184 EEMINISCENCES OF A SPORTSMAN. 



you will find that the Commander of the Faithful an- 

 nually lays out nine hundred and eighty-five thousand 

 and five hundred pounds. 



An extraordinary story is mentioned by Charles 

 d'Arrossia, Seigneur d'Esparron de Pallieres et de 

 Courmes, in the history of Mahomet, Emperor of the 

 Turks, that being out hawking two of the birds at- 

 tacked an eagle, and having for some time buffetted 

 him, they brought it down to the ground by their 

 violent blows. The falconers, proud of the exploit, 

 thought to please his Majesty by extolling the courage 

 and the boldness of the hawks. The Ottoman monarch 

 ordered that they should be killed, saying, it was not 

 allowable to attack their king ; and accordingly, he had 

 their heads cut off, not because they deserved it, but as 

 an example to his attendants. 



Amongst most of the tribes of Algeria, the pastime of 

 hawking is pursued with much ardour and ceremony ; 

 it is, however, exclusive, and is enjoyed only by the 

 autocrats. Four kinds of hawks, one of which is the 

 far famed Barbary falcon, are used for the purpose, and 

 they are trained with consummate craft and ability. Of 

 course the open and trackless plains of the Sahara afford 

 facilities for the enjoyment of this sport such as few 

 countries could supply. No Englishman who has time 

 and means at his disposal, and who has any predilection 

 for field sports, should visit Algiers, without going to 

 see the noble falcons of the tribes of Oulad Sidi Sheikh, 

 or those of the Hamerian Gharaka tribe, in the south- 

 western extremity of the Little Sahara. The docility of 

 the birds, the ra,pidity of their flight, and the fatal 

 swoop, as I have been informed by an eye-witness, is a 

 marvel of perfection. 



