Oporonis agilis
MASS. (Middlesex Co.) [Middlesex County, Massachusetts]
1876.
Thursday
Sept. 28 [September 28, 1876] Clear and a fine day, with high wind.
Off after breakfast with Dan [Daniel Chester French], driving
"up North." Just after passing Jos. Smith's
a grouse rose from an open field adjoining
the road and flew into a birch on the 
roadside. As the horse approached it, [delete]again[/delete]
it started again, and flying down the 
road a few rods turned sharply into the
yard of a farm house and actually alighted
on the top rail of an old hay rigging that
was standing in front of the farmers door.
As we approached it a third time however
it made across the road and alighted 
in a pine grove. Leaving the horse tied in
the road we started after it but before
we came to the place where we had marked 
it down, I flushed a fine large bevy
of quail from among the underbrush of
huckleberry bushes. I let them go without
shooting and a few rods further on put up
the grouse and shot at it cutting out
feathers. Thinking it a good opportunity to 
break in "Dash" I followed the quail about
for over an hour refusing many fine shots
at them, but finally when the dog had commenced
to point I resolved to shoot one or two
and after missing two single shots I made
a double *shot among the pines killing two
birds over a steady point from Dash.
Dan also fired once and missed. Returning
to the buggy we drove up to Hapgood's birches
where "Dash" made a doubtful point on a
woodcock which I killed as it rose.
Here we also started a bevy of quail which were
not larger than song sparrow. Got back to
dinner. Skinned the greebe [grebe] & woodcock in P.M.
[margin]Quail 2 - Woodcock 1. Saw a single Op. agisis [Oporonis agilis] among pitch pines on high land.[/margin]