86 AUDUBON 



July IS, Thursday. This has been a cloudy and a sultry 

 day. Sprague finished his drawing and I mine. After 

 dinner Mr. Culbertson, Squires, and myself went off nine 

 miles over the prairies to look at the " meadows," as they 

 are called, where Mr. Culbertson has heretofore cut his 

 winter crop of hay, but we found it indifferent compared 

 with that above the fort. We saw Sharp-tailed Grouse, and 

 what we thought a new species of Lark, which we shot at no 

 less than ten times before it was killed by Mr. Culbertson, but 

 not found. I caught one of its young, but it proved to be 

 only the Shore Lark. Before we reached the meadows we 

 saw a flock of fifteen or twenty Bob-o-link, Embcrisa ori- 

 sivora, and on our return shot one of them (a male) on 

 the wing. It is the first seen since we left St. Louis. 

 We reached the meadows at last, and tied our nag to a 

 tree, with the privilege of feeding. Mr. Culbertson and 

 Squires went in the " meadows," and I walked round the 

 so-called patch. I shot seven Arkansas Flycatchers on 

 the wing. After an hour's walking, my companions re- 

 turned, but had seen nothing except the fresh tracks of a 

 Grizzly Bear. I shot at one of the White-rumped Hawks, 

 of which I have several times spoken, but although it 

 dropped its quarry and flew very wildly afterwards, it went 

 out of my sight. We found the beds of Elks and their 

 fresh dung, but saw none of these animals. I have forgot- 

 ten to say that immediately after breakfast this morning I 

 drove with Squires to Fort Mortimer, and asked Mr. Col- 

 lins to let me have his hunter, Boucherville, to go after 

 Mountain Rams for me, which he promised to do. In the 

 afternoon he sent a man over to ask for some flour, which 

 Mr. Culbertson sent him. They are there in the utmost 

 state of destitution, almost of starvation, awaiting the ar- 

 rival of the hunters like so many famished Wolves. Harris 

 -and Bell went across the river and shot a Wolf under the 

 river bank, and afterwards a Duck, but saw nothing else. 

 But during their absence we have had a fine opportunity of 



