SETTLEMENT IN THE WEST 195 



countless times in after life, and some of his musings 

 have lost none of their interest with the flight of time, 

 for he had witnessed the advance of the white man and 

 the retreat of the red, along with the great herds of 

 deer, elk and buffalo that once found peaceful pasturage 

 on its banks. Speaking of a later but hardly less ro- 

 mantic journey, 8 he said: 



As night came, sinking into darkness the broader portions 

 of the river, our minds became affected by strong emotions, 

 and wandered far beyond the present moments. The tinkling 

 of bells told us that the cattle which bore them were gently 

 roving from valley to valley in search of food, or returning 

 to their distant homes. The hooting of the Great Owl, or the 

 muffled noise of its wings as it sailed smoothly over the stream, 

 were matters of interest to us ; so was the sound of the boat- 

 man's horn, as it came winding more and more softly from 

 afar. When daylight returned, many songsters burst forth 

 with echoing notes, more and more mellow to the listening ear. 

 Here and there the lonely cabin of a squatter struck the eye, 

 giving note of commencing civilization. The crossing of the 

 stream by a deer foretold how soon the hills would be covered 

 by snow. 



Many sluggish flatboats we overtook and passed ; some laden 

 with produce from the different head-waters of the small rivers 

 that pour their tributary streams into the Ohio ; others, of less 

 dimensions, crowded with emigrants from distant parts, in 

 search of a new home. 



The margins of the shores and of the river were at this 

 season amply supplied with game. A Wild Turkey, a Grouse, 

 or a Blue-winged Teal, could be procured in a few moments ; 

 and we fared well, for, whenever we pleased, we landed, struck 

 up a fire and provided, as we were, with the necessary utensils, 

 procured a good repast. 



8 When Audubon was returning with his wife and infant son from 

 Pennsylvania to Kentucky in the autumn of 1810; see "The Ohio," 

 Ornithological Biography (Bibl. No. 2), vol. i, p. 29. 



