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.

Of the hunting of the Wolfe: and first of their nature and properties. Chap. 75. (Book 75)

THe Wolfe is a beast sufficiently knowen in Fraunce and other Countries where he is bred: but here in Englād they be not to be foūd in any place. In Ireland (as I haue heard) there are great store of them: and bycause many Noble men and Gentlemen, haue a desire to bring that Countrie to be in∣habited and ciuilly gouerned (and would God ther were moe of the same mind) therefore I haue thought good to set downe the nature and maner of hunting at the Wolfe according to mine Author. The Wolfe (sayeth he) goeth on 〈◊〉〈◊〉 in February, in such sort as a Dogge lineth a birth whē she goet•…•…

saulte, wherin they abide ten or twelue dayes: many Wolues (where store be) do follow one she Wolfe, euē as Dogges fol∣low a Bitche: but she will neuer be lined but onely with one. She will suffer many to follow hir, and will carrie them after hir sometimes eight or tenne dayes without meate, drinke, or rest: and when they are ouerwearied, then she suffreth them all to take their ease, vntill they route and be fast on sleepe: & then will she awake y^e Wolfe which seemeth most to haue folowed hir, and that oftentimes is the foulest & worst fauourd, bycause he is ouerwearied and lankest: him will she awake and tyce him away with hir farre frō the rest, and suffer him to line hir. There is a common Prouerbe, which saith that: Neuer VVolfe yet sawe his Syre: for indeede it hapneth most cōmonly that whē all the rest of the Wolues do awake and misse the female, they follow them by the sent, and finding them oftentimes togy∣ther, they fall vpon that Wolfe and kill him for despite. But if there bee no greater store than one Dogge Wolfe and one bitche in a place, then this Prouerbe fayleth: yea or sometimes also the rest of the Wolues are so long ere they do awake and follow, that they cannot so quickly dispatch or kill him accor∣ding to their desire, and then also it faileth. Their whelps are able to engēder within twelue months: & whē their whelps be a yere old, then they part frō their Syre & frō their Dam: yea sometimes sooner, but not before their teeth be cast & shot out againe, for they cast teeth first when they are halfe yere old, & whē they are come vp again, they neuer cast more al their life time. Thē they depart frō their dam whē those teeth are come out again & grown hard, & they seke their aduēture, & pray for thē self: & if they chance to meete their syre or dam at any time after, they wil fawne vpō thē, & licke them, & seme in their kind greatly to reioyce. A good exāple for sundry euil disposed chil∣drē, which become vngrateful to their parents, which bring thē vp carefully: Since the brute beast cā teach thē their dutie, only by y^• instinct & motiōs of nature. Also when a dog & a bitch of thē do cōpany once togithers, they will not lightly part in sū∣der: for thogh they pray in diuers places, yet at night they wil

meete againe, or at the least once in two dayes if it be possible: and they beare meate vnto their whelpes togethers: but the dog will first eate his fill, and then carie the rest vnto his whelpes: But the bytche beareth the pray vnto hir whelpes before she eate any thereof hir self, and if the dogge like it, and haue not satisfied his hunger before, he will take it both from hir and the whelpes, and feede his fill thereon first. After he will leaue the rest for thē to feede on, if there be any, and if there be not, let them sterue for him if they will, so that he maketh not account of any thing, vn∣till his belly be full, but the bytch doth oftentimes beguile him. She leaueth the pray farre from their denne, and if she perceyue that the dogge be gone, then bringeth she it to hir whelpes: but if the dogge be there & perceyue that she hath brought nothing, he smelleth to hir mouth & hir lippes: if she haue nothing in deede then he beateth hyr: but if he smell by hir that she had prayed, he constreyneth hyr to shew it vnto him, or els hunteth backe him∣selfe by the counter of hir footing, and so findeth it out. Some hold opinion that the bytche washeth hir selfe all ouer, bycause the dogge shoulde not smell whether she haue prayed or not: but y^t I dare not sweare on a booke. Some heauy Wolues wil neuer helpe their bitches to feede theyr whelpes, but if it be in a place where there are no store of Wolues, as no more but he and his make, then he knoweth by the smell that the whelpes are his, and helpeth the Bitch to pray for them, and to feede them, but vncurtuously as I sayde before. Wolues are fattest when they haue small whelpes: for they feede not only vpō their owne prouision, but also vpon that whiche their make & their whelpes should eate also: they go nine weekes with whelpe, and some∣times three or foure dayes longer, & go sault but once in a yere. Some hold opinion that a Bitche will not haue yong whelpes nor engender as long as hir owne Dame is aliue. They haue whelpes in all respects like vnto our dogges, sometimes more & sometime lesse: for doubtlesse both the Foxe & the Wolfe are but a kind of wild Mastyfes and wild curres: they be of great force especially in their foreparts: they bite sore and dangerously, for sometimes they will kill a Cowe or a Bullocke: and they will

