THE LOVELORN GOBBLER 203 



nerves are cool. The turkey hunter must have 

 time. Give a low, soothing cluck, then listen 

 carefully, as the turkey may gobble the instant 

 he hears the cluck; perhaps two may answer, 

 but we will confine our attention to one. If a 

 two-year-old bird, he will gobble before he thinks ; 

 but we will not allow you such an easy job as a 

 two-year-old. Suppose the gobbler is three years 

 or over — he will straighten up his long neck and 

 listen some moments. He is not sure it was a 

 genuine cluck, but he thinks it was, and duly 

 drops his broad wings, partly spreads his tail, 

 and listens; then, " Vut-v-r-r-o-o-o-m-m-i " comes 

 the booming strut, and " Gil-obble-obble-obble," if 

 he dares this it is to elicit a call or cluck from you 

 to make sure he is not deceived. Now call, 

 "Cluck, cluck, keow, keotv, keow/ 9 at once he 

 answers " Gil-obble-obble-obble " two or three 

 times in a breath so loud and shrill that it rings 

 out like thunder in the quiet of the forest. Now 

 give a low quaver, "Keow, keow, keow," just 

 audible to him, yet low, then stop right there. 

 He will yell out in a fierce and prolonged rattle 

 that will make the squirrels quit their feeding 



