172 IN THE DAYS OF AUDUBON 



again. I wrote and sent most of the above to John Back- 

 man from St. Louis, after I had finished my drawing of four 

 figures of these most strange and most interesting crea- 

 tures.'' 



At Fort Leavenworth they were in the land of wild 

 turkeys and parrakeets. St. Joseph, Mo., was then Black 

 Snake Hills, a gopher territory, which little animals looked 

 upon the steamer as an intruder and a wonder. Indians 

 came riding down to the boat, the Sacs and Foxes. 



It was June. The woods and prairies along the Mis- 

 souri were full of birds, the air was wings. Audubon and 

 Victor studied the shores wherever the wood-choppers 

 stopped to cut green wood and gather dry branches. What 

 would we think to-day of traveling on a steamer when the 

 wood had to be cut or gathered to feed the engines? 



Let us present a picture of this country around bustling, 

 pushing, thriving Omaha, as Victor saw it on this won- 

 derful journey on the primitive steamers. It was known 

 as Fort Crogan then. 



" Prairie-wolves are extremely abundant hereabouts. 

 They are so daring that they come into the camp both by 

 day and by night; we found their burrows in the banks and 

 on the prairie, and had I come here yesterday I should have 

 had a superb specimen killed here, but which was devoured 

 by the hogs belonging to the establishment. The captain 

 and the doctor — Madison by name — returned with us to 

 the boat, and we saw many more yellow-headed troopials. 



