ie 7 fript tele Solty Peis oF goed hg tate os, ae Pit, a yy seria f S pe: 3 — CORYTHORNIS COERULEOCEPHALA, 6 & juv. THE Quarierly Magasin OF THE High Wycombe Patural History Society. k ee —_———- aetna eel “HE PRAYETH WELL WHO LOVETH WELL BOTH MAN, AND BIRD, AND BEAST; HE PRAYETH BEST WHO LOVETH BEST ALL THINGS BOTH GREAT AND SMALL; FOR THE DEAR GOD WHO LOVETH Us, HE MADE AND LOVETH ALL,” ycombe : PRINTED FOR THE SOCIETY BY W. BUTLER, CHURCH SQUARE: AND SOLD BY ALL BOOKSELLERS, Tnvex, ORIGINAL ARTICLES. * Additions to the Wycombe Flora, 1866-7... Amongst the ney nara ry S Autumn ms Birds, The, of Cookham and the Neighbourhood Branched Clavarias (illustrated) ... on Chiltern Country, The... Clerks of the Weather Folk-Lore Instinct v. Reason Introductory Address .. Large Wood Wasp, The (illust) vated) Migration “Mosses ... ‘4 7 as “es = Notes on Rrukin gliadasive Plants « doe ak is November Ramble, A On Fascination * On Incredulity with ‘respect to Geological Facts * On the Destruction of Birds * On the Seeds, or Spores, of Fungi (Gustrated)... * On the Study of Natural History coe Ornithological estes ate ae eet A ase * Our Ferns * Our Migrants Ae pe hiort Mei ae * Pleasures, The, of Moth Bamtitie Resources ah - Snake, The, and Adder eae mE ae Useful Books ... ae Bas ne i Weather, The, in the British Teles = What we found aa Winter Life, The, of a ‘Cuckoo i in England oe Wycombe Birds es ne sep Wycombe Butterflies i. Our Vanessidze ii, Our Argynnidze iii, The Red Horns Wycombe Hawkmoths Wycombe Wild Flowers:— i. The Nightshade Family oe ii, Our Violets (illustrated) es 123, 147, 173 ap eee 1 18, 36, 85, 131 ok, OG * The Papers marked thus have been read before the Society. Proceedings of the Society * Second Annual Report of the Secretary... Notices of Books aK aes one we dee wee 165 109, 129 3 eee i 23, 46, 69, 94, 113, 137, 168, 191 * Second Annual Address of the President oes 15 eee 139 eee 143 NOTES AND CORRESPONDENCE, PAGE American Blight, The .. 35 Angle Shades Moth, The 74 Beech Leaves .. 48 Birds, The, of Berks ‘and Bucks 169 Burnham Beeches sina eget Butcher’s Broom, The ,. .. 190 Caterpillars 5c 26 Chantarelle, The .. 50 Clerks of the Weather 145 Clouded Yellow, The 146 Curious Place for a Bird’s Nest 73 Dr, Johnson at Fault tee ea. SO Duke of Burgundy, The .._ .. 145 Edible Fungi Sh | ee ack CE Flora of Bucks, The os 169 FuneralofaBee .. 49 Future Life of Animals, The . 74 Good Old Times, The Sich ol ee: Green Woodpecker, The .. .. 73 Hawkmoths BP suite 50 Hebenon ., 48, 72, 98, 121 Hedgehogs.. . fet 905.469 ihenine Bird Moth, The 49 Instinct v, Reason 25, 26, 48, 49, 74 PAGE Is Geology adry Study?.. .. 26 Land Efts .. .. Ponts Large Tortoise-shell, The.. + a Late Martins . Rene ich) INP EEA 15s) | oe ceemes 26 Mezereon, The 194 NADLG ED sere eet OORe TS 49 Morell (illustrated) .. 194 On Preserving the Colour of Dried Flowers .. et Sita ee Phosphoric Centipede, Bes oh liiag Plant new to the District te MEAD Reason in Animals ., .. .. 133 Scarcity of Common Lepidop- GELBh ic sae Ap phen 8 enue mel Sea Currents iyp Small Elephant Hawkmoth, The 74 Stoat, The .. we 170 Uses of Animals Reap erice chit Water Crowfoot ae - See Wheatear, The oo) GSTS Whiteflowered Wood Violet .. 25 White Sand Martin .. ». 146 QUARTERLY MAGAZINE OF THE Winh Wpvecombe NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY. JULY, 1866. ADDRESS. ‘ CCEDING to the expressed wishes of many lovers of Nature, the above Society has resolved on issuing a periodical. As in the case of old John Bunyan’s book, there will doubtless be many varied opinions concerning its venturing to do so. But if any apology be needed, we can only state that our simple desire is to spread abroad a knowledge of the things which lie around us, and to increase that love for such things which dwells _naturally in the human breast. The district around High Wycombe is one peculiarly rich in natural treasures, both botanical and zoological, and at the same time is one which has been but very cursorily examined. There are flowering plants to be found in our woods, of sufficient rarity to induce bot- anists to make a journey from London to see them in bloom; there are many animals in the vicinity which inhabit but a few favoured spots in the island: the geology, if not of very varied aspect, is still highly interesting, many curious fossils having been obtained here, while the scenery in the valley is especially tranquil and soothing. To the numerous objects in these different branches of study we desire to draw attention, and also to spread any information in our power concerning them. In each number we hope to give two or three original articles on our local Fauna and Flora, to notice the progress of the study of Natural History generally, and by means of a page B 4 ADDRESS. or two for Notes and Queries, to afford an opportunity to all who desire it, of asking for, and receiving-information. All notices of the appearances of migratory birds, and hybernating animals, of the occurrence of rare and un- common plants, will be thankfully received and inserted ; we hope to make the work a reliable natural history of the neighbourhood, and to this end we ask all and everybody to contribute their quota, remembering that nothing is too trivial to notice, there is no telling what missing link in the chain it may prove to be: all that is necessary is a plain, truthful manner of telling it, omitting all romance, and never allowing imagination to supply the place of fact. For the science is peculiarly an inductive one; conclusions must not be drawn from one or two observations; if they are, we shall in all probability have to cancel them; patience and personal observation, however, will prevent this. i Should the Magazine meet with a favourable reception, we hope to issue it oftener than its present title would imply, and also to increase its size: for the present we must leave it to stand or fall on its own merits. On the Study of Watural History. A PAPER READ AT THE ANNUAL CONVERSAZIONE OF THE SOCIETY IN APRIL LAST, BY THE SECRETARY. ———— “ God fulfils Himself in many ways.” me study of Natural History may be looked at from two points of view; we may regard it either as affording pleasure to the senses and gratification to the mind; or as tending to be practically useful in the economy of our lives. It is now closely followed up by the holders of each of these views, and none of either class have ever repented the study. Nature herself is so infinite and varied in all her productions, that though she has had disciples ever since man appeared on the earth, she retains, even now, after the lapse of thousands of years, the same freshening influence, the same charm hanging about her works, which acts with such an irresistible force upon the neophyte, and urges him to travel onwards. It is not my intention now to refer at all to the advantages derived from the study by those holding the second view; we are assembled here as we have been at other times, simply from a love of Nature, with a desire so to look upon created works, that we may find “‘life and food for future years.”’ To many I may say nothing new; to some I may probably be able to place some old facts or thoughts in a new light; but I shall be amply repaid if I succeed in making only one more eager in his or her pursuits in the woods and fields—more desirous of following out thoroughly that which at present is taken up only in a desultory manner. 6 ON THE STUDY OF NATURAL HISTORY. I believe the love of created works to be inherent in the human mind—that if is not so much an acquired love as one that will spring up involuntarily; we have it in us naturally ; it may lie a long time dormant, but when some flower of spring, or animated ‘thing of beauty” shall appear, at a moment perhaps when the heart is peculiarly open to its influence, it will implant itself in our memories, and become a ‘‘joy for ever.”” Few indeed are they, who, having once set foot within the porches of the great palace of nature turn round and retrace their steps. And the farther they advance the greater is their wonder and delight— the more keen is their sense of enjoyment. When Linnzvs, after years of study, came to England, and for the first time in his life saw the yellow gorse in flower, he fell on his knees, and thanked God for the sight. No one can understand this who has not dis- covered a rare plant or seen some beautiful animal for the first time, that he has long wished to find. Just as in childhood, as the years—nay, as the weeks—roll by, we make fresh discoveries in the world around us, feel ourselves growing wiser—feel an expansive power at work within us, pro- duced by the very objects which that power enables us to appre- ciate—so do we, in maturer years, among the domains of nature, feel sources of new pleasures ever opening to us, and we make continually new discoveries. The things which delighted us in childhood, yield us little delight in manhood—then ‘‘ Earth, and every common sight, To us did seem Apparelled in celestial light, The glory and the freshness of a dream.’” But a sort of wearisome familiarity began to cling to them, ‘* Shades of the prison-house begin to close on the growin a But he beholds the light, and whence it flows, He sees it in his joy ; The youth who daily from the East Must travel, still is nature’s priest, And by the vision splendid Is on his way attended ; At length the man perceives it die away, And fade into the light of common day.” So, says the poet, is it with the ordinary experiences of life. If it could be shown then, that there was any one subject of study, which, beyond all others, and with less trouble, could afford us a ON THE STUDY OF NATURAL HISTORY. 7 never-ending experience of new pleasures— pleasures, which should not pall our satiated appetites, which have the very least alloy of disappointment in them, is it not worth while to pay a little atten- tion to it? Imay be said to be exaggerating, to be enthusiastic in my own mode of recreation; but I appeal to all naturalists to bear me out in what I have said, and I confidently leave it to the ex- perience of others. The subject is one, not so much for the library and the study, as for the theatre of Creation itself—you will bear in mind the view with which I am now regarding it—we shall learn most by personal examination, and what we so learn we shall seldom forget. Nature probably is most fascinating, subjectively, in the season of youth, the mind being then most capable of pure enjoyment, for its own sake; all things then wear a fairy garb; it was then, says Wordsworth, that “‘ The sounding cataract Haunted me like a passion: the tall rock, The mountain, and the deep and gloomy wood, Their colours and their forms, were then to me An appetite ; a feeling and a love That had no need of a remoter charm By thought supplied, or any interest Unborrowed from the eye.”’ And as riper years steal upon us the same love retains its hold, but there is a change in the mode of regarding it; we, like the poet, learn “To look on Nature, not as in the hour Of thoughtless youth, but hearing oftentimes The still, sad music of humanity, Not harsh nor grating, though of ample power To chasten and subdue. And we have felt A presence that disturbs us with the joy Of elevated thoughts ; a sense sublime Of something far more deeply interfused, Whose dwelling is the light of setting suns, And the round ocean, and the living air, And the blue sky, and in the mind of man: A motion and a spirit that impels All thinking things, all objects of all thought, And rolls through all things.” To come to something practical: let us draw a comparison between a lover of nature and one who thinks nothing of her. Take the case of a simple ramble through the fields: most people are in the habit of ‘doing a constitutional” occasionally. This 8 ON THE STUDY OF NATURAL HISTORY. walk is very often quite aimless, and is only undertaken as a matter of duty, out of regard to one’s health. A man takes a certain number of steps every day; he feels a sort of satisfaction after it, and goes to his work again until the time returns for its repetition. All well and good perhaps, but I ask, is it not also our duty to keep our minds in health, as well as our bodies ? The above individual grows no richer, mentally, for his labour. How different from the case of another, who tells you he never comes home from a ramble without having discovered something fresh : he goes out to escape from his daily routine of business ; he knows that nothing rests the mind so much as change, and that when it is thoroughly wearied out by continued concentration on one sub- ject, it is better to occupy it with another than to suffer it to be idle. And therefore in his walk he notices the flower and the animal, their habitats, and their times of appearing; he discovers, without the aid of books, that there is ‘‘a time for everything ”»— a set time, and that in the beautiful regularity which pervades nature, nothing appears out of time or order; the caterpillar is not hatched before its food-plant is putting forth its leaves; the butterfly and the bat do not wake from their winter’s sleep when there is nothing for them to eat; everything is arranged. He notices, with scarcely an effort, the peculiarities of the beasts of the field, and the birds of the air ; he discovers the marvellous con- nection between one species and another, between one family and another, and the dependence of all upon the Creator, so that *“'The whole round earth is every way _ Bound by gold chains about the feet of God.” In theSpring Ais eyes first see the swallow, fis ears are first greeted by the cuckoo, he is gratified by the bursting forth of the vegetation into the most lovely green ; in the Autumn, while tints still more lovely objectively, array themselves before him, his de- light is tempered with sober thoughts of the great change which is one day to be wrought in himself. In Summer he beholds the triumphant reign of all living things, and in Winter—generally thought to be dull and cheerless in the country,—he knows where to find the squirrel and the dormouse snugly domiciled; he can find you the chrysalis of many a moth and butterfly marvellously ON THE STUDY OF NATURAL HISTORY. 9 entombed in the earth, or slung in a hammock ; he can show you luxuriant beds of mosses—those children of the winter that flourish when all around is asleep: And even if he could not show you all this, think what marvellous stores of information he has laid up, that shall afford him food for thought when he is lonely, or from which he can draw fairy lore to wile away the winter evening; what tales he can tell you of the wonderful things he saw in the summer—how he found the boat of eggs floating about in the pond, so curiously and perfectly formed by the gnat, that it could not be upset—a veritable life-boat; again, how he drew from the water a thing monstrously strange, armed with jaws that could unfold themselves upon its prey while yet afar off, how with un- relenting stedfastness it destroyed and devoured the other in- habitants, and after a few months of such enjoyment it climbed up a tall reed, and splitting itself down the back, took unto itself wings and flew off to continue its carnage among the inhabitants of air. Or our naturalist may give you more pleasing accounts of the nests of the wren and titmouse, the beautiful spotted eggs of the thrush, and the pearly eggs of the azure haleyon—how one bird assailed him with a torrent of abuse as he approached her offspring, and another suffered him to lay hold of her, sooner than she would forsake her nest: again, of the banks of flowers upon which he lay and pondered—the bed of happy violets, the golden cowslips, the ‘‘jocund company” of daffodils, the delicate wood sorrel, the wind flower; he tells you how he saw the faee of wintry nature turned into a perfect paradise of loveliness, and says «‘ Though absent long These forms of beauty have not been to me As is a landscape to a blind man’s eye; But oft, in lonely rooms, and ’mid the din Of towns and cities, I have owed to them, In hours of weariness, sensations sweet.” These are the stores upon which the lover of nature can draw. The poets of nature have been many, and I must not take up your time in quoting what is most likely familiar to you. I have tried to show what a charm there is around us if we like to ex- perience it—what an infinite variety there is for the mind to study. It is this infinite variety which gives the superiority to Natural History as a means of recreation: there is no fear of exhausting 10 ON THE STUDY OF NATURAL HiSTORY. the subject. Alexander the Great was sorely distressed when he had conquered all there was to conquer; but it cannot be so with us, Creation knows no’limit. I remember reading in some “wild dream of a German poet” that a human being was conducted over the universe to view God’s worlds, and that after sweeping past innumerable orbs,—planets, satellites, and comets, the mind of the man sank into itself, and shuddered with the over- powering effects, begging to be shown no more. If it were so with the thought of the infinity of worlds, what would it be, could he have but a dim comprehension of the infinitude of infinities that exists in each separate world. Here then is provided for our delectation a goodly storehouse of knowledge ; volumes upon volumes lie open before us; take them up and reyerently turn over the leaves, they make up the Book of GOD. Nor only is the past history of each being written in every particle of which its material frame is constructed, but the past records of the universe to which it belongs, and a prediction of its future. God can make no one thing that is not universal in its teachings if we would be so taught; if not, the fault is with the pupils, not with the Teacher. He writes His everliving words in all the works of His hand; He spreads this ample book before us always ready to teach if we will only learn. We walk in the midst of miracles with closed eyes and stopped ears, dazzled and bewildered with the Light, fearful and distrustful of the Word! It is not enough to accumulate facts as misers gather coins, and then to put them away on our bookshelves, guarded by the bars and bolts of technical phraseology. As coins, the facts must be circulated, and given to the public for their use. It is no matter of wonder that the generality of readers recoil from works on the natural sciences, and look upon them as mere collections of tedious names, irksome to reqd,,unmanageable of utterance, and impossible to remember. Ourscientific libraries are filled with facts, dead, hard, dry, and material as the fossil bones that fill the sealed and caverned libraries of the past. But true science will breathe life into that dead mass, and fill the study of Zoology with poetry and spirit.—Rzv. J. G. Woop. 11 Wycombe Wild Flowers. I.—THE NIGHTSHADE FAMILY (Solanacee). és : came to passe that three boyes of Wisbich in the Ie of Ely did eate of the pleasant and beautiful fruit hereof, two whereof died in lesse than eight houres after that they had eaten of them. The third child had a quantitie of hony and water mixed together given him to drinke, causing him to vomit often:. God blessed this meanes and the child recovered.” The ‘‘Three Boyes of Wisbich’’—especially the Two who died— seem to us worthy of exaltation to the very highest pinnacle of the Temple of Shocking Examples erected by the nurses of Great Britain for the benefit and warning of those under their care. Children, we are all aware, have in them from birth almost, a predilection for testing the quality of every object which they see around them, by selecting a small portion thereof for immediate consumption. Shem, Ham, and Japhet, with their wives and cattle (we allude to their representatives in the ‘‘ Noah’s Arks”’ of infancy), are all very well while what we may term the suck- ing stage of childhood lasts: but when the gnawing epoch suc- ceeds, accompanied by the acquirement of the rudiments of walking, a wider sphere opens before the young and inquiring mind; out-door objects—earwigs and ants, for example—are devoured with relish, and herbs of various properties serve as sauce. A nursemaid in herself is powerless to prevent this: but arm her for the occasion with the tragical tale of the Three, and the horrible fate of the Two ‘Boyes of Wisbich;’’ let her be taught to narrate it in simple, but forcible language; and the infantile imagination must shudder at the scene presented to it, and the varied diet may be desisted from. Does this seem a strange way of beginning a paper upon Wycombe Wild Flowers? Let us then, without further delay, proceed to our subject, to which the above is not wholly c 12 WYCOMBE WILD FLOWERS. irrelevant, leaving, for the present, conjectures (in which we confess we feel great interest) as to why the ‘‘meanes” which were blessed to the recovery of the third child, were not at least tried upon the other two. Our readers’ curiosity must be—or at any rate ought to be—by this time excited as to the name of the plant, the ‘‘ pleasant and beautiful fruit’ of which brought such fatal consequences to the youthful Wisbichians. Quaint old Gerarde, who is our authority for the above statement, tells us that it was Dwale, or Drapiy NIGHTSHADE, and advises his readers to banish it from their gardens, or from any place near their houses, ‘‘ being a plant so furious and deadly.” It belongs to the order Soranacem—the Nightshade Family, to the few British representatives of which —all of them wild flowers of the Wycombe district—we would now direct attention. The Deadly Nightshade rejoices in the Latin name of Atropa Belladonna, but is perhaps usually known by that of Belladonna only, which we should anglicise as “ Beautiful Lady;” given to it from the fact that it is used as a cosmetic by Italian dames. The name Atropa refers very strongly to the fatal properties of the plant, Atropos being the mystic Fate whose office it was to sever the thread of life. Its English names also point to the poisonous nature of this species: they are—Deadly, or Sleepy, Night- shade; Dwale—a word which is a corruption of the French word deuil, mourning—to which is frequently added the prefix Deadly; Hogsbean—a name which is also applied to the Henbane;—and Dwayberries. The Deadly Nightshade is a very large and handsome plant, from three to eight feet high, and very shrubby; the stems are often thicker than an ordinary walking-stick; the leaves are large and smooth, of a somewhat dark green, egg-shaped, pointed, and uncut. ‘The flowers are also somewhat handsome, the calyces being green, and the corollas lurid purple; the latter are very numerous, growing singly, or occasionally in pairs, upon rather long stalks; and are pendulous, bell-shaped, and mono- petalous, t.e., one-petalled, all in one piece; each containing five white stamens, and one pistil. But it is in fruit that our Bella- WYCOMBE WILD FILOWERS. 13 donna appears most to advantage, when each blossom is succeeded by a lustrous purplish-black berry as large as a cherry, the juice of which gives a brilliant and permanent purple dye to paper; and the slender boughs bend to the earth with their beautiful but deadly freight. Each berry contains a great number of small black seeds, and is seated on the five-pointed calyx, which re- mains after the corolla has fallen off. "We may here remark that the corolla is that part of the blossom which is usually coloured, and which is commonly called the flower; the calyx is the cup in which the corolla is placed, and is wswally green. In some plants, as in the Buttercup, the calyx falls off as the corolla expands: but in others, as in our Deadly Nightshade, it is persistent, remaining even when the fruit is matured. Many suppose that itis to the Belladonna that Shakespeare alludes, when he says, ‘‘ Have we eaten of the insane root That takes the reason prisoner?”’ * and this supposition is borne out by the old authors, who tell us that ‘this kind of Nightshade troubleth the minde, bringeth mad- nesse if a few of the berries be inwardly taken, but if moe be given they also kill and bring present death.” Nevertheless, when judiciously employed, Belladonna is a valuable remedy in many diseases, especially in such as affect the eye. The Deadly Nightshade is a rare plant of chalky districts, and is also found among ruins: in some places itis very abundant, as about the ruins of Furness Abbey, whence that neighbourhood is said by Withering to have obtained the name of “ Vale of Night- shade.” Our own district produces it in several localities: it grows in profusion among the undergrowth in the little wooded patch which faces the middle lodge in Wycombe Park, and was formerly found on Keep Hill, as well as in a small wood above Hedge Mill, near Loudwater. A fine specimen grows in the Hughenden woods; and in the woodlands near Marlow and Medmenham itis of frequent occurrence, being especially luxuri- ant in some parts of Bisham Wood, Berks. The blossoms expand in June and July, and the berries are in perfection during Sep- tember and October. 14 WYCOMBE WILD FLOWERS. The Henpane, or Hogsbean (Hyoscyamus niger), shares the poisonous properties of the Deadly Nightshade in a very marked manner: its English name would point to its ill effects upon birds, and nearly all living beings are susceptible of its influence, Shakespeare speaks of the ‘‘juice of cursed Hebenon,” (not un- frequently rendered “‘ Ebony !””) “Whose effect Holds such an enmity with blood of man That, swift as quicksilver, it courses through The natural gates and alleys of the body; And, with a sudden vigour, it doth posset And curd, like eager droppings into milk, The thin and wholesome blood.,’’ And Gerarde tells us that ‘the leaves, seed, and juyce taken in- wardly, cause an unquiet sleepe like unto the sleep of drunken- nesse, which continueth long, and is deadly to the party.” Like the Deadly Nightshade, however, Henbane is a valuable plant in medicine, when used with judgment and care. The following anecdote, for the accuracy of minute particulars of which we can- not vouch, but the main facts of which are to be found in various works, show the striking effects produced by Henbane when taken unintentionally in large quantities. The Abbot of Jenesaisquoi had presented to his brother of Rhinon a salad, which was all that a salad should be—hot and strong, and plenty of it; little wotting, good man! that the lay- brother to whom the gathering of the herbs was entrusted had, with a lamentable ignorance of Botany, substituted the root of the Henbane for that of the bitter, but innoxious Chicory. At collation, full justice was done to the salad: its flavour was piquant and savoury withal. The monks went to bed, and slept heavily: when Brother Ambrose rang the bell for Prime, they thought that the time for that office had come round apace. But worse took place when they had somehow or other assembled themselves in chapel: the prior and chanters vied with each other in singing ridiculous nonsense: Brother Cyprian was with difficulty restrained from violently assaulting Brother Patrick, while the characters in Brother Gregory’s book took unto them- selves the form of flies, and kept the worthy soul fully employed in attempting to brush them off. Brother Maurus was absent WYCOMBE WILD FLOWERS. 15 altogether, and was found fast asleep in a corner of his cell, emitting such groans the while, that extreme unction would have been administered forthwith, had any brother been steady enough to perform the service. But the worst case of all was that of poor Lay-brother Francis, the tailor in ordinary to the monastery, who saw three needles when he should have seen but one, and occupied his time for more than a week in endeavouring to thread the two imaginary ones; during which time we can readily con- ceive that the robes of the Brotherhood got somewhat out of repair. However, we are told that the holy men all recovered, each, doubtless, resolving to be cautious ere he tasted a salad, the composition of which was unknown to him. And from this tale we may deduce a moral—Don’t eat of made dishes unless you know what’s in them. Henbane may be recognised, when seen, by its somewhat large, pale green leaves, which are usually much cut, and being viscid, support a large quantity of dust: the whole plant is extremely clammy and downy, emitting a peculiar and offensive smell. The woody stem, which in fine specimens is much branched, varies in height from one to two feet, but is frequently shorter. The calyces are large, becoming upright after the fall- ing off of the corollas: they are composed of strong fibres, and may usually be noticed in groups of ‘‘ skeleton flowers.” The monopetalous corollas are somewhat bell-shaped: those which first appear seem quite embedded in the topmost leaves, but as the stem elongates, we observe that they are really seated on short stalks in the azils of the leaves—7.e., where these join the stem. ‘They are of a pale straw-colour, or brownish yellow, exquisitely veined with lurid purple, which hue also tinges deeply the centre of each. There are five stamens and one pistil; the seeds are black and very numerous, of about the size of a’‘mustard- seed. The Henbane has a great partiality for waste ground, and may usually be seen springing up where a portion of woodland has been cleared: in newly made gardens it is sometimes a trouble- some weed. Preferring a chalky soil, it is seldom to be found in the same place for two successive seasons: we know but one permanent locality for it near Wycombe—about the rubbish heaps 16 WYCOMBE WILD FLOWERS. on Totteridge Common, where it has held its ground for many years, and grows to a large size. On waste ground and rubbish heaps it has been seen in all parts of the district—Great Marlow, Little Marlow, Bourne End, Cookham (Berks), Wycombe Marsh, Downley, Bradenham, Bledlow Ridge, &c.; and each year it is observed in some fresh locality. Last season, the Henbane was particularly fine and abundant in the large pit at Littleworth, near Downley. The blossoms expand from May till September. Our two remaining British Nightshades belong to the genus Solanum, from which the order takes its name. To mention all the useful and ornamental species of Solanwm would take up too much space, but before proceeding to the description of the two indigenous ones, we may briefly draw attention to one or two which are especially noticeable. First among these comes the Potato (S. tuberosum), one of the discoveries of unfortunate Sir Water Raleigh ; how would he stare, could he behold the mani- fold varieties of his Peruvian protégé now cultivated in this country! The Tomato or Love-apple (8S. lycopersicum), loved of gourmands, comes from Mexico and other countries; the curious Egg-plant (S. esculentum), too, is a member of this genus; and so is the Apple of Sodom (8. Sodomeum). Besides these, the number and variety of Nightshades now cultivated in what are termed ‘‘ sub-tropical gardens,” would baffle the description of any but their cultivators. Our own British species are the BrrrERswEET, or Woopy (mis- ealled Deadly) Niaursnapr (8. dulcamara), and the Buacx, or Garpren NiaursHAvE (8. nigrum). The former of these needs no description: any one who cares to know what Woody Nightshade blossoms are like, is requested to go to the nearest potato patch, and gather a bunch of potato-flowers, which Woody Nightshade blossoms resemble as closely as anything small can resemble any- thing large. The aforesaid ‘‘any one” will have no difficulty in finding S. duleamara; its long branches creep up nearly every hedge, or trail along by rubbish heaps and waste ground. It is most conspicuous in the late autumn and winter, when the flowers are succeeded by clusters of bright scarlet berries, beau- tiful but dangerous. The Garden Nightshade is much less WYCOMBE WILD FLOWERS. 17 common, occurring as a weed in gardens at Wycombe and Great Marlow, and also on waste ground in the latter locality. It isa shrubby plant, usually of small size, with white potato-like blos- soms, which are succeeded by black berries, and entire, some- times toothed leaves, and is altogether insignificant in appearance. In a dried state (hear it! O herbarium makers!) its appearance is miserable in the extreme. It shares the poisonous properties of S. duleamara ; and its flowers expand from July to September. The following useful or interesting plants also belong to the Solanacee: the Winter Cherry (Physalis Alkekeng), a pretty gar- den plant which seems to have gone out of fashion; Capsicum annuum, from which Cayenne pepper is obtained ; the Mandrake (Mandragora officinarum), which our ancestors fabled as shrieking when pulled from the ground; the Thorn-apple (Datura Stra- monium), with large white trumpet-shaped blossoms, and thorned seed-vessels, occasionally found on rubbish heaps; and the two species of Tobacco-plant (Nicotiana virginica and VV. rustica), the leaves of which, in conjunction with those furnished by the delightful, though humble, Dock, and the Cabbage-fields of the Metropolis supply the sterner sex—and occasionally, it is said, the weaker one—with the means of “making chimneys of their mouths.” In this age of sensation, we fear that our article may have proved somewhat ‘“‘slow.” We regret, but cannot obviate, the fact. Let us conclude, then, by presenting as a peace-offering to the Genius of Sensationalism, the name of Solanum anthropopha- gorum, which was exhibited at a recent meeting in London, as “the plant eaten with man-meat by the Fijis!”’ JAMES BRITTEN. Sza-curRENTs.—How much solid matter does the whole host of ° marine plants and animals abstract from sea water daily? Is it a thousand pounds, or a thousand millions of tons? No one can say. But, whatever be its weight, it is so much of the power of gravity applied to the dynamical forces of the ocean. And this power is derived from the salts of the sea, through the agency of sea-shells and marine animals, that of themselves scarcely possess the power of locomotion. Yet they have power to put the whole sea in motion, from the equator to the poles, and from top to bottom.—Mavry. The Chiltern Country. E hear often of the ‘‘ Chiltern Hills,’ and the ‘Chiltern Hundreds,” occasionally of the ‘Chiltern Forest,” but little seems to be known of the name, its origin, or meaning. The following sketch is written in the hope of throwing some light on the early history of the tract of country represented by these names, whose hills and dales are so familiar to the members of our society through our numerous pleasant excursions. The ‘‘ Chiltern Hills” are usually taken to mean the ridge of lofty hills which separate South Buckinghamshire from the Vale of Aylesbury; but the name of Chiltern properly applies to the whole of the hilly district of which the Chiltern hundreds, of political celebrity, form a portion. This district is called in the most ancient records by the simple name of Ciltern or Chiltern, and in later times, the Chiltern forest. Physically it may be defined as the tract of table land, broken up by numerous valleys and coombs, and marked by lofty peaks which serve as landmarks for many miles round—which stands up in bold relief between the vales of the Thame and df the Thames. This tract was covered by an almost impassable forest of beech woods, from which it acquired its ancient name; for the element CIL is common to all primitive European languages, and universally signifies in geography country that is or formerly was thickly wooded; and has found its way in more modern times back into our own language, from the Latin, in the word ‘‘ sylvan.”* The name of Chiltern was bestowed upon the forest by its earliest inhabitants, the Celts; and a considerable portion of the names of the natural creatures of the district are Celtic, though in a Saxonised form. Such are the names of the springs and streams; the names of several hills—Penn, Coles-hill, Knaphill, Keep-hill, * The Cil is softened in Anglo-Saxon into Chil by a process peculiar to the latter tongue. The element is traceable in many names in Italy, Spain, Germany, Bohemia, France, and Greece—wherever, in short, the Celtic tribes made permanent settlements. THE CHILTERN COUNTRY. 19 Haveringdon-hill (West Wycombe), &c. All these the Saxons must have found in use, and incorporated into their own language, like many elements in common names. The district is described by the name of Ciltern in the earliest known division of Saxon England, given by Camden (Magna Britannia, in Jansson’s Wovus Atlas, vol. 4, p. 65), on the authority of the celebrated jurist Francis Tate. This singular list probably dates not many years posterior to the Saxon invasion; and-the precise meaning of the several strange names by which the divisions are de- nominated is not yet determined by antiquaries; but we find among them plainly and unmistakeably that of Ciltern-setna, which is stated to contain seven thousand hides.* Here, then, we have the earliest documentary evidence of the name. Probably the whole of the district now called Buckinghamshire was in- cluded in it; and no one will deny that for harmony, propriety, and convenience, the ancient name is to be preferred before the modern, or its vulgar abbreviation into Bucks. But how came the old name to be cast out? What reason induced the surveyors who settled the county boundaries and fixed the county names by order of Alfred the Great, to exchange the ancient and significant name of Chiltern for one borrowed from a little town in a remote corner of the district? The reason is, that the Chiltern forest was of little political importance—it had no towns or villages to speak of till a long time after the neighbouring vales had become thoroughly populated. And such importance as it possessed, was rather of a negative than a positive kind; for after the Danish invasions had ceased it was in the worst possible reputation as the stronghold and hiding- place of innumerable thieves, murderers, and scoundrelsof all sorts. Thither retired all the vagabonds whom the peace threw out of employment—the discontented and disaffected—who together with the numerous original members of the most ancient trading company in the world, the freebooters, acquired for the name of the Chiltern forest an odour which was many centuries * The list only includes the cis-Humbrian part of the island, which is divided into thirty-four districts, the largest, Wessex, containing 100,000 hides, and the three smallest only 300 hides apiece. The only names besides Chiltern which I can identify with existing divisions are those of Kent, Essex, Sussex, and the Isle of Wight. . D 20 THE CHILTERN COUNTRY. lingering about it. So late as the time of Queen Elizabeth Drayton could write, in his Polyolbion— ‘Here (in the Chiltern hills) if you beat a bush, ’tis odds you start a thief.’’ The ancient office of Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds, though useful for political purposes, is now of the smallest possible im- portance to the Chilterners themselves. The original steward was some valiant knight—some sturdy cavalier who willingly resigned the glorious career of a soldier abroad for the less honourable but more useful life of a policeman at home; whose duty it was to protect peaceful citizens who had occasion to journey through its recesses, and to keep in check the marauding villains who infested it. He and his myrmidons, however, seem to have made little head against the nuisance. The Abbot of St. Albans was at last obliged to take the matter in hand, for the security of travellers to and from his Abbey. First, he proceeded to cut down as much of the forest as possible—more, I imagine, in his own vicinity than in South Buckinghamshire; then to make convenient roads, and then to hand over one of his manors to two stout soldiers (I forget their names), to be possessed by them on condition of their assisting the Steward of the Hundreds in his exertions to preserve the peace of the neighbourhood.* Such is the story as you read it in the ‘‘Lives of the Twenty-three Abbots,” by Matthew Paris. There is abundant confirmation of the main facts which the old chronicler relates of the Chiltern district from other sources; but I am a little sceptical as to the additional inhabitants whom he avers to have shared the posses- sion of the forest with the marauding parties aforesaid—namely, wolves. bears, and wild boars, whom these feudal police were also bound, as far as possible, to exterminate. So late as 1368, we find a tenure in the Five Rolls for the destruction of ‘‘ wolves foxes, martrons, cats, and other vermin” in the county of Buck- ingham; but it is probable that wolves had been extinct long before that period, in this portion of the island. A wild boar, I believe, was hunted and killed near Penn as late as the last century; but I am not able to give any authentic particulars. E. J. Payne. (To be continued.) * The abbot was Leofstan; the knights (there were three instead of two), Thurnoth, Walder, and Thurman; and the manor, Flamstead, in Herts. William the Conqueror took it away from them, and gave it to one of his own adyenturers. 