WILD TURKEY HUNTING. 19 
“ pen,’ —a gobbler who will listen to the plaintive note of 
the female until he has tried its quavers, its length, its re- 
petitions, by every rule nature has given him—and then, 
perhaps not answer, except in a smothered voice, for 
fear of being deceived ;—such a turkey will W se- 
lect to break a lance with, and, in spite of the chances 

against him, win. 
We then have here the best specimen of wild tur- 
key-hunting ; an exhibition of skill between the perfec- 
tion of animal instinct, and the superior intellect 
of man. 
The turkey-hunter, armed with his “call,” starts 
into the forest; he bears upon his shoulder the trusty 
gun. He is either informed of the presence of turkeys, 
and has a particular place or bird in view, or he makes 
his way cautiously along the banks of some running 
steam; his progress is slow and silent; it may be that 
he unexpectedly hears a noise, sounding like distant 
thunder; he then knows that he is in close proximity 
of the game, and that he has disturbed it to flight. 
When such is the case, his work is comparatively done. 
We will, for illustration, select a more difficult hunt. 
The day wears towards noon, the patient hunter has 
met no “sign,” when suddenly a slight noise is heard— 
not unlike, to unpractised ears, a thousand other wood- 
land sounds; the hunter listens; again the sound is 
heard, as if a pebble dropped into the bosom of a little 
lake. It may be that woodpecker, who, desisting from 
