PEREGRINE FALCON. 139 



to the stuffed animal. He would lose his meal, 

 should he quit his hold; which makes him careful 

 to fix well on the skull, that he may dig his bill 

 into the eye-socket, in spite of the motion. When 

 these first exercises are over, the skin is placed on 

 a cart, drawn by a horse at full speed : the bird 

 follows it, and is particularly feeding: and thus, 

 when they come to fly him in the field, he never 

 fails to dart on the head of the first beast of the 

 kind he discovers, and begins to scoop out the eyes. 

 This throws the animal into such distress, that 

 the hunters have time to approach, and dispatch it 

 with their spears. 



It has been before observed, that Falcons taken 

 from the nest are with most ease and certainty 

 instructed in the various documents necessary for 

 them to attend to when brought into the field ; but 

 the discovery of a nest of these birds is merely a 

 fortunate accident, which cannot often be expected. 

 It is therefore necessary to find some method of 

 obtaining the wild and full-grown bird, which is 

 then to undergo the troublesome process of edu- 

 cation. For this purpose various arts have been 

 devised. Like all other birds, Falcons may be 

 taken by means of nets, such as are used in catch- 

 ing larks; but the difficulty is to attract the bird. 

 If a Falcon is engaged in the pursuit of his prey 

 in the air, he will not quit it and descend to seize 

 an immoveable and apparently lifeless bait lying 

 on the ground. It is therefore necessary to use a 

 greater degree of art. The experienced Falconer 

 places and fixes in the centre of his net a pulley, 



