202 LAND-BIRDS. 



a. Mr. Maynard describes as follows the first specimen 

 obtained (though the italicizing is my own) : " Back grayish ; 

 the middle of the feathers having a black centre edged with 

 rufous. Top of head streaked with dusky and pale rufous, 

 divided by a broad stripe of pale yellowish white. There is 

 also a whitish superciliary stripe extending from the base of 

 the bill to the back of the head. Ear-coverts grayish, with a 

 rufous tinge." (Description of wings here omitted.) White 

 wing-bars " rather indistinct." "Tail brownish, with the tips 

 of the feathers and terminal half of the outer web of the outer 

 tail-feathers pale yellowish white ; the rest of the tail-feathers 

 narrowly edged with the same. Under parts, including under 

 tail-coverts, pure white. Feathers of the sides of the throat, 

 with a broad band across the breast and sides, streaked with 

 rufous, with dusky centres. The throat is indistinctly spotted 

 with dusky. A triangular spot on the sides of the neck, below 

 the ear-coverts, pale buff ; ears dusky. Bill dark brown, with 

 the base of the under mandible paler. Eyes and feet brown." 

 Length, six inches (or more). 



c. That I may do full honor to Mr. Maynard, as the dis- 

 coverer of a bird, not before described, in a country well pop- 

 ulated by naturalists of all sorts, I shall here transcribe at 

 length his own remarks about the Ipswich Sparrow, which he 

 at first erroneously supposed to be the Baird's Sparrow, 80 Pro- 

 fessor Baird having pronounced it to be that species. This 

 mistake, however excusable 011 the part of the latter gentle- 

 man, who is ranked as the foremost of American naturalists, 



spring occurs ordinarily during the lat- collection, shot in the Fresh Pond 



ter half of March and the first ten days marshes at Cambridge, is, so far as I 



of April. A few scattered birds spend am aware, the only specimen that has 



the entire winter on the eastern coast been actually taken out of sight and 



of Massachusetts, but by far the greater sound of the sea. W. B. 



number go south of Cape Cod. They 80 Until within the last two or three 



are common in January and February years [1873] this latter bird, a species 



on Long Island, the coast of New Jer- confined to the western United States, 



sey, and at Cobb's Island, Virginia, was known to ornithologists by one 



while two specimens have been cap- specimen only, one of those shot by 



tured in Georgia. Mr. N. C. Brown Audubon " upon the banks of the Yel- 



has reported seeing what he believed lowstone River, July 26, 1843." Lately 



to be an Ipswich Sparrow at Lake others have been shot, and their habits 



Umbagog, Maine, but a bird in my studied, in northern Dakota. 



