The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1889-08-07
EXPENSIVE DELlCACIES.
The Delicious Food Eaten by a
Backwoodsman.
Eggs at Ten Dollars Apioc'' They Arc
Very Scarce, of Course, But Gour-
mands Must Have The.r-A
Chapter for Epicurcs-

Chapter for Epicurcs-
"I have eaten the egg Of many wild
birds, from the plover TO the wild goose,
and have found some Of them very good
and many Of them very bad" said an cpl
cure 10 New York Mail and Express re-
porter, 'but the ruffed grouse's egg Is
simply morsel fit for the gods. The PAM
pered palate Of no Oriental potentate ever
hngeringly dallied with so rich and perfect
adelicacy, and yet never ate grouse'seggs
elsewhere than on the rough, uncovered ta-
BILE OF some backwoodsman's cabin, the last
place in the world where the epicure might
expect TO have his taste satisfied, let alone
glorifcd. How were they preparedl Simply
boiled. Boiled until tie white and yelk
were thoroughly cooked. Aruffed grouse's
eggis big enough 10 make two duinty bites.
1t isn't at all likely that you viii ever have
the opportunity Of brealfastiDg on this del
icacy, as it is moro than ocarce nowadays.
Besides, the law places 8 price on ruffed
gronse's eggs that put them out of the
reach OF the ordinary run Of egg-eaters. In
the estimation OF the law these eggs are
worth Sl0 apiece-sl20 dozen--and they
arc worth it, But in case the rare happi-
ness Of sitting down TO meal with dozen Of
them msy occur to you some time, had bet
ter tell you how they should be disposed Of.
Don't cut grouse's egg In two, nor dig the
meat from the shell with q spoon. Either
would be proclamation. Gently tap the small
end Of the egg on your plate until the shell
Is cracked. Then peel the shell carefully
on Of the meat. The shell is very brittle
and the richness beneath it very tender
When that is barred of its covering 1t lies
in your hand velvety olipsc, white as
ivory. Do not salt or pepper it or you spoil
ivory white and tho old gold yelk, will melt
In your mouth like some rich, creamy paste,
and its flavor is indescribably delicious.
|, at has been long time since tickled
my palate with ruffed grouse's eggs. They
are only in season for few days in May,
when they are fresh laid in the nest, and Of
course a person has 10 be right on the
ground 10 take advantage Of them.
"Next to tho ruffed grouse the pinnated
grouse, or prairie chicken, lays the best
eggs for eating. 1 have known as high a.
i60a dozen to be paid for prairie chicken
eggs in Chicago, although in the early days
OF that city, while tho surrounding prairie
still swarrned with that game bird, its eggs
were moro abundant in the market than
hens eggs were. have no doubt that eggs
OF all the numerous grouse family are supe-
rior to hens eggs, but never ate any but
the two mentioned.
'In this country there is no such thing a.
the business OF gathering wild eggs, but In
England tho collecting OF wild tiris' eggs
for the table is regular calling, particular
| ly plover eggs. The eggs OF tho ployer is a
great dclicacy among epicures there. Go
into any OF the poultry shops in English
towns end cities during April and May
and you will see an enticing display OF
| plover, partridge enG other eG!slo eggs
Of wild birds. They are usually shown In
baskets fashioned in imitation Of moss
lined BIRDS nests, each basket containing q
dozen eggs. Plover eggs are the most abun-
dant, but baskets made up from selections
from different kinds o: wild eggs are COM
mon. Plover eggs aro sold for four shil-
lings q dozen-about ono dollsr-and, Of
course, do net enter very largely into the
marketing Of the poor. The hunting Of
plover eggs Is C profession with a
certain class OF shiftless men and
boys. The finding OF the nest re.
quires great degree Of skill and cunning,
aud the business Is not over profitable
TO the nest hunters. Three dozen eggs
day is big days hunting. The dealer
has way Of testing the eggs TO satisfy
himself as 10 their soundness, and It is
rare, indeed, that two or three bad ones are
not found in each nest The collector is
| paid thirty cents o dozen for his sound
eggs. Thousands Of dozens Of plover eggs
are said TO be collected every spring. There
Is no law against the robbing Of nests, but
the severe and general laws against tres
passing are q constant menace to the egg
hunters.
''The eggs Of some wild fowl rank high
among edible wild eggs, with tho accent on
the rank The eggs Of all wild ducks, with
the exception Of the wood or summer duck,
and the egg Of the water hen, are strong
and tough. Why they should be I don't
know, as these birds, or the most Of them,
are clean, vegetable feeders. The wood
duck egg Is Q passably good article of food.
A boiled wild goose egg, II It were round,
would make first rate bowling ball, but q
wild swans egg 10 very palatable. The egg
Of the wild turkey Is better than that OF any
domestic fowl. The semi-wild fowls, as the
guinea hen aud the peafowl, lay eggs that
are moro grateful than an ordinary hens
egg 70 the palate Of the ep!oure. The
specified, humming-top shaped egg Of the
screeching guinea hen is the best poultry
yard egg for the table that tie farmer can
sell. Speaking Of the poultry yard natural.
lysuggests the pigeon. The egg Of tina,
bird is utterly worthless for food. The wild
pigeons egg turns TO milk whom boiled, and
smells like rancid oil Tho cuail's egg is q
sweet, creamy, but insip.d little morsel,
and, like the cherry, you can't make two
bites Of It, intend 70 try how sparrow
eggs will touch tho epicurean taste, and Il
they warrant It, will try and Introduce
them a. table dainty. That might be Q
good way toward abeting these httl,