peaceful retreats in early spring, at the same time that the _booming_
of their relative, the Pinnated Grouse, is recognised, as it reaches the
ear of the traveller, from the different parts of the more open country
around. In such places as the groves just mentioned, the species now
before you, kind reader, is to be met with, as you travel towards the
south, through the whole of Tennessee and the Choctaw Territory; but as
you approach the city of Natchez they disappear, nor have I ever heard
of one of these birds having been seen in the State of Louisiana.

The mountainous parts of the Middle States being more usually the chosen
residence of this species, I shall, with your permission, kind reader,
return to them, and try to give you an account of this valuable Grouse.

The flight of the Ruffed Grouse is straight-forward, rather low, unless
when the bird has been disturbed, and seldom protracted beyond a few
hundred yards at a time. It is also stiff, and performed with a continued
beating of the wings for more than half its duration, after which the
bird sails and seems to balance its body as it proceeds through the air,
in the manner of a vessel sailing right before the wind. When this bird
rises from the ground at a time when pursued by an enemy, or tracked by
a dog, it produces a loud whirring sound, resembling that of the whole
tribe, excepting the Black Cock of Europe, which has less of it than
any other species. This whirring sound is never heard when the Grouse
rises of its own accord, for the purpose of removing from one place to
another; nor, in similar circumstances, is it commonly produced by our
little Partridge. In fact, I do not believe that it is emitted by any
species of Grouse, unless when surprised and forced to rise. I have
often been lying on the ground in the woods or the fields for hours at a
time, for the express purpose of observing the movements and habits of
different birds, and have frequently seen a Partridge or a Grouse rise
on wing from within a few yards of the spot in which I lay unobserved
by them, as gently and softly as any other bird, and without producing
any whirring sound. Nor even when this Grouse ascends to the top of a
tree, does it make any greater noise than other birds of the same size
would do.

I have said this much respecting the flight of Grouse, because it is a
prevalent opinion, both among sportsmen and naturalists, that the whirring
sound produced by birds of that genus, is a necessary effect of their
_usual_ mode of flight. But that this is an error, I have abundantly
satisfied myself by numberless observations.

On the ground, where the Ruffed Grouse spends a large portion of its
time, its motions are peculiarly graceful. It walks with an elevated
firm step, opening its beautiful tail gently and with a well-marked jet,
holding erect its head, the feathers of which are frequently raised, as
are the velvety tufts of its neck. It poises its body on one foot for
several seconds at a time, and utters a soft _cluck_, which in itself
implies a degree of confidence in the bird that its _tout ensemble_
is deserving of the notice of any bystander. Should the bird discover
that it is observed, its step immediately changes to a rapid run, its
head is lowered, the tail is more widely spread, and if no convenient
hiding-place is at hand, it immediately takes flight with as much of the
whirring sound as it can produce, as if to prove to the observer, that,
when on wing, it cares as little about him as the deer pretends to do,
when, on being started by the hound, he makes several lofty bounds, and
erects his tail to the breeze. Should the Grouse, however, run into a
thicket, or even over a place where many dried leaves lie on the ground,
it suddenly stops, squats, and remains close until the danger is over,
or until it is forced by a dog or the sportsman himself to rise against
its wish.

The shooting of Grouse of this species is precarious, and at times very
difficult, on account of the nature of the places which they usually
prefer. Should, for instance, a covey of these birds be raised from
amongst Laurels (_Kalmia latifolia_) or the largest species of Bay
(_Rhododendron maximum_), these shrubs so intercept the view of them,
that, unless the sportsman proves quite an adept in the difficult art
of pulling the trigger of his gun at the proper moment, and quickly,
his first chance is lost, and the next is very uncertain. I say still
more uncertain, because at this putting up of the birds, they generally
rise higher over the bushes, flying in a straight course, whereas at
the second start, they often fly among the laurels, and rise above them
in a circuitous manner, when to follow them along the barrel of the gun
is considerably more difficult. Sometimes, when these birds are found
on the sides of a steep hill, the moment they start, they dive towards
the foot of the declivity, take a turn, and fly off in a direction so
different from the one expected, that unless the sportsman is aware of
the trick, he may not see them again that day. The young birds often
prove equally difficult to be obtained, for as they are raised from
amongst the closely tangled laurels, they only fly a few yards, and
again drop among them. A smart cur-dog generally proves the best kind on
these occasions; for no sooner does he start a covey of Ruffed Grouse
than his barking alarms the birds as much as the report of a gun, and
causes them to rise and alight on the nearest trees, on which they may
be shot at with great success.

This leads me to remark, that the prevailing notion which exists in
almost every district where these birds are numerous, that on firing
at the lowest bird perched on a tree, the next above will not fly, and
that by continuing to shoot at the lowest in succession, the whole may
be killed, is contradicted by my experience; for on every attempt which
I have made to shoot several in this manner on the same tree, my efforts
have proved unsuccessful, unless indeed during a fall of snow, when I
have killed three and sometimes four. The same cause produces the same
effect on different birds. It may happen, however, that in districts
covered with deep snow for several weeks, during severe winters, these
birds, becoming emaciated and weak, may stand a repetition of shots from
a person determined to shoot Grouse even when they are good for nothing;
but, kind reader, this barbarous taste is, I hope, no more yours than
it is mine.

During spring, and towards the latter part of autumn, at which times the
Ruffed Grouse is heard _drumming_ from different parts of the woods to
which it resorts, I have shot many a fine cock by imitating the sound of
its own wings striking against the body, which I did by beating a large
inflated bullock's bladder with a stick, keeping up as much as possible
the same _time_ as that in which the bird beats. At the sound produced
by the bladder and the stick, the male Grouse, inflamed with jealousy,
has flown directly towards me, when, being prepared, I have easily shot
it. An equally successful stratagem is employed to decoy the males of our
little Partridge by imitating the call-note of the female during spring
and summer; but in no instance, after repeated trials, have I been able
to entice the Pinnated Grouse to come towards me, whilst imitating the
_booming_ sounds of that bird.

Early in spring, these birds are frequently seen feeding on the tender
buds of different trees, and at that season are more easily approached
than at any other. Unfortunately, however, they have not by this time
recovered their flesh sufficiently to render them worthy of the attention
of a true sportsman, although their flavour has already improved.
When our mountains are covered with a profusion of Huckleberries and
Whortleberries, about the beginning of September, then is the time for
shooting this species, and enjoying the delicious food which it affords.

The Ruffed Grouse, on alighting upon a tree, after being raised from the
ground, perches amongst the thickest parts of the foliage, and, assuming
at once an erect attitude, stands perfectly still, and remains silent
until all appearance of danger has vanished. If discovered when thus
perched, it is very easily shot. On rising from the ground, the bird
utters a cackling note repeated six or seven times, and before taking
wing emits a lisping sort of whistle, which seems as if produced by the
young of another bird, and is very remarkable.

When the ground is covered with snow sufficiently soft to allow this bird
to conceal itself under it, it dives headlong into it with such force
as to form a hole several yards in length, re-appears at that distance,
and continues to elude the pursuit of the sportsman by flight. They are
sometimes caught while beneath the snow. Many of them are taken alive
in trap boxes during winter, although the more common method of catching
or rather destroying them is by setting dead falls with a figure-of-four
trigger.

Early in April, the Ruffed Grouse begins to _drum_ immediately after
dawn, and again towards the close of day. As the season advances, the
drumming is repeated more frequently at all hours of the day; and where
these birds are abundant, this curious sound is heard from all parts
of the woods in which they reside. The drumming is performed in the
following manner. The male bird, standing erect on a prostrate decayed
trunk, raises the feathers of its body, in the manner of a Turkey-cock,
draws its head towards its tail, erecting the feathers of the latter at
the same time, and raising its ruff around the neck, suffers its wings
to droop, and struts about on the log. A few moments elapse, when the
bird draws the whole of its feathers close to its body, and stretching
itself out, beats its sides with its wings, in the manner of the domestic
Cock, but more loudly, and with such rapidity of motion, after a few
of the first strokes, as to cause a tremor in the air not unlike the
rumbling of distant thunder. This, kind reader, is the "_drumming_" of
the Pheasant. In perfectly calm weather, it may be heard at the distance
of two hundred yards, but might be supposed to proceed from a much
greater distance. The female, which never drums, flies directly to the
place where the male is thus engaged, and, on approaching him, opens
her wings before him, balances her body to the right and left, and then
receives his caresses.

The same trunk is resorted to by the same birds during the season, unless
they are frequently disturbed. These trunks are easily known by the
quantity of excrements and feathers about them. The males have the liberty
of promiscuous concubinage, although not to such an extent as those
of the Pinnated Grouse. They have frequent and severe battles at this
season, which, although witnessed by the females, are never interrupted
by them. The drumming sounds of these birds lead to their destruction,
every young sportsman taking the unfair advantage of approaching them
at this season, and shooting them in the act.

About the beginning of May, the female retires to some thicket in a close
part of the woods, where she forms a nest. This is placed by the side
of a prostrate tree, or at the foot of a low bush, on the ground, in a
spot where a heap of dried leaves has been formed by the wind. The nest
is composed of dried leaves and herbaceous plants. The female lays from
five to twelve eggs, which are of a uniform dull yellowish colour, and
are proportionate in size to the bird. The latter never covers them on
leaving the nest, and in consequence, the Raven and the Crow, always on
the look out for such dainties, frequently discover and eat them. When
the female is present, however, she generally defends them with great
obstinacy, striking the intruder with her wings and feet, in the manner
of the Common Hen.

The young run about and follow the mother, the moment after they leave
the egg. They are able to fly for a few yards at a time, when only six
or seven days old, and still very small. The mother leads them in search
of food, covers them at night with her wings, and evinces the greatest
care and affection towards them on the least appearance of danger,
trying by every art in her power to draw the attention of her enemies to
herself, feigning lameness, tumbling and rolling about as if severely
wounded, and by this means generally succeeding in saving them. The
little ones squat at the least chuck of alarm from the mother, and lie
so close as to suffer one to catch them in the hand, should he chance
to discover them, which, however, it is very difficult to do. The males
are then beginning to associate in small parties, and continue separated
from the females until the approach of winter, when males, females, and
young, mingle together. During summer, these birds are fond of dusting
themselves, and resort to the roads for that purpose, as well as to pick
up gravel. I have observed this species copulating towards autumn, but
have not been able to account for this unseasonable procedure, as only
one brood is raised in the season.

These birds have various enemies besides man. Different species of Hawks
destroy them, particularly the Red-tailed Hawk and the Stanley Hawk.
The former watches their motions from the tops of trees, and falls upon
them with the swiftness of thought, whilst the latter seizes upon them
as he glides rapidly through the woods. Pole-cats, weasels, raccoons,
oppossums, and foxes, are all destructive foes to them. Of these, some
are content with sucking their eggs, while others feed on their flesh.

I have found these birds most numerous in the States of Pennsylvania
and New York. They are brought to the markets in great numbers, during
the winter months, and sell at from 75 cents to a dollar a-piece, in the
eastern cities. At Pittsburg I have bought them, some years ago, for 12½
cents the pair. It is said that when they have fed for several weeks
on the leaves of the _Kalmia latifolia_, it is dangerous to eat their
flesh, and I believe laws have been passed to prevent their being sold
at that season. I have, however, eaten them at all seasons, and although
I have found their crops distended with the leaves of the Kalmia, have
never felt the least inconvenience after eating them, nor even perceived
any difference of taste in their flesh. I suspect it is only when the
birds have been kept a long time undrawn and unplucked, that the flesh
becomes impregnated with the juice of these leaves.

The food of this species consists of seeds and berries of all kinds,
according to the season. It also feeds on the leaves of several species
of evergreens, although these are only resorted to when other food has
become scarce. They are particularly fond of fox-grapes and winter-grapes,
as well as strawberries and dewberries. To procure the latter, they
issue from the groves of the Kentucky Barrens, and often stray to the
distance of a mile. They roost on trees, amongst the thickest parts of
the foliage, sitting at some distance from each other, and may easily
be smoked to death, by using the necessary precautions.

I cannot conclude this article, kind reader, without observing how
desirable the acquisition of this species might be to the sportsmen of
Europe, and especially to those of England, where I am surprised it has
not yet been introduced. The size of these birds, the beauty of their
plumage, the excellence of their flesh, and their peculiar mode of
flying, would render them valuable, and add greatly to the interest of
the already diversified sports of that country. In England and Scotland
there are thousands of situations that are by nature perfectly suited
to their habits, and I have not a doubt that a few years of attention
would be sufficient to render them quite as common as the Grey Partridge.

     TETRAO UMBELLUS, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 275.—_Lath._
     Ind. Orn. vol. ii. p. 638.—_Ch. Bonaparte_, Synops. of Birds
     of the United States, p. 126.

     RUFFED GROUSE, TETRAO UMBELLUS, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol. vi.
     p. 45. Pl. 49. Male.—_Lath._ Synops. vol. iv. p. 738.

     SHOULDER-KNOT GROUSE.—_Lath._ Synops. vol. iv. p. 737.

Adult Male. Plate XLI. Fig. 1, 2.

Bill short, robust, slightly arched, rather obtuse, the base covered
by feathers; upper mandible with the dorsal outline straight in the
feathered part, convex towards the end, the edges overlapping, the tip
declinate; under mandible somewhat bulging toward the tip, the sides
convex. Nostrils concealed among the feathers. Head and neck small.
Body bulky. Feet of ordinary length; tarsus feathered, excepting at the
lower part anteriorly, where it is scutellate, spurless; toes scutellate
above, pectinated on the sides; claws arched, depressed, obtuse.

