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S  iflff^ 


No.  47. 


JANUARY,  1855. 


Price  6d. 


A  POPULAE  MONTHLY  MAGAZINE, 

ILLUSTRATIVE    OF    THE 

ANIMAL,  VEGETABLE,  AND  MINERAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    NUMEROUS    ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED   BY 

BEVERLEY  R.  MORRIS,  ESQ.,  A.B.,  M.D.,  T.C.D., 
memb:  wekn:  club. 

CORRESPONDING  MEMBER  OF  THE  NATURAL  HISTORY  SOCIETY  OF  GLASGOW. 
ITONORARY   MEMBER   OF   THE   LITERARY   AND   SCIENTIFIC   INSTITUTION   OF   KILKENNY. 


LONDON  : 

GROOMBRIDGE  AND  SONS,  5,  PATEENOSTER-KOW. 

EDINBUEGH:  JAMES  HOGG,  4,  NICOLSON-STREET. 

*  AND  JIAY  BE  HAD  OF  ALL  BOOKSELLERS. 


CONTENTS. 

The  Fishes  of  BanffsWre.     By  Mr.  Thomas  Edward        

Notes  on  the  Frog.     By  John  Dixon,  Esq 

Notes  on  the  Keadbreast.     By  Wiluam  Kidd,  Esq 

Nesting  of  the  Water-Ouzel  in  Norfolk.     By  G.  R.  Twinn,  Esq 

Notes  on  the  Ferns  of  Wool-Bridge,  Dorset.     By  John  E.  Daniel,  Esq 

Notes  on  the  Botany  of  North  Lancashire.     By  J.  P 

KEviEW.-Tho  Heart's  Proper  Element ;  or,  IIow  to  Keep  a  Healthy  Pulse.     By 

WiLLLVM  Kidd,  of  Hammersmith.  London  :  Groomhridge  and  Sons.  Price  Is. 
Proceedings  OP  SociETiEs.-The  Natural  History  Society  of  Glasgow    

The  Royal  Physical  Society  of  Edinburgh        

The  Retrospect.— On  Thrushes  alighting  on  the  Backs  of  Sheep 

The  Querist       


tage. 

1 


10 
12 
14 

16 
17 
21 
22 
23 


NOTICES  TO  CORRESPONDENTS. 
Communications  have  been  received   up  to  December    14th,  from  S.  Stone,  Esq.- 
Wm.  Kidd,  Esq.— R.  McL.— G.  Donaldson,  Esq. 

Contributions  have  been  received  up  to  December  14th,  from  Mr.  T.  Edward-E.  S.- 
Rev  G  SowDEN-Mr.T.LiSTER-J.MclNTOSH,  Esq.-O.  S.  Round,  Esq.-J.  C.  T.- 
J.  N.  Beadles,  Esq.-G.  R.  Twinn,  Esq,-J.  F.  Whiteaves,  Esq.-R.  B.  Cooke,  Esq.- 
J.  B.  Davies,  Esq.— Mr.  J.  G.  Barker. 

We  shall  feel  greatly  obliged  to  any  Correspondent  who  will  furnish  us  with  the  names 
of  any  respectable  Bird-Stuffers  in  his  neighbourhood. 

Many  Contributions  unavoidably  stand  over.  Our  Friends  will  understand  that  they 
are  only  postponed,  not  declined. 

Erratum  :  Vol.  iv.,  page  271,  line  6  from  bottom,-for  Rooking,  read  Woking. 
It  is  with  deep  regret  that  we  announce  the  death  of  two  distinguished  Naturalists,- 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Landesborough,  and  Professor  Edward  Forbes.     Can  any  of  our  Friends 
furnish  us  with  a  few  particulars  respecting  each,  more  than  those  contained  m  the  Reports 
of  Societies  in  the  present  Number  ? 

The  Editor  begs  to  announce  to  his  Correspondents,  that  he  has  arranged  with  his 
Printer,  so  that  the  Anthor  of  any  Paper  can  have  copies  of  his  Article  sent  him  by  post 
at  the  following  rates  : — 

Two  Pages.    Four  Pages.    Eight  Pages. 
...       2s.  6d.  4s.  Od.  6s.  6d. 

...       3     6  6    0  9     6 

...       5    0  7     6  12     0 


25  Copies  or  under 

50  Copies     

75  Copies     


Com.n.nications,  Drawings,  Advertisements,  eU.,  ^'^  ^^  «^'^'-^^^^'^f^^^f;,3f^^/2ci 
M.D.,  DriffiM;-Bools  for  Review,  and  Parcels,  to  the  care  of  GBOOMBBIDGE  and 

SONS,  5,  Paternoster-Bow,  London. 


THE 


NATUEALIST; 

A  POPULAE  MONTHLY  MAGAZINE, 


ILLUSTRATIVE    OF   THE 


ANIMAL,  VEGETABLE,  AND  MINERAL 
KINGDOMS, 


CONDUCTED   BY 

BEVERLEY  R.  MOREIS,  ESQ.,  A.B.,  M.D.,  T.C.D. 

mem:  wer»:  club. 

corresponding  member  of  the  natural  history  society  of  glasgow. 

honorary  member  of  the  literary  and  scientific  institution  op  kilkenny. 

corresponding  member  of  the  dublin  university  zoological  association. 


VOL.  V.-'\/\ 


WITH    ENGRAVINGS. 


LONDON : 
MESSHS.  GROOMBRIDGE,  5,  PATERNOSTER-ROW 

M.DCCC.LV. 


THE  NA'TITRALIST. 


THE  FISHES  OF  BANFFSHIRE. 

BY  MR.  THOMAS  EDWARD. 

-  The  coast  of  BaufFsliire,  extending  as  it  does  along  the  southern  shore  of 
the  Moray  Frith,  to  a  distance  of  foi'ty  miles,  or  thereby,  contains,  amongst 
other  towns,  the  fishing  villages  of  Crovie,  Gardenstown,  Whitehills,  Sand- 
end,  Portknockie,  Portessy,  or  Rottenslough,  Findochite,  and  Buckie,  or 
rather  Buckles, — for  tliere  are  tlii-ee  if  not  four  small  towns  beside  each 
other  wliich  go  by  that  name.  The  other  towns  along  the  line  of  that  coast, 
and  already  alluded  to,  are,  Banff  the  county  town,  Macduff,  Portsoy,  and 
CuUen ;  all  of  which,  also  contain  a  number  of  fishermen. 

The  dates, — that  is,  of  newer  species, — and  localities  of  occviiTenccs,  will 
be  given,  when  satisfactorily  known,  but  not  otherwise. 

Of  fresh-water  species  we  have  little  to  boast ;  but,  as  regards  our  marine 
produce,  Ave  have  a  goodly  number,  as  will  be  seen  from  the  following  list. 

The  Basse,  or  Sea  Perch.  {Lahrax  lupus.)  This  is,  as  far  as  I  am  aware, 
a  rare  species  with  us,  only  three  having  come  under  my  notice  as  having 
occurred.  One  of  these,  a  most  beautiful  specimen,  was  found  dead  in  our 
river,  the  Dovern,  not  far  from  its  mouth,  in  1839 ;  and  was  brought  home 
as  a  variety  of  perca  Jiuviatilis. 

The  Ruffe,  or  Pope.  (Acerina  vulgaris.)  One  said  to  have  been  obtained  off 
Troup-Head,  about  forty-two  j^ears  ago. 

The  Great  Wecver.  [Tmclunus  draco.)  It  is  averred  by  some  to  be  a  mere 
hoax,  concerning  the  pain  said  to  arise  from  the  prick  of  the  spines  of  the 
Weever.  Be  this  as  it  may,  I  know  that  a  specimen  of  the  above  species, 
which  was  brought  on  shore  here  in  1810,  and  which  was  rather  incautiously 
handled  by  an  acquaintance  of  mine,  was  likely  to  have  cost  him  pretty  dear. 
Some  of  the  spines  having  pierced  one  of  his  fingers,  he  threw  the  fish 
down,  but  had  hardly  done  so,  when  he  felt  a  burning  pain  creeping  all  over 
his  hand,  and  in  less  than  five  minute's  time,  it  reached  his  shoulder,  joer- 
vading  his  whole  arm.  The  pain  was  accompanied  by  a  dreadful  swelling, 
and  so  excruciating  was  the  torture  borne  by  the  individual  for  about  three 
quarter's  of  an  hour,  that  his  friends  actually  thought  he  would  have  gone 
VOL.  v.  B 


I") 


2  THE   FISHES   OF   BANFFSHIRE. 

mad ;  and  no  one  who  saw  him  at  the  time,  ever  dreamed  but  that  he  would 
have  lost  his  arm.  However,  by  next  morning,  the  pain  had  ceased,  but  not 
so  the  swelling ;  it  lasted  nearly  ten  days.  The  individual  is  still  alive ; 
and  maintains,  to  the  pi'esent  day,  that  he  never  felt  such  a  painful  sen- 
sation in  all  his  life,  as  he  then  did.  This  species  is  of  rare  occurrence 
Avith  us. 

The  Little  Weever.  {T.  viper  a.)  Specimens  of  the  Little  Weever  are  not 
unfrequently  met  with ;  which  would  seem  to  indicate  that  they  are  more 
numerous  in  the  Frith  than  the  preceding. 

The  Red  Surmullet,  {Mullus  barbatus,)  and  the  Striped  Red  Mullet,  (M. 
surmuletiis,)  have  both  been  obtained,  the  latter  being  the  most  frequent. 
They  are  known  here  by  the  term  '  Mullets.' 

The  Red  Gurnard,  {TrUjla  cuculus,)  is  prettj"^  frequent ;  as  also  is 

The  Sapphirine  Gurnard.  [T.  hirundo.)  Some  splendid  specimens  of  this 
latter  fish  are  annually  brought  on  shore  by  our  fishermen,  towards  the  end 
of  autumn. 

The  Gray  Gurnard.  {T.  gurnardus.)  This  is  our  commonest  Gurnard; 
and,  judging  from  the  numbers  taken,  must  be  very  numerous.  They  are 
known  here  by  the  term  of  '  Crunack.'  They  are  not  much  esteemed  as  an 
article  of  food,  even  among  the  peasants ;  and  are,  in  consequence,  seldom 
broixght  to  the  market. 

The  Little  Gurnard.  {T.  jxxciloptera.)  Somewhat  rare.  I  remember  once 
taking  one  from  the  stomach  of  a  Great  Northei'n  Diver,  which  was  shot 
between  Findochite  and  Speymouth,  in  the  spring  of  1840,  and  which  was 
sent  me  for  the  i:>urpose  of  being  preserved.  The  remains  of  another  were 
brought  me,  not  long  since,  by  one  of  my  own  girls.  It  was  found  in  our 
harbour. 

The  Short-spined  Cottus.  (Cottns  scotyius.)     Pretty  frequent. 

The  Long-spined  Cottus.  (C.  bubalis.)  Rather  plentiful.  I  find  them  in 
abundance,  in  pools  left  by  the  tide,  or  beneath  stones  at  low  water.  Many 
of  them  exhibit  some  most  beautiful  markings. 

The  Four-horned  Cottus.  (C.  quadricornis.)  I  have  never  found  this 
species  but  in  the  stomachs  of  other  fish ;  which  leads  me  to  conclude,  that 
they  generally  inhabit  pretty  deep  water ;  or,  at  least,  that  they  do  not  come 
so  near  to  the  shore  as  the  preceding  sj^ecies. 

The  Armed  Bullhead.  (Asjndophorus  JEuropaus.)  This  is  another  stomach 
sjjecies.  But  I  have  found  these,  also,  though  veiy  sparingly,  amongst  the 
rocks  at  low  tide. 

The  Rough-tailed,  Thi'ee-spined  Stickleback,  {Gasterosteiis  tracliurus,)  and 
the  Smooth-tailed  Stickleback,  {O.  leiiirus,)  are  both  plentiful.  The  former 
along  the  coast,  and  the  latter  in  our  streams  and  rivulets. 

The  Fifteen-spined  Stickleback.  {Spinachia  vulgaris.)  Common  among  the 
pools  along  the  shore.     I  have  seen  this  species  with  sixteen  and  seventeen 


THE   FISHES   OF   BANFFSHIBE.  8 

Spines.     They  are  known  amongst  our  fishermen  by  the  very  peculiar  deno- 
mination of  '  Willie-wun-beard.' 

The  Gilt-head.  {Chrysoplinjs  aurata.)  I  have  only  seen  two  specimens  of 
this  fish,  which  have  been  procured  with  us.  The  one  was  taken  off  Buckie, 
in  1841 ;  and  the  other  was  brought  on  shore  at  Portsoy,  in  18.39.  They 
appear  to  be  scarce,  from  the  fact  that  the  fishermen  do  not  know  them. 

The  Sea  Bream.  {Pagellus  centrodontus.)  This  is  a  more  common  species ; 
numbers  appearing  annually ;  some  seasons,  however,  in  greater  abundance 
than  others.     They  are  sold  here  under  the  name  of  '  Perch.' 

Ray's  Bream.  (Brama  Raii.)     Rare. 

The  Black  Bream.  (Oanthanis  griseus.)  A  few  of  these  are  generally  pro- 
cured every  autumn,  or  at  the  beginning  of  winter.  They  are  known  and 
sold  here  under  the  term  of  '  Old  Wife.' 

The  Four-toothed  Sparus.  [Dentex  vulgaris.)  Although  this  species,  like 
many  more,  bears  the  name  '  vulgaris,'  that  is,  common,  it  is  not  so  with  us  ; 
at  least,  so  far  as  I  know.  I  am  only  aware  of  one  specimen,  which  was 
taken  off  Troup-Head,  in  1830.  But  others  may  have  been  got,  though  un- 
known to  me. 

The  Mackerel.  {Scomber  scomhrus.)  This  beautiful  and  highly  prized  fish 
genei-ally  appears  on  our  part  of  the  coast  about  autumn  ;  in  some  seasons, 
in  great  plenty ;  in  others,  not  so  numerous. 

The  Spanish  Mackerel  ?  {8.  colias  ?)  As  will  be  seen,  I  have  placed  tliia 
species  here  as  doubtful.  A  mackerel  differing,  in  many  respects,  from  the 
one  noted  above,  and  which  agreed  veiy  well  with  S.  colias,  was  taken  off 
Portknockie,  in  1819 ;  but  by  the  time  I  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  it,  it  was 
a  good  deal  disfigured.  Still,  as  I  have  already  said,  it  exhibited  many  of 
the  markings,  and  other  characteristics  of  the  Spanish  Mackerel. 

The  Tunny.  {Thynnus  vulgaris)  Several  specimens  of  this  fish  have,  from 
time  to  time,  been  taken  with  us.  A  very  large  one  was  captured  in  the 
salmon  net  at  Portsoy,  in  1850.  It  measured  over  nine  feet  in  length,  and 
six  feet  in  girth. 

The  Sword-fish.  [Xipldas  gladius.)  A  small  specimen  of  this  fish, — rare  on 
this  part  of  the  coast, — was  caught  in  our  harbour  in  1841,  by  an  individual 
taking  shrimps.  It  was  brought  me  two  days  afterwards;  but  unfortunately, 
was  too  much  destroj'ed  for  preservation. 

The  Pilot-fish.  {Naucrates  ductor)  A  very  fine  specimen  of  this  rare,  and 
rather  peculiar  fish,  was  taken  in  our  bay  about  forty  years  ago,  and  was 
exhibited  as  a  curiosity.  It  was  unknown  in  the  place,  and  to  the  party  who 
took  it ;  but  an  old  tar  chancing  to  see  it,  who  had  seen  a  little  service 
abroad,  having  hitched  up  his  trousers,  and  rid  his  mouth  of  a  yard  or  two 
of  tobacco  juice,  exclaimed,  with  something  of  a  knowing  air, — "Well,  I'll 

be  if  that  isn't  a  Pilot ;  and  a  pretty  one  it  is,  too.     We  used  to  see 

them  often,  when  sailing  in  the  Mediterranean." 


4  THE   FISHES   OF   BANFFSHIRE, 

The  Scad,  or  Horse-Mackerel,  {Caranx  tracJmnis,)  or,  as  it  is  temied  here, 
the  '  Buck  Mackerel,'  is  not  very  numerous,  and  is  very  seldom  used  as  an 
article  of  food.  Its  appearance  here  is  generally  about  the  time  of  herring- 
fishing.  I  once  found  a  rather  strange  variety  of  this  species.  It  was  about 
the  usual  size ;  but  was  all  over  of  a  most  beautiful  golden  yellow,  finely 
striped  and  variegated  with  numerous  lines  of  the  brightest  blue ;  except 
the  fins,  which  were  of  the  finest  carmine. 

The  Dory.  (Zeusfaber.)  There  are  sevei-al  stones  here  of  the  Dory  having 
been  taken  on  our  coast ;  but  I  cannot  answer  for  their  authenticity, 
although  I  have  given  it  a  place  in  my  list. 

The  OiDah,  or  King-fish,  [Lampris  guttalus,)  has  occurred  on  several  occa- 
sions;  as  off  Troup-Head  in  1829,  at  Black  Pots  in  1838,  on  the  shore  near 
Portessy  in  18i4,  and  at  Buckie  during  the  present  summer  of  1854. 

The  Gray  Mullet.  {Mngil  capi  t .)  I  am  only  aware  of  two  specimens  of 
this  Mullet,  which  have  been  procured  T\'ithin  our  limits ;  the  one  at  Gar- 
denstown  in  1827,  and  the  other  at  Cullen  three  years  later. 

Montagu's  Blenny.  {Blennius  Montagui.)  One  specimen  taken  from  the 
stomach  of  a  Haddock,  in  1853. 

The  Gattoniginous  Blenny.  {Blennius  gattorugine)  I  have  met  with  this 
species  only  on  two  occasions. 

Yarrell's  Blenny.  {Blennius  Yarrellii.)  Rarely  met  with.  I  have  a  splendid 
specimen  in  my  collection,  which  was  found  cast  on  shore  by  one  of  my 
girls,  as  she  was  passing  between  Gardenstown  and  Crovie,  during  the  eai'ly 
part  of  1834,  and  already  mentioned  in  The  Naturalist. 

The  Shanny,  or  Smooth  Blenny,  {Blennius  jilwlis,)  the  Spotted  Gunnel, 
(Ounnellus  vulgaris,)  and  the  Viviparous  or  Green  Blenny,  {Znarces  vivipanis,) 
are  all  to  be  met  with  amongst  the  low-lying  rocks  along  our  line  of  shore. 
A  female  of  the  last-named  species,  which  I  had  procured  for  the  purpose  of 
preserving,  and  which  I  had  put  into  a  basin  of  fresh-water,  to  depriAe  it  of 
life,  surprised  me  a  good  deal, — though,  at  the  same  time,  I  was  very  Avell 
pleased  at  the  occurrence, — by  giving  birth  to  a  numerous  progeny,  but 
which  all  died  soon  after  being  extnided.  One  strange  circumstance  which 
I  obsei-ved  Avas,  that  they  did  not  all  come  into  the  world  after  the  same 
fashion.  Some  came  with  the  tail  first,  and  others  with  the  head.  They 
had,  each  of  them,  two  small  bladder-like  appendages,  Avhich  Avere  attached 
one  to  each  side,  betAvixt  the  head  and  the  vent. 

The  Wolf-fish.  {Anarrhicus  lupus.)  Frequent,  but  seldom  used  as  food.  I 
find  them  pretty  often  cast  on  shore  dead,  after  a  storm ;  Avhich  Avould  seem 
to  indicate  that  their  habitat  is  not  ahvays  in  deep  water. 

The  Black  Goby.  {Gobius  niger.)     These  inhabiting  the  rocky  parts  of  the 

coast,  become,  at  times,  the  prey  of  the  Haddock,  &c.     Though  they  do  not 

^eera  to  be  numerous  in  this  arm  of  the  sea,  I  meet  with  them  occasionally 

in  the  stomachs  of  fishes. 

fTo  he  continued.) 


NOTES  ON  THE  FROG.    (RANA  TEMPORABIA.) 

BY  JOHN    DIXON,   ESQ. 

Poor,  inoffensive  Frog;  what  dost  thou  Jiere? 
While  cruel  foes  are  standing  neare ; 
Come  skip  along,  these  flowers  among. 

And  banish  all  thy  feare. 
For  now  I  note  thy  panting  throat, 
Thy  glittering  eye,  and  tinted  coat; 
And  though  thou  can  be  friende  to  man. 

Yet  oft  thy  limbes  he'll  teare. 
'Tis  sad  to  flnde  the  heart  unkinde, 
To  creatures  thus  for  good  designed; 
And  framed  by  One,  their  course  to  run, 

To  show  His  wisdom  cleare. 

Autumn — crowned  with  that  most  inestimable  blessing,  an  abundant 
harvest — steals  fast  upon  us ;  the  trees,  clad  in  their  leaves  of  brightest 
hue,  impart  a  quiet  charm  to  the  sunny  landscape,  now  fanned  by  a  soft 
and  murmuring  breeze,  with  odours  laden  that  from  gentle  showers  have 
sprung.  The  busy  bee  still  wings  its  way  amidst  the  floral  beauties  left, 
and  trips  from  flower  to  flower  with  drowsy  hum.  Our  stony  path  yields 
even  forms  to  please  that  mind,  which  finds  its  gems  in  commonest  weeds : 
the  groundsel  still  puts  out  a  few  flowers,  neighbour  to  others  of  more 
showy  guize ;  here  the  cranesbill  lingers  in  happy  contrast  to  the  humble 
dandelion  or  hawkweed,  yet  most  gay;  there  the  modest  daisy  unassumingly 
peeps  out;  and  as  we  wander  on,  the  shepherd's-purse,  bright  ragwort, 
knapweed,  scabious,  and  the  rest,  do  all  attest,  that  daj's  full  mild  remain. 
The  gurgling  brook  can  boast  its  happy  dwellers,  too  :  for  here  the  minnow, 
stickleback,  and  loach  ply  their  scaly  oars,  and  timorous  bullheads  swiftly 
dart  about;  the  basking  frog  with  keenest  eye  detects  our  near  approach, 
and  touched  with  fear,  beneath  the  surfoce  dives.  The  banks  are  graced 
with  moistiire-loving  alders,  and  the  pensile  birch ;  while  guelder-roses, 
hollies,  and  the  mountain  ash,  with  scarlet  berries  glow;  heps  and  haws 
on  eveiy  hedge  abound;  and  flowers  of  meadow-sweet,  valerian,  watei'-pepper, 
and  the  plantain,  stay  the  observant  eye ;  and  serve  to  deck  the  crystal 
stream,  whose  rocky  banks  with  yellow  ferns  ai'e  clad.  A  buttei'fly  may 
cross  our  path,  and  tiny  insects  sport  above  our  heads;  then,  as  the  day 
declines  in  mild  twilight,  the  droning  beetle  soon  the  ear  assails ;  and 
moths  of  varied  tint  now  flit  about,  to  tempt  the  swift  winged  bat  to  venture 
out  and  skim  the  air.  The  swallows  all  are  gone ;  the  wren  and  redbi-east 
grow  more  bold,  and  cheer  us  with  their  song ;  the  sparrow,  ever  gay,  still 
chirps  his  lay,  unmindful  of  the  seasons'  change ;  he  loves  companionship, 
and  gladly  joins  the  shoals  of  finches  that  now  frequent  the  fold-yards,  and 
in  the  midst  he  holds  a  place,  the  noisiest  of  the  crow.     The  missel-thrush, 


O  NOTES   ON   THE    FROO. 

the  blithesome  lark,  in  flocks  unite;  while  congregated  starlings  join  the 
sable  rooks;  and  all  that  Nature  subjects  to  our  gaze  proclaims  stern  Winter 
drawing  on  apace,  when  many  forms  now  full  of  life  will  seek  retreats, 
wherein  to  sleep  the  nipping  season  out;  till  Spring  again  appears  with 
smiling  face,  and  sunshine  tempts  them  forth.  Divine  appointments  all, 
and  wisely  framed  for  great  and  wondrous  ends,  to  man  inscrutable ;  an 
indication  clear  of  all-directing  Power — that  Mighty  One  whom  heaven  and 
earth  obeys — whose  very  nod  could  rend  the  universe,  or  hurl  this  earthly 
planet  from  its  sphere,  and  yet  in  mercy  stoops  to  note  the  sparrow's  fall. 

Frogs,  as  generally  reported,  secrete  themselves  for  the  winter,  in  mud 
at  the  bottom  of  ponds  and  ditches,  where  they  have  often  been  found  in 
large  numbers,  clustered  together;  but  a  short  exposure  to  the  air  will  soon 
rouse  the  torpid  mass  to  activity.  Other  retreats  are,  however,  often 
selected;  as  holes  in  walls,  beneath  stones,  a  bank  side,-:-  or  even  hollow 
trees,  where  sufiicient  humidity  exists  to  suit  their  habits.  In  such 
situations  they  have  occurred  in  company  with  the  Toad,  Newt,  and  some 
varieties  of  the  Snail;  and  it  has  been  remarked,  that  the  Fi-og  is  first 
aroused  from  slumber. 

On  the  9th  Dec,  1848,  I  accompanied  an  antiquarian  friend  to  Gipton, 
for  the  purpose  of  surveying  some  Saxon  earthworks  there.  In  one 
field  was  a  slight  hollow  place  with  a  spring  in  it,  forming  a  little  pool 
covered  with  duckweed;  adjacent  stood  an  old  wall,  studded  with  lichens 
and  mosses,  and  built  into  it  was  a  curious  primeval  I'elic  in  the  shape 
of  a  quern.f  As  nothing  would  satisfy  the  antiquary  but  canning  it 
off,  we  set  vigorously  to  work  to  extract  it.  Stone  after  stone  was  carefully 
removed,  till  one  large  fragment  required  the  aid  of  both ;  and  as  we  raised 
it  from  its  bed,  my  friend,  eo  instante,  gave  a  sudden  cry,  and  bolted  back ; 
startled  by  the  appearance  of  three  fine  yellow  Frogs,  which  were  squatting 
in  a  crevice  below.  Our  proceedings  had  evidently  disturbed  their  slumbers, 
for  they  were  wide  awake  enough ;  and,  while  I  stood  laughing,  j)0j)ped  with 
one  accord  into  the  pool  below.  The  colour  of  these  Frogs  was  much 
brighter  than  they  usually  are  when  found  in  a  torpid  state ;  most  specimens 
I  have  seen  being  of  a  dusky  hue — in  fact,  the  colour  of  a  Toad.  To  get 
into  this  retreat,  the  Frogs  must  have  forced  their  way  through  a  very 
contracted  aperture.  I  remember  one  being  found  in  a  torpid  state,  in  a 
cavity  near  the  roots  of  a  dead  willow;  the  only  apparent  entrance  was  a 
very  small  hole,  through  which  one  would  suppose  a  full-grown  Frog  could 
only  have  forced  its  way  with  great  difficulty. 

I  have  not  paid  sufiicient  attention  to  the  history  of  this  reptile,  to 
become  acquainted  with  the  several  stages  of  its  growth ;  but  I  believe  most 
naturalists  agree,  that  they  do  not  attain  full  maturity  till  the  end  of  three 

•  Loudon's  Mag.  Nat.  History,  vol.  iii.,  p.  117;  vol.  vi.,  p.  156. 
t  VUJe  PeuuRnt'a  Tour  in  Scotland,  <tc.,  vol.  ii.,  pp.  AUS,  8i9. 


NOTES   ON   THE   FROG.  7 

years.  We  may  often  notice,  during  the  late  autumn  months,  young 
Frogs,  which,  as  cokl  weather  draws  on  and  food  becomes  scarce,  must 
be  compelled  to  look  out  for  eligible  winter  lodgings ;  such  specimens 
could  with  ease  creep  through  these  narrow  passages.  But,  I  must  then 
ask, — do  they  grow  rapidly  during  torpidity?  If  so,  the  many  instances 
recorded  of  Frogs  and  Toads  being  found  in  the  hearts  of  trees  *  are 
more  readily  accounted  for  on  the  supposition,  that  they  have  crept 
through  some  small  hole,  and  grown  too  corpulent  to  get  out  again ;  than 
that  the  bark  of  the  tree  should  have  expanded  during  winter,  and  entirely 
closed  the  entrance.  But  no  doubt,  some  of  your  more  observant  and 
better  informed  correspondents  can  furnish  other  notes  respecting  this 
query. 

Their  reanimation,  towards  the  close  of  winter,  depends  in  some  measure 
on  temperature ;  but  no  sooner  are  they  called  to  life,  than  the  great  work 
of  multiplication  commences ;  their  ci-oaking  is  heard  on  every  side ;  and 
if  a  ramble  should  lead  us  to  the  side  of  some  clear  pool,  we  find  it  full 
of  animation,  with 

"Amorous  Frogs,  in  clusters  firinely  bounde." 

This  "  gendering,"  as  the  country  folk  about  here  call  it,  sometimes  takes 
place  very  early,  as  the  following  extract  from  my  laide  calendar  will 
testify : — ■ 

"Feb.  \st.,  1852. f — Fine  mild  day — clear,  deep  blue  sky.  Swarms  of 
midges  merrily  sporting  about  the  dry  ferny  banks.  Skylarks  singing  most 
beautifully  on  Blackmoor;  heard  the  redbreast,  wren,  and  hedge-sparrow 
too.  Frogs  spawning  in  a  ditch  near  Verity's  house,  at  Pennyfynon, 
(vulgarly  called  Pennyfun,  i.  e.,  found.)  I  never  noticed  this  so  early 
before ;  the  avei'age  period,  according  to  my  observations,  being  from  the 
latter  end  of  February  to  the  middle  of  March.  Gilbert  White's  earliest 
record  is  Feb.  9th." 

The  eggs  are  generally  hatched  in  about  five  weeks  after  being  deposited  ; 
and  before  the  middle  of  April,  we  are  sure  to  obsei've  mj'iiads  of  little 
Tadpoles  wriggling  away  in  every  ditch.  In  this  state  the  Newt  preys  on 
them ;  and  great  numbers  perish,  particularly  in  a  dry  spring,  by  the 
water  evaporating :  so  that,  out  of  1400  eggs,  which  De  Montbeillard  I 
informs  us  a  single  Frog  will  spawn,  perhaps  not  one-sixth  of  that  number 
arrive  at  maturity;  and  these  have  enemies  in  the  shape  of  rats,§  mice, 
snakes,  ducks,  and  many  other  birds,  and  lastly — man,  who,  in  his  ignorance 
of  their  good  services,  will  still  persist  in  destroying  them. 

•  Mag.  Nat.  Hist,  vol.  vi.,  p.  459. 

+  My  caleAdar  indicates  the  winter  of  1851—2  as  haviny  been  a  mild  one. 

*  Diet  Classique  d'  Hist.  Nat.,  vol.  vii.,  p.  495. 
}  Mag.  Nat  Hist,,  vol.  v.,  p.  490. 


8  NOTES  ON   THE   FBOa. 

During  moist,  waiin  nights,  in  July  and  August,  we  may  often  fall  in  with 
great  numbers  of  Frogs  not  larger  than  the  finger-nail ;  at  such  times  they 
quit  the  water  to  see  the  world  on  shore,  and  skip  nimbly  about  the  wet 
grass  in  search  of  food ;  by  this  means  getting  gradually  dispersed.  They 
often  swarm  to  such  an  extent,  as  to  cause  some  people  to  entertain  a 
fallacious  idea  of  their  having  fallen  from  the  clouds. 

"  Greene  Frogs,  ingendered  by  the  seed  of  slime, 
First  without  feete,  then  leggs  assume;  now  strong 
And  apt  to  swimme,  their  hinder  parts  more  long 
Than  are  their  former,  framed  to  skip  and  jump."* 

These  little  creatures  are  ever  full  of  life  and  activity.  I  never  watch  their 
motions  but  with  pleasure,  and  think  how  happy  they  seem.  Then,  again  : 
How  admirably  Divine  Wisdom  has  created  them  for  performing  the  several 
useful  ends  and  functions  of  existence  !  Note  how  wonderfully  the  tongue 
is  framed  for  securing  prey.  A  buzzing  curious  fly,  perhaps,  settles  near; 
and,  before  the  eye  can  detect  any  movement,  it  is  swallowed  by  the  watch- 
ful creature.  How  beautifully  proportioned  are  its  limbs ;  and  how  well 
adapted  for  progression,  both  on  land  and  in  water !  How  gracefully,  and 
with  what  celerity,  it  swims  about;  and  Avhat  extraordinary  leaps  it  can 
make !  Yes :  even  in  this  despised  of  Nature's  work  we  trace  the  lineaments 
of  that  true  perfection  apparent  in  the  humblest  weed,  or  lowest  thing  that 
breathes. 

"  These  are  Thy  glorious  works.  Parent  of  Good ! 
Almighty  !  Thine  this  universal  frame, 
Thus  wondrous  fair!  Thyself  how  wondrous  then! 
Unspeakable !  who  sit'st  above  the  heavens, 
To  us  invisible,  or  dimly  seen 
In  these  Thy  lowest  works ;  yet  these  declare 
Thy  goodness  beyond  thought,  and  power  divine  ! "  + 

(To  he  continued.J 


NOTES  ON  THE  REDBREAST    {ERYTHACA  RUBEOULA.) 

THE  AMATEUR  (FEATHERED)  CHORISTERS, 

DOMESTICATED   IN    THE    CRYSTAL   PALACE,    SYDENHAM. 

BY   WILLIAM    KIDD,    ESQ. 

The  constancy  of  my  love  for  that  truly  amiable  little  fellow,  the  Robin,  is 
no  secret.  I  have  chronicled  personal  anecdotes  out  of  number  of  him  and 
his  tribe;    and  I  have  enjoyed  the  satisfaction   of  seeing  nearly  all  these 

*  Sandy's  Ovid,  ICiO.  +  Milton. 


NOTES   ON   THE    REDBREAST.  0 

^"  pretty  facts  "  going  tlie  round  of  the  English  and  Foreign  Press.  Had 
Master  Bob  only  been  born,  originally,  abroad — I  rejoice  that  he  was  not — 
at  what  a  value  would  he  have  been  rated  !  But,  being  of  English  extraction, 
he,  like  a  prophet,  has  little  honor  accorded  him  in  "  his  own  country." 
Those,  however,  who  love  him,  (no  small  number,)  will  make  up  for  the 
fashionable  apathy  of  the  rest. 

My  object  to-day  is,  to  call  the  special  attention  of  your  readers  to  the 
domestication,  by  self  invitation,  of  a  large  number  of  Robins,  male  and 
female,  in  the  Crystal  Palace,  Sydenham.  No  person  who  has  the  slightest 
partiality — to  say  nothing  about  affection — for  birds,  can  witness 'the  per- 
formances, and  listen  to  the  improvised  snatches  of  song,  in  which  our 
i*ed-breasted  little  friends  take  so  consj)icuous  a  part,  without  the  most 
li^vely  feelings  of  delight.  Enclosed  within  some  twelve  acres  of  glass, — 
enjoying  the  sun,  and  slieltered  from  the  severity  of  the  weather,  here,  no 
doubt,  they  will  live;  and,  if  permitted,  die.  May  that  daj'  be  very  far  distant. 

We  have  now  to  record  the  fact  of  this  Colony  being  perfectly  "  at  home," 
in  this  colossal  building.  They  "nest"  here;  in  the  tropical  trees  and 
rock-work, — in  the  fancifully  and  prettily-suspended  baskets  of  flowers, — in 
the  Creepers  decorating  the  fronts  of  the  galleries, — and  in  other  convenient 
sites.  Wlien  their  young  are  nearly  fledged,  they  are  brought  out  m3^stcri- 
ously,  to  have  a  peep  at  the  moving  mass  of  humanity  beneath  them.  The 
little  families  are  then  regularly  introduced  at  the  dinner- table  ;  and  show, 
at  a  very  tender  age,  much  Epicurean  discrimination  in  their  selection  of 
tid-bits.  No  maiivaise  honte  is  there  about  them.  Oh — no !  Young  and  old 
are  alike  bold  and  independent.  Butter,  sugar,  cheese,  bread,  sponge-cake, 
&c.,  &c  ,  to  all  and  each,  in  turn,  they  do  ample  justice.  Let  me  remark, 
that  "an  example"  is  set  them  in  this  matter,  so  general  and  so  perpetually 
repeated,  that  the  gourmandise  of  Master  Bob  is  only  the  "  natural  conse- 
quence" of  his  keeping  such  companj^.  We  often  look  on,  and  marvel  at  the 
"sayings  and  doings"  perpetrated  at  these  dinner-tables.  Nor  is  our  won- 
der at  all  diminished  as  we  ti'avel  homewards.  We  have  the  scene  vividly 
before  us,  long  after  we  have  reached  our  "  household  gods."  If  the  capa- 
bilities of  eating  and  drinking  were  to  be  contended  for,  as  a  proof  of 
"  national  virtue,"  what  a  "  virtuous  land  "  ours  would  be  ! 

Having  drawn  attention  to  some  of  the  peculiarities  of  our  little 
"  imitative  "  friends,  I  would  now  speak  of  the  melodiovis  harmony  of  their 
iniited  voices, — which,  at  this  particular  season,  (October,)  is  perfectly 
enchanting.  Perched  up  aloft,  each  seems  to  vie  with  his  distant  fellow  in 
filling  the  expansive  building  with  song, — and  such  song  !  Towards  evening, 
they  sing  even  sweeter  still ;  for  they  seem  to  consider  it  an  act  of  pleasing 
duty  to  "  sing  the  visitors  out."  Nor  do  they  scruple  to  mix  among  them, — 
trotting  along  among  the  shrubs,  or  perching  on  the  suspended  baskets  of 
flowers  immediately  over-head, 

B  2 


10  NOTES   ON   THE   REDBREAST. 

I  shall  have  a  good  deal  to  say  to  you,  on  a  future  occasion,  about  what 
might  be  done, — nay,  should  be  done,  in  the  matter  of  adapting  this  spacious 
building  to  the  habitation  of  certain  biids  of  song ;  whicli  would  not  only 
live  there  happily,  but  form  a  great  source  of  attraction  to  visitors  generally. 
At  present,  I  content  myself  with  calling  attention  to  "  the  little  bird  with 
russet  coat,"  whose  livery,  just  now,  is  both  new  and  beautiful.  Man's 
friend  he  surely  is  :  May  man  tender  him  his  friendship  in  return  ! 

Hammersmith,  Oct.  2nd,  1854. 

We  should  observe,  that  the  above  came  to  hand  in  October,  and  was 
apropos  of  the  doings  at  Sydenham  Palace,  at  that  particular  season.  How- 
ever, as  the  same  pleasing  scenes  will  be  again  gone  through  shortly,  and 
with  an  increased  interest,  we  have  preferred  to  record  them  in  the  opening 
number  of  tlie  New  Year. — B.  R.  M. 


NESTING  OF  THE  WATER-OUZEL,  IN  NORFOLK. 

{GINCLUS  AQUATIC  US.) 

BY  G.  B.  TWINN,  ESQ. 

More  than  one  of  the  many  correspondents  of  The  Naturalist,  observing 
my  notice  of  this  bird's  nesting  in  Norfolk,  have  addressed  me  relative 
to  the  circumstance  :  I  therefore  supply  my  stray  notes  for  general  benefit, 
if  approved.  The  Ouzel  is  not  at  all  common  in  the  south  and  east  of 
England,  I  believe ;  yet  doubtless  many  a  one  visits  those  parts,  and  is 
seen  by  some,  who  (in  the  language  of  Mr.  Round,  in  the  November  No., 
page  247)  from  their  occupation  in  the  fields,  however  ignorant,  speaking 
scientifically,  have  still  a  knowledge  of  many  things,  yet  unknown,  perhaps 
to  professors  ;  and  therefore  I  am  one,  not  at  all  sceptical,  when  I  hear  of  a 
strange  bird  appearing  in  a  locality  not  proverbial  for  its  general  presence. 

'Tis  a  good  thing,  I  readilj'  allow,  to  secure  truth  and  corroboration,  and 
supply  facts  from  actual  observation;  thus  I  am  additionally  induced  to 
send  my  "jottings"  to  The  Naturalist.  The  Water-Ouzel,  I  consider,  (with 
many  others,)  "  more  local  than  rare ;  "  and  this  was  the  first  I  had  met  with, 
nesting  in  Norfolk ;  yet  I  think  I  have  not  been  deceived  in  observing  it 
among  the  early  spring  visitants  for  the  last  four  years.  I  am  not  the  only 
person,  who  pronounced  this  nest  an  Ouzel's  ;  for  my  companion,  at  the  time 
of  discovery,  was  one  well  versed  in  nests  and  oology.  I  deem  myself  fully 
justified,  in  placing  this  bird  among  those  that  are  to  be  found  in  the  Eastern 
Counties.     Mr.  Yarrell,  if  I  recollect  aright,  mentions  one  being  seen  at  a 


NESTING   OF   THE    WATER-OUZEL.  11 

water-mill  on  the  Colne,  about  two  or  three  hundred  yards  above  the  place 
at  which  that  river  falls  into  the  Thames  :  also  on  the  Mole,  near  Esher,  and 
in  Essex  it  has  been  met  with.  Mr.  Harper,  of  Norwich,  (in  The  Naturalist, 
vol.  iv.,  p.  165,)  records  a  specimen,  shot  at  Lingwood ;  therefore  I  do  not  con- 
sider it  strange  or  imiDrobable,  that  it  should  be  found  nesting  in  Norfolk ; 
for  amid  that  rural  county,  there  are  so  many  dear  little  village  nooks,  and 
most  of  them  Avatered  by  a  runnel  or  rivulet,  with  beautiful  attendant  foliage, 
that  would  be  most  inviting,  and  adapted  to  the  specific  habits  of  the  Water- 
Ouzel.  Moreover,  I  am  informed,  that  this  is  not  the  first  instance  of  this 
bird's  nesting  in  Norfolk;  though  the  first  in  my  own  experience,  I  readily 
believe  it  is  not  the  first  in  the  county.  A  brief  description  of  the  nest  may 
be  interesting.  It  was  somewhat  similar  to  a  Blackbird's,  one  side  being 
higher  than  the  other ;  it  was  formed  of  more  fibrous  and  rooty  materials 
than  either  Thrush  or  Merle  employs  ;  its  situation  very  low  in  the  matted 
grasses  and  weeds,  at  the  base  of  a  small  hawthorn  hedge,  very  close  to  the 
outer  brickwork  of  a  little  arch,  for  the  beck  or  stream  to  pass  under ;  about 
half-a-mile  distant  from  Bawburgh  hill.  The  nest  was  on  the  inner  side  of 
the  hedge  skirting  to  the  road,  close  by  the  water,  as  will  at  once  be  seen 
from  its  low  position.  I  think  more  green  materials,  as  moss,  and  a  stray 
piece  or  two  of  lichen,  adorned  its  exterior,  than  are  used  by  the  common 
Blackbird.  It  was  a  very  snug  affair;  the  date,  March  31st,  1844,  which 
strikes  me  as  being  peculiarly  early.  I  would  add,  that  not  only  was  the 
nest  plundered  of  its  solitary  egg,  (mentioned  in  my  former  communication,) 
but  it,  itself,  was  utterly  destroyed  ;  a  very  great  regret. 

Instances  of  this  bird  building  a  "  domed "  nest  are  common ;  and  I 
imagine  the  one  side  of  this,  (found  by  me,)  being  a  little  raised,  is  (luite  in 
keeping  with  its  preponderating  habit.  If  I  thus  am  adding  "  a  mite  "  of 
confirmation  to  a  hitherto-unsettled  point,  the  nesting  of  the  Water-Ouzel 
in  Norfolk,  I  shall  feel  I  have  only  done  what  every  student  of  nature  should 
do, — cast  his  share  into  the  public  treasury  for  general  good. 

Note. — Of  the  Water-Ouzel,  it  has  been  Avritten : 

"  Leafy  vale, 
Green  bower,  and  hedge-row  fair,  and  garden  rich 
With  bud  and  blossom,  delight  him  not." 

My  discovery  accords  not  with  this ;  perhaps  it  was  the  exception,  as  the 
"  hedge-row  fair  "  was  selected. 
Birmingliam,  Nov.  lOth,  1854. 


12 
NOTES  OX  THE  FERNS  FOUND  NEAR  WOOL-BRIDGE,  DORSET. 

BY   JOHN    E.   DANIEL,   ESQ. 

Having,  during  tlie  last  summer,  collected  a  number  of  that  beautiful  class 
of  plants.  Ferns,  I  venture  to  send  you  a  list  of  tliose  found  in  this  imme- 
diate neighbourhood ;  and  though  I  cannot  presume  to  say  it  is  perfect,  it 
will  be  found,  I  trust,  correct  as  far  as  it  goes,  and  may  serve  as  the  basis  of 
a  more  extended  catalogue  of  the  Ferns  of  this  district. 

The  nomenclature  is  that  of  Newman's  "  History  of  British  Ferns,"  Van 
Voorst,  1854. 

Blcchnum  spicant,  Hard  Fern,  is  abundant  in  woods,  hedge-rows,  and  by 
tlie  hedge-banks  of  small  streams.  It  is  most  luxuriant,  especially  if  grow- 
ing in  a  heathy  soil,  well  shadowed  by  trees,  whence  I  have  gathered  fertile 
fronds  thirty  inches  in  length.  Both  fronds  occasionally  produce  abnormal 
forms,  by  having  the  apex  more  or  less  deeply  bilid;  bvit  a  single  specimen 
which  I  have  obtained  of  a  fertile  frond,  has  about  four  inches  of  the  apex 
of  a  frond  proceeding  from  it,  at  almost  a  right  angle,  about  two-thirds  of  its 
length  from  the  caudex. 

Eupteris  aquilina,  Eagle's-Wing  or  Common  Brake,  is  ubiquitous;  occasion- 
ally, in  woods  and  hedge-rows,  attaining  the  enormous  height  of  from  ten  to 
twelve  feet. 

Ctenopteris  Vulgaris,  Common  Polypody.  When  growing  from  an  old  pol- 
lard tree,  its  fronds  hanging  dowuv/ards,  few  things  appear  more  beautiful; 
but  not  only  there  need  we  look  for  it,  but  we  shall  find  it  growing  from  old 
walls,  roofs  of  houses,  and  banks.  My  observations  this  yeax,  have  shown 
me  how  very  susceptible  it  is  of  either  frost  or  droughts,  in  the  earlier 
stages  of  its  growth.  The  late  frosts  of  this  spring  punished  it  most 
severely,  and  the  want  of  moisture  during  the  summer,  in  exposed  situa- 
tions, was  equally  prejudicial.  It  is  still  vised,  about  here,  as  an  emollient 
tea  for  coughs  and  catarrhs. 

Qymnocarpium  pliegopteris,  Beech  Fern,  is  reported  to  be  found  in  some 
part  of  the  plantations  surrounding  Heflleton  House.  A  very  likely  place, 
but  I  have  not  been  successful  in  finding  it  there. 

CystojJteris  fragilis,  Brittle  Fern.  Old  churches  in  Dorsetshire,  is  given 
by  Newman,  as  a  station  for  this  most  interesting  little  plant ;  and  I  have 
some  specimens,  found  by  myself,  growing  on  a  bank,  near  a  wood,  six 
inches  long. 

PohjsLichum  aculeatum,  Prickly  Fern,  always  appears  to  me  to  recall  the 
head-dress  of  aboriginal  Indians,  that  is,  a  corona  of  feathers.  And  how 
beautiful  is  the  vernation.  Was  the  form  of  the  Bishop's  crozicr  taken  from 
it?  In  our  hedges  and  woods  it  is  abundant,  and  appears  to  be  not  unfre- 
queutly  subject  to  an  abnormal  formation. 


NOTES   ON    FERNS   FOUND   NEAB  WOOL-BRIDGE.  18 

'  Pohjstichum  angulare,  Willdenow's  Fern,  is  also  found  here;  and  my  atten- 
tion was  first  called  to  it  by  Mrs.  Sliipp,  of  Wareliam. 

Hemestheum  thehjpetris.  Marsh  Fern,  is  said  to  be  found  on  Poole  Heath. 

Lastrea  montana,  Mountain  Fern,  may,  I  believe,  be  pronounced  rare  abont 
here.  There  is  a  small  stream  running  through  a  portion  of  Wool  Heath, 
and  on  the  banks  of  this  there  are  two  plants  growing,  the  only  ones  that  I 
am  aware  of.  The  length  of  the  fronds  varied  from  eighteen  to  twenty-four 
inches. 

LophocUum  Fcenesecii,  Bree's  Fern,  is  to  be  constantly  met  with  in  damp 
woods  and  hedge-rows ;  certainly  one  of  our  most  beautiful  fei'ns;  but  it  will 
bear  very  little  exposure  or  handling  until  dried,  as  it  withers  very  speedily 
after  being  gathered. 

Lophodium  multiflorum,  Roth's  Fern.  This  also,  I  think,  may  be  pronounc- 
ed with  safety  to  be  found  here ;  but  in  this  genus,  the  species  appear  to  me 
to  run  so  much  the  one  into  the  other,  that  I  speak  with  great  caution  of  this 
and 

Lophodium  spinosum,  Withering's  Fern,  which  a  friend  has  announced  from 
specimens  in  my  collection,  as  also, 

Lophodium  rigidum,  Rigid  Fern,  which  appears  to  be  quite  local,  having 
only  found  specimens  on  one  bank,  in  a  damp  boggy  meadow  on  Wool-Bridge 
farm. 

Dryopteris  Jilix  mas,  Male  Fern,  is  everywhere  abundant,  more  especially 
the  common  form;  but  I  have  also  had  the  gratification  of  finding  the 
variety 

D.  f.  m.  affinis,  in  a  wood  at  East  Lulworth.  There  Avere  only  four  or 
five  plants  clustered  near  each  other,  so  far  as  I  could  discover.  I  have  also 
specimens  of  one  other  variety,  which  does  not  answer  to  any  description 
either  in  Newman  or  Moore.    Abnormal  forms  are  occasionally  met  with. 

Athyrium  Jilix  frnnina,  Lady  Fern.  This  elegant  and  delicate  plant  is  con- 
stantly to  be  seen,  and  although  the  forms  may  occasionally  slightly  vaiy, 
I  have  been  unable  to  mark  them  as  distinct  varieties.  This  and  the  two 
preceding  genera,  as  also  the  Eupteris  aquilina,  are  indifferently  cut  and 
dried  by  the  peasantry,  to  be  used  as  litter  for  their  pigs  and  cattle,  where 
they  have  any. 

As2'>lenium  adiantum  nigrum,  Black  Spleenwort,  is  not  so  abundant  as 
many ;  but  it  is  still  to  be  met  Avith  in  considerable  abundance  in  hedges 
and  old  buildings.     The  finest  specimens  from  Bindon  Abbey. 

Asplenium  marimim.  Sea  Spleenwort,  is  occasionally  found  on  the  clifis, 
facing  the  sea ;  but  the  only  rock,  to  my  own  knowledge,  is  Tilly  Whim, 
Swanage  ;  and  the  plant,  in  growth,  more  resembles  Newman's  figure,  mark- 
ed "  the  Liverpool  plant,"  but  which  is  veiy  different  in  size  and  the  shape 
of  the  pinnfE  from  plants  which  the  Rev.  Walter  Kendal  procured  for  me, 
from  Budleigh  Salterton,  Devon. 


14  NOTES   ON   FERNS   FOUND   NEAB   WOOL-BIIIDGE. 

Asplen'mm  trichomanes,  MaiJen-liair  Spleenwort,  is  in  great  abundance  at 
Bindon  Abbey ;  and  is  rarely  to  be  found  on  a  bank  by  tbe  roadside,  which 
runs  through  a  wood  near  Lulworth  Castle. 

Amesium  rata  mtiraria,  Wall-rue.  This  unobtrusive,  but  pretty  little  fern, 
seems  to  be  generally  distributed  through  the  country;  the  rocks  at  Portland, 
and  churches  and  old  walls  generally ;  seldom  exceeding  two  inches  and  a 
half  in  length. 

PhyUitis  scolopendrium,  Hart's  Tongue  Fern,  of  course,  makes  a  prominent 
feature  in  eveiy  landscape ;  but  so  far  as  my  slight  experience  goes,  this  dis- 
trict appears  remarkably  rich  in  the  forms  '*  lobatum,"  "  multifidum,"  and 
•'  laceratum,"  of  Moore ;  more  rarely,  "  crispum."  And  from  Blandford,  I 
have  seen  some  nice,  but  small  specimens  of  "  ramosum,"  of  the  same  author. 
The  villagers  call  it  "  Fire  leave  plant,"  and  consider  it  excellent  to  apply  to 
burns  and  wounds  arising  from  them. 

Notolepeum  ceterach,  Scaly  Spleenwort.  On  a  wall  sui-rounding  the  lawn 
of  Wool-Bridge  house,  are  vast  quantities  of  "  Amesium  ruta  muraria,"  and 
amongst  it  is  one  solitary  plant  of  the  Ceterach ;  during  this  dry  summer,  it 
was  quite  dried  up,  but  is  now  again  green  and  vigorous.  It  is  said  to  be 
abundant  on  Bere  Regis  Church. 

Botrychium  lunaria,  Moonwort,  is  occasionally  found  on  the  heaths  in  the 
neighbourhood,  as  Poole  and  Wareham,  &c. 

Ophioglossum  vulgatum,  Adder's  tongue,  is  to  be  found  in  considerable 
abundance  at  Bindon  Abbey,  and  Stoke  Meadows. 

Osmunda  regalis,  Flowering  Fern,  is  also  in  considerable  abundance  in  the 
damp  boggy  meadows  leading  from  Wool  to  Stoke,  Wool-Bridge  farm,  and 
Highwood,  near  a  pond.  This  year,  a  second  series  of  fruitful  fronds  were 
thrown  up,  in  August.     Is  not  this  unusual  ? 


NOTES  ON  THE  BOTANY  OF  NORTH  LANCASHIRE. 


One  lovely  afternoon,  towards  the  close  of  the  last  month,  I  paid  a  visit 
to  the  romantic  locality  of  Nicky  Nook  ;  a  hill  well  known,  and  of 
considerable  eminence,  situated  about  thi-ee  miles  N.N.E.  from  Garstang. 
The  object  of  my  visit  was,  to  investigate  the  wild  plants  in  the  neighbour- 
hood, coupled  with  a  strong  desire  to  revisit  the  cherished  scenes  of 
boyhood. 

On  the  southern  side  of  the  hill  runs  a  deep  narrow  valley,  through 
which  a  small  stream  wends  its  tortuous  and  noisy  course ;  forming,  on  its 
way,  numerous  pools  and  swamps ;  situations  highly  favourable  for  the 
growth  of  those  rare  plants  so  interesting  to  the  botanist.     The  scenery  of 


NOTES   ON    THE   BOTANY   OF  NORTH   LANCASHIRE.  15 

this  delightful  glen  is  at  all  times  beautiful  and  picturesque;  such  as  a 
lover  of  nature  delights  to  contemplate,  or  the  painter  and  poet  to  pourtray ; 
but  at  the  season  of  my  visit  it  was  rendered  highly  so,  as  its  entire  surface 
was  all  but  clothed  with  a  rich  profusion  of  wild  flowers,  the  most  con- 
spicuous of  which  were  those  of  the  heath  and  hair-bell, — 

"  Oh;  where  is  the  flower  that  content  may  tell, 
Like  the  laughing,  the  nodding,  and  dancing  hair-hell ! " — 

whilst  the  air  was  perfumed  with  the  fragrance  of  the  wild  thyme,  that 
grows  there  is  great  abundance. 

On  entei-ing  the  valley,  at  the  foot  of  an  old  wall,  I  met  with  that  elegant 
moss,  Dicraniim  Dillenii,  and  near  it,  Dicranuvi  palustre ;  the  latter  not  in 
fruit.  A  little  further  on,  amidst  a  dense  mass  of  Bog  Moss,  (Sphagnum 
obtusifoliumj  bloomed  the  pretty  little  Ivy-leaved  Bell-flower;  (Campanula 
hederacea;)  and  with  it,  its  delicate  companion,  the  Bog  Pimpernel;  (Ana- 
gallis  tenella ;)  also  tlie  trailing  stems  of  the  Cranberry  (  Vaccinium  Oxycoccos) 
were  there,  intertwining  with  that  singular  plant,  the  Sundew,  (Drosera 
rotumlifoUa.) 

"  Mid  the  wild  moor,  or  silent  glen, 
The  Sundew  blooms,  unseen  by  men; 
Spreads  there  her  leaf  of  rosy  hue, 
A  chalice  for  the  morning  dew." 

A  dry,  sandy  bank  was  ornamented  with  a  few  plants  of  the  Carline 
Thistle,  (Carlina  vulgaris.)  This  plant  was  rendered  famous,  from  a  Avell- 
known  tradition,  that  the  root  was  pointed  out  by  an  angel  to  Charlemagne, 
as  a  remedy  for  the  plague  that  prevailed  in  his  arm3^ 

"  Hypericum,  too,  was  there — the  herb  of  war — 
Pierced  through  with  wounds,  and  mark'd  with  many  a  scar." 

Many  of  the  pools  were  fringed  round  with  Bartramia  fontana,  Bryum 
palustre,  the  Arrow  grass,  (Triglochin palustre,)  Gij^sy-Avort,  {Lycopus  Europcais,) 
and  the  small  Willow-herb,  {Einlobium  palustre.)  At  a  little  distance  from 
the  margin  of  the  stream  were  scattered,  here  and  there,  Veronica  scutellata, 
with  small  clumps  of  Onaphalium  dioicum.  Higher  up  the  vale,  upon  a  dry 
bank,  I  picked  up  a  large  specimen  of  a  common  Mushroom,  {Agaricus 
campestris.)  measuring,  in  circumference,  twenty-five  inches ;  near  to  which, 
I  also  gathered,  Polytrichum  commune,  Polytriahum  formosum,  and  Polytrichum 
juniperinum.  The  stones  within,  and  near  to  Leather-coat  Wood,  which 
terminates  the  valley,  were  invested  with  Hypnum  plumosum,  Hypnum  ruta- 
bulum,  Hypnum  rusci/oUum,  Bryum  pnnctatum,  Trichostomum  aciculare,  and 
Tricliostomum  fasciculare.  In  the  wood  I  also  met  with  that  stately  plant 
the  broad-leaved  Heleborine,  {Epiimctis  latifoUa,)  along  with  the  Sweet 
Woodruff,  (Asperula  odorata,)  among  which  the  scarlet  berries  of  the  Arum 
macuhitum  were  conspicuous  objects. 


J 6  NOTES  ON  THE  BOTANY  OF  NORTH  LANCASHIRE. 

I  got  to  the  head  of  the  valley,  just  as  the  shades  of  evening  were  silently- 
stealing  over  the  landscape.  Every  sound  was  hushed,  save  the  murmuring 
of  the  little  brook,  and  the  sighing  of  the  gentle  breeze,  as  it  swept  over 
the  heath  and  brake.  It  was  a  fitting  time  and  place  for  the  mind  to  hold 
communion  with  its  Maker,  and  realize  those  lofty  feelings  so  beautifully 
alluded  to,  in  the  following  lines  : — 

"Trees,  tind  flowers,  and  streams, 
Are  social  and  benevolent;  and  he 
Who  oft  communetb  in  their  language  pure, 
Eoaming  among  them  at  the  close  of  day, 
Shall  find,  like  him  who  Eden's  garden  drcst, 
His  Maker  there,  to  teach  liis  listening  heart." 

Septemher  SOth,  1854. 


The  Heart's  Proper  Element;  or,  How  to  Keep  a  Healthy  Pulse.     By  William 
KiDD,  of  Hammersmith.     London :  Groombridge  and  Sons.   Price  Is. 

Mr.  Kidd  may  select  what  title  he  pleases  for  his  elegant  little  Book;  but 
Nature  will  show  herself,  and  without  intending  to  write  directly  upon 
Natural  History,  his  inherent  love  for  that  healthy  amusement,  most  valu- 
able for  both  body  and  mind,  will  peep  out.  In  the  fifth  chapter  of  this 
little  work,  when  speaking  of  the  "  beautiful  harmonies  of  our  globe,"  he 
thus  writes:  "other  tribes,  despising  vegetables,  are  adapted  to  the  elements; 
to  day,  to  night,  to  tempests,  and  to  the  different  parts  of  the  globe.  The 
eagle  confides  her  nest  to  the  rock,  ^\%ich  is  lost  in  the  cloud.  The  ostrich, 
to  the  burning  sands  of  the  desert;  and  the  rose  colored  flamingo,  to  the 
mud  of  the  southern  ocean.  The  white  bird  of  the  tropics,  and  the  black 
man-of-war  bird,  delight  to  sweep  in  company  over  the  expansive  bosom  of 
the  ocean ;  to  behold,  from  the  lofty  regions  of  the  atmosphere,  the  fleets  of 
India  sailing  beneath  them,  and  to  encircle  the  globe  from  east  to  west, 
rivalling  in  rapidity  the  course  of  the  sun  himself.  In  the  same  latitude, 
the  turtle-dove,  and  the  parrot,  (less  daring,)  travel  only  from  island  to 
island,  with  their  young  ones  in  their  irain  ;  picking  up  in  their  forests,  the 
seeds  of  the  spice-trees,  which  they  shake  down  from  branch  to  branch. 
While  these  birds  preserve  an  equal  temperature  under  the  same  latitudes, 
others  find  it  by  following  the  same  meridian.  Long  triangles  of  wild- 
geese  and  swans  go  and  come,  every  year,  from  south  to  north,  stopping 


BEVIEW.  17 

only  at  the  hoary  limits  of  winter.  They  pass  without  astonishment,  over 
the  populous  cities  of  Europe,  and  look  down  with  disdain  on  their  fertile 
fields,  which  present  furrows  of  green  corn  in  the  midst  of  snow.  So  much 
does  liberty  appear  preferable  to  abundance,  even  in  the  eyes  of  animals  !  " 
We  have  not  space  for  more  extracts,  but  we  cordially  recommend  this 
little  volume  to  our  readers.  They  will  find  some  wholesome  truths  in  it, 
and  the  shilling  spent  in  its  purchase  will  be  money  well  laid  out.  Mr.  Kidd 
ought  to  be,  and  we  trust  is,  a  happy  man ;  he  deserves  it,  for  he  labours 
hard  to  make  others  so  too,  and,  we  believe,  not  without  a  large  measure  of 
success. 


|r0mMngs  0f  Si^netits. 


PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  NATURAL  HISTORY  SOCIETY 
OF  GLASGOW.— SESSION,  1854-55. 

.  July  UTi.  The  Annual  General  Meeting  was  held  this  evening,  Dr.  Col- 
QUHOUN  occupied  the  Chair.  After  the  usual  routine  business,  Mr.  William 
Fekguson,  of  London,  was  unanimously  elected  an  honoraiy  member. 

The  meeting  then  proceeded  to  elect  Office-bearers  and  Council  for  the  en- 
suing year,  when  the  following  gentlemen  were  elected  to  fill  the  respective 
offices : 

Mr.  James  P.  Fraser,  F.  G.  S.,  President. 
Mr.  Roger  Hennedy,  Vice-President. 
Mr.  John  Gray,  Secretary. 
Mr.  Robert  Gray,  Treasurer. 

Messrs.  William  Gocrue,  Thomas  Gray,  and  Dr.  Colquhoun, 
Members  of  the  Council. 
On  the  motion  of  the  Chairman,  a  cordial  vote  of  thanks  was  passed  to  the 
retiring  Office-bearers,  in  which  the  meeting  desired  specially  to  acknow- 
ledge their  obligations,  as  a  Society,  to  Mr.  Fraser,  their  late  Secretary,  for 
his  untiring  zeal  and  successful  endeavours  in  promoting  its  interests,  and 
in  contributing  in  so  many  ways  to  the  general  prosperity  of  the  society  at 
large. 

The  meeting  then  adjourned  to  the  first  Tuesday  in  August. 

August  \st.  The  ordinary  Monthly  Meeting  was  held  this  evening,  the 
President  occupying  the  Chair.  The  Minutes  of  last  meeting  were  read 
and  approved  of. 


18  PROCEEDINGS  OF  SOCIETIES. 

Mr.  Kennedy  exhibited  some  specimens  of  Enteromorpha  intestinalis,  from 
the  Paisley  canal,  in  general,  a  littoral  species ;  but  in  this  instance  some- 
what remarkable,  from  its  inland  habitat. 

Mr.  Robertson  exhibited  a  specimen  of  Desmarestia  herhacea,  collected 
floating  near  Moville,  Ireland,  by  his  friend,  Mr.  Sawers.  Mr.  Sawers  re- 
marks, that,  in  a  letter  received  from  Mrs.  Griffiths,  Torquay,  concerning  this 
species,  he  is  informed  that  Agardh  had  pronounced  this  i)lant,  after  com- 
parison with  Russian  specimens,  to  be  undoubtedly  D.  herhacea,  though  the 
foreign  specimens  were  much  larger,  and  the  lateral  frondlets  more  fully 
developed. 

Mr.  Robert  Gray  then  stated  to  the  meeting,  on  the  authority  of  his  friend, 
Mr.  Sinclair,  the  occurrence  of  Larus  eburneus,  at  Ailsa  Craig.  As,  however, 
no  specimens  had  been  shot,  the  secretary  remarked,  that  such  statements 
coming  before  the  society  should  be  received  with  the  usual  caution,  till  an 
opportunity  of  verifying  the  fact,  by  examination,  should  occur. 

The  honorary  president,  Dr.  Scouler,  of  Dublin,  then  read  a  Paper  on  the 
Structure  of  the  Teeth  and  Jaws  of  the  Fossil  Fishes  of  the  Cartilaginous 
Order.  He  opened  the  subject  by  giving  an  outline  of  the  history  of  the 
Ganoid  fishes,  both  living  and  fossil.  "  The  order  of  Ganoids  of  Agassiz,"  he 
remarked,  "is  equivalent  to  cartilaginous  fishes,  with  the  exclusion  of  the 
Acipenseres  or  Sturgeons,  which  have  been  removed  by  Agassiz  from  the 
class  of  cartilaginous  fishes,  and  placed  near  the  Siluroids,  with  which  they 
appear  to  have  many  ailinities.  From  the  cartilaginous  natui-e  of  their 
bones,  it  is  very  rarely  that  any  portion  of  the  skeletons  of  Ganoid  fishes  is 
found  in  a  fossil  state.  On  the  other  hand,  their  teeth  and  spines  occur  in 
great  abundance,  and  by  the  aid  of  a  knowledge  of  existing  species,  afford 
means  of  classifying  them  according  to  their  affinities.  The  Placoid  fishes 
are  arranged  under  the  orders  of  Petromyzons  or  Lampreys,  of  which  no 
fossil  species  have  yet  been  found; — the  Sharks,  the  Rays,  and  the  Chi- 
mseras,  of  which  numerous  remains  are  found  in  the  strata  of  every  age.  In 
common  with  other  classes  of  extinct  animals,  they  appear  to  be  regulated 
by  certain  laws  of  distribution.  The  Chimaeras  are  not  found  in  the  older 
fossilliferous  strata,  but  chiefly  in  the  newer  secondaiy  and  the  tertiary. 
A  similar  law,  upon  the  whole,  holds  good  with  regard  to  the  Rays  or  flat 
cartilaginous  fishes.  The  order  of  succession  in  these  fishes  is,  however, 
better  seen  in  the  succession  of  the  diff'erent  divisions  of  the  great  family  of 
Squalids  or  Sharks.  The  Sharks  are  divided  into  three  groups,  viz.,  the  Ces- 
tracean,  with  flat  teeth  for  bruising  their  food ;  the  Hypodonts,  with  com- 
pressed and  obtuse  teeth;  and  the  true  Sharks,  with  sharp  cutting  teeth. 
The  Cestraceans  are  veiy  abundant  in  the  carboniferous  limestone  and  coal 
formation ;  they  then  disappear,  and,  at  present,  we  have  only  one  living 
representative  of  this  division— the  New  Holland  Shark.  In  this  respect, 
the  Cestraceans  resemble  the  Cephalopods  with  chambered  shells,  which 


raOCEEDINGS   OF   SOCIETIES.  19 

were  so  abundant  in  former  ages,  and  of  which  we  find  very  few  species  at 
present  in  existence.  The  Hypodonts,  with  compressed  and  obtuse  teeth, 
are  found  in  the  newer  secondary  strata,  and  have  now  completely  dis- 
appeared, leaving  no  representative.  On  the  (iontrary,  the  true  Sharks,  with 
■  sharp  teeth,  were  veiy  rare  in  the  older  formations,  and  increase  in  numbers 
as  we  ascend  to  the  present  epoch." 

