THIRD AMERICAN TOUR 153 



to young Brewer at this time show how eager he was 

 to secure the promised specimens. On October 23 he 

 wrote from Philadelphia: "I hope you will not forget to 

 call on our enlightened statesman D. Webster, and re- 

 mind him of his kind promise to assist you in the pro- 

 curing of specimens for me. This winter and next 

 spring are my only chances, and I beg you to do all you 

 can for me." He wrote again from Charleston, Janu- 

 ary 1, 1837: "I am sorry that the Hon. D. Webster 

 has not attended to his promises, and will write to him; 

 yet I would beg you, being on the spot, to trouble him a 

 good deal." 9 



After returning to New York, Audubon had a vis- 

 itor for whom he expressed the greatest admiration, 

 Washington Irving, who had aided him in 1833; he now 

 received from his hands letters to Martin Van Buren, 

 the President-elect, and Benjamin F. Butler, who then 

 occupied the post of Attorney-General. Irving called 

 attention in his letter to the national character of Au- 

 dubon's work, and warmly commended it' to the patron- 

 age of the country at large. On October 8 Audubon 

 wrote MacGillivray from New York that he had ob- 

 tained twelve new subscribers, two at Salem, four at 

 Boston, and six in New York, but a little later, through 

 the aid of Nicholas Berthoud, in one week's time 

 eighteen new names were added to his subscription list 

 in New York City alone. 



Meanwhile NuttalFs and Townsend's birds had not 

 been forgotten, and on October 15 he started with his 

 son for Philadelphia, where he was again welcomed by 

 Dr. Richard Harlan. No sooner, however, were efforts 

 renewed to gain permission to study the desired objects 



8 See Thomas M. Brewer (Bibl. No. 79), Harper's New Monthly 

 Magazine, vol. lxi, p. 666 (1880). 



