i6o EXTINCl' BRITISH ANIMALS. 



Ferquhard II., who died a.d. 668, is said to have 

 proved so bad a king that Colman, Bishop of Lindis- 

 farne, declared the vengeance of God would overtake 

 him, " And sure his wordes proved true ; for within 

 a, moneth after, as the same Ferquhard followed in 

 chase of a Wolfe, the beast being enraged by pursuite 

 of the houndes, flew back uppon the king, and 

 snatching at him, did wounde and byte him righte 

 sore in one of his sides, immediately where- 

 upon, whether through anguishe of his hurt, or 

 by some other occasion, he fell into a most filthie 

 disease."* 



The sport enjoyed in Scotland in former days 

 must have been incomparable. Bellenden, the trans- 

 lator of Hector Boece, says, that in the forests of 

 Caledonia there were "gret plente of haris, hartis, 

 hindis, dayis, rais, Wolffis, wild hors, and toadis," 

 (foxes), and he particularly mentions " the Wolffis " as 

 being "rycht noysum to the tame bestiall in all 

 partis of Scotland." 



In the reign of Malcolm lY. (1153-1165) Robert 

 de Avenel granted to the monks of Melrose the right 

 of pasturage in his lands in Eskdale, reserving to 

 himself the privileges of the feudal baron, to pursue 

 the wild boar, the deer, and the stag. One of his 

 successors questioned several of the claims to which 

 the grantees considered themselves entitled, and it 

 was ultimately decided in 1235, in presence of King 

 Alexander II., that they had no right to hunt over the 

 lands in question, and were restricted from setting 



* Holinsliecl, p. 148. 



