A Happy Month. 95 



published works, to the assistance rendered him by 

 41 my friend John Bachman," and Bachman's noble 

 defence of Audubon when unjustly assailed as a 

 naturalist, form a beautiful commentary on disin- 

 terested friendship. 



To MRS. J. J. AUDUBON : 



CHARLESTON, 15th November, 1831. 



Dear Madam I comply with a request of your 

 kind and worthy husband, who laid an injunction 

 on me this morning, that I should write to you. He, 

 together with Mr. Lehman and Henry Ward, left 

 this place this morning, in the schooner " Agnes," 

 for St. Augustine. They were all in good health 

 and spirits, and enthusiastically bent on the accom- 

 plishment of the object of their expedition to the 

 fullest extent. 



The last has been one of the happiest months of 

 my life. I was an enthusiastic admirer of nature 

 from my boyhood, and fond of every branch of 

 Natural History. Ornithology is, as a science, pur- 

 sued by very few persons and by no one in this 

 city. How gratifying was it, then, to become ac- 

 quainted with a man, who knew more about birds 

 than any man now living and who, at the same 

 time, was communicative, intelligent, and amiable, 

 to an extent seldom found associated in the same 

 individual. He has convinced me that I was but a 

 novice in the study ; and besides receiving many 

 lessons from him in Ornithology, he has taught me 

 how much can be accomplished by a single individ- 

 ual, who will unite enthusiasm with industry. For 

 the short month he remained with my family, we 

 were inseparable. We were engaged in talking 

 about Ornithology in collecting birds -in seeing 



