146 A SINGULAR SPECTACLE. 



This incident naturally kept us awake for a great part of 

 the night. The rattle of the abominable creatures echoed in 

 our ears ; and so great was the abhorrence which we all 

 entertained for them, that though, according to all appear- 

 ance, our presence had put them effectually to flight, we 

 felt just as uneasy as if we were still surrounded by them. 

 Fatigue and sleepiness, however, finally prevailed over our 

 imagination. We fell asleep, arid did not wake until the 

 day was far advanced. 



Before us rose, on the slope of the hill, the phalanstery 

 of the prairie dogs ; and as our horses were asleep, as our 

 fire was extinguished, and as no human movement troubled 

 the tranquillity of nature, our eyes were struck by a singu- 

 larly fantastic spectacle. 



Before us were upwards of a thousand marmots, a 

 hundred owls, and as many rattlesnakes, leaping from 

 one burrow to another, flying and hovering, crawling and 

 hissing. Our blood froze in our veins, and yet we were 

 chained to the spot. 



At length we were compelled to quit this dangerous 

 neighbourhood. "We arose, and all disappeared, except 

 the serpents, which from time to time raised their heads 

 above the openings to the burrows, and glided outside. 

 An hour after sunrise we had reached the banks of the 

 Mississippi. We had no more danger to fear, and felt 

 ourselves secure under the aegis of American civilization. 



