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pieces of paper, and a worsted garter. In the midst of this singular collection of materials were deposited two eggs. The kite is now almost extinct in England, and a kite's nest, of course, is a great rarity. The Rev. H. B. Tristram, speaking of the habits of the Egyptian kite (Milvus Ægyptius), says : *—“ Its nest, the marine storeshop of the desert, is decorated with whatever scraps of bournouses and coloured rags can be collected; and to these are added, on every surrounding branch, the cast-off coats of serpents, large scraps of thin bark, and perhaps a bustard's wing."

We have alluded to the Buzzard (Buteo vulgaris) in the passage above quoted from Richard III, and also to the synonym "puttock," which was sometimes applied to this bird, as well as to the kite.

Mr. St. John, who was well acquainted with the common buzzard, thought that in all its habits it more nearly resembled the eagle than any other kind of hawk.†

In the following passage, it seems probable, as suggested by Mr. Staunton, that a play upon the words is intended, and that "buzzard" in the second line means a beetle, so called from its buzzing noise :

"O slow-wing'd turtle! shall a buzzard take thee?

Ay, for a turtle, as he takes a buzzard."

Taming of the Shrew, Act ii. Sc. I.

The Great Sahara," p. 392. t "Tour in Sutherland," vol. i. p. 121.

Neither the kite nor the buzzard were ever trained for hawking, being deficient both in speed and pluck.

The former, however, was occasionally "flown at" by falconers, although oftener for want of a better bird, than because he showed much sport.

Both are now far less common than in Shakespeare's day. The increased number of shooters, and the war of extermination which is carried on by gamekeepers, inevitably seal their doom.

To those who have ever taken part in a hawking

excursion, it must be a matter of some surprise that so delightful a pastime has ceased to be popular. Yet, at the present day, perhaps not one person in five hundred has ever seen a trained hawk flown. In Shakespeare's time things were very different. Every one who could afford it kept a hawk, and the rank of the owner was indicated by the species of bird which he carried. To a king belonged the gerfalcon; to a prince, the falcon gentle; to an earl, the peregrine; to a lady, the merlin; to a young squire, the hobby; while a yeoman carried a goshawk; a priest, a sparrowhawk; and a knave, or servant, a kestrel. But the sport was attended with great expense, and much time and attention were required of the falconer before his birds were perfectly trained, and he himself a proficient.

This, combined with the increased enclosure and

H

cultivation of waste lands, has probably contributed as much as anything to the decline of falconry in England.

During the age in which Shakespeare lived, the sport was at its height, and it is, therefore, not surprising that he has taken much notice of it in his works, and has displayed a considerable knowledge on the subject.

In the second part of King Henry VI. Act 2, we find a scene laid at St. Alban's, and the King, Queen, Gloster, Cardinal, and Suffolk appearing, with falconers halloaing. We quote that portion of the scene which refers more particularly to the sport :

Queen. Believe me, lords, for flying at the brook,

I saw not better sport these seven years' day:
Yet, by your leave, the wind was very high;
And, ten to one, old Joan* had not gone out.
King. But what a point, my lord, your falcon made,
And what a pitch she flew above the rest!-
To see how God in all his creatures works!
Yea, man and birds are fain of climbing high.
Suff. No marvel, an it like your majesty,

My lord protector's hawks do tower so well;
They know their master loves to be aloft,
And bears his thoughts above his falcon's pitch.

Glo. My lord, 'tis but a base ignoble mind

That mounts no higher than a bird can soar.

* The name, no doubt, of a favourite falcon.

Card. I thought as much; he'd be above the clouds.

Believe me, cousin Gloster,

Had not your man put up the fowl so suddenly,
We had had more sport."

"Flying at the brook" is synonymous with "hawking by the river," and shows us that the party were in pursuit of water-fowl. Chaucer speaks of

"Ryding on, hawking by the river,

With grey goshawk in hand."

"Point."-The fluttering or hovering over the spot

where the "quarry" has been “put in."

"Pitch."-The height to which a hawk rises before

swooping.

"How high a pitch his resolution soars!"

Richard II. Act i. Sc. 1.

"Tower."-A common expression in falconry, signifying to rise spirally to a height. Compare the French "tour." The word occurs again in Macbeth, Act ii. Sc. 4, with reference to a fact which we might well be excused for doubting, did we not know that it was related as an unusual circumstance :

"On Tuesday last,

A falcon, tow'ring in her pride of place,

Was by a mousing owl hawk'd at and kill'd."