194 THE HUMAN SIDE OF BIRDS 



tice of supplying his owner with fish in great abun- 

 dance. On a large lake . . . are thousands of 

 small boats and rafts built entirely for this species 

 of fishery. On each boat or raft are ten or a dozen 

 birds, which, at a signal from the owner, plunge 

 into the water ; and it is astonishing to see the enor- 

 mous size of fish with which they return. . . . They 

 appeared to be so well trained, that it did not re- 

 quire either ring or cord about their throats to 

 prevent them from swallowing any portion of their 

 prey, except what the master was pleased to return 

 to them for encouragement and food. The boat 

 used by these fishermen is of a remarkably light 

 make, and is often carried to the lake . . . together 

 with the fishing-birds, by the men who are to be sup- 

 ported by it." 



In England, at one time, cormorants were kept 

 and trained as fishers, in the same way that falcons 

 were trained to hunt in the air. During the reign 

 of James I, the practice of keeping cormorants be- 

 came so much a matter of course that the office of 

 Master of the Royal Cormorants was established, 

 and one John Wood was the first to hold the place. 

 He was described as the "Keeper of His Majesty's 

 cormorants, ospreys, and otters" ; evidently the lat- 

 ter were also used for fishing. The King's cormo- 

 rant station was at Westminster, on the river. It is 



