AMUSING INCIDENT. 229 



and so remarkable was their conduct that I halted to wit- 

 ness it. 



The ringleader of this coterie was a very large old cock- 

 bird, his companions young males and hens. In a circle of 

 a few yards in diameter they stood around my pet, their 

 necks either stretched forward to their greatest length, or 

 their heads hoisted knowingly on one side. The leader, 

 who seemed the bravest of the party, slowly would advance 

 till he was almost within pecking distance of the cat, then 

 Puss would make a struggle, and the intruding bird would 

 precipitately retreat several paces. Being ambitious to fol- 

 low the example of their leader, a younger bird would now 

 advance, to be frightened off in the same manner as his 

 predecessor. The turkeys seemed to regard this as great 

 fun, for as soon as one would retire, all would commence 

 gobbling together, as if chaffing the coward, immediately 

 after which all would bristle up their feathers and com- 

 mence a mimic attack upon each other. Half an hour I 

 spent watching the strange vagaries of these noble birds, 

 till I considered I had learned all their performance by 

 heart, or witnessed all the tricks that the mountebanks in- 

 tended putting into practice ; so, waiting my chance when 

 the turkeys were aligned, I killed two with my left barrel 

 and one with my right. Pussy's release now called for my 

 attention ; with the aid of my knife in a moment she was 

 free, but true to her tiger instincts, the first use she made 

 of her liberty was to fly upon one of the dead birds, and 

 attempt to rend it in pieces with teeth and claw. In fact, 

 five minutes of her vindictive wrath would have soon mu- 

 tilated my game to such an extent as to render it unfit for 

 human food. I afterward made trial of this discovery, but 

 never with the same success, although it invariably afford- 

 ed me a shot. 



If domestic turkeys are kept where wild ones abound, 



