34 
THE FALCON. 
lost birds, who, to make his situation known, erects his 
standard in a conspicuous place among the army of hunters. 
In Syria, also, there is a variety of the Gentle Falcon, 
which the inhabitants call Shaheen, and which is of so 
fierce and courageous a disposition, that it will attack any 
bird, however large or powerful, which presents itself. 
“Were there not,” says Dr. Russel, in his account of 
Aleppo, “ several gentlemen now in England to bear 'wit- 
ness to the fact, I should hardly venture to assert that, 
with this bird, which is about the size of a pigeon, the 
inhabitants sometimes take large eagles. 
“ This Hawk was in former times taught to seize the eagle 
under the pinion, and thus depriving him of the use of one 
wing, both birds fell to the ground together ; but the pre- 
sent mode is to teach the Hawk to fix on the back, between 
the wings, which has the same effect, only that the bird 
tumbling down more slowly, the falconer has more time to 
come to his Hawk's assistance ; but in either case, if he be 
not very expeditious, the Falcon is inevitably destroyed. 
“I never saw the Shaheen fly at eagles, that sport having 
been disused before my time ; but I have often seen him 
take herons and storks. The Hawk, when thrown off, flies 
for some time in a horizontal line, not six feet from the 
ground; then mounting perpendicularly, with astonishing 
swiftness, he seizes his prey under the wing, and both toge- 
ther come tumbling to the ground.” 