The  Doctor  then  observed,  that  the  statement  of  Agassiz,  that  all  the 
fishes  of  the  older  strata  were  heterocercal,  that  is,  that  the  caudal  vertebraa 
were  prolonged  to  the  extremity  of  the  tail,  did  not  appear  to  be  entitled  to 
the  importance  which  has  been  assigned  to  it.  As  a  general  statement,  it  was 
valuable  as  a  guide  to  the  practical  ichthyologist ;  and  had  the  same  import- 
ance as  the  fact  that  no  deciduous  horned  ruminant  is  found  in  Africa,  or  that 
prehensile  tailed  monkeys  are  found  only  in  America.  As  a  philosophical 
generalisation  it  was  very  unimportant.  Thus  the  cartilaginous  fishes  of  the 
present  day  are  as  heterocercal  as  those  of  the  coal  formation ;  and  in  the 
modern  Batrachians,  the  deciduous  tail  of  the  Frog,  and  the  persistent  one 
of  the  Salamander,  did  not,  in  like  manner,  appear  of  much  consequence. 
Even  in  the  higher  Mammifers,  it  is  found  that  some  of  the  bats  have  per- 
sistent tails,  while  in  others  that  organ  had  disappeared. 

After  some  conversation  among  the  membei'S,  and  a  vote  of  thanks  passed 
to  Dr.  Scouler,  for  his  highly  instructive  Lecture,  of  which  the  above  is  a 
mere  outline,  the  meeting  adjourned  to  the  first  Tuesday  in  September. 

Sept.  Mh.  The  ordinaiy  Monthly  Meeting  of  the  Society  was  held  this 
evening,  Mr.  Fbasee,  President,  in  the  Chair. 

The  Minutes  of  last  meeting  having  been  approved  of,  Mr.  Godrlie  stated 
to  the  meeting  the  fact  of  a  rare  sea-weed,  Cystoseira  ericoides,  having  been 
collected  by  him  at  Ayr-heads.  Though,  hitherto,  rare  in  Scotland,  this 
plant  he  found  not  unfrequently,  during  the  months  of  July  and  August 
last,  on  this  part  of  the  west  coast,  apparently  drifted  away  from  its  neigh- 
boui'ing  habitats. 

Mr.  Duncan  exliibited  specimens  of  Cuscuta  epithymum,  collected  by  himself 
at  Barrhill,  near  Kirkintilloch,  hitherto  apparently  unnoticed  in  Scotland. 
It  was  found,  as  usual,  parasitical  on  the  flax,  on  which  plant,  Di*.  Scouler 
remarked,  it  was  found  in  great  plenty  in  Germany.  Mr.  Duncan  also  men- 
tioned his  having  collected  Sagittaria  sagittifolia  in  plenty,  on  the  coast  near 
Inchinnan  Bridge. 

The  Secretary  then  exhibited  several  species  of  the  genus  Pontia,  Fab., 
illustrative  of  the  geographical  distribution  of  these  butterflies,  and  of  the 
generic  similarity  in  the  species  of  various  latitudes. 

Dr.  Scouler  then  gave  a  Lecture  on  the  vertebral  development  of  the 
cranium.  He  stated,  that  about  the  commencement  of  the  present  century, 
the  idea,  that  the  cranium  is  comjDosed  of  a  series  of  vertebraj,  occurred  ta 


20  PROCEEDINGS   OF   SOCIETIES'. 

several  anatomists  ;  but  the  theory  was,  for  the  first  time,  carried  out  in  all 
its  details,  by  Okcn,  and  since  his  views  were  promulgated,  we  have  had  as 
many  theories  as  writers.  The  object  of  Dr.  Scouler's  Lecture  was,  to  ex- 
hibit what  appeared  to  him  the  difficulties  which  opposed  themselves  to  the 
vertebral  theory ;  and  in  doing  so,  he  observed,  in  the  first  place,  that  there 
ensued  the  greatest  discrepancy  among  the  defenders  of  the  vertebral  theory 
as  to  the  number  of  vertebrae  of  which  the  cranium  is  composed, — some  con- 
tending for  three,  while  others  increase  their  number  to  seven.  Wliatever 
number  we  may  assume,  there  is  one  objection  which  may  be  made  to  them 
all,  viz.,  that  the  number  of  bony  elements  is  not  invariable  in  the  crania  of 
animals, — some  having  more,  some  fewer  distinct  bones.  Thus  the  bones  of 
the  operculum  are  found  only  in  fishes ;  and  even  the  number  of  opercular 
bones  is  not  the  same  in  all  fishes, — the  numerous  family  of  Siluroids  hav- 
ing only  three,  while  the  greater  number  of  fishes  have  four.  Even  the 
same  bone  performs  different  functions  in  different  animals.  Thus  the 
squamous  portion  of  the  temporal  in  man,  protects  a  part  of  the  brain,  and 
in  him  must  be  a  portion  of  a  cranial  vertebra  ;  while  in  the  inferior  animals 
it  is  excluded  from  that  function.  In  like  manner  the  mastoid,  which  is  a 
portion  of  the  temporal  in  man,  becomes  unimportant  in  the  inferior  ani- 
mals ;  while  on  the  other  hand,  we  find  in  them  a  mastoid  which  is  a  portion 
of  the  occipital. 

The  Doctor  further  objected,  that  the  brain  differed  from  the  spinal  mar- 
row, not  only  in  its  greater  size,  but  also  by  containing  many  parts  which  do 
not  exist  in  any  portion  of  the  spinal  marrow ;  nor  is  it  legitimate  to  sup- 
pose, that  there  should  be  no  corresponding  difference  in  the  composition  of 
the  bony  protecting  parts.  The  nerves  which  proceed  from  the  spine  are 
merely  motive  and  sensitive,  while  from  the  brain  proceed  also  olfactory, 
optic,  and  acoustic  nerves ;  and  all  the  bony  parts  which  protect  these  must 
be  excluded  from  the  composition  of  a  vertebra.  When  these  parts  are  ab- 
stracted, it  will  be  difficult  to  construct  a  series  of  cranial  vertebrae. 

Even  the  spinal  vertebrae  themselves,  to  which  we  have  to  assimilate  the 
cranial  ones,  present  many  difficulties  in  the  way  of  this  theoiy,  for  the 
number  of  bony  elements  vai'ies  in  the  spinal  vertebrae  in  different  animals, 
and  even  in  the  same  animal  the  composition  of  a  vertebra  differs  in  dif- 
ferent parts  of  the  spinal  column. 

Business  being  concluded,  a  vote  of  thanks  was  passed  to  Dr.  Scouler,  and 
the  meeting  adjourned  to  October. 

Oct.  5rd.  The  ordinaiy  Monthly  Meeting  was  held  this  evening,  J.  P. 
Fbaseb,  Esq.,  F.  G.  S.,  President,  in  the  Chair. 

On  the  conclusion  of  the  opening  business,  the  President,  with  much 
feeling,  announced  to  the  members  the  sudden  removal,  by  death,  of  one  of 
theii-  corresponding  members,  Dr.  Landsborough,  of  Saltcoats.   "  Gentlemen, 


y      PROCEEDINGS   OF   SOCIETIES.  21 

before  we  proceed  to  the  proper  business  of  the  evening,  it  becomes  my 
painful  duty  to  notice  the  loss,  by  death,  of  one  of  our  corresponding  mem- 
bers, well  known  for  his  scientific  attainments,  who  was  a  highly  valued 
friend  Avith  many  of  us,  and  whose  name  was  familiar  to  all  of  us. 

"  Dr.  Landsborough  was  born  in  Dahy  in  Galloway,  in  the  year  1781, 
and  was  oi*dained  minister  of  Stevenston  in  1811.  During  the  period  of  his 
ministry  there,  he  employed  his  leisure  hours  in  studying  the  natural  his- 
tory of  his  parish,  and  published  a  Paper  entitled,  '  The  Natural  History  of 
Stevenston  and  the  Shores  of  Ardrossan.'  He  continued  minister  of  Steven- 
ston until  the  disi-uption  of  the  Church  of  Scotland  in  1843;  and  since  that 
period,  he  has  filled  the  pulpit  as  Free  Church  minister  of  Saltcoats. 

"  During  the  long  period  of  his  active  and  very  useful  life.  Dr.  Lands- 
borough  contributed  largely  to  the  progress  of  the  different  subjects  which 
he  studied,  by  various  jjapers  and  popular  works ;  and  though  the  laborious 
duties  of  a  faithful  minister  of  the  Gospel  allowed  him  little  leisure  for  the 
active  pursuits  of  science,  I  cannot  allow  this  occasion  to  pass  without  pay- 
ing a  tribute  to  his  virtues,  and  to  the  ardent — I  may  say  enthusiastic — in- 
terest he  took  in  the  advancement  of  natural  history.  He  exhibited,  also, 
the  influence  of  that  kindly  and  social  feeling  which,  in  a  minister  of  the 
Gospel,  may  sometimes  become,  in  its  indirect  influence,  scarcely  of  less 
importance  than  the  instruction  he  may  directly  communicate. 

(To  he  cont'mued.J 


ROYAL  PHYSICAL  SOCIETY  OF  EDINBURGH. 

The  first  Meeting  of  this  Society  for  this,  its  Eighty-Fourtli  Session,  was 
held  in  the  Institution  Rooms,  York  Place,  on  the  evening  of  Wednesday, 
the  22ud  November,  1854  — Hugh  Miller,  Esq.,  in  the  Chair. 

The  following  Donations  to  the  Library  were  presented,  and  thanks  voted 
to  their  respective  Donors  : 

1.  Proceedings  of  the  Royal  Society  of  London,  parts  1  and  2  of  vol.  vii. 
From  the  Society.  2.  Anatomical  and  Physiological  Observations  :  By  John 
Struthers,  M.D. :  from  the  Author,  3.  On  the  Occurrence  of  Cinchonaceous 
Glands  in  Galiaceoe:  Bj^  George  Lawson,  F.B.S.E.:  from  the  Author. 

Mr.  Mir.LEE,  as  the  retiring  President,  then  delivered  an  opening  Address, 
after  which. 

Professor  Fleming  moved  a  vote  of  thanks  to  Mr.  Miller,  which  was 
unanimously  agreed  to,  for  the  very  able  and  beautiful  exposition  of  the 
present  state  of  our  knowledge  of  the  geology  of  Scotland  they  had  just 
heard,  which  he  trusted  they  would  be  favoured  with  in  a  more  permanent 


2S  PROCEEDINGS   OF   SOCIETIES. 

form.  The  Professor  also  alluded  to  the  great  loss  our  Society,  and  science 
in  general,  had  sustained  in  the  death  of  Professor  Forbes. 

The  second  communication  was  a  "  Notice  of  an  Interesting  Habit,  stated 
to  have  been  observed  of  one  of  the  Woodpeckers  in  California."  By 
Andrew  Mun-ay,  Esq. 

Dr.  Lowe  moved  that  the  thanks  of  the  Society  should  be  given  to  Mr. 
William  Murray,  San  Francisco,  not  only  for  the  facts  contained  in  the 
curious  communication  Avhich  had  just  been  read  by  Mr.  A.  Murray,  but 
also  for  the  various  services  he  had,  from  time  to  time,  rendered  to  the 
cause  of  physical  science  in  general,  making  many  of  our  naturalists  ac- 
quainted with  the  varied  natural  productions  of  that  distant  land.  The 
motion  was  unanimously  agreed  to,  and  Mr.  Mun-ay  was  requested  to  convey 
to  his  brother  the  best  thanks  of  the  Society. 

The  next  was  a  "  Verbal  Notice  of  the  Lepidopterous  captures  during  the 
past  season."  By  William  H.  Lowe,  M.  D.,  Convener  of  the  Entomological 
Committee. 

The  fourth  communication  was,  a  "  Notice  of  the  Scops  Eared  Owl,  Scops 
Aldrovandi,  Will.  Orn.  Shot  in  Sutherlandsliire  (the  specimen  was  exliibit- 
ed)."    By  John  Alex.  Smith,  M.D. 

Mr.  Mubray  then  read  an  extract  of  a  letter  he  had  received  from  Sir 
William  Jardine  announcing  a  capture  of  the  Ivory  Gull;  "  I  have  received 
this  week,"  Sir  William  says,  "  a  beautiful  specimen  of  the  Ivory  Gull,  Larus 
eburneus,  shot  at  Thrumster,  county  Caithness,  while  skimming  over  some 
marshy  pools.  It  was  procured  by  Mr.  Robert  Shearer,  Borrowston  near 
Wick,  and  kindly  sent  to  me  by  that  gentleman,  who  has  therefore  added 
another  specimen  to  the  two  or  three  which  are  known  to  have  been  killed  in 
Britain." 

Professor  Gregory  was  balloted  for,  and  unanimously  elected  a  member 
of  the  Society,  and  the  Society  then  adjourned. 


%\t  gtte^ttt. 


On  Thrushes  alighting  on  the  Backs  of  Sheep. — Statements  Avhich  appear  in 
The  Naturalist,  I  apprehend,  are  open  to  criticism,  when  there  appears  a 
doubt  as  to  their  correctness.  At  pages  258 — 9  of  vol.  iv.,  there  is  a  state- 
ment respecting  "  Thrushes  feeding  on  the  backs  of  Sheep,"  and  that  they 
appeared  in  considerable  numbers.  I  am  not  intending  to  convey  the  idea 
that  Thrushes  never  do  alight  on  the  backs  of  Sheep ;  but  in  the  course  of 
long  observation,  I  never  have  seen  even  a  solitary  instance  of  the  kind ; 
and  I  have  made  inquiry  of  my  Naturalist  Friends,  as  well  as  of  breeders  of 
sheep,  who  all  concur  in  my  opinion  that  it  is  veiy  rare  for  them  to  do  so, 


THE   RETROSPECT. — THE    QUERIST.  23 

if  they  ever  do  at  all.  They  have  never  witnessed  such  a  circumstance ;  and 
when,  as  it  is  said  by  thy  correspondent  John  Eose,  they  were  in  "  consider- 
able numbers,"  I  incline  to  believe  he  may  have  been  mistaken ;  especially 
as  food  on  which  these  birds  feed  is  plentiful  in  August,  and  they  need  not 
be  driven  to  seek  parasites  on  the  sheep's  back.  It  is  notorious  that  Star- 
lings feed  on  grass-land  amongst  the  sheep,  and  are  known  to  settle  on  their 
backs  ;  and  at  the  time  mentioned,  the  young  birds,  in  their  gray  plumage, 
may  be  mistaken  for  Thi-ushes.  The  former  are  often  seen  in  large 
numbers ;  and  the  latter,  I  believe,  rarely  so.  Until  I  hear  of  some*  con- 
firmation of  his  statement,  I  must  believe  that  thy  correspondent  was 
mistaken. — J.  J.  Fox,  Devizes,  llmo.  6th,  1854. 


%\t  ^wmst. 


Can  any  of  j'our  microscopic  friends  inform  me  of  any  good  and  easj'  way 
of  separating  Desmidiae  from  Mud  ? 

Of  the  nature  of  the  starlike  bodies  in  the  cells  of  the  stalk  of  the  Nuphar 
lutea  ? 

Of  the  nature  of  the  perforated  cells  in  the  stalk  of  the  Common  Peony  ? 

Of  the  nature  of  the  globular  bodies  in  the  cells  of  the  testa  of  seed  of 
Common  Privet  ? 

Of  the  minute  crystals  in  the  cells  of  the  testa  of  the  seed  of  Anagallis 
arvensis  ?  These  are  best  seen  before  the  seed  is  quite  ripe.  Whether  the 
presence  of  starch  is  peculiar  to  certain  families  of  plants  ?  What  is  its 
peculiar  use  in  their  economy  ? 

Of  a  mode  of  making  permanent  polarizing  crystals  ?  With  me,  all  these, 
(and  I  have  tried  some  hundred  varieties  and  combinations,)  with  some  veiy 
few  exceptions,  eventually  break  up.  Does  this  arise  from  some  chemical 
combination  with  the  Canada  balsam  in  which  they  are  mounted  ? 

Why  a  thin  lamina  of  Mica,  placed  above  a  polarizing  object,  gives  a 
ground  differing  in  colour  from  that  produced  when  it  is  placed  beneath  ? 

Has  the  beautiful  texture  of;  the  Petalonema  alata  been  anywhere  figured  ? 

What  is  the  name  of  the  Puccinia  (?)  now  found  on  the  leaves  of  the  Rhus 
Toxicodendron  ? 

With  regard  to  Rhaphides,  has  Professor  Queckett  given,  at  the  Micros- 
copic Society,  a  second  lecture  upon  them ;  and  pronounced  any  opinion  on 
their  nature,  mode  of  formation,  &c.  ?  I  heard  his  first  lecture ;  and  learned 
from  a  friend,  some  long  time  afterwards,  that  he  had  not  then  given  his 
second.  The  list  of  Polarizing  Crystals  given  in  his  book,  by  the  Professor, 
is  very  incorrect.     The  Nitrate  of  Lead,  for  instance,  does  not  polarize ;  and 


24  THE    QUERIST. 

many  of  the  others  named  are  poor;   whilst  many  much  better  polari;2er3 
ai'e  omitted. 

Could  some  good  mode  of  exchanging  specimens  among  Amateurs  be 
suggested  ?  I  have  found  the  stock  of  mounted  specimens  in  many  of  the 
London  shops  very  limited  in  both  number  and  nature  ;  many  of  them  very 
poor;  and  many  good  objects  omitted.  Specimens  for  sale,  from  Amateurs, 
are  veiy  coldly  received,  or  declined  altogether,  because  not  mounted  in 
professional  style  ;  although  the  objects  themselves  are,  in  many  instances, 
much  more  interesting. — T.  P.  F. 

May  not  the  nest  with  six  eggs,  found  by  your  correspondent,  C.  E.  Smith, 
(see  vol.  iv.  p.  238,)  have  been  that  of  the  Wood- Warbler?  {Curruca  sihilatrix.) 
C.  H.  Dashwood,  Thornage,  November  11th,  1854. 

The  nest  and  eggs  found  last  spring,  by  Mr.  C.  E.  Smith,  were  doubtless 
those  of  the  Sedge-Warbler.— E.  K.  B. 

Can  any  of  the  readers  of  The  Natuealist  inform  me  of  any  mode  of 
ridding  my  house  of  mice,  with  which  it  is  infested,  other  than  hy  keeping 
a  cat,  and  by  the  ordinary  mouse-traps  ?  all  of  which  I  have  tried,  but  can- 
not induce  mice  to  enter  them. — Idem. 

I  believe  there  is  no  list  of  the  Swanneries  in  the  United  Kingdom,  to  be 
found  in  any  published  Work  on  Ornithology.  May  I  be  permitted  to  sug- 
gest, that  your  readers  should  furnish,  through  The  Naturalist,  notices  of 
any  such  with  which  they  may  be  acquainted,  with  the  view  of  obtaining  a 
perfect  list.  The  only  Swannery  ■\^'ith  which  I  am  acquainted,  is  the  remark- 
ably fine  one  of  the  Earl  of  Ilchester,  at  Abbotsbury,  Dorset ;  which  is  said 
to  contain,  at  the  present  time,  seven  hundred  Swans.  I  have  myself 
counted  nearly  four  hundred  at  one  time  on  the  water.  I  have  heard  of 
another  at  or  near  Bandon  in  Ireland,  but  I  have  not  seen  it. — Idem. 

In  reply  to  the  queiy  of  the  Rev.  F.  O.  Morris,  I  beg  to  say,  that  Water- 
ton's  triumphant  Defence  of  the  Ivj-^,  may  be  found  in  the  Second  Series  of 
his  Essays,  p.  68;  without  which  Essays  no  Naturalist's  Libraiy  can  be  said 
to  be  complete. — Henry  Daniel,  Teignmouth,  Devon,  Oct.  3rd,  1854. 

Hyacintlms  nonscriptus,  (var.  alba.)  On  the  9th  of  June,  1841,  far  remote 
from  cultured  earth  or  happy  cottage,  I  gathered  the  blue  and  white  var.,  in 
CotclifTe  Wood,  four  miles  distant  from  Northallerion ;  in  a  situation  where 
Nature  had  been  left  to  her  own  resources, — associated  with  that  lovely 
spring-flower  the  Wood  Anemone,  {Anemone  nemorosa,)  white  and  pink.  In 
the  same  wood,  one  of  our  most  celebrated  British  climbing  j)lants,  the 
Wood  Vetch,  ( Vicia  sylvatica,)  rears 

"  lis  pale  and  azure  pencilled  flower,"— Scott. 

and  would  invite  us  to  visit  a  place  so  peculiarly  adapted  to  the  Naturalist, 
in  one  of  Nature's  richest  gardens. — D,  Ferguson,  lledcar,  Oct.  5thj_J_854. 


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Part  L— THE  FLOWERING  PLANTS  AND  FERNS : 
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LITTLE  SECRETS,  OF  GREAT  AND  LASTING  IMPORT. 

Hugo  A'olunies,  like  the  Ox  roasted  at  Bartliolomew  Fair,  maj'  proclaim  plenty  of  labor 
and  invention  ;  but  they  affoi-d  much  less  of  what  is  delicate,  savory,  and  well-concocted 
than  smaller  pieces. — F.  Osborn. 

In  Handsomely-Printed  Pocket  Volumes,  jirice  One  Shilling  eaeli, 

TO  BE  CONTINUED  OCCASIONALLY. 


I.— LIFE:  ITS  TINTS  AND  ITS  SHADOWS,— 

A  MANUAL  FOR  "THE  PEOPLE:" 

aOOD-NATUKEDLY    POINTINO    OUT 

THE  GREAT  HIGHWAY  OF  HUMAN   HAPPINESS. 
BY  WILLIAM  KIDD,  OF  HAMMERSMITH. 


IL— THE  HEART'S  PROPER  ELEBIENT; 

A  BOOK  FOB  HIGHDAYS,   HOLYDAYS,  and  EVERY  DAY  in  thk  YEAR  : 

siiowixa 

HOW  TO  KEEP  A  HEALTHY  PULSE. 

Bij  the  /Same  Author. 


in.-THE  WORLD  AND  ITS  TWO  FACES; 

A  MICROSCOPIC  MIRROR  of  THE  LAND  WE  LIVE  IN :  Reflectixo  certaix  of 

THE  Curious,  Droll,  axd  Dark  Doings  of  its  Inhabitants;  and  Revealing 

THE  Many  Startlino  Romances  of  Real  Life. 

A  BOOK  FOR  THE  MILLION. 

By  the  Same  Author. 

Most  cordially  do  we  welcome  the  pleasant  and  .instructive  Series  of  Essays,  entitled, 
'*  LirrLE  Secrets,"  just  issued  by  William  Kidd,  of  Hammersmith,  at  the  modest  piice  of 
One  Shilling.  No  man  in  the  present  day  has  done  the  tenth  part  of  what  he  has  done,  for 
the  {idvancemeut  of  a  healthy  literature  amongst  our  rising  youth.  His  Works,  it  is  true, 
have  had  a  special  reference  to  objects  of  Natural  History, — Birds,  Flowers,  and  "Pets"  of 
the  animal  creation ;  but,  in  his  instructions  for  their  treatment,  he  has  ever  interwoven 
such  lessons  of  kindness,  forbo5irance  and  piety, — of  all  that  is  good,  and  an  eager  desire  to 
reform  that  which  is  evil,  that  we  both  respect  and  venerate  him.  *  *  *  We  rejoice  to 
see  him  in  his  Protean  shapes  again,— amusing,  delighting,  and  making  us  all  feel  "happy."  . 
His  present  flight  is  a  high  and  noble  one;  may  it  be  abundantly  successful  I — H-impsjiikk 
Advertiser. 

Anything  new  from  Mr.  Kidd's  pen  will,  at  all  times,  be  heralded  with  deliglit.  What- 
ever fonn  may  invest  his  Works,  that  which  Nature  dictates  he  will  write.  .  He  has  ever 
fearlessly  encountered  the  risk,  inseparable  from  mingling  with  grateful  instruction  un- 
palataljle  truths.  Truth  has  indeed  been  the  honourable  and  constant  characteristic  of  his 
unceasing  efforts  to  do  good.  Of  this,  lasting  evidence  remains  in  the  several  re'motely- 
.sundered  corners  of  the  world,  where  (from  the  perpetually  renewed  harvest  of  moral  lore 
with  Avhich  time  and  the  world  teem)  his  pon  has  scattered  so  many  rare  and  rich  gleanings. 
Mr.  Kidd  has  wanted  neither  the  originality  of  conception  and  feeling  which  give  zest  to 
truths  old  and  hackneyed,  nor  the  liberal  sentiment  and  unbiassed  judgment  which  enable 
their  possessor  to  appreciate  and  give  due  welcome  to  truths  new  and  strange.  Hence  his 
great  and  ever-interesting  power  over  the  public  mind. — Liverpool  jNIercurt. 

LONDON :— GROOMBRIDGE  and  SONS,  5,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 

And  to  he  had  fhy  order)  of  all  Boolcsellers  in  Town  and  Country. 


COULTAS,  printer,  YORK. 


No.  48. 


FEBRUARY,  1855. 


Price  6d. 


A  POPULAE  MONTHLY  MAGAZINE, 

ILLUSTRATIVE    OF  THE 

ANIMAL,  VEGETABLE,  AND  MINERAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    NUMEROUS   ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED   BY 

BEVERLEY  R.  MORRIS,  ESQ.,  A.  B.,  M.D.,  T.C.D., 
memb:  wEnx:  club. 

CORRESPONDING  MEMBER  OF  THE  NATUKAL  HISTORY  SOCIETY  OF  GLASGOW. 
HOPOEAEY   MEMBER  OF   THE   LITERARY   AND   SCIENTIFIC   INSTITUTION   OF  KILKENNY. 


LONDON : 
GROOMBRIDGE  AND  SONS,  .5,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 

EDINBUEGH:  JAMES  HOGG,  4,  NICOLSOX-STREET. 

AND  MAY  BE  HAD  OF  ALL  BOOKSELLERS. 


CONTENTS. 

PAQ] 

A  Glance  ftt  tlio  Feathered  Residents  in,  and  "Visitants  to,  the  Grounds  of  Terrick 

House.     By  Stephen  Stone,  Esq 25 

The  Swamps  of  the  Mississippi.     By  George  Donaldson,  Esq 28 

Injurious  Insects,  No.  3. — The  Common  Wasp.  {Vespa  vulgaris,  L.)     By  J.  Mc' 

Intosh,  Esq 32 

Progress  of  the  Seasons.  The  Operations  of  Nature. — January.  By  W.  Kidd,  Esq.  34 
Review. — A  Supplement   to  Baines'   Flora  of  Yorkshire  ;    with  a  Map.      The 

Flowering  Plants  :  by  John  Gilbert  Baker.     The  Mosses  :  by  John  No  well. 

London:  Pamplin.     8vo.  pp.  188 40 

Proceedings  OF  Societies. — The  Natural  History  Society  of  Glasgow    41 

Miscellaneous  Notices 45 

The  Querist       47 


NOTICES  TO  CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  up  to  January  16th,  from  T.  K.  Atkinson,  Esq. — 
S.  Stone,  Esq. — R.  Gray,  Esq. — H.  de  la  Chaumett,  Esq. — R.  Hobson,  Esq.,  M.  D. — 
Rev.  F.  J.  Dawson — J.  Longmuir,  Esq.,  Jun. — G.  Donaldson,  Esq. — R.  B.  Cooke,  Esq. — 
J.  Gatcombe,  Esq. — Wm.  Kidd,  Esq. — J.  F.  Whitehead,  Esq. — Miss  I.  Gifford — J.  Mc' 
Intosh,  Esq. — J.  Gray,  Esq. — H.  Sjiurthwaite,  Esq.— Mr.  G.  King — J.  E.  Daniel,  Esq. 
— O.  A.  Moore,  Esq. — H.  G.  Adams,  Esq. 

Contributions  have  been  received  up  to  January  16th,  from  S.  P.  Savill,  Esq. — 
G.  Stockley,  Esq. — J.  E.  Daniel,  Esq. — Mr.  J.  Brown — J.  Gatcombe,  Esq. — C.  Feyer, 
Esq. — Mr.  A.  Roberts — Major  Gifford — J.  B.  Davies,  Esq. — A.  A. — R.  B.  Cooke,  Esq. — 
T.  K.  Atkinson,  Esq. — C.  G.  Lenny,  Esq. — T.  Southwell,  Esq. — Uncas — 0.  S.  Round, 
Esq. — A.  S.  Moffat,  Esq. — J.  Braim,  Esq. — Mr.  C.  Jackson. 

No  Communication  can  be  inserted,  unless  the  Writer  sends  us  his  name  and  address, 
for  onv private  satisfaction. 

Will  J.  C.  T.,  A.  A.,  and  Uncas,  favour  us  with  their  names  and  addresses,  in  confidence. 

We  shall  feel  greatly  obliged  to  any  Correspondent  who  will  furnish  us  with  the  names 
of  any  respectable  Bird-Stuffers  in  his  neighbourhood. 

Many  Contributions  unavoidably  stand  over.  Our  Friends  will  understand  that  they 
are  only  postponed,  not  declined. 

Received:  A  Supplement  to  Baines'  Flora  of  Yorkshire,  by  John  Baker,  F.B.S.L., 
and  John  Nowell.     London:  Pamplin,  1854,  p.p.  188,  with  a  Map.     5s. 

The  Editor  begs  to  announce  to  his  Correspondents,  that  he  has  arranged  with  his 

Printer,  so  that  the  Author  of  any  Paper  can  have  copies  of  his  Article  sent  him  by  post 

at  the  following  rates  : — 

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25  Copies  or  under     2s.  6d.  4s.  Od.  6s.  6d. 

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Communications,  Draicings,  Advertisements,  etc.,  to  he  addressed  to  B.  B.  M0RBI8,  -Esq., 
M.D.,  Driffield; — Books  for  Review,  and  Parcels,  to  the  care  of  OBOOMBBIDGE  and 
SONS,  5,  Paternoster-Bow,  London. 


25 

A  GLANCE  AT  THE  FEATHERED  RESIDENTS  IN,  AND  VISITANTS 

TO,  THE  GROUNDS  OF  TERRICK  HOUSE; 

WITH  A  FEW  REMARKS  FROM  PERSONAL  OBSERVATION, 

UPON   THEIR   HABITS   AND   PECULIARITIES. 

•BY   STEPHEN    STONE,   ESQ. 

(Continued  from  page  223,  vol.  iv.^ 

He  who,  from  motives  best  known  to  himself  has  banished  this  bird  from 
his  "  domain,"  may  chance  one  day  to  meet  with  a  procession  of  slugs,  snails, 
&c.,  far  outvieing  in  numbers,  though  not  perhaps  in  audacity,  the  famous 
projected  Chartist  procession,  which,  with  bold,  undaunted  front,  and  fixed, 
determined  purpose,  was  to  have  mai'ched  upon  the  palaces  of  Westminster 
and  Buckingham;  albeit,  snail-like,  the  individuals  which  were  to  have 
composed  it  quietly  "  drew  in  their  horns,"  either  at  the  "  smell  of  gun- 
powder," or  from  having  "  smelt  a  rat."  Saltpetre,  when  taken  alone,  has 
by  no  means  an  exhilarating  eifect ;  but  when  combined  with  sulphur  and 
charcoal,  its  depressing  powers  are  manifestly  inci-eased.  Steel,  when 
reduced  to  powder,  is  considered  to  be  strengthening;  but  when  this  metal 
takes  the  form  of  sword  or  bayonet,  its  properties  undergo  a  remarkable 
change :  it  then  produces  trembling  of  the  limbs,  nausea,  and  other  dis- 
agreeable  effects.  So  at  the  bare  mention  of  these  ^^preparations"  our 
valorous  Chartists  found  their  strength  give  way,  their  spirits  droop,  and 
an  aguish  feeling  assail  them.  So  long  as  no  impediments  presented  them- 
selves, their  bravery  was  great — their  courage  matchless ;  but  a  few  hollow 
cylinders  disposed  here  and  there,  or  a  sprinkling  of  blue  uniforms,  with 
"  A.  1,"  "  L.  99,"  and  other  mystic  characters  or  devices  emblazoned  thereon, 
caused  their  valour  to  subside,  their  courage  and  bravery  to  melt  away,  like 
butter  exposed  to  the  fiery  rays  of  a  July  sun.  Or,  as  steel  and  nitre  are 
powerful  agents  in  counteracting  the  pi'ogress  of  disease,  so  with  the 
addition  of  sulphur  and  charcoal,  they  produced  in  this  notorious  Chartist 
case,  effects  almost  miraculous.  Not  a  dose  of  the  "medicine"  was  taken  by 
them — not  even  a  taste ;  the  simple  knowledge  that  it  was  provided  sufficed 
to  effect  an  instantaneous  and  a  permanent  cure  of  their  several  "  complaints ." 
so  the  pain  from  an  aching  tooth  almost  invariably  ceases,  the  moment  the 
insti'uments  of  the  dentist  are  exposed  to  the  sufferer's  view. 

But  to  return  to  the  point  from  which  I  have  been  wandering.  He  may 
flatter  himself  that  this  procession  of  slugs,  snails,  &c.,  is  a  deputation 
about  to  present  him  with  an  address,  and  a  vote  of  thanks,  for  having 
removed,  in  direct  opposition  to  his  own  interests,  a  most  determined  enemy 
of  theirs ;  and  had  they  been  "  Conservatives,"  such  might  possibly  have 
been  their  mission ;  but  being,  as  they  unquestionably  are,  "  Destructives," 
he  will  find  that  they  are  moved  by  no  such  feelings  of  gratitude ;  but  that 
VOL.  v.  c 


'2f>  THK    BIRDS   OF   TERRICK   HOUSE. 

they  arc  siini^ly  marching  forth  to  regale  themselves  without  acknowledge- 
ment, upon  the  fruit  and  vegetables  he  has  been  at  some  pains  and  consider- 
able expense  to  provide  for  them ;  and  in  the  banishment  of  the  bird  in 
question,  he  has  done  what  in  him  lay  to  secure  to  them  the  free  and  unin- 
teiTupted  enjoyment  of  the  feast. 

These  grounds,  limited  as  they  are  in  extent,  annually  send  forth  some 
fifteen  or  twenty  broods  of  yoUng  Blackbirds,  and  a  still  greater  number  of 
Song  Thrushes;  and  yet  the  fruit  crops,  instead  of  suffering  any  real  dimi- 
nution at  their  hands,  (pardon  the  expression,)  are,  I  am  fully  convinced,  far 
more  abundant  than  they  would  have  been  had  these  birds  not  been  per- 
mitted to  live.  By  the  adoption  of  various  simple  devices,  you  may  succeed 
in  preventing  them  from  making  any  serious  havoc  among  your  fruit,  while 
no  device  or  known  precautionary  measures  will  at  all  avail  against  the 
i-avages  of  snails  and  other  creatures,  which  the  Thrush  tribe  is  in  an  especial 
manner  appointed  to  keep  within  proper  bounds.  Spare  then,  Oh !  spare 
the  Blackbird :  he  will  amply  repay  you,  even  in  a  pecuniary  point  of  view, 
for  the  trifling  quantity  of  fruit  he  may  consume ;  for  be  assured,  that  for 
every  strawberry  he  eats  he  will  be  the  means  of  saving  you  ten,  or  it  may 
be,  a  far  greater  proportion  still. 

At  our  feet  the  ground  is  found  to  be  strewn  with  tree  mosses  and  other 
nest-building  materials.  Above  us  we  perceive  divers  pieces  of  wool  dangling 
from  the  forked  branch  of  a  beech ;  and  on  ascending  to  it  we  find,  as  we 
had  anticipated,  the  nest  of  the  Missel  Thrush.  (Turdus  viscivorus.)  This 
nest  is  outwardly  composed  of  tree  moss,  wool,  and  a  few  small  sticks,  with 
the  addition  of  some  kind  of  cement;  the  lining  consists,  as  I  invariably 
find  to  be  the  case,  of  fine  grasses ;  the  eggs,  usually  five  in  number,  are 
generally  sufficiently  distinct  in  character  to  be  easily  recognised,  but  I  have 
some  which  it  would  be  impossible  to  distinguish  from  a  variety  of  the 
Blackbird's. 

This  bird  is  an  early  breeder ;  in  ordinary  seasons  it  begins  breeding  by 
the  middle  of  March,  and  in  very  forward  ones  much  earlier.  I  have  found 
the  nest  in  February;  occasionally,  however,  it  is  not  found  till  the  middle 
of  April.  This  is  more  particularly  found  to  be  the  case  after  a  long  and 
severe  winter,  which  causes  most  of  our  indigenous  birds  to  become  so  out 
of  condition,  and  so  greatly  reduces  their  strength,  as  to  render  them 
unequal  to  the  task  of  nidification,  and  its  attendant  duties,  at  the  usual 
period.  The  nest  is  to  be  found  in  orchards,  gardens,  and  other  frequented 
places,  as  well  as  in  the  lonely  and  unfrequented  wood.  I  have  found  it 
within  three  feet  of  the  ground,  and  I  have  often  seen  it  as  high  as  twenty, 
or  even  thirty ;  so  far  from  the  bird  making  any  attempt  at  concealment,  it 
not  only,  as  a  general  rule,  chooses  the  most  conspicuous  and  exposed  situ- 
ations, but  also,  as  noticed  at  the  beginning  of  this  article,  is  in  the  habit  of 
strewing  the  nest-building  materials  about  in  such  a  manner  as  to  draw  the 


THE    BIUDS   OF   TEUUICK    HOUSE.  27 

attention  of  the  most  incurious  to  its  "  whereabouts."  It  likewise  contrives 
to  attract  attention  in  another  way,  being  seemingly  anxious  to  improve 
every  opportunity  of  doing  so ;  for,  on  the  appearance  of  a  suspicous  charac- 
ter in  its  neighbourhood,  and  not  unfrequently,  indeed,  on  the  appearance  of 
a  character  above  suspicion,  it  delivers  itself  of  a  vast  amount  of  angry 
expostulation ;  no  swell-mob's  man,  caught  in  the  act  of  picking  pockets  at  a 
race  or  fair,  is  greeted  with  harsher  sounds,  or  more  hearty  maledictions, 
than  those  which  our  friend  viscivorus  bestows  upon  cats,  weasels,  magpies, 
and  all  such  "  light  fingered  gentry,"  when,  in  quest  of  eggs,  young  birds, 
or  other  plunder,  they  have  entered  upon  his  "  domain."  Instances  have 
been  known,  and. recorded  in  The  Naturalist,  of  this  bird  preserving  a 
quiet  and  peaceable  demeanour  during  the  breeding  season ;  such  instances 
must,  however,  I  think,  be  considered  rather  as  exceptions,  than  as  the  rule. 

The  song  of  the  Missel  Thrush  is  loud,  and,  from  its  being  one  of  the  first 
to  break  the  silence  which  winter  imposes  upon  the  feathered  tribes,  the 
notes  are  pleasing,  although  there  is  not  much  variety  in  them.  Early  in 
January,  if  the  weather  be  at  all  mild,  this  song  may  be  heard,  and,  by 
those  who  give  but  little  attention  to  the  singing  of  birds,  is  often  erro- 
neously ascribed  to  the  Blackbird ;  a  practised  ear  will,  however,  readily 
detect  the  difference.  Its  melody  is  given  from  the  top  of  a  lofty  tree,  and 
occasionally  while  flying  from  one  tree  to  another.  When  the  breeding 
season  is  over,  families  of  these  birds  collect  together  after  the  manner  of 
the  Starlings,  though  not  in  such  immense  numbers;  the  flocks  consisting  of 
from  ten  or  twelve,  to  thirty  or  forty  individuals  :  these  are  not  unfrequently 
mistaken  for  an  early  appearance  of  Fieldfares. 

Missel  Thrushes  may  be  said  to  reside  permanently  with  us ;  although  a 
migration,  or  more  propeiiy,  a  dispersion  of  the  young  birds,  unquestionably 
takes  place :  an  All-wise  regulation,  which  pi-events  any  one  district  from 
being  over-crowded ;  thus  removing  the  liability  to  innumerable  evils,  which 
would  otherwise  constantly  exist.  In  very  severe  winters,  these  birds,  in 
common  with  others  of  the  Thrush  kind,  sufifer  from  an  insufficient  suj^ply 
of  food  ;  they  are,  however,  able  to  hold  out  longer  than  most  of  the  other 
species,  the  Redwings  especially,  as  might  be  expected  from  their  being 
far  more  robust  and  hardy-looking  birds.  I  never  met  with  more  than  one 
instance  in  which  this  bird  appeared  to  have  been  actually  famished ;  while 
the  poor  Redwings  often  come  to  that  deplorable  end. 

Low  down  in  a  juniper  we  find  the  nest  of  the  Hedge-Warbler,  or  Dunnock. 
(Accentor  modularis.)  Nests  of  this  species  are  usually  composed  of  small 
sticks,  green  moss,  and  wool,  with  fibrous  roots  and  straws,  or  stalks  of 
coarse  grass.  They  vary  much  in  neatness  of  construction ;  some  are  rather 
skilfully  put  together,  and  finished  with  great  taste.  The  lining  consists 
more  frequently,  perhaps,  of  cow-hair,  than  any  other  material:  sometimes  a 
sort  of  felt  is  made  of  moss  and  wool,  and,  as  I  have  seen  in  a  few  instances, 


28  .THE    BIRDS    OF   TKRRICK    HOUSE. 

of  rabbit's  down  and  moss,  and  this  constitutes  the  lining :  occasionally 
feathers  are  used ;  it  will  in  general  make  use  of  any  soft  substance  for  the 
purpose  that  comes  in  its  way.  The  most  beautiful  nest  of  this  bird  I  ever 
saw,  was  situated  on  a  small  island  in  these  grounds.  A  Duck  of  the  far- 
famed  Aylesbury  breed,  of  cream  yellow  exterior,  but  with  "under-clothing" 
of  snowy  whiteness,  chanced  to  have  a  nest  on  the  same  island.  The  down 
which  encircled  the  eggs  offered  to  the  longing  eyes  of  our  Hedge-Warbler 
attractions  not  to  be  resisted ;  she  had  therefore,  with  or  without  leave  of  the 
said  Duck,  appropriated  to  her  own  use  as  much  of  this  novel  material  as 
sufficed  to  line  her  nest  thoroughly.  A  more  beautiful  sight  than  the  five 
clear  blue  eggs,  reposing  upon  this  immaculate  and  snow-white  bed  of  down, 
could  scarcely  be  conceived. 

The  Hedge-Warbler  breeds  early  and  late ;  beginning  to  build  in  March, 
and  sometimes  at  a  still  earlier  period,  and  continuing  to  do  so  till  August, 
in  which  month  I  have  found  the  n^st  with  eggs.  It  usually  places  its  nest 
within  two  or  three  feet  of  the  ground,  a  faggot  stack  being  a  favourite  situ- 
ation; a  dead  thorn  fence  is  often  chosen;  indeed  no  situation  near  the 
ground,  which  offers  concealment,  comes  amiss  to  it.  It  sometimes  produces 
as  many  as  six  eggs. 

Modest  and  unobtrusive,  this  bird  deserves  to  be  a  general  favourite. 
Blameless  and  harmless  itself,  it  entertains  no  suspicion  of  evil  in  others. 
If  not  subjected  to  persecution — and  who  can  persecute  so  gentle  a  creature? 
— its  confidence  and  familiarity  become  great,  but  still  this  familiarity  is 
never  cai'ried  to  a  degree  to  become  offensive ;  like  a  thoroughly  honest, 
upright,  and  straight-forward  person,  it  neither  courts  nor  shuns  observation. 
Its  song,  though  short  and  simple,  consisting  only  of  a  few  notes  delivered 
in  a  continuous  strain,  has  yet  a  sweetness  and  plaintiveness  about  it  which 
render  it  extremely  pleasing  and  agreeable. 

(To  he  continued.J 


THE  SWAMPS  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI. 

BY   GEORGE    DONALDSON,    ESQ. 


KEAD   BEFORE   THE   NATURAL   HISTORY   SOCIETY   OP   GLASGOW. 


This  Paper,  Mr.  President,  is  more  of  a  popular  than  a  scientific  character. 
This  form  I  have  been  induced  to  adopt,  partly  from  the  example  of  some 
contiibutors  to  The  Naturalist,  whose  rambles  are  frequently  of  a  very 
instructive  and  entertaining  nature  ;  and  with  the  expectation  of  its  interest- 
ing some  of  the  gentlemen  at  the  table,  and  amusing  others,  I  will  attempt 


THE    SWAMPS   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI.  29 

to  desciibe  an  Excursion  which  I  made  into  the  Swamps  of  the  Mississippi, 
in  the  end  of  1850. 

Before  doing  so,  I  will  endeavour  to  outline  a  few  prior  circumstances  and 
observations,  which,  I  hope,  may  not  be  considered  irrelevant. 

I  presume  it  is  generally  known  that  my  pursuits,  on  the  American  Con- 
tinent, and  over  a  gi-eat  part  of  the  West  Indies,  were  entirely  Ornitholo- 
gical. The  desire  to  see  the  American  Birds  was  principally  acquired  from 
reading  the  fascinating  and  brilliant  discriptions  given  of  them  by  Wilson; 
a  name  familiar  to  all  of  you,  and  which  ought  to  be  so  to  every  Scotchman. 
His  incomparable  description  of  the  Mocking  Bird,  {Turdus  polyglottus,) 
completely  wrecked  ray  mercantile  ideas,  and  upset  the  entire  science  of 
pounds,  shillings,  and  pence,  with  me.  And  as  this  occurred  early  in  the 
spring  of  1849,  I  immediately  set  about  getting  my  guns  in  order,*  and 
buckling  some  old  clothes  together.  So  that,  in  place  of  being  found 
balancing  my  profit  and  loss  accounts,  on  the  3 1st  December,  perched  on  a 
three-legged  stool,  in  the  city  of  Glasgow ;  I  was  wandering  alone,  through 
some  of  the  western  forests,  far  beyond  the  Mississippi,  robbing  the  nests 
of  the  Guinea,  the  Downj',  the  Haiiy,  and  the  Golden-winged  Woodpecker, 
and  procuring  specimens  of  the  birds  themselves.  And  such  specimens, 
too,  as  can  onlj^  be  appreciated  by  being  seen  in  the  Academy  of  Science,  in 
the  city  of  Philadelphia.  A  collection  which,  on  that  continent,  has  no 
equal;  and  I  question  much  if  finer  or  more  beautiful  specimens  are  in  tlie 
possession  of  any  other  Institution  in  the  world.  The  members  of  this 
Institution,  I  am  bound  to  say,  are  the  very  essence  of  courtesy ;  for  not 
only  do  you  obtain  immediate  admission,  on  application  to  any  of  them,  but 
a  request  to  be  permitted  to  accompany  you  over  it,  for  the -purpose  of 
pointing  out  the  most  remarkable  objects,  is  not  uncommon 

It  is  in  this  city  that  Alexander  Wilson  is  buried,  whose  grave  I  visited 
very  early  the  fii-st  morning  after  my  arrival  in  Philadelphia;  a  rough 
sketch  of  which  I  have  at  present  in  my  hand,  and  also  some  blades  of  grass 
which  I  pulled  beside  it.     (See  The  Naturalist,  vol.  iii.,  p.  80.) 

Were  I  competent  to  go  into  detail  on  the  difterent  Orders,  Families,  and 
Genera,  not  only  of  the  department  of  science  which  came  under  nij^  obser- 
vation, but  of  others  closely  allied,  I  am  afraid  it  wouhl  consume  too  much 
of  the  valuable  time  of  this  meeting,  besides  reminding  myself  of  the 
opinion  expressed  by  the  author  of  "  The  Siege  of  Londonderry,"  who  pro- 
nounced the  work  to  be  "  a  burden  for  an  ass  to  carry."  I  have  no 
intention,  however,  to  trespass  further  upon  your  time,  than  to  explain  the 
appearance  of  that  swampy  region,  and  to  give  a  general  description  of  the 

*I  carried  three  guns  with  me  during  my  travels ;  and,  with  few  exceptions,  I  invariably  used  a  double 
gun,  made  for  me  by  Mr.  David  Young,  gunsmith,  in  Glasgow,  whose  excellence  as  a  practical  U-adesmau  is 
of  the  first  class.  His  work,  both  as  regards  quality  and  finish,  was  thoroughly  tested  by  the  variety  of 
work  which  this  gun  had  to  perform;  and  during  which,  neither  a  nail,  nipple,  nor  spring  gave  way. 


80  THE    SWAMPS    Of   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 

birds  and  animals  which  I  found  there.  My  principal  object  is  to  point  out 
one  of  the  latter,  which  may  probably  be  received  with  some  hesitation. 
The  slaughter  of  the  animal  is  not  so  much  what  I  intend  narrating, — 
although  that  certainly  occupies  a  portion  of  this  paper, — but  it  is  more 
to  establish  the  extraordinary  tenacity  of  life  possessed  by  the  creature,  and 
a  few  of  its  habits,  which  I  am  not  aware  are  sufficiently  known. 

While  travelling  over  the  Eastern  States,  making  myself  practically 
acquainted  with  the  beautiful  Orioles,  Fly-catchers,  Tanagers,  and  Wood- 
peckers, so  plentifully  distributed  in  the  primeval  forests  of  that  magnificent 
country ;  the  temptations,  though  great,  were  not  sufficient  to  induce  me  to 
tarry  by  the  banks  of  the  Delaware,  and  the  creeks  of  the  Schuylkill,  the 
Susquehanna,  and  the  Potomac,  amongst  the  Swimmers,  Stalkers,  Pkmgers, 
Divers,  and  Skulkers,  so  appropriately  named,  by  the  late  talented  and 
eminent  Professor  Mc  Gillivray. 

I  had  always  looked  foinvard,  with  unceasing  delight,  to  the  time  when  I 
should  paddle  my  own  canoe  in  some  of  the  western  waters,  which  I  had 
first  an  opportunity  of  doing  in  the  secluded  lakes  of  Miskeego  and  Muck- 
woaago,  during  the  Indian  summer  of  1849.  My  first  appearance  that  way 
was  both  ridiculous  and  unfortunate.  Indeed  I  was  ashamed  of  it,  Avhcn 
compared  with  the  skill  of  some  Winnibago  Indians,  who  glided  past  me 
as  though  thej^  had  been  shadows.  My  error  lay  in  striking  too  quickly  with 
my  paddle,  which  invariably  sent  me  too  much  to  the  right,  then  too  much 
to  the  left,  and  occasionally  round  about  altogether !  I  made  a  very  brilliant 
finish  to  the  exhibition,  by  snatching  up  my  gun,  and  shooting  crossways 
from  my  canoe,  at  a  number  of  ducks  that  came  flying  past;  which  resulted 
in  my  upsetting  the  whole  business,  and  suddenly  appearing  from  under- 
neath, on  the  far  side  of  tl^e  cockle-shell.  This  was  a  lesson  which  I  after- 
wards turned  to  considerable  account. 

The  stillness  which  prevails  at  this  particular  season  of  the  year,  has 
charms  of  no  ordinary  character.  It  gives  one  an  idea  of  solitude  not  other- 
wise easily  realized.  In  place  of  the  scorching  and  fiery  summer,  a  delightful 
change  occurs,  which  renders  the  atmosphere  deliciously  refreshing.  It 
then  assumes  a  hazy  apiiearance,  and  a  fragrance  is  imparted  to  it  which,  at 
any  other  season,  it  does  not  seem  to  possess.  The  beauty  of  a  crimson 
sunset,  reflected  in  an  Indian  lake,  is  a  scene  not  easily  forgotten.  Its 
fading  magnificence  brings  forth  the  Night-Hawk  {Caprimulgus  Americanos) 
in  great  numbers,  to  share  its  beauty,  and  to  pursue  its  prey  in  countless 
circles.  The  Night-Heron,  [Ardea  nycticorax,)  as  she  descends  from  a  lofty 
tree,  and  plumps,  with  a  scream,  into  the  reedy  margin  of  the  lake,  tends  to 
heighten  the  effect.  The  WTiip-poor-Will,  {Caprimulgus  vociferus,)  announcing 
himself  immediately  after  sun-down,  in  a  tone  well  suited  to  the  prevailing 
solitude,  is  followed  by  the  hooting  of  the  Owl,  which  proclaims  the  entire 
departure  of  the  day.     It  was  only  when  such  darkness  arose  as  prevented 


THE    SWAMPS   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI.  31 

me  from  seeing  the  muzzle  of  my  gun,  that  I  thought  of  the  nearest  way 
home ;  which  I  was  often  assisted  in  finding  by  the  incessant  sparkling  of 
the  Fire-Flies,  the  brilliancy  of  whose  light  frequently  induced  me  to  pause 
in  contemplation  of  the  wonderful  economy  of  so  extraordinary  an  insect. 

This  is  also  the  principal  season  for  Bee-hunting,  which  I  had  an  oppor- 
tunity of  witnessing,  as  practised  by  the  Indians.  But  as  it  is,  no  doubt, 
well  understood,  it  is  unnecessary  for  me  to  enter  into  any  explanation. 

As  I  have  still  far  to  travel,  before  reaching  the  Swamps,  perhaps  I  may 
be  permitted  to  notice  a  few  of  the  playful  and  beautiful  Squirrels  which  I 
had  an  opportunity  of  seeing. 

The  Red  Squirrel,  (Sciurus  Hudsonius,)  which  is  very  much  like  our  own, 
is  both  plentifully  and  widely  distributed  over  the  Northern  States,  and 
through  the  Canadas.  The  Chipmonk  {Tamia  striatus)  is  a  veiy  interesting 
and  active  little  fellow.  He  is  principally  a  ground-squirrel,  and  far  more 
familiar  and  unsuspecting  than  any  of  the  other  species  with  which  I  am 
acquainted.  I  recollect,  on  one  occasion,  whilst  laying  concealed  behind  a 
fence,  watching  for  a  shot  at  a  Woodchuck  or  Ground-Hog,  {Arctomys 
monatc,)  several  coming  close  to  me,  and  one  even  jumping  across  my  knee. 
And,  while  at  the  ruins  of  Ticonderoga,  I  was  greatly  amused,  by  observing 
a  number  of  them  actively  employed  in  catching  grasshoppers,  all  around 
me,  and  frequently  within  a  few  yards.  The  only  portion  of  that  insect 
which  they  appeared  to  relish,  was  the  head  and  part  of  the  body,  which 
they  so  quickly  removed,  that  I  scarcely  think  the  grasshopper  discovered 
his  loss  till  some  time  afterwards  ! 

The  first  specimen  of  the  Black  Squirrel  {S.  niger)  which  I  saw,  Avas 
in  Lower  Canada;  and  my  immediate  pursuit  of  him,  and  disappearance 
over  some  stumps,  and  through  some  brushwood,  will  not  soon  be  forgotten. 
I  afterwards  killed  many  fine  specimens,  none  of  which  would  measure  less 
than  twenty-six  inches.  But  in  no  district  could  I  find  so  many,  in  so  short 
a  time,  as  I  did  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Falls  of  Niagara.  Considerable 
manoiuvring  is  required  to  shoot  them  during  the  leafy  season  of  the  year, 
they  are  so  much  concealed  by  the  thick  foliage.  The  mode  of  accomplish- 
ing this  is,  to  keep  quiet  and  listen  well,  and  you  will  hear  the  nutshells, 
from  which  they  have  extracted  the  kernels,  dropping  through  the  leaves, — 
thus  betraying  the  place  of  their  concealment. 

I  found  no  Gray  Squirrels  (5".  Carolinensis)  there ;  but,  on  reaching  the 
valley  of  the  Genessee,  they  became  very  numerous.  They  are  remarkably 
fine  eating,  as  all  squirrels  are,  and  are  hunted  in  the  States  exclusively  for 
that  purj)ose. 

The  Fox  Squirrel  {8.  vulpinus)  I  first  saw  near  Fox  River,  in  Wisconsin. 
He  is,  so  far  as  I  know,  the  largest  Squirrel  to  be  found  in  that  country. 
I  have  frequently,  while  seated  on  a  fallen  log  in  the  forest,  been  much 
amused  with  the   curiosity   displayed   by  the   black   and   gray   Squirrels; 


82  THE    SWAMPS   OF   THK    MISSISSIPPI. 

barking,  and  collecting  around  me  overhead ;  and  frequently  descending  the 
trunks,  till  within  a  few  yards,  which  many  of  them  found  was  rather 
too  near  to  be  safe.  The  Fox  Squirrel  is  not  so  numerous  as  the  others 
I  have  mentioned.  I  found  him,  however,  afterwax'ds,  pretty  far  south, 
in  the  Soutlieru  States,  associated  with  the  Flying  Squirrels,  {Pteroviys 
volucella,)  the  smallest  and  most  interesting  of  the  whole.  They  appear 
to  become  gregarious  at  certain  seasons,  occupjdng  the  saqae  hole  in  a 
decayed  tree,  the  entrance  to  which  seldom  exceeds  the  size  of  a  dollar, 
being  equally  circular.  This  peculiarity  readily  betrays  their  hiding-place  ; 
and,  from  such  places,  I  have  frequently  cleared  out  from  three  to  five.  The 
difficulty  is  to  keep  them  out ;  for,  after  running  round  the  trunk,  they  will 
pop  in  again,  and  that,  too,  within  six  inches  of  your  nose.  These  holes 
seldom  exceed  ten  feet  from  the  ground.  Regardless  of  the  usual  knockings 
upon  the  trunk  which  scare  other  Squin-els  out,  this  little  Dodger  will  pre- 
tend to  be  "  not  at  home."  The  only  way  to  detect  the  imposition,  is,  to 
climb  the  tree,  and  job  him  out  with  a  thin  wand. 

The  Prairie  Squirrel,  or  the  Goffer,  as  he  is  more  frequently  called,  is  the 
last  on  my  list.  He  much  resembles  the  Chipmonk ;  and,  from  having  his 
homo  in  the  Priarie,  he  is  never  seen  anywhere  else. 

(To  be  contintied.J 


INJURIOUS  INSECTS,  No.  III. 
THE  COMMON  WASP.   {VESPA   VULGARIS,  L.) 

BY   J,    MC'  INTOSH,   ESQ, 

The  Common  Wasp,  {Vespa  vulgaris,)  is  a  well-known  enemy  of  the  gar- 
dener, having  been  formed  by  Divine  Wisdom  to  feed  upon  fruits  and  honey; 
and,  unhappily,  this  marauding  creature  neither  respects  nor  acknowledges 
the  right  of  property  in  any  one  ;  and  wherever  it  can  gain  access — whether 
it  be  to  the  store  of  the  laborious  Honey-Bee,  [Apis  melUfica,)  or  the  choice 
fruits  of  the  hothouse  or  the  open  garden — the  one  and  the  other  are  alike 
seized  upon,  and  made  subservient  to  its  support.  It  is  also  ferocious  and 
cruel  towards  its  fellow-insects,  even  to  cannibalism ;  still  they  are  very 
lively,  much  more  so  than  the  Honcy-Bee.  The  Wasp,  like  other  insects 
which  live  in  societies,  is  of  different  genders ;  the  male  and  female  are 
•wholly  intended  for  propagating  their  species,  while  neuters  are  for  defending 
and  supporting  the  young.  Amongst  Wasps  there  are  a  greater  number  of 
females  than  in  Bees ;   and,  instead  of  one  or  two  having  the  duties  of  a 


/ 

INJURIOUS    INSECTS.  38 

common  mother  to  perform,  Ave  find  in  each  colony  ahout  two  or  three 
hundred  females ;  and  these,  in  the  course  of  the  season,  give  birth  to  twenty 
or  thirty  thousand  Wasps,  all  of  which  perish  as  the  severity  of  winter  sets 
in,  Avith  the  exception  of  a  few  lai-ge  females,  destined  to  continue  the  race. 
These  become  torpid,  in  crevices  of  buildings,  under  the  bark  of  trees,  in 
holes,  in  dry  hedge-banks,  &c.,  till  revived  by  the  warmth  of  spring;  when 
they  issue  forth,  to  give  birth  to  a  fresh  progeny ;  at  which  time  they  may  be 
seen  prying  into  every  hole  of  a  hedge-bank,  especially  where  mice  have 
been.  After  she  has  fixed  upon  a  proper  situation,  and  made  the  necessary 
arrangements,  she  forms  a  number  of  cells,  in  which  she  deposits  her  eggs  ; 
from  these  eggs  are  produced  larvae,  which  the  parent  nourishes  with  the 
greatest  care.  These,  after  undergoing  the  necessary  transfonnations,  come 
forth  as  perfect  Wasps,  and  assist  their  mother  in  constructing  her  curious 
architectural  dwelling,  and  to  provide  for  the  wants  of  the  future  colony. 
In  this  way  the  colony  becomes  every  day  more  numerous.  As  soon  as  the 
cells  are  finished,  the  females  deposit  in  each  an  egg;  all  of  which,  in  due 
time  become  perfect  Avasps  !  and  sally  forth  to  range  the  fields  in  search  of 
prey.  Thus  they  are  ever  busy,  for  no  sooner  has  one  brood  become  perfect 
than  another  is  in  progress ;  hence,  from  being  a  solitaiy  individual,  the 
mother  finds  herself,  before  the  close  of  summer,  surrounded  Avitli  tens  of 
thousands  of  her  family. 

When  there  is  no  honey  to  be  found,  they  fall  upon  the  most  choice  fruits 
of  the  garden,  and  are  never  mistaken  in  their  choice;  the  apricot,  for 
instance,  is  \'ery  palatable;  it  is  the  same  Avith  our  most  delicate  pears,  the 
ruddiest  peaches,  and  the  ripest  grapes.  The  manner  in  Avhich  they 
excavate  the  sweet  pulp  and  juice  of  fruits  is  no  less  extraordinary  than  the 
skill  they  shoAV  in  excavating  their  subterranean  dAvellings.  They  commence 
by  perforating  the  skin,  AA'hich  is  most  exposed  to  the  sun.  The  aperture 
they  make  is  barely  sufiicient  for  the  body  to  enter.  Here  they  cut  away, 
with  their  saAA'-like  jaAvs,  such  pieces  as  they  choose  to  carry  aAA'ay  as  food  for 
their  progeny,  vintil  they  leave  the  skin  entirely  empty  ,  when  they  commence 
their  Avork  of  destruction  upon  another.  The  entrance  being  once  effected, 
particvdarly  as  regards  peaches,  apricots,  plums,  &c.,  several  Wasps  cany  on 
the  AA'ork  of  destraction  within  one  fruit ;  and  it  appears  to  me,  that  such  as 
assist  each  other  in  the  Avork  of  plunder,  are  the  inhabitants  of  the  same 
colony.  But  for  all  this,  they  are  not  over  dainty :  nothing  in  the  Avay  of 
animal  or  vegetable  food  comes  amiss  to  them.  In  your  kitchen,  they  AA'ill 
dine  off  foAA-l,  bacon,  or  butchers'  meat,  sugar,  or  preserves;  and  in  your 
parlour  Avill  regale  themseh'es  before  yovu*  very  face  AA'ith  your  wines,  &c.  If 
they  alight  in  the  shambles  on  their  Avay,  they  have  no  thought  of  proceed- 
ing further ;  here  they  fall  to  AVork,  and  carry  ofi"  bits  of  flesh  as  big  as 
themselves.  The  same  fate  awaits  the  sugar  casks  of  the  grocer.  In  France, 
the  butcher's  consider  the  attendance  of  Wasps  as  useful  for  driving  aAvay 

c  2 


84  INJURIOUS   INSECTS. 

the  flies  from  their  stalls ,  and  the  author  of  "  Hector  St.  John's  American 
Letters"  says,  the  famiei-s  in  some  parts  of  the  United  States  encourage 
both  Hornets  (Vespa  Grabo)  and  Wasps,  for  a  similar  purpose.  It  is  well 
known  to  naturalists,  that  Wasps  are  both  pirates  and  cannibals  :  wherever 
they  fly,  like  the  eagle  or  the  falcon,  they  form  a  desert  in  the  air  around 
them.  They  are  particularly  destructive  to  the  Hive-Bee,  {Apis  mellifica,) 
and  not  only  rob  them  of  the  fruit  of  their  industrious  labour,  but  murder 
the  very  makers  ;  nay,  they  even  devour  their  enemies.  In  these  particulars, 
they  resemble  many  of  our  own  species.  How  many  men  are  wasps  in  the 
liighest  degree,  in  respect  to  their  fellow-creatures  !  The  difference  is,  that 
Wasps  are  voracious  by  the  natural  instinct  which  impels  them  to  provide 
for  a  numerous  family ;  whereas  man  is  a  malefactor  by  choice,  and  in  oppo- 
sition to  the  reason  that  enlightens  him. 

The  manner  of  constructing  their  dwellings,  and  the  materials  employed, 
must  form  the  subject  of  another  paper. 

5,  Middle-Street,  Taunton. 


PROGRESS  OF  THE  SEASONS. 
THE  OPERATIONS  OF  NATURE.— JANUARY. 

BY   WILLIAM   KIDD,    ESQ. 

THETt  love  the  country,  and  none  else,  who  seek 
For  their  own  sake  its  silence  and  its  shade.— Cowper. 

To-day,  in  snow  arrayed,  stern  Winter  rules 

The  ravaged  plain.    Anon,  the  teeming  earth 

Unlocks  her  stores,  and  Spring  adorns  the  year. — Thomson. 

It  is  refreshing  to  have  a  periodical  devoted  to  the  better  feelings  of  our 
nature, — one  willing  to  record  the  genial  feelings  of  its  subscribers  and 
readers.  Such  is  The  Naturalist.  BetAveen  its  two  (ever)  green  leaves, 
have  been  treasured  up  many  pleasing  facts,  which,  but  for  such  a  medium, 
might  never  have  seen  the  light.  Lovers  of  nature,  properly  so  called,  are 
not  a  very  numerous  body ;  it  must  therefore  be  very  delightful  for  them  to 
possess  a  (ihannel  of  their  own,  in  which  to  breathe  an  interchange  of 
thoughts. 

The  old  year  having  passed  away,  and  a  new  one  having  dawned,  I  have 
felt  disposed  to  imitate  my  good  friends  the  birds,  by  shaking  my  wings  a 
little ; — the  more  readily,  seeing  that  the  unusual  mildness  of  the  season  has 
prematurely  induced  a  tendency  towards  that  feeling  in  man  and  animals 
generally. 

Winter,  known  as  such,  has  not  yet  appeared  amongst  us.  In  its  stead, 
however,  we  have  had  a  long  succession  of  trying  weather,  injurious  in  its 


PBOGBESS   OF   THE    SEASONS.  35 

eftects  upon  the  eartlx  and  most  of  its  inhabitants.  Sickness  in  every  form, 
and  death  in  its  ruthless  ravages,  have  been  ever  before  our  eyes.  Seldom, 
indeed,  has  there  been  a  greater  mortality  known,  in  a  given  time,  amongst 
mankind  and  the  lower  animals.  Even  the  very  nature  of  the  latter  appears 
to  have  undergone  a  temporary  change ;  for,  up  to  December,  the  voices  of 
most  of  our  autumnal  and  winter  songsters  (in  all  quarters,  I  hear)  have 
been  ail-but  silent.  I  have  noticed  their  genei-al  depression  of  spirit,  times 
out  of  number.  I  felt  that  they,  like  ourselves,  wei'e  suffering  from  some 
hidden  cause  common  to  us.  all. 

The  first  magical  change  in  this  matter,  in  my  vicinity,  and  for  many  miles 
around,  was  on  the  5th  of  January,  instant.  On  that  morning,  the  moon 
lingered  much  longer  than  usual, — daring  even  to  face  the  sun,  and  lovingly 
to  dispute  with  him  the  sovereignty  of  the  day.*  The  feathered  tribe,  to 
my  amazement  and  delight,  took  a  part  in  this  unusual  phenomenon. 
Robins,  thrushes,  blackbirds,  hedge-sparrows,  and  wrens,  for  the  first  time 
became  really  "  vocal,"  and  poured  forth  strains  hy  moonlight  that  indeed 
"waked  the  groves."  I  had,  before,  imagined  them  diminished  in  numbers, 
— wondered  whither  they  had  fled,  (if  alive,) — deemed  our  lovely  parkf 
deserted  by  the  choir ;  and  now  all  Heaven  resounded  with  their  music !  I 
had  risen  at  six,  a.  m.,  (my  usual  hour,)  and  Avas  therefore  present  at  the 
birds'  "  early  matins." 

