Page:Early western travels, 1748-1846 (1907 Volume 9).djvu/307

 descriptive of the river.[150] The bottom land is rich, and the banks on both sides steep. On the top of the east bank the remains of an ancient fortification stand. The wall, which is about fourteen feet high, is overgrown with large timber, and incloses a considerable space of land.

Much of the road in the east side of the little Miami is over wet clay land. Logs are split, and laid side by side across the road, as a way for carriages. The jolting over these is disagreeable, and the progress slow. At this dry season, the soil would serve the purpose better, but would be impassable in wet weather.

[275] The woods abound in pigeons, a small species of fowls which migrates to the southward in winter, and return to the north in spring. Their numbers are so immense that they sometimes move in clouds, upwards of a mile in length. At the time when they are passing, the people have good sport in shooting them, as one flock frequently succeeds another before the gun can be reloaded. The parts of the woods where they roost, are distinguished by the trees having their branches broken off, and many of them deadened by the pressure of the myriads that alight upon them.

The number of grasshoppers is amazingly great. A swarm of them rises from amongst the grass or weeds, at every footstep of the pedestrian. Some large species are winged, and can fly to the distance of twelve, and even twenty yards. This remark applies to every part of America which I have seen. The country abounds with a multitude of insects, much diversified in species, colours, and habits. Wasps and hornets are extremely numer-*