You must be very particular in not roasting these birds too much; baste them very frequently; teal will of course take less time; but your fire and motion of the spit must be attended to, and when you dish it, unless preferred to be done by the gentleman at the table, draw your knife four times down the breast; have ready a little hot butter, and juice of a lemon, cayenne pepper, a little dust of sugar, a glass of port wine, pour it all hot, the last minute, over your ducks J the remainder left of those birds the next day makes excellent salmi or hash, taking care of all the gravy that may remain.

They must be roasted at a very brisk fire; they take from twelve to twenty minutes, according to taste. Some people are of opinion that they should only fly through the kitchen: by epicures they are considered to be in perfection when they come up dry and brown, and, when cut, flood the dish with gravy. The means of insuring success consists in a very ardent fire, rapid motion of the spit, and constant basting. The carver should score the breast of the duck, put a piece of butter on it, and cut a lemon in half, putting on one half a spoonful of salt, and on the other a cayenne -spoonful of cayenne; put the two together, and squeeze vigorously over the duck.

To Stew

Shred thyme, winter savory, and sage, very small, put them into some strong broth, with a little pepper, salt, and two spoonfuls of wine: stew them together for one quarter of an hour; nearly roast the ducks, add the gravy that falls from them, but not the fat; then place a deep dish under them, and pour this sauce through, and over them into it. Remove the ducks, cut them up, and put them with the sauce into a stewpan over a stove, and let them stew till they are done enough.

Canvas Bach Duck should be cooked like wild duck, but nearer the fire, the fat being so delicate, that it requires to be cooked quickly; good plain gravy is all that is required to make them perfect.