156 ART AND PRACTICE OF HAWKING 



There is something in the impetuosity of a goshawk which is 

 contagious ; and the ostringer, who has perhaps not marched at 

 the double for years farther than the length of a platform to 

 catch a train, may sometimes be seen tearing along with his very 

 best leg foremost, through bramble, thorn, and quagmire, in 

 hope of being in at the death. The whole sight is certainly 

 worth seeing. Artists are fond of depicting the goshawk as she 

 stands with outspread wings and half-open mouth with the hare 

 paralysed in her terrible foot. No better personification could, 

 indeed, be found of the pride of victory. The hare weighs 

 commonly three times as much as his captor ; yet the victor 

 hawk must not only vanquish the hare, but also hold him fast. 

 It is almost as if a strong man were expected to hold a wild 

 zebra in his clutches. But the strength of a goshawk's grasp, 

 like that of the eagle's, must be tested by experience to be 

 properly understood. 



The female goshawk, besides being flown at ground game, 

 may be trained to take many other quarry, both big and little. 

 At pheasants she may be expected to do good execution. 

 Partridges will sometimes be captured in fair flight when a 

 good start is made. Herons may be caught before they have 

 gone any distance on the wing. Wild geese, wild duck, and 

 wild fowl of various kinds in the same way. Land and water 

 rails are available ; and water-hens are perhaps the favourite 

 objects of pursuit by a hawk that is not quite first-rate. Stoats, 

 weasels, and squirrels may be taken ; and the harmful, unneces- 

 sary rats will be picked up almost as fast as they can be driven 

 out. When ferrets are used there is a danger that one of them, 

 emerging from below, may be nailed and finished off by his 

 winged ally. In the old days goshawks were generally assisted 

 by spaniels ; and it was pretty to see how eagerly and cleverly 

 the dogs backed up the chief actor in the play, while she in 

 turn trusted to them to drive the quarry in the right direction. 

 The conditions of modern game-preserving do not lend them- 

 selves much to the use of spaniels ; and perhaps they are not 

 so often of service to the gos, but they are frequently used. A 

 good retriever is often useful, especially if you are flying phea- 

 sants, and the hawk should always be on the most amicable 

 terms with him. 



Male goshawks are thought by some to have more speed 

 than their sisters. When they are good, they will take partridges, 

 with a good start, but not otherwise ; and many of them will 

 tackle a pheasant. It is said that in some countries quails are 

 taken with the male. Very strong males will sometimes hold a 



