ENGRAVED BY E, HACKER, FROM A PAINTING BY A. COOPER, R.A.

We have but few field sports that are not now well represented in the library; the majority of them, indeed, can boast of many and many a treatise devoted each to its especial consideration. From the chase, with its numberless authorities, through all the varieties of the trigger and the rod-for coursing, cricket, or boating, we can always go to book. All these, too, are sufficiently modernized to be applicable to present use. If there was a hiatus, it was with the falconer's art-that pastime which in days gone by poets delighted to sing of, and painters still continue to paint. Mr. Cooper, however, makes no mistake when he arrays his sportsman in ancient costume. The flying of falcons is gradually becoming more and more rare; we should be almost afraid to say how long it is since the Duke of St. Alban's has had his royal birds unhooded. The decline, then, of the pursuit may in great measure account for the little that of late has been sung or said in its support. Such a want is at length well supplied. It is only within these last few days that Mr. Van Voorst, of Paternoster-row, has brought out a work which comes peculiarly apropos to the subject of our plate. Messrs. Francis Henry Salvin and William Brodrick have engaged themselves in writing "The Falconry of the British Isles." From their tastes and experience, as is everywhere evinced, they are espcially qualified for the labour they undertook. We never saw a subject more completely done justice to; and in saying this, we have to compliment not merely the authors, but almost equally so their publisher, and, we were about to add, their artist. The beautiful lithographs in colour, however, with which the work is profusely illustrated, also bear the name of Mr. Brodrick. These alone would warrant for the book the attention of the sportsman and the naturalist. As it is, they claim only the second place, as completing the furniture of a volume that is in every way a credit to those who have prepared it, and an honour to the old English sport it should tend so greatly to revive. As a taste of its quality, we borrow a description of "the Quarry" just brought down:

"The heron has, at all times, been considered the most noble quarry at which the falconer could test the qualities of his favourite birds; the height to which it will rise in the air when pursued, together with the powerful weapon of defence it carries, being such as to try to the utmost the courage and endurance of the boldest falcons. Many hawks, in fact, will not attack this bird at first, and can only be induced to do so by fastening pieces of

meat upon the back of a captured heron, and making them feed there; the bill of the heron being at the same time enclosed in pieces of elder, so as to prevent injury to the hawk; after that, two or three herons should be given from the hand, and in a creance, before the hawk can be depended upon to fly one at large. Herons may be caught by means of a long string, with a slip-knot, forming a noose, which is placed round a nest, at sunset, containing eggs, and drawn over the legs of the parent bird upon her return to the herony. When first taken, herons refuse to feed, and must be crammed, and also have a piece of broad tape tied round the neck, to prevent the food from being disgorged again. As these birds are by no means abundant anywhere, as few of them as possible should be killed.

For heron-hawking two things are absolutely necessary, viz., a well-stocked heronry, and an open country around it, easy to be ridden over. The season for this sport is during the spring months, when the old herons have to provide for their young, and for that purpose make regular flights to and fro some well-known feeding-ground and their nests, often to the distance of several miles. This is called 'the passage,' and of it the falconers avail themselves in order to intercept the herons upon their return.

"A heron put up out of a pond or brook would not afford anything like a proper flight; for if not taken at once by the hawks, it lights either upon a neighbouring tree, or even on the water. Probably our forefathers took in this way all the berons they used for the table, either with eyess falcons or with female goshawks. The Dutch falconers introduced the vastly superior mode of flying this quarry by placing themselves down wind of the heronry, and waiting for the return of the old birds. Those which are seen going out to fish are styled 'light herons,' and are not generally interfered with. When, however, a bird is noticed returning homewards with a full crop, the warning cry of Au vol' is raised; and if it passes sufficiently near to the falconer, he throws off a cast of falcons down wind of it, and the sport commences. Immediately the heron perceives itself to be pursued, it commences to rise in the air, or, in falconers' language, to'ring,' and at the same time lightens itself of the contents of its creel,' so that trout, eels, and frogs may be occasionally seen entirely out of their natural element descending from the skies: the hawks, also, have to get to their pitch by a spiral course, so that the three birds may sometimes appear to be flying in different directions. The heron, having considerably the start of his pursuers, is enabled to gain a lofty pitch before they can overtake it: it is this that adds so much to the interest of the scene, it being an acknowledged rule amongst falconers, that the higher the birds rise the finer may the flight be considered. As soon as the first hawk has got above the heron it makes a stoop, which is evaded by a shift; this gives the second hawk time to take up a similar position, and in turn to make a like attempt. These stoops are repeated frequently, the birds continuing to rise, and generally going down wind, obliging the company to ride briskly in order to keep them within sight, often to the distance of two or three miles. At length one of the hawks succeeds in "binding," that is, seizing the heron, its example being immediately followed by the other, when the three birds descend slowly to the ground. Instinct teaches old falcons to unbind just before they reach the ground, in order to avoid the shock, which the young hawks that retain their hold are liable to suffer from. Advantage should be taken by the falconer of this unbinding to lure off the hawk by means of a live pigeon in a creance, and to secure it, as there is great danger in attacking the heron upon the ground: it is under these circumstances, and not, as has often been supposed, whilst in the air, that he makes deadly use of his formidable bill. The falconer, upon dismounting to secure the heron and his hawks, pulls out a leathern thong with a leaden weight attached to it from a bag at the side of the saddle, which prevents his horse from straying; and as soon as the hawks have fastened upon the pigcon-lures he scizes the heron by the neck, and, placing the bird's head

between his knees, examines carefully any injuries it may have received during the encounter; if not severely hurt (which is seldom the case), or required for the training of younger hawks, it is restored to liberty, a thin copper plate, with his name and date of the year engraved upon it, having been previously fastened round the leg of the captive.

