ALEXANDER WILSON, the author of this smnlU 

 bat interesting poem, was a native cf Scotland. A wri- 

 ter in sneaking of his qualifications and indefatigable per- 

 severance, says : — " With an enthusiasm never excelled, 

 Ibis extraordinary man, who came to the United States n 

 poor and unfriended Scotch weaver, first taught himself 

 at the age of forty years, to draw and color after nature 

 — then applied himself to the study of various branches 

 of knowledge ; and, having acquired the power of wri- 

 ting clearly and elegantly, as well as depicting by his 

 pencil what he saw in his rambles, set out to penetrate 

 through the vast territories of the United States, unde- 

 terred by forests and swamps, for the sole purpose of 

 painting and describing the native birds. During seven 

 years, in which he prosecuted this undertaking, he trav- 

 elled more than ten thousand miles, "a solitary, explor- 

 ing Pilgrim," as he describes himself. His labors wera 

 rewarded with no worldly riches or honors, for he had 

 the greatest difficulty in procuring subscribers for the 

 splendid work ; (his Oroitholeiry) and when a booksel- 

 ler undertook to print and publish it, the only remunera- 

 tion which the author received, was a payment for the 

 aecliauical labor of coloring his own plates." 



