300 FALCONRY 



hastens on up wind. But a hundred yards or so is no matter to us 

 with this hawk, and the moment we are fairly down wind of him 

 the old hawk is unhooded and flung off ; and the falcon is in hot 

 pursuit of her quarry, rising with each stroke of her powerful 

 wings till she seems to shoot upwards like an arrow from the bow. 

 The rook has seen her, and is making his way upwards at no mean 

 rate, but the pace of the falcon is too much for him, and ere long 

 she is above him ; poising herself for a moment she comes, with 

 one terrible perpendicular stoop, straight at him. It would seem 

 as though nothing could escape ; but our rook is equal to the 

 occasion, and with a clever shift he has dodged her attack by a 

 good yard or more. Well done, rook ! but there is clearly now no 

 safety for him in the air, for the falcon has shot up again with the 

 impetus of her stoop to a height scarcely inferior to that from which 

 she descended ; so, turning his tail to the wind, he makes all pos- 

 sible haste to a small patch of thorns and whins that promises a 

 temporary shelter, having, however, on the way to evade two similar 

 stoops from the hawk, almost as fine as the first. Alas for friend 

 rook ! On reaching the covert he finds it already occupied by the 

 enemy, in the shape of the excited field, who soon drive him with 

 halloo and crack of whip from his shelter, and compel him to 

 again seek the open. The falcon has, however, strayed a little 

 away, so he starts with might and main to ring in spiral curves into 

 the very clouds. After him starts the hawk, but soon finds that a 

 really good rook, such as this is, can mount nearly as fast as she 

 can. Up, up they go, gradually becoming smaller and smaller. 

 Ring above ring does the falcon make, yet without getting above 

 him, till, apparently determined to gain the victory, she starts off 

 into the wind to make one tremendous circle that shall attain her 

 object. Steadily into the wind she goes, the rook striving to follow 

 her example, and appearing from below to be flying after the hawk. 

 At length, as she almost completes the outer circumference of her 

 circle, the rook, perhaps feeling his powers exhausted, turns down 

 wind, and, at a great height, makes off as fast as he can go. Surely 

 the flight is over, for the falcon is still working away, head to the 

 wind, as hard as she can in fact, the two birds are flying in oppo- 

 site directions, half a mile apart. ' Not a bit of it ! ' say the 

 initiated, who are off down wind as fast as they can ride. In 

 another moment you see the falcon come round, and though at 

 such a height she looks no bigger than a swallow, you can see that 

 she is far above the rook, whilst her pace, slightly descending as 



