1890
Swampscott, Massachusetts
June 15  Visit Tinker's and Ram Islands
Cloudless with clear blue sky, dark blue sea and light N.E. 
wind changing to fresh S.E. wind in P.M.
  Started at 9A.M. with J.A. and W.A.Jeffries in a cat-boat 
for the islands off Marblehead. We had a long and 
rather tedious beat to windward but finally reached 
Ram Island where we landed. Found five or six pairs of 
Spotted Sandpipers, several Song Sparrows, a Robin and a 
Field Sparrow.  The last two were probably not breeding but 
we saw young Song Sparrows flying about and found 
a young Spotted Sandpiper about 1/4 grown and still in the down. 
The latter was clinging in a crouching attitude to the face 
of a rock with one foot stretched back, the toes pressed 
against the rough surface.  It allowed itself to be taken 
up without moving in the least. John Jeffries thought 
that it was in a cataleptic state but W.Jeffries and I 
believed that it trusted to its protective gray coloring which 
matched that of the rock very closely. The old "Teeters" 
followed us closely during our circuit of the island flying 
from rock to rock and Just-weeting shrilly & incessantly.
  Next visited Tinker's Island.  Found a few Song Sparrows 
and Spotted Sandpipers, several Robins, and a male Nashville 
Warbler.  The latter acted like a Sparrow taking short 
flights and concealing itself in the grass until started 
again. We could not make it out for some time and 
fired three flying shots at it. After our ammunition was 
exhausted (we had only the three shells) the bird flew 
directly to us and alighted literally within ten feet of 
W.A. Jeffries, turning itself from side to side and erecting 
the feathers of the crown so as to show the chestnut 
patch conspicuously as it sat on the top of a tall weed. 
It was a remarkable episode for the bird hitherto had been 