HERON-HAWKING. 15 



That favourite diversion of our ancestors, heron 

 hawking, is now, it is to be regretted, nearly at an 

 end. It must have been an exciting and beautiful 

 sight with well trained hawks. Gay evidently 

 thought so. 



The tow'ring hawk let future poets sing, 

 Who terror bears upon his soaring wing ; 

 Let them on high the frighted hern survey, 

 And lofty numbers paint their airy fray. 



The remarks on the wanton destruction of he- 

 rons, may be applied to that persecuted and al- 

 most extinct bird, the Raven. The only pair I 

 have ever seen, with the exception of those in 

 Windsor Great Park, was in the neighbourhood 

 of Selborne, where they served to remind me 

 of Mr. White's very interesting account of the 

 pair, which had built their nests and reared their 

 young for so many years on the " Raven's Oak 

 tree" at that place. There are many curious 

 associations connected with this bird it is 

 frequently mentioned in our bible history, as 

 employed by the Almighty as the caterer of 

 food, and of its young being under the immediate 

 care of the Great Creator it has been immor- 

 talized by our Shakspeare, and referred to by 

 Addison, Dryden and Young, and indeed by many 

 of our poets. The raven not only has been, 

 but still is connected with the history of the 

 superstitions of this country, and it was but lately 



