The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1899-03-09
BEE SAMUEL IS
DANCING TURKEYS
STHERE were seven turkeys, all larg
By G. A. Stephens

HERE were seven turkeys, all large
ones, six bronze and one white
On board over the wire front of their
cage was painted the announcements:
Seven Dancing Turkeys; Exhibited
For the First Time; Round and Square
Dances and the Highland Fling!"
The exhibitor was a sallow-looking
boy about Is years of age, with a droll
droop of his left eye. In connection
with his cage of educated turkeys"
which he was showing at the county
fair, he had a sweet-cder and peanut
stand. The peanuts were excellent, for
he had a stove, kept hot with coal fire,
and roasted ovenful after ovenful. The
stove and fuel box were partly hidden
from the public eye by curtain al one
end; and both stand and cage had just
behind them the high board fence of
abe fair grounds.
Few people knew the owner. Those
few called him Bee Samuels. He had
been at the fair the year before with a
'whirling table," which, after the first
day, had been excluded by the manage
Inent as something too nearly akin to
gambling.
But this time he had brought flock
of educated turkeys, which spoke so
well for his patience and skill that his
show was admitted to the grounds
without question.
During the first day the cage did not
attract much attention, for the people
;r,+a in, O+h t,ara1+ia..
soon they began to talk about it.
Bez plan of exhibiting was not the
usual one. He had no tent, but merely
slide curtain inside the wire front of
ihe cage. Whenever the passing crowd
raised so cents Bee opened the curtain
and gave a brief performance. Of
course many saw it who had paid moth
ing; yet as many newcomers were con-
Stantly arriving the plan worked well.
During the forenoon of the second
day of the fair my friend Tom and l
snd ten or a dozen other young peo-
pie contributed the so cents requisite
80 see the turkeys dance.
There was rafting sound as Bee
pulled the curtain aside, and imme-
diately those seven turkeys began to
hop, first on one foot, then on the other,
constantly shifting and moving around
The cage. One could scarcely say that
they executed a regular figure; but
they went round and round, hopping in
a very curious and ludicrous manner.
Moreover, it was hard to guess the mo-
1--WE for their antics. The bottom of
abe cage inside the wires appeared to
be of old zinc or sheet iron. Occasion
ally Bee either struck the bottom of
ahe cage or ratified beneath it as if with
an iron rod, ITO change the time of the
aance," as he explained.
At once, then, the turkeys began to
leap higher, using their wings to assist
ahem. At every hop they rose to the
top of the cage, height of certainly
xix feet. Their feet seemed scarcely
10 touch the ground at all, so rapidly
did their leaps succeed each other. Up,
Up, and up and around they went in a
maze of leaping and tapping! This
Eas the Highland Fling" and no one
who saw it could help laughing.
After a minute or two Bee pulled the
curtain, and, thanking us, declared the
performance over. Nearly everyone
went away remarking that there never
WAS such turkey dance, and in the
course of ten minutes another so cents
were collected. People wondered how
bird so stupid as turkey could ever
have been trained to 60 through such a
performance Music had nothing to do
with it; Bee had merely raped on the
floor as signal for the dance to begin
Rad had ratified louder for the High
land Fling"
vt must have taken no end of time
and patience to teach them" l remem-
her saying to my companion.
Maybe; but doubt it," he replied.
ST don't like the looks of that Bez,'"
he continued. 81 think it's trick!"
Some discussion ensued; then we
Eent back to ask him how he had
drained the turkeys.
The fellow looked at us attentively.
and then gave an account of the gift"
he possessed of communicating his
will" to birds and animals. 1t re-
CURED months, he said; but Kindness
and perseverance accomplish wonders
We said to him that il was truly a
wonderful gift, and left, well satisfied
shat he had not told us the truth.
Hes fraud" remarked Tom. as we
walked away. 'If he had said fatty
that he did not wish to tell us about it
shouldn't have blamed him, for of
Az &c 10 4
keep it, he has a right to. 1 wo 1ldn't
spy round to fad 1t out, ether; but
pow that he has gone on and void us