64 THE NATURALIST OF THE ST. CROIX 



it; if not, all well." He left for home April 2, reaching 

 Washington April 4 ; attended a party at Prof. Baird's 

 April 5, reached Calais April 21 and the following day 

 " called all round to see the folks." 



The summer of 1870 was passed quietly at home. 

 Mr. Boardman did not at first intend to go south in the 

 winter of 1870-71, but as cold weather approached he 

 was anxious to get upon his favorite winter collecting 

 ground. Even so late as October 16, 1870, he wrote to 

 Prof. Baird : "I am not certain about going south again 

 this winter but think perhaps I may. Mrs. Boardman 

 and Willie will probably go with me if I go. I must try to 

 go to some new locality as I am too much at home about 

 Jacksonville. ' ' But on December 2, he writes his friend : 

 " We hope to leave for the south the last day of this 

 month if all is well," and they did, it being the same 

 date on which they left the previous year. He adds : 

 ' ' I shall not want to make much of a stay in Washing- 

 ton, having been there so often. We shall wear our 

 welcome out and I shall not be a rare curiosity at the 

 Smithsonian." On this trip to the south Mrs. Board- 

 man and their son William B. who was then nine years 

 old, accompanied Mr. Boardman. They reached Wash- 

 ington January 11, 1871, remaining five or six days. 

 Mr. Boardman spent the time at the Smithsonian and 

 also attended receptions at Prof. Baird's and at Senator 

 Edmunds' . Jacksonville was reached January 19. The 

 winter was spent at Jacksonville, with visits to Palatka, 

 St. Augustine, Hibernia and other places, where, accord- 

 ing to entries in his diary, he "called all round to see 

 friends." March 8 he "picked orange blossoms" and 

 March 28 " shot eleven cedar birds at one shot." They 



