1877.] The Wild Turkey and its Domestication. 323 
four years old with brown legs, though still showing the pink 
shade, and on whose feathers the white has very considerably re- 
placed the cinnamon shades. In fact I have many specimens that 
would readily pass for the bronze domestic turkey, even in the 
view of an expert. Iam satisfied that without a fresh infusion 
' of wild blood, in the course of fifteen or twenty years more but 
few individuals would show the distinctive marks of the wild tur- 
key to any considerable extent, and the whole would be pro- 
nounced the bronze domestic turkey. This change is much more 
manifest in some individuals than in others, still it is very marked 
in all. I have met with several farmers in the West who have 
domesticated the wild turkey and whose experiences correspond 
with my own, but they are not writing men, though frequently 
pretty good observers. The truth is that those having the most 
facts on this particular subject do not appreciate their importance, 
and the observations they have made are never known to the sci- 
entists who are most capable of weighing and comparing them, 
and it is possible that these have fallen into errors for the want 
of full data. 
The habits of the wild turkey are not as rapidly changed by 
domestication as its form and coloring ; still they undergo a 
change as well. The wild cock-turkey by the time he is five 
months old seeks a perch well up in the largest trees in his range, 
and as he grows older he is constantly inclined to seek a higher 
perch, till he is frequently found at the very apex of the tallest 
tree. The largest turkey I ever killed sat at the extreme top of 
avery tall tree, which enabled me to see him against the back- 
ground of the clear eastern sky as the day was breaking, while 
all below was profound darkness, and so I had plenty of time to 
approach behind another large tree with the most deliberate cau- 
tion to within range, and there I had to wait a considerable time 
before I could see the sights of the rifle. He was already 
alarmed and stood as straight as a penguin, which is the constant 
habit of the bird when his suspicions are awakened. Fearing he 
Would leave I fired before I could tell whether his back or his 
reast was towards me. When a twenty-four pound turkey falls 
from so great a height, and thrashing through the branches of 
the tree strikes the ground with a great crash, it is music to the 
ear of him who can claim the prize. A companion once killed 
à very large cock on the top of a very large tree, under which we 
had made our camp fire, where he had sat for hours undisturbed 
the noise and bustle of our camp. As we had approached 
