accompanied with rain and cold weather, and the water so rough that I
could not go ashore to get plants to draw. This afternoon, however,
the wind and waves abated, and we landed for a short time. The view
from the topmost rock overlooking the agitated sea was grand; the
small islets were covered with the angry foam. Thank God! we were not
at sea. I had the pleasure of coming immediately upon a Cormorant's
nest, that lay in a declivity not more than four or five yards below
me; the mother bird was on her nest with three young; I was unobserved
by her for some minutes, and was delighted to see how kindly attentive
she was to her dear brood; suddenly her keen eye saw me, and she flew
off as if to dive in the sea.
_July 4._ At four this morning I sent Tom Lincoln on shore after four
plants and a Cormorant's nest for me to draw. The nest was literally
_pasted_ to the rock's edge, so thick was the decomposed, putrid
matter below it, and to which the upper part of the nest was attached.
It was formed of such sticks as the country affords, sea-moss and
other garbage, and weighed over fifteen pounds. I have drawn all day,
and have finished the plate of the _Fringilla lincolnii_, to which I
have put three plants of the country, all new to me and probably never
before figured; to us they are very fitting for the purpose, as
Lincoln gathered them. Our party divided as usual into three bands:
John and Lincoln off after Divers; Coolidge, Shattuck, and Ingalls to
the main land, and our captain and four men to a pond after fish,
which they will catch with a seine. Captain Bayfield sent us a quarter
of mutton, a rarity, I will venture to say, on this coast even on the
Fourth of July. John and Lincoln returned with a Red-necked Diver, or
Scapegrace, Coolidge and party with the nest and two eggs of the
_Colymbus glacialis_.[201] This nest was found on the margin of a
pond, and was made of short grasses, weeds, etc.; well fashioned and
fifteen inches in diameter. After dinner John and I went on shore to
release a _Uria grylle_ that we had confined in the fissure of a rock;
the poor thing was sadly weak, but will soon recover from this trial
of ours.
_July 5._ John and Lincoln returned at sunset with a Red-necked Diver,
and one egg of that bird, they also found _Uria grylle_, whose pebbled
nests were placed beneath large rolling stones on the earth, and not
in fissures; Lincoln thought them a different species, but John did
not. They brought some curious Eels, and an Arctic Tern, and saw the
tracks of Deer and Caribou, also Otter paths from one pond to another.
They saw several Loons and _tolled_ them by running towards them
hallooing and waving a handkerchief, at which sight and cry the Loon
immediately swam towards them, until within twenty yards. This
"tolling" is curious and wonderful. Many other species of water-fowl
are deceived by these manoeuvres, but none so completely as the
Loon. Coolidge's party was fortunate enough to kill a pair of
Ptarmigans, and to secure seven of the young birds, hatched yesterday
at furthest. They met with these on the dreary, mossy tops of the
hills, over which we tread daily in search of knowledge. This is the
species of Grouse of which we heard so much at Dennysville last
autumn, and glad I am that it is a resident bird with us. The _Larus
marinus_ was observed trying to catch the young of the Eiders. I drew
from four o'clock this morning till three this afternoon; finished a
figure of the _Colymbus septentrionalis_.[202] Feeling the want of
exercise, went off with the captain a few miles, to a large rough
island. To tread over the spongy moss of Labrador is a task beyond
conception until tried; at every step the foot sinks in a deep, soft
cushion which closes over it, and it requires a good deal of exertion
to pull it up again. Where this moss happens to be over a marsh, then
you sink a couple of feet deep every step you take; to reach a bare
rock is delightful, and quite a relief. This afternoon I thought the
country looked more terrifyingly wild than ever; the dark clouds,
casting their shadows on the stupendous masses of rugged rock, lead
the imagination into regions impossible to describe. The Scoter Ducks,
of which I have seen many this day, were partially moulted, and could
fly only a short distance, and must be either barren or the young
bachelors, as I find _parents_ in full plumage, convincing me that
these former moult earlier than the breeding Ducks. I have observed
this strange fact so often now that I shall say no more about it; I
have found it in nearly all the species of the birds here. I do not
know of any writer on the history of birds having observed this
curious fact before. I have now my hands full of work, and go to bed
delighted that to-morrow I shall draw a Ptarmigan which I can swear
to, as being a United States species. I am much fatigued and wet to
the very skin, but, oh! we found the nest of a Peregrine Falcon on a
tremendous cliff, with a young one about a week old, quite white with
down; the parents flew fiercely at our eyes.
