66 
1869. 
Gal linage w'lsorii. 
Middlesex County, Mass. 
Apr. 6. 
Shot one to-day. 
“ 14. 
Heard one just at dusk, high up in air, making that 
weird humming neiee sound peculiar to this species. 
“ 24. 
I listened for sometime this evening, to a number of 
Snipe drumming over a large meadov/^ and heard one, v^hich 
had just finished drumming, and vras probably, at the time, 
on his^way to the ground, utter a shrill hee-hee-hec^hee/ 
On several occasions this spring I have knovm a male, 
continue his drumming flight for nearly an hour v/ithout 
the slightest intermission. They seem to prefer fine 
moonlight nights for their concerts, and probably extend 
them throughout the hours of darkness, for I have heard 
them as late as 10 P.M. 
Sept, ft 
Get. 
We had literally no Snipe on our meadov/s this autumn; 
At Concord itxwas the same, and is quite an unheard of 
thing there, as their fall grounds are perfection for 
Snipe, and usually furnish the very finest shooting. 
They must have avoided the state all together this season. 
1870. 
Apr. 9. 
Saw tvro and too k one of them, but vras unable to 
find the surviver; soon after sunset it began to “drum* 
overhead and continued it azlong as I remained in the 
vicinity, ’ 
“ 13. 
Started upwards of a dozen in the course of the day. 
“ 23. 
Saw about a dozen and took three. 
“ 26. 
Saw four. 
* 26. 
Sav/ upvmrds of a dozen. 
Sept, ft 
Oct, 
by 
All the Snipe meadov^s being completely dried up the 
excessive drought, the birds were driven to the beds of 
ditches and streams and the shores of ponds, for foor. 
What few I shot were much emaointArf 
/97/. 
Mar. 20, 
probably 
Shot the first of the season; it had appareatljs 
just arrived as it was apparently much exhausted and very 
thin. A most careful searchof the most likely meadows 
revealed no traces of others. 
Apr. 6. 
Throe were seen on the Belmont meadows. 
• 13, 
Started eight on the Belmont meadows and shot fire. 
“ 14. 
Started five in the Presh Pond marshes. 
“ 15. 
Flushed only two birds in a hard days tramp on the 
Belmont meadows. 
