Friends in Feathers and Fur, and Other Neighbors Part 5

_ABOUT TURKEYS._

[Ill.u.s.tration]

1. The turkey is about as large as a goose, but its legs are longer, and it stands up higher. Its feet are partly webbed, so that it can swim a little.

2. Its bill is short, thick, and pointed, and upon its head, above and between the eyes, grows a fleshy wattle, which does not stand up like the comb of a c.o.c.k, but hangs down over the bill. Upon the breast is a tuft of long, coa.r.s.e hair.

3. The tail is broad and rounded, and hangs downward; but the turkey can raise it and spread it out like a fan.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

4. The turkey can fly but a little way, but it can run very fast. At night, it roosts on trees or high places.

5. The hen-turkey is timid, but the old gobbler rather likes to quarrel. He is a vain bird, and it is funny to see him strut up and down, with his tail spread out, and his wings drawn down, his feathers ruffled, and his neck drawn back, and to hear him puff, and cry, "Gobble! gobble!"

6. Great flocks of wild turkeys are found in the West, where they live in the woods upon nuts and insects. The eagles sometimes pounce down and carry off young turkeys, as is shown in this picture.

LESSON XI.

_ABOUT SWANS._

[Ill.u.s.tration]

1. Here we have the picture of the swan, the largest bird of the goose kind. It is not often seen in this country, but is found in the Central Park, New York, and in a few other places.

2. It has short, stout legs, and webbed feet, like the duck, and it waddles along on the land in a slow and awkward way. It is clothed with feathers of a fine quality, like the goose, and those we see in this country are pure white. Black swans are found in some countries.

3. Its neck is much longer than that of the goose, and when it swims, sitting high in the water, with its long neck arched, it is one of the most graceful birds in the world. It has strong wings, and wild swans can fly a long distance without tiring. Tame swans do not fly far.

4. The bill of the swan is broad, and pointed like that of the goose, but a little longer. Below the eyes, and at the base of the bill, a narrow band of black extends across the front of the head.

5. The swans run in pairs. The mother swan lays from five to eight eggs, and hatches them in six weeks. The young swans are called cygnets. They are covered with down, and are able to walk and swim when first out of the sh.e.l.l.

6. The father swan watches the nest, and helps take care of the young ones. He will fly at anything that comes near, and he is able to strike terrible blows with his wings. He can drive away any bird, even the eagle.

7. Swans usually build nests of a few coa.r.s.e sticks, and a lining of gra.s.s or straw. They have a curious habit, however, of raising their nests higher, and of raising the eggs at the same time.

8. At times they seem to know that some danger threatens them, and then they turn their instinct for raising their nests to some purpose.

A person who observed all the facts tells this story:

9. For many years an old swan had built her nest on the border of a park, by the river-side. From time to time she had raised her nest, but never more than a few inches.

10. Once, when there had been no rain for a long time, and the river was very low, she began to gather sticks and gra.s.ses to raise her nest, and she would scarcely stop long enough to eat.

11. She seemed so anxious to get materials for nest-building that she attracted the attention of the family living near by, and a load of straw was carried to her. This she worked all into her nest, and never stopped until the eggs had been raised two and a half feet.

12. In the night a heavy rain fell, the river flowed over its banks, and the water came over the spot where the eggs had been; but it did not quite come up to the top of the new nest, and so the swan saved them.

LESSON XII.

_DOVES AND PIGEONS._

[Ill.u.s.tration: The Bath.]

1. Everybody likes the dove; it is such a pretty bird, and is always so clean. It flies all about the yard, the garden, and the street.

Even the rudest boys do not often disturb it.

2. It is about the size of a half-grown chicken, and looks more like a chicken than any of the other birds we have studied.

3. The doves about our houses are usually white, or a bluish gray.

They live in pairs, each pair having its own nest, or home; but where doves are kept, many pairs live in the same house or dove-cote.

4. They have a short, pointed bill, like a chicken, and strong legs and toes, so that they can walk and scratch easily.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

5. The mother dove lays but two eggs before sitting, and then her mate sits on the nest half of the time until the eggs are hatched. The young doves, called squabs, are covered with down like chickens, but, unlike chickens, the old ones must feed them a week or two before they are able to go about by themselves.

6. Both the father and mother dove feed the young ones with a kind of milky curd which comes from their own crops.

7. When the chicken drinks, it sips its bill full, and then raises its head and swallows; but the dove does not raise its head until it has drank enough.

8. The pigeon--which is another name for the dove--has very strong wings, and can fly far and fast without tiring. When taken from their home a great distance, pigeons will fly straight back.

9. Before we had railroads and telegraphs, people would take pigeons away from home, and send them back with a letter tied under their wings. These were called carrier-pigeons.

10. The doves in each home are very fond of each other. We can hear the father dove softly cooing to his mate at almost any time when they are about.

11. One day a farmer shot a male dove, and tied the body to a stake to scare away other birds. The poor widow was in great distress. She first tried to call him away, and then she brought him food. When she saw he did not eat, her cries were pitiable.

12. She would not leave the body, but day after day she continued to walk about the stake, until she had worn a beaten track around it. The farmer's wife took pity on her, and took away the dead bird, and then she went back to the dove-cote.

_THREE LITTLE DOVES._

Three little doves put on their gloves, And then sat down to dine; These little doves, they soiled their gloves, And soon were heard to whine-- "Oh, mother dear, come here, come here, For we have soiled our gloves!"

"Soiled your gloves, you naughty doves, You shan't sit up till nine."