Plumage compact, glossy. Feathers of the head narrow and elongated into
a curved tuft. A large space on the neck destitute of feathers, but
covered over by an erectile ruff of elongated feathers, of which the
upper are silky, shining, and curved forwards at the end, which is very
broad and rounded. Wings short, broad, much rounded and curved, the
third and fourth quills longest. Tail long, ample, rounded, of eighteen
feathers.

Bill horn-colour, brownish-black towards the tip. Iris hazel. Feet
yellowish-grey. Upper part of the head and hind part of the neck bright
yellowish-red. Back rich chestnut, marked with oblong white spots,
margined with black. Upper wing-coverts similar to the back. Quills
brownish-dusky, their outer webs pale reddish, spotted with dusky. Upper
tail-coverts banded with black. Tail reddish-yellow, barred and minutely
mottled with black, and terminated by a broad band of the latter colour,
between two narrow bands of bluish-white, of which one is terminal. A
yellowish-white band from the upper mandible to the eye, beyond which it
is prolonged. Throat and lower part of the neck light brownish-yellow.
Lower ruff feathers of the same colour, barred with reddish-brown, the
upper black with blue reflections. A tuft of light chestnut feathers
under the wings. The rest of the under parts yellowish-white, with broad
transverse spots of brownish-red; the abdomen yellowish-red; and the
under tail-coverts mottled with brown.

Length 18 inches, extent of wings 2 feet; bill along the ridge ¾, along
the gap 1-1/12; tarsus 1-7/12, middle toe 1¾.

Adult Female. Plate XLI. Fig. 3.

The plumage of the female is less developed and inferior in beauty. The
feathers of the head and ruff are less elongated, the latter of a duller
black. The tints of the plumage generally are lighter than in the male.

THE ORCHARD ORIOLE.

_ICTERUS SPURIUS_, BONAP.

PLATE XLII. MALE IN DIFFERENT STATES, ADULT FEMALE AND NEST.

The plumage of many species of our birds undergoes at times very
extraordinary changes. Some, such as the male Tanagers, which during the
summer months exhibit the most vivid scarlet and velvety black, assume
a dingy green before they leave the country, on their way southward.
The Goldfinch nearly changes to the same colour, after having been seen
in a gay apparel of yellow and black. The Rice Bird loses its lively
brightness until the return of spring. Others take several years before
they complete their plumage, so as to shew the true place which they hold
amongst the other species, as is the case with the Ibis, the Flamingo,
and many other Waders, as well as with several of our land birds, among
which, kind reader, the species now under your consideration is probably
that in which these gradual improvements are most observable by such
persons as reside in the country inhabited by them.

The plumage of the young birds of this species, when they leave the
nest, resembles that of the female parent, although rather less decided
in point of colouring, and both males and females retain this colour
until the approach of the following spring, when the former exhibit a
portion of black on the chin, the females never altering. In birds kept
in cages, this portion of black remains without farther augmentation
for two years; but in those which are at liberty, a curious mixture of
dull orange or deep chestnut peeps out through a considerable increase
of black-coloured feathers over the body and wings, intermixed with the
yellowish-green hue which the bird had when it left the nest. The third
spring brings him nearer towards perfection, as at that time the deep
chestnut colour has taken possession of the lower parts, the black has
deepened on the upper parts, and over the whole head, as well as on the
wings and tail-feathers. Yet the garb with which it is ultimately to be
covered requires another return of spring before it is completed, after
which it remains as exhibited in the adult male, represented in the plate.

These extraordinary changes are quite sufficient of themselves to lead
naturalists abroad into error, as they give rise to singular arguments
even with some persons in America, who maintain that the differences of
colour are indicative of different species. But, since the _habits_ of
these birds under all these singular changes of plumage are ascertained
to be precisely the same, the argument no longer holds good. I shall
now endeavour to describe these habits with all the accuracy supplied
by long observation.

The migration of the Orchard Oriole from south to north is performed by
day, and singly, as is that of its relative the Baltimore Oriole, the
males appearing a week or ten days sooner than the females. Their flight
is lower than that of the Baltimore, and considerably shorter in its
continuance, the Orchard Oriole alighting more frequently on the tops
of the trees, to rest or to feed. They exhibit a greater repetition of
motions of the wings, although sliding through the air for a few yards
only at a time, and whilst about to alight, as well as afterwards, perform
strong and well marked jettings of the tail. This the Baltimore seldom
does. No sooner have they reached the portion of the country in which
they intend to remain during the time of raising their young, than these
birds exhibit all the liveliness and vivacity belonging to their nature.
The male is seen rising in the air for ten or twenty yards in an indirect
manner, jerking his tail and body, flapping his wings, and singing with
remarkable impetuosity, as if under the influence of haste, and anxious
to return to the tree from which he has departed. He accordingly descends
with the same motions of the body and tail, repeating his pleasant song
as he alights. These gambols and carollings are performed frequently
during the day, the intervals being employed in ascending or descending
along the branches and twigs of different trees, in search of insects or
larvæ. In doing this, they rise on their legs, seldom without jetting
the tail, stretch their neck, seize the prey, and emit a single note,
which is sweet and mellow, although in power much inferior to that of the
Baltimore. At other times, it is seen bending its body downwards, in a
curved posture, with the head greatly inclined upwards, to peep at the
under parts of the leaves, so as not to suffer any grub to escape its
vigilance. It now alights on the ground, where it has spied a crawling
insect, and again flies towards the blossoms, in which many are lurking,
and devours hundreds of them each day, thus contributing to secure to
the farmer the hopes which he has of the productiveness of his orchard.

The arrival of the females is marked with all due regard, and the males
immediately use every effort in their power to procure from them a return
of attention. Their singings and tricks are performed with redoubled
ardour, until they are paired, when nidification is attended to with
the utmost activity. They resort to the meadows, or search along the
fences for the finest, longest, and toughest grasses they can find, and
having previously fixed on a spot either on an Apple Tree, or amidst
the drooping branches of the Weeping Willow, they begin by attaching
the grass firmly and neatly to the twigs more immediately around the
chosen place. The filaments are twisted, passed over and under, and
interwoven in such a manner as almost to defy the eye of man to follow
their windings. All this is done by the bill of the bird, in the manner
used by the Baltimore Oriole. The nest is of a hemispherical form, and
is supported by the margin only. It seldom exceeds three or four inches
in depth, is open almost to the full extent of its largest diameter at
the top or entrance, and finished on all sides, as well as within, with
the long slender grasses already mentioned. Some of these go round the
nest several times, as if coarsely woven together. This is the manner
in which the nest is constructed in Louisiana; in the Middle Districts
it is usually lined with soft and warm materials. The female lays from
four to six eggs of a bluish-white tint, sprinkled with dark brown, and
raises only a single brood in the season. The young follow the parents
for several weeks, and many birds congregate towards autumn, but the
males soon separate from the females, and set out by themselves as they
arrived in spring.

The sociality of the Orchard Oriole is quite remarkable, and in this
respect that bird differs widely from the Baltimore, which will not suffer
any other bird of its species to build a nest, or to remain within a
considerable distance from the spot which it has selected for its own;
whereas many nests of the species now before you may be observed in the
same garden or orchard, and often within a few yards of the house. I
have counted as many as nine of these nests on a few acres of ground,
and the different pairs to which they belonged lived in great harmony.

Although the food of the Orchard Orioles consists principally of insects
of various kinds, it is not composed exclusively of them. They are fond
of different sorts of fruits and berries. Figs are also much relished by
them, as well as mulberries and strawberries, but not to such a degree
as to draw the attention of the gardener or husbandman towards their
depredations.

This species makes its first appearance in Louisiana early in March, and
remains until October, being seen for several weeks after the Baltimore
Oriole has set out. In reaches the Middle Districts in the beginning of
April. I have met with it as far as the province of Maine and the head
waters of the Mississippi. It is fond of high ground and the neighbourhood
of mountains during the breeding season, after which it removes to the
meadows and prairies in considerable numbers. Whilst in these meadows,
it feeds principally upon a small species of cricket, ground spiders
and small grasshoppers. Their flesh is very good at that late season,
and is much esteemed by the Creoles of Louisiana.

The French of that State give it the name of _Pape de Prairie_, while
they designate the Baltimore Oriole by that of _Pape de Bois_, which
arises no doubt from the marked preference which the former manifests
to the plains in autumn, where a great number are shot or caught in trap
cages. It is easily kept in cages, where it sings with all the liveliness
which it shews in its wild state, and may be fed on rice and dry fruits,
when fresh ones cannot be procured. I have known one of these birds, a
beautiful male, kept for upwards of four years by a friend of mine at
New Orleans. It had been raised from the nest, and having passed through
the different changes of its plumage, had become perfect, was full of
action, and sung delightfully.

The nest represented in the plate was drawn in Louisiana, and was entirely
composed of grass. It may be looked upon as a sample of the usual form
and construction. The branch of Honey Locust on which you see these
birds belongs to a tree which sometimes grows to a great height, without
much apparent choice of situation. It is more abundant to the west of
the Alleghanies, and towards the Southern Districts, than in the Middle
States. The wood is brittle and seldom used. The trunk and branches are
frequently covered with innumerable long, sharp, and extremely hard
spines, protruded in every direction, and in some instances placed
so near to each other as to preclude the possibility of any person's
climbing them. It bears a long pod, containing a sweet substance, not
unlike that of the honey of bees, and which is eaten by children, when
it becomes quite ripe. The spines are made use of by tobacconists for
the purpose of fastening together the different twists of their rolls.

     ICTERUS SPURIUS, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synops. of Birds of the
     United States, p. 51.

     ORIOLUS SPURIUS, _Gmel._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 389.—_Lath._
     Ind. Ornith. vol. i. p. 180.

     BASTARD BALTIMORE, _Lath._ Synops. vol. ii. p. 433.

     ORCHARD ORIOLE, ORIOLUS MUTATUS, _Wils._ Americ. Ornith. vol. i.
     p. 64. Pl. iv. fig. 1, 2, 3, 4.

Male in complete plumage. Plate XLII. Fig. 1, 2.

Bill conical, slender, longish, compressed, a little curved, very acute,
with inflected acute margins; upper mandible obtuse above, lower broadly
obtuse beneath. Nostrils oval, covered by a membrane above, basal. Head
and neck of ordinary size. Body rather slender. Feet of ordinary length;
tarsus a little longer than the middle toe; inner toe little shorter
than the outer; claws arched, compressed, acute, that of the hind toe
twice the size of the others.

Plumage soft, blended, glossy. Wings of ordinary length, the second and
third primaries longest. Tail long, rounded, of twelve rounded feathers.

Bill black above with light blue margins, light blue beneath. Iris
reddish-brown. Feet light blue. Head, neck, and upper back black; the
rest of the body dusky orange-red, approaching to chestnut. Quills
and larger coverts black, margined with yellow, the latter tipped with
yellowish-white; tail black.

Length 6½ inches, extent of wings 9; bill along the ridge 7/12, along
the gap ¾; tarsus 1, middle toe ⅚.

Adult Female. Plate XLII. Fig. 5.

Bill, feet and iris, as in the male. Head and upper parts brownish-green.
Wings and tail greenish-brown; wing-coverts tipped with white; throat
white, sides of the neck and under parts generally greyish-yellow. The
young of both sexes resemble the female.

Male, first autumn and spring. Plate XLII. Fig. 3.

A patch of black on the throat, continued upwards over the lore and
forehead. Head and upper parts brownish-green; fore part of the back
orange; a yellow band over the eye. Under parts light yellow. Wings and
tail as in the female, but the coverts tipped with yellow.

Male in the second year. Plate XLII. Fig 4.

Irregularly spotted with black, yellow, and reddish orange, on the head,
neck, and back; the other parts nearly as in the adult male.

THE HONEY LOCUST.

     GLEDITSCHIA TRICANTHOS, _Willd._ Sp. Pl. vol. iv. p. 1097.
     _Pursh_, Flor. Amer. vol. i. p. 221. _Mich._ Arbr. Forest.
     vol. iii. p. 164. Pl. 10.—POLYGAMIA DIŒCIA, _Linn._ LEGUMINOSÆ,
     _Juss._

This tree, when growing in situations most favourable to it, sometimes
attains a height of sixty or eighty feet, and a diameter of three or
four. The bark is detached in large plates, and the trunk is marked with
several broad furrows. The flowers, which are small and of a greenish
colour, are succeeded by long, flat, pendent, generally tortuous pods,
of a brown colour. The wood is very hard, but porous and brittle. This
species is distinguished by its numerous, generally tripartite spines,
its linear-oblong leaflets, and its many-seeded, compressed legumes.

THE CEDAR BIRD.

_BOMBYCILLA CAROLINENSIS_, BRISS.

PLATE XLIII. MALE AND FEMALE.

Louisiana affords abundance of food and pleasant weather to this species,
for nearly four months of the year, as the Cedar Birds reach that
State about the beginning of November, and retire towards the Middle
Districts in the beginning of March. The Holly, the Vines, the Persimon,
the Pride-of-China, and various other trees, supply them with plenty
of berries and fruits, on which they fatten, and become so tender and
juicy as to be sought by every epicure for the table. I have known an
instance of a basketful of these little birds having been forwarded to
New Orleans as a Christmas present. The donor, however, was disappointed
in his desire to please his friend in that city, for it was afterwards
discovered that the steward of the steamer, in which they were shipped,
made pies of them for the benefit of the passengers.

