THE OOLOGJST. 



175'. 



SCENES PROM THE LIFE OF ALEXANDER 

 WILSON. 



Wilson and Bartram the Naturalist- 



G. Vrooman Smith. 



III. 



John Bartram, whose career ended in 

 1777, and who established the first bot- 

 anic garden in America, was pronounc- 

 ed by Linnaeus to be "the greatest 

 self-taught botanist in the world." 

 William, his son inherited the father's 

 vast capabilities and love for Botany, 

 and became at his death properietor of 

 the Botanical Gardens at Gray's Ferry 

 on the Schuylkill. He, like his father 

 did not confine his studies exclusively to 

 Botany, but his tastes were directed a- 

 long the entire line of natural history. 

 Before Wilson conceived the plan for 

 his American Ornitholog3 T , Bartram 

 was without doubt better acquainted 

 with the birds of this country than any 

 other person liviDg. In fact he had 

 published the most comprehensive list 

 of American birds ever written. 



Wilson's School was in close prox- 

 imity to the Botanical Gardens of Bar- 

 tram. The benign, congenial disposi- 

 tion of the owner early led Wilson to 

 become a frequent visitor at the garden, 

 and he contracted an affectionate, en- 

 during intimacy with the venerable 

 naturalist. The two friends conversed 

 and argued about topics relating to na- 

 ture, and gradually Wilson became 

 drawn into its fascinating meshes. He 

 often accompanied the Botanist on bot- 

 anizing expeditions in the vicinity, and 

 became acquainted with the natural ob- 

 jects of that section and enjoyed hearing 

 them explained by a master of the 

 science. Always a worshipper of the 

 beauties of nature, his inborn tastes were 

 kindly fostered in the society and by 

 the instruction of his newly made 

 acquaintance. 



Confiued to the close air and weary, 

 monotonous routine of a village school: 

 his nerves and active spirits were be- 

 ginning to lose their power. He was- 

 often given over to melancholy, depres- 

 sion and deponde;icy; for his mind was 

 constantly working and brooding over 

 dim and indefinite plans and systems 

 for the future; and this tendency 

 was greatly increased by his devotion 

 to poetry and the llute, in which he 

 spent most of his leisure time. His, 

 health was rapidly becoming impaired 

 by severe mental exertion and studying 

 late at night by a dim c,i i lie lig'it. 



Mr. Bartram 's library contained but. 

 few works on the subject of Natural 

 History. The writings of Edwards and 

 Catesby were sufficient to give him an- 

 idea of science, and to direct him in 

 making observations for himself. 



One of his first acquisitions in the 

 science was to discover thj imperfec-- 

 tions of books on the subject of the 

 birds of this country by an actual com- 

 parison with the living objects them- 

 selves. While Mr. Bartram possessed 

 invaluable taste and judgement to assist 

 and advise him in his new pursuit; yet 

 his ideas concerning the torpidity of" 

 swallows and the night hawk and whip- 

 poor-will being one and the same species, 

 were wholly in accord with the prevail- 

 ing opinion of the time. To Wilson, the 

 opinion that swallows, the gay harbin- 

 gers of Spring should at the approach 

 of cold weather take up their abode at 

 the bottom of mill-ponds and rivers with 

 the turtles and frogs, seemed like an. 

 .enormous absurdity. Though Bartram 

 shared the popular opinion, as Linnreus- 

 did, and even as Aristotle in remote 

 times believed in the submersion of" 

 swallows, Wilson was determined to 

 prove, if possible the contrary to him- 

 self and to the world by actual impartial 

 observation. He examined mill-ponds- 

 when they were drained in the Autumn;, 

 saw a multitude of trees cut down in 

 which chimney swifts had nested for- 



