42 THE TURKEY BUZZARD. 



pletely decomposed, before these birds could perforate 

 the tough skin of the monster, that, when at last it 

 took place," (what took place?) " their disappoint- 

 ment was apparent, and the matter, in an almost 

 fluid state, abandoned by the vultures." 



Here we have the singular phenomenon of vul- 

 tures surrounding their own dinner, without being 

 able to touch it, for want, I may say, of suitable 

 carving knives : and at last they are forced to depart 

 on an empty stomach, bearing marks on their coun- 

 tenances of apparent disappointment. I ask, what 

 became of the enormous mass of flesh in the 

 alligator's tail ? was it, too, in an almost fluid state, 

 similar to that of the contents of the abdomen ? 

 Had, then, the first stage of putrefaction done 

 nothing towards the softening of the skin, which, in 

 the tail of this animal, is by no means so thick as in 

 the dorsal and abdominal regions ? Were his vul- 

 tures so green in the art of perforation as not to 

 have learned that, as soon as putrefaction takes 

 place, the skin of the tail may be easily perforated 

 at the different joints ? If the vultures, only for a 

 minute, had but bethought themselves of applying 

 their "very powerful bills" to the skin at these 

 joints, it would undoubtedly have yielded to their 

 efforts; and then they could easily have worked 

 their way forward to the other parts of the alligator. 

 Had but our little carrion crow been there, he could 

 soon have taught them how to carve, and shown the 

 lubberly birds where lay the soft parts. Again, I ask, 

 were the vultures, whose daily occupation ought to 

 give them a pretty correct notion of the general 