The appetite of the Cedar Bird is of so extraordinary a nature as to
prompt it to devour every fruit or berry that comes in its way. In this
manner they gorge themselves to such excess as sometimes to be unable
to fly, and suffer themselves to be taken by the hand. Indeed I have
seen some which, although wounded and confined in a cage, have eaten of
apples until suffocation deprived them of life in the course of a few
days. When opened afterwards, they were found to be gorged to the mouth.

It is a beautiful bird, but without any song, even during the breeding
season, having only a note which it uses for the purpose of calling or
rallying others of its species. This note is feeble, and as it were
lisping, yet perfectly effectual, for when uttered by one in a flock
within hearing of another party, the latter usually check their flight,
and alight pell-mell on the same tree.

Their flight is easy, continued, and often performed at a considerable
height. The birds move in close bodies, sometimes amounting to large
flocks, making various circumvolutions before they alight, and then
coming down in such numbers together as to seem to be touching each
other. At this particular moment, or while performing their evolutions,
some dozens may be killed at a single shot; but if this opportunity is
lost, the next moment after they alight, the whole group is in motion,
dispersing over every bough to pick the berries which attracted them from
the air. Their crest is now erected, their wings are seen constantly
moving, and so eagerly do they grasp at the berries that they suffer
many of them to fall. Every flock passing within hearing is invited
to join in the feast, and in a few hours the tree is entirely stripped
of its fruit. In this manner they search the whole of the forests, and
towards winter are even satisfied with the berries of the Dog-wood. As
the cherries and mulberries ripen in the Middle Districts, the Cedar
Bird pays them frequent visits, and when these are out of season, the
blackberries and huckleberries have their turn. After this, the Cedars
supply a new and favourite food. I think the name of _Fruit-devourers_
would be more applicable to these birds than that of _Chatterers_, which
they bear among naturalists.

They are excellent fly-catchers also, spending much of their time in
the pursuit of winged insects. This is by way of dessert, and is not
managed with the vivacity or suddenness of true Fly-catchers, but with
a kind of listlessness. They start from the branches, and give chase to
the insects, ascending after them for a few yards, or move horizontally
towards them, perhaps rather farther than when ascending, and as soon
as the prey is secured, return to the spot, where they continue watching
with slow motions of the head. Towards evening, this amusement is carried
on for half an hour, or an hour at a time, and is continued longer at
the approach of autumn, the berries then becoming scarcer.

These birds come from the north, but the furthest place from which they
have started I am unable to tell. They reach the Middle Districts about
the beginning of April, and begin to pair in the beginning of June,
when thousands of young birds of other species have already left the
nest. Their favourite place for their nest is generally the branch of an
Apple-tree in the Orchard, its horizontal direction being apparently best
adapted for their taste, although here they are frequently very insecure,
the nest being seldom higher than ten feet from the ground, and often
so low as to be seen into. It is composed of coarse grasses externally,
and is lined with a finer kind. The female usually lays four eggs, of
a purplish white, marked with black spots, which are larger towards the
great end. The young are at first fed on insects, but after a week the
parents procure different kinds of fruits for them. The Cedar Bird nestles
less frequently in the low lands than it does in the upper parts of
the country, preferring the immediate neighbourhood of mountains. These
birds are more careful of themselves during the intrusion of strangers
to their nest, than perhaps any other species, and sneak off, in a very
unparental manner, quite out of sight, without ever evincing the least
appearance of sorrow on the occasion. I have not been able to ascertain
whether they raise more than one brood in a season.

When wounded by a shot, they fall to the ground as if dead, and remain
there in a stiffened posture, as if absolutely stupid. When taken up
in the hand, they merely open their bill, without ever attempting to
bite, and will suffer a person to carry them in the open hand, without
endeavouring to make off. Their crest at such times is laid flat and
close to the head. It is lowered or raised at the will of the bird, but
more usually stands erect. Their plumage is silky. The females do not
exhibit the waxen appendages on the wings so soon as the males; but these
appendages form no criterion as to the sex. I have seen males and females
with them, both at the extremities of the scapulars and tail-feathers,
seldom more than two or three attached to the latter, whilst there were
five or six at the former. Very few of these birds remain the whole
winter in the Middle States.

Now, kind reader, can _you_ give a reason why these birds are so tardy
in laying their eggs and rearing their young? It cannot be through want
of fruit for the food of their progeny, as the young birds, being at
first fed on insects, might continue to be so, at a season when these
abound, and as the old birds themselves evince pleasure at seizing them
on the wing on all occasions.

     BOMBYCILLA CAROLINENSIS, _Briss._ vol. ii. p. 337.—_Ch.
     Bonaparte_, Synops. of Birds of the United States, p. 59.

     AMPELIS GARRULUS, var. _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 297.
     —_Lath._ Ind. Ornith. vol. i. p. 364.

     CHATTERER OF CAROLINA, _Lath._ Synops. vol. iii. p. 93.

     CEDAR BIRD, AMPELIS AMERICANA, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol. i.
     p. 107. Fig. 1.

Adult Male. Plate XLIII. Fig. 1.

Bill short, straightish, broader than deep at the base, compressed towards
the end; upper mandible convex in its dorsal outline, with the edges
sharp, overlapping, and marked with a notch close upon the declinate,
acute tip; lower mandible nearly straight, a little bulging toward the
end. Nostrils basal, oval, partially concealed by the recumbent feathers.
Head and neck of ordinary size. Body bulky. Legs rather short; tarsus
compressed, anteriorly scutellate; toes scutellate above, the outer toe
united at the base to the middle one, the inner shorter than the outer;
claws arched, compressed, acute.

Plumage blended, soft and silky; an erectile tuft on the head. Wings
rather long, the first quill longest. Tail slightly rounded, of twelve
straight, broad feathers.

Bill, eyes, and feet, brownish-black. A black band on the forehead,
passing backwards, tapering behind the eye, to the occiput, and
margined above and below by a narrow white band. Head, neck, and breast
yellowish-brown, or fawn colour, fading into yellow on the abdomen,
and yellowish-white under the tail. Chin black. Back and wing-coverts
greyish-brown, passing on the lower back into light bluish-grey, of
which colour are the tail-coverts. Quills brownish-black, some of the
secondaries tipped with a small flat, oblong appendage, of the colour
of red sealing-wax. Of these appendages there are also frequently some
on the tail, which is greyish at the base, passing into brownish-black,
and terminated by a band of pale yellow.

Length 6¾ inches, extent of wings 11; bill along the ridge 5/12, along
the gap ¾; tarsus ¾.

Adult Female. Plate XLIII. Fig. 2.

The female is slightly smaller, and in external appearance differs from
the male only in being a little lighter in the tints of the plumage,
and in having the crest shorter. The waxen appendages also occur in the
female.

THE RED CEDAR.

     JUNIPERUS VIRGINIANA, _Willd._ Sp. Pl. vol. iv. p. 863. _Mich._
     Arbr. Forest. de l'Amer. Septent. vol. iii. p. 42. Pl. 5.—DIŒCIA
     MONADELPHIA, _Linn._ CONIFERÆ, _Juss._

This plant is very generally distributed in the United States, and
frequently attains a height of from forty to fifty feet, with a diameter
of a foot or fifteen inches at the base. It is distinguished by its
ternate leaves, which are adnate at the base, and imbricated. The berries
are oval, small, and of a bluish colour. The wood is red, close-grained,
very durable, and has a strong scent. Its growth is extremely slow, and
this circumstance, together with the great destruction of the tree for
various purposes, has rendered it difficult to procure cedar-wood of
tolerable size in the more accessible parts of the country.

THE SUMMER RED BIRD.

_TANAGRA ÆSTIVA_, GMEL.

PLATE XLIV. ADULT MALE, YOUNG MALE, AND FEMALE.

This beautiful species is destitute of song, and is of solitary habits,
preferring at all times the interior of the forests, but not the densest
parts of them. I have observed that woods interspersed with what are
called _scrubby_ hickories or stunted oaks, are favourite resorts of
the Summer Red Birds.

Their residence in the United States scarcely exceeds four months. None
remain in any of the more southern parts of our districts. Indeed, by
the middle of September, it would be difficult to see a single pair in
the forests of Louisiana. So very tender do they seem to be in regard
to cold, or even temperate weather, that they seldom go farther north
than Boston, or the shores of Lake Erie, but prefer the sandy woodlands
all along the eastern shores, as far as Massachusets.

Their flight is performed in a gliding manner when passing through the
woods, generally amidst the top branches of trees. Whilst migrating,
they rise high above the trees, and pursue their journeys only during
the day, diving towards dusk into the thickest parts of the foliage of
tall trees, from which their usual unmusical but well-known notes of
_chicky-chucky-chuck_ are heard, after the light of day has disappeared.
This species feeds principally on insects, and especially coleoptera,
some of which are often of larger size than a bird of the dimensions of
the Summer Red Bird might be supposed capable of swallowing. It seldom
alights on the ground, but prefers pursuing insects on the wing, which
it frequently does from the dried twigs at the extremity of the branches.

The construction of the nest of this richly clad species is nearly the
same in all parts of the Union in which it breeds. It is frequently
fixed on a branch crossing a road, or an opening of some description,
or, if in the woods, in some partially cleared space. It is usually
placed low on a horizontal branch. It is composed externally of dried
stalks of weeds, and is finished within with fine grass, arranged in
a slovenly manner. It is so insecurely fastened to the branch, that it
may be shaken off by striking the latter smartly. The female lays four
or five eggs of a light blue colour. The male and female sit upon them
alternately for twelve days, and are as anxious about their safety as
most species. The young are seen about the beginning of June, and follow
their parents until the time of the migration of the latter, which takes
place a fortnight earlier than that of the young birds. They raise only
one brood in a season.

The alterations of plumage which appear in the young birds between the
period at which they leave the nest, and the ensuing spring, are as great
as those of the Orchard Oriole. They are at first nearly of the colour of
the female. The males become a little mottled with dull reddish-orange,
towards the time of their departure for the south, the females only
deepening their tints. The following spring, the male appears either
spotted all over the body with bright red and yellowish-green, or only
partially so, having sometimes one wing of a greenish hue, whilst the
other is tinged all over with a dull vermilion tint. All these spots
and shades of colour gradually disappear, giving place to vermilion,
which, however, is yet dull; nor is it until the third spring that the
full brilliancy of the plumage is attained.

I have several times attempted to raise the young from the nest, but
in vain. Insects, fruits, and eggs, mixed with boiled meat of various
kinds, always failed, and the birds generally died in a very few days,
uttering a dull note, as if elicited by great suffering. The same note
is emitted by the young in their state of freedom, when, perched on a
branch, they await the appearance of their parents with their proper food.

I have represented an adult male, his mate, and a young bird in its
singularly patched state, to enable you to judge how different a family
of these birds must appear to the eye of a person unacquainted with the
peculiarity of these differences and changes of plumage.

The Vine on which you see them is usually called the _Muscadine_. It grows
everywhere in Louisiana, and the State of Mississippi, and that most
luxuriantly. In those States you may see vines of this species fifteen
inches in diameter near the roots, either entwined round the trunk of a
large tree, and by this means reaching the top branches and extending
over them and those of another tree, or, as if by magic, swinging in
the air, from roots attached at once to some of the uppermost branches.
In favourable seasons, they are laden with grapes, which hang in small
clusters from every branch, from which, when they are fully ripe, a good
shake will make them fall in astonishing quantity. The skin is thick
and very tough, the pulp glutinous, but so peculiarly flavoured as to
be very agreeable to the taste. These grapes are eaten by most people,
although an idea prevails, in Lower Louisiana particularly, that the
eating of them gives rise to bilious fevers. For my part, I can well
say, that the more I have eaten of them the better I have found myself;
and for this reason seldom lost an opportunity of refreshing my palate
with some of them in all my rambles. I am equally confident, that their
juice would make an excellent wine. Another absurd opinion prevails
in Louisiana, which is, that the Common Blackberries, however ripe and
pleasant, produce boils; although the country people make use of a strong
decoction of the root as a cure for dysentery.

     TANAGRA ÆSTIVA, _Gmel._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 889.—_Lath._
     Ind. Orn. vol i. p. 422.—_Ch. Bonaparte_, Synops. of Birds of
     the United States, p. 105.

     SUMMER TANAGER, _Lath._ Synops. vol. iii. p. 220.

     SUMMER RED BIRD, TANAGRA ÆSTIVA, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol i.
     p. 95. Pl. vi. fig. 3. Male, fig. 4. Female.

Adult Male. Plate XLIV. Fig. 1.

Bill rather short, robust, tapering, compressed, acute; upper mandible
a little convex in its dorsal outline, convex on the sides, the acute
edge slightly notched near the tip, which is a little declinate; lower
mandible also a little convex in its dorsal outline, with the edges
inflected. Nostrils basal, lateral, round. Head large. Body rather long.
Feet shortish; tarsus compressed, anteriorly scutellate, about the length
of the middle toe; outer toe united at the base to the middle one; claws
arched, compressed, acute.

Plumage soft, blended, glossy. Wings of ordinary length, the second
quill longest. Tail slightly emarginate, of twelve acute feathers.

Bill yellowish-brown above, bluish below. Iris hazel. Feet and claws
light greyish-blue. The whole plumage is vermilion, brighter on the
lower parts, excepting the tips and inner webs of the quills, which are
tinged with brown.

Length 7¼ inches, extent of wings 11; bill along the ridge 7/12, along
the gap 1; tarsus ⅚.

Adult Female. Plate XLIV. Fig. 3.

The general colour above is light brownish-green, the sides of the
head and the under parts generally brownish-yellow; larger wing-coverts
dusky, edged with yellow; quills deep brown, externally margined with
yellowish-red; tail-feathers of the same colour. The bill, eyes and legs
are of the same tints as in the male.

