184 
PASSENGER TURTLE. 
a minute, four hours, the time it continued passing, 
would make its whole length 240 miles. Again, 
supposing that each square yard of this moving body 
comprehended three pigeons, the square yards in tlie 
whole space multiplied by three, would give two 
thousand two hundred and thirty millions, two hun- 
dred and seventy-two thousand pigeons ! an almost 
inconceivable multitude, and yet probably far below 
the actual amount. Computing each of these to 
consume half a pint daily, the whole quantity at this 
rate, would equal seventeen millions four hundred 
and twenty- four thousand bushels per day !” 
This wonderful account of the roosting and breed- 
ing places of the Passenger Pigeon, is corroborated 
in every point by Audubon, who, in his delightful 
work the “ American Ornithological Biography,” 
has added various other particulars connected with 
its history, which want of space alone prevents us 
adverting to ; we camiot, however, pass over some of 
his observations on the mode of flight of these birds. 
“ It is,” he remarks, “ extremely interesting to see 
flock after flock performing exactly the same evolu- 
tions which had been traced as it were in the air by 
a preceding flock. Thus, should a hawk have 
charged on a group at a certain spot, the angles, 
curves, and undulations that have been described by 
the birds, in their efforts to escape from the dreaded 
talons of the plunderer, are uudeviatingly followed 
by the next group that comes up. Should the by- 
stander happen to witness one of these afl'rays, and. 
