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. 



