Ipswich Nov. 8 - 1875
Brachyotus palustris - Passerculus princepss
1875.
Nov. 8 [November 8, 1875] Clear with wind N.E. [northeast] and rather cold in the
morning, but calm and fine in P.M.
With Stone took the 8.38 A.M. train for
Ipswich where we arrived at 10 A.M.
Hired a "dory" of one Wm Stone and
started down river with a favorable tide
but a strong head wind. Reached the
sand hills after some pretty hard
pullings (on S's part) and landing
went in search of Pas. princips [Passerculus princeps]. Had
gone but a little ways when I started
 a Brachyotus Cassinii out of a little
hollow: it rose with clumsy flappings
and went off with dangling legs until
I stopped it with a charge of dust shot
at about 30 paces. Picking it up wounded
it struck at me fiercely with its
talons and erected the feathers of the 
head in such a way that that number 
looked nearly as large as one's two fists.
Continuing on we searched all the hollows
in vain for the "Ipswich sparrow" but
upon beating along the ridge of beach grass
above high water mark I finally started
one which rose out of range and going 
a little way lit agin: Walking quickly
to the spot it rose again at about 25 yds
and I gave it both barrels without
apparent effect: this time it flew a
long ways and though I distinctly saw
it light and went directly to the spot
I was unable to again flush it. Afterward
while eating lunch in a little sunny 
hollow back among the sand hills
one of these birds flew by us twice