Dimensions nearly the same.

Young Male. Plate XLIV. Fig. 2.

Dull vermilion, spotted with dull green.

THE WILD MUSCADINE.

     VITIS ROTUNDIFOLIA, _Mich._ Flor. Amer. vol. ii. p. 231.
     _Pursh_, Flor. Amer. vol. i. p. 169.—PENTANDRIA MONOGYNIA,
     _Linn._ VITES, _Juss._

Leaves between heart-shaped and kidney-shaped, nearly equally toothed,
shining on both sides.

TRAILL'S FLY-CATCHER.

_MUSCICAPA TRAILLII._

PLATE XLV. MALE.

This is a species which, in its external appearance, is so closely allied
to the _Wood Pewee_, and the small Green-crested Fly-catcher, that the
most careful inspection is necessary to establish the real differences
existing between these three species. Its notes, however, are perfectly
different, as are, in some measure, its habits, as well as the districts
in which it resides.

The notes of Traill's Fly-catcher consist of the sounds _wheet, wheet_,
which it articulates clearly while on wing. It resides in the skirts of
the woods along the prairie lands of the Arkansas river, where alone I
have been able to procure it. When leaving the top branches of a low tree,
this bird takes long flights, skimming in zigzag lines, passing close
over the tops of the tall grasses, snapping at and seizing different
species of winged insects, and returning to the same trees to alight.
Its notes, I observed, were uttered when on the point of leaving the
branch. The pair chased the insects as if acting in concert, and doubtless
had a nest in the immediate neighbourhood, although I was unable to
discover it. It being in the month of April, I suspected the female had
not begun to lay. Five of the eggs in the ovary were about the size of
green pease. I could not perceive any difference in the colouring of
the plumage between the sexes, and I have represented the male in that
inclined and rather crouching attitude which I observed the bird always
to assume when alighted.

I have named this species after my learned friend Dr THOMAS STEWART TRAILL
of Liverpool, in evidence of the gratitude which I cherish towards that
benevolent gentleman for all his kind attentions to me.

The Sweet Gum, on a branch of which I have placed Traill's Fly-catcher,
grows in almost every portion of the western and southern districts of the
United States. It sometimes attains a great size, but is more commonly
of moderate stature. Its wood is of little use. This tree is frequently
found with a cork-like bark protruding in shreds from its branches.

     MUSCICAPA TRAILLII.

Plate XLV. Adult Male.

Bill of ordinary length, depressed, tapering to a point, the lateral
outlines a little convex, very broad at the base; the gap reaching to
nearly under the eye; upper mandible with the edges acute, slightly
notched close upon the tip, which is a little deflected and acute; lower
mandible straight, acute. Nostrils basal, lateral, elliptical. Head and
neck of moderate size. Body rather slender. Feet of moderate length,
slender; tarsus compressed, covered anteriorly with short scutella, and
longer than the middle toe; toes free, scutellate above; claws compressed,
arched, acute.

Plumage soft and tufty; feathers of the head narrow and erectile. Wings
of moderate length, third quill longest. Tail longish, slightly forked
when closed, of twelve rather narrow, obtuse feathers.

Bill dark brown above, yellow beneath. Iris hazel. Feet brownish-black.
The general colour of the plumage above is dull brownish-olive, the two
rows of larger wing-coverts tipped with dull white. Throat greyish-white,
as is a very narrow space around the eye; sides of the head and neck,
and fore part of the breast, coloured like the back, but lighter; the
rest of the under parts dull yellowish-white.

Length 5¾ inches, extent of wings 8½; bill along the ridge ½, along gap ¾;
tarsus 7/12.

As already mentioned, this species bears a very close resemblance to
_Muscicapa acadica_, and _M. virens_, more especially the former.

_Muscicapa virens_ has the tail deeply emarginate, whereas in the present
species that part is nearly even. The colouring is nearly the same in
both, but _M. virens_ is considerably larger.

_Muscicapa acadica_ is also similarly coloured, but in it the whitish
space about the eye is larger, the throat darker, the breast and abdomen
lighter. The tail also is quite even. A decided difference exists in
the bill, which, in place of being convex in its lateral outlines, is
a little concave.

THE SWEET GUM.

     LIQUIDAMBAR STYRACIFLUA, _Wild._ Sp. Pl. vol. iv. p. 476.
     _Pursh_, Fl. Amer. vol. ii. p. 635. _Mich._ Arbr. Forest. de
     l'Amer. Sept. vol. iii. p. 194, Pl. iv.—MONŒCIA POLYANDRIA,
     _Linn._ AMENTACEÆ, _Juss._

This species, which is the only one that grows in the United States,
is distinguished by its palmate leaves, the lobes of which are toothed
and acuminate, the axils of the nerves downy. In large individuals, the
bark is deeply cracked. The wood is very hard and fine grained, but is
now little used, although formerly furniture of various kinds was made
of it. When the bark is removed, a resinous substance exudes, which has
an agreeable smell, but is only obtained in very small quantity.

THE EARTHQUAKE.

Travelling through the Barrens of Kentucky (of which I shall give you
an account elsewhere) in the month of November, I was jogging on one
afternoon, when I remarked a sudden and strange darkness rising from the
western horizon. Accustomed to our heavy storms of thunder and rain,
I took no more notice of it, as I thought the speed of my horse might
enable me to get under shelter of the roof of an acquaintance, who lived
not far distant, before it should come up. I had proceeded about a mile,
when I heard what I imagined to be the distant rumbling of a violent
tornado, on which I spurred my steed, with a wish to gallop as fast
as possible to the place of shelter; but it would not do, the animal
knew better than I what was forthcoming, and, instead of going faster,
so nearly stopped, that I remarked he placed one foot after another on
the ground with as much precaution as if walking on a smooth sheet of
ice. I thought he had suddenly foundered, and, speaking to him, was
on the point of dismounting and leading him, when he all of a sudden
fell a-groaning piteously, hung his head, spread out his four legs, as
if to save himself from falling, and stood stock still, continuing to
groan. I thought my horse was about to die, and would have sprung from
his back had a minute more elapsed, but at that instant all the shrubs
and trees began to move from their very roots, the ground rose and fell
in successive furrows, like the ruffled waters of a lake, and I became
bewildered in my ideas, as I too plainly discovered that all this awful
commotion in nature was the result of an earthquake.

I had never witnessed any thing of the kind before, although, like
every other person, I knew of earthquakes by description. But what is
description compared with the reality? Who can tell of the sensations
which I experienced when I found myself rocking as it were on my horse,
and with him moved to and fro like a child in a cradle, with the most
imminent danger around, and expecting the ground every moment to open,
and present to my eye such an abyss as might engulf myself and all around
me? The fearful convulsion, however, lasted only a few minutes, and the
heavens again brightened as quickly as they had become obscured; my horse
brought his feet to the natural position, raised his head, and galloped
off as if loose and frolicking without a rider.

I was not, however, without great apprehension respecting my family,
from which I was yet many miles distant, fearful that where they were
the shock might have caused greater havock than I had witnessed. I gave
the bridle to my steed, and was glad to see him appear as anxious to get
home as myself. The pace at which he galloped accomplished this sooner
than I had expected, and I found, with much pleasure, that hardly any
greater harm had taken place than the apprehension excited for my own
safety.

Shock succeeded shock almost every day or night for several weeks,
diminishing, however, so gradually as to dwindle away into mere vibrations
of the earth. Strange to say, I for one became so accustomed to the
feeling as rather to enjoy the fears manifested by others. I never can
forget the effects of one of the slighter shocks which took place when
I was at a friend's house, where I had gone to enjoy the merriment
that, in our western country, attends a wedding. The ceremony being
performed, supper over, and the fiddles tuned, dancing became the order
of the moment. This was merrily followed up to a late hour, when the
party retired to rest. We were in what is called, with great propriety,
a _Log-house_, one of large dimensions, and solidly constructed. The
owner was a physician, and in one corner were not only his lancets,
tourniquets, amputating-knives, and other sanguinary apparatus, but all
the drugs which he employed for the relief of his patients, arranged in
jars and phials of different sizes. These had some days before made a
narrow escape from destruction, but had been fortunately preserved by
closing the doors of the cases in which they were contained.

As I have said, we had all retired to rest, some to dream of sighs and
smiles, and others to sink into oblivion. Morning was fast approaching,
when the rumbling noise that precedes the earthquake began so loudly,
as to waken and alarm the whole party, and drive them out of bed in the
greatest consternation. The scene which ensued it is impossible for me
to describe, and it would require the humorous pencil of CRUICKSHANK to
do justice to it. Fear knows no restraints. Every person, old and young,
filled with alarm at the creaking of the log-house, and apprehending
instant destruction, rushed wildly out to the grass enclosure fronting
the building. The full moon was slowly descending from her throne,
covered at times by clouds that rolled heavily along, as if to conceal
from her view the scenes of terror which prevailed on the earth below.
On the grass-plat we all met, in such condition as rendered it next
to impossible to discriminate any of the party, all huddled together
in a state of almost perfect nudity. The earth waved like a field of
corn before the breeze; the birds left their perches, and flew about
not knowing whither; and the Doctor, recollecting the danger of his
gallipots, ran to his shop-room, to prevent their dancing off the shelves
to the floor. Never for a moment did he think of closing the doors, but,
spreading his arms, jumped about the front of the cases, pushing back
here and there the falling jars; with so little success, however, that
before the shock was over, he had lost nearly all he possessed.

The shock at length ceased, and the frightened females, now sensible
of their dishabille, fled to their several apartments. The earthquakes
produced more serious consequences in other places. Near New Madrid,
and for some distance on the Mississippi, the earth was rent asunder in
several places, one or two islands sunk for ever, and the inhabitants
fled in dismay towards the eastern shores.

THE BARRED OWL.

_STRIX NEBULOSA_, LINN.

PLATE XLVI. MALE.

Should you, kind reader, find it convenient or agreeable to visit the
noble forests existing in the lower parts of the State of Louisiana,
about the middle of October, when nature, on the eve of preparing for
approaching night, permits useful dews to fall and rest on every plant,
with the view of reviving its leaves, its fruits, or its lingering
blossoms, ere the return of morn; when every night-insect rises on
buzzing wings from the ground, and the fire-fly, amidst thousands of
other species, appears as if purposely to guide their motions through the
sombre atmosphere; at the moment when numerous reptiles and quadrupeds
commence their nocturnal prowlings, and the fair moon, empress of the
night, rises peacefully on the distant horizon, shooting her silvery rays
over the heavens and the earth, and, like a watchful guardian, moving
slowly and majestically along; when the husbandman, just returned to his
home, after the labours of the day, is receiving the cheering gratulations
of his family, and the wholesome repast is about to be spread out for
master and servants alike;—it is at this moment, kind reader, that were
you, as I have said, to visit that happy country, your ear would suddenly
be struck by the discordant screams of the Barred Owl. Its _whah, whah,
whah, whah-aa_ is uttered loudly, and in so strange and ludicrous a
manner, that I should not be surprised were you, kind reader, when you
and I meet, to compare these sounds to the affected bursts of laughter
which you may have heard from some of the fashionable members of our
own species.

How often, when snugly settled under the boughs of my temporary
encampment, and preparing to roast a venison steak or the body of a
squirrel, on a wooden spit, have I been saluted with the exulting bursts
of this nightly disturber of the peace, that, had it not been for him,
would have prevailed around me, as well as in my lonely retreat! How
often have I seen this nocturnal marauder alight within a few yards of
me, exposing his whole body to the glare of my fire, and eye me in such
a curious manner that, had it been reasonable to do so, I would gladly
have invited him to walk in and join me in my repast, that I might have
enjoyed the pleasure of forming a better acquaintance with him. The
liveliness of his motions, joined to their oddness, have often made me
think that his society would be at least as agreeable as that of many
of the buffoons we meet with in the world. But as such opportunities of
forming acquaintance have not existed, be content, kind reader, with the
imperfect information which I can give you of the habits of this Sancho
Pança of our woods.

Such persons as conclude, when looking upon owls in the glare of day,
that they are, as they then appear, extremely dull, are greatly mistaken.
Were they to state, like BUFFON, that Woodpeckers are miserable beings,
they would be talking as incorrectly; and, to one who might have lived
long in the woods, they would seem to have lived only in their libraries.

The Barred Owl is found in all those parts of the United States which
I have visited, and is a constant resident. In Louisiana it seems to
be more abundant than in any other state. It is almost impossible to
travel eight or ten miles in any of the retired woods there, without
seeing several of them even in broad day; and, at the approach of night,
their cries are heard proceeding from every part of the forest around
the plantations. Should the weather be lowering and indicative of the
approach of rain, their cries are so multiplied during the day, and
especially in the evening, and they respond to each other in tones so
strange, that one might imagine some extraordinary fête about to take
place among them. On approaching one of them, its gesticulations are
seen to be of a very extraordinary nature. The position of the bird,
which is generally erect, is immediately changed. It lowers its head and
inclines its body, to watch the motions of the person beneath, throws
forward the lateral feathers of its head, which thus has the appearance
of being surrounded by a broad ruff, looks towards him as if half blind,
and moves its head to and fro in so extraordinary a manner, as almost to
induce a person to fancy that part dislocated from the body. It follows
all the motions of the intruder with its eyes; and should it suspect any
treacherous intentions, flies off to a short distance, alighting with its
back to the person, and immediately turning about with a single jump, to
recommence its scrutiny. In this manner, the Barred Owl may be followed
to a considerable distance, if not shot at, for to halloo after it does
not seem to frighten it much. But if shot at and missed, it removes to
a considerable distance, after which its _whah-whah-whah_ is uttered
with considerable pomposity. This owl will answer the imitation of its
own sounds, and is frequently decoyed by this means.

