174 JOHN JAMES AUDUBON. 



tation of Da Costa, young Audubon determined to 

 go to France and lay the matter before his father. 

 Da Costa would give him no money, but a letter of 

 credit upon an agent in New York. The youth, 

 nothing daunted, walked all the way to New York, 

 was refused the money by the agent, who hinted 

 that the lad should be seized and shipped to China, 

 borrowed his passage money, went to France, 

 caused the removal of Da Costa, and obtained 

 his father's consent to his marriage. For a year he 

 resided at Nantes, shooting, stuffing birds, and 

 drawing for his beloved book. Then all French- 

 men being liable to conscription under Napoleon, 

 the Commodore obtained leave for his son to 

 return to America. 



Once again he was at his dear Mill Grove. In 

 his room " 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, raccoons, and opossums, and the 

 shelves around were likewise crowded with speci- 

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

 ards and other reptiles." 



Lucy's father, concluding that the study of natu- 

 ral history might not bring pecuniary support for 

 his daughter, suggested to Audubon that he obtain 

 some knowledge of commercial pursuits. Love 

 seldom asks about ways and means ; too seldom, in 

 fact, for subsequent happiness. Audubon entered 

 the counting-house of Mr. Benjamin Bakewell of 

 New York, and soon lost some hundreds of pounds 



