154 TAMED HAWKS. 



ship with -the Pigeons, and associated with them. At 

 first the Pigeons were rather shy of meeting their natural 

 enemy on such an occasion, but they soon became fami- 

 liarized, and approached without fear. It was curious 

 to observe the playfulness of the Hawk, and his perfect 

 good humour during feeding-time ; for he received his 

 portion without any of that ferocity with which birds 

 of prey usually take their food, and merely uttered a 

 cry of lamentation, when disappointed of his morsel. 

 When the feast was over, he would attend the Pigeons 

 in their flight round and round the house and gardens, 

 and perch with them on the chimney-top or roof of the 

 house, and this voyage he never failed to take early 

 every morning, when the Pigeons took their exercise. 

 At night he retired and roosted with them in the dovecot, 

 and though for some days after his first appearance, he 

 had it all to himself, the Pigeons not liking such an 

 intruder, they shortly became good friends, and he was 

 never known even to touch a young one, unfledged, 

 helpless, and tempting as they must have been. Ho 

 seemed quite unhappy at any separation from them, and 

 when purposely confined in another abode, he constantly 

 uttered most melancholy cries, which were changed to 

 tones of joy and satisfaction on the appearance of any 

 person with whom he was familiar. The narrator of the 

 above concludes his account, by adding, that he was as 

 playful as a kitten, and as loving as a dove. In Egypt, 

 and Turkey too, a particular species is often domesti- 

 cated, and may be seen in the farm-yards and gardens, 

 like the Sparrow-hawk just mentioned, in company with 

 Pigeons, without showing any inclination to injure them; 

 and in the course of 1833, a Hawk, which we believe to 

 be of a similar species to that domesticated in Turkey, 

 namely, the Common-buzzard, not only sat upon the eggs 

 of a common barn-door fowl, but instead of devouring 

 them when hatched, according to its natural habit, 

 actually paid them considerable attention, as long as 

 they were allowed to remain in the place where they 



