I Haue thought good diligently to looke (aswell in the workes of antiquitie, as also in those of our tyme) from whence the firste Race of hownds did come into Frāce, & I neuer foūd Chronicle nor Historie that seemeth to speake of greater continuaunce, than one whiche I sawe in Bryttaine, wrytten by one whose name was iohn of Monmouth an english man, the which doth treate, how after y^e piteous & dreadefull destruction of Troy, Aeneas arriued in Italie with his sonne Ascanius, (which was afterwards king [...]f the Latines) and begatte a sonne named Siluius, of whome Brutus descended, whiche loued hunting exceedingly.

Nowe it came to passe, that Siluius and Brutus beyng one daye in a Forrest hunting a Harte, they were ouertaken with night, and seeing the Harte passe before them almoste spente by the Howndes, they went towardes him to kill him. But fortune was suche to Brutus, (as God woulde) that whilest he meant to kill the Harte, by glauncing of his arrowe he killed his father Siluius. Whiche thing caused the people to bee mo­ued, and to mutine agaynst him, thinking that he had done it of malice and desire to reygne, and to haue the gouernement of the Realme. In suche sorte, that to auoyde their great furie and indignation, Brutus was constrayned to go out of the countrie, and vndertooke a voyage into Greece, to delyuer certayne Troyans, his companions and allyes, whiche were yet there deteyned in captiuitie since the destruction of Troye. Whiche voyage he accomplished by force of armes, and when he had deliuered them, hee assembled a greate number of the same Troyans, whome he caused to take an othe, that aswell [Page 2] for the dishonor whiche they had receyued, as also for the irre­cuparable losse and domage of their goods, and for the lamen­tations and dole which they had cause to make for their kins­folkes and friendes, whiche had bin slaine in the cruell warres of Troye, they should neuer returne into their country. Then did hee cause to be rygged and trimmed a greate number of shippes, wherein he embarked himselfe and all his men, and tooke with him a great number of Houndes & Greyhoundes. Afterwards he sayled so long till he passed y^e streyghts of Gi­braltare, entring into the Ocean Seas, and descended in the Isles of Armorie, whiche at this present is called Bretaigne in Fraunce, by reason of his name whiche was Brutus. Whiche Ilandes he conquered without resistaunce, and was therein, peasably by the space of foure yeares, and afterwardes tooke ship again, & landed at Totneys, in y^e west of this noble realme, whervpon after his cōquests made here ouer certaine gian [...]es, one of his captaines called Corineus, did buyld the chiefe town of Cornwall. But to returne vnto his deedes in Armory, whē they were setled, & had inhabited the sayd country, Brutus & his sonne Turnus, (which had as before fayde brought greate store of houndes with them) went dayly on hunting in the greate Forrest, whiche contayned then in length from Tyffauge vnto Poytiers; wherevpon one parte of the country is called to this present Gastine. Now at that same time there reygned in Poy­ctou and Aquitaine, a king named Groffarius Pictus, who made his continuall residence in Poyctiers, and was one day aduer­tised that the Troyans did greatly exercise themselues in hū ­ting, and that they hunted in his Forrestes with suche a kinde of dogges, as after they had once founde a Harte, they neuer lefte him tyll they brought him to death. Wherevpon King Groffarius, hauing hearde suche newes, was moued and ex­ceeding angrie, in suche sorte, that hee determined to make warres with them, and assembled all his forces. The Troy­ans being aduertised of suche an assembly, marched all along the ryuer of Loyre with all their puyssaunce, and mette their [...] ­nimies [Page 3] at a place where the citie of Tours is presently situate, and there they gaue battaile, in the whiche Turmis Cosine to Brutus, or as some Chronicles saye, Turnus the eldest sonne of Brutus was slayne, and in remembraunce of him the sayde Citie was buylte, and by the name of Turnus was called Tours.

I haue thought good to recoumpte this historie, that men may thereby vnderstande, that it is long since houndes haue bin vsed in Bretaigne, and I thinke certainly, that these Troi­ans were the first which brought the race of houndes into this countrie. For I finde no historie whiche maketh mention of longer continuaunce than that doth, and it is a thing moste certaine, that the greatest parte of the races of houndes whiche are in Fraunce, and other cuntries adioyning, did come from the countrie of Bretaigne, excepting the race of white hounds, the whiche I thinke to be come from Barbary. For being some­tymes at Rochell, I haue enquired of manye Pylottes and mariners, and amongest others I enquired of an olde man named Alfonce, who had oftentymes bene in the Courte of a Barbarian King called the Doncherib, whiche vsed muche hunting, and principallie in hunting the Raynedeare at force: and this olde man tolde mee, that all the houndes of his kennell were whyte, and that all the dogges of that coun­trie were such also. And surely I thinke in deede that y^e white dogges are comme out of the whotte countries, forasmuche as they gyue not ouer their chace howe hotte so euer it bee, whereas other dogges doe not holde out so in heate. Phoebus doeth also agree with this opinion, saying, that hee hath bene in Mauritanye, otherwise called Barbarie, where­as hee hathe seene the Raynede [...]re kylled at force with dogges which they call Baux, which gyue not ouer their chace for any heate that is. Wherevpon myne opinion is, that the Race of whyte dogges is come of those dogges called Baux of Barbarie, of the whiche Phoebus doeth speake, I wyll sette downe none other thing of the Antiquitie of [Page 4] houndes, but I will write heereafter of the nature and com­plexions, as well of white houndes, as of Fallowe, dunne, and blacke, whid [...] sortes are moste commodious for Princes and Gentlemen.

[Page 5]THe white Howndes haue bene brought in estimation in Fraunce, by the Lord great Seneschal of Normandie that was, and before him they were in small estimation, princi­pally amongst Gentlemen, for asmuche as they serue not gene­rally for all chaces, but onely for the Harte. The first of the race was called Souyllard, the which was giuen by a pore Gentleman to the King Lewes deceassed, who made no great accoumpt of him, bycause he loued the Dnune houndes aboue all other, of the whiche all his kennell was, and he made none accoumpt of others, vnlesse it were to make Bloodhoundes. The Seneschall Gaston beyng present with the Gentleman, whiche offred this Dogge, knowing well that the King lou [...]d not the hounde, did begge him of the King to make a present vnto the wisest La­die of his Realme, and the Kyng asked him who that was, that is (quod he) Anne of Bourbon your daughter, I agree not with you (quoth the King) in that you haue named hyr the wyfest, but you may say lesse foolish than others, whereas there is fewe wise women in the world. Then the King gaue the Dogge vnto the Seneschall Gaston, who ledde him not farre before he was begged of him, for the Lord great Seneschall of Norman­die did so importunately craue him, that he was constrayned to graunt him, afterwards the Lord great Seneschall gaue the Hounde in keeping to a hunter called Iames of Bresé, and from that time forwards they beganne to haue bitches lined by that dogge, and so to haue a race of them: the next yeare fol­lowing, the Ladie Anne of Bourbon whi [...]h loued hunting ex­ceedingly, vnderstanding of the beautie and goodnesse of this dogge, sent a bitche to be lyned by him two or three times, wher­vppon they engendred fiftene or sixtene dogges, and amongst the rest sixe that were excellent, called Clerault, Ioubard, Mi­raud, Meigrett, Marteau, and Hoyse the good bitche. Sithens the race did dayly encrease, as it is at this present, although at the beginning the dogges of that race were not so strong as they be at this present time. For the mightie King Frances did renforce them by a fallow dogge called Myrauld, the whiche Monsieur Anybauld the Admyrall did giue him, & afterwardes [Page 6] the Queene of Scottes gaue the King a white dogge called Barraude, from the which Marconnay Lieutenant of the Chace, did get his race of dogges, whiche are excellent, and much stron­ger than the rest were, and to speake truly, such dogges are most propre for Princes, and with such they ought to be serued, for as­much as they are fayre, gallant hunters, lustie rangers, and good of sent, whiche giue not ouer their chace for any hea [...]e that is, and are not easily ouerlaide or broken with throng of the riders, nor with the noyse and crie of many men whiche dayly attende Princes on Hunting. & keepe their chace better without chaunge than any other kinde of Dogges, and are better to trust vnto, neuerthelesse they muste be accompanied with the horsemen, and do feare the water a little, especially in the winter when it is colde. I will not forget to set downe what dogges of that race are beste, for asmuch as in euery litter that one halfe dothe not proue good, vnderstand then that those whiche are all of one co­lour, (as all white) are the beste houndes, in lyke maner those whiche are spotted with redde, the others whiche are marked or spotted with blacke or dunne, or a colour like vnto fryse, are of small vallour, of the whiche some of them are subiect to haue their feete great, fatte and tendre: sometimes nature dothe so worke that it maketh some to come out all blacke, the whiche happeneth not often, but when it doth happen they are com­monly seene to be good: and you must note that the Dogges of that sorts, are not in their chiefe goodnesse vntill they be three yeares olde or thereabouts, and they are much enclined to runne at tame beastes.

I Haue redde none other thing of the antiquitie of Fallow houndes, but onely that I haue seene in an olde written Booke made by an Hunter, the which maketh mention of a Lorde of Brytayne called Hüett of Nantes, and the [...]uthour of that booke did much esteeme hunting, the which amōgst other things gaue this blason to the houndes of that Lords kennelt.

[...]so I haue seene in a Chronicle in the towne of Lambale, a chapter which maketh mention that a Lord of the sayde place with a kennel of fallow and redde howndes, did rowse a stagge in a forrest of the countie of Poiucti [...]ur, and did hunte and pur­sue him by the space of foure dayes, in such sorte that the fourth day he tooke him neare to the citie of Paris. And it is to be presu­med that the fallow howndes are the auncient howndes of the Dukes and Lordes of Brytaine, of the which the lord Admi­rall d'Anybauld and his predecessours haue alwayes kepte and mainteyned the race, the whiche came first to be common in the time of the great King Frances father of Hūters. These fallow houndes be hardie and of good sent, keeping very wel their chace without chaunge, and are almost of the same complexion that the white houndes are, sauing that they endure not heat so well, nor yet the prease or throng of the prickers and galloppers, but they are swifter, more vniuersall for all chaces, and hotter in hū ­ting: and if it chance that a beast do stray out in the champaigne or the fieldes, they yet do neuer lightly forsake the chace, their complexion is strong, for they feare neyther the colde nor the waters, and they runne surely, and are very hardie, they are fayre hunters, louing commonly the Harte better than any other kind of chace, and they are more opinionate and harder to be taught than the whyte howndes, and so are they able to endure grea­ter payne and trauayle. The beste that you shall finde of the race of these Fallow houndes, are those whiche haue their heare most liuely redde, and suche as haue a white spotte in theyr forehead, or a ring aboute their necke, and likewise those whiche are all altogither fallow: but those that be lighter yellow, beyng mar­ked or spotted with blacke or dunne, are not greatly to be estee­med: those whiche are well ioynted and dewclawed are best to make bloudhoundes, & there are some whiche haue their tayles shagged like eares of Corne, & those are cōmonly good & swift: & since Princes at these dayes haue mingled the races of Fallow howndes one w^t an other, therfore they are become much strōger [Page 9] and better for the hart, the which is the right chace to yeeld plea­sure vnto Kyngs and Princes. But such houndes are not meete for meane Gentlemen, bycause they are commonly but for one chace: and they passe not greatly for the Hare and other small chaces: and agayne, they are muche enclyned to runne at tame beastes.

[Page 10]OUr dunne houndes are suche as aunciently our Kynges of Fraunce, and Dukes of Alencon did most esteeme. They be common, bicause they are fitte for most chaces, and therefore they are fittest for Gentlemen, for their nature and complexion is suche, that they hunt all kynde of chaces which you would haue them to hunt. The best of the race are such as be dunne on the backe, hauing their foure quarters redde or tanned, and the legs of the [...]ame coloure, as it were the-coloure of a Hares legs. Sometimes you shall see some that haue their hayre on the top of their backes, dunne or almost blacke, and their legges strea­ked and flecked with redde and blacke, the which doe commonly proue excellent, and although there are not many badde dunne houndes to be seene, yet neuerthelesse, the light dunne, hauing their legges fallowe after a whytishe coloure, are seldome so stron̄g nor so swifte as the other are, and Princes can not so much delight in them for sundrye eauses. One cause is, for that they doe muche feare the throng of the huntesmen on horsebacke, and they are troubled with their noyse, for as muche as they are hote and of a great courage, and put them selues quickly out of breath hearing the Crye and noyse of the hunters. Another cause is, that they feare heate, and doe not greatly esteeme a chace whiche doubleth or turneth before them, but if the chace holde endlong, you shall hardely finde better or swyfter hounds, although they be verie opinionate harde to beleeue their huntes­man, and verie easily inclyned to chaunge, bycause of they [...] heate and follye, and bycause of the great compasses which they caste when they are at defaulte. And aboue all thinges, they sticke muche vpon knowledge of their maister, and especially his voyce and his horne, and will do for him more than for any other huntesman. They ha [...]e suche emulation amongest them selues, that they knowe the voyce of their fellowes, and whe­ther they be sure or not, for if they be babbler [...] and lyers, they will not lightly followe them. They are houndes of great tra­uell, fearing neither colde nor water, and if they feele a chace to synke once before them, and that it beginne to be spent once, then will they neuer for [...] [...] [...] they haue kylled it. They [Page 11] which will take pleasure in them, muste vse them [...] this sorte. At the fyrst vncoupling of them, they must followe and encou­rage them as temperately as maye be, and with verie little noyse, for that they are hote, and doe quickly ouershoote the tracke or path of the chace which they vndertake, and there­fore the huntesmen on horseba [...]ke ought not ouer hastily to followe them vntill they vndertake it endlong: nor likewise ought they not to come ouer hastily vnto them at a de­faulte, and they must likewise beware that they crosse them not, for feare least they make them turne backe vpon them, and so in this maner they may take plea­sure in thē.

THe houndes which we call Sainct Huberts houndes, are cō ­monly all blacke, yet neuerthelesse, their race is so mingled at these dayes, that we finde them of all colours. These are the hounds which the Abbots of Sainct Hubert haue alwayes kept some of their race or kynde, in honour and remembrance of the Sainct which was a hunter with Sainct Eustace. Wherevpon [Page 13] we may coniecture that (by the grace of God) all good hunts­men shall follow them into Paradise. To returne vnto my former purpose, this kind of Dogges hath bin dispersed tho­rough the Countries of Hennault, Lorayne, Flanders, and Bur­gonye, they are mighty of body, neuerthelesse, their legges are lowe and short, likewise they are not swift, although they be very good of sent, hunting chaces whiche are farre straggled, fearing neyther water nor colde, and do more couet the cha­ces that smell, as Foxes, Bore, and suche like, than other, by­cause they [...]ince themselues neyther of swiftnesse nor courage to hunte and kill the chaces that are lighter and swifter. The Bloudhoundes of this colour prooue good, especially those that are cole blacke, but I make no greate accompte to breede on them, or to keepe the kinde, and yet I founde once a Booke whiche a Hunter did dedicate to a Prince of Lorayne, whiche seemed to loue Hunting much, wherein was a blasone which the same Hunter gaue to his Bloudhound called Soygllard, which was white.

Wherevpon we may presume that some of the kind proue white sometimes, but they are not of the kind of the Greffyers or Bauxes which we haue at these dayes.

AHound whiche should be good and fayre ought to haue these markes following. First I wil begin at the head, the whiche ought to be of a meane proportion, and is more to bee esteemed when it is long, than when it is short snowted, the nostrelles ought to be greate and wide opened, the cares large, side, and of a meane thicknesse, the chine of the backe compasse bowed like a Roch, the fillettes [Page 15] great, also the haunches great and large, the thigh well trus­sed, and the hamme streight and well compassed, the tayle bigge neare the reynes, and the rest slender vnto the very end, the heare vnderneath the belly hard, the legge bigge, the soale of the foote drie and formed like a Foxes foote, the clawes greate: and you shall note, that seldome shall you see suche dogges as are short trussed, (hauing their hinder parts high­er than their foreparts) to proue swift. Now to declare vnto you the significatiō of these marks, you shall vnderstand y^t the open nostrells do betoken a dogge of perfect sent, the ridge or chine of the backe rochbent, and the hamme streight, betoken swiftnesse, the tayle great neare the reynes and lōg and loose towardes the ende, betokeneth good and greate force in the reynes, and that the dogge is long breathed, the hard heare vnderneath the belly doeth signifie that he is paynefull, and feareth neyther water nor colde, the bigge legge, the Foxes foote and the great clawes, do betoken that the foote of such an hound is not fatte, and that he is strong in all his members, and able to endure long without surbaiting of himselfe.

If you would haue faire hounds, you must first haue a fayre Bitch, which is of a good kind, strong and well proportio­ned in all parts, hauing hir ribbes and hir flancks great and [Page 17] large, the whiche you may make to goe proude in this wyse. Take two heads of Garlike, half y^e stone of a beast which is cal­led Castor, with the iuyce of Cresseys, & a dozen of the flies called Cantharides, boyle all these together (in a potte holding a pynte) with Mutton, and giue the pottage two or three tymes vnto the bytche to drynke, and she will not fayle to go proude. And in like manner shall you make your dogges desirous of the bytche. &c.

Afterwardes, when you see that your bytche goeth proude, attende the full of the Moone vntyll it be passed, and then cause hir to be lyned (if it may be, vnder the Sygnes of Gemini and Aquarius) for the dogges whiche shall be engendered vnder those signes, shall not be subiect vnto madnesse, and shall com­monly be more dogges than bytches.

Also some say that there is a Starre named Arcture, and that suche dogges as are whelped or engendered vnder that Starre, shall be muche subiecte vnto madnesse. In lyke maner you must vnderstand dyuers secretes, whereof the first is: that of what dogge so euer a bytche shall be lyned, the firste time that she goeth proude, and at hir first litter, whether it be by Mastiffe, Greyhounde, or Hounde, in all hir other lytters whiche she shall haue afterwardes, she wyll alwayes haue one whelpe whiche shall resemble the dogge that first lyned hir: And for that cause you ought to haue good regarde that the first time she goeth proude, you cause hir to be lyned with some fayre dogge of a good kynde, for in all the lytters which she shall haue after­wardes, there will be some one which will resemble the firste. And although now adayes men make small account of the first litter, seyng they are of opiniō, that the first lytter is much giuen to become madde, and are commonly weake and small, yet must you not faile to lyne your bitche at the first with a fayre hounde, and of a good kynde, for if she should be lyned with a Mastiffe or a curre, the other litters wil hold the same race, and yet if you should suffer hir to slyp without lyning, she wil pyne away, and with great payne shall you recouer hir or make hir fatte againe.

An other secrete is, that if yee will haue lyght and hote [Page 18] hounds, then lyne your bytch with a yong dogge: for if she be lined­ned with an olde dogge, the whelpes will become more heauie, and lesse gallant. And herewithall vnderstand that it is not good to coole a bytch when she is proude in the water, for the water doth congeale the bloude within the veynes and Arteries, which may cause hir to become maungie, or else that she shall haue wormes, tormentes, and grypcs in hir bellye, and infinite other diseases which followe therevpon. When the bytches are lyned, and that they beginne to be sydebellyed, you must not leade them on hunting for diuers causes. One is, bycause the for­ces which they shall vse in hunting, do màrre and keepe fro pros­pering the little whelpes which are in their bellyes. Also that in leaping ouer the hedges, and running through the woodes, euery least rush or knocke may make them cast their whelpes, where­vppon might ensue diuers other euill happes which shoulde be long to recyte. Then the best is to let them onely passe vp and downe the house or court, and neuer locke them vp in their ken­nell, bycause they be importunate and longing, and therefore you must make them pottage once a day at the least. Further­more, if you would spaye a bitch, it must be done before she haue euer had litter of whelpes: & in spaying of hir, it shal not be good to take away all the rootes or strings of the veynes, for it is hard to take them away without hurting of the reynes, and so shall you hynder hir sooyftnesse euer after: but when some rootes of those veynes remayne, the bytche shall be much the stronger, and more hardie, and shall the better endure payne and trauell. Also you must take good heede that ye spay hir not when she is proud, for then shall you put hir in great daunger of death, but fyftene dayes after she hath lefte goyng proude. And when the little whelpes beginne to take shape within hir bel­lye, then is best spaying of a bytche.

THere are certayne seasons in the which little whelps are hard to escape, or to be brought vppe, especially if they be whel­ped [Page 20] in the ende of October, bycause of the Wynter and coldes whiche then beginne to reygne, and for that mylke and other nouritures which are most meete for them, doe then beginne to fayle, and therefore it is then verie harde (if they be whelped in such season) that they shoulde escape death, for as muche as the Winter hath ouertaken them before they haue force to endure the colde, and though they doe escape, yet will they be small and weake. Another vnmeete season for whelpes is in Iuly and Au­gust, bycause of the vehement heates, and the flyes, fleas, and o­ther vermyne which then will torment them. But the best sea­son to haue whelpes is in March, Apryll, and Maye, when the time is temperate and the heate not ouer greate. Also it is the right time which nature hath appoynted for the breeding of all lyuing creatures, as Kyne, Goates, Sheepe, and suche lyke, for that is the season most fytte for their nouriture. And seeyng that whelpes maye be bredde in all seasons, and that many de­lyght to breede their kynde, and to nourishe them in what season to euer they come, I haue therfore thought good according to my fantasie, to gyue vnderstanding of meanes howe to preserue them.

Fyrst if they be whelped in Wynter, you shall take a Bar­rell or a Pype well dryed, and knocke out the heade at the one ende thereof, afterwardes put strawe therein, and set it by a place where there is ordinarily a good fyre, then turne the open ende towardes the fyre, to the ende the whelpes may haue the ayre thereof, and you shall feede the damme with good pottage or broth made with Beefe or Mutton.

Then when the whelpes begynne to lappe, you shall accu­stome them also vnto pottage, but such as haue no salte therein, bycause salte doth make them drye, and causeth them to become maungie, vnto the which disease they are subiect when they are whelped in winter.

Also you shall put in their pottage much Sage & other hote, hearbes: And if peraduenture you see that their haire do fall, you shall then annoynt thē with oyle of Walnuts & honny mingled together, & kepe them in their tun or which as cleane as you can, [Page 21] and chaunge their strawe euery day: and when you perceiue that they beginne to goe, you shall haue a net made of strong thread, laced with a thong, and fasmed about the Tun or Pype, euen as they couer a Swyssers drūme, so that you may kepe them from going out, and that other dogs do not byte them, or that they be troden vpon or marred with mens feete. And you must make this pype or tunne in such sorte that it may be opened when you will. And as touching other whelpes which are bred in Som­mer, they must be put in some freshe place whether other dogges come not ordinarily, and you should lay vnder them some har­dle or watlyng with strawe therevpon, least the colde or moyst­nesse of the earth doe annoy them, and that strawe must also be often changed. They ought also to be in some darke place, by­cause the Flyes shall so least annoy them, and therewithall it shall be also good to annoynte them twyce a weeke with oyle of Nuttes myngled and beaten with Saffron bruzed to pou­der, for that oyntment doth kyil all sortes of wormes, and re­comfortes the skynne and the synewes of dogges, and keepeth them from byting of Flyes and Punayses. And sometyme you must also annoynte the Bytch in like manner, and put there to the iupce of Berue or wylde Cresseys, for feare least she fyll hir whelpes full of Fleas: and forget not to nourishe hir with pottage as is before rehearsed. When the whelpes shall be fyfteene dayes olde, you muste worme them, and eyght dayes after you may cut off one ioynte of theyr tayles, in suche fourme and manner as I will prescribe hereafter in the treatie of Receiptes. Afterwardes when they shall begynne to see and to rate, you muste gyue them good mylke alwayes hote, whe­ther it be Cowes mylke, Gotes mylke, or Ewes mylke: and note, that it shall not be good to wayne them, and put them to keeping abroade, vntyll they be two monethes olde, and that for dyuers causes. One: bycause the longer they taste of theyr dammes teate, the more they shall take of hir complexion and nature, the which we may see by experience. For when a Bytch hath whelpes, let a mastyffe bytch gyue sucke to that one halft, and you shall fynde that they will neuer be so good as those [Page 22] which the damme dyd bring vppe. Another cause is: that if you separate them one from another before they be two monethes olde at the least, they will be chyll and tender, and it will be straunge vnto them by want of their damme which was wont to keepe them warme.

[Page 23]THE auncient Authours would say, that a man maye knowe the best whelpes by the dammes teates, and that such as commonly sucked the teates which are nearer the heart of the damme, are the best and the strongest, bycause the bloude about that place is most lyuely and delicate. Others haue sayde, that they might be knowne by a token which they haue vnder the throate, whereas there are certayne haires lyke vnto Hogges brystles, and that if there be odde haires, it is a token of goodnesse, and that if there be euen, it is an euill token. Some other haue taken marke by the hynder legges, by the dewclawes, for if there be none (saye they) it is a good token, and if there be but one, it is also good, but if there be two, it is an euill likelyhoode.

Some agayne wyll looke within the mouth of the whelpe, thinking that suche as haue the roofe of their mouthe blacke should be good, and suche as are redde there, should not be muche worth. And if they haue theyr nostrelles wyde and open, it is a sygne that they shall be of perfect sent. As to the consideration of other partes of the bodye, there is no great iudgement, vn­tyll they be three or foure monethes olde. Neuerthelesse, I take them whiche haue long, large, and thicke eares, and the hayre vnder their belly hard and great, to be the best, and those markes I haue proued and founde true. Nowe bycause I haue thereof spoken a little before, I will speake none other thing therevpon at this present.

WHen your whelpes be brought vp two monethes vnder the damme, and that you see they can feede well, then shall it be good to feede them abroad into the Uyllages to keepe in some fayre place whiche is neare vnto some water, and farre from any Warren of Coneys, for as much as if they haue [Page 24] scarcetie of water, and when they come to be of force, they maye chaunce to be subiecte vnto madnesse, bycause theyr bloude wyll become hote and drye, whereas the water woulde haue made it colder and moyster, and yet would also nourishe them better: also if they should be neare vnto warennes, they might breake out and be drawne to hunting amysse after Coneys.

Therefore it shall be beste to bryng them vppe abroade wyth mylke, breade, and all sortes of pottages, and you shall vnder­stande that to bring them vppe in Uillages of the countrey, is muche better than to bryng them vppe in a Butcherie, for as muche as they are not closed vppe, and that they maye goe out when they will to seede, and to learne the tracke of a chace. Also bycause they are accustomed vnto the colde, the rayne, and all euill weather, and are not so soone subiecte to runnyng after tame beastes, when they are ordinarily bred amongest them, on that otherside, if they be bred in butcheries or shambles, the fleshe and bloude they should eate, would heate their bodyes in such sorte, that when they should become greate, and that they should runne in chace two or three raynye dayes, they woulde marfounder them selues, and would not fayle to become maun­gie, and to be subiecte vnto madnesse, and to runne after tame beastes, bycause in the Shambles they feede ordinarily on bloud, and neyther learne to questnor to hunte any thing at all. To conclude, I neuer sawe dogge come to good perfection (especi­ally to become a good haryer) which was fed and brought vp in the Shambles.

[Page 25]IT shalbe good to withdraw the whelpe from his nource when he is tenne moneths olde, and to keepe them all together in kennell, to thende they may vnderstand and know one an other. There is great difference to see a kennell of houndes nourished togither, and all of one age: and another of houndes gathered here and there: bicause those whiche are brought vp togither, do better vnderstand eche other, and keepe closer togither in Crie, than those whiche are gathered from sundrie places. When you haue brought your whelpes to kennell, you must hang clogges or billets of woodde aboute theyr neckes, to teache them to go coupled, the bread which should be giuen them, should be a third parte of wheat, a thirde of Barley or Otes, and a thirde of Rie, bicause beyng so mixed, it keepeth them fresh and fatte, and hea­leth or preserueth them from sundrie diseases, whereas if it were all Rie it might make them skoure too much, and if it were all wheate, it would binde them too much, the whiche would cause many diseases, and therefore it is best so to mire one with an other. Men must giue fleshe to their houndes in winter, especi­ally those whiche are leane, and hunte the Harte: but you should not feede haryers with fleshe for diuers considerations: for if you do, they will become fleshly, and gyuen to hunte great beastes of chace, and will make none accompt of the Hare and the Hare also doth often conueye hyr selfe amongst the heardes of tame beasts, to be thereby ridde of the dogges, and by that meanes the houndes might chaunce to leaue theyr chace, and to runne after the tamer beasts. But Buckhoundes and such as hunt the Harte will not so easily do it, bicause the Bucke or Harte is of greater sent than the Hare, in such sorte that his fleshe is vnto them more delicate and more greedely desired thā any other. The best flesh that you can giue Houndes, and that will beste set vp a weake hounde, are horseflesh, asse and mules fleshe, as for beefe (eyther oxe or cowes fleshe) and suche like, the fleshe is vnto them of a more soure substance. You should neuer suffer your houndes to feede vpon any flesh vntill it be fleyed, to the ende they may haue no knowledge neither of the beast, nor of his heare. I allow and prayse pottage made of Mutton, Goates fleshe, and the heades [Page 26] of beeues, for such leane houndes as are variers. And it shall not be amisse sometime to mingle therewith some brimstone, the whiche may warme them. Hereof I will more amply deuise in the treatie of receyntes.

A Kennell ought to be placed in some orientall parte of a house, where there may be a large courte wel playned, being fourescore paces square, according to the commoditie and abili­tie of the Lorde whiche oweth it, but the greater and larger that [Page 27] it is, the better it will be for the Houndes, bicause they shall haue the greater pleasure to play themselues, and to skōmer, through the middest of it, were meete and good to haue a little chanell of good fountayne water, neare vnto the whiche you shall lay a great trough of stone to receyue the course of the sayde water, the whiche trough shalbe a foote and a halfe high, to the end the houndes may drinke thereat the more easily, and that trough musfe be pearced at the one ende, to let out the water, and to make it cleane when you would. In the highest place of the Courte it shalbe good to buylde the kennell or lodging for the Houndes, in the whiche you must haue two chambers, whereof the one shalbe larger than the other, and in the same should be a chimney, great & large, to make a fire when neede shall require. The gates and windowes of the chāber, must be set and situate agaynst the rising of the Sunne and the South: the chamber should be raysed three foote higher than the leuell of the ground, and in the floore you shoulde make two gutters and holes to the ende the filthinesse and vryne of the Houndes may thereby auoyde, the walles ought to be well whited, and the plankes well mortised and ioyned, and so shall spyders, fleas, punayses and such like, the lesse breede and remaine therein. You must al­wayes leaue them some little dore or wicket to go out into the courte when they would skommer or ease themselues, then must you haue in the chamber little bodsteades which shalbe raysed a good foote frō the groūd, and therwithal let euery bedsteade haue vnder it a roller to remoue it where you will when you would make the place cleane: and againe that when they come frō the chace, and that it were needefull to warme them, you may rolle thē as neare y^e fire as you wil: also those bedsteads must be coue­red w^t hurdels or plankes pearced, to the end y^t when the hounds do pisse, the vrine may drayne to the groūd. You must also haue another chāber wherin the Hūte may withdraw himself & keepe his hornes, cowples, and other things necessarie. I thought not needefull to speake of sumptuous chābres y^t which Princes cause to be made for their hoūds, wherin there be closets, stoues, & other magnificences, for asmuch as y^t hath seemed vnto me, to be more [Page 28] anoyance than profitable for the houndes, for when they are ac­customed to such heates, beyng so tenderly and delicately hand­led, and after shalbe brought to some place where they shalbe euill lodged, or if they hunte in the raynie weather, then should they be readie to marfounder thēselues, and so to become maun­gie: wherefore I haue alwayes bene of opinion, that when they come from the fielde, and that they be moyled, it is sufficient if they be well chaffed and layed drie, without accustoming them to suche magnificence. And bicause sometimes men haue not cō ­moditie to haue fountaynes or brookes in euery place, it is re­quisite to make little tubbes of woodde or some troughes to put their water in. You must take heede that you giue thē no drinke in a vessell of copper or brasse, for those two kindes of mettals are venomous of their nature, and cause the water whiche com­meth in them to turne and to stinke, whiche woulde greatly anoy the houndes. You muste also haue prety little binges or baskettes of woodde to put theyr breade in, the whiche muste be broken and cut by small gobbets in the same, bycause some Dogges are sometimes sicke and of euill appetite. Also there are certayne howres and times that houndes will not feede, and therefore the baskets should not be emptie at any time, as we haue set in portray­ture before.

A Good keeper of Houndes should be gratious, curteous, and gentle, louing his dogges of a naturall disposition, and he ought to be both well footed and well winded, aswell to fill his horne as his bottell: the first thing whiche he ought to do when he riseth, is to go see his Houndes, to make their lodging cleane, and to dresse them as the case shall require: after he hath so clen­ [...] them, he ought to take his horne and founde three or foure [Page 30] tymes the call, to the ende he may comforte them and call them to him: and when he shall see them all aboute hym, then shall he couple them, and in couplyng them he muste take good heede that he couple not the Dogges together, for feare least they fight one with another, and if there be any yong houndes, it shalbe good to couple them with the olde bitches, to teache them to fol­lowe: when they are all well coupled, the keeper muste fill two great bagges or pockets with small bones, and other good mor­sels, as fishe, or horse feete fried, fatte roste meates, and such like, then he shall breake all into small gobbets into his bagges, and hang one bagge about his owne necke, and giue another vnto one of his companions, that done, he must take two wispes of cleane straw and put them vnder his gyrdell, with a little brush or duster to rubbe and duste his houndes when they shall come into the fielde: the other Huntesmen or varlettes whiche shalbe with him ought to do asmuch. Afterwards euery man shal take a fayre wande in his hande, and let one go before to call the houndes vnto him, another shall come behind which shall ierke them forwardes, and if there be two others, they shall go on eche side, and so all foure togither shall go leade the houndes through the greene Corne fieldes and through the medowes, aswell to feede them, as for to teach them to knowe theyr voyce, making them to passe through the heardes of sheepe and other suche like beastes, to accustome them, and to make them to know thē: and if there be any dogge that is so il taught as he would runne at a sheepe or any such tame beast, you must couple him with a rāmeA Ramme. or a stoute Sheepe, and with your wande you muste all to pay him and beate him a good while, crying and threatening to the ende that another time he may know the rate of suche as vse it. So muste you also vse to leade your houndes through the wa­rens, and if they couet to runne after the Conies, you muste threaten and chastice them, bycause yong houndes do naturally loue them. When you haue thus walked them in the morning, and that the Sunne beginneth now to be high, the Hunte must go into some fayre medow, and call all his dogges about him, and then muste they take their wispes and brushes, to brushe and [Page 31] duste their houndes as softely as may be: for sometimes the houndes whiche hunte in the woodes and forrests do pricke thē ­selues, and catche thornes or haue some scabbes or blisters, so that the keepers of Houndes hauing a beauy hande in rubbing and trimming them, might galde of the skinne, and rather do hurte than good. And furdermore it were very euill for the hounde to leese his haire or his lockes, for asmuche as he is vncessantly tra­uayled in Woodes and Forrestes, whereas the ryndes the water droppes, and other coldnesse doth fall vpon him continually, and therefore it may suffize to rubbe and courrie the hounde three times in a weeke, but Greyhoundes ought to be rubbed ones e­uery day. After all these things done, their keepers and Hunts­men must teach them to know the Hallowe aswell by the horne, as by the mouth, in this wise.

