460 BUFFALO LAND. 



and escape among the ravines by fast running, defying any pur- 

 suit except in the saddle. Even then if they can get out of 

 sight for a moment, they will often escape. While the rider is 

 pressing forward in the direction a tired turkey was last seen, 

 the bird will hide and let him pass ; or, turning the instant it 

 is hidden by the brow of the ravine, it will take a backward 

 course, passing, if necessary, close to the horse. As another il- 

 lustration of the wily habits of the turkey, let the hunter select 

 a creek along which there has been no previous shooting done, 

 and kill turkeys at early morning on roosts, and the next 

 night the gangs will remain out among the " breaks." 



For this shooting, a shot-gun is, of course, the best, although 

 I have had fine sport among the birds with the rifle. When 

 using shot at one on the wing, the hunter must not conclude 

 his aim was bad, if no immediate effect is observed. The fly- 

 ing turkey will not shrink, as the prairie-chicken does, when 

 receiving and carrying off lead. I have frequently heard shot 

 rattle upon a gobbler's stout feathers without any apparent ef- 

 fect, and found him afterward, fluttering helpless, a mile away. 



GENERAL REMARKS. 



The western field open to sportsmen is a grand one. Kan- 

 sas, Colorado, Nebraska, Dakotah, and Wyoming, are all over- 

 flowing with game. The climate of each is very healthy, and 

 especially favorable for those affected with pulmonary com- 

 plaints. A year or two passed in their pure air, with the ex- 

 citement of exploration or adventure superadded, would put 

 more fresh blood into feeble bodies than all the watering-places 

 in existence. Let the dyspeptic seek his hunting camp at even- 

 ing, and, my word for it, he will find the sweet savor of his 



