Grouse of the Northern Cattle Plains 1 1 1 



was time for the supreme effort; with a rush 

 he went to the front, and as a mighty spring carried 

 him up in the air he snapped his clean, cruel fangs 

 under the brave old gobbler, who by a great effort 

 rose just out of reach. One after another in the 

 next twenty-five yards each hound made his trial 

 and failed. At last the old hound again made his 

 rush, sprang up a wonderful height into the air, and 

 cut the bird down as with a knife. 



"The first flight of a turkey when being coursed 

 is rarely more than a mile, and the second about 

 half as long. After that, if it gets up at all again, 

 it is for very short flights so near the ground that 

 it is soon cut down by any hound. The astonishing 

 springs a greyhound who is an old hand at turkey 

 coursing will make are a constant source of surprise 

 and wonder to those fond of the sport. A turkey, 

 after coming down from his first flight, will really 

 perform the feat which fable attributes to the 

 ostrich; that is, will run its head into a clump of 

 bushes and stand motionless as if, since it can not 

 see its foes, it were itself equally invisible. During 

 the day turkeys are scattered all over the plains, and 

 it is no unusual thing to get in one afternoon's ride 

 eight or ten of them." 



