156 
CAROLINA PARROT. 
Tennessee river; after this I saw no more till I reached Bayo 
St. Pierre, a distance of several hundred miles; from all which 
circumstances, I think we cannot, from the residences of these 
birds, establish with propriety, any correct standard by which 
to judge of the comparative temperatures of different climates. 
In descending the river Ohio, by myself, in the month of 
February, I met with the first flock of Paroquets at the mouth 
of the Little Sioto. I had been informed, by an old and re- 
spectable inhabitant of Marietta, that they were sometimes, 
though rarely, seen there. I observed flocks of them, afterwards, 
at the mouth of the Great and little Miami, and in the neigh- 
bourhood of numerous creeks, that discharge themselves into 
the Ohio. At Big-Bone lick, thirty miles above the mouth of 
Kentucky river, I saw them in great numbers. They came 
screaming through the woods in the morning, about an hour 
after sunrise, to drink the salt water, of which they, as well as 
the pigeons, are remarkably fond. When they alighted on the 
ground, it appeared, at a distance, as if covered with a carpet 
of the richest green, orange and yellow. They afterwards set- 
tled, in one body, on a neighbouring tree, which stood detached 
from any other, covering almost every twig of it, and the sun 
shining strongly on their gay and glossy plumage, produced a 
very beautiful and splendid appearance. Here I had an oppor- 
tunity of observing some very particular traits of their character. 
Having shot down a number, some of which were only wound- 
ed, the whole flock swept repeatedly around their prostrate com- 
panions, and again settled on a low tree, within twenty yards of 
the spot where I stood. At each successive discharge, though 
showers of them fell, yet the affection of the survivors seemed 
rather to increase; for after a few circuits around the place, they 
again alighted near me, looking down on their slaughtered 
companions, with such manifest symptoms of sympathy and 
concern, as entirely disarmed me. I could not but take notice 
of the remarkable contrast between their elegant manner of 
flight, and their lame and crawling gait among the branches. 
They fly very much like the Wild Pigeon, in close, compact 