21 What we Fount. F we wish to convince ourselves of the infinite variety which nature so lavishly spreads before us, we cannot do better than narrowly examine, at the various seasons of the year, one locality, easily ‘‘come-at-able,”’ and of definite limits; we shall be astonished at finding how many species of Flowering Plants alone may be gathered in a comparatively small area. Most of our readers know the straight piece of road, about two and a half miles in length, which extends from High to West Wycombe. On the right hand side is a hedge, high in some parts, and very dusty; on the left, a lower hedge, between which and the road is a narrow grassy patch. While walking along this road on the 11th of June last, it occurred to us to gather a specimen of each plant then in blossom on the right hand side of the road alone ; and on arriving at West Wycombe we found that our bouquet numbered fifty-eight species! Besides these, there was at least an equal number, the blossoms of which had either not yet ex- panded, or had already withered; and we do not in the least exaggerate, when we state that one hundred and twenty species of British plants flower, at different times of the year, in this dusty hedge, all widely varying one from the other in many im- portant particulars. The number on the other side of the road would doubtless have been far greater. The railway, on one side, which produces the rarer species of Salad Burnet (Poterium muricatum) and the Woad (satis tinctoria), has its own distinct class of plants; and so has the river, on the other side of the road: all of them interesting, many of them beautiful, some of them rare. We may mention that among the fifty-eight species gathered were the Long-stalked Crane’s-bill (Geranium colum- binum) and Buxbaum’s Speedwell ( Veronica Buxbaumit), neither of them common, and that the Yellow Stonecrop (Sedum acre) 22 WHAT WE FOUND. appears truly wild at the foot of the hedge between Bird-in-hand and West Wycombe station. Let none, therefore, imagine that they need go far afield to increase their botanical lore: they will learn more from the careful examination of the plants on a single acre of ground, than they will by scampering hastily over miles of country in search of rarities. To such of our Wycombe friends as desire to commence studying our Wild Flowers for themselves, we would say—Go to Hollow Lane at least once a week for a year; bring home specimens of every plant, common or rare, which you may perceive: count them up, study them, watch them expand, you cannot fail to find a never-ending source of pleasure and amusement which will supply you with food for reflection for many days. And if, in any of your rambles, you find a rare plant, take no more of it than is necessary for your purpose, leaving the rest for any one else who may want it, re- membering that an Exterminator is unworthy the name of a Botanist. You must not say that this cannot be, or that that is contrary to Nature. You do not know what Nature is, or what she can do; and nobody knows. Wise men are afraid to say that there is anything contrary to Nature, except what is contrary to mathe- matical truth; for two and two cannot make five, and two straight lines cannot join twice, and a part cannot be as great as the whole, and so on (at least, so it seems at present): but the wiser men are, the less they talk about ‘‘cannot.”’ There are dozens and hundreds of things in the world which we should certainly have said were contrary to Nature, if we did not see them going on under our eyes all day long. If people had never seen little seeds grow into great plants and trees, of quite different shape from themselves, and these trees again produce fresh seeds, to grow into fresh trees, they would have said, ‘The thing can- not be; it is contrary to nature.” And they would have been quite as right in saying so, as in saying that most other things cannot be.—Rey. C. Kinestey.—‘ Water Babies.” 23 Proceedings of the Soricty. May 19th.—The members met on KEEP Am for their first field day this year. Some little time was spent in examining the chalk-pit, but scarcely any fossils were found, and they then rambled across the hill. Among the many flowers just appearing were the Milkwort (Polygala vulgaris), the Cross-leaved Bedstraw ( Galium cruciatum), the Horse-shoe Vetch (Hippocrepis comosa), &c. Orchis mascula was in full bloom; O. maculata had only put in an appearance of leaves. The Barberry (Berberis vulgaris) was covered with its lemon-coloured blossoms at the foot of the slope. Among the insects were seen a few specimens of the Holly Blue (Lycena Argiolus), which is rather rare in this locality; Lacon murinus, Cicindela campestris, and several other beetles were fly- ing about, while the body of a hedgehog yielded several Carabide or Burying Beetles. From Keep Hill the members passed into Dane Garden Wood, where they noticed the Coralwort (Dentaria bulbifera) in flower, and several Orchids just appearing. June 9th.—Ramble in Hottow Lanz. An hour or two passed very pleasantly in this curious old lane, which has attracted the attention both of the archeologist and the geologist in no small degree; the former looking upon it in the light of an ancient road for packhorses, &c., from the neighbouring settle- ments on the hills to the more populous valley; the latter as a still more ancient watercourse, along which a torrent rushed to join some larger body of water in the present Hughenden valley. Probably both are right, at any rate the views are not opposed to each other, since there is many a similar ravine in Devonshire at the present day which is used for traffic in summer, but is impassable in winter. Hollow Lane is famous alike for its flowers and its insects—the botanist or entomologist who has not examined it has a treat yet to come. In the course of the ramble the members found several larve of Sawflies, a fine specimen of one of the Chrysomelida, larvee of Oak Egger (Bombyx 24 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. Quercus), Drinker Moth ( Odonestis potatoria) with a few Loopers. The spindle tree was in one or two spots one mass of webs of the little Ermine Moth ( Yponomeuta euonymella) which were now deserted, and a nest of the larvae of Eriogaster lanestris—the Small Egger Moth, not very common in the neighbourhood until this year, was found on asloe bush. Curiously enough there appear to have been but avery few seen here before, one was found by the Society in a ramble last summer, and another a year or two before, but a fortnight ago the Secretary in a walk to Marlow saw on one side of the road only no less than seventeen nests, each crowded with inhabitants. Mr. Britten exhibited a curious specimen of the Ribwort Plantain (Plantago lanceolata) from Oakridge, having seven or eight spikelets at the base of the usual spike. In the lane were Geranium columbinum, and one or two commoner species, and the Rock Rose, which excited great admiration from its size, and the irratibility of the stamens: at the top were found the Squinancy- wort (Asperula cynanchica), the Cathartic Flax (Linum catharticum), and the Tufted Horse-shoe Vetch (Hippocrepis comosa). Various grasses in flower were also pointed out. BeEsiwEs their mere scientific value, these pursuits offer in them- selves alone a precious reward. ‘They beguile the dull routine of professional and other employments, cherish gentle thoughts and calm desires, and multiply and refine our enjoyments; they endear many a rural walk with delightful associations of ‘each: lane and every alley, dingle, or bushy dell, and every bosky bourn from side to side ;” they may soften solitude or affliction ; they must impress us with meek and touching lessons of the means of happiness so bountifully spread before us, and of how cheaply some of our best pleasures may be purchased. And, above all, while thus teaching us to look for the good and the beautiful in surrounding objecis, and helping us to the true riches—those large and best possessions—of contentment and thankfulness, they may incline our minds to the grateful habit of ‘looking through Nature up to Nature’s GOD.”—Proressor GULLIVER. Correspondence. All communications relating to advertisements, contributions, or the supply of this magazine, should be addressed to the Editor, care of Mr. Uliyett, High Wycombe. Contributions must be sent in before the.15th of the month pre- ceding the date of publication. The Editor will be glad to receive notes con- cerning any of our local plants and animals, their times of appearing, their popular names and traditions, abnormal forms and colours, §'c:; these inust-be authenticated by the writer’s name and address, but not necessarily for publication. Wuite-rnowrreD Woop (Doe) Vioter (Viola sylvatica). —'Three specimens of this somewhat rare variety were gathered by Mr. Frank Wheeler on the 30th of April last, in Adder’s Lane, leading down from Totteridge to the London Road. The petals were much narrower than is usually the case, and, as well as the spur, were quite white: in shape they resembled those of V. Reichenbachiana (a narrow-petalled form with wnbranched veins, not hitherto observed in the district) rather than those of our common JV. Riviniana; but the total absence of coloured veins renders it impossible to state positively that our plant belongs to the former sub:species. The blossoms emitted a faint sweet scent, quite different to that of the sweet violet (V. odorata). JAMES BRITTEN. Prant New to tae District.— On May 18th, I found in a field of Trefoil near Oakridge, several fine specimens of the Field Mouse-ear Chickweed (Cerastium arvense), which has not been previously ob- served in the district. Its situation Aya me from supposing it to e truly wild there; but, as it is by no means unlikely to occur on banks, I may mention that it may be distinguished from the Common Mouse-ear Chickweed (C triviale) by the size and whiteness of its blos- soms, somewhat resembling those of the Great Stitchwort (Stellaria Holostea). Ib. Lanp Errs.—Some boys a short time ago were finding these creatures in Wycombe Park, and were gravely cautioned by a man against getting bitten by them, as “‘there was no cure for it.’”’ A Instinct v. Reason.—The follow- ing anecdote of a Crow found in Ceylon (Corvus splendens), which resembles our Magpie in its habits, is given by Sir E. Tennent:—‘‘One of these ingenious marauders, after vainly attitudinising in front of a chained watch-dog, that was lazily gnawing a bone, and after fruitlessly endeavouring to divert.his attention by dancing before him, with head awry and eye askance, at length flew away for a moment, and returned bringing a companion which perched itself on a branch a few yards in the rear. The crow’s grimaces were now actively renewed, but with no better success, till its confederate, poising itself upon its wings, descended with the utmost velocity, striking the dog with all the force of its strong beak. The ruse was successful; the dog started with surprise and pain, but was not quick enough to seize his assailant, whilst the bone he had been gnawing was snatched away by the first crow the instant his head was turned. Two well-authen- ticated instances of the recurrence of this device came within my know- ledge at Colombo, and attest the sagacity and powers of communi- cation and combination possessed by these astute and courageous birds.”’ 26 CORRESPONDENCE. ‘Ir was about the middle of last April, when I observed a young lamb entangled amongst briars. It had, seemingly, struggled for liberty until it was quite exhausted. Its mother was present, endeayouring with her head and feet to disentangle it. After having attempted in vain, for a long time, to effect this purpose, she left it, and ran away bleating with all her might. We fancied there was something peculiarly doleful in her voice. Thus she proceeded across three large fields; and through four strong hedges, until she came toa flock of sheep. From not having been able to follow her, I could not watch her motions when with them. However she left them in about five minutes, accompanied by a large ram that had two power- ful horns. They returned speedily towards the poor lamb, and as soon as they reached it the ram im- mediately set about liberating it, which he did in a few minutes by dragging away the briars with his horns.’’—Loudon’s Magazine for 1831. Dr. Jounson at Favitt.— Swal- lows,’’ said he, ‘‘certainly sleep all the winter. A number of them con- globulate together, by flying round and round, and then all in a heap throw themselves under water, and lie in the bed of a river.” Is Grotocy A Dry Stupy?—‘‘In the course of the first day’s employ- ment I picked a nodular mass of blue limestone, and laid it open by a stroke of the hammer. Wonderful to relate, it contained inside a beau- tifully finished piece of sculpture,— one of the yolutes, apparently, of an Ionic capital; and not the far- famed walnut of the fairy tale, had I broken the shell, and found the little dog lying therein, could have sur- prised me more, Was there another such curiosity in the whole world? I broke open a few other nodules of similar appearance,—for they lay pretty thickly on the shore,—and found there might be, for in one of these there were what seemed to be the scales of fishes, and the impres- sions of afew minute bivalves, prettily striated; in the centre of another there was actually a piece of decayed wood. Of all Nature’s riddles, these seemed to me to be at once the most interesting and difficult to expound. I treasured them carefully up, and was told by one of the workmen to whom I showed them, that there was a part of the shore about two miles farther to the west, where curiously shaped stones, somewhat like the heads of boarding pikes, were occasionally picked up. I went, and found the place a richer scene of wonder than I could have fancied even in my dreams.”’ Hvueu Miter, Manrtins.—The martins (Hirwndo urbica) appeared in this neighbour- hood about the sixth of April, and by the end of the month they were to be seen in great numbers. The first of May was, however, an un- happy day for them; seldom do we recollect a more cold and chil- ling commencement of the ‘‘merrie month.’’* The poor martins were to be seen huddled together in dozens, cold and miserable, shrinking from contact with the cutting easterly wind and cold driving rain. In the morning numbers of them were found dead—yictims to the in- clemency of the season. T. MarsHatt. CaTERPILLARS.—The caterpillars forwarded to us were the larye of the ‘‘Drinker,’’ a very handsome moth (Odonestis potatoria), one of the Bombycidie. 27 Aut. HE chilly mornings of autumn are beginning to prevail, although, as yet, they are only the forerunners of bright sunny days; and nature is doffing her cheerful robe of green for a motley garment of gold and brown, gayer perhaps on the ex- terior, but a sign of decay within. ‘‘There is a beautiful spirit breathing now Its mellow richness on the clustered trees.”’ Look at our glorious woods, as the beams of the Autumn sun gild their summits, and say is not the year lovely in its decay ? Look at those splendid masses of green foliage, crowded on the lower branches of the elm, dying away upwards into a lighter hue ; see the glowing red of the beech, the bright yellow of the chestnut, set off here and there by the sombre green of the firs. The old age of the year is to us ever a lovely season, and yet, we confess, it is sad withal, for it speaks so plainly of Death, that it cannot be misunderstood. What say ye who profess to believe in the ‘‘ Religion of Nature” only? Does she not speak in plain words? ‘There is a death of all things around us every year, but a resurrection follows; we see it in every living thing; there is nought but change, yet there is no destruction, the same elements reappear in anew form, nothing is lost, it comes back again clothed anew in finer apparel. Our autumn rambles may not perhaps be so productive as those we took in the summer, yet they will be none the less in- teresting. We may note the retirement of each bird and beast to its winter quarters, and we may also hail the arrival of our northern visitors. The martins are to be seen now congregating * on our roofs, and exercising for their long journey; among the osier beds or aits of the Thames they may be found roosting by hundreds every night, appearing when disturbed in the dusk like a thick cloud. The Swift left us by the middle of August; his stay 1s always short, he is the first of his family tv come, and the B 28 AUTUMN. first to go ;the Sand Martin we never see at Wycombe, there being no suitable places for nidification. The song of the bird is hushed in the fields, the Robin only continues to enliven us with his cheerful warblings, and this he will do the winter through, joined occasionally by a Skylark. Strange that the feathered tribes should only send out their joyous carollings through such a short period of the year—that of rearing their young ; it would seem that love is then ‘ the lord of all,” and is thus shown; for when their duties are finished the love and the song cease too. The insects flit lazily about, the bee and the wasp put in an oc- casional appearance, and a few stridulous sounds from the grass- hopper and crickét emerge from warm grassy banks; the dor- mouse and the squirrel are hoarding up their supply of winter provisions, and snails are congregating in colonies under the tangled roots of the trees ; all the busy hum and music of summer are dying away. But fresh sights of beauty meet the eye as we ramble along our lanes; festoons and bunches of ripe fruit of every colour decorate the fading masses of leaves—the dark berry of the Dog- wood shadowed by the purple foliage and ‘‘ ensanguined ” stems, the shining black berries of the Privet, the brilliant fruits of the Woody Nightshade, and the Red and Black Bryony, the dark purple of the Guelder Rose—all looking so very beautiful that we feel tempted to try their flavour. But beware; many of them are forbidden fruits, and may bring on a sleep that knows no waking. More harmless are the “scarlet hips and stony haws ” that cover the rose and hawthorn—the food of many a truant schoolboy since Cowper’s days. Very soon we shall have the mosses out in all their beauty, and as we hunt among them we shall turn up many a beetle and caterpillar, snugly ensconced for the winter, abiding marvellously without food during the long months when vegetation would yield them nothing: these, and hosts of other things will pass under our notice only by our exercising a moderate amount of observation. So let no one sink into despondency from an idea that there is nothing for the Naturalist to see, and nothing to do till next Spring. 29 The Suvke wil Adder. S most of the readers of this magazine are aware, we have in this country three species of reptiles of the ophidian or serpent tribe, viz., the common snake (WNatrix torquata), the viper (Pelias berus), and the smooth snake (Coronella levis). ‘The last, how- ever, is very rare and local, while the other two are pretty gener- ally dispersed. From the dread with which these creatures are commonly looked upon, their habits are not much studied or observed; I therefore propose to give a few particulars of the habits of the two common species, premising that the viper, which is our only poisonous reptile, is at once distinguishable from the snake by the deep black chain which extends the whole length of the spine. The Snake, (Natrix torquata,) although seldom seen unless sought after, is yet tolerably abundant in most parts of the country in damp woods, and the reedy margins of ponds on un- frequented commons, but about Wycombe it appears to be almost unknown.* In order to get a sight, or at any rate, a chance of catching this, or any other serpent or lizard, perfect quiet is ne- cessary. The snake feeds exclusively on frogs and toads. As far as my experience goes, they do not seem to have any preference for the former. When caught they generally throw up their last meal, and those which I have captured have quite as often thrown up toads as frogs. The skin of the snake is shed entire about once a month in summer, and for some days before the event the reptile is perfectly blind. All reptiles (excepting, of course, the Batrachia) are excessively fond of basking in the sun, but all do not bask in a similar manner; for instance, the snake lies coiled up in a pyramidal form, while the viper lies stretched out at full length. When first captured snakes hiss loudly. The unpleasant smell that they'also make does not arise from their breath as * It is to be found however by close searching ; we haye known it caught on Wycombe Heath and at Penn,—Eb. 80 THE SNAKE AND ADDER. seems generally supposed, but from a white excrementitious sub- stance which they emit. The viper, relying on his formidable fangs for defence, makes no unpleasant smell. The country folk about Wisley, in Surrey,—my most frequent ‘‘ hunting-ground ”’ for reptiles,—say that a snake’s cast skin bound tightly round the head is a remedy for headache. These cast skins, which may frequently be found about their haunts, are very curious, as even the hard transparent substance with which all reptiles are pro- vided for the defence of the eyes when swimming is shed with the skin. This transparent substance can be put up at the creature’s will, and when notin use is folded in the lower eyelid. The glossy black tongue of the snake is rather longer than that of the viper. I need not insult readers by saying it is not a “sting.” I fancy it is of use as a feeler, since the animal has no limbs.* The distance between the two extremities of the fork is about equal to the thickness of the reptile’s body, and may be of use, like the whiskers of the cat, in letting it know whether it can get into a hole or not. The usual length of the snake is about three feet, but they often exceed this, The Virrr, or as it is almost always called by country people, the Apprr, inhabits dry heaths, glades in woods, and upland copses. It is seldom to be found near water. Its average length is twenty-three inches. I have often found them where furze has been lately cut, and it is hard to tell them from the furze stalks lying about. They evidently choose such places to sun themselves in, from the difficulty of being distinguished in them. Were we as well acquainted with their habits as we ought to be, we should doubtless know of many similar proofs of sagacity, which would enable us to appreciate our Lord’s command ‘Be wise as serpents.” The adder is plentiful in the woods round Wycombe, and on the neighbouring heaths and commons. Mr. Ullyett has met with it most frequently in Dane Garden wood, and on what, alas! was Wycombe Heath. Adders vary much ia colour, but the colours do not denote different species, and even seem to change periodically in the same individual. * Although serpents have no exterior legs, their ribs are moveable, and are not fixed to the breast bone, so that they are, in fact, interior legs. THE SNAKE AND ADDER. 31 Last May I brought up from Wisley, and deposited in the Zoo- logical Gardens, Regent’s Park, one with an almost perfectly white ground-colour. This specimen is now quite a dark brown, The food of the adder consists chiefly of shrews and field-mice. One which I caught last year—the original of the illustration in Mr. M. C. Cooke's work on British Reptiles—threw up three full grown mice, so that adders are of use in keeping down vermin. The fangs of the adder, nearly half-an-inch in length, are situated in the upper jaw. They move ona hinge, and when not in use are folded along the palate. They are hollow, and at the root of each is a little bag of venom, so that the fangs make punctures, and at the same time poison is introduced into the wound. The venom is hurtful from being thus introduced into the blood; it might be swallowed without causing the least injury. It is just to add that the adder never attempts to attack a human being except in self-defence. It always glides away into the nearest thicket on hearing any one approach. ‘There is therefore no reason why the creature should be persecuted. This reptile is capable of almost incredibly long fasts. Mr. Ullyett lately kept a couple for six weeks, during all which time they touched nothing but water, although mice, &c., ‘all alive’? were supplied ad libitum: yet, when set at liberty, they seemed as lively as when first caught. The adder can climb well, and is not unfre- quently found in nests, into which they climb for the sake of sucking the eggs, of which they are very fond. Three were this spring found in a blackbird’s nest in Enfield Chase, Middlesex. Adders’ fat is in great request among the peasantry as an ointment for cuts, and it is the best remedy for the creature’s own bite. There is in serpents, as in all other living creatures very much to admire in the wonderful adaptation of their structure to their mode of life; much to make us acknowledge that the Hand that made them is Divine. W. R. Tare. Grove Place, Denmark Hill, London. ‘*No scientific truth can possibly be too trifling or unimportant to be worthy of preservation.”—Sir J. E. Samira. 32 Migration. T is the pride of Englishmen that their country is open to all the world, that every one, be he aking flying from Revolution or an exile proscribed for his political opinions, finds rest and safety here, so long as he conforms to our laws, and lives peace- ably within the pale of our institutions. "We welcome all these, and extend to them the hand of fellowship and hospitality—and this although they come here merely for peace and security and not from sympathy with us as a people, or from love or attach- ment to our national character and constitution. They feel this is not their home, and they live and perhaps die amongst us as mere sojourners in a foreign land. On the other hand, if there be an amnesty for political offenders, or a new, era of politics in their own unhappy country, back they stream, sometimes without a tear of regret at leaving us, without a thought of the protection they have received, and often, sad to say, with prejudices only confirmed by the very benefits which should have dissipated them. How different it is with those humbler beings that visit the shores of England with the regularity and precision of the seasons, and impelled only by the mysterious workings of an infallible instinct. The migration of birds is indeed a wonderful theme for study and reflection. Our feathered friends come among us, the heralds of spring, or harbingers of winter, exemplifying the beautiful working of Nature’s laws, and the harmony and regu- larity subsisting in all the works of God. Our summer visitors stay their allotted time, make England their home, build their nests, rear their young, cheer us with their joyous song, and then, with a silent but thankful farewell, take their family back to their winter quarters with the promise, certain of fulfilment, to come back with the bright sunshine of the following year. And yet the migration of birds is with many a subject of little moment, ard our feathered friends come and go unnoticed and unknown. This is not as it should be, for the more we study these things, THE WEATHER IN THE BRITISH ISLES. 38 and notice the wonder, and beauty, and harmony of all creation, the more we are led to ponder and reflect with amazement on the works of the Lord and the operations of His hands. T. MarsHatw. Che Weather in the British Isles. HE British Isles enjoy an exceptional position on the earth’s surface, as regards temperature ; in other words, the English climate would be as extreme and steady both in its cold and hot fits, as other countries lying under the same latitude are (such as parts of Canada, Siberia, Central Russia, and Northern Ger- many), but for some peculiarities in the Ocean around it which affect the British Isles, but not these countries. This favourable condition of the temperature is owing to the operation of the Great Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic Ocean, This vast current of water after having basked under the tropical sun in the Gulf of Mexico and so become intensely heated, rushes out of that Gulf northward, until, turned aside eastward by the projecting cliffs of Newfoundland, glancing off, it runs across the Atlantic to Norway, dispensing its high temperature to the air and adjoining waters. As in this its course it passes north of Ireland and Scotland, it interposes a perpetual broad belt of warm sea between Great Britain and Iceland, and the frozen wastes of the Polar Seas. The benefit derived by the British Isles, in winter, is that they are surrounded by a sea of temperate warmth. In summer this ocean current arrests all the floating ice and icebergs that break loose and drift down from Iceland and Green- land, melts them and sweeps their dissolving masses away so that they never cross it to reach and chill our coasts: hence above England northward they never come down so low as the Shet- land Islands. 34 THE WEATHER IN THE BRITISH ISLES. But as the Gulf Stream runs obliquely across the Atlantic, ice- bergs from Baffin’s Bay float down undissolved as low as the latitude of Paris, off Newfoundland, before they fall into it. So that, far away in the Ocean, from a point westward from the Land’s End, to a point northward from Scotland, icebergs many or few may be and generally are floating along and melting during the early summer months. Although the solid iceberg is thus prevented from reaching us, still the products of their liquefaction diffused in vapour through- out the atmosphere, and the effects of the cold disengaged from them, as they melt under the sun and in the warm Gulf Stream, are swept over England by the wind, in rain, mist, fog, and chil- ling blasts, not only causing winter to linger in the lap of spring but also dashing summer. To exemplify these effects in our own seasons, we may instance the weather of this present year, 1866. The swallow came earlier than usual, in mid-April; and it was summer weather for a fortnight. The ice that encased Iceland broke up, parted, and drifting down into the Gulf Stream loaded the Northern atmosphere with mists and cold; the winter having been unusually severe in Iceland. Throughout May the cold vapours from the North kept sweeping over England, till the end of May; when the crop of Iceland ice was exhausted, and the atmosphere brightened, and through June and early in July great heat prevailed. About the middle of July the setting sun went down in a misty sky, and high above the sun a halo slightly prismatically coloured indicated plainly a mass of vapour over the Atlantic. The Great Eastern, dropping the telegraph cable in mid- Atlantic, telegraphed to England, then parched and glowing in the sun, that the ship was in the midst of cold blasts and torrents of rain; ships off Cape Race fell in with large icebergs, and a few days after high winds and chilling rain from the west prevailed in England and Western Europe for a month. Such being the history of the last spring and summer, and such the undoubted cause of it, it is difficult to persuade one’s self that THE WEATHER IN THE BRITISH ISLES. 85 any rule can be framed by which the greater or less quantity of ice that will be detached from the Arctic Regions, and the times when it will be detached in any year, can be calculated, though it may be reasonably supposed that the earlier and warmer the summer in the Arctic Seas, the more ice will be detached, and consequently the wetter will be the summer in England. England and Western Europe not only enjoy in the Gulf Stream a power that tempers the coldness of the sea around them ; an analogous effect on the air above those countries is produced by the ever glowing surface of the Great African Desert south- ward. The air which is heated over those burning sands and rocks expands and diffuses its glow over Europe. Its most violent effects are exerted eastward in the Simoon and Samaél or “wind of death’? of the Arabs, and towards the north-east in the Sirocco of the Levantines; only its milder effects are felt in Western Europe. 8. August 23, 1866. American Buicur.—This common insect (Aphis lanigera) which infests apple trees, produces in the course of a season eleven broods of young. ‘The first ten broods are viviparous, or are brought forth alive, and consist entirely of females. These never attain their full developement as perfect insects; but being only _ in the larve state, bring forth young, and the virgin aphides thus produced are endowed with similar fecundity. But at the tenth brood this power ceases. The eleventh does not consist of active female larve alone, but of males and females. These acquire wings, rise into the air, and sometimes migrate in countless myriads, and produce eggs, which, glued to twigs and leaf-stalks, retain their vitality through the winter. When the advance of spring again clothes the plants with verdure, the eggs are hatched, and the larva, without having to wait for the acquisition of its mature and winged form, as in other insects, forthwith begins to produce a brood as hungry, and insatiable, and as fertile as itself. Supposing that one aphis produced 100 at each brood, she would, at the tenth brood be the progenitor of one quintillion of de- scendants (1,000,000,000,000,000,000).—H. Parsrson. F 36 Che Chiltern Country.* (Continued from page 20.) AKE Sheet No. 7, of the Ordnance Survey of England and Wales, and cut it in half by a north and south line, and the western moiety will include nearly the whole of the district which T describe as the Chiltern Country. Two portions of the map, however, are still superfluous, and should be shaved off, namely, the triangular corner of the vale of Aylesbury, N.W. of the Icknield way, and the whole of the southern third of the sheet, following the course of the old Bath Road through the villages of Iver, Wexham, Farnham, Burnham, and Hitcham, and thence the course of the River Thames as far as Henley. The Road and the River taken in this way will form the Southern boundary of the Forest. The old road crossed the river Thames, as far as I can make out, by a ferry in the parish of Taplow, near the island of Formosa. The place is or was called Babham End. Thence the road passes through the village (once ranking as the town) of Cookham, and winding up the hill enters the long waste of open country which goes under the names of Pinkneys Green, Maidenhead Thicket, and Stubbings Heath, and then the tract of woodland called the Frith, passing through thevillages of Shottesbrook, the Walthams, Ruscombe, and Twyford. The Berkshire Frith, as we learn from Leland and other early travellers, was in as bad repute as the Buckinghamshire Chiltern. It merged southwards in the wide forest of Windsor. : Here we have our map of the forest ready for use. About the centre of the map the ancient towns of Missenden, Amersham, Wycombe, and Beaconsfield form a sort of Quadrilateral. The Chiltern forest seems to have consisted principally of beech woods, of which extensive remains are still left. The valleys were * ERRATA in No.1. First portion of this paper, page 18, third line from the bottom, for creatures read features. age 20, sixth line from the bottom, for Five Rolls read Fine Rolis. THE CHILTERN COUNTRY. 87 ’ mostly in a marshy state, and probably subject to floods. It ap- pears to have been peopled by the Celts or ancient Britons, who may have enjoyed possession of it for many centuries previous to the Roman Invasion. Besides the few worn remnants of the Celtic tongue found in local names, there is evidence of this in the numerous earthworks which are still traceable in the forest, and in the roads or drift- ways which lead up and along the hills, which are of the type usually recognized as Celtic. The Wycombe and Amersham valleys afford numerous examples of these roads, each leading to some mill on the stream, or to some place where a mill formerly stood. From this one may infer that the water-mill was known to the Celts. The roads or drift-ways in the forest appear to have been of local origin, and to have had no other object than that of ready communication between hill and valley. With one exception, my endeavours to make out continuous routes through the forest have been fruitless. This exception is a long, straggling road, which for distinction’s sake, I call by what appears to have been one of its names, Hollow Way. I first noticed its peculiar formation in Piper’s Wood, in the parish of Amersham, where it crosses the Amersham valley, whence I easily traced it to Penn Street (a name which decidedly confirms the notion that it is an ancient thorough- fare road). From Penn Street it leads to Beaconsfield, of which town it forms the main north and south thoroughfare; and a farm which stands near it, a mile or two beyond Beaconsfield, is still called Hollow Way farm. Here it leaves Burnham Beeches on the right, and enters the tract of now enclosed land which was formerly Farnham Common. Northwardsfrom Piper’s wood the road leads by way of Weedon Hill, to the town of Chesham, of which it forms the main street. Next it passes along Chesham Bottom and by the village of Hawridge to Cholesbury Common. Leaving the church of Choles- bury, and the large Celtic circular camp on the left, it proceeds, winding between the woods, for two or three miles, till it crosses the Turnpike road from Aylesbury to Tring and London. Here 38 THE CHILTERN COUNTRY. it severs the Counties of Buckingham and Hertford (a sure sign of its antiquity as a road dating from before the time of Alfred the Great), and is best known as Shire Lane, from this cireum- stance. Crossing the turnpike road, it strikes directly through the village of Drayton Beauchamp, where it is still well-known as Hollow Way. Beyond the point where it crosses the Aylesbury canal, in the parish of Drayton, I have not endeavoured to trace it; but I make no doubt it was intended as a line of communi- cation from the vale of the Thames to the vale of the Ouse, and was so used by our Celtic forefathers. It is accompanied by several circular intrenchments, which were the settlements (opprda, as Ceesar calls them) of the inhabitants. Besides that at Choles- bury, there is a remarkable one at Hawridge, and there are two in the parish of Great Missenden, within a few hundred yards of the road. The road may perhaps have terminated at or near the enormous entrenchment or oppidum in Bulstrode Park, in the parish of Fulmer. This remarkable camp is believed by some Buckinghamshire archeologists to be the identical town or oppidum of the Britons which Julius Cxsar took and sacked. Verulam or St. Albans contests this honour with it. The principal objection made to the claims of the Chiltern forest is, that Cesar specially excepts the beech and the fir from his list of the trees which grew in Britain: all sorts, he announces, are to be found, ‘preter fagum et abietem.”” Hence, the argument proceeds, Czesar evidently could never have visited Buckinghamshire. This, however, we get over easily enough, by replying that the fagus means, not fagus silvatica of the Chiltern hills, but fagus castanea or Spanish chestnut; and the abies the silver fir, or foreign deal, neither of which is indi- genous to our island, though they flourish abundantly when planted. Whitaker, in his History of Manchester, states that the Romans found the fir in Britain, but imported the Beech —probably in the same vessel which introduced the Cuckoo! We have positive arguments in favour of Buckinghamshire and the Chiltern forest being the scene of Julius Cesar’s invasion and sojourn in Britain. Cvsar tells us he crossed the Thames. The THE CHILTERN COUNTRY. 39 Celts under Cassivellanus had driven rows of sharp stakes along the bank of the river to impede his passage. The Romans, however, forded the stream, and the Britons fled in terror and confusion. The historian Polyeznus, gravely avers that the Britons were strangely affrighted by the additional terror of the castled Elephants of the Orient, which the Romans brought with them. The Elephants, according to the only construction of which his account seems capable, dashed into the bed of the river, and aided materially in the rout and chase of the natives to their forest stronghold. The truth of this is a matter of opinion. With or without Elephants, Cesar and his legions did cross the Thames. Antiquaries differ as to the place where this took place. The old opinion was in favour of Shepperton (the principal authority being the possession on the part of Lord Onslow of some dessert knives and forks, the handles of which were made from the stakes found in an old wear at that place). But it appears that these stakes were placed across the bed of the river, instead of longi- tudinally, to prevent the passage; and Mr. Daines Barrington, who examined the place to ascertain the truth, was convinced that they had been placed there by fishermen. The Venerable Bede asserts that they were to be seen in his time, and that they were at least as thick as a man’s thigh, and immoveably bed- ded in lead! Sir R. C. Hoare argues in favour of Richmond. Ceesar expressly says that he crossed the river into the terri- tories of Cassi-vellanus, or of the Cassii (Cassi-vellanus meaning King of the Cassii.) The tribes described by the Roman Geo- graphers as Cassii or Cattieuchlani, are understood to have oc- cupied the part now forming Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, and perhaps part of Middlesex. This fixes the place of crossing at any rate to some spot at no great distance from the camp of Fulmer. This camp was evidently an important Celtic stronghold —the largest in the district, and in all respects the likeliest to become the immediate refuge of the retreating Britons. E. J. Payne. (Zo be continued.) 