234 EEMINISCENCES OF A SPOETSMAN. 



ridges, and for hawking of every kind, such as the 

 heron and even larger game. Pierre Belon says that 

 the saker has the body of the crow, the head of the 

 merlin, the bill between that of the eagle and the crow, 

 the talons between that of the crow and the falcon. 

 The saker is in danger of dying when moulting, because 

 he gets too fat. In "The Grentleman's Eecreation" 

 we observe it stated. " The saker is a bird of passage, 

 for her eyrie has not been found in this country. 

 They are met with in the isles of the Levant, C}qorus, 

 Rhodes, and Candia. 



" She is somewhat larger than the haggard falcon, her 

 plumage rusty and ragged. She is hardy to all kinds 

 of fowl, more disposed to the field than to the brook, 

 and delights to prey on great fowls, as the heron, wild 

 goose, &c. 



" The saker is also good for lesser fowls, as pheasants, 

 partridges, &c., and is nothing so dainty in her food as 

 liawks long winged. 



" The hawk will make excellent sport with a kite, who, 

 as soon as she sees the saker cast off, immediately be- 

 takes herself to and trusts to the goodness of her wings, 

 and getteth to her pitch as high as possibly she may, 

 by making many turns and wrenches in the air ; which 

 if well observed, together with the variety of contests 

 and bickerings that are between them, it cannot but be 

 very pleasant and delightful to behold. I have known, 

 in a clear day and little wind stirring, that both the 

 saker and kite have soared so high that the sharpest 

 eye could not behold them, yet the saker in the en- 

 counter conquered the kite, and both come tumbling 

 down to the ground with a strange precipitancy. Of 

 all birds the saker has the longest train. 



