If the crust was hard and the whole loaf was very dense, it may not have had enough time to rise, or it might have been a little cold where it was sitting.
If the mixture was too wet, the texture will get tighter and denser, almost squished looking, toward the bottom of the loaf.
Mother Earth News tends to publish a lot of low gluten flour bread recipes, too, so it may just have been the kind of mix that doesn't really rise up much -yeast bread recipes need gluten, so they can stretch and rise. Those heavier breads usually benefit from a very careful watch on the time, so they don't get too dry.
Bread has a different smell when it's done, the smell changes and gets more intense. My dog figured it out and would go stand next to the oven and whine when bread was done.
