CouES: "Behind the Veil" 201 



of the "Black Warrior " (/"a/co harlanii Aud.), a bird which has 

 puzzled successive oi'uitholog-ists not a little. 



Following this letter of Audubon's is one from MacGillivray to 

 Audubon, which possesses special historical value as bearing upon 

 the share the Scottish ornithologist had in the make-up of Audu- 

 bon's work. It belongs to Mr. Wade, who allowed me to take a 

 copy. It is already pretty well understood that MacGillivray " did " 

 the technical portions of the "Birds of America" for Audubon; 

 i. e., furnished the nomenclature, the classification, much of the 

 technical description, and probably all of the anatomical matter. 

 As I have lately said in my Bibliography, while detailing these cir- 

 cumstances, "there seems to have been some mutually satisfactory 

 understanding between the two which has never been made public." 

 This letter of MacGillivray's was a windfall to me as a bibliographer ; 

 for I had said so much, unsupported by documentary evidence, that 

 I feared I had laid myself liable to censure. The letter shows that 

 the "satisfactory understanding" between Audubon and MacGillivray 

 was an ordinary business transaction "for value received." Mr. 

 Swainson, I think, has somewhere had something to say on the sub- 

 ject, though I forget exactly where ; but whatever he may have said 

 of the kind, and all that I have had to say, is here at last fully 

 established over MacGillivray's own signature. I should judge, also, 

 that this letter is a very characteristic one; for its sturdy inde- 

 pendence, express indifference to Audubon's proposal, and unguarded 

 candor, accord well with the impression I have formed of the 

 writer's personality. I may add, that in this letter, and in all of 

 several others I have seen, the name is written MacGillivray, not 

 Macgillivray, as we are in the habit of seeing it printed. 



But it is time for me to say " good-night " to my host, Mr. Wade ; 

 and in so doing I also make my respectful compliments to Audubon 

 and MacGillivray, leaving these joint authors of the "Birds of 

 America " to speak for themselves through the two following let- 

 ters, which, I need not add, are printed, as nearly as the type will 

 do it, verb. lit. et punct, after the originals.* 



* Since I penned this article, Dr. T. M. Brewer's eulogy of Audubon has 

 appeared in "Harper's Magazine" for October. Comparison of the several let- 

 ters it contains with the one here given will show how well they have been 

 edited. The fancifulness of the sketch is condoned by the warmth of friend- 

 ship and sincerity of admiration which pervade it. 



