1892
March 26
(no.2)
Concord, Massachusetts.
Mass.
Concord. - To Ball's Hill by boat at 9.30 A.M. The paddle
down river was delightful. Sc[?][?] a minute passed when
I did not hear the tender warble of a Bluebird or the
sweet chanting of a Song Sparrow. Both species have
evidently quadrupled in numbers since yesterday although
some allowance must obviously be made for the [?]
favorable conditions to-day.
[margin]To Ball's Hill[/margin]
[margin]Bluebirds & 
Song Sparrows[/margin]
  Crows & Jays were unusually numerous & noisy but I
still see no reason to think that either species has
as yet received any accessions from the South. I passed
two Muskrats swimming about among submerged bushes
but saw no Ducks or other water-fowl.
[margin]Crows & Jays[/margin]
[margin]Muskrats[/margin]
  Soon after reaching Ball's Hill I heard a succession
of shots along the rim above and presently Warren
appeared in a small canoe. He had nine Muskrats
and I heard him five times afterwards. I 
fear he has left few of these interesting animals in
this stretch of rim. He came very near shooting a
mink which Bensen started from a stone wall in
my land and which jumped into the water & dove
near Warren's boat.
[margin]Slaughter of
Muskrats[/margin]
[margin]Mink[/margin]
  Early in the forenoon I walked through the woods
to Davis's Hill where I found a Creeper and three
young Purple Finches among the pines. From the 
northern extremity of the hill I could see that the
river was open as far, at least, as Carlisle bridge but
the meadow ice on both sides extended quite out to
the edge of the channel. This comparatively narrow
and nearly straight canal of calm water was
fairly swarming with water-fowl. I counted thirty
Ducks and [?] at once and there were doubtless
[margin]Brown Creeper[/margin]
[margin]Purple Finches[/margin]
[margin]Water Fowl
in the river[/margin]