of it, and thus be firmly stuck fast at both ends. When skilfully and neatly performed, the operation of imping not only replaces effectually the part of a feather which has become useless, but repairs the mischief so thoroughly that no trace whatever remains of any injury having ever been done to it. I have known feathers so imped that the eye could not discern the place of juncture, and it was difficult even to discover it by passing the thumb-nail down the shaft of the imped feather. The tenacity of the rusted iron keeps the needle immovably in its place; and an imped feather, if it afterwards breaks at all, will break more readily in any part of it than near the place where the juncture has been made. Of course the smaller the hawk the more difficult is the operation. Merlins are particularly troublesome, owing to their vivacity and the smallness of their feathers. It is, however, quite possible for an experienced imper to mend up one of these tiny hawks, even without an assistant to help him in holding her down. The falconer should keep by him, in a box or drawer where they are safe from moths, a few feathers in readiness for imping the kind of hawks which he flies. When he is in the habit of moulting them he will be able to supply his needs by saving up the long feathers dropped in the moult. These should be so stowed away that it is possible to identify the year in which they were dropped; for it is not advisable to use a very old feather, as it may be brittle, and crack in pieces round the needle. A spare tail feather or two of any of the hawks which are most commonly trained may often be begged from a brother-falconer. But when a ger, saker, or one of the rarer falcons needs imping, it may be necessary to purchase a whole skin, which will entail some trouble and expense. It should be noted that there is one exception to the rule that a feather from any one kind of hawk must not be used for one of another kind. This is when the broken feather is to be imped merely for the purpose of the moult. Whenever hawks are moulting, the new feathers, as they come down, must be protected on each side by others of at least equal length to those of the natural plumage. But unless the hawk is being flown while she moults, it is immaterial whether the new feather matches the others in shape or colour. If it is long enough, and of about equal breadth, it will serve the required purpose. But every hawk before going into moult should be well set up in feathers of one kind or other, which are of a proper length and sufficient strength. A new feather, while growing down, needs more protection than any other.