I  will  not  dwell  upon  this,  beyond  remarking,  that  the  extraordinary  effect 
I  have  mentioned,  produced  on  the  physique  of  the  birds, — gifting  them  at 
once  with  a  pure  vocal  melody,  appears  to  have  been  general  on  this  identical 
day.  The  same  genial  weather  ruled  from  January  5th  to  Januaiy  8th,  on 
which  day,  as  I  shall  presently  tell  you,  I  too  undei-went  a  similar  organic 
change. 

I  believe  few  persons  can  say,  with  truth,  that  they  are  in  the  habit  of 
hearing  the  blackbird  in  musical  voice,  so  early  as  the  day  I  have  named. 
There  however  he  sat,  perched  up  aloft,  and  might  be  heard  discoursing 
music  most  melodious.  I  should  note,  too,  that  on  and  after  this  day  our 
little  birds  exhibited  all  tlie  amorous  dalliance  so  pleasingly  noticed  by 
Thomson,  in  his  "  Spring."  They  seemed  to  become  mated  as  if  by  magic ; 
to  have  wooed,  courted,  won,  and  espoused  their  hearts'  idols,  without  many 
of  the  formal  "protestations"  usually  resorted  to  on  these  "interesting 
occasions."    Early  incubation  is  evidently  the  order  of  the  day. 

Here  I  must  leave  the  lover  of  nature  to  his  vivid  imagination,  which  can 
easily  fill  up  the  details  of  what  I  merely  shadow  in  outline.  Such  a  change 
in  so  short  a  time,  from  a  state  of  apathy  and  sickness  to  one  of  Nature's 

*  This  phenomenon  was  yet  more  apparent  on  January  0th.  The  moon  was  visibly  rejoicing  in  the  high 
Heaven  until  nearly  a  quarter  to  nine,  a.  m.,  her  glorious  rival  good-temperedly  suppressing  liis  more  power- 
ful beams,  until  she  had  bade  the  day  Adieu : 

+  Eavenscourt  Paii, 


86  PBOGRESS   OF   THE    SEASONS. 

holidays,  arrayed  in  the  pleasing  charms  of  early  Spring,  (brilliantly  shone 
upon,  too,  by  the  mighty  Sol,  in  his  increasing  strength,) — may  be  conceived, 
though  not  expi-essible  in  words.  Sickness  began  to  wear  itself  out  quickly. 
The  birds  felt  the  influence  of  Nature,  and  so  did  I.  On  Monday,  Jan.  8th, 
I  rose  as  usual.  The  metropolitan  carriage  called  for  me  at  eight  o'clock.  I 
was  habited,  and  ready  to  start.  But  there  was  something  so  genial  in  the 
atmosphere,  which  touched  my  spirits,  (whilst  opening  the  garden  gate  to 
make  my  exit,)  that  I  felt  impelled  to  shake  my  head  at  the  coachman.  This 
signified  that  he  was  to  go  on  without  me.  "  Out  of  sight,  out  of  mind," 
thought  I,  as  I  retraced  my  steps,  determined  to  do  something  out  of  the 
common  way. 

Now  the  voices  of  the  birds  were  every  moment  becoming  more  musical. 
It  was  too  much  for  me.  "A  walk,"  shouted  I,  mentally, — "  and  a  long  one  !" 
The  air  freshened,  and  the  sun  peeped  out,  as  my  mind  became  decided. 
An  over-coat,  weighing  some  eight  ounces,  was  thrown  on  my  shoulders ;  a 
trusty  stick  was  my  companion ;  and  away,  at  once,  I  bounded. 

I  love  fair  company,  and  I  delight  in  genial  spirits.  But  7ioiv,  the  walk  I 
meditated  was  of  such  dimensions,  that  I  felt  prudence  must  be  exercised. 
If  /  chose  to  be  eccentric,  and  do  something  out  of  the  common  way,  it  was 
not  right  to  compel  others  to  do  so  too.  "  Spring,"  I  argued,  "  will  soon  be 
here ;  and  then  we  will 

" '  Together  range  the  fields.' " 

The  door  opened  on  its  hinges ;  with  an  elastic  spring  I  touched  the  ground ; 
the  garden  gate  closed  behind  me ;  and  ere  the  church  clock  had  chimed 
half-past  eight,  I  was  a  mile  on  my  rambles, — alone,  but  in  good  company. 
My  heart  was  full  of  guests. 

I  hardly  need  tell  you,  that  I  haA-e  materiel  enough  in  my  head  and  mind, 
connected  with  the  scenes  of  this  day,  to  fill  two  complete  numbers  of  The 
Naturalist;  but,  as  your  readers  and  myself  are  "birds  of  a  feather,"  and 
can  by  latent  aflinities  of  mind  get  at  each  other's  inmost  feeling  (for  Nature 
works  alike  in  the  breasts  of  all  her  admiring  children)  under  such  circum- 
stances,— I  forbear  enlarging  on  minuticB.  The  day  M-as  gloriously  fine.  The 
birds  were  both  nvimerous  and  musical ;  and  everywhere  I  found  that  hapfiy 
innocence  which  is  so  inseparable  from  the  quiet  repose  of  Nature. 

I  will  now  indicate  the  tortuous  course  of  my  footsteps.  First,  I  sped 
away  through  the  orchards  at  the  rear  of  Turnham  Green  Church ;  sitting, 
ever  and  anon,  on  a  gate  or  stile,  to  enjoy  the  voices  of  the  many  hundreds 
of  little  choristers  by  whom  I  was  environed  on  every  hand.  Thence,  I  pro- 
ceeded onwards  by  the  side  of  the  Thames,  which  was  "  confluent  as  a  mirror, 
and  still  as  death,"  until  I  reached  the  noble  gardens  of  Kew, — revelling,  as  I 
went,  in  the  many  winter  flowers  peculiar  to  this  district.  The  Lautustinns, 
in  particular,  was  abundant,  and  most  luxuriant  in  blossom.  To  describe  the 
melody  of  the  thrushes,  blackbirds,  and  robins,  in  Kew  Gardens,  would  be 


proghess  of  the  seasons.  87 

impossible :  I  will  not  attempt  it.  Next,  I  visited  Isleworth ;  returning, 
after  a  long  stroll,  to  Brentford,  and  wandering  thence  through  a  number  of 
orchards,  until  I  reached  Great  Ealing. 

Here,  amidst  other  cruelties  practised  on  birds,  I  observed  a  large,  upright, 
narrow  cage,  (painted  and  made  to  resemble  a  house,)  suspended  beneath  a 
window.  In  it  was  immured  a  harmless  sky-lark.  I  should  mention,  that 
this  house-cage  had  no  light  admitted  through  its  sham  windows ;  but  was 
dark  and  gloomy.  In  front,  near  the  bottom,  was  a  small  door,  or  opening, 
allowing  the  poor  bird  to  come  forward  and  stand  partially  on  an  arched 
platform.  The  space,  however,  was  so  wretchedly  narrow  as  to  prevent  "  the 
bard  of  Heaven"  from  squeezing  more  than  half  his  body  into  it, — his 
tail  and  hinder  parts  remaining  behind  in  his  dark  prison.  A  front  of  wicker 
to  this  little  outlet  completed  the  lark's  "  happy  habitation."  And  there  was 
this  noble  fellow, — this  herald  of  the  sky, — doomed  to  drag  out  his  wi'etched 
life !  Restless  on  the  wing,  and  listening  to  the  happy  voices  of  his  "  free  " 
brethren  just  above  his  head, — there  he  hung,  an  object  indeed  for  pity! 
O  man !  man !  what  a  hard-hearted  wretch  thou  art !  I  would  here  notice, 
also,  the  very  cruel  practice  prevalent  at  this  season  everywhere,  of  hanging 
song-birds  out  of  doors.  The  drafts  of  air  constantly  passing  through  their 
wii-y  dwellings,  not  only  inflict  on  them  serious  injury,  but  render  their  inno- 
cent lives  bvirdensome  to  them. 

Before  leaving  Ealing,  a  sensible  appetite  pressed  itself  upon  me.  I  as 
sensibly  satisfied  it.  A  rural  meal  was  it,  and  a  frugal  one ;  rendered  doubly 
enjoyable  by  the  possession  of  a  hapjiy  heart,  (full  of  absent  friends  bi-ought 
near,)  and  a  body  greatly  benefited  by  exercise,  a  change  of  air,  and  a 
change  of  scene.     But  the  glass  of  ale  is  emptied,  and  I  must  progress. 

I  now  sti-etched  out  to  the  lovely  locality  of  Hanger  Hill,  and  was  accom- 
panied all  the  way  by  lovely  little  choristers.  I  had  seen  a  funeral  procession 
pass  me  on  the  road.  I  had  looked  in  at  one  of  the  windows  of  a  mourning 
coach.  I  had  seen  a  countenance  wan  with  bitter  grief.  Methought,  as  our 
eyes  met,  that  heart  was  broken.  Meditating  upon  this,  the  bell  "  tolled ; " 
and  the  solemn  sound,  borne  on  the  breeze,  caught  my  ear.  I  sighed. 
Again,  that  sound !  Aye, — nor  did  it  cease  for  full  three  quarters  of  an  hour. 
Three  funerals,  I  had  heard,  were  being  "  performed  ; "  and  the  knell  of  each 
vibrated  on  my  ear  and  heart,  as  I  receded  in  the  distance.  *  *  * 

As  I  passed,  I  peeped  in  at  Twyford  Abbey,  and  its  beautiful  sequestered 
grounds,  A  good-natured,  arch-looking  face  had  seen  me  enter,  and  smiled 
at  me  as  I  came  out  again.  It  seemed  to  say, — "  You  are  a  traveller ;  tired, 
but  heartily  welcome."  I  felt,  somehow,  that  I  was ;  and  followed  that  face. 
The  face  led  me  into  a  snug  little  apartment  in  a  snug  little  hostelry,  called 
the  "  Fox  and  Goose,"  and  placed  before  me  such  a  delicious  glass  of 
sparkling  ale,  that  I  drank  it  and  the  pretty  face's  "  health "  at  the  same 
time.     Honi  soit  qui  mal  y  pense ! 


88  PROGRESS   OF   THE    SEASONS. 

Alperton  was  the  next  place  I  passed  ;  and  proceeding  a  considerable  dis- 
tance along  this  pretty  road,  (turning  to  the  right  at  the  extreme  end,)  I 
found  myself  near  Sudbury,  and  not  quite  three  miles  from  Harrow.  Of 
course,  I  could  not  help  strolling  to  Harrow ;  and  a  delightful  view  indeed  I 
obtained  of  it !  I  did  not  tai*ry  long  on  the  hill,  knowing  how  fearfully  fast 
the  time  was  flying.     However,  I  saw  quite  enough  to  fill  me  with  delight. 

My  mind  now  seemed  sweet  upon  Willesdon,  some  few  miles  distant ;  and 
turning  upon  the  hill — "  to  take  a  last  fond  look," — forward  I  went.  I 
reached  the  pretty  little  village  of  Willesdon  about  half-past  two  ;  and  after 
viewing  "  the  rookery,"  the  renowned  tomb  of  the  mother  of  Jack  Shepherd, 
and  other  local  curiosities,  it  was  time  to  be  again  moving.  Remembering 
the  fair  hand  of  mine  host's  daughter,  that  had  once  before  gracefully 
ministered  to  me  at  the  "  White  Hart "  here,  that  same  hand  was  again 
soUcited  to  pour  me  out  a  glass  of  sherry.  It  kindly  consented.  In  the 
strength  of  this  I  walked  some  four  miles  further,  and  passing  through  the 
dear  little  village  of  Acton,  just  as  the  birds  were  "  singing  Vespers,"  I  enjoyed 
another  most  delectable  treat.  Here,  homewards,  I  Avas  musically  enter- 
tained the  whole  distance, — the  Thrush  and  the  Blackbird  apparently  striving 
which  should  sing  the  other  to  sleep. 

I  may  here  generally  remark,  that  the  Wren,  Robin,  Chaffinch,  Dicky 
Dunnock,  {Accentor  modularis),  Thrush,  and  Blackbird,  were  to  day  the 
principal  songsters.  They  were  numerous  and  very  lively.  The  Sky-larks 
were  only  tuning  up,  and  taking  low  flights.  Their  song  was  not  matured, 
nor  joyous.  It  very  soon  will  be,  for  all  Nature  is  progressing.  Our  good 
mother — God  bless  her! — is  only  slumbering;  vegetation  already  shows 
what  she  is  thinhing  about.  We  must  not  altogether  wake  her  up  yet.  There 
must  yet  pass  over  her  head  some  heavy  clouds,  some  rough  winds,  some 
mountains  of  snow,  some  bodies  of  ice.  All  these  will  only  set  off'  her  lovely 
handiwork  to  increased  advantage. 

As  yet  we  have  had  no  Winter.  I  found  all  the  roads  and  lanes  through 
which  I  passed  perfectly  clean  and  dry  for  the  most  part.  Gnats  were  born 
during  the  day  in  countless  generations,  and  were  seen  eddying  in  giddy 
flight  under  many  a  hedge.  The  rooks  were  all  alive,  and  lively;  a  few 
repairing  their  old  nests.  Starlings,  by  thousands,  passed  over  my  head, 
and  all  savoured  of  activity. 

In  sheltered  situations  I  met  with  an  abundance  of  China  roses,  wall- 
flowers, periwinkles,  and  the  heartsease,  {Viola  tricolor).  Golden  saxifrage, 
too,  and  stonecrop,  {Chrysosplenium),  met  my  eye  in  pleasing  variety.  The 
bramble  was  in  full  leaf.  In  one  or  two  situations  I  noted  the  red  dead- 
nettle,  in  flower ;  also,  in  several  places,  budding  snowdrops,  and  crocuses. 
The  catkin,  too,  of  the  hazel,  was  unfolding,  and  the  leaves  of  the  honey- 
suckle were  out.  The  pretty  little  heads  of  the  daisies  Avere  perceptible, 
but  they  were  not  in  full  bloom.    All  nature  was  in  motion. 


PROGRESS   OF  THE    SEASONS.  39 

When  I  say  that  my  I'amble  extended  some  twenty-four  miles,  (I  was 
nearly  nine  hours  on  foot),  some  idea  of  my  enthusiasm  for  Nature's  loveliness 
may  be  formed.  I  went  out,  suffering  from  the  remnant  of  a  seven  weeks' 
cold,  cough,  and  catarrh.  Bronchitis,  and  its  ever-attendant  "  hacking 
cough,"  had  well  nigh  finished  me  ;  but  I  returned  with  all  the  freshness  of 
renewed  youth — regenerated  both  in  body  and  mind.  Tired  I  was — very ; 
and  so  hungiy  !  My  Lares  and  Penates  had  foreseen  this.  Such  an  array  of 
welcome  dainties  graced  the  'family  table  on  my  arrival  chez  nous,  that 
"  appetite  did  indeed  grow  by  what  it  fed  on  !  " 

Thus  ended  the  8th  day  of  January,  1855 — a  day  in  the  year's  calendar 
that  I  shall  ever  fondly  cherish.  May  many  others  be  tempted  to  follow  my 
example ;  and  thus  prove  that  pleasure  is  not  confined  to  cities,  nor  to  any 
one  season  of  the  year.  Only  let  us  keep  companj^  Avith  Nature,  and  our  life 
must  be  a  happy  one.  Chequei'ed  it  may  be — for  change  is  our  lot ;  yet  will 
it  be  so  sweetly  seasoned  with  variety  as  not  to  be  simply  bearable,  but  truly 
enjoyable.  Let  me  add,  that  a  good  night's  rest  completed  all  that  any 
honest  heart  could  desire.  I  awoke  on  the  following  morning  "  like  a  giant 
refreshed." 

I  am  now  writing  on  January  15th ;  and  this  is  the  first  notable  appear- 
ance of  a  coming  Winter.  It  is  a  hard  frost,  and  there  are  evident  symptoms 
of  snow  in  the  near  distance.  Yesterday,  however,  (January  14th),  was  a 
fine  Spring  day.  The  sun  rose,  with  a  radiant  countenance  of  joyous  energy, 
and  all  Nature  shared  the  benefit.  The  small  remnant  of  the  reigning 
moon,  (her  last  appearance  but  three),  again  faced  her  glorious  rival,  and 
lingered  in  the  sky  till  she  was  fairly  dazzled,  and  ohliged  to  retreat.  How 
lovely  she  looked,  as  she  faded  from  sight !  As  for  the  birds,  they  seem 
prepared,  now,  to  do  battle  against  any  rigours  of  Winter  that  may  await 
them.    They  have  had  a  rare  time  of  it,  so  far.    But  everything  in  its  season. 

"  Some  people  "  say,  we  shall  suffer  for  all  this ;  and  they  begin  to  grumble 
at  Nature  for  dozing  whilst  she  should  be  fast  asleep.  They  forget  her 
ladyship's  amiable  disposition,  and  lose  one  half  the  enjoyments  of  life  by 
doubting  her  daily  growing  power.  She  must  be  active.  It  is  her  nature,  her 
delight  to  be  so.  Besides,  will  she  not,  by  way  of  compensation,  return  vis 
blessings  a  hundredfold  for  any  trifling  little  disappointment  we  may  have 
had  ?  Aye — indeed  will  she  !  Only  let  her  fairly  wake  up,  and  put  on  one 
of  her  winning  smiles — how  will  the  earth  at  her  silent  bidding  teem  with 
new  beauties,  and  our  hearts  be  filled  with  shame  at  their  want  of  faith  in 
her  goodness,  power,  and  superior  judgment. 

Nature's  reproofs  are  always  gentle — therefore  are  they  effectual.  Her 
Avorks  are  works  of  love  and  good  will — therefore  is  all  creation  happy.  Oh, 
that  we  could  all  take  a  leaf  out  of  our  dear  mother  Nature's  book  ! 

Hammersmith,  Jan.  IQth,  1855. 


40 


A  Supplement  to  Saines'  Flora  of  Yorkshire ;  with  a  Map.  The  Flowering 
Plants.  By  John  Gilbert  Baker.  Tlie  Mosses.  By  John  Newell.  London : 
Pamplin.     8vo.  pp.  188. 

It  is  with  sincere  pleasure  that  we  notice  the  appearance  of  a  Supplement  to 
the  valuable  Flora  of  Yorkshire,  by  Henry  Baines,  which  was  published  in 
1840.  The  original  work  contained  a  long  list  of  Flowering  Plants,  Ferns, 
and  Mosses,  and  an  extensive  series  of  localities  for  all  the  rarer  species  was 
given :  in  addition  to  which,  on  many  occasions,  the  peculiar  insects  to  be 
found  on  a  plant  were  mentioned ;  thus  rendering  the  book  a  very  much 
more  intei-esting  one  to  the  general  Naturalist  than  any  other  Flora  with 
which  we  are  acquainted.  During  the  fourteen  years  which  have  elapsed 
since  the  publication  of  the  Flora,  considerable  additions  have  been  made  in 
both  departments  of  the  work;  and  these  additions,  together  with  the 
progress  of  Botanical  Science,  by  whicdi  species  and  varieties  have  been 
better  discriminated,  rendered  the  issuing  of  a  Supplement,  if  not  necessary, 
certainly  most  desirable.  Under  these  circumstances  Mr.  Baines  determined 
to  bring  out  the  present  work,  and,  as  he  states  in  a  prefatory  note,  "  Mr. 
Baker,  with  the  assistance  of  Mr.  Nowell,  having  with  great  kindness  under- 
taken the  management  of  the  matter,  (a  task  for  which  their  labours  in  the 
special  field  of  research,  and  their  acquaintance  with  the  general  literature  of 
the  subject  have  rendered  them  so  eminently  fitted),  I  may  with  confidence 
introduce  the  Supplement  which  they  have  furnished  to  the  notice  of  my 
friends  and  the  public,  as  exliibiting  not  only  a  very  complete  list  of  the 
botanical  treasui'es  of  the  county,  so  far  as  it  professes  to  treat,  but  also  as 
a  work  calculated  to  lead  its  readers  to  the  study  and  investigation  of  general 
principles."  The  Supplement  commences  with  a  few  pages  of  inti-oductory 
remai-ks,  explanatoiy  of  the  plan  adopted  in  the  work,  together  with  a  general 
summary  of  the  contents ;  and  this  is  followed  by  an  interesting  Essay,  by 
Mr.  Baker,  on  the  Physical  Geography  of  the  County.  We  then  liave  a  list 
of  all  the  Flowering  Plants  and  Ferns  which  have  occurred  in  Yorkshire,  the 
ai-rangement  of  the  genera  and  species  being  that  of  the  fourth  edition  of 
the  Catalogue  of  the  London  Botanical  Society.  In  this  section  we  have 
1155  species  enumerated,  of  Flowering  Plants,  and  53  Ferns ;  the  British  list 
only  including  1445  and  60.  Numerous  localities  are  given  for  the  rarer 
species ;  but  those  for  the  commoner  are  omitted.  The  work  is  in  fact  what 
it  purports  to  be,  a  Supplement;  and  although  a  valuable  addition  to,  it  does 
not  supersede  the  original  Flora,  which  Avill  still  be  found  most  valuable  for 
reference.  The  Plants  are  ai-ranged  under  the  heads  of  Native,  Denizen, 
Colonist,  Alien,  and  Incognit;   a  plan  which  gives  us   at  a  glance  much 


REVIEW.  41 

valuable  information.  The  Flowering  Plants  and  Ferns  are  succeeded  by 
the  Mosses ;  and  the  same  plan  and  arrangement  is  continued  through  this 
portion  of  the  book,  which  bears  internal  evidence  of  great  care  and  labour 
having  been  bestowed  upon  it :  330  species  are  enumerated;  a  large  number, 
but  it  is  probable  that  more  may  yet  be  added,  as  these  interesting  plants 
become  more  generally  sought  after. 

We  regret  that  our  space  Avill  not  allow  us  to  enter  more  into  detail ;  but 
we  confidently  and  warmly  recommend  this  work  to  our  readers :  to  those 
who  have  known  Mr.  Baines  as  long  as  we  have,  some  fifteen  years,  our 
recommendations  are  unnecessary ;  to  those  who  are  strangers  to  him,  we 
may  safely  say  that  his  care  and  accuracj'^  are  only  equalled  by  his  diligence 
in  seeking  information;  and  that  his  acquirements  in  Natural  History 
generally  are  very  extensive.  The  present  work  will  insure  Mr.  Baker  and 
Mr.  Nowell  a  lasting  reputation,  for  the  able  manner  in  which  they  have 
thus  done  justice  to  Mr.  Baines'  discrimination,  in  selecting  them  as  his 
assistants  in  producing  the  present  elaborate  volume. 


fmtcMnp  af  Bmttm, 


PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  NATURAL  HISTORY  SOCIETY 
OF  GLASGOW —SESSION,  1854-5. 

(Concluded  from  page  21.J 

"  Dr.  Landsborough  has  given  to  the  world  several  popular  works  on 
natural  history,  among  which  may  be  mentioned,  'A  Popular  History  of 
Zoophytes ;'  '  A  Popular  Histoiy  of  British  Sea- Weeds  ;'  and  a  pleasing  work 
entitled  '  Arran,  and  its  Natural  History ;'  the  shores  of  which  island  were 
a  favourite  dredging  ground  for  him,  as  being  a  prolific  field  for  the  Natural- 
ist, There  are  also  many  interesting  Papers  from  his  pen,  scattered  up  and 
down  the  pages  of  the  '  Annals  and  Magazine  of  Natural  History.'  He  was 
an  associate  of  the  Linnean  Society,  and  his  known  attachment  to  the  ob« 
jects  of  our  pursuits,  pointed  him  out  in  the  early  days  of  this  Society  as 
well  worthy  of  being  enrolled  in  the  list  of  its  corresponding  members. 
Shortly  after  his  election,  he  communicated  a  short  Paper  on  Hippothoa 
divaricata ;  and  more  recently,  a  Notice  of  an  Excursion  from  Gibraltar  to 
the  Shores  of  Tangeirs, — the  only  Papers  we  were  privileged  to  receive.  All, 
however,  who  went  to  Saltcoats  to  pursue  their  researches,  were  sure  to  re- 
ceive from  him  a  most  hospitable  welcome,  and  much  valuable  information. 


4li  PROCEEDINGS   Of   SOCIETIES. 

"  The  amiable  disposition  and  unaffected  piety  of  Dr.  Landsboroxigli,  se- 
cured to  him  the  love  and  admiration  of  all  who  knew  him.  Few  men  have 
ever  gained  the  respect  and  affection  of  a  large  circle,  both  of  private  and 
scientific  friends,  to  so  great  an  extent  as  Dr.  Landsborough.  His  life  was 
spent  in  the  simple  and  earnest  search  of  knowledge  among  God's  Avorks, 
and  the  equally  simple  and  earnest  teaching  of  his  Word  to  those  among 
whom  he  dwelt,  as  their  pastor,  for  the  long  period  of  forty  years. 

"  He  died  on  Tuesday,  the  12th  day  of  September  last,  in  the  seventy- 
third  year  of  his  age." 

These  remarks  were  fully  reciprocated  by  the  members  present,  by  a 
general  expression  of  regret  at  the  loss  they  had  sustained. 

Mr.  Thomas  Keid  was  then  proposed  as  a  resident  member  in  the  usual 
form,  as  was  also  Mr.  G.  J.  Lyon. 

Mr.  GoDRLiE  exhibited  specimens  of  Hierochloe  borealis,  Roem.  and  Sch., 
and  Holosteum  umbellatum,  Linn. ;  the  former  found  abundantly  near  Thurso, 
by  Mr.  Robert  Dick ;  and  the  latter  was  communicated  to  him,  by  Dr.  Leesch- 
ing,  as  having  been  found  on  a  hill  near  Bowling. 

Dr.  ScouLER,  the  Honorary  President,  then  delivered  a  Lecture  on  the 
Skeleton  of  Birds.  He  said,  that  in  each  of  the  great  groups  of  the  animal 
kingdom,  there  are  two  facts  to  be  taken  into  consideration.  A  certain  uni- 
formity of  plan  and  structure  is  seen  throughout  the  whole  series ;  and  this 
plan,  although  never  departed  from,  is  modified  so  as  to  fulfil  a  great  variety 
of  functions.  In  some  families  the  uniformity  of  type  preponderates,  and  is, 
so  to  speak,  more  rigidly  adhered  to ;  while  in  others,  the  plan  is  almost  lost 
amongst  the  rich  variety  of  structure  and  function.  Thus  the  structure  of 
the  brain  is  almost  the  same  in  every  species  of  bird,  while  in  fishes  it  varies 
in  almost  every  genus.  In  reptiles,  from  the  Tortoise  to  the  Lizard  and  the 
Serpent,  we  have  almost  every  variety  of  form  and  function  under  a  common 
type,  while  in  birds  the  diversities  are  few. and  comparatively  unimpoi-tant. 

The  bird  may  be  defined  a  vertebral  animal,  adapted  for  flying ;  and  from 
these  two  data  we  may  dediice  in  an  a  priori  manner,  all  the  peculiarities  of 
their  oi-ganisation.  The  muscular  energy  necessaiy  to  move  the  body 
through  the  air  requires,  as  an  essential  condition,  that  the  bird  should  be  a 
warm-blooded  animal,  as  the  animal  heat  and  muscular  power  are  in  th^ 
direct  ratio  of  the  oxygen  consumed.  The  power  of  flight  also  requires  that 
the  mass  of  the  viscera  should  be  in  the  centre  of  the  animal,  and  hence  the 
broad  sternum  for  their  support,  which  exceeds  in  magnitude  that  of  any 
mammiferous  animal.  The  vertebra?  of  the  neck  are  numerous,  to  give  the 
requisite  mobility  to  the  head, — the  chief  organ  of  prehension.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  head  has  neither  teeth  nor  masticating  appar'atus,  as  this  would 
disturb  the  centre  of  gravity ;  and,  accordingly,  the  function  of  mastication 
is  performed  by  the  stomach.  Another  condition  is,  that  birds  must  be 
oviparous ;  and  this  again  depends  on  their  nature  as  aerial  animals.    The 


PBOCEEDINGS    OF   SOCIETIES.  4$ 

utero-gestation  and  its  complement,  tlie  mammary  glands,  are  incompatible 
mth  a  flying  animal.  Even  the  Bat  offers  no  objection  to  this  view.  Hence 
as  birds  have  no  utero-gestation,  so  have  they  no  diaphragm  ;  nor  could  they 
be  sucking  animals,  as  they  have  neither  fleshy  lips  nor  tongues,  nor  even 
an  epiglottis. 

A  vote  of  thanks  was  then  tendered  to  Dr.  Scouler,  and  business  being 
over,  the  meeting  separated. 

Nov,  1th.  The  ordinary  Monthly  Meeting  was  held  this  evening,  the  Px'esi- 
dent  in  the  Chair. 

The  Minutes  of  last  meeting  were  read  and  approved  of,  and  Messrs. 
Thomas  Reid  and  Gr.  J.  L^on  were  unanimously  elected  resident  members. 

The  President,  having  vacated  the  Chair,  which  was  then  tilled  by  Dr. 
Arnott,  read  a  Paper  in  continuation  of  his  former  ones,  on  the  Geology  of 
Campsie  District,  entitled,  "  Some  further  Illustrations  of  the  Geology  of 
Campsie."  He  commenced  by  recapitulating  some  of  his  former  remarks  ou 
the  topography  and  general  physical  features  of  that  interesting  district, 
showing  the  prevailing  characters  of  the  strata,  and  giving  an  outline  of  the 
principal  beds  Avith  their  included  fossils,  and  a  general  desciiption  of  the 
boulder  drift,  with  several  proofs  of  the  prominent  part  it  had  played  in  the 
conformation  of  that  locality.  He  then  opened  his  present  Paper  by  relating 
the  ascending  order  of  the  strata,  stating,  that  the  lowest  beds  are  the  old 
red  sandstone  rocks  of  Killearn,  immediately  above  which  lie  the  Ballaggan 
beds,  which  in  their  turn,  are  covered  by  the  strata  seen  at  the  Linn  of  Bal- 
dernock,  the  lowest  in  which  fossils  are  there  found,  consisting  chiefly  of 
Cyprides,  &c.,  and  the  remains  of  fishes.  The  next  in  ascending  order  are  the 
Craigenglen  beds,  where  we  have  both  marine  and  fresh  water  fossils ;  the 
next  are  those  at  Milburn,  which  are  marine  beds  only ;  atop  of  these  lie 
the  strata  of  the  Schiliengow  Quarries  and  the  Glorat  Lime  Works,  which 
beds  are  both  marine  and  fresh  water ;  the  strata  of  the  Corrie-burn  are  the 
next  highest,  and  they  are  all  marine  ;  and  the  highest  we  have  in  that  dis- 
trict, are  found  at  Samson's  pit,  being  both  lacustrine  and  marine. 

He  then  described  that  fine  section  exhibited  at  the  spout  of  Ballaggan, 
which,  he  said,  is  composed  of  a  series  of  thin  beds  of  impure  limestones, 
sandstones,  and  shales.  These  strata  are  upwards  of  one  thousand  feet  in 
thickness,  and  are  seen  resting  on  the  old  red  sandstone,  in  some  of  the  glens 
near  Leven.  The  number  of  beds  which  constitute  this  section  are  about 
two  hundred  and  fifty.  These  beds  form  the  base  of  the  north  hill  towards 
the  west,  and  are  covei^ed  by  tabular  masses  of  trap ;  the  strata  do  not  rise 
against  the  trap,  but  they  dip  slightly  into  the  hill  near  it ;  from  which  fact 
we  were  led  to  the  conclusion,  that  the  vein  through  which  the  trap  had  been 
ejected,  must  have  its  position  at  some  distance,  and  the  liquid  mass  must 
have  overflowed  the  strata  without  disturbing  them  much.  The  Ballaggan 
beds  were  long  thought  to  contain  no  fossils ;  but  Mr.  Young  had  discovered, 


44  PROCEEDINGS  OF   SOCIETIES. 

in  a  tliiu  bed  of  sandstone  near  the  foot  of  the  section,  the  remains  of  a 
reedy  kind  of  plant,  somewhat  resembling  a  Calamite.  This,  however,  is 
the  only  fossil  that  has  yet  been  found  in  them. 

Mr.  Fraser  then  proceeded  to  describe  the  junction  of  these  beds  with  the 
old  red  in  Auchinreach  glen,  and  to  trace  them  in  two  of  the  glens  to  the 
spout  of  Ballaggan,  giving,  at  the  same  time,  a  description  of  them  as  he 
had  seen  them  in  these  two  glens.  He  went  on  to  prove,  that  the  range  of 
hills,  called  the  Campsie  and  Kilpatrick  hills,  have  been  the  principal  elevat- 
ing causes  of  all  the  strata  in  that  district ;  and  he  thovight  it  also  evident, 
that  all  the  strata  which  have  been  carried  up  with  these  trap  elevations 
have  been  removed  by  denudation.  He  was  not  aware  of  any  of  the  Bal- 
laggan strata  being  seen  between  the  section  he  had  described  and  the  river 
Leven.  The  higher  beds  of  the  Campsie  strata  seem  to  have  extended 
nearly  to  Kilpatrick  at  some  former  period,  for  the  very  same  limestones  and 
shales  which  are  found  in  the  south  hill  and  Craigen  glen,  with  the  charac- 
teristic fossils,  are  found  there  flanking  the  hill-side.  The  trap  hills  run 
nearly  north-east  and  south-west,  so  that  all  remains  of  the  carboniferous 
system  to  the  west  is  only  a  portion  of  its  very  lowest  beds  between  Ballag- 
gan and  Auchinreach  glen,  being  a  distance  of  upwards  of  twelve  miles. 
The  whole  of  this  distance  is  covered  by  a  range  of  trap  hills,  or  rather  hillocks, 
which  have  suffered  from  denudation  to  a  veiy  great  extent,  for  they  have 
all  evidently  been  connected  at  a  former  period,  though  now  they  are 
separated  by  considerable  hollows ;  the  strata,  therefore,  which  have  been 
carried  up  by  the  trap,  and  then  removed  by  denudation,  cannot  be  less  than 
from  fifteen  hundred  to  two  thousand  feet  in  thickness.  The  Ballaggan 
beds,  as  already  stated,  are  upwards  of  a  thousand  feet  in  thickness,  and  the 
higher  beds  on  the  south  hill  are  moi'e  than  five  hundred  feet. 

He  then  proceeded  to  describe,  at  some  length,  the  beds  in  their  ascend- 
ing order,  proving,  as  he  went  along,  the  frequent  depressions  and  elevations 
to  which  that  district  had  been  subjected,  as  evinced  by  the  interstratifica- 
tion  of  fresh  water  and  marine  beds,  besides  other  evidences  which  were 
mentioned.  He  then  turned  the  attention  of  the  Society  to  the  great 
mineral  axis  of  the  district,  pointing  out  its  peculiarities,  and  proving  from 
that  axis  itself,  that  the  trap  eminences  were  the  work  of  a  series  of  pro- 
tracted outbursts,  and  the  whole  district  one  of  constant  change, — now 
elevated,  now  depressed.  He  proved  that  the  valleys  of  Strathblane  and 
Campsie  were  valleys  of  denudation,  and  brought  forward  some  very  strik- 
ing and  interesting  facts  in  support  of  his  statements,  and  vividly  elucidating 
his  reasoning. 

Mr.  Fraser  then  wound  up  a  long  Paper,  of  which  the  above  is  but  a  faint 
outline,  by  stating,  that  the  mind  is  overwhelmed  in  attempting  to  compre- 
hend, or  even  form. a  vague  idea  of  the  vast  eternity  which  has  rolled  be- 
tAveen  the  time  of  the  first  existence  of  these  strata  and  their  present  shat. 


PROCEEDINGS    OF    SOCIETIES.  45^ 

tered,  twisted,  uplifted,  and  liollovved-out  condition ; — what  cliangos  have 
they  witnessed,  what  a  history  unfolded,  the  dates  of  which  no  chronologist 
can  fix,  and  comiiared  with  whose  youngest  eras,  his  oldest  are  but  as  the 
events  of  yesterday ! 

Business  being  now  concluded,  the  meeting  stood  adjourned,  as  usual,  to 
the  first  Tuesday  of  the  ensuing  modth. 


tisallat);e0iis  i^trtias. 


The  Pine  Marten.  (Mustela  Abietum.) — On  the  0th  of  November  I  had  a 
fine  specimen  of  the  Pine  Marten  brought  to  me  for  preservation,  which  had 
been  found  the  day  previous,  in  a  trap  on  the  grounds  of  Captain  Fox,  of 
Girsby  House,  distant  about  seven  miles  from  Louth.  They  are,  I  believe, 
fiir  from  common  in  this  part  of  the  country ;  I  have,  however,  been  informed 
by  the  Rev.  Geo.  Jackson,  of  Reston,  that  one  was  taken  some  years  ago,  in 
Burwell  Wood,  about  four  miles  from  Louth. — John  Brown,  Louth,  Nov.  8th, 
1854. 

Singular  Capture  of  the  Peregrine  Falcon.  (Falco  peregrinus.) — On  Thursday 
last,  a  labourer  at  work  near  the  coast  saw  a  Peregrine  Falcon  strike  down  a 
Gull,  [Larus  canus,)  a  few  hundred  yards  from  where  he  stood.  He  imme- 
diately approached  the  spot  with  caution ;  and  so  intent  was  the  Falcon  upon 
her  prey,  that  the  man  actually  put  his  foot  on  her  back,  and  held  her  down, 
whilst  he  untied  his  garter,  with  which  he  secured  his  prize.  The  Peregrine 
has  been  admirably  stuffed  by  Mr.  Bolitho,  of  Plymouth,  in  the  attitude  of 
killing  the  Gull;  and  is  now  in  the  possession  of  W  E.  Matthevvs,  Esq.,  of 
Gnaton  Hall,  a  few  miles  from  Plymouth,  near  which  place  the  capture  was 
made. — John  Gatcombe,  Wyndham  Place,  Plymouth,  December  21st,  1854. 

Late  Appearance  of  the  Ring  Ouzel.  (Turdus  torquatus). — Apropos  to  Mr. 
Round's  remarks,  in  the  number  for  November,  on  the  migration  of  the 
Mountain  Thrush,  I  maj'  mention  that  I  saw  one  at  Herrington  in  this  parish, 
on  the  13i/j  of  November,  J  853.  It  must  have  been  on  its  way  southward,  for 
there  is  no  natural  habitat  of  these  birds  within  a  great  many  miles  of  the 
place.  First,  I  saw  a  bird  flying  to  a  neighbouring  hill,  and  remarked  to 
myself  how  like  its  flight  was  to  that  of  the  Ring  Ouzel,  but  thought  it  im- 
possible it  could  he  one.  But,  some  hours  after,  I  saw  either  the  same  bird 
or  a  companion  quite  near  to  me,  on  a  footpath  at  the  bottom  of  the  hill 
beforenamed ;  and  a  Ring  Ouzel  it  certainly  ivas.  The  hill  is  not  unlike  a  south- 
country  down,  such  as  those  on  which  White  used  to  see  these  Ouzels  at 
Selborne.  When  the  bird  hopped  into  an  adjoining  plantation,  for  a  while 
it  kept  turning  round  and  round  on  a  branch  in  an  affected  way,  shuffling 
its  mngs  much  like  a  Turkey  Cock.     The  only  note  it  gave  resembled  the 


46  SIISCELLANEOUS   NOTICKS. 

"  tack  "  of  the  Wlieatear  or  Whinchat.  I  have  seen  no  account  of  the  bird 
wandering  southward  so  late  as  tliis,  by  thi-ee  or  four  weeks. — Geo.  Sowden, 
Newbottle,  Houghton-le-Spring,  Durham,  Nov.  22nd,  1854. 

Nest  of  the  Grasshopper  Warbler.  (Salicaria  locustella.) — On  the  2Cth  of 
May,  this  year,  I  found  the  nest  of  tliis  bird,  with  six  eggs,  beside  a  well- 
frequented  footpath  in  a  field  in  this  parish.  It  was  among  the  briers  and 
thick  grass  of  the  bank.  The  nest  is  usually  described  as  placed  so 
cunningly,  that  it  can  with  difficulty  be  found.  But  I  had  no  diificulty,  after 
once  my  attention  was  attracted  by  both  birds  flying  off  in  a  suspicious  Avaj'. 

Idem. 

Note  on  the  Cuchoo.  (Cuculus  canonis.) — The  last  time  I  heard  the  Cuckoo 
this  year,  was  on  the  24th  of  June,  at  tivo  o'chck,  a.m.,  near  Harrogate.  I  had 
heard  their,  to  me,  pleasing  notes  almost  daily,  up  to  that  date. — B.R.M., 
Driffield,  September  30th,  1854. 

Departure  of  the  Martin.  (Hinindo  urbica.) — On  Monday  morning,  the  2nd 
of  October,  whilst  busy  in  my  garden  soon  after  sun-rise,  ray  attention  was 
drawn  to  the  busy  movements  of  the  Martins ;  and,  looking  towards  a  neigh- 
bouring villa  westward,  the  whole  of  its  roof  and  chimneys  appeared  covered 
with  these  birds.  Turning  towards  my  own  house,  the  same  was  going  on  ; 
and  upon  the  roof  of  another  house,  southward,  the  same.  Thousands  upon 
thousands  of  these  pretty  birds  were  in  rapid  gyration,  their  white  breasts 
showing  in  soft  harmony  in  the  clear  blue  of  a  cloudless  sky;  even  the 
weather-vane  and  its  four  cardinal  pointers,  upon  my  own  house,  were 
literally  covered.  I  withdrew  from  the  busy  scene  to  breakfast  about  eight, 
with  the  intention  of  returning  in  as  short  a  time  as  possible ;  but  the  arrival 
of  the  postman  during  that  important  meal,  with  a  greater  than  usual  supply 
of  letters,  so  diverted  my  attention,  that  it  was  nearly  nine  o'clock  before  I 
got  out;  when,  to  my  great  disappointment,  not  one  of  my  interesting  friends 
was  to  be  seen.  All  had  taken  flight ;  and  the  day,  though  very  fine  and 
wai-m,  closed  without  a  single  individual  having  been  seen ;  nor  have  I 
observed  one  in  this  neighbourhood  since.  I  regret  extremely  being  absent 
at  the  moment  of  their  departure,  as  I  should  have  much  liked  to  have 
obsei-ved  the  "  order  of  their  going."  I  was  not  aware  until  now,  that  the 
migration  of  this  portion  of  our  feathered  society  was  so  sudden  and  simul- 
taneous. Heretofore,  I  have  understood  their  disappearance  to  be  more 
gradual ;  but  on  this  occasion  there  has  appeared  to  me  a  movement  more 
demonstrative  of  instinct  and  prescience,  than  any  in  my  previous  knoAvledge. 
— Thomas  Fuller,  Lansdown  Villa,  Charlcombe,  near  Bath,  Oct.  6th,  1854. 

Tlie  Ringdove.  (Columba  palumbus.) — A  freshly  laid  egg  of  this  bird  I 
found  in  this  neighbourhood,  on  the  5th  inst.  Although  well-known  as  a  late 
incubator,  I  believe  the  bird  will  rarely  be  found  to  breed  after  August,  and 
the  present  instance  may  reasonably  be  ascribed  to  the  remarkable  fineness 
of  the  present  season,  and  to  the  secluded  position  of  the  nest,  viz.,  in  a 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES.  4T 

plantation  of  firs  in  the  centre  of  a  wood.  At  page  43,  (volume  iv.  of  The 
Naturalist,)  the  eggs  of  this  species  are  said  to  have  been  found  in  the  same 
^\'ood,  towards  the  end  of  September ;  but  the  author  omits  to  give  the  pre- 
<;ise  date,  nor  does  he  state  that  the  eggs  were  addled  !  If  in  this  condition, 
I  can  assure  him  that  a  dozen  such  might  have  been  procured  any  time 
during  the  last  month.  Not  having  the  ability  of  this  gentleman,  of  leisurely 
strolls,  I  was  obliged  somewhat  hurriedly  to  leave  the  wood ;  or  might 
possibly  have  discovered,  even  at  the  late  date  given  above,  other  still- 
occupied  nests,  judging  from  the  noise  and  actions  of  the  birds  disturbed, 
but  the  investigation  of  which  I  must  resign  to  the  great  ornithological 
experience  of  your  former  correspondent. — H.  E.  S.,  Thirsk,  8th,  lOmo.,  1854. 

The  Spoonbill,  (Platalea  leucorodia,)  near  Louth. — On  the  17th  of  November, 
a  young  male  specimen  of  the  White  Spoonbill  was  brought  to  me,  which 
liad  been  shot  at  North  Cotes,  on  the  15th  of  November. — ^.T.  Brown,  Louth, 
Dec.  18th,  1854. 

Occurrence  of  the  Little  Stint,  or  Sandpiper,  (Tringa  minuta,)  at  Fraserburgh, 
Aberdeenshire. — There  was  shot,  by  a  gentleman  residing  in  Fraserburgh,  on 
the  26th  of  last  month,  a  splendid  specimen  of  the  above  little  elegant 
Tringa.  It  was,  at  the  time,  feeding  amongst  a  flock  of  Dvmlins,  or  Ring 
Dottrels.  If  I  remember  right,  I  think  it  is  stated  by  Sir  W.  Jardine,  Bart., 
in  the  Naturalist's  Library,  that  this  species  is  not  recorded  as  having  been 
obtained  in  Scotland,  as  far  as  he  was  aware.  That  it  is  a  scarce  species, 
at  least  that  it  is  but  seldom  procured  or  even  seen  in  this  part  of  the 
country,  I  am  well  aware ;  but  I  know  of  two,  besides  the  one  here  alluded 
to,  which  have  been  killed  in  this  neighbourhood.— T.  Edward,  Banff,  Oct. 
7tli,  1854. 

Bartram's  Sandpiper.  (Totanus  Bartramius.) — A  fine  specimen  was  shot 
near  Cambridge,  on  December  12th  ult.  We  hope  to  give  particulars  in  our 
next  — B.  R.  M. 


How  to  destroy  Mice.  Your  correspondent,  E.  K.  B.,  who,  at.  p.  24,  vol  5, 
of  The  Naturalist,  complains  of  the  ravages  of  mice,  may  soon  get  rid  of 
them.  It  is  evident  they  are  "  up  to  the  trap."  Cats,  too,  only  keep  them  in 
check.  Carbonate  of  Barytes  is  the  only  panacea  for  the  domestic  evil.  This 
(in  powder)  is  tasteless  and  scentless — and  moreover  a  most  active,  deadly 
poison.  Let  a  little  of  it  be  mixed  with  some  fresh  butter  and  moist  sugar. 
Spread  this  on  some  household  bread,  two  days  old.  Cut  some  thin  slices 
of  "bread  and  butter"  from  it,  and  place  them  (in  sections)  among  the  "runs" 
of  the  enemy — filling  also  with  the  tempting  dainty,  the  holes  into  which 
they  scamper  on  being  pursued.     Three  days  will  in  most  cases  cleai*  the 


48  THE    QUERIST. 

premises.  If  they  do  return — not  probable,  repeat  the  "  hospitable  spread;" 
and  their  race  will  shun  you,  hereafter,  as  if  you  were  their  hereditary  foe. 
Their  instinct  very  closely  resembles  reason ;  I  have  found  it  so.  They  never 
enter  my  house  now;  although  my  neighbours,  right  and  left,  entertain 
whole  armies  of  them.  The  coinmon  "  Carbonate  of  Barytes  "  is  to  be  used, 
price  6d.  per  lb.  It  is  to  be  had  in  London,  genuine,  of  Mr.  Bolton,  Chemist, 
146,  High  Holborn.  "  A  little  of  it  goes  a  very  great  way." — William  Kidd, 
Hammersmith,  January  12th,  1855. 

Lastraia  collina  is  mentioned  in  the  December  number  of  The  Naturalist  as 
occurring  at  Moseley  Pool.  As  I  do  not  know  this  fern  I  would  feel  obliged 
by  Mr  Twinn  giving  its  more  usual  name.  He  also  terms  the  Hawkweeds 
Pilosella.  This  is  not  a  generic,  but  a  specific  name,  and  therefore  not 
likely  to  convey  a  clear  idea  of  the  writer's  meaning.  I  am  aware  that  one 
species  of  hawkvveed  is  called  Hieraciam  pilosella. — J.  B.  Davies,  Edinburgh, 
December  10th,  1854 

Venessa  Antiopa  at  Blachlieath.  Permit  me  through  the  medium  of  your 
periodical  to  acquaint  Mr.  Drury,  Jun..  that  one  of  the  specimens  of  "  Venessa 
Antiopa"  caught  at  Blackheath,  and  mentioned  in  my  communication  of 
January  last,  was  taken  at  Montpelier  Row,  in  September  1852,  and  is,  I  have 
no  doubt,  the  same  as  the  one  mentioned  in  his  communication  which 
appeared  in  The  Naturalist  for  last  August. — L.  Shields,  Blackheath, 
October  4th,  1854. 

Unhnoivn  Eggs.  Are  not  the  eggs  described  by  Mr.  C.  E.  Smith,  in  The 
Naturalist,  vol.  iv.  p.  238,  those  of  the  Sedge  Warbler?  (Sylvia  salicaria?) 
H.  Buckley,  Calthorpe-street,  Birmingham,  November  6th,  1854. 

I  shall  be  much  obliged  if  any  of  your  subscribers  can  give  me  the 
Botanical  name  of  a  plant  provincially  known  as  the  "  Owl's  Crown."  It  is 
said  to  be  indigenous  to  light,  sandy  soils,  disappearing  upon  the  land  being 
clayed,  and  to  have  been  a  favourite  food  of  the  Great  Bustard. — Thomas 
Southwell,  Fakenham. 

On  separating  Desmidiece  from  Mud.  In  answer  to  the  inquiry  as  to  the  best 
mode  of  separating  Desmidiese  from  mud ;  I  believe  the  following  to  be  the 
best  mode,  which  is  suggested  by  Mr.  Ralfs,  in  his  work  on  Desmidiese, 
and  which  I  give  you  in  his  own  words. 

"  If  a  species  be  much  mixed  with  mud,  I  take  a  saucer,  fill  it  with  earth 
made  into  a  paste  and  water,  and  cover  it  with  a  piece  of  linen ;  over  this  I 
spread  a  thick  layer,  containing  the  Desmidiese,  and  allow  it  to  become 
nearly  dry ;  Avithin  a  few  days  the  specimens  will  form  a  stratum  on  the 
linen,  and  may  be  scraped  off  with  a  knife." — C.  G.  Lenny,  Eamsgate, 
January  2nd,  1855. 

On  removing  Grease  from  Insects.  Can  any  of  the  readers  of  The  Naturalist 
inform  me  of  the  best  way  of  taking  the  greasy  substance  out  of  the  bodies 
of  insects  ? — W.  C.  H.,  Cambridge.  /^^h  M^^J^ 


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tlie  liberty  of  informing  them  and  others,  that  he  intends  making  another  journey  into 
Scotland,  for  the  purpose  of  collecting  insects,  during  the  Summer  of  1855 ;  he  purposes 
devoting  seven  months  to  collecting  in  England  and  Scotland,  commencing  early  in  March, 
and  intends  collecting  through  England  on  his  way  to  and  from  Scotland. 

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scriber, to  be  his  property. 

Mr.  F.  hopes,  by  visiting  different  localities,  to  take  many  rare  and  new  species ;  thus 
affording  an  excellent  opportunity  to  Gentlemen,  of  obtaining  desirables  to  their  collections. 

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Detected  in  1854. 


LEPIDOPTERA.— By  the  Editor.        IIYMENOPTERA.— By  Frederick  Smith. 
COLEOPTERA.— By  W.  E.  Janson. 


Edited  by  H.  T.  STAINTON. 


OPINIONS  OF  ENTOMOLOGISTS. 

"The  Entomologist's  Annual"  cannot  fail  being  very  useful,  both  as  an  annual  resumS 
of  new  discoveries,  and  as  making  Entomologists  acquainted  with  each  other.  I  wish  it 
every  success,  and  have  ordered  four  copies  to  give  to  young  Entomological  friends. — 
William  Spence,  18,  Loioer  Seymour -Street. 

I  think  the  " Little  Stranger"  is  the  very  thing  we  want,  and  you  may  depend  upon  me 
making  such  a  welcome  novelty  known.— T.  J.  Bold,  Newcastle-iipon-Ti/ne. 

I  have  just  received  "The  Entomologist's  Annual."  I  am  greatly  pleased  with  it, 
especially  that  portion  of  it  which  contains  a  list  of  the  new  insects  discovered  since  18ii5. 
— Rev.  Joseph  Greene,  Dublin. 

The  "  Annual  "  is  very  much  wanted,  and  should  have  the  certain  effect  of  stimulating 
to  further  observation  and  research.  I  hope  it  will  meet  such  a  body  of  readers  as  will 
induce  its  being  continued. — Hugh  Colquhoun,  M.D.,   Glasgow. 

It  is  certainly  a  good  design,  and  will  tend  to  keep  many  a  country  collector  up  to  the 
mark  Avho  might  otherwise  have  fallen  in  the  rear :  for  it  has  hitherto  frequently  been  a 
matter  of  no  small  difficulty  to  get  information  about  novelties. — J.  W.  Dunning,  Cambridge. 

I  will  do  all  I  can  to  promote  the  sale  of  the  "  Annual,"  because  I  think  it  deserves 
support. — G.  R.  Watekhouse,  British  Mvseum, 

I  think  it  an  exceedingly  successful  and  usefid  ■publication. — T.  V.  Wollaston,  Brampton. 

I  have  but  little  fear,  after  it  is  once  kilown,  of  its  having  a  large  sale. — John  Scott, 
Stockton. 

I  am  much  pleased  with  the  work :  it  is  a  book  that  was  sadly  wanted. — E.  H.  Stretch, 
Banbury. 

The  '•  Annual  "  is  excellent,  and  will,  I  expect,  set  many  a  net  that  has  long  laid  dor- 
mant a-going  again. — George  Wailes,  Newcastle-upon-Tyne. 

If  the  thousand  collectors  that  I  estimate  there  really  exist  in  England  are  to  be  reached,- 
i   must  be  through  such  half-crown  publications  as  yours. — Edwin  Lees,   Worcester. 


LONDON :— JOHN  VAN  VOORST,  1,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 


COULTAS,  printer,  i'ORK. 


No.  49. 


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CONDUCTED   BY 

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AND  MAY  BE  HAD  OP  ALL  BOOKSELLERS. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

Bartram's  Sandpiper.    By  the  Rev.  F.  Tearle     49 

The  Swamps  of  the  Mississippi.     By  George  Donaldson,  Esq 51 

A  Glance  at  the  Feathered  Residents  in,  and  Visitants  to,  the  Grounds  of  Terrick 

House.     By  Stephen  Stone,  Esq 65 

The  Fishes  of  Banffshire.     By  Mr.  Thomas  Edward 59 

Notes  on  the  Frog.     By  John  Dixon,  Esq 62 

Notice  of  the  Red  Spider,  with  Remarks  on  a  Few  Others.  By  Geo.  Stockley,  Esq.  66 

Rambhng  Reflections  amidst  Snow  and  Frost.     By  William  Kidd,  Esq 67 

Miscellaneous  Notices 71 

Emberiza  calcarata.    Temminch.     A  fine  specimen  of  this  rare  visitant  was  netted  at 
Postwick  on  the  banks  of  the  Yare,  January  19th  last. — R.  D. 

Guestwich,  Feb.  15th,  1855. 


NOTICES  TO  CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  up  to  February  15th,  from  H.  G.  Adams,  Esq. — 
H.  T.  Stainton,  Esq. — S.  W.  North,  Esq. — W.  Ainley,  Esq. — C.  Fryer,  Esq. — W.  Kidd, 
Esq. — H.  Smuuthwaite,  Esq. — R.  H.  Meade,  Esq. — Capt.  T.  Brown — S.  Stone,  Esq. — 
Mr.  T.  Cane — Uncas — H.  Wood,  Esq. — G.  R.  Twinn,  Esq.— Mr.  R.  Damon— T.  G.  At- 
kinson, Esq. — G.  Donaldson,  Esq. 

Contributions  have  been  received  up  to  February  15th,  from  Mr.  J.  H.  Davies — T.  S. 
Rudd,  Esq. — S.  Stone,  Esq. — J.  Mc'  Intosh,  Esq. — T.  Southwell,  Esq. — A.  H.  Rannie, 
Esq.— Rev.  F.  Tearle— H.  M.  Mouncastle,  Esq.— 0.  S.  Round,  Esq.— J.  P._W.— T.  G. 
Bonney,  Esq. — J.  Garland,  Esq. — Mr.  S.  Bounsall — Mr.  W.  Parfitt. 

No  Communication  can  be  inserted,  unless  the  Writer  sends  us  his  name  and  address, 
for  om- 2>rivafe  satisfaction. 

Will  J.  C.  T.  and  A.  A.  favour  us  with  their  names  and  addresses,  in  confidence. 

We  shall  feel  greatly  obliged  to  any  Correspondent  who  will  furnish  us  with  the  nanie.s 
of  any  respectable  Bird-Stuffers  in  his  neighbourhood. 

Many  Contributions  unavoidably  stand  over.  Our  Friends  will  understand  that  tliey 
are  only  postponed,  not  declined. 

The  Editor  begs  to  announce  to  his  Correspondents,  that  he  has  arranged  witli  his 
Printer,  so  that  the  Author  of  any  Paper  can  have  copies  of  his  Article  sent  him  by  post 
at  the  following  rates : — 

Two  Pages.     Four  Pages.     Eight  Pages. 

25  Copies  or  under     2s.  Gd.  4s.  Od.  6s.  Gd. 

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Cuininnnications,  Draicings,  Advertisements,  etc.,  to  he  addressed  to  B.  B.  MOBEIiS,  Esq., 
M.D.,  Driffield; — Books  for  Beview,  and  Parcels,  to  the  care  of  OBOOMBB'IDOE  and 
SONS,  5,  Pat£rnoster-Bow,  London. 


49 
BARTRAM'S  SANDPIPER.  {TOTANUS  BARTRAMIU8,  TEMMINCK.) 

BY  THE  REVEREND  F.  TEARLE. 

A  SPECIMEN  of  this  bird  came  into  my  hands  on  the  16th  of  December  last, 
having  been  shot  on  the  12th  of  the  same  month.  It  was  purely  an  accident 
which  made  me  the  owner  of  it,  and  doubtless,  but  for  my  love  of  ornithology, 
it  would  have  been  carried  from  the  field  in  which  it  was  shot  to  the  kitchen 
of  the  owner  of  that  field,  where  a  very  summary  process  would  have  for  ever 
extinguished  all  knowledge  of  Bartram's  Sandpiper  having  been  shot  in  that 
neighbourhood.  As  a  Golden  Plover  (and  an  excellent  Golden  Plover,  too,  if 
Audubon  is  to  be  believed)  it  would  have  been  sent  to  table,  and  thus  have 
furnished  another  instance  of  the  ignominious  end  to  which,  no  doubt,  many 
a  rare  and  valuable  species  has  come,  through  the  want  of  a  little  knoAvledge 
of  one  of  the  most  interesting  subjects  in  the  world.  It  will  aff'ord  me  con- 
siderable satisfaction  if  the  rescue  of  the  bird  from  oblivion  shall,  through 
the  pages  of  The  Naturalist,  or  in  any  other  way,  directly  or  indirectly, 
contribute  to  the  extension  of  our  British  Fauna,  or  to  the  increase  of  our 
information  I'egarding  those  it  already  comprises. 

The  specimen  was  first  seen  by  some  laboui'crs  engaged  in  thrashing,  near 
a  farm  yard,  about  ten  miles  from  Cambridge.  Its  peculiar  and  plaintive 
whistling  cry  first  attracted  Iheir  attention,  and,  on  watching  it,  they 
observed  that  it  frequently  alighted  and  ran  along  the  ground  in  an  appa- 
rently weak  and  exhausted  state.  For  this  reason  one  of  the  men  fancied  he 
could  catch  it  with  his  hat,  and  began  to  chase  it  across  the  field.  But  as 
soon  as  he  approached  tolerably  near,  the  bird  rose  and  flew  round  in  large 
circles  above  him,  uttering  at  intervals  its  wailing  note.  He  soon  relinquished 
the  pursuit ;  but  a  gamekeeper's  boy,  who  lived  in  a  cottage  close  by,  took 
out  his  father's  gun  and  shot  it.  It  allowed  him  to  approach  several  times 
within  gunshot  before  it  rose.  Standing  erect,  it  seemed  to  watch  and  wait 
for  him ;  then  ran  a  shoi't  distance,  and  stood  as  before — after  the  manner  of 
a  bird  that  wishes  to  decoy  an  intruder  from  its  nest.  It  eventually  rose  and 
was  brought  down. 

The  field  had  been  newly  ploughed ;  and  notwithstanding  the  statement 
about  its  apparent  weakness,  I  suspect  it  found  an  abundance  of  food,  (though 
I  have  been  unable  to  ascertain  of  what  kind),  for  it  Avas  plump  and  weighty 
when  brought  to  me.  I  am  also  unable  to  state  its  sex ;  though  I  imagine, 
from  Audubon's  plate,  that  it  must  be  a  female.  Mr.  Savill,  who  stuflfed  the 
bird,  found  it  impossible  to  speak  with  certainty  on  this  subject,  owing  to 
the  contused  or  decomposed  state  of  the  generative  organs. 

The  extreme  length  is  twelve  inches  and  a  quarter;  expanse  of  wing, 
twenty-four  inches  and  a  quarter ;  height  from  the  top  of  the  head,  when 
standing  erect,  eight  inches  and  a  half;  beak,  one  inch  and  an  eighth;  tibia 

VOL.  v.  •<vSH_mI7?>^  D 

4 


60  b.vrtram's  sandpiper. 

and  tax'us,  each  two  inches.  The  upper  mandible  and  the  tip  of  the  lower, 
dai-k  brown — remainder,  dull  yellow;  the  top  of  the  head,  and  back,  dark 
brown,  each  feather  edged  with  a  narrow  border  of  buff ;  the  scapularies,  also, 
dark  brown,  with  a  broad  border  of  buff;  the  neck  and  breast,  dull  buff,  with 
arrow-headed  streaks  of  dark  brown;  throat,  chin,  belly,  thighs,  and  under 
tail  coverts,  white;  the  primaries,  rump,  and  upper  tail-coverts,  dark  brown, 
inclining  to  black ;  the  two  middle  tail  feathers,  brown,  with  dusky  bars — 
remaining  feathers  of  the  tail,  bright  buff,  with  whitish  tips,  and  irregular 
marks  of  dark  brown ;  secondaries,  long,  and  protruding  crosswise  over  the 
quill  feathers ;  under  surface  of  the  wing,  white,  with  numerous  and  beautiful 
peucillings  of  a  pale  greyish  ash-colour.  The  outer  and  middle  toes  are 
connected  by  a  small  web,  which  extends  in  the  form  of  a  thread-like  mem- 
brane, to  their  extremities.  The  chin  feathers  are  remarkable,  and  extend, 
like  a  small  tuft  of  fine  wool,  more  than  half  an  inch  along  the  under  surface 
of  the  beak. 

Trinity  Hall,  Cambridge,  Feb.  2nd,  1855. 

Mr.  Tearle  veiy  kindly  forwarded  us  a  coloured  drawing  of  this  fine  bird, 
from  which  the  plate  in  "  The  British  Birds,"  by  the  Rev.  F.  O.  Morris,  will 
be  coloui'ed.  According  to  Wilson,  the  food  consists  of  beetles,  and  other 
insects :  and  he  further  states,  that  they  are  remarkably  plump  birds,  weigh- 
ing u])wards  of  three  quarters  of  a  pound.  The  following  note,  by  Mr.  Gould, 
which  we  extract  from  the  "  Illustrated  London  News,"  gives  all  the  necessarj' 
information  respecting  this  fine  addition  to  our  Fauna.  We  are  indebted  to 
J.  Mcintosh,  Esq.,  F.  P.  Morris,  Esq.,  T.  G.  Bonney,  Esq.,  and  H.  Smur- 
thwaite,  Esq.,  for  notices  of  the  occurrence  of  this  specimen. — B.  R.  M. 

"  I  am  in  receipt  of  your  note  containing  a  drawing  of  Bartram's  Sandpiper, 
lately  killed  in  Cambridgeshire,  and  also  the  accompanying  letter  from  Mr. 
Tearle.  This  is  only  the  second  instance  that  has  come  under  my  notice  of 
its  occurrence  in  England,  and  the  species  must  now  be  included  in  our 
Fauna.  The  other  British  specimen  was  killed  in  Warwickshire,  a  year  or  two 
ago,  and  is  now  in  the  collection  of  Lord  Willoughby  de  Broke.  Continental 
writers  have  long  noticed  Bartram's  Sandpiper  as  an  occasional  visitor  to 
Evirope  ;  but  the  only  instances  of  its  having  been  found  in  England  are  those 
above  mentioned.  I  have  lately  received,  from  the  Directors  of  theJVIuseum 
at  Sidney,  in  New  South  Wales,  a  specimen  of  this  bii'd,  which  had  been 
killed  near  Botany  Bay.  This  is  the  first,  and  at  present  only  known  instance 
of  its  capture  in  Australia.  The  species  is  evidently  a  great  wanderer,  its 
true  habitat  being  the  northern  portions  of  America,  from  Canada,  through- 
out the  United  States,  to  Mexico ;  in  all  which  countries  it  is  very  common. 
It  is  a  bird  of  veiy  peculiar  form,  resembling  in  some  respects  that  of  the 
members  of  the  genus  CEdicnemus,  and  in  others  the  Trinc/cs.  Its  habits  also 
partake  of  those  of  the  birds  of  both  those  groups.  The  peculiarity  of  its 
form  has   caused  it  to   receive  many   generic  appellations — among  them, 


baivtram's  sandpiper.  51 

Tringa,  Totanus,  Actiturus,  Tringo'ideSt  Bartramia,  and  Eiiliga.  Of  these, 
pei'haps  the  term  Actiturus  (proposed  for  it  by  Prince  Chai'les  Lucien 
Bonaparte)  will  be  the  one  adopted,  in  which  case  the  bird  will  stand  as 
Actiturus  Bartramius,  Bonap.  An  interesting  account  of  the  habits  and 
economy  of  this  bird  will  be  found  in  Audubon's  "  Ornitliological  Biography," 
vol.  iv.,  p.  24. — John  Gocld. 


THE  SWAMPS  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI. 

BY   GEORGE    DONALDSON,   ESQ. 

('Continued  from  page  32. J 

The  difficulty  of  approaching  animals,  particularly  in  exposed  situations, 
is  occasionally  very  great ;  and  at  the  pi'csent  moment  it  would  be  a  difficult 
matter  for  me  to  recollect  the  different  characters  in  which  I  have  appeared, 
and  the  many  ruses  to  which  I  have  resorted,  to  accomplish  this :  the  most 
successful  in  which  I  ever  appeared  was  in  that  of  a  hog,  rooting ;  disguised 
in  a  buffalo  robe,  and  crawling  upon  all  fours.  I  practiced  this  Avith  great 
success  amongst  the  Ducks  and  the  Waders,  by  the  side  of  some  of  the 
western  rivers,  and  also  in  Canada;  but,  my  debut  in  this  chax'acter  amongst 
the  Jirst  gang  of  wild  Turkeys  which  I  saw,  was  particularly  unfortunate.  I 
came  upon  them  in  an  old  clearance,  when  they  were  feeding  upon  grass- 
hoppers, (I  should  rather  say  locusts).  They  regarded  me  Avith  much 
suspicion,  and  without  giving  me  an  oiiportunity  of  explaining  my  true 
character,  they  flew  off,  leaving  me  to  practice  the  deception  upon  a  more 
unsuspecting  party.  The  information  which  I  subsequently  received,  and 
the  practice  which  I  afterwards  had  in  hunting  th6se  beautiful  birds,  coim- 
pletely  gviaranteed  me  from  going  supperless  to  bed,  Avhile  living  on  the 
banks  of  the  Missouri,  or  in  the  bottom  lands  of  the  Mississippi ;  and  I  can 
now  impart  the  secret  to  you,  being  far  beyond  the  hearing  of  the  Turkeys, 
though,  neither  in  this  sense  nor  in  that  of  seeing  have  thej'  any  superior, 
with  the  exception,  probably,  of  the  Turkey  Buzzard,  which  in  my  opinion 
possesses  the  latter  power  beyond  any  living  creature. 