First one of the Huntesmen muste take one of the budgettes full of delicates as before sayde, and go a crosbow shoote or fur­der, according as the houndes are yong or wel entred: for if they be yong, and haue yet neuer bene entred, then the Hallowe muste be made the nearer, and they muste not be vncoupled bicause the old houndes may leade them to the Hallow, but if they haue bene begonne to be entred, then may they go further off and vncou­ple them, and then when the Hunte shalbe two good Crosbow shotte from his Houndes (the whiche his compaignions must in meane whyle holde together) he shall beginne to Hallowe, and to sounde his Horne, and he shall otherwhyles crie: How, How, How, thats he, thats he, How, to a Deare. And How, How, that that, or there, there, to an Hare, and he shall neuer cease to crye, to hallowe, and to blowe, vntill his houndes be come vnto him: when his cōpaignions shall heare him beginne to hallowe, they shall vncouple their houndes & crie, lyst hallow, hyke hallow, lyst, lyst, lyst, then when they are come to the hallow, the Hunte muste take his bagge of vi [...]ualles, and caste vnto them all the delicates, crying and comforting them as the Arte requyreth: then when he shall see that they haue almoste done eatyng of their rewarde, hee shall gyue signe or token to his com­panions that they beginne to hallowe, the whiche (hauing not [Page 32] stirred from the place where they vncoupled theyr dogges, and (hauing another budget or pocket full of delicates and dogges deynties) shall beginne to hallow on their side, and to blow their hornes to make the dogges come vnto them: then he which made the first hallow shall threaten them, and a little beate them with a wande crying agayne, lyst hallow, hyke hallow, lyst, lyst, lyst. And when the houndes shalbe come vnto them, they muste re­warde them with theyr delicates as the other did, and then after let them couple them vp agayne fayre and gently: for if one do roughly handle a young hound at the firste couplyng, he will not easily come agayne to the couplyng another time. When they are coupled vp agayne, they must leade them to their Ken­nell, and giue them meate, leauing alwayes some bread in their baskettes, for suche as shalbe of faynt appetite, their strawe must be chaunged three or foure times in a weeke at the least, and the Hunte must wreath wispes vpon little stickes, and pricke them in the grounde to make them pisse. It is a thing certayne, that if you rubbe ouer a wispe or suche like thing with Galbanum, allTo make a hound to pisse at one certain place. your houndes will not fayle to come and pisse agaynst it: and if perchance there be no fountayne nor brooke within the courte of your Kennell, then must you put their water in troughes of stone or of woodde as I haue rehearsed before, the whiche muste be changed and refreshed euery day twyce. Also in extreeme heate, Houndes are oftentimes combred with lice, fleas, and o­ther vermine and filthie things, and for remedie thereof you muste washe them once a weeke in a bath made with hearbes, as followeth.

First you must haue a great kettle holding tenne great pots or small buckettes full of water, then take tenne good stalkes of an hearbe called Veruyne, and wilde Cresseyes, and asmuch of the leaues of Sorell, Marioram, Sage, Rosemarie, and Rewe, and lette them boyle well altogethers, casting amongst them twoo hand­full of Salte: then when all is well boyled togithers, and that the hearbes be well consumed therein, you shall take them from the fire, and let them coole vntill the water be no more than luke warme, and therewith washe and bathe your dogges one after [Page 33] another rubbyng them softely with your wispes. And all these things are best to be done in great heates, thryse in a weeke at the least also sometimes when whelpes are lately brought from their nources out of the villages, they will dreade the waters and dare not aduenture to passe through ryuers, pooles, &c. To helpe this the Hunte muste choose out warme and hote dayes, in the whiche aboute noone, he shall couple vp all his houndes, and leade them to the side of some riuer or poole, and put of all his clothes: then shall he take them one after another, and carie them a good way into the ryuer to learne them to swimme and abyde the water: when he hath done this two or three times, he shall see that his houndes will not feare the water, nor will make any difficultie to passe or swimme through the riuers and pondes. And in this manner good Huntes shall vse their houndes, for if they obserue all these things aboue rehearsed, it is not possible but that theyr hoūdes shalbe wel entred and ordred. And often­times it happeueth that houndes do hunte and chase in the rayne and frost and other greuous weather, or els do enforce thēselues to passe and swimme through riuers and pooles, whē they do so, the Hunt ought to make them a good fire, and to rubbe and drie them, and when they be drie he should frotte and rubbe their bel­lies, to take of the dyrte aud claye whiche may hang therevpon, for if they go to kene [...] wette and moyled with dyrt, they should be in daunger to marfounder and to become mangie: oftētimes also in running through the hard champayne, or stonie grounde, they surbate and beblister their feete, and to helpe that, the Hunt must first washe theyr feete with water and Salte, then take the yolkes of egges & heate them wel with vinegre and the iuyce of an hearbe growyng vpon the rockes, and called Mouseare, then take pitch brused to powder and mingle it with twise asmuche soote, and after put your sayde powder amongst the egges and [...]yce of hearbs afore sayd, making them all hote togither and al­wayes styrring them, and you must take good heede that you o­uerheate it not, bicause the moysture might so be consumed and the substance of the egges woulde waxe harde, which woulde marre all, but [...] shalbe sufficient to heate it vntill it be some­what [Page 34] more than luke warme, and herewithall shall you rabbe euery night the feete and foldes betweene the clawes of your houndes with a linen cloute. I will stand no longer vpon this poynt, hoping to speake thereof more amply in the treatie of re­ceiptes.

[Page 35]WHen the Hunte hath taught his houndes to know and beleeue the hallow, and the sound of his horne, then the galloppers, prickers, and huntsmē on horsebacke seyng their houndes strong enough and aboute seuentene or eightene moneths olde, shall then beginne to enter and to teach them, and they shall haue them a fielde but once a weeke at the moste, for feare least they should marre them, for houndes are neuer suffi­ciently knit in their ioyntes and members vntill they be two yeares old at the least: and aboue all things whosoeuer would hunte the Harte at force, must vnderstand three secretes. The first is that he neuer accustome his houdes to runne a Hinde, nor giue them any quarrie or rewarde thereof, bycause there is difference betwene the sent of a Harte and a Hynde, as you may see by ex­perience that houndes do oftētimes single that one from that o­ther and yet houndes are of such nature that the first beast which a man doth enter them at, and that they first take pleasure in, and haue bene therewith rewarded, they do alwaies remēber it most, and thereby you may be sure that if you giue them rewardes or bring them to the quarrie of a Hynde, they would desire it more than the Harte. The second secrete is, that it is not good to enter yong houndes within a toile, for there a Harte doth nothing but turne and cast aboute, since he cannot runne endlong, when the hoūdes are in māner alwayes in sight of him, and if afterwards you should runne a Harte (with dogges so entred) at force, and out of a toyle, and that the Harte tooke endlong, eloygning him self from the houndes, they woulde quickly giue him ouer: and yet there is another thing whiche dothe more hurte vnto suche hoūdes as are entred into a toyle, for if a Harte do turne two or three times before them, they take aswell the countrie, as the right tracke, breakyng their course, & putting themselues out of breath, and neither learne to hunte nor to quest, nor to do any o­ther thing but rayse vp their heads still to see y^e Harte. The third secrete is that you enter not your houndes, nor beginne to teach them in the morn [...]ng if you can chuse, for if a man do firste ac­custome them to the freshe of the mornyng, if afterwardes they chaunce to Hunte in the heate of the day, they will quickly [Page 36] giue ouer, but you may enter them and rewarde them in this manner. Firste you ought to haue regarde that the Harte be in pryme of greace, bycause then he cannot so easily conuey himself nor eloygne himself before the houndes, as he would do in May or in Aprill, bicause they are heauier then, and cannot stand vp so long, then may you choose out a Forest wherein the Relaies be of equall proportion, and for your purpose, after place al your yong houndes togither with foure or fiue old houndes to enter them. And then leade them to the furdest and last Relaye, and cause the Harte to be hunted vnto them, with some good kenell of hounds whiche may keepe hym from resting or staying by the way, to the ende that when he shalbe ariued and come vnto them, and waxeth now wearie and almoste spent, you may then vncouple your olde Houndes firste, and when they haue well beaten and founde the tracke or sent of the Harte, beyng well entred in crie, you may also vncouple your yōg houndes, and hallow them in to the olde houndes, and you muste haue three good prickers, or Huntesinen on horsebacke at the least, to the ende that if there be any yong hounde whiche woulde carie or hang behind, beyng opinionate or musing and ploddyng by himselfe, the Horsemen may beate him well and make him come in to the rest: and you shall vnderstand that in what place soeuer you kyll the Harte, you ought to flea his necke, and to rewarde your houndes ther­with vpon the grasse all hote as it is, for so it shalbe muche bet­ter and more delicate and profitable for your houndes, than when it is colde: you may also rewarde them in another man­ner. Take a Harte in nettes or stalles, and cleaue or split one of his forefeete from the twiste of the cleas, vnto the ioynte of the foote, or els cut off one of his feete or cleas altogither, afterwards vntangle him out of the net or stall and let him go, a quarter of an houre after, you may bryng all your yong hounds and as­semble them togither, then take your Bloudhoundes and with them finde out the view or Slotte of the Harte or Bucke, and followe them wi [...]h your yong Houndes, and when you haue followed them a Crossebowe shoote, you maye then hallowe and blowe for your yong [...] that done you [Page 37] may vncouple your yong houndes from the old, that the olde houndes may first leade them: and you muste haue good prickers and huntesmen on horsebacke in the tayle of them to make them holde in and close. Yet another way to bryng your houndes to quarrie and to rewarde them, you must haue foure or sixe hunts­men that be good and swifte of foote, for els they may rather hinder than furder the houndes, and to euery one of these you may giue two couple of houndes to leade in liames, and when the houndes haue vnlodged the Harte, they may go fayre and softely, and not weary theyr yong houndes before the crie: then when they shall perceyue that the Harte hath runne twoo good houres, and that he beginneth to sinke before the houndes, they may caste of theyr yong houndes, but they ought to haue good regard that they caste them not of when he is at Baye: especial­ly when his head is full sommed, for in that furie he woulde en­danger them or kill them. Mine opinion is that the best entryng of houndes is at the Hare, for that is their very best beginning, for asmuch as thereby they shall learne all doubles, and turnes, as lykewise to knowe and to come to the hallowe, and also they become very tendre nosed and perfecte of sent by accustoming the beaten wayes and champaygne Countries, and afterwards when a man woulde enter or teache them to the Harte, they will quickely forget and abandone the Hare. Here muste be no­ted that all houndes ought to be well acquaynted with their prickers or Huntesmen on Horsebacke which shall follow them, and therefore it is requisite that when the Huntesmen shall giue them rewarde, and that they make the Ouar­rie, the prickers and Huntesmen on horsebacke be there present to make much of them, & to speake to them, to the end that they may the better vnderstand and know them.

[Page 41] ISodore sayeth that the Harte is right contrarie to the Serpent, and that when he is olde, decrepyte, and sicke, that hee goeth to the dennes and caues of Serpentes, and with his no­strels he puffeth and forceth his breath into their holes, in suche fort, that by vertue and force therof he constreyneth the Serpents to come forth, and being come forth, he kylleth them with his foote, and afterwards eateth and deuoureth them. Afterwarde he goeth to drinke, and so the venyme spreadeth through all the veynes of his body, and when he feeleth the venyme worke, he runneth to chafe and heate him selfe, immediately he beginneth to voyde and purge himselfe, in such sort that nothing remayneth in his belly, comming forth by all the conduites and pores that nature hath made in him. And by this mean he renueth his force, and healeth him selfe, casting his haire.

When the Hartes passe the great ryuers or some arme of the Sea, to go to Rut in some Ile or Forest, they assemble them selues in great heardes, and knowing which of them is stron­gest and best swimmer, they make him go formost: and then he which commeth next him, stayeth vp his head vpon the backe of the first, and the thirde vpon the backe of the seconde, and conse­quently al the rest do in like maner, euen vnto the last, to the end that the one may relieue the other, and when the first is wearie, another taketh his place.

Plynie sayeth, that they can endure to swymme thirtie myles endwayes, and that he hath seene experience thereof in the Ile of Cypres, from whence they go commonly vnto the Ile of Cy­lice, the which is thirtie myles distant. Yea and he sayeth, that they haue the vent and sent of the Rut from the one Ile to the other. To speake a truth, I haue seene some hunted in Forestes adioyning to the Sea, which haue bene so sore hunted, that they launched into the Sea, and haue bene kylled by fyshermen tenne myles from the shore.

The Hart doth maruell and is astonyed when he heareth one call or whistle in his fist. And for proofe, when you see an Hart [...] before you in the day time, and that he be in the playne, call after hint saying, ware ware, or, take heede, and you shall [Page 42] see him turne backe for doubt of the voyce which he heard. He louet [...] to heare Instrumentes, and assureth him selfe when hee heareth a Flute or any other sweete noyse. He heareth verie per­fectly when his heade and his eares are set vpright, but when he holdeth them downe, he heareth not so well. When he is on foote and is not afrayde, he maruelleth at all things which he seeth, and taketh pleasure to gaze at them, as a Carter and his Carte, or any beast loden with any thing. Plynie sayth, that an Hartes age is knowne by his teeth, by his feete, and by his heade, as I will declare hereafter in the treatise of Iudgement of the Hart. Fur­thermore he sayth, that the Antlier and croches of a Harte doe multiply from the fyrst heade that he beareth, vntill he be seauen yeares olde, and that afterwardes they multiply not but only in greatnesse, and that also according to the rest and good feeding, or the styrring that they shall haue. They beare sometimes more and sometimes fewer croches, and that is the reason that menne haue iudged a Hart of tenne, as somtimes haue bene seene. Fur­thermore he sayth that the first heade which an Hart beareth, is dedicated and giuen to Nature, and that the foure Elements do euerie of them take therein a portion. Isodore is of an other opi­nion saying, that the Hart doth burie and hyde his first heade in the earth, in suche sort that a man shall hardly finde it. And to speake a truth, I could neuer finde any that were mewed or cast by their owne accorde, neuerthelesse I haue seene one that sayde he had seene them, but therein I report me to that which may be thought. The Hart hath a propertie, that if he goe to feede in a yong spring or Coppes, he goeth first to seeke the winde, that he may finde if there be any person in the Coppes which may inter­rupt him. And if any man take a little bough, branch, or leafe, and pysse or spitte vpon it, if he leaue it in the spring or Coppes where the Harte should feede, he will not fayle to finde it out, and then he will feede no more in that place. Plynie sayth, that when the Hart is forced with houndes, his last refuge is to come about houses vnto a man, vnto whome he had rather yeelde him selfe than vnto the hounds, hauing knowledge & vnderstanding what things be moste contrarie and hatefull vnto him, the [Page 43] which I haue seene by experience, that an Hynd being readie to calue, hath rather auoyded and eschued the way and place where dogs did resort, thā whereas mē were accustomed to be, as also when she would conceyue, she attendeth vntill the Starre called Arcture be raysed, and caryeth hir calfe eight or nine monethes, the which are calued in May commonly, although I haue seene some fall later, according to the nouriture and age of the Hind. There are some Hyndes which haue two Calues at once, and before she calueth, she purgeth hir with the hearbe called Tra­gonce, and after that she hath calued, she eateth vp the skynne wherein the Calfe did lye. Plynie sayth moreouer, that if a man take the Hynde immediately after she haue calued, he shoulde finde a stone in hir body the which she hath eaten or swallowed to make hir calue with more ease, the which stone shoulde be ve­rie requisite and profitable for women that are with chylde. When the Hyndes calfe is great, she teacheth it to runne, and to leape, and the coast that it must keepe to defende it selfe from the houndes. The Hartes and Hyndes may liue an hundreth yeres, according to Phoebus saying. And wee finde in auncient hysto­riographers, that an Harte was taken, a hauing coller about his necke full three hundreth yeares after the death of Cesar, in which coller Caesars armes were engraued, and a mot written, saying, [...] me fecit. Wherevpon the Latin Prouerb came, which saith, Ceruin [...]s annos viuere.

HArts do commonly beginne to Uault about the middest of September, and their Rut doth continue about two monethes, and the older that they be, the hotter they are, and the better beloued of the Hyndes. The olde Harts go sooner to Uault than the yong, and they are so fierce and so proude, that vntil they haue accomplyshed their lust, the yong Harts dare not come neare them, for if they do, they beate them and dryue them away. The yong Deere haue a maruellous craft and malice, [Page 45] for when they perceiue that the olde Harts are wearie of the Rut and weakened in force, they runne vppon them, and eyther hurt or kyll them, causing them to abandon the Rut, and then they remayne maisters in their places. Hartes doe muche so­ner kyll each other when there is scarcitie of Hyndes, for if there be Hyndes plentie, then they separate them selues one from an­other, and hyde them selues in one place or other. It is a pleasure, to beholde them when they goe to Rutte and make their vaute. For when they smell the Hynde, they rayse their nose vp into the ayre, and looke aloft, as though they gaue thankes to nature which gaue them so great delight. And if it be a great Hart, he will turne his heade, and will looke if there be none other neare to anoy or interrupt him. Then the yong deare being not able to abyde them, and seing them make such counte­nances, will withdraw themselues from them and runne away. But if there be any of equall bygnesse, they beginne then both of them to vault, and to scrape the grounde with their fecte, shoc­king and butting one against another, in such sort, that you shal heare their blowes of their heades a good halfe myle of, so long, til he which is master do chace away the other. The Hind behol­ding this pastime, doth neuer remoue frō hir place, then he which hath the mastrie, will begin to vault, and to bellow, casting him selfe with a full leape vpon the Hynde to couer hir, and that quickly. They are very easie to be kylled at such times, for they follow the pathes & ways where the Hyndes haue gone, putting their nose to the grounde to followe by the sent, and neuer looke nor vent whether any man be there aboutes which may annoye them or not. During the time of their Rut they lyue with small sustenance, for they feede onely of suche things as they see before them, & rather regard the tracke of the Hindes. Their chief meate is the red Mushrome or Todestoole which helpeth well to make them pysse their greace, they are then in so vehement heate, that euerie where as they passe and finde waters, they tumble and lye therein, and sometimes for dispight, they thrust their heades into the earth, a man may easily know the olde Hart from the yong, by hearing him when he belloweth. For the elder they be, the [Page 46] greater and more roaring their voyce is. Also thereby you may know if they haue bene chased and hunted or not, for if they haue bene hunted or be afrayde of any thing, they put their mouth a­gainst the ground and bellow softly, and yet with a great voice, the which the Hartes which are at rest neu [...]r do. For they rayse vp their heads bellowing and braying aloude & without dreade.

IN Februarie and Marche, the Hart meweth and casteth his head, and commonly the olde Hart much soner than the yong. But if there be any which haue bene hurt at Rut or by any o­ther meane, then nature is not so strong in him to helpe him. For all his substance and nouriture can not suffise to heale him, and to driue out his head, by reason of the hurt which he hath. So are there some which leesing their stones or pyssels at Rut or other­wise, do neuer mewe. For you must vnderstand that if you geld an Hart before he haue an heade, he will neuer beare heade. And on that other side, if you geld him when he hath his head or ant­lier, he will neuer cast or mewe it: In lyke maner, if you gelde him when he hath a veluet head, for it will remayne so alwayes, and neyther fraye nor burnishe. This giueth vs to vnderstand, that there is great vertue in the stones, for through their occasion oftentimes many men which beare heades of a goodly beame, do yet neuer mew nor cast them. When the Harts haue mewed or cast their heades, they beginne then to withdrawe themselues, and to betake them to the thicket, hyding them selues in some faire place where there is some good feede and water, vpon the border of some fielde, to the ende they may goe to some peece of wheate, pease, or suche like lustie feede. And you shall note, that yong Harts doe neuer betake them selues vnto the thickets, vn­till they haue borne their thirde heade, which is in their fourth yeare, and then they may be iudged Hartes of tenne, but verie yongly. As also the Bores do neuer forsake their routes, vntill [Page 47] their thirde yeare, bycause they haue not the courage, nor their tushes and armes are not yet sufficient to defend them.

After the Hartes haue mewed, they beginne in the monethes of Marche and Apryll to thrust out their buttones, and as the Sunne doth ryse in his circle or course, and that their feede doth increase and waxe harde, their heades in like manner and their venysone do growe and augment, and by the middest of Iune, their heades will be somed of as much as they will beare all that yeare, at least if they be in a good corne countrey or where good feede is, and haue no hinderance nor disquiet, and accordingly as the season of the yeare doth increase the croppe of the earth, euen [...]o will their heades increase in all respectes.

HArtes doe hyde them selues when they haue mewed for diuers reasons. First bycause they are leane and wcake, by reason of the wynter past, hauing no force to defende them selues. And also bicause they beginne then to finde feeding, & thē they take their ease to restore their flesh and force. Another reason is, that they haue lost their weapons of defence, the which be their heades, and dare not shewe them selues as well for feare of other beasts, as also for shame that they haue, to haue lost their strength and beautie. And also you shal see by experience, y^t if (in a corne fielde or pasture where an Hart feedeth after he haue me­wed) there be any Pyes or Iayes, or suche byrdes which chatter at them and discouer them, they will streight way returne vnto their thicket, to hyde themselues for the shaine and feare that they haue. And you shall vnderstand they will not leaue their thicket (vnlesse men do styrre and remoue them) vntill the ende of Au­gust, when they begin to wax hote, and to hunt after the Hynds. When the Harts that are in couert, do perceiue that their heades do begin to dry, (which is about the. xxii. of Iuly) then they dis­couer themselues, going vnto the trees to fray their heads, and to [...] of the velnet.

[Page 48]

And when they haue frayed their heades, they then do burnish their heads, some against cole heapes, some other against mettall places, some in clay and other commodious things and places to do it in. Some beare red heads, some blacke, and some whyte, all which colourings proceede of nature and of none other thing: for it should be verie hard for the dust or pouder of coles, or any such like thing to giue them coloure. The red heades are com­monly greater and fayrer than the rest, for they are commonly fuller of marrowe and lighter: the blacke heades are heauier, and haue not so much marowe in them: the white are the very worst and the worst nourished. All this I haue knowne by experience [Page 49] of Crossebowe makers and makers of Harquebushes, which put it often in their worke, who haue tolde me that the least blacke heades which come from the Scottes or wylde Irishe (whereof men bring great number to Rochell to sell) are muche heauier than those which we haue here in Fraunce, for they haue not so much marowe in them, although there is a Forest in Poictou cal­led the Forest of Mereuant, in which the Harts beare smal black heades, which haue but little marowe in them, and are almost like to them of Irelande. There is another Forest about foure leagues from thence called Chyssay, in the which the Harts beare heades cleane contrarie, for they are great, red, and ful of marow, and are verie light when they are drye. All these things I haue thought good here to alledge, to let you knowe that Harts beare their heades according to the pasture and feede of the countrey where they are bred, for the Forest of Mereuant is altogether in Mountaynes, vales and Caues, whereas theyr feede is drie, leane, and of small substance. On that other side, the Forest of Chyssay, is in a playne countrey, enuyroned with all good pasture and corne groundes, as wheat, peason, and suche, wherevpon they take good nouriture: which is the cause that their heades become so fayre and well spreade.

HArtes are of three sundrye sortes of co [...], that is to saye, browne, fallowe, and red. And of enerie of these coates there proceede two sortes of Hartes. The one are great, and the other little. First of the browne Hartes there be some great, long, and side haired, which beare a verie high heade, redde of coloure, fayre, and well beamed, which stand vp long before houndes. For all long shaped Harts haue longer breath, and are swyfter of bodye, than the short proportioned are. The other [Page 51] kinde of browne Hartes are little, thicke set, and short. Whiche beare commonly a blacke mayne, and become fatter venison and more delicate than the others, bycause they doe more com­mōly keepe in yong springs & Coppises, than in the high woods. These kyndes of Hartes are craftie, hyding them selues, bycause when they are in greace, they doubt to be founde. For as muche as th [...]ir bodie will not indure to stande long before the hounds: So make they their feede verie short, and beare their heades low and wyde in sunder. And if they be old and feed in good ground, then are their heades blacke, fayre, and well braunched, and com­monly paumed at the toppe. The other Hartes which are of a fallowe coate, do beare their heades high, and whyte of coloure: Whereof the beames are verie small, and the Antliers long, slender, and yll growne, principally of that sort of fallow which drawe vpon the whytish dunne haire. So also haue they neither heart, courage, nor forte. But those which are of a liuely redde fallowe, which haue lightly a little blacke or browne liste vpon the rydge of their backe, and their legges of the same coloure, be­ing long, and side, those be verie strong, bearing fayre and high heades, well furnished and beamed, hauing all the other markes or tokens which I will hereafter declare. Then the Harts which are of a liuely redde haire, are commonly yong Hartes. That sort of coated Hartes, should not great­ly reioyce the huntsmen on horsebacke, bycause they stande vp long, and are of verie good breath.

HArts beare their heads in diuers sorts and maners, some well growne, some other yll growne and worsse spred, some other againe counterfet, and al this according to the age, coūtrey, feede and rest that they haue, and you must note, that they beare not their first head which we call broches (in a fallow Deare pricks) vntil they enter the second yere of their age. In the third yere of their age, they ought to beare foure, sixe, or eight small braūches, at their fourth yeare they beare eight or tenne, at fiue, tenne or [Page 53] twelue, at sixe, twelue, fourtene, or sixtene: and at their seuenth yeare, they beare their heades beamed, branched, and somed with as muche as euer they will beare, and do neuer multiplye therein but onely in greatnesse, and according to the feede and rest that they shall haue. After they haue once accomplished their seuenth yeare, they will beare markes on their heades, sometimes more, and sometimes lesse, although men shall alwayes knowe the olde Hartes by these tokens which follow.

• 1 First when the compasse of the Burre is large and greate, well pearled, and neare vnto the moysture of the head.
• 2 Secondly, when the beame is great, burnished, and well pearled, being streight and not made crooked by the Antlyers.
• 3 Thirdly, when the gutters therein are great and deepe.
• 4 Also if the firste Antlier (which Phoebus calleth and termeth Antoiller) is great, long, and neare to the Burre, the Surant­lier neare vnto the Antlier the which ought a little to enlarge it selfe some what more from the beame than the firste, and yet it should not be to long, and they ought to be both well pearled, all these thinges betoken an olde Harte.
• 5 Also the rest of the branches or hornes which are higher, be­ing well ordered and set, and wel growne according to the big­nesse and proportion of the head, and the croches, palme, or crown being great and large according to the bygnesse of the beame, are tokens of an olde Hart: and if the croches which are somed aloft, do double together in the crowne or palme, it is a signe of a great olde Hart.
• 6 Also when Harts haue their heads large and open, it signi­fieth that they are olde, rather than when they are crooked and close bowed. And bycause many men can not vnderstande the names and diuersities of heades according to the termes of hun­ting, I haue thought good heere to cause them to be portrayed and set forth with little explycations, to specifie the name of eue­rie branch or part, as here vnder is declared.

The thing that beareth the Antliers, Royals, and toppes, ought to be called the beame, and the little clyffes or streakes therein are called gutters.

[Page 54]That which is about the crust of the beame is termed pearles, and that which is about the burre it selfe in fourme of litle pear­les, is called pearles bigger than the rest.

[Page 55]

[Page 56]

[Page 57]

[Page 58]

[Page 59]

[Page 66]In the moneth of June, & July they will cōmonly make their fumishyng in great croteys very softe, & yet neuerthelesse there are some will make them brode vntill it be midde June.

And from midde July vntill the ende of August they make theyr fewmishing altogither formie, great, long, knottie, well knodde, anoynted, aud gilded, letting fall but fewe of them, the which they should let fall scattered without cleauyng one to an­other, and without little prickes at the one ende, and you muste marke whether they be very fatte and whether the Harte haue bene in the corne or not.

And these be the markes or tokens by the fewmishing of an Harte of tenne, & of old Hartes, although men may be deceyued oftentimes: for if the Hartes haue had any disturbaunce, or hau [...] bene hurte, then they make theyr fewmet oftentimes drie, bur­ned aud sharpe at that one ende, especially at such time as they fray theyr heades: but after they haue frayed and burnished, their fewmet will lightly returne to the naturall course: in suche case the Huntesman ought well to marke bycause the markes to sudge by are doubtfull. In September and October there is no longer iudgement to be had bycause of the Rut, and you muste vnderstand that there is difference betweene the fewmet of the morning & that of the euenyng, bicause the fewmishings which an Harte maketh when he goeth to relief at night, are better dis­gested and moyster, than those which he maketh in the morning, bycause the Harte hath taken his rest all the day, and hath had time and ease to make perfect disgestion and fewmet, whereas contrarily it is seene in the fewmishyng whiche is made in the morning, bycause of the exercise without rest whiche he made in the night to go seeke his feede.

THe Huntesman may take knowledge and iudge of the head of the Harte by the breach or bearyng downe of the boughes [Page 67] and branches, all the yeare long, excepting foure moneths, which are Marche, Aprill, May, and June, in whiche time they mewe their heades, and beare their veluet and bloudy heades: and ther­fore in that season there is no greate iudgement to be had: but when their heads beginne to harden, you may iudge by the bea­ring downe or breaking of the braunches & boughes, vntill they haue mewed agayne, for asmuche as when they enter into the thickets, they lift vp their heades and feare not to breake & beare downe the braunches, & thereby the huntesman may take know­ledge: but when the Ha [...]tes haue softe heades or in bloud, you can take small iudgement bycause they couche their heades lowe and flat vpon their backe for feare least they should knocke them agaynst the boughes, and so hurte them. When the Huntesman shall see that the Harte hath his heade harde and soomed, and that iudgement may be giuen by the entries where they go into the thickets, let him then looke well therevnto, and especially in great springs, whiche haue not bene felled in eight or ten yeares before, and he shall see therein by the pathes whiche the Hartes do make, that the braunches and boughes are bowed and broken or borne downe on bothe sides, and by marking the bredth of the sayd entrie, he may iudge whether it were a broade open head or not: and if there be any place of thicke where the Harte hath raysed his head vpright altogether, or that he stayed to har­ken (for lightly when they harken, they rayse theyr heades and set vp theyr eares) then may the Huntesman finde percase some bro­ken branches, or some brused boughes, wherby he may iudge the length and height of the beame, & the height of the Hartes head.

BY the gate & goyng of an Harte the Huntesman may know if he be great and long & whether he will stande long vp be­fore his houndes or not: for all Hartes which haue a long step or pace, will longer stand vp than they which haue a shorte steppe, & also they are swifter, lighter, & better breathed: also y^• Hart which [Page 68] leaueth a great Slotte of his forefoote, dothe neuer stande long vp when he is chased. By these tokens the Huntesman may knowe the force of the Harte, and take the aduantage for his houndes: and agayne a Harte whiche hath a long foote hath a greater bodie than they whiche are round footed.

IF you will know whether an Harte be high or not, and like­wise the greatnesse and thicknesse of his bodie, you must looke where he entreth into a thicket amongest the fearnes and small twigges the whiche he hath ouerstridden, and marke thereby the heigth of his belly from the ground, whiche you shall perceyue by the heigth of the brakes or twigges whiche he hath borne downe. His greatnesse is knowen by the sides of the brakes or twigges where his bodie hath pas­sed for it is harde if you finde not some drie broken stickes or suche like whereby you may measure his greatenesse.

Commonly the old Harts do fray their heads vpon the yong trees which mē leaue growing in springs: and the elder that an Hart is, the sooner he goeth to fray, and the greater tree he see­keth to fray vpon, and suche as he may not bende with his head: and when the Huntsman hath fonnde his frayingstocke, he must marke the heyght where the ende of his croches or paulme hath reached, and where the braunches shall be broken or brused: and [Page 70] thereby he shall know and iudge the height of the Hartes heade, and if he do perceyue that at the highest of his fraying there be foure markes brused at ones and of one height, it is likely that the same Harte beareth a crowned toppe, or croched at the least. In like maner if you see that three antliers haue touched three braunches of one heigth, and two other that haue left their markes somewhat lower, it is a token that he beareth a paul­med head. Although these tokens be very obscure and a mā must haue a good eye that will take iudgement by the little small twigges and leaues, neuerthelesse you shall see sometimes that the olde Hartes do fray vpon small trees, as blacke Sallowe and such like, aswel as the yong Hartes, but yong Hartes do neuer fraye vpon great trees, vnlesse they be Hartes of tenne. I wil stand no longer here­vpon bycause there be other more certaine tokens and iudgements herevn­der mencioned.

