358 Letter from Audubon to the Editor. 



limestone region, in the sandstone hills, many licks are found 

 with fossils, but no bones and no monuments. Is it not strange 

 that there should be an apparent connection between them, or 

 rarher their locality ? as if some Indian tribe had collected these 

 bones as relics. 



The valley of Big-bone creek is nearly a mile wide at the lick 

 and above it, but becomes much narrower below it, as if the 

 lick had been formerly a basin, or small lake. All the hills are 

 of horizontal blue limestone, with some shells, chiefly terebra- 

 tuHtes, productus, &c. But the valley, with the sides of the hills, 

 are of clay. This clay is of various hues and consistency, often 

 mixed with sand and gravel, damp in the middle, dry and arid 

 on the sides of the valley. It contains in the ravines several fos- 

 sils, chiefly alcyonites and entrochites. The hills rise 120 to 180 

 feet above the valley. They are wooded and full of game, but 

 with a very thin soil. The soil in the valley, near the lick, is 

 rather sterile, but higher up becomes fruitful, and is well cul- 

 tivated. 



Many pretty plants are found in the valley and hills, but no 

 saline plants. The stream of Big-bone often changes its course, 

 and washes away its banks when it overflows in the spring. The 

 back-water of the Ohio, when very high, comes near to the lick, 

 and may have reached it formerly. 



No bones were protruding or visible in the banks, in 1821 ; 

 but some were visible as late as 1810, at least. The first Euro- 

 pean discoverer of this place was Longueuil, in 1739, who took 

 away many bones to Louisiana and France. They were then 

 quite out of the ground. He was led there by the Indians, who 

 held the place as holy, and never took away the bones. 



Having well explored the lick and valley, I returned to Lex- 

 ington with Dr. Short, as soon as he called for me. This was in 

 September, 1821. 



NO. 1.— LETTER FROM AUDUBON TO THE EDITOR. 



St. Augustine, East Florida, Dec. 7, 1831. 



I AM now seated in earnest to give you an unceremonious sum- 

 mary of my proceedings up to this time, since we left Richmond, 

 in Virginia. As a geologist, I venture to suppose you would have 



