Charles E. Burchfield, Journals, June 10, 1932

There is an excitement in riding on a street-car when you have no objective - At a certain point the canal looked so interesting we got off and made for it, came to some locks - We went along these - a flat-topped scow which reminded me of the tops of red dusty freight cars on a summer's day - and I felt a warm pleasing sensation of having come home to my own for a moment - it seemed all at once like a good life to work in the barren heat of a railroad -

We spent some time in watching the manuevers [sic] of a tug in getting another scow out of the way of this big one - I felt at home here - to the west the turbulent Niagara, + the windy patch [of] meadow between it and the canal full of buttercups - there was a healthy glamour of everyday life about it.  We crossed on one of the locks to the other side of the canal, where one of the men told us that a big boat was due in twenty minutes - we waited for it - following [this] we left the canal - to the windy meadow - a feeling of long ago noons of childhood - we picked wild-flowers, iris + buttercups, keeping up a lively banter all the while - along the shore - the grass grew right down to the edge, + the wind blew the water in waves into the grass - the wind was insistent + boisterous -

Charles Burchfield, June 10, 1922