The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-06-06
A BIG GOBBLER.

The following is an extract from recent
letter dated San Antonio, May s. to
James F. King, Atkinson, Ca, from Hon.
Henry c. King who is well-known in Geor-
gia, and WIN is now resident of San An
tonic, Tex:
1 returned home from my camp en- Tues
day the 18th and send you herein, as prom
ised, the gobbler's beard, OF boards, for as
you will see it is double, two distinct boards
growing an inch or more apart. This is the
second instance of double beard that
have seen in Texas, although have heard
of others. But they are rare. The gobbler
that wore this one, gobbied about O'Clock
a. N. opposite camp, across the Sabinal
river on which was hunting Approach
ing as near as practicable and posting my
self behind a cat-claw bush as a screen,
called on a wing-bone. He came, answer
ing frequently, till he reached the other
bank, where he halted strutting and COB
bling as if to persuade his unseen love to
come across to him, and his lordly port and
gorgeous plumage that flashed and glittered
in the morning sun might have tempted the
coyeSt prude. A few more cautious ''yelps'
on my wing-bone, however, and L heard the
heavy "hutf-huff" of his wings, then silence
for some moments, while, with my gun in
position to be used on either side OF the
bushes, | kept a sharp lookout, till suddenly
on my right front, about Is yards off, his
greenish white head and slender neck went
up above the high grass and weeds. We
saw each other at the same moment and in
that moment he turned to run having out a
step to take to be hidden behind bushes
but before he took that step I fired. Silence
again and no turkey! Putting my setter
on the track and following about 100 yards
up the bottom, l found my game. From
his head to his breast-do IN the neck
nearly a dozen turkey shot, r. B. bad
passed through and yet he ran 100 yards.
From toes to tip of bill, he measured feet
8 inches and from tip to tip of wings, 5
feet 6 inches. This was the largest COB
bier l have seen, except one shot on the
Concho river in 1877, and strange to say
his spurs indicated that he was not over 2
years old.
HISTORICAL CAMELs,
When jefferson Davis was Secretary of
War, number of camels were imported, by
order of the war department, for the use Of
the army on the dry plains, and at the out
break of the war they were most, if not all
of them, at Camp Verde, a military post
fifty miles northwest of San Antonio. At
the close of the war, they lapsed again to
the United States and were sold to individ-
uals The last of them, after having been
kept on ranch near Austin, where they
increased considerably, were sold a few
years ago to a circus company at high
prices. 1t is not unlikely that some of these
may have been left in Arizona, as some
one has written an account of camel hunt
locating the scene in that territory. This
account stated that they were wild and
hunting them was attended with danger.
from the vicious pugnacity Of the old males
L saw the camels frequently when in this
vicinity, but do not remember that they
displayed any disposition to go wild l had
quite an exciting adventure among them one
night as ] was cantering home through
mountain valley half a mile from the house,
First, one tall, ghost-like head and neck
stretched up against the dim SKY, till a
dozen rose up 30 or 40 yards ahead of me-
My horse saw them as soon as l did and
though not easily scared, quit that placa in
a series of sudden, sidelong, backward
jumps that made my back and lungs ache
for days after. When | got home found
that the canels were being removed from
San Antonio to Camp Verde, ard the men
in charge or them had asked permission
, to encamp with them that night at my
ranch.
After this, when l lived in Boerne, one
OF these camels, large male, came march
ing quietly down the main street of the
town one day, and such panic and STAN
pede of every horse and team of mules,
oxen and of women and children there
never was seen. The old fellow had got
away from Camp Verde and was taking the
road leisurely toward San Antonio.
whether with a hope of better grazing or
possill with q vision Of his native desert
ahead who knoWsi