1892
Oct.12
(No 2)
Concord, Massachusetts.
Mass.
Concord - At 3.30 P.M. I rowed C. to Davis's Hill where
we spent an hour or more examining the roots of the
pines. Where they were badly burned the sap has
exuded in considerable quantities forming bunches of rather
stiff gum not unlike that found on cherry & peach trees.
The Davis woods seemed totally devoid of small birds
but we started a Great Blue Heron from one of the
pines and heard Quail, evidently a scattered covey,
whistling on the opposite side of the river. A small
water fowl diving on the broad stretch beyond the 
hill looked like a Pied-billed Grebe. A sportsman
(Jones I think) was beating the meadows opposite
and fired two or three shots there. His dog started
several Meadow Larks while I was watching him
through my glass. (I afterwards heard that he shot seven Snipe).
[margin] Gr. Blue Heron [/margin]
[margin] Snipe [/margin]
 On our way up river at sunset we saw a Marsh
Hawk (ad.♂) beating[?] the Great Meadows and started
two Great Blue Herons, both young, from Hunt's Pond.
  The autumn coloring was at its height on the 8th,
9th and 10th. Today the colours looked faded or
washed out and many of the red maples were bare while
the river was covered thickly with floating leaves which
made a loud rustling as our boat moved through
them. The white maples have turned a sickly greenish
yellow & their leaves look withered & dry.
[margin] Autumn colors [/margin]
  This was a "gossamer" day. The Balloon Spiders were
voyaging across the landscape in large numbers &
the meadows were coated with their shiny silk.
The spiders annoyed us somewhat by crawling over us.
[margin]Balloon Spiders [/margin]