HOME LIFE 189 



nity of being stroked. So also, while she is pulling contentedly 

 at the juiciest parts of the joint, you may take her more freely 

 into the presence of men, horses, dogs, and children — in fact, 

 introduce her to more society. The bolder you become the 

 more inclined she will be to let her mistrust prevail over her 

 fondness for the feast, and the less exclusively she will confine 

 her attention to it. Thus a pigeon's wing, which it would take 

 a fully-trained tiercel less than five minutes to dispose of, may, 

 with a falcon caught only a fortnight ago, engage her attention 

 for nearly half an hour. 



With tirings there will often be a small quantity of castings 

 which will be swallowed with the pickings of meat. The trainer 

 must judge for himself whether enough of them has been thus 

 taken during the day to form a proper pellet, or whether more 

 should be given in another way. In feeding up upon quarry which 

 they have themselves killed, whether on the fist or on the ground, 

 hawks will almost always naturally take castings enough. But 

 when the meal consists of beef, or of anything that has been 

 skinned or plucked quite bare, it will be necessary either to add 

 some feathers or fur, or the like, scattering it about on the meat 

 which the hawk is about to swallow, or else the casting may 

 consist of a strip of skin with fur or feathers left on it, and a 

 piece of meat at one end. While swallowing the meat the hawk 

 will gulp down the skin attached to it, and thus with one or two 

 mouthfuls give herself the required quantity of castings. Some 

 falconers make up the casting into a sort of pill, and cram their 

 hawks with it ; and I believe this plan answers the purpose very 

 well, though I have seldom if ever tried it. It is not, of course, 

 necessary to give castings every day. But they are generally 

 beneficial, and always, as far as I know, harmless. Some of the 

 old falconers advise not to give castings on days when a hawk 

 has bathed ; but I am unable to give the reason for this. Cast- 

 ings are taken daily by wild hawks, which certainly have less 

 need of them than tame ones. And if, through laziness or any 

 other cause, the falconer omits for days in succession to give any, 

 it is pretty certain that his hawk's crop and stomach will become 

 clogged with a sort of mucus, which will either make her dull, 

 sluggish, and morose, or otherwise impair her general health. 

 Castings should be given rather late in the day than early ; and 

 after they have been taken the hawk must always be kept 

 unhooded at about the time when she may be expected to throw 

 them up, i.e. from about the fifth hour after she has swallowed 

 the casting, until she has cast. For this reason, if for no other, 