"Much depends upon the wind and the quality of the hawks, as respects the duration of a heron's flight. About the year 1844 there was a wonderful hawk at Loo, called 'Bulldog,' which generally took her heron at the third stoop, a feat we have never heard of as accomplished by any other hawk.

"During the spring of 1843, Mr. Newcome had a cast of passage hawks of such excellence, that their performances are well worth recording. These hawks, named Sultan and 'De Royter,' had been flown for a season at Loo, before being brought to England. Each year, as soon as they had finished their moult, they were entered and flown at rooks previous to the commencement of the heron season; during their third year they took at Hockwold in Norfolk and at Loo fifty-four herons, and in the following season of 1844 they took in the same localities fifty-seven herons !

"The bittern used to be a favourite quarry at which to fly heron-hawks ; as, however, this bird is so seldom met with at the present day, it is unnecessary to say anything about it.”

YACHTING.

There

There never was a yachting season which looked so promising, nor bore so many fair and inviting aspects, as the approaching one. is but one small black cloud hanging in the blue horizon of yachting regions, and that one cloud may be easily dispersed by carrying out the suggestions contained in our last number, under the head, "Mensuration of Yachts"; but if allowed to cast its gloomy shadow on the sunny waters of the Solent, the critical banks of the Thames, the merry seas of old Erin, or the famed regattas of the Eastern coast; that cloud, if not dispersed, will hover over those aquatic scenes, and flutter like a hawk before pouncing upon its terror-stricken victim. We will not now again depict the mischief that is pending, whilst the present unsatisfactory and confused system of tonnage admeasurement prevails; but proceed with our subject, after expressing, in renewed terms of regret, our sympathizing sorrow that the present system of yacht mensuration should remain in so forlorn a state.

Great preparations are now being made by almost every yacht club in the kingdom, for rendering the yachting season of 1856 as attractive and enlivening as any of its predecessors. A great many new yachts have been built, and amongst them several racing clippers. The Messrs. Wanhill, of Poole, have recently turned out a beautiful vessel for Sir Percy Shelley she is schooner-rigged, and named The Extravaganza. They have besides constructed three new cutters of highly promising

appearance. Fife of Fairlie (the builder of the far-famed Cymba) has been fully employed in building new yachts and lengthening old ones: Several other yacht builders on the Irish coast are at the present time busily engaged on new yachts. The beautiful cutter "Medina," T. W. Fox, Esq., R.W.Y.C., is being lengthened by Hawkins, of Plymouth. Nicholls, of Dartmouth, has two new yachts in hand, of about sixty tons each, one of which is built from American lines; he is also lengthening two others of about the same tonnage. Three or four new clippers have been built on the Humber, for members of the Royal Yorkshire Y.C. In fact, there is scarcely a yacht club on the English or Irish coast, but has newly-constructed yachts to contend at the regattas of the present season. Most of those clubs have held their annual meetings, and made preparations for their sailing matches: those meetings have, without exception, been numerously and influentially attended, and an unusual degree of energy has been displayed. The Irish regattas are becoming exceedingly attractive; the best matches of all are sailed in the Irish Channel, or at any rate they have proved so the last two years. The Royal St. George's Yacht Club is making active arrangements for rendering the regatta in Dublin Bay as stirring as usual. It is fixed to take place on the 24th June; and the other Irish Clubs intend arranging their regattas to come off at successive intervals after the Dublin Bay regatta, so as to insure the attendance of all yachts that may be on the coast at that particular time. The Royal Western Yacht Club of Ireland has no less than twenty additional yacht owners among the list of new members admitted to that club. The Royal Welsh Yacht Club, Carnarvon, has also added several influential members to its roll.

Amongst the numerous new members admitted to the Royal Thames Yacht Club, is a no less important personage than the Right Hon. Viscount Bangor, owner of The Lalla Rookh schooner, 126 tons. The first cutters' match of that club is to be sailed on the 14th inst., under the usual regulations of half-a-minute per ton for difference of tonnage; but no time is to be allowed beyond 60 tons; the last day of entry is the 7th inst. The schooner match of that club is fixed for the 14th of June, for 100 sovs., and is to be sailed under different regulations to those of previous years. The great stumbling-block to the success of this annual match has been the want of allowance of time for disparity of tonnage. That obstacle is now removed, and a quarter-minute per ton is to be allowed. There can be no doubt but such an arrangement will induce many yachts to contend for the prize, which would otherwise exclude themselves from entering; for it seems the height of unfairness that a yacht of 50 or 60 tons should be compelled to sail upon even terms with one of 160 or 200 tons, as has formerly been the case. It can be no credit to a vessel of such huge proportions beating others of such widely inferior tonnage; and it is well known, that since "The America" came into fame, more schooner yachts have been built than were ever before known. Some of the fastest and best of the class range in size of 50, 60, 70, and 80 tons: these are the identical clipper schooners that should contend in the Thames match. Schooners such as the Shark, Titania, Alarm, and others of such large proportions, ought to sail in a class by themselves, unless they are handicapped.