FURNITURE AND FITTINGS 45 



leash round the pole. But it is learnt with the greatest ease. 

 Nothing more is necessary than to take the two ends of the 

 leash — the thick and the thin — and pass one over and one 

 under the pole. Then tie them together, just as if you were 

 tying a black necktie, except that you make only one bow 

 instead of two. Let this one bow, when the knot is pulled 

 tight, be about four inches long ; and through the loop formed 

 by it pass the two ends of the leash, which will naturally be 

 found on the reverse side of the knot (Fig. lo). When the 

 hawk is carried on the fist, the ends of the jesses, the swivel, and 

 button of the leash will often lie in the palm of the left hand. 

 The leash will hang down for some inches, perhaps a foot, and 

 then, forming a loop, be gathered up to the little finger, round 

 which the lower part, a few inches from the thin end, is wound 

 for the sake of extra security. 



Smaller leashes in the same style, but made of less stout 

 leather, can very well be used for the smaller hawks, and usually 

 are so. But when these hawks are doing a great deal of flying, 

 as they should, and doing it twice a day, the trouble of con- 

 stantly unfastening the ring-swivel from the jesses and fastening 

 it on again becomes very tiresome, and even vexatious ; and it 

 is a common practice to use spring-swivels permanently. The 

 outer ring of these (unless they are made specially) is too small 

 to admit the passage of a flat leash ; and it will be found more 

 convenient to use thongs shaped like a porpoise-hide boot- 

 lace. In fact a long leather boot-lace makes about as good a 

 leash as can be wished for. The function of the button is 

 fulfilled by a simple knot tied in the end of the lace. Or in 

 order to save still more time, the lace may be permanently 

 attached to the spring-swivel in the manner shown in the 

 diagram (Fig. 25). By making the knot an inch or two 

 away from the ring of the swivel, instead of close up to it, 

 enough length of tether is left, when the leash is tied round the 

 pole, to enable a merlin or sparrow-hawk in short " racing 

 jesses " to shift about a bit on the perch. 



The proper place for a hawk, when not out of doors, is the 

 screen-perch (Fig. 23). The bar on which the hawk stands 

 may run from wall to wall of the hawk-house, or, if this is not 

 convenient, it may be supported on arms or brackets reaching 

 out from the wall to a distance of not less than 30 in. for a 

 big hawk, or 2 ft. for a little one. Where this arrangement is 

 also impossible the bar may be supported at each end on a post 

 or tressels so securely fastened or weighted that they cannot be 

 upset or moved out of place. Round the bar, which should be 



