104 The Birds of the Assyrian Monuments and Records. 
over, that we must read the Accadian word as surdu, and not 
as cuS-du, Prof. Delitzsch thinks that the Assyrian name 
caSusu is a reduplicated form of the Hebrew (cus) f which 
he identifies with the screech-owl, the Hebrew name being 
explained in the Talmud by the Aramaic word ^1|2, which, 
as we have seen, is probably that species of owl. Mr. Pinches, 
to whom I am indebted for valuable suggestions, and for 
copies from the tablets not yet published, tells me that he 
thinks he has found a tablet which seems to show that the 
Assyrians practised falconry, and that the bird used for that 
purpose is none other than the surdu in question ; so that the 
idea conveyed by the name of the bird, "which makes might," 
is very fitting for some of the larger falcons, which the 
Assyrians very probably employed as helping agents in their 
capture of winged, or possibly even running, game. This use 
of the surdu would, of course, exclude all the owls, and point 
to some falcon, as. perhaps, the Peregrine, or one or other of 
allied species or varieties. The Assyrian cahisu may be 
referred to the Heb. DD| (allied to "to divide," 
" distribute," or the Aramaic " to eat," " masticate." 
From the idea of dividing by cutting came that of reckoning 
up or assigning a certain portion, hence the Aramaic Dpp, 
" a fixed or reckoned portion," " a share." The ancient art 
of hawking was practised for the sake of securing the prey, 
and little account was taken of the sport itself, as in later 
times of the noble art of falconry, It was the custom of 
ancient people, who employed kites or falcons to aid them in 
the capture of their game, to encourage the birds by always 
dividing a portion of the prey with them. In India, as we 
learn from Ctesias, foxes and hares were hunted by the use 
of birds of prey. It is probable that the Greeks derived from 
India and Thrace their first information concerning falconry. 
Aristotle expressly mentions certain parts of Thrace in which 
the people made use of rapacious birds in their fowling expe- 
ditions, and Aelian (" Nat. Hist," ii, 42) tells us that when 
the Thracians catch any birds " they divide them with the 
hawks, by which means they render them faithful partners in 
fowling ; if they did not give them a share of the booty they 
