ART. DCCCXIX. Hunting.

HUNTING, according to one of the old chronicles, must have originally been pursued as a simple recreation and amusement, though sometimes followed to obtain the hide of the animal; thus "Lameth an archer, but some dele blynde, had a younglyng yt. ledde hym whyle he hunted for playe & lykyng; other for loue of bestes skynnes: for men ete no flesshe before Noes flood." Afterwards, when flesh became the usual food and the domestic herd could no longer supply novelty to the evervarying appetite, a higher gratification to the palate appears to have been sought for in beasts of venery. "Take thy weapons, thy quiver, and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison, and make me some savoury meat," was the command of the patriarch Isaac to his son Esau, and that command has been noticed by a divine, as a proof of the lawfulness of the chace. "Perswading myselfe (he says) that the smelling of the dogge, the flying of the hawke, the antipathie amongst the creatures, howeuer it was produced by the fall of man, yet neuerthelesse that God in his mercy alloweth & in his wise prouidence disposeth euen of these contrarities and antipathies, as well as of the sympathies of the creatures, for the good and vse of man, his lieutenant & viceregent ouer the works of his hands. And for hunting more especially it is my opinion, if not iudgment, that Isaack would not have tollerated, much lesse commaunded Esau's hunting if it had bin sinfull. Secondly (the same writer continues), it is lawfull to kill the creature in Christian liberty, deere or hare, or the like for meat or medicine: yea so to kill them as they may be most vseful and behoofeful for man, which is done better

* "Represent to your generous reading, the natural enmity betwixt the horse and the beare, the wolfe and the lyon, the fox and the badger; such a native disagreeing remaines among these beasts, as their hatred is implacable; ever pursuing their enemy with an inveterate hate: for an enmity ingrafted by nature, cannot be suppressed by lesse than nature," p. 175. Braithwait's Nursery for Gentry.

by chase or course, than eyther by gins or shooting, as experience shewes; and, as some scrupulously obiect, this is not to tyrannize ouer the creature in putting it by continuance of chase or course to a more lasting paine; but rather to lessen, euen as he that dies by degrees in a consumption, or that bleeds to death, dies more easily than he that is hewn by a sword, as Samuel did Agag, al at once."* As a custom amongst mankind the chace has proved universal, varying only from the necessity of the climate or difference of the prey. In all countries the hand of power, which it first assisted in the institution of, + has appeared jealously employed in guarding the prescriptive rights and boundaries of the royal forests. Englishmen were relieved, or made secure, from the forfeiture of life, by the Charta Foresta, (which immediately followed Magna Charta, 1225,) and then it was enacted “no man from henceforth shall lose either life, or member for killing of our deer;" limiting the punishment to only fine or imprisonment. The law was further defined, whereby for an "Archbishop, Bishop, Earl or Baron, coming to us at our commandment, passing by our forest, it shall be lawful for him to take and kill one or two of our deer, by view of our forester, if he be present; or else he shall cause one to blow an horn for him, that he seem not to steal our deer; and likewise they shall do returning from us, as it is aforesaid." Next to these primary laws of the chase, may be noticed the enthusiasm of its votaries, and the apparent idleness and irreligion it created among the lower classes, that induced them

"The opinion of a worthy diuine S. I. and composed by himselfe, concerning this [hawking] and the like subiect." Epilogue to Latham's "seconde book of Falconrie." 1618

A circumstance thus described in Lanqvette's Chronicle. "It appereth in the Bible, that the first kingdom was begun by Nemroth among the Babylonians, whom the scripture calleth a strong hunter before the Lord, that is, a mightie prince, who by force brought people to his subiection. In that he was a hunter, is signified that he was a deceiuer of soules, an oppresser of men: and for that he withdrewe menne from the true religion of God he was so called," Fo. 7.

to hunt "on the holydays, when good Christian people be at church, hearing divine service." To restrain such abuses, in 1389 a statute law was made "that no manner of artificer, labourer, nor any other layman, which hath not lands or tene-ments to the value of xls. by year, nor any priest, nor other clerk, if he be not advanced to the value of xl. by year, shall have or keep from henceforth any grey hound, hound, nor other dog to hunt; nor shall they use ferrets, keys, nets, harepipes, nor cords, nor other engines for to take or destroy deer, hares, nor conies, nor other gentlemen's game upon pain of one year's imprisonment." A complaint, not dissimilar, is made by the divine, already referred to, as convinced of the lawfulness of the recreations of hawking and hunting. "These exercises [he asserts] are grossly and sinfully abused by many loose and licentious persons, that obserue no circumstances, which vsually make or marre the actions, they vsing it most that stand [in] least need; in respect of any calling or imploiment they haue or vndertake, to wearie their spirits, or spend their bodie or braine, hauing their hearts so taken vp, and affections intangled with it, as they spend and mispend their golden and pretious time, two or three whole daies in a weeke: making recreation halfe, if not all their vocation, trade, and occupation, turning all their meate into sauce, yea the sabboth itselfe, which should be dedicated to God and good duties, being profaned and polluted by the discourses of their chases and courses with their hounds and horses, or coursers." [Yet, as the same writer continues,] "because such idle libertines doe abuse this honest and harmlesse exercise, as it hath euer beene accounted, may it not therefore be lawfully and conscionably vsed with moderation by a magistrate, or minister, or lawyer, or student, or any other seriously imployed, which in any function heat their braines, wast their bodies, weaken their strength, weary their spirits; that as a meanes and blessing from God, by it their decayed strength may be restored, their vitall and animall

spirits quickned, refreshed, and reuiued; their health preserued, and they better inabled (as a bow vnbended for shooting) to the discharging of these weighty charges imposed vpon them." A different advantage to be derived from the chace was suggested by that learned and perspicuous writer, Sir Thomas Elyot, in "the boke named the Gouernour;" by rendering it a pursuit of emulation, and with reward crowning the successful efforts of strength and activity. Although the custom of the Persians,* Greeks and Romans in

