20 LIFE OP AUDUBON. 



found a ready welcome. The shooting and drawing of birds was 

 continued. His friend Eosier, less fond of rural sports, stuck to 

 the counter, and, as Audubon phrases it, " grew rich, and that 

 was all he cared for." Audubon's pursuits appear to have severed 

 him from the business, which was left to Hosier's management. 

 Finally, the war of 1812 imperilled the prosperity of the part- 

 ners, and what goods remained on hand were shipped to Hender- 

 sonville, Kentucky, where Eosier remained for some years longer, 

 before going farther westward in search of the fortune he coveted. 

 Writing of the kindness shown him by his friends at Louisville, 

 Audubon relates that when he was absent on business, or " away 

 on expeditions," his wife was carried off to some neighbour's 

 house, and taken care of till he returned. 



It was at Louisville that Audubon made the acquaintance of 

 Wilson, the American ornithologist. Wilson, a poor Scottish 

 rhyme-making weaver, had been driven from Paisley through 

 his sympathies with the political agitators of that notable 

 Scottish town ; and finding a refuge in the United States, had 

 turned his attention to ornithology. From the pages of Audu- 

 bon's ' Ornithological Biography' it maybe interesting to. re- 

 produce an account of the meeting between the two naturalists. 

 " One fair morning," writes Audubon, " I was surprised by the 

 sudden entrance into our counting-room at Louisville of Mr. 

 Alexander Wilson, the celebrated author of the 'American 

 Ornithology,' of whose existence I had never until that moment 

 been apprized. This happened in March, 1810. How well do I 

 remember him, as he then walked up to me ! His long, rather 

 hooked nose, the keenness of his eyes, and his prominent cheek- 

 bones stamped his countenance with a peculiar character. His 

 dress, too, was of a kind not usually seen in that part of the 

 country ; a short coat, trousers, and a waistcoat of grey cloth. 

 His stature was not above the middle size. He had two volumes 

 under his arm, and as he approached the table- at which I was 

 working, I thought I discovered something like astonishment in 

 his countenance. He, however, immediately proceeded to dis- 

 close the object of his visit, which was to procure subscriptions 

 for his work. He opened his books, explained the nature of his 

 occupations, and requested my patronage. I felt surprised and 

 gratified at the sight of his volumes, turned over a few of the 



