174 FIELD NOTES FOE THE YEAR. 



The next step is to accustom the hawk to feed on the lure, 

 and only on the lure, so as to fly directly to it whenever she 

 sees it: indeed, the lure ought only to be shown when the 

 bird is to feed. 



These two points gained, you must proceed to flying the 

 hawk in an open field, substituting a long silken string, or 

 " creance," for the short leathern strap, the " leash," by 

 which you always hold her. By taking her out hungry, and 

 by showing her, when mounted in the air, the lure with food 

 attached to it, you will find that she will swoop at once down 

 to her usual feeding-place, which, as I have said, should be 

 the " lure " only. 



After doing this two or three days, if the hawk appears 

 tractable, and not at all shy and wild, take her out when 

 very hungry, and let her mount without any " creance ; " and 

 when she is well up in the air, toss down the lure, which 

 until then should be concealed, and ten to one but the hawk 

 will immediately come down upon it with the rapidity of an 

 arrow ; and a more beautiful sight that the swoop of a hawk 

 from a great height I do not know. 



To make her kill her game, you must at first let her fly at 

 a pigeon, or other bird, with its wings partially cut, so as to 

 ensure the hawk against failure at the commencement. After 

 she has killed two or three birds in this way, she will 

 probably kill any bird you may fly her at in a favourable 

 country. But in this fine old sport the mere killing the 

 game is almost a minor consideration. The flight, the 

 soaring, and the rapid detection of, and descent upon, the 

 lure, are in themselves most interesting and beautiful. 



I am not sufficiently skilled in the science, even if I had 

 time and space, to attempt technically to describe or make 

 others understand all that is required to constitute an 

 accomplished falconer. The moulting of the falcons, their 

 keeping, feeding and training, must all be perfectly under- 

 stood and carefully attended to ; and although almost any 

 person who has his time at his command may manage to 

 keep a single hawk in good training and obedience, yet to 

 carry out the amusement to any degree of perfection, a 

 professed and skilful falconer must be engaged, whose sole 

 and entire employment should be to attend to the health and 

 education of the birds. 



The training of falcons is much facilitated by the natural 

 disposition of the bird, which is bold, confiding, and fearless ; 



