- 
494 Cabot's Remarks on 
seamen's bellies. If they be old, or not well boiled they are 
of difficult concoction, and are salted and stored up for pro- 
vision of victual. There are found in their stomachs stones 
of an ash color,-of divers figures and magnitudes." 
Among those who have written upon the Dodo in more 
modern times, since its apparent extinction, M. de Blainville 
is perhaps the most full and complete in his examination of 
the question as to the place it should occupy in the animal 
kingdom ; and although he arrives at the conclusion that it 
should be classed among the Vulturidz, yet I shall quote some 
passages from his article, as they favor, I think, very strongly 
my view of the subject. In speaking of the form of the bird 
he says, “ The body in front, where it joins the neck, forms a 
sort of large swelling as if it had a crop in the interior." 
Again he says, ** And as we have seen that the stomach con- 
stantly contains stones, it is probable that this bird was pro- 
vided with a gizzard.” Still again, he says, * None of the 
authors quoted have said anything about the kind of food of 
the Dodo. The existence of stones in the gizzard would 
nevertheless lead us to suppose that they were granivorous." 
Some of the reasons which he gives for not putting them 
among the gallinaceous birds are “ the form of the bill," * the 
strength and curve of the nails,” “the strength and shortness 
of the feet," and * the scaly covering of the tarsi " and “the 
absence of spurs.” 
In summing up this evidence we see 
+ -]lst. That the flesh of the Dodo was good to eat, and some- 
times used for provisioning ships. This would not be the 
case if they were vultures. 
9d. That though entirely incapable of flight, or even of 
rapid motion, yet they were very fat; which certainly coul 
not be the case if they were Vultures or any other Rapaciov® 
bird; whose character necessarily implies that they one 
animal substances, for we cannot imagine that such an un- 
wieldy bird, requiring such a large amount of food could by 
any possibility procure sufficient animal substance for its sup- 
port. 
