The noble arte of venerie or hunting VVherein is handled and set out the vertues, nature, and properties of fiutene sundrie chaces togither, with the order and maner how to hunte and kill euery one of them. Translated and collected for the pleasure of all noblemen and gentlemen, out of the best approued authors, which haue written any thing concerning the same: and reduced into such order and proper termes as are vsed here, in this noble realme of England. The contentes vvhereof shall more playnely appeare in the page next followyng.

Howe to enter yong hounds to the Hare. Chap. 60. (Book 60)

FIrst in hunting of the Hare, I woulde not haue you to haue aboue two or three huntesmen at the moste, where∣of one shall take charge to rate and beate on such hounds as bide plodding behinde: and the other shall make them seeke and call about. For if there be many huntesmen, they shall f•…•…yle the tra∣ces and footing of the Hare, or at the •…•…ast will amaze the hounds (with the varietie of their voyces) when they are at default. For an Hare maketh sometimes so many doubles, crossings, &c. that an hounde can not well tell where he is, nor which way to make it out, nor will doe any thing else (in maner) but holde vp their heades, and looke to the huntesmen for helpe and comfort. Then let the huntesman cast about a compasse, where they came firste at defaulte, and encourage them, the whiche he can not so well doe, if the other huntsmen haue beaten and foyled the trace with their feete, or the feete of their horses. And he whiche hunteth for∣most, should carie with him a good bigge wallet of lynnen cloth full of deyntie morsels, to giue his houndes, to the ende that they may knowehim. For aboue all things it is meete, that an hound should knowe his maister and hun•…•…sman, his voyce, and his horne: and then when it commeth to the hallowe, they will soo∣ner come in to his voyce, than to an other mans, and will leau•…•… all others to come vnto him: therefore he shoulde neuer hallowe them amysse, nor without good cause. And if he would haue his houndes come in to him, to make them goe into some groue or couert, let him hallowe thus, crying, Heere hav•…•…, heere, haw, haw,

And when the houndes are come in to him, let him seeke some fayre muse or gappe to passe in at, and there let him cast a cruste of breade, or somewhat to make them go in the more willingly, crying, Couert, couert, hyke in hyke. &c.

Here I will discouer vnto you two secretes. Whereof that one is, that he which hath a kennell of yong houndes to enter, he must marke well the countrey where he will make them their fyrste quarrey, and wher•…•…of he will make it. For according to the places where they shall be entered at the beginning, and ac∣cording to the quarrey which you shall giue them, they will al∣ways afterwards proue. And therfore if at y^e first whē you enter yong hounds, you accustome them to be vncoupled in the plaine champayne, and that they hunt there an Hare to the forme, and starte hir, they will remember it all their life after. And then when so euer you vncouple them in a couert, they will make no great hast to hunte there, but will seeke to hunte out into the playnes, and suche places as they haue beene accustomed •…•…o in hunting of the Hare. Euen so will they best loue the couertes, if they be firste entered there, and haue founde gaine therein. And therefore it is requisite to enter your houndes in the coun∣trey, where you meane to abyde and to hunt most commonly: for houndes once accustomed to a place or kynde of chace, will not willingly hunt otherwise. Another secrete is, that you ne∣uer enter nor accustome your houndes at firste to hunte in the mornings, bycause of the dewe and moysture of the earth. For if you once enter and accustome them to hunt in the freshe mor∣nings, if afterwardes you bryng them on fielde in the heate of the day, and that they once feele the heate of the Sun, or some dry wynd which hath drawne vp the moyst dewe from the ground, they will neyther hunte, nor call on willingly, but will runne to seeke the shadowe, and there to rest them and sleepe. Therefore I holde it best to accustome your hounds to be entred and hun∣ted withall, in the heigthe and heate of the day, rather than in the mornyng. And the best season to begynne to enter your yong hounds, is in October and Nouember, for then the time is tem∣perate, and the heates are not vehement: and then also young