The flight of the Barred Owl is smooth, light, noiseless, and capable
of being greatly protracted. I have seen them take their departure
from a detached grove in a prairie, and pursue a direct course towards
the skirts of the main forest, distant more than two miles, in broad
daylight. I have thus followed them with the eye until they were lost in
the distance, and have reason to suppose that they continued their flight
until they reached the woods. Once, whilst descending the Ohio, not far
from the well-known _Cave-in-rock_, about two hours before sunset, in
the month of November, I saw a Barred Owl teased by several crows, and
chased from the tree in which it was. On leaving the tree, it gradually
rose in the air, in the manner of a Hawk, and at length attained so great
a height that our party lost sight of it. It acted, I thought, as if it
had lost itself, now and then describing small circles, and flapping its
wings quickly, then flying in zigzag lines. This being so uncommon an
occurrence, I noted it down at the time. I felt anxious to see the bird
return towards the earth, but it did not make its appearance again. So
very lightly do they fly, that I have frequently discovered one passing
over me, and only a few yards distant, by first seeing its shadow on the
ground, during clear moon-light nights, when not the faintest rustling
of its wings could be heard.

Their power of sight during the day seems to be rather of an equivocal
character, as I once saw one alight on the back of a cow, which it left
so suddenly afterwards, when the cow moved, as to prove to me that it
had mistaken the object on which it had perched for something else.
At other times, I have observed that the approach of the grey squirrel
intimidated them, if one of these animals accidentally jumped on a branch
close to them, although the Owl destroys a number of them during the
twilight. It is for this reason, kind reader, that I have represented
the Barred Owl gazing in amazement at one of the squirrels placed only
a few inches from him.

The Barred Owl is a great destroyer of poultry, particularly of chickens
when half-grown. It also secures mice, young hares, rabbits, and many
species of small birds, but is especially fond of a kind of frog of a
brown colour, very common in the woods of Louisiana. I have heard it
asserted that this bird catches fish, but never having seen it do so,
and never having found any portion of fish in its stomach, I cannot
vouch for the truth of the report.

About the middle of March, these Owls begin to lay their eggs. This
they usually do in the hollows of trees, on the dust of the decomposed
wood. At other times they take possession of the old nest of a Crow
or a Red-tailed Hawk. In all these situations I have found their eggs
and young. The eggs are of a globular form, pure white, with a smooth
shell, and are from four to six in number. So far as I have been able to
ascertain, they rear only one brood in a season. The young, like those
of all other Owls, are at first covered with a downy substance, some
of which is seen intermixed with and protruding from the feathers, some
weeks after the bird is nearly fledged. They are fed by the parents for
a long time, standing perched, and emitting a hissing noise in lieu of
a call. This noise may be heard in a calm night, for fifty or probably a
hundred yards, and is by no means musical. To a person lost in a swamp,
it is, indeed, extremely dismal.

The plumage of the Barred Owl differs very considerably, in respect to
colour, in different individuals, more so among the males. The males
are also smaller than the females, but less so than in some other
species. During the severe winters of our Middle Districts, those that
remain there suffer very much; but the greater number, as in some other
species, remove to the Southern States. When kept in captivity, they
prove excellent mousers.

The antipathy shewn to Owls by every species of day bird is extreme.
They are followed and pursued on all occasions; and although few of the
day birds ever prove dangerous enemies, their conduct towards the Owls
is evidently productive of great annoyance to them. When the Barred
Owl is shot at and wounded, it snaps its bill sharply and frequently,
raises all its feathers, looks towards the person in the most uncouth
manner, but, on the least chance of escape, moves off in great leaps
with considerable rapidity.

The Barred Owl is very often exposed for sale in the New Orleans market.
The Creoles make _gumbo_ of it, and pronounce the flesh palatable.

     STRIX NEBULOSA, _Gmel._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 291.—_Lath._
     Ind. Ornith. vol. i. p. 21.—_Ch. Bonaparte_, Synops. of Birds
     of the United States, p. 38.

     BARRED OWL, STRIX NEBULOSA, _Lath._ Synops. vol. i. p. 133.
     —_Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol. iv. p. 61. Pl. 23. fig. 2.

Adult Male. Plate XLVI. Fig. 1.

Bill very short, compressed, curved, acute, with a small cere at the
base; upper mandible with its dorsal outline curved from the base, the
edges acute, the point trigonal, very acute, deflected, lower mandible
with the edges acute and inflected, obtuse at the tip. Nostrils roundish,
in the fore part of the cere, concealed by the recumbent bristles. Head
disproportionately large, as are the eyes and external ears. Body short.
Legs long; tarsus feathered; toes feathered at the base, scutellate
above, papillar and tubercular beneath; claws curved, slender, rounded,
extremely sharp.

Plumage exceedingly soft and downy, somewhat distinct above, tufty and
loose beneath. Long bristly feathers at the base of the bill, stretching
forwards. Eyes surrounded by several circles of compact feathers;
auricular feathers forming a ruff, and with those of the head and neck
capable of being erected. Wings ample, the fourth quill longest, the
first short. Tail long, large, rounded, of twelve broad, rounded feathers.

Bill yellow, the under mandible tinged with blue on the back. Eyes black.
Toes yellow; claws bluish-black. The general colour of the upper parts is
light reddish-brown. Face and greater part of the head brownish-white,
the feathers of the latter broadly marked with brown, of which a narrow
band passes from the bill along the middle of the head. Feathers of the
back and most of the wing-coverts largely spotted with white. Primary
coverts, quills, and tail, barred with light brownish-red; wings and tail
tipped with greyish-white. Under parts pale brownish-red, longitudinally
streaked with brown, excepting the neck and upper breast, which are
transversely marked, the abdomen, which is yellowish-white, and the
tarsal feathers, which are light reddish.

Length 18 inches, extent of wings 40. Bill along the ridge 1½; tarsus
2½, middle toe 2.

THE GREY SQUIRREL.

     SCIURUS CINEREUS, _Harlan_, Fauna Americana, p. 173.

The Grey Squirrel is too well known to require any description. It
migrates in prodigious numbers, crossing large rivers by swimming
with its tail extended on the water, and traverses immense tracts of
country, in search of the places where food is most abundant. During
these migrations, the Squirrels are destroyed in vast quantities. Their
flesh is white, very delicate, and affords excellent eating, when the
animals are young. "In 1749," says Dr HARLAN, in the work above referred
to, "a premium of three pence a-head was offered for their destruction,
which amounted in one year to L.8000 Sterling, which is equal to about
1,180,000 individuals killed."

THE RUBY-THROATED HUMMING BIRD.

_TROCHILUS COLUBRIS_, LINN.

PLATE XLVII. MALE, FEMALE, AND YOUNG.

Where is the person who, on seeing this lovely little creature moving
on humming winglets through the air, suspended as if by magic in it,
flitting from one flower to another, with motions as graceful as they
are light and airy, pursuing its course over our extensive continent,
and yielding new delights wherever it is seen;—where is the person, I
ask of you, kind reader, who, on observing this glittering fragment of
the rainbow, would not pause, admire, and instantly turn his mind with
reverence toward the Almighty Creator, the wonders of whose hand we
at every step discover, and of whose sublime conceptions we everywhere
observe the manifestations in his admirable system of creation?—There
breathes not such a person; so kindly have we all been blessed with that
intuitive and noble feeling—admiration!

No sooner has the returning sun again introduced the vernal season, and
caused millions of plants to expand their leaves and blossoms to his
genial beams, than the little Humming Bird is seen advancing on fairy
wings, carefully visiting every opening flower-cup, and, like a curious
florist, removing from each the injurious insects that otherwise would
ere long cause their beauteous petals to droop and decay. Poised in the
air, it is observed peeping cautiously, and with sparkling eye, into
their innermost recesses, whilst the etherial motions of its pinions, so
rapid and so light, appear to fan and cool the flower, without injuring
its fragile texture, and produce a delightful murmuring sound, well
adapted for lulling the insects to repose. Then is the moment for the
Humming Bird to secure them. Its long delicate bill enters the cup of
the flower, and the protruded double-tubed tongue, delicately sensible,
and imbued with a glutinous saliva, touches each insect in succession,
and draws it from its lurking place, to be instantly swallowed. All
this is done in a moment, and the bird, as it leaves the flower, sips so
small a portion of its liquid honey, that the theft, we may suppose, is
looked upon with a grateful feeling by the flower, which is thus kindly
relieved from the attacks of her destroyers.

The prairies, the fields, the orchards and gardens, nay, the deepest
shades of the forests, are all visited in their turn, and everywhere
the little bird meets with pleasure and with food. Its gorgeous throat
in beauty and brilliancy baffles all competition. Now it glows with a
fiery hue, and again it is changed to the deepest velvety black. The
upper parts of its delicate body are of resplendent changing green; and
it throws itself through the air with a swiftness and vivacity hardly
conceivable. It moves from one flower to another like a gleam of light,
upwards, downwards, to the right, and to the left. In this manner, it
searches the extreme northern portions of our country, following with
great precaution the advances of the season, and retreats with equal
care at the approach of autumn.

I wish it were in my power at this moment to impart to you, kind reader,
the pleasures which I have felt whilst watching the movements, and viewing
the manifestation of feelings displayed by a single pair of these most
favourite little creatures, when engaged in the demonstration of their
love to each other:—how the male swells his plumage and throat, and,
dancing on the wing, whirls around the delicate female; how quickly he
dives towards a flower, and returns with a loaded bill, which he offers
to her to whom alone he feels desirous of being united; how full of
ecstacy he seems to be when his caresses are kindly received; how his
little wings fan her, as they fan the flowers, and he transfers to her
bill the insect and the honey he has procured with a view to please her;
how these attentions are received with apparent satisfaction; how, soon
after, the blissful compact is sealed; how, then, the courage and care
of the male are redoubled; how he even dares to give chase to the Tyrant
Fly-catcher, hurries the Blue-bird and the Martin to their boxes; and
how, on sounding pinions, he joyously returns to the side of his lovely
mate. Reader, all these proofs of the sincerity, fidelity, and courage,
with which the male assures his mate of the care he will take of her
while sitting on her nest, may be seen, and have been seen, but cannot
be portrayed or described.

Could you, kind reader, cast a momentary glance on the nest of the
Humming Bird, and see, as I have seen, the newly-hatched pair of young,
little larger than humble-bees, naked, blind, and so feeble as scarcely
to be able to raise their little bill to receive food from the parents;
and could you see those parents, full of anxiety and fear, passing and
repassing within a few inches of your face, alighting on a twig not more
than a yard from your body, waiting the result of your unwelcome visit
in a state of the utmost despair,—you could not fail to be impressed
with the deepest pangs which parental affection feels on the unexpected
death of a cherished child. Then how pleasing is it, on your leaving the
spot, to see the returning hope of the parents, when, after examining
the nest, they find their nurslings untouched! You might then judge
how pleasing it is to a mother of another kind, to hear the physician
who has attended her sick child assure her that the crisis is over, and
that her babe is saved. These are the scenes best fitted to enable us
to partake of sorrow and joy, and to determine every one who views them
to make it his study to contribute to the happiness of others, and to
refrain from wantonly or maliciously giving them pain.

I have seen Humming Birds in Louisiana as early as the 10th of March.
Their appearance in that State varies, however, as much as in any other,
it being sometimes a fortnight later, or, although rarely, a few days
earlier. In the Middle Districts, they seldom arrive before the 15th of
April, more usually the beginning of May. I have not been able to assure
myself whether they migrate during the day or by night, but am inclined
to think the latter the case, as they seem to be busily feeding at all
times of the day, which would not be the case had they long flights to
perform at that period. They pass through the air in long undulations,
raising themselves for some distance at an angle of about 40 degrees,
and then falling in a curve; but the smallness of their size precludes
the possibility of following them farther then fifty or sixty yards
without great difficulty, even with a good glass. A person standing in
a garden by the side of a Common Althæa in bloom, will be as surprised
to hear the humming of their wings, and then see the birds themselves
within a few feet of him, as he will be astonished at the rapidity with
which the little creatures rise into the air, and are out of sight and
hearing the next moment. They do not alight on the ground, but easily
settle on twigs and branches, where they move sidewise in prettily
measured steps, frequently opening and closing their wings, pluming,
shaking and arranging the whole of their apparel with neatness and
activity. They are particularly fond of spreading one wing at a time,
and passing each of the quill-feathers through their bill in its whole
length, when, if the sun is shining, the wing thus plumed is rendered
extremely transparent and light. They leave the twig without the least
difficulty in an instant, and appear to be possessed of superior powers
of vision, making directly towards a Martin or a Blue-bird when fifty or
sixty yards from them, and reaching them before they are aware of their
approach. No bird seems to resist their attacks, but they are sometimes
chased by the larger kinds of humble-bees, of which they seldom take the
least notice, as their superiority of flight is sufficient to enable
them to leave these slow moving insects far behind in the short space
of a minute.

