CHINESE SPORTSMAN AND WEAPONS 223 



" After he has stopped at his capital city 

 (Peking) those three months that I men- 

 tioned, to wit, December, January, Febru- 

 ary, he starts off the first day of March, and 

 travels southward towards the Ocean Sea, 

 a journey of two days. He takes with him 

 full 10,000 falconers, and some 500 gerfal- 

 cons besides peregrines, sakers, and other 

 hawks in great numbers, and goshawks also 

 to fly at the water-fowl. But do not suppose 

 that he keeps all these together by him ; 

 they are distributed about, hither and 

 thither, one hundred together, or two hun- 

 dred at the utmost, as he thinks proper. 

 But they are always fowling as they ad- 

 vance, and the most part of the quarry taken 

 is carried to the emperor. And let me tell 

 you when he goes thus a-fowling with his 

 gerfalcons and other hawks he is attended 

 by full 10,000 men who are disposed in 

 couples, and these are called Toscaol, which 

 is as much as to say, "Watchers." And the 

 name describes their business. They are 

 posted from spot to spot, always in couples, 

 and thus they cover a great deal of ground. 

 Every man of them is provided with a 

 whistle and hood, so as to be able to call 

 in a hawk and hold it in hand. And when 