The  ruse,  then,  for  decoj'ing  Turkeys,  in  the  months  of  Aiigust  and 
September,  for  the  purpose  of  shooting  them,  is,  to  provide  yourself  with  a 
small  bone,  called  the  Yelper,  which  is  extracted  from  the  wing,  and  then 
betake  yourself  into  such  places  as  Turkeys  ai-e  known  to  freqtient  (or  to 
"  use,"  as  the  Americans  say) ;  and  then  carefully  to  conceal  yourself  under  a 
quantity  of  brushwood  and  leaves,  and  commence  calling.  If  within  hearing 
of  a  Turkey,  she  will  immediately  reply;  a  repetition  of  the  call  from  time 


6*  THE    SAVAMPS   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 

to  time  will  bring  her  at  last  within  ten  yards  of  you,  and  not  unfrequently 
attended  by  her  whole  brood ;  and  if  a  man  cannot  in  this  way  provide  a  good 
Christmas  dinner  for  himself  and  his  friends,  he  does  not  deserve  ever 
to  be  permitted  to  partake  of  a  roasted  Turkey. 

While  spending  some  time  amongst  the  Indian  islands,  and  the  Rice 
Lakes  in  the  Canadas,  where  ducks  were  very  numerous,  particularly  the 
Wood  Duck,  (Anas  sponsa),  I  was  let  into  the  secret  of  how  to  bring  them 
within  such  a  distance  as  proved  fatal  to  many  of  them;  and  this  was  effected, 
after  shooting  three  or  four,  by  placing  them  in  a  creek  close  beside  each 
other,  in  the  attitude  of  swimming,  the  head  supported  from  below  by  a  rod 
stuck  into  the  mud,  the  point  of  it  being  thrust  into  the  base  of  the  under 
mandible,  and  as  I  lay  concealed  in  a  small  flat  boat  amongst  the  rice,  I 
could  kill  just  as  many  as  I  wished. 

Bitterns  of  great  size  and  beauty,  occasionally  passing,  came  in  for  a  share 
of  what  was  going;  the  Loons  [Cohjmhus  glacialis,)  or  Great  Northern  Divers, 
which  I  w^as  told  were  numerous  at  certain  seasons,  I  had  no  opportunity  of 
seeing ;  but  in  judging  from  the  bottoms  of  many  seats  which  I  found  covered 
with  their  skins,  I  had  no  reason  to  doubt  the  statement;  and  this  Heathen 
substitute,  to  my  taste,  Avas  quite  a  triumph  over  the  Morocco  and  hair  cloth 
of  modern  contrivance. 

The  (Oallinula)  Water  Hens  were  numerous ;  and  the  Musk  Rat  (Fiber 
Zibethicus)  I  met  occasionally  with;  not  being  prepared  for  meeting  such  an 
overgrown  specimen,  as  I  supposed,  of  an  old  acquaintance,  my  astonishment 
was  naturally  great  on  picking  out  of  a  marsh  one  which  I  had  shot :  an 
observation  from  a  person  who  accompanied  me  settled  my  surprise,  by 
remarking  that  I  stared  as  if  I  had  never  seen  a  Musk  Rat  before  :  and  in 
this  he  was  right.  The  number  of  dead  shells  which  I  found  strewed  in 
every  direction  by  the  sides  of  the  marshes,  and  deposited  occasionally  upon 
tufts  of  grass,  I  was  told  upon  inquiry,  were  the  work  of  this  rat,  which 
corresponds  admirably  Afitli  many  of  the  habits  of  the  Racoon  (Procyon  lotor) 
in  this  respect,  and  also  of  the  common  Hog;  all  of  which  are  formidable 
competitors  of  the  most  enthusiastic  conchologists ;  and  many  fresh  water 
shells,  which  there  would  be  difficulty  in  otherwise  obtaining,  are  fished  up 
by  these  collectors  and  cracked  upon  the  shores;  which,  in  my  opinion, 
accounts  for  many  mutilated  specimens  that  find  their  way  into  this  country. 
On  a  shelling  excursion  which  I  once  made  with  Mr.  Clark,  in  Ohio,  a 
gentleman  well  known  by  reputation  to  some  present,  we  came  upon  a  whole 
herd  of  swine  fishing,  and  which,  from  his  apparent  indignation,  I  have  no 
doubt  he  would  have  gladly  destroyed  in  the  most  wholesale  way.  I  must 
pass  over  a  long  catalogue  of  other  families,  such  as  Racoons,  Snakes, 
Skunks,  Opossums,  Wood  Chucks,  Lizards,  Passenger  Pigeons,  Pelicans, 
Whooping  Cranes,  and  Humming  Birds,  &c.,  &c.,  all  of  which  I  bagged 
during  my  excursion;  reserving  the  particulars  for  some  future  occasion. 


THE    b\VAMl>S    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI.  53 

The  appearances,  then,  which  the  lowlands  of  the  Mississippi  present  are 
innumerable  openings  from  the  river,  called  Byous ;  these  sluggish  waters, 
it  is  said,  often  extend  back  in  many  places  for  upwards  of  a  hundred  miles, 
and  lie  covered  with  a  greenish  shine  until  they  are  evaporated  back  to  the 
clouds  by  the  heat  of  the  sun. 

A  description,  of  which  I  once  took  a  note,  conveys  my  idea  most  accu-  , 
rately  of  what  they  are ;  and  this  description  I  will  quote  here,  with  some 
little  alteration,  which  I  hope  will  not  affect  a  picture  that  I  consider  has 
been  so  faithfully  expressed. 

"  Nothing  in  reality  or  imagination,"  says  the  writer,  "  can  exceed  the 
unusual  scenes  to  which  these  dead  waters  open;  a  filthy  stench  arises 
incessantly  to  fill  the  aii-  with  pestilence ;  huge,  uncouth  alligators  lazily 
float  upon  the  surface,  or  bask  in  the  sun,  above  the  mashed  prairie  cane, 
reeds,  and  sword  grass,  which  form  innumerable  small  islands  within  these 
lagoons ;  unclean  fish  tamely  lie  in  the  depths,  and  enormous  mud  turtles 
(Testudo  Caretla)  can  be  seen  slowly  disappearing  amongst  the  I'&nk  materielle ; 
mottled  snakes  dart  across  the  floating  and  vegetating  green;  mammoth  bull 
frogs  utter  their  unearthly  croakings  from  the  fallen  trees  ;  and,  where  the 
soil  rises  with  sufficient  adhesion,  the  funereal  cj'^press  rears  its  death- 
associating  trunk,  and  hangs  its  bows  with  the  sombre  weeds  of  crapy  moss ; 
unknown  vegetation  starts  up  from  mud  and  atmosphere,  and  increases  to  a 
rankness  which  tells  of  death  and  dissolution.  Approach  the  shore,  and  the 
mocassin  snake  lies  coiled  at  your  feet ;  clouds  of  mosquitoes  blacken  the 
air  and  fix  upon  you ;  sjiiders,  with  bodies  as  big  as  wallnuts,  red,  yellow, 
and  brown,  draw  their  cords  from  tree  to  tree ;  a  death-like  stillness  reigns, 
only  to  be  broken  by  such  noises  as  one  hears  with  a  distempered  brain. 
Here  is  also  the  retreat  of  the  Turkey  Buzzard,  which  comes  to  digest  the 
offal  he  has  gathered  from  afar ;  the  screeching  of  the  owl,  as  he  sneaks  from 
his  gloomy  retreat,  accompanied  by  the  whirring  and  whizzing  of  myriads  of 
bugs  and  beetles,  adds  to  the  horrible  eff'ect  of  this  polluted  region :  the 
scene  might  with  truth  be  more  highly  coloured.  Old  Charon's  craft  was  a 
pleasure  boat,  and  his  passengers  were  favoured  with  excursions  of  cool 
summer's  sailing,  in  comparison  with  what  is  experienced  here."  There  is 
one  thing  I  consider  much  out  of  place,  and  that  is  a  large,  delicate  white 
flower,  like  the  water  lilies  of  our  ponds,  but  neai'ly  the  size  of  a  hat  crown  ; 
the  stems  grow  from  the  bottom  oftentimes  ten  or  fifteen  feet  from  the 
surface,  and  spread  their  broad  leaves  and  open  their  pure  white  petals  upon 
the  water's  surface.  And  the  necessity  of  drinking  such  water  as  these 
lagoons  contain,  in  the  absence  of  any  of  better  quality,  poisons  the  blood, 
and  prepares  the  system  for  the  scourge  of  yellow  fever,  from  which  there  is 
so  little  chance  of  escape.  If  there  are  parts  of  the  earth  yet  unfitted  for 
the  residence  of  man,  but  undergoing  a  gradual  transformation,  this  is  cer- 
tainly one  of  them.    And  few  other  situations,  in  my  opinion,  are  better 


54  THE    SWAMPS    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 

calculated  to   illustrate  some  of  the   great   geological  changes  at  present 
iu  operation. 

A  morass  of  this  character  is  well  qualified  for  the  production  and  support 
of  many  foul  specimens  of  animal  life,  whose  existence  is  amply  sustained 
and  wonderfully  developed  by  the  abundant  variety  which  Nature  has  so 
liberally  provided  for  them.  Specimens  of  which  must  be  daily  taking  up 
their  positions  amongst  the  vast  accumulating  masses  of  vegetable  corrup- 
tion, and  whose  fossil  remains  at  some  distant  age  are  quite  as  likely  to 
afford  a  subject  of  as  grave  discussion  amongst  geologists  and  comparative 
anatomists  as  ever  the  revelation  of  the  Iguanodon  or  the  Pterodactylus 
has  done;  and  I  cannot  but  think  that  the  production  here  of  either 
the  Catfish,  or  the  Stingaree  (species  of  the  Silurits),  which  are  so  very 
numerous  in  the  Swamps  of  the  Mississippi  and  the  Alabama,  would  create 
some  astonishment,  the  sting  of  either  seldom  failing  to  produce  giddiness 
and  vomiting  ;  and  frequently  insensibility,  and  occasionally  death  itself.  I 
was  stung  bj^  one  in  the  swamps  of  the  Alabama  river,  in  the  month  of 
December,  1850,  which  had  the  immediate  effect  of  rendering  me  sick,  with 
an  inclination  to  vomit.  The  sting  consists  of  a  serrated  spine,  situated 
underneath  the  pectoral  fins,  which  can  be  elevated  at  pleasure ;  in  size  it 
corresponds  with  the  ajjpearance  of  the  fish ;  they  grow  to  an  enormous  size, 
and  in  the  markets  of  Louisiana  I  have  frequently  seen  them  weighing 
upwards  of  1401bs.  The  voracity  of  this  fish  corresponds  well  with  his 
expression,  and  on  one  occasion  I  was  nearly  dragged  head  first  into  a 
lagoon  of  the  Alabama,  by  one  of  them  seizing  hold  of  a  duck,  from 
■which  I  was  washing  the  blood,  preparatory  to  cooking, — a  Science,  by  the 
way,  in  which  I  never  made  any  great  progress. 

The  clouds  of  ducks  up  the  sloughs  and  byous  of  the  Illinois  river,  and 
also  at  the  mouth  of  the  Yayoo  confirmed  me  in  my  anticipations  of  what  I 
might  expect  in  the  Swamps  of  the  Mississippi ;  a  day  or  so  afterwards  I 
observed  a  small  boat  which  had  just  emerged  from  them,  on  her  way  down 
the  river  loaded  with  a  variety  which  caused  me  to  open  my  eyes  wider  than 
I  have  ever  done  since  ;  an  inquiry  as  to  how  I  was  to  get  to  the  "  promised 
land  "  was  received  either  w^ith  suspicion  or  inattention;  but  upon  a  further 
trial  I  was  told  by  the  men  that  they  merely  traded  for  the  ducks  at  the 
mouths  of  the  byous,  and  that  they  knew  nothing  more  of  the  men  than 
handing  them  the  dollars  and  receiving  the  birds.  The  following  day  I 
joined  a  boat  going  up  for  the  same  purpose,  and  fraternized  vnth  a  Ducker, 
who  took  me  on  board  without  any  hesitation.  I  told  him  I  had  no  meat, 
but  that  I  had  some  money. 

'  "  I  have  the  meat  without  the  money  ;  and  I  reckon,"  says  he,  "that's  just 
ichaar  we  differ." 

("To  he  continued.) 


55 


A  GLANCE  AT  THE  FEATHERED  RESIDENTS  IN,  AND  VISITANTS 

TO,  THE  GROUNDS  OF  TERRICK  HOUSE; 

WITH  A  FEW  REMARKS  FROM  PERSONAL  OBSERVATION, 

UPON   THEIR   HABITS   AND   PECULIARITIES. 

BY   STEPHEN    STONE,   ESQ. 

(Continued  from  page  28.^ 

In  the  delightful  weather  we  had  in  the  month  of  March  last,  particularly 
about  the  time  of  the  full  moon,  when  the  nights  were  almost  as  bright  and 
beautiful  as  the  days ;  a  period  which  all  who  seek  the  genuine  and  never- 
cloying  pleasui'es  Nature  incessantly  yields ;  who  know  how  to  appreciate 
and  admire  the  ever-varying  beauties  she  at  all  seasons  discloses;  and  who, 
in  the  calm  enjoyment  of  these  beauties,  pursue  "  the  noiseless  tenour  of 
tlieirway,"  remote  from  cities  black  with  smoke,  and  blacker  still  with  crime; 
must  undoubtedly  remember ;  I  several  times,  during  an  occasional  moon- 
light ramble,  heard  the  notes  of  the  Hedge- Warbler  warbled  forth  between 
eleven  and  twelve  o'clock  at  night.  Sweet  as  is  the  song  when  heard  on  ordi- 
nary occasions,  it  fell  with  ten-fold  sweetness  on  the  ear  at  this  unusual  hour; 
breaking,  in  a  delightful  manner,  the  "solemn  stillness"  which  reigned 
around ;  lending  an  additional  charm  to  a  scene  which  before  was  indescriba- 
bly lovely ;  and  creating  a  thrill  of  the  most  exquisite  pleasui-e,  a  pleasure 
which  it  is  the  peculiar  privilege  of  the  lover  of  Nature  to  enjoy.  Oh !  who 
would  waste  his  existence  in  midnight  revels ;  ruin  his  health,  and  wear  his 
life  away  amid  the  smoke,  and  dust,  and  din  of  towns;  when, 
"  Far  from  the  madding  crowd's  ignoble  strife," 

he  might  obtain  infinitely  purer  joys  and  more  substantial  delights  than  are 
to  be  found  in  the  gay  saloons  of  the  wealthy  and  fashionable,  or  in  the 
haunts  of  dissipation  ?  Who  that  might  breathe  the  pure,  fresh,  health  giving, 
invigorating  air  of  mountain,  hill,  or  valley,  would  choose  i-ather  to  inhale 
the  noxious  vapours  and  poisonous  exhalations  arising  from  city  sewei's, 
and  drains  ?  Who  that  has  tasted  the  refined  and  elevating  pleasures  the 
love  of  nature  yields,  would  Avish  to  return  to  those  gross  and  debasing  grati- 
fications in  which  the  voluptuary  is  prone  to  indulge. 
To  these  birds  may,  with  truth,  be  applied  the  line, — 

"  Tlieir  sober  wishes  never  learnt  to  stray ; " 

few  being  of  more  stay-at-home  habits  than  they.  'Mid  summer's  heat  and 
winter's  cold,  as  well  as  throughout  the  more  temperate  seasons  of  spring 
and  autumn,  they  are  constant  frequenters  of  one  chosen  neighboui-hood.  If 
they  indulge  themselves  in  periodical  changes  at  all,  they  are  almost  as 
limited  in  extent  as  those  of  that  model  of  a  countiy  parson,  Dr.  Primrose, 


66  THE    BIRDS    or    XERHICK    HOUSE. 

tlie  renowned  aud  worthy  "  Vicar  of  Wakefield,"  and  of  his  lady,  the  exem- 
plary Mrs.  Primrose:  their  "migrations"  amounting  to  little  more  than  an 
occasional  removal  "  from  the  blue  bed  of  flowers,"  or,  more  properly,  from 
the  bed  of  blue  flowers,  "to  the  brown"  patch  set  apart  for  the  cultivation  of 
esculents ;  or  from  one  part  of  the  garden  or  gi-ounds  to  another :  and  when 
protection  is  given  them,  as  would  universally  be  the  case  if  people  were  not 
unfortunately  troubled  with  an  obliquity  of  vision  with  reference  to  their 
own  interests,  they  are  often  found  to  resort  to  the  very  same  spot  for  the 
purpose  of  building,  year  after  year.  A  pair  built,  for  several  years  in  suc- 
cession on  a  branch  of  an  Orleans  Plum  tree,  which  was  trained  against  the 
wall  in  the  garden  of  Henry  Eustace,  Esq. ;  and  another  pair  among  some 
Rosemary  growing  against  the  same  wall.  I  have  no  doubt  that,  in  the  for- 
mer case,  the  same  pair  of  birds,  or  their  immediate  descendants,  constructed 
each  successive  nest ;  as  a  peculiarity  in  the  lining  ran  through  the  entire 
series ;  the  arched  feathers  of  domestic  fowl,  from  the  poultry-yard,  being 
almost  exclusively  employed  for  the  purpose.  The  egg  of  the  Cuckoo  is  often 
palmed  off"  upon  this  bird ;  who  hatches  and  rears  the  young,  to  the  certain 
destruction  of  its  own  legitimate  ofi'spring. 

Near  the  top  of  this  same  shrub,  the  Greenfinch  {Coccothraustes  chloris) 
has  a  nest.  This  nest  is  by  no  means  unlike  the  last :  like  it,  it  is  composed 
of  small  sticks,  green  moss,  wool,  &c. ;  and  like  it,  lined  with  hair,  and  in 
most  cases,  a  few  feathers :  it  is  by  far  the  least  interesting-looking  of  the 
nests  of  the  Finch  tribe.  The  eggs — five,  and  sometimes  six,  in  number — 
vary  a  good  deal  in  colour  and  markings  :  some  are  freckled  all  over  with  pale 
yellowish  brown,  bearing  a  strong  resemblance  to  the  eggs  of  the  Redbreast ; 
others  are  blotched  with  dark  purplish  red,  or  liver  colour;  while,  between 
these  two  extreme  varieties,  are  numberless  intermediate  ones ;  and  some, 
again,  are  streaked  after  the  manner  of  the  eggs  of  the  Yellow  Bunting.  I 
have  some  which  might  readily  pass  for  the  latter  species,  except  that  they 
are  rather  smaller  in  size.  They  ai-e  usually  rather  elongated  in  shajje.  Tall 
hedge-rows  and  evergreen  shrubs  are  principally  selected  by  this  bird,  as 
proper  situations  for  the  nest;  though  it  may  frequently  be  found  placed 
against  the  trunk  of  an  Elm,  especially  if  the  tree  be  encircled  with  Ivy, 
supported  by  a  small  diverging  branch,  eight  or  ten  feet  from  the  ground. 

After  harvest,  these  birds  are  found  in  considerable  flocks  among  the 
stubbles ;  and,  as  winter  comes  on,  they  approach  the  farmer's  stack-yards, 
feeding  upon  the  loose  grain  which  may  there  be  found.  If  the  agriculturist 
could  keep  an  accurate  debtor  and  creditor  account  between  himself  and  this 
bird,  he  would  undoubtedly  find,  at  the  end  of  the  year,  a  "considerable 
balance  due  to  the  bird ;  for,  although  it  may  destroy  some  portion  of  his 
grain  and  seed  crops, — being  extremely  fond  of  turnip  and  rape  seeds,  as 
well  as  having  a  taste  for  wheat  and  barley,  and  still  coarser  fare,  beans  and 
})eas, — there  would  j'et  be  an  immense  set  off  in  its  consumption  of  the 


THK    BIRDS    OF   TEHKICK    HOUSE.  57 

seeds  of  cherlock,  dandelion,  and  other  plants  ;  which,  whatever  their  medi- 
cinal properties  may  be,  the  cultivator  of  the  soil  justly  considers  as  inimical 
to  his  interests;  and  which  he  who  plumes  himself  upon  high  farming 
labours  assiduously  to  eradicate.  In  this  work,  or  at  any  rate,  in  greatly 
checking  their  increase,  he  is  materially  assisted  by  the  bird  in  question,  as 
well  as  by  the  Finch  tribe  in  general. 

In  the  rules  laid  down  or  drawn  up  for  the  special  enlightenment  and 
guidance  of  "  The  Standlake  and  Brighthampton  Sparrow  Club,"  and  by  this 
discerning  body  approved  of  and  adopted,  two  Greenfinches,  are  held  to  be 
equal  in  value  to  one  Sparrow.  I  agree  with  the  sage  members  of  this  club 
in  their  estimate  of  the  comparative  value  of  the  two  species,  because  un- 
questionably the  injuiy  resulting  to  the  agriculturist  from  the  ravages  of 
insects  and  their  larvai  upon  which  the  Sparrow  mainly  subsists,  is  far  more 
serious  than  that  which  he  sustains  by  the  prevalence  of  noxious  weeds,  up- 
on the  seeds  of  which  the  Greenfinch  in  a  great  measure  feeds, — insects 
being  only  occasionally  included  in  its  "  bill  of  fare."  But  in  forming  their 
estimate,  these  sages  are  guided  solely  by  the  supposed  injury  done  to  their 
crops  by  the  birds  in  question.  They  see  plainly  enough  what  it  is  the 
Sparrow  feeds  upon  for  a  week  or  two  before  the  sickle  is  put  into  the  corn ; 
their  eyes  are  open  to  its  doings  for  about  one-twenty-fifth  part  of  the  j'ear, 
but  duritig  the  remaining  twenty-four  parts,  they  either  wilfully  shut  their 
eyes,  or  they  are  afflicted  with  real  blindness  in  reference  to  its  diet.  They 
see  it  feeding  for  a  few  days  upon  the  ripening  grain,  and  without  inquiring 
further  into  the  merits  of  the  case, — without  considering  for  a  moment 
whether  the  services  rendered  them  by  the  bird  do  not  justly  entitle  it  to 
the  small  portion  of  the  grain  it  contents  itself  with  taking ;  and  Avhether 
even  after  it  has  consumed  this  small  portion,  they  are  not  still  infinitely  its 
debtors ;  sentence  of  death  is  forthwith  pronounced  against  it.  This  pro- 
ceeding is  directly  opposed  to  the  spirit  of  English  law;  it  is  the  glory  of 
our  English  law,  and  redounds  to  the  honour  of  those  who  administer  it  in 
its  purity,  that  in  criminal  as  in  civil  cases,  evidence  on  both  sides  is  freely 
admitted  and  patiently  listened  to ;  nor  is  a  verdict  given,  until  the  evidence 
has  been  carefully  analyzed,  and  the  guilt  or  innocence  of  the  party  arraign- 
ed as  clearly  established  as  it  is  possible  to  be — "  the  benefit  of  any  doubt  " 
being  given  to  "  the  accused."  Were  this  spirit  of  fair  dealing  to  be  dis- 
played in  our  treatment  of  the  feathered  tribes,  we  should  have  no  Sparrow 
Clubs  dealing  death  and  destruction  ai'ound; — startling  the  timid,  by  causing 
sudden  and  alarming  explosions  to  take  place  close  to  the  windows  of  dwel- 
lings ;  and  endangering  the  public  safety,  or  imperilling  the  vision  of  her 
Majesty's  lieges  by  showers  of  small  shots,  discharged  on  highways  or  in 
bye-ways ,  there  is  hardly  a  bird  but  would  be  hailed  as  the  benefactor  of 
the  human  race,  and  welcomed  as  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and  interesting 
links  in  the  chain  of  Creation. 

c2 


68'  THE    BIRDS    OF   TERRICK    HOUSE. 

The  Greenfinch  is  of  a  gentle  and  Cionfiding  disposition  ;  no  bird  sooner 
becomes  tame,  when  treated  with  kindness,  than  it.  When  a  boy,  I  used 
often  to  take  it  in  a  common  brick-trap,  in  severe  weather,  and  keep  it  so 
long  as  the  frost  continued  ;  giving  it  its  liberty  when  the  weather  broke  up. 
About  the  second  or  third  day  after  being  taken,  it  would  invariably  feed 
from  my  hand,  and  sit  quietly  on  my  finger  while  I  walked  about  the  room  ; 
it  also  exhibited  the  greatest  reluctance  to  leave  on  being  set  at  large.  It 
possesses  considerable  strength  of  beak,  feeding,  when  little  else  can  be  pro- 
cured, upon  hard  pulse,  which  it  is  enabled  to  pick  to  pieces.  I  have  sel- 
dom met  with  eggs  of  this  species  before  the  latter  end  of  April,  or  the 
beginning  of  j\Iay.  It  occasionally  continues  to  produce  eggs  till  August, 
between  the  I2th  and  the  24th  of  which  said  month,  in  the  present  year,  I 
found  seven  nests,  four  with  eggs  and  three  mth  young,  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  Cokethorpe  Park,  within  less  than  fifty  paces  of  each  other ;  the 
mania  for  late  nesting  would  therefore  seem  to  have  been  infectious  among 
these  birds.  One  of  the  nests  contained  only  three  eggs  on  the  day  it  was 
found,  the  21st,  the  fourth  and  final  one  being  produced  on  the  following 
day  ;  so  that  this  bird  would  not  hatch  its  young  until  the  first  week  in  Sep- 
tember, the  latest  period  for  such  an  event  in  the  history  of  the  Greenfinch 
to  occur,  which  has,  as  yet,  come  under  my  observation. 

I  have,  upon  one  occasion,  found  an  egg  of  the  Cuckoo  in  a  nest  of  this 
species.  A  question  of  considerable  interest  naturally  arises  from  this  cir- 
cumstance. Supposing  the  Greenfinch,  which  has  but  little  taste  for  insect 
food,  to  have  hatched  the  young  Cuckoo,  a  bird  whose  diet  consists  almost 
exclusively  of  insects  and  their  larvae,  neither  gi'ain  nor  seeds  forming  any 
poi-tion  thereof,  could  it  have  been  reared  by  its  foster-parent  ?  Would  she, 
by  some  mysterious  agency,  have  been  led  to  adopt  a  different  course  of 
treatment  in  the  case  of  the  young  Cuckoo,  to  that  which  she  would  have 
adopted  in  the  case  of  her  own  proper  offspring  ?  Would  a  vegetable  diet 
with  Avhich  she  would  principally  have  supplied  her  own  young  brood  have 
been  entirely  discarded,  and  insect  food  alone  administered  as  a  substitute  ? 
or,  did  the  parent  Cuckoo  make  "  a  slight  mistake  "  in  the  matter  ?  Was 
she  misled  by  the  resemblance  this  nest  bore  to  that  of  the  Hedge-Warbler, 
and  so  acted  under  the  erroneous  impression  that  it  was  in  a  nest  of  the 
latter  species  that  she  was  about  to  deposit,  or  had  deposited  her  egg  ?  And 
would  the  young  Cuckoo,  in  consequence  of  this  mistake,  perish  in  its  in- 
fancy, its  foster-parent  being  in  the  dark  as  to  the  exact  kind  of  food  proper 
for  it. 

Has  any  reader  of  The  Naturalist  met  with  an  instance  of  this  bird,  or 
any  granivorous  one,  having  hatched  a  young  Cuckoo  ?  If  so,  would  he 
obligingly  communicate  the  result  to  the  Editor  of  this  Magazine,  who,  I  am 
sui-e,  would  readily  give  it  a  place  in  its  pages. 

(To  he  continued.) 


69 


THE  FISHES  OF  BANFFSHIEE. 

BY  MR.  THOMAS  EDWARD. 

(Continued  from  page  i.J  " 

The  Freckled  or  SjDotted  Goby.  {Gobius  minutus.)  This  is  another  stomach 
species ;  as  also  the  Double  Spotted  Goby,  {G.  Ruthersparri,)  which  appears 
to  be  the  rai'est  of  the  three. 

The  Gemmeous  Dragonet.  {OalUonymus  lyra.)  This  splendidly  coloured 
fish  is  frequently  met  with ;  and  the  so-called  Sordid  Dragonet  (C  dracun- 
culus)  is  found  in  about  equal  number ;  for,  it  is  a  general  maxim,  that 
jv'here  the  husband  is,  there  should  the  wife  be  also.  It  is  somewhat 
strange,  and  not  a  little  curious,  that  ichthyologists  of  this  enlightened  age 
should  still  cling  to  the  idea  that  these  fish  are  distinct  species.  I  wish  no 
man  to  adopt  my  opinions,  either  on  this  or  any  other  subject,  but  I  am 
fully  persuaded  that  they  are  the  selfsame  fish.  Looking  at  the  very  trifling 
diiference  exhibited  between  them, — a  difference  which,  in  my  humble  judg- 
ment, only  shows  them  to  be  remarkably  alike, — I  wonder  how  Naturalists 
could  have  set  them  down  as  distinct  species.  Let  us  examine  them  inter- 
nally. Out  of  about  one  hundred  specimens  which  I  have  cai*efully  dis- 
sected, I  have  never  yet  found  any  thing  like  roe  or  ova  in  those  having  the 
long  rays  on  the  first  dorsal,  and  which  are  known  as  the  Gemmeous;  and, 
in  like  manner,  I  have  never  yet  met  with  any  thing  at  all  pertaining  to  a 
milt,  in  those  having  the  short  raj's,  and  which  are  known  as  the  Sordid 
Dragonet.  Their  manner,  also,  when  sporting  in  their  native  element, 
which  I  have  often  observed  in  both  young  and  old,  goes  far  to  strengthen 
my  opinion.  They  are  always  found  in  the  same  neighbourhood,  and  I  have 
frequently  seen  the  adults  pursuing  each  other,  but  could  discover  no  differ- 
ence except  in  the  brighter  markings  and  the  longer  rays  already  alluded  to. 
Hence  my  conclusion  that  they  are  only  male  and  female  of  the  same 
species. 

The  Angler,  or  Fishing  Frog,  {Lophius  plscatorius,)  or,  as  it  is  called  here, 
the  Sea  Devil,  is  frequently  met  with,  but  is  not  used  as  an  article  of 
food. 

The  Ballan  Wrasse.  {Lahrus  hergylta.)  Pretty  frequent  during  summer. 

The  Blue  Striped  Wrasse.  (Z.  mixtus.)  Rare.  A  very  pretty  specimen  was 
taken  last  season  (1853)  off  Macduff,  and  is  now  in  the  possession  of  Mr. 
M'Gregor  of  that  place. 

The  Gilthead.  (Crenilahrus  melops.)  Rare. 

Jago's  Goldsinny.  {C.  nipestris.)  I  have  only  seen  one  of  this  species  in 
this  neighbourhood ; — a  most  beautiful  specimen  which  I  found  one  winter  s 
day.  cast  on  shore  at  our  links. 


60  THE    FISHES   OF   BANFFSHIHE. 

The  Small-mouthed  Wrasse.  {Acantholahrtts  exoletus.)  Like  the  last,  only 
one  specimen  of  this  fish  has,  as  yet,  come  under  my  notice,  and  that  one 
was  cai^tured  off  Troup-Head. 

The  Gold  and  Silver  Carps,  {Cyprinus  auratus,)  as  they  are  termed,  have 
been  introduced,  and  have  thriven  pretty  well,  as  at  Macduff,  where  they 
have  propagated  to  an  amazing  degree. 

The  Minnow.  (Leuciscus  2}hoxi7ius.)  This  pretty  active  little  fish  is  to  be 
found  in  most  of  our  streams.  It  is  curious  to  see  it  stated  in  works  on 
Ichthyology',  that  this  species  is  not  to  be  met  with  north  of  the  Dee, 
Aberdeenshire. 

The  Gar-fish,  {Belone  vulgaris,)  or,  as  it  is  called  here,  '  The  Greenbane,' 
is  by  no  means  scarce,  at  certain  seasons. 

The  Saury  Pike.  (Scomberesox  saurus.)  Not  so  often  met  with  as  the  last. 
In  fact,  it  must  be  termed  rare. 

The  Salmon.  {Salmo  salar.)  This  valuable  and  highly-prized  fish  is  found 
both  along  our  coast  and  in  our  fresh  waters.  At  one  time,  they  were  very 
numerous  in  the  Doveran.  From  a  pot  or  liole  which  once  existed  a  little 
below  the  bridge  which  spans  the  river,  at  a  little  distance  from  the  sea,  and 
not  far  from  the  town,  as  many  as  one  hundred,  and  sometimes  more,  have 
been  taken  at  one  haul.  This  was  before  stake  and  bag  nets  were  so  thickly 
planted  along  our  sea  shore  as  they  now  are. 

The  Bull,  or  Gray  Trout  [S.  eriox.)  Some  large  individuals  of  this  species 
are  taken. 

The  Salmon  Trout.  (S.  trutta.)  So  diverse,  as  every  Naturalist  knows, 
are  the  opinions  entertained  concerning  this  species,  and  so  much  has  been 
said  on  the  subject,  pro  and  con,  that  one  is  a  good  deal  puzzled  what  to 
believe.  Each  writer  on  the  subject  seems  to  be  fully  satisfied  that  he  has 
perfectly  cleared  up  the  points  in  dispute.  But  as  these  writers  do  not 
all  agree,  there  is  still  a  mj'stery  hanging  over  the  matter.  Here,  at  one 
time,  they  were  believed  to  be  the  young  of  the  Salmon ;  and  the  tacksman 
gave  orders  that  they  should  not  be  taken.  Previously,  they  had  been  fished 
for  with  small  meshed  nets,  and  sold  as  Trout,  under  the  name  of  '  Phinock." 
Time  passed  on,  and  the  water  beheld  another  tacksman,  who  differing  from 
his  predecessor,  gave  orders  that  they  should  be  again  taken.  Accordingly, 
they  are  now  annually  fished  for,  and  are  once  more  sold  as  '  Sea  Trout,' 
'  White  Trout,'  and  '  Phinock ;'  the  larger  at  threepence,  and  the  smaller  at 
twopence  per  pound  ;  and  always  meet  a  very  ready  sale. 

The  Common  Trout.  {S.  fario.)  In  all  our  streams.  These,  also,  are 
taken,  and  sold  with  the  last-mentioned. 

The  Smelt,  (Osmerus  eperlanus.)     Rare  with  us. 

The  Herring.  {Culpea  harengus.)  This  species  abounds  along  this  coast, 
toAvards  the  middle  of  summer,  and  the  beginning  of  autumn.  The  fry  of 
this  fish  is  met  with  nearly  all  the  year  round. 


THE    FISHKS    OJ    BANFFSHIRE.  61 

Leach's  Herring.  {C.  Leachii.)  A  rather  smaller  sized  Herring  than  the 
common  species.    It  is  generally  met  with  in  small  parties  in  May  and  June. 

The  Sprat,  or  Garnel  Herring.  (<7.  sprattus.)  This  also  is  met  with  about 
the  same  time,  but  in  smaller  numbers. 

The  Twaite  Shad  (Alosa  Jinta.)  Rare.  A  very  fine  specimen  was  taken 
in  our  river  last  summer,  about  a  mile  from  the  sea,  and  was  noticed  in  The 
Naturalist. 

The  AUice  Shad.  (A.  communis.)  The  same  may  be  said  of  this  species, — 
it  is  rare.  They  are  termed,  '  Rock  Herring.'  A  veiy  large  one  was  brought 
on  shore  at  Gardenstown,  some  years  ago,  but  was  destroyed. 

The  Cod.  {MorrJiua  vulgaris.)  It  is  to  the  stomach  of  this  speciies  that  I 
am  most  indebted  for  many  of  the  rarer  of  the  testaceous  and  cinistaceous 
specimens  which  I  possess.  As  some  of  the  readers  of  The  Naturalist  may 
not  be  acquainted  with  the  Cod's  bill  of  fare,  a  rough  sketch  may  not  be 
altogether  amiss.  I  will  only  mention  what  I  have  myself  seen.  To  name 
every  article  of  this  heterogeneous  affair  singly,  where  numbers  of  one  class 
occur,  is,  of  coui'se,  out  of  the  question,  as  it  would  take  up  too  much  space. 
The  reader  will  therefore  have  to  exercise  his  own  discriminative  powers. 
Well  then  :  Crabs  and  lobsters,  of  almost  every  description,  except  Hamarus 
vulgaris,  (which  I  have  never  yet  found,)  from  the  prickly  Stone  Crab, 
{Lithodes  Maia,)  up  to  the  hard  Parten,  [Cancer  pagurus,)  and  the  larger  the 
better.  Shells  of  every  sort,  particularly  Fustis  antiquus  and  Buccinum  unda- 
tum;  no  matter  whether  inhabited  by  their  original  possessor,  or  by  a  hermit 
in  the  form  of  a  Pagurus,  it  is  no  obstacle  to  the  voracious  Cod.  Shrimps, 
fish  lice,  sea  mice,  (Aphrodita  aculeata,)  urchins,  with  now  and  then  a  star- 
fish ;  '  Dead  Men's  Paps,'  as  they  are  termed  here,  (Alcyonium,)  and  Actinias; 
no  matter  what  they  may  be  attached  to, — a  shell  or  a  stone, =i=  provided  these 
are  not  themselves  fixtures ;  all  are  gulphed  by  this  unceremonious  fish. 
The  eggs,  capsules,-  or  purses,  of  the  Dog  (Scyllium,)  and  the  Skate,  with 
the  roe  and  ova  of  other  species,  particularly  when  deposited  on  sea-weed  ; 
then  the  Algae  and  the  Zoophytes,  also,  walk  down  the  gullet,  along  with  the 
spawn,  that  nothing  may  be  lost.  As  for  the  Holothurida^,  or  Sea-Cucum- 
bers, few  if  any  of  them  escape.  Now  and  then  fragments  of  the  Me- 
dusae. Feathers,  with  the  remains  of  sea-fowl ;  and,  on  one  occasion, 
the  skeleton  of  a  partridge  Avitli  the  wings,  feet,  legs,  and  head  adher- 
ing. Pieces  of  pewter,  and  of  cloth,  occasionally ;  and  once  a  cluster  of 
beech-nuts,  with  part  of  a  domestic  fowl,  a  cock.  As  for  fish  ! — why  the  fish 
does  not  swim,  if  it  be  not  too  large,  which  Master  Cod,  when  hungry, 
will  not  attempt,  and,  if  successful,  swallow.  In  short,  nothing  seems  to 
come  amiss.  Such  is  a  brief  outline  of  the  Cod's  bill  of  fare,  as  having 
chiefly  come  under  my  own  observation.    This,  however  does  not  include  all 

*  It  is  only  about  nine  moutlis  since  I  took  from  the  stomach  of  a  Cod,  a  stone  which  weighed  above 
three  pounds,  and  to  which  the  remains  of  an  Acdnia  Yrere  still  attached. 


4)3  THE    FISUKS   OF    BAXFFSUIRE. 

whicli  the  animal  preys  upon  auil  devours.  It  is  enough,  however,  to  show 
its  epicurean  propensities.  The  Cod  is  extensively  fished  for  along  this  part 
of  tlie  coast,  and  may  be  termed  the  poor  man's  salmon.  Great  numbers  are 
salted  and  dried,  and  in  that  state,  sent  to  the  southern  markets.  I  have 
occasionally  met  with  a  Cod  of  a  red  colour,  in  all  save  the  fins,  which  are 
generally  of  a  yellowish  tinge,  and  never  larger  than  a  common  sized  Had- 
dock. They  are  known  here  by  the  name  of  '  Rock  Codlings.'  Perhaps  this 
may  be  but  one  of  the  many  vaiieties  of  the  species  already  named. 

(To  he  continued.) 


NOTES  ON  THE  FROG.     {RANA  TEMPORARIA.) 

BY  JOHN    DIXON,   ESQ. 

(Concluded  from  page  S.J 

On  the  7th  of  last  July,  I  found  Frogs  near  the  summit  of  Ingleborough, 
2364  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  The  weather  had  been  wet  for  some 
time  previous,  and  no  doubt  food  in  plenty  Avas  to  be  had  even  at  this 
elevation.  The  froth  enveloping  the  larvae  of  the  frog-hopper,*  called  here 
cuckoo-spit  and  frog-spit,  was  very  abundant  particularly  on  the  two  common- 
est plants  in  flower,  woodruf  and  tormentil. 

I  love  to  ramble  amid  these  solitaiy  scenes  of  wild  grandeur,  when  still- 
ness reigns  unbroken,  save  by  the  bleating  sheep  or  curlew's  plaintive  note. 

When  a  ft-og  is  closely  pursued,  it  often  ejects  a  considerable  quantity  of 
water,  either  to  lighten  itself  or  what  is  more  probable  from  fear.  Professor 
Bell  f  states  this  water  to  be  perfectly  limpid  and  pure,  and  secreted  in  a 
sac  or  vessel,  where  it  is  kept  in  store  for  the  purpose  of  supplying  moisture 
to  the  skin,  in  aid  of  cutaneous  respiration.  A  Frog,  in  the  course  of  a  few 
hours,  will  sometimes  absorb  its  own  weight  of  water.  Moisture  seems  ab- 
solutely requisite  for  maintaining  them  in  a  perfectly  healthy  state  ;  hence  it 
probably  arises,  that  their  seeming  scarceness  in  dry  weather,  is  to  be  ac- 
counted for  by  the  fact  of  their  keeping  more  closely  to  water  during  such 
seasons.  Around  the  mai-gins  of  ponds  we  may  often  see  scores  basking 
with  their  heads  just  out  of  water ;  not,  I  think — as  some  have  supposed — 
for  the  purpose  of  catching  insects;]:;  when  disturbed,  they  plunge  to  the 
bottom  and  bury  themselves  in  the  mud  with  singular  adroitness;  if  however 

•  Tettigonia  spumaria,  Oliver.  Cicada  spumaria.  This  little  insect  is  called,  in  Yorkshire,  a  "  brock," 
and  from  its  ciuious  habit,  the  old  adage  is  derived  of  "  sweating  like  a  brock."  This  name  is  also  applied 
to  the  badger. 

f  History  of  British  Reptiles. 

i  Jesse's  Gleanings  in  Natural  History,  second  eeriee,  p.  118. 


NOTES   ON    THE    FROa.  63 

you  remain  perfectly  still,  they  soon  re-appear,  and  venture  again  to  the 
surface.  In  very  cold  weather — during  summer — they  keep  to  the  bottom,  or 
shelter  beneath  the  roots  of  rushes  and  other  aquatic  plants,  where  I  have 
found  them  often  huddled  together  in  considerable  numbers.  The  cry  of  a 
poor  frog,  when  hurt,  or  in  the  jaws  of  an  enemy,  is  piteous  in  the  extreme. 
We  have  often  read  very  curious  notices  of  creatures  putting  on  an  apparent 
semblance  of  death — now  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  this  feature  is  oftener 
the  paralysis  attendant  on  fear  Last  June,  I  caught  a  large  frog  at  Moor- 
town,  tied  it  carefully  up  in  a  pocket  handkerchief,  and  carried  it  some  little 
distance  in  my  hand.  On  looking  at  the  poor  captive  again,  it  was  quite 
motionless,  and  to  all  appearance  dead  ;  I  felt  truly  sorry,  but  still  had  the 
inward  satisfaction  of  thinking  that  it  could  not  have  arisen  from  rough 
treatment — I  laid  it  on  the  grass — still  no  signs  of  animation  appeared — a 
little  brook  was  close  at  hand — I  put  it  in — and,  in  a  short  time,  had  the 
gratification  of  seeing  it  swim  briskly  away.  It  would  seem  that  they  take 
food  under  water;  for  I  remember,  when  very  young,  going  on  an  angling 
expedition  to  some  ponds  at  Wistow ;  our  tackling,  it  must  be  confessed,  was 
somewhat  primitive,  being  a  straight  willow  with  a  yard  or  two  of  thread  at 
the  end,  armed  with  a  crooked  pin  baited  with  a  writhing  worm.  The  sport 
began  in  good  earnest,  and  quite  to  our  satisfaction;  several  sticklebacks 
were  speedily  transferred  from  their  own  roomy  pool,  to  sicken  and  die 
within  the  narrow  limits  of  an  old  doctor's  bottle  ;  but  what  cared  we  about 
such  thoughts.  "Hurrah — another  bite — it's  a  big 'un  this  time,"  said  one 
precocious  youth,  and  a  big  one  it  was  too,  and  no  mistake ;  not  a  big  fish 
however,  but  a  "thundering  big"  frog — the  rod  was  thrown  down  instantei', 
and  away  we  all  scampered  through  very  fear.  One  of  our  party  put  on  a 
bold  and  valiant  front — returned— and  at  a  respectful  distance,  we  saw  him 
extract  the  barbarous  hook  and  let  the  captive  free.  This  is  not  a  solitary 
instance  of  their  taking  bait  under  water;  I  have  heard  other  anglers  relate 
similar  reminiscences.  The  colour  of  frogs  is  remarkably  varied ;  we  meet 
with  them  of  all  shades,  from  a  light  yellow  to  a  dusky  brown,  apparently 
uninfluenced  by  temperature.  This  feature  affords  matter  for  curious  specu- 
lation, being  as  yet,  I  believe,  unexplained. 

There  is  another  circumstance  too  I  must  not  pass  over,  that  of  frogs 
occuring  in  blocks  of  coal  and  stone.*  In  such  situations,  some  few  have 
unquestionably  been  discovered;  but  we  should  be  on  our  guard  against 
deception,  curiosities  of  this  sort  having  lately  become  common,  at  least  in 
Yorkshire— arrant  forgeries, — but  still  displaying  sufiicient  ingenuity  to  de- 
ceive the  unwary.  It  is  surprising  to  note  the  various  shifty  expedients  that 
the  animal  man  will  resort  to,  in  pursuit  of  gain.  A  newspaper  paragraph 
perhaps  furnishes  us  with  a  marvellous  story  concerning  some  antediluvian 

*  Gentlemans'  Magazine,  vol.  Ixxxviii.,  p.  264;  do.,  vol.  Ixxviii.,  p.  224.  Histoi-y  of  Fossil  Fuel,  p.  107. 
Chambei's's  Edinburgh  Journal,  new  series,  vol.  x.,  p.  39. 


64  Notes  on  the  fiiog. 

frog  being  found  in  a  real  solid  block  of  coal ;  tliat  its  fortunate  possessor  is 
say  Mr.  John  Snooks,  of  the  Fleece,  who  will  have  infinite  pleasure  in  shew- 
ing it  to  all  his  friends.  Half  the  country  side  flock  to  see  it,  and  as  a 
natural  consequence,  the  contents  of  honest  John's  beer-barrel  go  off  in  a 
rapid  consumption ;  he  chuckles  at  the  success  of  his  curiosity,  which  liter- 
ally becomes  a  real  golden  fleece. 

Rarities  of  this  sort  may  be  seen  in  many  of  our  provincial  museums,  but 
being  often  crowded  amidst  a  variety  of  other  articles,  are  apt  to  be  over- 
looked. Geological  specimens,  it  is  true,  generally  get  tbe  best  place  in 
public  collections,  both  as  regards  light  and  favourable  ari*angement.  The 
zoological  department — invai'iably  possessing  most  interest  to  the  generality 
of  peoijle — is  too  often  ill  lighted,  badly  ventilated,  and  suffering  from  damp- 
ness. This  last  is  the  greatest  evil  and  should  be  first  i-emedied.  One  or 
two  collections  I  have  lately  visited,  contain  the  most  abject  specimens  of 
taxidermy  it  is  possible  to  conceive  The  representatives  of  what  were  once 
beautiful,  are  now  sad  pitiful  objects,  icell  stuffed  it  is  true — but  we  call  a 
goose  well  stuffed  when  filled  with  sage  and  onions.  Not  the  least  attention 
has  been  paid  to  anatomy.  Here  stands  what  was  once  a  lord  of  the  animal 
creation,  to  whom  we  should  be  doing  charitable  justice,  by  removing  the 
"FelisLeo, "  and  substituting  "  This  is  the  Lion."  A  baboon  is  grinning 
most  horribly,  perhaps  because  one  of  his  eyes  is  determined  on  dropping 
out.  A  veritable  Russian  bear — though  of  a  different  species  to  the  Czar — 
looks  us  in  the  face,  a  woeful  type  of  "  looped  and  windowed  raggedness." — 
Turning  to  an  odd  shrivelled  up  lump  of  leather,  we  are  gravely  given  to 
understand  it  is  a  defunct  bat !  With  shivering  steps — for  the  apartment 
savours  strongly  of  ague  and  rheumatism — we  turn  to  the  birds.  It  must 
surely  be  the  moulting  season.  That  cock  though  plumes  himself  on  having 
a  couple  of  goodly  tail  feathers  still  left — but  what  would  Juno  have  said, 
after  paying  her  sixpence,  to  find  her  dear  bird  in  such  a  pickle.  The 
aquatic  tribe  are  rejoicing  in  their  own  element,  the  water  pouring  down  the 
cases  after  each  shower — as  for  the  matter  of  mouldy  mandibles,  why,  don't 
mention  it.  Now  this  is  but  a  true  picture  of  too  many  public  museums,  but 
the  evil,  I  am  happy  to  say,  is  somewhat  diminishing. 

Our  Philosophical  Society,  here,  has  recently  made  a  very  judicious 
alteration,  the  public  being  now  admitted  to  their  valuable  museum  "  at  the 
small  charge  of  one  penny,"  as  showmen  have  it ;  and  their  talented  curator, 
Mr.  Henry  Denny,  has  drawn  up  a  "  Companion,"  which  to  the  student  will 
be  of  great  service.  Now  this  is  a  step  in  the  right  direction,  and  an  example 
that  similar  societies  may  profit  by.  I  should  much  like  to  see  the  study  of 
Natural  History  more  genei*ally  introduced — as  far  as  practicable — as  a  part 
of  English  education.  It  is  a  science  which  soon  rivets  the  attention  of 
youth,  and  would  serve  as  a  relaxation  from  the  severer  studies,  besides  ex- 
citing laudable  curiosity,  and  awakening  in  the  mind  a  spirit  of  keen  observa- 


NOTKS    ON    THE    ilUtCx.  6") 

tioii.  I  often  tliiuk  tliat  both  parents  and  sclioolmastcrs  might  obviate  much 
of  that  cruelt}-^  shown  by  youth  to  dumb  animals,  if  they  oul}'  went  the  right 
way  about  it.  So  far  as  I  may  judge,  it  seems  of  little  use  inflicting  corporeal 
punishment  on  a  lad  for  torturing  flies,  "blowing"  frogs,  and  suchlike  tricks. 
Example,  fraixght  with  kindness,  is  better  than  the  I'od.  There  are,  I  believe, 
some  few  educational  establishments  with  sensible  men  at  their  heads,  who 
adopt  many  very  laudable  plans.  During  one  half  day  in  a  week,  the  master 
gives  his  pupils  readings  from  a  selection  of  good  sound  authors.  If  the 
subject  selected  appertains  to  Natural  History,  perhaps  a  microscope  is  put 
in  requisition,  and  a  world  of  wonders  opened  to  view.  A  poor  fly  is  shewn 
to  be  a  marvellous  compound  of  divine  ingenuity,  and  perhaps  to  pain  as 
sensitive  as  even  mortal  man.  Their  cruel  propensities  are  gradually  con- 
quered— they  learn  to  admire  and  hold  sacred  the  varied  forms  of  creation, 
I'egarding 

"  the  meanest  things  that  are,* 
As  free  to  live,  and  to  enjoy  that  life. 
As  God  was  free  to  form  them  at  the  first, 
Who  in  his  sovereign  wisdom  made  them  all." 

A  I'amble  of  this  sort  is  never  taken  but  fresh  sources  of  delight  arise 
from  it ;  the  mind  expands  at  every  step,  and  learns  to  find  some  "  good  in 
everything."  A  fig  for  all  your  scientific  classifications  and  barbarous  nomen- 
clatures. It  is  absolute  nonsense  to  attempt  cramming  a  lad  with  a  jargon 
of  jaw-breaking  Latinity,  which  not  one  person  in  fifty  thousand  understands. 
It  is  this  alone  which  retards  the  study,  and  prevents  it  from  becoming 
deservedly  popular. 

What  is  it  that  constitutes  the  main  charm  of  such  good  books  as  White's 
Selborne,  Waterton's  Essays,  or  Jesse's  Gleanings — why  because  they  are 
delightful  "  round  unvarnished  "  I'eminiscences  of  actual  observation,  midst 
sunny  fields  and  shady  groves  ; — in  their  perusal,  we  are  almost  led  to  fancy 
ourselves  treading  the  soft  turf  and  listening  to  the  joj^ous  strains  of  caroling 
birds; — we  make  a  companion  of  our  book — its  language  is  pure  homely 
English  unadorned. 

Now  we  are  all  gifted  with  that  power  of  observation  which  leans  us  to 
admire  the  beautiful  in  nature,  and  have  only  to  exercise  that  gift  to  become 
respectable,  and  what  is  better,  truthful  naturalists  The  most  supei-ficial 
among  us  may  be  able  to  hold  converse  with  nature  in  her  thousand  varied 
forms,  and  to  record  some  new  facts  or  pleasing  reminiscences  of  hapj)y  hours 
Avell  spent.  By  instilling  into  the  mind  the  spirit  of  observation,  many  evils 
are  conquered  and  prejudices  overcome.  There  are  still  people  who  regard 
the  frog  and  many  other  harmless  creatures  as  enemies,  saj^  what  we  will. 
The  poor  frog  is  charged  with  eating  strawberries,  simply  from  the  fact  of  its 
being  seen  hopping  about  the  beds ;  now  a  little  quiet  observation  would 

•  Co\\'per. 


66  NOTES   OM    THE    I'HOG. 

remove  this  silly  notion,  and  prove  its  errand  to  be  one  of  infinite  service, 
ridding  us  of  slugs,  and  snails,  the  real  pests  and  spoilers  of  our  choicest 
fruit.  But  their  prejudice  is  of  such  ancient  standing,  and  so  deeply  rooted, 
that  they  cannot  or  will  not  comprehend ;  and  to  turn  them  from  their 
blind  stubbornness,  you  might  almost  as  well — as  Ii-ving  says — attempt  to 
turn  a  nisty  weathercock  with  a  broken-winded  bellows,  or  open  an  oyster 
with  a  rolling  pin.  Time  however  will  bring  its  remedy ;  year  after  year  will 
still  roll  on,  while  we  are  sleeping  beneath  the  grassy  mound,  and  others  will 
spring  up  to  aid  the  good  work,  and  teach  the  mind  to  know  that  everything 
for  ends  of  good  was  all  designed. 
Leeds,  Oct.,  1854. 


NOTICE  OF  THE  RED  SPIDER.  {DYSDERA  ERYTHRINA,   Walch.) 
WITH  REMARKS  ON  A  FEW  OTHERS. 

BY    GEORGE    STOCKLEY,    ESQ. 

With  the  exception  of  one  or  two  of  our  common  species,  seldom  do  we 
see  a  notice  of  this  interesting  family  in  our  serial  works  on  Natural  History; 
yet  no  branch  of  that  svibject  is  more  replete  with  the  wonders  of  providence 
than  the  natural  history  of  our  native  Spiders,  of  which  a  popular  work,  in  a 
cheap  form,  is  much  wanted. 

Of  the  above  scarce  species,  I  have  met  with  but  two  during  the  past 
season,  both  in  the  vicinity  of  Old  Ford.  It  is  said  to  be  abundant  in  France. 
Its  general  habitat  appears  to  be  under  stones,  and  near  old  ruined  walls. 
It  is  an  easily  distinguished  species  from  others  of  the  same  family,  being 
in  shape  somewhat  like  the  Common  House  Spider,  [Aranea  domestica,)  but 
larger,  with  a  longer  body,  legs  pale  red,  thorax  deep  red,  body  inclined  to 
pale  brown  in  some  varieties. 

The  most  common  species  around  London,  in  the  early  summer,  is  the 
pretty  Long-bodied  Spider,  {Tetragnatha  extensa,)  most  abundant  in  those 
lanes  where  the  thick  bushes  and  trees  form  so  agreeable  a  shade  on  some  of 
our  bright  summer  days. 

Another  species,  the  {Aranea  saccata)  is  abundant  under  stones,  and 
especially  at  the  foot  of  old  walls.  The  Garden  Spider,  (Epeira  diadema,) 
and  the  small  hunter,  {Salticus  scenicus,)  so  beautifully  striped  like  a  zebra, 
seem  to  be  equally  abundant  throughout  England,  though  I  am  not  aAvare 
if  they  are  equally  so  in  Scotland. 

There  is  a  species  I  have  met  with  at  Wanstead,  rather  larger  than  the  one 
last  named, Avith  a  longer  body;  I  believe  it  is  the  (Aranea  holosericea,  Linn.,) 
it  is  a  prettily  marked  species,  and  scarce ;  it  occurs  in  July. 


NOTICE    OF   THE    RED   SPIDER.  67 

While  rambling  iu  the  spring,  (I  believe  Ma}',  1847,)  in  Haiuault  Forest,  I 
met  with  a  peculiar  bottle-shaped  nest  of  a  species  of  Spider,  attached  to  the 
twig  of  a  small  bush  with  a  kind  of  stout  silken  band,  yet  left  iu  such  a 
manner  as  to  vibrate  with  the  slightest  breeze  ;  some  weeks  aftenvards,  on 
oi)ening  the  box  where  I  had  placed  it  with  the  Adew  of  determining  the 
species  at  some  future  time,  I  found  an  addition  of  six  young  spiders  which 
had  liberated  themselves  from  it  which  with  the  nest  I  have  in  my  small  col- 
lection. The  name  of  the  species  I  am  unacquainted  with,  though  it  is  not 
uncommon  around  London  during  summer,  when  full  grown  being  about  the 
size  of  the  Garden  Spider,  (E2)eira  diadema,)  the  body  rather  flatter  than 
that  species,  of  a  brownish  hue ;  it  does  not  appear  to  construct  a  web,  but 
frequents  the  upper  surface  of  the  leaves  of  plants,  where  it  may  be  observ- 
ed lying  motionless,  watching  for  its  insect  prey. 

There  is  an  admii-able  figure  of  the  nest  of  this  species  in  volume  second 
of  the  Magazine  of  Natural  History,  page  104,  under  the  title  of  "  A  nidus 
on  a  rush,"  though  nothing  was  known  of  the  species,  being  there  supposed 
to  belong  to  a  water  insect.  The  figures  have  been  copied  in  other  works  as 
spider's  nests,  though  as  far  as  I  am  aware,  the  species  peculiar  to  it  ap- 
peared not  to  be  kuown,  which  induces  me  to  send  the  above  for  the  pages 
of  your  interesting  Journal. 

If  any  of  your  correspondents  could  inform  me  of  the  name  of  this  species, 
I  should  feel  greatly  obliged. 

Tennyson  Terrace,  Hackney  Wick,  Dec.  18th,  1854. 


RAMBLING  REFLECTIONS  AMIDST  SNOW  AND  FROST; 

ANTICIPATING  THE  PLEASING  PROSPECT 

OF  SPRING. 

BY  WILLIAM  KTDD,  ESQ. 

0,  Winter!  ruler  of  the  inverted  year, 
I  love  ihee, — all  unlovely  as  thou  seem'st, 
And  dreaded  as  thou  art. — Cowper. 

Eeviving  Natuee  seems  again  to  breathe, 

Now  loosen'd  from  the  cold  embrace  of  Death. — Thomson. 

All  hail !  to  the  advent  amongst  us  of  stern  Old  Winter.  He  knows,  as 
well  as  we  do,  that  Nature  loves  strong  contrasts ;  therefore  has  he  watched 
the  opportvmity,  whilst  his  fair  mistress  was  dozing,  to  hold  her  empire  with- 
in his  iron  grasp.  Soon,  however,  must  the  burly  old  fellow  release  his  hold; 
and  having  fulfilled  his  bracing  mission,  let  a  more  gentle  hand  perfect  that 
which  he  has  so  well  begun.    He  has  done  us  good  service,  and  we  shall  part 


08  nAMBLING    BEFLECTIOiVa   AMIDST    SNOW   AND   IliOST. 

from  Ilim  witli  gratitude.     He  has  regenerated  the  Earth,  aud  given  it  new 
life, — charming  proofs  of  which  are  becoming  daily  visible  : — 

All  Natui'e  feels  the  renovating  force 
Of  WiNTEB,  only  to  the  thoughtless  eye 
In  ruin  seen. 

We  have  kept  company  with  him  to  the  last,  aud  pronounce  him,  though 
very  rough  withal,  to  have  "  that  within  which  passeth  show." 

In  the  little  rural  episode  I  sent  you  some  time  since,  and  which  appeared 
in  the  February  No.  of  The  Naturalist,  I  recorded  the  appearance  of 
Nature  in  the  first  half  of  the  month  of  January.  My  observations  extended, 
you  will  remember,  to  the  first  fifteen  days,  and  told  of  a  remarkably  mild 
season,  the  budding  of  trees,  the  gi-owth  of  flowers,  and  the  singing  of  birds, 
— ^in  fact  of  a  premature  Sjoring.  I  was  just  able  to  discern,  Avhilst  closing 
my  despatch  to  you,  (on  the  16th,)  that  a  marked  change  was  about  to  take 
place  all  over  the  country.     Indeed  I  hinted  at  it. 

Snow  began  to  fall  soon  after  mid-day,  on  the  16th  of  January ;  and  it  con- 
tinued to  fall  daily  from  that  time  until  long  after  the  end  of  the  month. 
The  30th  of  January  was  the  scene  of  a  heavy  snow  storm.  So  was  the  31st. 
The  streets  were  ail-but  impassable  on  both  days.  Then  the  bitter  howling 
winds  !  It  was  better  than  a  play,  to  see  how  men,  women,  and  children  tried 
to  escape  from  their  irresistible  violence.  To  I'un  was  impossible.  Neither 
could  they  face  the  enemy.  Crab-like,  they  were  compelled  to  sidle  along ! 
All  this  time.  Nature  had  deeply  buried  in  her  chaste  embraces  everything 
that  she  loved  and  cared  for  in  the  fields  and  lanes,  gardens  and  shrubberies, 
woods  and  forests.  Oh,  what  a  lovely  snow-white  mantle-i=  did  she  wear  dur- 
ing this  month ! 

Nor  was  hoar-frost  wanting,  to  gem  with  its  lustrous  pearls  and  sparkling 
diamonds,  (heightened  in  splendour  by  the  beams  of  the  glorious  sun,) 
the  arms  and  arteries  of  the  lofty  oak  and  other  stately  trees.  Brilliant, 
too,  were  the  spangles  pendant  from  the  more  retiring  bushes,  twigs,  and 
sprays.  How  they  glistened  in  the  sun !  Then  the  fantastic  embodiments 
that  everywhere  met  the  eye, — all  modelled  in  snow  and  ice ;  there  is  no 
possibility  of  describing  them.  Fancy  might  liken  them  to  eveijthing  that 
can  be  imagined  of  fairy-land.  There  were  fat  little  cherubs,  trees,  birds, 
palaces,  balloons,  sprites,  elves,  and  what  beside  ? — all  suspended  in  air, 
crystallised !  And  as  you  gazed  on  them,  they  appeared  animated !  The 
window-panes,  too, — what  excruciatingly-droll  objects,  in  endless  variety,  did 
they  not  exhibit !     Old  Winter  is  assuredly  a  waggish  artist. 

•  Have  yovir  readers  ever  seen  "  Snow  Pictures,"  lighted  up  by  the  full  moon  ?  I  have  gazed  on  such, 
not  long  since.  It  was  from  an  eminence,  during  the  holy  stillness  of  Nature.  Night  rendered  the  charm 
complete.  Fleecy  clouds  floated  around  the  fair  moon.  In  the  remote  distance,  were  gigantic  moun- 
tains of  misty  vapour.  In  the  midst,  shone  out  the  starry  ftrmameut.  What  a  boundless  prospect  of  iudea- 
cribable  beauty  did  the  eye  comprehend  I 


BAMBLIXG    KEFLEOTIONS   AMIDST    SNOW   AND    FROST.  O'J 

Then  there  were  our  ponds,  and  large  sheets  of  water, — all  rich  in  solid 
blocks  of  crystal ;  huge  masses  of  which  might  be  seen  quietly  floating, 
or  lying  about,  edgeways,  on  their  shining  surfaces.  The  grass,  too, — how 
beautiful  it  looked,  bespangled  with  its  countless  myriads  of  frozen  dew- 
drops  !  And  when  the  sun  darted  his  slant  beam  upon  them,  how  did  their 
varied  reflections  express  all  the  lovely  colours  of  the  rainbow  !  I  seemed, 
whilst  treading  the  green  floor,  to  be  pacing  on  a  pavement  studded  with 
brilliants. 

But  I  must  now  descend  from  the  lofty  regions  of  poetry  to  common-place 
prose,  and  say  a  few  (sad)  words  about  the  dear  little  birds  whom,  only  a 
short  month  since,  I  left  so  sweetly  singing.  The  snow  and  frost  of  January 
and  February,  so  deep  and  so  severe,  have  caused  them  to  die  by  the  thou- 
sand. February  came  in  with  snow,  in  some  places  from  five  to  ten  feet 
deep, — covering,  not  only  the  surface  of  the  fields,  but  also  hedges  and 
the  low  brushwood.  Poor  Skylarks  !  How  they  sought  the  high-road  to  see 
if,  peradventure  a  few  grains  of  corn,  dropped  by  some  passing  horse, 
might  fall  in  their  way !  Hardly  an  hour's  life  seemed  to  linger  in  their 
little  bodies.  'Twas  a  harrowing  sight  truly.  Whole  armies  of  felts,  red- 
wings, and  other  of  the  larger  winter  visitors,  seemed  also  hard  put  to  it  to 
keep  themselves  alive.  Some  of  the  feathered  tribes  sought  refuge  in  our 
London  streets, — more  particularly  the  Chaffinch,  Hedge-Sparrow,  and  that 
dear  little  fellow,  the  Blue  Titmouse,  fParui  Ccertileus.J  This  last  might  be 
seen  very  actively  busy  in  examining  the  black,  smoke-dried  branches  of  the 
trees  in  our  west-end  squares.  I  remarked  him  thus  occupied  last  year.  As 
for  the  Robins  and  Wrens,  poor  little  fellows  ! — driven  to  their  shifts,  and 
pursued  by  their  enemy,  man,  they  have  suffered  most  severely. 

One  would  imagine  that  sights  of  distress,  such  as  those  I  have  faintly 
described,  would  draw  forth  the  sympathy  of  feeling  (if  not  the  tear  of  pity) 
from  all  beholders.  So  far  is  this  from  being  the  fact,  that  the  murderous 
gun  has  heen  unceasingly  ed  worli.;  scattering  the  limbs  and  feathers  of  the 
smaller  birds  in  every  direction.  This  is  called  "  capital  fun."  Even  our 
tradespeople  joined  the  ranks,  to  participate  in  the  "pleasure"  of  this  butch- 
ery. Their  business,  meantime,  was  quite  neglected !  I  record  it  to  their 
shame.  As  for  Blackbirds,*  Thrushes,  and  Skylarks,  the  slaughter  of  these 
has  been  fearfully  great ;  all  murdered  for  "  the  pleasure  of  the  thing."  A 
near  neighbour  of  mine, — quite  old  enough  to  know  better,  has  slain,  with 
his  hollow  tube,  almost  all  the  feathered  pets  that  frequented  my  garden ; 
amongst  them,  my  most  choice,  tame  Robin,  of  whom  I  have  published  so 
many  interesting  little  anecdotes.      He  flew,  when  wounded,  to  the  favourite 

•  I  am  delighted  to  see  how  your  worthy  correspondents,  Stephen  Stone,  John  Mc.  Intosh,  and  others, 
continue  to  expose  the  absurd  prejudices  of  our  market-gardeners  and  those  who  persist  in  destroying 
Blackbirds,  Thrushes,  &c.,  which  are  the  very  best  friends  they  could  have.  The  harmless  mole,  too,  (Talpa 
vulgaris,)  how  short-sighted  is  the  policy  that  deprives  him  of  life '.     His  value  cannot  be  overrated. 


