AND AMERICAN RURAL SPORTS. 



15 



" Before leaving the nest with her young brood, the 

 mother shakes herself in a violent manner, picks and ad- 

 justs the feathers about her belly, and assumes quite a dif- 

 ferent aspect. She alternately inclines her eyes oblique- 

 ly upwards and sidewaj's, stretching out her neck to dis- 

 cover hawks or other enemies, spreads her wings a little as 

 she walks, and softly clucks to keep her innocent offspring 

 close to her. They move slowly along, and as the 

 hatching generally takes place in the afternoon, they 

 frequently return to the nest to spend the first night 

 there. After this, they remove to some distance, 

 keeping on the highest undulated grounds, the mother 

 dreading rainy weather, which is extremely dangerous to 

 the young, in this tender state, when they are only co- 

 vered by a kind of soft hairy down, of surprising delicacy. 

 In very rainy seasons, Turkeys are scarce, for if once com- 

 pletely wetted, the young seldom recover. To prevent the 

 disastrous effects of rainy weather, the mother, like a skil- 

 ful physician, plucks the buds of the spice-wood bush, and 

 gives them to her young, 



"In about a fortnight, the young birds, which had pre- 

 viously rested on the ground, leave it, and fly, at night, 

 to some very large low branch, where they place them- 

 selves under the deeply-curved wings of their kind and 

 careful parent, dividing themselves for that purpose into 

 two nearly equal parties. After this, they leave the woods 

 during the day, and approach the natural glades or prai- 

 ries, in search of strawberries, and subsequently of dew- 

 berries, blackberries, and grasshoppers, thus obtaining 

 abundant food, and enjoying the beneficial influence of the 

 sun's rays. They roll themselves in deserted ants' nests, 

 to clear their growing feathers of the loose scales, and pre- 

 vent ticks and other vermin from attacking them, these 

 insects being unable to bear the odour of the earth in 

 which ants have been. 



"The young Turkeys now advance rapidly in growth, 

 and in the month of August are able to secure themselves 

 from unexpected attacks of wolves, foxes, lynxes, and even 

 cougars, by rising quickly from the ground, by the help 

 of their powerful legs, and reaching with ease the highest 

 branches of the tallest trees. The young cocks show the 

 tuft on the breast about this time, and begin to gobble and 

 strut, while the young hens pur and leap in the manner 

 which I have already described. 



"About the beginning of October, when scarcely any 

 of the seeds and fruits have yet fallen from the trees, these 

 birds assemble in flocks, and gradually move towards the 

 rich bottom lands of the Ohio and Mississippi. The males, 

 or as they are more commonly called, the gobblers, asso- 

 ciate in parties of from ten to a hundred, and search for 

 food apart from the females; while the latter are seen 



either advancing singly, each with its brood of young, 

 then about two-thirds grown, or in connexion with other 

 families, forming parties often amounting to seventy or 

 eighty individuals, all intent on shunning the old cocks, 

 which, even when the young birds have attained this size, 

 will fight with, and often destroy them by repeated blows 

 on the head. Old and young, however, all move in the 

 same course, and on foot, unless their progress be inter- 

 rupted by a river, or the hunter's dog force them to take 

 wing. When they come upon a river, they betake 

 themselves to the highest eminences, and there often re- 

 main a whole day, or sometimes two, as if for the purpose 

 of consultation. During this time, the males are heard 

 gobbling, calling, and making much ado, and are seen 

 strutting about, as if to raise their courage to a pitch be- 

 fitting the emergency. Even the females and young as- 

 sume something of the same pompous demeanour, spread 

 out their tails and run round each other, purring loudly, 

 and performing extravagant leaps. At length, when the 

 weather appears settled, and all around is quiet, the whole 

 party mounts to the tops of the highest trees, whence at a 

 signal, consisting of a single cluck, given by a leader, 

 the flock takes flight for the opposite shore. The old 

 and fat birds easily get over, even should the river be a 

 mile in breadth, but the younger and less robust, frequent- 

 ly fall into the water, — not to be drowned, however, as 

 might be imagined. They bring their wings close to their 

 body, spread out their tail as a support, stretch forward 

 their neck, and striking out their legs with great vigour, 

 proceed rapidly towards the shore, on approaching which, 

 should they find it too steep for landing, they cease their 

 exertions for a few moments, float down the stream until 

 they come to an accessible part, and by a violent effort 

 generally extricate themselves from the water. It is re- 

 markable, that immediately after thus crossing a large 

 stream, they ramble about for some time, as if bewildered. 

 In this state, they fall an easy prey to the hunter. 



" When the Turkeys arrive in parts where the mast is 

 abundant, they separate into smaller flocks, composed of 

 birds of all ages and both sexes, promiscuously mingled, 

 and devour all before them. This happens about the mid- 

 dle of November. So gentle do they sometimes become 

 after these long journeys, that they have been seen to ap- 

 proach the farm-houses, associate with the domestic fowls, 

 and enter the stables and corn-cribs in quest of food. In 

 this way, roaming about the forests, andfeeding chiefly on 

 mast, they pass the autumn and part of the winter. 



"As early as the middle of February, they begin to 

 experience the impulse of propagation. The females se- 

 parate, and fly from the males. The latter strenuously pur- 

 sue, and begin to gobble or to utter the notes of exulta- 