HEre will I giue precepts to all Huntesmen leadyng their bloudhoundes with them in the Forrests, how they shal go­uerne themselues according to the moneths & seasons, for Hartes do chaunge theyr manner of feeding euery moneth, and as the Sunne riseth in altitude, & that thereby good pasturage and feede encreaseth, so make they change of their feede. I will first begin at the end of their Rutte which is in the end of October, follow­ing orderly frō moneth to moneth vntill I returne about y^e mo­neth of September.

[Page 72]And therfore in the moneth of Nouember you shal [...]eke the hart in heaths and broomie places, wherof they then delight to crop the flowers and toppes bycause those are hotte and of greate substance, the which dothe restore theyr nature and recomfort their members, which are sore ouerwearyed with Rutte, and sometimes also they remayne and lye in suche heathe and brome, especially when the sunne is hote.

In december they he [...] together and withdrawe themselues to the strongthe of the forrests to haue harboure from the colde windes, snowes, and frostes, and do feede on the Holme tres, Elder trees, brambles, and bryers, and such other things as they can then fynde greene: and if it snow, they feede on the tops of [Page 73] the mosse, and pill the trees euen as a Goate will doe.

In Ianuarie they leaue hearding with rascal, & accōpany thē ­selues three or foure hartes togither, withdrawing thēselues in­to the corners of the forests, and go to the good winter pasture & fogge, or to the corn then sproong, as wheat, rie, & such other like.

In Februarie and Marche they go to the plumpes and tuftes of Coleworts, or of Hasill nuts or grene corne, and in medows to pigwort, woodbynd, birche, and such like, wherof they croppe the toppes. And in those two moneths they mewe and cast their heades, beginning to marke what coast may be most commodi­ous for them to take holde, and to harbour in, vntill their heads be growen againe, and then they parte eche from other.

In April and May they rest in their thickets and holds, in the whiche they remayn all that season, and stirre not much vntil the beginning of rutte, vnlesse they be stirred against their wills, ta­king their harbour neare vnto some pretie springs and couerts, wherin there is muche yong frytes, and therin they will feede, as lykewise also in pease, beanes, tares, thetches, lyntelles, and suche other Sommer corne as they can fynde neare hande: for they will not straye farre if they fynde anye feede nere to theyr layre. Some Hartes there be whiche will venture farre to such feede, and will goe out therefore but once in two dayes. And note you well, that some Harts be so craftie, that they haue two layres wherein they harboure: and when they haue bene three dayes on that one syde of the forrest, they will take an other har­borough as long on that other syde of the forrest. And these be olde hartes which haue bene sore stirred and put from their feed, whiche chaunge their [...]aire, as the wynd chaungeth to haue per­fect vent as they come out of their thickets what faulte may per­happes be in their feede.

And you shall also note, that in these Moneths of April and Maye, they goe not to the soyle, by reason of the moysture of the spring, and of the deaw which giueth liquor sufficient.

In June, July, and August they go to the springs and coppi­ses, asbefore, and vnto corn, as wheat, otes, rie, barley, and suche like as they may find (but seldom to rye or barly) and thē are they in their pride of greace. And let mē say what they wil, they go to [Page 74] the water, and I haue seene them drinke, but that is more com­monly at this time than at any other time of the yeare, bycause of their disposition, and also by reason of the great vehement heates which take the dewe from the spryngs, when they nowe beginne also to growe harde. In September and October they leaue their thickets and goe to Rut, and at that time they haue neyther certaine feede, nor layre, as I haue before declared in the chapter of Rut.

[Page 75]IMmediatly after Supper the Huntsman should go to his ma­sters chamber, and if he serue a king, then let him go to the mai­ster of the games chamber, to knowe his pleasure in what quar­ter he determineth to hunt the day following, that he may know his owne quarter: that done, he may go to bedde, to the ende he may rise the earlyer in the morning, according to the tyme and season, and according to the place where he must hunt: then when he is vp and readie, let him drinke a good draughte, and fetche his hound to make him breake his fast a little: And let him not for­get to fill his bottel with good wine, that done, let him take a lit­tle vineyger in the palme of his hand, and put it in the nost [...]lls of his hounde, for to make him snuffe, to the ende his sent may be the perfecter, then let him go to the wood. And if he chaunce by the way to finde any hare, partriche, or any other beast or bird that is fearefull, liuing vpon seedes or pasturage, it is an euill sygne or presage that he shall haueb ut euill pastime that day. But if he fynde any beaste of rauine, liuing vpon praye, as Wolfe, Foxe, Rauen, and suche lyke, that is a token of good lucke. He muste take good heede that he come not too earely into the springs and hewtes where he thinketh that the Harte doth feede and is at re­liefe. For Harts do go to their layre commonly in the Springs, yea, and though they were drawne into some strong holde or thicket, yet if they be olde craftie Dearc, they will returne some­times to the bordure of the Coppes, to hearken or spye if there be any thing to annoy them. And if they chaunce once to vent the huntesman or his hounde, they will straight way dislodge from thence and goe some other where, especially in the heate of the yeare. But when the huntesman perceyueth that it is time to be­ginne to beate, let him put his hounde before him, and beate the out sides of the Springs or thickets: and if he finde of an Harte or Deare that like him, let him marke well whether it be freshe or not, and he may knowe as well by the maner of his houndes drawyng, as also by the eye. For if he marke the pathes and trackes where the Harte hathe gone, hee shall see oftentimes the deawe beaten of, or the foyle freshe, or else the grounde [Page 76] somewhat broken or printed a freshe, and suche other tokens, as he may iudge that the Harte hath gone that way lately, and lette hym neuer marke the sayings of a meany of dreamers, whyche say, that when a man fyndeth copwebbes within the printe of the Slotte, it is a signe that the Harte is gone long before. Suche people shall soone be deceyued: for many tymes the cob­webbes fall from the saye, and are not suche as Spyders make, but a kind of kell, which as I haue seene of experience of an Hart passing by me within one hundreth paces, and I haue gone to see the slotte streight wayes, and before I coulde come at it the cop­webbes or kelles were fallen vppon it. So is there also another kynde of men whiche marke when the slotte is full of cleere wa­ter in soft groundes, where an Harte hath passed, and saye that he is gone long before: but they neuer mark whether the ground be subiect vnto moysture or not, and yet they may well knowe, that being subiect vnto moysture, then the little sources whyche passe by chanels vnseene in the earth will soone fyll the Slotte with cleare water: whiche may cause a Huntesman to be decei­ued, and therfore let him looke well to it: and also let hym not altogither trust vnto his hounde. For some houndes will also beguyle their maister, and especially those hounds that are quic­kest of sente: whiche are not best for the mornings, bicause of the ryndes and dewes, and then they draw but slowly, making smal accompt on theyr quest, as though the game were gone farre be­fore them: but when the Sunne is well vp, and that the deaw is cleared, and the sent of the earth is perfect, then haue they good sent, and doe their dutie well. Then to returne to our purpose, if the Huntesman fynde of an Harte which liketh him, that hath passed that way lately, and if his hound sticke well vpon it, then let him holde his hound short, for feare least he lapyst: and again, in a morning, a hounde shall drawe better beeing helde shorte, than if he were lette at length of the Lyam: And yet some Hun­ters will giue them all the Lyam, but they doe not wel. When he hath well considered what maner of Hart it may be, aud hath marked euery thing to iudge by, then let him draw tyll he come to the couert where he is gone to: and lette him harboure him [Page 77] if he can, still marking all his tokens as well by the Slot, as by the entries, foyelles, and such like. That done let him plashe or bruse downe small twigges, some alofte, and some bylowe as the arte requireth, and therewithall whilest his hounde is hote, let him beate the outsides, and make his ryngwalkes twyce or thrice about the woode, one whyle by the great and open wayes, that he may helpe him self by his eye: another whyle through the thicke and couert, for feare least his hounde should ouershoote it, for he shall haue better sent alwayes in the couert, than abroad in the high wayes. And if he finde that the Hart be not gone out of the ryngwalke, or do doubt that he haue drawne amysse, then let him goe to his markes which he plashed or shred, and drawe counter till he maye take vp the fewmet, as well made in the euenings reliefe as in the morning: and let him marke the place where he hath fed, and whereon also to marke his subtleties and craftes, for thereby the huntesmen shall knowe what he will doe when he is before the houndes. For if in the morning he haue made any doublings towardes the water, or else in his waye, then when he beginneth to be spent before the houndes, all the faultes, doublings, or subtleties that he will vse, shall be in the same places, and like vnto those which he hath vsed in the mor­ning, and thereby the huntesman may take aduauntage both for his houndes, and for the huntesmen on horsebacke.

And if it chaunce that the huntesmen finde two or three pla­ces where the Deare hath entred, and as many where he hath comen out, then must he marke well which entrie seemeth to be freshest, and whether the places where he came forth agayne, were not beaten the same night. For an Harte doth oftentimes goe in and out of his harbrough in the night, especially if it be a craftie olde Deare, he will vse great subtleties, beating one place diuers times to and fro. Then if the huntesman can not finde all his goyngs out, & commings in, nor can well tell which of them he were best to trust vnto, he muste then take his compasse and ryngwalke the greater about the couert, so as he may therein en­close all his subtleties, entries, and commings out. And when he seeth that all is compassed within his ryngwalke, excepting [Page 78] onely one comming in, whereby he might be come from the springs or feedes, then must he let his houndes draw hardly, and if it be possible, let him drawe euen to the Hartes layre or har­bour, for he maye well thinke that those pathes or trackes will bring him to it. And in this manner huntesmen should harbour their Deare, but not as many huntesmen do now adayes. For if they can not quickly come to the harbour of an Harte, they then will foyle the gappes, so to make him harbour, which is often­times a cause that they finde nothing in their circuites or walks. And some againe do trust altogether in their hound. And when they finde the Slotte of an Hart, they will onely plashe or brust some bought at entrie of the thicket, and then go vnder the wind, and if their houndes do winde any thing, then they neuer cast a­bout, but trust so vnto their houndes winding of it. Such men trust more in their hounde, than to their owne eyes. And me thinkes a good huntesman should neuer greatly esteeme a hounde which hangeth altogether vpon windnig aloft: for he neuer putteth his nose to the grounde, and therefore doth of­tentimes begile his maister.

THe Huntesman ought to looke ouer night in what coaste the Deare go to feede: and if it be in a spring, then let him mark which way he may best come in the morning vpō a cleare wind. And also let him chose some standing in some tree on the border of the spring, from the which he may behold eassly all things that feed therin. In the morning let him rise two houres before day, and go to the couert, and when he is come neare to the Deares harbroughes, he should leaue his hound in some house, or if he [Page 80] haue a boye with him, he may leaue his hounde with the boye, and place him somewhere that he may quickly finde him againe if he haue neede of him: then let him go to his tree whiche he marked ouer night, and let him get vp into it, lookyng into the spring, and if he espie an Harte whiche like him, then lette him marke what head he beareth, and let him not sturre from thence vntill he see him go to herbrough. Afterwardes when he seeth that he is in the thicke, he must marke the place whereaboutes he entred, by some little pretie tree or suche like thing, that beyng done he shall come downe and go fetche his hounde: but here he shall marke one secrete: that he go not aboute to herbor an Harte an houre at least after he see him go to layre, bycause som­times an Harte goeth to layre, at the bordure of the thicket, or els will come backe thither to harken or see it any thing there be whiche might anoy them, as I haue sayde before: and therefore the Huntesman should not go so soone. And furdermore if in ca­sting aboute the couert, he heare eyther Pies, Iayes, or such birds wondering, then let him withdraw him and stand close, for that is a token that the Harte is yet on foote, and then let him stay halfe an houre longer before he make his ringwalke. And when he hath wel and surely herbored him, he may go backe to the assembly and make reporte thereof, and descyfer the Hartes head which he hath seene, with all o­ther good markes and tokens. And if he haue taken vp any of the fewmet, he shoulde put them in his horne and bryng them also to the as­sembly.

Oftentimes the craftie Deare whiche haue bene in times past runne and chased with houndes, do keepe long time close & come not out of the strong holdes & thickettes, and feede in small priuie groues and hewts, whiche haue brne lately felled within the greater couerts: and thus they do most commonly in May & [Page 82] June rather than in any other season of the yeare: for asmuch as in those monethes they go not much to the water, but content thēselues with the moysture of the dewe and the earth, the which suffizeth them: but in July and August when the wood harde­neth, and the heate is vehement, then they muste needes discouer themselues and come out of their holdes to go vnto the water. Neuerthelesse, in what season soeuer it be, they cānot hide them­selues abou [...] foure dayes, but that they muste come out of the thickets, and that for sundrie causes: wherof one is, that they will go to see where other Deare do lie, by whom they hope to finde safegarde: for if they should be hunted they woulde f [...]ee among them for change, that so the houndes might be deceyued: or els sometimes they come foorth to go to their feede. Neuerthelesse when they do so, they retire into their holdes two or three houres before day. To preuent such craftie and subtile Deare, the Hunts­man must vse this manner: First when he is in a fayre thicke or couert at the ende of a Forrest, and chanceth to finde the slotte of an Harte, beyng old trodden, as a day or two before, and that the grounde is much broken with such old trackes, then he must cast and beate all the outsides: and if perchaunce he neither finde him to haue gone out nor in, either lately, or of old, then may he well thinke that he goeth not out, and that he hideth and concealeth himself within the thickes: then let him get him vnder y^e wind, and let him go into the thickes, holding his hounde shorte, cree­ping as secretely as he can: and if he perceyue that [...]is hounde haue any thing in winde, and that by his countenance & gesture it should be like that he is not far [...]e from the Harte, then let him withdrawe and retyre himself for feare least he rowze him, and let him go in at some other side of the woodde where it is not so thicke: then if he chance to finde any little [...]ewtes or springes priuily copsed within the thicke, where the Harte may feede by night, he may search it fayre and well, and take vp the fewmish­yngs which he findeth. But here muste you note one thing, that is, that he may not go into suche places, vntill it be nine of the clocke in the mornyng, bicause such Hartes do sometimes take herbrough or layre within those little Copisses, to enioy the cō ­forte [Page 83] of the Sunne, and about nine of the clocke they withdraw themselues to the shadowe for two principall reasons, whereof that one is for feare of the Flies and Horseflies, whiche woulde torment him, if he were abrode: the other, for to auoyde the vehe­ment heate of the Sunne whiche would be at none dayes. And the Huntesman must take good heede that he enter not ouer fast into the thicke, for that such Hartes do sometimes take layre ve­ry neare those priuie coppyses, bicause they are neyther feared nor styrred. But it suffiseth for thē if they be only in couert. And also in such springs, they come out to feede immediately after sixe of the clocke in the euening: and therefore let the Huntesman be content to haue seene the Slotte freshe and to haue taken vp the fewmishing: and afterwards let him retyre himself as secretely as he can, and neuer tarie to see or marke the entries, but carrie his hounde in his armes with him. And when he is farre inough from thence, lette him counterfayte the Shepherd, or whistle in some pipe, least the Harte haue gotten him in the winde and so rowze, for if he sing or whistle, he shall enbolden him againe. Afterwards he may rest half an houre or more in some place by, to the ende that the Harte may be the better assured, and then let him caste about and make his ring. And if perchance he cannot finde any fewmishing, and that the place be so thicke of grasse that he cannot well see the Slotte, then let him kneele downe, hauing his hounde behinde him, lookyng vppon the foyles and trackes in the leaues and grasse, and if they be well streyned lette him clappe his hande vpon the Slotte, and if he finde that it be foure fingers broade, then may he iudge him an Harte of tenne by the foyles: but if it be but three fingers broade, he shall iudge it a yong Harte.

HEre you must vnderstand that there is difference betweene springs or coppises, and other feeding places, for we call all pastures, fieldes, or gardens wh [...]rein all sortes of corne and pot­hcarbes do grow, feedings: and when an Harte doth go to feede in such, we say that he hath bene at his feede: then the Huntes­man must be styrring carely to go seeke the Harte in suche pla­ces, for asmuch as the good people of the villages whiche are a­boute suche places do rise by the breake of day, to turne their [Page 85] cattell on field. And therfore the Harts withdraw thēselues be­times into theyr thickes: & also the Kine, Gotes, Sheepe, & suche beasts will breake the slotte or view where the Harte shall haue passed: the which would be an occasiō that the Huntesman could not perceiue it, neyther yet his hounde could haue sent therof: and therefore let him in such place be stirryng very earely.

[Page 86]IT happeneth very often that men fayle of killyng the Harte at force diuers kindes of wayes: sometimes by occasion of y^e great heate, or that they be ouertaken with night, and many other kindes of wayes which should be tedious to rehearse: when such chance happeneth, you shall thus do. First they which follow the houndes shall caste a marke at the last pathe or way where they shall fortune to leaue the chase: that they may thither returne to seeke him on the morrow by the breake of the day with the blond­hounde and the houndes of the kenell behind them: for when there is occasion to seeke an Harte agayne, you muste not tarie for re­porte nor assemblie: bycause it is vncertayne if the chace will long continue, nor into what coast he should be gone: and there­withall that Hartes which haue bene hunted, do most commonly runne end wayes as farre as they haue force: and then if they finde any water or soyle, they do stay long time therein: and do so stiffen theyr ioyntes there with that at theyr commyng out, they cannot go farre nor stande vp long, and then also they are con­strayned to take harbour in any place that they may finde, so as they may be in couert, and feede as they lie, of such things as they may finde about them. When the Huntesmen shal be come vnto the place where they lefte markes ouer night, they shoulde parte in sunder: and he whiche hath the best hounde and moste tender nosed, should vndertake to drawe with him endwayes in the trackes and wayes where he seeth moste lykelyhoode, holding his hounde shorte, and yet neuer fearyng to make him lappise or call on: the other Huntesmen ought to take them to the outsides of the couertes alongst by the moste commodious places for them to marke, and for theyr houndes to vent in: and if any of them chance to finde where he hath lept or gone, he shall put his hounde to it whoupyng twyce, or blowyng two motts with his horne, to call in his fellowes and to cause the reste of the kenell to ap­proche. The rest hauyng heard him, shall streight wayes go to him, and looke altogither whether it be the Hart which they seeke: and if it be, then shall they put therevnto the hounde whiche beste desireth to drawe or to sticke there, and the reste shall parte euery man a sundrie waye to the outsides and skirtes of the couert: [Page 87] and if they finde where he hath gone in to some likely couert or groue, then shall they drawe theyr houndes neare vnto them, and beate crosse through it: And if there they renew their Slotte or view, let them first well consider it whether it be the right or not: but if he whiche draweth do perceyue that it is right, let him blow twoo motes to call his companions, and to aduertise the horse­men that they take heede, bycause his hounde dothe make it out better and better: and if he chaunce to rowze him, or that he find fiue or sixe layres togither one after another, let him not thinke it strange: for Hartes whiche haue bene runne and spent, do often­times make many layres togither: bycause they cannot well stand on foote to feede, but feede lying: and many yong Hunters whiche vnderstand not the cause are oftentimes beguyled: for when they finde so many layres, they thinke it should be some hearde of deare, that haue lyen there: and therefore they ought to looke well aboute them.

VVHen a Huntesman shall seeke for a Harte in an highe woode, let him first haue respect to two things, that is, the season and the thickes or other couerts of the Forrest. For if it be in the heate of the y [...]are, these horseflies, gnattes, and suche lyke, will driue the Deare out of the high woode: and then they disper [...]e themselues into little thickets or groues which are neare vnto good feede. There are Forrestes of sundrie sortes: some be [Page 89] strong of holfs of Holme trees. Some other haue thicke tuft [...] of white thorne. And some are enuyroned with springs and cop­pyses. Wherefore the huntesman must be gouerned according to the couerts which he findeth. For somewhiles Hartes doe lye in the tuftes of white Thorne, vnder some litle tree in maner wide open. Sometimes vnder the great trees in the high woodes. And sometimes in the borders or skyrtes of the Forrest, in some little groues or Coppyses. And therfore in such great couertes or highe woodes, a huntesman must make his ring walke great or little, according to the holdes. For if a man driue an Harte into the high wood, it will be harde to harbor him or to come neare him. And therefore if the huntesman do well, he shall neuer make re­port of a Stagge or Hart harbored in such places. But I will speake no more of high woodes, for me thinks men take such order for high woodes nowe adayes, that before ma­ny yeres passe, a huntesman shall not be com­bered with seeking or harboring an Hart in highe woodes.

I Haue thought good heere to declare the termes and words of Uenerie, and how a yong hunts­man shoulde speake before the maisters of the game. First it is conuenient that an huntesman be wel stayed and temperate in his speech: for al hunters whiche haue regarde to the pleasure of their Uenerie, ought to be sober and modest in talke. But at these dayes they take more delight in emptying of the bottles, than they haue regarde to their tongs. But if a yong huntsman chaunce to light in company with elder maisters, and that they aske him howe he calleth the ordure of an Harte, Rayndeare, Gote, or fallow Deare, he shall answere that they are to be cal­led the fewmet or fewmyshings, and that all beastes which liue of browse, shal haue the same terme in that respect. But in beasts of rauyne or pray, as the Bore, the Beare, and such like, they shall be called the Lesses. And of Hares and Coneys, they are called Croteys. Of other vermyne or stinking chases, as Foxes, Bad­gers [Page 114] and such like, they are called the feance, of the Otter they are called the Sprayntes. Afterwardes if one aske him howe he will terme the feeding of an Hart or such like, in termes of Ue­nerie, he shall say that it is called the feede of a Deare. As to say: Lo heere you may see where a Deare hath taken his feede. Of Bores and such like, you shall say the feeding, as to say, lo, heere he hath fed. &c. So is there great difference betwene the feete of praying beasts, and the feet of a Deare. For in beasts of pray and rauine, as Beare, and Bore. &c. they are called traces. But the footing or tracke of a Deare, as Harte, Bucke, Rayndeare, and Goate, they are called the viewe, and the Slot. Also there is difference be­tweene the Fryth and the Fell. The Felles are vnderstoode the Mountaines, Ualleys, and pastures with corne, and such like. The Frythes betoken the Springs and Coppyses. And if a Deare do feede abroade out of the woodes, you shall say that he fed in the Felles, otherwise in the Frythes. A yong hunter hath also to consider the difference betwene these words. Wayes and Trenches. For by the first is ment the high and beaten ways on the outside of a wood or forest, and such also as lye through such woods being cōmonly beaten and trauelled. And by this word Trench, is vnderstoode euery small way, not so commonly vsed. And therfore if the huntsmen do say, the Hart is gone downe the way, it is to be vnderstoode that he ment the high beaten waye: But when he hath taken some other by path or waye into the wood or Forest, then a huntsmau will say he is gone downe that trench. &c. So is there also difference betweene a Trench and a path. For trenches as I say, be wayes and walkes in a woode or Forest. But pathes are any place where a Deare hath gone and left viewe or Slot either long before or fresh and newe. As tou­ching blemishes, they are the markes which are left to knowe where a Deare hath gone in or out. And they are little bowes plashed or broken, so that they hang downward. For any thing that is hung vp, is called a Sewel. And those are vsed most com­monly to amaze a Deare, and to make him refuse to passe wher they are hanged vp. When a huntsman goeth to rowze a deare, as to vnharbor a Hart or so, he shal say to his hound when he ca­steth him off, There boy there, to him, to him, to him. But if it were [Page 115] to a Bore or such like, he shal speake in the plural number & say, To them, to them. &c. Whē a Hart hath fed in the Fels, he is co­monly wet with dew, & wil not go to [...]is la [...]re, vntill he be dried in the Sunne or otherwise, and then commonly he lyeth downe vpon his belly in some opē place, & rowzeth him when he ryseth. That place hath with vs no proper name, but only to say: here y^e Hart hath dried & rowzed himself. The places where an Hart or any other Deare lyeth by day, are called layres. But the lying places of Bores and such like, are called dennes, and of a Fox the kennell. Afterwardes, when a huntesman commeth to make his report, he shal say altogether what he hath seene and found. And if he found nothing but view or slot, & be demaunded what ma­ner of view or slot it was, he shall by rehearsall tell and describe wh [...]t maner of Slot or view it was, as to say, a short or a long foote, with such and such markes. The like report shall he make of his ports & entries: but if his hap were to haue seene the Harte or Deare, & had leysure to marke him, then if he be demaunded what maner of Deare it was, and what head he beareth, he may answere first: He was of such, or such a coate, as fallow, browne, blacke, or dunne, and consequently of such and such a body, bea­ring a high or lowe head, according as he hath seene. And if the Deare be false marked, as bearing sire Antliers or croches on the one side, and seuen on the other, then shall the huntsman saye: he beareth fourtene false marked, for the more doth always include the lesse. And if he perceiu that the Deare baere a fayre high head big beamed, the Antliers neare and close to his head, & well spred according to the heigth, then may he say, that he beareth a fayre head, well spred, & well marked in all points, & palmed, crowned, or cro [...]d according as he sawe it. And likewise he may name how many it was in the top, as an Hart of ten, fourtene, sixtene, or so forth. And if any demaund him if he iudged by the heade whether the Hart were an old Hart or not, and howe he know­eth, he maye answere, that he iudgeth by the burre which was great and well pearled, set close to the head of the Deare. And also by the Antliers which were great, long, and neare to the burre, and accordingly by the tokens heretofore rehearsed.

[Page 100]The clawes which hang behinde of a Deare or of a Goate, and such like, are called dew clawes. As to say when you finde the slot or view deepe, so as the print of them may be seen, behold here he hath left viewe of his dewclawes. Of a Bore they are called the gardes. If a huntsman find view or Slot whereby he iudgeth not y^t it is a great or an old deare, he may say it is likely to be of an Hart of ten or an Hart of y^e first head. But if he find Slot that seem of a great Deare, he may say, a Hart of ten, with out any addition of words. And if he iudge him to be a very old deare, he may then say an Hart of ten, and so he was long since. And the greatest prayse that he can giue a Deare, shall be to say, A great old Hart or Deare.

And of a Bore, when he forsaketh the Sounder & feedeth a­lone, he shalbe called a Sanglier going into the third yere. The next yere he shall be called a Sanglier of three yeres olde. The next yere after that, he is called a Sanglier chaseable: the grea­test prayse that can be giuen him, is to say, A great Bore not to be refused. Of fallow beasts the company is called an heard, and of blacke beasts it is called a rout, or a Sounder.

A Hart belloweth, a Bucke groneth, and a Robucke belleth when they go to Rut. A Hart goeth to the steepe at noone in the heate of the day to keepe him from the flye. An Harte breaketh where he leaueth Slot or view. When he leapeth into the water and commeth out againe the same way, then he proffereth. If he passe through the water, he taketh soyle, and where he commeth out, you shal say that he breaketh water. And after that you may call him an Hart defowlant the water.

An Hart or a Bucke is flayed, a Hare strypped, and a For or such like vermyne are raysed. An Hart and a Bucke likewise reared, rowzed, and vnharbored. An Hart started, and a Fox vn­kennelled.

RElayes must be set according to the seasons and growth of springs. For in winter when the Hartes heade is harde, they [Page 101] keepe the strong couerts and thickets. And in spring time when their heades are tender, they keepe in yong frythes and coppises, and in the weakest couerts that they can finde, for feare least they should knocke and hurt their heades against the boughes. And therefore it is requisite to set men abroad which are brought vp in hunting, and vnderstande well their aduauntages, and with them a good pricker or huntsman on horsebacke, mounted vpon a good curtall, which should be lightly clad, hauing good bootes and high, with an horne about his necke. Phoebus sayth, that they ought to be clad in greene when they hunt the Hart or Bucke, and in russet when they hunt the Bore, but that is of no great importance, for I remitte the coloures to the fantasies of men. These horsemen should go ouer night to their masters chamber, or if they serue a Prince, to the masters of the games or his Lie­uetenantes, to knowe which of them shall followe the kennell, and which shall be for the Relayes, and in which Relayes and where they shall bestowe them selues, and what houndes they shall leade with them, what helpes and varlets shall goe with them. And those of the relayes shall do well to haue euerie man a little byllet to remember the names of their Relayes: and then let them go to their lodging, and get them a guide which may conduct them in the morning. Afterwardes they must looke that their horsses be well [...]hod and in good plight, giuing them otes sufficient: That done, they shall go to bed, that they may rise in the morning two houres before day. If it be in Sommer, they must water their horsses, but not in Winter, and then they shall bayte them well vntill the varlets shall bring the houndes for their relayes. Their guide being come, they shall breake their fasts altogether. And in steede of Pystolets, they shall haue each of them a bottle full of good wyne at the pomell of their saddles. And when daye shall beginne to peepe, then must they gette on horsebacke, hauing with them their guide, their relayes, and all their equipage. If they would sende a curtall to another of the relayes, then shall they say to one of their varlets, that he goe with one of their companions to such a Relay. When they are come to the place appoynted for their Relaye, they shall place [Page 102] their houndes in some faire place at the foote of some tree, forbid­ding the varlet that he vncouple them not without their know­ledge and commaundement, and that he stir not from thence nor make any noyse. Then shal they go three or foure hūdreth paces from thence, on that side that the hunting is ordeined, and shall hearkē if they heare any thing, or can discouer the Hart, for seing him a farre of, they shal better iudge whether he be spent or not, then if they marke him when he is hallowed or cryed at. For an Hart when he is spent, doth beare his head low if he see no man, shewing thereby howe wearie he is. But when he seeth a man, he rayseth vp his heade, and maketh great boundes, as though he would haue men thinke that he is strong and stout. As also the horseman shal [...] withdraw him selfe aside for another reason. And that is, bicause the pages and they which holde the horses do cō ­monly make such a noyse, that he can not heare the crye. And also when the Hart doth heare noyse, or hath the dogs in the winde, they will either tume backe againe, or wheele aside from the re­laye: for which cause the horsman shal hold himself aside to chose & marke the Hart at leysure. And if he passe by his relaye, he shall marke dilligently whether he sinke or be spent, and also whether he heare the hounds in chace comming after him or not. And me thinkes that in hunting an Hart at force, it were not best to cast off your relayes, vntill you see the houndes of the kennell which beganne the crye. So should you see who hunteth best, and also the swiftnesse of your houndes. But nowe adayes I see fewe hunt the Harte as he ought to be hunted: for men giue not their hounds leysure to hunt, neither is there passing two or three that can hunt: for there are so many hunters on horsebacke which can neither blow, hallow, nor prick perfectly, which mingle thēselues amongst the hounds, crossing them, and breaking their course, in such sort, that it is not possible they should hunt truly: & therefore I say, that it is the horses which hunt, and not the hounds. I wil now therfore teach the Uarlet how to forslow the Relaye when the Hart is past by. First he must lead his hounds coupled or ty­ed vnto the tracke, & let them folow so three or foure paces right, then let him cast of one, and if he take it right, then maye he vn­couple [Page 103] the rest, and blowe to them. For if he should cast off his Relay a farre off, the hounds might hunt counter, which would be a great fault. And also if the Ha [...]t be accompanyed with any other Deare, then the pricker on horsebacke must ryde full in the face of him, to trie if he can part them or not, and if he can parte them, then may he vncouple the houndes vpon the viewe. And if a pricker on horsebacke chaunce to be at relaye on the side of a poole or water, and see the Harte make towardes it, he shoulde suffer him to goe to soyle therein his fill, and neuer blowe nor make noyse: then when he commeth out, he may let the Uarlet go [...] with the houndes vnto the place where he came out, and vn­couple the houndes vpon the viewe as before saide. And he must neuer abandon them, blowing after them to call in ayde, and brusyng the grounde or making markes al the waye as hee goeth, bicause if the houndes shoulde hunte channge, or scatter and stray from the right wayes, then may they returne to the laft marke, and so seeke againe the first chace.

Ph [...]bus sayeth, that you must rate the houndes which come farre behynde when the Harte is past the Relaye. But for my parte, I am of a contrarie mynde. For as muche as the houndes of the Crye which haue alredie hunted long time, do better kepe their true tracke and do not so soo [...]e cha [...]nge, as the fresh hounds which are newly cast off at the Relayes. True it is, that if there be any olde houndes which come behynde plodding after the Crye, then the prickers on horsebacke, or the Uarlets which tarie behinde, maye call them after them, and leade them before the crye againe. Or else if you haue neede of more Relayes, and that you perceiue the Hart bendeth towardes a coast where there is not muche chaunge, and that he should be forced to turn backe againe the same way: and also that there be good houndes ynow before to mainteine the chase, then may you take vp the hinder­most houndes and keepe them fresh for his returne: and if perad­uenture it happen that the pricker on horsebacke being at his re­laye, should see an Hart of tenne passe by him, and yet heare not the other huntsmen, nor their hornes, then let him looke wel whe­ther the Hart be embost or not, and what houndes they were that [Page 104] came with him. And if he perceiue that they were choyse hounds and suche as will not hunt chaunge, then ought he to blowe as loude as he can for other hounds, and to call in helpe. And if one come in, then let him followe the houndes which mainteined the chace, and vncouple his houndes of relay, blowing and hallow­ing all the way as he goeth, and blemishing against or ouer the Slot or viewe of the Deare.

A huntesman on horsebacke shoulde be circumspecte in these things, for sometimes some freshe Deare may rowze before the houndes vpon a sodeine, by reason of the noyse of the houndes and huntsmen, the which may be a great hurt: and peraduenture shall seeme to be embost also, especially when Deare are in pride of greace: But if he perceiue that the sure houndes of the kennell hunt it not, and that he heare not them come after in ful cry, then ought he not to cast of his relayes, but only to marke which way he fleeth, & to blemish at the last thicket where he sawe him enter, or at the last place where he had him in viewe, to the ende that if he heare the houndes at default, he may go and tell them that the Hart which passed by his relay, was fallowe, browne, or accor­ding as he sawe him, and that he bare such and such a heade. &c. And thereby they may iudge and gesse, whether it were the cafft Deare or not, and may goe to seeke him againe, beginning then at the blemishes which he made vpon his last viewe.

