The Master of Game: The Oldest English Book on Hunting

138

In the Shirley MS. there is added: "the hound tongue beareth medicine and especially to himself." G. de F. has the same (p. 97).

139

Wither or dry up.

140

Inflammation of the stifle joint.

141

Seton. G. de F. (p. 98) says: "une ortie et un sedel de corde." His word sedel came from the Spanish sedal. The English "seton" comes from seta, a hair, because hair was originally employed as the inserted material.

142

Testicles.

143

The following words, which are in Shirley MS. and in G. de F., are left out: "some tyme for they more foundeth as an hors."

144

The Shirley MS. has the following ending to this chapter: "And God forbid that for (a) little labour or cost of this medicine, man should see his good kind hound perish, that before hath made him so many comfortable disports at divers times in hunting," which is not taken from G. de F.

145

Danger of his being lost to the hounds.

146

Challenge —i. e. the noise the hounds make on finding the scent of an animal.

147

Get off the line.

148

Separated him from the other deer.

149

From here to the middle of the 13th line on the next page the text is copied from the Shirley MS., the scribe who wrote the Vespasian B. XII. MS. having made a mistake in his transcript, copying on folio 65 the folio 64, which therefore appears twice over, to the exclusion of the matter here copied from the Shirley MS.

150

This sentence is difficult to understand without consulting G. de F. (p. 110), who says: "as the hound does not challenge when the stag is with change, one does not know where he is going unless one sees him, and one cannot always see him."

151

G. de F.: "cerfs baus restifz" is the name which he gives these hounds.

152

G. de F. adds: "and remain quite quiet."

153

"Le chien baud," G. de F., p. 111. See Appendix: Running Hounds.

154

The text of the MS. differs from G. de F., who says if one hunts stags "ou autres bestes en traillant sans limier" (drawing from them without having first harboured them with a lymer), and does not say "without greyhounds"; p. 111.

155

G. de F. has here: "Ils crient trop en quérant leur beste quelle que soit," p. 111.

156

"The hounds cannot challenge too loudly when they are on the line." G. de F.: "Chien ne peut trop crier," p. 112.

157

From Mid. Eng. harien, harren, to harry or worry game. See Appendix: Harrier.

158

Encharning, feed with the flesh of game, to blood.

159

Should be "luce," and G. de F. has "luz," from Lat. lucius, pike, p. 103.

160

G. de F., p. 104, says: "La harpe bien avalée en guise de lion," harpe meaning in this instance "flanks."

161

"Long head as a cow" is evidently a mistake of translator or scribe. G. de F. has: "le costé lonc comme une biche et bien avalé" ("the sides long as a hind, and hanging down well").

162

The following words should be added here, a line having been omitted by the scribe: "and straight near the back as a lamprey, the thighs great and straight as a hare." They are in Shirley MS. and G. de F., p. 104.

163

In lieu of this original passage G. de F., p. 105, has: "sans abayer, et sans marchander" ("without baying or bargaining").

164

G. de F. has "estourdiz," which the "Master of Game" translates as "stordy" or sturdy, but the modern sense would be hairbrained, giddy, not sturdy.

165

Means chase a horse. G. de F. says: "Se on court un cheval, ils le prennent voulentiers," p. 100.

166

Setters, from coucher, to lie down. G. de F.: "chien couchant" (p. 113).

167

Brittany. In Shirley MS. "England" precedes "Scotland." G. de F. says nothing about Scotland. He says "Bretainhe," meaning Brittany (p. 113).

168

Bercellettis or bercelettes, hounds, most likely shooting dogs, from berser, to shoot, bercel, an archer's butt.

169

Wanlasour, one who drives game. Appendix: Wanlace.

170

"Take" is probably the scribe's mistake for "tache," teach.

171

They are not likely to get the mange so soon.

172

The first four words are omitted in our MS., but they are in the Shirley MS. and in others, and in G. de F.

173

Shirley MS.: "lewed," i. e. laewed or unlearned (Stratmann).

174

Baldric, the belt on which the horn was carried.

175

Fewterer, the man who held the greyhounds in slips or couples.

176

The words in brackets have been omitted in our MS. but are in the Shirley MS. and G. de F. p. 129; they have been thus inserted to complete the sense.

177

See Appendix: Excrements.

178

The words in brackets are omitted in our MS. but are in the Shirley MS. and in G. de F. p. 132.

179

The tines at top. See Appendix: Antler.

180

Ever more is here a mistake; it should be never more. G. de F. says: "Mes jeune cerf ne froyera jà en gros arbre" (p. 132). Also in the Shirley MS.

181

Not of "good time" means in the old sporting vocabulary an old track, not a recent one.

182

G. de F. calls the track of deer on grass "foulées," from which the modern "foil," "stepping on grass," is derived.

183

A whole line is missing here in our MS. The words in brackets are taken from the Shirley MS. It runs: "Affter I wal telle yowe a man howe he shal speke amonge good hunters of y offyce of venerye."

184

The word "work" has been omitted. "Et bien ouvrer subtilement" (G. de F. p. 134).

185

Brow, bay, and tray tines. See Appendix: Antler.

