days. They were shot. Whether Audubon did any of the shooting or not, he
does not say. But he aided and abetted, and his Spanish blood must have
tingled in his veins. Then the cabin was set on fire, and the travellers
proceeded on their way.

It must be confessed that this story sounds a good deal like an episode in
a dime novel, and may well be taken with a grain of allowance. Did remote
prairie cabins in those days have grindstones and carving knives? And why
should the would-be murderers use a knife when they had guns?

Audubon reached Hendersonville in early March, and witnessed the severe
earthquake which visited that part of Kentucky the following November,
1812. Of this experience we also have a vivid account in his journals.

Audubon continued to live at Hendersonville, his pecuniary means much
reduced. He says that he made a pedestrian tour back to St. Genevieve to
collect money due him from Rozier, walking the one hundred and sixty-five
miles, much of the time nearly ankle-deep in mud and water, in a little
over three days. Concerning the accuracy of this statement one also has his
doubts. Later he bought a "wild horse," and on its back travelled over
Tennessee and a portion of Georgia, and so around to Philadelphia, later
returning to Hendersonville.

He continued his drawings of birds and animals, but, in the meantime,
embarked in another commercial venture, and for a time prospered. Some
years previously he had formed a co-partnership with his wife's brother,
and a commercial house in charge of Bakewell had been opened in New
Orleans. This turned out disastrously and was a constant drain upon his
resources.