Parboil ten minutes, when you have drawn them, and put in a raw carrot
or onion. Lay in very cold water half an hour. Cut into joints, pepper,
salt, and flour them. Have ready some butter in a frying-pan, and fry
them a light brown. Put them in a saucepan and cover with gravy made of
the giblets, necks, and some bits of lean veal. Add a minced shallot,
a bunch of sweet herbs, salt, and pepper. Cover closely and stew half
an hour, or until tender. Take out the duck, strain the gravy when you
have skimmed it; put in a half-cup of cream or rich milk in which an
egg has been beaten, thicken with browned flour, add a tablespoonful of
wine and the juice of half a lemon, beaten in gradually not to curdle
the cream; boil up and pour over the ducks. This is about the best way
of cooking wild ducks.