GALLINE. 297 
one behind, articulated upon the tarsus, above the junction 
of the anterior toes. 
The members of this natural and well-marked order are 
birds of a bulky and heavy form; their bodies abounding 
in muscular fibre, remarkable for its sweetness and excellent 
quality as food. Their short and concave wings, as well as 
other peculiarities of anatomical structure, render them un- 
fit for distant or long-continued flight ; but their strong limbs 
are perfectly adapted for speed, or continued exertion on foot. 
Their principal food consists of grain and seeds ; but, im ad- 
dition to these, some few eat roots, berries, or the buds 
of trees; and most of them devour insects. In the whole 
tribe, the food undergoes maceration in the craw, previous to 
its entering the stomach or gizzard, which is, in this order, a 
receptacle possessing great muscular grinding power. Some 
members of the different genera that this order comprises, 
are polygamous; others pair regularly every year. Their 
nest is in most cases placed on the ground, amidst the her- 
bage, and formed without much art. Their eggs are nume- 
rous, and the young, when first excluded, are covered with a 
soft down, and are immediately able to follow their parents, 
and to feed themselves. ‘The males of such as pair never 
assist the females in incubation. ‘They scratch the earth with 
their feet in search of food ; and are all addicted to the pecu- 
liar habit of rolling in dust, and working it into their fea- 
thers. 
It is from this order that we have obtained our highly- 
prized domestic poultry. 
By the genera Pterocles, Penelope, and Crax, this order 
shews a distant approach to the Columbine; and the genera 
Tinamus and Hemipodius, are links of the chain that unites 
it to the order Cursores. 
