1893
July 23
  Clear with strong N. W. wind. Much cooler than
yesterday with a further, more decided fall of the
temperature late this afternoon the evening being almost frosty.
  Up river with W. Deane in the forenoon rowing
to Clamshell Hill and sailing thence to Fairhaven,
stopping by the way to visit the Marsh Wren's nest
near Heath's Bridge. The number of eggs had not been
added to since yesterday so I assumed that the
set was complete and took both eggs and nest. The
male was singing about sixty yards away when we
landed. We walked directly to the nest and stood
within three or four feet of it for a minute or more,
talking. Then I stooped to look in when the female
darted out of the entrance hole and dropping to,
or nearly to, the ground made off through the grass,
probably springing from stem to stem but keeping so
well concealed that I could not see her. The trembling 
of the stems served to trace her route & progress pretty
accurately, however. After she had gone a few yards
I rushed after her where she flushed and flew off
slowly & heavily. The Bowles Bros. have never started
a bird from the nest but in this instance I
probably surprised the bird by approaching swiftly
and silently along the path which I had made
during former visits. She came about as we were packing
the eggs and uttered her scolding churr but did not
again show herself. Yesterday while I was at the
nest she kept flying from place to place in the grass
near me carrying in her bill something white or whitish
about half the size of one of her own eggs. The female
[margin]Cistothorus 
stellaris[/margin]