Oakes weekly Republican. (Oakes, Dickey County, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1883-1898, 1889-11-29
MELEAGRiS GALl.OPAVO.
Th.cl, IS tl:c 40 ,tanica, Name" of the
Patriotic Thanksgiving nird.

which fs tl:e 80 ,tanical Name" of the
Patriotic Thanksgiving; ni,d.
If the fathers OF the republic had been
granted the right and power to create a
truly patriotic ana native American bird
especially for Thanksgiving, and exactly
suited for it. they could not possibly
have done hc;!er than nature had already
DONE The turkey iins lh. bill. lie is
tooti,so@c. he is suncy, hc is wholesome,
nourishin:s, and does not c!ov. He is
born at the right season, "comes in just
at the right time. is better 10y nature than
by cultivation. and he is exclusively
American. No other land has such a
fowl. He is not only American, he is
misunderstanding is, pan-North Amer
lean. From the woods OF the upper
Saguenay to the forests of Florida, to
speak scientifically, mcleayris gailcpavo
is indigenous-in other words, the wild
turkey was found native to the woods.
His intellect also is peculiarly Ameri-
can. He is Il willy bird and does not
give hiwSrlf away withou, sufficient
cuuse. lie is ardent In love and savage
in war. like other Americans Like
them, too. his ardor las often bsxan the
denth of him. for it is only by ''c&llin:,
that is, initiating the vo!%G of hia rnate
that the h;;ntcr can lurr the Will tur-
key towards him The practice was
cond"mued by tr;lr sporls:nen. tor it Was
only pr;i,tirahi" daring the sea;nn when
the turkey is not VI his best Ii is q Curl
GUS fact. and known to but few in these
wild turiieylcss times. that the bird him
self furnished the bone which served to
call" him to destruction. A single
bone, about as long as ones forelinyer,
in each male turkey is hollow and Of
just the right shape for piping, With a
little practice any one with an average
ear can eject the breath through it in a
way to make an exact imitation of the
female turkeys love notes. At any rate,
it is exact enough to deceive the male.
} DR.. Franklin may have been joking
when he suggested the turkey us the en-
blem of the United States instead Of the
eagle, but his suggestion had much tc
} support it. The bird, rs aforesaid, is
native, exclusively American, willy and
warlike. He is also in his native stase q
traveller and explorer. TO the ordinary
rivers the wild turkey paid little heed.
The St. Lawrence and the Mississippi
often bnffled him, for it is rare, indeed,
for wild turkey to fly mile. Even at
his best estate he relies more on running
than flying From marked and tagged
specimens turned loose after capture ii
has been shown that the turkey travels
far. The great plains of the west barred
his progress, however, as he insists on al
abundance Of clean running water
Meleagris gallopavo is gone, practical
ly extinct in most of the country, but he
is tolerably we'll represented by Melea
girls Amerieana-the common farinyart
fowl-and in Europe the descendants o
those turkeys which William Strickland
lieutenant to Sebastian Cabot, carried tx
England. Gre numbered hy millions an,
ere classified in several species and va
rie,es. From the cradle to the grav
the domestic turkey is interesting. Firs
D, are the Gclicately tinted and love-!
% specklctl eggs. and in caring for then
the female almost resumes her wild X,
~ t;:rc. She concoals her nest with rir
talent, rarely approaches it twice by til
o s%!ine route. and always makes a wild
y circuit i'll leaving it for the barnyarc
~ coming III from some other tlirectio
IN With an Innocent air that is amusing
# The Young are almost as tcndcras babies
! it is in August that Che growing bird be
gins to show what is in him. AS til
n, fruitful autumn advances he takes o
70 the high and glossy shades Of adult lif,
and i'll November is in just the rigl
~ stage to be sacrificed. and most genc7
ally is. Peace to his hashesl