Under a Wild Sky (64 page)

251
   
He went to a meeting and paid his dues
Ford,
John James Audubon
, page 265.

251
   
George Ord, who had been conveniently abroad
“List of Visitors,” Royal Society Archives. Ord stopped by the society on June 18, 1829.

251
   
He immediately directed Havell
Audubon,
The Birds of America.

251
   
A short while later, Dr. Harlan
Richard Harlan to Audubon, August 19, 1830 (Beinecke).

252
   
Havell sent Audubon a note updating him
Robert Havell Jr. to Audubon, June 2, 1830 (Houghton).

252
   
The paper itself—heavy linen stock
Personal observation. Of the various original double elephant folios I've looked at, none appeared the worse for wear because of any frailty of the paper, which really is extraordinary. On many pages of most sets, the pressing together of the prints under the great weight of the bound volumes has caused the images to transfer faintly onto the backs of the adjacent prints. But the prints are sturdy. In fact, they appear to have held up in some cases to careless handling. One print I saw bore the smudged tracks of a house cat across its face.

252
   
Worst of all was a scathing letter
Ford,
John James Audubon
, page 269.

252
   
Enraged, Audubon wrote to Havell
Audubon to Robert Havell Jr., June 29, 1830 (Houghton).

252
   
Chagrined at not having caught
Ibid.

252
   
He warned Havell that if
Ibid.

252
   
Stung, Havell fired back
Robert Havell Jr. to Audubon, June 30, 1830 (Houghton).

253
   
Swainson sent Audubon a sarcastic note
William Swainson to Audubon, May 1 [10?], 1830. Quoted in Herrick,
Audubon the Naturalist
, vol. II, pages 97–99.

253
   
Ord had written to Alexander Lawson
George Ord to Alexander Lawson, circa 1830 (Houghton). Only a fragment of this biting and bitter letter survives. I wonder about the date, as it seems more likely to have been written during Ord's visit the year before.

253
   
Lucy wrote about it to Victor and Johnny
Lucy Audubon to Victor and John Woodhouse Audubon, August 30, 1830 (Beinecke).

254
   
In October they arrived in Edinburgh
Buchanan (ed.),
The Life and Adventures of John James Audubon
, page 171.

254
   
In addition to engraving, printselling, and publishing
Printed advertisement, circa 1830 (Ewell Sale Stewart Library and Archives).

254
   
Audubon asked Havell to display
Audubon to Robert Havell Jr., January 16, 1831 (Houghton).

254
   
My letter will be through necessity
Audubon to Lucy Audubon, October 11, 1829 (Beinecke).

255
   
Another factor in the decision
Fries,
The Double Elephant Folio
, page 47.

255
   
Audubon confided to Charles-Lucien Bonaparte
Audubon to Bonaparte, July 14, 1830. Quoted in Ford,
John James Audubon
, pages 269–70. Audubon had been telling this to Bonaparte since they had first met in Philadelphia six years earlier. In this letter, he put it bluntly, saying that he was “not a learned naturalist” but only a “practical one.”

255
   
Audubon had thought initially of William Swainson
Audubon to William Swainson, August 22, 1830 (Linnaean Society Archives).

255
   
He told Audubon that their coming to stay with him
William Swainson to Audubon, between August 24 and August 28, 1830. Quoted in Herrick,
Audubon the Naturalist
, vol. II, pages 103–5.

256
   
One of the people he talked to was
Ralph,
William MacGillivray
, page 35.

256
   
Eleven years younger than Audubon
Ibid., pages 1–35. The physical description is from the frontispiece likeness of MacGillivray in Ralph's book.

256
   
When Audubon met him
Ibid., pages 29–32.

256
   
Toward the end of 1830
Ibid., page 35. A few months later, MacGillivray apparently regretted not asking for credit as a coauthor, and complained of it in a letter—Willliam MacGillivray to Audubon, May 7, 1831 (Beinecke).

256
   
Audubon, rising at dawn
Buchanan (ed.),
The Life and Adventures of John James Audubon
, page 172.

257
   
MacGillivray matched Audubon's manic pace
Ibid.

257
   
Prone to rheumatism, Lucy found Edinburgh
Lucy to Robert Havell Jr., December 2, 1830 (Houghton).

257
   
Audubon, whom she observed
Ibid.

257
   
It was so foggy in Edinburgh
Ibid.

257
   
Anyone having business with Audubon
Ibid. Lucy's correspondence on behalf of Audubon commenced in Edinburgh and would continue, as needed when “Mr. Audubon” was “particularly engaged,” for many years.

257
   
She told Mrs. Havell that they were far too busy
Lucy Audubon to Mrs. Havell, February 27, 1831 (Houghton).

257
   
In a burst of headlong writing
Buchanan (ed.),
The Life and Adventures of John James Audubon
, page 172. Apparently the book was typeset as the copy was produced, as it was ready to ship within weeks of Audubon and MacGillivray completing their draft.

257
   
The typeset version ran to
Audubon,
Ornithological Biography
, vol. I.

258
   
I feel pleasure here in acknowledging
Ibid., pages xviii–xix.

