CHAP. VIII. MIGRATORY PIGEON OF AMERICA. 255 



on the face of the heavens resembling the winding of a 

 vast and magnificent river. When this bend became 

 very great, the birds - as if sensible of the unnecessary 

 circuitous course they were taking suddenly changed 

 their direction, so that what was in column before, 

 became an immense front, straightening all its inden- 

 tures, until it swept the heavens in one vast and in- 

 finitely-extended line. Other lesser bodies also united 

 with each other, as they happened to approach, with such 

 ease and elegance of evolution, forming new figures, 

 and varying these as they united or separated, that I 

 was never tired of contemplating them. Sometimes a 

 hawk would make a sweep on a particular part of the 

 column, from a great height, when, almost as quick as 

 lightning, that part shot downwards out of the common 

 track, but soon rising again, continued advancing to the 

 same height as before. This inflection was continued 

 by those behind, who, on arriving at this point, dived 

 down, almost perpendicularly, to a great depth, and 

 rising, followed the exact path of those who went before. 

 As these vast bodies passed over the river near me, the 

 surface of the water, which was before as smooth as 

 glass, appeared marked with innumerable dimples, oc- 

 casioned by the dropping of their dung, resembling the 

 commencement of a shower of large drops of rain or 

 hail." 



(269.) In regard to the numerical amount of pigeons 

 thus assembled, our author proceeds to make the fol- 

 lowing remarks : " To form a rough estimate of the 

 daily consumption of one of these immense flocks, let 

 us first attempt to calculate the numbers of that already 

 mentioned, as seen in passing between Frankfort and 

 Indiana. If we suppose this column to have been one 

 mile in breadth, and I believe it to have been much 

 more, and that it moved at the rate of one mile in a 

 minute, four hours the time it continued passing 

 would make its whole length 24-0 miles. Again, sup- 

 posing that each square yard of this moving body com- 

 prehended three pigeons, the square yards in the whole 



