MASS. (Middlesex Co.) [Middlesex County, Massachusetts]
1876.
March 23 [March 23, 1876] Clear and a fine day with bracing N. W. [northwest]
wind. Rose early and drove over to take 
the 8.10 train for Concord on the Lowell road
but after putting up my horse in a livery stable
found upon going to the station that all
travel was suspended beyond Lexington
by reason of a bad 'wash' in the road bed. 
Getting my horse I rode about the
country till 11 A. M. when I took the 
up train on the F.R.R. Arriving at 
Concord I ran across Charlie Richardson 
and prevailed on him to take a trip 
down river in his "birch" with me. 
We had a very pleasant paddle, going
down some three miles, but saw very
little to shoot at, killing only a musk 
rat and a meadow mouse (A. riparia [Arvicola riparius])
The latter - like the former - was drowned
out by the rise of the waters and was 
sitting on some floating debris among 
the bushes. Saw four duck, two black
(A. obscura [Anas obscura]) and two small fowl that
I took to be Lophodytes cucullatus but 
am not quite certain. I saw a single
Collaris [Aythya collaris], a very fine adult Buteo lineatus
and a few Scolecophagus [Scolecophagus ferrugineus]. Took the 5P.M.
train on the Lowell R.R. home, the passage
through having been completed since morning. 
Getting off at Arlington St. I walked 
across country home. As I passed the lower
swamps the sun was just setting and 
I paused a moment to listen to the
birds. Out over the flooded meadow several
red wings [Red-winged Blackbird] perched on isolated bushes
were rolling out their rich guttural notes