216 CLASS AVES. 



hen to represent the heron. On the five-and-twentieth day, 

 the crow, the kite, and the heron themsehes are attached to 

 the stake, having the claws blunted, and the beak surrounded 

 with a sort of case, to prevent such resistance as might revolt 

 the falcon. On the twenty-eighth and twenty-ninth days, they 

 teach him to know his game at greater and greater elevations, 

 which is called demi-escap, and on the thirtieth they do this at 

 the highest point, leaving the bird at full liberty, which is called 

 grand-escap. 



The merlins being by far the most familiar and docile of the 

 birds of prey, their training is much less tedious and difficult. 

 It is not necessary to use the hood with them. When the 

 falconer has carried them on his hand for a few days, and 

 enticed them with little pickings of meat, they fly to him the 

 moment they see him. Then shut up in a room, the window of 

 which is only closed by a drawn curtain, they soon accustom 

 themselves to leap upon his hand. When the bird can do 

 this at twenty paces in the open air, they attach a lark to 

 a packthread at that distance : the merlin soon seizes it, takes 

 it in his beak, then in his talons, and carries it off. It is 

 necessary to prevent his doing this, which is the only difficulty 

 in his education. For this purpose they begin by drawing the 

 packthread with a jerk. Frequently the lark does not escape 

 from the merlin, and his head remains in the beak of the latter. 

 In all cases, the body of the lark is quickly passed into a little 

 crook dug in the earth for that purpose ; and the merlin 

 returning with fury to devour his prey, at his master's feet, but 

 without being able to take it away, he gradually comes by 

 reiterated exercises, assisted by the voice and gesture, to lose 

 this habit, and never resumes it with small birds of any species. 

 The merlin is employed to hunt, not only larks, but black- 

 birds, quails, and partridges. 



The hobby is much less docile than the merlin, and his 

 training a matter of much greater difficulty ; but it is needless 

 to mention it, as it does not differ in kind from what we have 

 already related. 



