HOME LIFE 181 



exercise, it is impossible for a falconer to err on the side of 

 excess. Wild hawks in their airy circlings, and in pursuit of 

 their daily subsistence, traverse an almost incredible distance 

 in the course of a year ; probably fifty times as many miles as 

 the most active of trained hawks can be expected to travel in 

 the same period. Let the trainer, therefore, make it a simple 

 rule to give his charges as much exercise as he can — not all at 

 racing pace, of course, but in using their wings, He need not be 

 afraid of overdoing the thing, as long as he leaves off when the 

 hawk has made too violent an exertion in an actual flight at 

 quarry. I have seen a hobby, waiting on in a high wind, refuse 

 to come down to the lure, though quite sharp-set, and, for the 

 mere pleasure of flying, remain on the wing for twenty-five 

 minutes. The distance flown through the air in the time — 

 counting only that in which his head was to the wind — amounted 

 to a great many miles ; and so far was he from being tired at 

 any time, that he would stoop at and hit the lure, and yet refuse 

 to hold it, and go up again to the soar. Few hawks will do 

 this willingly ; they must often be induced by some device of 

 the trainer to keep on the wing ; and it is impossible to fly such 

 hawks too much. 



With respect to food, the matter is altogether different. It 

 is just as easy to overfeed a hawk as to underfeed her. But 

 what trainer can ever be sure that he has always exactly hit off 

 the golden mean ? Gers, peregrines, and all the hawks which 

 resemble the peregrine, desert-hawks, hobbies, eagles, goshawks, 

 and female sparrow-hawks, are fed, as a rule, once a day — 

 peregrines well ; eagles, goshawks, and the desert-hawks more 

 sparingly. Merlins of both sexes and male sparrow-hawks 

 twice ; but lightly on one at least of the two occasions. Raw 

 beef is generally the staple food of the big hawks ; but it should 

 not be tough, and should be often varied by a rather lighter 

 diet of bullock's heart, rabbit, fowl, or pigeon. Merlins and 

 sparrow-hawks should be fed chiefly on small birds, and in 

 default of these on sheep's heart, rabbit, young fowls, or ex- 

 ceedingly tender mutton or beef. This sort of diet will also 

 be good for hobbies and kestrels ; but it is not necessary to be 

 so nice with them, and they can be regaled with coarser food, 

 as long as it is not tough. But they must also have a freshly- 

 killed small bird occasionally. Goshawks will thrive upon rats, 

 weasels, squirrels, rooks, and, in short, almost any kind of bird 

 or animal, except water-hens, which are indigestible and apt to 

 bring them out of yarak. But a goshawk in good flying order 



