The Audubon Magazine. 



Vol. I. 



JUNE, 1887. 



No. 5. 



JOHN JAMES AUDUBON. 



IT was in October, 1820, that Audubon 

 started from Cincinnati with an expedi- 

 tion which had been sent out to make a 

 survey of the Mississippi River. He was 

 furnished with letters of recommendation 

 from General Harrison and Henry Clay, 

 and had in mind a long excursion through 

 the Southern States, which was to include 

 Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and Arkansas. 

 Captain Cumming was at the head of the 

 surveying party. The journey from Cincin- 

 nati to the mouth of the Ohio was made in a 

 flat boat and occupied fourteen days. 



Arriving at Natchez, Audubon made this 

 town his headquarters for a time, and re- 

 ceived much kindness there. Mr. Berthoud, 

 a relative, resided here, and did much to 

 make his stay pleasant. Natchez seems to 

 have delighted the naturalist, not less on 

 account of its beautiful environs and the 

 abundance of its bird life, than by its size, 

 it having then 3,000 inhabitants. 



Although his surroundings were in many 

 respects pleasant, he was greatly troubled 

 by the lack of funds, for he had been un- 

 able to collect money which was due him at 

 Cincinnati, and was really penniless. An 

 incident which occurred here shows how 

 reduced were his fortunes. It happened 

 that his shoes, and those of one of his com- 

 panions, were worn out, and neither of the 

 two had money enough to purchase a new 

 pair. Audubon stopped at a shoemaker's and 



stated the case, informing him that they were 

 without money, but offering to sketch por- 

 traits of the shoemaker and his wife in return 

 for two pair of boots. The offer was ac- 

 cepted, and in a short time the portraits were 

 finished, and the travelers were furnished 

 with new foot gear. 



Some tmie in December, 1820, the natu- 

 ralist left Natchez for New Orleans in a keel 

 boat with Mr. Berthoud, in tow of a steamer. 

 Here, by an unlucky accident, a portfolio of 

 his precious drawings was left behind, and 

 its loss caused much anxiety, but the prompt 

 dispatch of letters to Natchez resulted in its 

 recovery, and on his arrival at New Orleans 

 he found the portfolio awaiting him there. 

 The voyage down the Mississippi was full 

 of charms for the naturalist, and he writes 

 of it in most enthusiastic terms. 



Upon reaching New Orleans he at once 

 set out to find work, but at first without 

 success. At length, however, he was for- 

 tunate enough to obtain an order for a por- 

 trait from a well-known citizen of New 

 Orleans, and this proving a good likeness 

 he received a number of orders, which at 

 once put him in funds, and enabled him to 

 give some time to his favorite pursuits. He 

 obtained a number of new birds here. 



In March he learned of the conclusion 

 of the treaty between Spain and the United 

 States, by which a considerable portion of 

 the Southwest was ceded to the latter 