_July 6._ By dint of hard work and rising at three, I have drawn a
_Colymbus septentrionalis_ and a young one, and nearly finished a
Ptarmigan; this afternoon, however, at half-past five, my fingers
could no longer hold my pencil, and I was forced to abandon my work
and go ashore for exercise. The fact is that I am growing old too
fast; alas! I feel it--and yet work I will, and may God grant me life
to see the last plate of my mammoth work finished. I have heard the
Brown Lark (_Anthus spinoletta_) sing many a time this day, both on
the wing and whilst sitting on the ground. When on the wing it sings
while flying very irregularly in zigzags, up and down, etc.; when on a
rock (which it prefers) it stands erect, and sings, I think, more
clearly. John found the nest of a White-crowned Bunting with five
eggs; he was creeping through some low bushes after a Red-necked
Diver, and accidentally coming upon it, startled the female, which
made much noise and complaint. The nest was like the one Lincoln found
placed in the moss, under a low bough, and formed of beautiful moss
outwardly, dried, fine grass next inside, and exquisitely lined with
fibrous roots of a rich yellow color; the eggs are light greenish,
slightly sprinkled with reddish-brown, in size about the same as eggs
of the Song Sparrow. This _Fringilla_[203] is the most abundant in
this part of Labrador. We have seen two Swamp Sparrows only. We have
found two nests of the Peregrine Falcon, placed high on rocky
declivities. Coolidge and party shot two Oyster Catchers; these are
becoming plentiful. Lieutenant Bowen of the "Gulnare" brought me a
Peregrine Falcon, and two young of the _Alca torda_, the first hatched
we have seen, and only two or three days old.
_July 7._ Drawing all day; finished the female Grouse and five young,
and prepared the male bird. The captain, John, and Lincoln, went off
this afternoon with a view to camp on a bay about ten miles distant.
Soon after, we had a change of weather, and, for a wonder, bright
lightning and something like summer clouds. When fatigued with drawing
I went on shore for exercise, and saw many pretty flowers, amongst
them a flowering Sea-pea, quite rich in color. Dr. Kelly from the
"Gulnare" went with me. Captain Bayfield and Lieutenant Bowen went off
this morning on a three weeks' expedition in open boats, but with
tents and more comforts than I have ever enjoyed in hunting
excursions. The mosquitoes quite as numerous as in Louisiana.
_July 8._ Rainy, dirty weather, wind east. Was at work at half-past
three, but disagreeable indeed is my situation during bad weather. The
rain falls on my drawing-paper, despite all I can do, and even the fog
collects and falls in large drops from the rigging on my table; now
and then I am obliged to close my skylight, and then may be said to
work almost in darkness. Notwithstanding, I finished my cock
Ptarmigan, and three more young, and now consider it a handsome large
plate. John and party returned, cold, wet, and hungry. Shot nothing,
camp disagreeable, and nothing to relate but that they heard a Wolf,
and found an island with thousands of the _Mormon arcticus_ breeding
on it. To-morrow I shall draw the beautiful _Colymbus glacialis_ in
most perfect plumage.
_July 9._ The wind east, of course disagreeable; wet and foggy
besides. The most wonderful climate in the world. Cold as it is,
mosquitoes in profusion, plants blooming by millions, and at every
step you tread on such as would be looked upon with pleasure in more
temperate climes. I wish I were a better botanist, that I might
describe them as I do birds. Dr. Wm. Kelly has given me the list of
such plants as he has observed on the coast as far as Macatine Island.
I have drawn all day at the Loon, a most difficult bird to imitate.
For my part, I cannot help smiling at the presumption of some of our
authors, who modestly assert that their figures are "up to nature."
May God forgive them, and teach me to _copy_ His works; glad and happy
shall I then be. Lincoln and Shattuck brought some fresh-water shells
from a large pond inland; they saw a large bird which they took for an
Owl, but which they could not approach; they also caught a frog, but
lost it out of their game bag.
