308 Wright, Morning Awakening and Even-Song. [july 



taken on each occasion has been upon the driveway midway be- 

 tween the house and the road, or about fifty feet from either, with 

 open lawn around. The record has usually extended over two 

 or two and a half hours, that is, up to 5 or 5.15 o'clock. 



The elevation of the location is about 1600 feet above the sea. 

 The place is situated on the southwestern slope of Boy Mountain, 

 which is a part of one of the secondary ranges and rises to a height 

 of 2240 feet, the summit being somewhat north of east. The sun- 

 shine, therefore, is delayed in reaching the location and its immedi- 

 ate vicinity. The rays of the sun are seen on the mountains across 

 the narrow valley some time before they have reached the lis- 

 tener's position, and still earlier they have brightened with rosy 

 light the heads of the Presidents uplifted higher into the sky. 

 Thus there is a pervasive light thrown around much before the 

 birds whose voices have been chronicled come within the range 

 of the sun, which is not until forty-five minutes or an hour after 

 its actual rising. 



A row of maples together with other shade trees borders the 

 nearer roadside, while across the road, beyond a mere border of 

 grass land, mixed woodland reaches up the mountain side. Farther 

 eastward from this woodland is open, rocky, hillside pasture, dotted 

 with individual spruces and firs. Mowing fields stretch away 

 southeastward. Westward and about five hundred feet distant 

 woods of mixed growth extend to the river which is some three 

 hundred feet below in the valley bottom. These woods are well 

 occupied by songsters, especially warblers of many species, whose 

 songs are heard when at the close of the morning-awakening record 

 the footpaths through them have been followed. But these voices 

 within the wood have seldom reached up to the position chosen and 

 entered the records obtained. The warblers and other songsters, 

 however, which occupy the woodland bordering the road are well 

 within the range of hearing, as well as the birds of the fields, the 

 open hillside pasture, and the roadside. 



Taking position with paper block in hand and assisted to make 

 notes by the light of a small electric lantern or a candle, as the 

 case may be, the first bird-note has been waited for. Meanwhile 

 a few minutes of complete stillness have continued the silence of 

 the night, this stillness being broken only by the distant sound of 