VVHen the Prince or Lord which hunteth shall haue heard all reportes, and that the relayes are well set and placed, and that the huntsmen and houndes haue broken their fast or re­freshed them selues, then he which seemed to haue harbored the greatest and oldest Deare, and him which lyeth in the fayrest couert, vpon whose report the Prince or Lorde would goe to [Page 106] hunte, shall take his bloudhounde and go before to the blemi [...] ­ings with his companions, and with all the prickers or hun­ters on Horsebacke whiche hunte with the kennell, who shoulde haue euery one of them a good cudgell in his hand, which is cal­led a Hunting coodgell or a Troncheon to turne the boughes and beare them from his face as he followeth the houndes in the woodes or thickes: and this coodgell shoulde not be bea­ched or pilled vntill suche season as the Harte haue frayed his head: but when the Harte hath frayed, then may a Huntes­man beare a coodgell beached or pilled lawfully: beyng come to the blemishes, lette them alight to behold the Slot and suche other markes as may be taken by the view or foote of a Deare, to the end they may the better know whether their houndes hunte change or not. Then when the Prince or Master of the game is come, and the houndes for the crie, all the horsemen must quickly cast abrode about the couert, to discouer y^e Harte whē he rowzeth & goeth out of his hold, y^t they may the better know him after­wards by the cote, & by his h [...]ad. And when the huntesmā which harbored him, shal see all the rest of his cōpaniōs about him with the houndes for the crie, he shall then go before them & rowze the Deare, for the honour is due to him: and then the rest shall cast of their hoūdes, he & al they crying, To him, To him, thats he, thats he, & such other wordes of encouragemēt. And here I will teach you two secretes: the one is that the huntesmen should not be to hastie with their houndes at the first rowzing or vnharboring of the deare, for asmuch as theyr heate may perchaunce make them ouershoote & hunt amisse: the other is, that the houndes of the crie should alwayes come behi [...]de the huntesman which hath harbo­red, and behinde his hounde by threescore paces at the least, vntill he haue vnharbored, for feare least the Harte haue crossed & dou­bled within the thicket, and they might foyle or breake the Slot, so that the bloudhound should not be able to drawe and hunte so truely as els he would: for oftentimes old beaten Deare, when they go to layre, do vse all pollicies and subtilties in crossing, doubling & such like. And therfore if the houndes of the crie come ouer neare after y^e bloudhound, they shal breake the Slot & view, [Page 107] so that he which harbored shal scarce make his ho [...]de to hunte it: and if the bloudhounde as he draweth do chaunce to ouershoote & draw wrong or counter, then muste the huntesman drawe him backe and say, Backe, backe, softe, softe, vntill he haue set him right againe. And if he perceyue that the hounde do amend his fault & hunte right againe, let him kne [...]le down vpō one knee to marke y^e Slot or the portes well & aduisedly: and if he perceiue that his hounde draw right, let him clappe him on the side & cherish him, saying. Thats my boy, thats he, thats he, To him knaue, and let him blemish there aswell for thē that come after him, as also to shew them that come with the kennell that the Harte passed there, and if the kennell be to farre frō him, he should crie, Come neare, come neare with the houndes, or els let him blowe two motes, leauing blemishes both alofte & by lowe, all the way as he goeth, that if his hounde ouershoote or drawe amisse, he may yet come back to his last blemish. Then if he perceyue y^t his hounde do renew his drawing, & that he drawe stiffe, so that it seemeth he be neare the Harte, he must hold him then shorter & shorter, least if the Harte should rowze for feare a farre of, his hounde (hunting vpon the winde) might [...]arie him amisse, so that he should not finde the layre. Whereby (& by the foyles about it) he might haue certaine iudgement: and if he rowze or vnharbor the Deare & finde the layre, let him not blow ouer hastely for y^e houndes, but only crie, Looke ware, looke ware, ware, ware, and let him drawe on with his hoūde vntil y^• Deare be descried, & rightly marked before he hal­low. And if he finde any fewmets as he draweth, let him marke well whether they be lyke to those which he found before or not, I meane those which he brought to the assembly: & yet sometimes he might so be deceyued, but that is not often, but only when the deare hath chaūged his fee [...]e. True it is y^t the fewmishing which a Deare maketh ouer night, be not like those which he maketh in the morning, when he draweth into y^e thicket to go to his layre: for those which he maketh at his f [...]ede in y^e night or euening, be flatter, softer, & better disgested, than those which he maketh in a morning: & y^e reason is bicause he hath slept & rested al day, which maketh perfect digestion: & cōtrarily those which he ma [...]eth in [Page 108] the rūning, are neither so well disgested nor so soft. For as much as al y^e night a Deare goeth & trauelleth to seeke his feede, & hath neither had rest nor leysure to disgest his feede so well. And yet they will be like of forme and proportion, vnlesse the chaunge of feeding be the cause of it. Or if the huntesman finde the layre of the Deare, he shall lay his cheeke or his backe of his hande vpon it, to feele if it be warme or not. Or he may know by his hound, for he will streyne and lappyse, or whymper, or sometime call on plainely. All these tokens giue a huntesman to vnderstande, that the Hart is rowzed and on foote. Some Harts be so subtile and craftie, that when they rowze and go from their layre, they coast round about, to seke some other Deare wherby the hounds which follo we them, might finde change to hunt. Or else per­chance they haue some yong Brocket with them in company al­wayes, whereby the hunte man may be beguyled. And therefore he shall not blowe to cast off more houndes when he rowzeth him, but only crye, ware, ware, ware, come neare with the houn­des. And let him drawe after him still that way that he went fyftie or threescore paces: And whē he shal perceiue that the Hart prepareth to flee, if he seeme to be sure thereof, let him blowe for the houndes, and crye to them, thats he, thats he, to him, to him. And let him drawe still vpon the Slot or viewe, blowing and hallowing, vntill the houndes be come in and beginne to take it right, and therewithall he must goe amongst them, with his hounde in the lyam to encourage them, and to make them take it the more hotely. Afterwardes when he seeth that they are in full crye, and take it right, he may go out of the thicke, and giue his hounde to his boy or seruant, and get vp on horsebacke, kee­ping still vnder the winde, and coasting to crosse the houndes which are in chace, to helpe them at default if neede require. But if it shoulde happen that the Harte turning counter vppon the houndes in the thicket, had come amongest chaunge, then let all the huntesmen menace and rate their houndes, and couple them vp againe, vntill they haue gone backe eyther to the layre, or to last blemish made vpon any Slotte or viewe, and so hunt on a­gaine vntill they may finde the Harte. For some beaten Deare [Page 109] will fall flat vpon his belly, and neuer moue vntill the houndes be euen vpon him.

NOw that I haue treated of suche iudgements & markes as the huntesmen may take of an Harte, and how they should behaue themselues in harboring of a Deare, I thinke meete like­wise to instruct (according to my simple skill) the huntesmen on [Page 110] horsebacke how to chase and hunte an Harte at force: and that aswel by aucthoritie of good & auncient hunters, as also by expe­rience of mine owne hunting. And bycause at these dayes there are many men which beare hornes and bewgles, and yet cannot tell how to vse them, neyther how to encourage and helpe theyr houndes therwith, but rather do hinder than furder them, hauing neyther skill nor delight to vse true measure in blowyng: and therewithal seyng that Princes and Noble men take no delight in hūtyng, hauing their eyes muftled with the Scarfe of world­ly wealth, and thinking thereby to make theyr names immor­tall, which in deede doth often leade them to destruction bothe of bodie and soule, and oftener is cause of the shortening of theyr lyfe (which is their principall treasure here on earth) since a man shall hardly see any of them reygne or liue so long as they did in those dayes that euery Forest rong with hou [...]es and hornes, and when plentie of flagon bottels were caried in euery quar­ter to refreshe them temperately. Therefore I shoulde thinke it labour lost to set downe these things in any perfect order, were it not that I haue good hope to see the nobilitie & youth of En­gland exercise themselues aswell in that as also in sundrie other noble pastimes of recreation, accordyng to the steppes of theyr Honorable Iuncestors and Progenitours. And therefore I ad­uenture this trauayle, to set downe in articles and particulari­ties, the secretes and preceptes of Uenerie as you see.

First then the prickers and Huntesmen on horsebacke, muste vnderstand, that there is diuersitie betweene the termes and wordes whiche they shall vse to Buckhoundes, and the termes and wordes which they shall vse in hunting of the Bore. For an Harte fli [...]th and eloyneth himselfe when he is sore hunted, tru­sting to nothing els but vnto his heeles, nor neuer standeth in his defence vnlesse he be forced: and therefore you shall com­forte such hounds with lowde and courageous cries and noyses, aswel of your voyce as of your horne also. But when you hunte a wilde Boare or any such beast, you shall do the contrarie, by­cause they are beasts which are slower, and cannot flee nor eloyne themselues from the houndes: but trust in their tuskes & defence: [Page 111] and therfore in such chases, you shall comfort your houndes with furious terrible soundes and noyse, aswell of the voyce as also of your horne, to the ende you may make the chase flee endwayes. And you should alwayes be neare at hande, and holde in with your houndes, & make great noyse least the Bore should hurte or kill them. As touching the Harte and such other light chases or beasts of Uenerie, the huntesmen on horsebacke may followe theyr houndes alwayes by y^e same wayes that they saw him passe ouer, & neuer shal neede to crosse nor coast so much for feare least they should rowze some change: and likewise bicause in hunting so, they shal alwayes be best able to helpe at defaultes: and let thē neuer come nearer the hoūdes in crie, thā fiftie or threescore paces, especially at y^e first vncoupling, or at casting of their relayes. For if an Harte do make doublings, or wheele about, or crosse before your houndes, if then you come in to hastily, you shall foyle and marre the Slot or view, in such sorte as the houndes should not be able to sent it so well, but should ouershoote the chase, and that would marre the sporte: but if the prickers and huntesmen on horsebacke perceiue that an Harte (beyng rūne an houre or more) make out endwayes before the houndes in chase, & therewithall perceyue that the houndes follow in ful crie taking it right, then they may come in nearer towardes the houndes, & blowe a Re­chate to their hoūdes to cōforte them. You shal vnderstand here­with that when a Harte feeles that y^e houndes hold in after him, he fleeth & seeketh to beguyle thē: with chaunge in sundry sortes, for he wil seeke other Hartes & Deare at layre, & rowzeth them before the houndes to make them hunte chaunge: therewithall he wil lie flat downe vpon his bellie in some of their layres, & so let the houndes ouershoote him: and bicause they should haue no sent of him, nor vent him, he wil trusse al his. iii. feete vn [...]er his belly & wil blow & breath vpō y^e grounde in some moyst place: in such forte y^• I haue seene the houndes passe by such an Harte within a yeard of him & neuer vēt him: & this subtiltie doth nature endow him with, y^t he knoweth his breath & his feete to giue greater sent vnto y^• houndes thā al the rest of his bodie. And therfore at such a time he wil abide y^e horsemē to ride ful vpō him, before he wilbe [Page 112] reared, and this is one especiall reason wherefore the horsemen & huntsmen should blemish at suche places as they see the Harte entre into a thicket or couert to the ende that if the houndes fall to change, they may returne to those blemishes, and put their houndes to the right slot and view, vntill they haue rowzed or founde him againe with their bloudhounde, or with some other stanche old hounde of the kenell, in the which they may affie thē ­selues. For old staunche houndes which will not hunte change, when they see an Harte rowzed & before them, they neuer call on nor once open: but if they be yong rashe houndes they wil runne with full crie and so take change. Wherfore in such respectes the huntesmen on horsebacke must haue great cōsideration, & let thē neuer affie themselues in yong houndes, vnlesse they see some old stanche houndes amongst them: and if there be two prickers or huntesmen on horsebacke together, that one shal run to the hoūds & rate them, that other shal hallow, and call them into the place where they made the default, & there let thē beate well with their houndes, cōforting them vntil they may finde the Harte againe. And if he heare any old sure hounde bay or open, let him make in to him & looke on the slot whether he hunt right or not: and if he find that it be right let him blow with hishorne, and afterwards halow vnto that hounde naming him, as to say, Hyke a Talbot, or Hyke a B [...]wmont Hyke Hyke, to him, to him, &c. Thē the other huntesmen shall beate in theyr houndes to him, & by that meanes they shall renewe the chase and finde him agayne. I gaine a Hart bringeth the houndes to change in an other manner: for as soone as he perceyueth that the houndes runne him, and that he cannot eschew them, he will breake into one thicket after another to finde other Deare, and rowseth them, and heardeth himselfe with them. So that he holdeth herd with thē somtimes an houre or more before he will parte from them or breake heard: then if he feele himselfe spent, he will breake heard, and fall a doubling & crossing in some harde high way that is much beaten, or els in some riuer or brooke the which he wil keepe as long as his breath will suffer him: and when he perceyueth that he is farre before the houndes, he will vse like subtilties as before to beguyle them, [Page 113] lying [...]lat vpon his belly in some harde way or drie place, and crossing all his foure feete vnderneath him, breathing and blow­ing against the grounde as before saide, or against the water if he haue taken the soylein such sort, that of all his body you shal see nothing but his nose: and I haue seene diuers lye so, vntyll the houndes haue bene vpon them before they would ryse. In these cases the huntesmen must haue especiall regarde to their olde sure houndes, when they perceyue a Deare to seeke the hearde so, for. the olde sure houndes will hunt leysurely and fearefully, when the rashe young houndes will ouershoote it. And therefore neuer regarde the yong houndes but the olde stanche houndes: and trust in the olde houndes gyuing them leysure, and being neare them to helpe and comfort them, euer­more blemyshing as you perceyue and fynde any Slot or view of the Deare that is hunted.

And if so chance that the houndes be at default, or that they disseuer and hunt in two or three sundry cōpanies, then may they [...] thereby that the Hart hath broken heard frō the fresh deare, and that the sayd fresh Deare do separate them selues al [...]o. And they must not then trust to a yong hounde (as before sayde) how good so euer he make it, but they must regarde which way the old stanch hounds make it, and make in to them loking vpon the Slot, view, or soyle. And when they haue found the right, & per­ceiue that the Hart hath broken heard frō the other Deare, let thē blemish there, and blow, and cry, There he goe [...]h, thats he, thats he, [...]o him, to him, naming the hound that goth away with the vaut­chace, and hallowing the rest vnto him. You shall also haue re­gard that hounds can not so well make it good in the hard high wayes, as in other places, bicause they can not there haue so per­fect sent, and that for diuers causes. For in those high ways there are the tracke and footing of diuers sundry sorts of cattell which beate them continually, and breake the ground to dust with their feete in suche sort, that when the houndes put their noses to the ground to sent, the pouder and dust snuffeth vp into their noses, & marres their sent. And againe, the vehement heate of the Sun doth dry vp the moisture of the earth, so that the dust couereth the [Page 114] slot or view of the Deare as he runneth, & that is the sent wher­by the houndes hunte principally, whereas vpō the greene groūd the Harte leaueth sent vpon the grasse or boughes where he pas­seth or toucheth with his bodie. Many other reasons there are to proue that in y^e high wayes a hounde cannot haue so good sent as in other places, the whiche I passe ouer for breuitie. And in such place an Harte wil subtilly make crosses and doublings, or hold the same long together to make the houndes giue it ouer: such is the benefite of nature to giue the dūbe beast vnderstāding which way to help himself, as it giueth also vnderstanding to al liuing creatures to eschew and auoyde their contrarie, and their aduer­sarie, and to saue it selfe by all meanes possible. But when the huntesmen shal finde their houndes at default vpon such an high way, then let them looke narowly whether the Harte haue dou­bled, or crossed: and if they finde that he haue, as to runne right end wayes, & come backe againe counter vpon the same, then let them crie to their houndes to encourage them, To him boyes, coun­ter, To him, to him. And let them treade out the counter slottes in sight of their houndes, helping & comforting thē alwayes, vntill they haue brought them where he entred into some thicket or co­uert, and there let them stay theyr houndes vntill they make it good vpō the sides of the high wayes, or thickets, and not within the couerts: for when they are once entred into the couerts, they shall haue much better sent, and shal not so soone ouershoote it, as they should haue done in the high wayes. For there the grasse, & the leaues & such other things do keepe the sent fresher, and also the ground being moyster, an Harte cānot so [...] touch it with his feete or bodie, but he shall leaue sent for the houndes: and let the huntesinen inake blemishes all the way as they passe, & beate the places wel with their houndes, cōforting and helping them y^e best that they can: and if any one hounde cal on alone, the huntes­men must make in to him, & looke by y^e slot or other tokens what it should be that he hunteth: and if they finde that he [...] the chaffed Deare, they shall rechate in for the rest of the houndes, & name that hounde to them, as to say Talbot, á Talbot, á Talbot, as beforesayd. It hapneth oftētimes also y^t an Harte passeth by some [Page 115] coleharthes or place where things haue bene buried: and then the houndes cannot haue so good sent, bicause the hote sent of the fire smoothreth the houndes, & makes thē forget the sent of the Harte. In such case the huntsmē may marke which way the Harte held head, and coast by the coleharthes with their hoūdes quickly, vn­til they come on the farside thereof: there let thē beate well vntill theyr houndes make it good againe by the slot or other tokens, or by the sent which they must needes finde in the fresh ayre passing thus by and staying not. But if an Harte breake out before the houndes into the champaigne countrie, and that it be in the heate of the day, betweene noone & three of the clocke: then if the huntes­men perceiue that theyr houndes be out of breath, they must not force them much, but cōfort them the best y^t they can, and though they heare not theyr best houndes cal on vpon the Slot or view, yet if they wagge theyr tayles it is inough: for peraduenture the houndes are so spent with the vehement heate, that it is painefull to them to call on, or that they be out of breath: and therefore in such case the huntesmē shal do well to follow afarre off without ouerlaying or ouerriding of thē as I haue beforesayd. And if y^t houndes giue ouer and be tyred, then let the huntesmen blemishe vpon the last Slot or view, and go with their houndes into the next village, where they shall giue thē bread and water, & keepe thē about them vnder some tree or shade vntill the heate of y^e day be ouer, and let them sometimes blowe to call in theyr boyes or seruants which follow on foote, and their other cōpanions, about three of the clocke, they may go backe to their last blemishe, and put their houndes to the Slot or view: and if any of theyr var­lettes or Boyes had a bloudhounde there, let him put his bloud­hounde to the Slot or view, and drawe before the houndes with him, cherishyng and comforting him, and neuer fearyng to make him open in the string: for the other houndes hearing him open, will come in and take it right, leauyng their defaultes. Thus shoulde the Huntesmen holde on beating and following vntill they haue reared and found the Harte againe. You shall vnderstand that when a Harte is spent and sore rūne, his last e­fuge is to the water whiche hunters call the soyle, and he will [Page 116] cōmonly therefore rather descend downe the streame, than [...] against it, especially if the hounds run him well. And it seemeth he hath naturally this vnderstanding, that he knoweth if he shuld not swimme against the streame when he goeth to the soyle, the houndes would haue greater sent of him, than when he descen­ded downe the streame. For the wynde would alwayes beare the sent vpon them, and also it were more painefull and greater trauell to him selfe, to swymme against the streame, than to swymme downe the streame. Understande then that if a Harte be sore runne, and come to a Ryuer or water, he will common­ly take it, and swymme in the verie middest thereof, for he will take as good heede as he can, to touch no boughes or twygges that grow vpon the sides of the Ryuer, for feare least the hounds shoulde thereby take sent of him. And h [...] will swymme along the ryuer long time before he come out, vnlesse he light vpon some blocke or other suche thing which stop him in the streame, and then he is forced to come out. In such places the huntesmen must haue good regard to blemish at the place where he first toke soyle: and let them marke there wel which way he maketh head, the which they may perceiue either by their houndes, or by mar­king which way he fled when he came thether. Let them make their houndes take the water and swymme therein: for they may [...]nde sent vpon the bulrushes or weedes which growe in the ry­uer. Or otherwise, the huntesmen them selues may seeke to finde where the Harte hath forsaken the soyle (which huntesmen call breaking of the water) and there they shall finde by the grasse or hearbes which he hath borne downe before him, which waye he maketh heade. When they finde assuredly which way he maketh heade, then let them call their houndes out of the water, for feare least they founder them with too much colde after their heate. And if there be three huntesinen of them together, let two of thē get one of the one side of the riuer, and another on that other side, and let the thirde get him before that waye that the Harte hath made heade, to see if he can espye him swymming or lying in the water: the two huntsmen which shalbe on each side of the ryuer, shal beate with their hounds each of thē vpō his side, & far inough [Page 117] from the bankes. For they shal haue better sent. xx. or. xxx. paces off, than they should haue at the verie side or banke of the ryuer. And the reason is, that when the Hart commeth out of the water he is al wet and moyled with water, which poureth downe his legs in such abundance, that it drownes the Slot or view. But cōmonly he rouseth and shaketh the water off him at his cōming out therof, so that by that time he haue gone. xx. or. xxx. paces, the Slot is better, and the hounds shall sent him much better. Ne­uerthelesse the huntsmen them selues should kepe alwayes neare to the riuer: for somtimes the Hart will lye vnder the water all but his very nose, as I haue before rehearsed: Or may percase lye in some bed of bulrushes, or in some tuft of sallowes, so that they might leaue him behind them: and then assone as they were past, he might goe counter backe againe the same way that he came. For commonly a Harte hath that craftie pollicie to suffer the hounds to ouershoot him, and the huntsmen to passe by him. And assone as they be past, he will steale back & go coūter right back­wards in y^e same track or path y^t he came. This hapneth not oftē, vnlesse the riuer be full of sallows or such bushes, and neare vnto some forest. But let some one of y^e Huntesmen haue alwayes an eye to the Riuer, & let the rest beate with theyr hoūdes. xx. paces from the bankes, and so let them keepe on altogether vntill they finde where he brake water: and if they finde any blocke or beame, or such thing that lieth crosse ouerthwarte the streame, let them looke there whether he haue broken water or not, for vnlesse it be at such a place, or at suche a let, a Harte will keepe the wa­ter long, especially when he breaketh from the houndes ouer a champaigne countrie: for at such times they will holde the wa­ter as long as they can, and also at such times they trust no lon­ger neyther in their thickets, nor in their swiftnesse, but are con­strayned to seeke the soyle as their last refuge. And here I thinke it not amisse to aduertise you, that an Harte dreadeth the Northerne windes, and the Southerne windes much more than he doth the Easterly or Westerly windes, in such sorte that if at his breakyng out of a couert, when he seeketh to breake from the houndes endwaies ouer the champaigne, he feele either a North­winde [Page 118] or a Southwinde blow, he will neuer runne into it, but turnes his backe and takes it in his tayle, and this he dothe for diuers respects. The first is bycause the Northwinde is colde and sharpe, and drieth exceedingly, and the Southwinde is hote and corrupt, bycause it commeth vnder the circle of the Sunne, the whiche ouercommeth him and settes him vp quickly by the vehement sweltrie heate thereof. And if he should runne into a­ny of those two windes, it would quickly enter his throte when he is embost and beginneth to be spent, and would drie his throte and his tongue sore, and would alter and chafe him much with the vehement heate thereof. Also those windes are commonly great and tempestuous, and if he should runne against them, his head and hornes woulde be as a sayle to holde him backe, the which might much let him in his runnyng. Agayne, he know­eth that if he runne into the winde, the houndes shall haue the better sent of him, and neede not so much to lay theyr noses to the ground but may hunte vpon the winde. Also he himself doth couet alwayes both to see and heare the houndes whiche follow him. And although Phoebus sayeth that all Hartes do commonly runne downe the winde how so euer it sitte, yet haue I found it otherwise by experience: and especially when it bloweth frō the Seawardes, which is a moyst winde, and then a Harte will co­uet to rūne agaynst the winde: but doubtlesse a Harte doth feare the Northerlywinde and the Southwinde, as I haue sayde be­fore: and so do all other beasts, as Spaniels or hoūdes, the which wil not hunte so wel in those windes, as they do at other times. Also you shal vnderstād, that a Harte doth foreloyne and breake out before the houndes for diuers reasons, especially in Aprill or May, when his head is bloudie and soft: for then if he be hunted he dareth not holde in the thickets or couerts for hurtyng of his head: but is [...] to come forth of the strong holdes, and then he breaketh ouer the champaigne Countries, and seeketh to forloyne or to breake from the houndes, and then he doubleth, crosseth, &c. Or it may be that a harte forsaketh the couert for an other reason: bicause in the thickets he trauayleth more, & beateth himself sorer in bearing downe the boughes before him: & cannot [Page 119] make way so wel before the houndes: for they beyng much lesser than he, do runne with greater ease in the hollow of the woodes below, and in like maner h [...] cannot crosse nor double so well in the couert as he may do in the playne champaigne. And for these causes he is constreyned (as it were) to go out either into the hol­low woodes, or into the champaigne. And there let the Huntes­men haue good regarde, for a hounde may much sooner be at de­fault in the hollow woodes than in the strong couerts, hauing more scope to cast about & to rāg [...] furder out when they are hote & madbrayned, & so they may ouershoote the slotte, if the Huntes­men be any thing hastie with them, & ouerley them, or ouereyde them and hunte change: the which they cannot so lightly do in y^e strong couerts, for there they runne directly vpon the foote of the Deare: and cannot cast out neither one way nor other so redily, for they feare euermore to leese the right tracke where the Harte went. And therfore a Huntsmā shal take greater heede to chāge in the hollow high woodes, than in yonger springs: for a hounde will sooner ouershoote and hunte out in the hollowes, than in the strong holdes. Also in hollow high woodes a Harte dothe fore­loyne more & breaketh furder from the houndes, and hath more leysure to crosse & double, and to seeke the change amongst other Deare thā he hath in strōger couerts: also an Hart doth forloyne or breake out frō the houndes for an other cause: that is when he feeleth himself sore layed to by the houndes, & seeth y^t no subtiltie helpeth him, then becōmeth he amased and looseth his courage, and knoweth not whiche way to take, but passeth at al aduen­ture ouer the fieldes, and through the villages & such other places. Then should the Huntesmen drawe neare to their houndes, and if they perceiue them at any default, they shall neuer go backe to any Slot or viewe, but go on still, and hunte forwardes: for a Deare that is spent or sore hunted, and that seeketh to foreloyne or breake from the houndes, will neuer tarie to crosse or double, but holdeth head onwardes still as long as breath serueth him, vnlesse he haue some soyle in the winde, then he may chaunce go aside to take the Soyle, but els not. True it is that if he breake out into the chāpaigne for any cause before mentioned, & be not [Page 120] sore spent, nor beginne to sinke before the houndes, then he maye chance to double, crosse, and vse other subtleties: but if he be spent, he will sildome vse any subtletie, but onely to lye flat vpon his belly awhyle, and that not long neither. Furthermore you shall nowe vnderstande that there is great difference in finding out the subtleties of a Deare in the Forestes or strong holdes, and those which he vseth in the playinā chpaigne. For in the strōg co­uerts you must cast about neare vnto the last Slot that you find, and you must hold in as neare as you can. For if the huntesmen cast wide out in beating for it, they maye chaunce to light vpon change, which will carie out your hounds to your great disad­uantage. But in the champaigne you maye cast about at large without dread of chaunge: and that in the freshest and most cō ­modious places, where they might soonest finde viewe, and so make it out, and whereas also the houndes maye haue best sent. For in the sandhils and drye places, a hounde can not make it out so well, by reason of the dust and sande which will strike vp into his nose, and by reason that the Sunne doth sooner drye vp the moysture from the ground in those places. Again, bicause in such heathy places, and barreyne grounds, there is neyther grasse nor any thing whereon the Deare may leaue sent so well: and that is the cause that Huntesmen may caste aboute in the moste conuenient moyst places, and in the freshe vnder some bushe or shade where the earth is not so much dried and parched with the Sunne: and if they cannot make it out at the firste casting a­boute, they may then caste about the second time a larger com­passe: and if by that meanes they make it not out, then may they presume that he is within that compasse and precincte which they haue so caste about, or else that the Harte hath made some crossyng or some doublyng, or vsed some subtiltie: then let them leade backe theyr houndes to the place where they first fell at de­fault, and put their houndes to it vpon the Slotte, or where the earth is broken as they went before, and lette them beate it well with their houndes, speaking to them and cherishyng them all that they cā deuise, aswell with their voyce as with their hornes: and let them looke well to the grounde to helpe their houndes. [Page 121] And it shal not be possible (thus doyng) but that you shal rowze the Deare againe within the circuite and compasse that you had earst cast about: and at the least if you do not, you shall yet finde where he is gone on, and so make it out, vnlesse the extremitie of the heate do altogether marre your hou [...]des Hunting. Further­more you shall remember, that when an Harte breaketh out frō the houndes, by the two firste places where you stay vpon any crossyng or doublyng that he hath made, you shall perceyue all the subtilties and pollicies which he will vse all that day after. For if his t [...]oo first doublings or other subtilties be in an high waye, or in á water, then all the rest that he will vse all the day after will be in the same manner. And then let the Huntesmen marke well on whiche hand he turneth when he parteth: for on whiche hand soeuer he turne the two firste times, on the same hand he will turne (at his parting) all the day after, whether it be on the right hand or on the left hand: And therefore remem­ber euer when you come at any default to beate first on that hād which he tooke at the two first defaults. Also an Harte doth of­tentimes vse greate pollicies in the pathes within the greate woodes and strong couerts, or els will follow such a pathe vn­till he come to the outside of the woode, as though he woulde come out into the playne, and will immediately fall to dou­ble and crosse, returnyng flat counter, sometimes two boweshot togethers: then the Huntesmen to make it out at such a default muste take good heede that theyr houndes take not the counter, bycause the Harte is [...] backwardes therewith so farre: and also they shall finde the Slotte or view, (or at least the foyles of the view) fresher in the couert, than they should do abroade in the fielde, the which may carrie them farre backe vpon the counter. Wherefore at such defaults the Huntesmen shall not be to hastie with their houndes, but rather giue them leysure, and let them hunte in dread and doubt vntill they haue made it out perfectly. Also there be some Hartes, whiche when they rise out of their layres will halte, or fall downe vpon their bellie before the Huntesmen, and seeme to reele and royle before the houndes, as if they were spent and sore hunted not long before: by such sub­tleties [Page 122] you may iudge [...]asily that they are olde beaten Deare, & wel breathed, & wil stand long vp before your houndes, tru­sting much in their force & swiftnese: for a huntsman may easily know when a Harte is spent in deede, and when he beginneth to sinke and will not long holde vp, by diuers tokens. First if he neyther regard, heare nor see any man or any thing before hin [...] when the houndes runne him: or if he beare his head lowe, put­ting his nose downe to the grounde, and reele or folter with his legges, shewyng how feeble he is in deede, or if he espie a man before him, he rayseth vp his head, and maketh great boundes and leapes on heigth as though he were lustie and freshe (as I haue sayde heretofore) but such friskes will not last long: for when he is a little past by, he will stretche out his necke agayne and hold downe his head and will reele and wallow as before sayde. Or els likewise you may know when a Deare is spent, if his mouth and throte be blacke and drie without any froth or fome vpon it, and his tongue hangyng out: likewise by his Slot or view where you finde it, for oftentimes he will close his clawes to­gethers as if he went at leysure, and streight way agayne will open them and stray them wyde, making great glydings, and hitting his dewclawes vpon the grounde, or his shanke bones sometimes, and will commonly followe the beaten pathes and wayes, and neuer double nor crosse but verie little. And if he come to a hedge or a dytch, he will goe all alongst to seeke some brack or beaten leape, bicause he hath not force to leape it round­ly of him selfe. By all these tokens you may know when a deare is spent and readie to fall. Thus will I ende this chapter, pray­ing all expert huntsmen and masters of Uenerie to hold me ex­cused, if I haue ouerskipped, or left out any thing meete to be set downe, for as much as it is hard for any man to set down so wel in writing, as he might put it in execution. But always re­member that the Arte it selfe requireth great skyll, wit, and pol­licie, in a huntsman: and that he gouerne him selfe according to the varietie of occasions, and according to the presumptions that he shall see in the Deares wyles and subtleties: therewithall that he haue respect to the goodnesse or imperfection of the houndes, [Page 123] and to the crossings and doublings of the Deare together with the places where the same are made. And therevpon he maye make his ring, and cast about litle or much, according to the cō ­moditie of the place, time, & season. For houndes will moreouer shoot in the heate, and in the time that there is most sent vpon the herbes, flowres, and grasse, than at any other season of the yeare. And therefore at such times and places, you shall do well to cast about a greater compasse or circuite, and oftner also, seeking moyst and fresh places for the better sent and aduauntage of the houndes. Thus doing, you haue verie euill lucke if you lose a Hart by default: so that you will take paynes and giue not ouer for a little discomfort. Yea when you are ouertaken with the night, or that your houndes are surbayted and wearie, yet a good huntesman should not thereat be abashed, nor discomfited, but blemishe vpon the last Slot or viewe, and to him agayne in the morning.

VVHen a Hart is at Baye, it is dangerous to go in to him, & especially in rutting time. For at that time their heads are venomous & most perillous, & thervpon came this prouerbe. If thou be hurt with Hart, it brings thee to thy Beare, But Barbers hand wil Bores hurt heale, therof thou needst not feare.

