Down the Ohio River floated a skiff manned by two Negroes, carrying a young couple and their baby to a new home farther west. The long-haired young man, whose weathered face belied his trade, was a storekeeper with a passion for painting birds. His name was John James Audubon. Passing an island, Audubon saw the cross-eyed, hook-nosed face of a horned owl. Up came his fowling piece; he shot, leaped overboard to retrieve the bird. As he waded through the shallows he began sinking in quicksand. The Negroes, cautioning him not to...
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