_July 10._ Could I describe one of these dismal gales which blow ever
and anon over this desolate country, it would in all probability be of
interest to one unacquainted with the inclemency of the climate.
Nowhere else is the power of the northeast gale, which blows every
week on the coast of Labrador, so keenly felt as here. I cannot
describe it; all I can say is that whilst we are in as fine and safe a
harbor as could be wished for, and completely land-locked all round,
so strong does the wind blow, and so great its influence on our
vessel, that her motion will not allow me to draw, and indeed once
this day forced me to my berth, as well as some others of our party.
One would imagine all the powers of Boreas had been put to work to
give us a true idea of what his energies can produce, even in so snug
a harbor. What is felt outside I cannot imagine, but greatly fear that
few vessels could ride safely before these horrid blasts, that now and
then seem strong enough to rend the very rocks asunder. The rain is
driven in sheets which seem scarcely to fall on sea or land; I can
hardly call it rain, it is rather a mass of water, so thick that all
objects at any distance from us are lost to sight every three or four
minutes, and the waters comb up and beat about us in our rock-bound
harbor as a newly caged bird does against its imprisoning walls. The
Great Black-backed Gull alone is seen floating through the storm,
screaming loudly and mournfully as it seeks its prey; not another bird
is to be seen abroad; the Cormorants are all settled in the rocks
close to us, the Guillemots are deep in the fissures, every Eider Duck
lays under the lee of some point, her brood snugly beneath her opened
wings, the Loon and the Diver have crawled among the rankest weeds,
and are patiently waiting for a return of fair weather, the Grouse is
quite hid under the creeping willow, the Great Gray Owl is perched on
the southern declivity of some stupendous rock, and the gale
continues as if it would never stop. On rambling about the shores of
the numerous bays and inlets of this coast, you cannot but observe
immense beds of round stone of all sizes, some of very large
dimensions rolled side by side and piled one upon another many deep,
cast there by some great force of nature. I have seen many such
places, and never without astonishment and awe. If those great
boulders are brought from the bottom of the sea, and cast hundreds of
yards on shore, this will give some idea of what a gale on the coast
of Labrador can be, and what the force of the waves. I tried to finish
my drawing of the Loon, but in vain; I covered my paper to protect it
from the rain, with the exception only of the few inches where I
wished to work, and yet that small space was not spared by the drops
that fell from the rigging on my table; there is no window, and the
only light is admitted through hatches.
_July 11._ The gale, or hurricane, or whatever else the weather of
yesterday was, subsided about midnight, and at sunrise this morning it
was quite calm, and the horizon fiery red. It soon became cloudy, and
the wind has been all round the compass. I wished to go a hundred
miles farther north, but the captain says I must be contented here, so
I shall proceed with my drawings. I began a Cormorant and two young,
having sent John and Lincoln for them before three this morning; and
they procured them in less than half an hour. Many of the young are
nearly as large as their parents, and yet have scarcely a feather, but
are covered with woolly down, of a sooty black. The excursions brought
in nothing new. The Shore Lark has become abundant, but the nest
remains still unknown. A tail feather of the Red-tailed Hawk, young,
was found; therefore that species exists here. We are the more
surprised that not a Hawk nor an Owl is seen, as we find hundreds of
sea-birds devoured, the wings only remaining.
_July 12._ At this very moment it is blowing another gale from the
east, and it has been raining hard ever since the middle of the day.
Of course it has been very difficult to draw, but I have finished the
Cormorant. John and Lincoln brought in nothing new, except the nest
and ten eggs of a Red-breasted Merganser. The nest was placed near the
edge of a very small fresh-water pond, under the creeping branches of
one of this country's fir-trees, the top of which would be about a
foot above ground; it is like the Eider's nest, but smaller and better
fashioned, of weeds and mosses, and warmly lined with down. The eggs
are dirty yellow, very smooth shelled, and look like hen's-eggs, only
rather stouter. John lay in wait for the parent over two hours, but
though he saw her glide off the nest, she was too wary to return. I
saw a Black-backed Gull plunge on a Crab as big as my two fists, in
about two feet of water, seize it and haul it ashore, where it ate it
while I watched it; I could see the Crab torn piece by piece, till the
shell and legs alone remained. The Gull then flew in a direct line
towards her nest, distant about a mile, probably to disgorge her food
in favor of her young. Our two young Gulls, which we now have had for
nearly a month, act just as Vultures would. We throw them a dead Duck
or even a dead Gull, and they tear it to pieces, drinking the blood
and swallowing the flesh, each constantly trying to rob the other of
the piece of flesh which he has torn from the carcass. They do not
drink water, but frequently wash the blood off their bills by plunging
them in water, and then violently shaking their heads. They are now
half fledged.