40 Alosses. LTHOUGH Mosses are among the minute and seemingly in- significant of Nature’s works, they, in common with other cryptogamic forms of vegetation, deserve a share of attention even from those who may not make them objects of scientific study. The moss growing upon the wall-top is looked on by many with an eye of indifference, if not of contempt; but to those who will take the trouble to examine its structure, it affords a source of infinite admiration. We presume that none of our readers, in this enlightened age, think that because objects are small, they are on that account unworthy of investigation: otherwise, as has been remarked, ‘‘ The horse is superior to its rider,”’ and one of old— Solomon, the wise king of Israel, has set us an example in this very particular, by being conversant with the ‘‘Hyssop” on the wall, which by Hassalquist is regarded as a minute Moss, still found on the walls of Jerusalem. Mosses are no less numerous and varied than beautiful; they abound all over the kingdom, and some may be found at all seasons of the year; affording in our daily walks a fund of in- struction and pleasant amusement. Let our readers then not be satisfied with the perusal of these brief remarks, but let them at once proceed in their rural walks to collect these objects of study, which may be examined at home by the aid of a good pocket-lens, a penknife, and a pair of scissors. The chalk hills and cliffs of our own beautiful Buckinghamshire abound in mosses: they are to be found on tree, rock, and stone, in damp places, by the side of brooks and rills; indeed, they are so numerous that it has been calculated that one-fourth of thevegetable kingdom is composed of them. In addition to the pleasing recreation afforded by the study of these interesting objects of creation, the soul may also be led to look from nature up to nature’s God! Neu Arry. 41 Che Large Wood Wasp. have had several specimens of this insect brought to us the last year or two, with special requests to know its name, and whether it was English or Foreign. In answer to the former we said it was a Wood Wasp, and to the latter query we said ‘‘Both.” It is met with most commonly perhaps in grocers’ shops among the sugar, sometimes alive and sometimes dead; it emerges oc- casionally from the floor of a room, having spent a portion of its life in a wooden prison; but wherever it is seen it causes some little terror from its great size, and the length of its ovipositor. A short account of it may not be uninteresting to our readers. It belongs in the first place to that order of insects, called the Hymenoptera, from the fact of their possessing four transparent membranous wings: in this order are included the bees, wasps, ichneumons, sawflies, &c., from which it will be seen that the highest order of insect instinct is comprehended in it. In the next place it is included in the family Siricide, and it rejoices in the scientific name of Sirex gigas, the Giant Wood Wasp, Sawfly, or Ichneumon, It is, as we before said, a formidable looking creature, 42 THE LARGE WOOD WASP. of a deep yellow hue, having the thorax and a band round the abdomen jet black. The wings and antenne are yellow, the latter being of very great length: the long pointed weapon, commonly looked upon as a sting, is the instrument with which the female bores holes in living wood, in which to deposit her eggs. There is an interesting account of this process, in Science Gossip for August, written by a gentleman who watched it, waiting with a true naturalist’s patience for twenty-three minutes while a lady Sirex deposited her eggs in a new larch telegraph post. This ovipositor is of a complicated nature when examined under the microscope, but not so much so as that of some of the true sawflies. . The insect is able to give a slight wound with the weapon, irritant in its nature, but not envenomed. The eggs hatch into grubs which feed upon the soft moist wood, and doubtless when present in any considerable numbers, they do much damage. Many are imported from abroad, both in the larva and pupa state, in deal, and from this in due time, they escape as winged inhabitants of air. When this happens in a nursery, we may excuse the alarm of the non-naturalist nurse and her progeny. We have caught them ourselves among the fir trees in Whittington Park. *,.* We are indebted for the accompanying engraving to Mr. Harpwicxz, of 192, Piccadilly. ‘Some folks have a great liking for the poor little Efts. They never did anybody any harm, or could if they tried; and their only fault is, that they dono good—-any more than some thousands of their betters. But what with ducks, and what with pike, and what with sticklebacks, and what with water-beetles, and what with naughty boys, they are ‘‘sae sair hadden doun,” as the Scotsmen say, that it is a wonder how they live; and some folks can’t help hoping, with good Bishop Butler, that they may have another chance, to make things fair and even, somewhere, some- when, somehow.—Rev. 0. Kinastey.—‘t Water Babies.” 48 Wycombe Buttertlies. OUR VANESSIDZ. HE butterflies in this family are the most gorgeously coloured of any found in Great Britain; and with one exception they are very plentiful. These two considerations lead me to believe that a short account of such species as are to be seen in this locality cannot fail to be interesting to the readers of the Wycombe Quarterly. Who has not gazed with interest and wonder at the lovely Io, fanning its peacock wings in the sun asit sits ona flower and extracts its nectar, or at the stately Atalanta, the Red Admirable, with its magnificent contrast of scarlet and black sailing along the pathway and then disappearing over the high hedge? ‘The boy is filled with the ardent desire to possess the treasure ; the thoughtful man desires to know something of the life history of these living gems. The early part of their lives, however, is not what we might expect ; to the general observer they are then unsightly looking creatures, devouring the foliage of the elm, thistle, or despised nettle. They are passed by as if they were worthless, neglected because of their more than homely garb, and when you assure him that they will one day be gaily coloured butterflies he starts, and says ‘‘impossible.’’ But the naturalist knows the interest at- tached to the shunned caterpillar ; he takes it home, provides it with food, watches it with delight and astonishment day by day, as it passes through its various changes and the little ‘‘ills that flesh is heir to ;”” and he is rewarded at last by seeing it emerge from its chrysalis case a bright and happy thing of air. Let me assure my readers that there is nothing that will prove so inter- esting and fascinating to them as lovers of nature than the rearing of butterflies through all their stages; it is so easily done, and @ 44 WYCOMBE BUTTERFLIES. there is comparatively so little trouble attached to it, that no one can complain of having no time for it. There are seven British species of the genus Vanessa; of these three are always common round Wycombe, one is occasionally very plentiful and another has been found but a few times; two we do not possess at all. I will take them in the order of their relative abundance. Tur Peacock. V. Jo. There is not the slightest need to de- scribe this, as every one has seen it. It is found on the wing most plentifully in August and September, but many individuals will be seen in the spring; these are not in such good condition, having slept away the winter in some snug corner in an outhouse or a stack of wood, and now reappear to lay their eggs and then to die. ‘The caterpillar is black, sprinkled with very minute white dots, and is covered with short branched spines; it feeds on the nettle in companies; in 1865 I found them by hundreds in Hollow Lane, but they have not been nearly so plentiful this summer. Tur Smartt TorrorsE-sHetn. V. Urtice. This is a smaller butterfly than the last, but very prettily coloured with black, orange, blue, and yellow. ‘There are two broods of it every year, one in May and June and another in August. They hybernate like Jo, and there is an interesting account in the Zoologist, p- 5000, of the capture of a hundred of them at Christmas, 1855. The larva is of a yellowish grey colour, but the depth of shade varies very much, there is a broad dark line down the back, and the whole of the body except underneath is covered with spines. Tue Rep Apmrraste. V. Atalanta. Thisspecies, known com- monly as the Red Admiral, is distinguished at once by the bril- liant scarlet bands across its front wings, and a border of the same on the hind wings, and surpasses every other British butterfly in the combined simplicity and vividness of its colouring. The under side is most exquisite, and entirely baffles description. The caterpillar feeds on the nettle, and the perfect insect emerges in August. Tue Pamren Lavy. V. Cardui. This is not nearly so com- mon as the former species, and sometimes one is not seen fora WYCOMBE HAWK MOTHS. 45 whole season. It was pretty plentiful in 1865 on Downley Com- mon, and I have seen it two or three times much nearer Wycombe. The colouring is very beautiful, consisting of marblings of black and a rich rosy red, with white spots in the fore corners rather smaller than those of Atalanta. The caterpillar feeds on thistles and nettles. The perfect insect appears in August—sometimes earlier. Toe Lance Torrorse-sHett. V. Polychloros. I have not had the good fortune to meet with this at Wycombe, but the Rev. T. H. Browne had a colony of the larve in his garden on an elm tree, from which he reared imagos. The colouring much resem- bles that of Urticee, but there is no fear of confounding the two if notice be taken of the outermost spot on the front wings—it is yellow like the others, while the same spot on Urtice is pure white. Polychloros is generally much larger than Urtice. The caterpillars of all the above species are thorny and very sombre in their colouring; the chrysalises are angular, suspended by the tail, and generally adorned with golden spots; I have seen those of Urticee completely washed in gold. The imagos of all hybernate occasionally. Hy. ULiyerr. List of Wycombe Tawwk Woths. Eyep Hawk Mors Smerinthus ocellatus .. Plentiful. Porrds 2232.2 f. S) populd 2. ele op ae Ss ss os Sian bli ks ZPD ie rs Deate’s Heap .. Acherontia atropos .. Common in 1865. Convotvotus .... Sphinx convolvuli .... Very rare. ' One specimen taken to Mr. T. P. Lucas in 1863. i S. ligustri .......... Very common. ELEPHANT,...... . Cherocampa Elpenor,. Not very plentiful. Larvee in the Park, 1865. Smatt Exerwant.. C. porcellus ....... . Found by Mr.Gaviller. Humuine Brrp .. Macroglossa stellatarum Common till this year. Hy. ULiyerr. 46 Proceedings of the Society. July 17th.—The members had an evening ramble for the sake of those to whom it is inconvenient to attend in an afternoon. They went by train as far as West Wycomsg, where they alighted and commenced exploring. Mr. Britten joined them here, and showed a bunch of Cuscuta Trifolit, a vegetable parasite on clover, cordially detested by farmers; also some Self Heal (Prunella vulgaris), with pink flowers. In the yard by the station, a con- siderable quantity of Vervain (Verbena officinalis) was growing ; this is the sole British representative of the gay verbenas of our gardens. Haveringdon Hill was then ascended, and the Mauso- leum and old British earthwork examined. On the walls of the former were some well-developed specimens of Asplenium ruta- muraria, the Rue-leaved Spleenwort; it also grows on the walls of the church, but does not there reach such perfection. The view from this hill, both east and west is exceedingly beautiful, and to the geologist, particularly interesting, the high yet gently sloping hills pointing out in an unmistakeable way the shores of an ancient sea. The south side is almost covered with numerous very old Yew trees, which appear to have been planted here many years ago. The Stemless Thistle ( Carduus acaulis) is plen- tiful on the slopes, and Calamintha officinalis—the Common Cala- mint in the ditch at the summit, and on the banks at the foot. Underneath the hill is an artificial cave cut in the chalk, for a length of about a quarter of a mile: into this the members de- scended, and were much gratified. No traces of fossils could be detected anywhere, but a ‘‘fault’’ was noticed in one place where there had been a slip of ahout a couple of feet or more. On an old piece of wood was found a quantity of microscopic fungi. The cave is a great resort of bats in the winter, among which has been found the Lesser Horseshoe (Rhinolophos hipposideros); but of course none were ‘‘at home” now. The members returned on PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. 47 foot along the high road, where they found the Cat-mint (Nepeta cataria) locally abundant. The unfavourable weather has prevented the Society arranging another field day since the above. *.* The first of the winter evening meetings will take place on Tuesday, October 9th, when the President has invited the members to meet at his house. A paper will be read, and objects of interest exhibited. Uses or Anmats.—The following facts will give us some idea of the way in which the abundance of animal life affects human industry :— In 1855 we imported 26,500,000 goose and swan quills. In 1856 we imported 2,188,737 squirrel skins. No monkey skins were worn as muffs before the Exhibition of 1851; now we im- port hundreds of thousands. This is bringing the African races more into contact with Europeans, and so furthering the work of civilisation. (It augurs ill however for the monkeys. ) Upwards of 100,000 ermine skins are imported annually ; 15,000,000 leeches are annually used in this country, and 500 tons of bees wax: 12,000 bears are killed every year for the sake of their skins. Dr. LANKESTER’S LecruREs. Ir would appear from a comparison of the observations of Messrs. Bousingault and Humboldt, separated by an interval of thirty years, that South America is gradually sinking, and if this process be continued, at some distant epoch it may even be sub- merged. The observations show that the altitudes of the Andes were less when taken the second time ; and these results are con- firmed by the fact that the snow-line in this range of mountains, has, in the interval referred to, apparently risen. Dr. LarpNeEr. Tue system of the universe forms one grand complicated piece of celestial machinery ; circle within circle, wheel within wheel, eycle within cycle ; revolutions so swift, as to be completed in a few hours! movements so slow, that their mighty periods are only counted by millions of years. Are we to believe that the Divine Architect constructed this admirably adjusted system to wear out and to fall in ruins, even before one single revolution of its com- plex scheme of wheels had been performed? No; I see the mighty orbits of the planets slowly rocking to and fro, their figures expanding and contracting, their axes revolving in their vast periods ; but stability is there. Every change shall wear away and after sweeping through the grand cycle of cycles, the wholegsystem shall return to its primitive condition of perfection and. beauty. Orzps oF HEAVEN. 48 Correspondence. All communications relating to advertisements, contributions, or the supply of this magazine, should be addressed to the Editor, care of Mr. Butler, High Wycombe. ceding the date of publication. Contributions must be sent in before the 15th of the month pre- The Editor will be glad to receive notes con- cerning any of our local plants and animals, their times of appearing, their popular names and traditions, abnormal forms and colours, §'c.; these must be authenticated by the writer's name and address, but not necessarily for publication. Hesenon. — “ Not unfrequently rendered ‘Ebony’!” says Mr. Britten (p. 14 of No. 1 of this Maga- zine), with a note of exclamation. But ebony is the right rendering, and not merely the best, but the only possible rendering into the English language of the word hebenon, sup- posing this latter to be a bond fide word, and not a monster in classical form, corrupted by some transcriber or dictator from the commonplace English henbane. The word is ‘Oriental (originally Semitic, I be- lieve), being found in the Hebrew Bible (Ezekiel xxvii. 15.) as habenim, plural, according to Gesenius and De Wette, from the word being imported from foreign countries in the shape of planks, like our deals. It appears in the Greek as hebelos and hebenos, in the Latin as hebenus and hebenum or hebenon, and inthe modern Euro- pean languages as ebony, ebene, ebano, &e., &e., all which signify the black hard heart of the Diospyros hebenum, originally, as we learn from Virgil, to be found only in India. * Sola India nigrum Fert iebenum.” Though the modern languages have dropped the h, it found in the form of heben in our old English poets. So it appears reasonable and natural to interpret hebenum or hebenon, ebony. Mr. B. as I understand him, takes hebenon to be a mistake for henbane. But do the symptoms described by the poet agree in any one particular with those detailed in Mr. B.’s amus- ing little monastic fiction > Why not allow Shakspere to make use of the black, ill-smelling, deadly-looking, “cursed’’ tree as a poetical poison ? On the other hand, only fancy the royal victim of this solemn tragedy, meeting his death by — henbane! Is it possible that he, of that more than mortal ‘ form and combination,’ Where every God did seem to set his seal, To give the world assurance of a man — could have been such a miserable chicken as to succumb to a small quantity of this contemptible bird- poison? Iam under the impression that the ebony is the ‘‘ tree of death”’ of the Persian paradise ; but in con- sequence of the confused and index- less state of the German tomes, which are the authorities on Oriental archeology, cannot verify this. E. Ase Prat y I rurnx it is a fact worth knowing, that beech leaves are an excellent substitute for feathers in beds, and in this part, they may be gathered with little trouble and expense. Gathered about the fall, and some- what before they are much frost- bitten, they form the best and easiest mattresses in the world, instead of straw; because, besides their tender- ness and lying loosely together, they continue sweet for seven or eight years, long before which time straw becomes musty and hard. Brrcu Lear. «* Aw immaterial principle, similar to that which, by its excellence, places man so much above animals does exist unquestionably in the latter, and whether it be called soul, reason, or instinct, it presents in the CORRESPONDENCE. 49 whole range of organized beings, a series of phenomena closely linked together, and upon it are based not only the higher manifestations of the mind, but the very permanence of the specific differences which charac- terise every organ. Most of the argu- ments of philosophy in fayour of the immortality of man, apply equally to the permanency of this principle in other living beings.” PrRoressor AGASSIZ. ** No one can doubt that the roots, as it were, of those great faculties which confer on man his immeasur- able superiority above all other animate things, are traceable far down into the animate world. The dog, the cat, and the parrot, return love for our love, and hatred for our hatred. They are capable of shame and sorrow, and though they may have no logic nor conscious ratioci- nation, no one who has watched their ways can doubt that they pos- sess that power of rational cerebra- tion which eyolves reasonable acts from the premises furnished by the senses—a process which takes fully as large a share as conscious reason in human activity.” PrRoressor OWEN. Moxes.—The Cosmos relates an in- teresting experiment, which proves the service rendered to agriculturists by moles, and the impolicy of de- stroying these little quadrupeds. In a commune of the Canton of Zurich, the municipal council were lately about to proceed to the selection of a molecatcher, when M. Weber, a distinguished naturalist, laid before the board the following facts. M. Weber had carefully examined the stomachs of fifteen moles caught in different localities, but failed to dis- coyer therein the slightest vestige of plants or of roots; whereas they were filled by the remains of earth- worms. M. Weber, not satisfied by this fact, shut up several moles in a box containing sods of earth on which fresh grass was growing, and a smaller case of grubs and earth- worms. In nine days two moles de- voured 341 white worms, 193 earth- worms, 26 caterpillars, and a mouse, skin and bones, which had been en- closed when alive in the box. M. Weber next gave them raw meat, cut up in small pieces, mixed with vegetables ? the moles ate the meat and left the plants. He next gave them nothing but vegetables; in 24 hours two moles died of starvation. Another naturalist calculated that two moles destroyed 20,000 white worms in a single year. These facts ought to convince farmers that tomul- tiply the moles would be much better than to destroy them, and the earth they turn up enriches the land, so much so, that the produce is often doubled. FUNERAL or A Bre.—A _ corres- pondent transmits the following :— **On Sunday morning last I had the pleasure of witnessing a most in- teresting ceremony, which I desire to record for the benefit of your readers; and if Dr. Cumming, the Times’ beemaster, happens to be one of them, I would particularly com- mend it to his notice. Whilst walking with a friend in a garden near Falkirk, we observed two bees issuing from one of the hives, bearing betwixt them the body of a defunct comrade, with which they flew for a distance of ten yards. We followed them closely, and noted the care with which they selected a convenient hole at the side of the gravel walk—the tenderness with which they com- mitted the body, head downwards, to the carth—and the solicitude with which they afterwards pushedagainst it two little stones, doubtless ‘in memoriam.’ Their task being ended, they paused for about a minute, per- haps to drop over the grave of their friend a sympathising tear, when they flew away, and, as John Bunyan says in his dream, ‘I saw them no more.’ ’’— Glasgow Herald. Tue Humuine Brrp Morn.—Is it not rather remarkable that the Hum- ming Bird Hawk Moth has not yet appeared? After such a super-abun- dant supply of them last season, it seems strange that none are about now. They were out very late last year too. I saw one on Bledlow Ridge in November. A Youne Entomotocisr. v R. M. Bypy-4'\ 50 CORRESPONDENCE. Many of the Lepidoptera appear in numbers only in some particular seasons, and the phenomenon is not at all satisfactorily accounted for yet. It is one of those many problems in Nature which continually remind us of the immense amount of labour yet necessary to discover an explanation of some of her commonest mysteries. The above moth has been seen in Wycombeonceor twicethis year. No doubt the continual wet weather last winter and this summer destroyed many of the pupe. Eb. Hawk Morus.—The caterpillars of some of the Hawk Moths have been very abundant this year ; I have had about twenty of the Privet Hawk, eight of the Poplar, two of the Lime Hawk, and two of the Eyed Hawk. Many more have been found, but as far as I can discover, none of the Death’s Head, which were so abun- dant last year. The boys call all these caterpillars ‘‘locusts,’’ because they have a horn on the tail. Tam unable to explain the logic involved. The larve of the Buff Tip Moth may now be found in colonies on the lime, beech, elm, and other trees. Hy. Unuyerr. Tue CHANTARELLE (Cantharellus cibarius). ‘‘ What be yer a goin to do with they things ?’’ said a son of the soil to me the other day. I had in my hand a basket of golden Chan- tarelles, to which allusion was thus unceremoniously made. “I am going to eat them,’’ I replied. ‘To eat em! Why they’re toadstools !’’ responded my friend : whereupon I gave him a short, and, I flattered myself, able account of the various edible fungi which surround us at this season. He listened—looked on me with evident pity—and then turned away in lofty contempt. A year ago, I should have been as un- | likely to eat fungi from the wuods as he—but eaperientia docet—and I am now an ardent admirer of Chan- tarelles from a culinary, as well as from an xsthetic point of view. Last | Autumn, I sent a box of our wood- | ERRATA in No. 1. land fungi to a friend in town, who is ‘‘well up’’ in such things. He returned me a rough sketch of one, to which he appended a short de- scription, with the practical remark, “Kat it.’” This was the Chantarelle. Accordingly, I collected sufficient for a dressing, and, after they had been well washed and trimmed, had them stewed, with butter, pepper, and salt, after the manner of mushrooms, and served upon aslice of toast. On this occasion, they were stewed somewhat too rapidly ; and the result might be briefly de- scribed as tough, and I was the only partaker of the dish. During the last month, however, three dishes of Chantarelles have appeared upon our breakfast table, and haye’ been thoroughly appreciated by the fa- mily. Their flayour is similar to that of a mild mushroom. Those who feel inclined to taste for them- selves, may find Chantarelles in almost every one of our Wycombe woods, from the latter end of August till the end of October or beginning of November. They are easily re- cognisable, being of a rich yellow colour all over; the stem is very thick, gradually expanding into the top, or pileus, which is funnel-shaped, and smooth, thus differing from the umbrella-form assumed by the mush- room, and many more of our common fungi. The gills are very thick, and look more like veins; and the whole plant is sometimes imbedded in leaves, the top only appearing. Chantarelles grow sometimes singly, and sometimes in patches; they have a peculiar scent, which is said to resemble that of apricots, though I confess myself unable to discover this likeness. A great deal more information regarding this and other edible fungi, may be found ina little illustrated book, price 6s., entitled “A Plain and Easy Account of British Fungi,” written by Mr. M. C. Cooke, and published at 192, Piccadilly, to which I beg to refer my readers. James Britten. Page 16, line sixteen from the top, for ‘* Water” read ‘ Walter.”’ Page 17, lineten from top, for “Alkekeng”’ read “Alkehengi.” a 51 D Hovember Hamble. BELIEVE it is a prevalent idea that in a late Autumn or Winter walk there is little or nothing to be found to interest or admire; this is a mistake, for there is no season of the year in which Dame Nature does not furnish us with somo object of attraction. As a true lover of Nature, finding fresh beauties in every wood, lane, and hedgerow, I am anxious to make others participators in my pleasure, and will ask them to accompany me in imagination in a lovely ramble which I have this day enjoyed with a friend. The neighbourhood of Wycombe abounds in charming walks of varied beauty,—hill, dale, and wood, forming scenery of no com- mon order; and our ramble of to-day is by no means the least beautiful among them. Passing through West Wycombe and under the hill, where the bright sun shining on the velvet sward and rich old yew trees formed a picture of exquisite beauty, we ascended the long hill leading to Wheeler End. In the lane we noticed many tufts of the Male Fern (Lastrea iliz-mas), and the gnarled roots of many of the trees overhanging the road, “ bearded with moss,” were decorated with thelovely golden-fruited Polypody (Polypodium vulgare); on the banks were the elegant Long-stalked Cranesbill (Geranium columbinum) and the Herb Robert (4. Robertianum) blossoming in great profusion, with here and there a root of the Soft Dovesfoot (G. molle). The Common at Wheeler End is fast losing all claim to the title, large portions of it being already enclosed; these encroachments on the ancient rights of the geese, donkeys, &c., are very painful to every lover of Nature, the commons being some of her richest treasuries. The Furze ( Ulex ewropeus) is here at all seasons more or less gaily in bloom. I was greatly amused on this Common in the Spring by the eccentric conduct of a pair of Blackcaps (Curruca atri- capilla), which followed us the whole time, scolding in the most Hq 52 A NOVEMBER RAMBLE. emphatic manner, and constantly flying down close to our dogs, venturing almost to beat them with their tiny wings. Wending our way homeward by a field path we passed a small farm, where I lingered awhile at the gate and watched the arrange- ments for the nightly comfort of the various animals, each appear- ing to be kindly cared for; even the donkey, usually so oppressed, was here unharnessed by loving little hands, and, with a gentle pat and a kiss, turned into the orchard to feed with those busy vegetarians, the geese—altogether forming a pretty and peaceful picture. Near the field path we found hosts of old friends still lingering on the sunny hillside in almost undiminished beauty, among them the three Geraniums before named; Buxbaum’s Speedwell (Veronica Buxbaumii), with its large brilliant biue flowers; Field Scabious (Anautia arvensis); Shepherd’s Needle (Scandix Pecten-veneris); Chicory (Cichorium Intybus); Wild Radish (Raphanus Raphanistrum) ; with a few plants of the pretty but troublesome Corn Crowfoot (Ranunculus arvensis). Ina field of turnips we saw a fine plant of the Garden Marigold ( Calendula arvensis) in full bloom. Many of the trees were wreathed with graceful climbing plants, the Black Bryony (Zamus communis), With its brilliant crimson berries, being most conspicuous. Our path in the woods lay through deep beds of leaves, the crisp rustling of which under our feet reminded me of the murmur of the sea upon a soft sandy shore; here we were frequently startled by a rabbit or other small animal springing up and bounding away over the leaves. From Toweridge the path leads above West Wycombe Park, whence the view is remarkably pretty; passing near a wood where, in Spring, we find one of our sweetest and lovliest wild flowers, the Lily of the Valley ( Convallaria majalis). Near Chapel Lane, into which our path leads, is a small triangular wood, almost surrounded by water, where the earliest Primroses (Primula vulgaris) are ever found. Thence our route led through a narrow lane, past Desborough and Copy Farm to Newland. This lane in Spring is full of floral treasures, and even now is bright with the varied hues of the Autumn leaves, red, purple, and rich golden A NOVEMBER RAMBLE. 538 yellow, which, with the fruit of the Hawthorn (Crategus Oxya- cantha), and the light feathery seed of the Traveller’s Joy (Clematis Vitalba), veil the departing year in a robe of beauty. The sun having now disappeared, our observations were brought to a close; while the remainder of our walk was brightened by myriads of stars, so beautifully called by Long- fellow, ‘‘the forget-me-nots of the angels.” E. C. 1) SG ; : ® / ; ] Aw aisn da f . High Wycombe, Noy. 10, 1866. Iw giving up discovery, one gives up one of the highest enjoy- ments of Natural History. There is a mysterious delight in the discovery of a new species, akin to that of seeing for the first time, in their native haunts, plants or animals of which one has till then only read. Some, surely, who read these pages have experienced that latter delight; and, though they might find it hard to define whence the pleasure arose, know well that it was a solid pleasure, the memory of which they would not give up for hard cash. Some, surely, can recollect, at their first sight of the Alpine Soldanella, the Rhododendron, or the Black Orchis, growing upon the edge of the eternal snow, a thrill of emotion not unmixed with awe ; a sense that they were, as it were, brought face to face with the creatures of another world; that nature was independent of them, not merely they of her; that trees were not merely made to build their houses, or herbs to feed their cattle, as they looked on those wild gardens amid the wreaths of the untrodden snow, which had lifted their gay flowers to the sun year after year since the foundation of the world, taking no heed of man, and all the coil which he keeps in the valleys far beneath.— Rey. OC. Kinestry.—“ Glaucus.” ** Might not the very admiration of Nature have been an act of worship,” continued Lancetor. ‘How can we better glorify the worker than by delighting in his work ?”—“ Yeast.” —ReEv.C. KINGSLEY. 54 On Buevedwulity with respect to Geological Lacts.* HE parent of incredulity with regard to scientific truths is, in the majority of cases, ignorance. People refuse to believe a statement because the fact to which it refers is beyond the range of their experience, and they cannot understand how it is ascertained. The most commonly accepted doctrines of Geology were once rejected with an amount of contempt and even of pity, quite equal to that with which the ideas of Solomon de Caus and the Marquis of Worcester, concerning steam, were heard. Toa certain extent this principle may be a good one; but when it ex- tends to a resolute refusal to believe the statements of persons whose experience is much greater than our own, it becomes reprehensible. And for this reason, that anyone may, if he chooses to exercise the powers imparted to him, examine into these things for himself, and so become capable of judging about them: when he refuses to do this, in addition to refusing to believe, the very utmost we can do for him is to leave him in his wilful ignorance. What numbers of people there are who firmly believe the earth to be still in the same state in which it first came from the hands of the Creator ; who laugh when you assert that the dry land upon which they stand was once covered by the sea; who smile in pity for you when you revive the tale of an old Atlantis, and say it is not at all improbable: they forget how our mighty rivers are constantly wearing down their banks, deepening their channels, and occasionally seeking fresh beds; how waterfalls grind down rocks; how ice and frost cause them to crumble away ; how the restless dash of the sea wears away the shore, while in other places the mouths of rivers are filling up. You remind them of these, you refer them to a new island lately sprung up during an earthquake in mid ocean, to the action of volcanoes and floods of lava century after century—and you startle them; they begin to * Read before the Society at the first Evening Meeting (October 9, 1866) of the Second Winter Session, 1866-7. ON INCREDULITY WITH RESPECT TO GEOLOGICAL FACTS. 55 think they were wrong ; but still they make a dead stop at the fact that the Wycombe Valley, e.g., was once at the bottom of the sea. You then take them to a chalk quarry, show them its nature, ask them how the fossils came there? The general reply, when any thought is exercised at all, is, that the Deluge left them there; and _ this, although a deception, is at least a point gained, for it makes them acknowledge that the Deluge wrought a change on the earth’s surface. But what are we to say to aman who declares, in spite of all you tell him, that he does not believe these fossils ever were living animals, but that God created the quarry with them in their present state embedded in it? Is he any better than un- believing philosophers who referred them to an abortive attempt of Nature—a sort of trial of skill before she attempted to make the perfect being? ‘With such a person we cannot argue, since he does not inherit the ground which we ought to possess in common, on which to base our premises—I allude to the use of his senses in connection with his reflective faculties. ‘Though the number of such people is decreasing it is still considerable ; and they are to be found mostly amongst those who make the greatest religious profession: they fancy that the Bible teaches them differently ; but ask them where, and they are lost; they will not however yield their belief any the more for that. Few educated people, who have honestly looked at both sides of the question, would now affirm that the earth is scarcely 6000 years old,—I say if they have looked at both sides,—because there is a certain section of educated persons who wil not look at the opposite side for fear it should prove to be the right one; they will tell you that they have con- scientiously examined one side and found it to be true, and they refuse on principle to examine the other. As these will not argue, they must go into the same class with the man who believes in the plastic attempts of the Creator. I thought of taking just one or two of the common facts of Geology that are more or less appalling to such persons as those I have mentioned, and of showing the simple grounds on which they are to be received and believed. 56 ON INCREDULITY WITH RESPECT TO GEOLOGICAL FACTS. As regards the explanation given by them of the appearance of fossil shells and skeletons—that they were so created —I would say very little in deference to the common sense of the true en- quirers, since they would themselves demolish it. A skeleton found on the snowy sides of the Alps, or in a chasm at the foot of the Andes, is at once said to be that of some living being: if we find one embedded in stone, why may we not draw the same con- clusion ? In fact, not to be allowed to draw it, as I heard a friend say once, is to attribute to the Creator an intention to lead us astray by the right use of our faculties. But I will take one of the very first assertions of Geology, the formation of our hills under water—-the statement, for instance, that the hills on which we ramble were once under the sea—they were in fact constructed there—there was a period of time when they did not exist, although the other parts of the earth did. To the sceptic in Geology this is tantamount to denying the truth of the Bible—an deal Bible, mind, not the one we commonly under- stand as the Bible. ‘‘ What,” he says, ‘‘do you mean to say that the earth was formed piecemeal ?—that these Wycombe hills were put here after the other part was finished ? Absurd.” ‘‘ Gently,” we reply, ‘‘don’t be so hasty in drawing conclusions ; the hills were not put here ; you do not understand the groundwork of the science; let us give you a few illustrations. Have you ever noticed the little channels by the side of the road after a heavy shower of rain? Have you seen how the sweep of the water has laid the sand in streaks, how the materials are assorted according to their gravity, the rubbish in one place, the heavier pebbles in another? Have you noticed how, where the action of the water was most violent, the bed of the channel is waved and ridged with regular layers of sand? Should you have any hesitation in ascribing all this to aqueous force, even if you were not informed that such was the case? And if you saw on the sand an impres- sion resembling a bird’s foot, would you not say at once that a bird had walked over it? Now we find all these appearances in our geological excursions—we split open a slab of stone and find its surface in waves and ridges exactly like those we saw in the ON INCREDULITY WITH RESPECT TO GEOLOGICAL FACTS. 