The which hath not bin sayd for nothing, as hath bin proued by many examples. For we read of an Emperor named Basill, [Page 125] which had ouercome his enimies in many battels, and had done great deeds of Chiualrie in his Countrie, and was yet neuerthe­lesse slayne with an Harte in breaking of a Bay. Behold gentle Reader the vnconstancie of variable fortune. A Prince whiche had done so many deedes of prowesse amongst men: which had both comforted his [...], and discomforted his enimies: which had peaceably defended his people, and courageously assaulted suche as sought to subuert his dominion, was at the last in the pryde of his pleasure, in the pursute of his pastime, and in the vnexpected day of his destenie, vāq [...]ished, slayne, and gored with the hornes of a brute Beast: yea (that more is) by a fearefull beast, and such an one as durst not many dayes nor houres before haue beheld the coūtenance of the weakest mā in his kingdome: A Beast that fledde from him, and a beast whom he constreyned (in his owne defence) to do this detestable mu [...]der. This ex­ample may serue as a mirrour to al Princes and Potestates, yea and generally to all estates, that they brydle their mindes from proferyng of vndeserued iniuries, and do not constrayne the simple sakelesse man to stand in his owne defence, nor to do (like the worme) turne agayne when it is troden on. I woulde not haue my wordes wrested to this construction, that it were vn­lawfull to kill a Deare or such beasts of venerie: for so should I both speake agaynst the purpose which I haue taken in hande, and agayne I should seeme to argue against Gods ordināces, since it seemeth that suche beastes haué bene created to the vse of man and for his recreation: but as by all Fables some good mo­ralitie may be gathered, so by all Histories and examples, some good allegorie and comparison may be made. And to returne to the matter, I might recite many other stories and examples, but this may suffize to admonish all Huntesmen that they go wisely and warily to a Harte when he is at Baye: as hereafter I will more largely declare. You shall vnderstand then, that there are Bayes in the water and Bayes on the lande, and if an Harte be in a deepe water, where the Huntesman cannot come at him, the best thing that he can do, shalbe to couple vp his houndes, and that for many causes: for if they shoulde long continue in [Page 126] the water, it would put them in great daunger to founder and marre them, or if the water be broad & deepe, they might chaunce (through eagernesse of their game) to drown. For a Hart which is spent, will not willingly leaue a great water, when he seeth the hounds and the huntsmen come in to him, but will swimme vp and downe in the middest of the streame, and neuer come neare the bankes. And therefore I say the huntesman shall doe wel to take vp his hounds, and to stand close vpon a cleare wind vntill the Harte may come out of his owne free will, the whiche peraduenture he wil quickly do, when he heareth no longer noise after him. And if the huntesman stande clo [...]e and vpon a cleare winde, he may chance to haue a blowe at him with his sword [...] as he commeth out. But if he fayle thereof, and that the Hart be once past him, let him suffer him to passe farre inough before he vncouple his hounds, for if a Hart heare any sodeine noyse com­ming after him, he may chance to returne vnto the soyle. But if he perceiue that the Harte will not come out of the water, then let him get a boate, or if he can swymme, let him put off his clothes, and swymme to him with a Dagger readie drawne to kyll him, and yet let him well beware howe he assayle him, vn­lesse the water be verie deepe. For if it be so shallowe that an Hart may stande vpon the bottome, he may chaunce to giue the huntesman a shrewde blowe, if he take not heede at the [...]rst en­counter: marie where it is deepe he hath least force. It hath beene my happe oftentimes to kyll in this sorte verie great Hartes, and that in sight and presence of diuers witnesses, and afterwardes I haue guided their deade bodyes to the banke swymming. As touching the baye on the lande, if the Harte be frayed and burnished, then the huntsman ought well to regarde and consider the place. For if it be in a playne and open place, where there is no wood nor couert, it is daungerous and harde to come in to him: but if it be by an hedge side, or in a strong thirke or queadx, then whyles the Harte doth stare and looke vp­on the houndes, the huntesman may come couertly amongst the bushes behynde him, and so maye easily kyll him: and if the Harte turne heade vpon him, let him runne behynde some tree, [Page 127] or couer him selfe in the thycke quickly, or shake some [...] rudely and boysterously before him. Or else when you see an Hart at Baye, take vp the houndes, and when the Harte turneth heade to flee, galloppe roundely in, and before he haue ley sure to turne vpon you, it is a thing easie ynough to kyll him with your sworde.

VVHen the Harte is kylled, then all the huntesmen whiche be at fall of him, shall blowe a note, and whoupe also a deade note, to the ende that the rest of the companies with all the houndes may come in. Being assembled, and the Prince or chiefe hunter come also, they shall bryng the houndes to the Deare, and let them all to byte and teare him about the necke, then couple them vp vntyll their rewarde be prepared. Then the chiefe hunte shall take his knyfe, and cut off the Deares ryght foote before, and present it to the Kyng as you see it here por­tayed. And before they proceede any further, they must cut down good store of greene branches and boughes, and strewe them vp­on the grounde. Then shall they lay the Hart therevpon, laying him vpon his backe, with his foure feete vpwardes, and his head vnder his two shoulders, as you maye likewise see here por­trayed.

That being doone, make a little forke with one tyne longer than any other (as you may see also) vpon the which forke you maye hang all the dayntie morselles whiche appertayne to the Prince or chief personage on field. And before that you go about to take off his skynne, the fyrst thing that must be taken from him, are his stones which hunters call his doulcettes, and hang them on the forke by a little of their skynne: then let them begin to take of his skinne in this maner.

First you must beginne to slyt it at the throate, and so all along his bellye, vnto the place where you tooke awaye his [Page 128] doulcets, then take him by the right foote before, and cut the skin rounde aboute vnderneath the ioynt of the dewclawes, and then slit it from thence vnto the toppe of his brest, and do asmuch to the other forelegge: then slit and cut the skinne in like maner of the hinder legges vnto the toppe of the hanche, leauing at the place where you tooke away the doulcets: then beginne at euery legge, one after another to take of the skinne: & when you come at his sides you must let cleaue to the skinne, a thinne kinde of redde fleshe which hunters call the apparel of an Hart, the which groweth aboue the benison and betweene it and the skinne on both sides of his bodie. Thus when the skinne is cleane taken of sauing only at the head, eares, skut, and the Tewell (at all which places the skin must still haue hold,) before you go about to do any more, the chiefe Huntesman must call for a bolle of wine, and drinke a good harty draught: for if he shoulde breake vp the Deare before he drinke, the Uenison would stinke and putrifie. You shall also present before the Prince or chiefe personage in field, some fine sauce made with wine and spices in a fayre dishe vpon a chafyngdishe and coles, to the end that as he or she doth behold the huntesman breaking vp of the Deare, they may take theyr pleasure of the sweete deintie morsels, and dresse some of them on the coles, makyng them Carbonadies, and eating them with their sauce, reioycing and recreating their noble mindes with rehersall whiche hounde hunted best, and which huntesman hunted moste like a woodman: callyng theyr best fauoured hound [...]s and huntesmen before them, and rewarding them fa­uorably, as hath bene the custome of all noble personages to do. Then shall the huntesman take his knife in hande agayne and breake vp the Deare in this sorte: spreadyng the skinne on both sides vpon the greene leaues strewed for that purpose. Firste he shall take out the tongue, and put it vpon the Forke, for it ap­pertayneth to the Prince or to the chiefe personage: likewise two knottes or nuttes whiche are to be taken betwene the necke and the shoulders, and twoo others whiche are in the flankes of the Deare, and are called flankardes, and hang them vpō the Forke: this beyng done, he shall first take out the right shoulder with [Page 129] his shoulder knyfe, the which perteineth to the huntsman which harbored him. Then next that other shoulder pertayneth to the rest of the huntesmen. Then must he take the Brysket bone and the flappes which hang with it vnto the necke, and that pertay­neth also to him that harbored and rowzed him. Then shall he make his arbour and take out the panch, and cut off the Deares Pyssell, which is medicinable. Afterwardes he shall take the sweete pudding (which is the fat gut that goeth to the Deares tewell) and the vppermost gut next the stomacke, and turne and clenze them both whiles they be hote, and put them on the forke, for they appertayne to the best personage.

All these being doone, you shall take the Harts heart, and slyt it in sunder, taking out a bone which is therein, and rayse the Noombles from his fillets, and betweene his hand [...]s, and so vp to the mydryffe betweene the bloudboulke and the sides, leauing the rauens morsell (which is the gryssell at the spoone of the bris­ket) and giue two gashes on ead [...] side of the brysket, to shew the goodnesse of the fleshe. And you shall take from the Noombles three knots or nuts, which are betweene them and the sides, and are called cynq and quatre. Those pertayne to the chiefe huntes­man, ehe Noombles, hand [...]s aud tenderlings (which are the soft toppes of his hornes when they are in bloud) doe pertayne to the Prince or chiefe personage. The necke and the chyne being taken from the sides, reserue the sides for the Prince, the necke for the Uarlet of the kennell, and the chyne for the Uarlet that keepes the bloude hounde.

THe houndes shall be rewarded in this maner. First let the bloude houndes be present when you breake vp the Deare, that they may see him broken vp, and let them be tyed or made fast to some tree or bough, so farre one from ano­ther that they fight not. Then the huntsman which harbored the Harte, shall take the cabaging of the heade, and the heart of the Deare to reward his bloud hound first, fór that honor pertaineth [Page 131] to him: when he hath done, he shall deliuer it to the rest, that they may likewise rewarde theirs: that done they shal syt downe and drinke, whiles the Uarlets of the kennell prepare the rewarde for their houndes, and that maye be made in two sortes. Firste some vse immediately assone as the Hart is deade, (the huntsi [...]ē hauing blowne to assemble the rest vnto his fall) to alight from their horses, and take off the Deare skinne from his necke whilst it is hote, and when they haue well skotd [...]d it with their wood­kniues, that the houndes may the more easily teare off the fleshe, they rewarde the houndes with that and the braynes all hote and bleeding: and surely those rewardes are much better than others which are giuen afterwardes colde when they come home, and will much better flesh and encourage the hounds. But the re­wards which are made at home (which are called cold rewards) are thus giuen. The varlets of the ken [...]ell take bread, and cut it into gobbets into a pan, cutting cheese likewise in gobbets with it: then take they the blud of y^• deare, and sprinkle it vpō the bread and cheese, vntill the breade and cheese be all bloudy: and then they take a great bolle of mylke warme, and mingle it altoge­ther. Afterwardes they shall spread the skynne vpon the ground in some faire place, and put out this reward vpon it. Remem­ber that you let it not abyde long in the pan, for then the milke will turne and be sowre. When it is thus prepared, put the caba­ging of the heade in the midst amongst it, and haue a payle or tub of fresh water in a readinesse neare to the reward, to let your houndes lappe in when they are rewarded. Then you shall set the head vpon a staffe (which must be smothe and cleane for hur­ting of the houndes) and let one of the Uarlets carie it an hun­breth paces from you. Then the Prince or chiefe shall begin to blow and to hallow for the hounds, bicause that honor with all others appertaine vnto y^e Prince or chief personage. And if he or [...]e ca not or wil not do it thēselues, let thē appoint who shal do it as for their honor. Afterwards all the huntsmen shal take their hornes and blowe, and hallowe to the houndes to reioyce them. In this meane while the Uarlet of the kennell shall stande [...] the rewarde with twoo wandes (in eache hande one) [Page 132] [...]o keepe the houndes backe vntill they be all come about [...]nd when they are all baying and calling on about him, l [...] [...]nd from the rewarde, and suffer the houndes to eate it. [...]n they haue almost eaten it vp, let him whiche hold [...]res heade, hallowe and crye, Heere againe boyes, h [...] [...]haw, haw. &c. Then the Uarlets of the kennel which stand [...]he reward, must rate away the houndes, and make them [...]m that halloweth. Then he shall shewe them the heade [...]e Deare, lifting it vp and downe before them to make [...] baye it: and when he hath drawne them al about him bayi [...] shall cast downe the heade amongst them that they may [...] their pleasure thereon. Then shall he leade them backe a [...] to the skynne, and turne the skynne vpon them (being cold then kennell them vp. Consider that it shall be best to k [...] them immediately, for else if they should runne about an uell, it would make them cast vp their rewarde againe. [...] warde being thus giuen and fynished, the Uarlet and may go to drinke.

Although mine Aucthor were a Frenchman, & in Fraunce the hunting of the Bucke is nothing so common as the hunting of the Harte is, yet somewhat he hath written thereof, the which (together with some experience of mine owne) I haue thought good here to place next vnto the hunting of the Harte.

It is needelesse to write what difference of heare, head, and other proportions, there are betweene the Harte and the Bucke, since bothe kindes of Uenerie are common inough in this our noble Countrie. The Bucke is fawned in the end of May, and hath all properties common with an Harte, but that the Harte goeth sooner to the Rut, and is sooner in greace, for when a Hart hath bene. xiiij. dayes at Rut, then the Bucke doth but scarcely beginne: there is not so muche skill to be vsed in lodgyng of a Bucke, as in harboring of a Harte, nor needeth to vse somuch drawing after him: but onely to iudge by the view and marke what groue or couert he goeth into, for he will not wander nor royle so farre aboute as a Harte, nor change layre so often: and yet we vse here in England to lodge the Bucke as wee vse to harbor the Harte, for the Bucke is much commoner with vs than the Harte. He maketh his fewmishing in sundrie maners and formes as the Harte dothe, according to the seazon of the feede that he findeth, but most cōmonly they are round: when they are hunted they flie into [...]rch strong couertes as they haue bene most accustomed vnto, and neuer flee so farre before the houndes, nor double, crosse, nor vse suche and so many subtile policies as an Harte doth. For he turneth backe vpon the houndes oftentimes, and escheweth the high wayes as muche as he may, especially in the open playnes: he is sometimes killed at Soyle as an Harte doth, and will beate a Brooke or Riuer, but not so craftely nor can so long endure therein, nor dare take suche great riuers and waters as the Harte will, he leapeth lightlier at the Rut than an Harte, and groyneth as an Harte belloweth, but with a baser boyce ratlyng in the throte: the Harte & he loue not one another, [Page 142] but do one of them eschewe anothers layre: they are sweeter of Sent vnto the houndes than the Harte or the Rowdeare, and yet some thinke that the Rowe is the sweetest chase that is, but at least theyr flesh is more delicate: and therefore if a hounde haue once fedde thereon, he will loue it aboue all other chases. The venyson of a Bucke is very dayntie, good meate, & is to be dres­sed (in manner) lyke to the venyson of an Harte: but the Hartes fleshe wilbe longer preserued: the Bucke will hearde more than the Harte, and lieth in the dryest places: but if he be at large out of a Parke, he will heard but little frō the moneth of May, vntill the end of August, or very neare, bycause the flie troubleth him: they loue the hilly places well, but they muste haue dales and bottomes to feede in: wee hunte the Bucke euen as wee hunte the Harte: sauyng that it is not needefull to lay so many relayes, nor to lay out so farre. Bycause he fleeth not so farre out, but wheeleth and keepeth the couert as is before declared. The greatest subtiltie that a huntesman hath neede to beware of in huntyng the Bucke, is to keepe his houndes from huntyng counter or chaunge, bycause we haue plentie of Fallow deare, and they come oftener directly backe vpon the houndes than a redde deare doth: the breakyng vp and rewarde are all one with the breakyng vp and reward of an Harte.

THe Rowe is a beast well knowen and easie to hunte, and yet fewe huntesmen know his nature: he goeth to Rut in October: and remayneth therein fiftene dayes, he neuer cō ­panieth but with one make, and they neuer part vntil the Row­doe haue fawned. Then the Doe parteth from the Buck & faw­neth as farre from him as she can, for if he finde it, he will kill the fawne: but when the fawne is great that he can runne and feede, then the Doe returneth to the bucke & accompa [...]ieth with him againe louingly. Yea and they will make asmuch haste to returne togethers as may be, the cause whereof is y^t a Row doe doth most cōmonly fawne two at once: & they be cōmonly also h [...]cke & Doe, so that being accustomed togethers in youth, they [Page 143] do loue to keepe company euer after. Some Row doe hath bin killed with fiue fawnes in hyr, bodie at once, which is a strange thing in so smal a beast. And here I thought good to note vnto you that a fawne of a Rowe, is called the first yeare a Kidde: the second a Gyrle: the third yeare an Hemuse: the fourth a Rowe bucke of the first head: and the fifth yeare a Rowebucke and no more. Assoone as a Rowebucke cōmeth from Rut he casteth his hornes, and few of them after they be paste two yeares olde, do fayle to mew at Alhollantide: their heades grow out againe ve­ry quickly for they fray them cōmonly in March: you may hunt him at all times alike, for his venyson is neuer fat, nor neuer out of season: they hide their heads in mosse, when they haue cast and mewed them: all the fauour that shoulde be shewed vnto the Rowe deare, is vnto the Does when they are with fawne, and vntil their fawnes be able to liue without thē. They make mar­uelous good chase and stand vp long, and flee farre endwayes, and their fleshe is good meate: you shall hardly know them ey­ther by their foote or fewmettes: they see not very perfectly, nor beare any great venison: that is to say, they be not very fat, vn­lesse it be inwards: their kidneyes will sometimes be hidde with fat, and then are they in great pryde of greace. When they are hunted they turne much and come often directly backe vpon the dogges, and whē they may no more endure, they flee to the wa­ter, and beate the water like an Harte, wherein they will hang by some bough all vnder the water but their very snowte, & wil neuer stirre vntill a man or a hounde come euen vpon them: he keepeth in the strong thickets, and commonly in the highest groundes: sometimes also in the playnes but that very seldome. The Rut of a Rowe deare is properly (amongst hunters) cal­led his turne, as to say the Rowe goeth in his Tourne. His cros­sings and doublings before the houndes are called Traso­nings. He is not called a greate Rowebucke, but a fayre Row­bucke: the heard of them is called a Beauie: if he haue Beauie greace vpon his tayle when you breake him vp, then is he veni­son: otherwise he is meeter for to be giuen whole to the hoūdes than to be dressed for your dishe: the hounds muste be rewarded [Page 144] with the bowels, the bloud, and the feete slit in sunder and boy­led altogether, it is not called a rewarde but a dole: of all other things necessarie to be vnderstoode for the huntyng of a Row­deare, I haue sufficiently spoken in the hunting of an Harte, and the hunting of a Bucke.

THe Raynedeare is a beast like vnto an Harte, but great di­uersitie in their heades: for a Raynedeares head, is fuller of antlyers and much bigger and wyder in co [...]passe: he beareth foure and twentie braunches or more, according to his age: he hath a great pawme on the Toppe like a Harte: and his antliers before are paw [...]ed also: he flieth endwayes when he is hunted by reason of the great weight of his head: but whē he hath stoode vp a great whyle and hath crossed, doubled, and vsed all his pol­licies, then he settes his backe and haunches agaynst some Tree that nothing may assayle him but onely before, and holdes his head lowe to the grounde: and then fewe dare come neare him, and his head couereth all his bodie. If any man come in to helpe the houndes behinde him, then whereas a Harte will strike with his antlyer, he striketh with his feete, but not so great a blowe, yet he wilbe sure neuer to turne his head, for that is his chiefe de­fence: He is terrible to see bothe for hounde and greyhounde by reason of his great huge head, he is not much higher thā a bucke, but he is greater and thicker: when he rayseth vp his head, it is much wider and broder then his bodie is: he feedeth lyke a Hart, and maketh his fewmets, sometimes round and sometimes flat, he liueth very long, and is killed with houndes, bowes, nettes, and other such engines: he beareth fatter venison when he is in pryde of greace then any other Deare doth: he goeth to Rut af­ter the Harte lyke a fallow Deare, and fawneth like as other deare fawne: he is seldome hunted at force, nor with houndes, but onely drawen after with a bloudhound and forestalled with nettes and engines, and that in the thicke and greatest holdes if you can, for so shall you soonest ouercome him by reason of his [Page 145] great head whiche combreth him. I will treate no more of him, bicause I do not remember that I euer heard of any in this ou [...] Realme of England: it may be that there be some in Ireland: And therefore I thought not a [...]isse thus to place him amongst the beastes of Uenerie, although he be not here in vse.

THere are two sortes of wilde Goates, the one are called euen so, wild Goates: and that other sorte is called [...]arus or Sa­ris. And although I haue not heard or redde that there be any of them in England, or at least any that be hunted, yet bycause it may be well ynough that there are some in Wales or in other Mountaynes, I haue thought good to set downe the nature of him, and the manner of hunting of him, as I founde it in mine Aucthor, placing him amongst the beasts of Uenerie, since it ap­peareth by the holy Scriptures that his fleshe is Uenison. The wilde Goate is as bigge as an Harte, but he is not so long, nor so long legged, but they haue as much fleshe as the Harte hath, they haue wreathes and wrinkles on their hornes whereby their age is knowē: for so many yeares old as he is, so many wreaths you shall finde about his horne: and as a Harte meweth and ca­steth his head, so doth the wilde Goate mew his wreathes & re­new them, but he meweth not the beame, the whiche is as bigge as a mans legge if he be an old Goate. They haue a great long beard, & are brownish grey of colour like vnto a Wolf, and very shaggie, hauing a blacke list all alongst the chyne of their backe, & downe to theyr bellie is fallow, their legges blacke, and their [...]ayle fallowe: their feete are like the feete of a tame Goate: the print and tracke wherof is great broade & rounde, rather bigger than the Slot of an Harte: theyr bones be accordyng to the big­nesse of a tame Goate, but somwhat greater: they are fawned in May, & fawne as a Hinde or Doe, but they haue but one fawne at once, the which they suckle and bryng vp as the tame Goate bringeth vp hir kidde. Their feede is of corne and grasse as other Deare feede: but they will eate Iuie, mosse and suche like feede [Page 146] that is harde, better than any other Deare. In spring they make their feromets rounde, but afterwardes they make them broder and flatte, as a Harte doth when he comes to good feede. There is iudgemēt to be takē by their fe [...]mets, either round or [...]latte, euen as there is of an Harte: they go to Rut about Alhal­lantide, and abide therin a moneth: when their Rut is past they put thē [...]lues in heards and come downe frō the mountaynes & rockes, where they abide al the Sōmer: and that aswel to eschew the Snow, as also bicause they find no foode on the mountaynes any longer: and yet they come not very lowe into the playnes, but keepe about the foote of the mountaynes, and there seeke foo [...] vntil it be towards Easter: then they returne to the mountaines, and euery one of them takes him to his holde or strongest couert vpon the rockes & cragges, euen as the Hartes keepe the thickes. Then the he Goates part frō the female (which are called Geats, and the buckes Goates) and the Geats drawe neare to some little brooke or water to fawne, & to abide there al the sommer. When the Goates be so parted frō the Geats, attending vntill the time of their Rut returne, they runne vpō either man or beasts whiche passe by them, and fight one with another as Hartes do, but not altogether a like: for these make an vnpleasant noyse, & they hurt sore with their blowes, not with the endes of their hornes, but with the middest & Butte of their head: in such sorte that they do oftentimes brea [...]e a mās legge or his arme at a blowe: & though he woundeth not with his blowe, yet if he beare a man agaynst a tree or a banke, he will surely kill him: and suche force hath he also in the chyne of his backe, that though a man (how strong so­euer he be) should strike him with a barre of yron ouerthwarte the reynes, he will go on and neuer shrinke at it. When he go­eth to Rut, his throte and necke is maruelous great: he hath such a propertie that although he fall tenne poles length downe from an high, he will take no hurte thereby: and he goeth as surely vpon the toppe of a rocke, as a Hor [...]e will go in an high way. They clime maruelously for theyr feede, and sometimes they fal, then can they not hold with their feete, but thrust out their heads against the rockes and hang by their hornes vntill they haue re­couered [Page 147] themselues vp againe. That kinde of thē which is called [...] or Saras, is of like proportion to this which I haue already described, and is not much bigger than the tame Goate. His na­ture and properties are (in maner) all one with the wilde Goate. Sometimes he would skrat his thyghes with his soote, and thru­steth his hoofes in so farre, that he cannot draw thē backe agame, but falleth and breaketh his necke, for his hoofes of his feete are crooked, and he thrusteth them farre into the skinne, and then they will not come out agayne. When they come frō their feede, they go to the rockes & lie vpon the hardest places that they can finde. The Gawle both of this sorte and that other, is very good for si­newes that be shrunke vp, when they are great & old, they are but too too fat venyson, especially within the bodie. The Geates haue hornes like the Goates in all respectes, but not so great: bothe sortes of them haue their seazon & greace time, like vnto the Hart goyng to Rut at Alhallantide: then you may hunte them vntill theyr Rutting time come, for in winter they are very leane, fee­ding vpō nothing but Pynes & Fyrretrees, or such other woodes as are alwayes greene, howe little nouriture soeuer they yeelde. Their leather is warme when it is carried in season, for neyther cold nor rayne will pearce it, if the hearie side be outwards: their fleshe is not very holesome, but breedeth the feuer through the a­bundant heate that is in it: neuerthelesse when they are in season, the venison of them is reasonable delicate to eate.

THe best time to hunt the wilde Goate, is at Alhallontide, and the huntesman muste tic by night in the high mountaynes in some shepeheardes [...]abane, or such cottage: and it were good that he lay so seu [...]n or eight dayes before he meane to hunte, to see the aduantages of the coastes, the Rockes, & places where the goates do lie, & all such other circūstances: & let him sct nettes & toylcs, or forestallings, towards the riuers & bottomes, euen as he would do for an Harte: for he may not looke y^e his hou [...]s will folow y^e Goate downe euery place of y^e moūtaines. if he haue not hewers [Page 148] nor Huntesmen ynow to set rounde aboute: then let him place his copanions on the toppes of the Rockes, that they may throw downe stones, and shoote with Crossebowes at the Goates: a Huntesman shall seeke thē and draw after them with his bloud­hounde, euen as he doth after an Harte, and then cast off foure or siue couple of houndes to maynteyne the crie, & shall make three or foure relayes to refresh those houndes which are first cast off: for when his houndes haue once or twice climed vp the Moun­taynes & cliffes, they wil be so hote and so sore spēt, that they can hunte no longer: then the Goate goeth downe to the small brookes or waters in the bottomes, and therfore at such places it shalbe best setting of relayes, and let the relayes neuer tarie vn­till the houndes come in, whiche were first cast off, for it wilbe long sometimes before they come in: and yet there are some lu­stie yong houndes which will neuer giue ouer a Goate nor suf­fer him to take Soyle. This chase requireth no great Arte nor following, neyther can a mā follow on foote nor on horsebacke. The best help is in the Relayes which shalbe set in the bottoms, and for the reward, it may be done at pleasure and deuise of the Huntesman, alwayes prouided that he rewarde not the houndes with the best morselles.

HAuing described the hunting of an Harte, and al other deare according to my simple skill, I haue thought good to set downe here a little treatyse of the huntyng at the wilde Bore, and of his properties: although he ought not to be coumpted a­mongstYet our Try­stram recke­neth the Bore for one of the foure beasts of Venerie. the Beasts of Uenerie which are chasable with hoūdes, for he is the proper pray of a Mastif and such like dogges, for as­much as he is a heauie beast, and of greate force, trusting & affy­ing himself in his Tuskes & his strength, and therefore will not so lightly flee nor make chase before houndes, so that you cannot (by hunting of the Bore) know y^e goodnesse or swiftnesse of thē, [Page 149] and therewithall to confesse a truth, I thinke it greate pitie to hunte (with a good kenell of houndes) at such chas [...] [...]d that for such reasons and considerations as followe.

First he is the only beast which can dispatch a hounde at one blow, for though other beastes do bite, snatch, teare, or rende your houndes, yet there is hope of remedie if they be well attended: but if a Bore do once strike your hounde and light betweene the foure quarters of him, you shall hardely see him escape: and therewithall this subtiltie he hath, that if he be runne with a good kenell of houndes, which he perceyneth holde in rounde and fol­lowe him harde, he will flee into the strongest thicket that he can finde, to the ende he may kill them at leysure one after an­other, the whiche I haue seene by experience oftentimes. And a­mongst others I sawe once a Bore chased and hunted with fif­tie good houndes at the least, and when he sawe that they were all in full crie, and helde in rounde togethers, he turned heade vpon them, and thrust amiddest the thickest of them. In suche sorte that he slewe sometimes fire or seuen (in manner) with twinklyng of an eye: and of the fiftie houndes there went not twelue sounde and aliue to their Masters houses. I gayne if a kennell of houndes be once vsed to hunte a Bore, they will be­come lyther, and will neuer willingly hunte fleing chases a­gayne. For asmuche as they are (by him) accustomed to hunte with more ease, and to find great Sent. For a Bore is a beast of a very hote Sent, and that is contrarie to light fleing chases, which are hunted with more payne to the hounde, and yet there­with do not leaue so greate Sent. And for these causes who so euer meaneth to haue good hoūdes for an Harte, Hare, or Row­deare, let him not vse them to hunte the Bore: but since men are of sundrie opinions, and loue to hunte suche chases as lie moste commodiously aboute their dwelling places, I will here de­scribe the propertie of the Bore, and how they may hunte him. And the manner of killing him either with the sworde or Bore­speare, as you shall also see it set out in portrayture hereafter in his place.

THe Bore is of this nature, that when his Dame dothe pigge him, he hath as many teeth, as euer he will haue whyles he liueth, neyther will their teeth any way multiplie or encrease but onely in greatnesse and length. Amongst the reste they haue foure, whiche (with the Frenchmen) are called Defences: and we call them Tuskes or Tusches, whereof the two highest do not hurte when he striketh, but serue onely to whet the other two lowest: but with those lower Tuskes, they stryke mar­nelously and kill oftentymes: if a Bore happen to haue his eyes blemished, or to hurte them daungerously, he will heale agayne very soone. A Bore may liue fiue and twentie, or thirtie yeares: it is easier to bryng them into a Soyle in Aprill or in Maye, than in any other season: and that is bycause they sleepe sound­lyer in those two moneths than at any other tyme of the yeare: for asmuch as they feede then vppon strong hearbes and buddes of trees, which do so moisten their braynes that they become very sleepy. Againe the spring time reneweth their bloud, which ma­keth them sleepe the more soundly. They go to Rut aboute the moneth of December, and their great heate endureth neare about three weekes. And although their Sowes become colde agayne and couet not the Bore, yet do not the Bores parte from them vntill it be Ianuarie, then they withdraw themselues vnto their holdes, wherein they keepe close sometimes three or foure dayes together and neuer come out, especially when they haue found [...] the [...], and do finde sweetenesse in the roote of the Fearne. Sometimes a Bore will wander farre out of the Forrestes or thicke couerts to seeke feedyng: especially in time of the vintage in suche Countries as wine is made: and wheresoeuer they be­come when day appeareth, there will they abyde without respect of the place. It suffiseth if they finde but some tuffte of thornes or brambles, and there will they lie vntill it be night agayne: [Page 151] they harken earnestly and will heare a man very farre off, espe­cially when they be vnder the winde, but if they be vp the winde, heare not greatly. They lyue and feede vpon all kinde of Corne and Frutes, as Apples, Peares, Plummes, Akehornes, Chest­nuttes, Beechmaste, and suche lyke, and of all sortes of root [...]s al­so, vnlesse it be Rapes and Nauie rootes. Also in Apryll and May they feede on the buddes of Plumtrees, & Chestnut trees, and all other sweete buddes that they can finde, especially vpon the buddes of broome and Iuniper, they will feede on no carion vnlesse it be of a deade Horse: they neuer become sowle or me­sled (as wee terme it) lyke vnto our tame Swyne. When they are in the marishes, they feede and lyue vppon water Cresseys, wilde Garlyke, and suche hearbes as they can finde. Beyng neare to the Sea coaste, they will feede vppon all kinde of shel­fishes, as Cockles, Muskles, Oysters, and suche lyke. Their sea­son beginneth in the middest of September, and endeth aboute the beginnyng of December when they go to the Rutte: com­monly a Bore wyll abyde the baye before he go out of his denne, and they lie moste commonly in the strongest holdes of Thornes, and thicke Bushes: and when they are hunted they sticke also in the strongest couertes, and will seldome leaue them vntill it be darke night. And if it chaunee that there be a Sownder of them together, then if any one breake Sownder, the reste will followe the same way. The Bore dothe sooner forsake the hollow Forestes to seeke strong couerts, than the Harte dothe: therevpon it hath bene spoken in Prouerbe, that a Bore is but a gest: and if a Bore be in a thicke or strong couert, beyng come thyther from a hollow woode or Forrest, then if you hunte him, he will not fayle to go backe by the same way that he came thether: and when soeuer they are once reared, they flee continually & neuer stay vntill they come to the place where they were farrowed and brought vp, for there they thinke thēselues in sa [...]egarde. This haue I seene by experiēce by a Bore, whiche hath come fro [...] his accustomed denne to seeke feede, and beyng hunted he went immediately & directly backe [...] [...] [Page 154] close and rowteth not, then shall you say he graseth: these termes you maye vse in making report of a Bore.

COmmonly a man maye knowe an olde Bore or a great swyne, by the foote where he hath gone, whereof the print or forme ought to be great and large, the toes rounde and thicke, the edge of his hoofe worne and blunt, without cutting or paring the grounde, so much as a younger swyne doth: the heele great, the gardes (which are his hinder clawes or dewclawes) should be great and open one from another, vpon the which he beareth and stayeth him all the waye when he goeth vpon harde ground: his footing behynde should be troden sidewardes, and more outwardes than his forefeete, to shewe the thicknesse be­tweene his thyghes. The pleytes or wrincles which are be­tweene his heele and dewelawes, should leaue print or forme on the ground, shewing the stifnesse and thicknesse of his haire: his steppes great and long, the treading of his foote should be deepe and great, to shewe the weightinesse of his body.

VVHen a Bore rowteth in a hedge, for a roote (which some cal the Parke) then may you perceiue the greatnesse and length of his head, by the depthe and largenesse of his rowting. So may you also knowe in soft places where he wormeth, or in such other places.

VVHen he soyleth and walloweth him in the myre, then is it easie to know his gretnesse, by the length & largenesse of the soyle. Or else at his departure-from the soyl, you may per­ceiue it where he hath gone into some thicke, by the leaues and braundrs which he shall touch: for he goeth out of the soyle all [Page 155] my [...]rie and dyrtie, the which will leaue markes vpon the leaues and branches of his heigth, thicknesse. &c. Sometimes when he commeth out of the soyle, he will rub him against a tree, by the w [...]ich you may see his heigth: and also he will commonly giue two or three blowes with his tuskes vpon the tree, as it were the staus of a dagger, whereby the huntesman may take iudgement and knowledge as well of his heigth, as also of the greatnes [...]e of his tuskes. You may knowe and iudge also by his denne: for a great Bore when he is at pryme of his greace, wil make his d [...] deepe: and at his going out thereof, will make hi [...] lesses (which is his ordure) and by the greatnesse and length thereof you maye iudge the Bore. These lesses shal neuer be brought to an assem­bly, but let the huntsman content himselfe with the sight of them in places where he findeth them.

