[4V50 Gary]

I've been reading some modern things (Lucinda Frank's My Father's Secret War which is a great read but I think there are some mistakes, some WW II aviation books) as well as Civil War material. The last two books didn't produce anything of interest but that's the price of research. It's a hit or miss proposition. Anyway, here's a little gem from a book that I'm currently reading.

Captain Travis, who was the our quartermaster's sergant, tells me that while the regiment lay at this camp, he and a certain lieutenant procured shot-guns from a friendly farmer, and stated out early one morning in quest of birds for a game dinner. About a mile from camp they entered the woods at the foot of a mountain and began clambering up the sides. "Presently," says the captain, "we discovered, bobbing about on a plateau just ahead of us, an immense flock of wild turkeys, and creeping cautiously up, so that we could get good range, we blazed away both together, and as the flock raised we let them have the contents of our second barrels. Then we moved out and picked up six fine black fellows, and tying their feet together, we shouldered our guns, slung our birds over them, and hastened back to camp, as proud as cuffies. We knew Colonel Ellis was extremely fond of wild game, and concluded to select the largest pair and present them to him. On entering the Colonel's tent I found him busy writing, and without saying a word I laid the birds down beside him and walked quietly out; but before I was twenty feet away I heard him shout, 'Come back here!' On reentering the tent he looked first at me and then at the birds, and asked, "Travis, what ____ does this mean?' 'Well, Colonel,' said I, 'we had good luck this morning-captured half a dozen wild turkeys, and-' 'Wild turkeys! wild turkeys! Turkey-buzzards, you ____! Take away the carrion!' he shouted."

It's one case of looking the gift horse in the mouth.