MASS. (Middlesex County) [Middlesex County, Massachusetts]
1875
Oct. 7 [October 7, 1875]  Rained in torrents all last night &
to day clearing up in P.M. Left the
house at 3.30 and struck up into
the swamps. Started a snipe and 4
rail, bagging them all in 5 shots.
All the rails were P. Carolina [Porzana carolina] and
"Shot" pointed all but one in good
style. Saw 4 other snipe flying 
over high. Last week John Nesbitt
bagged 7 snipe around pond holes
in the fields. The first flight cock
were killed at Concord on the 24 ult. [September 24, 1875]
when J.C. Melvin started ten birds.
  Snipe 1 - Rails 4. Met
Robert & John Nesbitt this P.M. The former
showed me a Rallus Virgin [Rallus virginianus] which he
had shot; they usually come later &
leave earlier. I am inclined to consider
this a bird that [?] bred on the ground
& has remained behind. Rail were
seen in large numbers last week but
all so far as I can learn were P. Carolina [Porzana carolina].
H.A. Purdie [Henry A. Purdie] took a walk Sunday 
the 3rd [October 3, 1875] and noted D. coronata [Dendroica coronata] abdt. [abundant]
Regulus calendula numbers (one
shot by J. Warren Sept. 29th [September 29, 1875]) & Turdus
Aliciae several. I saw a flock
of Scol. ferrugin. [Scolecophagus ferrugineus] in our yard on
the 4th [October 4, 1875] and saw another large
flock in the swamps this evening.
The weed beds are literally alive
with sparrows of every description
A fine y.y. Buteo Penn. [Buteo pennsylvanicus] was brought
to me Sunday. It was shot on the
Brooks pl. [Brooks place] in Belmont on the 2nd. Both
stomach & crop were stuffed with Bufo Am. [Bufo americanus] nothing else