116 NOTES ON NEW ENGLAND BIKDS 



beach, 1 who had several pigeons which he had killed in 

 the woods by the shore. Said that they had been blown 

 off the mainland. 



May 7, 1859. I frequently see pigeons dashing about 

 in small flocks, or three or four at a time, over the woods 

 here. 2 Theirs is a peculiarly swift, dashing flight. 



Sept. 9, 1859. I start many pigeons now in a sprout- 

 land. 



Sept. 13, 1859. It is a wonder how pigeons can swal- 

 low acorns whole, but they do. 



Sept. 14, 1859. They are catching pigeons nowadays. 

 Coombs has a stand west of Nut Meadow, and he says 

 that he has just shot fourteen hawks there, which were 

 after the pigeons. 



Sept. 15, 1859. P. M. — To Annursnack. 



Dense flocks of pigeons hurry-skurry over the hill. 

 Pass near Brooks's pigeon-stands. There was a flock 

 perched on his poles, and they sat so still and in such 

 regular order there, being also the color of the wood, 

 that I thought they were wooden figures at first. They 

 were perched not only in horizontal straight lines one 

 above the other, which the cross-bars required, but at 

 equal distances apart on these perches, which must be 

 their own habit ; and it struck me that they made just 

 such a figure seen against the sky as pigeonholes cut in 

 a doves' house do, i. e. a more or less triangular figure, 

 and possibly the seeing them thus perched might have 

 originally suggested this arrangement of the holes. 



Pigeons dart by on every side, — a dry slate color, 



1 [On the south shore of Eoekport, Mass.] 

 a [In Acton, adjoining Concord on the west.] 



