1892.
July 21
[margin]To Ball's Hill.[/margin]
Concord, Massachusetts.
Mass.
Concord.- Cloudless and rather warm with light
variable winds and intervals of breathless calm.
    Started for Ball's Hill at 9 A.M. intending to
spend the day writing in my cabin but on reaching
Bensen's landing I learned that a smoke which I
had seen ever since leaving the Buttricks' came from
a wood fire that some careless camper had started
on Davis's Hill. Accordingly I kept on to the latter
place which proved indeed to be all in a blaze.
Bensen and Peter with their man soon joined me
and after a hard fight of over an hour we got
the flames under control. I had no idea that a
fire could run so at this season. Four or five acres
in all were burned over but the damage, aside
from the temporary disfigurement of these beautiful
woods, was trifling most of the trees being too large
to sustain any real injury.
  Thinking it wise to watch the place lest the fire
should start up again I spent the remainder of
the day there returning to the Buttricks' in time
for tea.
  Along the river to-day I saw a Phoebe, two
King fishers, and two Green Herons (one of the last
a young bird) and heard singing Red-eyed Vireos, a
Yellow-throated Vireo, several Maryland Yellow-throats,
two Meadow Larks, two Red-wings, an Indigo Bird
(near Hunt's Pond, a new locality) three Short-billed
Marsh Wrens and a Wood Pewee besides many Song
and several Swamp Sparrows and two Black-billed
Cuckoos. I also (at 9.30 A.M. clear & sunny at the time) heard a Virginia Rail utter the
pig note several times - a late date for this cry.
[margin]Virginia Rail[/margin]