COWARDLY DISPOSITION OF THE TURKEY-THE PEACOCK.

it is certainly very unlikely that he could ever have found his way across the ocean, except in aship. The turkey is valued for his flesh. His delight is to wander with his wives about theprecincts of the farmyard in search of insects and larvae, especially the eggs of ants, of whichhe is immoderately fond. This peculiarity is cleverly noticed in Gay's fable of " The Turkey,and the Ants," where the old hen turkey is represented as having forsaken the barn with herinfant train in quest of a change of diet. She comes unexpectedly upon an ant-hill, and whiledevouring as many of the eggs as she can swallow, she bursts out into a rapturous speech,inciting her brood to eat freely, and assuring them that "an ant is most delightful meat."And'then she goes on to allude feelingly to the vile gluttony of man, Who eats turkeys, "until,"she says, " Christmas shortens all our days."

The quarrelsome and yet cowardly disposition of the turkey cocks is aptly described byGoldsmith in the following paragraph:-" Though so furious among themselves, they are weakand cowardly against other animals far less powerful than themselves. The cock often makesthe turkey keep at a distance, and they seldom venture to attack him but with united force,when they rather oppress him by their weight than annoy him by their arms. There is noanimal, how contemptible soever, that will venture boldly to face the turkey cock, that he willnot fly from. On the contrary, with the insolence of a bully, he pursues anything that seemsto fear him, particularly lap-dogs and children, against both which he seems to have a peculiaraversion. On such occasions, after he has made them scamper, he returns to his female train,displays his plumage around, struts about the yard, and gobbles out a note of self-approbation."

THE PEACOCK (Plate xviI., a)

Is a native of India. This most brilliant of birds was known in very ancient times; for inthe Bible it is mentioned as being imported into Judmea by the fleet of King Solomon. Thepeacock shows the adaptability to various climates characteristic of the species to which itbelongs, and consequently we find it domiciled in every country, as far north as Sweden andNorway.

Among the Romans it was considered the height of splendour to crown a banquet with apeacock, and among our English ancestors the peacock formed the gorgeous centre-dish atmany a great feast. The bird seemed, however, to be introduced more for ornament than use,for its flesh was not very highly esteemed; and thus it was regarded rather as a distinguishingdecoration of the board than a dish whose flavour might delight the guests; therefore thepeacock appeared at the table with his magnificent train spread out for the admiration of thebeholders, and not, like the humbler poultry, to be plucked and deprived of his feathers, andto be judged merely by the merits of his flesh.

The food of the peacock, like that of the turkey, consists chiefly of barley and otherkinds of grain; but, when kept as an ornament in the park or pleasure-ground of a rich man,it will frequently reduce the gardener to despair by effecting an entry into the garden, where itcommits great havoc among the choicest flower-beds in its search after insects. The cry of thepeacock is extremely harsh and disagreeable: it seems as though nature had granted extrabeauty of plumage to the bird as a compensation for its utter want of melody.

The following remarks from White's "Natural History of Selborne," upon the voices ofvarious birds of the poultry kind, may interest our young readers. The reverend author says:

"No inhabitants of a yard seem possessed of such a variety of expression, and so copiousa language, as common poultry. Take a chicken of four or five days old, and hold it up to awindow where there are flies, and it will immediately seize its prey with little twitterings of

complancency; but if you tender it a wasp or a bee, at once its note becomes harsh, andexpressive of disapprobation and a sense of danger. When a pullet is ready to lay, she inti-mates the event by a joyous and easy soft note. Of all the occurrences of their life, that of

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