THE ROYAL HOUNDS. 237 



shall have passed before him then shall he rout and 

 blow as loud as he may with great joy and great 

 pleasure, and I assure you he thinketh of no other 

 sin and no other evil. And when the hart be over- 

 come and be at bay he shall have pleasure. And 

 after when the hart is spayed and dead he undoeth 

 and maketh his curee and suquerreth or rewardeth 

 his hounds, and so he shall have great pleasure and 

 when he cometh home he drinketh joyfully, for his 

 lord hath given him to drink of his good wine at the 

 curee, and when he doth come home he shall doff 

 his clothes and his shoes and his hose, and shall 

 wash his legs and his thighs and peradventure his 

 whole body. And in the meantime shall order well 

 his supper with wortes and of the neck of the hart, 

 and of other good meats and of wine and ale. And 

 then he shall take the air in the evening of the night 

 for the great heat that he hath had. And then shall 

 he go and drink and lie in his bed in fair fresh clothes, 

 and shall sleep well and stedfastly all the night 

 without any evil thoughts of any sins, wherefore I 

 say that hunters go into paradise when they die and 

 live in this world more joyfully than any other men." 

 Ceremony has gradually passed away, but we see 

 in these old accounts, which are reproduced and 

 enlarged and commented on by many writers both 

 in French and English, such as Charles IX., 

 Du Fouilloux, Turberville, and others, that all the 

 essential principles have been preserved to the 

 present day. Nothing new has been or can be 



