Dissertation on Birds of Prey and the Sport - the Falconry Heritage ...

greatly amused to see "quanto stava bene in mano a1 contadino." For his reward, the
farmer asks for "cinquanta o bastonate o scoreggiate." 'O The king asks why, and the
farmer explains the deal he made with the mastro usciere, to which he had agreed so that
the retainer would get the sort of reward he deserved. The king recognizes the usciere's
avarice and the contadino 's cleverness, and orders that the usciere be given his half of the
prize requested, twenty-five lashes. When this is done, the king tells the farmer, "hotti
cavato d'obbligo che l'avei promesso a questo rubaldo; l'avanzo non voglio seguire di
dare a te." He gives the farmer the promised two hundred francs, and tells him to come
back whenever he needs help. Sacchetti sums up, "Grande fu la justizia e la discrezione
di questo re; ma non fu minore cosa, uscire del petto d'uno villano, anzi d'un animo
gentile, si potrebbe dire, tanto degna domanda, per pagare la cupidigia di colui che mai
non fu in grazia dello re Filippo, come era prima." He emphasizes the greed of the
retainer, who had hoped to take advantage of the farmer by playing upon his insecurities
in dealing with a high-class object. Sacchetti shows the wisdom of the king, but equally
the inner nobility of the farmer, who shows by his request that possession of the quality
of gentilezza can be unrelated to one's birth status.
Giovanni Sercambi also provides a tale that centers on a sparrowhawk and
involves beatings. While Sacchetti's tale, despite its setting in France, has an immediacy
derived largely from the author's introductory statement that implies his acquaintance
with its protagonist,2' Sercambi's story is set far from his audience's experience both in
space and time: "Lungo tempo fu che lo 'mperadore di Gostantinopoli nomato Cesari
'O This term, not used here in its modern sense, is defined by Borlenghi as "whippings."
2' "Uno contadino di Francia mi si fa innanzi a volere che io lo descriva in suo sottile accorgimento, il
quale us0 contro a una maestro uscier del re Filippo di Valos.. ."