THe difference betwene wylde swyne and our hogs is great, and that in sundry respects. First they are commonly blacke, or grissed and streaked with blacke: whereas oures are whyte, sanded, and of all coloures. Therewithall the wylde swyne in their gate, doe alwayes set the hinderfoote within the forefoote, or very neare, and stay them selues more vpon the toe than vpon the heele, shutting their clawes before close: and cōmonly they strike their gardes (which are their dewclawes) vpon the grounde, the which sway outwards: & the sides of their hoofs do cut & pare the ground, the which our swyne do not, for they sprea [...]e and open their foreclawes, leauing ground betwene them: and they be cō ­monly round and worne, leaning & staying more vpon the heele than vpon the toe. Againe, they set not their hinderfoote within their forefoote, and their gards fall straight vpon the ground and neuer shoyle or leane outwards: & they do beate down & foyle y^e ground, and cut it not. Also the soale of their feete is fleshy, and maketh no plaine print vpon the ground as the wilde swine do. There is likewise great difference in their to w [...]ings: for a wild swine doth rowt deeper, bicause his snowt is longer: and w [...]en [Page 156] they come into corne fieldes they follow a furrow, rowting and worming all alongst by some balke, vntill they come to the end. But tame swyne rowte heere and there all about the fielde, and neuer followe their rowting as the wylde swyne do. Likewise you may know them by the difference of their feedings in corne growne: for the wilde swyne beare downe the corne rounde a­bout them in one certaine place, and tame swyne feede scatte­ring here and there.

ALthough some hunters holde opinion, that there is small iudgement to be taken of the difference betweene male and female, being yong swyne that yet do keepe the soun­der: Yet haue I obserued diuers differences in my time, where­by you may knowe the male from the female, yea were they but pigges of a yeare olde following the dammes, whereof I will shewe myne opinion in this sort. The male pigges following the damme, doe commonly scatter further abroade than the fe­males doe, and will nouzle and turne vp the grounde tenne or twelue paces further of from their dammes than the females do, and that (thinke I) is bycause they are hardier than the females are, for they followe the damme as close as they can, and dare not scatter abroade as the males do. You may iudge them also by their gate, for euerie male pigge or hogge, goeth broder with his hinder legges than the female do: and commonly they set the tracke or print of the hinder foote, vpon the outer side of the print of the forefoote, by reason of the thicknesse that he beares betwene the thyghes more than the female, for the female is leaner be­twene the legges, and goeth closer in hir gate. You may also knowe them by their gardes, for the male hath them commonly greater, and nearer to his heele than the female, whiche beareth them high, short, and loose, one being neare vnto an other, and therefore she striketh not hir gardes on the grounde so often as the male doth, yea though she doe, the print of them is but small [Page 157] and sleight, and spoyleth not outwards like the male. Also com­monly the female hath not so great an heele as the male, and hath hir clawes longer and sharper before, and openyng wyder than the male. Also the soales of hir hinder feete, are lesser and straighter than the males be.

YOu shall not by your wil hunt a yong Bore of three yeares at force. For he will stand vp as long or longer than a light yong Deare, which beareth but three in the toppe. But when he is in his fourth yeare, then maye you hunt him at force, euen as well as an Hart of tenne: and yet he wil stande vp rather loger. Wherfore if a hunts [...]an do goe to reare a Bore of foure yeares olde, he shall do well to marke well whether he went timely to his den or not. For commonly these Bores which tarie till it be day light before they go into their co [...]ches or dennes, following their pathes or ways long time, especially where they find ferne or beche, whervpon they feede, are great murtherers of dogs, and verie hardy. The hunt [...]man shall not neede to be afrayde to come ouer neare vnto such a Bore for rearing of him, for he will not likely be reared for him. But if he find of a Bore which soy­leth oftentimes, and which routeth now here, & now there, neuer staying long vpon one place, then is it a token that he hath bene s [...]arred, and withdraweth himself to some resting place at al ad­uentures. And such bores most cōmonly come to their dens, cou­ [...]hes, or holds, two or three houres before day. Then let the hunts­man beware for comming ouer neare to them, for if they once finde him in the winde, or haue the wynde of his hounde, they will be gone, and he shall hardely come neare them agayne, nor finde them. If a Bore meane to tarie and abyde in his denne, couche, or fort, then maketh he some doubling, or crossing at the entrie thereof vppon some highe way or beaten pathe, and then goeth into his holde, to lay him downe in his couche or denne: and by such meanes a huntsman being earely in the woods, may iudge the subtlet [...]e or craft of the Bore, and according to that [Page 158] which he shall perceiue, he maye prepare to hunt with houndes which are hote or temperate. For if it be a great Bore, and one that hath lyne long at rest, he shall do well to hunte him with houndes that will sticke to him: and let the huntsmen on horse­backe be euer amongest them, charging the Bore, and forcing him as muche as they maye to discourage him: for if you hunte suche a Bore with foure or fyue couple of houndes, he will make small account of them, and when they haue a little chafed him, he will take courage, and keepe them styll at Bayes, run­ning vpon any thing that he seeth before him: but if he perceiue him selfe charged and hard layd vnto with houndes and huntes­men, then he will become astonyed, and lose courage, and then he is enforced to flee and to seeke the cuntrey abroad. You must set Relayes also, but that muste be of the staunchest and best olde houndes of the kennell: for if you shoulde make your Relayes with young houndes, and suche as are swyfte and rashe, then when a Bore is any thing before the rest of the houndes in chace, he might easily kyll them in their furic, at their first comming in to him. But if he be a Bore whiche is accustomed to flee end­wayes before the houndes, and to take the champayne countrey, then you shall cast of but foure or fyue couple of houndes at the [...]irst, and set all the rest at Relayes, about the entrie of the fieldes where you thinke likely that he will flee. For suche a Bore will [...]ldome keepe houndes at a Baye, vnlesse he be forced: and if he do stande at Baye, the huntesmen must ryde in vnto him as secretely as they can without muche noyse, and when they be neare him, let them cast rounde about the place where he stan­deth, and runne vpon him all at once, and it shall be harde if they giue him not one skotch with a sworde, or some wounde with a Borespeare: and let them not stryke lowe, for then they shall commonly hit him on the snoute, bycause he watcheth to take all blowes vpon his Tuskes or there aboutes. But let them lift vp their handes hygh, and stryke right downe: and let them beware that they stryke not towardes their horses, but that other waye: For on that side that a Bore feeleth him selfe hurte, he turneth heade strayght wayes, whereby he might the sooner hurt or kyll [Page 159] their horses, if they stroke towardes them. And if they be in the playne, then let [...]ast a cloake about their horses, and they maye the better ryde about the Bore, and stryke at hym as they passe: but staye not long in a place. It is a certayne thing experi­mented and founde true, that if you hang belles vpon collers about your houndes neckes, a Bore will not so soone stryke at them, but flee endwayes before them, and sildome stand at Bay.

I Might well mainteine that of all chases, the Hare maketh greatest pastime and pleasure, and she weth most running in hunting, and is meetest for gentlemen of all other hun­tings, for that they may find them at all times, and hunt them at most seasons of the yeare, and that with small charges. And a­gaine, bicause their pastime shall be alwayes in sight, whereby they may iudge the goodnesse of their houndes, without great paines or trauell. Also it is great pleasure to beholde the subtil­tie of the little poore beaste, and what shift she can make for hir [...]lfe. Wherefore the hun [...]n must be wary and wise to marke [Page 163] hit subtilties, the which I haue predicted much, and therefore I am the bolder to set downe in wryting suche [...] as I haue seene, knowne, and made. First the hunte [...]man which shall be nexte the houndes, shall looke and marke [...]any thinges when the Hare riseth out of [...]ir forme. As first what weather it is. For if it be raynie weather, then the Hare will holde the high wayes more than at any other time. And if she come to the side of any yong spring or groue, she will not lightly goe in, but will con­uey hir selfe, and squat vnder the side thereof, untill the houndes haue ouershot hir: and then she will returne the self [...] same waye that she came, vnto the place where she was start or put vppe, for she will not willingly goe into any couert, bycause of the dewe and wet that hangeth vpon the lowe twigges. In suche a case, the huntesman shall doe well, to tarie and staye an hun­dreth paces before he come to the woodes sides, and then he shall see hir if she come right backe as before sayde. Then maye he hallowe in his houndes and call them backe: for else it woulde be harde to make it out. Whē a Hare doth so as before sayd, by­cause an hound will scarcely beleeue that the Hare were gone directly backwardes, therefore the Huntesman shall doe well to hallowe them in before they go any further: for else they will rather iudge it to be the counter as she came first.

Nexte to this, a huntesman muste marke in what place the Hare sitteth, and vpon what wynde she made hir forme. For if she forme eyther vpon the North wynde, or vpon the South winde, she will not willingly runne into the winde, but will runne vpon a syde wynde, or else downe the wynde. Also if an Hare doe forme in the water, it is a token that she is foule and mesled. In hunting of suche an Hare, lette the huntesmen take good heede all the daye vnto the Brookes sides, for suche an Hare will make all hir crossings, doublings, &c. vppon Brookes sides and plashes. Agayne, a huntesman [...]uste marke whe­ther it be a bucke Hare or a female, and whether she be wonted to the place where she sat, or a passenger: The which he maye knowe by suche obseruations as I haue before rehearsed: for doubtlesse, a Hare whiche is bred and wonted to a certaine place, [Page 164] and especially a female Hare, (if a huntesman doe marke the first waye that she bendeth, or the firste compasse that she bendeth when she parteth first from the forme) will all the daye long holde the same wayes, and cast about the same coastes, and passe through the same muses vntill hir death or escape: vnlesse it be as I sayde, some Bucke which be come from some other place, or that the houndes runne him so harde, that he be enforced to make out endwayes before the houndes, and so to goe out of his haunt, the which they will all do commonly, by that time that they be well runne two houres without default. But at the fyrst they will doe (in manner) nothing else bu [...] turne, crosse, and double, passing fyue or sire tymes one waye, and in one selfe same path. And you must vnderstande, that if you leese an Hare at any time, let the huntesmen yet remember and marke whiche pathes she bette, and what way she coasted: for another time if you finde the same Hare, she will doubtlesse keepe the same pla­ces, and make the like doublings, crossings. &c. And by that meanes you shall preuent hir subtletie, and much help the hounds in knowing which way she will bend.

I haue seene a Hare so craftie, that as soone as she heard the sounde of an horne, she woulde ryse out of hir forme, yea, had she beene formed a quarter of a myle dystant from the huntes­man that blewe, and woulde streyght wayes goe swymm [...] in some poole, and abyde in the middest thereof vpon some rushbed, before the houndes came at hir, or hunted hir at all. But at the last I discouered hir subtleties, for I went close alongest by the poole, to see what might become of hir, and vncoupled my houn­des there aboutes where I suspected she should be: and as soone as euer she hearde the horne, she starte, and leapt before my face into the poole, and [...] to another bed in the midst thereof, and neyther with stone nor clodde that I coulde throwe at hir, woulde she ryse nor styrre: vntyll I was fayne to stryppe off my clothes, and swymme to hir: yea, and she taryed me almoste, vntyll I layde my hande vppon hir, before shee woulde styrre. But at the last, she [...] out and came by the houndes, and stoode vppe afterwardes three houres [Page 165] before we coulde kill hir, swymming and vsing all hir crossing and subtleties in the water. I haue also seene an Hare runne and stande vp two houres before a kennell of houndes, and then she hath started and raysed an other freshe Hare out of hir forme, and set hir selfe downe therein. I haue seene other agayne, swymme ouer two or three waters, the least whereof hath beene fourescore Taylers yardes ouer. I haue seene some agayne, which [...] being runne well by the space of two houres or more, hath crepte vnder the dore of a Sheepecote, and hyd hir selfe a­mongst the sheepe. And I haue seene Hares oftentimes runne into a flocke of sheepe in the fielde when they were hunted, and woulde n [...]er leaue the flocke, vntill I was forced to couple vp my houndes, and folde vp the sheepe, or sometimes driue them to the Cote: and then the Hare would forsake them, and I vn­coupled my houndes at hir agayne and kylled hir.

I haue seene that woulde take the grounde like a Coney, (whiche is called goyng to the vault) when they haue bene hun­ted. I haue seene a Hare goe vp by one side of an hedge, and come downe by that other side, in suche sort, that there was no more but the thicknesse of the hedge betweene them. I haue seene an Hare being sore runne, get vp vppon an olde wall sixe foote heigth from the grounde, and squat or hyde hir selfe in the hole that was made for a Scaffolde. I haue seene some swymme ouer a brooke eyght yardes broade, more than twentie times within the length of an hundreth paces, and that in my sighte. For these causes the huntesman must be warye and cir­cumspect in hunting of the Hare. For a hounde whiche is a per­fect good Haryer, may be bolde to hunte any chace: for the Hare is the verie proper beaste to enter houndes well, and to make them tender nosed. But afterwardes when you woulde make your houndes to the Harte, they will quickly forsake the Hare, bycause the venyson of an Harte is mu [...] more delicate and deyntie than the Hares is: and houndes do much [...] more de­sire it, bycause the Harte is also of greater sent than the Hare. An Hare lyueth not aboue seuen yeares at the moste, especially the Bucke. They are of this propertie, that if there be a Bucke [Page 166] and a female which keepe one quarter commonly together, they will neuer suffer any strange Hare to syt by them, nor to abyde neare them, unlesse it be their owne yong ones. And therefore hath it beene an olde saying, that the more you hunt, the more Hares you shall haue, bycause when an Hare is killed, there will soone come other from some other quarter.

FIrst in hunting of the Hare, I woulde not haue you to haue aboue two or three huntesmen at the moste, where­of one shall take charge to rate and beate on such hounds as bide plodding behinde: and the other shall make them seeke and call about. For if there be many huntesmen, they shall f [...]yle the tra­ces and footing of the Hare, or at the [...]ast will amaze the hounds (with the varietie of their voyces) when they are at default. For an Hare maketh sometimes so many doubles, crossings, &c. that an hounde can not well tell where he is, nor which way to make it out, nor will doe any thing else (in maner) but holde vp their heades, and looke to the huntesmen for helpe and comfort. Then let the huntesman cast about a compasse, where they came firste at defaulte, and encourage them, the whiche he can not so well doe, if the other huntsmen haue beaten and foyled the trace with their feete, or the feete of their horses. And he whiche hunteth for­most, should carie with him a good bigge wallet of lynnen cloth full of deyntie morsels, to giue his houndes, to the ende that they may knowehim. For aboue all things it is meete, that an hound should knowe his maister and hun [...]sman, his voyce, and his horne: and then when it commeth to the hallowe, they will soo­ner come in to his voyce, than to an other mans, and will leau [...] all others to come vnto him: therefore he shoulde neuer hallowe them amysse, nor without good cause. And if he would haue his houndes come in to him, to make them goe into some groue or couert, let him hallowe thus, crying, Heere hav [...], heere, haw, haw, [Page 167] And when the houndes are come in to him, let him seeke some fayre muse or gappe to passe in at, and there let him cast a cruste of breade, or somewhat to make them go in the more willingly, crying, Couert, couert, hyke in hyke. &c.

Here I will discouer vnto you two secretes. Whereof that one is, that he which hath a kennell of yong houndes to enter, he must marke well the countrey where he will make them their fyrste quarrey, and wher [...]of he will make it. For according to the places where they shall be entered at the beginning, and ac­cording to the quarrey which you shall giue them, they will al­ways afterwards proue. And therfore if at y^e first whē you enter yong hounds, you accustome them to be vncoupled in the plaine champayne, and that they hunt there an Hare to the forme, and starte hir, they will remember it all their life after. And then when so euer you vncouple them in a couert, they will make no great hast to hunte there, but will seeke to hunte out into the playnes, and suche places as they haue beene accustomed [...]o in hunting of the Hare. Euen so will they best loue the couertes, if they be firste entered there, and haue founde gaine therein. And therefore it is requisite to enter your houndes in the coun­trey, where you meane to abyde and to hunt most commonly: for houndes once accustomed to a place or kynde of chace, will not willingly hunt otherwise. Another secrete is, that you ne­uer enter nor accustome your houndes at firste to hunte in the mornings, bycause of the dewe and moysture of the earth. For if you once enter and accustome them to hunt in the freshe mor­nings, if afterwardes you bryng them on fielde in the heate of the day, and that they once feele the heate of the Sun, or some dry wynd which hath drawne vp the moyst dewe from the ground, they will neyther hunte, nor call on willingly, but will runne to seeke the shadowe, and there to rest them and sleepe. Therefore I holde it best to accustome your hounds to be entred and hun­ted withall, in the heigthe and heate of the day, rather than in the mornyng. And the best season to begynne to enter your yong hounds, is in October and Nouember, for then the time is tem­perate, and the heates are not vehement: and then also young [Page 168] Har [...]s which haue not bene hunted, are foolish, and are neither of force nor capacitie to vse such subtleties and pollicies, but hold on endways before the houndes most commonly: and do squat and start againe oftentimes, the whiche doth much [...] encourage the hounds, and doth much better enter them, than if they should flee into another quarter far before them. True it is and a thing oftē proued, that an Hare hath greater sent, and is more eagerly hun­ted by the houndes, when she feedeth and relieueth vpon greene corne, than at any other time of the yere. And yet also you haue some Hares, which naturally giue some of them greater sent thā some others, and are much more eagerly hunted and chased by y^e hounds. As these great wood Hares, and such as are foule & mes­led & keepe neare to the waters. But the litle red Hare, which is (in maner) like a Coney of bigne sse, is neither of so strong a sent nor yet are so eagerly hunted by the houndes as other Hares be. Such as feede vpon the small br [...]nches of wilde time, or such like herbes, are cōmonly very swift, and wil stand long vp before the hounds. So haue you some Hares more subtle & crafty, thā some others are, especially the females, for they double & turne shorter than the Bucks do, and that pleaseth the hounds but a litle. For it is grieuous to hounds which are lustie & eager, to turn so oftē bicause they like better a chase which fleeth before thē endways, y^t they may run with al their force. And for such Hares as double & crosse so often, it is requisite at default to cast the greater cōpasse about, when you beate to make it out. For so shal you find al hir subtleties, & yet need to sticke vpon none of them, but only where she went onwardes: for so doing, you shal abate the Hares force, and cōstrein hir to leaue doubling & crossing. Some Hares will holde the high beaten wayes onely, where the houndes can haue no sente, bycause there is neyther boughe, leafe, nor any moyste place wherwith y^e Hare might leaue sent of hir body. The which she must needs leaue if it were in woodes, corne, high grasse, or such other moyst and coole places. And therefore when a huntsmā shall find such an Hare, & shal see his hounds at default vpon an high way, let him hunt on with his houndes still all alongst the way, vntill he finde where the Hare hath broken from the way, [Page 169] or vntill he finde some small dale, or freshe place by the waye where the houndes may finde sent. And he himselfe also muste looke narowly vpon the grounde, as he goeth if he can finde the footing of the Hare (which we call pricking) the whiche he shall easily know: for the fashion of an Hares foote is sharpe, & made like a kniues poynt, and hyr little nayles do alwayes fasten vpō the grounde, so that he shall see the prickes of them in any moyst place, or where the grounde is softe: for an Hare when she fleeth before the houndes, doth neuer open hyr foote nor nayles in sun­der, as stinkyng chases and vermine do, but keepeth hir foote al­wayes close lyke the poynt of a knife. So is there also certaine places and seasons, in the whiche an hounde can haue no sent of an Hare, as in the winter season, in the playne champaigne coū ­tries, where the grounde is fatte and rotten: and the Hare (ha­uing an hearie foote) when she fleeth, the vppermost of the earth and grounde sticketh vpon the sole of hir foote, so that she carieth it away with hyr, and that couereth and taketh away all the sent from the houndes: and agayne in suche playnes there are com­monly no braunches nor twigges which she might touche with hyr body and so leaue sent thereby. Agayne there are certayne moneths in the which a hounde shall haue no sent (or very little) of an Hare: as in the Spring time by reason of the vehement smell of the sweete flowers and hearbes, which doth exceede the sent of an Hare. Likewise you muste take heede that you hunte not in a harde froste, for so your houndes shall surbayte theyr feete and loose their clawes, and yet at that season an Hare run­neth better than at any other, bicause y^e soale of hyr feete is hea­rie. You shall vse in maner the same termes and wordes to en­courage your hariers, that you vse to encourage your Bucke­houndes, and suche as you hunte any Deare withall: Sauing onely at the hallowe to an Hare you say, Haw, Haw, Haw, here, Haw, here, &c. Wheras in hallowing of a Deare you say when the hoūds come in, Thats he, Thats he, To him, to him, to him, &c. Againe remēber that when soeuer you entre your yong hoūdes, you neuer helpe them to kill the Hare with your Greyhoundes, for if you accustome to course the Hare with your Greyhoundes [Page 170] before the houndes, then when soeuer you should hallowe, the houndes would do nothing but lifte vp their heades, and looke alwayes to see the Hare before the Greyhoundes, and will ne­uer put nose to the grounde, nor beate for it, nor hunte. But your best entryng of yong houndes, is by the helpe of old steynche houndes, whiche may best learne to cast for it at a doublyng or default.

THe best season to hunte the Hare with houndes, is to beginne in the middest of September, and to leaue at midde Apryll: and that, bycause of the flowers and vehement heates whiche beginne after Apryll, and take away the sente of the Hare from the houndes. Then in September the Huntesman shall beginne to gyue rewards vnto his Haryers, and to renew their huntyng of that chace. For (as I haue sayde) at that tyme, Hares be yong and feeble, and as the season passeth, so theyr force encreaseth: euen so your houndes the more that they hunte, and the more quareys that they haue, the better, stronger, and perfecter they become. And agayne when the winter appro­cheth, the moystnesse and coolenesse of the earth encreaseth, the which houndes do delight in rather than in great heate. When your houndes are twoo yeares olde and vpwardes, you may hunte with them thryse in a weeke, and they will be the better. When a Lorde or Gentleman will go on huntyng, the huntes­man muste regarde the tyme and place where he shall be, to the ende he may go seeke the Hare where moste lykely huntyng is: as in the Pastures, Meades, or Greene fieldes, and suche lyke: and there he shall vncouple his houndes: and if there be any hounde whiche light vppon the trayle of an Hare, where shee hath relieued that night, lette the Huntesman staye and be not ouer hastie, vntill the houndes make it out of themselues, and when he perceyueth that they beginne to drawe in together and [Page 171] to call on freshly, then lette him comforte them with woordes, and name that hounde whiche hunteth beste, as to say: Hyke a Fyndall, Hyke, &c. It is moste certayne that houndes will haue better sente of an Hare when shee goeth towardes the reliefe, than when shee goeth towardes hyr Forme, yea although shee go sooner to the one than to that other: and the reason is, that when a Hare is in the fielde and relieueth, shee coucheth lowe vppon the grounde with hyr bodie, and passeth oftentymes o­uer one plotte of grounde to seeke good feede, whereby shee lea­ueth grea [...] Sente of hyr vppon the grasse or blades, and cro­ [...]yeth also sometimes: and therefore the houndes haue greater sente of hir, than they haue when she goeth out of the field (or out of the corne or high grasse at least) to go to hir Forme: For whē she goeth to hir Forme, she doth cōmonly beate the high wayes (as beforesaid) doubling, crossing, & leaping, as lightly as she cā. Therfore when a huntsmā seeth his hounds crosse where a Hare hath relieued, & that they begin also to make it on vnto hir going out towardes hir Forme, let him suffer his houndes to hunt fayre and softly, and hasten them not ouermuch for ouershooting of it: and if his houndes fall at default, then is it a token that the Hare hath made some double or some crosse, or that she hath gone and come backe agayne by one selfe same way: then shall he crie, Haw agayne, agayne here, Haw, and shall not styrre any furder forwardes, for if he come too neare the houndes, it woulde rather make them to ouershoote it: but let him so stay them and make them beate for it, comforting and chearyng them with wordes and with his voyce, and beholding how they hunte & beate for it. But if they cannot make it out vpon the high ways, then let him cast rounde about in the freshest and greenest places, and such as are most commodious for the houndes to take sente vpon, for by that meanes at last he shall make it ou [...] whiche way the Hare is gone into some gro [...]e or sp [...]yng: and then his houndes may al­so beate the groues, and he himself must likewise beate the tuffts and bushes with his hunting sticke, to helpe the houndes to starte hyr. And if he chaunce to finde an olde Forme, he muste take some rewarde out of his wallet and caste it in the sayde olde [Page 172] forme, and call in the houndes into it, crying: Here, Haw, her [...] she sat, here she sat, To hyr agayne. The Huntesman shall do well also to haue a peece of the fatte of Bacon or such like thing in his wallet, wherewith he may anoynt the end of his hunting staffe, and then when soeuer he woulde poynt his houndes to a Muse, or to any place, he shall neede to do nomore but stryke on the grounde with the ende of his staffe, and his houndes will go through the muse, or come into any place where he shall poynt them, and hunt it much the better. But if the huntesman when he hath cast aboute, do not finde that the Hare is gone out be­yonde the compasse that he casteth, then lette him call backe hi [...] houndes to the place where they first came at default, and let him consider which way it seemeth that the Hare bent hyr head when she came into that way or place, and if she helde on head, then let him beate with his houndes still onwardes on bothe sides of the way: for oftentimes the Hare followeth the high wayes ve­ry farre, to double, crosse and vse pollicies, and will neuer steppe from the way in a myle together. And in such places the houndes can haue no sent, by reason of the duste and other suche things as I haue before alledged, and yet they will squatte vpon the out­sides of the wayes or very neare to them: and therefore let the huntesman beate the sides of the high wayes well. But if al these pollicies cannot helpe the houndes to make it out, then may the Huntesman well iudge that the Hare hath turned backewardes vpon the houndes: and then let him take his compasse greater and beate backe with his houndes, and it shall hardly be possible but at the last he must make it out. And yet some Hares there be that will sit vntili you treade vpon them before they will ryse, and some wilbe taken in the Forme. Now although I haue so much spoken in prayse of trayling of an Hare from the relief to the Forme, yet me thinks it is more payne than needeth, and lesse pleasure than might be desired: bycause the houndes while they trayle, do call on but coldly one after another: and that it should be much shorter and better pastime to seeke and finde hyr as fol­loweth.

When three good huntesmen are met, and perceyue that theyr [Page 173] hounds do find where an Hare hath releued in some fayre corne­fielde or pasture. Then must they consider the season of the yeare and what weather it is: for if it be in the Springtime or in the Sommer, then a Hare will not sit in the bushes, bycause these Pissemyers, Tikes, and sometimes Snakes and Adders will driue them out: then they are costreyned to sit in the cornesieldes, or fallow fieldes and open places. In winter they loue to sit neare the townes sides in some tuffte of brambles or thornes: especially when the winde is eyther Southerly or Northerly, for they feare both those windes also exceedingly. Then accor­ding to the season and place where the Hare shall wont to sitte, they shall beate with their houndes to starte hir at the first: and vsing that meanes, they shall sinde more Hares, and haue shor­ter sporte than in trayling after them as before sayde: and they may so enter their hounds accustome & them, that assoone as they beginne to beate the busshes with theyr hunting stickes, the houndes will in and striue who may first gette in, like Spani­els at retrife of a Partriche. And when the Hare is starte and on foote, then let the huntesman go where he sawe hyr passe, and hallowe in all the houndes vntill they haue al vndertaken it, and go on with it in full crie: Then let him rechate to them with his horne, and comforte them euery way that he can best deui [...]e: and when he perceyueth that they are in full crie, let him follow fayre and easily, not making ouer much haste at firste, nor ma­king to much noyse eyther with horne or voyce: for at the firste the hoūdes will easily ouershoote a chase through too much heate: and therfore if the huntesman ouerlay them, he should but chaffe them more, whieh might cause them both to ouershoote it and to leese it. But when they haue run the space of an houre, and that they are well in with it, and sticke well vppon it, then may the huntesman come in nearer to his houndes, bicause by that time their heate will be wel cooled and they wil hunte soberly. Aboue all things let him marke the first doublyng that the Hare ma­keth as I haue before sayde, and thereby he may gouerne himself all the day: for all the rest that she will make will be lyke vnto it: and according to the pollicies that he shall see hir vse, and the [Page 174] place where he hunteth, he muste make his compasses greate or little, long or shorte, to helpe the defaults, alwayes seeking the moystest and moste commodious places for the houndes to sente in. There are twoo manner of huntings at the Hare, for some follow and neuer hallowe before an Hare, nor after hyr, nor ne­uer helpe houndes at defaulte: and me thinkes that this is a no­ble kynde of huntyng, and doth beste shewe & proue the goodnesse of the houndes: other againe do marke which way an Hare ben­deth at the first, and coast before hir to meete [...]yr, and there hallow amayne, and helpe the houndes also at defaults asmuche as they can. When hounds are hunted with in this sorte, they become so light of beliefe that many tymes they leaue the right tracke to go in to the hallowe, and by that meanes the Hares can stande vp but a whyle before them. And surely he that woulde hunte to kill many Hares, shoulde do beste to hunte this kynde of way: but to trie the good hunting of houndes, I do more prayse that other way, whiche hunteth onely vpon the foote and sente: but this latter way is speedie, and beste counteruayleth the sub­tilties of an Hare. I coulde haue stoode longer in descrybing the meanes how [...] to breathe and enter haryers. But bycause I haue both spoken sufficiently in the hunting of an Harte, and al­so in these chapters before, whiche treate of the pollicies and sub­tilties that Hares vse, whereby a huntesman may finde precepts sufficient to gouerne himselfe, therefore I will nowe say no more of that poynt.

VVHen your houndes haue killed the Hare, let the varlet of your kennell, cut downe some pretie bending wandes of an Hasell or some such tree, & then let him take the Hare and lay hir in some fayre place vpon the grasse: then let the huntesman [Page 175] alight from his horse, and blowe the death to call in all the hoūdes: that done, the varlet of the kenell shal keepe off y^• hoūtes with those little wandes, and let them all baye aboute him. The huntesman shall blowe still a good while, and afterwardes shall clappe and stroke his best houndes on the sides, and shewe them the Hare, saying: Dead boyes, dead: Then lette him hulke hir) (which is to open hir and take out hyr garbage) and afterwards stryp off hir skinne before the houndes, takyng away the Gall, the lightes, and the skinne, the whiche he shall hang vp in some tree, where the houndes may not eate them, for they will make them sicke. When the Hare is thus hulked and stripte out of hyr skinne, le [...]te the Huntesman take out of his wallet some bread, cheese, and other small morsels, & put them into the bulke of the Hare, to wet and moysten them with hir bloud: then shall he cutte off the foreparte of the Hare, head and all: and yet if he haue any yong hounde whiche is fearefull, let him giue him the Hares heade by himselfe for to encourage him the better. Then muste the varlet of the kennell ty [...] a corde to the forequarters of the Hare in fiue or sixe places, that one dogge may not teare a­way all at a mouthfull, and so beguyle all his fellowes. After­wardes let him hide it, and take his staffe and go an hundreth paces from the rest: in meane whyle the huntesman shall powre out the rewarde of bread and cheese vpon the cleanest place of grasse that he can finde, and shall yet keepe off the houndes with his hunting wande. This beyng done, he shal blow that all the houndes may come in together, & shal suffer them to eate this re­warde, clapping them vppon the sides, comforting of them, and blowing with his horne. In meane while whē they haue almost done, he shal make signe to the varlet of the kennell whiche shall hallow and blow for the houndes: then the huntesman shall rate them & beate them to him, saying: Lyst Hallow, Hike Hallow, hike. Then the varlet shall shew them the Hare holding it as high as he can, & holding his corde alwayes fast by y^• end: & when all the houndes be about him, he shal cast it amongst thē, & suffer thē to [...]eare it by peecemeale out of the corde: and then carie them to the water before he cou [...]le them vp agayne: or rather lette him [Page 176] carie them home vncoupled, that they may skoure at large and skommer: for a hounde will be enclined to be sickly when he hath eaten of a Hares fleshe. And therefore let him giue them bread after they haue eatē the rewarde, to close vp theyr stomacks withall, and least they should cast it vp againe.

THe Conie is a cōmon beast and well knowen vnto all men. The Conie beareth hyr Rabettes. xxx. dayes, and then kinte­leth, and then she must be bucked againe, for els she will eate vp hir Rabets. She wil haue fiue, sixe, and seuen at a litter. He that would haue a warrayne well replenished with Conies, shoulde hunt them & beate them in twice or thrice in a weeke with some Spanell or curre for the purpose: for otherwise they will stray & feede out into the woodes and cornefieldes neare adioyning, and you shall neuer make thē come in to their burrowes or clappers againe. Some hold opiniō that they will follow a Hare to knot & [...]ngēdre with hir: but for the reason before alledged, beate them i [...] twice or thrice in a weeke. When a Buck [...] Conie will go to the Doe, he will beate vpon the ground with his forefoote mar­uelously, and by that meanes he heateth himselfe: when he hath buc [...]t, then falleth he backwards & lieth in a traunce as he were half dead: and then may a man easily take him. The fleshe of a Conie is much better than the fleshe of an Hare, for the Hares flesh is much drier and more m [...]lancholike: so is the skinne of a Conie (if it be blacke) a very good furre, where as the Hares skin is little or nothing worth.

