230 ART AND PRACTICE OF HAWKING 



moulting them he will be able to supply his needs by saving up 

 the long feathers dropped in the moult. These should be so 

 stowed away that it is possible to identify the year in which 

 they were dropped ; for it is not advisable to use a very old 

 feather, as it may be brittle, and crack in pieces round the 

 needle. A spare tail feather or two of any of the hawks which 

 are most commonly trained may often be begged from a brother- 

 falconer. But when a ger, saker, or one of the rarer falcons 

 needs imping, it may be necessary to purchase a whole skin, 

 which will entail some trouble and expense. It should be 

 noted that there is one exception to the rule that a feather 

 from any one kind of hawk must not be used for one of another 

 kind. This is when the broken feather is to be imped merely 

 for the purpose of the moult. Whenever hawks are moulting, 

 the new feathers, as they come down, must be protected on each 

 side by others of at least equal length to those of the natural 

 plumage. But unless the hawk is being flown while she moults, 

 it is immaterial whether the new feather matches the others in 

 shape or colour. If it is long enough, and of about equal 

 breadth, it will serve the required purpose. But every hawk 

 before going into moult should be w^ell set up in feathers of 

 one kind or other, which are of a proper length and sufficient 

 strength. A new feather, while growing down, needs more 

 protection than any other. 



If a feather is broken so high up that the shaft at the place 

 of fracture is hollow, there are at least two ways in which it 

 may be mended. The simplest is to slit the shaft on its under 

 side, and then, cutting off the base of the new feather which is 

 intended to be used, push the latter in bodily to the hollow of 

 the old shaft. When it is far enough in, pass a small needle with 

 strong waxed thread right through both quills, starting from 

 below, and, winding the two ends of the thread round the quills 

 in opposite directions, tie tightly together underneath the 

 feather. When the feather is big enough there may be two such 

 lashings of thread, one a little lower down than the other. A 

 second plan, which is known as plugging, consists in first stuffing 

 up the hollow quill, of the injured feather, above where it has 

 been cut through, with a chunk of some feather which is not 

 hollow, but has a solid pith. The plug thus inserted is firmly 

 fixed in by means of some glutinous compound. When it has 

 had time to become immovably settled in its place the imping 

 can be done with an imping-needle in the ordinary way, the 

 new piece of feather having been plugged also in a similar way, 