57 channel; we look at another and it is crossed in two or three directions by tracks apparently of birds; but when we ascribe these to the same cause you disbelieve it—why? Why does the impression of a foot on sand signify that an animal has walked over it, while the same impression on stone signifies nothing ? Well, the hardness of the material puzzles you. Now listen again. Suppose that your wayside channel, down which the rain sent a miniature torrent, was filled thereby with clay instead of sand—it is immaterial which, but we say clay to make the illustration more evident—and that the same impressions were made upon it, waves, ridges, hollows, footmarks ; suppose that it remained undisturbed by any agency whatever, under a hot July sun for a week, the identical marks would still remain, though they are on a harder surface; is there any reason now to doubt their cause ? What then if it lay undisturbed for many hundreds or thousands of years—or what if, when it was partially hardened, fresh layers of sand or clay were thrown down, and all the little hollows filled up, and then many ages elapsed and it was hardened into stone? Would it not easily split in the direction of the plane of all the markings, and exhibit those markings almost as distinctly as at first? You see clearly that the thing is not such an impossibility—that there is, at any rate, some probability in it. Look at this mass of shells I have brought from Lane End, it is almost as hard as iron ; but when I took it from the ground it was soft clay, and would scarcely hold its own weight together; am I not warranted in concluding that these shells once contained animals? If they did. I know from the character of the shells, that they were marine animals; if so may I not conclude, either that they have been brought from the now distant sea and buried here, or that the sea itself was once here, and that here they lived anddied? The former conclusion is too unlikely to be entertained fora moment. As regards our own chalk hills there is not much difficulty if the foregoing conclusions are accepted. Different rivers and seas carry away different kinds of mud or sediment with them, and, therefore, when it is deposited, different kinds of stone are formed; the sea washing the chalk cliffs of Dover, 58 ON INCREDULITY WITH RESPECT TO GEOLOGICAL FACTS. carries away a very different burden to that washed by the Atlantic off the rocky coast of Ireland. As a more practical illustration we may point to the fact that a great deposition of chalk is now going on in the channels of the Bermudas, where the ship anchors come up covered with white lime mud.” Our friend is willing to allow now that there may be some foundation for what we advanced, and the next question probably will be, Might not all the shells found fossil have been left by the Deluge? We reply, No; and avery little consideration will show us this. We find fossils in every variety of situation, from the surface to depths of hundreds and thousands of feet. Now of course these shells were there before the enclosing substance—chalk or whatever else,—and if we find them at the bottom of chalk masses several hundred feet in depth, it follows that this thickness of chalk has been laid over them since. Is it at all probable that the forty days of aqueous tumult produced this? If so, how can we account for the alternate layers of flint and chalk? But the greatest objection is this. We find one particular class of fossils in our chalk hills, a totally different class in the oolitic hills of Gloucestershire, and another amongst the coal beds of Lancashire : how could the waters of the Deluge be so discriminating ? How happens it that the different classes of animal remains are never confusedly mixed? And the chalk in England yields the same fossils as that in Europe—the coal of Lancashire and that of North America gives us the same—in fact each particular formation, in whatever part of the world it may be, yields its own peculiar class of fossil: this could not have been brought about by a chaotic flood, but by some agent, regular in its action, and obedient to certain laws. The same kind of reasoning will apply to the fact that the various formations are as regular in the order of superposition as the fossils ; if the Flood: brought them about, how is it that each occupies a certain determinate relative position —that the Lane End clay has never yet been found beneath chalk —that chalk always lies above green,—coal always below oolite and Jias? I think that these questions are sufficient to show our wavering friend that he must give way a little, ON INCREDULITY WITH RESPECT TO GEOLOGICAL FACTs. 59 Next, I may mention the geologic age ofthe earth. None of us would affirm, I presume, that this can be obtained from the Bible. ‘In the beginning” the heavens and earth were created —and that beginning may have been 6,000 or 6,000,000 years ago for what the Scriptures tell us. If you once allow that the hills were formed in the bed of the sea by sediment regularly and therefore slowly deposited, the idea of immense periods of time at once takes possession of the mind: we can, however, form no definite ideas of these, because we do not know the rate of deposi- tion. Try to imagine how long one of our own hills—Keep Hill —would take in its formation: the white sediment dropping slowly to the bottom, year by year, as each animal died, and its shell sank and decayed, or was covered up: then think that the eretaceous formation in its greatest thickness has been set down at 1,200 feet —that the thickness of many formations beneath it is as great—-that there have been several beds of clays and sands deposited over it many hundreds of feet in depth,—how many ages would thus be consumed? Recollect that the chalk mass itself is made up of animal remains, chiefly microscopic, whose tenants must have flourished before the chalk was formed into ranges of hills—must have belonged to this earth when peopled by different animals to those now roaming about—how long did they exist asaclass? Omitting the Oolite, Lias, Trias, coming next in order under Cretaceous Rocks, let us notice the Coal Measures several thousand feet in thickness : they consist of beds of pure coal stratified between beds of clay and sandstone ; the coal itself con- sists of vegetable matter; how long did the plants and trees flourish before they were embedded ? how long did it take to form a bed of sandstone over them; how long for another period of vegetation? another bed of sandstone? a third and perhaps a fourth? The mind recoils from the calculation. The Falls of Niagara are often appealed to as a proof of a greater age for the earth than that generally allowed. They are situated at the farther end of a gorge or passage seven miles long. The proofs are perfect that the Falls were once at the lower end of this gorge—that the river, falling over this ancient escarpment, by : 60 ON INCREDULITY WITH RESPECT TO GEOLOGICAL FACTS. degrees has worn for itself a channel 160 feet deep, backwards and backwards through the strata. Of course some parts of the strata were softer than others and were more quickly worn away, but Professor Huxley considers that a probable calculation shows that something like 10,000 years have been employed in forming the gorge. Then there is an astronomical proof of the earth’s age, which was brought forward by Mr. Lucas in a lecture he once gave in Wycombe, which I think very important. Let it be granted first that the earth and all the planets and stars were created at the same time. We learn this from the Bible ; and it is easy to see that the earth being a portion of the Solar System, that system could not exist as it is without it; the insertion of the earth (had it not pre-existed) or the abstraction of it (now it does exist) would disturb the ‘harmony of the spheres.” Similarly our Solar System is an integral portion of one vast assemblage of systems, the destruction of any one of which must bring about the destruction of the whole. All, then, were created at once. Now there are certain stars, or masses of stars, so distant that the light travelling from them takes 60,000 years to reach this earth: many people who do not know how this is found out refuse to believe it, but no student of astronomy or of trigonometry would disbelieve it. We can see these stars, their light has reached us; ?.e., the rays of light now entering the eye through the telescope started from these stars 60,000 years ago; therefore the stars were then in existence, and as the earth was also, the earth must be até least 60,000 years old, Grant this, and there is no limit we can put to its age. Time prevents me taking up other points on which people are incredulous ; I trust, however, that sufficient has been said to show that geologists have sufficient grounds for at least the pro- bability of their theories, however startling they may at first appear. Geology does not, and cannot, contradict the Bible when rightly studied ; the earth is just as much the work of Gop as the Bible; both are occasionally misread, but that does not prove the study of either to be unlawful; both tell the same wondrous tale AMONGST THE GRASS. 61 with respect to the display of His power ; but, as the study of the crust of the earth would never enlighten us with regard to spiritual truth, so no amount of biblical study will ever teach us Geology or Astronomy. Hy. Untyerr. Amongst the Grass. HEN Mr. H. ©. Watson produced his invaluable work, “‘Qybele Britannica,” he found it so difficult to procure positive information of the flora of some districts that, under the head of Bellis perennis, he enumerated several counties in which he had no evidence that even the common Daisy was to be found. If this was the case with flowering plants we must expect it to be even worse with such obscure organisms as fungi, indeed, in half the counties of Britain we do not know that the common mushroom or the corn-mildew is to be found. Buckinghamshire is one of the counties concerning the inferior flora of which we know almost nothing, and in the hopes of adding to our knowledge, I am about to give a short account of one small group of fungi, in the hope that it may lead some stray reader to hunt for them, identify them, and record how many belong to this county. Amongst the grass in autumn the close observer of nature will not have overlooked some little white or yellow bodies, growing either singly or in tufts, and only conspicuous from the clearness of their white, or the brightness of their yellow colour. Com- monly only from one to two inches in height and not thicker than a crow-quill, it may be expected that hundreds of people, even in Bucks, have walked over them, or sat down upon them, many a time and oft, and never noticed them. These belong to a genus of Fungi bearing the name of Clavaria, from the club-shape of many of its members ; and as we have upwards of thirty British species, it behoves us to write of them in some kind of order, and for that purpose, those which are more or less clavate or simple, shall occupy the first place. Indeed it is doubtful whether space will permit us on this occasion to enumerate the branched species at all. 62 AMONGST HE GRASS. SECTION I, SOLITARY. lirst and foremost is the king of all our Clavarias, C. pistillarte (fig. 1.), if size constitutes any claim to kingly dignity; and having received from High Wycombe a native specimen of this some- what rare species,* its right to a first place is indisputable. Fig. 1. In size this ‘club’ exceeds our figure, for it will attain a height of more than six inches, and a thickness of nearly an inch at the thickest part ; externally it is smooth everywhere, and though at first of a tawny colour becomes browner by age. Internally it is white and fleshy. This and the four succeeding species always grow singly and distinct, and not in tufts, as those of our second group. A very rare species (C. Ardenia) has been found in the southern counties, in which the clubs are much more slender and attenuated, always of a redder brown or rust colour, and with the clubs hollow. Almost equally rare is a twisted and contorted species ((. contorta), of a dirty white colour, which is oc- casionally found bursting through the bark of fallen branches. Indeed both (. Ardenia and C. contorta differ from the majority of their fellows in selecting fallen branches on which to vegetate. A smaller species (C. juncea), with slender thread-like hollow clubs is sometimes abundant in certain localities amongst dead leaves in woods. Thestem is hollow, and at first pale externally, becoming ultimately of a reddish-brown. * It was gathered in 1865 in Hearnton Wood, West Wycombe; and last year in the Booker Woods.—Ep. AMONGST THE GRASS. 63 A slender, delicate, little white Clavaria will often make its appearance on the soil in garden pots. This is C. acuta (fig. 2), usually the tops - of the clubs are pointed, but occasionally they are somewhat blunt. The fifth and last species of this group (C. uncialis) grows on the dead stems of umbel- liferous plants, and bears some resemblance to the last, but is always blunt at the apex. Its general height is about an inch. The substance is white and tough, and not at all fragile, as in some species of the following group. SECTION II. CZSPITOSE. In this section the clubs are still simple or unbranched, but they grow in tufts, which are more or less fused together or united at the base. These differ much in colour, for in one species it is purple, in another it is rose-coloured, in three it is yellow, in two it is clay-coloured, and in two it is white. The purple species (C. purpurea) has elongated hollow clubs, and grows in pastures amongst grass. It is by no means common. The rose-coloured species ( C. rosea) also loves the grass, but is decidedly rare ; the substance is brittle and the tips of the clubs Fig. 3. become yellowish. I have never been fortunate enough to find either of these. Of the three yellow species, C. fusifor- mis is common in woods.* It grows in rather dense tufts of delicate spindle-shaped clubs varying from one to two or three inches in height, which are ultimately hol- low, the tips of the clubs are generally of a darker colour. The acute ends character- ize this species. (Fig. 3.) The second yellow species, C. ceranoides, also has the tips of a darker colour, but the clubs are unequal and not pointed, but * Is frequent also on commons; Naphill Common, &c.—Ep. 64 AMONGST THE GRASS. often divided a little way down. Itis difficult to determine the line which separates it from C. fusiformis. The other species (C. inequalis) is very variable inform, some of the clubs being simple and others forked, but none of them dis- coloured at the tips. Its substance is more brittle, and the clubs do not become hollow. Itis not uncommon amongst grass, es- pecially in woods. Fig. 4. Of the clay-coloured species C. argillacea is the largest, and the brittle clubs have a shining yellow stem ; whereas C. tenudpes has inflated and wrinkled clubs (fig. 4.), and a very slender stem. Altogether the latter species scarcely exceeds an inch in height. Both are found on heaths. Finally the two white species are C. vermiculata and C. fragilis. The first of these is very common on lawns and pastures and al- ways white.* The clubs are cylindrical and rather attenuated at the tips, not exceeding three inches in length. They certainly resemble a tuft of fairy candles, and would make a very good stew if they were not so small. The clubs are never coloured or hollow, whereas in C. fragilis, the clubs are cylindrical and hollow, often yellowish, with a white stem, exceedingly fragile. Both are rather common, but the latter prefers meadows to upland pastures, and there is very little difference in their relative sizes. It would be difficult by means of woodcuts to give a distinct notion of the speci- fic difference in some of these little plants, as somuch depends upon the colour, but by the exercise of a little care and patience it may not be impossible to recognize them by the brief characters here given. This chapter having already attained its limit, the branched species, belonging to this genus, must form the subject of a future communication. M. CO. Cooxe. * Gathered last autumn on Naphill Common.—Ep. 65 Additions to the Wycombe Llova,—1866. LTHOUGH every branch of Natural History has ever some- thing new to set before us, and although we can never ex- haust the marvellous stores of information presented to us in each natural object, it is, of course, self-evident that just in proportion as we become more acquainted with any one subject, we have just so much the less to find out about it. In other words, to speak more particularly of our own district, each plant or insect that we find for the first time leaves one less for future discovery. The careful inventory which has been made during the last few years of the botanical productions of our woods and fields has left room for but few additions: and it is therefore with great pleasure that I record the discovery during the past season, of seven species of flowering plants hitherto un- recorded for the Wycombe district. I may here remark that the area comprised in the district to the examination of which our Society is especially devoted is a radius of five miles from the parish church of High Wycombe, — this being the extent to which the labours of local naturalists are usually confined: and my forthcoming Flora of Wycombe will be _ arranged in accordance with this generally adopted plan. I will now briefly mention the seven species recently added to our list in the order of their discovery. 4 Tue Frenp Movse-zar Cuickwezp (Cerastium arvense) was uly recorded at page 25 of the Society’s Magazine. It has not et been observed in any other locality than that there mentioned, and we must consequently consider it, for the present, as merely a visitor to the district. Tne Fine-teavep Hearn (Erica cinerea). Although by no means a rare plant, had not been recorded among us until the 25rd of June last, when I had the pleasure of finding it in great plenty upon Wooburn Common. ‘The same observations also apply to 66 ADDITIONS TO THE WYCOMBE FLORA. THe Turrep Water Scorpron-arass ( Iyosotis eespitosa), which grows in damp places and by the edges of ponds in the same locality, and has since been observed near Whittington Park. It is an insignificant little plant, with small blue flowers, and much resembles its relative, the Forget-me-not (IZ palustris) in general appearance. Tue Srenper Tare (Vicia gracilis), is a much rarer species than any of the following—indeed, it may be considered as the princi- pal botanical discovery of the year. The sub-province of West Thames (comprising the counties Berks, Bucks, and Oxon) was not known to produce it, until it was discovered, on the 23rd of June, by Dr. Bowstead, growing in some plenty at the foot of the field side of the embankment, on the right hand side of the road, at the beginning of the ascent of White Hill, as you go to Beaconsfield. In general appearance it resembles the Hairy Tare (}”. jirsuta), but the flowers are much larger and more con- spicuous, of a delicate purplish blue. Tue Acrip Lerruce (Lactuea virosa) I found growing very plentifully among the Furze on the gravelly embankment on the left-hand side of the road going up White Hill. It is a tall plant, with a thick stem, which has small but sharp thorns, and when broken, exudes a white milky juice; the flowers are yellow, resembling those of the Garden Lettuce. Tue Corron TuistiE ( Onopordum Acanthium). Two fine plants of this, the handsomest of our Thistles, were observed in a hedge adjoining the Ham Farm, near West Wycombe; they may, how- ever, have originated in the adjoining garden. Tue Lesser Dopper (Cuscuta Epithymum). This pretty para- site was discovered on Wooburn Common by Miss Chandler, growing upon Furze and other plants; although a frequent species, it is not known to occur on any other of our commons. ‘In addition to this list of plants new to our district, it may be interesting to enumerate a few of the rarer species, already known to occur with us, for which additional localities have been discovered. The Woad (Jsatis tinctoria), which was in 1865 noticed among the Saintfoin by the railway near the Bird-in- tl ee ADDITIONS TO THE WYCOMBE FLORA. 67 Hand, was last year pretty plentiful, appearing at intervals between that place and Bradenham. The Annual Yellow Cress (Nasturtium palustre), an insignificant little plant, which has hither- to been noticed only at Lane End and Marlow, has been gathered near the Marsh Green: and the Hairy Rock Oress (Arabis hir- suta) has been found in Wycombe Park, and several other locali- ties. The rare Coralwort (Dentaria bulbifera), has been noticed in the little wood at the foot of White Hill; and Mr. Marshall has traced it beyond our district as far as to Amersham. The Bar- berry (Berberis vulgaris) the claims of which to be regarded as a native of our district rested solely on the specimen on Keep Hill, has been observed sparingly in the neighbourhood of Marlow by the Rev. Bernard Smith. Wooburn Common, already mentioned as the locality of two or three new plants, produces the elegant Yellow Cow-wheat (Delampyrum pratense) in great abundance : the absence of this species from our neighbourhood generally was commented upon by Mr. Mill, in his list of Marlow plants pub- lished in 1850 ; and although Mr. Melvill noticed it in the Mar- low vicinity in 1865, it was still almost unknown to the district. The lovely Bee Orchis ( Ophrys apifera) has been gathered during the last season in Fennell’s Wood, Loudwater, in a wood near Bradenham, and on a bank near White Hill: and the little Musk-scented Orchis(Herminium Monorchis) was abundant on Keep Hill. Many of the localities given in a list kindly supplied me by Mr. Gaviller have also been examined and verified. The Solomon’s Seal (Polygonatum multiflorum) mentioned by Withering as growing ‘‘about High Wickham, Bucks,” has not yet been noticed in our district; and we have been equally unfortunate with the Red Campion (Lychnis diurna), which, although included in Mr. Mill’s Marlow list, has, at present, entirely escaped our observation, although Mr. Marshall gathered a single specimen on the road to Amersham about 53 miles from Wycombe. The Shepherd’s Rod (Dipsacus pilosus) which it was feared would be destroyed by the clearing of the hedges in .its only Wycombe locality, between Cressex Farm and Handy Cross, has apparently benefited thereby; having been finer and more abundant during J 68 ADDITIONS TO THE WYCOMBE FLORA. ~ the past season than it ever was before. Last but by no means least in importance, the Mezereon (Daphne Mezereum) has been found this year both in Dane Garden Wood and in Fennell’s Wood; and a specimen has also been observed in a previously unrecorded locality, namely, in the small wood at the foot of White Hill. These are, I think, the principal additions to our knowledge of the plants of this neighbourhood which have to be recorded for the past season. If in themselves trifling, they are to a certain extent of importance as rendering more perfect the flora of a locality which, form the rarity of the species which it embraces, presents features of especial interest.* James Brirren. * Read before the Society at the first Evening Meeting (October 9, 1866) of the Second Winter Session, 1866-7. List of Wycombe Birds, Ho, 1. FALconipz. Sparrow Hawx......Fualco nisus ......Not very common. ISITE fe cheid o.0(0 a's . Ff. tinnunculus ..Plentiful; known as the Red Hawk and Little Hawk. Srriciwpz#. Barn Owl.e....... Strix flammea ....Common. BRO WINCI WL > ao nies Cee CHO 6 ta ern eicintalas wine LaniaD&. ReED-BACKED SHRIKE, . Lanius colluris...,Called Butcher-bird. Moscicarip”. FLYCATCHER ........Muscicapa grisola, ,Common. MERULIDA. Misset TurusH...... Zurdus viscivorus. . Tolerably plentiful. Sona THRUSH ......7. Musicus ...... Common. BLACKBIRD,.... Re ae TIE FIELDFARE,,........2- pilaris,....,..Called Felts and Pigeon Felts. REDWING oo esc p eee Le WiMcus. Hy. ULiyerr. 69 Proceedings of the Society. SECOND WINTER SESSION 1866—7. First Eventne Meerrine, Ocr. 9.—This was held at the house of the President, and was very largely attended. Tea and coffee were provided at six e’clock; after which the business of the evening was opened by the President, who, in a short introductory address, alluded feelingly to the loss which the Society would sus- tain in the approaching departure of the Secretary. Mr. Ullyett, then read an interesting paper ‘‘On Incredulity with respect to Geological Facts,” which will be found entire at p. 54 of the present number ; after which he formally resigned his office as Honorary Secretary of the Society. It was proposed by Mr. John Parker, jun., and seconded by Mr. E. J. Payne, that Mr. Britten be elected to the vacant post. This resolution was put to the meeting, and was car- ried unanimously. A short paper, illustrated by specimens, on the additions to the Wycombe Flora during the past season, was then read by Mr. Britten : it will be found at p. 65. The objects exhibited, which were very numerous, were inspected; among them may be specially mentioned—casts of the eggs of the two gigantic extinct _ birds, the Dinornis giganteus, of New Zealand, and the pyornis 7 maximus, of Madagascar ; fossils from the Gault at Folkestone, in- _ cluding several Ammonites; some scarce fossil Crabs ; and Kent- ish fossils from the Thanet sand, etc.: these were all lent by the _ President. Mr. Britten also exhibited several specimens of wild flowers in blossom, among which may be mentioned the Penny Royal (Mentha pulegium) from Naphill Common ; the fruit of the Deadly Nightshade (Atropa Belladonna) from Hughenden ; and the Fine-leaved Heath (Zrica cinerea) from Wooburn Common. The meeting terminated with the usual votes of thanks. 70 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOOIETY. Srconp Eventne Meerine, Nov. 13, held by kind permission at the house of Mr. John Parker, jun. A vacancy having oc- curred in the Committee by the removal of Mr. Britten to the post of Secretary, Dr. Bowstead was unanimously elected in his place. A paper on “ British Reptiles,” kindly forwarded by Mr. W. R. Tate, of London, was read by the Secretary. The orders Sauria and Batrachia, as illustrated by British examples, were selected for especial notice ; and the remarks upon each species were gath- ered, in a great measure, from personal observation. The Presi- dent then delivered an instructive address upon ‘‘ Diatoms and Desmids,”’ illustrated by diagrams and coloured drawings. The physiology of these minute vegetable organisms was explained ; and the narrow line which separates them from the animal world was clearly and concisely drawn. Various Diatoms were exhibi- ted under the microscope, as were also fossil specimens of their sporangia, from flint. Among the subjects exhibited was a collection of Butterflies, and another of Beetles (chiefly local), exhibited by the President, the former containing the only speci- mens of the rare Clouded Yellow ( Colias Edusa) which have been taken in the Wycombe district, Various Reptiles, British and foreign, preserved in spirits, were also on the table; as also was a copy of Morris’ “ British Birds,” lent by Dr. Bowstead; and a series of coloured engravings of Wild Flowers. The approaching Meteor-shower formed, as might be expected, the subject of much con- versation ; after which, the usual votes of thanks having been pro- posed and acceded to, the meeting broke up. Asetul Books. has been suggested to us by a contributor that a small portion ofour space might be profitably occupied by a list of useful books as may be usefully consulted by those who are desirous of increas- ing their knowledge of Natural History. We have great pleasure in acceding to this proposition: and have selected the following, which, while giving sound reliable information on the subjects of USEFUL BOOKS. 71 which they treat, are free from technicalities which might puzzle the uninitiated. The Animal Kingdom, as represented in Great Britain, is treated of in the world-famed “ Natural History of Selborne,” of which many editions are published; a very good one, copiously illustrated, and annotated by the Rev. J. G. Wood, may be obtained of Messrs. Routledge for 8s. 6d. The same publishers also issue some admirable books at the low price of 1s.: ‘‘The Com- mon Objects of the Country,” by the Rev. J. G. Wood, ‘‘British Birds’ Eggs,’’ and ‘‘ British Butterflies,” are all well illustrated; and the first named is most pleasingly written. Mr. Hardwicke publishes “‘ British Reptiles,” by Mr. M. C. Cooke; and ‘Slugs and Snails,” by Mr. Ralph Tate; both are written in plain language, and the latter is a handy introduction to British Conchology: both are illustrated (4s. plain, 6s. coloured). The Vegetable Kingdom is also well represented in the following works: ‘‘Wild Flowers of the Year,” published at 1s. by the Religious Tract Society; ‘‘ Flowers of the Field,” by the Rev. C. A. Johns, a valuable introduction to the classification and description of British Plants, published by the 8. P. C. K., illus- trated, 7s.: ‘* A Manual of Botanic Terms,” by Mr. M. C. Cooke, fully illustrated, 2s. 6d., published by Hardwicke, as is also ‘A plain and easy Account of the British Fungi,” by the same author, with coloured plates, price 6s. ; While Messrs. Routledge supply ‘British Ferns” and ‘‘Our Woodlands, Heaths, and Hedges,” for 1s. each, and ‘“‘ Wild Flowers” for 2s. All of these are fully illustrated: and the last-named contains a good explana- tion of botanical phraseology. This list, at present very incomplete, would be more so did we omit to mention Hardwicke’s ‘Science Gossip,” with which many of our readers are doubtless already acquainted. Itis admir- - ably arranged and illustrated; and its price is but 4d. monthly. We hope to return to this subject on a future occasion, when works on other branches of Natural History will come under consideration; as well as some of a more advanced style than those above mentioned. 72 Correspondence. All communications relating to advertisements, contributions, or the supply of this magazine, should be addressed to the Editor, care of Mr, Butler, High Wycombe. Contributions must be sent in before the 15th of the month pre- ceding the date of publication. The Editor will be glad to receive notes con- cerning any of our local plants and animals, their times of appearing, their popular names and traditions, abnormal forms and colours, §c.; these must be authenticated by the writer’s name and address, but not necessarily for publication. Hesrtnon.—Henbane v. Ebony.— Although quite unable to equal the amount of learning displayed by Mr. Payne at p. 48, I still adhere to my opinion that by hebenon, Shakespeare most certainly intended Henbane. In this opinion I am supported by a great majority of Shakespearian com- mentators. But if the Ebony was indeed intended, we are forced to believe that our great poet did not know what he was talking about! Mr. Payne seems to think it almost impossible that a king could “suc- cumb”’ to the action of Henbane, which he humorously terms “a con- temptible bird-poison;’’ but as- suredly it would be more unlikely that the juice of a tree, perfectly in- nocuous, in its effects, could in any way tend to such a result : and if we admit that kings are, after all, but ordinary flesh and blood—it seems to me that a monarch is as likely as a peasant to fall a victim to the effect of a poison. Again, Henbane produces different effects upon dif- ferent people; and the symptoms given in my “‘amusing little monas- tic fiction’’ (which, however, rests on a solid basis of fact); although they may not exactly coincide with those of the poet, may be quite as correct as his. The ‘rendering’ to which I referred has been given, more than once, at a village penny reading: and I am quite willing to allow Mr. Payne to cite this as an authority, should he think fit. The conclusion to which we must come is briefly this: if Shakespeare knew what he was talking about, nothing but Henbane could have been inten- ded by him; but, if on the other hand, we allow that he was exer- cising his right of ‘ poetical license’ in no ordinary degree, Ebony, or anything else, might have been selec- ted for his purpose. I cannot help thinking that the former supposition will be most generally assented to. James BritTen. Tue Larcr TortoisE-sHELL (Va- nessa Polychloros). (See p. 45.)— This fine butterfly is not unfrequent all round Marlow. It appears about the end of July, and almost imme- diately enters into its state of hyber- nation. For a few days only it may be observed in the sunshine, basking on the bole of some tree, and flying about it when disturbed. We only saw one last summer, and it was just outside a wood at Fingest. In April and early May it is more easily found, flying in the open walks of our woods; but the specimens are then worn and should not be cap- tured, as they are laying the eggs of a future brood. I haye taken the larya just ready to turn, on palings in this town, and the perfect insect appeared about a fortnight after. Although called by Harris in his “ Aurelian”’ the * Nettle Butterfly,” it is well known to feed on the elm, as stated by Mr. Ullyett. Itis gene- rally called “The Large Tortoise- shell,’ and is regarded as a prize among our young collectors. Rey. BERNARD SMITH, Great Marlow. CORRESPONDENCE. 73 Ccrious Pxrace For A Brrp’s Nest.—One day in the spring of 1865, while at the Groye, Booker, I was requested by Mr. Morris to go into the garden and take down care- fully a watering pot, which had been hanging to the branches of an apple tree all the winter; I removed it from the branch, and on looking into it, I saw the whole of the bottom covered with soft moss, in the middle of which was, sitting on its nest, a Tomtit (Parus major). Although the bird shewed some surprise at the sight of me, it did not fly away: I replaced the watering pot on the branch, when the bird suddenly started out and flew into a neigh- bouring tree. I looked again into the nest, which contained four little eggs. What astonished me most was the great quantity of moss which had been collected by the little bird for its nest, for the whole of the bottom of the watering-pot was covered two inches deep with the moss, which appeared loose, but was woven loosely with horsehair. The nest itself was more closely woven, and quite maintained its hollowed appearance thereby, being lined with hair and small feathers. The dia- meter of the watering-pot was about a foot, and it would haye held more than a gallon of water. The good lady of the house was yery kind to the little bird, and took a great in- terest in its welfare, and she told me that it afterwards hatched its young safely. The great quantity of moss was doubtless to absorb moisture, the bird being able to judge by some unknown power that no drainage could take place through such a dense substance as tin; otherwise it might have been saved much trouble and many journeys to and fro by simply building its nest in one corner. Does this exhibit season or instinct ? R. M. Bowsteap, M.D. Tue GREEN WooprPEckER (Picus viridis).—This, the largest of the British Woodpeckers, is also one of the most beautiful of our British Birds. Any one who wanders through the wooded parts of Buck- inghamshire may often detect it by its jerky flight, and by the peculiar scream which it utters when alarmed. The rich green and yellow of the back, and the deep crimson of the back of the head, are equal in colour- ing to the plumage of the Kingfisher. It is a shy bird, but not uncommon, and is widely distributed. It is known by various provincial names, most of them indicating its habit of boring trees : ‘* Woodspite,”’ “* High- hoe,’”’ “ Hew-hole,’”’ ‘‘ Pick-a-tree”’ —also in Northumberland, “ Rain- fowl,” from its habit of being noisy before rain. From the same cause, the old Romans called them Pluvie Aves. The local name in Bucks is Wetile (Witwall?). Old Christopher Merrett, in his valuable Pinaw Rerum Naturalium Britannicarum, pub- lished 200 years ago, calls them ** Witwoll,”’ while Bewick gives this name to the Large Spotted Wood- pecker (P. major). Is Wetile”’ (of the spelling of which I am doubt- ful) a corruption of this word, or does it really indicate the character of the bird as the herald of rain? I find, too, that its local name here is Hichail. This is no doubt a corrup- tion of Hickwall, but, according to Bewick, this is the name of the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (P. minor). Perhaps some of your readers can tell me whether ‘ Wetile” is the correct mode of spelling the name, and whether it is a corruption of “* Witwall’”’? T. MarsHatu. Eprste Funer.—*I have this autumn myself witnessed whole hundredweights of rich, wholesome diet rotting under trees ; woods teeme ing with food and not one hand to gather it; and this perhaps in the midst of potato-blights, poverty, and all manner of privations, and public prayers against imminent famine. I haye, indeed, grieved when I have considered the straitened condition of the lower orders this year, to see! pounds innumerable of extempore beefsteaks growing on our oaks in the shape of Fistulina hepatica; Agaricus fusipes, to pickle, in clusters under them; Puff-balls, which some of our friends have not inaptly com- 74 CORRESPONDENCE. pared to sweetbread, for the rich delicacy of their unassisted flavour ; Hydna, as good as oysters, which they somewnat resemble in taste; Agaricus deliciosus, reminding us of tender lamb kidney; the beautiful yellow Chantarelle, that Kalon Ka- gathon of diet, growing by the bushel, and no basket but our own to pick up a few specimens in our way; the sweet nutty Boletus, in vain calling himself edulis, where there was none to believe him; the dainty Orcella, the Agaricus hetero- hyllus, which tastes hike the craw- fish when grilled ; the red and green species of Agaricus to cook in any way, and equally good in all.”’—Dr. Badham’s “Esculent Funguses of Great Britain.” Ancir Suapres Motn.—I saw a good specimen of this moth (Phlogo- phora meticulasa) clinging to the land side of a large block of gault on the beach on November 30th. Was not this very late in the year for it? The day was very cold, and a high wind was blowing. EnToMoLoGicus. [It was rather late in the season, put they are generally out till the end of October.—Eb. ] Instinct v. Reason. — A bee, which Huber watched while solder- ing the angles of a cell with propolis, detached a thread of this material, with which she entered the cell. Instinct would have taught her to separate it of the exact length re- quired, but after applying it to the angle of the cell she found it too long, and cut off a portion so as to fit it for her purpose. Hy. ULLyetr. Smartt ExepHant HawkmotH (Cherocampa porcellus).——Three specimens of this beautiful little Hawkmoth were taken during the past season at honeysuckle blossoms at Bradenham, by Mr. Kennedy. “Tp we wish rural walks to do our children any good, we must give them a love for rural sights, an ob- ject in every walk; we must teach them to find wonder in every in- sect, sublimity in every hedgerow, the records of past worlds in every pebble, and boundless fertility upon the barren shore; and so, by teach- ing them to make full use of that limited sphere in which they now are, make them faithful in a few things, that they may be fit hereafter to be rulers over much.” Rev. C. Kinestey.