CORRESPONDENCE 187 



and can there be out of the way of the great mosquito 

 poison manufacturing company. I think I should like 

 one thousand shares of the stock." "I have been out 

 twice this week," he writes July 14, 1870, "but each 

 time was driven home by showers. I however got, each 

 time, some Ducks and Woodcock ; four Ducks one time. 

 I think you had better let Woods Holl slide and come 

 down bird shooting and shell-heap hunting." In one 

 letter he writes that he is glad Mrs. Baird was pleased 

 with the raspberries which are plenty and he would send 

 them oftener if he could only get the boys to pick them. 

 In another letter he writes : "I was expecting to go to 

 Kendrick lake this afternoon to get some of those young 

 Grebes, but Mrs. Boardman is to have President Harris 

 and a lot of company to tea and she is afraid I shall not 

 be back in time or may tear my pants and besides, she 

 says Saturday is no time to have dead birds about and 

 that I shall not go — so for the love of woman I shall 

 have no chick Grebes this week." He writes about 

 Prof. Baird having left Eastport when he was there in 

 the late summer of 1869, without having come up to 

 Milltown to say good by, adding : "I was almost sure 

 something awful would happen to you for it. You may 

 think yourself very fortunate you were not all down to 

 the bottom of the ocean ; I feel thankful that old Neptune 

 was so easy as to let you off with only a long swell. I 

 hope you have been forgiven for the way you left. You 

 must all be sure to come back to Georgie's wedding as 

 we are to have a gay old time. ' ' In July, 1870 he writes : 

 " I have hardly skinned a bird since I came from Florida 

 — instead of mounting them I have taken to eating them. 

 I think Woodcock and Snipe are best broiled, Duck 



