Cleveland Park Sept 26, 1930
This evening just before dusk I saw
a woodcock in the yard next door. She was
within 10 feet of the street when first seen
about beneath a thick bush, and shielded by
bushes. Passing automobiles seemed not
to alarm her. She walked slowly right
rapidly, holding the body nearly
vertically, with the beak close to the
earth. She bored often, but
never deeply, but seemed to
peck up something. Presently
the woodcock broke from the street
following the edge of a deep
flower bed, at sometime on
the adjoining lawn, threading
in and out among the plants.
Once she stopped still for a
few minutes, evidently having
seen us, at the window,
but we kept still and she moved on.
From where we looked down at her
from the bedroom window, she
was not more than 20 feet away.
Soon she walked out on this
open lawn several feet from
the flower bed, and then flew
away, up the street and over a
hollow down toward the valley.
All the time she was in the
yard she was never more than
10 feet from our home or this
orchard. Evelyn and I watched her.