THE TURKEY. 



159 



(and it might in a certain degree,) as it is in nature ; 

 this we know, that turkeys which have laid their eggs 

 in out-of-the-way places, and have been allowed to in- 

 cubate there, have brought their troop of downy young- 

 lings into the farm yard with evident pleasure and 

 satisfaction — no extra attention having been paid to 

 them. It is usual, however, in Europe and the northern 

 parts of the United States, to remove the young chicks, 

 one by one, as they make their exit, and place them in 

 a basket of warm flannel, tow, or feathers, until all are 

 out, and then restore them to the hen ; this is done 

 as a precautionary measure, lest any accident should 

 happen to them. 



in a state of nature, the turkey only rears one brood 

 during the season, unless her eggs have been destroyed 

 or removed, nor will the domestic hen incubate twice, 

 if allowed to rear her own brood ; some, however, which 

 like, as the common phrase is, " to work a free horse 

 to death," recommend that the turkey be induced to 

 hatch a second time in the season. This is effected 

 by taking her young brood from her as soon as pos- 

 sible, and mixing it with another' brood of the same 

 age, as nearly as may be ; her cares being no longer 

 required for her young, and her instincts unsatisfied ; 

 she seeks the company of the male, and in about three 

 weeks, again commences laying, until the number of 

 eggs is complete, when she re-engages in the task of 

 incubation. But I object to this practice in toto. It 

 is cruel, and it taxes the system ; she has already sat 

 patiently for thirty days, that is four weeks and two 

 days, and surely that is quite enough. Besides, the 

 brood thus hatched will be late in the season, and late 

 broods of turkeys cannot be reared without very great 

 care ; they cannot stand the chilly mornings of autumn 

 nor the frosty nights ; their limbs become swollen and 

 rheumatic, and they die one after another, few sur- 

 viving, and these few never become fine, healthy 

 bird from which the breeder would select his stock. 

 Let nature alone. Should a hen lay after hatching her 

 clutch of eggs, and should she, (which is very unlike- 



