2o6 APPENDIX 



hounds. This word seems to have remained in use in 

 England long after it had disappeared from the language 

 of French venery. Gaston no longer uses the word 

 berner^ but has valet de chiens. 



BISSHUNTERS, furhunters. Our MS. (p. 74) de- 

 clares that no one would hunt conies unless they were 

 bisshunters, that is to say rabbits would not be hunted 

 for the sake of sport, but only for the sake of their skins. 

 Bisse, bys, byse was a fur much in vogue at the period of 

 our MS., as its frequent mention in contemporaneous 

 records testifies. 



BLENCHES, trick, deceit; O. N. hUkkja (Strat.). 

 Blanch, or blench, to head back the deer in its flight. 

 Blancher or blencher, a person or thing placed to turn 

 the deer in a particular direction. 



BOCE, from the French bosse^ O. Fr. boce^ boss, hump 

 or swelling. Cotgrave says : " Boss, the first putting out 

 of a Deere's head, formerly cast, which our woodmen 

 call, if it bee a red Deere's, the burle, or scale, and, if a 

 fallow Deeres, the button." 



BOUGHS, bowes [brisées). When the huntsman 

 went to harbour the deer he broke little branches or twigs 

 to mark the place where he noticed any signs of a stag. 

 Also, at times during the chase he was instructed to do 

 the same, placing the twigs pointing towards the direction 

 the stag had gone, so that if the hounds lost the scent he 

 could bring them back to his last markings, and put them 

 on the line again. In harbouring the stag a twig was 

 broken off and placed in front of the slot with the end 

 pointing in the direction in which the stag was going ; 

 each time the harbourer turned in another direction a 

 twig was to be broken and placed so as to show which 

 way he took ; sometimes the twig was merely bent and 



