108 NOTES ON NEW ENGLAND BIRDS 



erect as at first, as if beside herself. She was not lame, 

 and I suspect no wing was broken. I did not suspect 

 that this swift wild bird was ever run down by the cars. 

 We have an account in the newspapers of every cow 

 and calf that is run. over, but not of the various wild 

 creatures who meet with that accident. It may be many 

 generations before the partridges learn to give the cars 

 a sufficiently wide berth. 



April 22, 1859. Scare up partridges feeding about 

 the green springy places under the edge of hills. See 

 them skim or scale away for forty rods along and up- 

 ward to the woods, into which they swiftly scale, dodg- 

 ing to right and left and avoiding the twigs, yet with- 

 out once flapping the wings after having launched 

 themselves. 



Dec. 24, 1859. I saw the tracks of a partridge more 

 than half an inch deep in the ice, extending from this 

 island 1 to the shore, she having walked there in the 

 slosh. They were quite perfect and reminded me of 

 bird-tracks in stone. She may have gone there to bud 

 on these blueberry trees. I saw where she spent the 

 night at the bottom of that largest clump, in the snow. 



This blueberry grove must be well known to the 

 partridges ; no doubt they distinguish their tops from 

 afar. 



Jan. 22, 1860. I scare a partridge that was eating 

 the buds and ends of twigs of the Vaccinium vacittans 

 on a hillside. 



April 19, 1860. Toward night, hear a partridge drum. 



1 [An island in Flint's Pond whereon were some remarkably large 

 blueberry bushes which Thoreau has been describing.] 



