152 ART AND PRACTICE OF HAWKING 



done by making a half-knot round the shaft of the outer feather, 

 nearly half-way down, passing the ends over and under the tail, 

 and making a double knot of them on the shaft of the outer 

 feather on the other side. When the hawk bathes the thread is 

 nearly sure to come off ; and when she is dry you can put on 

 .another. If it stays on, no harm is done. This simple device 

 ensures the tail feathers against any accident which might 

 otherwise occur while she is being handled by the trainer, and 

 perhaps by more or less incompetent assistants. Later on it 

 will be tried hard enough ! Some falconers — and good ones, 

 too — despair of saving it for long ; but you need not sacrifice it 

 sooner than you have any real occasion. The tail is just as 

 much — or as little — use to the hawk while she is being manned 

 — or, for that matter, when she is flying to the fist — whether it 

 is tied up or not ; and in the former state it can come to no 

 harm. Let the hawk at least take her first quarry with un- 

 damaged feathers. A moderate degree of coping will be found 

 permissible for short-winged hawks, although it is hardly ortho- 

 dox to say so. No doubt blunt claws would be detrimental to 

 these hawks in the field ; but between bluntness and the needle- 

 like sharpness of the uncoped claw there is a world of difference. 

 The uncoped goshawk not only ruins the best glove in double- 

 quick time, but sometimes in starting from the fist does not 

 completely disengage all eight needles immediately from the 

 buckskin, and so is impeded, and flurried, and vexed in that 

 short temper of her own. 



The strength of a goshawk's beak and feet is almost in- 

 credible ; and, this being so, it is well to be provided with good 

 store of useful tirings. Heads and necks of fowls will be 

 acceptable ; and the more elderly and bony these creatures are 

 the better for the purpose. For during the long process of 

 carrying you will want to give your goshawk plenty of hard 

 morsels to pull at ; and none but the toughest will withstand 

 for long the attacks of her sharp-pointed beak. The frequent 

 discussion of bony tirings will wear down that sharpness a 

 little, but I think not quite enough. Goshawks should not be 

 allowed to get at all thin, far less weak ; on the other hand, 

 they should not be too freely fed. Half a crop a day of beef 

 or good fowl, or a little more of rabbit, is a very fair allowance, 

 if she has once a week, or rather oftener, a good gorge, with 

 plenty of castings, and the next day very short commons. As 

 soon and as much as possible she must be made to work for her 

 food. That is, she must earn it by showing every day some 

 improvement in her behaviour. If yesterday she bated off 



