WILD GEESE. 185 



to its rescue, and, with its beak, struck the Hawk 

 so violent a blow, that it was stunned, and taken up 

 by one of the threshers. The Goose is, in truth, by 

 no means a cowardly bird, and will often, when 

 excited, defend himself very courageously; a quality 

 of which the Russians seem well aware, as it is 

 not an uncommon thing in that country, instead of 

 training up Game Cocks for fighting, to have what 

 are termed Goose-pits, where they are regularly 

 trained for the sport. The birds are taught to peck 

 at each other's shoulders, so as to draw blood ; and 

 well-trained Ganders have been known to sell as 

 high as twenty pounds, and betting upon them runs 

 very high. This cruel sport takes place in March *. 

 Our domestic Geese are descended from the marsh 

 or fen Goose (Anser palustris), which, though ori- 

 ginally a wild species, is more easily tamed than 

 some others, particularly if taken young. Not but 

 that some of this race may be domesticated. In 

 America, where vast flights pass to the northward 

 to breed, the people shoot them in great numbers, 

 and as many, owing to their wide spread of wing, 

 are often merely pinioned, they are kept alive, and 

 in process of time, have been made so tame, that, 

 having been let out in the morning, they returned 

 in the evening. Several have been thus kept 

 for many years; but although they constantly asso- 

 ciated with the farm-yard Geese, they were never 

 known to breed with them. Under particular cir- 

 cumstances, a wild Goose has indeed been known 

 to throw itself under the protection of man. Thus, 

 an officer settled on a farm near the Missouri, in 

 * Granville's Russia. 