The nest of this Humming Bird is of the most delicate nature, the external
parts being formed of a light grey lichen found on the branches of trees,
or on decayed fence-rails, and so neatly arranged round the whole nest,
as well as to some distance from the spot where it is attached, as to
seem part of the branch or stem itself. These little pieces of lichen are
glued together with the saliva of the bird. The next coating consists
of cottony substance, and the innermost of silky fibres obtained from
various plants, all extremely delicate and soft. On this comfortable
bed, as in contradiction to the axiom that the smaller the species the
greater the number of eggs, the female lays only two, which are pure
white and almost oval. Ten days are required for their hatching, and the
birds raise two broods in a season. In one week the young are ready to
fly, but are fed by the parents for nearly another week. They receive
their food directly from the bill of their parents, which disgorge it
in the manner of Canaries or Pigeons. It is my belief that no sooner
are the young able to provide for themselves than they associate with
other broods, and perform their migration apart from the old birds, as
I have observed twenty or thirty young Humming Birds resort to a group
of Trumpet-flowers, when not a single old male was to be seen. They do
not receive the full brilliancy of their colours until the succeeding
spring, although the throat of the male bird is strongly imbued with
the ruby tints before they leave us in autumn.

The Ruby-throated Humming Bird has a particular liking for such flowers as
are greatly tubular in their form. The Common Jimpson-weed or Thorn-apple
(_Datura Stramonium_) and the Trumpet-flower (_Bignonia radicans_) are
among the most favoured by their visits, and after these, Honeysuckle, the
Balsam of the gardens, and the wild species which grows on the borders
of ponds, rivulets, and deep ravines; but every flower, down to the
wild violet, affords them a certain portion of sustenance. Their food
consists principally of insects, generally of the coleopterous order,
these, together with some equally diminutive flies, being commonly found
in their stomach. The first are procured within the flowers, but many of
the latter on wing. The Humming Bird might therefore be looked upon as an
expert flycatcher. The nectar or honey which they sip from the different
flowers, being of itself insufficient to support them, is used more as
if to allay their thirst. I have seen many of these birds kept in partial
confinement, when they were supplied with artificial flowers made for the
purpose, in the corollas of which water with honey or sugar dissolved in
it was placed. The birds were fed on these substances exclusively, but
seldom lived many months, and on being examined after death, were found
to be extremely emaciated. Others, on the contrary, which were supplied
twice a-day with fresh flowers from the woods or garden, placed in a room
with windows merely closed with moschetto gauze-netting, through which.
minute insects were able to enter, lived twelve months, at the expiration
of which time their liberty was granted them, the person who kept them
having had a long voyage to perform. The room was kept artificially warm
during the winter months, and these, in Lower Louisiana, are seldom
so cold as to produce ice. On examining an orange-tree which had been
placed in the room where these Humming Birds were kept, no appearance of
a nest was to be seen, although the birds had frequently been observed
caressing each other. Some have been occasionally kept confined in our
Middle Districts, but I have not ascertained that any one survived a
winter.

The Humming Bird does not shun mankind so much as birds generally do. It
frequently approaches flowers in the windows, or even in rooms when the
windows are kept open, during the extreme heat of the day, and returns,
when not interrupted, as long as the flowers are unfaded. They are
extremely abundant in Louisiana during spring and summer, and wherever a
fine plant of the trumpet-flower is met with in the woods, one or more
Humming Birds are generally seen about it, and now and then so many as
ten or twelve at a time. They are quarrelsome, and have frequent battles
in the air, especially the male birds. Should one be feeding on a flower,
and another approach it, they are both immediately seen to rise in the
air, twittering and twirling in a spiral manner until out of sight. The
conflict over, the victor immediately returns to the flower.

If comparison might enable you, kind reader, to form some tolerably
accurate idea of their peculiar mode of flight, and their appearance
when on wing, I would say, that were both objects of the same colour,
a large sphinx or moth, when moving from one flower to another, and in
a direct line, comes nearer the Humming Bird in aspect than any other
object with which I am acquainted.

Having heard several persons remark that these little creatures had
been procured with less injury to their plumage, by shooting them with
water, I was tempted to make the experiment, having been in the habit of
killing them either with remarkably small shot, or with sand. However,
finding that even when within a few paces, I seldom brought one to the
ground when I used water instead of shot, and was moreover obliged to
clean my gun after every discharge, I abandoned the scheme, and feel
confident that it can never have been used with material advantage. I
have frequently secured some by employing an insect net, and were this
machine used with dexterity, it would afford the best means of procuring
Humming Birds.

I have represented ten of these pretty and most interesting birds, in
various positions, flitting, feeding, caressing each other, or sitting
on the slender stalks of the trumpet-flower and pluming themselves. The
diversity of action and attitude thus exhibited, may, I trust, prove
sufficient to present a faithful idea of their appearance and manners.
A figure of the nest you will find elsewhere. The nest is generally
placed low, on the horizontal branch of any kind of tree, seldom more
than twenty feet from the ground. They are far from being particular
in this matter, as I have often found a nest attached by one side only
to a twig of a rose-bush, currant, or the strong stalk of a rank weed,
sometimes in the middle of the forest, at other times on the branch of
an oak, immediately over the road, and again in the garden close to the
walk.

     TROCHILUS COLUBRIS, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 191.—_Lath._
     Ind. Ornith. vol. i. p. 312.—_Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of
     Birds of the United States, p. 98.

     RED-THROATED HUMMING BIRD, _Lath._ Synops. vol. ii. p. 769.

     HUMMING BIRD, TROCHILUS COLUBRIS, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol. ii.
     p. 26. Pl. 10. fig. 3. Male; fig. 4. Female.

Adult Male. Plate XLVII. Fig. 1, 1, 1, 1.

Bill long, straight, subulate, depressed at the base, acute; upper
mandible rounded, its edges overlapping. Nostrils basal, linear. Tongue
very extensile, filiform, divided towards the end into two filaments.
Feet very short and feeble; tarsus slender, shorter than the middle toe,
partly feathered; fore toes united at the base; claws curved, compressed,
acute.

Plumage compact, imbricated above and on the throat, with metallic lustre,
blended beneath. Wings long, narrow, a little incurved at the tip, the
first quill longest. Tail forked when closed, when spread even in the
middle and laterally rounded, of ten broad feathers, the outer curved
inwards.

Bill and feet black. Iris of the same colour. Upper parts generally,
including the two middle tail-feathers, green, with gold reflections.
Quills and tail purplish-brown. Throat, sides of the head, and fore
neck, carmine-purple, spotted with black, varying to crimson, orange,
and deep black. Sides of the same colour as the back; the rest of the
under parts greyish-white, mixed with green.

Length 3½ inches, extent of wings 4¼; bill along the ridge ¾, along the
gap ⅚; tarsus ⅙, toe ¼.

Adult Female. Plate XLVII. Fig. 2, 2, 2.

The female differs from the male in wanting the brilliant patch on the
throat, which is white, as are the under parts generally, and in having
the three lateral tail-feathers tipped with the same colour.

Dimensions the same.

Young Bird. Plate XLVII. Fig. 3, 3.

The young birds have the under parts brownish-white, the tail tipped
with white, and are somewhat lighter in their upper parts. In autumn
the young males begin to acquire the red feathers of the throat.

THE TRUMPET-FLOWER.

     BIGNONIA RADICANS, _Wild._ Sp. Pl. vol. iii. p. 301. _Pursh_,
     Flor. Amer. vol. ii. p. 420.—DIDYNAMIA ANGIOSPERMIA, _Linn._
     BIGNONIÆ, _Juss._

This splendid species of Bignonia, which grows in woods and on the
banks of rivers in all the Middle and Southern States, climbing on trees
and bushes, is distinguished by its pinnate leaves, with ovate, widely
serrate, acuminate leaflets, and large scarlet flowers, of which the
funnel-shaped tube of the corolla is thrice the length of the calyx. The
pods are of a brown colour, from four to seven inches long, and contain
a double row of kidney-shaped light brown seeds.

THE AZURE WARBLER.

_SYLVIA AZUREA_, STEPH.

PLATE XLVIII. MALE AND FEMALE.

So scarce is this bird in the Middle Districts, that its discovery in
the State of Pennsylvania has been made a matter of much importance. Its
habits are consequently very little known, even at the present day, and
it would appear that only two individuals have been seen by our American
ornithologists, one of which, a young female, has been figured by the
Prince of Musignano.

It arrives in the lower parts of the State of Louisiana, in company
with many other species of Warblers, breeds there and sets out again
about the beginning of October. It is as lively as most species of
its genus, possesses the same manner of flight, moves sidewise up and
down the branches and twigs, frequently changing sides, and hangs to
the extremities of bunches of leaves or berries, on which it procures
the insects and larvæ of which its food is principally composed. The
liveliness of its notes renders it conspicuous in those parts of the
skirts of the forests which it frequents; and its song, although neither
loud nor of long continuance, is extremely sweet and mellow.

I have no precise recollection of the time when I first made a drawing
of this pretty little bird, but know this well, that a drawing which I
had of it was one of the unfortunate collection destroyed by the rats
at Henderson. In Louisiana, where it is as numerous as other Sylviæ, I
have several times shot five or six during a single walk, towards the
end of August, when the young are nearly full coloured.

The nest is placed in the forks of a low tree or bush, more frequently
on a Dog-wood tree. It is partly pensile, projecting a little above the
twigs to which it is attached, and extending below them for nearly two
inches. The fibres of vines and of the stalks of rank herbaceous plants,
together with slender roots, compose the outer part, being arranged in
a circular manner. The lining consists entirely of the dry fibres of the
Spanish Moss. The female lays four or five eggs, of a pure white colour,
with a few reddish spots at the larger end. When the female is disturbed
during incubation, she trails along the twigs and branches, with expanded
tail and drooping wings, and utters a plaintive note, resembling in all
these circumstances the Blue-eyed Warbler. I am not sure that they raise
more than one brood in a season. When the young abandon the nest, their
plumage partakes of a greenish tinge, and no difference can be perceived
between the sexes without dissection. The little family move and hunt
together, and exhibit much pleasure in pursuing small insects on wing,
which they seize without any clicking sound of their bill. They seem at
this period to evince a great partiality for trees the tops of which
are thickly covered by grape vines, amongst the broad leaves of which
they find ample supplies of food. They also sometimes alight on the tall
weeds, and pick a few of their seeds. The males or females do not assume
the full brilliancy of their plumage until the following spring.

I am inclined to think that this species is extremely abundant in the
Mexican dominions, as I have observed these birds more numerous towards
Natchitochez and along the waters of the Red River. On the other hand,
I have not observed it eastward of the State of Tennessee.

The twig on which it is represented, belongs to a small tree or shrub,
which grows along the skirts of the forests in the State of Louisiana.
The bark is easily stripped off, when the wood shows a yellow, resinous
colour. It is brittle, and is not applied to any use. The berries are
eaten by different species of birds.

     SYLVIA AZUREA, _Stephens_, Cont. Shaw's Zool. vol. i. p. 653.
     —_Ch. Bonaparte_, Synops. of Birds of the United States,
     p. 85; and Amer. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 27. Pl. xi. fig. 2. Young
     female.

     CÆRULEAN WARBLER, SYLVIA CÆRULEA, _Wilson_, Amer. Ornith. vol. ii.
     p. 141. Pl. xvii. fig. 5. Male.

Adult Male. Plate XLVIII. Fig. 1.

Bill of ordinary length, straight, much broader than deep at the base,
tapering, compressed toward the acute tip. Nostrils basal, oval, exposed.
Head of ordinary size. Body rather slender. Feet of ordinary length,
slender; tarsus compressed, covered anteriorly with a few long scutella,
acute behind, scarcely longer than the middle toe; toes free, scutellate
above; claws arched, slender, much compressed, acute.

Plumage soft and blended, glossy. Wings of ordinary length, the first
and second quills longest. Tail longish, even, of twelve rather narrow,
obtuse feathers. Short bristle-pointed feathers at the base of the upper
mandible.

Bill bluish-black. Iris blackish-brown. Feet blue. Head and upper parts
generally, of a fine rich blue, the back marked with longitudinal streaks
of blackish, and a narrow band of black from the forehead passing along
the lore to behind the eye. Tips of the two rows of larger wing-coverts
white, forming two conspicuous bands across the wing. Quills black,
externally margined with blue. Tail of the same colour, each feather
having a patch of white on the inner web, near the end, excepting the
two middle ones; all externally margined with blue. Under parts white,
as well as a streak over the eye, above which is a streak of blackish.

Length 4½ inches, extent of wings 8; bill along the ridge 5/12, along
the gap 7/12; tarsus ⅔, middle toe 7/12.

Adult Female. Plate XLVIII. Fig. 2.

The female differs from the male, chiefly in having the colours paler.

THE BEAR-BERRY.

     ILEX DAHOON, _Mich._ Fl. Amer. vol ii. p. 228. _Pursh_, Fl.
     Amer. vol. i. p. 117.—TETRANDRIA TETRAGYNIA, _Linn._ RHAMNI,
     _Juss._

This species of Holly is distinguished by its elliptico-lanceolate leaves,
which are thick, leathery, shining, and reflected at the margin, and
its corymboso-paniculate, lateral and terminal peduncles. The berries
are globular and bright red.

THE BLUE-GREEN WARBLER.

_SYLVIA RARA_, WILS.

PLATE XLIX. MALE.

The Blue-green Warbler so resembles the young of the Azure Warbler, that
were not the form of its bill, and some of its habits, considerably
different, I should be tempted to consider it a mere variety of that
bird. It is equally rare in the Middle Districts, where I have shot only
a few, and these in the dark recesses of the Great Pine Swamp.

On its passage through the States, it is found in Louisiana, where it
appears in the beginning of April. This lateness of its arrival indicates
its coming from a great distance, most of the other species appearing
several weeks earlier. They seem to disperse soon after, as on their
first appearance several may be procured in one day, as well as during
their equally short stay in autumn, when, again, I have shot six or
seven from a single tree, on which they appeared as busily engaged as if
so many Titmice. I have met with them singly and far apart in Kentucky,
in Ohio, upon the Missouri, and along Lake Erie, but I have never found
their nest.