HE that would take Conies muste hunte with two or three Spanels or curres made for the purpose, amōgst the hedges & bushes where he knoweth that the Conies do lie: he may also haue smal Greyhoundes for the purpose to course at them: but in their default, the Spanels or curres will driue them into theyr Burrowes: then set pursenettes vpon al the holes, or as many of them as you can finde, and put in a Ferret close musseled, and she will make the Conies bolte out againe into your pursenets, and so you shal take them. Remember that your Ferret be close musled, for els she will kill the Conie in the ground, and perad­uenture will not come out againe of three or foure dayes after. For default of a Ferret, you may make Conies come out of their Burrowes with the pouder of Orpyne and Brimstone, & make a smother with them, and it will make the Conies bolte out of the earth, and so you shall take them in your pursenets. Mine Aucthor telleth furthermore of making smal low hedgerowes al alongst downe by y^e side of some hedge which is wel replenished with Conies: and that the sayde lowe hedges should be made o­uerthwart contrarie to the standing of the quicke hedge: & that sundrie holes should be made in them, at the whiche he would set pursenets or other nettes, and so take the Conies, hunting them vp & downe with a Spaniell or curre. But he seemeth not to haue seene our English Warreyns, nor our maner of taking of our Conies. For (thanked be God) there are sundry Lordes & Gentlemen in England, which haue their groundes so well re­plenished, as they would cunne a man but small thanks whiche shuld so smother theyr burrowes with Brimstone or Orpin: for in deede that will marre a Burrow, & drine the Conies cleane from it. But wee take them principally with [...]eyes: next with pursenets & Ferrets: thirdly with a drawing Ferret when they be yong: and againe we haue a kind of dogges called tumblers, which will kill Conies abundantly, & after a maruelous fashiō. Of all these sortes of taking Conies, together with the order to keepe a Warreyn from vermin, I wil hold no longer discourse: for in deede it is somewhat besides my purpose, since I [Page 180] accoumpte ferrettyng one of the coldest and vnpleasantest chaces that can be followed. Yet thus muche I haue thought meete to write of it, following mine Aucthor: and bicause in d [...]ede it see­meth to be a kinde of Uenerie, at the least he that hath a good warreyne of Conies, a good Douehouse, and [...] fishepondes, shall neede the lesse to go into the Forest or Chase for Beefe, or Bacon, for these three are good neighbours.

NOw to speake of For houndes & Terryers, and how you should enter them to take the Foxe, the Badgerd, and suche like vermine: you muste vnderstand that there are sundrie sortes of Terriers, whereof wee hold opinion that one sorte came out of Flaunders or the low Countries, as Irtoys and thereabouts, and they haue crooked legges, and are shorte heared moste com­monly. Another sorte there is whiche are shagged and streight legged: those with the crooked legges will take earth better than the other, and are better for the Badgerd, bycause they will lye longer at a vermine: but the others with streyght legges do serue for [...] purposes, for they wyll Hunte a­boue the grounde aswell as other houndes, and enter the earthe with more furie than the others: but they will not [Page 181] abide so long, bycause they are too too eagre in fight, and there­fore are constreyned to come out to take the ayre: there are both good and badde of bothe sortes. And bycause it is good pastime, and braue fight, without great payne or trauayle to the huntes­man, therefore I haue thought good to set downe here some pre­ceptes for the entryng of Terriers, and for the better fleshyng and encouragyng of them.

You shall beginne to enter them assoone as they be eyght or tenne Moneths old: For if you enter not a Terrier before he be a yeare old, you shall hardly euer make him take the earth. And you must take good heede that you encourage them, and rebuke them not at the firste: nor that the Foxe or Badgerd do hurte them within the earth, for then they will neuer loue the earth a­gayne. And therefore neuer enter a yong Terryer in an earth where there is an olde Foxe or Badgerd: But firste lette them be well entred, and be a yeare olde full or more. You shall do well also to put in an old Terryer before them whiche may a­bide and endure the furie of the Fox or Badgerd. You may en­ter them and fleshe them sundrie wayes. First when Foxes and Badgerds haue yong cubbes, take all your olde Terryers and put them into the grounde: and when they beginne to baye, (whiche in the earth is called Yearnyng) you muste holde your yong Terryers euery one of them at a sundrie hole of some an­gle or mouth of the earth, that they may herken and heare theyr fellowes yearne. And when you haue taken the old Foxes or Badgerdes, and that there is nothing left in the earth but the yōg Cubbes, take out then all your old Terryers, & couple them vp: then put in your yong Terryers & encourage them, crying, To him, To him, To him: and if they take any yong Cubbe, lette them take theyr pleasure of him, & kill him within the grounde: and beware that the earth fall not downe vpon them and smoo­ther them. That done, take all the rest of the Cubbes and Bad­gerds pigges home with you, and frie theyr liuers and theyr bloud with cheese, and some of theyr owne greace, and thereof make your Terryers a rewarde, shewyng them alwayes the heads and skinnes to encourage them. When they haue bene re­warded [Page 182] or rather before, washe them with Sope and warme water to get out the clay whiche shall be clodded in theyr heare: for els they will soone become mangie: and that would be harde to be cured. You may enter them also thus: you must take old Foxes and Badgerdes aliue with your olde Terryers and the helpe of such clampes and holdfastes as you shall see here por­trayed: Take them and cut away their nether Iawe wherein there wang teeth be set, and neuer touche the vpper Iawe, but let it stande to shewe the furie of the Beast, although it can do no hurte therwith: then make an earth in some of your closes, and make it large inough, bycause that the Terryers may fight and turne therein the better, and that they may go in twoo to­gether: then couer the borowe or earth with bordes and turues, and put the Fore or Badgerd therein: then put in al your Ter­ryers both yong and old, and encourage them with wordes, as hath bene before declared, and as the Arte requyreth: and when they haue yearned sufficiētly, then beginne to digge with spades and mattockes to encorage them agaynst such tyme as you must vse to digge ouer them: then take out the Foxe or Badgerde with the clampes or pinchers, killyng it before them, or lette a Greyhounde kill it in their sight, and make them reward there­of. It shall be well to cast them some breade or cheese vpon the vermin assoone as it is dead, for the better boldnyng and encouraging of thē. If you will not cut the Iawe of the Foxe or Badgerd, then breake out al his teeth that he bite not the Ter­ryers, and it shall suffyze as well.

AS you haue two kyndes or more of euery other chace by di­uersitie of names: so of these vermyne there are Foxes and theyr Cubbes, and Badgerdes and theyr Pigges: the female of a Foxe is called a Bitche, and he himselfe a Doggefoxe: the Female of a Badgerde is called a Sowe, and the male a Badgerde or a Borepygge of a Badgerde. Yet some will not allowe this difference: but I can prooue it by good rea­son and by the diuersities of colour, nature, and proportion. [Page 184] the Badgerd pigges at comming out of the earth do common­ly make and cast their fyaunts: and they neuer do it vntill they haue made a hole in the earth with theyr snowte or with their foote: and then they fyaunt within it and hide it: this the Foxe cubbes do not. Also the Badgerd maketh his hole commonly in sande or light earth whiche is easie to digge, and in open pla­ces, to haue the comfort of the Sunne: for they sleepe vncessant­ly, and are muche fatter than Foxcubbes be. As touchyng their heare, they haue a grey coate, and are somewhat whyter than the olde, waxyng greyer and greyer the elder that they bee: some say that there is twoo sortes of these yong Badgerdes (and I beleeue it) whereof that other sorte goeth furder out for their pray than these do: and that they caste their fyants longer somewhat lyke a Foxe, and keepe commonly in strong holdes or in rockes, and make their earth or their Burrowe deeper than these doo. But yet there be not so many chambers nor angles in their Burrowes as there are in these: for it were vnpossible for them to worke so well in Rockes or in harde earth, as those others do in Sande. These two sundry sortes do not keepe one another companie: neyther shall you lightly finde one of them where that other is. Terryers do feare the one more than the other, bycause they are muche curster, and a­gayne they stinke muche worse. For the better vnderstandyng of the diuersitie, let vs coyne a worde, and call the one Badgerd­pigges, and the other Badgerdwhelpes, and say that the Bad­gerdwhelpes haue theyr nose, their throte, and their eares yel­lowyshe, lyke vnto a Marternes throte, and are muche blac­ker than the pigges, and higher legged: Bothe sortes liue vpon all fleshe, and will hunte after carrion: they do greate hurte in Warreynes and Connigrees, especially when they be full of little rabbets, for they make a hole right aboue the neast,VVe thinke that the Foxe maketh a hole aboue as well as a Badgerd. and go streyght to them: Whereas the Foxe followeth the holes mouthe vntill he come at the neast. I haue seene a Badgerde take a suckyng Pigge in my presence, and ca­ryed him cleane away vnto his earth. It is sure that they desire Hogges fleshe more than any other: For if you trayne [Page 185] a peece of Porke or Hogges fleshe vppon their burrowe, they will sure come out vnto it. They pray also vppon all Pullen, as Geese, Duckes, Hennes, and suche like. I can speake by experience, for I haue brought vp some [...]ame, vntill they were foure yeares olde, and being so brought vp, they are verie gen­tle, and will playe with yong whelpes, and ne [...]er hurt them, and the rest of the day that they neither feede nor playe, they be­stow in sleeping. Those which I haue brought vp, would come to me at a call, and followe me like whelpes of houndes. They are verie chyll o [...] colde, and if you lette them lye in a chamber where there is any fire, they will creepe so neare it, that they will burne their coates and their feete also many times, and then are they verie harde to be healed. They will be fed with any thing, breade, cheese, fruites, byrdes, or any thing that you will giue them. When it snoweth or is harde weather, then they come not out of their holes sometimes in twoo or three dayes toge­thers, the which I haue obserued at their holes mouth, when it hath snowed and lyen there so thicke, that they coulde not haue styrred out, but that I might haue perceiued them: As I haue seene that after three dayes they haue come out for pure hunger, and gone to praye for meate. It is a pleasure to beholde them when they gather stuffe for their nest or for their couch, as straw, leaues, mosse, and such other things: and with their forefeete and their heade, they will wrappe vp as muche together, as a man would carie vnder one atme, and will make shifte to get it into their holes and couches. This sub [...]letie they haue, that when they perceiue the Terryers beginne to yearne them, and to [...] at thē, they will stoppe the hole betweene the Terryers and them, least the Terryers should followe them any further: and then if the Terryers baye still, they will remoue their baggage with them, and go into another chamber or angle of their Burrowe. They [...] long, and when they ware old, then some of them fall blind, and can not come forth of their holes. Then if they be the Bad­gers, the Sowes feede them, and if it be the Sowe, the Badger feedeth hir likewise. They dye also of certayne wormes, and [...], which they haue all ouer their skynne: euen as you see [Page 186] that houndes haue the maunge and cankerwormes sometimes. And therefore it is that I councelled to washe your Terryers, as soone as they came out of the earth. All these thinges I haue seene by experience: they are long liued, and harde to kyll. For I haue seene a well byting Greyhounde, take a Badger and teare his guttes out of his bellye, and yet the Badgerd hathe fought still, and would not yeelde to death. True it is that they are verye tender vpon the snowt, and you can not giue them so little a blowe vpon the snowte with a sticke, but that they wil dye immediately.

As touching Foxes, I account small pastime in hunting of them, especially within the grounde. For as soone as they per­ceyue the Terryers, if they yearne harde, and lye neare vnto them, they will bolte and come out streight wayes, vnlesse it be when the bytche hath young Cubbes: then they will not for­sake their young ones to dye for it. They make their earthes and Burrowes as neare as they can, in grounde that is harde to dygge, as in galte, clay, and stonye grounde, or amongest the rootes of trees: and their earthes haue commonly but one hole, the whiche is verie straight, and goeth verie farre in, before it come at their cou [...]. But sometimes they take a Badgers old Burrowe, whiche hath moe chambers, holes, and angles. When a good Terryer doth once reache a Foxe, they defende themselues shrewdly, but yet nothing like the Badgerd, neyther is their by­ting so daungerous. If you take a bytche Foxe in the time that she goeth on clycketing, and cut out hir gutte whiche holdeth hir spreame or nature, together with the kydneys whiche Gelders take awaye from a bytche whiche when they spaye hir, and then cut all into small gobbets, and put them into a potte hote as they be, then take Goome of Masticke and mingle it therewith, and couer the potte close, it will keepe all the yeare, and will serue to make a trayne for a Foxe, when you would, on this wise: Take a skynne of Bacon, and lay it on a Gryd­yron, and when it is well broyled and hote, then dippe it and puddle it in this sawce that is within the pot, and make a trayn therewith, and you shall see that if there be a Foxe neare to any [Page 187] place where the trayne is drawne, he will followe it. But he which maketh the trayne, must rubbe the soales of his shoes with Cowes dung, least the Foxe vent his footing. And thus you may trayne a Foxe to a standing, and kyll him in an euening with a Crossebowe.

It is also a thing experimented, that if you rubbe a Ter­ryer with Brymstone, or with the oyle of Cade, and then put the Terryer into an earth where Foxes be, or Badgerdes, they will leaue that earth, and come no more at it in two or three moneths at least.

IT shalbe needlesse to speake of his shape or proportion, since he is so common a beast. His conditions are in many respects like vnto y^• Wolf. For first y^e bitch Fox bringeth forth as many cubs at a lytter, as the she Wolf doth, somtimes more, and somtimes lesse, as the she Wolf doth also. But indeed she doth lytter them deepe vnder the ground, & so the Wolf doth not. She venometh with hir byting when she is sault, as the Wolfe doth. The life of a Foxe & of a Wolf continue both like time. You shal hardly [Page 188] take a bytchfoxe when she is bragged and with cubbe, for then she lyeth close about hir burrowe, and if she heare neuer so little noyse, she whippeth in quickely before the houndes or any thing can come neare hir: she is a false and craftie beaste like vnto the Wolfe. The hunting of the Foxe is pleasant, for he maketh an excellent crye, bycause his sent is verie hote, and he neuer fleeth farre before the houndes, but holdeth the strongest couerts, and fleeth from the fielde, as a beast which trusteth not in his legges, nor yet in his strength. And if the Foxe stande in his defence, it is by force, and yet alwayes he will as neare as he can keepe the couert: yea though he finde none other couert but a bushe, yet he will flee to it. And when he perceiueth that he maye no longer endure nor stande vp before the houndes, then will he take the earth, and will trust to his Castles there, which he knoweth per­fectly: yet there is he taken also, but then must it be digged, and that in a softe or light grounde. If Greyhoundes course hym, then his last remedie (if he be in the playne) is to bepysse or to be­shyte the Greyhounds, that they may giue him ouer for the stinke and [...]thinesse thereof, yea, and Greyhoundes are more afrayde of a Foxe, than of a greater beast. For I haue seene Greyhounds which would runne hardly at an Hart, yea, would not refuse the wilde Bore, nor the Wolfe, and yet they would streyne curtesie at a Foxe. When a bytche Foxe goeth on clycqueting, and seketh a dogge, she cryeth with a hollowe voyce, like vnto the howling of a madde dogge: & likewise if she mysse any of hir cubbes, she maketh y^e self same noyse: but when they are killed, they will ne­uer crye, but defend thēselues till the last ga [...]pe. A Foxe wil pray vpon any thing y^t he can ouercome, yea, were it a vermine, & will feede vpon all sortes of caryon: but the meate which they moste delight in, is poultrie, as Hennes, Capons, Geese, Duckes, small birdes, or any thing that they finde. And in default thereof, gen­tle master Raynard will be content with butter, cheese, creame, flaunes, and custardes. They do much hurt in Warrens and co­ney burrowes. And they kill Hares also by fraude, but not by force of running. Some Foxes do praye abroade in the woodes and fields, like vnto Wolues. And some there be which praye no [Page 189] where but in the Uillages and countrey Townes: and therein they are so subtile and craftie, that neyther dog nor man can de­fende them. They lye lurking al day in ditches neare vnto hou­ses, to see ho [...]e dame Pertlot the husbandmans henne doth, and to see hir chickens vertuously brought vp. The skynne of the Foxe is a very good furre and a warme, but it is not verie faire, and it stinketh alwayes, vnlesse it be verie excedingly well drest. The greace and marrowe of a Foxe are verie good to rub synew [...]s that are shronke. Of the rest of his subtleties and pro­perties I will speake more at large in the hunting of him. He is taken with Houndes, Greyhoundes, Terryers, Nettes and ginnes. But if the Nettes and ginnes be not strong, he will soone dispatch them like a Wolfe.

THe Badgerd (sayth he) maketh but slow speede before the hounds, and cannot long stand vp. So that commonly she [...]igh teth it out at the Baye, or else taketh the earth, & there is killed with Terryers. For if you finde a Badgerde a­broad, it shall not be from hir burrow lightly. A Badger pray­eth vpon any vermine or other thing, and will feede vpon any caryon or fruit like vnto the Foxe. The Badgerd battles much with [...], & is a verie fat beast. Once in a yeare they engēder as the Fox, and they litter them in their holes, euen as the fox doth. Their biting is venemous, as the Foxes is, but they make better defence for themselues, and fight more stoutly, & are much stron­ger. The bloud and greace of a Badgerd, is medicinable as the Foxes bloud is also. Some hold a blinde opinion, that if a yong childe should weare his firste shoes of a Badgerdes leather. he should euer afterwards heale a horse of the Farcine if he did but once get vp v [...]on him. The flesh of a Badger is as much worth as that of a Foxe, which is to rewarde the hounds withall, and yet that but of y^• greace, & certaine parts of him neither. [...] [...] [...]ounds will eate of a Foxes fleshe, but a Badgerdes is wallo­wish [Page 190] sweet & rammish. I my selfe haue eatē of it, and disgested it well, and without any maner of annoyance. The skynne of a Badgerd, is not so good as the Foxes, for it serueth for no vse, vnlesse it be to make myttens, or to dresse horscollers withall.

HE that would hunte a Badgerde, must seeke the earthes and burrowes where they lie, and in a fayre mooneshine night, let him go vnto them vpon a cleare winde, and stoppe all the holes but one or two, & in those let him set sacks or pokes fastned with [Page 191] some drawing string which may shut him in as [...]one as [...]e str [...]i­neth the bag. Some vse no more but to set an Hoope in y^• mouth of the sacke or poke, and so put it into the hole: and [...] as the Badgerd is in the poke and streyneth it, the poke slippeth off the hoope and followeth him into the earth, and so he lieth tumbling therein vntill he be taken, and these men are of opinion, that as­soone as y^• Badgerds head is once within the Sacke or hole, hee will lie still and wil not turne backe againe for any thing. The bagges or Sacks being thus set, let your Huntsman cast off hys Houndes, and beate all the groues, hedges, and tufts, within a mile or halfe a mile about, whiche are most likely: and when the Badgerd heareth any hunting, hee will straightwayes home to his earth, and there is taken as beforesayd. Euer remember that he which standeth to watch the pokes, do stand close and vpon a cleare wind, for else the Badgerd will soone find him & then wil forsake that earth to seeke some other, or else to escape some other way: but if y^• hounds chance to encounter him, or to vndertake y^• chace before he be gottē into his earth, or recouered neare vnto it, thē wil he stand at bay like a Bore, and make you good pastime.

HE that would hunt a Fore aboue the ground, shall do well to beate with his hownds in the thickest queaches, & tufts or groues neare vnto [...], and in thicke hedgerowes and such other places. For commonly a Foxe will lurke in such, to pray or espie his aduantage vpon dame Pertelot, & such other damsels that kepe in those Courts, and to see yong pigges well ringl [...]d whē they are yong, for feare least they should learne to turne vp Gentlemēs pastures, & to marre their meadowes w^t rowting, for surely M. Raynerd is a very well disposed man, and would be loth to see youth fal into such follie in any cōmon wealth where he may strike a stroke. Also in y^e countries where wine is made, he will lie much in the Uineyards, & (as some hold opinion) will eate of y^e Grapes. Ones he lieth always in couert & obscure pla­ces, like an honest plainmening creature, which careth not gretly for to come at y^e Court. Wel, the Huntsman which would haue [Page 192] good pastime at this vermine, shall do well to stop vp his earthes if he can finde them: and let him stoppe them vp the night be­fore he meaneth to hunte. About midnight when he may be sure that the Foxe is gone abroade to seeke his praye, let the earthes then be stopped with boughes and earth well and strongly ram­med, that master Raynard get not in again ouer hastely. Some vse to set vp bleinchers, or sewels (which are white papers) or to lay two white stickes a crosse before the hole, and holde opini­on, that when a Foxe espyeth those stickes or sewels, he will mi­strust that it is some engin to take him, and will turne backe a­gaine: but I thinke not that so sure as to stoppe the earthes. If the huntsman know not where the earthes be, let him seeke them out two or three days before he meaneth to hunt, & stop thē. But bicause somtimes a huntsmā can not find al the blinde earthes y^t are in couerts and greate woods: then if a Foxe finde out some of them, and so beguile the huntesman, he maye yet get him out eyther quicke or deade, without Terryers, in this manner. If there be any more holes than one in the earth, let him set purse­nets or bagges in one of the holes vnder the winde, euen as he would set for a Badgerd, & let him stop vp all the holes besides, but one, and let that one be aboue the wynde as neare as he can. Then let him take a piece of parchment or leather, and laye it in the hole, laying fyre vpon it, and putting brymstone, Myrre, and such smothering greace vpon the fire: there withall let him stoppe vp the hole, & suffer the smother to go into the earth. This done, the Foxe will not long abide in the earth, but will either starte into the pursnet or bagge, or else will sound dead the next day at some other of the holes mouthes which were stopped. The best hunting of the Foxe aboue the ground is in Ianuarie, Februa­rie, and March. Yet you may hunt him from Alhollantide, vntil Easter. When y^e leaues are falne, you shall best see your houndes hūting, & best finde his earths. And also at y^t time the Foxes skyn (which is the best part of him) is best in season. Againe, the houn­des do best hunt a Foxe in the coldest weather, bicause he leaueth a verie strong sent after him. Alwayes set your Greyhounds on the outsides of the couertes vnderneath the winde, and let them [Page 193] stand close, cast of at the first but the thirde part of your kennell to finde him: The rest you shall cause to be led vp and downe the couerts, in pathes and high wayes, to cast off vnto their fel­lowes whē he is found. It is not good to cast off too many hoūds at once, bicause woods and couerts are full of sundry chases, and so you should haue your kennell vndertake sundry beastes, and lose your pastime. Let those which you cast off firste, be olde, stanch, and sure houndes. And if you heare such a hounde call on merily, you may cast off some other to him, and when they run it with ful cry, cast off the rest, and you shall heare good pastime. For a Foxe will not willingly depart out of the couerte, where he hath bin accustomed to ly, but wil wheele about in the thicks, and thereby make you much the better pastime. The wordes of comforting y^e hounds, the hallowing, & all such like ceremonies, are euen the same which you vse in hunting of other chases and vermine. When he is dead, you shall hang him vp on the end of a strong pyked staffe, and hallow in al your hounds to bay him, then make them reward with such things as you can get, for the flesh of a Fox is not to reward thē w^tall, for they wil not eate it.

THey which will heare good pastime at a Foxe, or a Bad­gerd within the grounde, must be furnished with suche tooles and appertinances as followe, and as are heere be­fore this present chapter portrayed. First let there be in the com­pany, fiue or sixe strong fellowes which can well endure to dygThey are but spades a [...]d Mattockes which are not so needfull to be portrayed. and delue. Next you must haue as many good and arrant Ter­riers, garnished with collers full of belles, to make the Foxe or Badgerd start the soner, and also their collers wil be some defēce to saue them from hurting. But when your Terriers are out of breath, or that the Belles are stopped and glutted vp with earth, or that you perceiue the vermine is angled (whiche is to say, gone to the furdest parte of his chamber to stand at defence) then you may take off the collers: but at the first they serue to greate [Page 194] purpose, to make the vermine eyther start or angle. Then to re­tourne vnto my matter, a Lord or Gentleman whiche will fol­low this pastune, should haue halfe a dozen Mattes to lie vppon the ground on, as they hearken to the Terriers: some vse to car­rie a windbed whiche is made of leather strongly sowed on all the foure sides, and hauing a Pype at one of the corners, to blow it as you woulde blowe a Baggepype, and when it is blowen full of wind, to stoppe it vp and lie vpon it on the grounde: but this were too great curiositie, & yet a Lord or Gentleman can­not take too great heede of the colde and moysture of the earthe, for he may thereby take sundrie diseases and infirmities. The in­strumēts to digge withal must be these, sharpe poynted Spades, round hollowed Spades, and flatte broade Spades, Howes, or Mattocks, and Pickaxes, a Colerake and a payre of Clampes or Holdfasts, Shouells both shodde and bare, an Axe and a sharpe paring Spade, the sharp pointed Spade serueth to begin y^t trēch first, where the ground is hardest and broader tooles would not so wel enter: the roūd hollowed. Spade serueth to digge amōgst Rootes, and may be so made with such sharpe edges, that it will cut the rootes also: the flat broade Spade, to digge withall when the trenche is better opened and the grounde softer: the Howes, Mattocks, & Pickaxes to digge with in harder grounde where a Spade will make no riddance of the worke: the Colerake to clense the hole and to keepe it from stopping vp: the clampes or holdfasts to take a Foxe or Bagerd out aliue, wherewith you may make pastime afterwards, or to help the terriers when they are aferd to bite a vermine: y^• Shouels both shod and bare, serue to cast out y^• earth which the Spades or Mattocks haue digged, according to y^• hardnesse or softnesse of y^• grounde wherein you digge: the paring Spade to keepe the trenche in fashion: and the Axe to cut the rootes or any other thing withall. You shall also haue a Payle to set water vnto your Terriers at suche times as they come out to take breath. All these instruments I haue caused to be portrayed y^t you may the better perceyue them. And w^t these instruments & such like necessary implements a Lord or Gentle­mā may fill a prettie little Cart or Wagon made for y^t purpose, y^t which he may cause to be caried on field with him, alwais pro­uided [Page 195] that when the sayd cariage is loded, he forget not to cause his Cooke and Butler to hang good store of bags and bottels a­bout the raues and pinnes thereof: for it will be both comely and comfortable. In this order of battell, a noble man or gentlemā may march to besiege the Foxe and Badgerd, in their strongest holes and castles. And may breake their Casmats, Plotformes, Parapets, and worke to them with Mynes, and countermines, vntill they get their skynnes, to make furres and myttens.

BEfore you put your Terriers into the groūd, you must haue consideration what kynd of mould it is, and marke well the situation thereof, and as neare as you can, iudge where aboutes the chiefe angles or chambers should be, for else you may worke cleane contrarie, and rather hinder the Terriers than further thē. Is if the earth or burrowe, be hanging on a side of a banke, you shall do beste to put in your Terriers bylowe, towardes the vale, to the end that you may make the vermine chamber on the top of the banke, where the earth is not deepe, and where you digge to him with most ease. Againe, if the earth be on the top of a banke, and the banke standeth in a playne plot of grounde, then you shall doe best to put in your Terriers, in those holes which are highest on the toppe of the banke: and strike with a staffe vpon the banke, to make the vermine flee downe into the lowest parts, & there to chamber or angle thēselues. It shall not be amisse, to put in a Terrier or twaine at the first without any noise, to make the vermin disseuer, & to chamber thēselues. Foxes & Badgerds which haue bin beaten, haue this subtletie, to drawe vnto the largest part of the burrow, where three or foure angles meete togethers, and there to stande at bay with the Terriers, to the ende they may afterwardes shift, and goe to which chamber they list. In such a case strike harde vpon the ground right ouer them: and if you see that they will not remoue so, then take your round hollowed spade, and digge in to them right vpon them. But when they are chambred, then you shal not digge right vpō them, but right vpon the Terrier. For if you dig right vpon the [Page 196] vermyne, it might make them to bolt into some other angle, and to enforce the Terryer to giue them place. Therfore you shal dig right ouer the Terryers with a round hollowed spade, the which will conuey the earth with it, and is made principally for suche a purpose. And when you haue digged so long that you be come to the angle, then thrust your spade betweene the vermine and the Terryer, so that the vermine can not by any meanes come out vpon your Terrier. For in some chamber you may chāce to find fiue or sixe vermin together, which might hurt your poore terrier, and discourage him. When you haue stopped them in thus, then work with your broad spades and other tooles, and make a large trench if you will haue good sport, and put in your Terryers to the vermine, and you shall see bold fight of all fashions. You must take heede to the subtleties of the vermine, especially of Badgerds. For sometimes they will stop vp the trench betwene them and the Terriers, and worke themselues further in, so that your Terriers shall not be able to find them, nor to know what is become of them. Somtimes when you haue found their Cas­mat and chiefe strength, you may take them out aliue with your holdfasts or clampes, and therein vse this policie and foresight. Take them with your tongs or clampes by the lower chappe, the one clampe in the mouth, and the other vnder the throate, and so draw them out. For if you should take them out by the body or necke, they should haue libertie to byte and snatch at the Ter­ryers, which wil be doing with them as you take them out. Be­ing thus taken, put them into a sacke or poke, to hunt with your Terryers in your gardens or close courtes, at your pleasure. He that will be present at such pastimes, may do well to be booted: For I haue lent a Foxe or a Badgerd ere nowe, a piece of my hose, and the skyn and fleshe for companie, which he neuer restored agayne. Let these fewe pre­cepts suffise for the hunting of Foxes and Badgerds.

THe Otter is a beast well knowne. Shee feedeth on fishe, and lyeth neare vnto Ryuers, Brookes, Pooles, and fishe­pondes, or Meares: hir lying commonly is vnder the rootes of trees, and sometimes I haue seene them lying in [...] hollowe tree, foure or fiue foote aboue the grounde: euen as a Foxe, Polcat, wildecat, or Badgerd will destroye a Warren, so will the Otter destroy all t [...]e fishe in your pondes, if she once haue founde the waye to them. She dyueth and hunteth vnder the water, after a wonderfull manner, so that no fishe can escape hir, vnlesse they be verie great and swift. A litter of Ot­ters, will destroy you all the fishe in a ryuer (or at least, the grea­test store of them) in two myles length. They goe sault at suche times as firrets go sault, which time euery mā may eassy know. And they kindle & bring forth their yong Otters, euen as firrets do, somtimes more, & somtimes lesse. To speak a truth, they seem to be a kind of water firrets. There is great cunning in the hun­ting of thē, as shal be saide in the next chapter, & also it is possible to take thē vnder the water, & by the ryuers side, both in traps & in snares, as you may take a Hare with Harepypes, or such like gynnes. They byte sore and venomously, and defende them selues stoutly. And if they be taken in snares, if they abyde long, they will sone sheare themselues out with their teeth. I will not speake much more of their nature, but onely that they are footed [Page 201] like a Goose: I meane they haue a webbe betweene theyr clawes, and haue no heele but onely a rounde ball vnder their soale of their foote: & their tracke is called the marke of an Otter, as we say, the slot of an Hart: and their fewmets are called spraynts, as hath bene sayde before. An Otter abideth not much nor long in one place, but if she be frayed or finde any fault (as they are very perfectly of smellyng and hearing) they will forsake their couche & shifte a mile or two vp or downe a riuer: the like wil she do if she haue once destroyed the store of fishe, and finde no plentie of feeding. From a pondgarden or good store of fishpondes she wil not lightly be remoued, as long as there is store of fish in them: for therein fishes are taken with more ease, than in the Riuers or greater waters: but inough of their natures.

VVHen a huntesman would hunte the Otter, he should first send foure seruants or varlets with bloudhounds or such [...] as will drawe in the lyame, & let him sende them, twoo vp the Riuer, and two downe the riuer, the one couple of thē on th [...]t one side, & the other on that other side of the water. And so you shal be sure to finde if there be an Otter in y^t quarter: for an Otter cannot long abide in y^t water, but must come forth in the night to make his [...], & sometimes to feede on grasse and heathes by the waters side. If any of theyr lyamhounds finde of an Otter, let y^t huntesman looke in the softe groundes and moyst places to see which way he bent the head, vp or downe the riuer: or if he cannot perceyue it by the markes, he may partly perceyue it by y^t sprayntes & then he may follow his hounde, & lodge it e­uen as you would do a Deare, or a Bore. And if he finde not the Otter quickly, he may then iudge that he is gone to couche somewhere further off from the water: for an Otter will some­times seeke his feede a myle (or little lesse) from his couche and place of reste: and commonly he will rather go vp the Riuer than downt: for goyng vp the streame, the streame bringeth him sent of the fishes that are aboue him: and bearing his nose into the winde, he shall the sooner finde any faulte that is aboue him. [Page 202] also you should make an assembly for the Otter as you do for y^t Harte, and it is a note to be obserued that all such chaces as you draw after before you [...] them, lodge them, or herbor them, you shoulde make a solempne assembly to heare all reportes before you vndertake to hunte them, and then he which hath foūd of an Otter, or so drawen toward his couche that he can vndertake to bryng you vnto him, shall cause his houndes to be vncoupled a vowshotte or twayne before he come at the place where he thin­keth that the Otter lieth: bycause they may skommer and caste about a while vntill they haue cooled their bawling and brayne­sicke toyes, whiche all houndes do lightly vse at the first vncou­plyng: then the varlets of the kennell shall secke by the riuers side, and beate the bankes with theyr boundes vntill some one of them chaunce vpō the Otter: remember alwayes to set out some vpwards and some downe the streames, and euery man his Ot­ter speare or forked staffe in his hande, to watche his ventes, for that is the chiefe aduantage: and if they perceyue where the Ot­ter cōmeth vnder the water (as they may perceyue if they [...] it well) then shall they watche to see if they can get to stand be­fore him at some place where he would vent, & stryke him with theyr speare or staffe: and if they misse, then shall they runne vp or downe the streame as they see the Otter bend, vntil they may at last giue him a Blowe: for if the houndes be good Otter houndes and perfectly entred, they will come chaunting and trayling alongst by the riuers side, & will beate euery tree roote, euery holme, euery Osier bedde, and tufft of bulrushes: yea som­times also they will take the ryuer and beate it like a water spa­niell: so that it shall not be possible for the Otter to escape, but that eyther the houndes shall light vpon him, or els some of the huntesmen shall strike him; and thus may you haue excellent sporte and pastime in hunting of the Otter, if the houndes be good, and that the Riuers be not ouer great: where the Riuers be greate, some vse to haue a lyne throwen ouerthwart the Ri­uer, the whiche twoo of the huntesmen shall holde by eche ende, one on the one side of the Riuer, and the other on that [...]her: and [...] them holde the line so slacke that it may alwayes be vnder­neath [Page 359] the water, & so go on w^t it: and if y^e Otter come diuing vnder y^t water, he shall of necessitie touche their line, & so they shal feele & know which way he is passed, the which shal make him be taken the sooner. An Otters skinne is very good furre, & his grease wil make a medicine to make fishes turn vp their bellies as if they were deade. A good Otter hounde may proue an excellēt good buckhoūd, if he be not old before he be entred.

