Letter from Audubon. 409 



hundred per day) — my generous host proposed to return towards 

 home again. Preparations were accordingly made, and we left 

 the schooner, with tide and wind in our teeth, and with the 

 prospect of a severe cold night. Our hands pulled well, and 

 our barque was as light as our hearts. All went on merrily 

 until dark night came on. The wind freshening, the cold aug- 

 menting, the provisions diminishing, the waters lowering, all — 

 all depreciating except our enterprising dispositions. We found 

 ourselves fast in the mud about 300 yards from a marshy shore, 

 without the least hope of being able to raise a fire, for no trees 

 except palm trees were near, and the grand diahle himself could 

 not burn one of them. Our minds were soon made up to do — 

 what 1 Why, to roll ourselves in our cloaks, and to lay down, 

 the best way we could, at the bottom of our light and beau- 

 tiful barque. Good God, what a night ! to sleep was impossible ; 

 the cold increased with the breeze, and every moment seemed 

 an hour, from the time we stretched ourselves down until the 

 first glimpse of the morn: but the morn came, clear as ever 

 morn was, and the north-easter as cold as ever wind blew in this 

 latitude. All hands half dead, and masters as nearly exhausted 

 as the hands — stiffened with cold, light clothed, and but slight 

 hope of our nearing any shore ; our only resort was, to leap into 

 the mire, waist deep, and to push the barque to a point, some 5 

 or 600 yards, where a few scrubby trees seemed to have grown, 

 to save our lives on this occasion. " Push, boys, push ! Push for 

 your lives !" cry the generous Bulow, and the poor Audubon — 

 " All hands push !" Aye, and well might we push : the mire 

 was up to our breasts, our limbs becoming stiffened, and almost 

 useless, at every step we took. Our progress was as slowly per- 

 formed as if we had been clogged with heavy chains. It took 

 us two and a half hours to reach the point, where the few trees 

 of which I have spoken were ; but, thank God, we did get there. 



We landed!! and well it was that we did; for, on reaching 

 the margin of the marsh, two of the negroes fell down in the 

 mud, as senseless as torpidity ever rendered an alligator, or a 

 snake ; and had we, the xvhite men, not been there, they certainly 

 would have died. We had them carried into the little grove, to 

 which, I believe, all of us owe our lives. I struck a fire in a 

 crack ; and, in five minutes, I saw, with indescribable pleasure, 

 the bright, warming blaze of a log pile in the centre of our 



Vol. I.— 52 