In spring it has a soft and mellow song, which is not heard beyond the
distance of a few paces. It is performed at intervals between the times
at which the bird secures an insect, which it does with great expertness,
either on wing, or amongst the leaves of the trees and bushes. The tops
of trees, however, appear to please them best, the reverse being the
case with the Azure Warbler.

The Blue-green Warbler has a peculiar cunning manner of leaning downwards
to view a person, or while searching for an insect, and which is very
different from that of any other bird, although I am unable to describe
it. While thus leaning, it moves its head sidewise so very slowly that
the motion is hardly perceptible, unless much attention is paid to it.
After this, it either starts off and flies to some distance from the
observer, or darts towards the prey that had attracted its notice. While
catching an insect on the wing, it produces a slight clicking sound with
its bill, and in this respect approaches the Vireos. Like some of them
also, it descends from the highest tops of the trees to low bushes, and
eats small berries, particularly towards autumn, when insects begin to
fail.

Its flight is performed in zigzag lines of a few yards, as if it were
undetermined where to alight. I have found no difference between the
sexes as to external appearance.

The plant on which I have figured a male is found in Louisiana, growing
along the skirts of woods and by fences. It is called the _Spanish
Mulberry_. It is a herbaceous perennial plant, attaining a height of from
four to eight feet. The fruits are eaten by children, but are insipid.

     SYLVIA RARA, BLUE-GREEN WARBLER, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol. iii.
     p. 119. Pl. 27. fig. 2.—_Ch. Bonaparte_, Synops. of Birds
     of the United States, p. 82.

Adult Male. Plate XLIX.

Bill longish, nearly straight, depressed at the base, tapering to a point.
Nostrils basal, oval, half concealed by the feathers. Head and neck
of ordinary size. Body ovate. Feet of ordinary length, rather slender;
tarsus compressed, covered anteriorly with a few long scutella, acute
behind, rather longer than the middle toe; toes scutellate above, free;
claws arched, slender, much compressed, acute.

Plumage blended, soft and tufty. Wings longish, little curved, the first
and second quills longest. Tail shortish, rounded, of twelve rather
acute feathers.

Bill dark brown above, light blue beneath. Iris dark brown. Feet light
blue. General colour of the upper parts light greenish-blue, of the
under parts white. A white streak over the eyes. Tips of the two first
rows of wing-coverts white, forming two bands across the wing. Quills
blackish-brown, their outer margins blue. Tail blackish-brown, the outer
feathers having a white patch on the inner web near the end.

Length 4¾ inches, extent of wings 8; bill along the ridge ⅓, along the
gap ½; tarsus ⅔.

THE SPANISH MULBERRY.

     CALLICARPA AMERICANA, _Willd._ Sp. Pl. vol. i. p. 619. _Pursh_,
     Fl. Amer. vol. i. p. 97.—TETRANDRIA MONOGYNIA, _Linn._ VITICES,
     _Juss._

A perennial herbaceous plant, with oval, serrate leaves, which are downy
beneath; sessile cymes of red flowers, and globular red berries, arranged
apparently in dense whorls. It grows in dry gravelly or sandy soil, in
Virginia, Carolina, and Louisiana.

THE BLACK AND YELLOW WARBLER.

_SYLVIA MACULOSA_, LATH.

PLATE L. YOUNG MALE.

This little bird was by mistake engraved, and named after my friend W.
SWAINSON, Esq., during my absence from London, one drawing having been
accidentally substituted for another. It is in reality the young of the
Black and Yellow Warbler, and was intended to form part of the Plate
which will represent the adult male and female of that species. My good
friend will, I know, excuse this mistake, as I have honoured a beautiful
new species with his name.

It being more consistent with my present arrangement to give a full
account of each species, as it is represented in the Plate allotted to
it, and its different states of plumage, as much as this object can be
attained, you will permit me, kind reader, to postpone the habits of
this species until you see the whole group together. In the mean time,
I shall confine myself to a description of the immature state of plumage
as represented in my illustrations.

     SYLVIA MACULOSA, _Lath._ Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 536.—_Ch.
     Bonaparte_, Synops. of Birds of the United States, p. 78.

     YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER, _Lath._ Synops. vol. iv. p. 481.

     BLACK AND YELLOW WARBLER, SYLVIA MAGNOLIA, _Wils._ Americ.
     Ornith. vol. iii. p. 63. Pl. 23. Male.

Young Male. Plate L.

Bill brown above, brownish-yellow beneath. Iris dark hazel. Feet
brownish-yellow, claws yellow. Head and hind-neck light greyish-blue,
blending into yellowish-green on the back, the lower part of which
is spotted with black; a broad band across the rump yellow, the upper
tail-coverts black. Wings bluish-grey when closed, the outer webs being
of that colour, the inner brownish-black; tips of the two larger rows
of coverts white, forming two bands of that colour. Tail black, with a
broad band of white in the middle, on the inner webs, excepting on the
two middle feathers, which are margined with blue, the outer webs of the
other feathers being bluish-white; the under parts are ochre-yellow,
the posterior part of the breast and sides spotted with black. Length
5 inches, extent of wings 7¼.

THE WHITE OAK.

     QUERCUS PRINUS, _Willd._ Sp. Pl. vol. iv. p. 439. _Pursh_,
     Fl. Amer. vol. ii. p. 633.—QUERCUS PRINUS PALUSTRIS, _Mich._
     Arbr. Forest. de l'Amer. Sept. vol. ii. p. 51. Pl. 7.—MONŒCIA
     POLYANDRIA, _Linn._ AMENTACEÆ, _Juss._

Leaves oblongo-oval, acute, largely toothed, the teeth nearly equal,
dilated, and callous at the tip; cupule craterate, attenuated at the
base; acorn ovate. This species grows in low shady woods, and along the
margins of rivers, from Pennsylvania to Florida. The wood is porous,
and of inferior quality.

THE HURRICANE.

Various portions of our country have at different periods suffered
severely from the influence of violent storms of wind, some of which have
been known to traverse nearly the whole extent of the United States,
and to leave such deep impressions in their wake as will not easily be
forgotten. Having witnessed one of these awful phenomena, in all its
grandeur, I shall attempt to describe it for your sake, kind reader,
and for your sake only, the recollection of that astonishing revolution
of the etherial element even now bringing with it so disagreeable a
sensation, that I feel as if about to be affected by a sudden stoppage
of the circulation of my blood.

I had left the village of Shawaney, situated on the banks of the Ohio,
on my return from Henderson, which is also situated on the banks of
the same beautiful stream. The weather was pleasant, and I thought not
warmer than usual at that season. My horse was jogging quietly along, and
my thoughts were, for once at least in the course of my life, entirely
engaged in commercial speculations. I had forded Highland Creek, and was
on the eve of entering a tract of bottom land or valley that lay between
it and Canoe Creek, when on a sudden I remarked a great difference in
the aspect of the heavens. A hazy thickness had overspread the country,
and I for some time expected an earthquake, but my horse exhibited no
propensity to stop and prepare for such an occurrence. I had nearly
arrived at the verge of the valley, when I thought fit to stop near a
brook, and dismounted to quench the thirst which had come upon me.

I was leaning on my knees, with my lips about to touch the water, when,
from my proximity to the earth, I heard a distant murmuring sound of
an extraordinary nature. I drank, however, and as I rose on my feet,
looked toward the south-west, where I observed a yellowish oval spot,
the appearance of which was quite new to me. Little time was left me
for consideration, as the next moment a smart breeze began to agitate
the taller trees. It increased to an unexpected height, and already the
smaller branches and twigs were seen falling in a slanting direction
towards the ground. Two minutes had scarcely elapsed, when the whole
forest before me was in fearful motion. Here and there, where one tree
pressed against another, a creaking noise was produced, similar to that
occasioned by the violent gusts which sometimes sweep over the country.
Turning instinctively toward the direction from which the wind blew,
I saw, to my great astonishment, that the noblest trees of the forest
bent their lofty heads for a while, and unable to stand against the
blast, were falling into pieces. First, the branches were broken off
with a crackling noise; then went the upper part of the massy trunks;
and in many places whole trees of gigantic size were falling entire
to the ground. So rapid was the progress of the storm, that before I
could think of taking measures to insure my safety, the hurricane was
passing opposite the place where I stood. Never can I forget the scene
which at that moment presented itself. The tops of the trees were seen
moving in the strangest manner, in the central current of the tempest,
which carried along with it a mingled mass of twigs and foliage, that
completely obscured the view. Some of the largest trees were seen bending
and writhing under the gale; others suddenly snapped across; and many,
after a momentary resistance, fell uprooted to the earth. The mass of
branches, twigs, foliage and dust that moved through the air, was whirled
onwards like a cloud of feathers, and on passing, disclosed a wide space
filled with fallen trees, naked stumps, and heaps of shapeless ruins,
which marked the path of the tempest. This space was about a fourth of
a mile in breadth, and to my imagination resembled the dried-up bed of
the Mississippi, with its thousands of planters and sawyers, strewed in
the sand, and inclined in various degrees. The horrible noise resembled
that of the great cataracts of Niagara, and as it howled along in the
track of the desolating tempest, produced a feeling in my mind which it
were impossible to describe.

The principal force of the hurricane was now over, although millions of
twigs and small branches, that had been brought from a great distance,
were seen following the blast, as if drawn onwards by some mysterious
power. They even floated in the air for some hours after, as if supported
by the thick mass of dust that rose high above the ground. The sky had
now a greenish lurid hue, and an extremely disagreeable sulphureous
odour was diffused in the atmosphere. I waited in amazement, having
sustained no material injury, until nature at length resumed her wonted
aspect. For some moments, I felt undetermined whether I should return
to Morgantown, or attempt to force my way through the wrecks of the
tempest. My business, however, being of an urgent nature, I ventured into
the path of the storm, and after encountering innumerable difficulties,
succeeded in crossing it. I was obliged to lead my horse by the bridle,
to enable him to leap over the fallen trees, whilst I scrambled over or
under them in the best way I could, at times so hemmed in by the broken
tops and tangled branches, as almost to become desperate. On arriving at
my house, I gave an account of what I had seen, when, to my surprise,
I was told that there had been very little wind in the neighbourhood,
although in the streets and gardens many branches and twigs had fallen
in a manner which excited great surprise.

Many wondrous accounts of the devastating effects of this hurricane
were circulated in the country, after its occurrence. Some log houses,
we were told, had been overturned, and their inmates destroyed. One
person informed me that a wire-sifter had been conveyed by the gust to
a distance of many miles. Another had found a cow lodged in the fork of
a large half-broken tree. But, as I am disposed to relate only what I
have myself seen, I shall not lead you into the region of romance, but
shall content myself with saying that much damage was done by this awful
visitation. The valley is yet a desolate place, overgrown with briars and
bushes, thickly entangled amidst the tops and trunks of the fallen trees,
and is the resort of ravenous animals, to which they betake themselves
when pursued by man, or after they have committed their depredations on
the farms of the surrounding district. I have crossed the path of the
storm, at a distance of a hundred miles from the spot where I witnessed
its fury, and, again, four hundred miles farther off, in the State of
Ohio. Lastly, I observed traces of its ravages on the summits of the
mountains connected with the Great Pine Forest of Pennsylvania, three
hundred miles beyond the place last mentioned. In all these different
parts, it appeared to me not to have exceeded a quarter of a mile in
breadth.

THE RED-TAILED HAWK.

_FALCO BOREALIS_, GMEL.

PLATE LI. MALE AND FEMALE.

The Red-tailed Hawk is a constant resident in the United States, in
every part of which it is found. It performs partial migrations, during
severe winters, from the Northern Districts towards the Southern. In the
latter, however, it is at all times more abundant, and I shall endeavour
to present you with a full account of its habits, as observed there.

Its flight is firm, protracted, and at times performed at a great height.
It sails across the whole of a large plantation, on a level with the
tops of the forest-trees which surround it, without a single flap of its
wings, and is then seen moving its head sidewise to inspect the objects
below. This flight is generally accompanied by a prolonged mournful cry,
which may be heard at a considerable distance, and consists of a single
sound resembling the monosyllable _Kae_, uttered in such a manner as to
continue for three or four minutes, without any apparent inflection or
difference of intensity. It would seem as if uttered for the purpose of
giving notice to the living objects below that he is passing, and of thus
inducing them to bestir themselves and retreat to a hiding-place, before
they attain which he may have an opportunity of pouncing upon some of
them. When he spies an animal, while he is thus sailing over a field,
I have observed him give a slight check to his flight, as if to mark
a certain spot with accuracy, and immediately afterwards alight on the
nearest tree. He would then instantly face about, look intensely on the
object that had attracted his attention, soon after descend towards it
with wings almost close to his body, and dart upon it with such accuracy
and rapidity as seldom to fail in securing it.

When passing over a meadow, a cotton-field, or one planted with
sugar-canes, he performs his flight close over the grass or plants,
uttering no cry, but marking the prey in the manner above described, and
on perceiving it, ascending in a beautiful curved line to the top of the
nearest tree, after which he watches and dives as in the former case.
Should he not observe any object worthy of his attention, while passing
over a meadow or a field, he alights, shakes his feathers, particularly
those of the tail, and after spending a few minutes in pluming himself,
leaves the perch, uttering his usual cry, and ascending in the air,
performs large and repeated circular flights, carefully inspecting the
field, to assure himself that there is in reality nothing in it that
may be of use to him. He then proceeds to another plantation. At other
times, as if not assured that his observations have been duly made, he
rises in circles over the same field to an immense height, where he looks
like a white dot in the heavens. Yet from this height he must be able
to distinguish the objects on the ground, even when these do not exceed
our little partridge or a young hare in size, and although their colour
may be almost the same as that of surrounding bodies; for of a sudden
his circlings are checked, his wings drawn close to his body, his tail
contracted to its smallest breadth, and he is seen to plunge headlong
towards the earth, with a rapidity which produces a loud rustling sound
nearly equal to that of an Eagle on a similar occasion.