* With the Persians the chace formed a portion of the education of their youth, for the purpose of iuuring them to toil, hardiness and temperate living. "Cirus, and other aunciene kinges of Persia (as Xenophon writeth) vsed this manner in all their huntynge. First, where as it semeth there was in the realme of Persia, but one citie, whiche as I suppose, was called Persepolis; there were the children of the Persians, from their infancie, vnto the aege of seuentene yeres, brought vp in the lerning of justice and temperaunce and also to obserue continence in meate and drinke in so muche, that whither so euer they went, they toke with them for their sustenaunce, but only breade and herbes called cressis, in Latin Nasturtium: and for their drinke, a dysshe to take water out of the ryuers as they passed. Also they learned to shote, & to cast the darte or iauelyn........ Thei were accustomed to ryse alwaie in the fyrste spring of the daye, and pacientely to susteyne alway both cold and heate. And the kyng dyd se them exercised in goyng and also in rennying. And whan he intended, in his owne personne, to hunte, which he dyd commenly euery moneth, he took with hym the one halfe of the company of yong men, that were in the palaises. Than toke euerye man with him his bowe and quiver with arrowes, his sword or hache of steele, a lyttel tergat, and two dartes. The bowe and arrowes serued to pursue beastes that were swyft, & the dartes to assaile them and all other beastes. And whan theyr courage was chaufed, or that by fiersenesse of the beast they were in danger, than force constrayned theim to stryke with the sworde or hache, and to haue good eye at the violente assaulte of the beaste, and to defend theim yf neede were, with their tergates, wherein they accounted to be the trewest and moste certaine meditacion of warres. And to this huntyng the kynge didde conducte them, and he himselfe firste hunted suche beastes as he hapned to encounter. And whan he had taken his pleasure, he than with most diligence dyd set other forwarde, beholdyng who hunted valiauntly, and refourmyng them, whom he sawe negligente or slouthfull. But er thei wente forthe to this huntynge, they dyned competently and duryng their huntyng thei dined no more. For yf by any occasion their huntyng continued aboue one day, thei toke the said diner for their supper: and the next day, if thei kylled no game, thei hunted vntill supper time, accounting those two daies but for one. And if thei toke any thyng, thei eate it at their supper

pursuing lions, libards, tygers, or other beasts equally savage could not be followed as "in this realme be no such cruel beastes to be pursued; [still he says] notwithstandying, in the huntyng of red dere and falowe, mought be a great parte of semblable exercise vsed by noble men, specially in forestis which be spacious: if they wolde vse but a fewe nombre of houndes, onely to harborowe or rouse the game, by their yornynge to gyue knowlege, whiche waie it fleeth, the remanaunt of the disporte to be in the pursuyng with iauelyns and other weapo's, in maner of warre. And to theim whiche in this huntyng dooe shewe moste prowesse and actiuitie, a garlande or some other lyke token, to be gyuen in signe of victory, and with a ioyful maner to be brought in the presence of him that is chiefe in the companie, there to recieue condigne praise for their good endeuour."* In the modern chace the lithsomness of youth is no longer excited to pursue the animal. Attendant footmen are discontinued and forgotten; while the

with ioye and pleasure. If nothyne were killed, thei eate only bread and cressis, as I before rehersed, and dranke therto water. And if any man will dispreise this diete, lette hym thynke what pleasure there is in breade to him that is hungry; and what delectation is in drynkynge water to him that is thurstye. Surelye this maner of hunting may be called a necessary solace and pastyme, for therin is the verye imitacion of battayle. For not onely it doth shew the courage and strengthe, as well of the horse as of him that rydeth, trauersing ouer mountaines and valeyes, encountryng and ouerthrowyng great and myghty beastes; but also it increaseth in theim bothe agilitie and quicknesse, also sleyght and policye to find suche passages and straites, where thei may preuent or intrap their enemies. Also by continuaunce therin, thei shall easely susteine trauaile in warres, hunger and thurste, cold and heate. Hitherto be the wordes of Xenophon although I haue not sette theim in lyke order as he wrate them."

"Gouenour, 1553.

"The old Lord Gray (our English Achilles) when hee was Deputie of Ireland, to innure his sonnes for the warre, would vsually in the depth of winter, in frost, snow, raine, and what weather soever fell, cause them at midnight to be raised out of their beds, and carried abroad on hunting till the next morning; then perhaps come wet and cold home, having for a breakefast, a browne loafe and a mouldie cheese, or (which is ten times worse) a dish of Irish butter; and in this manner the Spartans and Laconians dieted, and brought up their children, till they came vnto man's estate." Peacham's Complete Gentleman.