276 NONE IN ENGLAND. [CHAP. in. 



Christian theological sense. I could not believe in the 

 sport of nature, and did not like to distrust Ternminck's 

 veracity, supported too as he is by Albin. But inquire 

 of any clever farmer's wife what she would think, if 

 any one told her that all her neighbour's Turkey-poults 

 grew up this season with large feathered crests on their 

 heads, some black and some white ! A pretty freak of 

 nature indeed ! She would either laugh, or be angry 

 and affronted from suspicion of a hoax, according as her 

 temper might happen to be. A Turkey's head, with 

 its movable and eligible skin, certainly does not look 

 a likely place for a plume of feathers to start from. Such 

 a Jusus has never occurred in the great Turkey-breed- 

 ing counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, and Cambridgeshire ; 

 for the appearance of the monster would be sure to be 

 observed, if it ever took place. So we gave it up, till 

 a valued friend sent us the following extracts from 

 "Wild Life in the Interior of Central America, by 

 Geo. Byam, 43rd Light Infantry" : 



" There are two species of wild Turkey in Central 

 America, differing widely from each other, both in 

 appearance and value as an article of food. The com- 

 monest is the almost black Turkey, with a grey spotted 

 breast and red crest; their form is elegant, and their 

 movements resemble the Peahen: they are abundant 

 near rivers or water, and it is not difficult to bag five or 

 six in a day's shooting: but the flesh is dark and rather 

 coarse when roasted, but makes splendid soup, very 

 like hare-soup, and slices cut raw from the breast and 

 fried in a pan, are capital. They are fond of living in 

 very high trees on the banks of rivers and streams, and 

 do not shun much the ranches built in the forest. 



" The other, and much rarer, is a most magnificent 