70  UAJJBLING    REFLECTIONS   AMIDST    SNOW   AND    FROST. 

window  of  his;  ami  there,  under  its  sill,  breathed  his  last  note.*  I  remon- 
strated with  the  blood-stained  wretch,  for  committing  such  wanton  acts  of 
ciiielty;  and  I  asked  him  what  the  innocent  little  creatures  (half-starved 
as  they  were)  had  done  to  annoy  him  ?  His  reply  was  Avorthy  of  the  whole 
heartless  tribe  of  which  he  is  a  member, — "  the  birds  have  no  business  here  ; 
they  deserve  to  be  shot .'"  Unfortunately,  the  law  affords  no  protection  to  these 
little  creatures,  fer^  natura.   Would  that  I  were  a  legislator  for  a  single  day  ! 

Alas,  for  the  carnage  carried  on  in  the  fields  upon  these  unoffending  tribes ! 
I  have  seen  enough  in  my  recent  rambles  to  make  me  (almost)  hate  the  race 
to  Avhich  I  belong.  The  savage  enjoyment — a  kind  of  ecstatic  rapture — shown 
by  these  fiends  whenever  they  have  wounded  a  bird,  it  is  hideous  to  behold. 
Legion  are  they  in  number,  and  Demon  ought  each  of  them  to  be  named. 
One  feUow,  most  respectably  habited,  coolly  told  me  that  he  and  his  nephew 
had  (the  day  previous, — Sunday !)  "  bagged  "  twentj^-three  blackbirds  before 
dinner,  besides  wounding  at  least  a  dozen  others !  Am  I  wrong  in  what  I  so 
often  assert  publicly, — that  man  is  a  semi-savage  ?     I  think  not. 

I  have  left  myself  small  space  to  speak  of  the  now  daily  opening  flowers. 
With  your  permission,  I  will  at  a  future  time  say  a  word  or  two  about  what  I 
so  dearly  love.  Just  at  this  time  of  writing,  the  primrose,  crocus,  snowdrop, 
— that  "  Icicle  changed  into  a  flower," — and  other  little  graceful  strangers, 
are  bashfully  struggling  into  life.  The  snow  has  preserved  everything  from 
harm.  Its  fertilizing,  fructifying  influences  are  already  visible.  The  young 
com  looks  luxuriant ;  the  grass  is  green ;  the  trees  are  lively ;  vegetation 
safely  progresses.  I  can  plainly  see  that,  ere  long,  we  shall  have  a  lovely 
series  of  dailj^-expanding  beauties  in  the  vegetable  world.  Before  these 
remarks  see  the  light,  strong  winds  will  be  at  work  to  evaporate  the  excess 
of  moisture  from  the  earth,  caused  by  the  thaw  and  heavy  rains.  Our 
mother  Nature,  too,  will  have  awakened  once  for  all.  She  Avill  be  busily 
arranging  her  plans,  and  working  her  miracles  of  beauty.  Already,  I  have 
noticed  hundreds  of  her  dreaming  thoughts  and  wishes  in  course  of  fulfil- 
ment.    But  what  lies  before  us  ?     There  is  ecstasy  in  the  thought. 

We  have  yet  many  more  bleak  winds  to  blow  over  us ;  but  these  will 
gradually  subside.  The  signal  will  then  go  forth  for  us  to  wander  abroad, 
and  see  what  is  doing  in  the  fields.  Nature's  invitation  must  be  at  once 
accepted  by  all  who  love  the  Countiy.  Her  companions  are  even  now^  await- 
ing her.     Hark ! 

Up  springs  the  lark, 
Joyous  mid  loud,  the  messenger  of  morn ! 

*  During  the  past  month,  1  have  received  many  heart-rending  accounts  of  similar  acfs  of  ci-uelty,  com- 
mitted in  all  parts  of  the  country.  Garden-pets,  out  of  number,  have  fallen  victims  to  the  gim  of  the  idle 
vagrant.  In  oue  case,  a  Blackbird,  Thrush,  and  Starling,  (choice  favourites  all,)  were  sorely  wounded,  like 
my  own  innocent  Robin,  they  sought  the  window  of  their  best  friend,  shewed  theif  shattered  limbs,  and 
then  died ! 


RAMBLTN'O    UEFI.F.CTIONS   AMIDST   SNOW    AND   FROST.,  71 

Ere  yet  the  shadows  fly,  he  mounted  sings 
Amid  the  dawning  clouds,  and  from  their  haunts 
Calls  up  tlie  tuneful  nations. 

Oil,  how  sad  it  is  to  think  how  few  of  these  "  tuneful  nations  "  are  left  to  us! 
Howevei*,  let  us  gratefully  make  much  of  the  survivors.  Their  notes  shall 
be  doubly  sweet. 

Hammersmith,  Feb.  IPtth,  1855. 


The  Oyr  Falcon.  (Falco  Islandicus.) — A  fine  specimen  of  this  rare  and  noble 
bird  was  shot  on  the  25th  November,  by  a  person  named  Dixon,  near  Robin 
Hood's  Bay,  on  the  moors  of  Sir  J.  V.  B.  Johnstone,  Bart.,  M.P.  It  is  an  adult 
female,  and  is  in  the  finest  plumage.  The  beak  very  pale  blue  colour;  the 
cere  rich  yellow;  irides  nearly  black;  the  head,  neck,  breast,  and  lower  parts 
of  the  body  white ;  the  feathers  on  the  thighs  are  long  and  white ;  all  the 
upper  parts  of  the  body  and  wings  are  white,  sparingly  marked  with  arrow 
streaks  of  black;  the  tail  has  no  bars,  but  is  plain  white;  the  legs  are  yellow; 
the  claws  brown.  The  stomach,  on  dissection,  was  found  to  be  stuffed  with 
the  entrails  of  some  animal,  probably  those  of  a  hare.  Weight,  31bs.  3oz. ; 
length,  from  the  point  of  the  beak  to  the  end  of  the  tail,  20f  inches ;  measure- 
ment from  tip  to  tip  of  wrings,  when  extended,  3ft.  lOin.  Sir  John  Johnstone 
has  forwarded  the  bird  to  Mr.  A.  Roberts,  King-street,  Scarborough,  to  be 
stuffed.  Yarrell,  in  his  "  History  of  British  Birds,"  remarks,  "  Of  the  true 
Falcons  w^hich  the  British  Islands  produce,  the  Gyr  Falcon  may  be  con- 
sidered one  of  the  most  typical  in  form,  as  it  is  the  largest  in  size.  It  is  an 
inhabitant  of  Europe  and  North  America;  seldom  appearing  south  of  52°  of 
latitude,  or  north  of  74°."  Large  sums  were  formerly  expended,  in  procviring 
specimens  from  Iceland  and  Norway,  for  various  potentates  of  Europe,  who 
■were  then  devoted  to  falconry.  The  Gyr  Falcons  were  used  to  hunt  the  Crane, 
Stork,  Heron,  and  Wild  Goose.  The  ancient  amusement  of  falconry  is  now 
little  cared  for;  but,  to  those  who  may  wish  to  be  informed  on  this  svibject, 
Sir  John  Sebright's  "  Observations  on  Hawking,"  and  Turbevill  among  olden 
writers,  are  the  best  authorities. — R.  B.  Cooke,  Scarborough,  Dec.  7th,  1854. 

Temminck's  Stint.  (Tringa  Temmiucikii ) — This  bird  was  shot  at  Wisbeach, 
Oct.  11th,  1854,  by  —  Whiting,  Esq  ;  it  is  now  in  my  possession. — S.  P.  Savill, 
13,  Regent-street,  Cambridge. 

Hie  Oray  Phalarope,  (Phalaropus  lobatus,)  near  Louth. — On  the  13th  of 
November,  a  specimen  of  the  Gray  Phalarope  was  brought  to  me  for  pre- 
servation, by  H.  Allenby,  Esq.,  by  whom  it  had  been  shot  the  same  day, 


72  MlSCJbn.T.ANKOUS   NOTICKS, 

whilst  swimming  in  a  pool  of  water  at  North  Thoresby,  distant  eight  miles 
north  by  west  of  Louth.  On  the  13th  of  December,  a  specimen  of  the  same 
bird  came  into  my  possession,  which  was  taken  between  North  Cotes  and 
Marsh  Chajjel,  distant  about  nine  miles  north-north-east  of  Louth.  I  have 
also  in  my  possession  another  specimen  of  the  same  bird,  which  was  shot 
whilst  swimming  at  Saltiieet  Haven,  on  the  26th  of  December,  1853.  The 
oldest  shooters  in  the  place  did  not  remember  having  seen  a  similar  bird, 
although  some  of  them  had  followed  this  vocation  for  more  than  half  a 
century. — J.  Brown,  Louth,  December  18th,  1854. 

Grmj  Phalarope,  (Phalaropus  lobatus,)  near  Cambridge. — A  specimen  of  this 
interesting  little  bird  was  killed  by  a  man  with  a  stick,  swimming  in  a  pond 
with  some  tame  Ducks,  at  Barton,  Cambridgeshire,  Oct.  6th,  1854. — S.  P. 
Savill,  13,  Regent-street,  Cambridge. 

Egyptian  Goose.  (Anser  Egyptiacus.) — A  male  bird  was  shot  by  a  gunner  at 
Suthery  Fen,  Isle  of  Ely,  Nov.  23rd,  1854.— Idem. 

Occurrence  of  the  Lesser  White-tvinged  Gull.  (Larus  Icelandicus.) — A  specimen 
of  this  rare  and  valuable  Gull  was  found  under  curious  circumstances,  on 
the  morning  of  the  8th  of  December.  I  was  taking  the  temperature  of  the 
sea  from  the  outer  pier,  when  I  observed  a  Gull  floating,  which  had  been 
shot  by  some  sportsman.  At  first  I  took  it  to  be  a  young  Larus  canus ;  but, 
observing  no  black  on  the  tip  of  the  wings,  I  felt  satisfied  it  was  a  rarity; 
and  W'hen  taken  out  of  the  sea,  it  proved  to  be  an  immature  example  of  the 
Lesser  White-winged  or  Glaucous  Gull.  My  specimen  measures  twenty-ono 
inches  in  length ;  the  wings,  when  closed,  reached  two  inches  beyond  the 
the  tail;  colour,  dull  white,  very  beautifully  clouded  with  pale  ash  brown; 
eyes,  dark  brown.  Faber  remarks,  this  is  the  only  Gull  that  passes  the 
winter  in  Iceland  without  breeding  there  in  summer.  It  mvist,  like  the  Ivory 
Gull,  {Larus  ehurneus,)  breed  in  the  higher  northern  regions,  and  come  to 
Iceland  in  winter,  as  a  bird  of  passage ;  it  will  most  probably  breed  in  Hud- 
son's Bay.  It  is  not  unfrequently  met  with  on  the  Shetland  Isles,  but  taken 
on  our  coast  it  is  a  treasure  for  the  ornithologist. — Alfred  Roherts,  King- 
street,  Scarborough,  Dec.  1854. 

Rare  Birds  near  Plymouth. — A  fortnight  since  a  fine  specimen  of  that  now 
scarce  bird,  the  Avocet,  (Recurvirostra  Avocetta,)  was  killed  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  Plymouth,  and  is  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Pincombe,  animal  pre- 
server, of  Devonport.  Some  specimens  of  the  Grey  Phalarope,  Black  Red- 
start, and  Hawfinch,  have  been  also  obtained  wdthin  the  last  month. — John 
Gatcombe,  Plymouth,  Nov.  25th,  1854. 

Eggs  of  Foreign  Birds,  laid  in  England. — I  have  now  in  my  possession  an 
egg  of  the  Cassowary,  laid  in  the  Royal  Surrey  Zoological  Gardens  a  few 
years  since ;  this  is  a  great  rarity,  I  mean  the  fact  of  its  being  "  British  laid." 
I  have  also  the  egg  of  the  Ostrich,  laid  in  1851,  in  the  same  locality; 
but  this  is  not  so  uncommon. — H.  H.  S.,  London,  Oct.  lXt.h,  ,.1854. 


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MESSRS.  GROOMBRIDGE,  5,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 

EDINBURGH:  JAMES  HOGG,  4,  NICOLSOX-STEEET. 

AND  MAY  BE  HAD  OF  ALL  BOOKSELLERS, 


J 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

Notes  on  Star-fishes  found  in  the  Moray  Fritli,  at  Macduff,  near  Banff.  By  W.  ...  73 
A  List  of,  and  Notes  on,  the  Fungi  found  in  the  Neighbourhood  of  Exeter.     By 

Mr.  Edward  Parfitt    77 

The  Swamps  of  the  Mississippi.     By  George  Donaldson,  Esq 81 

The  Myrtle  Bee.     By  O.  S.  Round,  Esq 85 

The  Water  Ouzel.  {Ginclm  aquaticus.)     By  A.  S.  Moffatt,  Esq 88 

Winter. — Notes  at  the  Lakes.     By  C.  W.  Rothery,  Esq 89 

Review. — The  Entomologists'  Annual  for  1855;  with  Notices  of  the  New  British 

Insects  detected  in  1854.     London:  John  Van  Voorst yi 

The  late  Professor  Edward  Forbes.     By  One  of  his  Pupils 92 

Proceedings  of  Societies. — Entomological  Society  of  London 95 

The  Querist       96 


It  is  requested  that  all  Communications  be  addressed  in  future 
to  B.  R.  MORRIS,  M.  D.,  38,  Pawcett-street,  Bishopwear- 
mouth,  Dtirham. 


NOTICES  TO  CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  up  to  March  17th,  from  J.  J.  Fox,  Esq. — W.  Kidd, 
Esq. — H.  A^-CELL,  Esq. — Mr.  A.  Kerr — J.  Longmuir,  Esq.,  Jun. — M.  W.  Norman,  Esq. 
— J.  MuiR,  Esq. — Mr.  R.  Reynolds — J.  C.  T. — J. — J.  B.  Da  vies,  Esq. — R.  W.  Falconer, 
Esq.,  M.  D. — C.  W.  Rotheey,  Esq. — J.  N.  Beadles,  Esq. — H.  T.  Stainton,  Esq. — W. 
Bean,  Esq. — S.  Stone,  Esq. — J.  Ctatherer,  Esq. — G.  Donaldson,  Esq. 

Contributions  have  been  received  up  to  March  15th,  from  J.  E.  Daniel,  Esq. — 0.  tS. 
Round,  Esq. — Mr.  T.  Lister — J.  W.  Eccles,  Esq. — R.  Drake,  Esq. — F.  M.  Burton",  Esq. 
— G.  Grantham,  Esq. — R.  Marris,  Esq. — J.  Fotheegill,  Esq. — W.  R.  Robertson,  Esq. — 
J.  C.  T.— Rev.  J.  Farr— J.  F.  Whiteaves,  Esq.— W.— Mr.  M.  Westall— Mr.  J.  Thorne 
— J.  P. — C.  W.  Rothery,  Esq. — J.  Gatcombe,  Esq. — H.  Smurtiiwaite,  Esq. — Mr.  T. 
Fathers — G.  R.  Twinn,  Esq. — Rev.  F.  0.  Morris — Mr.  E.  Parfitt — Mr.  J.  Morley— 
C.  E.  Smith,  Esq. 

A  Letter  addressed  by  us,  Jan.  23rd,  to  W.  C.  Hall,  Esq.,  Cambridge,  has  been 
returned  to  us  fi-ora  the  Dead  Letter  Office.   Will  Mr.  H.  favour  us  with  his  correct  address. 

Errata  :  Page  52,  line  18 — for  Heathen,  read  feathery. 
,,     53,     „    16 — for  Caretla,  read  Caretta. 
„     ib.,     „    20 — for  bows,  read  boughs. 
„     54,     ,,    28 — for  Yayoo,  read  Yazoo. 

The  Editor  begs  to  announce  to  his  Correspondents,  that  he  has  arranged  with  his 
Printer,  so  that  the  Author  of  any  Paper  can  have  copies  of  his  Article  sent  liim  by  post 
at  the  following  rates  :— 

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75  Copies     

C'omviunications,  Drawings,  Advertisements,  etc.,  to  be  addressed  to  B.  R.  MOIiBIS,  Esq., 
M.D.,  38,  Fawcctt-slreet,  Blshopicear  mouth,  Durham; — Boohs  for  Beview,  and  Parcels,  to 
the  care  of  Messrs.  GEOOMBBIDOE,  5,  Paternoster-Row,  London. 


Two  Pages. 

F 

our  Pages. 

Eight  Pages. 

2,s.  Gd. 

4s.  Od. 

6s.  6d. 

.J     c, 

6     0 

9     G 

5     U 

7     G 

12     6 

73 


NOTES    ON    STAR-FISHES    FOUND    IN    THE    MORAY    FRITH,    AT 
MACDUFF,  NEAR  BANFF. 

BY  W.  .  /^A  ■  t 

(Concluded  from  page  233,  vol.  i\.J  I     T V^ 

Lesser  Sand-Star.  (Ophiura  alhida.)  This  Star-fish  is  frequently  reiifi4(; 
All  the  specimens  I  have  are  from  deep  water. 

Gray  Brittle-Star.  {OpMoGom.a  neglecta.)     Common  within  tide  marks. 

Daisy  Brittle-Star.  {OpJdocoma  hellis.)  This  species  is  again  introduced,  for 
the  purpose  of  correcting  an  error  in  the  former  part,  {OiMocoma  rosuhx,)  and 
for  the  purpose  of  describing  others  that  were  lately  obtained.  One  of  them 
is  a  gem.  It  is  of  a  reddish  colour,  with  a  pentangular  Avhite  space  in  the 
centre  of  the  disk.  One  would  say  that  this  white  space  is  a  Knotty  Cushion- 
Star  in  miniature.  The  rays  are  also  of  the  same  reddish  colour,  crossed  by 
bands  of  a  darker  red.  The  disk  is  three-eighths  of  an  inch  across,  and  the 
rays  are  one  and  one-fourth  inch  long.  Another  measures  half-an  inch  across, 
with  rays  fully  one  and  one-half  inch  long.  The  disk  is  white,  with  a  margin 
of  a  reddish  colour.  The  rays  are  of  the  same  colour,  crossed  by  darker 
bands.  A  third  is  wholly  of  a  dirty  whitish  coloui',  with  scarcely  any  red 
bands  on  the  rays.     Its  disk  is  about  three  fourths  of  an  inch  in  diameter. 

Common  Brittle-Star.  (Ophiocoma  rosula.)  This  species  is  rather  plentiful, 
and  of  all  colours, — red,  yellow,  variegated,  &c.  Lately  I  obtained  one  with 
a  blue  disk  and  reddish  rays,  which  are  crossed  by  bands  of  a  darker  red. 
With  respect  to  the  spines,  they  ai'e  scarcely  twice  the  breadth  of  the  ray ; 
and  I  find,  after  careful  examination,  that  they  are  of  different  lengths ;  the 
lowermost  one  on  each  plate  being  the  shortest,  and  the  others  increasing  in 
length  to  the  second  from  the  uppermost,  which  is  the  longest. 

Sand  Brittle-Star.  {Ophiocoma  mimita.)  Mr.  T.  Edwards  has  got  several  of 
this  species. 

Three-rayed  Brittle-Star.  {Ophiocoma  JiUformis.)  This  is  a  veiy  doubtful 
species  in  the  Frith. 

The  Long-armed  Brittle-Star.  {Ophiocoma  hrachiata.)  This  one  is  pretty 
frequently  met  with  in  stomachs.  Some  time  ago,  I  obtained  one  from  the 
crevices  in  the  shell  of  a  Avorn  Cijprina  Icelandica.  It  was  twisted  and  turned 
into  the  holes  and  passages  between  the  outside  plates  of  the  shell  in  a  most 
astonishing  manner,  so  that  it  was  with  the  greatest  difficulty  that  it  could 
be  extracted  from  what  may  veritably  be  called  a  labyrinth.  It  was  of  a  bright 
red  colour. 

Common  Cross-fish.   {Uraster  rubens.)      "Cross  Fit."      This  is  the  most 
common  of  all  the  Star-fish.     It  is  the  pest  of  the  fishermen.     It  seizes  the 
bait,  and  in  so  doing  lies  right  across  the  line,  and  keeps  it  close  to  the  bot- 
tom, among  the  mud,  weeds,  &c.,  and  thus  prevents  the  fish  from  catching 
VOL.  v.  E 


74  STAR-FISHES    OF   BANFF. 

the  hook.  I  have  obtained  them  a  foot  across,  and,  have  been  told  by  the 
fishermen  that  the}-  have  seen  them  much  larger.  I  have  obtained  them  with 
three  vei-y  unequal  raj's. 

Violet  Cross-fish.  {U raster  violacea.)  Plentiful,  but  not  so  common  as  the 
former  species. 

Ej'ed  Cribella    {Cribella  oculata.) 

Rosy  Cribella.  (Crihella  rosea.) 

Purple  Sun-Star.  (Solaster  endeca.)  Rather  common.  I  have  obtained  some 
of  these  of  a  cream  colour  above,  with  a  few  purplish  dots  scattered  over  the 
body. 

Common  Sun-Star.  [Solaster  papposa.)  Very  common.  I  have  one  before 
me  measuring  seven  inches  across,  with  thirteen  rays ;  another  five  inches, 
with  fourteen  rays ;  and  a  third  six  inches  and  a  half,  with  twelve  full-grown 
rays  and  two  incipient  rays  ;  three  full-grown  rays  are  between  them. 
Whether  the  fvill-grown  rays  had  been  broken  off,  and  these  two  are  now 
growing  in  their  places,  it  is  difficult  to  say.  There  is,  however,  no  appear- 
ance of  the  loss  of  the  rays.  I  obtained  a  second  specimen  of  the  same 
kind,  but  did  not  preserve  it.  The  colours  of  this  "rare  fish"  were  most 
splendid.  In  the  centre  was  a  dark  red  space,  with  tubercles  of  the  same 
colour.  Round  this  was  a  ring  of  a  paler  red,  with  the  tubercles  almost 
white.  To  this  succeeded  a  ring  of  a  darker  red,  similar  to  the  central  space, 
with  red  tubercles  interspersed  with  white.  Around  the  edge  was  a  very  pale 
red  ring,  shading  into  white  between  the  rays,  with  the  tubercles  white.  The 
rays  were  ringed  much  in  the  same  way.  With  regard  to  the  madreporiform 
tubercle,  the  tubercles  are  so  arranged  that  the  fasciculi  on  them  can  cover 
the  whole  of  it,  and  often  have  I  observed  it  almost  entirely  concealed  by 
them.  Is  this  intended  as  a  protection  to  it  ?  The  short  raj's  also  suggest 
another  question :  Have  Star-fish  the  power,  not  merely  of  reproducing  their 
broken  rays,  but  have  they  also  the  power  of  adding  to  the  number  of  their 
rays?  Another  thing,  which  appears  to  be  a  "questio  vexata"  I  have  to  state. 
It  is  with  regard  to  the  burning  sensation  felt  on  touching  the  Star-fish. 
Now  I  must  say,  that,  on  taking  the  one  above  described  into  my  hand,  after 
it  had  been  for  a  day  and  a  half  lying  uncleaned,  I  distinctly  felt  a  most  dis- 
agreeable burning  sensation.  I  had  entirely  forgotten  what  Professor  Forbes 
says  on  the  subject,  so  that  the  sensation  cannot  be  attributed  to  imagination. 
Bird's-Foot  Star-fish.  (Palmipes  memhranaceus.)  I  have  obtained  three 
specimens  of  this  beautiful  Star-fish,  all  from  deep  water,  brought  up  by  the 
fishermen's  hooks.  One  of  them  is  small,  measuring  three  inches  the  longest 
way.  The  centre  and  rays,  or  rather  ridges,  are  red.  The  margin  is  of  the 
same  colour ;  whilst  the  spaces  between  the  ridges  are  white,  interspersed 
with  red  dots.  The  under  side  is  white,  with  the  exception  of  a  narrow  red 
margin  wholly  round  two  of  the  sides,  and  half  round  the  other  two ;  thus 
leaving  one  whole  side  and  two  half  sides  white.  Another  is  larger,  measuring 


STAR-FISHES   OF   BAKFF.  75 

five  inches  and  a  half.  It  is  of  a  fine  red  colour  above,  and  white  beneath,  with 
the  exception  of  a  narrow  red  margin.  The  third  is  a  most  splendid  specimen. 
It  is  almost  symmetrical,  and  measures  six  inches  and  a  quarter.  It  was 
taken  in  fifty  fathoms  water,  ten  miles  from  land,  on  the  13th  of  February. 
Knotty  Cushion-Star.  {Ooniaster  equestris.)  This  is  rather  frequent.  With- 
in the  last  eighteen  months,  I  have  obtained  five  or  six  specimens.  All  that 
I  have  seen  were  of  a  fine  red  colour ;  the  larger  ones,  however,  becomiug 
yellow  when  preserved,  but  the  smaller  ones  keeping  the  colour.  The  largest 
specimen  I  have,  measures  eight  inches  across.  The  furrowed,  forceps-like 
spinules  are  closed  in  the  dried  specimens,  but  they  are  open  in  the  living 
animal.  The  creature  appears  to  have  a  very  delicate  sense  of  touch.  The 
least  puncture  with  a  pin  causes  it  to  shut  the  spinviles.  If  you  touch  the 
spinules  in  any  row  in  rapid  succession,  it  closes  them,  and,  after  a  little, 
opens  them ;  so  that,  before  you  reach  the  end  of  the  row,  it  is  shutting  them 
at  the  one  end  and  opening  them  at  the  other. 

Butthorn.  {Asterias  aurantiaca.)  Common.  Of  this  I  obtained,  last 
autumn,  a  monstrosity.  One  of  the  rays,  at  about  half  the  length,  separated 
into  two  fully  developed  rays ;  so  that,  if  you  count  the  rays  at  the  tips,  they 
number  six ;  if  at  the  roots,  five.     It  was  of  a  pale  rose  colour. 

Lingthorn.  {Luidia  fragilissima.)  Both  varieties  occm-.  I  have  before  me 
a  specimen  with  seven  rays,  measuring  sixteen  inches  across.  It  was  taken 
from  deep  Avater.  I  have  seen  them  without  a  single  ray,  and  the  disk  still 
living. 

Common  Egg-Urchin.  {Echinus  sphcura.)  "  Canniber."  Common.  One 
specimen  measures  twelve  inches  and  a  half  in  circumference,  and  three 
inches  in  height. 

Purple  tipped  Egg-Urchin.  {Echinus  miliaris.)  Quite  common ;  always  from 
deep  water. 

Green  Pea-Urchin.  {Echinocyamus  pusillus.)  I  find  the  shells  in  great 
abundance,  brought  up  in  almost  every  conglomei'ation  of  stones,  shells,  &c.; 
although  I  have  not  yet  been  so  fortunate  as  to  obtain  a  living  specimen. 

Purple  Heart-Urchin,  {Spatangus  purpureus.)  One  bi-oken  specimen,  but 
quite  enough  to  identify  the  species. 

Fiddle  Heart-Urchin.  {Brissus  hjrifer.)  Last  autumn  I  procured  a  very  fine 
specimen.  The  body  was  of  a  brownish  kind  of  colour,  and  the  spines  were 
of  a  dirty  white.  It  is  two  inches  and  one-eighth  long,  one  inch  and  three- 
quarters  broad,  and  one  inch  deep. 

Common  Heart-Urchin.  {Amphidotus  cordatus.)     Quite  common. 

Snail  Sea-Cucumber.  {Psolus  pihantapus.)  Several  wei'e  got  last  autumn,  at 
Gamrie. 

Angular  Sea-Cucumber.  {Cucumaria  pentactes.) 

Long  Sea-Cucumber.  {Cucumaria  fusif or  mis.)  On  the  16th  October,  1854,  I 
obtained  what  I  considered  to  be  a  specimen  of  this"  Sea-Cucumber.     It  was 


76  STAR-FISIIES   OF   BAKFF. 

kept  alive  for  several/ days,  but  it  uever  changed  its  position.  It  merely, 
from  time  to  time,  elongated  itself.  Wlien  stretched  out,  it  measured  about 
three-fourths  of  an  inch.     Its  colour  was  a  dirty  white. 

Milk-white  Sea-Girkin.  {Ocnus  lacteus.)  I  obtain  this  Sea-Girkin  in  great 
abundance,  almost  on  every  stone  and  shell  taken  from  deep  water.  I  have 
kept  them  alive  for  days.  They  are  very  sluggish,  seldom  changing 
their  position.  I  have  seen  the  tentacula  expanded  at  all  hours  of  the  day. 
When  touched,  they  were  contracted  for  a  little ;  but  again  gradually  ex- 
panded, when  the  cause  of  annoyance  appeared  to  be  withdrawn. 

Common  Thyone.  (Thyone  papillosa.)  On  the  23rd  October,  amidst  a  mass 
of  stuff  from  the  fishermen's  lines,  I  obtained  this  Thyone.  It  was,  when 
found,  of  a  roundish  shape,  with  the  tentacula  protruding  to  their  entire 
length..  It  was  immediately  put  into  a  basin  of  water.  It  remained  for  some 
time  in  the  same  state  as  when  found.  By  next  morning  it  had  fixed  its 
basis  of  operation  on  the  side  of  the  basin.  I  kept  looking  at  it  at  intervals, 
for  some  time.  It  began  to  elongate  itself  towards  the  head,  and  to  throw  it 
about  in  all  directions.  It  did  so  for  some  time.  It  then  contracted  itself 
towards  the  posterior  extremity,  and  the  body  seemed  as  if  tied  round  with 
a  thread.  This  constriction  passed  slowly  along  the  body,  from  the  exti-emity 
to  the  head.  After  it  had  passed  away,  it  raised  its  head  perpendicularly, 
and  threw  back  its  body,  so  that  you  could  distinctly  see  the  wave  of  expan- 
sion passing  to  the  posterior  extremity.  Again  the  wave  of  constriction 
began,  and  passed  slowly  along  as  before.  It  continued  to  do  so  always  in 
the  same  direction.  Its  length  was,  when  at  rest,  about  three-fourths  of  an 
inch.     Its  colour  was  a  dirty  white. 

Tailed  Priapulus.  (Priapulus  caudatus)     Sometimes  got  in  stomachs. 

Common  Spoon-Worm.  {Echiurus  vulgaris.)  Doubtful.  I  obtained,  from  the 
stomach  of  a  haddock,  what  appears  to  be  this  Spoon-Worm. 

Of  the  Holothuriadae  and  Sipunculidse,  the  foregoing  are  but  a  very  small 
portion.  Since  the  Frith  can  boast  of  a  fair  share  of  the  other  families  of 
Star-fish,  a  good  look. out  may  bring  to  light  a  great  many  more  ;  of  which, 
when  found,  due  intimation  shall  be  given  in  The  Naturalist. 

Having  now  completed  the  list  of  Star-fish  as  far  as  known,  I  trust  soon  to 
be  able  to  communicate  lists  of  the  Crustaceans,  Zoophytes,  and  Molluscs. 

Macduff,  Banff,  Nov.  18th,  1854. 


77 


A  LIST  OF,  AND  NOTES  ON,  THE  FUNGI  FOUND  IN  THE 
NEIGHBOURHOOD  OF  EXETER. 

BY  MR.  EDWARD  PARFITT. 

(Continued  from  pa^e  279,  vol.  iv. 

Agarieus  mastrucatus.  This  is  a  curious  and  very  rare  species.  I  met  with 
several  growing  together  in  a  somewhat  imhricated  form,  on  an  old  post 
supporting  the  roof  of  a  shed,  at  R.  Barns',  Esq.,  Bellare,  Dec.  16th,  1852. 

A.  septiciis.  This  is  also  rare ;  I  have  only  met  with  two  or  three  on  the 
trunks  of  elms,  growing  out  between  the  cracks  of  the  bark.  It  is  also  a 
pretty  and  curious  species. 

A.  prunulus.  Not  uncommon  in  Stoke  Wood,  and  pastures  round  Exeter. 
Sept.  1853. 

A.  rhodopolius.  Rather  abundant  in  rich  pastures  in  this  neighbourhood. 

A.  mammosus.  A  few  of  this  species  occurred  at  Coaver,  in  May  and  Nov. 
1853. 

A.  leoninus.  A  magnificent  variety  of  this  Agaric  occurred  on  a  piece  of  elm 
lying  in  the  woodyard,  at  Coaver,  Oct.  1851,  with  the  pileus  of  a  beautiful 
carmine  colour,  covered  with  a  thickish,  transparent,  wrinkled  epidermis,  or 
rather  skin,  smooth  in  the  centre,  but  wavy  towards  and  on  the  margin, 
where  it  is  wrinkled  into  little  waves,  in  a  somewhat  reticulated  manner. 
This  epidermis,  with  care,  can  be  easily  taken  off  entire.  Lamella,  slightly 
imbricated,  rather  stout  face,  stem  very  firm,  rather  tough,  compressed 
upwai-ds,  rather  paler  than  the  pileus.  This  is,  I  think,  the  most  beautiful 
Agaric  I  ever  saw ;  the  pencil  cannot  in  any  way  do  it  justice.  The  colour 
and  transparency'  of  the  epidermis  fixes  one  to  the  spot;  you  cannot  but 
admire  it.     Unfortunately  it  is  veiy  rare ;  I  have  never  seen  hut  two. 

A.  2}hleboj)honis.  Two  or  three  of  this  species  came  up  in  some  old  tan,  in 
one  of  the  pits  in  Messrs.  Veitches'  Nursery.  Jan.  1853. 

A.  cTialyheus.  I  met  with  three  or  four  of  this  pretty  little  Agaric,  on  a 
grassy  part  of  Exmouth  warren,  opposite  Mount  Pleasant  Inn,  July  14th,  1853. 

A.  hrunneus.  Rare.  I  have  only  met  with  two  specimens  ;  those  were  found 
on  a  hedge-bank  at  Coaver,  under  the  shade  of  trees.  1851. 

A.  violaceus.  This  is  not  uncommon  with  us,  at  least  I  have  met  with 
several  plants  of  it  each  year,  for  the  last  year  or  two ;  but  I  have  not  seen 
any  this.  Oct.  23rd,  1851. 

A.  cinnamomeus.  Rare.  Only  one  or  two  specimens  have  come  under  my 
observation ;  these  were  met  with  in  Stoke  Wood,  Sept.  1852,  amongst  half 
rotten  leaves,  under  the  shade  of  trees. 

A.  aureus.     This  is  not  common  with  us. 

A.  aurivellus.  Several  of  what  I  take  to  be  this  species  came  up  in  one  of 
the  stores,  at  Messrs.  Veitches'  Nursery,  April  5th,  1853. 


78  FUNGI   OF   EXETEK. 

A  squarrosus.  Due  large  bunch  of  this  fiue  Agaric  was  brought  me  by  the 
gardener  at  —  Bowring's,  Esq.,  Larkbear,  Exeter;  they  were  growing  at  the 
foot  of  a  large  apple  tree.  Oct.  23rd,  1853. 

A.Jlammans.  This  is  a  most  beautiful  species,  and  verj-  rare  ;  I  met  with 
three  growing  together,  on  an  old  elm  stump,  at  Coaver,  Oct.  1851,  and  have 
not  seen  any  since. 

A.  fastihilis.  Common  near  the  stumps  of  trees,  Matford,  &c,  July  28th, 
1853. 

A.jlavidus.  Rare.  One  or  two  specimens  only  have  come  under  my  obser- 
vation; those  were  found  at  Coaver,  Oct.  26th,  1853. 

A.  sapineus.  This  is  also  rare.  A  small  tuft  of  these  came  up  through  a 
gravel  walk,  supposed  to  have  sprung  from  the  roots  of  a  Pinus,  which  had 
died  and  been  cut  down.  Jan.  1852. 

A.  rimosus.  This  is  not  a  common  species,  though  I  have  met  with  several 
in  pastures  and  on  lawns  round  Exeter,  Sept.  1852.  This  is  a  well  marked 
species. 

A.  Hooheri.  Several  of  this  beautiful  Agaric  have  come  up  from  time  to 
time,  on  the  peaty  soil  of  the  Camellia  bed,  in  the  greenhouse  at  Coaver ;  the 
epidermis  of  this,  as  well  as  the  veil  and  stem,  are  loosely  covered  with 
loose  and  lufFy  scales,  which  gives  the  plants  a  sort  of  ragged  appearance. 
June,  1853. 

A.  geophyllus.  Common  amongst  fallen  leaves,  bits  of  sticks,  &c.,  under 
trees  at  Coaver,  and  Stoke  Wood. 

A.  tener.  Rather  common  in  rich  pastures  round  Exeter,  particularly  in  a 
large  held  at  Matford.  Aug.  Sept. 

A.  hypnorum.  This  is  of  frequent  occurrence,  particularly  in  moss  used 
with  the  peaty  soil  in  which  orchids  are  growing,  in  the  store  at  Coaver 
House. 

A.  involutus.  Not  uncommon.  Also  a  variety  with  a  sub-bulbous  base. 
Coaver,  Aug.  20th,  1853.     This  is  an  exceedingly  variable  species. 

A.  variabilis.  Rather  scarce.  I  have  never  found  it  but  on  the  rough  bark 
of  elms,  growing  out  between  the  chinks  of  the  bark.  It  is  a  curious  and 
very  pretty  little  species,  and  very  much  reminds  one  of  the  Torquay  bonnet- 
shell  (Pileopsis  Hungarica).  Coaver,  Nov.  ITtli,  1852. 

A.  volvaceus.  Rare.  I  have  only  seen  two;  these  came  up  in  a  cucumber 
bed,  in  the  garden,  Coaver  House,  June,  1852. 

A.  Georgii.  In  a  bushy  place,  at  Parker's  Well,  and  one  or  two  other 
places  round  Exeter ;  bvit  it  is  not  an  abundant  species  in  this  neighbour- 
hood, neither  does  it  grow  half  so  large  as  I  have  seen  it  in  many  other 
counties.  In  Norfolk,  for  instance,  I  have  noticed  some  very  large,  particu- 
larly in  the  woods  at  Melton  Constable,  the  seat  of  Lord  Hastings. 

A.  eampestris.  Common,  most  years;  this  year  I  have  scarcely  seen  anj-. 
A  curious  monstrosity  occurred  at  Mr.  Lowring's,  Exeter,  Nov.  7th,   1852, 


FUNGI    OF   EXETER.  79 

very  much  indeed  like  the  one  described  by  the  Rev.  M.  J.  Berkly,  in  the 
English  Flora,  page  107.  The  one  I  am  about  to  describe  was  a  very  fine 
specimen,  on  which  the  curious  monstrous  form  was  growing ;  it  measured 
five  inches  in  diameter.  The  monstrosity  was  like  a  smaller  specimen, 
without  a  stem,  and  with  its  back;  that  is  the  top  of  the  pileus  was  growing 
out  on  the  top  of  the  larger  one.  But  the  margin  of  the  monster  was  distorted 
and  irregular,  and  the  gills  were  also  irregular,  and  somewhat  broken  into 
teeth-like  laminae,  and  placed  as  it  were  promiscuously,  some  one  way  and 
some  another,  in  the  pileus ;  their  margins,  also,  very  irregular  in  form, 
resembling  in  miniature  the  horns  of  the  Moose  Deer,  without  the  lower 
antler;  these  curious  gill-like  processes  were  exactly  the  same  colour  as  the 
true  gills  of  the  typical  form  of  the  species,  and  also  produced  spores  just 
the  same. 

A.  campestris,  variety  pratensis,  of  Dr.  Badham  This  is  not  a  common 
Agaric  with  us,  I  think  this  j)lant  has  as  much  right  to  rank  as  a  species  as 
many  others  that  are  called  species.  It  has  always  a  different  place  of  growth 
from  the  true  species,  growing  on  old  clay  hedge-banks  and  margins  of  wood, 
in  dense  tufts.  The  pileus,  too,  is  always  of  a  brown  colour,  and  the  gills 
are  of  a  much  deeper  flesh  colour,  and  the  veil  is  also  much  more  dense,  Ihe 
flesh  more  solid,  and  harder  than  in  campestris.  With  these  distinctions  I 
think  we  might  venture  on  calling  it  a  true  species. 

A,  precox.  This  is  not  a  very  plentiful  species,  though  I  have  met  with 
several  lots  of  it,  and  also  several  varieties, 

A.  semiglobatm.     Common  in  rich  meadows  round  Exeter. 

A.  ceruginosus.  This  is  also  a  plentiful  species  in  short  grassy  meadows 
and  lawns. 

A.  lachrymabundus.     I  have  only  met  with  two  or  three  specimens, 

A.  fascicularis.   Very  common  on  the  stumps  of  old  trees,  in  dense  tufts. 

A.  callosus.  Rare.  Two  specimens  only,  in  Mr.  Pince's  Nursery,  Exeter. 
Jan.  ]4th,  1853. 

A.  fcenisecii.  This  is  also  rare  ;  one  or  two  specimens  only  I  have  found, 
and  in  the  stoves  at  Messrs.  Veitches'  Nursery,  Exeter. 

A.  areolatus.  A  very  distinct  species.  I  met  Avith  this  in  the  garden  of 
Coaver  House,  near  Exeter.  Sept.  1853. 

A.  Candollianus.  Rare.     One  specimen  only  in  the  stove  at  Coaver  House. 

A.  bifrons.  Rare.  A  very  pretty  little  species  ;  I  met  with  it  in  an  old  cow- 
dung,  at  Coaver.  Nov.  1 3th,  1854. 

A.  atomatus.  This  is  a  very  beautiful  little  Agaric,  found  amongst  rotten 
sticks,  &c.,  on  the  margins  of  woods.     Not  common.    July  28th,  1853. 

A.  corriigis.     Rare,  in  this  neighbourhood. 

A.  gracilis.  Not  common.  One  or  two  specimens  in  the  grounds  of  Parker's 
Well  House.  Aug.  1854. 

A.  semiovatus.     Common  on  dung  of  animals  in  meadows  round  Exeter. 


80  FUNGI   OF  EXETER. 

A.  papilionaceus.  Two  specimens  only  have  come  under  my  notice ;  those 
were  found  on  the  lawn,  at  Coaver.    May  19th,  1853. 

A.  striatus.  Rather  rare.  Three  or  four  only  in  a  field  at  Matford,  near 
Exeter.   1851. 

A.  Boltonii.  This  is  a  very  pretty  and  delicate  Agaric;  in  Avet  weather  it 
is  beautiful,  but  in  diy  weather  it  sometimes  dries  up  before  the  pileus 
expands,  when  it  closes  or  falls  down  round  the  stem,  in  folds,  precisely  like 
a  closed  umbrella  in  miniature.  The  description  in  English  Flora  being  so 
brief,  I  Avill  add  a  little  more  to  it,  so  as  to  enable  any  one  interested  in 
these  matters  to  distinguish  this  plant  from  its  allies.  Stem  hollow,  brittle; 
fibrillose,  when  young,  very  finely  striated,  the  striae  scattered  over  with  very 
minute  scales,  particularly  the  upper  half,  at  length  nearly  smooth.  Gills, 
cinnamon,  or  reddish  yellow  coloured,  very  thin ;  ventricose  in  front,  free, 
the  margins  finely  serrated;  Pileus  membranaceous,  viscid,  when  young, 
soft  to  the  touch,  smooth,  and  shining  at  the  apex ;  margin  striated,  appa- 
rently from  the  pressure  of  the  gills ;  ochraceus,  the  pileus  at  length 
becomes  concave,  slightly  umbonate,  the  umbo  at  length  clothed  in  a  beauti- 
ful white  web-like  down.  It  is  a  veiy  beautiful  and  graceful  little  Agaric, 
not  uncommon  in  rich,  dungy  pastures,  round  Exeter,  in  July.  My  figure 
and  Sowerby's  A.  Jlavidus,  agree  exactly. 

A.  disseminatus.  This  is  a  delicate  and  beautiful  plant,  but  very  common, 
on  the  ground  over  buried  wood,  &c. 

A.  comatus.  A  fine  and  beautiful  fungus,  in  a  young  state,  when  it  is  also 
good  as  an  article  for  food ;  but  it  soon  dissolves  into  a  nasty  black  fluid, 
which  fluid  may  be  made  use  of  by  the  artist. 

A.  picaeeus.  Very  rare,  but  curious  and  beautiful.  I  met  with  two  of  this 
species,  in  a  pasture  at  Matford,  in  Oct.  1851,  but  have  not  seen  a  single  one 
since.  Those  I  took  home  and  figured  ;  but  while  busy  painting  them,  one 
of  them  melted  away,  into  a  black,  inky  mass  as  if  he  had  not  the  face  to  sit 
to  have  his  likeness  taken;  but  it  was  no  use,  the  thing  was  done ;  for  you 
must  recollect  whoever  takes  up  the  study  of  this  interesting  branch  of 
Botany,  when  you  get  a  subject,  you  must  either  make  a  drawing  directly,  or 
a  clear  written  note  of  the  species  under  consideration,  some  of  them  being 
so  fugacious  and  fragile  that  almost  the  least  breath  of  air  destroys  them. 

A.  atramentarius.     Common  about  the  roots  of  old  trees,  &c. 

A.  micaceus.  Also  common  at  the  roots  and  stumps  of  trees,  sometimes  in 
prodigious  numbers. 

A.  cinereus.  Not  very  plentiful ;  though  I  have  met  with  many,  in  Coaver 
garden,  in  rich  soil.    April  13tli,  1853. 

A.  niveus.  This  is  a  veiy  pretty  Agaric,  when  young;  rather  common  in 
rich  meadows,  on  horse  dung.  Oct.  1851. 

A.  plicatilis.     Common  on  dung  in  pastures ;  very  delicate  and  fragile. 

A.  Henderionii.     This  is  the  most  delicate,  fragile,  and  fugacious  fungus  I 


FUNGI    OF   EXETER.  81 

ever  met  with ;  two  or  three  specimens  came  up  in  a  hot  bed,  in  Coaver 
garden, in  1853. 

A.  stercorarius.     Common  on  dunghills,  &c.    Oct.  and  Nov. 

A.  ephemerus.    An  elegant  little  species,  and  very  common. 

A. A  beautiful  species,  allied  to  the  last,  came  up  in  some  damp 

cinder  ashes,  in  the  greenhouse  at  Coaver,  Aug.  10th,  1853.  Pileus  mem- 
branaceus,  striated,  umbonate,  the  umbo  yellowish  umber,  the  rest  of  the 
pileus  dilute  umber,  and  frosted  over  with  beautiful  white  jointed  scales, 
the  joints  tinged  with  yellow,  the  scales,  or  squamula,  triangular,  curved; 
Lamella,  very  narrow,  rather  paler  than  the  pileus,  their  margins  black,  soon 
dissolving,  adnate;  stem  hollow,  white,  sub-bulbous,  rooting,  clothed  in 
scattered,  white,  meal-like  scales,  which  are  thicker  towards  the  top ;  rather 
brittle,  sub-librillose.  My  figures  are  very  much  like  Sowerby's  A.  acctabu- 
losus,  though  they  do  not  agree  in  all  points,  nor  can  I  find  any  description 
in  English  Flora  with  which  it  corresponds. 

A.  rutilus.     One  or  two  specimens  only  under  Scotch    firs,  at  Coaver. 
Aug.  23rd,  1853. 

{To  he  contimied.J 


THE  SWAMPS  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI. 

BY   GEORGE    DONALDSON,    ESQ. 

f  Continued  from  page  54.J 

My  wardrobe  was  rather  limited,  for  with  the  exception  of  my  two  blankets 
(a  red  one  and  a  blue  one)  1  could  have  put  the  rest  of  it  into  the  crown  of 
my  hat. 

Two  years  had  nearly  elapsed  from  the  time  I  had  raised  my  gun  and 
killed  a  "  Cedar  Bird"  in  the  State  of  Massachussets,  before  I  found  myself 
roAving  up  a  byou  to  the  west  of  the  great  Mississippi.  Our  progress  through 
it  was  necessarily  slow,  from  the  overwhelming  heat  of  the  sun ;  the  turnings 
and  twistings  were  numerous,  from  having  to  observe  the  openings  and 
narrow  passages  through  the  prairie  cane;  we  passed  through  a  cedar  swamp 
of  great  extent,  completely  inundated,  the  trunks  of  the  trees,  on  an  average, 
being  fully  eight  feet  under  water,  and  some  of  the  animals  which  I  have 
previously  mentioned  I  had  then  an  opportunity  of  seeing.  The  first  flock 
of  Ducks  which  I  observed  were  the  blue  winged  Teal,  {Anas  discors,)  of 
which  I  shot  one  and  wounded  several.  The  belted  Kingfisher  (Alcedo 
Alcyovi)  was  of  common  occurrence,  and  would  frequently  perch  within  ten 
yards  of  me,  on  a  drooping  branch  of  a  decayed  cedar;  and  the  familiar 
Inanner  in  which  he  appeared  to  recognize  me,  by  erecting  his  crest  and 


82  THH    SWAMl'S    Ul-'    TUK    MISSISSIPPI. 

bobbing  his  head,  was  often  the  cause  of  prolonging  his  life.  We  very  fre- 
quently opened  into  lagoons  of  considerable  extent,  and  on  my  first  entrance 
into  one,  I  was  deceived  by  what  I  imagined  to  be  a  black  and  fiat  bank,  of 
about  an  acre  in  extent ;  this,  to  my  confusion,  on  a  nearer  approach,  was 
converted  into  a  counties  host  of  Pooldeans,  (a  species  of  Coot,  Fulica  atra,) 
so  closely  crowded  together,  that  I  was  often  surprised  afterwards  that  they 
could  find  sufficient  room  to  swim ;  as  they  permitted  me  to  approach  within 
fifteen  yards  of  them,  you  can  scarcely  doubt  there  Avere  some  deaths  and  a 
few  cripples  in  the  collection.  These  birds  are  passed  by  with  perfect 
indifference  as  long  as  the  Ducks  continue  plentiful;  and  during  a  haze  the 
canoe  can  nearly  be  paddled  on  to  the  top  of  them,  which  I  partly  did,  and 
as  I  cannot  show  you  what  I  killed  by  shooting  both  barrels  into  such  a 
mass,  I  may  mention  that  one  of  the  men  with  whom  I  afterwards  associated 
informed  me  that  he  killed  153  by  a  right  and  left,  which  I  do  not  for  one 
moment  question. 

The  appearance  of  these  birds  taking  wing  is  very  picturesque ;  in  place  of 
raising  themselves  into  the  air,  they  keep  tripping  and  spattering  along  the 
surface,  supported  by  the  flapping  of  their  wings ;  and  this  temporary  com- 
motion produced  within  a  still  lagoon  is  frequently  very  refreshing.  I  think 
that,  without  fear  of  contradiction,  I  may  set  down  the  Cinereous  Coot  as 
being  infinitely  the  most  numerous  of  any  species  to  be  found  in  the 
swamps.  We  continued  through  a  long  succession  of  creeks  and  lagoons, 
well  stocked  with  Ducks  and  Pooldeans,  at  which  I  kept  loading  and  shooting 
till  the  sun  went  down  beyond  the  prairie;  and,  just  as  he  plumped  out  of 
sight,  a  common  practice  with  him  in  tropical  countries,  we  reached  lake 
Cataahoola,  a  'distance  of  fully  thirty  miles  from  the  river.  Our  landing  was 
a  very  sticky  one;  for,  in  place  of  getting  close  to  the  shincer,  we  had  to  get 
out  and  wade  up  to  the  knees,  through  mud  and  decayed  vegetation,  and 
carry  our  cargo,  consisting  of  guns,  Ducks,  a  quantity  of  rice,  blankets, 
several  bags  of  shot,  and  two  jars  of  claret,  besides  other  articles  which  some 
of  the  men  had  ordei-ed.  On  getting  to  the  bank,  I  discovered  that  it  con- 
sisted principally  of  shells,  which  had  been  thrown  down  above  the  decayed 
reeds  and  prairie  cane,  by  the  Choctaw  Indians,  who,  I  was  afterwards  in- 
formed, had  carried  them  there  for  the  purpose  of  forming  mounds,  not  only 
as  places  of  sepulture,  but  also  as  a  temple  for  the  adoration  of  the  Great 
Spirit.  I  very  shortly  afterwards  gathered  my  blankets  about  me,  and  lay 
down  on  the  shells,  where  I  slept  as  soundly  as  ever  my  grandmother  did  on 
a  bed  of  down. 

The  following  morning,  very  early,  I  found  that  I  had  got  into  a  new  circle 
of  friends,  who  were  rising  out  of  their  lairs  all  around  me  ;  several  of  them 
were  rather  better  sheltered  than  I  was ;  there  were  three  Americans,  two 
Frenchmen  one  Mexican,  a  Swede,  three  niggers,  (runaways,  I  suppose,) 
with  all  of  whom  1  became  immediately  acquainted.     The  history  of  these 


THE    SWAMPS    OF   TUK    MISSISSIPPI.  f^3 

men  I  have  no  doubt  would  afford  many  a  strange  incident,  and  probably  a 
few  dark  ones,  as  the  swamps  in  that  country  furnish  the  desperate  with  a 
great  city  of  refuge;  for  in  such  a  place  they  are  beyond  all  law  and  juris- 
diction ;  swords,  bowie  knives,  and  pistols,  are  within  the  reach  of  all,  and 
many  a  midnight  burial  takes  place  amongst  the  lakes.  Sunday  is  not  even 
known,  and  the  chase  is  kept  up  with  quite  as  much  interest  on  that  day  as 
any  other  day ;  and,  as  the  markets  in  the  southern  part  of  Louisiana  are 
open  on  the  Sabbath,  the  supply  of  Ducks  and  lish  are  expected  on  that  day 
as  well  as  on  Saturday. 

The  confusion  of  tongues  prevailing  in  the  French  market  of  New  Orleans, 
which  I  afterwards  visited,  almost  convinced  me  that  the  crowd  which  was 
dispersed  at  Babel  had  come  to  a  focus  there.  The  morning  after  my  arrival, 
I  got  up  out  of  the  shells  about  two  hours  before  day,  and  found  that  several 
of  my  foreign  a(;quaintances  had  already  put  out.  A  canoe  (or  peroque) 
as  they  are  always  called,  was  provided  for  me,  into  which  I  got  myself 
squatted,  and  after  paddling  and  shoving  myself  through  a  long,  zigzag, 
marshy,  and  muddy  creek,  quite  ovei'grown  with  sword-grass,  by  which 
I  got  my  hands  severely  cut,  I  got  into  a  small  bay,  which  opened  into  lake 
Catawatchaa,  when  I  secreted  myself  amongst  the  reeds  till  about  sun  up. 
The  Ducks  then  began  to  fly,  and  the  shooting  commenced  across  the 
lagoons,  from  the  blinds  which  the  men  had  constructed  to  shoot  the  Ducks 
from.  The  quacking  of  these  men,  in  imitation  of  the  Ducks,  was  so  very 
remarkable  that  I  never  could  distinguish  between  the  one  and  the  other ; 
this  is  the  great  secret  in  Ducking,  and  had  I  not  seen  what  they  can  accom- 
plish I  never  would  have  believed  it.  A  man  concealed  in  a  blind  can  call  a 
flock  of  Ducks  from  an  altitude  of  200  yards  till  within  fifteen  feet  of  him, 
and  you  may  then  suppose  how  many  he  can  kill  by  a  well  directed  riyht  and 
left.  In  this  accomplishment  I  was  found  wanting  ;  but  independent  of  it,  I 
had  as  much  sport  as  I  could  desire,  and  many  a  Duck  did  I  kill,  the 
lustrous  tints  of  which  were  little  inferior  to  many  of  the  Humming 
Birds.  The  Prairie  Hawks  were  very  numerous,  and  followed  closely 
in  the  track  of  where  so  much  destruction  was  going  on.  To  see  them 
stoojiing  and  hunting  the  wounded  Ducks  across  the  lagoons  was  fre- 
quently a  very  spirited  affair,  and  it  was  nothing  uncommon  for  one  of 
them  to  alight  on  the  back  of  a  Duck  which  had  just  been  shot,  and  that, 
too,  within  fifteen  yards  distance.  The  first  Mallard  {Anas  Boschas)  I  killed, 
was  taken  possession  of  by  one  of  them,  but  whom  I  quickly  stretched  at  full 
length  alongside  the  Duck,  to  teach  him  that  I  was  quite  as  good  a  judge  of 
Ducks,  without  the  green  peas,  as  himself. 

In  about  two  hours  I  had  my  peroque  well  loaded  with  both  Ducks  and 
Pooldeans.  I  then  paddled  off  amongst  the  marsh}-  islands,  in  search  of 
Alligators,  which  I  had  no  difficulty  in  finding.  The  first  which  I  came  upon 
were  laying  quite  exposed,  with  the  exception  of  a  small  portion  of  the  tail. 


^4 


THE    SWAMPS    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


within  the  lagoon.  I  supposed  they  would  turn  round,  and  present  their 
heads  before  sinking  themselves ;  in  this  I  was  disappointed,  for  they  hacked 
into  it,  and  immediately  disappeared.  I  was  defeated  repeatedly  in  this 
way,  in  my  attempts  to  bag  the  game ;  but  I  afterwards  ran  my  canoe  close 
np  to  them,  and  seldom  failed  to  burst  their  heads  before  they  could  eftect 
their  escape :  the  average  length  of  such  as  these  was  from  seven  to  nine  feet. 
Some  smaller  ones,  which  I  afterwards  killed,  1  turned  belly  uppermost,  to 
make  them  more  attractive  to  the  Black  Vultures  ( Vidtur  atratus)  and  Tur- 
key Buzzards,  which  were  frequent  in  their  attendance. 

There  is  no  other  way  of  killing  Ducks  within  the  lagoons,  than  from  a 
canoe,  and  much  care  is  required  in  shooting  from  it ;  for  by  doing  so  cross- 
ways,  (as  I  explained  before,)  it  will  upset  in  a  second,  and  many  guns  and 
lives  have  been  lost  in  this  manner.  They  only  contain  a  single  individual ; 
(I  refer  entirely  to  the  canoes  within  the  swamps ;)  and  if  one  should  tip 
over,  in  an  open  lagoon  with  a  mud  bottom,  the  chances  are,  the  boatman 
might  share  a  similar  fate  with  the  prophet,  with  no  hope  of  being  vomited 
up  again.  The  distances  at  Avhich  the  men  are  frequently  from  each  other, 
prevent  the  possibility  of  their  ever  being  heard ;  and  as  for  being  seen,  that 
is  out  of  the  question,  for  the  tall  rushes  and  cane-brake  by  which  they  are 
constantly  surrounded  reijder  this  impossible.  It  occasionally  proved  rather 
a  "  coggly  business  for  me,  but  I  always  saved  my  distance  by  about  half  a 
nose." 

On  my  arrival  at  the  Shells,  I  found  that  several  of  the  men  had  i-eturned 
with  their  canoes  well  loaded  with  Ducks  and  Coots ;  with  which  they  had 
cooked  up  a  very  greasy  mess,  better  suited  to  the  taste  of  an  Esquimaux  than 
of  a  Scotchman ;  this  however,  with  some  boiled  rice,  was  very  acceptable. 
Amongst  the  variety  which  I  had  killed,  I  found  the  following  species  :  the 
Ruddy  Duck!!  {Anas  rutilans,)  the  Canvass-back,  {Anas  valisineria,)  the 
Shoveller,  {Anas  clypeata,)  the  Mallard,  {Anas  Boschas.)  the  Buffel-head,  {Anas 
alheola,)  the  Prairie  Hawk,  and  the  Cinereous  Coot.  {Fulica  atra.)  Many 
successive  days  were  passed  in  the  same  manner,  during  which  I  shot  two 
other  species ;  the  Green-winged  Teal,  {Anas  crecca,)  and,  if  I  mistake  not, 
the  Pintail.  {Anas  glacialis.)  While  laying  quietly  concealed  in  my  canoe, 
amongst  the  tall  reeds,  I  have  been  much  delighted  with  the  near  approach 
and  the  inquiring  "  peep "  of  the  Water  Rail,  {Rallus  Virginianus,)  and  the 
wonderful  activity  displaj'ed  by  the  Marsh  Wren,  {Certhiapalustris,)  and  other 
Creepers  trJiich  I  cannot  name,  (I  question  if  they  have  ever  been  named  at 
all,)  hunting  insects  up  and  down  the  long  slippery  canes  all  aroiind  me. 

In  shooting  from  a  blind,  the  person  is  quite  concealed ;  and  it  is  only 
after  liaviug  shot  a  number  of  Ducks  that  he  unfastens  his  canoe,  and  picks 
them  up  from  off  the  lagoon,  where  they  are  floating  around  him.  He  is 
occasionally  disa])pointed  in  bagging  the  whole,  for  the  Alligators  now  and 
Ihen  nab  a  few.     I  lost  several  Ducks  without  knowing  how;  but  this  was 


THE    SWAMPS    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI.  86 

soon  explained,  by  observing  the  jaws  of  one  of  these  animals  projected  from 
the  surface,  and  gobbling  up  a  Duck,  within  a  very  short  distance  from  me. 
I  watched  for  a  repetition  of  such  a  piracy;  and  just  as  I  caught  him  gaping, 
I  discharged  a  barrel  right  down  his  throat ;  which  I  am  quite  sure,  if  it  did 
him  no  harm,  did  him  no  good.  I  have  little  doubt  that  some  of  the  monstrous 
Cat-fish  in  these  swamps,  practice  the  same  thing;  and  this  I  am  inclined  to 
believe,  from  their  snatching  at  some  birds  in  my  hand,  which  I  previously 
mentioned.  I  was  astonished,  on  one  occasion,  to  find  a  frog  make  an 
attempt  to  swallow  a  Bird  called  the  Tyrant  Fly-catcher,  which  I  had  shot. 
It  fell  into  a  marsh,  and  scarcely  had  it  reached  the  water  when  it  was  seized 
and  pulled  underneath;  the  buoyancy,  however,  of  the  bird,  of  which  he 
had  only  swallowed  a  part,  raised  it  to  the  surface.  I  immediately  shot  my 
other  barrel ;  which  resulted  in  wounding  the  frog,  which  swam  to  the  other 
side.  Upon  measurement  of  it  afterwards,  I  found  it  to  exceed  sixteen 
inches,  measuring  from  the  extended  forelegs  to  the  extremity  of  the  hind 
ones.  I  could  mention  other  instances  of  equal  voracity,  and  two  in  par- 
ticular; one  of  a  shark  off  the  island  of  Porto  Rico,  which  I  fed  with  a 
quantity  of  shavings  tied  up  in  an  old  handkerchief.  I  gave  him  something 
else,  besides  the  shavings,  which  he  did  not  appear  to  relish  so  well.  The 
other  Avas  that  of  a  shark,  pursuing  and  attacking  the  canoe  of  a  nigger  boy, 
called  Isaac,  while  crossing  a  lagoon;  it  made  two  attempts,  and  in  the  last 
one  broke  several  of  its  teeth,  which  it  left  sticking  in  the  side  of  the  canoe, 
one  of  which  I  afterwards  extracted  with  my  knife. 

(To  he  concluded  in  our  next.J 


THE  MYRTLE  BEE, 

BY    O.  S.  HOUND,  ESQ. 

Under  this  title,  there  has  been,  as  some  of  my  readers  may  be  probably 
aware,  a  very  extraordinaiy  discussion  of  late,  in  the  "  Notes  and  Queries," 
a  periodical  that  deserves  a  more  extended  circulation  than  it  has  hitherto 
obtained,  relative  to  a  bird  unhnoivn  to  any  British  ornithologists.  This 
circvimstance  was  first  mentioned  to  me  by  Mr.  James  Forbes,  late  of  Sill- 
wood,  Sunnyhill,  who,  being  acquainted  with  the  gentleman  from  whom  the 
statement  came,  and  who  was  also  known  personally  to  myself,  I  expressed 
a  wish  to  see  him  upon  the  subject ;  and  they  both  of  them,  viz.,  Mr.  James 
Forbes,  and  Captain  Brown  of  Egham,  came  to  my  rooms  on  the  27th  ult., 
and  I  "  had  it  out,"  and  will  give,  as  nearly  as  I  can,  what  passed  on  that 
occasion.  Captain  Brown  I  have  known  for  many  years,  he  is  an  old  Penin- 
sular officer,  of  the  50th,  celebrated  as  a  keen  and  successful  sportsman,  and 


86  THE    MYRTLE    BKE. 

more  especially  with  the  gun  and  rod,  and  as  having  taken  the  largest  Trout 
ever  caught  with  hook  and  line  in  the  Thames,  which  weighed  15^1bs  ;  one 
thing  more  I  must  premise,  and  which  my  readers  could  not  otherwise  know, 
and  that  is,  the  honest,  straightforward,  and  soldier-like  bluntness  with  which 
the  stoiy  I  am  about  to  tell  was  given.  Captain  Brown  set  out  by  disdaining 
any  pretensions  to  a  knowledge  of  British  Ornithology,  to  which,  in  part,  is 
probably  to  be  ascribed  the  fact  of  the  present  subject  having  not  earlier 
been  brought  under  the  attention  of  Naturalists.  It  was  at  the  termination 
of  the  last  war,  that  the  Captain  returned  to  his  native  village,  where  he  has 
ever  since  resided ;  and  every  locality  within  a  range  of  six  miles  from 
Egham  was  well  known  to  him,  as  far,  at  all  events,  as  its  sporting  capabilities 
went.  The  spot  to  which  I  would  now  refer  is  known  as  the  "  Long  Arm," 
and  is  a  valley  lying  on  the  north  side,  and  running  parallel  with  what  was 
the  Guards  and  Cavalry  Stables'  Quarter  of  the  Camp  at  Chobham,  and 
which  terminates  eastward  in  a  piece  of  water,  which  was  of  essential  use 
on  that  occasion.  Twenty-five  years  since,  this  valley  was  one  quaking  bog, 
incapable  of  sustaining  the  weight  of  a  man,  and  in  which  even  pointers 
floundered  about  leg  deep ;  it  was  then  covered  with  what  my  friend  calls 
"  Bog  Myrtle ;"  and  I  presume,  by  his  description,  this  was  a  small  species 
of  withey,  which  grows  in  such  localities ;  at  all  events,  it  flouiished  here, 
in  large  or  small  patches,  or  single  bushes,  more  or  less.  This  valley  abuts 
on  the  eastern  part  of  the  Portnall  Estate,  belonging  to  Colonel  Challoner, 
and  was  a  good  Snipe-ground,  and  the  constant  resort  of  the  Captain,  his 
father  and  their  friends.  On  these  occasions,  he  says,  that  he  remembered 
his  father  complaining  of  "  those  troublesome  Bees "  which  diverted  the 
attention  of  the  dogs,  and  kept  them  pottering  about  in  the  bushes  to  the 
great  loss  of  time ;  and  this  occurred  every  time  they  went  to  the  spot ; 
and  being  in  the  habit  of  meeting  with  the  aforesaid  "Bees,"  it  became  so 
usual,  that  he  never  thought  of  its  being  anything  peculiar,  but  looked  upon 
them  as  some  species  of  small  bird  which  usually  frequented  such  places. 
They  were  veiy  minute,  and  flew,  or  rather  buzzed  from  bush  to  bush,  im- 
mediatelj'  concealing  themselves  at  the  foot,  in  the  grass  around  the  stem, 
and  seldom  or  never  again  appearing;  and  he  well  remembers  his  impres- 
sion being,  that  the  dogs  must  often  have  trod  them  into  the  moss,  and  so 
killed  them.  The  tail  appeared  long  for  the  body,  and  in  flight,  gave  them 
a  pleasant-like  appearance.  The  parties  with  whom  he  was  in  the  habit  of 
shooting  in  this  place,  were  his  father,  Mr.  Samuel  Mumford  of  Chobham,  an 
old  man  named  Spong,  and  well  known  as  a  man  living  on  the  produce  of  the 
"wild,"  who  dealt  in  plovers'  eggs,  snipes,  and  wildfowl,  and  a  Mr.  Isherwood, 
brother  to  the  present  Eector  of  Old  Windsor.  Being  out  shooting  in  the 
locality  in  question,  with  this  latter  gentleman,  and  the  "  Bees"  flying  from 
bush  to  bush,  as  usual,  one  of  the  pointers  followed  a  bird  into  a  bush  and 
made  a  dash  at  it,  as  dogs  will,  and  came  up  the  bank  with  a  bunch  of  grass, 


THE    MYRTLE    BEE.  87 

&(;.,  in  its  mouth,  which,  upon  being  called  to,  it  dropped.  This  was  picked 
up  by  Mr.  Isherwood,  with  the  observation,  "now  I  wonder  if  he  has  got 
anything  there,"  immediately  followed  by,  "  lauk !  look  here,  what  a  little 
brute,"  or  some  such  expression;  and  sure  enough  there  was  a  bird,  but  such 
a  bird  as  never  was  seen  before.  Being  both  keen  fishermen,  the  first  thing 
that  naturally  occurred  to  them  was,  has  it  got  any  feathei'S  fit  for  flies? 
But  after  a  careful  inspection,  that  was  found  to  be  a  hopeless  case  ;  and 
Mr.  Isherwood  exclaimed,  "  what  a  worthless  little  devil ;"  but,  as  Captain 
Brow^n  thinks,  pocketed  the  bird,  and  his  description  of  it  is  this  :  It  was 
not  half  as  big  as  a  common  Wren;  (in  the  Notes  and  Queries  he  says, 
*'  half,"  not  wishing  to  put  it  lower ;)  the  tail  being  long  in  proportion  to  the 
body,  probably  two-thirds,  but  square  ;  the  whole  length  about  two  inches. 
The  plumage,  sooty,  gray-black ;  the  only  variation  being  round  the  A'ent, 
where  the  feathers  were  yellowish ;  but  one  peculiarity  much  struck  him, 
namely,  that  the  tongue,  which  protruded,  in  consequence  of  the  dog  having 
crushed  the  little  creature,  was  long,  horny,  and  very  sharp  ;  the  head  was 
small  in  proportion,  and  the  neck  short ;  and  the  legs  and  feet  the  tinyest 
things  you  could  imagine.  This  was  the  description  of  the  bird,  and  this 
the  manner  in  which  ocular  demonstration  was  obtained  of  its  identity. 
Immediately  that,  I  believe  by  a  casual  mention  of  the  circumstance,  this 
discussion  arose,  Captain  Brown  set  to  work  to  get  con-oborative  evidence  ; 
but  Time,  the  destroyer  of  all  this,  was  greatly  against  him.  First,  the 
locality  wore  a  totally  new  face,  the  ground  had  been  drained,  the  quaking 
bog  had  ceased  to  exist,  the  "  Bog  Myrtle  "  had  been  taken  with  the  Peat 
in  which  it  grew,  and  had  boiled  many  a  lowly  kettle.  Mr.  Isherwood  and 
the  Captain's  father  had  paid  the  debt  of  Nature,  and  therefore  old  Spong 
and  Mr.  Mumford  were  the  only  available  witnesses.  But  here  again  he  was 
foiled ;  old  Spong  had  died  in  the  union,  the  year  before,  and  Mr.  Mumford 
was  in  fact  on  his  death-bed,  so  that  the  fact  rested,  and  now  rests  on  the 
Captain's  sole  testimony.  He  says,  indeed,  that  a  Captain  Shepherd,  of 
the  Royal  Navy,  was  with  him  on  one  occasion,  and  saw  the  birds  flying  to 
and  fro ;  but  whether  he  is  living  or  dead,  or  whether,  if  living,  he  would 
remember  the  circumstance,  is,  of  course,  doubtful. 

