420 AUDUBON 



about them till I have tested the fishermen's stories. 1 It is 

 now calm, for a wonder, but as cold as vengeance, on deck; 

 we have a good fire in the stove, and I am roasting on one 

 side and freezing on the other. The water of our harbor 

 is actually coated with oil, and the bottom fairly cov- 

 ered with the refuse of the codfish ; the very air I breathe 

 and smell is impregnated with essence of codfish. 



July 30. It was a beautiful morning when I arose, and 

 such a thing as a beautiful morning in this mournful 

 country almost amounts to a phenomenon. The captain 

 and myself went off to an island and searched for an 

 Alauda alpestris, and found a good number of old and 

 young, associated, both equally wild. The young were 

 led off with great care by the adults, and urged to squat 

 quietly till nearly within gunshot, when at a "tweet" 

 from the parent they took to the wing and were off. 

 These birds are very pugnacious, and attack a rival at 

 once, when both come to the scratch with courage -and 

 tenacity. I saw one beautiful male in full summer dress, 

 which I secured, and have drawn, with a portion of moss. 

 I intend to add two drawn in winter plumage. This after- 

 noon we visited Mr. Jones and his wife, a good motherly 

 woman, who talked well. Our young men returned from 

 Port Eau fatigued, and, as usual, hungry; complained, as 

 I expected, of the country, the climate, and the scarcity 

 of birds and plants, and not a pair of moccasins to be 

 bought; so Lincoln and Shattuck are now barefooted. 

 They brought a Lestris pomarinus? female, a full-grown 

 young Raven, and some Finches. Coolidge's party had 

 some Lesser Red-polls, several Swamp Sparrows, three 



1 The Curlew which occurs in almost incredible numbers in Labrador is 

 the Eskimo, Numenius borealis ; the one with the bill about four inches 

 long, also found in that country, but less commonly, is the Hudsonian, 

 N. hudsonicus. See Coues, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Philada., 1861, p. 236. 



— E. C. 



2 Pomarine Jager, or Gull-hunter, now called Stercorarius pomarinus. 



— E. C. 



