78 THE MASTER OF GAME

3oure hounde, bi cause pat 3e vndo not pe fourme
of pe foot and blowep wip inne and dob pe oper
pinges as I haue bifore saide.*

First he shal speke but a litil and boost litel
and wel?® and sotelly and he must be wise and doo
his craft bisily for an huntere shuld not be an
harowde of his craft, and if he happe pat he be
amonge good hunters pat spekyn of huntyng,
he shuld speke in pis maner, first if men aske
hym of pasturis, he may answere as of hertis and
for alle oper deere, swete pasturis, and of alle
biteng beestis as of wilde boores, wolues and oper
byteng beestis he may answere, pei fede as I have
said bifore and if men speke and aske hym of pe
fumes he shal clepe fumes* of an hert cotyng of
pe buk and of pe Robuk of pe wilde boor and of
pe blak beestis,* an of Wolfes he shal clepe it lesses,
and of hares and of conynes he shal saie pei crotep
pat of pe fox waggyng of pe greie pe werderobe
and of oper stinkyng beestis® he shal clepe it drit
and pat of pe oter he shal clepe spraytyng as
bifore is saide, and if menasken of pe beestis feete,
of pe hertis he shal saie pe trace® of an hert, and
eke of pe buk, and pat of pe wild boor and of pe
wolf eke pei clepyn traces by yondde pe see, and pat
of pe stynkyng beestis pat men calle vermyn he
shal clepe hem steppis, as I haue said, And if he
hap say an hert wip eyn per is ili maners of hewis
of hen, pat oon is clepyd broun, bat oper jelow,
and pe iii dune, and so he may clepe hem as him
pinkep pat pei beren her hues. And men aske
what hede’ berep the hert pat he hab seie he shal
alway answere by euen and not by odde, for if he
be fourched on pe ryghte side and lak nouzt of his
ryghtes® bineth and on pe righte® side auntelere and
Rialle and susrial and nou3t fourthe but only pe
beme he shall say it is an hert of x. at defaute™
for pe most parte berep pe nombre euermore to
evin, And euery beestis tynde shuld be rekenyd as
sone as a man may hang a baudrike or a lessh™
perupon, and non oper wise. And whan an hert
berep as many tyndes in pat oon side as in pat
oper he may say if he be but fourched, pt he 1s an
hert of x, and if he be troched of iti he is an hert
of xii, and if he be trochid of tit. he 1s an hert

of xvi, if it be be so algate p' he hap pe rightes by
nethe as bi forun is said, And if lak eny of his

1 A whole line is missing here in our MS. The words in brackets are taken from the Shirley MS.

your hands, so that ye undo not the form of the foot
and blow within and do the other things as I have
before said.’ (After I will tell you how a man shall
speak among good hunters of the office of venery.)
First he shall speak but a little, and boast little,
and well work® and subtlely, and he must be wise
and do his craft busily, for a hunter should not be
a herald of his craft. And if it happen that he be
among good hunters that speaketh of hunting he
should speak in this manner. First if men ask
him of pasture he may answer as of harts and for
all other deer, sweet pastures, and of all biting
beasts as of wild boar, wolves, and other biting
beasts he may answer, they feed as I have said
before. And if men speak of the fumes ye shall
call fumes*® of a hart, croteying of a buck, and of
a roebuck in the same wise of a wild boar and of
black beasts* and of wolves ye shall call it lesses,
and of hare and of conies ye shall say they crotey,
of the fox wagging, of the grey the wardrobe, and
of other stinking beasts® they shall call it drit,
and that of the otter he shall call sprainting as
before is said. And if men asketh of the beasts’
feet,’ of the harts ye shall say the trace® of a hart
and also of a buck, and that of the wild boar and
of the wolf also they call traces beyond the sea.
And that of the stinking beasts that men call vermin,
he shall call them steps as I have said. And if
he hath seen a hart with his eyes, there are three
kinds of hues of them, that one is called brown, the
other yellow, and the third dun, and so he may call
them as he thinketh that they beareth all their hues.
And if men ask what head’ beareth all the hart he
hath seen he shall always answer by even and not
by odd, for if he be forked on the right side, and
lack not of his rights® beneath, and on the right?
side antler and royal and surroyal and not forked
but only the beam, he shall say it is a hart of ten
at default,° for it is always called even of the greater
number. And every hart’s tines should be reckoned
as soon as a man can hang a baldric or a leash’!
thereupon and not otherwise. And when a hart
beareth as many tines on the one side as on the
other, he may say if he be but forked that he is a
hart of ten, and if he be troched of three he is a
hart of twelve, if he be troched of four he is a hart
of sixteen, always if it be seen that he hath his
rights beneath as before is said. And if he lack

It runs:

“ Affter I wal telle yowe a man howe he shal speke amonge good hunters of y offyce of venerye.”
2 The word “work” has been omitted. “ Et bien ouwvrer subtilement (G. de F. p. 134).