To  this  account.  Captain  Brown  adds,  that  on  another  occasion,  and  in 
another  locality,  namely,  near  Rapley's  Farm,  Bagshot  Pa]-k,  he  met  with 
the  birds,  but  had  never  seen  them  elsewhere.  Now,  I  know,  that  all  ex- 
traordinary tales  are  at  once  repudiated  as  simply  fabulous,  by  a  large  class 
of  persons  ;  and  again,  there  are  others  who  incline  to  an  immediate  belief, 
with  somewhat  of  a  superstitious  awe ;  the  true  medium  is,  of  course,  the 
safest.  I  confess  that  I  cannot  disbelieve  Captain  Brown's  statement ;  and 
then  comes  the  question,  whether  his  memory  is  defective  on  the  subject,  or 
being  no  Naturalist,  he  mistook  some  very  small  known  bird  for  a  non- 
descript.     The  Rev.   Mr.    Isherwood  has   been    communicated   with,   that 


88  TJIE   MYRTLE    1!EK. 

search  might  be  made  amongst  his  brother's  tackle  and  papers,  but  at 
present,  I  believe  nothing  has  been  found,  and  therefore  we  can  only  reason 
on  what  we  have  before  us.  My  first  impression,  when  I  heard  of  the  mat- 
ter was,  that  it  might  be  a  "  Lesser  Grasshopper  Lark,"  which  we  know  fre- 
quents such  localities,  except  that  it  is  generally  where  the  ground  is  dry ; 
but  the  square  tail  is  against  it,  and  the  Captain,  on  being  shewn  the  figure 
of  one,  denied  any  resemblance  to  his  bird.  This  is  all  I  have  been  able  to 
elicit  or  conjecture;  and  as  I  have  already  run  this  article  to  an  unusual 
length,  I  must  let  it  rest  here  for  the  present.  Before  I  close  this,  however, 
I  may  just  observe,  tliat  the  fact  of  a  nondescript  having  hitherto  escaped  the 
attention  of  Naturalists,  has  occurred  on  so  many  occasions,  when  tlie  sub- 
ject was  almost  before  their  eyes,  that  I  do  not  think  such  a  Consideration 
should  have  too  much  weight. 

Lincoln  Inn  Fields,  March  \st,  1855. 


THE  WATER  OUZEL.  (GINGLUS  AQUATIGU8.) 

BY  A.  S.  MOFFAT,  ESQ. 

The  Water  Ouzel  is  a  very  common  resident  on  the  pebbly  upland  streams 
of  the  highlands  of  Northumberland,  where  it  seems  to  be  a  permanent 
denizen ;  as  in  any  month  of  the  year  it  is  impossible  to  walk  half  a  mile 
along  the  gravelly  shores  of  these  hill-born  streams,  especially  near  the 
Cheviot  range,  without  encountering  at  least  half  a  score  of  these  little 
spruce,  white-throated  warblers,  now  perched  upon  the  top  of  some  projecting 
stone,  jerking  out  a  lively  little  ditty, — anon  plunging  head  foremost  into  the 
shallow  but  rapid  stream  to  cater  for  its  crustaceous  meal, — then  taking 
wing,  and  after  a  flight  of  a  hundred  yards  or  so,  dropping  suddenly  upon 
some  favourite  shallow,  again  to  repeat  the  same  routine. 

It  seems  almost  miraculous,  how  these  tiny  creatures  manage  to  stem  the 
power  of  the  stream  as  they  do  while  so  occupied;  I  have  seen  them  im- 
mersed quite  over  head  in  a  rapid,  where  it  would  seem  utterly  impossible 
for  any  bird,  their  size  and  strength,  to  keep  its  place  for  a  moment  against 
such  a  current ;  and  it  would  appear  to  me  very  evident,  that  they  can  only 
accomplish  this  mechanical  feat,  by  grasping  hold  of  the  gravel  and  stones 
at  the  bottom  of  the  water  with  their  feet.  Although  I  cannot  assert  this 
to  be  a  positive  fact,  yet  I  consider  it  to  be  so  probable,  that  in  no  other 
manner  can  this  strange  faculty  be  so  reasonably  accounted  for. 

In  regard  to  the  nesting  places  of  this  bird.  I  may  mention  that  one  day 
last  season,  somewhere  about  the  middle  of  June,  while  on  a  fi.shing  excur- 
sion, I  was  about  to  cross  a  Mountain-burn,  called  the  Langiey-ford-burn, 
about  a  mile  from  the  foot  of  Cheviot,  over  which  is  thrown  a  foot-bridge, 


THE   WATER   OUZEL.  89 

composed  of  three  or  four  rough  fir  trees,  placed  side  by  side,  (and  covered 
on  the  top  with  turf  flags,)  with  their  ends  resting  upon  two  opposite  rocks. 
On  approaching  the  bridge,  I  observed  a  nest  placed  underneath  it,  between 
the  supporting  trees  and  the  turfs ;  and  as  a  proof  that  it  was  the  nest  of 
the  Water  Ouzel,  I  observed  the  parent  bird  itself  fly  out  of  it  not  more 
than  four  yards  from  me,  as  I  approached  the  end  of  the  bridge. 

It  is  still,  I  believe,  an  unsettled  point,  whether  or  not  these  pert  little 
gently  destroy  the  spawn  of  fish.  I  am  rather  inclined  to  give  them  credit 
for  some  little  depredations  of  this  kind,  although  I  have  heard  a  good  prac- 
tical out-door  Naturalist  strenuously  deny  the  charge.  He  informs  me  that 
he  has  dissected  the  stomachs  of  scores  of  them,  at  all  periods  of  the  year, 
and  never  yet  discovered  the  ova  of  fish  in  any  of  them ;  yet  I  observe,  that 
during  the  spawning  season  of  the  Salmon  and  Trout,  which  always  run  up 
the  mountain-becks  and  burns  for  this  purpose,  as  near  to  their  sources  as 
they  can  find  suitable  gravel-beds  to  deposit  their  ova  in,  the  numbers  of 
these  feathered  attendants  vastly  increase  at  this  particular  season  in  these 
localities,  which  looks  rather  suspicious.  And  as  this  bird  undoubtedly 
preys  upon  all  kinds  of  aquatic  larvae,  next  door  to  being  piscivorous,  I  have 
no  reasonable  misgiving,  but  that  any  dainty  looking  spaAvn  which  may 
present  itself,  dui'ing  those  diving  excursions,  would  be  unceremoniously 
appropriated  without  any  regard  to  the  Tweed  Fisheries'  Act.  But  as  this 
accusation  is  only  supported  b}'  circumstantial  evidence,  perhaps  some  of 
the  readers  of  The  Natubalist  will  be  kind  enough  to  enlighten  us  on  the 
subject. 

I  cannot  say  what  the  nest  above-mentioned  contained,  as  its  situation 
was  such,  that  I  could  not  reach  it  without  removing  the  superincumbent 
turfs,  which  would  inevitably  have  destroyed  the  nest ;  and  being  unwilling 
to  do  this,  I  left  the  little  waterman  in  peaceful  possession  of  its  romantic 
home. 

Wooler,  Jan.  8th,  1855. 


WINTEK.— NOTES  AT  THE  LAKES. 

BY   C.  W.  ROTHERY,   ESQ. 

Winter,  felt  by  all  in  this  changeable  climate  of  ours,  has  perhaps  been 
more  severely  so  by  the  denizens  of  this  mountainous  district, — by  man,  and 
beast,  and  the  feathered  tribe ;  and  the  vegetable  kingdom  has  nigh  all  its 
traces  cut  away.  Wreaths  of  snow,  on  the  Keswick  and  Ambleside  road, 
have  been  cut  through  five  or  six  feet  deep  in  some  places ;  forming,  in  situ, 


00  WINTER.— NOTES   AT   TUE    LAKES. 

marble  passages,  as  it  were ;  breasting  a  sparkling  view  beyond,  of  the  Hel- 
vellyn  range,  or  what  one  of  our  local  poets  styles,  the 

"  Elephantine  sides  of  mighty  Helvellyn  I " 

All  the  ridges  have  been  clothed  in  the  purest  white,  and  have  not  been  so 
beautifully  adorned,  perhaps,  for  twenty  years. 

In  a  simihir  excavation  extending  the  greater  part  of  a  mile  along  a  lane — 
the  Lovers'  lane  of  Keswick  cars — to  the  Druid  stones,  upon  the  brow  of 
Castle  Rigg,  I  wandered  the  other  day ;  and  suddenly,  in  the  snow  track,  I 
was  aroused  by  three  wild  geese,  on  their  way  to  some  other  winter  scene. 
Noting  the  trio  is  barely  admissable ;  but  their  flight  was  so  remarkably  low, 
that,  had  I  had  a  stone  ready  and  been  a  good  shot,  I  certainly  might  have 
brought  down  or  wounded  one  of  them,  as  they  passed  over  my  head. 

A  day  or  two  after  the  departure  of  the  Wild  Geese,  a  rapid  thaw  com- 
menced ;  which  has  continued,  and  melted  the  snow  fields,  and  the  stubborn 
thousand  acres  of  lake  ice ;  leaving  here  and  there  only  traces  of  former 
richest  traceiy,  which  appear  in  scratches  and  patches  on  fell  noses  and  their 
caps.  The  ice  of  Dei'wentwater,  on  being  cut,  was  ascertained  to  be  about 
eight  inches  thick  in  the  centre  of  the  lake,  before  Thursday,  February  22nd ; 
and  the  surface  was  so  compact  and  solid,  that  carts  heavily  loaded  with 
coals  passed  over  to  Vicar's  Island ;  also  two  gentlemen  in  a  gig  drove  across 
the  lake.  I  walked  round  part  of  Derwentwater  the  other  day,  immediately 
after  the  thaw  began,  and  was  much  surprised  on  seeing  extensive  cracks, 
which  appeared  to  reach  nearly  across  the  lake.  Large  wedges  of  ice  had 
been  raised,  and  reclined  upon  the  level  surface,  or  lake  ice  field ;  the  sun's 
rays,  softening  the  thick  floes,  caused  them  to  break  into  thousands  of  elon- 
gated crystals,  when  you  administered  a  sharp  blow  to  the  block;  thereby 
scattering  the  glittering  fragments  in  every  direction,  as  spangles  innumer- 
ble,  to  the  sun 

A  few  days  ago,  I  paid  a  visit  to  Stockgill  Force,  near  Ambleside ;  but  did 
not  particular!}'  note  its  appearance,  expecting  to  look  upon  more  beautiful 
tracery  from  accumulated  icicles  and  their  congeners.  The  encased  falling 
water,  broken,  was  pretty  to  look  at,  within  the  grotto-formed  recesses  of  ice ; 
but  the  effect  at  the  old  bobbin  mill,  a  few  yards  below,  was  beyond  descrip- 
tion. Icicles  seemed  to  weep  as  willow  sprays,  in  every  direction  where  the 
cold  water  could  escape  to  add  another  frozen  drop ;  and  the  trough  whose 
contents  supplied  the  mill  wheel  stood  forth  with  a  regiment  of  oblong  white 
boys,  some  eight  or  ten  feet  in  height. 

At  Keswick,  vegetation  is  far  behind,  as  we  can  only  expect.    The  Snowdi'op 

1  noticed,  for  the  first  time,  in  the  gardens  of  Greta  Hall,  on  March  1st. 
The  Bullfincjh  sang  lustily  on  the  1st  of  March ;  but  all  other  birds,  save  the 
Robin  and  Rooks,  have  not  yet  yet  regained  their  spring-like  feelings. 

Greta  Hall,  vear  KeswicJf,  March  2iuh  1855. 


91 


ieWeiu. 


The  Entomologist's  Annual,  for  1855 ;  comprising  Notices  of  the  New  British 
Insects  detected  in  1854.  Edited  by  H.  T.  Stainton,  Esq.  London:  Van 
Voorst,  1855.     Pp.  112,  one  coloured  plate.     Price  2s.  6d. 

Whoever  has  pursued  the  study  of  Entomology  for  sMy  length  of  time,  must 
have  frequently  felt  the  want  of  some  work  which  should  give  him  an  idea  of 
what  others  were  doing  in  the  same  interesting  pursuit  in  which  he  was 
engaged.  This  want  has  been  most  apparent  in  the  case  of  those  who,  living 
in  the  country,  are,  as  it  were,  in  a  great  measure  isolated,  with  respect  to 
other  Entomologists.  The  Entomologist's  Annual,  as  its  name  implies,  pur- 
poses to  supply  this  deficiency;  and  its  projector,  Mr.  Stainton,  deserves  the 
thanks  and  encouragement  of  all  Entomologists  in  the  country,  for  the 
admirable  way  in  which  he  has  carried  out  his  design.  Of  the  work  before 
us,  some  sixty  pages  are  occupied  by  a  list,  with  authorities,  localities,  &c.,  of 
all  the  Lepidoptera  which  have  been  discovered  since  1835;  those  obtained 
in  1854  being  kept  separate  from  the  others.  This  list  is  the  production  of 
Mr.  Stainton,  and  his  well-earned  reputation  as  a  Lepidopterist  is  a  sufficient 
pledge  for  the  accuracy  and  completeness  of  the  list;  which  comprises  174 
species,  21  of  which  were  found  during  the  past  year;  showing  that  noA'elties 
insiy  still  be  expected  to  reward  the  diligent  collector. 

The  next  fourteen  pages  are  occupied  by  the  new  Hymenoptera.  This 
portion  of  the  volume  is  from  the  pen  of  Mr.  Frederick  Smith,  well  known, 
for  many  years,  as  one  of  our  first  Hymenopterists.  From  this  it  appears, 
that  59  new  Bees  have  been  discovered  since  Kirby's  Monograph,  in  1802. 
Several  additions  are  also  recorded  in  other  families  of  the  Hymenoptera. 

The  next  portion  of  the  work  is  devoted  to  Coleoptera;  and  its  author, 
Mr.  Janson,  commences  his  list,  which  embraces  227  species,  from  the  pro- 
duction of  Stephens'  Manual  of  British  Beetles,  in  1839. 

In  order  to  give  our  readers  some  idea  of  the  nature  of  the  work,  we 
extract  the  following  from  the  notices  of  new  British  Lepidoptera  taken  in 
1854: 

^^ Uudorea  gracilalis.  Doubleday,  n.  sp. — Taken  by  Mr.  Weaver  in  Scotland;  expands 
9-10  lines ;  not  very  nearly  allied  to  any  of  our  known  species :  the  anterior  wings  have 
a  peculiarly  delicate  appearance ;  they  are  very  narrow  at  the  base,  gradually  widening 
to  a  little  before  the  apex  :  the  hinder  fascia  runs  obliquely  inwards  from  the  costa,  as 
in  E.  lineola ;  before  the  hinder  margin  are  several  black  spots,  cilia  pale  fuscous,  with 
paler  patches ;  the  posterior  wings  are  greyish-fuscous,  with  paler  cilia." 

Many  of  the  other  new  insects  are  noticed  with  much  more  elaborate 
descriptions,  and  the  plate  which  accompanies  the  volume  contains  well 
executed   and  coloured  figures  of  seven  of  the  novelties.     We   earnestly 


92  BEVIEW, 

recommend  this  little  pocket  volume  to  our  readers,  and  believe  that  any  one 
buying  it  will  consider  his  half-crown  well  laid  out. 

Since  the  above  was  written,  a  new  edition  has  been  called  for :  we  wish  it 
every  success  its  author  could  wish. 


THE  LATE  PKOFESSOR  EDWARD  FORBES. 

BY   ONE    OF   His   PUPILS. 

"  Nature,  a  jealous  mistress  laid  him  low. 

He  woo'd  and  won  her;  and,  by  loye  made  hold, 
She  show'd  him  more  than  mortal  man  should  know; 

Then  slew  him,  lest  her  secrets  should  be  told." 

The  Naturalist  would  but  ill  fulfil  its  duty  to  a  numerous  circle  of  its 
readers,  were  it  to  omit  a  brief  notice  of  the  distinguished  philosopher  whose 
name  is  at  the  head  of  this  page,  who  has  been  so  lately  called  from  a  sphere 
of  extraordinary  usefulness  to  the  enjoyment,  we  trust,  of  more  elevated 
views  of  those  mysteiies  whose  solution  was  the  one  object  of  his  life,  and 
an  endless  communion  with  the  God  of  Natiu-e.  And  yet  what  shall  we 
wi'ite?  Should  we  tell  of  his  childhood,  youth,  and  manhood;  his  struggles 
after  truth,  successful  through  the  very  difficulties  by  which  they  were 
encompassed,  we  would  be  but  rehearsing  a  thrice  told  tale.  Were  we  to 
comment  on  his  literary,  his  scientific,  and  his  artistic  merits,  we  would  but 
feebly  echo  the  sentiments  of  each  and  all  of  his  readers.  Or  were  we,  in  the 
spirit  of  the  humourist,  to  record  his  sallies  of  wit,  his  youthful  squibs,  or 
his  more  mature  poetical  effusions,  our  sketch  would  bear  too  much  re- 
semblance to 

"  A  joke  scrawl'd  on  an  epitaph." 

All  that  we  can  do  is  to  present  a  few  facts  relative  to  the  departed  genius, 
in  hopes  that  they  may  stir  up  the  fire  of  emulation  in  the  bosom  of  some 
fellow  student. 

Edward  Forbes  was  essentially  a  naturalist.  Intended  by  his  parents  for 
the  respectable  profession  of  medicine,  he  had  no  alternative  but  to  take  out 
classes  which  he  never  attended  and  purchase  books  which  he  never  studied. 
The  details  of  a  medical  education  were  to  him  dry  and  unattractive  pursuits, 
and  in  no  way  calculated  to  win  him  from  his  happy  rambles  in  search  of 
objects  of  natural  history.  It  was  in  vain  that  friends  persuaded,  and  he 
himself  endeavoured.  His  love  for  Nature  was  too  strong  to  be  overcome. 
He  was  meant  by  Nature  for  one  of  her  favoured  ones ;  and  accordingly  a 
natui'alist  he  became.  Travel,  in  1836,  after  he  had  quite  forsaken  his 
medical  studies,    but  strengthened    the  natural  bent  of  his  inclination. 


THE    LATE    PROFESSOR    EDWARD    FORBES.  93 

Fi-ance,  Algiers,  and  Norway  added  richly  to  his  already  increasing  stock  of 
specimens,  and  not  a  little  to  his  knowledge  of  the  natural  sciences.  Many 
papers  had  in  the  meantime  been  contributed  to  various  literary  periodicals ; 
but,  in  1838,  he  appeared  before  the  public  for  the  first  time  as  the  author 
of  a  book,  entitled,  "  Malacologia  Monensis,"  descriptive  of  the  mollusca  of 
his  native  island  and  its  surrounding  waters.  Three  years  later  appeared 
one  of  the  best  monographs  vi^hich  has  ever  issued  from  the  press,  i.e., 
"  A  History  of  British  Starfishes."  The  work  is  replete  with  every  variety 
of  information  required,  whether  by  the  tyro  or  the  philosopher.  Every 
species  is  drawn  with  a  fidelity  only  to  be  looked  for  in  one  who  combined 
in  a  high  degree  the  joint  qualities  of  a  naturalist  and  an  artist.  The  accu- 
racy of  the  scientific  details,  the  clearness  of  his  descriptions,  and  above  all, 
the  stamp  of  reality  which  the  book  bears  on  its  every  page,  must  endear  it 
and  the  author  to  every  lover  of  nature.  He  was  no  compiler,  no  writer  of 
other  people's  discoveries,  but  a  most  scrupulous  investigator.  In  company 
with  his  friend  John  Goodsir,  now  Professor  of  Anatomy,  he  had  dredged 
many  a  long  day  for  the  materials  for  his  work ;  adding  by  this  means  no  less 
than  eighteen  new  species  to  the  Echinodermata  of  Britain.  The  last  para- 
graph in  the  work  gives  us  an  insight  into  the  secret  of  his  success.  "  The 
naturalist  whose  acquaintance  is  confined  to  preserved  specimens  in  a 
cabinet,  can  form  but  a  vague  idea  of  the  glorious  variety  of  nature,  of  the 
wisdom  displayed  in  the  building  up  of  the  atoms  of  matter  to  be  the  houses 
of  life  and  intellect.  And  unless  we  study  the  creatures  living  around  us, 
how  can  we  gain  that  delightful  knowledge.  The  passing  note  of  an  animal 
during  travel  is  an  addition  to  science  not  to  be  scorned;  the  briefly 
characterizing  of  a  new  species  from  a  preserved  specimen,  if  done  with 
judgment,  is  of  importance;  but  the  real  progress  of  Natural  History  must 
ever  depend  on  the  detailed  examination  of  the  beings  gathered  around  us 
by  the  laws  of  geographical  distribution,  living  and  multiplying  in  their 
destined  homes  and  habitats." 

In  1841,  Forbes  sailed  for  Syria,  in  the  ship  Beacon,  visiting  and  exploring 
with  all  his  wonted  enthusiasm,  the  greater  pai't  of  Asia  Minor.  Shortly 
after  his  return,  in  1843,  he  commenced  his  duties  as  Professor  of  Botany, 
in  King's  College,  London.  He  was  now  in  a  fair  way  to  fortune,  every  year 
receiving  fresh  tributes  to  his  learning  and  genius.  It  were  in  vain  to 
enumerate  the  many  contributions,  avowed  or  anonj'mous,  which  from  that 
time  to  the  year  of  his  death  emanated  from  his  pen.  By  far  the  most 
important,  however,  was  the  work  undertaken  conjointly  with  Mr.  Hanley, 
on  the  "  British  Mollusca."  The  work  is  in  four  large  volumes,  and  contains 
besides  lucid  descriptions,  exquisitely  drawn  figures  of  every  species. 

In  1852,  he  was  appointed  to  the  chair  of  Natural  History,  in  the  University 
of  Edinburgh.  His  long  cherished  ambition  was  now  satisfied,  and  he 
looked  forward  to  making  the  museum  where  he  had  learned  some  of  his 


04  THE    LATE    PROFESSOR   KDWARD   FORBES. 

earliest  lessons  a  place  famous  among  nations.  The  summer  course  passed 
off  triumphantly;  and  many  a  student  who  may  hereafter  rise  to  eminence 
must  date  the  first  kindling  of  the  spark  to  that  memorable  occasion.  The 
winter  session  commenced,  and  all  seemingly  went  Avell,  for  six  days ;  when 
he  begged  the  class  to  excuse  him  lecturing  on  the  succeeding  day,  (Friday), 
as  he  thought  that  by  resting  till  Monday  he  would  regain  his  strength ;  but 
he  never  entered  his  class  room  again.  The  writer  can  well  remember  the 
feeble,  wavering  step  of  the  once  strong  man,  as  he  ascended  the  stairs  to 
the  lecture  room ;  and  the  quivering  of  his  lip,  while  a  placid  smile  strove  in 
vain  to  conceal  the  pain  i-aging  within.  He  seemed  a  sudden  wreck — a  strong 
frame  reduced  to  a  shadow,  but  retaining  in  its  fragile  crust  a  mind  as  pure 
and  undimmed  as  when  a  boy  he  first  climbed  Arthur  Seat,  or  cast  his 
dredge  into  the  Frith.  The  Monday  arrived,  but  still  he  was  too  ill  to  venture 
out;  and  many  a  gay  face  looked  sad  at  the  tale.  Day  by  daj^  passed  on,  and 
we,  without,  from  feeling  disappointed,  began  to  dread.  At  length  the 
fatal  day  arrived.  On  Saturday,  Nov.  18th,  at  6  p.  m.,  in  the  39th  year  of  his 
age,  his  spirit  passed  calmly  away. 

No  man  ever  had  a  wider  range  of  friendshij>  than  Forbes ;  and  few  have 
deserved  it  so  well.  One  writer  has  aptly  said  of  him  :  "  The  petty  vanities 
and  heart-burnings  which  ai'e  the  besetting  sins  of  men  of  science  and  men 
of  letters,  had  no  hold  upon  his  large  and  generous  nature — he  did  not  even 
understand  them  in  others.  A  thorough  spirit  of  charity — a  complete 
toleration  for  everything  but  empiricism  and  pettiness — seemed  to  hide 
from  him  all  but  the  good  and  worthy  points  in  his  fellow  men.  If  he  ever 
wronged  a  man,  it  was  by  making  him  fancy  himself  better  than  he  was. 
Worked  to  death,  his  time  and  his  knowledge  were  at  the  disposal  of  all 
comers ;  and  though  his  published  works  have  been  comparatively  few,  his 
ideas  have  been  like  the  grain  of  mustard  seed  in  the  parable.  They  have 
grown  into  trees,  and  brought  forth  fruit  an  hundred-fold."* 

Others  must  write  his  biography,  we  but  give  a  passing  tribute  f  Of  his 
poetical  compositions  we  can  spare  room  for  but  one  example. 

TO  A  STAR. 

A  NIGHT  sky  overhead ; 

One  solitary  star, 
Shining  amid 
A  little  cloud  of  blue,  for  dark  clouds  hid 
Its  sister  sunlets.     On  its  azure  bed 
It  seemed  a  sun  ;  for  there 
No  jealous  planet  shone,  with  which  it  to  compare. 

•  Literary  Gazette. 

+  Dr.  G.  Wilson,  the  biographer  of  J.  Reid  and  Cavendish,  has  undertalcen  the  task. 


THK    LATE    PROKESSOK    EDWAUD   FORBES.  05 

The  dark  clouds  rolled  away ; 

And  all  Night's  shining  train 
Of  suns  and  stars, 
And  the  great  moon,  poured  forth  their  silvery  light. 
Where  then  was  that  fair  star,  which  shone  so  bright  ? 
Where  was  it  ?     None  could  say ; 
Yet  there  it  surely  was,  although  it  seemed  away. 

So  lustrous  shall  we  find 

On  earth  each  lustrous  soul. 
When  seen  alone ; 
And  though,  when  brighter  forms  around  it  press. 
We  lose  its  form  and  doubt  its  loveliness. 
Still  should  we  bear  in  mind — 
That  it  is  not  less  bright,  although  it  he  outshined. 


ENTOMOLOGICAL  SOCIETY  OF  LONDON.— JAN.  1st,  1855. 

E.  Newman,  Esq.,  President,  in  the  chair.  Mr.  Douglas  exhibited  a  living 
specimen  of  Gratonychus  castanipes,  Pajdiull,  one  of  the  Elaterida,  not  hitherto 
recorded  as  British,  recently  found  by  him  in  the  rotten  wood  of  an  oak. 

Mr.  Stevens  exhibited  two  rare  beetles ;  a  male  of  Jiimnos  Buckeri,  from 
Darjesting,  and  a  female  of  Dicranocephala  Wallichii,  from  India. 

The  President  exhibited  a  specimen  of  silken  felt,  formed  by  the  cater- 
pillars of  Saturnia  Pavonia  media ;  which  were  confined  sepai'ately  in  recep- 
tacles, presenting  no  salient  points  to  which  the  cocoons  could  be  attached ; 
and  so  the  whole  stock  of  silk  was  spread  over  the  smooth  surface.  Herr 
Eetsch  informed  him  that  a  series  of  very  interesting  experiments  with  these 
^  larvae  was  now  in  progress  at  Vienna,  and  promised  perfect  success.  The 
President  read  a  short  note  on  Helobia  impressa,  tending  to  show  that  it  was 
distinct  from  H.  nivalis,  with  which  it  had  been  recently  associated;  but 
rather  courting  inquiry  on  the  subject,  than  insisting  upon  the  correctness 
of  his  opinion. 

Mr.  DowNiE  exhibited  a  bee-hive  containing  several  «nprovements,  the 
efficacy  of  which  he  had  proved  during  three  years  :  consisting,  first,  of  a 
movable  floor,  by  means  of  which  the  essential  matter  of  removing  dead 
Bees,  &c.,  in  winter,  might  be  accomplished  without  admitting  cold  air; 
secondl^^  a  series  of  ventilators,  to  ensure  the  admission  of  air  according  to 
circumstances ;  and  thirdly,  an  easy  method  of  feeding  Bees. 


96  PROCEEDINGS    OF   SOClEXtES. 

Read :  "  A  Memoir  on  the  British  species  of  the  genus  Stenus,"  by  Mr.  G. 
R.  Waterhouse,  and  Mr.  E.  W.  Janson.  "  Notes  on  the  Economy  of  various 
Insects,"  by  Mr.  J.  Curtis.  And  "  Descriptions  of  some  species  of  Brazilian 
Ants,"  by  Mr.  J.  Smith ;  with  "  Observations  on  their  Economy,"  by  Mr.  H. 
W.  Bates. 

Mr.  Braylet,  referring  to  the  habits  of  one  of  the  species  of  Ants  men- 
tioned in  his  last  paper,  said,  that  the  immense  trains  of  Ants  carrying  the 
mutilated  bodies  of  various  insects,  might  illustrate  the  accumulation  of 
insect  remains,  at  times  seen  in  the  strata  of  the  secondary  geological  foi*ma- 
tion;  for  if  these  trains  had  been  suddenly  covered  up,  the  stratum  in  which 
they  were  imbedded  would  afterwards  exhibit  the  same  appearance  as  the 
deposits  to  which  he  had  alluded. 

Mr.  Saunders  said,  many  circumstances,  local  or  accidental,  at  times 
brought  great  numbers  of  insects  together ;  he  particularly  remembered,  at 
this  moment,  the  vast  quantity  of  the  Beetle  Qaleruca  Tanaceti,  seen  a  few 
years  since,  on  the  Norfolk  coast. 


%\t  f  tterist. 


The  Wood  Pigeon  (Columba  palumbus.) — ^A  few  lines,  signed  H.  E.  S.,  are 
inserted  in  your  last  number,  commenting  upon  a  note  relative  to  the  late 
incubation  of  Columba  palumbus,  which  I  communicated  to  your  pages  a  con- 
siderable time  ago.  (Vide  Nat.,  vol.  iv.,  p.  43.)  In  reply  to  his  inquiiy,  I  beg 
leave  state,  that  the  eggs  were  not  addled !  And  that  the  date  on  which  I 
found  them  was,  as  nearly  as  I  can  remember,  either  the  21st  or  28th  of 
September,  1853, — probably  the  former. — J.  H.  Davies,  Thirsk,  Feb.  5th,  1855. 

At  page  forty-eight  of  your  present  volume,  a  correspondent,  W.  C.  H.  of 
Cambridge,  asks  how  he  is  to  remove  grease  from  insects.  Perhaps  you  will 
be  kind  enough  to  publish  the  following  extracts  from  Maunder's  Treasury 
of  Natural  History,  p.  766  :  "  Grease. — ^When  a  thick  bodied  specimen,  like 
the  Ghost  Moth,  becomes  greasy,  immerse  it  in  spirits  of  turpentine,  and 
then  stick  it  on  a  bed  of  calcined  magnesia  till  dry,  when  the  magnesia  may 
be  blown  off."  Again,  on  page  767,  right  col. :  "Caterpillars. — Should  a  speci- 
men become  greasy,  apply  a  little  spirits  of  turpentine;  if  that  is  not 
effectual,  scrape  a  iittle  French  chalk  over  it,  expose  the  specimen  to  heat, 
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CONDUCTED   BY 

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CONTENTS. 

FAOE. 

A  Spring  Eamble.     By  T.  Southwell,  Esq 97 

A  Glance  at  the  Feathered  Residents,  and  Visitants  to,  the  Grounds  of  Terrick 

House.    By  Stephen  Stone,  Esq 101 

Notes  on  the  Habits  of  the  Ring  Ouzel.  {Merula  Tm-quata.)     By  E.  M.  A Ill 

The  Swamps  of  the  Mississippi.     By  Geoeoe  Donaldson,  Esq 113 

On  the  Expansion  and  Contraction  of  British  Land  Shells.   By  H.  R.  Bolton,  Esq.  119 

Miscellaneous  Notices 120 


It  is  requested  that  all  Communications  be  addressed  in  future 
to  B.  R.  MORRIS,  M.  D.,  38,  Fawcett-street,  Bishopwear- 
mouth,  Dxirham. 


NOTICES  TO  CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  up  to  April  12th,  from  E.  Wood,  Esq. — J. 
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Esq. 

Owing  to  absence  from  home,  many  other  Contributions  have  not  yet  been  received. 
They  will  be  duly  acknowledged  in  our  next. 

Received  :  A  Classified  List  of  British  Mosses,  by  George  Dixon. 

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97 
A  SPRING  RAMBLE. 

BY  T.  SOUTHWELL,  ESQ. 

Many  ai-e  the  delightful  spots  and  quiet  retreats  to  be  met  with, 
easy  walk  of  most  of  our  large  towns;  and  yet  how  frequently  are  they 
known  only  to  those  few  of  their  inhabitants  who  have  made  Nature  their 
study,  and  love  to  hold  communion  with  her,  in  her  own  wild  domain.  To 
many  of  these  spots  we  have  been  introduced  through  the  interesting  pages 
of  The  Naturalist,  by  those  who  know  how  to  value  them,  and  can  appre- 
ciate their  beauties.  The  pleasure  I  have  experienced  in  reading  these 
papers  has  induced  me  to  endeavour  to  describe  one  of  my  favourite  rambles 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Lynn,  which  I  hope  may  not  be  altogether  without 
interest. 

On  the  morning  of  the  9th  of  April  I  started  in  company  with  a  friend, 
my  ultimate  destination  being  the  village  of  North  Wootton,  about  four 
miles  from  Lynn.  The  route  we  had  planned  was,  to  proceed  to  ^awsey  by 
the  high  road,  and  then  make  a  dii-ect  cut  across  the  country  to  N.  Wootton, 
passing  through  Roydon  feu  on  our  way.  Lynn,  Bawsey,  and  N.  Wootton 
form  the  three  points  of  a  triangle,  each  about  equi-distant  from  the  other. 

The  morning  was  most  delightful,  and,  chatting  gaUy  along  the  road,  we 
soon  arrived  at  a  part  of  the  heath  called  "  Bawsey  bottom ; "  here  we  left 
the  turnpike,  and  entered  a  rough  and  wet  patch  of  ground,  studded  with 
Alder  bushes,  and  overgrown  with  coarse  grasses  and  moss.  In  this  spot, 
some  years  ago,  my  companion  discovered  the  beautiful  Fern,  Lastrea 
cristata,  growing  in  abundance ;  and,  notwithstanding  our  numerous  visits, 
it  still  flourishes,  mixed  with  L.  uliginosa,  in  undiminished  quantities. 
Whilst  Avalking  through  this  "  Alder  Car,"  we  were  delighted  with  the  first 
song  of  the  Willow  Wren  we  had  heard  this  year.  After  crossing  the  turn- 
pike again,  we  entered  a  part  of  the  Car  where  the  trees  were  of  older 
growth,  closer,  more  regularly  planted,  and  interspersed  with  Birch.  This, 
again,  was  a  noted  place  to  my  fortunate  companion,  for  here  he  had  found 
the  nest  of  the  Woodcock ;  the  young  birds  had  left  it,  it  is  true,  but  the 
egg-shells  remained  near  their  leafy  nest,  and  were  immediatel}'  recognised 
by  my  friend,  who  has  had  no  little  experience  in  the  eggs  of  British  birds. 
Since  that  time  we  have  not  forgotten'to  keep  a  good  watch ;  and  although 
Ave  have  seen  the  Woodcock  in  the  neighbourhood  late  in  the  season,  no 
other  nest  has  been  found. 

On  emerging  from  the  Alder  Car,  and  entering  upon  the  open  heath,  a 
Kestril  hunting  for  its  morning  repast  came  in  sight.  A  Kesti-il,  although 
common  in  this  neighbourhood,  is  never  an  object  of  indiiference  to  me.  I 
love  to  watch  it  suspended  in  the  air,  apparently  without  effort;  then,  a 
tremulous  and   rapid  motion  of  the  Avings  is  seen,  and  it  flies  off,  satisfied 

VOL.  V.  i 


98  A    SPRINO   RAMBLE. 

with  its  survey;  soon  to  "hovei-"  again,  and,  if  more  successful,  precipitate 
itself  to  the  earth,  and  bear  off  the  fruits  of  its  persevering  search.  In  this 
case,  after  hovering  and  dashing  downwards,  but  stopping  before  it  reached 
the  earth,  several  times,  it  made  one  final  and  apparently  successfnl  stoop, 
and  flew  off  in  the  direction  of  the  fine  old  woods  of  Refley.  The  Kestril  is 
our  most  common  Hawk,  and  is  more  numerous  still  in  winter.  I  can  bear 
testimony  to  the  accuracy  of  Mr.  Morris's  statement,  that  the  Kestril  often 
hovers  at  a  much  greater  elevation  than  forty  feet  from  the  ground.  (Brit. 
Birds,  vol.  i.,  p.  125.) 

We  had  now  quite  left  the  road,  and  were  passing  at  the  back  of  a  lai-ge 
sand  hill,  when  an  exclamation  from  my  friend  drew  my  attention  to  the 
first  Sand  Martin  wc  had  seen  this  spring,  and  soon  after  another  flew  past 
us ;  these  were  the  only  two  seen  by  us  during  our  walk.  A  small  liver,  well 
stocked  with  Trout,  one  of  which  my  companion  tried  in  vain  to  "  tickle," 
soon  crossed  our  path ;  but  after  proceeding  along  its  bank  some  distance, 
we  found  a  shallow  part,  at  which  we  forded,  and  directed  our  steps  towards 
a  long  high  hill  which  forms  Grimstone  warren.  In  the  enclosed  grounds  at 
the  foot  of  this  hill,  a  great  many  Lapwings  were  brooding.  On  ascending 
the  hill,  the  scene  was  desolate  in  the  extreme ;  the  only  signs  of  life  were 
the  Wheatears,  which  flitted  from  stone  to  stone,  and  the  white  tails  of  the 
Rabbits,  seen  for  a  moment  as  they  dived  into  their  subterranean  abodes. 
We  stood  in  a  little  hollow,  the  view  in  the  only  direction  in  which  any  sign 
of  cultivation  would  present  itself  being  intercepted ;  and  the  whole  scene 
was  so  wild  and  dreary  that  one  might  almost  fancy  it  never  had  been 
disturbed  by  the  presence  of  man.  There  is  something  very  remarkable, 
too,  in  the  stillness  of  a  heath :  here  the  solemn  silence  was  broken  only  by 
the  "wee-weep"  of  the  Lapwings,  which  still  followed  us, — one  of  those 
"  sounds  "  so  well  described  by  Cowper,  which — 

"inharmonious  in  themselves  and  harsh, 
Yet  heard  in  scenes  where  peace  for  ever  reigns, 
And  only  there,  please  highly  for  their  sake." 

On  the  very  highest  aud  most  exposed  part  of  the  hill,  the  warrener  had 
consti'ucted  a  hut  of  stones  and  sods ;  we  went  into  this  rude  edifice,  and 
on  the  rough  stone  which  formed  the  hearth  lay  a  poor  little  Mouse — dead. 
A  very  fine  wliite  sand  is  dug  from  the  side  of  this  hill,  and  sent  in  large 
quantities  to  Lynn ;  whence  it  is  conveyed  by  the  colliers,  in  the  form  of 
ballast,  to  Sunderland  and  Newcastle,  and  disposed  of  to  the  glass  works 
there. 

The  termination  of  the  hill,  which  in  summer  is  covered  with  Pteris  aqui- 
lina,  is  rather  abrupt ;  and  at  the  foot  lies  Roydon  fen,  in  which  we  were 
soon  plunging.  Here  we  found  the  Cranberry  {Vacdnium  Oxycoccos)  in 
abundance,  spreading  itself  over  the  soft  mounds  of  Sphagnum,  some  of  the 


A   SPRINa    RA.iMBLB.  U9 

last  year's  berries  still  remaining  on  the  jjlants.  The  Lousewort  was  just 
making  its  appearance,  and  the  dead  spikes  of  the  Cotton  Grass  {Oriophorum 
angustifolium)  were  still  in  some  places  surmounted  by  their  white  plumes. 
Towards  one  end  of  the  fen  a  good  many  stunted  Willow  bushes  are  found ; 
and  on  the  somewhat  firmer  ground  which  immediately  surrounds  each 
bush,  Cladium  mariseus  grows.  At  this  time,  the  delicate  fronds  of  Lastrea 
Thelypteris  were  just  making  their  appearance;  the  drier  parts  were  covered 
with  the  Bog  Myrtle,  and  its  yellow  pollen  rose  in  clouds  as  we  walked 
amongst  it.  The  botany  of  Roydon  fen  is  at  pi*esent  rather  scanty,  but  in 
June  it  presents  a  very  different  appearance.  All  the  varieties  of  Drosera 
{rotundifoUa,  longifolia,  and  Anglica)  are  there ;  the  beautiful  little  Pinguicula 
vulgaris,  Polygala  vulgaris,  Pyrola  rotundifoUa,  Narthecium  Ossifragum,  and 
later,  Parnassia  palustris,  with  many  others.  How  few  know  the  beauty  of 
our  bog  plants,  and  yet  how  worthy  they  are  of  admiration.  The  Bog-bean, 
Asphodel,  Pyrola,  Sundew,  and  Grass  of  Parnassus  are  scarcely  known  to 
any  but  the  botanist ;  and  yet  there  are  not  many  plants  which  exceed  them 
in  beauty.  I  generally  find  an  impression  that  Cranberries  grow  on  bushes  ; 
and  few  are  they  who  are  acquainted  with  the  delicate  creeping  plant,  and 
elegant  little  flower,  which  produces  the  berry  so  much  admired  when  it 
reaches  our  table  converted  into  tarts. 

We  found  no  Lapwings  on  the  heath,  they  preferring  the  security  of  the 
enclosed  waiTen ;  but  Snipes  and  Redshanks  were  plentiful  in  the  fenny 
part.  The  Short-eared  Owl  and  Montagu's  Harriers  used  to  breed  here,  and 
a  nest  is  still  occasionally  found ;  but  they  are  all  very  rare.  This  is  to  be 
attributed  to  the  game-keeepers,  who  shoot  them  during  the  wintei',  or  as 
soon  as  they  make  their  appearance  in  the  si)ring ;  but  should  they  then 
escape,  they  are  sure  to  fall  an  easy  prey  so  soon  as  they  have  either  nests 
or  young.  The  Wild  Duck  breeds  here  too,  but  is  seldom  met  with  now. 
There  is  not  much  to  be  learned  from  the  men  cutting  turf,  with  regard  to 
the  birds,  although  they  may  have  spent  their  whole  lives,  and  those  perhaps 
long  ones,  on  the  spot;  their  general  reply  b^ing — "Why,  you  know  sir,  we 
don't  pay  no  attention  to  them  'ere  things."  They  may  be,  and  doubtless 
are,  possessed  of  much  information  with  regard  to  the  habits  of  the  birds 
frequenting  the  heath ;  but  they  do  not  know  it,  and  it  is  very  difficult 
to  get  at. 

We  had  now  reached  the  part  of  the  heath  through  which  the  turnpike 
passes  to  Grimstone ;  and  after  crossing  this,  we  ascended  another  barren 
hill,  the  chief  vegetable  productions  of  which  were  the  Stonecrop  {Sedum 
acre)  and  Viola  tricolor ;  and,  turning  in  the  direction  of  North  Wootton, 
shaped  our  course,  as  neai'ly  as  we  could  guess,  in  a  dii*ect  line  for  the 
Poplars  on  the  gi-een.  After  walking  for  some  time  through  fields,  all  of 
which  were  under  cultivation,  we  arrived  at  a  belt  of  Fir  plantation,  on 
emerging  from  the  other  side  of  which,  a  view  suddenly  presented  itself 


100  A    SPRING    RAMBLE. 

which  has  often  called  forth  my  admiration.  The  spot  on  which  we  stood 
commanded  a  fine  view  of  the  broad  Ouse,  glittering  in  the  sunshine,  and 
studded  with  vessels  of  all  sizes,  from  the  stately  brig,  to  the  little  fishing 
boat  whose  sail  looked  a  mere  spot  on  the  calm  waters ;  and  one  or  two 
steamers  were  impetuously  pursuing  their  onward  course,  regardless  of  wind 
and  current,  leaving  a  long  train  of  black  smoke  hovering  in  their  wake ;  the 
open  waters  of  the  Wash  forming  the  horizon.  On  the  right,  a  long  heath- 
covered  hill,  ending,  before  it  reached  the  shore,  in  an  abrupt  headland, 
intercepted  the  view,  at  about  two  miles  distance  ;  the  inteiwening  country 
being  beautifully  varied  with  hills,  woods,  and  dales.  On  turning  to  the  left, 
the  town  and  harbour  of  Lynn  formed  the  chief  objects  in  the  distance;  the 
fine  old  church  of  St.  Margaret,  and  the  spire  of  St.  Nicholas,  (lately  taken 
down,)  wei-e  well  known  features  in  the  landscape ;  the  masts  in  the  harbour 
forming  the  background.  I  well  remember  the  first  lovely  summer's  evening, 
when,  just  as  the  sun  was  setting,  I  first  saw  this  view  from  the  spot  on 
which  we  were  standing ;  I  had  often  seen  it  from  other  points,  but  it  broke 
upon  me  so  suddenly,  on  leaving  the  dark  Fir  plantation,  that  I  was  perfectly 
enraptured.  It  may  be  that  old  associations  have  endeared  these  scenes  to 
me,  but  I  never  behold  them  witliout  feeling  emotions  of  the  most  exquisite 
pleasure. 

We  soon  reached  another  turnpike,  leading  to  Castle  Rising ;  and  here  my 
friend  left  me,  he  proceeding  to  Wolferton  wood,  and  I  continuing  my  way 
over  the  heath  to  Wootton.  As  I  walked  along,  a  Viper  lay  basking  in  the 
sun,  and  I  had  almost  stepped  upon  it  before  we  were  aware  of  each  other's 
presence ;  when  it  soon  disappeared  in  a  mound  of  green  moss.  Amved  at 
the  fann-house  of  my  friend,  I  was  received  with  unfeigned  kindness ;  and, 
after  changing  my  wet  and  muddy  clothes,  did  ample  justice  to  his 
hospitality 

I  fear  I  have  already  trespassed  too  long,  but  cannot  conclude  without 
saying  a  few  words  on  the  benefits  to  be  derived  from  such  quiet  rambles  as 
I  have  endeavoured  to  describe.  Not  only  is  the  body  refreshed  and  in- 
vigorated, but  a  healthy  tone  is  given  to  the  mind.  The  more  we  study 
Nature's  laws,  the  more  shall  we  be  impressed  with  the  beauty  and  harmony 
of  their  arrangement ;  and  the  more  shall  we  feel  our  own  insignificance, 
compared  with  Him  who  could  frame  laws  which  should  be  immutable  from 
the  first,  and  yet  perfect  in  everything !  In  the  solitude  of  the  wood  or 
heath,  the  naturalist  finds  every  facility  for  quiet  meditation ;  and,  with- 
drawing from  all  the  cares  and  anxieties  of  the  world,  resigns  himself  wholly 
to  the  soothing  and  calming  influences  of  the  scene  ai'ound.  The  solemn 
stillness  of  the  wood  is  only  broken  by  the  subdued  cooing  of  the  Ringdove, 
the  distant  caw  of  the  I'estless  Rook,  the  laughing  note  of  the  Green  Wood- 
pecker, or  the  sudden  flight  of  a  startled  Blackbird,  as  he  seeks  shelter  from 
the  intruder  in  the  tangled  copse.     And  thus  he  wanders  on,  treading  a 


A   SPRING    RAMBLE.  101 

carpet  of  mingled  moss  and  flowers ;  the  graceful  Fern  rearing  its  fronds  at 
his  feet,  and  the  sweet-scented  Honeysuckle  spreading  its  delicious  perfume 
in  the  air  around.  In  scenes  like  this,  the  mind  is  raised  above  this  world's 
cares  ;  and  then  it  feels  how 

"  Nature  never  did  betray 
The  heart  that  loved  her ; " 


and  how  it  is 


"  her  privilege, 
Through  all  the  years  of  this  our  life,  to  lead 
From  joy  to  joy;  for  she  can  so  inform 
The  mind  that  is  within  us,  so  impress 
With  quietness  and  beauty,  and  so  feed 
With  lofty  thoughts,  that  neither  evU  tongues, 
Rash  judgments,  nor  the  sneers  of  selfish  men, 
Nor  greetings  where  no  kindness  is,  nor  all 
The  dreary  intercourse  of  common  life. 
Shall  e'er  prevail  against  us,  or  disturb 
Our  cheerful  faith,  that  all  that  we  behold 
Is  full  of  blessings." 


Fakenham,  January,  1855. 


A  GLANCE  AT  THE  FEATHEEED  RESIDENTS  IN,  AND  VISITANTS 

TO,  THE  GROUNDS  OF  TERRICK  HOUSE; 

WITH  A  FEW  REMARKS  FROM  PERSONAL  OBSERVATION, 

UPON   THEIR   HABITS   AND   PECULIARITIES. 

BY    STEPHEN    STONE,    ESQ. 

(Continued  from  page  6?.) 

Between  the  two,  we  discover  the  nest  of  the  common  Linnet.  (Linaria 
cannabina.)  This  nest  is  constructed  chiefly  of  very  light-coloured  fibrous 
roots,  with  a  few  stalks  of  Galium ;  it  is  extremely  well  built  and  neatly 
lined  with  hair.  Some  nests  of  this  species  have  a  peculiar  neat  appear- 
ance, while  others  are  very  shallow  and  altogether  exhibit  a  slovenly  and 
careless  style  of  architecture.  The  eggs  are  usually  five  in  number;  they 
vary  almost  as  much  in  colour  and  markings  as  those  of  the  .Greenfinch  : 
some  specimens  are  of  a  pale  sea  green,  without  spot ;  others  of  a  bluish 
white,  also  without  spot ;  but>  those  which  may  be  considered  characteristic 
of  the  species  are  of  a  bluish  white,  or  greenish  white  ground,  with  reddish 
spots  and  specks  of  two  or  three  different  shades,  varied  also  with  spots  of 
purplish  grey,  and  an  occasional  streak  of  a  darker  colour:  the  eggs  also  vary 
a  good  deal  in  size  and  shape.     This  bird  begins  building  about  the  same 


102  THE    BIRDS   OF   TERBICK   HOUSE. 

time  as  the  Grreenfinch,  but  it  is  much  less  generally  dispersed  over  this  part 
of  the  country  than  that  bird,  it  having  favoui-ite  localities  to  which  it  anually 
resorts.  Large  furze  commons  are  most  in  favour  with  this  species  as  breed- 
ing places,  where,  if  search  be  made,  very  many  nests  may  be  discovered 
within  a  few  yards  of  each  other.  They  are  more  or  less  gregarious  through- 
out the  entire  year.  Immense  flocks  are  to  be  met  with  during  the  autumn, 
winter,  and  the  early  part-  of  spring,  when  they  do  good  service  to  the  cause 
of  agriculture,  by  consuming,  in  large  quantities,  the  seeds  of  the  common 
Charlock,  {Sinapis  arvensis,)  the  warm  and  moderately  pungent  taste  of  which 
they  seem  greatly  to  relish.  His  Grace  of  Norfolk  once,  in  evil  hour,  fancied 
he  had  discovered  an  article  which  only  required  strong  and  earnest  recom- 
mendation, to  become  a  favourite  and  a  principal  ingredient  in  the  diet  of 
the  labouring  classes.  Now  t6  encourage  the  foreigner  by  the  introduction 
of  a  foreign  article,  to  the  prejudice  of  the  home  grower,  is  universally  held 
to  be  bad  policy ;  pit}'  it  is  therefore  that  his  Grace's  attention  had  not  been 
directed  to  that  spontaneous  production  of  our  own  native  soil,  the  common 
Charlock ;  he  would  unquestionably  have  found  the  prepared  seeds  of  this 
plant  almost,  if  not  quite,  as  stimulating,  equally  nutritious,  and  as  well 
suited  in  most  respects  to  the  purpose  intended,  as  his  favourite  curry  pow- 
der; and  could  he  have  succeeded  in  overcoming  the  prejudices  of  the 
labouring  classes,  and  prevailed  upon  them  to  give  the  preference  to  his 
stimulating  diet,  he  might  justly  havo  been  considered — what  each  Protec- 
tionist candidate  for  the  honour  of  representing  a  favourite  county  in 
Parliament,  on  the  eve  of  a  general  election  always  took  care,  in  the  palmy 
days  of  protection,  to  i^roclaim  himself — "  the  real  friend  of  the  farmer,"  if 
not  that  of  the  poor  man. 

The  notes  of  the  Linnet  are  lively  and  agreeable  when  given  as  a  solo,  but 
when  hundreds  of  voices  are  heard  in  concert,  the  effect  is  peculiarly  pleas- 
ing. It  is  one  of  those  glorious  days  which,  to  quote  the  Rev.  Gilbert  White, 
"  no  season  but  the  autumn  produces, — cloudless,  calm,  serene,  and  worthy 
of  the  south  of  France  itself."  The  sun  diifuses  a  cheering  warmth  without 
causing  an  oppressive  feeling ;  a  bluish  haze  hangs  around  the  horizon  and 
upon  the  svimmits  of  the  distant  hills ; 

"  Slow  through  the  air 
Gossamer  floats,  or  stretch'd  from  blade  to  blade 
The  wavy  network  whitens  all  the  fields;" 

the  scenery  too  is  of  that  gorgeous  character,  "  which  no  season  but  the 
autumn  produces."  Ten  thousand  varied  tints  the  leaves  display, — green, 
gold,  red,  purple,  brown  ;  every  imaginable  shade  of  each  meets  the  admir- 
ing eye.  Here  the  bright  red  fruit  of  the  hawthorn  and  the  wild  rose  may 
be  seen  in  great  abundance,  adorning  like  coral  beads,  the  hedgerow,  and 
holding  out  a  cheering  promise  of  support  to  the  feathered  tribes  when 
stern  winter  has  set  in,  and  more  substantial  fare  is  denied  them.     There,  in 


TBK   BIBDS   or   lEBRICK   HODSE.  10<1 

small  clusters,  hang  the  jet-black  berries  of  tbe  privet  and  tlxe  blackthorn. 
There,  too,  the  sloe  bush  is  seen,  its  every  branch  strung  as  with  beads  of 
jet.  The  acorns  on  yon  mighty  oak  are  fast  ripening — changing  from  green 
to  golden  yellow,  from  yellow  to  rich  brown.  Some  have  already  fallen — 
brought  down  by  the  equinoctial  gales  which  lately  prevailed ;  and  upon 
these  the  Pheasant,  the  pride  and  ornament  of  the  game  preserve,  is  feeding; 
while,  in  anticipation  of  the  fall  of  the  rest,  that  light,  agile,  aiiy,  half-flying, 
interesting,  and  beautiful  creature,  the  Squirrel,  has  gathered  and  stored  up, 
for  winter  use,  lai'ge  quantities  of  them.  Take  your  stand  beneath  the  tree 
at  nightfall,  and  you  will  find  the  field  mouse  busily  employed  in  conveying 
them  to  its  retreat  for  the  same  purpose.  The  Rook,  too,  by  way  of  change 
of  diet,  feeds  upon  them  to  some  extent.  How  beautiful  looks  that  moun- 
tain ash,  with  its  bunches  of  showy  red  beri'ies ;  and  the  foliage  of  that 
beech — how  x-ich,  and  warm,  and  glowing,  are  the  tints  !  how  inimitable  the 
hues  it  displays.  Its  ripened  fruit,  too,  has  fallen ;  and  here  again  the 
squirrel  is  feasting.  Here,  too,  the  great,  the  marsh,  and  coal  Titmice  are 
revelling  in  the  abundance  of  food  it  yields.  From  long  distances  have  they 
come — from  various  quarters  are  they  here  gathered  together  to  partake  of 
this  annual  treat.  And  how  amusing  it  is  to  watch  their  lovelj'  antics !  never 
still — ever  in  motion ;  in  constant  change  of  attitude.  Now  suspended  by 
the  feet  from  the  extremity  of  a  slender  branch ;  now  clinging  for  a  moment 
to  the  trunk  of  the  tree;  now  engaged  in  sportive  flight;  now  lighting  upon 
the  ground,  and  prying  underneath  the  leaves  in  search  of  the  fallen  mast,  a 
portion  of  which  is  presently  found,  seized  upon,  and  conveyed  to  some  con- 
venient branch,  or  placed  in  some  crevice,  where  the  bird  may  be  seeJi 
hammering  away  at  it,  with  the  utmost  good  will  and  heartiness,  until  the 
kernel  is  reached,  the  strokes  from  its  bill,  given  wdth  great  rapidity,  being 
distinctly  to  be  heard  to  some  distance.  All  is  untiring  activity  and  un- 
disturbed enjoyment. 

A  peaceful  and  a  holy  calm  steals  over  us  in  the  contemplation  of  the  scene 
before  us ;  there  is  not,  perhaps,  that  bounding,  gushing,  hilarous  feeling 
the  spring  produces,  but  one  fully  as  lich,  though  of  a  more  subdued  kind. 
The  thought  that  all  these  beauties  are  on  the  eve  of  being  swejjt  away ;  and 
that  in  the  course  of  a  few  days  they  Avill  vanish  from  the  sight,  contributes, 
in  some  degree,  no  doubt,  to  check  any  exuberance  of  feeling.  Let  that 
thought  remind  us  that  we  too  must  perish  ;  that  as  the  leaves  fade  away,  so 
shall  we  decay :  nor  can  we  reckon  upon  attaining  old  age,  or  even  upon 
growing  up  to  manhood,  ere  we  be  removed  from  this  earthly  scene ;  for  as 
the  young  and  tender  leaves  are  often  rudely  stripped,  by  tempestuous  winds, 
from  the  parent  tree,  even  before  they  have  become  fully  expanded,  so  may 
we,  at  any  age,  be  torn  away,  by  "  the  pestilence  that  walketh  in  darkness," 
or  by  "  the  sickness  that  destroyeth  at  noon  day."  May  death,  whenever  it 
comes,  find  us  with  lamps  trimmed,  and  with  lights  burning. 


104  THE    BIRDS   OF   TERRICK    HOUSE, 

But  liai'k !  what  sweet  murmuring  sound  is  borne  upon  tlie  breeze  ?  now 
scarcely  audible ;  now  falling  upon  the  ear  distinct  and  clear ;  now  dying 
away  in  softest  cadence ;  now  again  swelling  and  becoming  louder,  fuller, 
and  more  distinguishable ;  and  again  sinking  into  a  sweet  and  subdued 
murmur.  From  Avhence  comes  this  sweet  harmony?  Proceeds  it  from  a 
choir  of  angels  in  yon  distant  Heaven  ?  Nay !  but  from  a  choir  of  beings 
less  exalted,  but  not  less  innocent ;  from  beings  occupied  like  the  heavenly 
host,  in  chaunting  hymns  of  gi-atitude  and  praise  to  the  Great  Author  of 
their  existence ;  from  a  flock  of  Linnets  stationed  on  the  tops  of  yon  tall 
trees,  does  this  charming  chorus  proceed.  Happy  in  themselves,  they  diifuse 
happiness  and  enjoyment  around  them.  Who  can  listen  to  their  sweetly 
soothing  melody,  and  not  be  touched  with  feelings  of  the  liveliest  gratitude 
to  their  Creator  and  ours,  for  having  made  them  to  solace  us  with  their 
music ;  to  delight  us  with  their  beauty  and  vivacity,  and  to  benefit  us  by  . 
their  services.  '  Innocent  creatures !  Would  that  none  could  be  found  to 
harm  ye.  Would  that  man  could  clearly  perceive,  that  in  becoming  your 
enemy,  he  becomes  an  enemy  to  himself  That  in  plotting  your  destruction, 
he  is  plotting  against  his  own  happiness  and  comfort,  and  contriving  to 
lessen  the  sources  of  enjoyment  with  which  a  gracious  God  has  blest  him. 
But  the  curtain  falls. 

And  when  it  again  rises,  the  scene  has  changed.  An  interval  of  a  few 
weeks  has  elapsed,  and  the  gorgeous  beauties,  upon  which  we  lately  gazed, 
have  passed  away.  A  north-east  wind  is  now  howling  among  the  naked 
branches  ; — those  same  branches  which  we  lately  beheld  clothed  in  the  ut- 
most splendour  and  magnificence;  upon  which,  hues,  bright  as  the  gold  of 
California,  lately  shone.  The  snow  has  been  diifting  throughout  the  night, 
and  has  now  covered  the  surface  of  the  earth.  Vegetation  lies  securely  hid 
— wrapjjed  up  and  protected  by  this  beautifully-contrived  covering,  from  the 
severity  of  the  frost  which  accompanies,  or  which  is  immediately  to  follow 
this  storm.  But  for  this  protecting  mantle,  what  dire  havoc  might  not  the 
frost  create  among  our  more  tender  plants ;  nay,  even  the  more  hardy  ones 
would  greatly  suffer ;  and  our  wheat  plant,  that  inestimable  boon  from  Avhich 
— it  need  not  be  told — bread,  "  the  staff  of  life,"  the  staple  article  of  food  in 
all  civilized  countries  is  derived,  would  at  times  be  in  imminent  danger  of 
perishing.  Thus  do  we  invariably  find,  that  in  every  dispensation  of  Provi- 
dence, judgments  ai'e  tempered  with  mercy.  Winter  is  approaching  with 
rapid  strides.  The  temperature  has  fallen  ;  the  cold  is  increasing.  Where 
are  now  the  merry  songsters,  whose  harmony  lately  cheei'ed  and  delighted 
us  ?  They  are  still  in  flocks ;  but  not  now  sitting  calmly  upon  the  tops  of 
tall  trees,  and  pouring  forth  their  glad  hymns  of  praise  ;  not  now  preening 
their  feathers,  arranging  their  plumage,  and  sunning  themselves  in  the  full- 
ness of  enjoyment;  but  moving  hurriedly  to  and  fro  in  search  of  food  and 
shelter. 


THE    BIRDS    OF    TERRIOK    HOUSE.  105 

Within  musket  shot  of  yon  barn  door,  a  space  some  twenty  feet  by  three  or 
four,  is  strewn  with  seeds,  of  which  tlie  Linnet  is  very  fond,  as  well  as  with 
the  refuse  of  grain  which  proves  attractive  to  other  sj^ecies  :  this  is  provinci- 
ally  termed  a  "  scrape,"  and  a  very  expressive  term  it  is,  for  the  poor  birds 
who  may  be  driven  by  hunger  to  visit  it,  soon  find  themselves  in  a  sad  scrape. 
Ensconced  within  the  barn,  through  the  door  or  boarding  of  which,  a  hole  has 
been  bored  sufficiently  large  for  the  muzzle  of  the  fowling  piece  to  be  thrust 
through,  and  a  view  of  the  "  scrape  "  obtained  as  well,  is  one  who  arrogantly 
styles  himself  "  Lord  of  the  Creation,"  but  whose  doings  proclaim  him  to  be, 
in  reality,  merely  a  petty  tyrant  over  the  weaker  portion  thereof.  His  eye  is 
fixed  with  a  sinister  expression  upon  the  treacherous  bait  his  hands  have 
spread.  The  murderous  gun  is  lying  beside  him,  loaded  with  small  shots ; 
the  intention  of  the  barbarous  gunner  being  to  maim  the  greatest  possible 
number,  rather  than  to  kill  a  few  outright.  The  poor  birds  begin  to  assem- 
ble ;  timidly  they  approach  at  first;  but,  as  neither  net  nor  trap  of  any  kind 
appears  in  sight,  they  gradually  acquire  confidence ;  their  numbers  swell  and 
increase  every  minute,  until  at  length  the  whole  "  scrape"  appears  animate 
with  life ;  from  one  end  to  the  other  it  is  covered  with  Linnets,  Greenfinches, 
Chaffinches,  yellow,  common,  and  a  few  black  headed  Buntings,  with  here 
and  there  a  Mountain  Finch.  The  Sparrow  keeps  aloof;  constant  persecu- 
tion, even  from  its  cradle,  renders  this  bird  suspicious  of  everybody  and  al- 
most everything :  it  knows  fi'om  bitter  experience,  that,  except  in  very  rare 
instances,  danger  lurks  wherever  food  is  too  invitingly  spread,  or  wherever 
a  superabundance  of  it  is  to  be  found.  Upon  the  dense  mass  of  innocent 
beings,  the  gun  is  now  brought  to  bear;  the  finger  of  the  murderer  is  upon 
the  trigger ;  an  explosion  follows,  and  that  which  a  moment  before  was  a 
mass  of  living  creatures,  sound  and  healthy,  is  now  a  mass  of  dead,  dying, 
and  mutilated  bodies.  Scores  are  left  dead  upon  the  spot ;  scores,  more  are 
writhing  in  agonizing  pain  from  broken  limbs  and  other  dreadful  mutilations; 
while  many  others  are  to  be  seen  dropping  here  and  there  in  the  course  of 
their  flight,  sinking  exhausted  from  mortal  Avounds.  On  every  hand  may  be 
seen  miserably  crippled  individuals  fluttering  away  in  terror,  and  vainly 
seeking  a  hiding  place.  The  author  of  all  this  misery  issues  forth  to  secure 
his  victims.  To  capture  the  wounded  is  his  first  care,  knowing  that  the  dead 
cannot  escape.  Here,  he  seizes  upon  a  poor  blind  wretch;  there,  upon  one 
trailing  along  with  broken  wing.  Oh !  worse  than  savage !  does  not  its 
terror-sti'icken  air,  as  thou  seizest  it — the  dreadful  palpitations  and  throb- 
bings  of  its  little  heart,  thou  canst  not  but  feel  as  thou  pressest  it  in  thy 
blood-stained  hand,  awaken  within  thee  a  feeling  of  pity  or  remorse?  List 
to  its  terrified  cry — its  piteous  screams  !  Look  in  its  dear  little  eyes,  how 
imploring  is  their  expression  !  How  eloquently  they  appeal  to  thy  compas- 
sion !  And  can  they  appeal  in  vain?  If  they  can — if  thou  canst  indeed 
close  thine  eyes  to  the  poor  little  creature's  supplicating  look — if  thou  canst 

F  2 


106  THE    BIRDS   OF   TERRICK    HOUSE. 

shut  thine  ears,  and  allow  it  to  pass  unlieeded — if  tliou  relentest  not— if  thy 
soul  doth  not  melt,  and  remorse  for  the  deed  thou  hast  committed,  seize  not 
ujion  thee,  and  thou  resolvest  never  again  to  be  guilty  of  so  barbarous  an 
act — though  thou  wert  possessed  of  the  wealth  of  the  Indies — though 
luxuries  of  every  kind  were  at  thy  command — though  rank  and  station  were 
thine,  the  beggar  with  a  feeling  heart,  and  humane  disposition,  and  a  com- 
passionate nature,  were  more  to  be  envied  than  thou.  What  has  it  ever 
done  to  deserve  this  horrible  cruelty  at  thy  hands  ?  Its  life  was  far  more 
blameless,  and  probably  more  useful  than  thine  own.  Had  it  done  thee  any 
injury,  there  might  have  been  some  excuse  for  thee ;  but  so  far  from  its 
being  injurious  to  man,  it  is,  I  repeat,  one  of  the  many  benefactors  with 
which  an  all  gracious  providence  has  surrounded  us.  If  deeds  of  blood  de- 
light thee — if  thou  canst  feel  pleasure  in  scenes  of  carnage  and  slaughter, 
why  not  betake  thyself  to  the  battle  field  ;  there  thou  mightest  be  honour- 
ably employed  in  the  cause  of  justice  and  of  freedom.  There  thou  mightest 
signalize  thyself.  There  ample  opportunities  would  be  afforded  thee  of 
showing  thy  valour, — if  any  be  in  thee, — and  of  obtaining  renown.  In 
lending  a  helping  hand  to  stay  the  torrent  of  despotism  which  has  set  in 
from  the  north,  threatening  to  overthrow  kingdoms,  and  endangering  not 
only  the  peace  of  Europe,  but  of  the  world,  thou  mightest  at  once  gratify 
thy  taste  for  blood,  and  render  good  service  to  thy  country,  and  to  all  peace- 
ably disposed  governments  throughout  the  earth.  To  aid  in  checking  the 
mad  ambition  of  a  Despot,*  who  seeks,  by  aggression,  to  obtain  unlimited 
power,  would,  mcthinks,  be  far  nobler  employment  than  slaughtering  beauti- 
ful, unoffending,  harmless,  and  not  only  harmless,  but  service-rendering, 
benefit-conferring  birds. 