roundely carie a sheepe, a Gote, or a good porkine in their mouth & neuer touch the ground with it, & wil runne so fast away with it, that vnlesse horsemen or Mastife dogs do stay them, they will hardly be ouertaken, eyther by the heardman or by an other crea∣ture: they pray vpon all kinde of things, and will feede vpon any carion or any vermine, they liue not lōg nor aboue. xij. or. xiiij. yeares at most. When he hath fedde vpon any vermine or serpēt (as he doth often) then runneth he wonderfully fast. In such sorte that I haue seene a Wolfe (being emptie) outrunne foure or fiue brace of the best Greyhoundes that might be founde: for there is no beast whiche runneth faster than he: and he holdeth marue∣lously also, when he is hunted with houndes, he flieth not farre before them: and vnlesse he be coursed with Greyhoūds or Ma∣stiues, he keepeth the couert like a Bore or a Beare, & especially the beaten waies therein: most cōmonly he prayeth by night, but sometimes also by day when he is hungry: some Wolues will praye vpon Deare, Gotes, and swyne, and sent as freshly and as tenderly as an hounde: some also wil eate a dogge if they catch him: and fome of them kill children and men sometimes: & then they neuer feede nor pray vpon any other thing afterwards, whē they haue once bene fleshed & nousled therein, but die sometimes for hunger. Such Wolues are called VVarwolues, bicause a mā had neede to beware of them, they be so craftie that when they as∣sayle a man, they flee vpon him & lay hold on him before he per∣ceyue them: but if he perceyue them first, then they assayle him so subtillie y^t he shal hardly escape their teeth, and can maruelously defend themselues from any weapon that a man hath for his de∣fence. There are two causes which make them fet vpō mankind: one is, that when they be old & feeble, & that their teeth begin to fayle them, then can they not carrie their pray as they were wōt: so that they learne with more ease to pray firste vpon children which they meete or espie, which pray can neyther make resistā•…•…e, nor is needefull to carie it farre: & therwithall the skinne & fleshe is much more tender and delicate than the skinne & fleshe of any other pray. Another reason is, that in countries where warre is made, & where battayles & skirmishes are giuen, there they feede

vpon the dead carkasses of men whiche lie slayne in the fielde, as also in other places vpon suche as hang on the gibbets and trees being executed by Iustice: And the flesh of mā is so delicate and toothsome, y^t when they haue once tasted of it, they care for none other meate. I haue seene a Wolfe forsake the fold, and kill the heardesmā. They are more craftie (if more may be) than the Fox or any other beast: when they are hunted they will take al their aduantages, at other times they will neuer runne ouer hastely, but keepe themselues in breath & force alwayes: they haue al∣wayes neede thereof, for there passe few dayes but that they are coursed or cried at by as many as see thē, in the countries where they haūt. A Wolfe wil stād vp a whole day before a good ken∣nell of houndes vnlesse y^t Greyhoundes cource him: most com∣mōly he is taken in some village or hamm•…•…let, he will seldome stand at Baye, vnlesse it be when he cannot longer endure: and then he becomes mad: the bityng of a Wolfe wil hardly be hea∣led as I haue before sayde, for their biting is venemous & ranc∣leth sore. And againe, bicause they are oftentimes madde, & then there is no cure for their biting: whē they haue ouerfed thēselues or are sicke in their body, they eate grasse as a dogge doth, they cā wel abide hunger at some times, for a Wolfe may bide without meate sixe or seuen dayes: but then wo be to y^t pray that he next meeteth. The bitche wolfe will neuer lightly parte farre frō hir whelpes whē they be yong, for feare least she should leese them. When a woife findeth a litter of pigges, or a flocke of sheepe, he he will (by his wil) kill thē all before he feede vpon any of them. They are hunted at force, taken w^t greyhounds or mastyfes, and hanged in ginnes and snares. But it had neede to be a strong snare y^t should holde them vnlesse helpe come in the sooner: they are also killed in ditches where they passe w^t needels, venemous pouders, & diuerse such other things which men lay in baytes for them. When y^• heardes & sheepe come downe frō the Mo•…•…taines to grase & feede in y^• valleys, then they descend also to seeke their pray. They follow a cāpe cōmōly, to feede on y^t carion of horses & such other beastes as mē leaue behind thē. They barke & howle like vnto dogs, & if there be two of them togither they make such

a terrible noyse that you woulde thinke there were. xx. of them: this do they most commonly when it is fayre weather, or when they are yong and not past a yeare old, or that they be trayned to any place for to hunte afterwardes: and surely when they be so trayned, they will hardly abide where they feede, and especially old Wolues, if it be at y^• first time that they haue bene trayned: but if they once haue bene accustomed to it, then they will abide the better. Some of them be so craftie, that when they pray by night, they will flie a myle or two from thence before day, espe∣cially if it be in a place where they haue bene hunted or stirred, or that they finde some trayne of fleshe made for them. They crie not at all when they are killed, as our dogges do, but in diuerse other properties they resemble a dogge. It is harde or almoste vnpossible to keepe or bryng vp a Wolfe so yong, or so fast tied in subiection, or so corrected and kept in awe, but that it will do some mischiefe at any time that it get libertie and finde meane to do so: and the tamest that euer was yet, woulde (if it were ledde abrode) looke this way and that way, to espie somewhat that it might be doyng withall. For both a Wolfe is doubtfull that men meane harme vnto him: and agayne he knoweth well in his owne conscience that he dothe many shrewde turnes, and that therefore men hunte and pursue him: but for all that he wil neuer leaue his malicious nature: it is written that the right forefoote of a Wolfe is medecinable for the swelling in the throate, and for the inflamacion of the liuer: their skinnes are ex∣cellent furre and durable.