—* Glaueus.” Tur Furure Lire or ANIMALS. __“ Will the creature, will even the brute creation always remain in this deplorable condition ? God forbid that we should affirm this, yea, or even entertain such a thought! While the whole creation groaneth together (whether men attend or not) their groans are not dispersed in idle air, but enter into the ears of Him that made them. While His crea- tures travail together in pain, He knoweth and is bringing them near- er and nearer to their birth, which shall be accomplished in its season. He seeth the earnest eapectation wherewith the whole animated crea- tion waiteth for that final manifesta- tions of the sons of God: in which they themselves also shall be delivered (not by annihilation : annihilation is not deliverance) from the present bondage of corruption into a measure of the glorious liberty of the children of God. Nothing can be more ex- press. Away with vulgar prejudices, and let the plain word of God take place. They shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into glorious liberty : evena measure, according as they are capable, of the liberty of the children of God.” Rev. Joun WESLEY. Erratum—No, 2., p. 27, first line from the bottom, for “ first’? tead last.” 75 Hesourees, APPY the man who has some resources beyond the ordinary routine business employment of life. One-idea-people are ‘never agreeable people, especially to those whose minds unfortu- nately are not bent at all in the course of the one idea. The delicie of entire change from the engrossing task of life are known so well to most intelligent men and women, that one can only “compare such a change to the feeling of him whose life is spent ‘in the fen country, where «For leagues no other tree did mark The level waste, the rounding gray,” finding himself by the Lake of Lucerne on a clear summer day, : he bright blue waters at his feet, and, rising from the Lake, the glorious green mountains, ridge above ridge, ‘till his eye rests the distant sparkling outline of the eternal snows. The colours of this simile may to some be too bright; I pray you, therefore, my friends, tone them down with your own brush and in harmony with your own fancy. This Magazine attests the resources of the Naturalist, the Microscopist, the Geologist, and the Antiquarian; and I will now venture to put in a’word for my ow n humble resources. A reverence, though by no means a super- stitious one for antiquity, and a love of architecture, have led me, in company with a kindred spirit, to find recreation in leisure hours in pleasant pedestrian trips, easy marches from this ancient town, to spots bearing familiar names, yet full of antiquarian interest. A fresh walk amid hill and valley in this Chiltern district, with good health and an object before you, who can describe such -acombination of enjoyments? George Borrow would certainly well perform the task, did he from “‘ Wild Wales” take his next walk through our county. To recount the numerous objects of interest within compass in na this neighbourhood would be beyond my purpose: I will only mention a few that at the moment strike me. There is the almost K 76 RESOURCES. deserted village of Fingest, its church tower rising up like a spectre in the valley; that Norman tower makes the lonely vale quite worthy of a visit. This pilgrimage should be taken first, then will be appreciated the better the rude grandeur of the tower of St. Alban’s church, reared, not improbably, by the same hands that built the little tower of Fingest. Pray do not be offended, my reader, if in my simplicity I treat you as amongst the unini- tiated in Architecture. Whilst on the Norman style, I might mention there is an interesting Norman doorway to the restored church of Bradenham; a delightful afternoon’s walk is that across the high ground of Downley and Walter’s Ash, down into the Bradenham Valley, and back to High Wycombe. Nothing how- ever, can be finer in Norman work in this neighbourhood, than the pillars and arches that remain to attest the early foundation of the Hospital of St. John, now the Wycombe Royal Grammar School. Then, next we have, here and there, interesting specimens of the early English style. A walk over Keep Hill to Little Marlow, would afford an opportunity to visit the village church; the north windows and the tower are well worthy of examination ; in another direction, a walk to the secluded village of Little Missen- den would reward the admirer of Early English work, there being at the east end of this church a triplet window with double plane of tracery; whilst, though beyond the limits of this locality, the beautiful tower of Haddenham church, with the arcading sur- rounding the belfry story, ought not to be left unnoticed. It is by carefully examining these humbler details and by be- coming acquainted with their distinctive beauties that we are able to realise the glories of the minster; that in visiting such churches as Lincoln, Salisbury, or Beverley,—those triumphs of Gothic in its purest and most lovely forms,—we do not take a mere bird’s-eye view of the building, and content ourselves with afew empty ex- clamations, but we are at first sight overpowered with the vast work of art before us, specially in our earliest and happiest days of travel, and then we gradually acquaint ourselves with the entire design—the grandeur of the proportions to the ex- quisite finish of the sculpture. RESOURCES. “Ws T have been travelling very rapidly through the twelfth and _ thirteenth centuries in search of the art of those periods in our ; neighbourhood, and now arrive at the early part of the fourteenth century, in which the decorated style flourished; and there are some good examples of that style to visit within easy distance. _Shottesbrooke church, beautifully situated amid the richly wooded country around Maidenhead, is a perfect specimen of decorated work; no busy perpendicular workman, nor, far more serious, untutored churchwarden has marred the design of its original architect ; the spire is, I understand, being now rebuilt strictly in accordance with the first model. Burnham church, with its fine ‘roof, and Hitcham church, are fair examples of the decorated ‘period, and nearer home the manorial chapel at Widmer, near Marlow, now forming part of a farmhouse, and described in an interesting chapter of the Records of Buckinghamshire for 1865, by the late Rev. W. H. Kelke, has its east and ‘south windows of the early fourteenth century period. _ We now come to the last or perpendicular age. We have left behind us the graceful shafts, the pointed arch, and the high- pitched roof: great and grand were—if we only take York Minster as an example—the works of the perpendicular builders, and most industrious and popular builders they were; hardly any eathedral or parish church escaped their industrious hands, but we see in their designs the unmistakeable signs of the decline of Fothic art, and when they had chiselled the last pinnacle to fenry the Seventh’s chapel at Westminster, its reign was over ; the art itself died only to be revived in modern days. The nave, lerestory, and tower of our parish church, also the nave and ransepts of Thame church, would be classed with this order ; but is I have before hinted, there is scarcely any village church near us that does not present some specimens of this style. Grateful as we should be that the sacred buildings throughout the land have very generally been reverently preserved, it is to be lamented that—at least, in our own locality—so little is left us of the _ domestic art of the Middle Ages. No doubt many houses in the ‘3 present day and in this ancient borough from their numberless mutilations disguise their antiquity ; still we look in vain for the 78 RESOURCES. ancient market house, the home of the Lord of the Manor, and of the inferior magnates, and find nothing but the peasant’s cottage in unfrequented spots to remind us of the dwelling-places of our forefathers. It is not by reading of the strifes and loves, the rise and fall of kings, that we can really become acquainted with the history of any period, but it is by seeing with our own eyes the monuments and memorials left us of the past that we can know the habits of thought of bygone generations ; as an instance with reference to the mere customs of a certain age, a recent examination of the beautiful tapestry work at Haddon Hall, Derbyshire, gave me more idea of how people amused themselves, how they dressed, in fact what resources they had, than the most elaborate de- scription of volumes. JoHN ParkER, JUNR. High Wycombe. Ghee Llensuves of Hloth Bunting.* LARGE white sheet, a dark lantern, a good stick, and a box of Calmar Tandstickor. Also a bottle of chloroform, some entomological ‘‘ sugar,’’ and pill boxes ad infinitum. Time about nine p.m. Thus equipped we start for Dane Garden Wood ona cloudy night in June or July. Did you say what for? Well, to catch moths, and possibly, a cold. Not a tempting occupation at such an hour you may think; a snug room with a glass of some- thing cheerful would be preferable. We will not argue the point; suffice it to state that there are people ready to forego the latter for the chance of capturing something good between the — hours of nine and three, when Morpheus reigns supreme over all, excepting entomologists. It is, perhaps, cold work for the first hour, but by the end of that time you begin to warm to your work, and as the ‘‘ game’’ appears you are lost in the excitement — of hunting. Up we go, over Keep Hill, stumbling over the — juniper bushes, startled every now and then by a moth dashing — * Read before the Society at the Sixth Evening Meeting (March 5th, 1867), of the present Winter Session. THE PLEASURES OF MOTH HUNTING. 79 at our bull’s eye, or vainly gazing after one that sailed across the gleams into the darkness like a winged ghost: we make frantic dashes at them with the net, but in vain: perhaps we catch one out of every thirty—ah! what is this? A Magpie; no, nota bird, not Pica caudata, but Abraxas grossulariata, which you must acknowledge to be a prettier name; a very common species, but we retain it because it is our first capture to-night. Forward; we do not want to wait on the hill, let us get to the wood at once. Here we are; how gloomy it looks at night. We think of the cosy little room we left, and the contrast is painful: yet we dare not return without accomplishing our errand, having been guilty of several vain boasts relative to what we should takehome. On these tree trunks at the edge of the wood, and also on the old gate posts, we spread some of our liquid “‘ sugar” to entice the moths that may come by. It gives out a rich odour (we speak as moths), and cannot fail to draw a host of gay young Nocturni. And __ leaving this for a time we seek an opening in the interior of the __ wood; here we suspend our sheet, with a lantern to throw a strong light on it. Light possesses a wonderful attraction for moths, and this mode is a favourite one with some entomologists. They (the moths, not the entomologists) settle on the white sheet and are pill-boxed. This again we may leave to itself for a time and go and seek our fortune with the net: ah! what a lot of great creatures come fluttering round us just in this one spot; we must see what they are: only the Yellow Underwing, Zriphena pronuba; _ we really cannot spend time in catching them. Pronuba and grossu- _lariata are two of the moth-hunter’s greatest torments, they are always getting into the nets ; if a curious looking moth rushes by you, it is sure to be one of them (if you catch it), and you get sold times innumerable. To return to our sugar—what luck ? ‘Here on the gate post we have two very fine cockroaches, and a slug; we did not certainly mixup our sweets forthem. Buthere onthe tree trunk we see some little sparkling beads throwing back the light; we know them, the eyes of moths are very beauti- ful by lantern-light, and the little beads show that there aro moths there. Hereis the Angle Shades, Phlogophora meticulosa, nothing rare, there are four of them here, but still it is very pretty; here 80 THE PLEASURES OF MOTH HUNTING. are also Xylophasia polyodon, X. hepatica, and yes, it is the lovely little Peach Blossom, Zhyatira batis, but the shy creature was too quick for us, the gleam of the light soon drove it away. But look on the ground here at the foot of the tree—two Yellow Underwings, and one Hepatica, positively intoxicated, perfectly helpless. Oh, sight fora Temperance Society! Pick them up and preserve them as proofs of the fondness of moths for drink. The other tree trunks afford us a few choicer specimens, and now we wend our way to the sheet and lantern. Why, where can the spot be? Surely this is near where we left them: we wander up and down, round and round, finding ourselves continually coming back to the same place, but no sign of a sheet, no friendly ray to guide our wildered steps. Lost, lost ina wood at midnight, and we cannot tell which way to turn, or where to look for a path. How very horrible! And yet it makes one feel romantic, because you see there is no danger, only inconvenience; we can wander about till the morning, and then we are certain to find our way out; still we should prefer not to do this. Stay; a‘‘ happy thought” strikes me; let us make our way up to the highest ground, as straight as we can. What a relief, here is the way out. Nowa fresh start, and by the aid of a better path we find our parapher- nalia, but there is nothing on it, and as it is getting very early, we pack up, and start homewards. Beating the hazel and hawthorn bushes as we go, we find dozens of night-feeding caterpillars, letting themselves down by a thread, spider-like, as we shake the branches, and crawling up again when they think the danger over. They are mostly Geome- tride, and by taking some home, and caging them, we may succeed in obtaining a moth or two that we do not often find in the per- fect state. These are some of the ‘Pleasures of Moth Hunting,” and many of our readers no doubt will say, queer pleasures they are. We have, however, only told of a ramble during a summer night ; what would they say to an hour or two in a cold bleak night in March or April, such as we have spent looking over the sallows by the stream at the Marsh, and picking choice specimens of the Hebrew Character, Zeniocampa Gothica, and others of the same BRANCHED CLAVARIAS. 81 genus off their blossoms? Or how would you like to be out in a thick drizzling rain at 11.30 p.m. in October, throwing the gleams of your lamp on the ivy blossoms which then adorn the Park wall below the Rye, and detecting the little Chestnut Moths holding high festival? We have done this often, and one night took home forty specimens, comprising sixteen or seventeen species. We have them now in our cabinet, and as we look them over, each tells its own tale, forms in fact, a little volume in a large library, and it speaks to us most of friends that are gone, who shared with us the Pleasures of Moth Hunting. Hy. Univer. Hraacied Clavavrias. AVING, in the last number, briefly characterised the British species of Clavaria which have the clubs simple and undivi-: ded, it will be expected of me that I render the account complete by an enumeration of the branched species. Nothing is so essen- tial for a satisfactory determination of the larger fungi as good faithful figures. In the absence of these I must endeavour to make the distinctions as plain as I can. If specimens of Clavaria are laid upon a piece of dull black paper over-night, in the morning the paper around the specimen will be found discoloured, frosted, or more or less sprinkled with the spores which the Clavaria has shed. These will either be _ quite white or yellow, brown, or some similar tint. The larger number of British species have white spores. Let us accept this _ as a distinction whereby to separate the branched species into two sections. First, those which possess white spores, of which there are ten Species; four of these are white, two yellow, two greyish or brown, one violet, and one whitish, with red tips. To commence with the largest group, the white species may be thus distin- guished. 82 BRANCHED CLAVARIAS. Clavaria coralloides and Clavaria Kunzei are both very much and repeatedly branched, so as to form a dense coralline tuft; but in the former the base or stem is thick, and in the latter slender. In the former the branches are unequal, and dilated in the upper portion ; whilst in the latter the branches are equal and compres- sed at the axils. Both are found in woods, but C. Kunzeiis very rare. Both the above species are brittle, and both the following are tough. This may serve as a little guide in their discrimination. Clavaria rugosa (Fig. 1) is usually quite white, but sometimes of a dingy colour. Fig. 1. It has a character peculiarly its own, in its wrinkled surface, and in the clubs being nearly simple, often but slightly branched, enlarging upward, and occasionally more than four inches in length. Each club grows by itself, be it simple or forked ; and the tips are always blunt and rounded. It grows in woods, amongst grass, or on shady banks. Clavaria cristata, though often white, is quite as often of a dingy, dirty colour. The branches are less numerous than in the two species first named, and are flattened, spreading, with a crest-like appearance, being sharply notched at the apex. It is to be found in woods. The more persistently dingy species are Cla- varia cinerea and Clavaria umbrina. The first of these is of a greyish colour, very much divided and subdivided so as to form a dense tuft, pro- ceeding from a short, thick, tough stem. The other species has a slender stem, is of a pale umber colour, only slightly branched, and is certainly rare, whilst C. cinerea is common in woods and on shady banks. The yellow species are represented by Clavarta fastigiata and Cla- varia muscoides, both of which occur in pastures. The first is very much branched, the branches are short, and again divided in a BRANCHED CLAVARIAS. 83 digitate or clustered manner.* The last is less divided, slender, forked, and with the branches curved. It is the less common of the two. The violet species is Clavaria amethystina. It is very brittle, variable in size, and much branched. We have no other species with which it can be confounded. Clavaria botrytis has a thick fleshy stem, the upper portion divi- ded into a number of swollen branches, which are red at the tips. It has been found in woods, but is very rare. This ends the white spored species. Those having coloured spores are eightinnumber. One of the rarest and most beautiful is Clavaria erocea, which is of a bright saffron yellow, small in size, slender with crowded branches, and has only been found in Somersetshire. Clavaria grisea has a dirty white, thick stem, divided above into a few thick, blunt wrinkled branches, of a dingy grey colour. It is not at all a handsome or attractive species, and is rather uncommon. It may be known by its brownish spores from other species of a similar colour. Fig. 2. Clavaria abietina (fig. 2) has a very characteristic habit of its own, and is not uncommon under fir trees. It is of an ochrey colour, resembling Scotch snuff, very much branched and sub- divided, but the branches and branch- lets are all erect, giving the plant a very neat appearance. It sometimes turns green when bruised. Another species possesses in a less degree this erect habit. It is Clavaria stricta, a species which has occurred in : Buckinghamshire, found by Mr. Britten, and is not uncommon in gardens.t It is of a pallid yellowish colour, very much branched, turning brown when bruised. * Extremely plentiful on our Commons during the late autumn; Nap- hill Common, &c.—Ep. ‘ + Occurred in great abundance in the autumn of 1865 on the earth sur- rounding an old sawpit in Hearnton Wood, West Wycombe; and in 1866 in the Hughenden Woods.—Eb. L 84 BRANCHED CLAVARIAS. The yellowest of the Clavaria in this group (with the exception of C. crocea) is Clavaria aurea, which has a thick pallid trunk, divided into stout forking branches. It occurs in woods, but is considered rare. There are two ochraceous species still to be mentioned, both of which are uncommon: Clavaria flaccida, which is flaccid, as its name indicates, with a slender smooth trunk, and numerous con- verging branches; and Clavsariacrispula, which is not at all flac- cid, has a slender woolly trunk, and many spreading branches. The former occurs amongst moss in woods, and the latter at the base or in the hollows of trees. The most recent addition to the list of British Clavariea is C. formosa. It is a large thick stemmed species, divided into numerous long, thick, erect branches, each of which is again much subdivided at the apex. The colour is yellowish. It was found by C. E. Broome, Esq., near Bristol. Uninteresting as this bare enumeration of species may be to the general reader, one feels some satisfaction in the hope that it may prove useful, and be the means of inducing those to look for Clavarias who never looked before, and those who always looked to look the more. Should only half a dozen Clavarie not known at the present to flourish in this county be hereafter identified through the medium of these two chapters, that alone would recompense the writer for his little effort. M. ©. Cooxe. Doss it not seem to you, that there must surely be many a thing worth looking at earnestly, and thinking over earnestly, in a world like this, about the making of the least part whereof Gop has employed ages and ages, further back than wisdom can guess or imagination picture, and upholds that least part every moment by laws and forces so complex and so wonderful, that science, when it tries to fathom them, can only learn how little it can learn?—Rry. C. Kinasiey. —* Glaucus.” 85 Che Chiltern Country. (Continued from page 39.) HE Chiltern Country is divided into parishes, most of which resemble very roughly the form of a square. Now the parishes in the lowlands adjoining the great roads on the North- West and South of the forest uniformly take a decidedly oblong shape, often run up into the hilly forest region, and sometimes take to themselves detached portions of land in the very thick of the’ forest. It is easy to see that these lowlands were at some time past thickly populated (comparatively speaking), and sufficient proof of this is contained in the unusually quick succession of old parish churches as we traverse either the Icknield Road _ or the old Bath Road. On the former, we find, at an average dis- _ tance of about a mile apart, Ellesborough, Great Kimble, Little Kimble, Monks and Princes Risborough, the two Saundertons, _ Horsenden, Bledlow, Chinnor, Crowel, Aston, Lewknor, &c., and so on in the same proportion, till we arrive at the place where the Chiltern range crosses the Thames, at Goring. So along the old Bath road, we have Iver, Wexham, Stoke, Farnham, Burn- ham, Hitcham, and Taplow, then the Walthams, Shottesbrooke, and Ruscombe. All these villages being closely packed together, _ their corresponding parishes naturally take an elongated oblong _ shape, extending generally in this way at right angles on either side of the principal road, to an extreme length of perhaps six or seven miles, with a breadth of only a mile, or a mile and a half. The Chiltern parishes are considerably larger than these, in “consequence of the great area of unavailable woodland contained within their boundaries, and the absence of any important road to induce settlements. That they are of more recent formation than those adjoining, just mentioned, is seen from the numerous detached hamlets and patches of land within the forest, reputed to belong to, and still claimed by these lowland parishes: ¢.9., the hamlet of Seer Green, belonging to Farnham, and the hamlet 86 THE CHILTHRN COUNTHY, of Coleshill, belonging to some manor in the adjoining county of Hertford: that of Ackhampstead, belonging to Lewknor, in the county of Oxford, &c., &e. These portions seem to have been occupied by a kind of colonisation, before the whole forest was thought worth entire occupation and regular division into parishes. This division took place in or before the reign of Alfred the Great, whence all old English parochial names date. In some not exactly known year, in his time, the name each village or town then bore was distinctly ascertained, or a name given to it, if it had none, and its boundaries were fixed: and thus the first official survey of the island took place. The names of the Chiltern parishes enable us to look for a moment with the eyes of our Saxon-German forefathers over our hills and vales. A list of these names, and a few remarks by way of explanation, may be both useful and interesting, especially as the subject has never before been systematically attempted. To ascertain the signification of the names, we must generally recur to some earlier spelling, in consequence of the corruptions produced by many centuries of tradition. Doomsday Book, the oldest authority, is generally most correct in this particular, and the best guide to deciding the meanings. AmersHAM. The first name on our list presents a singular difficulty. Tracing it from the earliest, we find it successively called Almondesham, Agmondesham, Amondsham, Amersham, the two last being easily corrupted from either the first or second, one of which is evidently incorrect. Notwithstanding the authority of the spelling Agmondesham, which has been in use from the XIII century to the present time, though cor- rupted in pronunciation, I take the first, as being in Doomsday Book; ALMOND’s HAM—THE PLACE oF THE AtMaANN, Almand, or Almanian (Zat. Alemanni), 7.¢., (1) a German or Germans of the Alemannic nation, as distinguished from the Saxons, Franks, Frisians, or (2) generally, a German or Germans as distinguished in the later times from the Danes of the adjoining parish of Chal- font. The word was constantly used in this second sense.* It is * Schilter, Thesaurus Antiq. Teut. iii, 21. THE CHILFHRN COUNTRY. 87 originally derived from alle manne, ¢.e,, allthe men, the nation, and is found in the modern French words for Germany and the Ger- man, Allemagne, Allemand. Agmondes-ham, though written during many years, was never in oral use, as is shown by the endorsement of one of the earliest documents (XIII‘» century), in which it is spelt Amundesham, though Agmundesham is in the body of the deed. The g is probably an error altogether. BeaconsFIELD. From tlie obvious Beacon—THE FIELD OF THE Beacon, a station on the ancient telegraph line which conveyed to the whole country the news of invasion and pillage. BiepLow. Bledelow=Bioopy nix; a relic of the battle fought there between the Christian Germans and heathen Danes is seen in the chalk cross on Bledlow Down, not far from the better known cross of Whiteleaf. BrapenuaM. Breda or brada means a flat open place, derived from the old form of our word broad. Burnoam. VILLAGE BY THE BURN, or rather among the burns, or brooklets. Cuatront. This name is reducible to no Saxon elements known to me, and appears to be of Danish origin. Cuentes. See Iselhampstead, hereafter. CHESHAM, or properly CuEsTER-HAM. The well-known word chester is the Saxonised Roman word for a town or military settlement, and points to the existence of such in the times of the Roman dominion.* CHOLESBURY, properly CHELWALD’S-BURY, contains the name of its Saxon possessor. Denuam, properly Danr-Ham, was certainly a Danish settle- ment, and so named by the Saxon neighbours. Dorney, properly Txorn-ry, signifying low uncultivated ground near a river. Very many places in low situations have this name; among others, it is the old name of the present site _ of Westminster Abbey and Palace. ExtesporoveH. In acorrupted form, compounded with the * Which is confirmed by the discovery of important Roman remains found here in the year 1864, 88 ON FASOINATION. name of some Saxon possessor; probably the same name as Aylesbury. Eron. Eton and Upton once evidently formed but one parish; a glance at the maps placed together will show this. For the sake of distinction, the little suburb which had grown up near the town of Windsor, was called Eton, or properly Ey-ron, meaning TOWN BY WATER, and the original village Up-ron, or UPLAND TOWN. Farnuam. Here for the first time we have a genuine botanical name. Farnham is so called from the Frrn which grows or once grew abundantly in its neighbourhood. KE. J. Payne. (Lo be continued.) On Fascination. HE power of fascination, as possessed by certain animals, is very remarkable. We are all familiar with the stories which tell us how birds or small animals are fascinated by snakes: but it does not appear to be equally well-known that the same power is shared by other creatures, and those natives of our own country. As an illustration and in evidence of this fact, I will just narrate one or two circumstances which have occurred within my own sphere of observation. In the winter of 1848, while spending my holidays with a school-fellow at a farm-house in Warwickshire, two hens were carried off by a Fox in a somewhat mysterious manner. They had been seen to go to roost the night before upon a long ladder, which lay across the beams of an open waggon-shed: and how Reynard could possibly have got to them, was a matter of conjecture. The next night, my companion and I stationed our- selves in a little outhouse attached to the shed, whence we could see all that passed inside, by means of a hole in the wall. At length our attention was arrested by a short snappish bark, fol- 5S ae ON FASCINATION. ". oes lowed by a cackle among the poultry; and, looking through the hole in the wall, saw Reynard sitting with his head directed up to the fowls. My companion was very eager to shoot, but I advised him to wait until the Fox began to move off; when a hen fell suddenly down from the perch, and was instantly seized by her adversary. Before he could get away, the contents of the gun had finished his career. This incident leads me to believe that Foxes are, in this way, more destructive than poachers in pheasant-preserves. Another case, somewhat allied to the foregoing, although per- haps exhibiting reason rather than fascination, I had an oppor- tunity of observing, some three years ago, as I was walking by the side of a large wood and noted fox-cover. Looking through the hedge into a wide grassy ride I saw ata little distance a Rabbit feeding, when a Fox crept quietly out of the wood, and, perceiving the Rabbit, threw himself down on his back, with his legs in the air, and lay perfectly motionless. The Rabbit in turn- ing round saw this strange object, and ran into the wood; but soon came out again, and sat up to take a better survey. Apparently satisfied with its observations, it came a little nearer and com- menced to eat, but was again startled by a slight noise caused by the Fox having struck the ground with his tail. This seemed to excite the Rabbit’s curiosity still further; it approached until within ten yards of Reynard, when the seemingly inanimate object suddenly came to life, and seizing the unfortunate Rabbit, which appeared too frightened to move, scampered off with his prey. - I have also reason to believe that the power of fascination is by no means confined to Snakes and Foxes, and the following cir- cumstance tends to support this opinion. About five years ago, while driving along Chapel Lane, near West Wycombe, I heard a peculiar cry, and on arriving opposite the lane which leads to Copy Farm, I saw in the middle of the path a Water Wagtail (Motacilla Yarreilii), its wings drooping by its sides, uttering piercing shrieks, and apparently in an agony of fear. At the same time I became conscious of another sound, something be- tween a grunt anda hum. Qn nearing the bird, which seemed 90 OUR VIOLETS. unable to move, I found that this proceeded from a Stoat, in the hedge-bottom, which had evidently fascinated the Wagtail, for as soon as I drove the Stoat away, the bird flew off, glad to be released from the power of its foe. I trust that these few remarks may lead to farther corres- pondence upon this subject, which appears to me to be one of considerable interest to naturalists. R. M. Bowsreap, M.D. , Wycombe Wild Flowers. II—OUR VIOLETS (Violacee). G aa more the season of spring is approaching; once more ‘‘the winter is past—the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come;’’ and the naturalist, who has been eagerly watching each faint foreshadowing of the resurrection, as it were, of plants and insects, now begins to prepare for a full enjoyment of the daily-increasing beauties of Nature. Not that he is weak enough to believe in the “‘ethereal mildness,” with which the poet invested spring; he knows full well that cutting winds, and heavy rain, and chilly frosts make that season at the best achangeful one; but in spite of all these, there is a development in Nature which nothing can entirely check, and which each day brings a step nearer to per- fection. Among the avant-couriers of the floral train, the Violets claim a foremost place, and demand at least a passing notice as their right: we will, therefore, give a few moments to their inspection. We cannot here, as at Mentone, wander forth into valleys filled with double-blossomed Violets, where the air is literally laden with the fragrance they give forth; nevertheless, one of our own species is sufficiently sweet and lovely, and we value it none the less because we have to search for its blossoms among its beds of green leaves. We have in the neighbourhood of Wycombe, at OUR VIOLETS. 91 least five species of Viola. People generally recognise but three : the Sweet Violet, the Scentless, or Dog Violet, and the Pansy, or Heart’s-ease. But in the second of these, we may readily discover three forms with distinguishing characteristics which can scarcely be overlooked if we exercise our powers of observation in an ordinary degree, and to these our remarks will be chiefly devoted. Tue Sweer Viorer (Viola odorata) is so universally known and admired, that we will not insult our readers by attempting a de- scription of it. We find it with white, pale blue, or purple flowers: and near Buckingham a variety occurred with deep claret-coloured blossoms: occasionally very pretty specimens are found, having white flowers striped with purple. It may be re- marked, that in a wild state, the white Violets are usually much earlier than the purple ones: and about Wycombe both are equally common, although in some parts of the country a white Violet is accounted a rarity. Two points, however, connected with this species demand special attention, since itis by them that the Sweet Violet is distinguished from the next species, the Hairy Violet. If we pull up a root of V. odorata we shall notice that from its centre proceed one or more runners, which are technically, and without the slightest reference to Ritualism, called séoles; these stoles, at intervals, take root in the ground, and throw up leaves _ and flowers. In the Hairy Violet these stoles do not exist. Again, if we pluck a Sweet Violet, we shall notice that, above the middle of the flower-stalk, are two tiny light-green _ appendages, called bracts, which are really small leaves; in the Hairy Violet, these are situated below the middle of the flower- stalk. _ Tue Harry Vioter (Viola hirta) is not uncommon upon our chalky banks; and—with the two following species—shares the name of Dog Violet, a name given, probably, in contemptuous _ allusion to its want of scent, In many respects, it resembles _ the Sweet Violet, from which it is distinguished by the afore- mentioned peculiarities, The leaves are hairy, and their under- sides very pale green; in outline they are somewhat more tri- angular than those of V. odorata; the leaf-stalks are longer, and also very hairy; the flowers are of a paler blue than those of the M 92 OUR VIOLETS. preceding. White-flowered varieties are of rare occurrence; and the blossoms, although occasionally slightly scented, are usually inodorous. In the immediate neighbourhood of Wycombe, this Violet is plentiful in Hollow Lane, and it appears to be frequent in other parts of the county where a chalky soil prevails: we have records of its occurrence at Hedgerly, Wendover, and Drayton-Beauchamp. Tur Woop Vioter (Viola sylvatica) is the most ornamental species which we possess. Differing widely from its predecessors in the smoothness and general appearance of its leaves, which are but slightly hairy, it far surpasses them in the size and brilliancy of its blossoms, which are, however, scentless. The two first- mentioned species have scarcely any stem—both flowers and leaves springing from the crown of the root: but in V. sylvatica we find a real stem, from which the flowering shoots branch off. Modern botanists divide the Wood Violet into two species: and it is chiefly with a view of ascertaining whether the second of them is found within our limits, that this paper has been written. We would therefore direct especial attention to the following brief description of the differences existing between the two forms: and also to the annexed figures, engraved, by Mr. pea SE 8 kind permission, from ‘‘ English Botany.” Fig. 1. 1. V. Riviniana, Reich. (fig. 1.) This is our common scentless Violet, which, as on the terrace-walk at Hughenden, produces such splendid masses of rich, purple-blue flowers : itis common everywhere, in woods or on hedgebanks. The chief distinguish- ing mark between this and the next species lies in the black veins which streak the lowermost petal: in V. Riviniana these are numerous, and uniformly branched at the base. In the other form, 2. V. Reichenbachiana, Bor. (fig. 2), which is not, as yet, known to occur in our county, the petals are somewhat longer, andj much narrower; while the veins of the lowermost one are comparatively few, parallel, and scarcely, if at all, branched. This is a much less common form in England: but hopes are OUR VIOLETS. 98 Fig.2. entertained that by diligent search it may be detected in the county, if not in our own } immediate neighbourhood. It may be remarked ALY é\ that Professor Babington describes the flowers of V. Retchenbachiana as ‘‘lilac;” while those of V. Riviniana are “blue.” The aggregate species, V. sylvatica, is the Violet to which the name Dog Violet is most usually applied. A white-flowered variety was found near Wycombe last year by F. Wheeler, Esq., and is described at p. 16; but this form is of rare occurrence. Tue Dog Vioier (Viola canina) is a somewhat puzzling species, and in very many respects resembles V. sylvatica. The flowers have less of the purple tinge than those of that species; and the spur is yellowish-white. The only form which I have seen in our district is V. flavicornis, Sm., which grows, or at any rate, used to grow, in great plenty on Wycombe Heath; I believe I have also noticed it on Keep Hill. In the Wew Botanists’ Guide, it is stated to grow “‘ near Hitcham, Dropmore, and Burnham Gore Lane,” all inthe county. It seems to prefer dry, open places, and is not very common. Professor Babington characterises V. canina as having the ‘‘primary and lateral stems flowering and lengthening ;” while in V. sylvatica the flowering branches are “‘ axillary from a ‘short flowerless central rosette of leaves.” Careful investigation _ will, in nearly all cases, render the seemingly slight differences between the Wood and the Dog Violet sufficiently spparent. _ Tse Hearr’s-zase orn Pansy (Viola tricolor) is the last of our Violets, and must be almost as familiar as the Sweet Violet to our readers. Its habit is, however, very different from that of the preceding species; and it also differs from them in being an annual: in short, were it not for the blossoms, we should hardly recognise the Heart’s-ease as atrue Violet. The flowers, in order _ to bear out the specific name, should be of three colours—purple, _ blue, and yellow, or blue, yellow, and white: but this form is comparatively rare with us, although occasionally to be met with in cornfields. The variety termed V. arvensis is the more common with us, in which the petals are small, and either yellow or white; but it is difficult to lay down any differences of sufficient re” A 94 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. importance to distinguish it from the true V. tricolor, the one form passing almost imperceptibly into the other. The true V. tricolor is, however, a stouter plant than /. arvensis, and is often biennial, or even perennial: both flower from spring until very late autumn. Thus we conclude our chapter on Violets. Much could be said on the various references made to them by the poets—their ‘old associations ’’—their properties, real and imaginary: but space for this is wanting. "We may mention that we shall be very glad to receive specimens of either V. sylvatica or V. canina from any part of the county, in a fresh state, for examination: and should these few remarks lead to the discovery of V. Reichenbachiana, we shall, indeed, have our reward. JAMES BRITTEN. Proceedings of the Society. Tuirp Eventne Meetine, Jan. 15.—Held by kind permission, at the house of John Parker, Esq. Tea and coffee were, as usual, kindly provided, and there was a large attendance of members and friends. The President read a short paper, furnished by the Rey. W. H. Painter, on the remarkable caye at Brixham, Devon, which the writer had recently visited. The length of the cavern is estimated at 500 yards, while the height now averages 4ft. 10in.: in it were discovered bones of the Cave Bear, Hyena, and Rabbit, with a large antler of a Deer, andsome flint knives. This paper was followed by one from Mr. Ullyett on “The Mammalia of High Wycombe.” This was read by the Secretary; in it our few wild animals were enumerated, and short descriptions of, and notes upon, the more interesting of them were given. After an interval for conversation, the President concluded his paper on Diatoms, which was illustrated by coloured diagrams; yarious natural substances were mentioned, into the composition of which these minute organisms enter very largely, as guano, &c. The objects exhibited were then inspected ; the President, besides his ever-attractive microscope, had brought a gollection of Land and Freshwater Shells, a collection of Spiders, a stuffed specimen of the Iguana, and several books. Miss Chandler exhibited a yaluable collection of Madeira Ferns, and dried specimens of the local Legwminose and Scrophulariacee, which were much admired. A fine stuffed Stoat (Mustela Erminea) was shown by Dr. Bowstead, and PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. 95 some curious Chinese Insects by the Secretary. The usual votes of thanks terminated the meeting at about 10 p.m. Fourtu Evyenine Merrine, Fes. 5.