COMMON FALCON. 
dashing at its prey, and grasping it with 
its claws, the Peregrine Falcon strikes its 
victim with its breast, and actually stuns 
it with the violence of the blow before seiz- 
ing it with its claws. The boldness of the 
Peregrine Falcon is so great that it was 
generally employed to take the formidable 
Heron. After the Heron had been roused 
from its contemplations by some marsh 
or river, the Falcon, who had previously 
been held hooded on its master’s hand, 
was loosed from its bonds and cast olf. 
A contest then generally took place be- 
tween the Heron and the Falcon, each 
striving to ascend above the other. In 
this contest the Falcon was always vic- 
torious, and after it had attained a suffi- 
cient altitude, it swept upon the Heron. 
3 
