Walter Deane (1848-1930) Papers; Journal Jan-Dec 1901. Botany Libraries, Archives of the Gray Herbarium, Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, Mass.

34 Salem, N.Y. 1901 July 6 (2)

lavendar color. They were five or six hundred yards off and the effect was something utterly unlike anything I ever saw in nature before. It was caused by the Bugloss growing thickly over the whole slope. In places a soft-green of grass around the lavendar added a peculiar effect. We passed two large [Bee hives] apiaries on our drive, containing from 50 to over 100 hives. I should have enjoyed examining them had we time. The owner of the larger one made one year recently by sending his honey to Boston $1200. The hives were very plain and the places were plain country homes.

Birds were numerous and were such as we see at home. A Kingfisher flew rattling [?] over the Creek. Red-Wings rose from the low meadows. Barn & Eave Swallows flitted over the fields feedling themselves and attending to the wants of their hungry households and when were were away the hills the air about us was filled with the songs of the Vesper Sparrows. It was a rich chorus. We started up a young woodchuck on the road and Mr. Potter told me that both the Cotton—tail & the Northern Varying Hare are here. We passed in Rupert a very fine Elm standing in a meadow near the road. It was from five to six feet in diameter. We reached home by six o'clock.

This evening I saw two stone Morian[?] imple[?]- ments brought by [?] Audubon from Missouri and a walrus' tooth brought by him from Labrador. In the hall is a pair of moose horns brought from Maine by J.J. Audubon.

35 Salem, N.Y. 1901 July 7

Day cloudy & sunny, warm in the sun. Mercury 84° at noon, dropping to 72° in the early evening.

I spent this morning, Sunday, in the house. It is too hot to walk. We looked at many interesting family relics. In the hall on the second floor is an copper plate of the Birds secured by Miss Audubon as the first one mentioned before. This is the Snow Goose Chen hyperborea. There is a rather large oil painting of a rooster and two hens painted by J.J. Audubon in a short[?] morning from nature at the request of a friend who wants to see his quick work. There is an oil of the Prong—horned Antelope in the hall by J.W. Audubon, reproduced in the Quadrupeds; also a large oil of a Highlander in costume by J.W. Audubon done in Scotland. In Miss Florence's room are three valuable pictures: two oils by J.W. Audubon, reproduced in the Quadrupeds, The Cougar, ♀ [female] & young, and Collie's Squirrel; and an original water color by J.J. Audubon, reproduced in the Quadrupeds, of the Leopard Spermophile(Spermophilius tridecem lineatus. There is also a small water color by J.W. Audubon of an owl, made when Mr. Audubon was almost 13 years old. In the southwest room adjoining ours is a large oil painting of a view with Stirling Castle in the distance, painted by Victor Audubon.

In Miss Audubon's room we were shown the seal of the turkey with the inscription "America

36 Salem, N.Y. 1901 July 7 (2)

my Country" given to J.J. Audubon by Mrs. Rathbone (See Miss Audubon's "Journals"), and a wooden snuff box given by Sir Walter Scott to J.J. Audubon. The box, some three inches by two inches, is cut out of a single piece of dark wood. A wooden chair with the legs shortened was shown us. This was used by J.J. Audubon when he painted the lower part of his pictures.

We had a heavy thunderstorm and much rain this afternoon. We looked over a large folio of pictures, not originals, but prints, both colored and uncolored of some of the "Birds" and of paintings made by John W. Audubon the originals of which are scattered here & there, many of them in England. Miss Audubon also read us letters from various parties in connection with the publication of the Journals recently published. They were of the greatest interest.

After supper we took a walk in the village. Rev. Mr. Rush, the Episcopal clergyman, called later.

37 Salem, N.Y. 1901 July 8

The day has been most delightfully comfortable. The morning opened at 60°, at noon we had 78° and by evening it was down to 62°.

This morning we examined with Miss Audubon a chest of valuable letters and the original famous Audubon journals, all most carefully preserved as a sacred legacy. Miss Audubon has had a heavy iron bound box some three feet long made to hold these papers and this box is kept always in her room. It has been thrown out of the 2 ^d story window once to test its holding qualities in case of fire. Some most interesting letters written by J.J. Audubon to his wife when he was in France in relation to his ancestry were read aloud. I looked into the Journals with a feeling of reverence that I held in my hand the very pages written over at the time of those now famous expeditions. In some there are beautiful pencil sketches of fish and other subjects. A small hatchet and bowie knife given him in his western journies are in the box. The only oil painting that Miss Audubon owns of her grandfather hangs over the head of the bed in her room. The subject is two Scotch Grouse and it was painted in Scotland.

At noon Miss Audubon took M. & me to call on Miss Williams, an intimate friend who called on us yesterday. She lives nearly opposite in a beautiful old-fashioned house dating over one hundred years back.

38 Salem, N.Y. 1901 July 8 (2)

I was much interested in the pianola and listened to a tune played by it. A quaint old picture hangs in the hall representing training day in Salem many years ago. Extensive grounds extend back of the house embracing lawn, flower and vegetable gardens. Large river maples and an enormous locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) about two feet [?] line the sidwalk.

In the afternoon I had a most delightful drive with Miss Florence and Miss Harriet Audubon. The latter is the older half—sister of our hosts. Mr. Potter drove us in a light carryall with a pair of horses. I enjoyed as on the previous drives the rolling country, cultivated to the tops of the hills or to the very edge of the woods far up. Field of waving oats and golden rye greet you at every turn and in one place they were busy cutting and cradling the rye, the long arms of the machine revolving in a most human—like manner.

We drove to old Asa Fitch's house and [Home of Asa Fitch] went over it, examining the old well—kept rooms. In the hall on the second floor is the old original paper on the wall, representing General Washington on horse-back conversing with a Morian[?] standing beside him. The picture is about 6 in. high and is repeated indefinitely. The rooms are lage [large] and square, four on a floor in the main