Turn  we  now  from  this  sad  scene, — this  scene  of  bloodshed  and  cruelty 
which  nothing  would  have  induced  me  to  depict,  but  an  earnest  desire  of 
seeing  such  scenes  become  less  common,  such  barbarities  of  less  frequent 
occurrence ;  naj^  of  seeing  them  entirely  put  an  end  to.  Would  that  I  could 
be  at  all  instrumental  in  bringing  this  about;  could  I  but  succeed  in  con- 
verting one  enemy  of  the  feathered  tribe  into  a  friend,  I  should  then  feel 
that  I  had  not  occupied  the  valuable  pages  of  The  Naturalist  altogether  in 
vain.     Here  let  the  curtain  again  fall. 

And  let  it  again  rise,  and  disclose  a  more  agreeable  scene. 

The  earth  is  still  covered  with  snow;  the  weather  has  become  more  in- 
tensely cold ;  the  pools,  and  lakes,  and  streams,  are  completely  frozen  over- 
Winter  reigns  supreme.     There  is  more  apparent  cause  for  despondency 

*  Since  these  remarks  were  committed  to  paper,  deatli  has  suddenly  and  most  unexpectedly  terminated 
the  earthly  career  of  this  Despot.  May  the  eyes  of  his  successor  he  opened  to  the  reckless  folly,  the 
madness,  and  the  extreme  wickedness  of  the  course  he  pursued  ;  a  course  'which,  let  us  charitably  hope, 
though  he  may  have  exhibited  no  outward  sign,  he  nevertheless,  in  that  brief  period  which  was  allowed  him 
for  preparation,  after  receiving  the  awful  summons  to  appear  in  the  presence  of  his  God  and  render  up  his 
account,  in  the  depths  of  his  heart  truly  repented  himself  of. 


THE    BIRDS   OF  TERRICK    HOUSE.  107 

and  gloom  than  at  the  time  the  last  scene  opened.  The  poor  birds  might 
reasonably  be  expected  to  be  in  a  worse  position  now  than  then ;  but  we  are 
now  introduced  into  the  "  domain"  of  one  who  loves  them  ;  who  rejoices  in 
every  opportunity  that  offei's  itself  of  testifying  that  love;  and  who  is  earnest 
in  the  desire  and  unceasing  in  the  endeavour  to  ameliorate  their  condition, 
when  for  a  time  the  earth  is,  as  now,  locked  up,  and  the  supplies  it  wont  to 
yield  are  cut  off  from  them..  We  behold  a  space  of  some  extent  in  a  sheltered 
situation,  from  which  the  snow  has  been  carefully  swept.  Over  this  space 
provisions  to  suit  all  tastes  have  been  strewn.  Here  the  Blackbird  and  the 
Thrush  thrive  and  become  fat  during  the  most  protracted  frosts.  Here 
Sparrows — for  a  long  course  of  kind  ti-eatment  has  disarmed  even  the 
Sparrow  of  his  suspicions — Finches,  Buntings,  Titmice,  and  other  birds 
revel  in  enjoyment.  No  murderous  gun  is  here  pointed  at  them;  no 
treachery  awaits  them  here !  There  is  no  concealed  snare,  or  trap ;  no 
enemy  is  lying  in  wait  to  destroy;  no  danger  is  lurking  around.  Eyes  there 
are,  bent  upon  them  from  the  dining  or  drawing  room  windows,  but  not 
with  a  sinister  expression.  Eyes — friendly,  admiring  eyes,  are  bent  earnestly 
upon  them,  complacently  witnessing  their  enjoj^ment;  glancing  from  one 
species  to  an^other — from  the  common  and  soberly  clad  Hedge-Warbler,  to 
the  somewhat  rare  and  handsomely-plumaged  Grosbeak — and  noting  the 
particular  habits  and  manners  of  each  member  of  this  truly  "  happy  family," 
of  which  our  favourite  Linnet  foi-ms  a  part. 

Mark  the  restless  activity  of  the  Nuthatch  yonder;  how  rapid  are  his 
movements ;  how  lively  all  his  actions.  Now  he  seizes  upon  a  nut,  and 
wedging  it  firmly  in  a  chink  in  the  bark  of  an  elm  close  by,  provides  us  with 
a  vast  fund  of  amusement  in  watching  his  operations.  It  seems  not  to 
matter  at  all  to  him  whether  head  or  tail  be  uppennost,  or  whether  both  be 
upon  a  level.  Now  he  may  be  seen'in  a  vertical  position ;  now  in  a  horizontal 
one  :  again  he  changes  that  position  for  another;  nor  ceases  changing  until 
he  finds  himself  in  that  in  which  his  blows  upon  the  nutshell  tell  with  the 
greatest  effect.  But  though  intent  upon  his  work,  he  keeps  a  watchful  eye 
upon  everything  that  passes ;  like  a  wakeful  and  a  faithful  sentinel,  he  is  not 
to  be  surprised  at  his  post.  After  every  two  or  three  blows,  a  keen  and 
scnitinizing  glance  is  thrown  around.  The  Rev.  F.  O.  Morris,  in  his 
charming  "  History  of  British  Birds,"  now  being  published,  has  happily 
caught  tills  act  of  wariness  in  the  bird  ;  and  admirably  has  he  depicted  it. 
The  representation  he  has  given  of  the  bird  is  altogether  a  most  life-like  one. 
But  more  of  him,  i.e.,  the  Nuthatch,  anon.  Supplied  with  a  suificiency  of 
food,  the  individuals  who  form  this  interesting  "  Christmas  party  "  feel  not 
the  cold — it  harms  them  not.  Wind  and  storm  are  by  them  lightly  regarded. 
Sheltered  among  the  evergreens,  or  reposing  in  the  side  or  under  tlie  thatch 
of  some  friendly  rick,  they  securely  and  comfortably  pass  the  night,  and 
throughout  the  day  are  cheerful  and   contented.      Asylums  like  this    are 


108  THE    BIRDS    OF   TERRICK    HOUSE. 

unfortunately  not  common ;  would  that  they  were.  What  a  source  of  rational 
enjoyment  would  they  open  to  us  !  How  greatly  might  the  pleasures  of  life 
be  thereby  increased.  How  Avell  would  these  interesting  little  creatures 
repay  us  for  the  trifling  expense  we  should  incur  in  supporting  them  when 
the  inclemency  of  the  weather  has  driven  them  to  want.  Kindness  is  rarely 
thrown  away  upon  birds,  wherever  else  it  may  be  found  to  have  been  thrown 
away. 

One  more  scene  in  the  life  of  a  Linnet,  which,  like  our  own,  is  chequered 
with  good  and  evil,  with  clouds  and  sunshine,  calm  and  storm,  light  and 
shade,  joys  and  sorrows.  But  whether  with  us  joys  or  sorrows  mostly  pre- 
vail— whether  we  bask  in  the  sunshine  of  prosperity  or  be  overshadowed  by 
the  clouds  of  adversity,  the  three-score  years  and  ten  allotted  to  man  upon 
earth  will  soon  pass  away ;  and  then,  ah  !  then,  high  and  low,  rich  and  poor, 
the  prince  and  the  peasant,  master  and  servant,  maid  and  mistress,  will  be 
laid  low  together.  There  will  be  an  end  to  all  earihly  distinction  then. 
Neither  wealth  nor  titles  will  longer  avail.  Banks  and  stations  will  be  swept 
away.  Nought  will  avail  us  but  an  interest  in  that  one  great  and  perfect 
atonement  made  by  the  blessed  Eedeemer  for  the  sins  of  the  world — the 
shedding  of  his  most  precious  blood.  God  grant  we  may  obtain  an  interest 
in  that  atonement ! 

Winter  with  its  storms  and  cold  has  passed  away.  The  frost  which  pre- 
vailed in  January,  and  the  snow  with  which  it  was  accompanied,  have 
vanished,  not  without  having  left  behind  them  immense  benefits  to  the 
agriculturist.  The  action  of  the  frost,  followed  by  the  melting  of  the  snow, 
mellowed  "  the  stubborn  glebe,"  and  rendered  the  task  of  the  husbandman, 
in  pulverizing  the  soil  and  preparing  it  for  the  reception  of  the  seed  about 
to  be  sown,  a  comparatively  easy  one.  The  drying  winds  of  March  further 
and  most  powerfully  aided  him  in  the  task,  and  enabled  him  successfully  to 
complete  it.  How  faithfully  kept  has  been  the  promise  God  gave  to  Noah 
after  the  deluge  :  "  While  the  earth  remaineth,  seed  time  and  harvest,  cold 
and  heat,  and  summer  and  winter,  and  day  and  night  shall  not  cease."  In 
all  things  "  He  is  faithful  that  promised."  The  genial  showers  of  April  have 
refreshed  the  earth,  and  caused  "  the  tender  herb  to  spring,"  the  grain  to 
vegetate,  the  grass  to  grow,  and  the  buds  on  hedge-row  and  tree  to  expand 
into  leaf  or  blossom.  The  aconite  and  snowdrop  have  come  and  gone,  and 
the  primrose  and  violet  have  succeeded  them.  The  daisy,  buttercup,  and 
cuckoo-flower  bedeck  the  meads  ;  the  bluebell  and  wood-anemone  the  copse, 
which  is  also  vocal  with  the  notes  of  the  Blackbird,  Song-Thrush,  Nightin- 
gale, Blackcap,  and  other  "  sweet  warblers  of  the  grove."  Here  the  beautiful 
brimstone  Butterfly  may  be  seen  flitting  about  "  like  an  animated  primrose," 
as  Miss  M.  E.  Catlow,  in  her  "Account  of  the  Diurnal  Lepidoptera  of  Sussex," 
published  in  vol.  ii.  of  The  Naturalist,  has  very  happily  expressed  it, — 
goodly  sized  petals,  though,  tlaat  primrose  displays.      Here,  too,  worn  speoi- 


THE   BIRDS   OF  TERRTOK   HOUSE.  109 

mens  of  the  Nettle,  Tortoise-shell,  and  Peacock  Butterfly  may  be  seen 
spreading  themselves  out  in  the  sun  and  enjoying  the  warmth  after  having 
had  their  energies  cramped  during  the  winter  months,  in  which  they  had 
been  lying  in  a  half  torpid  state  in  the  thatch  of  rick  or  outhouse,  or  in 
some  convenient  nook  or  corner,  cranny  or  crevice.  The  small  whites,  too, 
are  beginning  to  emerge  from  the  chrysalis  state,  and  one  by  one  to  make 
their  appearance.    While  around  us 

''The  wild  Bee  wanders  humming 
Like  a  blessed  fairy  thing." 

Warmed  into  life,  and  called  into  active  existence  by  the  reanimating  power 
of  the  sun's  rays,  it  is  now  collecting  wax  to  form  its  cells,  the  future  birth- 
places of  a  numerous  progeny,  which  shall  duly  arise,  and  through  the  live- 
long summer  gather  sweets  "  from  every  opening  flower,"  their  ceaseless 
hum  resounding  through  the  dale ;  the  "  soothing  dreamy  sound  "  tending 
gratefully  to  allay  excited  feelings  ;  lulling  the  heat-oppressed  and  weary  to 
repose ;  and  powerfully  contributing  to  "  steep  the  senses  in  forgetfulness." 
Each  season  has  its  charms :  but  charming  beyond  all  other  seasons  is 
the  Spring.  Each  season  discloses  beauties  peculiar  to  itself.  Each  in  its 
turn  contributes  largely  to  the  enjoyment  of  the  lovers  of  Nature.  As  re- 
gards scenery,  Autumn  unquestionably  bears  off"  the  palm.  But  Autumn 
speaks  of  glories  departing,  of  beauties  decaying,  of  splendours  vanishing ; 
while  the  Spring  is  full  of  life,  of  hope,  of  increasing  animation.  It  speaks 
of  growing,  of  expanding  beauties,  of  unfolding  joys,  of  greater  pleasures 
yet  in  store,  of  bi'ightening  prospects.  Light  and  buoyant  become  the 
spirits  ;  joyous  and  gladsome  the  feelings.  The  soul  is  attuned  to  harmony. 
Eeclining  upon  some  sunny  bank,  and  richly  enjoying  the  beauties  with 
which  we  are  surrounded,  sing  we,  as  sang  the  poet  Thomson : 

"  These,  as  they  change,  Almighty  Father !  these 
Are  but  the  varied  God.    The  rolling  year 
Is  full  of  Thee.     Forth  in  the  pleasing  spring 
Thy  beauty  walks,  Thy  tenderness  and  love : 
Wide  flush  the  fields;  the  soft'ning  air  is  balm; 
Echo  the  moimtains  round ;  the  forest  smiles ; 
And  ev'ry  sense,  and  every  heart  is  joy." 

We  wend  our  way  to  some  common  or  heath  where  the  furze  abounds, 
whose  "  flowers  of  scented  gold  "  in  countless  myriads  charm  the  eye.  Here 
the  bridal  song  of  the  Linnet  is  heard,  and  here  ari*ayed  in  his  bridal  robes 
is  he  seen.  Of  bright  vermillion  is  his  vest ;  a  frontlet  of  the  same  bright 
colour  is  upon  his  forehead  ;  a  rich  tawny,  varied  with  white  and  brown  are 
the  remaining  colours  of  his  dress.  He  looks  a  bridegroom  every  inch.  Of 
handsome  and  dashing  exterior;  pleasing,  gentle,  and  persuasive  in  manners, 
— to  gain  a  biide  were  to  him  no  difficult  task.  The  dress  of  the  bride  is 
far  plainer  than  that  of  the  bridegroom;   it  is  of  that  sober  and  modest 


110  THE    BIRDS   OF   TKKRICK   HOUSE. 

character  so  well  befitting  the  sex.  The  fond  dalliance  usually  succeeding 
the  fastening  of  the  nuptial  knot  having  somewhat  subsided,  the  "happy 
pair "  have  settled  down  in  earnest  to  the  duties  attendant  on  married  life. 
They  have  built  them  a  house ;  and  she  which  was  late  a  "  bride  expectant," 
is  now  an  "  expectant  mother."  The  eggs  have  been  laid,  and  she  is  engaged 
in  incubating  them  ;  while,  like  an  attentive  husband,  he  is  doing  his  best  to 
lighten  her  arduous  task,  and  to  aid  and  cheer  her  in  the  performance  of  the 
duty  which  has  devolved  upon  her.  A  few  more  days,  and  their  little  family 
will  demand  all  their  care  and  attention  ;  and  right  cheerfully  will  that  care 
and  attention  be  bestowed :  faithfully  and  affectionately  will  they  be  nursed, 
fed,  and  tended;  the  parents  fearlessly  exposing  themselves  to  danger,  if 
necessary,  in  order  to  draw  off  attention  from  their  offspring ;  nor  will  their 
care  of  them  cease,  until  they  are  perfectly  able  to  shift  for  themselves ; 
neither  will  they  then  part  company,  but  continue  to  live  together  in 
harmony,  till,  united  with  other  families,  they  become  "  part  and  parcel "  of 
one  of  those  immense  flocks  we  meet  with  after  the  close  of  summer. 

To  whatever  part  of  the  common  we  may  direct  our  steps,  the  blithesome 
lay  of  the  Linnet  will  not  fail  to  be  heard,  numerous  pairs  of  birds  being 
there  located  for  the  purpose  of  breeding. 

The  description  I  have  given  of  the  male  bird  in  his  nuptial  dress,  does 
not  apply  to  all  males  indiscriminately ;  for  here  we  find  some  in  almost  as 
plain  attire  as  their  more  modest  pai-tners,  while  between  these  two  extremes 
in  dress  will  be  found  many  intermediate  varieties ;  some  having  the  breast 
and  forehead  faintly  tinged  with  red ;  others  the  breast  alone ;  while  one  may 
occasionally  be  seen  with  a  brilliant  red  breast,  but  without  any  discernible 
tinge  of  red  on  the  forehead.  What  may  be  the  true  cause  of  this  diversity 
in  the  plumage  of  the  male  Linnet  remains  yet  to  be  discovered ;  by  some  it 
is  thought  to  depend  upon  the  age  of  the  bird ;  this  opinion  may  or  may  not 
be  correct.  There  is  much  in  the  history  of  the  Linnet  still  shrouded  in 
obscurity;  much  that  still  requires  clearing  up.  Formerly  two  distinct 
species  were  supposed  to  exist,  one  called  by  Montagu,  the  Brown  Linnet, 
(Fringilla  linota),  the  other,  the  Greater  Eedpole,  (F.  cannabina),  nor  is  it,  at 
the  present  time,  perfectly  clear  that  there  may  not  be  more  than  one 
species,  though  the  almost  endless  variety  of  plumage  which  displays  itself, 
would  seem  to  be  evidence  rather  against  than  in  favour  of  this  supposition. 
Meyer  expresses  himself  doubtful  upon  the  subject  Then,  with  reference  to 
the  bright  red  colour  with  which  some  males  in  the  nuptial  season  are 
adorned,  is  it  the  result  of  a  vernal  moult  ?  Ornithologists  tell  us  it  is  not ; 
but  that  it  is  produced,  or  rather  brought  out,  by  the  falling  off,  or  wearing 
away,  of  the  tips  of  the  feathers,  which  were  of  a  brown  colour,  and  concealed 
the  bright  colouring  underneath.  I  imagine  there  must  be  something 
besides  this  in  operation,  else  how  is  it  that  caged  specimens  never  exhibit 
this  bright  colouring:  if  the  sole  cause  wei-e  the  wearing  away  of  the  brown 


THE    BIRDS    OF   TKRRICK    HOUSE.  HI 

tips,  one  would  suppose  this  would  be  as  likely  to  occur  in  the  case  of  a 
caged  bird,  as  of  one  possessed  of  its  liberty.  From  the  fact  that  caged 
specimens  never  do  exhibit  this  bright  colouring,  it  may  not  be  altogether 
unreasonable  to  conclude  that  the  spirits  of  the  bird  may  be  either  remotely 
or  nearly  connected  with  the  matter ;  like  the  flush  of  animation  which  is  seen 
to  bedeck  the  cheek  of  the  happy  and  light-hearted  among  ourselves,  in  con- 
tradistinction to  the  pale,  sickly,  and  care-worn  countenance  of  the  sorrowful 
and  dejected. 

In  one  instance  I  found  an  egg  of  the  Cuckoo  in  a  nest  of  the  Linnet.  The 
same  remarks  would  apply  in  this  instance  as  in  that  of  the  Greenfinch,  and 
the  same  question  would  arise  in  the  event  of  the  egg  having  been  hatched 
by  this  bird. 

CTo  he  continued.) 


NOTES  ON  THE  HABITS  OF  THE  EING  OUZEL.    MERULA 

TORQUATA. 

BY   E.  M.  A. 

Gentle  reader,  have  you  ever  been  on  Dartmoor?  If  you  have,  and  if 
you  are  a  true  naturalist,  you  will  look  back  to  that  period  as  a  much-to-be- 
regretted  and  well-remembered  time.  From  the  highest  "  Tor  "  that  crowns 
yon  hill,  down  to  the  marshy  hollow  that  lies  beneath  your  feet,  there  is 
ample  scope  for  the  exercise  of  your  ornithological,  botanical,  or  geological 
propensities.  You  will  remember  the  almost  alpine  mosses  that  clothe  the 
rocks ;  the  delicate  ferns  that  cluster  thickly  in  the  numerous  ravines ;  and 
the  beautiful  eriophorum,  anagallis,  or  menyanthes,  of  the  bogs.  Perchance 
if  this,  my  first  offering  to  The  Naturalist,  meets  with  a  gracious  recep- 
tion, I  may  hereafter  give  you  the  result  of  some  botanical  rambles  among 
those  favoured  regions.  My  present  object  in  taking  up  the  pen  is  to  give 
you  a  slight  sketch  of  the  Ring  Ouzel,  who  has  ever  been  my  especial 
favourite,  and  has  ever  struck  me  as  not  the  least  ornament  of  those  wild 
districts  in  which  he  delights. 

Do  you  want  to  see  him  at  home  ?  Then  take  your  fishing  rod  and  wander 
up  one  of  the  numerous  small  streams  that  contribute  their  waters  to  the 
magnificent  Dart.  "  Owbrook,"  or  "  Cherry-brook,"  or  the  east  branch  of  the 
Dart  itself  will  answer  your  purpose.  By  the  time  you  have  ascended  to 
the  more  narrow  parts  of  the  stream,  where  it  appeara  as  if  it  had  lost  its 
way,  chafing  among  the  grey  boulders  of  granite,  you  will,  in  all  probability, 
have  ensnared  some  dozens  of  small  though  brightly  coloured  trout,  and 
(what  is  more  to  our  present  purpose)  will  have  arrived  at  the  abode  of  the 


112  THE    HABITS    OF    THE    RING    OUZEL. 

Ring  Ouzel.  His  wild  note  will  first  apprize  you  of  his  proximity,  and  you 
will  then  catch  a  sight  of  him,  perched  on  the  top  of  some  grey  rock,  at  a 
cautious  distance  from  you,  and  looking  at  you  with  a  degree  of  shy  curiosity, 
as  if  he  had  never  before  seen  a  human  being — which  is  very  likely  the  real 
state  of  the  case. 

His  similarity  to  the  common  Blackbird  will  immediately  strike  you ;  but 
there  is  an  air  of  freedom  and  wildness  about  him  which  his  more  tame 
congener  does  not  possess.  To  my  mind,  there  is  almost  as  great  a  difference 
between  them  as  between  the  waddling  tenant  of  the  farm-yard,  and  the  fine 
old  Mallard,  who,  on  some  bright,  frosty  morning,  starts  from  the  sedges  on 
some  river  bank,  and  with  the  water  dripping  from  his  orange  feet,  wings 
his  way  thi-ough  the  bi'ight,  cold  air!  Far  be  it  from  me,  however,  to 
depreciate  the  Blackbird.  Every  lover  of  the  country  and  nature  must  love 
him,  but,  whilst  he  savours  of  the  smoothly -mown  lawn  and  trim  hedge-row, 
the  Ring  Ouzel  reminds  you  of  the  purple  heather  and  granite  rocks  among 
which  he  makes  his  home. 

Like  the  Golden  Oriole,  his  beautiful  though  rare  relation,  he  is  one  of 
our  summer  visitors.  Gilbert  White  (blessings  on  his  memory !)  was  the 
first  to  establish  the  fact  of  his  migration.  He  makes  his  appearance  about 
the  same  time  as  the  swallow,  at  which  period  he  will  occasionally  linger 
about  the  gardens  and  plantations  which  adjoin  his  native  moors.  About 
the  end  of  September,  or  beginning  of  October,  the  mountain  ash  berries, 
which  grow  in  abundance  about  the  banks  of  the  Dart,  would  detain  him  for 
a  short  period  from  his  southern  migration.  I  have  been  assured,  by  resi- 
dents on  the  moor,  that  Ring  Ouzels  may  be  found  there  duiing  the  winter, 
even  in  snow  storms ;  but  I  must  coufess  that  I  have  never  seen  them  at 
such  times.  I  do  not  know,  however,  why  he  should  not  manage  to  pick  up 
a  subsistence  during  winter,  as  well  as  various  more  delicate  birds  than 
himself.  In  summer  he  feeds  luxuriously  on  the  whortle  berries,  (vaccinium 
myrtillus),  w^hich  cover  a  considerable  part  of  Dartmoor ;  and  from  his 
partiality  to  the  neighbourhood  of  water  he  doubtless  picks  up  worms  and 
small  mollusca  about  the  edges  of  the  stream. 

Rather  late  in  May,  the  business  of  incubation  commences,  which  process, 
again,  bears  great  similarity  to  that  of  the  Blackbird.  The  nest  of  the  Ring 
Ouzel,  however,  is  almost  invariably  placed  on  the  ground,  that  of  the 
Blackbird  rarely  so.  It  is  concealed  with  great  care  under  shelter  of  a  tuft 
of  heath,  or  furze,  upon  the  bank  of  some  rivulet.  It  is  composed  of  similar 
materials  to  that  of  the  Blackbird,  with  the  exception  of  no  clay  being 
emploj'ed,  which  gives  it  a  somewhat  lighter  and  looser  construction.  The 
eggs  vary  much  in  shape  and  colour,  but  generally  are  very  similar  to  some 
varieties  of  the  Blackbird,  though  of  a  rather  rougher  texture.  Those  in  my 
collection  are  of  a  pale  green  colour,  with  rather  large  blotches  of  a  reddish 
brown,  and  I  have  seen  many  others  like  them.     I  have  also  one  egg  from 


THE    HABITS   OF  THE    RING   OUZEL.  H3 

the  Yorkshire  moors,  which  is  thickly  dotted  with  greyish  brown,  in  the 
manner  of  those  of  a  Jay. 

The  female  is  greatly  attached  to  the  young,  and  will,  I  have  been  told, 
sometimes  allow  herself  to  be  taken  off  the  nest.  The  young  birds  are  of  a 
brown  colour,  and  entirely  without  the  white  gorget  which  in  the  male  is  so 
conspicuous.  This  has  caused  them  to  be  looked  on  as  a  distinct  species. 
In  the  female,  the  white  is  always  interspersed  with  some  dark-coloured 
feathers. 

The  song  of  the  male  is  wild  and  desultory,  and  hanaonizes  well  with  the 
cry  of  the  Curlew  and  Golden  Plover,  who  are  usually  his  near  neighbours. 
If  suddenly  started  he  has  a  cry  similar  to  that  of  the  Blackbird  in  a  like 
pi'edicament. 

They  are  not  rare  on  various  parts  of  Dartmoor,  but  can  hardly  be  called 
very  common.  On  some  of  the  Yorkshire  moors  they  are  more  plentiful, 
and  I  have  been  told  of  their  nest  having  been  taken  there  among  the  ivy 
covering  a  rock,  at  a  considerable  elevation  above  the  ground. 

If  you  shoot  and  eat  them,  (mind  !  I  never  did  either),  you  will  find  them 
not  to  be  despised.  Yarrell  says  that,  in  France,  where  they  frequent  vine- 
yards and  feed  upon  grapes,  they  are  esteemed  a  great  delicacy.  I  have 
usually  found  that  they  are  careful  to  keep  out  of  gunshot,  and  am  glad  of  it, 
for  I  should  regret  the  death  of  such  a  harmless  and  joj'ous  denizen  of  the 
gray  moors. 

Here,  in  this  smoky  emporium  of  the  cotton  trade,  amid  all  the  abomina- 
tions of  a  large  manufacturing  town — "  deformities  of  brick  and  mortar 
penning  up  deformities  of  mind  and  body " — I  cannot  but  look  back  with 
regret  to  the  sunny  air,  the  purple  moors,  and  the  rushing  streams  of  beauti- 
ful Dartmoor.  Man,  however,  has  better  and  holier  objects  in  life  than  even 
the  harmless  study  of  nature.  /  must  remember  this ;  but  if  thou,  gentle 
reader,  hast  time  and  opportunity  to  visit  the  Eing  Ouzel  on  his  native 
granite,  and  if  what  I  have  written  leads  you  to  feel  an  interest  in  him,  my 
writing  this  will  not  have  been  altogether  useless. 

For  the  present  I  bid  you  heartily  farewell. 

Manchester,  Sept.  7th,  1854. 


THE  SWAMPS  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI. 

By    GEORGE    DONALDSON,    ESQ. 

CCondrided  from  page  85. J 

Before  clearing  out  of  the  brake,  I  determined  upon  killing  one  of  the 
largest  Alligatoi's  I  could  find,  for  the  purpose  of  procuring  his  teeth,  as 
a  memento  of  him ;  and  I  succeeded  in  doing  so.    I  have  72  of  them  along 


114  THB    SWAMPS    OF    THK    MISSISSIPPI. 

with  me  for  your  inspection,  which  will  enable  you  to  judge  of  his  size 
compared  with  the  specimen  from  the  Nile,  in  the  museum  of  this  insti- 
tution. I  employed  a  negro  to  assist  me  in  hunting  up  a  big  specimen,  and, 
if  possible,  the  one  which  ate  up  his  brother ;  for  his  brother  was  lost  a  few 
months  previous,  and  as  Uncle  Daiv  had  his  own  suspicion  of  what  had 
become  of  him,  he  kept  up  a  constant  war  upon  Alligators ;  or,  to  use  his 
own  words,  he  kept  "  icorkin'  on  dem,"  with  the  expectation  that  he  might 
one  day  alight  upon  the  right  one.  Daiv  was  just  the  man  for  me,  and  as 
we  went  off  together  in  our  peroques  early  in  the  morning,  I  arranged  with 
him  that  he  should  return  about  twelve  o'clock  to  the  place  where  we  parted, 
and  by  that  time  the  day  would  be  sufficiently  warm  to  enable  us  to  catch 
them  basking  in  the  sun.  He  hunted  me  up  about  the  time  appointed,  and 
after  giving  me  instructions  which  course  to  paddle,  we  soon  lost  sight  of 
each  other  amongst  the  marshy  islands  so  numerous  in  the  lagoons. 

I  observed  many  tracks  which  the  Alligators  had  made  by  mashing  down 
the  cane,  the  breadth  of  which  was  a  very  good  guide  to  the  size  of  the 
animal.  They  veiy  frequently  form  a  semicircular  retreat  amongst  the  reeds, 
entering  by  the  one  end  and  making  their  exit  by  the  other;  and  as  they  often 
lay  concealed  half  way  round,  it  is  difficult  to  ascertain  which  way  the  head 
points.  Much  danger  is  to  be  apprehended  from  the  tail,  and  it  is  nearly 
impossible  to  kill  them  unless  by  shooting  them  through  the  head ;  and  the 
only  way  to  get  a  chance  of  doing  so  is  by  facing  them,  which  frequently 
is  not  very  advisable,  for  both  the  speed  and  animation  of  an  Alligator  at 
certain  seasons  of  the  year,  are  not  generally  understood.  During  my  stay 
amongst  the  men,  a  party  of  us  went  off  some  distance  to  a  dry  prairie, 
(which  I  called  a  very  marshy  one),  for  the  pui-pose  of  shooting  Ducks;  in 
which  we  were  very  successful;  and  in  place  of  burdening  ourselves  by 
carrying  the  Ducks  about  on  our  persons,  we  stored  them  in  one  large  pile, 
or  heap,  in  order  to  remove  them  at  the  end  of  the  day,  and  on  going  back 
for  that  purpose  we  found  them  surrounded  by  Alligators,  snoring  and 
quarrelling  amongst  themselves  for  the  spoil;  and  as  they  had  eaten  up 
nearly  the  whole,  and  mashed  up  the  balance,  we  discharged  our  guns  into 
the  ci'owd,  and  sloped  as  quickly  as  possible.  Had  it  not  been  that  these 
animals  had  their  supper  provided,  the  probability  is  that  they  would  have 
hunted  us  some  distance, — a  circumstance  which  they  have  frequently  been 
known  to  do.  One  of  the  men,  called  Marsico,  informed  me  that  he  made  a 
narrow  escape  that  very  day,  by  one  snatching  at  him  when  on  his  way 
through  the  brake ;  and  it  was  only  at  the  end  of  fifty  yards  that  he  shook 
the'enemy  off.  The  speed  of  the  Alligator,  during  that  distance,  is  quite 
equal  to  that  of  most  men ;  and  I  am  of  opinion  that,  with  better  footing, 
the  race  would  prove  in  favour  of  the  Alligator.  It  was  a  common  opinion 
amongst  them,  that,  at  the  expiry  of  fifty  yards,  a  man  had  little  to  fear ; 
but  it  not  unfrequently  happened,  as  one  of  them  remarked,  that  the  running 


THfi   SWAMPS   OF  THE   MISSISSIPPI.  115 

was  taken  up  by  another  monster  at  that  distance,  which  entitled  a  man  to 
an  additional  fifty  yards. 

On  emerging  from  a  very  swampy  place,  which  I  had  considerable  diflBculty 
in  getting  through,  I  observed  Daiv  coming  out  of  a  lagoon  at  such  a  rate  as 
convinced  me  that  he  had  found  a  burster,  (a  western  term  invariably  used 
to  express  anything  beyond  the  usual  standard).  As  he  holloed  for  me,  I 
went  skimming  along  as  if  I  had  been  raised  in  a  wigwam.  We  entered  the 
lagoon  together,  and  on  reaching  the  far  side,  I  found  the  Alligator  em- 
bedded amongst  a  quantity  of  weeds  and  sword  grass,  into  which  his 
immense  weight  had  partly  sunk  him,  although  his  head  and  the  greater 
portion  of  his  tail  were  quite  exposed.  We  held  a  council  of  war  as  to  the 
best  mode  of  attack.  I  proposed  several  things,  which  Uncle  Daiv  would 
not  second,  informing  me  that,  when  the  Alligator  did  start,  he  would  make 
for  the  lagoon  by  the  shortest  tracks.  As  this  was  the  only  point  I  could 
see  him  from,  I  was  exceedingly  unwilling  to  change  my  opinion ;  nor  did  I, 
As  no  time  was  to  be  lost,  I  suggested  that  we  should  get  as  near  to  him  as 
possible,  for  to  shoot  him  with  No.  6,  at  fifteen  yards  distance,  would 
amount  to  about  the  same  thing  as  spitting  in  his  face;  and  the  only  plan  to 
accomplish  this,  was,  to  run  our  peroques  over  the  reeds,  and  up  till  within 
five  yards  of  him.  This  could  only  be  done  by  my  getting  into  Daiv's  canoe, 
and  shoving  my  own  ahead.  This  was  the  very  thing ;  but  unfortunately,  in 
making  for  my  own  canoe,  I  sunk  up  to  the  waist.  Daiv  hauled  me  out 
immediately  by  the  neck,  amidst  a  frightful  storm  of  snoring  and  hissing, 
which  the  monster  had  got  up  out  of  compliment  to  me;  in  my  confusion  I 
could  not  get  at  my  gun,  and  on  searching  for  my  knife  (a  bowie  one,  by  the 
way)  I  found  that  I  had  left  it  amongst  the  shells.  I  was  all  right  veiy  soon, 
and  as  the  brute  had  not  shifted  his  position,  I  made  another  attempt  to  get 
into  my  peroque,  in  which  I  succeeded.  I  snatched  up  my  gun,  in  a  second, 
with  the  intention  of  shutting  up  both  his  eyes ;  but,  as  I  could  only  see  one 
of  them,  I  sent  the  whole  charge  into  it,  which  caused  him  to  raise  his 
head  and  open  his  jaws,  (to  allow  me  to  look  down  his  throat,  I  suppose), 
for  the  hissing  and  snoring  which  followed  were  tremendous.  On  turning 
his  head  and  looking  my  way,  an  opportunity  was  aftbrded  me  of  filling  tip 
his  other  03*6 ;  this  was  my  intention  from  the  first,  for  I  knew  very  well, 
that,  if  I  could  shut  him  up,  the  odds  would  be  in  my  favour.  I  loaded 
again,  and  gave  him  two  other  in  the  same  place;  and  the  wallowing, 
snoring,  hissing,  and  splashing,  was  renewed  with  redoubled  fury.  It  was 
at  this  moment  that  I  discovered  the  great  muscular  violence  of  the  tail ;  he 
cleared  the  cane  brake  like  so  much  chaff  around  him,  showers  of  which  fell 
about  me,  and  in  some  of  the  violent  surges  which  he  made  with  his  tail,  he 
brought  it  completely  round  to  his  shoulder,  which  was  veiy  far  beyond 
what  I  considered  any  such  animal  capable  of  doing.  I  remarked  this  to 
some  of  my  foreign  acquaintances,  -who  appeared  all  perfectly  aware  of  the 


116  THE   SWAMPS   OF  THE    MISSISSIPPI. 

fact,  and,  if  I  properly  recollect,  one  of  them  told  me  tliat  a  person  whom  he 
knew,  had  either  got  his  legs  hroken  or  severely  injured  by  standing  close 
beside  the  head  of  one  some  short  time  previously.  I  gave  him  right  and 
left  again,  and  with  the  exception  of  what  shot  entered  his  eyes,  the  rest 
rattled  off  his  head,  as  peas  would  do  from  the  head  of  a  cask.  Daiv,  who  I 
afterwards  discovered  had  partly  retired  from  the' scene,  holloed  out  for  me 
to  "  keep  workin'  on  him,"  and  to  shoot  him  under  the  jaws.  As  he  kept 
lumbering  about,  and  occasionally  raising  his  head,  I  planted  it  all  in  the 
right  place,  and  the  next  barrel  I  shot  down  his  throat.  As  the  enemy  had 
not  yet  surrendered,  I  fired  two  other  shots  into  the  under  part  of  his  body, 
from  which  the  crimson  flowed  most  copiously.  Keeping  my  eye  steadily 
upon  him  I  loaded  again,  upon  the  principle  that  the  best  way  to  prevent 
war  is  to  be  prepared  for  it.  As  he  appeared  rather  overcome,  I  stepped  out  of 
my  canoe,  up  to  the  knees,  amongst  the  decayed  and  slushy  materielle,  with 
the  intention  of  stabbing  him  with  my  clasp  knife  between  the  spaces  of  the 
scales,  and,  if  possible,  betwixt  the  ribs.  Before  doing  so,  I  sat  down  upon 
his  shoulder  and  cut  out  one  of  the  horny  projections  from  the  upper  part 
of  his  neck,  (which  I  have  also  here),  and  by  way  of  completing  his  destruc- 
tion I  stuck  my  knife  into  his  body,  which  caused  him  to  snort  with  such 
violence,  that  I  started  for  my  peroque  so  very  quickly  that  any  person 
would  have  imagined  I  was  in  a  hurry. 

I  must  have  presented  a  very  ridiculous  appearance  in  scrambling  and 
floundering  through  the  reeds,  for  not  only  was  I  up  to  my  knees,  but  my 
arms  were  occasionally  up  to  the  shoulders.  I  called  out  for  Daiv  to  kill 
him,  but  as  he  had  all  along  considered  me  the  greatest  Alligator  of  the  two, 
he  thought  there  was  no  necessity  for  rendering  me  any  assistance.  I 
shoved  my  peroque  before  me,  and  was  soon  in  the  lagoon,  and  on  my  way  to 
the  Shells.  My  sooty  appearance,  arising  from  perspiration  and  gunpowder, 
would  nearly  have  guaranteed  750  dollars  for  me  in  the  slave  market  of  New 
Orleans.  The  emission  of  musk  during  the  struggle  was  particularly  strong, 
and  on  cutting  off"  his  head  the  following  day,  it  was  doubly  so,  from  having 
severed  the  vessel  containing  the  fragrance.  The  following  morning,  at  the 
usual  hour,  I  rose  and  shook  myself,  and  providing  myself  with  my  gun,  an 
axe,  and  my  bowie-knife,  I  slid  into  the  marsh,  and  taking  up  a  position  as 
formerly,  I  shot  a  number  of  Ducks  and  Coots  about  day  break ;  and  about 
eight  o'clock  I  hunted  up  the  fallen  enemy.  As  I  had  no  assistance,  it  gave 
me  much  trouble  to  get  my  peroque  into  its  old  place;  he  was  just  laying 
as  I  left  him,  and  in  the  full  belief  that  I  had  bowled  him  over,  I  went  up  to 
him,  and  with  my  whole  strength  I  struck  the  knife  up  to  the  handle  into 
the  side  of  his  throat ;  he  turned  his  head  immediately  round  and  nearly  caught 
me  by  the  shoulder.  If  I  was  in  a  hurry  before  I  was  in  a  greater  one  this 
time.  I  laid  hold  of  my  gun  and  gave  him  two  other  remembrances  of  his 
old  acquaintance ;  I  loaded  as  quickly  as  possible,  as  the  hissing  and  snoring 


THE    SWAMPS    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI.  117 

liad  commeuced  again  ;  but  as  I  was  not  be  hissed  off,  I  seached  my  pockets 
and  found  one  of  my  rifle  balls,  which  I  put  into  my  guri,  and  with  which  I 
gave  him  the  finishing  touch.  I  burst  a  hole  in  his  head  sufficient, to  admit 
my  hand,  I  then  mounted  on  his  head  and  gave  a  hurra  for  myself;  I  then 
shouldered  my  axe  and  commenced  cutting  off  his  head,  and  as  I  have 
copied  an  extract  from  an  old  letter,  which  I  sent  home  for  the  amusement 
of  some  of  my  young  relations,  describing  this  operation,  you  will  probably 
permit  me  to  read  it. 

"  Of  all  the  scenes  this  must  have  been  the  most  classic.  I  was  standing 
up  to  the  knees  in  water  and  broken  cane,  making  the  fragments  of  bones, 
blood,  and  water  fly  in  every  direction, — a  liberal  proportion  of  which  I  dealt 
about  myself,  and  it  kept  dripping  all  the  time  from  the  rugged  points  of 
my  lojtg  beard,  for  you  must  understand  that  you  would  require  to  look  twice 
before  you  would  recognize  your  ole  imcle,  for  it  is  a  long  time  now  since 
he  lost  sight  not  only  of  his  chin  but  his  mouth  too." 

The  day  was  fearfully  warm,  and  I  was  very  thirsty,  and  having  no  oppor- 
tunity of  drinking  from  a  crystal  spring,  I  took  a  good  draught  from  the 
neighboui-hood  of  my  knees,  which  was  rather  highly  coloured  (of  course  from 
the  operation)  and  resembled  golden  sherry  more  than  water  from  the  foun- 
tain. I  kept  hewing  till  I  cleared  a  way  down  through  the  bones,  and  the 
next  difficulty  was  to  get  the  sldn  of  the  throat  cut  through,  in  order  to 
separate  the  head  from  the  body;  to  turn  round  the  head  was  very  far  beyond 
my  strength,  besides  the  uncertain  footing  I  had  to  contend  with ;  to  accom- 
plish this,  I  sunk  my  arm  up  to  the  shoulder  and  kept  sawing  and  cutting 
with  my  knife  till  he  looked  more  like  a  log  and  less  like  an  Alligator.  After 
some  hard  work,  I  got  his  head  into  my  peroque,  and  just  as  I  was  putting 
off,  a  Turkey  Buzzard  made  his  appearance,  and  after  describing  a  few 
circles,  he  lit  upon  the  admiral,  but  before  he  could  tap  him,  I  reckon  he 
would  require  to  go  home  and  sharpen  his  bill. 

I  got  safely  across  the  lake  and  through  the  creek,  and  deposited  my 
specimen  at  head  quarters ;  the  surprise  of  some  of  the  men  was  great,  for 
although  they  had  all  seen  hundreds  of  Alligators,  they  acknowledged  that 
one  of  his  size  was  not  to  be  seen  eveiy  day.  I  opened  his  mouth  and 
gagged  him  to  shew  oft'  his  teeth,  which  added  considerably  to  his  expres- 
sion, and  in  this  fix  I  left  him  to  pass  the  night  with  a  number  of  Cranes, 
Egrets,  Ducks,  Coots,  and  Racoons,  which  were  laying  in  confusion  all  round. 
The  following  day,  I  split  up  his  jaws  with  my  axe  for  the  pui-pose  of  boiling 
them,  in  order  to  extract  the  teeth ,  and  during  this  process,  I  was  par- 
ticularly struck  with  the  manner  in  which  these  animals  appear  to  shed  their 
teeth ;  it  may  be  common  Avith  other  members  of  this  family,  but  the  pecu- 
liarity was  veiy  new  to  me  ;  in  place  of  shedding  the  whole  tooth,  they  only 
shed  a  part, — the  upper  crust,  if  I  may  so  term  it,  slips  off  in  the  form  of  a 


118  THE    SWAMPS   OF   XHE    MISSISSIPPI. 

thimble,  exposing  the  under  tooth,  accurately  formed  and  perfectly  mature, 
(in  f&ci,  semper  paratus,)  ior  whatever  either  living  or  dead  substance  may 
come  in  his  way. 

As  the  age  of  animals  is  frequently  arrived  at  by  examination  of  the  teeth, 
it  would  be  difficult  to  determine  the  age  of  the  Alligator  by  his  ;  and  from 
this  circumstance,  I  have  set  him  down  just  as  old  as  any  other  Alligator, 
which  corroborates  the  reply  of  an  honest  man  once  selling  a  horse,  who,  on 
being  asked  the  age  of  it,  cautiously  replied,  that  it  was  just  as  old  as  any 
otlier  man's  horse,  being  ignorant  whether  youth  or  old  age  was  the  greatest 
recommendation. 

Sometime  after  this  event,  I  got  information  of  a  very  large  one  which 
had  repeatedly  been  seen  in  a  prairie  bordering  on  lake  Wadchoctaw.  I 
immediately  set  out  in  search  of  him,  but  after  scrambling  for  the  greater 
part  of  a  hot  day,  through  mud  and  cane-brake,  I  could  not  fall  in  with  him ; 
and  as  the  sun  was  nearly  down,  I  passed  the  evening  in  a  marshy  clump  of 
Cedars  and  Cypresses,  listening  to  the  Mocking  Bird,  which  was  occasionally 
intruded  upon  by  the  snore  of  an  Alligator,  sufficient  to  have  rivalled 
Lablache  himself  in  some  of  his  deepest  intonations. 

The  last  few  evenings  I  spent  in  the  Swamps,  I  amused  myself  in  paddling 
close  by  the  edge  of  the  lagoons,  and  setting  fire  to  the  cane  and  long 
grasses,  which  were  previously  reduced  nearly  to  tinder  by  the  heat  of  the 
sun,  and  the  terrific  grandeur  of  these  burning  savannahs  is  beyond  descrip- 
tion ;  this  is  a  common  practice  with  the  men,  not  so  much  for  effect  as 
utility,  for  the  seeds  which  many  of  these  grasses  bear  are  the  finest  feeding 
for  Ducks,  and  which  these  birds  never  can  get  to  unless  thrown  down  in 
this  manner,  the  seed  immediately  falling  into  the  marsh  Avhenever  the 
stalks  give  way.  There  is  abundance  of  feeding  in  addition  to  this,  par- 
ticularly wild  celery,  which  is  in  profusion,  and  well  known  to  be  the  prin- 
cipal food  of  these  birds.  I  must  now  sit  down,  but  not  before  expressing 
my  gratitude  for  the  kindness  which  I  experienced  from  the  men  while 
roosting  amongst  them  at  lake  Cataawatchaa,  one  of  whom,  named  Booteau, 
oflfered  me  the  greatest  proportion  of  his  day's  shooting  the  night  I  was 
leaving,  probably  to  supply  me  with  funds  for  a  game  at  euchar  and  poker, 
two  well  known  games  in  the  West. 

Booteau  had  figured  very  conspicuously  (as  he  told  me  himself)  as  a 
Matador  in  the  bull-ring  at  Algiers,  in  the  vicinity  of  New  Orleans ;  and  sub- 
sequently, kept  a  gymnasium  somewhere  in  the  West,  where  pistol  shooting 
and  the  use  of  the  bowie-knife  were  taught  gratis.  I  took  my  leave  of  the 
learned  Professor  and  his  colleagues  reluctantly,  and  continued  my  journey 
to  Cuba,  the  Blue  Mountains  in  Jamaica,  Porto  Rico,  and  also  to  the  mag- 
nificent and  picturesque  island  of  Haili,  justly  named  the  queen  of  the 
Antilles,  in  constant  pursuit  of  the  fowls  of  the  air ;  and  in  the  last-named 
island,  I  expected  to  have  procured  a  specimen  of  Le  Musicien,  a  bird  called 


THB    SWAMPS    OF    XHB    MISSISSIPPI.  119 

the  Organiste  of  Haiti,  about  which  Jso  much  superstition  and  mystery 
prevail ;  but  fever,  arising  from  misfortune,  completely  defeated  me  in  this 
attempt. 

Mill  of  Boundie,  near  Banff,  Dec.  29f  A  1853. 


Olf  THE  EXPANSION  AND  CONTRACTION  OF  BRITISH  LAND 

SHELLS. 

BY    H.  R.  BOLTON,    ESQ. 

My  attention,  for  some  time  past,  has  been  called  to  the  occasional  expan- 
sion and  contraction  of  our  common  hedgerow  Snails  during  the  period  of 
life,  more  particular'ly  those  of  the  larger  species,  Helix  pomatia,  H.  aspersa, 
H.  arbustorum,  &c.,  some  of  which  I  obtained  and  kept  in  my  own  garden, 
and  find  that,  after  the  animal  has  ariived  at  maturity,  the  size  of  the  shell 
frequently  varies,  according  to  the  dryness  or  dampness  of  the  atmosphere, 
and  plenty  or  scarcity  of  food.  Of  this  I  am  fully  convinced,  from  constant 
observation  and  experiments. 

After  two  or  thi'ee  days  of  successive  warm  and  congenial  showers,  placing 
plenty  of  food  within  their  reach,  such  as  lettuce,  I  have  measured  a  full 
grown  H.  pomatia,  and  found  the  circumference  round  the  largest  whorl 
measure  four  inches  and  nine  tenths.  I  have  then  placed  the  same  animal 
for  twenty  days  in  a  dry  situation,  exposed  for  an  hour  or  two  each  day  in 
the  sun,  depriving  it  the  whole  period  from  food.  After  this,  on  again 
measuring  it,  I  have  found  its  decrease  in  size  to  have  been  four  and  a  half 
tenths  of  an  inch,  measuring  now  but  four  inches  and  four  and  a  half  tenths. 
On  replacing  it  again  in  a  moist  situation,  with  food,  after  a  few  wet  days  it 
has  obtained  its  former  dimensions. 

I  have  also  tried  the  same  experiment  on  H.  aspersa,  the  specimen  I 
committed  to  that  ordeal  when  in  high  condition.  I  found  the  circumference 
to  have  been  3  8,  the  decrease  being  three  tenths  of  an  inch.  This  also,  on 
being  returned  into  the  damp  and  good  keep,  soon  arrived  at  its  primitive 
size.  In  experimenting  on  many  other  species,  I  found  a  similar  deci'ease 
in  proportion  to  their  size. 

I  have  generally  observed,  that  all  our  Land  Shells  decrease  in  size  after 
death,  and  the  animal  is  taken  out,  to  what  they  were  while  in  a  living  and 
vigorous  state. 

Not  having  seen  or  read  any  obsei-vations  in  the  works  of  our  naturalists 
on  this  expansion  and  contraction  of  Shells,  induced  me  to  trouble  you  with 
these  few  remarks,  as,  perhaps,  some  of  your  readers  will  follow  the  matter 
up  further,  by  investigating  how  such  alteration  is  effected  on  what  appears 
to  be  a  hard  and  fixed  substance. 

3,  VaUetot  Place,  Stoke  Devonport,  April  2nd,  1855. 


120 


PisallanMS  ptias. 


Occurrence  of  the  Little  Auk,  (Mergulus  alle,)  at  Barnsley. — On  the  11th  of 
November,  a  curioiis  bird  was  brought  for  me  to  name.  It  proved  to  be  the 
Little  Auk,  provincially  the  Eotche,  or  Sea  Dove.  It  had  been  picked  up 
by  a  girl,  crouching  close  to  the  steps  of  a  house  at  Kingston  Place,  Barnsley; 
no  doubt  exhausted  in  its  long  flight  from  the  sea.  When  placed  in  a  tub  of 
water,  it  swam  and  dived  about  with  great  rapidity.  Portions  of  fish  were 
given  to  It,  with  a  view  of  preserving  it  alive;  it  being  far  more  desirable  to 
study  birds  in  a  living  state,  than  as  dead  specimens ;  being  far  away  from 
its  native  element,  however,  it  pined  away,  and  died  on  the  14th  inst.  The 
bird-stuffer  who  is  preparing  it  for  my  collection,  proved  it  to  be  a  male  bird 
by  dissection,  and  was  struck  with  the  peculiar  internal  arrangements,  dif- 
fering from  any  that  had  come  under  his  hands,  which  he  pointed  out.  His 
ingenious  inferences  corresponded  with  the  descriptions  in  Mc'  Gillivraj', 
Yarrell,  and  other  writers.  From  these,  as  from  Montagu,  Jardine,  and 
Knight's  Pictorial  Museum,  in  some  of  which  are  accurate  plates  of  the  bird, 
I  learnt,  that  it  was  not  only  a  stranger  to  these  parts,  but  that  its  occurrence 
in  England  is  so  rare  as  to  have  the  dates  chronicled.  It  is  not  thought  to 
breed  in  this  kingdom,  except  in  the  northern  isles  of  Scotland.  Dr.  Ed- 
monston  considers  it  a  rare  visitant  to  Shetland,  but  it  is  more  plentiful  in 
the  Orkney  Isles  Its  native  home  is  within  the  arctic  circle,  whence  it  is 
sometimes  driven  southward  by  storms.  It  abounds  on  the  frozen  coasts  of 
Greenland  and  Spitzbergen,  even  supplying  sliip^'  companies  with  a  varia- 
tion of  food.  Captain  Beechy  in  his  Voyage  to  the  North  Pole,  while 
desciibing  the  sceneiy  of  Magdalen  Bay,  on  the  west  of  Spitzbergen,  says — 
"  At  the  head  of  the  bay  there  is  a  high  pyramidal  mountain  of  granite, 
tei-med  Kotge  Hill,  from  the  myriads  of  birds  (the  Rotche)  that  frequent  its 
base,  and  which  appear  to  prefer  its  environs  to  any  part  of  the  harbour." 
To  those  who  do  not  know  the  bird,  it  may  be  described  as  something 
betweeen  the  Razor-Bills  and  Guillemots,  but  smaller,  being  not  nine  inches 
long. — T.  LisTEK. 

Achillcea  tomentosa,  dc. — In  Babington's  Manual  of  British  Botany,  it  is 
stated,  on  the  authority  of  the  Rev.  —  Little,  that  this  plant  is  found  on  the 
estate  of  Auchlunkart,  Banffshire;  but  Sir  W.  J.  Hooker  says,  that  it  had 
been  washed  down  from  a  portion  of  an  old  garden,  about  one  hundred 
yards  distant.  It  is,  in  fact,  a  very  doubtful  native,  and,  like  many  others, 
should  be  expunged  from  the  list  of  truly  indigenous  plants.  Babington 
says  that  Carex  Banningliauseniana  is  found  in  Banffshire,  N.  B.  I  should 
like  to  know  if  any  of  your  correspondents  have  gathered  it  in  that  county. 
Carex  elongata — a  rare  plant — I  have  seen  at  Auchmedden,  a  few  miles  east 
of  the  town  of  Banff.— J.  Rose,  M.D.,  Haslar,  Oct.  20th,  1854. 


TO  ADVERTISERS. 

Advertisements  are  inserted  on  the  Cover  of  Tue  Naturalist,  on  the  following  very  low 
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Advertisements  to  he  sent  not  later  than  the  15th  of  the  Month. 


NOW  KEADY,  SECOND  EDITION,   (with  considerable 
ADDITIONS,)  WITH  A  COLOUKED  PLATE, 

Priee  Half-a-Croivn. 


THE   ENTOMOLOGISTS'   ANNUAL    FOR   1855; 

COMPEISING, 

Notttes  of  tte  i^ebj  Brttigi^  Ensects  UetectetK  in  1854 ; 

Instructions    for    Collecting,    Preserving,   and  Arranging  Insects; 
And  an  Address  to  the  Young  Entomologists  at  Eton,  Harrow,  Winchester,  Rugby, 

AND    at   all    other   ScHOOLS. 


LONDON  :— JOHN  VAN  VOORST,  1,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 


A  BOOK  FOR  EVEEY  SPORTSMAN  &  COUNTRY  GENTLEMAN, 


Now  ready,  in  royal  4to.,  elegantly  bound  in  half  morocco,  gilt  edges,  price  £2 

BRITISH  GAME  BIRDS  AND  WILD  FOWL. 


BY   BEVERLEY   R. 


MORRIS,    ESQ.,    A.B.,    M.D.,  T.C.D. 

MEM.    WERN.    CLUB. 


This  magnificent  Work,  illustrated  with  Sixty  Coloured  Plates,  contains  Familiar  and 
Scientific  Descriptions  of  the  following  subjects : 


Pheasant 
(Jape  oaillie 
lllaok  Grouse 
Ited  Grouse 
Ptarmigan 
Partridge 

Ked-legged  Partridge 
Barbary  Partridge 
Virgiuian  Partridge 
Quail 

Andalusian  Quails 
Great  Bustard 
little  Bustard 
Ruffed  Bustard 
Great  Plover 
Golden  Plover 
Gray  Plover 
Dotterel 


Ring  Dotterel 
Kentish  Plover 
Little  Piinged  Plover 
Woodcock 
Great  Snipe 
Common  Snipe 
Jack  Snipe 
Brown  Snipe 
Sabine's  Snipe 
Grey-Lag  Goose 
Bean  Goose 
Park  Footed  Goose 
White-fronted  Goose 
Bernicle  Goose 
Brent  Goose 
Red-breasted  Goose 
Egyptian  Goose 
Spur-winged  Goose 


Canada  Goose 
Hooper 
Bewick's  Swan 
Mute  or  Tame  Swan 
Polish  Swan 
Ruddy  Shieldrake 
Common  Shieldrake 
Shoveller 
Gadwall 
Pintail  Duck 
Bimaculated  Duck 
Mallard 
Garganey  Teal 
Summer  Duck 
Teal 
Widgeon 
American  Widgeon 


Eider  Duck 
Steller's  Western  Duck 
King  Duck 
Velvet  Scoter 
Common  Scoter 
Surf  Scoter 
Red-crested   Whisthng 

Duck 
Pochard 
Paget's  Pochard 
Femiginous  Ducks 
Scaup  Duck 
Tufted  Duck 
Long-tailed  Duck 
Harlequin  Duck 
Golden  Eye 
Buffel-headed  Duck 


Tlie  great  interest  which  naturally  attaches  to  our  Game  Birds  and  Wild  Fowl  renders 
it  a  matter  of  surprise  that  no  work  has  yet  appeared,  not  only  devoted  exclusively  to  tliem, 
but  which  should  give,  ui  addition  to  the  ordinary  information  as  to  their  history,  liabit>:, 
and  sporting  peculiarities,  accurately  coloured  figures  of  each  of  them.  The  object  of  tlie 
present  work  is  to  supply  this  deficiency ;  and  in  doing  this  it  has  been  the  author's 
indeavour  to  avoid,  as  much  as  possible,  all  mere  technicalities  ;  while,  at  the  same  time, 
the  most  accurate  and  complete  history  of  each  bird  is  given  ;  so  that  the  sportsman  Avho 
never  made  Natural  History  his  stud}^  may  find  no  difficulty  in  recognising  any  bird  lie 
may  meet  witli  in  his  shooting  excursions,  whether  he  confines  himself  to  the  limits  of  tlie 
preserves,  or  seeks  the  more  exciting  sport  to  be  met  with  on  our  secluded  lakes  and  s«a- 
sliores. 

THE  ILLUSTEATIONS 

Are  from  Original  Drawings,  coloured  after  nature  in  the  most  exquisite  maimer.     Alto- 
gether, a  more  unique  and  elaborate  volume  upon  the  subject  of  Game  Birds  and 
Wild  Fowl  has  never  been  published. 

LONDON :— Messks.  GROOMBRIDGE,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 


BRITISH  SHELLS  AND  FOSSILS. 


R.  DAMON,  OF  Weymouth,  Dokset, 

A, 

Supplies  Collections  of  BRITISH  SBj^LS,  pine  specimens,  correctly  named,  100  species 
for  52s.  6d. ;  200,  6  guineas ;  300,  l^^uineas.  An  Elementary  Collection  of  50  species 
(100  specimens)  for  15s.  Specimens  segkby  post.  Improved  Dredges,  for  collecting  Shells, 
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illustrating  100  Genera  of  recent  Shell^fos. ;  Ditto,  of  500,  1,000,  2,000  species,  equally 
reasonable.    Labels  for  recent  Skells. 

Fossils. — Saurian  Eemains,  Pentacrinite,  Ophiura,  Fish,  Shells,  &c.,  characteristic  of  the 
lilue  Lias  and  other  Oolite  strata.  Elementary  Collections  of  Fossils,  to  assist  in  the 
study  of  Geology,  £1.  and  upwards.     Labels  for  Fossil  Shells. 


SITUATipr  WANTED, 

As  Keeper  of  a  public  or  private  Museum ;  Assistant  to  a  professional  naturalist,  or 
exploring  party ;  or  an  appointment'^tcPaiiiy.  situation  requiring  a  practical  knowledge  oi', 
and  a  strong  predilection  for  wha^^fer^etS^ins  to  Natural  History. 

The  advertiser  is  a  middle-aged  man  ;  has  been  long  accustomed  to  shoot,  collect,  pre- 
pare, set  up,  and  classify,  specimens  of  Quadrupeds,  Birds,  Shells,  Insects,  Zoophites,  and 
Marine  Algse,  and  is  a  practical  and  tasteful  Taxidermist ;  and  would  render  ^himself 
generally  useful  to  whoever  employed  him.  It  has  been  his  practice  to  observe  the  habits 
of  animals,  recording,  and  sometimes  publishing  the  same,  and  the  appearance  of  anything 
unusual  in  the  natural  history  of  the  district  where  he  resides. 

Can  furnish  unexceptionable  references  as  to  his  qualifications,  moral  chai'acter,  and 
sober  and  active  habits.     Apply  to  J.  E,,  care  of  the  Editor  of  The  Naturalist. 


MOSSES. 
A  CLASSIFIED  LIST  OF  BRITISH  MOSSES, 

Compiled  from  Wilson's  "  Bryologia  Britannica,"  containing  all  the  varietios 

Sent  free  by  post  for  three  postages,  and  on  thick  paper  for  four.  100  copies  free  b}' 
post  for  ^12s.  6d.  Address  George  Dixon,  Ayton,  near  Stokesley,  Yorkshire  ;  who  will 
forward  the  price  list  of  his  other  catalogues  and  specimens,  to  parties  supplying  him  with 
their  address. 


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JUNE,  1855, 


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A  POPULAR  MONTHLY  MAGAZINE, 

ILLUSTRATIVE    OF   THE 

ANIMAL,  VEGETABLE,  AND  MINERAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    NUMEROUS   ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED   BY 

i  ORRIS,  ESQ.,  A.B.,  M.D.,  T.C.D., 

>-:mb:  wern:  club. 

CORRESPONDING  MEMU-       OJ   THE  NATURAL  HISTORY  SOClExTT  OF  ujLASGOW. 
UOSORARY   MEMBER  OP   THE   LlTERAIiY   AND   SCIENTIFIC  INSTITUTION   OF   KILKENNY. 


LONDOI^ 

MESSRS.  GROOMBRIDGE,  5,  PATERNOSTER-ROW 

EDINBUEGH:  JAITES  HOGG,  4,  NICOLSON-STEEET. 

AND  MAY  BE  HAi.!  OP  ALL  BOOKSELLERS. 


CONTENTS. 

•      .  PAGE, 

Two  Days  in  Wensleydale.     By  John  G.  Baker,  Esq 121 

The  Fishes  of  Banffshire.    By  Mr.  Thomas  Edward 127 

The  Redbreast.  {Erytliaca  Ruhecula.)  By  J.  Mc' Intosh,  Esq 131 

A  List  of  Land  and  Fresh-Water  Mollusca,  found  in  the  Neighbourhood  of  Thirsk. 

By  Mr.  John  H.  Davies       13;] 

A  List  of,  and  Notes  on,  the  Fungi  found  in  the  Neighbourhood  of  Exeter.     By 

Mr.  Edward  Parfitt 137 

Injurious  Insects,  No.  4.     The  Common  Wasp.  ( Ves^^a  vulgaris.)     By  John  Mc' 

Intosh,  Esq 13;> 

A  Memento  from  the  Yare,     By  G.  R.  Twinn,  Esq 141 

Miscellaneous  Notices 142 

It  is  requested  that  all  Communications  be  addressed  in  future 
to  B.  R.  MORRIS,  M.  D.,  38,  Pawcett-street,  Bishopwear- 
mouth,  Durham. 

NOTICES  TO  CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  up  to  May  15th,  from  R.  Andrews,  Esq. — G.  R. 
Twinn,  Esq. — W.  Kidd,  Esq. — S.  Stone,  Esq. — T.  Southwell,  Esq. 

Contributions  have  been  received  up  to  May  15th,  from  S.  Stone,  Esq. — H.  Smurthwaite. 
Esq.— T.  C— W.  C.  H.— J.  H.  Davies,  Esq.— J.  S.  Walker,  Esq.— J.  D.— 0.  A.  Moore, 
Esq.     To  May  19th,  from  M.  J.  0.  Harper — J.  Canafy,  Esq. — C.  G.  Lenny,  Esq. 

Errata:  Page  56,  line  3 — for  "from  the  blue  bed  of  flowers,"  read  "  from  the  blue  bed  '- 
of  flowers. 

„     57,  ,,    4  fi-om  bottom — for  lieges,  read  liege  subjects. 

,,     98,  „  18 — for  brooding,  read  breeding. 

„     99,  „     2 — for  Criophoruni,  read  Eriophorum. 

„    ib.,  „  23 — for  The  Short-eared  Owl  and  Montagu's  Harriers,  read  The 

Short-eared  Owl,  and  the  Hen,  and  Montagu's  Harriers. 

„  101,  „  10  from  bottom — for  peculiar,  read  peculiarly. 

„  102,  ,,  21 — for  his,  read  this. 

„  103,  ,,    1 — for  blackthorn,  read  buckthorn. 

„    i6.,  „  19 — for  lovely,  read  lively. 

,,  105,  „     9  from  bottom — for  blind,  read  bli"led. 

„  106,  ,,     1 — for  it,  read  its  cry. 

„     ih.,  ,,  32 — for  tribe,  read  tribes. 

,,  107,  ,,     6 — for  it  wont,  read  it  was  wont. 

„     z6.,  ,,     5  from  bottom — for  who,  read  whicii. 

