138 THE TURKEY. 



understand a word they said. As it was very unpleas- 

 ant weather, and the roads were exceedingly bad, the 

 Englishmen were much fatigued by the time they got 

 to the village in which the strange creatures were. 

 The people of the village took them to the house where 

 the animals were kept, the door was opened, and out 

 marched a turkey cock and hen ! The former seemed 

 to rejoice much in his release from his confinement, 

 and began to gobble his Arabic with great vehemenoy. 

 Though vexed at having taken a tedious journey for 

 nothing, yet the travellers could not help laughing 

 at the denouement. The people were, however, ex- 

 ceedingly surprised, when informed that these strange 

 creatures were very common in India and England. 

 It seemed that the birds had escaped from a vessel 

 which had been wrecked in the G-ulf of Persia, and 

 had gradually made their way to the place where they 

 then were. 



Although, as before observed, the exact time and 

 circumstances, under which the turkey was introduced 

 into the various countries of Europe, are in some ob- 

 scurity, still the wild original of the domestic stock is 

 not only well known, but still abounds in some of the 

 wooded districts of America remote from civilization. 



Two species only are known to naturalists, namely, 

 the common wild turkey, (Meleagris gallopavo,) of 

 North America, the origin of our domestic stock, and 

 the Honduras turkey, (M. ocellata,) a bird, which, in 

 the metallic splendor and varying tints of its plumage, 

 outrivals the peacock, if not every other tenant of the 

 air. But, except, perhaps, in some of the dense un- 

 trodden woods of Yucatan and of Central America, 

 from Cape Honduras to the tenth degree of north lati- 

 tude, this bird might be sought for in vain. Of its pecu- 

 liar h abits and manners nothing is positively known. 

 We may suppose, however, that it resembles, to a great 

 degree, the common wild turkey of the north. Could 

 it be domesticated in our Southern States, what a 

 splendid acquisition should we have to' our poultry 

 va.rds and lawns ! 



