Maison rustique, or The countrey farme· Compyled in the French tongue by Charles Steuens, and Iohn Liebault, Doctors of Physicke. And translated into English by Richard Surflet, practitioner in physicke. Now newly reuiewed, corrected, and augmented, with diuers large additions, out of the works of Serres his Agriculture, Vinet his Maison champestre, French. Albyterio in Spanish, Grilli in Italian; and other authors. And the husbandrie of France, Italie, and Spaine, reconciled and made to agree with ours here in England: by Geruase Markham. The whole contents are in the page following

The catching of Birds.

CHAP. XLI.

That men of old time made no account of catching of Birds.

THe taking of Birds hath not beene much approued nor liked of, by men of old time, by reason of the little exercise which it affoordeth: seeing they made no account of any manner of hunting, whereby the bodie receiued no kind of exercise, whereby it might be made more nimble and readie to mannage matters of greater importance: againe, we find not any men∣tion made of the hunting of Birds, in the bookes of the auncient writers, as Aristotle or Plin••e, who seemeth not to haue beene ignorant in any thing that might make for the truth of his writings: neither yet of hauking, which is the noblest kind of hun∣ting of birds of all the rest. All which notwithstanding, the men of our time haue not ceased to put in practise many sorts of taking of birdes, as, with birdes of the praie, which excelleth all the rest, with great nets, small nets, tonnelling, fire, snares, bundles of straw, with the cros-bow, long-bow, nooses, pit falls, chirping, pipes, horse, crow, bell, hand, and many moe waies, which are well enough knowne to birde••••: we wil first speake of hauking.