Thus haue you now asmuch as I cā presently set down for y^t hūting of such chaces as I thinke likely or possible to be hū ­ted in this our cūtry: yea some also percase which you wil say are not in vse w^t vs at these daies. But bicause I haue suffici­ently declared mine intēt in myne Epistle in the beginning of this book, therfore I wil spēde no more time in excusing of my self: but wil passe ouer vnto y^t Woulfe, & the Beare, which are as strange & stranger than any other that I hitherto named.

THe Wolfe is a beast sufficiently knowen in Fraunce and other Countries where he is bred: but here in Englād they be not to be foūd in any place. In Ireland (as I haue heard) there are great store of them: and bycause many Noble men and Gentlemen, haue a desire to bring that Countrie to be in­habited and ciuilly gouerned (and would God ther were moe of the same mind) therefore I haue thought good to set downe the nature and maner of hunting at the Wolfe according to mine Author. The Wolfe (sayeth he) goeth on [...] in February, in such sort as a Dogge lineth a birth whē she goet [...] [Page 362] saulte, wherin they abide ten or twelue dayes: many Wolues (where store be) do follow one she Wolfe, euē as Dogges fol­low a Bitche: but she will neuer be lined but onely with one. She will suffer many to follow hir, and will carrie them after hir sometimes eight or tenne dayes without meate, drinke, or rest: and when they are ouerwearied, then she suffreth them all to take their ease, vntill they route and be fast on sleepe: & then will she awake y^e Wolfe which seemeth most to haue folowed hir, and that oftentimes is the foulest & worst fauourd, bycause he is ouerwearied and lankest: him will she awake and tyce him away with hir farre frō the rest, and suffer him to line hir. There is a common Prouerbe, which saith that: Neuer VVolfe yet sawe his Syre: for indeede it hapneth most cōmonly that whē all the rest of the Wolues do awake and misse the female, they follow them by the sent, and finding them oftentimes togy­ther, they fall vpon that Wolfe and kill him for despite. But if there bee no greater store than one Dogge Wolfe and one bitche in a place, then this Prouerbe fayleth: yea or sometimes also the rest of the Wolues are so long ere they do awake and follow, that they cannot so quickly dispatch or kill him accor­ding to their desire, and then also it faileth. Their whelps are able to engēder within twelue months: & whē their whelps be a yere old, then they part frō their Syre & frō their Dam: yea sometimes sooner, but not before their teeth be cast & shot out againe, for they cast teeth first when they are halfe yere old, & whē they are come vp again, they neuer cast more al their life time. Thē they depart frō their dam whē those teeth are come out again & grown hard, & they seke their aduēture, & pray for thē self: & if they chance to meete their syre or dam at any time after, they wil fawne vpō thē, & licke them, & seme in their kind greatly to reioyce. A good exāple for sundry euil disposed chil­drē, which become vngrateful to their parents, which bring thē vp carefully: Since the brute beast cā teach thē their dutie, only by y^• instinct & motiōs of nature. Also when a dog & a bitch of thē do cōpany once togithers, they will not lightly part in sū ­der: for thogh they pray in diuers places, yet at night they wil [Page 205] meete againe, or at the least once in two dayes if it be possible: and they beare meate vnto their whelpes togethers: but the dog will first eate his fill, and then carie the rest vnto his whelpes: But the bytche beareth the pray vnto hir whelpes before she eate any thereof hir self, and if the dogge like it, and haue not satisfied his hunger before, he will take it both from hir and the whelpes, and feede his fill thereon first. After he will leaue the rest for thē to feede on, if there be any, and if there be not, let them sterue for him if they will, so that he maketh not account of any thing, vn­till his belly be full, but the bytch doth oftentimes beguile him. She leaueth the pray farre from their denne, and if she perceyue that the dogge be gone, then bringeth she it to hir whelpes: but if the dogge be there & perceyue that she hath brought nothing, he smelleth to hir mouth & hir lippes: if she haue nothing in deede then he beateth hyr: but if he smell by hir that she had prayed, he constreyneth hyr to shew it vnto him, or els hunteth backe him­selfe by the counter of hir footing, and so findeth it out. Some hold opinion that the bytche washeth hir selfe all ouer, bycause the dogge shoulde not smell whether she haue prayed or not: but y^t I dare not sweare on a booke. Some heauy Wolues wil neuer helpe their bitches to feede theyr whelpes, but if it be in a place where there are no store of Wolues, as no more but he and his make, then he knoweth by the smell that the whelpes are his, and helpeth the Bitch to pray for them, and to feede them, but vncurtuously as I sayde before. Wolues are fattest when they haue small whelpes: for they feede not only vpō their owne prouision, but also vpon that whiche their make & their whelpes should eate also: they go nine weekes with whelpe, and some­times three or foure dayes longer, & go sault but once in a yere. Some hold opinion that a Bitche will not haue yong whelpes nor engender as long as hir owne Dame is aliue. They haue whelpes in all respects like vnto our dogges, sometimes more & sometime lesse: for doubtlesse both the Foxe & the Wolfe are but a kind of wild Mastyfes and wild curres: they be of great force especially in their foreparts: they bite sore and dangerously, for sometimes they will kill a Cowe or a Bullocke: and they will [Page 206] roundely carie a sheepe, a Gote, or a good porkine in their mouth & neuer touch the ground with it, & wil runne so fast away with it, that vnlesse horsemen or Mastife dogs do stay them, they will hardly be ouertaken, eyther by the heardman or by an other crea­ture: they pray vpon all kinde of things, and will feede vpon any carion or any vermine, they liue not lōg nor aboue. xij. or. xiiij. yeares at most. When he hath fedde vpon any vermine or serpēt (as he doth often) then runneth he wonderfully fast. In such sorte that I haue seene a Wolfe (being emptie) outrunne foure or fiue brace of the best Greyhoundes that might be founde: for there is no beast whiche runneth faster than he: and he holdeth marue­lously also, when he is hunted with houndes, he flieth not farre before them: and vnlesse he be coursed with Greyhoūds or Ma­stiues, he keepeth the couert like a Bore or a Beare, & especially the beaten waies therein: most cōmonly he prayeth by night, but sometimes also by day when he is hungry: some Wolues will praye vpon Deare, Gotes, and swyne, and sent as freshly and as tenderly as an hounde: some also wil eate a dogge if they catch him: and fome of them kill children and men sometimes: & then they neuer feede nor pray vpon any other thing afterwards, whē they haue once bene fleshed & nousled therein, but die sometimes for hunger. Such Wolues are called VVarwolues, bicause a mā had neede to beware of them, they be so craftie that when they as­sayle a man, they flee vpon him & lay hold on him before he per­ceyue them: but if he perceyue them first, then they assayle him so subtillie y^t he shal hardly escape their teeth, and can maruelously defend themselues from any weapon that a man hath for his de­fence. There are two causes which make them fet vpō mankind: one is, that when they be old & feeble, & that their teeth begin to fayle them, then can they not carrie their pray as they were wōt: so that they learne with more ease to pray firste vpon children which they meete or espie, which pray can neyther make resistā [...]e, nor is needefull to carie it farre: & therwithall the skinne & fleshe is much more tender and delicate than the skinne & fleshe of any other pray. Another reason is, that in countries where warre is made, & where battayles & skirmishes are giuen, there they feede [Page 207] vpon the dead carkasses of men whiche lie slayne in the fielde, as also in other places vpon suche as hang on the gibbets and trees being executed by Iustice: And the flesh of mā is so delicate and toothsome, y^t when they haue once tasted of it, they care for none other meate. I haue seene a Wolfe forsake the fold, and kill the heardesmā. They are more craftie (if more may be) than the Fox or any other beast: when they are hunted they will take al their aduantages, at other times they will neuer runne ouer hastely, but keepe themselues in breath & force alwayes: they haue al­wayes neede thereof, for there passe few dayes but that they are coursed or cried at by as many as see thē, in the countries where they haūt. A Wolfe wil stād vp a whole day before a good ken­nell of houndes vnlesse y^t Greyhoundes cource him: most com­mōly he is taken in some village or hamm [...]let, he will seldome stand at Baye, vnlesse it be when he cannot longer endure: and then he becomes mad: the bityng of a Wolfe wil hardly be hea­led as I haue before sayde, for their biting is venemous & ranc­leth sore. And againe, bicause they are oftentimes madde, & then there is no cure for their biting: whē they haue ouerfed thēselues or are sicke in their body, they eate grasse as a dogge doth, they cā wel abide hunger at some times, for a Wolfe may bide without meate sixe or seuen dayes: but then wo be to y^t pray that he next meeteth. The bitche wolfe will neuer lightly parte farre frō hir whelpes whē they be yong, for feare least she should leese them. When a woife findeth a litter of pigges, or a flocke of sheepe, he he will (by his wil) kill thē all before he feede vpon any of them. They are hunted at force, taken w^t greyhounds or mastyfes, and hanged in ginnes and snares. But it had neede to be a strong snare y^t should holde them vnlesse helpe come in the sooner: they are also killed in ditches where they passe w^t needels, venemous pouders, & diuerse such other things which men lay in baytes for them. When y^• heardes & sheepe come downe frō the Mo [...]taines to grase & feede in y^• valleys, then they descend also to seeke their pray. They follow a cāpe cōmōly, to feede on y^t carion of horses & such other beastes as mē leaue behind thē. They barke & howle like vnto dogs, & if there be two of them togither they make such [Page 208] a terrible noyse that you woulde thinke there were. xx. of them: this do they most commonly when it is fayre weather, or when they are yong and not past a yeare old, or that they be trayned to any place for to hunte afterwardes: and surely when they be so trayned, they will hardly abide where they feede, and especially old Wolues, if it be at y^• first time that they haue bene trayned: but if they once haue bene accustomed to it, then they will abide the better. Some of them be so craftie, that when they pray by night, they will flie a myle or two from thence before day, espe­cially if it be in a place where they haue bene hunted or stirred, or that they finde some trayne of fleshe made for them. They crie not at all when they are killed, as our dogges do, but in diuerse other properties they resemble a dogge. It is harde or almoste vnpossible to keepe or bryng vp a Wolfe so yong, or so fast tied in subiection, or so corrected and kept in awe, but that it will do some mischiefe at any time that it get libertie and finde meane to do so: and the tamest that euer was yet, woulde (if it were ledde abrode) looke this way and that way, to espie somewhat that it might be doyng withall. For both a Wolfe is doubtfull that men meane harme vnto him: and agayne he knoweth well in his owne conscience that he dothe many shrewde turnes, and that therefore men hunte and pursue him: but for all that he wil neuer leaue his malicious nature: it is written that the right forefoote of a Wolfe is medecinable for the swelling in the throate, and for the inflamacion of the liuer: their skinnes are ex­cellent furre and durable.

VVHen a huntesman woulde hunte the Wolfe, he muste trayne them by these meanes. Firste lette him looke out some fayre place a myle or more from the greate woodes where there be some close stāding to place a brace of good Greyhounds in, if neede be, the whiche shoulde be close enuironed, and some ponde or water by it: there shall he kill a horse or some other great beast, and take the foure legges thereof and carie them [Page 209] into the woods and Forests adioyning. Then let foure goodfel­lowes take euery man a legge of the beast, and drawe it at his horse tayle all alongst the pathes and wayes in the woodes vntill they come backe agayne vnto the place where the dead beast li­eth: there lette them lay downe their traynes. And when the Wolues go out in the night to pray and to feede, they wil crosse vpon the trayne and follow it, vntill they come at the dead ca­rion: there they will feede theyr fill. And then let the huntesman aboute the breake of day go thether, and leaue his horse a good way of vnderneath the winde, and come fayre and softely to the place to espie if there be any Wolues feedyng. If there be, he may retire & styrre them not, and neuer looke how much or how little they haue fedde: for it is sufficient if the hūtesman see them, since they are so craftie & subtile as I haue beforesayd. Then let him clime into some tree there by, & looke which way the Wolfe goeth, and where it is likely that he will lie. For as I haue sayd, they will not lightly farie whereas they feede, but rather will be gone very earely in the grey mornyng: for whether they came late or earely, or whether they would lie in the Sunne rather thā in the couert, or that they would voyde and emptie their bellies, or whether it be so that they haue bene lately styrred and hun­ted, I councell the huntesman to be gone betymes, and so shall he be sure to see certainely: and if he cannot see them, then lette him looke vpon the carion whether they haue bene at it or not: and how many he gesseth haue bene at it, accordyng to the pla­ces that he shall see gnawen or fedde vpon: and then lette him returne to his Lorde or Master, and make reporte accordingly. And let him marke and looke in the wayes which are about the nexte couert or the couert whiche they are gone into, whether they be there entred or paste on furder. And if his hounde will sticke willingly vpon the tracke of a Wolfe, and will challenge it, then he may caste aboute the couert and come not within a­ny parte thereof, and so shall he be best assured whether they be there stayed or not: for his hounde will vent it out styll as he goeth. And therewithall let him marke and iudge whether they do all keepe companie still togither or not, for many times some [Page 210] one will be gone, and all the rest will abide, or els some one wil abide, and all the rest will be gone: but those whiche be full, do most willingly tarie alwayes: and when they fedde not theyr fill the day before, then they tarie longer than suche as fedde their fill ouer night, or yong Wolues, or suche other: for an olde Wolfe is so doubtfull and so full of mistrust, that he will sel­doine abide w [...]re he feedeth. And therefore it were no badde pollicie, to leaue but little meate at the place wherevnto you trāyne, and to leaue harde by the place, some weake beast tyed, so that it can neyther stray away nor make defence. And when the Wolues come and finde but little carion at the place, then to satis [...]e their hunger, they will fall vppon that beaste and de­uoure it: Whiche if they do not the firste night, they will sure­ly do it the nexte night if you obserue that order: and by that meanes they will feede theyr fill, and the rather abyde and tarie by it or neare vnto it: for they are gluttons, and desirous to keepe the tenmant of their praye, when they haue killed a beast and leaue any of it. And when the Hun [...]an shall by these meanes haue bene assured of theyr feedyng twoo nightes togi­ther, then may he make preparacion to hunte them on the thirde day: or if they fayle to come vnto the trayne the firste or se­conde daye, then lette him sende out Uarlettes to trayne from aboute all the couerts adioyning vnto the same place: and so doyng, he cannot misse but drawe Wolues thither once within twoo or three nightes, vnlesse it be in Februarie. In that mo­neth they make small accoumpt of any trayne, by reason of their heate in followyng the Saulte bitches. And sometimes also a Wolfe will followe the trayne euen vntill they come at the ca­rion, and yet when they come there will go their wayes and not feede vppon it. In suche a case the Huntesman shall change his trayne and carion, as if it were of Horse [...]eshe, or beefe, lette him make it of Sheepes or Goates fleshe, or the fleshe of an Asse (whiche Wolues do loue exceedingly,) or of Hogges flesh: for otherwyse he shoulde not be able to knowe whether there be any Wolues neare vnto the place where he trayned or not: [Page 211] and if he doubte thereof, then shall he fayne a voyce, and call or barke, and howle lyke a Wolfe: and if there be any Wolues in the whole couert within the hearyng they will answere him. Agayne, if they come to the carion, and feede not in two or three nightes one after another, or that they feede and go their wayes and tarie not in any couert neare adioyning, then lette him o­uernight hang vp the carion in some trees, so highe that they cannot come by it: and yet leaue some bones vpon the ground, to the ende they may gnawe vpon them. And lette him tarie in the woode vntill it be as it were an houre before day: and lette him leaue by the caryon the garments of some Shepherde or Heardesman, that the Wolues may haue no mistrust of hym where he standeth: then when it is not passyng halfe an houre or little more before daye, lette hym put downe the caryon and go his wayes, and then the Wolues commyng too it, and ha­uing not fedde all the night before, will feede hungerly, and through their gluttonie will forgette themselues and abyde vn­till it be farre foorth dayes, and so go to kennell in the couerts adioyning: for they will be so hungry to feede, and they shall haue so small tyme to satisfie their hunger, that they will be con­strayned to abyde. But bicause commonly Lordes and No­blemen do not ryse so earely as to see these pastymes and polli­cies, therefore I thinke meete that when he hath beaten downe the fleshe as beforesayde, he cause some good fellowes to go and to make fires betweene them and the laste couerts that the Wolues fledde vnto: and lette the fires be not passyng a bow­shotte or not so much one from another: and at euery fire lette some one or two of the cōpany stand talking and laughing one with another: when the Wolues shall heare that, they shall be constreyned (by reason that the day light is now come vpon thē) to abyde there in the couert harde by the carion. In meane whyle, the Lord or Gentleman shall be come and may hunte them at hys pleasure: and that shall he order thus. Firste lette him regard which way wil be the fayrest course for Greyhoūds, and place them accordingly: and as neare as he can lette him forestail with his Greyhoundes the same way y^t the Wolues did [Page 212] flie the nightes before, if the grounde serue to course in, vnlesse the winde be contrarie, for then it were but follie to set them that waye: otherwayes the Wolfe will rather come that way than any other way. If the winde serue not that waye, then lette him set his Greyhoundes in the fayrest place to course in vppon a good wynde: and lette hym set his Greyhoundes in rankes as neare one to another as the number of his Greyhoundes will permitte: alwayes regardyng the wynde, and causing them whiche holde the Greyhoundes to stande close. That be­yng so appoynted, lette him set hewers all rounde aboute the Couert where the Wolues doo lye, to hewe and make noyse on euery side but onely that where the Greyhoundes doo stande. If his owne seruauntes and companie be not sufficient, he may do well to assemble the neighbours whiche dwell neare by: who will be gladde to helpe hym bycause the Wolues doo them suche greate harmes and domages. And lette all those people stande as thicke as they can all aboute the couert, but onely on that side where the Greyhoundes are set, talkyng and walkyng one to another, and makyng all the noyse that they can deuise to force them vnto the Greyhoundes. Then lette the Huntes­man go with his Lyamehounde and drawe from the carion vnto the thickes sides where the Wolues haue gone in: and there the Huntes shall caste off the thyrde parte of their beste houndes, for a Wolfe will sometimes holde a couert long tyme before he come out. The Huntesmen muste holde neare in to theyr houndes, blowyng harde and encouragyng them with the voyce: for many houndes will streyne curtesie at this chace, although they bee lustie and arrant at all other chaces. When the Wolfe commeth to the Greyhoundes, they whiche holde them shall do well to suffer the Wolfe to passe by the first ranke, vntill he be come vnto the seconde ranke or furder: and let the last ranke let slippe their Greyhoundes full in the face of the Wolfe: & at the same instant let al the other rankes let slippe also. So that the firste ranke staying him neuer so little, he may be assayled on all sides at once: and by that meanes they shall the more easily take hym. It is beste entryng of Houndes [Page 213] at yong Wolues whiche are not yet passyng halfe a yeare or a yeare olde: for a hounde will hunte suche more willingly and with lesse dread than they will hunte an olde Wolfe. And likewise the yong Wolues can neyther make so good defence, nor yet vse suche policies and subtilties as the olde Wolfe will. Or it shall be good to take Wolues alyue in engines, and then breake theyr teeth and enter your houndes at them. When the Wolfe is deade, you shall make the rewarde thus. Firste lette the houndes and Greyhoundes, but especially the houndes runne in and all to byte and musle the dead Wolfe: then let the hunte open his belly all alongst and take out all his bowels: then lette him take a Sheepe or a Porkine and kill it, and strype of the skinne quickly and cut it all to gobbets, putting it into the bo­dye of the Wolfe, and there lette the houndes and Greyhoundes [...]ate it out. For defaulte of a sheepe or suche hote meate, let him take breade cheese and suche lyke scrappes and broken morselles and put them into the Wolfe for the houndes rewarde as before sayde. Note that bothe houndes and Greyhoundes will re­quyre greater fleshyng and encouragement to a Wolfe than to any other chace, and therefore all the cheare that you can vse vnto them, will be little enough: And if a Wolfe chaunce to breake vppon the hewers, and so escape the course, yet bee not thereat discouraged, but beate the same couert on the next day. For a Wolfe hath this propertie, that when he hath once so esca­ped, he bethinketh him thereof, & returneth thither on the next day to see what y^e matter was which styrred him so, or to see what is become of his companions if he had any, or to see if there be any carrion. And agayne he is so craftie, that he thinketh surely men will not hunte in the sayde place agayne so quickely: but if he finde faulte and perceyue that any of his companions be killed, then will he be gone from thence the nexte night, and come no­more there of a greate whyle: yea though you trayne him he may chaunce to come vnto the trayne, but surely he will not ta­rie in any couert neare vnto that place. A man may knowe a doggewolfe from a bitche by the trackes of theyr feete: for the [Page 212] [...] [Page 213] [...] [Page 214] dogge hath a greater heele, a greater toe, greater nayles, and a rounder foote: and the Bitche casteth hyr fiants commonly in the middest of an high way, whereas the dogge casteth them on the one or other side of the pathe. And now let these fewe things suffise for the hunting of the Wolfe.

THere be Beares of two sorts, that one much greater than that other naturally: although they be of equall age, or how long foeuer they liue, but their properties and condicions are all one. sauing that the greater be much stronger, the which I accoumpt no difference of nature. They are naturally very cr [...]est & harme­full vnto all [...]ame beastes, and are very strong in all partes of their bodies but onely the head. A small blow on the head killeth them: they go to make in December, some sooner & some later, according to their rest and good feeding: their heate endureth fifteene dayes and not paste. When the Shebeare doth feele hir yong within hir, then doth she withdrawe hir selfe into some caue or rocke, and their abideth vntil she bring forth hir whelps: therefore you shall seldome heare of a Beare taken when she is with whelpe. Somtimes a Beare, especially a Male, will keepe close in his denne fortie dayes and nightes without eyther meate or drinke, hauing none other nourishment but onely sleepe and [...]ucking on his Toes: at fortie dayes ende they will come out, and though it be a fayre day, yet will they enclose themselues agayne for fourtie dayes longer, alwayes doubting that the winter will yet cōtinue: and lightly as long as any harde wea­ther lasteth, they will not come out of their dennes. They are whelped most commonly in Marche: the most parte of them are dead one whole day after they be whelped: but the Dāme doth fo licke them, warme them, and cherishe them, that she reuiueth [...]hem at last. Their heare at first is more whitish than like black: [Page 215] they giue them sucke a moneth and not much more, and that is bicause their whelpes are curst and haue cruell pawes & sharpe nayles, and byte shrewdely: if they finde not their fill of milke in the Dammes teates, or that she remoue when they sucke, thē they will byte the teate, & teare their Dāme with their pawes, whervpon many of them kill their whelpes, and byte them sore somtimes. At least assoone as the Damme perceineth that they beginne to waxe strong, shee giueth them sucke no longer, but goeth abrode, and prayeth or fedeth vpon any thing that she cā finde, and then castes it vp agayne before hir whelpes, by that meanes she feedeth them vntill they can praye for themselues. When they ingender, they lye face to face. They feede vppon Hearbes, Frutes, Honie, Fleshe, Milke, Maste, Beanes, Pease, and of all manner of carion and vermine. They will clyme a tree for y^e frute: and somtimes in the winter or hard weather, when all these things faile them, they kill Kyne and other cat­tell to feede un: and yet fewe of them do so, vnlesse it be sheepe, Gotes, or suche little beastes. If they be in good plyghte (and especially the greater sort) they continew in their strength and force tenne or twelue yeares. They liue sometimes. xx. yeares, but they doe oftentymes become blinde, and then they cannot pray. They go very far for their prayes, considering the great­nesse and weight of their bodies, & that is bycause they would not be founde: but yet looke where they praye, they remaine and continue harde by their praye. If they be hunted, they followe a man, and yet neuer runne vpon him vnlesse they be hurt: but if they be hurte, then they runne vppon any thing that standes before them. They are maruelous strōg in their pawes, wher­with they coll in a Man or a Dogge, in suche sorte, that many times they kill and smoother them, or breake their bulckes with the force. Their nayles haue great force, but not such as would kill a beast: but with their whole pawe they pull a dogge vnto their mouth, and then they teare him maruelously, for they byte sore, insomuch that if they get holde of a mans heade, they will byte him into y^e braines: & as for an arme or a leg, they would [Page 216] crushe it in peeces like glasse. If you strike at them w^e a sword, they wil breake & beare off a great blow with their pawes: they are so heauie, that when they be hunted they cā make no speede, but are alwayes within sight of the Dogges: they stand not at a Baye like to the Bore, but flee styll wallowing as they can vntill helpe of men come in: and then if the houndes sticke in and fight with them, they fight very valiantly in their own de­fence. Sometimes they stād vpon their hinder feete as vpright as a man: but that is a token of dread and cowardlynesse, but being vpon all foure they fight bothe the more strongly and the more stoutely: for then they declare that they will be reuenged, and flee no longer: they haue very perfect sent, & smel furder off thā any other beast, vnlesse it be the Bore. For in a whole For­rest they will smel out a tree loden with mast: when they be o­uerweried, they flee to some brooke or water, & ther they be ouer­throwen: they may be hunted with Mastyfes, Greyhoundes, or houndes, & they are killed & chaced w^t bowe, borespeare, dartes, & swords: so are they also takē in snares, caues & pits, & in other engines. If two mē on foote hauing borespearesor Iauelins, or short pitchforkes, would sticke wel one to an others defēce & re­uēge, they may kil a great beare for y^• Beare is of this nature, that at euery blowe she will be reuenged on whatsoeuer come next to hands. So that when y^e one hath striken the Beare, she will runne vpon him: & then if the other strike quickly, she will returne to him againe. So that the one may alwaies help and succour the other: they do naturally abide in the great Moun­taines, but when it snoweth or is very hard weather, then they descēd to seeke foode in y^• valleies & Forests, they cast their lesses fomtimes in round Croteys, & somtimes flat like a Bullocke, according to the feede that they finde: they are able to engen [...]r when they be but one yeare old, & then they departe from their dammes, they go somtimes a galloppe, & somtimes an amble: but when they wallow then they go at moste ease. When they are chased they flee into the couerts and Forestes, their season begynneth in Maye, and endureth vntyll suche tyme as they go to ingender agayne: but at all seasons they bee very fatte [Page 217] both within and without. And by that meanes their season la­steth longer than any other beasts. When a Beare is hurt sore, and escapeth the huntsmen, she will open and stretch hir wound, yea, sometimes she will drawe out hir owne guts and bowels to search them whether they be pierced or not: and by that mea­nes many of them dye, when they might well escape. When they come from their feeding, they beate cōmonly the highways and beaten pathes: and where so euer they goe out of the hyghe way, there you may be sure they are gone to their denne, for they vse no doublings nor subtleties. They tumble and wallowe in water and myre like vnto sooyne, and they feede like a dogge. Their flesh is delicate to some mens tooth: but in mine opinion, it is rammishe and vnsauerie, at leastwise it can not be holsome. Their greace is good for the gowt and shrinking of the sinews, and the better, if it be mingled with other oyntments. Their feete are the best morsell of them, for they be delicate meate. Their skynne is a furre, but very course: meeter to laye vpon a bed, than to weare otherwise. I haue termed their fatte, greace, & so is it to be called of all beastes which praye: and of all Deare & other fallow beasts, it is to be called Sewet. As also their feede is called feeding, and a Deares is called feede, as I haue before declared.

THe best finding of the Beare is with a lyamhounde, and yet he which hath no lyamhounde, maye trayle after the Beare, as they doe after a Rowe, or a Bucke: but you may drawe after the Beare in the vineyards, in the hollow ma­stie woods, and such like places, according to the season: & so you may lodge them, and runne and hunte them, as you do a Bore. For the more speedy execution, you shall do well to mingle ma­stifes amongst your houndes: for they will pinch the Beare, and make hir angrie, vntill at last they bring them to the bay: or else they driue them cleane out of the playne, into the couert, and ne­uer let them be in quiet, vntill they come to fight for desence: and [Page 218] by that meanes they are the sooner kylled. For though the Beares byte a dogge sore, yet they kyll them not so soone as a Bore doth. The rewarde may be made after the death of the Beare, as it is made at the death of a Wolfe.

Thus haue I nowe (what out of myne Authour, and what by myne owne experience and coniecture) set downe the natures and hunting of as many chases as I thinke chaseable: yea, and these two last rehearsed, viz. the Wolfe and the Beare, toge­ther with the Rayndeare also, I haue not thought good to leaue out, although they be not in vse heere with vs in Englande: since they seeme by the description, to be noble chases, and much esteemed in other countreys. Nowe let me set downe the Cures & Medicines for dogs, when they shall eyther be hurt, or fall into any surfeite, sicknesse, or infyrmities.

HOunds, and generally all kynd of dogs, are subiect to many diseases & infirmities. But aboue all other diseases, they are most cūbred with madnesse, wherof there are seuen sundry sorts. The first kynd is called y^• burning hote madnesse, or the desperat madnesse. And this kinde of madnes can not be healed, but is so harmfull & contrarie vnto a dogs nature, that immediately after y^• venome therof hath once crept into y^• bloud of a dog, it burnes [Page 220] and infectes him sodainely. And as sone as the brayne feeleth it selfe vexed with the fume thereof, the dog tormenteth him selfe continually, and becommeth desperate, as hath often bene seene by experience: the dogges which haue this madnesse, are known sundry wayes. Firste when they runne, they rayse their tayles right vp, the which other dogges doe not, that be sicke of other kyndes of madnesse. Agayne, they runne vpon any thing that standeth before them as well beastes, as other thinges, and haue no respect, where nor which way they run, whether it be through Ryuers, pondes, or waters. Also their mouth will be very black, and will haue no fome nor froth in it. They endure not in this kynde of madnesse, aboue three or foure dayes at the most, by reason of the vntollerable payne and trauell thereof. When they maye no longer endure, they howle a kynde of howling in the throate, and hoarcely, but not like the howling of a dogge that were sounde. All beastes which they shall byte, as well dogges as other, if they drawe bloude on them, will doubtlesse runne madde also.

The second kinde of madnesse, is called running madnesse, and is likewise vncureable. But the vyting thereof is not so ve­nemous, nor so dangerous for other beastes, as the first is, for it vexeth not continually without intermission. And when a dog is madde of this kynde of madnesse, the first dogge which he by­teth in the forenoone, dothe beare with him all his venome, & will be in great daunger to runne madde: but as many as he byteth afterwardes, may escape from running madde thereof. When dogges haue this madnesse, they runne not vpon beastes, nor vpon men, but onely vppon dogges, and harken as they goe to heare the barking of other dogges, to the ende they may go shake them and byte them. They runne in the high wayes, and cast their fayles betwene their legges, trotting like a Foxe, and may continue thus nyne monethes, but not past. These two kyndes of madnesse are more daungerous than all the rest, and when a dogge will become madde, of any of these two sortes of mad­nesse, you may knowe by these tokens.

First they eate verie little, they will smell vpon other dogs, [Page 221] and when they haue smelt on them, will shake and byte them, yet wagging their [...]ayles, and seeming to cherish them. They sigh sore, & shuffe with their noses, and looke sydewayes or ouer­thwarts. They are sad and heauie, yet running after butterflyes and other flyes. There are many other apparant tokens which I leaue for breuities sake. Whē you perceiue them by such tokens, shift them out of the company of other dogs, and shut them vp, for their breath is infectiue, and m [...]y make other dogges madde: for such diseases are taken amongst dogs, as the pestilence is a­mongst men. The other fiue sorts of madnesse, are nothing like so dangerous: for dogs which are sicke of them, do neither runne nor byte. So that I esteeme them rather sicknesses, than mad­nesses, although sundrye huntsmen haue hold opinion, that al the seuen sortes of madnesse were vncurable. But I my selfe haue healed sundry dogs, which haue bi [...] sicke of these other fiue kinds of madnesse hereafter mentioned, with the Receiptes which I meane (God willing) to set down here in wryting. And the said fiue sundry sorts of madnesse are thus named.

The first is called the dumme madnesse, the which lieth within the bloud, and is to be known by this note or signe: The dogges which are mad therof, wil not feed, but hold their mouth wide o­pē, putting their feet into their mouth, as if they had some bone in their throat, & hide thēselues cōmonly in moist & freshest places.

The seconde is called the falling madnesse, for the dogs which haue it, fal as they go, as if they had the falling euill, or the Saint Johns sycknesse. And the disease lyeth in their heapes.

The thirde kynde of madnesse, is called the La [...]ke madnesse. For the disease is within their bodies, and maketh them skūmer so much, that they become so tanke, leane, and thynne, that a man may thrust them through with his finger.

The fourth is called the sleeping madnesse. The which com­meth with a kinde of little wormes, that lye in the mouth of a dogges stomacke, being there engendered through corruption of humours, the vapors and fumes whereof, doe mount vp into the braynes of a dog, and make him sleepe vncessantly, so that commonly they die sleeping.

[Page 222]The fifth and last kynde of madnesse, is called the [...] or slauering madnesse. For when a dogge hath it, his heade swelleth, and his eyes become yellowe as a Kyghts foote, and he driueleth and slauereth at the mouth commonly.

When a dogge hath any of these kyndes of madnesse, he will haue no lust to eate, but lyueth eight or nyne dayes in this sorte, doing no hurte to any thing, and in the ende dyeth for hunger: wherewithall you must vnderstande, that dogs are of this pro­pertie generally: Whensoeuer they feele any disease within their bodies (without any occasion of hurtes, or such accidentes) they wil neuer feede lightly, vntill they be healed therof. For proofe, when a dogge is sicke, he will not eate the deyntyest morsell that you can proffer him, vntill he haue eaten grasse, and cast vp all that was within him, and then he will eate. Some are of opini­on, y^t the worme vnder a dogs tong, is the cause of madnesse: but I thinke not so. Although it maye be, that suche as haue beene wormed, doe not so commonly fall madde: yet sometimes they do, as may dayly be seene.

These diseases are taken amongst dogs, by breathing and cō ­panying one with another. And therfore it shal be best to shut vp such as haue thē, from al the rest of your hoūds, as is before sayd.