_July 13._ When I rose this morning at half-past three, the wind was
northeast, and but little of it. The weather was cloudy and looked
bad, as it always does here after a storm. I thought I would spend the
day on board the "Gulnare," and draw at the ground of my Grouse, which
I had promised to Dr. Kelly. However, at seven the wind was west, and
we immediately prepared to leave our fine harbor. By eight we passed
the "Gulnare," bid her officers and crew farewell, beat out of the
narrow passage beautifully, and proceeded to sea with the hope of
reaching the harbor of Little Macatine, distant forty-three miles; but
ere the middle of the day it became calm, then rain, then the wind to
the east again, and all were sea-sick as much as ever. I saw a
_Lestris_[204] near the vessel, but of what kind I could not tell,--it
flew like a Pigeon Hawk, alighting on the water like a Gull, and fed
on some codfish liver which was thrown overboard for it,--and some
_Thalassidroma_,[205] but none came within shot, and the sea was too
rough to go after them. About a dozen common Crossbills, and as many
Redpolls (_Fringilla_ [_Acanthis_] _linaria_) came and perched on our
top-yards, but I would not have them shot, and none were caught. Our
young men have been fishing to pass the time, and have caught a number
of cod.
_July 14._ The wind blew cold and sharp from the northeast this
morning, and we found ourselves within twenty miles of "Little
Macatine," the sea beating heavily on our bows, as we beat to the
windward, tack after tack. At noon it was quite calm, and the
wished-for island in sight, but our captain despairs of reaching it
to-day. It looks high and horribly rugged, the highest land we have
yet seen. At four o'clock, being about a mile and a half distant, we
took the green boat, and went off. As we approached, I was surprised
to see how small some Ducks looked which flew between us and the
rocks, so stupendously high were the rough shores under which our
little bark moved along. We doubled the cape and came to the entrance
of the Little Macatine harbor, but so small did it appear to me that I
doubted if it was the harbor; the shores were terribly wild, fearfully
high and rugged, and nothing was heard but the croaking of a pair of
Ravens and their half-grown brood, mingling with the roar of the surf
against the rocky ledges which projected everywhere, and sent the
angry waters foaming into the air. The wind now freshened, the
"Ripley's" sails swelled, and she was gently propelled through the
water and came within sight of the harbor, on the rocks of which we
stood waiting for her, when all of a sudden she veered, and we saw her
topsails hauled in and bent in a moment; we thought she must have seen
a sunken rock, and had thus wheeled to avoid it, but soon saw her
coming up again and learned that it was merely because she had nearly
passed the entrance of the harbor ere aware of it. Our harbor is the
very representation of the bottom of a large bowl, in the centre of
which our vessel is now safely at anchor, surrounded by rocks fully a
thousand feet high, and the wildest-looking place I ever was in. After
supper we all went ashore; some scampered up the steepest hills next
to us, but John, Shattuck, and myself went up the harbor, and after
climbing to the top of a mountain (for I cannot call it a hill) went
down a steep incline, up another hill, and so on till we reached the
crest of the island, and surveyed all beneath us. Nothing but
rocks--barren rocks--wild as the wildest of the Apennines everywhere;
the moss only a few inches deep, and the soil or decomposed matter
beneath it so moist that, wherever there was an incline, the whole
slipped from under our feet like an avalanche, and down we slid for
feet or yards. The labor was excessive; at the bottom of each dividing
ravine the scrub bushes intercepted our way for twenty or thirty
paces, over which we had to scramble with great exertion, and on our
return we slid down fifty feet or more into an unknown pit of moss and
mire, more or less deep. We started a female Black-cap Warbler from
her nest, and I found it with four eggs, placed in the fork of a bush
about three feet from the ground; a beautiful little mansion, and I
will describe it to-morrow. I am wet through, and find the mosquitoes
as troublesome as in the Floridas.