—Held by kind permission at the house of the late R. Wheeler, Esq. The principal feature of the evening was a paper (very kindly forwarded by the author, Robert Holland, Esq., of Mobberley, Cheshire), “On some Resemblances between Plants and Animals,” of which the following is a short summary :—“ The life of a plant is subject to a great many of the same changes as those which attend that of an animal. External circumstances affect it in the same way; ¢.g., neither a fish nor a water plant can flourish out of their native element. Again, both animals and plants are similarly influenced by various poisonous substances: like animals, too, plants breathe, their leaves corresponding to the lungs of the former. Plants, as well as animals, grow by the accumulation of matter deposited from food, which food is drawn by the roots from the soil ; or, when the plant first germinates, from the supply of sugar formed by the action of heat and moisture from the starch contained in theseed. Many plants seem to have, to a certain extent, the power of motion, the stamens and pistils of some changing their positions at various stages of their development. Most of our Orchids have, in a measure, the power of locomotion, the bulb dying away each year, and a new one forming at one side of it, so that the plant appears each year perhaps half an inch distant from the place where it last came up. The long winter sleep of plants is analogous to the sleep of animals, enabling them to start with fresh vigour when the genial spring sunshine calls them to life again. Plants mimic animals in their habits of life; we have solitary and gregarious animals, and we have solitary and gregarious plants. In the same way we have animal parasites, and we have vegetable parasites, closely resembling them in their method of obtaining food from their foster-parents: and as some members of the animal world perform the office of scavengers, by devouring or otherwise removing decaying matter, so do fungi convert such refuse into soil.” The writer con- eluded by drawing attention to the Sundews and the Venus’ Flytrap, as special examples of carnivorous vegetables. An interval for conversation ensued, after which the Secretary, in a brief paper, urged upon the members _ the necessity for more active work during the coming season, expressing a hope that the out-door meetings of the next summer session would be _ more largely attended than has hitherto been the case. An inspection of _ the objects exhibited succeeded: among which were the following :—A tray of Fossils, lent by E. Wheeler, Esq.; a collection of Minerals, by the President; the local species of Geraniacee and Umbellifere, by Miss Chand- ler; the Spurge Laurel (Daphne Lawreola) and Shepherd’s Needle (Scandix Pecten-Veneris) in blossom; and several illustrated works on various branches of Natural History. The President’s microscope was, as usual, in requisition. Among the more interesting objects shown were—a section of 96 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. the nose of a mouse (injected), the web of a Spider, and a wing of the Burnet Moth (Anthrocera Filipendule); after which, the usual yotes of thanks haying been proposed, and cordially acceded to, the meeting terminated. Firrtn Eventne Meerine, Fes. 26.—Held at the house of the President, at his kind invitation. This meeting was very largely attended, upwards of thirty members and friends being present. W. G. Smith, Esq., of London, had forwarded a paper, ‘‘ On Toadstools,”’ to the Secretary, which was read by him. The author dilated largely upon the pleasure and instruction derivable from a close study of the Fungus tribe, proceeding to explain the structure and development of various members of this marvellous class. The yaried forms, odours, colours, and size of the different species was exemplified, and many of the edible Fungi were commented on in terms of high praise. Mr. Smith, however, judiciously warned his hearers against indiscriminate Fungus-eating, and concluded his paper with a detailed account of the alarming and well-nigh fatal results produced upon himself and his family, from the partaking of Agaricus fertilis, a poisonous species. The paper, which gave both instruction and amusement, was illustrated by a large sheet of engravings of the Edible Fungi, also by Mr. Smith; both will shortly be published by Mr. Hardwicke. The objects exhibited were very numerous: the President contributed yarious bones, among which were the skull and lower jaw of a young Indian Elephant, with teeth i situ ; also two large teeth of a mature specimen; the upper jaw with long and perfect tusks, of the African Wart-Hog (Phacocherus Athiopicus), a portion of the jaw of the common Boar, showing the long tusks; and a tooth of the fossil Elephant, or Mammoth (Hlephas primigenius), found at Deptford. 'The Rey. W. Hunt Painter showed several trays of Fossils; some (among which were Trigonia cordata, Ostrea conica, and Cyprinia angulata), from the Upper Greensand, at Teignmouth, Devon; and others (including Limneus longis- catus, Neritina concava, and Fusus labiatus), from the chalk at Freshwater, Isle of Wight. Miss Chandler exhibited dried examples of the orders Caryophyllacee and Composite. A somewhat novel feature was the exhibi- tion by the President, in small saucers, of various inhabitants of our streams, in a living state; including small Water Spiders (Hydrachna) ; Water Molluscs, comprising Planorbis spirorbis, Physa fontinalis, and Paludina similis; various species of Caddis worms (Phryganide), in their curious dwellings; the fresh-water Oniscus, an analogue to the common Woodlouse ; and fresh-water Shrimps of large size, small specimens of which are very common in the wells of this town. Living specimens of the Green Hellebore (Helleborus viridis), Hairy Violet (Viola hirta), Cowslip (Primula veris), and other plants now in blossom, were brought by the Secretary. The Rey. W. H. Painter then gave a brief address, descriptive of his recent visit to the interesting cayes in the Carboniferous Limestone in the vicinity My , ‘ PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. 97 of Ingleborough, Yorkshire. One of these, Nethercoat Cave, is entered by a narrow doorway, whence a flight of steps leads into the cavern, a distance of 70 feet. The galleries have never been explored. A beautiful arch of limestone, and a waterfall of 70 feet, are among the more remarkable features ; and in the neighbourhood of the cave are severalchasms. In Clapham Cave the stalactites and stalagmites are of unusual beauty ; in it is a large chamber 20 feet high. Bands of Bellerophons (“‘ Rams’-horns’’) extend through the cave. The meeting concluded with the usual votes of thanks. Srxta Eventne Meretine, Marcu 5.—Held (by kind invitation) at the house of T. Wheeler, Esq. The first paper was by Mr. Ullyett, on “‘ The Pleasures of Moth Hunting,’’ which will be found at p. 78. This was followed by a Geological paper, by Eyan Hopkins, Esq., which was read by T. Wheeler, Esq. ; it will be published in the Transactions of the Victoria Institute, before which it was originally read. The author advocated a some- what novel theory, viz., that the crust of the earth was moying bodily, although very gradually, in a northerly direction. In support of this, the existence of fossilised tropical trees in latitudes now northern, was adduced ; and it was stated that the position of the earth with regard to certain fixed stars was known to haye changed. These remarks gave rise to considerable discussion ; and several members expressed their non-concurrence in the views of Mr. Hopkins. An inspection of the objects exhibited followed ; among them were trays of fossils, lent by E. Wheeler, Esq., recent Elephant bones, from the Gaboon River, West Africa, by Dr. Bowstead; dried Wild Flowers, by Miss Chandler; Microscopic Objects, by the President ; and some living Wild Flowers, by the Secretary, as well as the Bear’s-foot (Helleborus fetidus) which, however, is not truly wild in the district. The President then delivered a short address on “The Mouths of Insects,” illustrated by diagrams and coloured drawings; various illustrations were afterwards shown with the aid of the microscope. The usual votes of thanks terminated the meeting. Tue finding of a new species is “rescuing, as it seems to you, one more ? % thought of the divine mind from Hela, and the realms of the unknown, un- classified, uncomprehended. As it seems to you: though in reality it only _ Seems so, in a world wherein not a sparrow falls to the ground unnoticed by our Father Who is in heaven. The truth is, the pleasure of finding a new species is too great; it is morally dangerous; for it brings with it the temptation to look on the thing found as your own possession, all but your own creation : to pride yourself on it as if Gop had not known it ages since ; even to squabble jealously for the right of having it named after you, and of being recorded in the Transactions of I-know-not-what Society as its first discoverer :—as if all the angels in heaven had not been admiring it, long before you were born or thought of.’—Rery. C. Kinesney.—“ Glaucus.” Gorvespondener. Hesrnon.—Mr. Britten has given no substantial answer to the objection raised against interpreting Hebenon=— henbane. ‘The question depends on the following points :—1. Shakespere, “Jnowing what he was about,” wrote and printed hebenon, a word posses- sing, as has been pointed out, a poetical and terrible significance, if not representing a practical agent from the poisoner’s pharmacopeeia. The superstitious and fanciful contem- poraries of the poet, throughout the civilised world, in those palmy days of poisoning, attributed deadly virtue to many an innocuous article, and nu- merous fictitious poisons, of which acqua tofana is a notorious instance, were the terror of the powerful and illustrious. The selection of whatever is obscure and repulsive in nature was the obvious work of the poet for the business of murder, necromancy, en- chantment, &e., though the objects themselves, as in the case of the absurd pharmaca of the witches of Middleton and Shakespere, may for the most part be perfectly innocuous, or even medical in their nature. The supernatural, and that wild middle region between the supernatural and the physical, so often traversed by the poet, must not be tested by natural science: much less should the natural philosopher outrage the work of the poet to illustrate his discoveries, when the great poets afford plenty of legitimate examples of most accurate and constant ob- servation of the lower forms of nature. 2. Ifthe juice of henbane or of any English plant, poured into the human ear, were known actually to produce general cutaneous irritation and mor- tification, and to end by the death of the patient, the above would go for nothing. Unless this can be shown, the account of the poisoning must be admitted to be poetical, 7.¢., fictitious : and in the absence of evidence we must assume this negative position, notwithstanding Mr. Britten’s pro- foundly scientific remark that the plant “produces different effects upon different people. eo Wises Hepernocs. — During a summer afternoon’s ramble last year, my atten- tion was arrested by the barking of my dog in the midst of a thick plantation. I soon found that the cause was a Hedgehog, of rather a large size, which, having rolled itself up, bid defiance to its antagonist. I drove the dog off, took up the Hedgehog, and placing him in my pocket handker- chief, brought him home, and put him down in the shrubbery adjoining my kitchen garden, where I hoped he would be of some advantage in destroy- ing slugs, beetles, worms, &c. In a few days I missed him: soon atter- wards there wasa report that a sitting hen had been disturbed, and her eggs scattered, some of which were hatched, and the young taken away for a few days nursing until the whole should come off. Some eggs never produced young, having been dis- turbed by (as it was supposed) a rat. The nest was a hundred yards from the garden. All that were likely haying been hatched, the hen and her eight chickens were duly cooped in a small courtyard near the garden. Next morning the maid came in with a doleful countenance, ‘‘ There’s been something and killed one of the chickens.’”’ The dead body was ex- amined; it had been mumbled and scratched about, but little eaten. All pronounced it must be a rat: so ‘‘George”’ was sent for, and the price of sixpence was placed on the head of the marauder. The following morning another, and one of the best chicks, was dead, and was much in the same state as the former. The ratcatcher was sent for, and the price raised to a shilling. ‘Ill have him,” says “George;” ‘ [ll set more traps: ” these were baited with the dead chicks. Next morning the real thief was caught,—it was my pet Hedgehog! G. ” Erratum.—No. 3, p. 70, fifth line from the bottom, for “useful ’’ read “such,” 99 On the Destruction of Biris.* This is a subject which engages the increased attention of all naturalists, and a great deal has been written during the past few years to enlighten the public mind on the real influence which these small creatures have in maintaining the balance of creation ; and assuredly it is a topic worthy of notice, the more so, that until lately the delusions of the public mind have been such that our common birds and other animals, instead of finding an admirer and protector in man, have had the greatest difficulty in holding their own, in consequence of the ruthless persecutions they have constantly met with and experienced. Now, I am not going to contend that small birds are unqualified friends of the farmer and the gardener: no doubt their services are, as our lamented friend, Artemus Ward, would say, ‘a little mixed ;” but still I maintain that the observations of naturalists do show, when guided by reflection and intelligence, that the benefits which are | worked out by small birds far outweigh the damage which they _ commit, and that they are on the whole necessary to maintain the balance of creation, and to keep under those smaller creatures _ which, without them, would soon become intolerable pests. Now, unfortunately, casual observers don’t look very far ahead. They _ judge the value of God’s gifts as they seem to them, and as they appear chiefly to affect their own immediate interests. They don’t reflect fully on the nature and purpose of these, nor _ observe the daily life and habits of our common birds, and hence | they quite under-estimate the value of them, and set them down | at once as the enemies of the farmer, and the foes of the gardener. It is my object in the following observations to show that the popular and too common ideas on this subject are nothing more nor less than sheer delusions unfounded on fact, and unwarranted * Read before the Society atthe Seventh Evening Meeting (April 9th, 1867) of the Second Winter Session. N 100 ON THE DESTRUCTION OF BIRDS. by observation. I don’t seek to contend that in special instaiice’ considerable harm and damage may not be committed by small birds; but to show that the blind and indiscriminate destruction of them, as in the case of that wicked and stupid institution called a Sparrow Club, is based on nothing short of ignorance and total want of ordinary observation. The habit of decrying the value of these, God’s creatures, is not, however, confined to the subscribers to Sparrow Clubs. The gardeners commonly believe their worst foes to be the Blackbirds, Thrushes, Sparrows, Finches, and Tomtits. The farmer commonly regards all creatures with wings, specially Rooks and Sparrows, as his bitter enemies; he shoots them, traps them, poisons them, makes scarecrows of them, and, in fact, does all he can to get rid of them. The game- keeper goes to work in a more business-like manner—he kills everything, it does not matter what, ‘‘ quite promiscous;” every- thing to him is vermin (except perhaps foxes); Cats, Hawks, Owls, Stoats, Weasels, Polecats, Hedgehogs, Magpies, Jays, Squirrels, may all be seen exhibited in his museum—a strange medley— those that kill game, those that prey on the smaller vermin, all hanging together on the same rail. There is no discrimination, no classification, no reflection on the purposes for which these varied creatures are sent into the world; all are sacrificed for the sake of preserving tame pheasants which are nursed, and watched, and fed, till their natural instinct of self-preservation is nearly knocked out of them. As to the Hawks the gamekeeper scarcely ever troubles to distinguish between them; a Hawk is to him simply a Hawk—no distinction being made between the per- fectly harmless and useful Kestrel, and the more powerful Sparrow- hawk. The difficulty one always has in obtaining real and valu- able information from gamekeepers and others, whose oppor- tunities of studying the nature and character of the various species of wild birds are abundant, alone shows how little as a rule they value these creatures—shows indeed that they regard them simply as a nuisance, and an obstacle to the preservation of game. I heard a short time ago that in a part of Norfolk a Magpie had not been seen for 15 years; and I was informed at the same time that in a part of Surrey the Magpie is an “ extinct bird.” ON THE DESTRUCTION OF BIRDS. 101 There is, then, a ruthless and indiscriminate persecution carried on, and a constant war waged, against the fere nature of this island. Gamekeepers, gardeners, farmers, schoolboys, are all pitted against them; while it is sad to know that, among our countrymen generally, there is a strongly-rooted impression that all are foes to the farm and the garden. True, they say ‘It is pleasant to hear birds sing, and to see them flying about, and there is no doubt they destroy grubs and insects ;” besides, ‘‘ the Robins covered the children in the wood with leaves.” But all these considerations weigh as nothing against the conviction of the great damage that they commit ; and, therefore, they must be put down as foes to the farm and garden, not recognised as at all necessary, but only tolerated on account of their beauty and their song; the idea that they are at all essenti:! to maintain the balance of creation, being one that scarcely enters the heads of half of even those who like andadmire them. Now, we will take up the cudgels on behalf of our feathered friends, and first of all let us notice the Rook. That he does some harm there is no doubt, but who amongst us does not? If you were to shoot a Kook in March or April probably you might find in his crop a few grains of newly-sown spring corn; but shoot one every day in the year and examine his crop, as is recommended by our old friend Gilbert White, of Selborne, and you will see that although he does some amount of harm at times by devouring corn and turnips, yet that his food consists chiefly of grubs, wireworms, cockchaffers, and other destructive insects. Indeed, any one possessed of ordinary observation can at once prove this. See an army of Rooks scattered over a large pasture field and working perse- veringly with their bills; what are they searching for and devouring? The grubs of the cockchaffer, which are most destructive to pasture lands, and occasionally will quite destroy a garden lawn. You may often have noticed in the Rye the Rooks tearing up the turf, and doing apparently a great deal of damage; well, they are doing all this in their search for grubs, and specially the larvee of the cockchaffer, which is, as I have said, very destructive both in its larval and perfect states. This was specially the case during the dry summers of 1858 and 1859; 102 ON THE DESTRUCTION OF BIRDS, when in places the Rye was for a time quite withered where these active birds had been tearing up the turf. The well known practice of Rooks following the plough, and devouring the grubs thrown up, is one which is noted by even the most casual observers. Often have we seen an army of hundreds of the mem- bers of the corvine family scattered over a park or pasture ground in winter for hours together, and reflected on the wonderful part performed by these birds in keeping within due bounds insect life of the most injurious kind. A well known popular writer thus refers to the destructive nature of the cockchaffer grubs. ‘‘ Pur- suing their destructive labours unseen, and never appearing above the surface of the ground until they take their adult form, these larvee are more formidable enemies than even the slug, the snail, and the caterpillar, creatures which can be detected and destroyed by man. Neither human eye nor touch can discover the subter- ranean larve as they silently consume the very life of the plants on which they feed, cutting away the tender rootlets, and causing a blight, as it were, to fall on the herbage. Many an acre of grass, many a fine crop of vegetables has been blighted from no apparent cause; the plant ceases to grow, the leaves lose their fresh, healthy colour, they become limp and droop, the vivid green fades out of them, and changes to yellow, the edges crumple up, and the plant dies. There is no external sign of injury, and until the plant be uprooted, and search made below, no destroyer is visible ; but in the earth, or entangled in the roots of the dying plant, will be found an inconspicuous, brownish, smooth-skinned, sharp-jawed grub, whose sleek condition shews the extent of its feeding, and whose trenchant teeth have eaten away the sources of life. Hidden, however, as they are from human view, they cannot conceal themselves from the senses of the Rook.’ So much for the Rook: at least to shew that he does a wondrous amount of good. I will leave his evil deeds to the discovery of his enemies, having every confidence that they will, in the course of their investigations, find that these are far outweighed by his good ones. Let us next notice the House Sparrow. Our old friend, Gilbert White says—Chaffers are eaten by the Turkey, the Rook, and the ON THE DESTRUCTION OF BIRDS. 103 House Sparrow. Now, we all know that House Sparrows have been generally considered as embodying in their small persons all that is mischievous and destructive; and this is no doubt . partly owing to the impudent conduct of the bird, and his great familiarity with man, and the abodes of man. He is always _ hopping about and chirping, making himself perfectly at home, _ whether in the farm yard, or in the dingy streets of London. His colour is altered by the atmosphere of the metropolis, but he is just the same chirping, cheeky creature everywhere. Can the Sparrow do any good? It seems, indeed, presumptuous, weighing _ the prejudices that have been instilled into our minds from our earliest youth, to say he can: but true it is, and it can easily be proved. People are so apt to look just beyond their own noses ; and our gardener, because he sees a few peas pulled up, or seeds eaten, condemns the poor birds at once and destroys them ruth- lessly. But, let him look beyond ; let him watch the Sparrow all the year round, let him see him in the early morn pecking away _ at the insects on the grass, or devouring the grubs of the goose- berry fly, or swallowing the wireworm ; let him only reflect on the ~ enormous number of insects he must destroy in the course of the year, not only for his support, but to maintain his young ravenous brood. Let him examine the crop of a dead bird; let him do all this and even more, and then he must come to the conclusion that, of all the societies organised on the basis of ignorance and stupidity, that institution called a Sparrow Club is alike the most wicked and insensate, and calculated to effect results the very reverse of what is intended. In a township near Liverpool, great complaints were made of the small birds. Dead birds and eggs were liberally paid for; thousands of the latter were destroyed, the Sparrows were pretty nearly exter- inated, and a plague of grubs and caterpillars was the result. A correspondent of the Rev. J. G. Wood writes that he found in __ the crop of a Sparrow that was shot as it was coming from his _ fruit trees, 20 green caterpillars and a number of aphides. In- _Stances can be multiplied. In the Meld newspaper of a late date it is recorded by a correspondent at Melbourne, in Victoria, that the grounds of the Acclimatisation Society were ridded of a 104 ON THE DESTRUCTION OF BIRDS. plague of caterpillars by the Sparrows and small birds which had been introduced from this country. What do the Sparrow Clubs say tothis? In one instance the annual meeting of a Sparrow Club recorded the destruction of 7000 small birds in one year in one locality, and it is calculated that these birds would have destroyed 20 millions of grubs, caterpillars, and insects, during the breeding season. Mr. Wood remarks on the ignorance and inconceivable folly which dictates these bird murders; and he suggests that it would be quite as rational a proceeding to give prizes for smut in wheat, for diseased potatoes, the most fly-devoured turnips, or the most wireworm-blighted corn. Now, no one would be disposed to contend that the Sparrow does no harm; but that he is judged too much for the harm he does, and gets little credit for the immense services he renders, it requires but a small amount of observation to discern. Watch him feeding his young, and you will soon find out that caterpillars and insects are their staple food; and this process, mark you, goes on for hour after hour; each pair of birds working in its own beat, and ridding gardens and orchards of insect pests, in a way that it is useless for man to emulate. I cannot dwell longer on the daily walk of the Sparrow—lI have selected him because he is generally in bad odour, because he is too generally regarded as a very desperate character, and as the embodiment of all that is useless and destructive. Nowif it has been, or can : be, shown that he is really a most useful creature, and that his services to man are most important, then I can fairly ask for a merciful consideration of the claims of our other English birds to our protection, and a fairer estimate than is usually given of the great and wonderful part they are all acting in maintaining the balance of creation. True,—there is nothing of unmixed good ; each small bird does its share of good and harm, the former, I believe much counterbalancing the latter ; it does it quietly and — unostentatiously ; unfortunately, the bad only is usually noticed, and hence the persecutions small birds are subjected to; but re- flection on the purpose of these small creatures, aided by close observation of their daily habits, will soon dispel the prevailing impression that they do nought but harm. At Walton Hall; the — ON THE DESTRUCTION OF BIRDS. 105 abode of the late Charles Waterton, not a bird was destroyed, nora nest taken, and the result was, not that his gardens were laid waste, but that his crops were plentiful and abundant. Mr. Ellis, of Leicester, writes thus to the Rev. F. O. Morris, in January, 1864: —‘* At Walton Hall the co-existence of many birds of prey with game and wild fowl is remarkable. When last spring at Mr. Waterton’s, the Lapwing was in friendly intercourse with the Carrion Crow, while Magpies and Hawks were close at hand. The presence, too, of a great number of Herons does not prevent the lake from supplying plenty of fish.” Again he writes:— ‘‘This summer we have had two broods of the White Owl in the midst of a game preserve ; in thef .ning their habitation, and in which they nightly search f , the coveys of Partridges were full and undisturbed.” On .ué other hand the destruction of the smaller birds has proved in its results this: that if man attempts to regulate the operation of creation after his own fashion, he must certainly make a mess of it. At the present day this is the case in France, where the dearth of small birds is severely felt. The colonists of Australia and New Zealand are wiser in their generation; for they are doing all they can to im- port the small birds from England, and large numbers are now taken out by returning colonists. JI heard an instance some _ time ago where a settler at Canterbury, in New Zealand, took back with him a number of Blackbirds and Thrushes; and in the garden of the Victoria Acclimatisation Society, Sparrows, Rooks, Thrushes, Yellow Ammers, Blackbirds, Finches, &c., have been set at liberty. It seems strange that the colonists value these small creatures, and that we fail to do so generally in England. Eyen the little Titmouse, when it appears to be destroying the buds of trees, is really feeding on the insects within them. It _has been calculated that in the breeding season this small bird destroys some 500 of insects and caterpillars daily. I will not now stop to allude to our other English garden birds in detail; the Starling, Blackbird, Thrush,—the first an especially useful bird ; the two latter simply atoning by the beauty of their song for any damage they may commit in fruit gardens for a short 106 CLERKS OF THE WEATHER. period of the year. I trust that in future better and truer ideas may prevail; that the Hawks and Owls, the Jays, Magpies, and other trophies may nolonger disgrace the gamekeeper’s rail— that the value of our English birds will be taught in every school in the country, and birds nesting discountenanced to the fullest extent. It is chiefly amongst the young that we must look for the reception of more rational views on this important subject. A change is, however, I am glad to say, taking place in the popu- lar mind, an increased interest is being shown, and more en- lightened views are being entertained. We have, then, good hope that this will continue, and that the time is not far distant when a Sparrow Club will be unknown, and the Gamekeeper’s Museum a thing of the past. Tuog. MarsHAtt. Glevks of the weather. 66 FS it going to be a fine day?” is a question which, at this season of out-door enjoyment, is frequently upon our lips. If we have made arrangements for a pic-nic, or for a no less en- joyable ramble in search of wild flowers or insects, it is, to say the least of it, unsatisfactory, when our first morning peep out of window is met by a dull sky or a heavy bank of clouds. If it rained we should feel disappointed; but the uncertainty is even more trying. Now, in such cases, we doubtless feel how useful would be the information obtainable from the Clerk of the Weather Office, did that functionary exist; but as that source of weather-knowledge is denied to us, we must look around and see if Nature, the truest Lady Bountiful extant, has not in some measure supplied the deficiency. As usual, we find pro- vided for us the very things we require: and these little black imps, sluggish though they seem now, are Clerks of the Weather in good sooth, known though they be by the less dignified name of Leeches. CLERKS OF THE WEATHER. 107 Now, having given our Leeches an important designation, we must endeavour to show that they deserve it; and this we must do on the principle recommended by Ingoldsby, ‘‘Crede experto— trust one who has tried.” An esteemed correspondent having sub- mitted to us the following facts, all recorded by herself during five years’ careful observation, we gladly publish them for the benefit of those to whom the query, with which this article com- mences, frequently occurs :— The apparatus necessary for the purpose is very simple: it consists of a glass jar, holding a pint and a half of water, with stones and a shell or two at the bottom, and a few sprays of Anacharis; the water must not reach the top of the vessel by at least two inches. A tight-fitting wirework cover m:st be placed over the top, as the Leeches soon escape, especially in stormy weather. The water should be changed once in ten days during the summer; and once in three weeks during the winter. As arule, during fine and wet weather, the Leeches remain at the bottom of the vessel. When a change is slowly approaching _ they move upwards, twenty-four hours, or, at times, thirty-six hours in advance of it. When a storm is rapidly approaching, ' the Leeches become very restless, and rise quickly ; while before a thunder-storm they pass entirely out of the water. When the change occurs, they become still, at the bottom of the vessel; but if, under such circumstances, they rise again or keep above the _ water, length or violence of storm is indicated. If the Leeches rise during a continuance of east wind, wind rather than rain is to be expected. When astorm comes direct from a distance, we shall observe the rapid rising and restlessness ~ alluded to above, but much shorter notice—from four to six hours— will be given. When heavy rain or high wind is to be expected, _ the Leeches are also restless and keep out of the water, but their movements are much less rapid. It is advisable to keep the vessel in a temperature as even as possible. When the temperature falls below 48°, the Leeches cease to indicate any change; they become quite torpid, or, in in other words, hybernate pro tem. In a small jar at a temperature M 108 CLERKS OF THE WEATHER. above 75°, the excessive heat may cause them to rise; other- wise they would be quiet. We must bear in mind that, should the Leeches seem to indicate wrongly, the mistake does not lie in their indication, but in our observation, or mode of interpretation of the same. Nature cannot err; and all mistakes are ours, not hers: so where we find. apparent contradictions, we must humbly believe that we are in the wrong. To insure certainty of observation, it is advisable to follow the plan annexed, of keeping a daily record of the doings of the Leeches, and of the state of the weather. After a time this will not. be so essential ; as careful observation will enable us at once to determine what weather is indicated. We shall then be able readily to answer the oft-repeated question, ‘‘ What is the weather going to be ?”’ for the Clerks of the Weather Office will never fail to supply us with an answer. TABLE SHOWING OBSERVATIONS FOR A WEEK. | iS if : ah DESCRIP- | OBSER- 1867| HOUR.| LEECHES. WEATHER. WIND. TION, VATIONS. | \ Two nearly) y- : a ‘ , |Apl. 10am) \ attop. — Fine; cumuli. | NW. Fresh, tov he . . Jasted e 7p.m.| At bottom. | Thunderstorm. |N.NW.] Stormy. 20 min. | p ) ae ai | io |tLa-m. At bottom. |Fine; cloudshigh.|W.NW.] Calm. | 6 p.m. of on a8 y, [}0am. At bottom. | Fine; cumuli. | NW. | Moderate. 7p.m os \ Half way}p.-.. si 7 12 lla.m. { upin water. Fair; clouds high.| W.NW.| Calm. 4p.m.|Nearly at top. 13 12).m. } I weir ag of Heavy rain. SW. Fresh. 6 p.m, fe Fine rain. bi Moderate. 10a.m.} At bottom. Heavy rain. SW. Gian 14 | Nearly out 6p.m. | ‘dP yater Fine. oe Iali-gale. One out of 15 12p.m. } water. 10p.m.. At bottom. |Fine ; clouds low Heavy showers. SW. | Squally. Moderate. ELIZABETH WooLLAMS. OO 109 Hustinct v. Bewsow. [ is said that animals have Reason; and a question has been raised by one of our correspondents as to whether we at- tribute to Reason or Instinct the method by which animals and birds provide for their own safety and the comfort of their off- spring. Now, in the first place, before we determine any pro- position, and make known to the world an opinion somewhat new or contrary to generally received notions, we should be certain that the terms and words we make use of to express that opinion are understood by our readers in the same sense that we intend them. If there is doubt about the meaning of any word we em- ploy, we should give a definition of it and state the sense in which we employ it. Words have so many significations, they convey to minds so many different ideas, according to the general or par- ticular way in which they are intended, that we cannot be too particular in the words we select to express our notions, to de- fine clearly and distinctly the sense in which we take them. Mathe- maticians in general, when the least doubt arises as to the sense in which they intend a term to be understood, give the meaning which they themselves put upon it, which is no doubt the cause why they differ so little in their general propositions. Theologians and their disputants, on the contrary, give no definition of the words they use in their arguments, which consequently leads to _ endless controversy. Let us see then in what way we understand _ the word Reason, and determine if we all receive the sense and meaning alike. Philosophers, great writers, and custom have made a distinction between Reason and Instinct; and that dis- tinction is, as we have been taught, the difference between the human mind and that of the animial. Reason, I believe, as generally understood, is the action of the mind upon knowledge ; ‘that knowledge, received through the sense of sight, hearing, &c., is said to know the difference, or relations, between cause and effect, and it is that which regulates our general actions. If the 110 INSTINCT V. REASON. mind were constantly to yield to external impulses and its current of ideas, without this particular quality called Reason to regulate our action and moral conduct as rational and immortal beings, we should be no better than the animals themselves. Now, if we understand Reason in this light, which I believe is the proper meaning, I do not see how, or in what way, we can say that animals are possessed of Reason. Itis true that animals perform operations in various ways, which to us appear wonderful, in- ducing us to believe that they must have some forethought or knowledge of cause and effect ; as, for example, the bird builds its nest with every degree of care and comfort for its young; at least, some birds, not all, for the Wood-Pigeon, Peewit, Partridge, and some others, scarcely make any nest at all. Then take the Bee, which constructs its honey-comb on the highest mathematical principles: the Ants—cut into one of ¢heir small hillocks and see the extraordinary and beautiful manner in which it is arranged both for a summer and a winter habitation: the Spider—look at the subtilty with which it weaves its web; and a thousand others equally marvellous : and yet we cannot say that they have any knowledge of what they are doing ; if they had, we may, to employ our reason, ask why they should not all alike use the same care for their young? Hares make little or no nest; Rabbits, au contraire, burrow deep into the ground, and exercise the greatest care for the warmth and protection of their young. Again, if we say they have knowledge of what they are doing, why, we may ask, do they not make their nests in the best position to be found in the locality in which they are placed, and not in the most ex- posed and dangerous places, which is very frequently the case? Again, if animals are possessed of Reason, and are conscious of what they are doing, why is not man himself possessed of Reason without tuition? I think it will not be denied, that if man were not educated, taught, and brought up amongst rational beings, he would not be considered a rational being himself; and would, as T have before stated, be little better than the animal in actions and moral conduct. We can, therefore, only attribute this mode of operation in the animal to a particular faculty, or innate quality, which we call Instinct; for it is quite clear that they are eR i eel WYCOMBE BUTTERFLIES. 111 unconscious instruments of what they perform, or that it is an in- nate quality given them by the great Creator for the propagation of their several species, their self-protection, and for the use of man. I conclude then that Reason is one of those faculties which relate to knowledge, as I have said, and therefore itis a mistake in the meaning or sense of the word when we differ in our opinion as to animals being possessed of Reason. It is very clear that the mind, to reason well, must be in possession of some previous knowledge, and reasons from that knowledge comparing ideas and notions. Can we, then, say that the little bird reasons from a previous knowledge when it builds its nest, when we know for certain that it had never seen a nest so constructed ? Newue Arty. Wycombe Duttertlies, Il—OUR ARGYNNIDZ (Fritillaries). HE colouring of these butterflies, though not so gorgeous as that of the Vanesside, is yet very rich in tone, and the sight of any of them on the wing will always incite the young naturalist to attempt a capture. They derive their common name from the fact of their resembling the flowers of Fritillaria Meleagris, both butterfly and blossom having the surface chequered with dark marks on a lighter ground. The under surface of the wings vies with the upper in beauty, being in most of the species washed with silvery streaks, or studded with spots of the same radiance. The presence or absence of these marks shows whether the species belong to the genus Argynnis or to Melitea. Of the latter we have no representatives in the neighbourhood, at least to my knowledge: the former contains six species, and of these I have seen three in the district, and Mr. Gaviller vouches for two others on Marlow Common.* * The reader will recollect that a ‘district’? is the area comprised within a radius of five miles from the Parish Church; I cannot now recol- lect whether Marlow Common falls within this area. [It does.—Ep.] 112 WYCOMBE BUTTERFLIES. Tae PrARL BorpERED Fririnnary (Argynnis EHuphrosyne).-— This is the commonest of all, and may be seen in the openings in woods, and in lanes, from the end of May till the end of July. The wings, like those of all the species, are of the hue known to entomologists as fulvous—a very rich light brown, and are marked with black spots and bars. The under side of each hind wing has one silvery spot in the centre. Tur Smver Wasnep Fririmiary (4. Paphia).—This is one of our most magnificent butterflies, and the sight of one seated on a bramble flower is never to be forgotten. A worn and battered specimen in the autumn of 1864 was the first I chanced to see ; it was flying lazily about in Winch Bottom. I waited till the following summer, and looked anxiously for its reappearance, but for some time was disappointed. In the month of July, however, T asked a friend to go one very warm day, and he brought back five or six specimens. I then set off myself, and succeeded in tracing them to a wood some distance up the lane to the right, where colonies of them were holding high festival over the bramble blossoms. This wood I found to be the ‘‘ metropolis” of these insects; they are plentiful in it every year. If any of our readers would enjoy a sight of natural happiness and beauty, T would recommend them to pay a visit this month to the spot, and it will serve them with remembrances for their winter meetings. Many atime have I sat down and watched Paphia sailing majestically down some avenue in the wood, or up the lane till the temptation of the blackberry flowers overcame it, and it would sit upon one with its bright wings outspread, till it had imbibed its fill. It is a far greater pleasure to watch them than to catch them. The female has the upper surface suffused with an olive green tint; both sexes have the under side of the hind wings, washed with silvery streaks. They occur plentifully also by the woods on Naphill Common. Tue Smartt Peart Borperep Fririaiary (A. Selene).