The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-08-16
THE KING OF HAWKS.


 World-the favorite Of kings-a gift for
 an emperor. And well it deserved the
 high place which it held, for of the
 many birds used in the ancient sport of
 falconry, the duck hawk or peregrine
 falcon was the swiftest, the most sav-
 age and the most courageous of them
 all. The sport is now practically obso-
 lete, but for thousands of years it was one of the principal amusements of the
 better classes throughout Europe and
 Asia. Nowhere did it take deeper root
 than in England, where for centuries
 it was conducted on a grand scale and
 at enormous expense. Some of the mo-
 bility kept falcons as race-horses are
 kept to-day, regardless of cost. paying fabulous prices for celebrated birds, and
 maintaining large staffs of skilled fal- coners. Men carried falcons upon their gloved wrists in those days as matter
 of course and thought no more of it
 than they would of carrying walking sticks, and a lady going ever so short a journey would be almost sure to carry a hawk of some kind.
 Froissart tells us that when Edward III. invaded France he took thirty faI- coners on horseback, who had charge of his hawks, and every day he either hunted or hawked as he was disposed" Until the reign of King John only peo- pie of high rank and power were aI- lowed to indulge in this royal sport, and many were the laws which protected the hawks and their nests. Death was at one time the penalty for stealing the eggs of falcon. Amongst the impor- tant privileges wrested from John was the Forest Charter, by virtue of which all freemen were allowed to fly their own hawks and keep their own heronries still it remained a felony to steal fal- Ncon or it's eggs, and freeman was lia- ble to imprisonment for "a year and 8 day" for robbing a falcons nest in his own woods
 With the sport there grew up a curi- ous class of men known as falconers, whose business it was to care for and train the savage birds In their charge. Although there were recognized rules for training the hawks, each man had his own methods and tricks, which were kept in the family and handed down from father to son often for several generations.
 In some cases the hawks were taken from the nest before they could fly, but the best were full-grown wild ones cap- tured and trained. It was found that no amount of education received from a falconer equalled the valuable instruc- ton given the young hawk by it's own parents.
 The falcon was used to hawk for all kinds of large birds, and sometimes for hares and other small quadrupeds. But the grandest sport of all was heron hawking. An ideal place for this amusement was an open plain situated between river and wood frequented by herons. To such a plain the sports men would repair in the afternoon as the herons were returning from their feeding grounds. The gathering was apt to be brilliant one, and in many cases would include the king and his courtiers. Many ladies would also be present. All would be attired in gay costumes and mounted on richly capar- isoned horses, and all would be chatting and laughing. Presently a great blue heron would be seen in the distance, homeward bound at a great height. Then two falconers on horseback, each with hooded falcon perched upon his wrist, would ride out to meet the hom- ing birl. As the heron approached the the hawks, and as they caught sight of their flying prey they were released and flew, circling upward at great speed. | The heron would see them coming, and | would generally Tighten himself by dis | gorging several fish and then up he | would go in an attempt to keep above l his enemies. But what can prevail | against the speed of a falcon? One of l the fierce birds would presently whirl | upward over the long-legged fisherman, | and then down she would come like a | "Fe%cASiiC, SSGhIifS lU her prey with her death dealing talons. l But the heron knew thing or two, and | he would probably dodge the blow. al- lowing the hawk to spin downward far below him. But by this time the other falcon would have risen above her prey and in her turn would "stoup' with a force sufficient to seal the fate of the heron if she struck him. Again and again the savege birds would swoop town in turn, until the heron, too tired Q dodge, received the mighty talons, delivered with such force as to rend him rom trump to neck. Down they would II 90, the victor and the vanqushed, and II n an instant perhaps the other hawk I would 'bind to- and the trio would 1oat earthward together. As they cached the ground falconer would lash up and seize the heron's neck, that l valuable hawk might not be put out ,f commission by the formidable bill. Heronry is no longer practised in Eng and except by few individuals. To be ure, the late Queen Victoria counted amongst her servants a grand falcon- r." but it is doubtful if the good lady Il would have known peregrine falcon rom fish-hawk if she had seen them ide by side No. the times have and the people and their am- ,itions have changed, but one factor of