_July 15._ Our fine weather of yesterday was lost sometime in the
night. As every one was keen to go off and see the country, we
breakfasted at three o'clock this morning. The weather dubious, wind
east. Two boats with the young men moved off in different directions.
I sat to finishing the ground of my Grouse, and by nine had to shift
my quarters, as it rained hard. By ten John and Lincoln had returned;
these two always go together, being the strongest and most active, as
well as the most experienced shots, though Coolidge and Ingalls are
not far behind them in this. They brought a Red-necked Diver and one
egg of that bird; the nest was placed on the edge of a very small
pond, not more than ten square yards. Our harbor had many _Larus
zonorhynchus_[206] (Common Gull); the captain shot one. I have never
seen them so abundant as here. Their flight is graceful and elevated;
when they descend for food the legs and feet generally drop below the
body. They appear to know gunshot distance with wonderful precision,
and it is seldom indeed that one comes near enough to be secured. They
alight on the water with great delicacy, and swim beautifully.
Coolidge's party brought a nest of the White-crowned Bunting
(_Fringilla leucophyrs_) and three specimens of the bird, also two
_Charadrius semipalmatus_. They found an island with many nests of the
_Phalacrocorax dilophus_,[207] but only one egg, and thought the nests
were old and abandoned. One of the young Ravens from the nest flew off
at the sight of one of our men, and fell into the water; it was caught
and brought to me; it was nearly fledged. I trimmed one of its wings,
and turned it loose on the deck, but in attempting to rejoin its
mother, who called most loudly from on high on the wing, the young one
walked to the end of the bowsprit, jumped into the water, and was
drowned; and soon after I saw the poor mother chased by a Peregrine
Falcon with great fury; she made for her nest, and when the Falcon saw
her alight on the margin of her ledge, it flew off. I never thought
that such a Hawk could chase with effect so large and so powerful a
bird as the Raven. Some of our men who have been eggers and fishermen
have seen these Ravens here every season for the last eight or nine
years.
_July 16._ Another day of dirty weather, and all obliged to remain on
board the greater portion of the time. I managed to draw at my Grouse
and put in some handsome wild peas, Labrador tea-plant, and also one
other plant, unknown to me. This afternoon the young men went off, and
the result has been three White-crowned Buntings, and a female
Black-capped Warbler. Our captain did much better for me, for in less
than an hour he returned on board with thirty fine codfish, some of
which we relished well at our supper. This evening the fog is so thick
that we cannot see the summit of the rocks around us. The harbor has
been full of Gulls the whole day. The captain brought me what he
called an Esquimau codfish, which perhaps has never been described,
and we have _spirited_ him. We found a new species of floweret of the
genus _Silene_,[208] but unknown to us. We have now lost four days in
succession.
_July 17._ The mosquitoes so annoyed me last night that I did not even
close my eyes. I tried the deck of the vessel, and though the fog was
as thick as fine rain, these insects attacked me by thousands, and I
returned below, where I continued fighting them till daylight, when I
had a roaring fire made and got rid of them. The fog has been as thick
as ever, and rain has fallen heavily, though the wind is southwest. I
have drawn five eggs of land-birds: that of _Falco columbarius_,[209]
_Fringilla leucophyrs_,[210] _Anthus spinoletta_,[211] _Sylvia
striata_,[212] and _Fringilla savanna_.[213] I also outlined in the
mountainous hills near our vessel, as a background to my Willow
Grouse. John and Coolidge with their companions brought in several
specimens, but nothing new. Coolidge brought two young of the
Red-necked Diver, which he caught _at the bottom_ of a small pond by
putting his gun rod on them,--the little things diving most admirably,
and going about the bottom with as much apparent ease as fishes would.
The captain and I went to an island where the _Phalacrocorax
dilophus_[214] were abundant; thousands of young of all sizes, from
just hatched to nearly full-grown, all opening their bills and
squawking most vociferously; the noise was shocking and the stench
intolerable. No doubt exists with us now that the Shore Lark breeds
here; we meet with them very frequently. A beautiful species of violet
was found, and I have transplanted several for Lucy, but it is
doubtful if they will survive the voyage.