HOW TO FIND THE HARE 183 



not well at his -pleasure and they grede (hunt) there 

 where he has not pastured, then shall he say " Illeoqs 

 illeoqs " 1 in the same place while they seek her. 

 And then he should cast and look about the field, to 

 see where she hath been and whether she hath pas- 

 tured or not, or whether she he in her form, for she 

 does not like to remain where she hath pastured 

 except in time of relief If any hounds scent her, 

 and she hath gone from thence to another place, he 

 shall say thus to his hounds as loud as he can : " Ha 

 cy douce cy et venuz arere, so howeP 2 And if he 

 see that she be gone to the plain or the field or to 

 arable land or into the wood, if his hounds get well 

 on her scent, then he shall say : " La douce amy, il 

 ad est illeoqs " 3 and therewith he shall say : " so- 

 how illeoqs, sy douce cy v ay liant " 4 and twice 

 " so-howe," and when he is come there where he 

 supposeth the hare dwells then shall he say thus : 



1 " In this place," or " here, here." This passage, which 

 reads somewhat confusedly in our MS., is clearer in Twety and 

 Gyfford {Reliquiœ Antiquœ, vol. i. p. 149). It reads as follows : 

 "And then ye shall blowe iij notes, yf yowr hund ne chace not 

 well hym, there one ther another, as he hath pasturyd hym, ye 

 shall say ' Illeosque, illeosque, illcosque] " meaning that 3 motes 

 should be blown where the hare has pastured to bring your 

 hounds to the place, illeosque meaning here, in this place. 



2 " Softly there, here she has been, back there." Following 

 this the Shirley MS. and Twety and Gyfford contain a passage 

 which our MS. has not got : "And thenne sa cy, a este sohoiu, 

 and afterwards sa cy avaimt" 



3 " Softly, my friend, she has been here." 



4 " Here gently, here valiantly." 



