° 1915 J Wright, Early Records of the Wild Turkey. 77 



a bundle of arrowes, an ell long, feathered with turkies feathers." 

 These Indians "daily catch .... turkies, . . . . " and "the poore 

 soules are daily with us and bring us turkie, . . . . " In " An 

 Account of the Colony of the Lord Baron of Baltimore, 1633 " the 

 author writes that 1 " There are also great quantities of wild tur- 

 keys, which are twice as large as our tame and domestic ones . . . . " 

 About the same time, "A Relation of Maryland" records that 2 

 "they (at Yoacomaco) went dayly to hunt with them for Deere 

 and Turkies, whereff some gave them for Presents, and the 

 meaner sort would sell to them for knives, beades and the like." 

 "Of Birds" it relates that "there is .... also wild Turkeys in 

 great abundance whereof many weigh 50 pounds and upwards." 

 In this period, another relator holds that 3 " every day they are 

 abroad after .... turkies and the like game : whereof there is a 

 wonderful plenty." In another instance, he recounts how the 

 modest Indian women brought turkies to the homes of the settlers. 

 About 15 years afterwards, in "A Perfect Description of Virginia 

 . . . . " there appears a note concerning 4 " Wild Turkies, some weigh- 

 ing sixtie pound weight." In 1650, Edward Williams publishes 

 the second edition of his "Virginia" wherein he mentions 5 "in- 

 finites of wilde Turkeyes, which have been known to weigh fifty- 

 pound weight, ordinarily forty," and in comparing Virginia with 

 China, he exclaims, " Let her shew us Turkies of 50 pound weight." 

 Six years later, 1656, "Leah and Rachel" appears. Hammond, 

 its author, claims 6 " wild Turkeys are frequent, and so large that 

 I have seen some weigh neer threescore pounds." Ten years 

 later, George Alsop, in describing the " Character of the Province 

 of Maryland" notes 7 "especially the Turkey, whom I have seen 

 in whole hundreds in flights in the Woods of Mary-Land, being an 

 extraordinary fat Fowl, whose flesh is very pleasant and sweet." 

 Shortly after, 1669, Nathaniel Shrigley enumerates 8 "Turkies" 



i ibid., p. 10. 



2 ibid., pp. 75,80, 98. 



a Shea's Early Southern Tracts. No. I, pp. 16, 18. 



* Force, P. Vol. II, pp. 17, 3. 



s Force, P. Vol. Ill, pp. 12, 21. 



« Force, P. Vol. Ill, p. 13. 



7 Narratives of Early Maryland, pp. 347, 357. 



» Force, P. Vol. Ill, p. 4. 