Har•…•…s which haue not bene hunted, are foolish, and are neither of force nor capacitie to vse such subtleties and pollicies, but hold on endways before the houndes most commonly: and do squat and start againe oftentimes, the whiche doth much•…•… encourage the hounds, and doth much better enter them, than if they should flee into another quarter far before them. True it is and a thing oftē proued, that an Hare hath greater sent, and is more eagerly hun∣ted by the houndes, when she feedeth and relieueth vpon greene corne, than at any other time of the yere. And yet also you haue some Hares, which naturally giue some of them greater sent thā some others, and are much more eagerly hunted and chased by y^e hounds. As these great wood Hares, and such as are foule & mes∣led & keepe neare to the waters. But the litle red Hare, which is (in maner) like a Coney of bigne sse, is neither of so strong a sent nor yet are so eagerly hunted by the houndes as other Hares be. Such as feede vpon the small br•…•…nches of wilde time, or such like herbes, are cōmonly very swift, and wil stand long vp before the hounds. So haue you some Hares more subtle & crafty, thā some others are, especially the females, for they double & turne shorter than the Bucks do, and that pleaseth the hounds but a litle. For it is grieuous to hounds which are lustie & eager, to turn so oftē bicause they like better a chase which fleeth before thē endways, y^t they may run with al their force. And for such Hares as double & crosse so often, it is requisite at default to cast the greater cōpasse about, when you beate to make it out. For so shal you find al hir subtleties, & yet need to sticke vpon none of them, but only where she went onwardes: for so doing, you shal abate the Hares force, and cōstrein hir to leaue doubling & crossing. Some Hares will holde the high beaten wayes onely, where the houndes can haue no sente, bycause there is neyther boughe, leafe, nor any moyste place wherwith y^e Hare might leaue sent of hir body. The which she must needs leaue if it were in woodes, corne, high grasse, or such other moyst and coole places. And therefore when a huntsmā shall find such an Hare, & shal see his hounds at default vpon an high way, let him hunt on with his houndes still all alongst the way, vntill he finde where the Hare hath broken from the way,

or vntill he finde some small dale, or freshe place by the waye where the houndes may finde sent. And he himselfe also muste looke narowly vpon the grounde, as he goeth if he can finde the footing of the Hare (which we call pricking) the whiche he shall easily know: for the fashion of an Hares foote is sharpe, & made like a kniues poynt, and hyr little nayles do alwayes fasten vpō the grounde, so that he shall see the prickes of them in any moyst place, or where the grounde is softe: for an Hare when she fleeth before the houndes, doth neuer open hyr foote nor nayles in sun∣der, as stinkyng chases and vermine do, but keepeth hir foote al∣wayes close lyke the poynt of a knife. So is there also certaine places and seasons, in the whiche an hounde can haue no sent of an Hare, as in the winter season, in the playne champaigne coū∣tries, where the grounde is fatte and rotten: and the Hare (ha∣uing an hearie foote) when she fleeth, the vppermost of the earth and grounde sticketh vpon the sole of hir foote, so that she carieth it away with hyr, and that couereth and taketh away all the sent from the houndes: and agayne in suche playnes there are com∣monly no braunches nor twigges which she might touche with hyr body and so leaue sent thereby. Agayne there are certayne moneths in the which a hounde shall haue no sent (or very little) of an Hare: as in the Spring time by reason of the vehement smell of the sweete flowers and hearbes, which doth exceede the sent of an Hare. Likewise you muste take heede that you hunte not in a harde froste, for so your houndes shall surbayte theyr feete and loose their clawes, and yet at that season an Hare run∣neth better than at any other, bicause y^e soale of hyr feete is hea∣rie. You shall vse in maner the same termes and wordes to en∣courage your hariers, that you vse to encourage your Bucke∣houndes, and suche as you hunte any Deare withall: Sauing onely at the hallowe to an Hare you say, Haw, Haw, Haw, here, Haw, here, &c. Wheras in hallowing of a Deare you say when the hoūds come in, Thats he, Thats he, To him, to him, to him, &c. Againe remēber that when soeuer you entre your yong hoūdes, you neuer helpe them to kill the Hare with your Greyhoundes, for if you accustome to course the Hare with your Greyhoundes

before the houndes, then when soeuer you should hallowe, the houndes would do nothing but lifte vp their heades, and looke alwayes to see the Hare before the Greyhoundes, and will ne∣uer put nose to the grounde, nor beate for it, nor hunte. But your best entryng of yong houndes, is by the helpe of old steynche houndes, whiche may best learne to cast for it at a doublyng or default.