—I first made the acquaintance of this species on the late Wycombe Heath. Early in June it was flying about in considerable mumbers. When on the wing, it can scarcely be distinguished WYCOMBE BUTTERFLIES. 1138 from Euphrosyne, except by a deeper tint of colouring. The markings are very similar in both species, but Selene is known by haying a row of silver spots on the hind wings where Euphrosyne has but one. When Wycombe Heath was destroyed, I gave up all hopes, for I had not seen Selene anywhere else: but in 18661 caught several in a wood at Lane End, so it is still a denizen of our neighbourhood. The two species which Mr. Gaviller took are Adippo and Aglaia, occurring on Marlow Common; both have large isolated silvery spots underneath the hind wings. I was unable to pay more than one visit to the spot, and then I was not fortunate enough to see either of them. A specimen of Aglaia was once brought me, said to be taken in the neighbourhood of Abbey Barn, but I was not satisfied about it. The caterpillars of all ihe species feed on different species of Viola, especially V. canina, the Dog Violet; they are very dark in colour, and covered with spines. They are seldom seen except by those hunting expressly for them. There is a very small butterfly liable to be mistaken fora Fritillary, and occurring very plentifully in Dane Garden Wood : it is Tue Duxe or Buncunpy (Wemeobius Lucina), and belongs to a different family altogether. Collectors look upon it as a prize, since it is only locally plentiful. It is said that the caterpillar has never been found in England, though it is known to feed on the leaves of the primrose. Hy. ULiyetr. Proceedings of the Society. _ Sevente Eventne Meerine, Apri 9.—Held at the house of John Parker, Esq., by his kind invitation. The chief feature of tho evening was a paper by Thos. Marshall, Esq., ‘‘On the Destruction of Birds,” which will be found at p. 99 of the present number ; this was listened to with great interest, and at its con- 114 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. clusion a conversation ensued, in which our feathered friends were ably and warmly defended. Myr. Sharpe was prevented by illness from delivering his paper ‘‘On the British Tits;” its place was supplied by a discussion on the subject of the Future Life of Animals, in which so much interest was evinced at the meetings of the First Winter Session. The objects exhibited were, as usual, numerous ; among them were the four ear bones of the Rabbit, with the ear bones of several birds, illustrating the difference of structure between the ear of the bird and that of the mammal; casts of the bones of the Dinornis, by the President; a tray of fossils ; several cases of stuffed birds ; and many wild flowers in blossom, those of the greatest interest being the Yellow Star of Bethlehem ( Gagea lutea), from Charlbury, Oxon, and the Mezereon (Daphne Mezereum), and Lent Lily (Wareissus pseudo-Nareissus), from our own neighbourhood. The microscope, which it is in- tended to present to Mr. Ullyett, the late Secretary, was on the table. The usual votes of thanks terminated the meeting. Annvat ConversAZIONE, Aprit 30.—The success which last year attended the Conversazione held in the Council Chamber, induced the Committee to engage the Town Hall for this occasion ; the greatly increased interest manifested in the well-being of the Society leading them to believe that such a step would be gene- rally appreciated. That their ideas were well founded, the very large attendance amply testified. Every intimation was given that there would be no charge for admission; it being felt that rich and poor alike should have an opportunity of admiring the works of Nature. The kind co-operation of many friends of the Society tended greatly to the success of the evening, and we take this opportunity of thanking those ladies who so kindly asssisted in arranging the objects for exhibition. Our appeal for assistance met with a warm response in every respect. At seven o’clock the company began to assemble, tea and coffee (kindly provided by friends of the Society) being handed round; after which, the objects exhibited having received a share of attention, the Secretary, the Mayor, and some other members of the Society ascended the platform, and the President (the Rey. T. H. Browne) delivered the following PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. 115 ANNUAL ADDRESS. «THe retrospection of the year that is past is once more assigned to myself, It is my painful duty to announce that, since our last Annual Meeting, we have lost by death a valuable and esteemed member—the late Robert Wheeler, Esq. He was present with us last year, and took a lively interest in the pro- ceedings on that occasion. His character and worth is too well known to you all to require anything like a eulogium from me; I should not, however, be doing justice to the Society, or to the esteemed and honoured memory of our departed friend, without this passing notice. “T think weshayve reason to congratulate ourselves upon the present con- dition and future prospects of our Society. Our numbers have increased beyond our most sanguine expectations ; and, as it is not unreasonable to con- clude, that, when any join a Natural History Society, they have already a taste for natural science, or are desirous of possessing and cultivating that taste, from the increase of numbers may we not augur well for the future? Our Evening Meetings have been well, and, in some cases, numerously, attended. If we may judge from what we have scen and heard, an interest has been awakened, and on some occasions much scientific gratification has been ex- perienced. At these reunions the members have used the privilege, to which they are entitled, of introducing friends. Many of those who came as visitors have enrolled themselves as members. We welcome all who can sympathise with us in our appreciation of the wonderful works of God. Many and yaried branches of natural science have engaged our attention during the last Winter Session. Sometimes these subjects have been broached in general conversation, sometimes in the shape of colloquial addresses, and sometimes in the more set form of written papers. Four of these papers were intended to illustrate Geological science. Our late Secretary, Mr. Ullyett, sent us a communication on the Mammalia of our neighbourhood, which elicited much interesting conversation, as well as important information from the members present. We haye had four papers on that very fascinating branch of natural science—Botany. One was written by our Secretary, on the Phanerogamic _ Plants of our neighbourhood. One was sent us from a gentleman at a dis- _ tance, on the Cryptogamia—the Agarics—called in popular language, Toad- stools. It is not a very attractive name, but the writer of the paper most logically proved that a vulgar prejudice has hitherto prevented a most valu- able gastronymic gratification. Two other botanical papers treated of thuse most beautiful, and to those who are acquainted with them, most interesting _ objects—the Desmids and Diatoms. An extremely interesting and very _ scientific paper was forwarded to us by Robert Holland, Esq., of Mobberley, Cheshire, ‘‘On some Resemblances between Plants and Animals.’’ The writer set forth some very striking analogies existing between these two great provinces of the natural kingdom: Mr. Marshall fayoured us with a very N 116 _ PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. practical and useful paper, on the folly and sin of a reckless destruction of our native birds. "We wish that those who disturb the balance of creation by this wholesale destruction of the feathered race could become indoctrinated with the spirit of that communication. We might then hope that our fields and trees would be cleared of the grub and caterpillar which now endanger both, and pleasant sights and sweet sounds from above would oftener gladden every lover of nature. One paper on Reptiles and two communications on Entomology complete our list. “The geological papers were followed by discussions on that most im- portant and interesting subject—the age of the physical world, It is a question from which in the present day we cannot turn aside. It is con- tinually coming before the mind. Every observation only confirms the great principle of the geologist, as now entertained by the thoughtful and observant mind—that creation was very slow and gradual in its develop- ment, and that our globe is indeed hoary in years, or rather, hoary in ages, Perhaps we are not saying too much if we affirm that human language would fail to describe how ancient is the earth—that though the mathematician might calculate the duration of its past existence, the human intellect in its present state would fail to comprehend its meaning. “© Tt would be difficult in a popular assembly to bring this matter down to the comprehension of those to whom the subject is almost anew one. None can expect to have scientific conclusions on this subject, without much read- ing, thought, logical reflection, and arduous observation of facts as recorded on the stony pages of God’s book of nature. Mere reading will not make a geologist. Of course, we proceed in investigating the subject, by reasoning from the operation of physical laws known now, to the operation of those laws in ages long since gone by. “‘ Analogy in reference to Jehoyah’s works is a safe principle of reasoning. When we have once traced the connection between effects and causes in the physical world, we may with certainty conclude that a like cause has been in operation where we can trace a similar effect. According to this principle —from what we now see going on in the formation of hills and valleys—from the action of air and rain—of river and sea—we think we are safe in reasoning back to what these important agencies accomplished through ages past. I gee nothing in the volume of revelation that is opposed to this important con- clusion. Not that I think that the inspired word was intended to teach man science. Inspiration, according to the known laws that are in operation now, is a miracle. The word of God as now given to us is a wiracle of diyine kindness to mankind. But miracles are not wrought by Him when the known laws which He has established can accomplish the desired result, or man, by his unaided intellect and observation, can elicit facts or work out principles. PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. 117 ‘*When God made man, He left him, even in a state of innocence, to develope the fruits of the earth by his own intelligence and industry. They . could have grown up spontaneously if the Creator had willed it. God has placed us in a world of wonders, where facts abound on eyery side, and mighty laws are operating. But in the great volume of nature, written as in tables of stone, Jehovah is teaching us of facts that have transpired, and of laws that were operating in ages long since past away. These facts were like what are known now, these laws are analogous to what are working now. Why did God write these records of His doings in ages past? He might have given thém all by inspiration. No—He wrote them thus for us to read—for us to work out, and learn how steadily and how gradually He has been developing creation until now. Revelation was not designed to teach us this, which the great book of creation is able to teach, and the mind of man can, by patient labour, learn for itself. But revelation does not contradict this conclusion ; on the contrary, it seems to confirm it. It teaches us that this law of gradual development prevails through all God’s dispensations. It is seen in God’s providential dealings with mankind. It is illustrated in civilization, the arts and sciences, the gradual overthrow of ignorance, super- stition, and ungodliness ; in the spread of divine truth and real religion upon earth. Even the history of redemption was very slowly and gradually unfolded to the minds of mankind. “Tt is the Mosaic account of creation that prevents many from receiving, as a matter of faith, these statements respecting the world’s antiquity. There are three modern interpretations of the inspired narrative which I can only notice, without attempting to prove or disprove either. Indeed, the subject is by far too important and recondite to admit of its being discussed in the popular address of an Annual Meeting. We may be sure of one position—that whether we can harmonise to our satisfaction the book of revelation, and the opening book of the geologic world—there can be no contradiction,—the hand that wrote the revelation of heayen, laid the foundations of the earth. We venture also to advance that the. bible is a popular book. The authors wrote as those who belonged to the popular part of the community, and for those who knew nothing of science. If it had been written on strictly scientific principles, then, for ages and genera- _ tions past, all would have been wrapped up in mystery. The origin of the § world—the part which Jehoyah took in His own creation, would have been _ unknown. ‘In the first verse of Genesis we have the grand opening of the Divine revelation : ‘‘ In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.’’ So far we might have expected the Eternal Father to have revealed Himself and His works to His creatures. Between that great event and what transpired since then, a part of which, so far as we are concerned, is narrated in the 118 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. following verses—may have intervened a space of which millions of ages may have been but units. The work of creation in connexion with our own globe and the solar system is narrated in the following verses. Here, then, is started the enquiry, Are we to understand this literally—six days of twenty- four hours each? or does the term day, according to a common usage of Scripture, express a very long though definite period of time? or have we here the utterances of a prophetic mind—the narrations of the prophetic historian’s mentalapprehensions and visions, when he was under the power of Divine inspiration? That is to say, Did he see, as it were, the work of creation commence, and go on unto completion, when under the influence of the prophetic ecstasy, as probably the other prophets of God did when they were under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost? They saw facts in vision as if to them they were realities, and as some think, pictorial views, in which objects that were near and those which were afar off, were present to the mind like the wide expanse of a glorious landscape, in which the near and the distant appear to the eye at the same time—and were written as thus seen. So God made the mental perception of the prophetic historian to take in, during six days’ revelation, all things which transpired from the com- mencement of creation to the placing of man on earth. Thus the return of morning and evening would be literally true—but true in relation to the prophet’s divine ecstasy rather than as expressing the period of the Creator’s operations. ‘“Thus only shall we enter on the true course of progress, when we feel such a divine impulse to go forward—for only as you advance can you be happy or wise. Go forward—all things around are moving, and every thing in creation is developing into a higher and higher state of being —and thus they say to us, Go forward. Let ‘ Excelsior’’ be our motto— let progress be our aim. There is a firefly in the southern clime, Which shineth only when upon the wing ; So is it with the mind,—when once we rest We darken. On! said God unto the mind, As to the earth, for ever. On it goes, Rejoicing native of the infinite— As a bird of air—an orb of heaven. Go forward, but with all your study of creation, ignore not creation’s God. The German has said that we may see in nature all that we bring an eye to see it with. Christ has said the pure in heart shall see God. Let us not be of the number of those who see there everything but God, but of those who see God in everything. The universe is Jehovah’s temple: let us not admire the temple, for the solidity ofits foundation, or the grandeur and beauty of its structure, but see no God there; rather let our admiration of the created fill us with adoring thoughts of the great Allin All. Then indeed shall creation seem refulgent with the glories of the Eternal King, and all things around be vocal with His praise.”’ PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. 119 A paper “ On Buttercups” was then read by the Secretary, in which the land species of the genus Ranunculus were described in a popular manner; the localities in our own neighbourhood where each species may be found being given, with notes on the ‘* vertues’’ attributed to them by our ancestors. The paper was illustrated by plates of each species, from Hardwicke’s ‘ English Botany.’ The third paper, read by the Secretary in the unavoid- able absence of its author, R. B. Sharpe, Esq., was ‘*On the British Titmice (Parine),’’ each species being technically described, and popular notes on its habits being added; Mr. Sharpe strongly condemned the bird-murder unfortunately so popular among un- educated persons. A beautiful collection of the Titmice illustrated this paper, the male and female of nearly every species being shown, as well as the eggs, and, in one or two cases, the nests. After the reading of the papers, the President briefly explained several of the more interesting geological specimens, especially the bones of the Dinornis, the fossil Bugs, and the Ammonite and Nautilus tribe. Many interesting objects were afterwards ex- hibited under the microscope, and it was not till it grew late that the concluding votes of thanks were moved. The Mayor proposed the thanks of the meeting to the Rev. T. H. Browne for his un- wearying exertions to promote the interests of the Society and for the interesting paper he had read; this was seconded by Thomas Wheeler, Esq., and heartily responded to. F. Wheeler, Esq., _ moved, and Mr. Butler seconded, a similar vote to the Secretary, which was carried by acclamation, and responded to by Mr. Britten. The friends then began to disperse, and we believe that every one departed greatly delighted with the pleasant and profitable evening which had been spent. The following were among the principal objects exhibited :— Ostz0LoGy was represented by a beautiful and perfect skeleton of the _ American Crocodile (Crocodilus Americanus); a skeleton of the Oyster Catcher (bird) (Hematopus Ostralegus) ; carefully prepared bones of the two British representatives of the Salamanders, commonly called the Water Newt (Zriton cristatus, and Lophinus or Lissotriton punctatus) ; the skull of a large bear from Thibet ; portions of the skull of the Ethiopian Wart-Hog (Phacocherus Aithiopicus), with enormous tusks; the jaw of a Boar, with fully-developed tusk; two scapule, or shoulder blades, of a Whale; the 120 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. skull and lower jaw, with teeth, of a young Indian Elephant; two femurs, and a humerus of a large African Elephant from the Gaboon country ; organic remains, illustrating nearly every division and sub-division of geological science, from the Lower Silurian up to the Glacial periods and time of Coal deposits ; casts of rare fossils, amongst which especially may be noticed Homalonotus delphinocephalus and Asaphus tyrannus, two very large forms of Trilobite; casts of six species of the New Zealand Moa, or gigantie¢ Ostrich, including Dinornis giganteus variety maximus, D. gracilis, D. erassus, and other forms; casts of the eggs of the large extinct birds Dinornis and Gpyornis, and eggs of the large Ostrich, Emu, and Cassowary, to con- trast with these giant forms. There were five different kinds of Ivory used for economic purposes, viz., the tusks of the Elephant, Walrus, and Hippo- potamus, the tibia of the Giraffe, and the albumen of the Ivory Nut, the fruit of a species of Palm tree (Phytelephus macrocarpa). In Grotoay, besides the fossil bones mentioned above, the President ex- hibited fossil wood from the Gault, Upper and Lower Greensand, Wealden, and Coal measures: also several species of Ammonite, one of which, Ammonites giganteus, from the Portland Oolite, deserved special notice. Two very large specimens, Vautilus elegans and WV. pseudo-elegans from the Upper Greensand, at Warminster, were much admired ; a number of other specimens were also exhibited, including some from the Red Crag; and a variety of sponges from the Upper Greensand, with recent species for com- parison with the extinct forms. Trays of Chalk Fossils, many from our own neighbourhood, were lent by E. Wheeler, Esq. : ConcuoLoGy was represented by a collection of Land and Freshwater Shells, arranged according to Turton’s ‘Manual,’ contributed by the President; also a collection of Marine Shells, by the same; and another of those found at Teignmouth, Devon, by Miss Chandler. EntromoLoey was illustrated by the President’s valuable collection of Hymenoptera, including the Bees, Wasps, Ants, Ichneumon Flies, and Saw- flies ; a case of Marlow Lepidoptera was exhibited by J. B. Mathison, Esq. ; Coleoptera and Lepidoptera were also shown by the President; a case of Wycombe Insects, arranged by Mr. Ullyett, and others of foreign species by G. Vernon, Esq., and T, Wheeler, Esq. OrniTHOLOGY, in addition to Mr. Sharpe’s collection of Titmice, was re- presented by yarious rare Birds from that gentleman’s museum, among which were the Golden Oriole (Oriolus galbula), the Rose-coloured Pastor (Pastor roseus), and the Red-winged Starling (Agelaus pheniceus). Cases of Birds were also lent by Messrs. Simmonds, Vernon, Thurlow, B. Lucas, and others. Borany was fully illustrated. A conspicuous object, and one which attracted much attention, was a table covered with living Wild Flowers in blossom, arranged by Miss Chandler. Among them was the rare Coralwort CORRESPONDENCE. 121 (Dentaria bulbifera). Specimens of the beautiful Pasque-flower (Anemone Puisatilla), in a living state, were sent from Aldbury Nowers, near Tring, by the Rev. H. Harpur Crewe. Miss Chandler’s valuable hortus siccus was duly appreciated, as was the herbarium of Mr. Stubbs, of Henley: this gentleman also sent a collection of Ferns, and some very beautiful groups of dried flowers and leaves, arranged on cardboard, the natural colours being admirably preserved, which received much commendation. In addition, it may be added that a selection of valuable illustrated works was provided, as well as a portfolio of plates illustrative of British Botany ; and some beautiful sketches of Fungi, by the Rev. Bryant Burgess. The walls were decorated with coloured diagrams, some lent by J. Rutty, Esq., others by J. Slade, Esq., Secretary to the North London Naturalists’ Club. The tables were decorated with flowers, cut and in pots. ing object was a glass containing specimens of living Foraminifera, Hydra One very interest- tuba, Entomostraca, and Infusoria, developed in an aquarium, the water not having been changed for six years. interesting specimens were exhibited, has been singularly fortunate in Mrs. Woollams, by whom these maintaining that balance of life upon which the success of an aquarium so greatly depends. Correspondence. Heszenon.—I have followed the friendly controversy on this subject with some interest, and hold entirely | with Mr. Britten that Henbane and not Ebony is meant. word ‘“‘juice”’ is decisive. Ebony _ could only be known to Shakespeare and to those he was writing for, as a dry, sapless wood: how then could he speak of such a thing as a phial ofits juice? Whereas, the clammy, fetid nature of Henbane was just such as to suggest itself to the poet’s mind, and to be understood by his audience as a fitting instrument for the purpose. I grant that the ex- pressions of our poets are not always to be tested by scientific truth. An amusing catalogue might be com- posed of their ludicrous mistakes, at _ the head of which might stand Dr. _ Watts and his “‘ busy bee,” that “* Loads with yellow wax her thighs, With which she builds her cells,’ whereas the pellets on the bee’s I think the | thighs are not wax at all, nor are they used in the construction of the comb. But, if such assertions are not scientifically true, they always agree with the popular opinion ; and Henbane was universally held poison- ous—Ebony not. Dryden speaks of the “‘ poisonous Henbane,”’ and from Dioscorides downwards there is a terrible array of authorities for its poisonous effects. Besides, how could Shakespeare (who seems to have been well acquainted with Scripture) introduce as a cursed poison that which the prophet had enumerated among the precious commodities contributed by the mer- chant-princes of Dedan to the luxu- ries of Tyre? Mr. Payne brings forward a great amount of learning, but he does not seem to have one single argument to offer, except the unproyed assertion that Ebony was called the Tree of Death of the Persian Paradise; and even if this 122 were so, it might be from its black, funereal colow, and not from its poison. Itis true there is the greater similarity of the name, but poets are fond of sounding words, if they vary not too much from the correct mode of spelling. Horace allows that poets have the right to use nova ficta- que verba parce detorta, and Milton’s “Euphrasy’”’ is an anglified term, though so near the original that it could not be mistaken. Mr. P. need not have sneered at what he calls “My. Britten’s profoundly scientific remark ’’ about the different effects of Henbane upon different persons ; it was a fair answer to his objection about the symptoms enumerated by the poet; and certainly the effects of Henbane seem most diverse— blindness-delirium-—madness—death. Shakespeare might well add leprosy without any material increase of the catalogue. One great point in de- termining the matter is ‘‘ Did Shake- speare wish to use such language as would fall in with the pre-conceived notions of his audience, and was Ebony or Henbane more likely to do this?’ My own opinion is in favour of the latter. Rey. R. Woop. Westward, Cumberland. Tur Goop Oxp Times.—About the year 1809 I was introduced to a residence amidst the beech timber and underwood and commons which abounded on the Chiltern Hills of Buckinghamshire. At this time very many animals and reptiles were denounced as common enemies, and, as such, a price was set upon their heads, decided upon by the vestry and paid by the churchwardens, as shown by the following items as charged in the churchwardens’ ac- counts of the period :— ‘‘ A viper, a slow or blind worm, 6d. each.”’ These were supposed to sting the sheep while at feed. The tongue of the former was supposed to be its sting, and the latter effected its injury by some other process; and many ailments amongst the domestic farm animals were attributed to the above causes. The general specific was an ointment made by frying the body of either viper, or slow-worm, in lard; and many a good housewife CORRESPONDENCE. would pay the stipulated reward, thus to become a kind of Lady Bountiful, by a gift she bestowed of the grand specific to anyone requir- ing it in the neighbourhood. Six- pence was also the price set on the poor hedgehog. He was charged with sucking the milch cows as they lay down during the night, thus pro- ducing a disease called “ the gargut,”’ —being no other than an inflam- mation of the udder, generally then, as now, produced by cold. The grand specific for this was an oint- ment of hedgehog fat. Another charge was for the destruction of sparrows. In the spring of the year, the price, regulated by the annual March vestry, was, for sparrows’ eggs, ahalfpenny adozen, young spar- rows, a farthing each, hen sparrows, a penny each, cock birds a halfpenny each. Thus, without taking into con- sideration the good arising from the destruction by them of innumerable insects, pests of garden and field, they were denounced for injury done to wheat just on the edge of harvest. I am not aware of any kind of parochial reward for foxes, as the slayer of a fox considered himself amply re- warded by carrying it to all the farmers in rotation, a shilling being the expected reward; but a good poultry wife would often make an addition of a bit of victuals and a pint of beer. After haying done duty in the neighbourhood of its death, it would be sold by its cunning possessor to some mate in another district, who would pass it off as fresh killed till decomposition would render it past endurance, and the trick was “smelt out.’? Things are now changed: vipers, whose bite is venomous, and who would rather glide away than attack, are almost extinct. The slow or blind worm neither bites or stings; and the hedgehog, whose small mouth renders it incapable of sucking the mammal of a cow, and whose prickles would soon render its company disagreeable even to a sleeping cow, is now petted by the London bakers for the purpose of devouring the beetles which infest their bakehouses ; and is equally use- ful for the same purpose against those | that infest the gardens. G. — oo 123 Ghe Birds of Gooklaan and Me Meighhourlond, BY R. B. SHARPE. AVING been requested to write a paper on the birds which have been observed in the neighbourhood of Cookham, I have great pleasure in presenting the following sketch of the ornithology of the district. The beautiful collection formed by Mrs. De Vitré at Formosa has been the basis of the accompanying list; I have further included such species as are in my own collection, or arein the possession of private individuals, and I have taken every pains to render the list as complete as possible. To Mrs. De Vitré I must return my best thanks for her kindness in allowing me to examine the specimens in her collection, and also for her assistance and en- couragement in the preparation of the present essay, while I am fortunate in obtaining the help of Mr. Briggs, the head-gardener on the estate, who has, from his earliest youth, studied the habits and economy of our British birds, and is well known in the neighbourhood of Cookham, as an enthusiastic naturalist and a clever taxidermist ; nor must I omit to mention Mr. Joseph Ford, to whom I am likewise indebted for much interesting information. © Order ACCIPITRES. Sub-order I. Acorrrrres Divrnt. Fam, Fauoonrpz. Sub-fam. AQUILINE. Aquila. 1. Aquila chrysaétos. The Golden Eagle. Before he came to Cookham, Mr. Briggs was employed as a keeper at Bulling Bare, a place about ten miles distant, and _ while there he had an opportunity of recording the occurrence of this rare British bird from his own personal observation. He Was one day walking in company with another keeper near the outskirts of a plantation on the estate, and in the adjoining field a @ 124 THE BIRDS OF COOKHAM AND THE NEIGHBOURHOOD. several pheasants were feeding. Theso suddenly began to show some signs of alarm, and a great many flew up quickly and took refuge within the cover. Before, however, they could all gain a place of safety, a large Eagle swept down upon an unfortunate individual, and carried him off. Mr. Briggs’s fellow-keeper at once set a trap near the place, and had the good fortune to capture the marauder three days afterwards. He proved to be a fine Golden Eagle, the only one, I believe, ever observed in the county. Pandion. 2. Pandion haliceetus. The Osprey. In the Naturalist of November the 1st, 1864, I recorded the occurrence of the Osprey at Cookham. On the 6th of October in that year Mr. Briggs was engaged in the garden at Formosa, when his eye was attracted by the appearance of a large bird flying slowly along the outskirts of Lord Boston’s wood. As he stood watching, the bird sailed directly over to the spot where he stood and circled round his head at about the height of thirty yards, turning its eye downwards, and apparently taking stock of him. He called to one of the men near him to fetch his gun, but by the time it arrived, the Osprey was out ofthe reach of shot, and was pursuing its course down the river with the same easy and graceful flight. A gentleman, however, who was on the water, saw the bird approach, and shot it in the wing when it fell into the water and was killed with the boat-mop. For some days previous a large Hawk had been observed in the neighbourhood of Hedsor, and three days afterwards another Osprey was seen near the same place by aman named Stanniforth, who used to attend to the Lock at Cookham. ‘We heard that there was one killed about this time near Windsor, which we conclude was the above- mentioned bird, Similar instances have been recorded of the occurrence of the Osprey inland, and Mr. Harting in his interesting work on the ‘ Birds of Middlesex,’ has mentioned its appearance at Uxbridge in 1863, and again in 1865 at Southgate, where a pair remained for some days. | ENS ow THE BIRDS OF COOKHAM AND THE NEIGHBOURHOOD. 125 Sub-fam. BureoNInz. Buteo. 3. Buteo vulgaris. Common Buzzard. A very fine male of this species was shot-at Hollyport in 1862, and was sent to Mr. Briggs for preservation. The way in which it was captured was rather curious. A man named Wells was trying to shoot some woodpigeons, and had placedon the ground alittle distance off a stuffed bird for a decoy. He had not waited long before the above mentioned Buzzard swept down and was carrying off the stuffed bird, when he shot it. Sub-fam. MiLvinz. Milvus. 4. Milvus regalis. Kite. This bird is now of very rare occurrence in England, and it is hard to imagine the former abundance of the species. A friend of mine informs me that about six or seven years ago a specimen was captured on the roof of a large warehouse in London, and lived for some time in confinement, and in the Zoological Gardens there is a Kite, presented by Howard Saunders, Esq., of Reigate, which was taken in England, being one of three nestlings he had received. With regard to its appearance at Cookham instances are wanting of late years, but in the memory of several of the inhabitants, the Kite used to be quite a common bird at Pinkney’s Green, an unenclosed heath about four miles distant. Sub-fam. FALcoNINz. Hypotriorchis. 5. Hypotriorchis subbuteo. The Hobby. The Formosa collection contains a beautiful male Hobby shot at Cliefden in 1860, and we have also occasionally observed it sailing over the woods in the neighbourhood. The courage of this pretty little Hawk has always been a favourite theme both with naturalists, and the lovers of Falconry, and I am able to give a striking instance of its pluck which came under Mr. Briggs’ own observation, when at Bulling Bare. He had found a nest of this species in one of the plantations on the estate, and only waited till the young ones were fledged, to take them. 126 THE BIRDS OF COOKHAM AND THE NEIGHBOURHOOD. Accordingly, he mounted to the nest, and was immediately greeted with loud cries from the young birds. The male Hobby hearing the screams of the nestlings, sailed over to the spot, and surveyed the scene of action from a considerable height. Suddenly as Mr. Briggs was preparing to descend with his captives, the bird darted down from above with immense velocity, his wings cleaving the air with a loud whish-sh-sh as he shot down to within a foot of the intruder’s head, and then carried up by the impetus of his descent, he mounted as swiftly as he had stooped, and only paused a second ere he recommenced the attack. This was renewed in quick succession as Mr. Briggs descended, causing in his mind no small apprehension lest the courageous bird should strike at his face. Having reached the ground in safety, and wishing to obtain the old bird, he carried the young into the middle of a neighbouring field, and having made them scream, stood ready; with his gun. No sooner did the parent-bird hear the young cry, than he again appeared, and from an im- mense height swooped at Mr. Briggs with the same astonishing velocity that had characterized his former descents. So sudden was the attack that there was no time to fire, and the bird ascen- ded like lightning. Would that I could now add that the Hobby escaped, but alas! love for its nestlings impelled him to make one more stoop, and in the midst of his next descent, the gun was fired, and the poor Hobby fell to the earth ‘like a thunderbolt.”” The difference between the mode of attack of the Sparrowhawk and that of the Hobby in defence of their young is also noticed by Mr. Stevenson wher writing on the former bird in his ‘Birds of Norfolk.’ The Hobby seems always to descend from above, while the Sparrowhawk dashes backwards and for- wards, sometimes even striking at the intruder. 6. Hypotriorchis cesalon. The Merlin. Although neither Mrs. De Vitré nor myself possess a specimen of this bird actually shot at Cookham, still the species has occasionally been observed by Mr. Briggs flying in the neigh- bourhood, and I have received eggs from a man named a THE BIRDS OF COOKHAM AND THE NEIGHBOURHOOD. 127 Grace from Wooburn, a village about two miles to the north- east of Cookham. At Bulling Bare Mr. Briggs tells me it was by no Means uncommon, and he was once witness to a remarkable specimen of this falcon’s audacity. He was standing near a thick bush at the above estate, when a chaffinch, closely pursued by a male Merlin darted into the thicket like a flash of lightning. Nothing daunted by his presence the Hawk dashed in, and dragging the unfortunate chaffinch out, was carrying him off, when Mr, Briggs put an end to his career by a well aimed shot In this instance the chaffinch was quite dead (perhaps killed by the shot) but he tells me that in many instances when he has seen these hawks flying with a bird in their talons, he has fired at them, though far out of shot, in order to make them drop their prey, and several times he has seen the birds fly away unhurt when released by the hawk. I have recently purchased four Merlin’s eggs taken near Ongar Wood on the 2nd of July. They were found on the ground, and were much incubated, and I hear from Mr. Davy, of the Highgate-road, that about ten years ago he also received a nest of young Merlins from the same neighbourhood. Tinnunculus. 