Should he not succeed in discovering the desired object in the fields,
he enters the forest and perches on some detached tree, tall enough to
enable him to see to a great distance around. His posture is now erect,
he remains still and silent, moving only his head, as on all other
occasions, to enable his keen eye to note the occurrences which may take
place in his vicinity. The lively Squirrel is seen gaily leaping from one
branch to another, or busily employed in searching for the fallen nuts
on the ground. It has found one. Its bushy tail is beautifully curved
along its back, the end of it falling off with a semicircular bend; its
nimble feet are seen turning the nut quickly round, and its teeth are
already engaged in perforating the hard shell; when, quick as thought,
the Red-tailed Hawk, which has been watching it in all its motions,
falls upon it, seizes it near the head, transfixes and strangles it,
devours it on the spot, or ascends exultingly to a branch with the yet
palpitating victim in his talons, and there feasts at leisure.

As soon as the little King-bird has raised its brood, and when its
courage is no longer put in requisition for the defence of its young
or its mate, the Red-tailed Hawk visits the farm-houses, to pay his
regards to the poultry. This is done without much precaution, for, while
sailing over the yard where the chickens, the ducklings, and the young
turkeys are, the Hawk plunges upon any one of them, and sweeps it off
to the nearest wood. When impelled by continued hunger, he now and then
manages to elude the vigilance of the Martins, Swallows and King-birds,
and watching for a good opportunity, falls upon and seizes an old fowl,
the dying screams of which are heard by the farmer at the plough, who
swears vengeance against the robber. He remembers that he has observed
the Hawk's nest in the woods, and full of anger at the recollection
of the depredations which the plunderer has already committed, and at
the anticipation of its many visits during the winter, leaves his work
and his horses, strides to his house, and with an axe and a rifle in
his hands proceeds towards the tree, where the hopes of the Red-tailed
Hawk are snugly nestled among the tall branches. The farmer arrives,
eyes the gigantic tree, thinks for a moment of the labour which will be
required for felling it, but resolves that he shall not be overreached
by a Hawk. He throws aside his hat, rolls up his sleeves, and applies
himself to the work. His brawny arms give such an impulse to the axe,
that at every stroke large chips are seen to fall off on all sides. The
poor mother-bird, well aware of the result, sails sorrowfully over and
around. She would fain beg for mercy towards her young. She alights on
the edge of the nest, and would urge her offspring to take flight. But
the farmer has watched her motions. The axe is left sticking in the core
of the tree, his rifle is raised to his shoulder in an instant, and the
next moment the whizzing ball has pierced the heart of the Red-tailed
Hawk, which falls unheeded to the earth. The farmer renews his work,
and now changes sides. A whole hour has been spent in the application of
ceaseless blows. He begins to look upwards, to judge which way the giant
of the forest will fall, and having ascertained this, he redoubles his
blows. The huge oak begins to tremble. Were it permitted to speak, it
might ask why it should suffer for the deeds of another; but it is now
seen slowly to incline, and soon after with an awful rustling produced
by all its broad arms, its branches, twigs and leaves, passing like
lightning through the air, the noble tree falls to the earth, and almost
causes it to shake. The work of revenge is now accomplished: the farmer
seizes the younglings, and carries them home, to be tormented by his
children, until death terminates their brief career.

Notwithstanding the very common occurrence of such acts of retribution
between man and the Hawk, it would be difficult to visit a plantation
in the State of Louisiana, without observing at least a pair of this
species hovering about, more especially during the winter months. Early in
February, they begin to build their nest, which is usually placed within
the forest, and on the tallest and largest tree in the neighbourhood.
The male and female are busily engaged in carrying up dried sticks,
and other materials, for eight or ten days, during which time their
cry is seldom heard. The nest is large, and is fixed in the centre of a
triply forked branch. It is of a flattish form, constructed of sticks,
and finished with slender twigs and coarse grasses or Spanish moss. The
female lays four or five eggs, of a dull white colour, splatched with
brown and black, with a very hard, smooth shell. The male assists the
female in incubating, but it is seldom that the one brings food to the
other while thus employed.

I have seen one or two of these nests built in a large tree which had
been left standing in the middle of a field; but occurrences of this kind
are rare, on account of the great enmity shewn to this species by the
farmers. The young are abundantly supplied with food of various kinds,
particularly grey squirrels, which the parents procure while hunting in
pairs, when nothing can save the squirrel from their attacks excepting
its retreat into the hole of a tree; for should the animal be observed
ascending the trunk or branch of a tree by either of the Hawks, this one
immediately plunges toward it, while the other watches it from the air.
The little animal, if placed against the trunk, when it sees the Hawk
coming towards it, makes swiftly for the opposite side of the trunk, but
is there immediately dived at by the other Hawk, and now the murderous
pair chase it so closely, that unless it immediately finds a hole into
which to retreat, it is caught in a few minutes, killed, carried to the
nest, torn in pieces, and distributed among the young Hawks. Small hares,
or, as we usually call them, _rabbits_, are also frequently caught, and
the depredations of the Red-tailed Hawks at this period are astonishing,
for they seem to kill every thing, fit for food, that comes in their
way. They are great destroyers of tame Pigeons, and woe to the Cock or
Hen that strays far from home, for so powerful is this Hawk, that it
is able not only to kill them, but to carry them off in its claws to a
considerable distance.

The continued attachment that exists between Eagles once paired, is
not exhibited by these birds, which, after rearing their young, become
as shy towards each other as if they had never met. This is carried to
such a singular length, that they are seen to chase and rob each other
of their prey, on all occasions. I have seen a couple thus engaged,
when one of them had just seized a young rabbit or a squirrel, and was
on the eve of rising in the air with it, for the purpose of carrying it
off to a place of greater security. The one would attack the other with
merciless fury, and either force it to abandon the prize, or fight with
the same courage as its antagonist, to prevent the latter from becoming
the sole possessor. They are sometimes observed flying either one after
the other with great rapidity, emitting their continued cry of _kae_,
or performing beautiful evolutions through the air, until one or other
of them becomes fatigued, and giving way, makes for the earth where the
battle continues until one is overpowered and obliged to make off. It
was after witnessing such an encounter between two of these powerful
marauders, fighting hard for a young hare, that I made the drawing now
before you, kind reader, in which you perceive the male to have greatly
the advantage over the female, although she still holds the hare firmly
in one of her talons, even while she is driven towards the earth, with
her breast upwards.

I have observed that this species will even condescend to pounce on
wood-rats and meadow-mice; but I never saw one of these birds seize even
those without first alighting on a tree before committing the act.

During the winter months, the Red-tailed Hawk remains perched for hours
together, when the sun is shining and the weather calm. Its breast is
opposed to the sun, and it then is seen at a great distance, the pure
white of that portion of its plumage glittering as if possessed of a
silky gloss. They return to their roosting-places so late in the evening,
that I have frequently heard their cry after sun-set, mingling with the
jovial notes of Chuck-will's-widow, and the ludicrous laugh of the Barred
Owl. In the State of Louisiana, the Red-tailed Hawk roosts amongst the
tallest branches of the _Magnolia grandiflora_, a tree which there often
attains a height of a hundred feet, and a diameter of from three to four
feet at the base. It is also fond of roosting on the tall Cypress-trees
of our swamps, where it spends the night in security, amidst the mosses
attached to the branches.

The Red-tailed Hawk is extremely wary, and difficult to be approached by
any one bearing a gun, the use of which it seems to understand perfectly;
for no sooner does it perceive a man thus armed than it spreads its
wings, utters a loud shriek, and sails off in an opposite direction.
On the other hand, a person on horseback, or walking unarmed, may pass
immediately under the branch on which it is perched, when it merely
watches his motions as he proceeds. It seldom alights on fences, or the
low branches of trees, but prefers the highest and most prominent parts
of the tallest trees. It alights on the borders of clear streams to
drink. I have observed it in such situations, immersing its bill up to
the eyes, and swallowing as much as was necessary to quench its thirst
at a single draught.

I have seen this species pounce on soft-shelled tortoises, and amusing
enough it was to see the latter scramble towards the water, enter it,
and save themselves from the claws of the Hawk by immediately diving.
I am not aware that this Hawk is ever successful in these attacks, as
I have not on any occasion found any portion of the skin, head, or feet
of tortoises in the stomachs of the many Hawks of this species which I
have killed and examined. Several times, however, I have found portions
of bull-frogs in their stomach.

All our Falcons are pestered with parasitic flying ticks. Those found
amongst the plumage of the Red-tailed Hawk, like all others, move swiftly
sidewise between the feathers, issue from the skin, and shift from one
portion of the body to another on wing, and do not abandon the bird for
a day or two after the latter is dead. These ticks are large, and of an
auburn colour.

The body of the Red-tailed Hawk is large, compact, and muscular. These
birds protrude their talons beyond their head in seizing their prey, as
well as while fighting in the air, in the manner shown in the Plate. I
have caught several birds of this species by baiting a steel-trap with
a live chicken.

The animal represented as held in one of the feet of the female, is
usually called a _rabbit_ in all parts of the United States, but is
evidently a true hare. It never burrows, but has a _form_ to rest in,
and to which it returns in the manner of the common hare of Europe.
I may hereafter present you, kind reader, with a full account of this
American species, which occurs in great abundance in the United States.

I have only here to add, that amongst the American farmers the common
name of our present bird is the _Hen-hawk_, while it receives that of
_Grand mangeur de poules_ from the Creoles of Louisiana.

     FALCO BOREALIS, _Gmel._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 266.—_Lath._
     Ind. Ornith. vol. i. p. 25.—_Ch. Bonaparte_, Synops. p. 32.

     AMERICAN BUZZARD, _Lath._ Synops. vol. i. p. 50.

     RED-TAILED HAWK, FALCO BOREALIS, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol. vi.
     p. 75. Pl. 52. fig. 1. Adult.

     AMERICAN BUZZARD, OR WHITE-BREASTED HAWK, FALCO LEVERIANUS,
     _Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol. vi. p. 78. Pl. 51. fig. 3. Young.

Adult Male. Plate LI. Fig. 1.

Bill short, robust, at the base as broad as deep, compressed towards
the end, cerate; upper mandible, with the dorsal outline, convex from
the base, rounded on the sides, the edges with an obtuse lobe, the
tip trigonal, descending obliquely, acute; lower mandible involute at
the edges, truncate at the end, broadly rounded on the back. Nostrils
roundish, nearly dorsal, in the fore part of the cere. Head large,
flat above. Neck shortish, robust. Body bulky. Legs rather long, very
robust; tarsi stout, scutellate before and behind, the sides covered with
hexagonal scales; toes scutellate above, scaly on the sides, scabrous
and tubercular beneath; claws roundish, strong, curved, very acute.

Plumage compact and firm; feathers of the head and neck rather narrow,
of the other parts broad and rounded. Tarsus feathered anteriorly about
one-third down. Wings long, ample, rounded, the fourth quill longest,
the first short. Tail of twelve broad, rounded feathers, even, and of
ordinary length.

Bill light blue, blackish at the tip, greenish-yellow on the margin
towards the base; cere greenish-yellow. Iris hazel. Tarsi and toes yellow;
claws brownish-black. Upper part of the head light brownish-grey. Loral
space and under eyelid white. A broad band of dark brown from the angle
of the mouth backwards. Neck above and on the sides reddish-yellow, with
large deep brown spots. Back deep brown; scapulars of the same colour,
broadly margined and tipped with brownish-white. Lesser wing-coverts
chocolate-brown; larger lighter brown, tipped with white. Primary quills
blackish-brown; secondaries lighter, tipped with brownish-white; all
barred with blackish. Upper tail-coverts whitish, barred with brown,
and yellowish-red in the middle. Tail bright yellowish-red, tipped with
whitish, and having a narrow bar of black near the end. Lower parts
brownish-white; the fore part of the breast and neck light yellowish-red,
the former marked with guttiform, somewhat sagittate brown spots: abdomen
and chin white; feathers of the leg and tarsus pale reddish-yellow,
those on the outside indistinctly spotted.

Length 20½ inches, extent of wings 46; bill along the back 1¼, along the
gap 2; tarsus 3⅓, middle toe 2¾. Wings when closed reaching to within
two inches of the tip of the tail.

Adult Female. Plate LI. Fig. 2.

The female, which is considerably larger, agrees with the male in the
general distribution of its colouring. The upper parts are darker, and
the under parts nearly white, there being only a few narrow streaks on
the sides of the breast; the tibial and tarsal feathers as in the male.
The tail is of a duller red, and wants the black bar.

Length 24 inches.

THE AMERICAN HARE.

     LEPUS AMERICANUS, _Harlan_, Fauna Americana, p. 193.

The Rabbit, as this animal is named in the United States, has the habits
of the European Hare, forming a flat, well-beaten, oblong space among
the grass, on which it rests during the day. It never burrows like the
Common Rabbit of Europe, although it resorts for safety to the hollows
of fallen trunks, or those frequently existing at the roots of standing
trees, as well as to cavities in rocks. It feeds principally towards
the approach of night and early in the morning, and spends the greater
part of the day in its form. When startled by a dog, it proceeds in a