XXII
HERON STRUCK DOWN BY PEREGRINE (PHOTO TAKEN JUST BEFORE THE HERON TOUCHED THE GROUND)
The next thing to do is to fly her at a stone-plover.[553] You must cast her off with her breast to the wind, and then cut off the plover so that it squats on the ground.[554] If she takes it, feed her up on other food, saving the plover alive for another day in case of accident, for you must not let your hawk’s success make you overconfident. If she fail to take it, lure her and feed her.
If you have a made hawk, it is better to unhood her at the plover first, to show the youngster the way.
Here let me give you a word of caution. Should your shāhīn fail to kill, on no account must you in luring her back release the bagged plover as she comes towards you: do so only twice and she will never after be really good at the lure; she will contract a habit of “waiting on” in expectation of a live bird being thrown out for her, and will ignore the dead lure; then, if you have no live bird by you with which to lure her without delay, some eagle will be attracted to the spot, and she will to a certainty be lost.
Now a properly trained shāhīn should be obedient to the dead lure; she should not require live “hand-birds”[555] to call her down.
To resume; you must first take two or three stone-plover with her, and then two or three hubara.[556] After that, three or four mallard,[557] then a wild goose,[558] and then two or three common heron.[559] Fly her at this quarry in the order mentioned, for a shāhīn improves by degrees[560] and does not require to be entered to large quarry by “hand-trains.”[561] Should you, however, be in a district where all this quarry is not to be found, you must of necessity have recourse to “trains.” Next fly her at a raven.[562] If she take it, give her only a little meat and save the raven alive. On the morrow fly her at this raven from a good long distance: as soon as she takes it, cut the raven’s throat and let her just taste the blood, but feed her up on the flesh of a pigeon or of a chicken, for the flesh of the raven is not a suitable food for hawks.
XXIII
YOUNG PEREGRINE (ENGLISH BLOCK AND INDIAN HOOD)
On the following day take your hawk and go to some spot where only two or three half-tame undisturbed cranes[563] are accustomed to feed. Get close up to them and cast off your hawk. If your shāhīn “bind” to the quarry, get in as quick as you can and secure the crane’s wings;[564] cut its throat, rip open its breast, and feed your hawk.