258
   
Audubon planned to sell
Fries,
The Double Elephant Folio
, page 50.

259
   
And so he interspersed the bird accounts
Audubon, title page,
Ornithological Biography
, vol. I.

259
   
In “Kentucky Barbicue”
Audubon, “Kentucky Barbicue on the Fourth of July,”
Ornithological Biography
, vol. II, pages 576–79.

259
   
He wrote a devoted remembrance
Audubon, “A Wild Horse,”
Ornithological Biography
, vol. III, pages 270–74.

259
   
He wrote enthusiastically of
Audubon, “The Squatters of the Mississippi,”
Ornithological Biography
, vol. II, pages 131–34.

259
   
There was a pioneer family's recollection
Audubon, “The Burning of the Forests,”
Ornithological Biography
, vol. II, pages 397–402; and “The Lost One,”
Ornithological Biography
, vol. II, pages 69–73.

259
   
Then there was the ghastly
Audubon, “The Death of a Pirate,”
Ornithological Biography
, vol. II, pages 185–89.

260
   
In “Pitting of Wolves,” Audubon told
Audubon, “Pitting of Wolves,”
Ornithological Biography
, vol. III, pages 338–41.

260
   
After an entertaining discussion
Audubon, “Scipio and the Bear,”
Ornithological Biography
, vol. I, pages 479–82.

261
   
In “The Prairie,” Audubon recounted
Audubon, “The Prairie,”
Ornithological Biography
, vol. I, pages 81–84.

261
   
There was a similar dubious quality
Audubon, “The Runaway,”
Ornithological Biography
, vol. II, pages 27–32.

262
   
In “The Earthquake” he told of riding
Audubon, “The Earthquake,”
Ornithological Biography
, vol. I, pages 239–41.

263
   
Audubon without question experienced
Walker,
Earthquake
, pages 112–13.

263
   
At the time of the initial quake
Lucy Audubon to Euphemia Gifford, January 5, 1812 (Princeton University Library).

264
   
“
Kentucky Sports” began with
Audubon, “Kentucky Sports,”
Ornithological Biography
, vol. I, pages 290–95.

265
   
Audubon gave a much fuller description
Audubon, “Colonel Boon,”
Ornithological Biography
, vol. I, pages 503–6.

265
   
The stature and general appearance of this wanderer
Ibid.

265
   
Daniel Boone left Kentucky
Faragher,
Daniel Boone
, pages 308–9.

266
   
Boone, who was by then almost eighty
Ford,
John James Audubon
, page 88.

266
   
Lucy wrote to Mrs. Havell to say that so much
Lucy Audubon to Mrs. Havell, February 27, 1831 (Houghton).

266
   
In the fall of 1831
Audubon to Lucy Audubon, November 23, 1831 (Beinecke).

267
   
Off to starboard the surf crashed
Personal observation. I have family in this part of the world, and have spent much time on the same beautiful and often wild stretch of ocean.

267
   
On November 20 the
Agnes
made port
Audubon to Lucy Audubon, November 13, 1831, and November 23, 1831. The arrival date is derived from Audubon's plan to leave Charleston “the day after tomorrow” stated in his November 13 letter, and the duration of the passage, stated as five days in the letter of November 23 (Beinecke).

267
   
It reminded him of “an old French Village”
Audubon to Lucy Audubon, November 23, 1831 (Beinecke).

267
   
Established in 1565 by the Spanish
Gannon,
The New History of Florida
, page 44.

267
   
Audubon thought the people here were the laziest
Audubon to Lucy Audubon, November 29, 1831 (Beinecke).

267
   
The weather, too, was awful
Ibid.

267
   
One day Audubon explored
Audubon to Lucy Audubon, November 23, 1831 (Beinecke).

267
   
He wrote a series of cheerful letters to Lucy
Audubon to Lucy Audubon, December 5, 1831 (Beinecke). Audubon said being once again in the wilds of America had made him feel “as young as ever.” Lucy, he advised, should be “gay” and “happy.”

268
   
He even devised a plan
Ibid.

268
   
But letters from Havell
Ibid.

268
   
“Do not despond my Lucy”
Ibid.

268
   
The subscriber list seemed to have leveled off
Ford,
John James Audubon
, page 281.

268
   
On August 1, 1831
Audubon to Robert Havell Jr., July 31, 1831 (Houghton).

268
   
From New York they had gone to
Audubon to Robert Havell Jr., September 20, 1831 (Houghton). Although Audubon mentions only three subscribers in this letter, he got a fourth—the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia—as Lucy reported in a letter to Mrs. Havell twelve days later—Lucy Audubon to Mrs. Havell, October 2, 1831 (Houghton). A month after this Richard Harlan wrote to Audubon about the arrival and condition of the academy's copy of
The Birds of America.

268
   
Audubon declared, prematurely it turned out
Audubon to Robert Havell Jr., September 20, 1831 (Houghton).

268
   
Victor met his parents
Audubon to Lucy Audubon, October 9, 1831; October 13, 1831; and October 23, 1831 (Beinecke).

268
   
He was accompanied again
Audubon to Lucy Audubon, October 23, 1831 (Beinecke).