186

In Shirley MS. it is "left."

187

Instead of this original passage G. de F. says: "For if he had on one side ten points and on the other only one, it should be called summed of twenty" (p. 135).

188

G. de F. has "spur" instead.

189

Burr, mule, from the Fr. meule.

190

Dew claws.

191

According to Shirley MS. and the sense, the "iiii" should be omitted.

192

G. de F. (p. 136) says: "Ou belles portées" – portées being the branches, and twigs broken or bent asunder by the head of the deer, termed "entry" or "rack" in mod. Eng. – Stuart, vol. ii. 551.

193

G. de F. (p. 139) says if "le senglier gise près de la terre, c'est signe qu'il ait bonne venoison," so our MS. is evidently wrong when it says "it is a token that it is no fat boar."

194

The man who leads the hound in leash when harbouring the hart.

195

To set the covert was for the huntsman or limerer with his hound on a leash to go round the covert that he had seen the deer enter, and to look carefully whether he could find any signs of the stag having left the place. This in more modern parlance is called making his ring walks.

196

Moving, moves. See Appendix: Move.

197

Should not give tongue.

198

In the text of our MS. (the Vespasian) no break occurs here, but in the table of chapters at the beginning of the MS. the chapter as here given is enumerated, and this corresponds also with the Shirley and other MSS.

199

The scribe who copied the Vespasian MS. omitted the bracketed words.

200

See Appendix: Hart.

201

The explanation of this sentence is that a stag which entre-marched or sur-marched, or in other words placed the hind foot on the track or beyond the track made by the front foot, was a thin or light deer, and therefore not a fat stag, which latter was what the hunter would be looking for.

202

Lappet of his coat.

203

Shirley MS. Dislavee– obsolete word meaning going beyond bounds, immoderate.

204

After grease time. See Appendix: Grease Time.

205

G. de F. (p. 151) says "in great plenty," not "upon a great platter."

206

Measure of the deer's footprint. In old English, a measure (Stratmann).

207

Wrong scent, or check.

208

Shoots, fresh-growing young wood.

209

A long note.

210

Recheat, a hunting signal on the horn.

211

Recheating. See Appendix: Hunting-Music.

212

Vauntlay, to cast off the relay before the hounds already hunting have passed. See Appendix: Relays.

213

Do not hunt heel: contre, counter.

214

Drop his jaw. (?)

215

Gone off the right line.

216

This chapter does not exist.

217

If the hounds have gone away after two stags.

218

Call to the hounds encouragingly.

219

Shirley MS.: "doubling of their mouths," from the Fr. menee. See Appendix: Menee.

220

See Appendix: Curée.

221

A horn signal denoting that the chase is being followed at a distance by those who blow. From the Fr. fortloin, written forlonge. See Appendix: Forlonge.

222

A note sounded only by those who are on the right line.

223

To kill with a sword or hunting knife. See Appendix: Spay.

224

Cut off the head close behind the antlers. Shirley MS.: "Cabache."

225

Shirley MS. says four notes.

226

Should read: "at the last moot."

227

"Back there!" from the Fr. arrière.

228

"Out of couples, forward there, forward!" (Precisely the same instructions are given by the later Twety and Gyfford.)

229

"Gently, my friend, gently!"

230

Quest, hunt, seek, also challenge.

231

"Softly, there he has been!"

232

"In this place," or "here, here." This passage, which reads somewhat confusedly in our MS., is clearer in Twety and Gyfford (Reliquiæ Antiquæ, vol. i. p. 149). It reads as follows: "And then ye shall blowe iij notes, yf yowr hund ne chace not well hym, there one ther another, as he hath pasturyd hym, ye shall say 'Illeosque, illeosque, illeosque,'" meaning that 3 motes should be blown where the hare has pastured to bring your hounds to the place, illeosque meaning here, in this place.

233

"Softly there, here she has been, back there." Following this the Shirley MS. and Twety and Gyfford contain a passage which our MS. has not got: "And thenne sa cy, a este sohow, and afterwards sa cy avaunt."

234

"Softly, my friend, she has been here."

235

"Here gently, here valiantly."

236

To call back the hounds from a wrong scent, the same as "recheat."

237

The words in brackets are in the Shirley MS.

238

Huntsman holding hounds in leash.

239

Men and hounds stationed at different places, usually on the boundaries of the district in which the game was to be roused and hunted, or at convenient passes from whence the hounds could be slipped at the game.

240

Teasers, a small hound to tease forth or put up the game.

241

A difficult sentence to unravel. In the Shirley MS. it runs: "and yif hit have eseyne nought to ye stagge, but yif he were avaunced."

242

"Within the set" means within that quarter of the forest or park around which are set or stationed the men and hounds, called the stable.

243

To tie the couples of hounds together.

244

Made the smaller deer clear out of the forest.

245

The beginning of this sentence relating to the "server of the hall" is not in our MS. but in the Shirley MS.

246

Shirley MS., "harthounds."

247

Shirley MS. has "resteynour."

248

This means that the men in whose charge the teasers and receivers were placed were given the skin or fee.