216 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



Napoleon called for men for his campaign against Russia, 

 and it was decided that John James should enlist in the 

 navy rather than be drawn in a general levy. Later, he ob- 

 tained leave of absence, and, in company with a young 

 man named Rosier, sailed for America. They landed 

 in New York after an adventurous passage, and went at 

 once to Mill Grove, where they were mutually happy. 

 One writer gives an interesting account of a visit to 

 Audubon at Mill Grove during this time : 



"On entering his room, I was astonished and delighted 

 to find it was turned into a museum. The walls were 

 festooned with all sorts of birds' eggs, carefully blown 

 out and strung on a thread. The chimney-piece was 

 covered with stuffed squirrels, racoons, and opposums; 

 and the shelves around were likewise crowded with 

 specimens, among which were fishes, frogs, snakes, liz- 

 ards, and other reptiles. Besides these stuffed varieties, 

 many paintings were arrayed upon the walls, chiefly of 

 birds. He had great skill in stuffing and preserving 

 animals of all sorts. He also had a trick of training 

 dogs with great perfection, of which art his famous dog, 

 Zephyr, was a wonderful example. He was an admirable 

 marksman, an expert swimmer, a clever rider, possessed 

 great activity, prodigious strength, and was notable for 

 the elegance of his figure and the beauty of his features, 



story of the destruction of a valuable painting by his 

 favorite hunting dog. After finishing a painting of 

 grouse, Audubon went out of the room, leaving his 

 canine companion sleeping before the fire. Awakening 

 suddenly, the clog was deceived by the life-like attitude 



Photo by J. Howard Pell 



RUINS OF OLD STAMPING MILL 

 All that remains of the stamping mill at the old Ecton Copper Mine. 

 15 mine '* M ' d ? liave * u PPl'*d much of the lead for bullets 

 used by the American army during the Revolutionary war and 

 it later produced considerable quantities of copper. 



and he aided nature by a careful attendance to his dress. 

 Besides other accomplishments, he was musical, a good 

 fencer, danced well, had some acquaintance with leger- 

 demain tricks, and could plait willow baskets." 



Audubon had a great fondness for animals of all 

 kinds, especially dogs. His patience is illustrated by the 



Photo by 7. Howard Fell 



RUINS OF THE ECTON MINE . 



This mine was developed from the mine originally^ owned by Admiral 

 Audubon, and the ruins are now frequently visited by tourists. 



of the birds and fell upon them, ruining the canvass. On 

 his return Audubon mildly remarked, "Zephyr, you 

 little know what mischief you have done," and pro- 

 ceeded to repaint the picture. 



His love for Lucy Bakewell led Audubon to ask her 

 father for her hand in marriage, but Mr. Bakewell ad- 

 vised him to first enter commercial life and establish a 

 business. With his friend Rosier, he went to New York 

 and entered a counting house, but quickly lost a con- 

 siderable sum of money through speculation, and demon- 

 strated his lack of business ability by devoting most of 

 his time to the gratification of his natural tastes for the 

 woods. He was given up as a hopeless case by his 

 friends, and returned with Rosier, who was also unsuc- 

 cessful, to the more congenial surroundings of Mill 

 Grove. During the following two years they made sev- 

 eral trips to Louisville, Kentucky, as partners in trading 

 ventures, and then they decided to set up a permanent 

 establishment there. 



Mill Grove was sold, and on April 8, 1808, Audubon 

 was married to Miss Bakewell, and started on his wed- 

 ding journey to Louisville, arriving after an eventful 

 trip in which his bride was nearly killed. He and his 

 partner were soon settled in business, but while Rosier 

 stayed behind the counter and took care of the trade, 

 Audubon enjoyed the hunting and social life of the 

 planters, with whom he quickly became a favorite. He 

 continued his studies of the birds, and his plan for a 

 "biography of the birds" took definite shape, but the 



