Note 414 — Chapter XXX · “RECLAIMING”[400] THE PASSAGE SAKER

In the Kapurthala State, sakers that were to be entered to kite were trained in this manner. The hawk, excited by being fed, was hooded and placed on the ground. Then, the lure being banged on the ground, it was taught to snatch at it (in the dark), and rewarded when it “bound” to the lure. The first live kite given as a “train” was presented to it in this manner, i.e., the hooded hawk was induced to “bind” to it as to the lure and was duly rewarded. The hood was then removed and perhaps a little more meat presented through the kite’s feathers. The kite was then forcibly removed and thrown to the distance of one or two feet, and as soon as the hawk bound to it, it was fed up on a fresh warm bird. The eyes of the kite were seeled, its claws tied up, and a string was of course fastened to its leg.