The Horses of the Sahara and the Manners of the DesertDaumas, E. (Eugène)
History
The Horses of the Sahara and the Manners of the Desert
Daumas, E. (Eugène)
Arabian horse; Sahara
The greyhound of the Sahara is far superior to that of the Tell. He is
of a tawny colour, and tall, with a sharp snout, broad forehead, short
ears, and muscular neck; the muscles of the hindquarters being, also,
very prominent. He has no belly, clean limbs, well detached sinews, the
hock near the ground, the under part of the paw small and dry, the
palate and the tongue black, and the hair very soft. Between the two
ilia, there should be the breadth of four fingers, and the tip of the
tail should be able to pass under the thigh and reach the hip-bone. Both
the fore-arms are generally fired in five lines to harden the muscles.
The most renowned greyhounds of the Sahara are those of the Hamiân, the
Oulad-Sidi-Shikh, the Harar, the Arbâa, and the Oulad-Naïl.
HAWKING.
The sporting equipments of a noble of the Sahara are complete when he
has a _thair el horr_, or a bird of race; for there men of distinction
are still addicted to falconry. The _thair el horr_ is of a dark yellow
plumage, with a short, powerful bill, thick, muscular thighs, and very
sharp talons. It is very rare, and is caught in the following manner.
When a _thair el horr_ has been sighted, they put a tame pigeon into a
small net, and throw it up into the air in front of the bird of prey,
who swoops down upon it. Her talons, however, get entangled in the net,
so that she can neither draw them out, nor fly away, and is thus easily
secured. When the falcon finds herself a prisoner, she shows no signs of
fear or anger. There is a saying in the desert which is often quoted in
seasons of calamity:
A bird of race, when she is caught, never frets.
Rings are passed round her legs and she is fastened to a small perch
prepared for her in the tent. To accustom her to the presence of men,
they cover her head with a hood, which allows only the beak to appear.
Her master unhoods her, gives her fresh meat, holds her on his fist, and
caresses and speaks to her as much as possible before a numerous
company, to accustom her to noise. At the end of a month the bird knows
her master, and is thoroughly tamed. They then take a leveret and tie it
by one leg, the hawk also being held fast by a very long "creance." They
unhood her, and let the leveret go before her eyes. As soon as the bird
sees it, she rises into the air, uttering cries. The leveret stops and
squats down, when the falcon swoops and kills it with a blow of her
talons. The owner runs up, draws the leveret, and gives a portion to the
bird. This manœuvre is repeated until the falcon shows no desire to fly
away, which is known by her remaining beside the animal she has killed.
The falcon, naturally disposed to seize her prey, is further looked upon
as trained, when she answers to the call before she has pounced upon her
quarry.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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