JOHN JAMES AUDUBON 93 
of the time in Edinburgh, and part of 
the time in London, with two or three 
months passed in France, where there 
were fourteen subscribers. While ab- 
sent in America, he had been elected a 
fellow of the Royal Society of London, 
and on May 6 took his seat in the great 
hall. 
He needed some competent person 
to assist him in getting his manuscript 
ready for publication and was so fortu- 
nate as to obtain the services of Mac- 
Gillivray, the biographer of British 
Birds. 
Audubon had learned that three edi- 
tions of Wilson’s ‘‘Ornithology’’ were 
soon to be published in Edinburgh, and 
he set to work vigorously to get his book 
out before them. Assisted by MacGil- 
livray, he worked hard at his biography 
of the birds, writing all day, and Mrs. 
Audubon making a copy of the work to 
send to America to secure copyright 
there. Writing to her sons at this time, 
