Four-and-a-Half Months’ Stay in New Harmony
Description of the region – Natural history – Messrs. Say, Lesueur, and Owen – Hunting excursions in Indiana and Illinois – Wabash, Fox River – Illinois prairies – Albion – Black River – Mr. Bodmer’s trip to New Orleans
February 24, 1833
In the morning at daybreak, everything covered white with snow, which, however, is only an inch deep. All night long there had been a storm from the north or northwest, and at seven thirty, when the sun was already shining brightly, we had a temperature of -6°R [18.5°F, -7.5°C], which was even more chilling than usual because of the wind. Yesterday Mr. Lesueur sent me a nice completed drawing he had made for me from life as a memento. It depicts the Emys recently acquired from New Orleans, which I listed in my [Natural History] Diary under the name “serrata ” with a “?” In this drawing it is very faithfully stretched from all sides. The top shell, however, has not been reproduced in its dark basic color but [shows] only the yellow markings and spots.
Today I attempted to draw up a bird calendar (list of the birds) in Harmony, based on my observations during my four-month stay. The list of nonmigratory birds is fairly accurate. (See the following page.)
| List of Birds Observed in November, December, January, and February at the Mouth of the Wabash, 1832–1833: | |||
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| Resident birds throughout the entire winter: | Still present in November: | Individual birds in December: | In the second half of January: |
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| Returned in February: | Appeared again in Harmony at the beginning of March: | ||
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| List of the Species of Native Mammals along the Wabash in Indiana and Illinois | |
|---|---|
| 1. Cervus canadensis | completely exterminated |
| 2. Cervus virginianus | still everywhere, though no longer in large numbers |
| 3. Ursus americanus | very rare; must be regarded as exterminated |
| 4. Felis concolor | only one of them shot in the last seven years |
| 5. Felis canadensis | not uncommon; in the space of four months I obtained two of them |
| 6. Canis lupus (ciner.)Canis lupus (niger) | not uncommonmore rare—more common in the prairies |
| 7. Canis cinero argenteus | common |
| 8. Canis rufus | rarer |
| 9. Procyon lotor | very abundant |
| 10. Mephitis putor | not uncommon; abundant in the prairies of Illinois |
| 11. Didelphis virginiana | very abundant |
| 12. Scalopus canadensis | common |
| 13. Sorex no. 13 | not uncommon |
| 14. Mustela vison ? (mink) | very abundant |
| 15. Mustela pennanti (fisher) | rare |
| 16. Lutra canadensis | not uncommon |
| 17. Mustela erminea | not uncommon in the prairies of Illinois |
| 18. Arctomys monax | common |
| 19. Castor fiber | exterminated |
| 20. Fiber zibethicus | numerous |
| 21. Lepus americanus | common but not very numerous |
| 22. Sciurus cinereus | common and numerous |
| 23. Sciurus rufiventer | numerous |
| 24. Sciurus (Tamias) striatus | rare |
| 25. Pteromys volucella | everywhere but not very numerous |
| 26. Gerbillus canadensis | rare |
| 27. Mus no. 2228 22 | abundant |
| 28. Mus no. 33 | not uncommon |
| 29. Hystrix dorsata | very rare; more in the prairies of Illinois |
| 30. Vespertiliones | hidden in winter |
| The buffalo (Bos bison), too, was once quite numerous along the Wabash; one still finds many of its bones in the prairies of Illinois. | |
Dreidoppel had gone out tracking. Along some fox tracks he found a buried partridge, which a fox had probably caught the previous night and buried in the snow. Otherwise he saw nothing but several ducks. Later I wrote to Mr. von Schweinitz in Bethlehem to request a list of plants in the Pocono Mountains. The letter, however, cannot leave here until the first of March.
At twelve noon, -2 1/3°R [26.8°F, 2.9°C]. During the afternoon a cold wind blew over the already partially melted snow. In Mr. Maclure’s orchard I found a flight of robins (Turdus migratorius), more new spring arrivals, and many bluebirds, as well as Fringilla hyemalis. A steamboat docked and loaded Mr. Owen’s whiskey. A flatboat came down the Wabash; [it] took Mr. Nohl to Memphis, from where he would continue to New Orleans.
Later Mr. Lesueur visited us, and in the evening Mr. Say and I went to Mr. Maclure’s. We had a discussion, particularly about the constitution and government of the United States, which was quite interesting and instructive for me. The Chamber of Deputies is the first; each state sends two deputies, usually scholars or jurists. The second chamber is that of the Representatives, which corresponds to the House of Commons in London. Behavior is somewhat tumultuous there, [and] far more decorous in the other house. An Indian chief, whom one brought there, expressed it very well; he said [that] in the first chamber there were men, in the second, boys.
Formerly, the president himself opened the Chamber of Representatives with a speech. Washington and his successor did this themselves, but this no longer happens. The president sends his secretary there instead, since he could very likely get into unpleasant situations now and then. Here all the undertakings of the government entail great expenses, because everything is so expensive. In the Indian war against Black Hawk, about fifty to sixty whites [were killed]. [The war] was therefore actually quite insignificant, and yet it cost several million dollars. One can calculate one dollar per day for each militiaman, and the expenses became very high, because several additional companies of militia had to remain only to protect colonies United States citizens. Now people expect another war with the Indians.