Have ready a frying-pan two-thirds full of boiling salted water, allowing one-half tablespoon salt to one quart of water. Put two or three buttered muffin rings in the water. Break each egg separately into a saucer, and carefully slip into a muffin ring. The water should cover the eggs. When there is a film over the top, and the white is firm, carefully remove with a buttered skimmer to circular pieces of buttered toast, and let each person season his own egg with butter, salt, and pepper. If cooked for an invalid, garnish with four toast-points and a bit of parsley. An egg-poacher may be used instead of muffin rings.