134 S Q U A T T E R S O F T H E M I S S I S S I P P I .
Log after log is hauled to the bank of the river, and in a short time their
first raft is made on the shore, and loaded with cord-wood. When the
next freshet sets it afloat, it is secured by long grape-vines or cables, until
the proper time being arrived, the husband and sons embark on it, and
float down the mighty stream.
After encountering many difficulties, they arrive in safety at New
Orleans where they dispose of their stock, the money obtained for which
may be said to be all profit, supply themselves with such articles as may
add to their convenience or comfort, and with light hearts, procure a passage
on the upper deck of a steamer, at a very cheap rate, on account
of the benefit of their labour in taking in wood or otherwise.
And now the vessel approaches their home. See the joyous mother
and daughters as they stand on the bank! A store of vegetables lies
around them, a large tub of fresh milk is at their feet, and in their hands
are plates filled with rolls of butter. As the steamer stops, three broad
straw-hats are waved from its upper deck ; and soon, husband and wife,
brothers and sisters, are in each other's embrace. The boat carries off* the
provisions, for which value has been left, and as the captain issues his orders
for putting on the steam, the happy family enter their humble dwelling.
The husband gives his bag of dollars to the wife, while the sons
present some token of affection to their sisters. Surely, at such a moment,
the Squatters are richly repaid for all their labours.
Every successive year has increased their savings. They now possess
a large stock of horses, cows, and hogs, with abundance of provisions,
and domestic comfort of every kind. The daughters have been married
to the sons of neighbouring Squatters, and have gained sisters to themselves
by the marriage of their brothers. The government secures to the
family the lands, on which, twenty years before, they settled in poverty
and sickness. Larger buildings are erected on piles, secure from the inundations;
where a single cabin once stood, a neat village is now to be
seen; warehouses, stores, and work-shops increase the importance of the
place. The Squatters live respected, and in due time die regretted, by
all who knew them.
Thus are the vast frontiers of our country peopled, and thus does cultivation,
year after year, extend over the western wilds. Time will no doubt
be, when the great valley of the Mississippi, still covered with primeval
forests, interspersed with swamps, will smile with corn-fields and orchards,
while crowded cities will rise at intervals along its banks, and enlightened
nations will rejoice in the bounties of Providence.
( 135 )
T H E SNOWY OWL.
STRJX NYC TEA.
P L A T E C X X I . MALE A N D F E M A L E .
THIS beautiful bird is merely a winter visitor of the United States,
where it is seldom seen before the month of November, and whence it
retires as early as the beginning of February. It wanders at times along
the sea coast, as far as Georgia. I have occasionally seen it in the lowei
parts of Kentucky, and in the State of Ohio. It is more frequently met
with in Pennsylvania and the Jerseys; but in Massachusetts and Maine
it is far more abundant than in any other parts of the Union.
The Snowy Owl hunts during the day, as well as in the dusk. Its
flight is firm and protracted, although smooth and noiseless. It passes
swiftly over its hunting ground, seizes its prey by instantaneously falling
on it, and generally devours it on the spot. When the objects of
its pursuit are on wing, such as ducks, grouse, or pigeons, it gains upon
them by urging its speed, and strikes them somewhat in the manner
of the Peregrine Falcon. It is fond of the neighbourhood of rivers
and small streams, having in their course cataracts or shallow rapids,
on the borders of which it seizes on fishes, in the manner of our wild
cat. It also watches the traps set for musk-rats, and devours the animals
caught in them. Its usual food, while it remains with us, consists
of hares, squirrels, rats, and fishes, portions of all of which I have found
in its stomach. In several fine specimens which I examined immediately
after being killed, I found the stomach to be extremely thin, soft, and
capable of great extension. In one of them I found the whole of a large
house-rat, in pieces of considerable size, the head and the tail almost
entire. This bird was very fat, and its intestines, which were thin, and
so small as not to exceed a fourth of an inch in diameter, measured 4£ feet
in length.
When skinned, the body of the Snowy Owl appears at first sight compact
and very muscular, for the breast is large, as are the thighs and legs,
these parts being covered with much flesh of a fine and delicate appearance,
very much resembling that'of a chicken, and not indelicate eating, but the
thorax is very narrow for so large a bird. The keel of the breast-bone i>