236 THE WILD TURKEY. 



seemed to be very quiet, and I feared that he had taken 

 alarm ; but by the time I had worked my way seventy 

 or eighty yards into the forest the gobble was repeated. 



Though there was an imdergrowth of blackberry 

 bushes, poison vines, and other small plants, the forest 

 was tolerabl}^ open. The trees stood at some distance 

 from each other, though their branches interlaced and 

 mingled in such a manner as to check completely the 

 growth of sapliugs and large bushes ; in fact, it was so 

 open that a deer standing up might have been seen at 

 a distance of three or four hundred yards. 



Of course the open nature of the ground was against 

 me ; so after a few minutes' thought I hid myself behind 

 the trunk of a fallen tree, and there waited till the 

 turkey should give me further information as to his 

 whereabouts. In a few moments the bird ao-ain sounded 

 his challenge, and directly afterwards I set eyes for the 

 first time on a wild turkey. 



It stood with its head in a listening attitude, one foot 

 slightly raised, as though ready for instant flight ; and I 

 at once mentally acknowledged that it was the hand- 

 somest bird I had ever seen. In watching his actions, I 

 observed that, although the wings were lowered till they 

 swept the ground and the tail was extended like a huge 

 fan while the fine fellow was in the act of gobbling, yet 

 the moment the sound ceased the wings were folded, 

 the tail was lowered, and every feather was in its place. 



As I heA only a double-shot gun, fourteen gauge, I 



