Natural History of the Alligator. 27S 



receive the object, and, like battering-rams, to bruise it shock- 

 ingly in a moment. 



The alligator, when after prey in the water, or at its edge, 

 swims so slowly towards it, as not to ruffle the water. It ap- 

 proaches the object sidewise, body and head all concealed, till 

 sure of his stroke ; then, with a tremendous blow, as quick as 

 thought, the object is secured, as I described before. 



When alligators are fishing, the flapping of their tails about 

 the water may be heard at half a mile ; but, to describe this in 

 a more graphic way, suffer me to take you along with me, in 

 one of my hunting excursions, accompanied by friends and ne- 

 groes. In the immediate neighbourhood of Bayou Sarah, on 

 the Mississippi, are extensive shallow lakes and morasses, that 

 are yearly overflowed by the dreadful floods of that river, and 

 supplied with myriads of fishes of many kinds, amongst which 

 trouts are most abundant, white-perch, cat-fish, and alligator- 

 gars, or devil-fish. Thither, in the early part of autumn, when 

 the heat of a southern sun has exhaled much of the water, 

 the squatter, the planter, the hunter, all go in search of sport. 

 The lakes are then about 2 feet deep, having a fine sandy bottom ; 

 frequently much grass grows in them, bearing crops of seeds, 

 for which multitudes of water-fowls resort to those places. The 

 edges of these lakes are deep swamps, muddy for some distance, 

 overgrown with heavy large timber, principally cypress, hung 

 with Spanish beard, and tangled with diff*erent vines, creeping 

 plants and cane, so as to render them almost dark during the 

 day, and very difficult to the hunter's progress. Here and 

 there in the lakes are small islands, with clusters of the same 

 trees, on which flocks of snake-birds, wood-ducks, and difibrent 

 species of herons, build their nests. Fishing-lines, guns, and 

 rifles, some salt and some water, are all the hunters take. Two 

 negroes precede them, — the woods are crossed, — the scamper- 

 ing deer is seen, — the racoon and the opossum cross before 

 you, — the black, the grey, and the fox squirrel, are heard bark- 

 ing, — here on a tree close at hand, is seen an old male pur- 

 suing intensely a younger one ; he seizes it, they fight desperate- 

 ly, but the older attains his end, vincit, castratque juniorem. 

 (Now, my dear Sirs, if this is not mental power illustrated, 

 Avhat shall we call it) ? As you proceed farther on, the hunJc 