3 See Appendix : Excrements.
5 See Appendix : Fewte.
7 See Appendix: Antler.

8 Brow, bay, and tray tines. See Appendix: Antler. | JS.
0 f “for if he had on one side ten points an

19 Instead of this original passage G. de F. says:

only one, it should be called summed of twenty” (p. 135)-

4 See Appendix: Wild Boar.
® See Appendix: Trace.

9 In Shirley MS. it is “ left.”

1 G, de F. has “spur” instead.

 

d on the other

HOW A MAN SHOULD

ryghtes 3e mot abate so many in pe toppe for an hertis
hed shuld begynne to be discrivid fro pe mule’ upward,
and if he kaue moo bi ti in oon side pan in p' oper
ye must take from p' oon to count up pat oper wip
al, as I shal moor clerly speke in a chapiter here
after on discryueng of an hertis hede. And if
it be so p' the hertis trace haue oper toknes pan
I haue said, and it ponk hym an her chaceable, and
men aske hym what hert it is he may say it is an
hert of x. and of no more, and if it seme hym a
grete hert and men aske hym whatt hert it is he
shal say p' it is an hert pat the last yere was of x.
and shuld not be refusid, And if he happe wel
haue saie hym wip his eyen, or bi pe forsaide
tokenys, so p' fully he knowep p* he is a greet hert
and an hert may be, if men aske hym what hert it
is, he may say a greet hert and an oolde deer and
p' is pe grettest word pat he may say as I haue
said bifore. And if men aske hym wherbi he
knoweth it, he may say for be good boones” and
pe good taloun or good sool of foot for pise iii *
pinggis makyn pe trace grete, or fayre leires, or pe gras
or the erpe wel pressid, or bi pe hie hede,* or bi be
fumes or al pe ober tokenys p* he shal knowe as I
haue said bifore. And if he se eny hert, pe which
hab a wel affeted® hede aftir pe hight and pe shap
and pe tyndes wel irenged, bi good mesure, be oon
from pat oper, and men aske hym what he berep he
may answere pat he berep a greet hede and a faire
of beme and of alle his rightes, and wel openyd,
and if men aske hym what hed he berith he may
answere pat he berep a faire hede bi alle tokenys
and awel ygrow, And if he se an hert p' hap a
lowe hed or an hie or a grett or smal and it be
pik isette hie and lowe,® and men axe hym what
hed he berep, he may answere pat he berep a pik
sette hed aftir his makyng pat he hab lowe or
small or of what ober maner pat euer it be, and
3if he se an hert p' hap a diuers hede or p* he haun-
telers ben behynde or p' he had double beemes or
oper aduersitees ban ober hertis hedis comonly
ben wonned to bere, and men axen what hede he
berethe, he may answere a diuerse hed, or a
countirfethed,’ for he is counterfeted soo. And if
he see an hert p* berith an hie hede p" is wide and
thyn itynded wip longe bemes and men aske what
hede he bereth he shal answere a faire hede and a
wide and long bemes, but it is not pikke sette
neiper wel affeted. And if he se an hert that

: Burr, mule, from the Fr. meule.

S According to Shirley MS. and the sense, the “iii”

* G. de F. (p. 136) says: “ou belles portées ”’-

by the head of the deer, termed “ entry” or “
; Fashioned. See Appendix: Affeted and Antlers.
According to G. de F. p. 136 it should read:

ou grosse et soit menuement chevillée et pueblée de

KNOW A GREAT HART 79

any of his rights beneath he must abate so many
on the top, for a hart’s head should begin to be
described from the mule! upwards, and if he hath
more by two on the one side than on the other,
you must take from the one and count up that
other withal, as I shall more clearly speak in a
chapter hereafter in describing a hart’s head.
And if it be so that the hart’s trace have other
tokens than I have said and he thinks him a hart
chaceable, and men ask what hart it is he may
say it is a hart of ten and no more. And if it seem
a great hart and men ask what hart it is, he shall
say it is a hart that the last year was of ten and
should not be refused. And if he happen to have
well seen him with his eye or the before said tokens,
so that he knoweth fully that it is as great a hart
as a hart may be, if men ask him what hart it is,
he may say it is a great hart and an old deer. And
that is the greatest word that he may say, as I have
said before. And if men ask him whereby he
knoweth it, he may say for, he hath good bones?
and good talons and a good sole of foot, for these
four® things make the trace great, or by fair lairs
or the grass or the earth well pressed or by the high
head,* or by the fumes or else other tokens as I
have said before. And if he see a hart that hath
a well affeted® head after the height and the shape
and the tines well ranged by good measure, the
one from the other, and men ask him what he
beareth he may answer that he beareth a great
head and fair of beam, and of all his rights, and
well opened ; and if a man ask him what head he
beareth, he shall answer that he beareth a fair
head by all tokens and well grown. And if he sees
a hart that hath a low head or a high, or a great,
or a small, and it be thick set, high and low® and
men ask him what head he beareth he may answer
he bears a thick set head after his making, or that
he hath low or small or other manner whatever it
be. And if he see a hart that hath a diverse head,
or that antlers grow back or that the head hath
double beams or other diversities than other harts
commonly be wont to bear, and men ask what
head he bears, he may answer a diverse head or
a counterfeit,’ for it is counterfeited. And if he
sees a hart that beareth a high head that is wide
and thin tined with long beams, if men ask what
head he beareth, he shall answer a fair head and
wide, and long beams, but it is not thick set neither
well affeted. And if he see a hart that hath a

2 Dew claws.

should be omitted.

—Portées being the branches, and twigs broken or bent asunder
rack’? in mod. Eng. Stuart, vol. ii. 551.

“Et s'il voit un cerf qui ait la teste basse ou haute ou gresle
corns et haut et bas,” 7 Abnormal.