258 THE TURKEY BUZZARD. 



near a dead ox at the dusk of evening, that had only two or three in 

 the morning ; when some of the latter comers had probably travelled 

 hundreds of miles, searching diligently themselves for food, and pro- 

 bably would have had to go much farther had they not espied this 

 association." A little after this, having described the manner in 

 which the " famished cannibals " satisfied their hunger, the author 

 says, " the repast finished, each bird gradually rises to the highest 

 branches of the nearest trees, and remains there until the digestion 

 of all the food they" (instead of it) "have" (has) "swallowed is 

 completed." 



Here we have, perched on high trees, flocks of vultures waiting 

 till their dinner be sufficiently tender ; and also flocks of vultures 

 waiting on the highest branches of trees till their dinner be suffi- 

 ciently digested. The author tells us that the first " are easily seen 

 by other vultures, who through habit know the meaning of such 

 stoppages." I wish the author had told us how he became informed 

 of this knowledge, which the " other vultures " had acquired of these 

 stoppages. Let us suppose for an instant that the latter comers, 

 after travelling "hundreds of miles," had unluckily mistaken the 

 group of vultures perched on high trees ; and in lieu of arriving at 

 the tree under which dinner was waiting for them, they had got to 

 the tree under which all the dinner had been eaten up. Pray, what 

 were the hungry scavengers to do? Were they to proceed 

 " hundreds of miles " farther, upon an empty stomach, in quest of 

 more stoppages ? or were they to wait in patience, with the vultures 

 perched on high dead limbs of trees, till those stomach-filled birds 

 should have digested their food, and were ready to start afresh? 

 The author assures us, that " vultures perched on high dead limbs, 

 in such conspicuous positions, are easily seen by other vultures, who, 

 through habit, know the meaning of such stoppages." But then we 

 have only his bare word for this extraordinary circumstance ; and 

 notwithstanding what he has said, my opinion is, that the coming-up 

 vultures would just as often have the bad luck to find themselves 

 arrived at the tree under which the dinner had been all eaten up, as 

 the good luck to get to the tree under which dinner was to be found 

 too tough to be eaten immediately. 



Towards the end of the account, our author tells us, that " the 



