154 ANIMAL FOOD RESOURCES OF DIFFERENT NATIONS. 



females remaining produce annually lfi,000,000 young 

 turkeys ; 6,000,000 of these are reserved to replace those 

 killed, and an average of 6,000,000 are carried off by 

 disease. There remains, therefore, 6,000,000 turkeys 

 ■which, sold at 3 frs. each, produce 30,000,000 frs. The 

 higher price given for first-class birds may be estimated 

 at 260,000 frs., which gives a total result of 33,701,120 

 frs. 



The breast of the wild turkey of North America 

 {Meleagris gallo-pavo), nicely fried in the oil of the black 

 bear, would furnish a dish calculated to tickle the palate 

 of a London alderman. Its flesh has a very charac- 

 teristic flavour, different from that of the tame bird ; it 

 has a gamey taste, and the flesh after cooking is blacker 

 than that of the domestic turkey. 



"Always partridges" has become almost proverbial, 

 and we flnd from Lawson (" History of Carolina ") how 

 a repetition of the most delicious food palls. " We 

 cooked our supper," says that traveller, " but, having 

 neither bread nor salt, our fat turkeys began to be 

 loathsome to us, although we were never wanting of a 

 good appetite, yet a continuance of our diet made us 

 weary;" and again he adds, "by the way our guide 

 killed more turkeys and two polecats, which he iate, 

 esteeming them before fat turkeys." 



The flesh of the turkey is unlawful food among the 

 Mohammedans. The prejudice arises, it is said, from 

 the tuft on the breast, which bears some resemblance 

 to hog's bristles. 



Peacocks were carefully reared by the ancients in 

 the island of Samos. The guinea fowl was considered 

 dehcious by the Eomans, but they knew not the turkey. 



We no longer hear of peacocks and pies of cranes' 

 tongues. As for peacocks, they have entirely gone out 

 of fashion, and it is doubtful whether anyone living ever 

 tasted peacock in England ; yet peacock pies, with the 

 heads and tails of the birds protruding from the crust, 

 were formerly common enough at Christmas. William 

 IV. is said to have partaken of peacock when dining with 