7. Tinnunculus alaudarius. The Kestrel. The Kestrel is a very common bird at Cookham, and breeds in large numbers in Cliefden Woods, sailing over which I have sometimes seen six at once. Some time ago, this species bred for two successive years in some tall fir trees at Formosa, where the nest was discovered by Mr. Briggs, and the bird is often seen in the neighbourhood of the tall elm trees on the estate. Last year it was especially common, and I saw several specimens in Mr. Burrow’s grounds at ‘‘The Elms.” As regards its food a curious instance came under my notice the other day, when a friend of Mr. Briggs sent him a male Kestrel ‘‘just as he shot it.” It was grasping a slow-worm in its claws, and so tightly, that when it arrived at Cookham from Reading its feet then held its victim, _ which was still living. The food of this bird I believe to consist chiefly of small birds ; and although it may be in pursuit of mice, 128 THE BIRDS OF COOKHAM AND THE NEIGHBOURHOOD. when observed hovering over the stubble fields, which is the general opinion of authors, I am inclined to think it is more probably attracted by the sparrows which collect in such numbers inthestubble. At least, this is my opinion, for on many occasions I have pursued these flocks of Sparrows to get for myself a “‘Sparrow-pie,”’ and on one occasion, [remember well, having crept close up to a flock, I was about to fire from behind the hedge, when I saw a brown thing jumping about on the ground in the midst of them. I thought at first it was astoat, but I soon saw it was a Kestrel, and I stood watching it. What surprised me most was, that the Sparrows did not fly, but were dodging about like mice on all sides of the Hawk, apparently aware that if once on the wing, the Hawk would soon overtake them, where- as, on the ground their smaller size and superioragility enabled them to elude his grasp. The Kestrel, however, conquered, for I heard a squeak, and then the whirr of the flock as it took flight, and immediately after the Hawk flew over my head with a Sparrow in its claw. Ihad never thought of firing till he was out of reach, but I followed the direction he took, and he finally darted out from under a plough-share, where I found the Sparrow with his head eaten off. The Kestrel is also an enemy in winter to the Siskins, Redpoles, and Goldfinches, which at that time of the year frequent the alder-trees. When one day I had shot into a number of Siskins, and the flock had resettled on the tree again while I was reloading, a male Kestrel sailed over my head and carried off a victim in my presence. Mr. Briggs has also seen them glide quietly along the edge of the trees and seize the Siskins, which, when feeding, always hang at the outermost tips of the branches. I am very fond of keeping this species in con- ‘finement, and was speaking to a London bird-fancier lately about some young birds, and asking if they could feed themselves. In proof that they could he produced the smallest bird out of five, which had been killed by the others, who had begun to devour it. Who would have thought of the Kestrel being such a cannibal ? (Lo be continued.) a Be ei el 129 Justine v. Hewson. HAVE used the same heading as that of the article in the July number, but I must protest against it, since it shows that the subject in dispute is not rightly apprehended. Al- though I am prepared to cite some of the greatest names in support of the view that the lower animals possess Reason, I am not aware that any naturalist has, as yet, denied that they possess Instinct. Therefore it is not ‘‘ Instinct v. Reason,’ but it is this: we believe that they possess Reason in addition to Instinct, even as we, the “nobler” part ofcreation do. With us Reason predominates ; with them, Instinct ; but both qualities are present in the whole animated world. Itis quite as necessary that this should be perfectly understood, as that the words themselves should be properly defined. The ‘‘distinction between Reason and Instinct,” given by your fair correspondent, is rather misty, the said ‘ distinction” being ‘‘the difference between the human | mind and that of the animal;” this appears to be a distinction with adifference. But I am quite prepared to fall in with her definition of Reason, given immediately after, viz., ‘‘ the action of the mind upon knowledge,” or rather the power of the mind to act upon knowledge: and, having this definition, I cannot see how Reason is to be denied to the lower animals. How can there be a mind _without Reason? And the above “distinction” gives the animal amind. This is simply one of those instances in which a dis- putant tacitly acknowledges the truth of that which he is opposing by the unconscious use of a word implying it all. But as my intention is simply to answer the article in your last, and not to write an essay, I will take up the arguments therein supposed to be advanced. I do not think it has ever been said that any reasoning faculty was exercised by a bird, bee, or ant, in the construction of their several dwellings, so we may put all reference to these on one side: the first statement to be noticed is that in connection therewith,— 130 INSTINOT VY, REASON. ‘‘We cannot say that they can have any knowledge of what they are doing.”” Why cannot we? And ifit comes to that, can we say that they have not? As far as I can see, we have not so much right to make this assertion, as we are justified from analogy in making the opposite. Did not the Crow on p. 25, and the Sheep on p. 26, know what they were doing? ‘When a dog goes to the fire on a cold night does he not know he is doing so? does he not know that he will be warm there? And when he whines to be let into the house, is he ignorant not only of the reason but also of the fact of his whining? I am sure if anyone told your cor- respondent that her pet dog or pony was only an ignorant, unconscious mass of animalised earth, she would feel highly indignant. Again, she asks, ‘If they had any knowledge of what they were doing, why should not all alike use the same care for their young?’? I ask, in reply, Is it necessary ? Are all their young equally sus- ceptible? Her question throws discredit on the Creator of the animals. But do all human mothers use the same care for their infants? The same argument applies in this case. Once more I quote—Why are the nests not always placed in the best and safest locality ? Supposing they are not, does this be- foken lack of Reason? Surely the question puts the argument wholly into my hands; were it simply Instinct, they always would be so placed, since this quality is said to be “ unerring.” Do we, the ‘“‘nobler”’ creatures (I am fond of this phrase), always put our domiciles in the best and safest places? If we do not, and if your correspondent adheres to her style of argument, then, we are destitute of Reason. In conclusion, I cannot but admire the naive and artless manner in which my fair opponent says “ Zt 7s quite clear that they are un- conscious instruments of what they perform,” when not a single line beyond bare assumption has been brought forward to support such a statement. Hy. ULLYErt. Since I wrote the above I find that some one has written an article in the Intellectual Observer, showing that there is something more than Instinct employed by birds even innest-building. Ihave not read it, and it would not inyalidate anything I have adyanced, 131 The Chiltern Country. (Continued from page 88.) AWLEY. (fuille-ley.) Fallow or arable land. Fincest. This curious name appears in Domesday Book as Dile-hurst, and is properly spelt Ding-hurst or Thing-hurst, in- dicating the place where the Thing, or Court of the Hundred, was held. FutmMer means foul marsh: and every one who has seen it in the early months of the year, and heard the stories of old inhabitants, can readily imagine how appropriate the name must have been in days when drainage and roads were unknown. Gerrarp’s Cross Common is distant a very short way from Fulmer ; and over this common, avoiding that village, pass the principal highways of the neighbourhood. Who Gerrard was, and why he was immortalised by linking his name with this pleasant spot, no one appears to know for certain. The country people tell you that he was the younger of two brothers, who fought with swords at the cross roads, and that the elder fell ; also that at twelve o’clock, on certain nights of the year, they may still be seen fighting over again their unnatural combat. The peasants of the Harz mountains in Germany have a very similar legend, which has been elegantly versified by Heine.* Hametepen (Hamel-den) means the village in the valley, Hamel being equivalent to hamlet, and the diminutive of ham. HamppeEN appears to be named from the hemp which once grew there abundantly. HeEpGERLY (properly Hedg-ley) is simply ‘‘ enclosed land.” Hepsor. The termination over contracted into or is most com- mon in Danish names. Hedda was probably a Dane, and Hedda’s over would mean his residence or estate. The name does not occur in Domesday Book, though it dates from an earlier period. * Romanzen, No. 3. ? 132 THE CHILTERN COUNTRY. Hirowam means village by the brook. The same element oceurs in Hitchenden, the proper name of the picturesque parish which bounds that of Wycombe on the north. The late pro- prietor of that place, Mr. John Norris, performed the curious feat of transmuting it into Hughenden, a name utterly impossible to be pronounced by Saxon lips, and in every respect nonde- script and unmeaning. The name was indeed occasionally spelt with u, as Hutchenden, and Hugenden (in which the g was soft, and not differing really from ch) but the guttural gh is quite unknown and inadmissible in the Anglo-Saxon language, common though itis among our Celtic neighbours of Wales and Ireland. Hitchen is thus discovered to be the original name of the stream which joins the Ouse on the Oxford Road of Wycombe, and is identical with that of the river on which the city of Winchester stands— the Itchen. HorsENDEN is Horsa’s town. Horsa was an undeniable Saxon, as every schoolboy knows. Instone. Ibstone is properly spelt Hibe-stanes, meaning the high stones which here bounded the counties of Buckingham and Oxford. Inmzr. This name is properly spelt Ze/-mer, and means Eel- marsh. If our Society numbers any fish-fanciers, perhaps they can inform us how it happens that the eel, once so plentifulin our upland valleys, is now no longer to be found? I suppose that as our marshes have been drained, the mud on which the eel fattens has disappeared ; and as the stream grows cleaner, the eel can no longer find feeding ground. The muddiest rivers in Europe pro- duce the best eels. In Domesday Book several Chiltern parishes (West Wycombe, Hitcham, &c.) are rated to produce as many eels as those on the river Thames (Taplow, Marlow, Eton, &c.). IsENHAMPSTEAD, or IsSELHAMPSTEAD, is the name of two adjoin- ing villages, called for distinction Iselhampstead Chenies and Iselhampstead Latimers, and now better known by these dis- tinctive epithets than by their native names. sen or Jsel means river, and is one of a very large family of names of Celtic stock, signifying the same thing. THE CHILTERN COUNTRY. 133 Kiustz. This is properly spelt Kine-bell. Whether this parish was distinguished for possessing a church bell before others, and received this whimsical name in consequence, I cannot say ; but I know ofno more certain explanation. To say that Kimble derives ifs name from the fabulous King Cymbeline, or Cuno- beline (had that worthy ever existed) is like deriving the name of Luther from the Lutherans. Lovpwater. Loud, lude, lade, lede, lide, with several other variations, mean channel or course of water. ‘‘The Lyde” of Bledlow is a curiosity well worth visiting for the geologist. Martow. Mar hasalready been explained to be equivalent to moor or marsh: the name means precisely the same as Marston, Merton, Moreton, &c. MEDMENHAM, more properly IMedenham or Meydenham, means place of horses. Itis not generally known even among antiquaries, that meyden is one of the numerous Saxon names for horse, and that Maidenhead signifies Maidenhythe or Horse-wharf; between which place and other parts of the neighbourhood trade was carried on by means of horses. The ancient inn sign of the Maidenhead was probably represented origimally by a horse’s head. In the same way are to be explained numerous local names like Maiden Castle, Maiden Camp, &c., which occur in many parts of the country. MissENDEN means, so far as I can make out, dirty town. PENN is a Celtic remnant, and perhaps the purest form of any element found all over Europe, signifying a high hill. K. J. Payne. (To be continued.) Reason mv Antmats.—Schiller puts the following into the _ mouth of a Swiss peasant, in the play of Wilhelm Tell :— And brutes have reason, too; We know that well, who rise to hunt the chamois ; The cunning creatures, when they go to feed, Put some one up on guard, who cocks his ear And pipes a warning when the sportsmen near, HE, J. P. 134 On the Destruction of Hirds. [The following forms an admirable pendant to Mr. Marshall’s article in our last; and we trust that it will tend still further to increase the good opinion of ‘our feathered friends,” which is happily growing up amongst us.—Ep. ] N bygone days, thousands of acres of furze and underwood furnished happy homes for many a bird, and the sparrows re- velled in the then prevalent thatched buildings; and herein we have something that partly justified, at that time, the war of extermination declared against birds ; but now, times are changed. The forest and the common are gone, so are the thatched buildings: while the hedges are grubbed, and the poor birds driven into a very limited space. The parks and shrubberies, the church tower, and the chimney top, are the only places left in which the feathered tribe may build and rear their young: while, on the other hand, their mortal enemy, man, is ever anxious to play the sportsman, apd practise on the poor remnant that is left. Hence the very proper cry against the destruction of small birds, and of the good they do in keeping under the insects, whether caterpillar, grub, or fly, which destroy crops of fruit and corn wholesale, and increase as their foes decrease. When, four years ago, I came to my present residence, the shrubberies teemed with the feathered tribe, in consequence of the encouragement of birds by my predecessor. Wanting fruit, I declared war against the birds; ‘‘from early morn to dewy eve,” there was I with my gun, till I reduced my supposed enemies so much that my garden was as still as the grave, except when I chanced to walk there : when some Sparrow or Finch would give the warning to his mates, for birds and beasts can talk to one another as well as my readers can; indeed, the language of bird and beast is now so familiar to me that I can always tell pretty well ‘“‘what’s up”; but more of this anon. ‘The gooseberry trees put forth a goodly promise, and I looked forward with hope: Te ee ON THE DESTRUCTION OF BIRDS. 135 but a few weeks more, and the caterpillars came rapidly; the leaves disappeared from each tree in succession, the fruit shrivelled, and notwithstanding I tried lime, and salt-and-water, the caterpillars finished them off, and then, dropping from them, took up another form of existence. Then came chaffers in their turn, and instead of songs I had plenty of buzz. The cabbages were eaten up by the green caterpillars, and the beans and roses by aphides. I determined to alter my tack for another year by vowing never wilfully to destroy another bird about my ground ; and I have had my reward. Ihave not had mischief from the grub and caterpillar tribe for the three last seasons; I have plenty of company and plenty of song. My plan is to procure some of the smallest shot, and with this shoot flying, just as you find the birds have caught the flavour of the fruit you wish to preserve ; you will soon find that they can confabulate; and if you pay attention, you may soon understand their language as you slyly attempt to repeat the warning. Like boys, they will try it on a short time, but finding you are in earnest, the fruit will remain unmolested on the trees, and your conscience free from the thought of having destroyed a friend. But leave the fruit unguarded, and a combined attack is sure to follow. This is all settled in a council of birds; for they, like an attacking army, know that scouts are necessary, who give the alarm on the least appearance of danger. Of the good birds do in the destruction of noxious insects a few anecdotes will suffice. One day seeing a cock Sparrow actively employed about fifty yards from me, near a large stone in the road, I was curious to know his business. By the aid of a small telescope I brought him close tomy eye; he had a large cockchaffer, and this he took up and dashed with all his might against the stone. I saw part of the chaffer’s mailed coat fly off at every blow, and the soft body, when wholly divested, was borne off as a choice morsel for the Sparrow’s young. I then went and examined the fragments; they consisted of the broken wings and shield of the luckless chaffer: 136 ON THE DESTRUCTION OF BIRDS. This summer just opposite a window, a pair of Sparrows have hatched successive broods under the shelter of a broken slate; morning and noon are the pair busily engaged in supplying their hungry family with food, and as they pause and carefully look round before they enter, I am enabled to see that their beaks are crammed with what are familiarly called ‘‘ Daddy long-legs,” and other flies. In March last, when the snow lay thick and long on the ground, my attention was directed towards a tapping just outside the room window near whereI stood. Peeping through the half-drawn blind I saw a Blackbird with a large garden snail, which he was busily engaged in smashing against a large stone. By repeated blows the shell was removed, and the snail soon became a choice feast for the sorely-pressed bird. Just after my park was mown it was found to be unusually full of new colonies of ants, their hills raising great impediments to the operations of my mowers. The hay being carried the rooks came for several days and seemed extremely busy. I was curious to know what they were after; and on searching I found the anthills pecked open and destroyed ; the eggs were devoured, except in a few places of long standing, which formed fortresses defying all attacks. Some amateur sportsman, tempted by a good shoot from the road, gave warning to my friends to quit, since which they have not visited me. Partridges are real farmers’ friends ; their food, when young, consists wholly of insects. Small birds are evidently on the decrease, and many birds formerly known in this district, as the White or Screech Owl, and the Brown Owl, are seldom seen; whereas 50 years ago there was not a barn or steeple without its inhabitants, and nightly were they seen flitting silently round the fields in pursuit of mice. The numerous flocks of Pigeons that formerly visited the beech woods of this locality each winter have disappeared. One thing is clear,—the unlimited destruction of birds will assuredly hand us over to a worse enemy in the shape of aphides, grubs, and flies. Henry Gipzons. Loxboro’ House, Bledlow Ridge. —— 4 r » ep i 137 PLroceedings of the Society. — THIRD SUMMER SESSION—1867. First Ramsriz, May 14.—On this occasion Hollow Lane was visited ; the attendance was but limited, owing, doubtless, to the inclemency of the weather. The Secretary exhibited specimens of the Fly Orchis (Ophrys muscifera) from Quarry Wood, near Marlow ; and of the Karly Spider Orchis (0. aranifera), sent by Mr. Ullyett, from Folkestone. The usual spring flowers were noticed in the lane, as well as the Blood Beetle ( Zimarcha levigata). Much dissatisfaction was expressed at the alterations which have lately been made in this interesting locality, the hedges having been lowered in a most unsparing manner. In returning across jthe fields towards the Cemetery, a very large fungus, Polyporus squamosus, was observed growing on the trunk of an old ash tree. Szeconp RamsBie, June 4.—Heavy showers in the earlier part of the day doubtless intimidated many from accompanying the Society on this excursion; those present proceeded to Marlow Road Station by the 3.50 p.m. train. They then walked along as far as Cores End, the Great Celandine (Chelidonium majus) being noticed by the way; after which they retraced their steps, and visited the gravel-pit at Well End, the President enlivening the walk by an account of his recent excursion into Devonshire and Cornwall. On arriving at the pit, the Secretary directed especial attention to several plants which are, in our district, almost confined to this locality; among them were the Soft Knotted Trefoil (Zrifoliwm striatum), the Subterranean Trefoil (7. subterrancum), the elegant Bird’s-foot ( Ornithopus perpusillus), the ‘ Spring Vetch (Vicia lathyroides), the Trailing 8. John’s Wort (Hypericum humifusum), the Knawel (Scleranthus annuus), and _ the Buck’s-horn Plantain (Plantago Coronopus). Specimens of most of these having been collected, the President pointed out traces of the action of water and that ofice. Various plants 1388 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. were noticed in returning to the station, whence the members returned by the 6.3 p.m. train to Wycombe, pleased with their ramble, and regretting that others had not shared in their enjoy- ment. [The continuance of wet weather caused the postponement, and eventually the omission, of the Rambles fixed for July 13th and July 30th respectively; while that arranged for August 20th was postponed until August 25th. | Turrp Ramesre, Avcusr 25.—Owing to a slight want of punctuality in the time of starting, the Society on this occasion was divided into two sections; one, under the direction of the President, proceeding to Totteridge, in accordance with previous arrangements ; the other, accompanied by the Secretary, prefer- ring to visit Downley. The former slowly wended its way along the Totteridge road, examining every bank, and capturing with the net many interesting insects. The President directed atten- tion to the Turnip Fly (Haltica nemorum), one of the Halticide, a great pest to the farmer. Various other Coleoptera and Diptera were taken, each receiving a share of attention. Several mem- bers gathered from the hedge specimens of the curious vegetable excrescences produced on leaves by the puncture of the ovipositor of the Gallfly. The fungi at Totteridge Green and Wood were examined, and specimens of the Puftball (Lycoperdon Bovista), Mushroom (Agaricus campestris), and Chantarelle (Cantharellus cibarius), were gathered. Totteridge Green is one of the localities in the district in which the Henbane (Hyoscyamus niger) is per- manently established. Towards the close of the evening the members returned by the lane leading down to the London road ; the conversation throughout the walk having a general or special bearing upon subjects connected with natural history. The Secretary and party proceeded to Downley; in the cora- fields on the way were noticed the pretty Toadflaxes(Zinaria spuria, L. LElatine, and L. minor), with the Hemp Nettle (Galeopsis Ladanum), Knotted Bur Parsley (Zorilis infesta), and other plants. A white-flowered variety of the Field Thistle (Carduus arvensis) was gathered near Plomer Hill. From Downley the members PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. 139 proceeded to the Hughenden Woods, where the great number of fungi was very remarkable: among those observed were Agaricus (Clitocybe) giganteus, Boletus edulis, Russula fragilis, and Can- tharellus cibarsus: while the presence of Phallus impudicus was betrayed by its disagreeable odour. The Winter-Green (Pyrola minor), just out of blossom, and the Lady's Mantle (Alchemilla vulgaris), were seen in the woods; and the elegant fronds of the Lady Fern (Athyrium filiz-femina) were much admired. The Deadly Nightshade (Atropa Belladonna) still remains in its old locality : the plant has this year attained the height of about eight feet, and was covered with the lustrous purplish-black berries. The members returned home at about 8 p.m. Fourtu Ramerez, Serr. 12.—Arrangements had been made for a ramble to the Hughenden Woods, but owing to the very limited attendance, and a slight confusion in the time and place of meet- ing, it was considered better to proceed to Green Street. The President's net was in great requisition; and much interesting entomological information was given by him. The various wild flowers which abound in Green Street were noticed; conspicuous among them being the Autumnal Gentian (@. Amarella) with the _ larger form, G. germanica, Willd., the beautiful fringe of the corolla being much admired. The members returned to Castle Hill at 5 p.m., where they were joined by many who had not accompanied _ them. Tea and coffee were kindly provided by J. Edwards, Esq., at whose invitation the subsequent meeting washeld. The mem- bers then walked about the grounds, the site of the old castle being __ explored, and a short description of it given by Mr. Payne. THe Annvust GENERAL Business Meetrine then commenced, the _ President, the Rev. T. H. Browne, taking the chair. The Secre- tary opened the proceedings by reading the following ANNUAL REPORT. _ et me not be considered to be encroaching on the province of our _ esteemed President, when I commence my report by quoting the words with _ which he opened his address at our Annual Conversazione on April 30th last: I merely echo his sentiment in his own words when I say that ‘I think we haye reason to congratulate ourselves upon the present condition 4 140 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. and future prospects of our Society.’ We now number sixty-five members, of which number twenty are ladies, and forty-five, gentlemen; eleven are resident at a distance beyond our radius of five miles, while the remainder live within it, although several are not inhabitants of the town. In 1865 we numbered but thirty members ; last year we raised our list to forty-four; so that it is plain that the interest taken in our Society is increasing, while we may now consider it firmly established, this being its third year of existence, ‘* Subject to the consent of the members, I would propose a slight alteration in the wording of our third rule, by which the annual subscription becomes due upon the first of January in each year. As we have followed the example of other Societies, and divided our year into two Sessions—a Winter Session, and a Summer Session,—it seems to me that we might with propriety so arrange our subscriptions that our year might include a Summer and Winter Session, each complete: instead of embracing as at the present time, a portion of two Winter Sessions in one year. This difficulty might easily be obviated by appointing May Ist as the day on which annual sub- scriptions should be payable. “Our proceedings during the past year, ending on April 30th last, may be thus briefly summarised. During our Summer Session, but three Rambles were taken—to Dane Garden Wood, Hollow Lane, and West, Wycombe,— the very wet weather which then prevailed having prevented the accomplisb- ment of a larger number. The attendance at these was but small. Seven Eyening Meetings, besides the Annual Conyersazione in the Town Hall, were held during the Winter Session: at which the following papers. were read :— * On Incredulity with respect to Geological Facts Mr, Unuyerrr. * Additions to the Flora of Wycombe............THE SECRETARY. On British Reptiles (communicated) ............Mr. W. R. Tare. On Diatoms and Desmids (two papers) ........,..THE PRESIDENT. On the Cave at Brixham, Devon (communicated)... Rev. W. H. Painter. On the Mammalia of High Wycombe (communicated) Mr. Uniyerr. On some Resemblances between Plants and Animals (communicated). ..06.0% cs eeesierdes scenes Ds) LOLLAND, sq. On Toadstools (communicated)....6.s0se0e veeees W. G, Surru, Esa. * Onthe Pleasures of Moth Hunting (communicated) Mr. Untyerr. A Geological Paper (communicated)............ ..Evyan Hopxtins, Esa. * On the Destruction of Birds ..........5 veeeveeel. MAarsHant, Ese. * Annual Address ....... aim visleiabinid=aie)p Arpad cnn THE PRESIDENT. OB UEFELCUPS jsicie.eic\e 01s o\ei0 « «0 ielola(oreialeinl’ sb) oi@a'sisle@e Ay MR CRIMA TN On the British Tits (Paring) (communicated) ....R. B. Suarrz, Esa. PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. 141 It is gratifying to be able to state that each of these Evening Meetings was well attended. Five of the above-named papers (marked thus *) have been published in full in the Quarterly Magazine of the Society, and a brief summary of the remaining has also been given. At all the Evening Meetings there has been an exhibition of objects, to which each has con- tributed according to his or her ability, and discussions on various subjects have occurred. I must not omit to mention that our local Flora was increased by seven Flowering Plants.* Mr. Ullyett, also, shortly before his departure, added two Butterflies to the list of those of our neighbourhood— one, the Brown Fritillary (A7gynnis Aglaia), which had previously been taken on Marlow Common; the other, the Brown Hairstreak (TZhecla Betule), quite new to the district. This will show that, as a body, we have not been idle: at the same time, there is yet ample room for discovery and investigation. Before quitting this subject, I beg, in the name of tke Society, to tender our best thanks to those ladies who so kindly presided at the tea with which our Annual Conyersazione commenced. Although their kind- ness has not been overlooked, it has not hitherto been acknowledged. We are also grateful to the many friends who lent objects for exhibition on that occasion, as well as to those who assisted in arranging them. ‘As it was felt that we were mainly indebted to our late Secretary, Mr. Ullyett, for the organisation of the Society, a subscription was raised among the members for his benefit, with which a microscope was purchased and presented to him. “T will now proceed to lay before you a short statement in connection with the Society’s Magazine, first directing attention to our Cash Account. On April 30th last, I had the sum of £5 14s. 5d. in hand, after all expenses for the year had been paid: and I haye since received £1 12s, 6d., while £3 5s. is still due, so that we may consider our balance to amount to £10 11s. 11d. “At the General Business Meeting held on May 1, 1866, it was resolved that a Quarterly Magazine of Natural History should be established in connection with the Society. The reasons for this were then fully entered into, and need not now be dwelt upon: suffice it to say that the first number appeared in July 1866, that five numbers are now before the public, and that the magazine has been favourably reviewed in various periodicals and news- papers. Of course, the idea that our magazine would be financially a suc- cess was never entertained ; works depending chiefly upon local support and appealing to but a small class of readers, seldom, if ever, pay ; but a hope was felt that it might possibly just cover its own expenses. Such, however, has not been the case. (I must not omit to mention that Mr. Butler very kindly offered to take upon himself the responsibility of the first four numbers.) When I ascertained positively that a loss would occur, I called a meeting of the Committee (on March 14th ult.) and laid the matter plainly before them, * See p. 65. 142 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY. stating that I feared a loss of between £2 and £3; but at the same time directing attention to the balance at the Society’s disposal. After a long discussion, it was decided that the magazine should be continued, it being felt that the Society’s funds could not be employed in a more appropriate manner : while it was also resolved that the deficiency arising from the first four numbers should besupplied to Mr. Butler from the funds of the Society. This deficiency will, I believe, amount to £2 16s. 93d. when all subscriptions are paid, but of these £3 Os. 6d. is still unpaid. May I therefore urgently request that our friends will, as soon as possible, pay the sums due for magazines? Of the merits of the magazine it is not for me to speak : others, whose opinions are of considerable value, have alluded to it in terms of praise: and the list of subscribers is on the increase. If our members would push its circulation with a little more energy, we should doubtless have little or no deficiency at the end of another year. Our pages have been well supplied: in fact, each number has announced the unavoidable postpone- ment of several communications. Stating, in round numbers, our loss on Nos. 1-4 as £3, the funds of the Society will still announce a balance in our favour of £7 9s. 5d. “‘T will now conclude by thanking you for the very kind support you have given me since I have filled the post of Secretary. Although an unworthy successor of Mr. Ullyett, whose general information we all valued, I have endeayoured to the best of my ability to advance the Society’s interests, and, I trust, not altogether without success. That we may year by year enter more into the study of the wonders around us is my earnest wish: each is a line in the great book of Nature, that book which is ‘more interesting than all the books, save one, that ever were written upon earth.’ “T nowresign into your hands the Secretaryship, and willask you to proceed with the election of officers. Those now retiring are—Rey. T. H. Browne, President; R. M. Bowstead, M.D., T. Marshall, Esq., F. Wheeler, Esq., Committee.” ‘James Britten, Hon. Sec.’’ John Parker, Esq., proposed, and Mr. Butler seconded, that the Secretary’s Report be accepted : and that the alteration in Rule 3, suggested by him, be adopted. Carried unanimously. John Parker, Esq., then proposed the re-election of the Rey. T. H. Browne as President of the Society, remarking that no one better could possibly be found to superintend its affairs. Seconded by Mr. Britten: carried unani- mously. Mr. Butler, in a complimentary speech, proposed that Mr. Britten be re-elected Secretary. Seconded by Miss Chandler: carried unanimously. The Secretary proposed the re-election of the Committee: Dr. Bowstead, T. Marshall, Esq., and F. Wheeler, Esq. Seconded by Mr. Tottle: carried unanimously. Eee BOOKS RECEIVED. 1438 The President, in a brief address, acknowledged the flattering terms in which he had been re-elected: and made a few remarks relative to the desirability of forming a Museum in connection with the Society. The formal business of the evening being concluded, an inspection of the objects exhibited ensued. The President showed several entomological specimens, including the Clouded Yellow (Colias Edusa) taken at Wycombe five years ago, and referred to its recent reappearance in the district. Liv- ing specimens of many local wild flowers were on the table, including the Great Burnet Saxifrage (Pimpinella magna) new to the district, Cat-mint (Nepeta Cataria), Calamint (Calumintha officinalis), &c.; plants of the Grass of Parnassus (Parnassia palustris), and Dwarf Centaury (Zrythrea puichella), from Liverpool, were much admired. Miss Chandler brought two fasciculi of dried plants: and dried specimens of the small, but rare, Waterworts (Zlatine hexandra and £. hydropiper), and Cyperus fuscus were shown by the Secretary. A short address, ‘‘On the Stomachs of Insects,’’ was given by the President in the course of the evening: those of the Beetles, Cricket, Mole Cricket, and Grasshopper being selected for illustration. A vote of thanks to J. Edwards, Esq., and Mrs. Edwards, for the kind reception given to the Society, brought a very pleasant meeting to a close. The following from Mr. Ullyett, in acknowledgment of the microscope pre- sented to him by the Society, has been received by the Secretary :— ‘*«S, Mary’s Schools, Folkestone, “September 20th, 1867. *« Dear Srr,—Please to convey to the members of our Society my warmest thanks for the valuable present they have forwarded. They could not haye chosenany thing more useful to me, and it will alwaysserve toremind me of the pleasant rambles and conversaziones I enjoyed in their company while I was at Wycombe. I heartily wish the Society a long continued life, and that the success now attending it may never decrease. I hope ere long to hear that they have established a Museum in the town. “Believe me, my dear Sir, yours faithfully, “Hy. Uniyert.” Books Received. A Summary of the Occurrences of the Grey Phalarope in Great Britain during the Autumn of 1866. By J. H. Gurney, Jun. (London: Van Voorst.) This is a very neatly got up little pamphlet, and will prove exceedingly interesting to the ornithologist, especially to him who makes our Birds of Passage a fayourite study. Phalaropus lobatus is a northern bird, and visits 144 BOOKS RECEIVED. England only when the approach of winter renders its own clime too in- hospitable. The author of the Summary has taken considerable pains to get together all the notices he could of its occurrence last autumn in various parts of the country, and has been so successful, that, however scarce it may have been deemed fifty years ago, it deserves now, we should think, to have its name taken off the list of rare birds. ‘The nearest locality to us, noticed in the book, is an eyot of the Thames, not far from Pangbourne, where one was shot; but we doubt not others might have been seen still nearer; those sedgy willow eyots that occur so plentifully in various parts of the river must harbour a great many birds, and would prove a world of discovery if well examined. Our readers will recollect that it was by one of them that the Little Bittern (A7dea minuta) was taken a year or two ago by one of our members. We cannot help regretting that the pamphlet bears such ample testimony to the general tendency to shoot everything that is at all rare; the great majority of the specimens seen were killed, and we must protest particularly against the conduct of the gentleman who shot eighteen out of one flock; we doubt whether the bird will be so common this year. Its natural tameness is much against it, as is evident from the number knocked down with hand weapons, and maimed with missiles from those arch-enemies of animals in general—boys: we trust the school-boy who ‘‘stoned’”’ one at Stokes Bay will get a few lessons in Natural History. A very nice map accompanies the work. The Naturalists’ Circular, August and September, 1867. (London: Henry Hall, 56, Old Bailey, E.C.) This little magazine, an enlarged form of one which has long been known among amateur naturalists, bids fair to take rank among the most useful of our serials. Its specialty is an Exchange List, in which appear the names and addresses of those naturalists who are willing to assist their brethren in the collection of the various objects of their study. Short practical articles, as those on ‘*‘ Lamps for the Microscope,’’ ‘‘ Larva-Rearing,’’ &c. : papers on matters of general interest to the naturalist, and notes and queries, make up each number. The Vuturalists’ Circular seems likely to take the place of the lately-defunct Watwralist, but we trust will not share its untimely fate. Its price is 2d. monthly. Country Life: A Journal of Rural Pursuits and Recreation. (London : 10, Bolt-court, Fleet-street, H.C.) Price 2d. weekly. We have received No. 4 of this new periodical; and, if we may take it as a specimen of the whole, can give it our sincere recommendation. It is, as its name implies, a paper for dwellers in the country; the gardener, the angler, and, what more immediately concerns us, the naturalist, will find each of their pursuits duly attended to. The principalarticle in the number before usis oneon ‘The Cholera Fungus,” by Mr. M.C. Cooke, a well-known authority on fungi in general. He carefully weighs the evidence for and against, and thus concludes: ‘* The crime is not proved against the prisoner at the bar, and he is acquitted. Let us hope that the experiments will be continued, and that in the meanwhile no absurd ery will be raised about a ‘cholera fungus.’’’ Other interesting papers are those on ‘ Fishermen’s Flies,” ‘‘ Jottings by the Way,” and ‘ Poultry-keeping:’’ “‘ The Garden’’ is well looked after. The Entomologist, Nos. 44 and 45.—There is no falling off in the interest of this periodical. Several good descriptions of larve are to be found in these two numbers, and a lengthy note on the ** Hop Insect.’’ We commend it to the notice of all our entomological readers. tue 145 CGorrespontence. We shail be glad to receive articles on any natural objects, the preference being always given to such as have a local interest. Notes on the popular names of, or traditions concerning, Animals or Plants, or on any subject con- nected with Natural History, will be welcome. “CLERKS OF THE WEATHER.”— (See p. 106).—Mrs. Woollams writes as follows:—“ I think I named three Leeches to a pint and a half of water. I venture to remind you of this, as it is somewhat essential; for not only is that number sufficient for the quantity of water, but a larger number is apt to puzzle beginners, as they do not always rise and fall together to the moment. My experience is not of jive, but of Jifteen years, so I trust you will receive it with confidence.” ON PRESERVING THE COLOUR OF DRIED FLOWERS.—(See p. 121).—I have been asked to communicate the manner of fixing the colour in the mounted groups of flowers which I sent over for the Annual Svirée. Some five years ago, a friend, who had been travelling in Norway, shewed some specimens which he had brought home to a dear child, who commenced experimenting to preserve the colour in drying. Ultimately she found the applica- tion of a heated flat iron the best mode of proceeding. It was her practice to pick the flower in pieces for the purpose of more evenly pre- serving the true proportions, and then, with the perfect flower before her, to make it up again. The medium used in fixing it on the card was isinglass in solution. The specimens sent to Wycombe were only a few of those produced ; the groups of wild flowers, which passed into the hands of valued friends, being especially natural. Henley. H. STUBBS. THE DUKE oF BurcuNDY (NVe- meobius Lucina).—Mr. Ullyett, in his paper on the Wycombe Butter- flies, page 113, remarks that the larva of the “Little Duke of Bur- gundy Fritillary” (Nemeobdius Lu- cina), is said never to have been found in England. Mr. U. will there- fore probably be interested to know that [have taken both eggsand larve somewhat freely in this neighbour- hood, and have bred the perfect insect. Some few years since, I hap- pened to be in a sunny field em- bosomed in beech woods, in this parish, where numbers of this pretty little butterfly were flitting to and fro, and I determined to have a hunt for the larva. I had read in West- wood’s British Butterflies that the larva fed on the Primrose (Primula vulgaris), and so to work I went, carefully examining the leaves of each primrose plant, but with no success. I noticed, however, that the field was covered with numerous plants of the Cowslip (Primula veris), and to these I immediately directed my attention. I had only examined two or three plants, when at the back of the very lowest leaves among the long grass, close to the ground, I found some small hairy larvee and a number of little white eggs, resembling those of