Concord, Mass.
1902.
April 10 
(No 3)
  As I have just said I listened to these Owls
until they ceased hooting. Indeed I could not tear
myself away for the sound of their voices thrilled
and fascinated me as it always does. It was
peculiarly impressive this evening owing to its perfect
keeping with the gloomy weather and to the fact
that it had a wide margin of silence the distant
notes of a Robin being the only other sounds
that broke the otherwise perfect stillness.
  As I was crossing Bensen's pasture my attention
was attracted by a light silvery whistling of
wings & looking up I saw a pair of Black Ducks
speeding low down over the land towards the
Great Meadows. The were closely followed by
a flock of four Golden-eyes whose wings made
a similar but decidedly louder sound and a 
few minutes later I saw a flock of four
Black Ducks pursuing precisely the same course.
  On reaching the causeway that crosses the
swamp behind Ball's Hill I stopped to listen
to the Robins that were singing & calling all
about me. Suddenly, almost at my feet, a
Meadow Mouse started out from a bank 
and swam across a broad space of open water
a foot or more in depth. It moved with great
rapidity (certainly much faster than a Muskrat)
and nearly its whole body seemed to be out of
water giving me the impression that it was 
running on the surface rather than swimming.
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