„  108,  „     8 — for  a  Linnet,  read  the  Linnet. 

„     ih.^  „  16 — for  Ranks  and  stations,  read  Rank  and  station. 

„  109,  „     1 — for  Nettle,  Tortoise-shell,  read  Small  Tortoise-sliell. 

Received  :  AVe  have  just  received  a  miniature  volume,  entitled  "  The  Power  or 
Example,"  price  3d. ;  written  by  William  Kidd.  Its  object  is  self-evident ;  and  there  are 
so  many  home  truths  in  it,  that  Ave  should  perhaps  all  do  well  to  "  take  a  leaf  out  of  Mr. 
Kidd's  book."  When  Truth  is  set  before  us  in  plain  array,  it  necessarily  induces  thought- 
fulness;  and  this  leads  to  practical  reform.  The  power  of  Example  io^:  good  or  cm,  is 
indeed  fearfully  great. 

The  Editor  begs  to  announce  to  Ihj  Con-espondents,  that  he  has  arranged  with  his 
Pnntt'ir,  so  that  the  Author  of  any  Paper  can  have  copies  of  his  Article  sent  him  by  post 
at  the  following  rates : — 

Two  Pages. 

25  Copies  or  under     2s.  6d. 

50  Copies     3     6 

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Communications,  Braivings,  Advertisements,  etc.,  to  be  addressed  to  B.  R.  MOBIilS,  Esq.. 
M.D.,  38,  Fawcett-street,  Bishopwearmouth,  Durham; — Books  for  Beview,  and  Barceh,  ii^ 
tk«  care  of  31essrs.  GBOOMBEIDOE,  5,  Paternoster- Bozo,  London. 


Four  Pages. 

Eight  Pages. 

4s.  Od. 

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121 
TWO  DAYS  IN  WENSLEYDALE.  ^o^^.-rx^r-.  vS^^. 

BY  JOHN    G,  BAKEH,    ESQ. 

The  surface  of  the  whole  of  the  western  third  part  of  the  nort^i^ing^6,^v 
Yorkshire,  embracing  an  area  of  about  six  hundred  square  miles,  is  nTTGTJniip 
by  a  series  of  moorlands,  composed  of  limestone  and  gritstone  strata 
deposited  during  the  early  part  of  the  carboniferous  epoch ;  culminating 
and  continuous  where,  along  the  borders  of  Westmoreland  and  Cumberland, 
Micklefell  attains  an  elevation  of  2600  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  and 
several  less  considerable  peaks  exceed  2000  feet ;  and  sloping  gradually  in 
an  eastern  direction.  The  district  is  intersected  by  innumerable  dales  and 
ravines,  converging  towards  the  three  nearly  parallel  principal  dales  of  the 
Tees,  Swale,  and  Ure ;  which,  narrow  at  first,  hemmed  in  by  bleak  moor- 
lands and  margined  by  ranges  of  precipitous  cliffs,  gradually  widen  and 
expand,  and  assume  a  more  highly  populated  and  richly  cultivated  character, 
in  pi-oportion  as  the  hills  contract  their  dimensions,  till  at  length  they  are 
lost  in  the  broad  and  fertile  valley  which  fills  up  the  whole  of  the  central 
portion  of  the  county. 

Of  these  three  dales,  Teesdale  has  long  been  celebrated  amongst  botanists 
as  affording  a  favourable  arena  for  their  exertions ;  so  that  its  numerous 
floral  rarities  and  peculiarities  are  seldom  doomed  to  bud  and  blossom 
unseen ;  Swaledale  has  been  carefully  exploi-ed  by  a  diligent  resident 
observer,  to  whose  labours  the  "  New  Botanists'  Guide,"  the  "  Cybele  Britan- 
nica,"  the  "Yorkshire  Flora"  and  its  "Supplement,"  and  the  "  Salictum 
Britannicum,"  bear  testimony ;  but,  since  the  days  of  Curtis  and  Brunton, 
during  the  last  fifty  years,  the  botanical  productions  of  Wensleydale  have 
been  comparatively  unexamined  and  neglected. 

Until  the  present  season,  I  had  not  enjoyed  any  opportunity  of  visiting 
the  district;  and  had  therefore  arranged  with  my  relative,  R.  D.  Carter,  then 
Resident  at  Darlington,  to  spend  a  day  or  two  during  the  summer  with  some 
of  our  friends  who  reside  at  Carperby,  a  village  situated  about  half-way  up 
the  dale.  In  accordance  with  our  agreement,  nine  o'clock,  on  a  morning 
early  in  last  eighth  month,  (August,)  found  me  at  Leeming  Lane  station,  the 
terminus  of  a  branch  of  the  late  York,  Newcastle,  and  Berwick  railway;  duly 
equipped  with  a  pocket  ordnance  map  of  the  district,  Professor  Phillips' 
"  Railway  Excursionists'  Guide,"  and  a  vasculum  of  capacious  dimensions. 
From  the  station  to  Bedale,  a  distance  of  about  three  miles,  an  omnibus 
runs.  Bedale  is  a  small  market  town,  situated  on  Grimscar  beck,  a  branch 
of  the  Swale,  just  upon  the  western  edge  of  the  great  central  valley  before 
mentioned.  But  perhaps,  before  commencing  opei-ations,  it  may  bef/ie^ira- 
ble  to  make  a  few  general  remarks,  for  the  benefit  of  those  who  have  not 
devoted  their  attention  to  the  study  of  the  rudimentary  principles  of  phyto- 
geography. 

VOL.  V.  a 


122  TWO    DAYS    IN    WENSLEYDALE. 

I  have  already  endeavoured  in  another  place  (the  "  Supplement  to  the 
Yorkshire  Flora ")  to  investigate  and  explain  the  manner  in  which  the  dif- 
ferent assemblages  of  species,  called  by  geographical  botanists  "types  of 
distribution,"  unite  and  combine  together  to  form  the  vegetation  which 
clothes  the  surface  of  our  county.  Out  of  a  thousand  more  or  less  strictly 
native  species  of  flowering  plants  and  ferns  which  it  produces,  it  is  there 
shewn,  that  whilst  57  per  cent,  are  diffused  generally  throughout  Britain, 
31  per  cent,  are  absent  from  the  northei-n,  and  9  per  cent,  from  the  southern 
portions  of  the  island.  Whatever  part  of  the  county  be  visited,  it  Avill  be 
found,  as  a  general  rule,  that  it  is  species  of  the  "universal"  class  which 
make  up  the  main  body  of  the  vegetation ;  and  that,  allowing  for  situation, 
the  differences  between  the  aspect  of  the  flora  of  different  parts  is  caused  by 
the  absence  or  presence  of  the  species  which  compose  the  remaining  classes. 
The  flora,  therefore,  of  any  portion  of  the  central  vale,  may  be  characterized 
as  composed  mainly  of  "  universal "  species,  with  a  large  admixture  of  those 
{"austral"  species)  which  run  out  in  a  northern  dii-ection.  Since  the  days  of 
Toui'nefort  and  Bembo  it  has  been  a  familiar  fact,  that  a  district  elevated 
above  the  sea  corresponds  in  its  flora  to  a  level  tract  of  the  country  more  or 
less  further  northward,  in  proportion  to  its  elevation.  So  that,  (to  state  the 
facts  of  the  case  in  the  form  of  generalization,)  a  botanist  who  travels  from 
the  bottom  towards  the  head  of  a  vallej^  like  Wensleydale,  gradually  leaves 
behind  the  "austral"  species,  one  after  another,  as  he  advances;  and  every 
now  and  then,  meets  with  a  fresh  northern,  or  "  boreal"  species,  intermingled 
amongst  the  general  body  of  the  vegetation ;  which,  as  stated  before,  always 
consists  of  those  species  which  are  distributed  throughout  the  whole  extent 
of  the  island.  And  if  he  be  a  resident  in  towns  and  cities,  who  only  finds 
opportunity  for  an  occasional  or  periodical  ramble  amongst  the  mountains, 
he  soon  learns  to  regard  these  boreal  species  (which,  if  confidence  may  be 
placed  in  the  theory  of  the  late  lamented  Professor  Edward  Forbes,  are 
fragmentary  relics  of  the  flora  of  the  period  which  preceded  the  great  glacial 
inundation)  with  feelings  of  pecvxliar  interest.  But,  of  course,  it  is  only  a 
faint  glimpse  of  all  this  that  a  casual  visitor  catches. 

To  return  to  Bedale,  however.  To  occupy  the  time  till  my  companion 
should  arrive,  I  walked  out  along  the  high  road  in  a  southern  direction,  for 
a  mile  or  two,  and  gathered  Polygonum  Fagopyrum,  which  had  become 
naturalised  in  considerable  plenty  upon  rubbish  heaps  by  the  roadside,  and 
Geranium  colunibinum;  and  noticed  a  single  bush  of  Salix  Forhyana,  a  species 
of  considerable  i-arity.  The  Brambles  of  the  hedgerows  there  appear  to  be 
discolor,  corylifolius,  fusco-ater,  nitidus,  and  ccesins. 

It  was  not  long  before  my  companion  made  his  appearance,  and  then  for 
the  westward  in  good  earnest.  Carperby  is  rather  more  than  twenty  miles 
from  Bedale  by  the  shortest  way ;  but  we  preferred  the  plan  of  proceeding  at 
once  to  the  Ure,  the  nearest  point  of  which  is  about  three  miles  from  Bedale, 


TWO    DAYS   IN   VVENSLEYDALE.  123 

and  then  taking  the  road  along  its  southern  bank.  Soon  after  leaving 
Bedale,  we  reach  the  narrow  terrace  of  magnesian  limestone,  which  inter- 
venes between  the  red  sandstone  and  carboniferous  strata.  The  transition  is 
marked  ,by  a  conspicuous  alteration  in  the  general  aspect  of  the  vegetation, 
caused  by  the  appearance,  more  or  less  prominently,  of  such  species  as 
Origanum  vulgare  and  Campanula  glomerata ;  but  we  could  not  spare  time  just 
then,  to  endeavour  to  trace  out  the  change  into  its  primary  particulars. 
Before  long,  we  found  ourselves  at  the  village  of  Thornton  Watlas ;  and  soon 
afterwards,  the  hills  which  encompass  the  valley  on  each  side  rise  upon  the 
horizon,  and  "  Penhill's  pui'ple  top "  (to  quote  the  expression  supplied  by 
our  guide  book)  begins  to  assume  a  prominent  position  in  the  view. 
Crossing  down  to  the  bridge  at  Jerveaux,  we  noticed  Oalium  tricorne,  Fedia 
dentata,  and  Linum  usitatissimum,  growing  in  a  cornfield,  amongst  abundance 
of  Euphorbia  exigua  and  the  small-flowered  fonn  of  Galeopsis  Ladanum. 
Upon  hedgebanks  in  the  same  vicinity,  as  stated  in  the  "Yorkshire  Flora" 
of  Baines,  occurs  Pimpinella  magna.  Upon  the  south  bank  of  the  river, 
about  a  mile  above  the  bridge,  are  situated  the  picturesque  ruins  of  a 
Cistercian  priory,  founded  in  1155,  the  last  abbot  of  which  took  a  lead- 
ing part  in  the  ill-fated  "  Pilgrimage  of  Grace."  Its  walls  are  bound 
together  by  ivy,  and  adorned  with  Snapdragon,  Pellitory,  and  Wall-flower, 
interspersed  with  Hieracium  vulgatum  and  the  tall  wand-like  stems  of  Lactuca 
virosa. 

As  we  advance  thoroughly  into  the  dale,  hedgei-ows  and  septal  flowering 
plants  yield  place,  in  a  great  measure,  to  gray  walls  of  loosely  piled  stones, 
clothed  with  a  vestiture  of  mosses  and  lichens,  thinner  or  denser  according 
to  circumstances.  The  species  which,  from  their  prominence  or  pre-domi- 
nance,  appeared,  within  the  scope  of  our  observation,  to  stamp  the  general 
fades  of  the  muscology  of  the  district,  are  Anomodon  viticidosum,  Tortula 
ruralis,  Grimmia  apocarpa,  Weissia  curvirostra,  and  Didymodon  rigididus. 
Here,  as  in  several  other  places,  we  noticed  two  intimately  allied  Orthotricha 
— anomalum  and  cupulatum ;  and  also  a  considerable  quantity  of  Didymodon 
Jlexicaidis,  of  course  in  a  barren  state. 

At  East  Witton,  the  moorlands  rise  on  each  side  of  the  dale  to  a  consider- 
able elevation;  and  soon  after  the  Ure  is  joined  by  the  Cover,  a  stream 
which  rises  near  Little  Whernside,  not  far  from  the  head  of  Nidderdale. 
Leybuni,  a  smaU  town  on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  which  from  its  elevated 
position  commands  fine  views  up  Wensleydale  and  Coverdale,  w^e  did  not 
visit.  At  Middleham  the  most  renowned  attractions  are,  the  ruined  walls 
of  a  castle— large  and  massive,  but  singularly  devoid  of  architectural  embel- 
lishment— formerly  the  property  of  the  renowned  "last  of  the  barons," 
Warwick  the  king-maker;  and  afterwards  of  Eichard  of  Gloucester,  the 
third  and  last  monarch  of  that  name  who  occupied  the  throne  of  England. 
Here,  as  before  at  Jerveaux  abbey,  and  afterwards  at  Bolton  castle,  the 


124  TWO    DAYS    IN    WENSLEYDALE. 

"Pellitory  of  the  wall"  was  the  species  called  Parietaria  diffusa,  by  Koch 
and  various  other  authors.  On  other  walls  in  the  neighbourhood  occur 
Enacalypta  streptocarpa,  and  a  curious  Bryum,  (probably  a  form  of  pallescens,) 
growing  with  Tortula  tortuosa  and  Asplenium  Buta-miiraria. 

At  the  suspension-bridge  which  spans  the  Ure  near  this  place,  the  high- 
road crosses  to  the  north  side  of  the  river;  but,  following  the  recommenda- 
tion of  Professor  Phillips,  we  proceeded  along  a  green  path  which  leads 
through  the  fields  on  its  southern  bank.  About  this  part,  as  well  as  higher 
up,  various  forms  of  8alix purpurea  occur  plentifully;  and  on  stones  in  the 
bed  of  the  river,  Cinelidotus  fontinaloides,  growing  amongst  Fontinalis^nti- 
pyretica,  and  the  fluitant  form  [O.  rivularis,  Brid.)  of  Grimmia  apocarpa. 
Amongst  some  of  the  hedgebanks  by  the  footpath,  we  noticed  Hieracium 
tridentatum ;  but  searched  in  vain  for  any  traces  of  Salix  acutifolia,  a  species 
detected  here,  for  the  first  time  in  Britain,  in  1831,  (but  not  published  till 
the  present  year,)  by  Mr.  Ward,  of  Richmond,  which  has  since  been  also  dis- 
covered in  Cleveland.  On  the  banks  of  the  river  at  Wensley,  the  multiform 
Salix  phylicifolia,  the  most  widely  difi"used  of  the  "boreal"  willows  in  this 
cou,ntry,  begins  to  make  its  appearance,  intermingled  amongst  the  purpurea ; 
which  latter  principally  shows  itself  as  the  form  called  S.  Lamlertiana  by 
Smith :  also  Rumex  aquaticus,  which  my  companion  was  particularly  in- 
terested in  finding,  as  it  was  the  first  time  he  had  chanced  to  fall  in  with  it. 
Here,  also,  Seabiosa  columbaria  finds  scope  for  luxuriant  development ;  and 
the  profuse  golden  flowers  of  Hypericum  dubium  attracted  our  special 
attention.  At  this  place  we  crossed  to  the  north  side  of  the  stream,  and 
followed  the  road  to  Redmire,  through  Bolton  park.  Amongt  the  woods  in 
the  neighbourhood  we  meet  Geranium  sylvaticum,  one  of  the  boreal  species  to 
which  allusion  was  made  in  the  earlier  part  of  my  paper ;  and  on  the  rocks, 
Arabis  hirsuta  occurs.  The  church  at  Redmire  belongs  to  the  same  fraternity 
as  that  commemorated  by  Wordsworth — 

"  Wythbum's  modest  house  of  prayer, 
As  lowly  as  humblest  dwelling." 

On  crossing  to  the  side,  turning  away  from  the  road,  with  the  laudable  inten- 
tion of  enlarging  our  knowledge  of  archaeology  by  the  inspection  of  the 
"Norman  doorway"  promised  bj'  the  guide  book,  we  perceived,  through  the 
vista  of  the  porch,  that  it  was  embellished  by  a  written  paper,  duly  signed 
and  sealed  by  the  wardens  pro  tempore,  threatening  to  invoke  the  utmost 
rigour  of  the  law  vipon  the  head  of  any  misguided  individual,  who  might 
climb  upon  the  top  of  the  church  for  the  purpose  of  amateur  bell-ringing ! 
However,  we  neither  of  us  needed  to  be  thus  deterred  from  the  exploit 
deprecated ;  and,  besides,  it  was  getting  late  enough  in  the  day  to  induce  us 
to  press  forward.  By  the  roadside  beyond  Redmire,  Rumex  aquaticus  again 
shews  itself;  and,  not  far  from  the  same  place,  a  small  colony  of  Calendida 


TWO   DAYS   IN   WENSLEYDALE.  125 

arvensis  seemed  to  have  temporarily  established  itself.  Not  long  aftenvards, 
the  manor  house  at  Carperby  appears  in  sight,  and  we  were  soon  comfortably 
established  within  its  walls. 

About  a  mile  below  Carperby  are  situated  the  celebrated  rapids  of  Ays- 
garth,  which  present  one  of  the  very  few  instances  in  Britain,  in  which  a 
great  river  makes  any  considerable  sudden  descent ;  and  in  that  direction, 
early  next  morning,  we  pursued  our  way.  Their  aspect,  like  that  of  almost 
all  other  waterfalls,  depends  pi-incipally  upon  the  quantity  of  water  in  the 
river;  which,  in  the  Ure,  a  stream  which  receives  the  drainage  of  a  wide 
extent  of  mountainous  country,  varies  exceedingly  between  different  times. 
At  the  time  of  our  visit,  very  little  rain  had  fallen  for  sevei'al  days,  so  that 
the  Force  was  not  nearly  so  striking  in  aspect  as  it  is  under  the  conditions 
represented  in  the  lithograph  in  the  "  Rivers,  Mountains,  and  Sea-coast  of 
Yorkshire ; "  a:nd  a  considerable  part  of  the  margins  of  the  grey  limestone 
ledges  which  form  the  rapids  were  exposed  to  view,  bearded  with  Hypnum 
ruscifoUum  and  Cinclidotus  fontinaloides,  interspersed  here  and  there  with 
Hypnum  palustre  and  rivulare.  The  steep  banks  of  the  stream  are  clothed 
with  close  thickets  of  small  trees  and  underwood,  in  a  manner  considerably 
resembling  the  High  Force  of  Tees ;  but  the  Wensleydale  fall  is  only  elevated 
about  two  hundred  yards  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  (whilst  that  of  Teesdale 
is  upwax-ds  of  a  hundred  yards  higher,)  and  wants  besides  the  special  rarities 
(as  Potentilla  friiticosa,  Poa  Parnellii,  and  the  Hieracia)  which  supply,  at  the 
latter,  the  principal  botanical  attractions.  Here,  however,  may  be  found, 
growing  amongst  the  thickets,  Hieracium  tridentatum,  Trollius  Europceus, 
Oeranium  sylvatieum,  (i-ecorded  from  this  station  in  the  original  Botanists' 
Guide,  of  Turner  and  Dillwyn,)  Bubus  villicaulis,  Bhamnus  catliarticus,  Serra- 
tula  tinctoria,  Aquilegia  vidgaris,  (in  a  condition  of  genuine  and  indisputable 
aboi'iginality,)  Bosa  tomentosa,  Viola  liirta,  Tritieum  caninum,  and  many  other 
species  less  noteworthy.  Intermingled  amongst  these,  the  oozy  streamlets 
which  trickle  gently  down  from  above,  thickly  impregnated  with  calcareous 
matter,  supply  localities  for  Blysmus  compressus  and  Scirpus pauciflorus,  Sagina 
nodosa,  Parnassia  palustris,  and  Lycopodium  selaginoides  ;  and  a  luxuriant 
growth  of  such  mosses  as  Hypnum  commutatum,  and  its  variety  condensatum, 
(H.  aduncum  of  Hooker  and  Taj^or  in  part,)  H .  Jilicinum,  Bartramia  fontana, 
Bryum  himum,  and  Dicranum  squarrosum.  This  is  the  lowest  station  which  has 
been  ascertained  in  Britain  for  Sesleria  ccerulea,  a  species  which  is  lost  in  a 
southern  direction,  till  it  again  makes  its  appearance  on  the  chalk  hills  of 
Rouen.  Amongst  and  upon  the  rocks,  near  where  they  suddenly  descend, 
grow  Hieracium  ccesium,  Oalium  pusillum,  and  Hippocrepis  comosa — a  plant 
known  only  in  another  locality  in  North  Yorkshire.  Here  also  we  noticed  a 
peculiarly  graceful  Euphrasia,  and  a  Thyme  with  elongated  stems  and  com- 
plicate leaves,  which  is  doubtless  Thymus  angustifolius  of  Schreber.  Upon 
the  edge  of  the  great  fall  gi-ow  Bryum  pallens,  and  an  interesting  Hypnum, 


126  TWO    DAYS   IN   WENSLEYDALE. 

the  true  Jtiivlatile  of  Swartz ;  (distinct  specifically  from  the  plant  given 
under  that  name  by  Brueh  and  Schimper,  which  is  the  H.  irriguum  of 
Wilson's  forthcoming  Avork ;)  and  on  the  rocks  within  reach  of  the  spray, 
Collema  multifulum  of  Scopoli,  {C.  marginale,  Huds.,)  and  Endocarpon  lachneum. 
On  the  miniature  scars  that  margin  the  stream  below,  a  curious  form  of 
Origanum  vulgare,  with  pale  flowers,  green  bracts,  and  prominently  exserted 
stamens,  occurs,  amongst  plenty  of  Scahiosa  columbaria,  and  Hypericum 
diihium. 

In  the  afternoon  we  visited  some  of  our  friends  who  reside  at  Thoresby,  a 
mile  or  two  eastward.  In  fields  below  Carperby  grow  Allium  vineale  and 
oleraceum;  and  on  Ash  trees  by  the  side  of  the  footpath,  Parmelia  scortea  and 
pallescens.  On  the  hill-side  above  Thoresby,  Bolton  castle,  founded  by  the 
Scropes  in  the  reign  of  Richard  II.,  celebrated  in  history  as  one  of  the 
prison-houses  of  the  unfortunate  Mary  of  Scotland,  occupies  a  commanding 
position.  Though  besieged  and  taken  in  1645,  by  the  Parliamentary  army^ 
it  has  suffered  comparatively  little  deterioration,  a  portion  being  still  in- 
habited, and  {^^  Sic  transit  gloria  mundU")  one  of  the  principal  rooms  upon 
the  story  converted  into  a  tinner's  shop.  With  one  of  our  friends  as  guide, 
we  visited  the  castle,  and  examined  it  thoroughly  throughout,  ascending 
even  to  the  very  roof;  whence  we  brought  away,  as  memorials,  specimens  of 
Poa  suhcarulea  and  Achillcea  millefolium.  On  the  hill-side  above  the  castle, 
Hieracium  strictum  had  been  supposed  {vide  "  Supplement  to  the  Yorkshire 
Flora")  to  occur.  Having  been  favoured  with  explicit  directions  to  the 
station,  I  mounted  up  to  the  place,  but  could  find  only  H.  vidgatum ;  and 
have  since  seen  reason  to  believe  that  an  accidental  transposition  has  taken 
place,  and  that  the  locality  for  the  strictum  is  in  reality  Grizedale,  in  West- 
moreland; so  I  consoled  myself  with  gathering  Sesleria  ccertilea,  and  rejoined 
my  companions  at  the  village.  In  the  evening  we  returned  again  to 
Carperby, 

We  had  already  compiled  a  list  of  between  three  and  fovir  hundred  sj)ecies 
of  flowering  plants  and  ferns,  and  should  have  much  liked  to  have  prosecuted 
our  researches  further;  to  have  seen  for  ourselves  the  striking  phenomenon 
of  the  occurrence  of  Armeria  maritima  (normally  a  littoral  species,  but  occa- 
sionally growing  also  in  alpine  situations  inland)  in  luxuriant  profusion  at 
Nappa,  elevated  only  about  seven  or  eight  hundred  feet  above  the  level  of 
the  sea ;  to  have  trodden  in  the  footsteps  of  the  older  explorers  before 
mentioned,  and  verified  the  stations  which  they  have  placed  on  record  for 
various  boreal  species ;  and  to  have  endeavoured  to  trace  out  the  ascending 
termini  of  southern  species,  amongst  the  romantic  and  picturesque  scenery 
of  Upper  Wensleydale.  I  was,  however,  on  the  other  hand,  desirous  of 
reaching  home  again  next  evening;  so  we  parted  from  our  kind  and  hos- 
pitable entertainers,  and  crossing  the  intervening  moors  by  way  of  Hart-leap 
well,  managed  to  arrive  at  Richmond,  just — and  only  just — in  time  for  the 


TWO   DAYS   IN   WENSLEYDALE.  127 

departure  of  the  last  train.  But,  for  my  own  part,  I  can  only  say  that,  if 
spared,  I  have  not  the  slightest  intention,  that  the  short  excursion,  the 
scientific  results  of  which  I  have  endeavoured  to  sketch  for  the  readers  of 
The  Naturalist,  shall  be  my  last  "  two  days  in  Wensleydale." 

Marketplace,  Thirsk,  11th  of  12th  Mo.,  1854. 


THE  FISHES  OF  BANFFSHIEE. 

BY  ME.  THOMAS  EDWARD. 

C  Concluded  from  page  62. J 

The  Haddock.  (M.  ceglefnus.)  Far  more  numerous,  the  Haddock,  like  the 
Cod,  is  extensively  taken,  and  largely  cured  and  forwarded  south.  Our 
Buckie  Haddocks  are  well  known  for  their  excellence,  and  are  far-famed  for 
their  superior  qualities.  Like  the  Cod,  the  stomach  of  this  species  is  also  a 
rich  mine  for  the  Naturalist,  as  the  reader  may  already  have  anticipated 
from  the  foregoing  list.  The  long-armed  Brittle  Star  {OpMoeoma  hracMata) 
is  found  in  abundance,  and  occasionally  the  Daisy  Star.  {O.  hellis)  The 
young  of  the  Sand  Star  (0,  texturata)  in  profusion,  with  sometimes  a 
specimen  of  the  Lesser  Sand  Star.  {O.  albida.)  The  Green  Pea  and  other 
urchins  are  frequent,  with  many  of  the  smaller  and  rarer  species  of  the 
Crustaceans  and  Testaceans. 

The  Bib,  or  Whiting  Pout.  {M.  lusca.)  Frequent ;  but  not  often  brought 
to  the  market,  although  they  are  most  excellent  eating.  The  fishermen 
generally  cut  them  up  and  use  them  as  bait. 

The  Power  Cod.  [M.  minuta.)  Not  known  as  an  inhabitant  of  the  Frith 
until  last  autumn,  or  at  least  not  publicly  made  known  as  such  till  then, 
when  three  were  brought  ashore  here  by  some  of  our  fishermen,  as  already 
mentioned  in  The  Naturalist.  One  or  two  have  been  met  with  since. 
They  are  excellent  eating.     It  is  a  great  pity  they  are  so  small  and  so  scarce. 

The  Whiting.  [Merlangus  vulgaris.)  Often  taken,  but  not  so  much  admired 
generally  as  the  Haddock. 

The  Pollack,  or  Sythe.  {M.  pollachius.)     Frequent. 

The  Coal-fish.  (M.  carbonarius.)  Like  the  last ;  and,  when  young,  great  num- 
bers are  occasionally  taken  in  our  harbours,  in  small  meshed  nets,  and  are 
sold  from  twenty  to  thirty  for  the  penny.     They  are  here  termed  '  Gerrocks.' 

The  Green  Cod.  (M.  virens.)  Though  I  have  given  this  fish  a  place  here, 
I  am  somewhat  doubtful  as  to  the  propriety  of  so  doing.  A  fish  resembling 
the  species  in  all  except  the  position  of  the  fins  and  foiin  of  the  head,  was 
brought  me  about  two  years  ago,  as  a  variety ;  but,  unfortunately,  it  was  too 
far  gone  to  be  of  any  use.  The  fisherman  who  brought  it  did  not  know  it. 
It  was  taken  off  Sandend. 


128  THE   FISHKS   OF   BANFFSHIRE. 

The  Hake.  (Merlucius  vulgaris)     Found  occasionally. 

The  Ling.  {Lota  inolva.)  Fished  for  with  the  Cod,  and  cured  in  the  same 
manner.    When  salted  and  dried  they  are  called  '  Kealing.' 

The  Five-bearded  Rockling.  {Motella  quinquecirrata.J  Frequent  among  the 
pools  left  among  the  rocks  by  the  tide. 

The  Four-bearded  Rockling.  (AL  cimhria.)  Rare.  I  have  only  met  with  it 
once. 

The  Torsk,  or  Tusk.  (Brosmius  vulgaris.)  Taken  with  the  Cod  and  Ling, 
and  cured  in  the  same  fashion. 

The  Great  Forked  Beard.  (Phycis  furcatus.)  This  fish  is  of  rare  occurrence 
with  us,  and  that  only  at  long  intervals.  One  was  taken  in  our  bay  in  1819, 
and  another  off  Gami-ie-Head,  in  1822. 

The  Plaice.  (Platessa  vulgaris.)  Plentiful,  and  highly  prized  by  many  for 
its  very  delicate  flesh  and  agreeable  flavour. 

The  Flounder.  (P.  Jiesus.)  Or  as  it  is  called  here,  the  Common  Fluke,  and 
the  Saltwater  Fluke,  (P.  limanda,)  are  also  pretty  frequent.  In  the  stomachs 
of  these  fish  I  occasionally  find,  among  other  matters,  Tellina  fabula,  T. 
tenuis,  T.  punicea,  (a  most  beautiful  little  shell,)  Natica  Montagui,  N.  Alderi, 
Philine  scahra,  Cylichna  truncata,  O.  cylindracea,  &c. 

The  Smooth  Dab,  (P.  microcephala,)  and  the  Pole  Dab,  (P.  pola,)  are  not 
so  often  met  with. 

The  Yellow,  or  Rough  Dab,  (P.  limandoides,)  and  the  Long  Flounder,  (P. 
elongata,)  are  of  rare  occurrence. 

The  Holibut,  (Hlppoglossus  vulgaris,)  and  the  Turbot,  (Rhombus  maxirnus,) 
are  both  met  with,  inhabiting  deep  water.  They  are  seldom  taken  near  the 
shore.  The  former  is  the  most  plentiful.  The  latter  is  known  here  as  the 
Roan  Fluke,  and  always  commands  a  ready  sale  and  a  high  price.  The  other 
is  called  the  Turbot;  and  though  it  sells  well,  also,  it  is  not  so  valuable  as 
the  true  Turbot,  nor  yet  so  eagerly  sought  after  by  the  higher  classes.  Both 
species  are  chiefly  taken  at  a  place  called  '  The  Bank,'  or  out  sea-fishing. 

The  Brill,  or  Pearl  Turbot  {B.  vulgaris.)  This  species  is  occasionally 
taken  along  with  the  two  preceding,  but  must  rank  as  rather  rare  with  us. 

Muller's  Topknot,  {R.  hirtiis,)  occurs  at  intervals  along  our  whole  line  of 
coast. 

The  Sole,  {Solea  vulgaris,)  is  not  so  common  with  us,  as  its  name  would 
seem  to  indicate. 

The  Lemon  Sole.  {S.  pegusa.)     Rare. 

The  Solenette,  [Monochirus  lingiiatulus,)  is  of  more  frequent  occurrence.  I 
have  found  them  in  the  stomach  of  the  Cod  and  Haddock. 

The  Cornish  Sucker.  [Lepidogaster  Cornubiensis.)  I  remember  finding  a 
small  fish,  on  one  occasion,  where  our  fishermen  clean  their  lines,  and  which 
resembled  the  above,  in  almost  eveiy  particular.  It  is  the  only  specimen 
that  has  come  under  my  notice. 


THE    FISHES   OF   BANFFSHIRE.  1^9 

Tlie  Two-spotted  Suekei\  {L.  himaculatus.)  Brought  on  shore,  now  and 
then,  amongst  the  refuse  entangled  in  the  fishermen's  lines,  and  occasion- 
ally in  old  shells,  such  as  Fusus  antiquus,  Buccinum  undatum,  and  Cyprina 
Islandica,  &c. 

The  Lump  Sucker.  (Cyolopterus  lumpus.)  Frequent.  Known  here  by  the 
name  of  '  Paddle  Cock.'     Not  used  as  an  article  of  food. 

The  Unctuous  Sucker.  (Liparis  vulgaris.)     Of  partial  occurrence. 

Montagu's  Sucker.  (L.  Montagui.)  I  have  only  once  met  with  this  beauti- 
ful little  fish  here,  and  that  but  lately.  It  was  brought  on  shore  in  an  old 
shell.     I  should  think  it  rai-e  in  the  Frith. 

The  Sliari)-nosed  Eel,  [Anguilla  acutirostris,)  and  the  Broad-nosed  Eel, 
{A.  latirostris,)  are  both  found.  The  former  is  the  most  numerous,  aad 
brings  the  highest  price. 

The  Conger,  or  Great  Eel.  {Conger  vulgaris.)  This  large  species  is  often 
met  Avith,  but  is  not  used  as  food. 

The  Sand-Eel,  {Ammodytes  Tobianus,)  and  the  Sand-Lance,  (A.  lancea,)  the 
latter  the  most  numerous.     Both  these  are  used  by  our  fishermen  as  bait. 

The  Great  Pipe-fish,  (Syngnathus  aeus,)  and  the  Lesser  Pipe-fish,  (S.  Typhle,) 
are  both  met  with,  and  are  cut  up  by  the  fishermen  for  the  same  purpose. 
They  are  accounted  by  them  to  be  superior  to  any  other  bait.  A  splendid 
specimen  of  the  larger  species  was  found  cast  on  shore  between  Gardenstown 
and  Crovie,  about  ten  years  ago,  and  was  sent  me  by  my  friend  Mr.  Gordon, 
of  the  former  place. 

The  Worm  Pipe-fish  (S.  lumbriciformis)  is  met  with ;  and  I  should  suppose 
is  not  so  rare  as  one  might  expect,  if  there  were  more  observers  along 
the  coast,  or  our  fishermen  were  more  attentive  than  they  generally  are. 
This  remark  applies  to  many  other  species  besides  the  above. 

The  Hippocampus  brevirostris.  This  rare  and  peculiar  horse-headed  look- 
ing creature  has  been  met  with  here.  Two  were  found  cast  on  shore  at  a 
place  called  the  Sands  of  Boyndie,  near  the  town  of  Banff,  about  twenty- 
seven  yeai-s  ago,  after  a  very  severe  sea  storm. 

The  Short  Sun-fish,  (Orthagoriscus  mola,)  and  the  Oblong  Sun-fish,  {0.  oh- 
longus,)  fiave  been  occasionally  met  with.  Several  have  been  brought  on 
shore  by  the  fishermen  of  Gardenstown,  Crovie,  and  other  places. 

The  Sturgeon.  (Acipenser  sturio.)  Rare.  One  was  taken  in  a  salmon  net, 
in  1844. 

The  Small  spotted  Dog-fish.  (ScylUum  canicula.)     Occasionally. 

The  Tope.  {Oaleus  vulgaris.)  I  am  only  aware  of  two  instances  in  which 
this  fish  has  been  found  within  our  limits.  The  one,  at  or  near  Buckie,  in 
1829 ;  and  the  other  in  1846,  in  the  bay  of  Banff.  Neither  do  our  fishermen 
appear  to  know  it  veiy  well ;  hence,  I  should  conclude  the  species  to  be 
rather  scarce. 

The  Picked  Dog-fish.  {Acanthias  vulgaris.)     Plentiful ;  often  too  much  so. 


i;iO  THE   FISHES   OF   BANFFSHIRE. 

The  Greenland  Shark.  {Scymnus  borealis.)  In  May  1849,  a  large 
specimen  of  the  above  Shark  was  captured  by  some  fishermen  belonging 
to  Pennan,  off  Troup-head.  When  brought  on  shore,  it  measured  thir- 
teen feet  nine  inches  in  length,  and  eleven  feet  in  circumference  where 
thickest. 

The  Spinous  Shark.  (Echinorhinus  spinosus)  Being  down  towards  Gamrie- 
head,  on  the  first  of  January  1851,  my  attention  was  arrested  by  the  scream- 
ing of  a  number  of  sea  gulls  beneath  me ;  and  on  looking  over  to  the  foot  of 
the  cliff's,  I  saw  them  quarrelling  and  fighting  over  a  large  object  floating  in 
the  water,  close  to  the  rocks.  I  stood  a  few  moments,  contemplating  the 
scene.  But  having  been  of  a  curious  turn  all  my  life,  I  could  not  bear  the 
suspense  long,  and  accordingly  descended  to  see  what  they  were  battling  so 
fiercely  about,  hoping  also  to  come  in  for  a  share,  if  it  were  any  thing  very 
fine.  After  a  rough  and  rugged  descent,  which  occupied  the  greater  part  of 
the  day,  and  in  accomplishing  which  I  was  teriibly  cut  up,  I  found  the 
object  of  their  solicitude  and  my  curiosity  to  be  the  remains  of  a  large 
Shai'k  of  the  above  species.  On  mentioning  the  circumstance  to  a  friend,  a 
few  days  afterwards,  he  expressed  his  belief  that  it  was  the  first  instance  of 
the  animal's  appearance  in  the  Scottish  seas.  Be  this  as  it  may,  it  is  the 
only  instance  with  which  I  have  met,  and  our  fishermen  do  not  know  it  by 
the  description  I  have  given  them. 

The  Angel-fish,  (Squatina  vulfjaris,)  or  as  it  is  here  called,  (like  the 
Angler,)  the  Sea-devil,  is  sometimes  procured.  A  large  specimen  was  cast 
into  our  harbour,  during  the  winter  of  1851. 

The  Cramp-fish,  or  Electric  Ray.  {Torpedo  vulgaris )  A  specimen  of  this 
fish  is  said  to  have  been  taken  about  six  miles  off  Loggie-head,  near  CuUen, 
in  1817.     Others,  also,  are  hinted  at,  as  having  been  caught. 

The  Sharp-nosed  Skate.  {Raia  oxyrJiynohus)  Large  individuals  of  this 
species  are  sometimes  taken,  with  the  more  frequent  of  our  Rays.  One 
measuring  upwards  of  seven  feet  in  length,  and  over  five  in  breadth,  was 
captured  by  our  fishermen  about  twenty  years  ago. 

The  Flapper  Skate.  {R.  intermedia.)  I  have  some  doubts  as  to  this  Ray 
having  oefturred  here.  I  may  state,  however,  that  a  small  Skate,  agreeing  in 
many  essential  points  with  the  flapper,  was  taken,  in  a  bag  net  set  for 
salmon,  about  nineteen  years  ago,  and  said  to  be  a  young  one  of  the  above 
species,  and  as  such  I  have  included  it  here. 

The  Blue  or  Gray  Skate,  {R.  batis,)  and  the  Thoi-nback.  [R.  clavata.) 
Taken,  occasionally,  in  great  numbers  ;  the  former  being  the  most  numerous 
and  the  most  prized. 

The  Starry  Ray.  {R.  radiata)  This  small  species  is  picked  up  now  and 
then. 

The  Lamprey,  or  as  it  is  called  here,  the  Lamper  Eel,  {Petromyzon  mari- 
nus,)  is  often  met  ^vith. 


THE    FISHES    OF   BANFFSHIRE.  131 

The  River  Lamprey.  (P.Jluviatilis.)  Considered  rare.  A  very  fine  speci- 
men was  taken  in  the  Doveran,  near  Kirkside,  in  1852,  but  was  destroyed 
by  a  dog  belonging  to  the  individual  who  made  the  capture. 

Planer's  Lamprey,  or  Lampern  (P.  Planeri)  has  also  occurred^  These 
fish  are  generally  termed  '  Nine-eed  Eels,'  and  are  by  no  means  held  in  very 
high  estimation  by  the  boys. 

The  Myxine,  or  Glutinous  Hag.  (Gastrobranchus  cceeus)  This  very  curious 
and  singular  animal,  whether  you  call  it  a  fish  or  a  worm,  is  of  frequent 
occcurrence ;  and  with  it  I  now  conclude  my  long  and,  it  may  be,  uninter- 
esting list  of  the  Fishes  of  Bantfshire. 

This  list,  however  must  not  be  considered  as  anything  like  complete. 
Time  and  attentive  observation,  will  doubtless  greatly  enlarge  it.  Could  our 
fishermen  be  induced  to  pay  more  attention  to  these  matters,  we  should 
soon  have  a  record  of  many  other  species  which  have  as  yet,  perhaps,  never 
been  publicly  noticed. 


THE  REDBREAST.     {ERYTHACA  RUBECULA.) 

BY   J.  MC.  INTOSH,  ESQ. 

In  confirmation  of  the  many  interesting  accounts  of  the  manners  and 
habits  of  Mr.  Bob,  given  in  the  pages  of  The  Natukalist  and  other  works, 
by  our  old  friend,  Mr.  Kidd,  of  Hammersmith,  I  beg  of  you  and  your  readers 
to  accept  of  the  following  interesting  note,  gleaned  from  "  The  Chronicles  of 
the  Season."  The  writer,  after  alluding  to  the  severity  of  the  weather,  says, 
"  an  adventurous  robin,  however,  resolving  to  escape,  if  possible,  the  miseries 
of  cold  and  hunger,  established  himself,  during  the  day,  beneath  the  shelter 
of  our  roof.  At  first,  with  his  peculiarly  rapid  but  interrupted  hop,  he 
ventured  into  the  kitchens,  where  the  warmth  and  the  abundance  of  food 
attracted  him.  Here  the  bustle  and  the  hasty  movements  to  fro,  somewhat 
daunted  his  resolution,  so  that  he  could  only  contrive  to  secure  a  few 
crumbs  before  he  made  his  retreat.  A  second  attempt,  made  \t  a  more 
auspicious  moment,  was  so  well  received  by  the  inmates,  and  so  encoui-aging 
to  the  bird,  that  he  now  fearlessly  ranged  every  part  of  the  room  in  search 
of  food,  and,  perched  on  a  holly  branch  which  adorned  the  wall,  he  sang  a 
few  little  notes  of  gratitude  before  his  departure.  From  this  time,  the  Robin 
was  a  constant  guest.  Early  in  the  morning,  as  soon  as  the  door  was  opened, 
he  left  his  roosting  place,  in  a  neighbouring  out-house,  to  enjoy  the  friendlj- 
shelter  of  his  new  home.  He  became  particularly  attached  to  a  goodly  row 
of  hams,  &c.,  as  they  hung  in  their  paper  cases  from  the  ceiling,  and  he  took 
occasion  to  steal  bits  of  suet  from  the  cook,  Avhcnever  he  found  her  chopping 
any  for  family  use.    His  visits,  which  Averc  at  first  confined  to  the  kitchen. 


132  THE    EEDBREAST. 

now  extended  to  other  parts  of  the  house.  If  the  door  or  window  of  the 
dining  room  was  left  open  for  a  short  time,  we  were  sure  to  see  our  little 
friend  performing  the  duty  of  gathering  up  the  crumbs  beneath  our  table, 
and  then  taking  his  favourite  station  on  the  top  of  an  argand  lamp,  which 
stood  on  the  sideboard.  Here  he  would,  in  general,  content  himself  with 
watching  the  proceedings  of  the  family  ;  and  we  were  occasionally  favoured 
with  a  song,  the  notes  of  which  were  so  sweet  and  clear,  and  yet  subdued, 
that,  for  the  time,  we  were  wont  to  praise  his  name  above  that  of  all  the 
songsters  of  the  spring.  It  was  now  no  unusual  thing  to  find  our  robin  in 
the  sleeping  apartments,  or  in  those  devoted  to  study ;  and  when  it  was 
wished  to  exclude  him  from  either  of  these  rooms,  and  the  windows  were  set 
open  for  that  purpose,  we  were  sometimes  highly  amused  to  find,  that  no 
sooner  had  we  driven  him  out  in  that  direction,  than,  with  his  rapid  flight, 
he  immediately  entered  the  house  again  through  the  kitchen,  and  was  wing- 
ing his  way  up  stairs  to  the  same  apartment  he  had  just  been  compelled  to 
quit. 

For  a  time,  the  excessive  freedom  of  our  guest  was  borne  without  com- 
plaint, and  his  visits  afforded  much  pleasure  and  diversion  to  the  younger 
branches  of  the  family ;  but,  at  length,  when  every  room  in  the  house  was 
subject  to  his  intrusions — when  he  made  the  nursery  his  sleeping  apartment, 
joined  the  family  at  breakfast,  alighting  on  the  table,  and  picking  holes  in 
the  butter, — when  he  not  only  demanded  our  hospitality  on  his  own  account, 
but  brought  one  of  his  acquaintances  to  share  in  it,  and  when  the  tarnished 
state  of  the  furniture  reminded  us,  that  however  interesting  it  may  be  to  have 
tame  birds  flying  about  our  apartments,  it  is  a  pi'actice  wholly  irreconcilable 
with  the  maxims  of  neatness, — we  were  obliged,  at  last,  to  concur  in  the 
decision,  that  our  presuming  friend  must  be  banished  the  house.  But  this 
was  a  thing  more  easily  talked  of  than  done.  The  doors  and  windows  could 
not  always  be  kept  shut,  nor  could  we  be  so  constantly  on  the  watch  to  ex- 
clude the  bird,  as  he  was  on  the  watch  to  come  in.  This  being  the  case,  an 
expedient  was  resorted  to.  The  robin  was  caught,  put  into  a  basket,  and 
carried  to  a  village  about  a  mile  distant.  Having  set  him  at  liberty,  the 
messenger  returned  homewards ;  but  long  before  he  reached  our  residence, 
the  robin  was  at  his  former  post,  and  taking  advantage  of  the  unguarded 
state  of  the  house — had  triumphantly  effected  an  entrance.  That  it  was  the 
same  bird,  we  could  not  for  a  moment  doubt,  for  we  had,  by  long  companion- 
ship, become  so  well  acquainted  with  his  fonn  and  habits,  that  we  were  able 
to  point  him  out  as  "  our  robin  "  when  associated  with  other  birds  upon  the 
house.  Another  week  was  now  allowed  to  pass  by,  without  any  attempt  to 
rid  ourselves  of  an  annoyance  which  seemed  without  remedy.  But  on  the 
occasion  of  a  visit  of  the  family  to  a  country  town,  about  seven  miles  ofi",  it 
occurred  to  the  mistress  of  the  house  that  the  robin  might  as  Avell  go  too — 
that  ho  might  like  the  town  better  than  the  country.      Again  we  succeeded 


THE    REDBBEAST.  183 

in  catching  him,  and  consigning  him  to  his  wicker  prison.  He  was  placed 
in  the  carriage  Avith  the  chikiren,  who  departed  well  pleased  that  they  had 
charge  of  their  little  favourite.  Arrived  at  the  vicinity  of  the  town,  they 
opened  the  basket,  and  hade  adieu  to  the  robin,  half  hoping,  however,  that 
they  should  find  him  at  home  when  they  returned.  In  this  they  were  de- 
ceived, for  we  never  saw  our  pretty  intruder  again.  Other  birds  of  his  kind 
occasionally  sought,  and  obtained  our  hospitality,  but  none  were  found  so 
fearless  and  so  troublesome  as  he ;  and  none,  as  he  did,  ventured  to  follow 
the  members  of  the  family  into  every  part  of  the  house,  and  to  make  them- 
selves quite  '  at  home.' " 
January  2bt7i,  1865. 


A  LIST  OF   LAND   AND   FRESH-WATER   MOLLUSCA,   FOUND   IN 
THE  VICINITY  OF   THIRSK. 

BY  MR.  JOHN  H.  DAVIES. 

I  HAVE  been  much  gratified  at  perceiving  the  increased  degree  of  attention 
which  the  geogi-aphical  distribution  of  our  native  mollusca  has  lately  re- 
ceived, and  have  been  greatly  interested  in  perusing  the  valuable  papers 
upon  the  subject,  which  have,  from  time  to  time,  been  contributed  to  the 
pages  of  The  Naturalist. 

I  am  sending,  herewith,  a  list  of  the  species  which  have  been  ascertained 
to  occur  in  this  neighbourhood,  and  will  preface  it  by  endeavouring  to 
furnish,  in  as  few  words  as  possible,  a  summary  of  the  leading  physical 
characters  of  the  district 

The  north  riding  of  Yorkshire  is  composed  of  two  groups  of  moorlands  ; 
one  in  the  west,  the  other  in  the  east  of  the  northern  portion  of  the  broad 
valley,  which,  running  north  and  south  between  them,  fills  up  the  whole  of 
the  central  surface  of  the  county.  Thirsk  is  situated  about  midway  between 
York  and  Darlington,  five  miles  from  the  eastern  edge  of  the  valley.  Conse- 
quently, a  ten  mile  circuit  includes  in  the  first  place ; — in  the  west,  a  flat 
low,  level,  and  richly  cultivated  district,  composed  of  red  sandstone  deposits, 
overlaid  with  tertiary  diluvium,  which,  in  a  natural  state,  has  been  closely 
interspersed  with  bogs  and  pools  of  standing  water.  Secondly ; — in  the 
centre,  a  liassic  band,  about  five  miles  in  breadth,  considerably  undulated, 
and  thickly  covered  with  wood ;  and  thirdly,  in  the  east,  a  tract  of  elevated 
country,  belonging  to  the  oolitic  moorlands,  rising  abruptly  out  of  the  valley, 
the  margin  of  which  is  diversified  in  several  places  by  precipitous  cliffs  and 
scattered  debris.  But  of  the  district  indicated,  only  comparatively  a  small 
portion  has  been  explored  conchologically,  in  a  complete  and  efficient 
manner. 


134  LAND   AND   FRESH-WATER   MOLLUSCA   OF   THIRSK. 

I  liavc  to  acknowledge  the  kindness  of  various  friends,  in  communicating 
notices  of  stations,  whose  names  will  be  found  throughout  the  list. 

Neritina  fluviatilis,  Lam.  Adhering  to  Utrieularia  vulgaris.  In  slow 
streams  at  Newsham  Carr. —  Wm.  Foggitt. 

Bithinia  tentaculata,  Oray.    Common  in  ditches  and  stagnant  ponds. 

Valvata  piscinalis,  Lam.  Not  unfrequent  in  ditches  at  Newsham  Carr. 
Amongst  Fontinalis  antipyretica,  in  the  Codbeck,  Thirsk. — J.  J.  Binns. 

Arion  ater,  Gray.    Abundant. 

Arion  hortensis,  Fer.  Moist  hedge  bank,  Grizzlefield,  and  in  the  Holmes, 
Thirsk. 

Limax  maximus,  Linn.     In  cellars,  and  under  stones;  moist  bank,  Feliskirk. 

Limax  flavus,  Linn.     Occasionally  found  in  cellars. 

Limax  agrestis,  Linn.    Very  abundant. 

Limax  hrunneus,  Drap  ?  I  found  a  few  specimens  in  a  shady  situation  near 
Thirsk,  which  I  could  refer  to  no  other  than  this  species.  They  differed 
materially  from  L.  agrestis,  especially  in  their  darker  colour,  and  comparatively 
longer  necks.  I  have  repeatedly  searched  the  locality  since,  but  have  not 
been  successful  in  procuring  even  a  single  specimen  again,  and  have  there- 
fore thought  it  best  to  attach  to  the  name  a  note  of  interrogation. 

Lim,ax  arhoreus,  Bouch.  Plentiful  on  the  bark  of  an  ash  tree  on  the  top  of 
the  moor  above  Hawnby,  at  an  elevation  of  about  900  feet ! — Jno.  0.  Baker; 
and  in  a  similar  situation,  near  Feliskirk ! — O.  R.  Baker. 

Vitrina  pellucida,  Flem.    Not  uncommon  amongst  moss,  decayed  leaves,  &c. 

Helix  aspersa,  MUl.    Very  common. 

Helix  hortensis,  List.     Very  common. 

Helix  Tiyhrida,  Pior.     Not  unfrequent. 

Helix  nemoralis,  Linn.     Exceedingly  common. 

Helix  arbustorum,  Linn.  Amongst  nettles  in  several  places.  Under  Boltby 
Scar,  at  an  elevation  of  700  feet. 

Helix  Lapicida,  Linn.  On  rocks  along  the  westex*n  edge  of  the  oolitic 
moorlands,  Boltby  Scar,  WhitsunclifFe,  and  Rolston  Scar,  occasionally 
plentiful. 

Helix  pulchella,  MUl.  Frequently  amongst  moss,  and  at  the  roots  of  grass, 
&c. 

Helix  Cantiana,  Mont.  By  the  roadside  between  Thirsk  and  Thorpfield, 
near  Newsham ;  Rievaulx  abbey,  and  other  localities. 

Helix  fulva,  Mill.  A  few  specimens  at  Rainton  heights,  at  an  elevation  of 
900  feet ! — R.  W.  K.  Long.     Moist  hedge  bank,  Grizzlefield,  near  Thirsk. 

Helix  acuUata,  Mill.  Hedge  bank  near  Boltby  ;  and  in  company  with  H. 
fulva,  at  Rainton  heights  ! — B.  W.  K.  Long. 

Helix  granulata,  Aid.  Amongst  nettles  at  Rievaulx  abbey,  and  moist  hedge 
bank,  Grizzlefield. 

Helix  higpida,  MUl.    Numerous.     In  addition  to  the  normal  form  of  the 


LAND   AND   FRESH-WATER   MOLLTTSCA   OF  THIRSK.  185 

species,  varieties  also  occur  which  may  probably  be  the  H.  concinna  and  H. 
depilata  of  authors. 

Helix  rufescens,  Penn.  Only  two  specimens  have  been  procured  ;  one  near 
Hawnby  ! — J.  Foggitt ;  and  another  near  Thorpfield  ! — George  R.  Bakdr. 

Helix  virgata,  Mont.  Wood-end,  near  Thirsk. — O.  R.  Baker.  Hedge  bank 
between  Thirsk  and  the  railway  station. 

Helix  caperata,  Mont.     Dry  bank  between  Hawnby  and  Rievaulx. 

Helix  ericetorum,  Mill.   Hedge  bank  between  Thirsk  and  the  railway  station. 

Zonites  rotundatus.  Gray.  Not  unfrequent.  In  a  wood  below  Whitsuncliffe. 
at  an  elevation  of  upwards  of  900'  feet. 

Zonites  umbilicatus,  Gray.  Amongst  Encalypta  streptocarpa,  house  roof  at 
Boltby!— in.  W.K.Long. 

Zonites  alliarius,  Oray^  Not  uncommon  amongst  moss,  and  under  stones, 
&c.  R.  W.  K.  Long  informs  me  that  he  finds  it  in  gardens  at  the  roots  of 
carnations,  in  great  abundance. 

Zonites  cellarius,  Gray.    Not  unfrequent. 

Zonites  purus.  Gray.     Common  amongst  moss,  &c. 

Zonites  nitidulus,  Gray.     In  similar  situations. 

Zonites  Ineidus,  Gray.     In  similar  situations. 

Zonites  crystallinus,  Gray.     In  similar  situations, 

Suecinea  putris,  Flem.  Frequent  in  moist  situations,  on  the  banks  of 
streams,  and  occasionally  in  the  water  adhering  to  aquatic  plants.  I  have 
noticed  a  Suecinea  on  nettles,  (roadside  between  Thirsk  and  Sutton,)  which  I 
imagine  may  be  the  8.  Pfeifferi  of  Rossmdsler. 

Bulimus  obseurus,  Drap.  On  decayed  hawthorn  roots;  bank  between 
Thirsk  and  the  railway  station  ;  bank  between  Hawnby  and  Rievaulx. 

Zua  lubriea,  Leach.  Very  common  amongst  moss,  &c.  I  have  found  this 
species  at  an  elevation  of  about  900  feet. 

Azeca  tridens,  Leach.  Plentiful  at  the  roots  of  trees  at  Rainton  heights. 
(Elevation  900  feet.) 

Pupa  umbilicata,  Drap.  Not  uncommon  under  stones  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Rievaulx,  Boltby  Glen,  Flazendale,  and  other  localities.         ^ 

Pupa  marginata,  Drap.  Bank,  between  Hornby  and  Rievaulx,  in  company 
with  Helix  caperata. 

Vertigo  edentula,  Gray.  R.  W.  K.  Long  found  a  single  specimen  at  Rainton 
heights. 

Clausilia  hidens,  Drap.    At  the  roots  of  trees  near  Feliskirk ! — G.  R.  Baker. 

Clausilia  nigricans,  Jeff.  Frequentlj"  in  similar  situations  to  the  preceding 
species.  In  a  wood  below  Whitsuncliffe,  at  an  elevation  of  nearly  1000 
feet. 

Carychium  minimum,  Leach.     Common  at  tlie  roots  of  grass,  &c. 

Limneus  auricularius,  Drap.  One  specimen  from  Sowerby  ings,  near 
Thirsk. 


136  LAND    AND    FUESH-WATER   MOLtUSCA   OF   THIRSK. 

Limneus  pereger,  Drap.  Abundant  in  ditches  and  stagnant  pools.  The 
varieties,  acutus  and  laeustris,  sometimes  occur. 

Limneus  stagnalis,  Drap.  Brick-ponds  at  Wood-end,  near  Thirslt. — J.  Q. 
Baker.     Stagnant  pond  near  Sowerby. 

Limneus  palustris,  Drap.  Stagnant  pond  near  Sowerby. — J.  Q.  Baker. 
Brick-ponds  between  Thirsk  and  Topcliffe ! — J.  Foggitt. 

Limneus  truncatulus,  Jeff.    Not  unfrequent. 

Limneus  glaber.  Gray.  Amongst  Lemna  in  a  pond  half-way  between  Whit- 
suncliffe  and  Goi-mire.    Pools  on  Pilmoor. — J.  G.  Baker. 

Ancylus  fluviatilis,  Mill.  Adhering  to  stones  in  Whitelassbeck,  near  Thirsk; 
in  the  Codbeck,  and  other  localities. 

Velletia  laeustris,  Gray.  My  friend,  J.  W.  Watson,  found  this  species  a  few 
yeai's  ago,  in  a  pond  near  Thirsk.  We  proceeded  together  to  the  place  a 
short  time  ago,  but  could  not  procure  specimens;  and  I  have  since  been 
there  alone,  with  a  similar  result. 

Physa  fontinalis,  Drap.  Wood-end  brick-ponds. — G.  R.  Baker.  Frequent 
in  ditches  at  Newsham  carr. 

Aplexus  hypnorum,  Gray.  Ditch  by  the  roadside,  between  Thirsk  and  Top- 
cliffe, in  considerable  abundance  ! — J.  Foggitt. 

Planorhis  corneus,  Drap.  Plentiful  in  a  pond  near  Topcliffe.  Sometimes 
curiously  deformed. 

Planorbis  alhus,  Mill.    Pond  between  Kilvington  and  Feliskirk 

Panorbis  marginatus,  Drap.    Very  common  in  ponds  and  ditches. 

Planorbis  spirorbis,  Mill.  Amongst  Equiseta  in  a  pond  between  Gormire 
and  Whitsuncliffe,  and  in  the  ditch  on  the  roadside  between  Thirsk  and 
Topcliffe. 

Planorbis  contortus,  Mill.    Plentiful  in  similar  situations  to  the  preceding. 

Cyclas  cornea,  Lam.     In  similaE  situations. 

Pisidium  pulchellum,  Jen.  Brick-ponds  between  Thirsk  and  Wood-end ! — 
O.  E.  Baker.    Ditches  at  Newsham  carr 

Pisidium  amnieum,  Jen.  Pond  in  the  Hohnes,  Thirsk ! — J.  Foggitt.  A 
single  immature  specimen  only. 

Anodon  cygneus,  Turt.  Very  abundant.  Arriving  at  great  perfection  in 
the  Wood-end  brick-ponds. 

Unio  pietorum,  Lam.  In  the  lake  at  Studley  park. — J.  G.  Baker.  Mill-dam, 
Codbeck,  Thirsk,  in  considerable  abundance. 

October  2Uh,  1854. 


13? 


A  LIST  OF,  AND  NOTES  ON,  THE  FUNGI  FOUND  IN  THE 
NEIGHBOURHOOD  OF  EXETER. 

BT  MR.  EDWARD  PARFITT. 

(Continued  from  page  81.^ 

Agarieus  odorus.  Not  common;  one  or  two  in  Messrs.  Veitches'  Nursery. 
Sept.  29tli,  1852. 

A.  dealhatus.    In  pastures  round  Exeter ;  rather  common. 

A.  cedematopus.     Coaver;  rare.  Nov.  1851. 

A.  virgineus.  Meadows  at  Alphington  and  Exeter.  Nov.  1851.  A  variety 
also  occurs,  with  the  pileus  umbonate  in  all  stages  of  growth,  smooth  and 
sated,  as  in  the  true  species ;  the  margin  at  first  entire,  at  length  splitting  in 
several  places,  somewhat  in  the  way  of  A.  rimosus ;  otherwise  it  does  not 
differ  from  the  normal  form. 

A.  ceraceus.  Three  or  four  specimens  of  this  occurred  on  the  lawn  at 
Parkers-well  House,  Oct.  24th,  1852.     I  have  not  met  with  any  since. 

A.  puniceus.  Three  specimens  of  this  most  beautiful  Agaric  I  found  in  the 
long  grass  left  for  hay  on  the  lawn  at  Coaver  House,  on  the  12th  of  June, 
1852.  I  have  not  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  any  since,  so  that  I  must 
consider  it  a  rare  species. 

A.  cocoineus.    Rather  common  in  a  field  at  Matford.  Sept.  1852. 

A.  miniatus.  This  is  a  rare  species  with  us;  perhaps  for  the  want  of  more 
boggy  ground.  I  have  only  met  with  it  but  once ;  and  that  on  Haldon,  in  a 
wet  raised  hUlock,  in  a  bog,  Sept.  1851. 

A.  laccatus.  Rather  common  in  dampish  places  in  meadows  round  Exeter. 
Sept.  30th,  1852. 

A.  sulphur eus.  Not  common.  Three  or  four  in  Stoke  Wood,  April  28th, 
1851. 

A.  lascivus.  A  few  of  this  species  came  up  in  one  of  the  stoves  at  Messrs. 
Veitches'  Nursery,  in  some  fibi'ous  peat,  April  4th,  1853. 

A.  velutipes.  Almost  every  old  stump  is  furnished  with  tufts  of  this  pretty, 
though  common  species. 

A  fusipes.  Immense  tufts  of  this  are  frequently  to  be  met  with,  on  and 
about  the  stumps  of  old  elms.  I  met  with  some  veiy  fine  ones  in  Sir  Stafford 
Northcote's  park,  in  July,  1853. 

A.  hutyraceus.  On  the  grass  plot  at  Coaver  House,  May  10th,  1853;  not 
common. 

A.  compressus.  I  have  not  met  with  more  than  one  or  two  of  this  fine 
Agaric;  those  were  found  in  a  pasture  at  Matford,  Oct.  1851. 

A.  peronatus.    A  few  specimens  in  Stoke  Wood,  Sept.  1852. 

A .  arcades.  Particularly  common  in  almost  all  the  meadows  and  pastures 
round  Exeter. 


138  FUNGI   OF   EXETEK. 

A.  undatus.  This  well  marked  species  came  up  in  a  stove  at  Messrs. 
Veitches's  Nursery,  and  was  given  me  by  Mr.  Taylor,  the  intelligent  foreman 
in  the  new  department,  that  is,  where  the  new  plants  are  placed  when  im- 
ported to  this  country  by  that  eminent  firm.  Aug.  12th,  1854. 

A.  Rotula.  Is  not  common  with  us,  at  least  in  this  neighbourhood.  I  met 
with  a  few  specimens  in  April,  1853. 

A.  androsaceus.  A  great  number  of  this  pretty  little  species  came  up  on 
some  stems  of  grass,  under  a  large  Pinus  at  Coaver,  Aug.  12th,  1853. 

A.  Iris.  This  is  a  very  beautiful  little  species.  I  met  with  several  of  it 
growing  amongst  dead  Scotch  fir  cones  and  leaves,  along  with  A.  galericulatus, 
in  the  small  belt  of  wood  round  Coaver  House,  May  17th,  1853 ;  but  have 
not  seen  any  before  or  since. 

A.  alcalinus.  This  is  rare  with  us ;  I  have  only  met  with  two  or  three. 
These  were  found  in  an  oak  stake  stuck  into  a  heap  of  half  rotten  leaves, 
Oct.  1853.     Coaver. 

A.  galericulatus.  Very  common  amongst  Scotch  fir  and  other  leaves. 
March,  1853. 

A. polygrammus  This  is  a  rare  and  beautiful  species;  the  delicate  whitish 
stem  looking  like  a  miniature  fluted  column ;  and  the  very  white  gills,  and 
brownish  umbonate  pileus,  give  this  Agaric  a  very  graceful  appearance  ;  it  is 
quite  a  favourite  of  mine. 

A.  galopus.  Rather  common  on  Scotch  fir  cones  and  leaves,  lying  on  the 
ground.  Oct.  27th,  1852. 

A.  strobilinus.  Rare.  Growing  out  from  between  the  scales  of  Pinus 
Pinaster.  But  my  specimens  appear  to  be  larger  than  those  described  by 
Dr.  Greville ;  as  mine  were  about  an  inch  £i-om  the  margin  of  the  pileus  to 
the  apex,  whereas  those  above  mentioned  were  from  three  to  five  lines.  It 
is  a  beautiful  species.     Coaver,  Oct,  1851. 

A.  stylohatus.  This  delicate  and  beautiful  little  species  I  have  met  with,  on 
the  rugged  bark  of  elms  about  Exeter,  Dec.  23rd,  1852 ;  but  I  consider  it  a 
rare  species,  as  I  have  not  seen  any  since. 

A.  Venerrimus.  I  have  only  met  with  this  once ;  and  those  were  found  in 
an  old  laburnum,  that  was  pai'tly  blown  down,  and  cracked  in  the  middle. 
In  this  crack  was  an  accumulation  of  rotten  bark,  and  other  debris  caused  by 
wood-lice  (Onisci) ;  and  on  this  sawdust-like  stuff  these  Agarics  Avere  growing, 
and  very  beautiful  they  looked ;  their  delicate  white  fragile  forms  contrasted 
greatly  with  the  debris,  and  the  dark  fissure  in  which  they  were  growing. 

A.  cortieola.  This  is  to  be  met  with  in  immense  numbers,  some  winters 
covering  the  bark  of  elms  for  a  foot  or  two ;  and  a  beautiful  and  curious 
appearance  they  have,  when  seen  en  masse.  I  have  also  met  with,  though 
sparingly,  a  veiy  beautiful  variety  of  a  dark  lilac  colour.  Also  another 
very  beautiful  variety,  with  stem  and  epidermis  of  a  dark  purplish  lead 
colour;  lamella  distant  and  slightly  decurrcnt,  pale  bluish  coloured;  the 


FUNGI    OF   EXETEB.  18d 

whole  plant  covered  with  short  down.  These  were  growing  in  an  orchid 
block,  in  the  stove  at  Coaver  House,  Sept.  1851. 

A.  Fibula.  Not  common.  Found  amongst  short  mossy  grass,  on  the  lawn 
at  Coaver  House,  June  23rd,  1853. 

A.  muralis.  A  great  number  of  this  species  were  growing  on  a  mossy  wall 
on  the  Topsham  road,  through  the  winter  of  1851 — 2. 

A.  inconstans.  Rare.  I  met  with  a  tuft  of  this  curious  Fungus  in  the 
grounds  of  Sir  T.  D.  Acland,  having  called  on  the  gardener  to  see  the  place, 
Sept.  14th,  1853;  and  in  walking  round,  a  tuft  of  this  caught  my  eye,  growing 
on  an  old  elm  stump  sawn  off  nearly  even  with  the  ground.  I  have  not  seen 
any  before  or  since. 

A.  ostreatus.  On  the  stump  of  a  beech  tree  at  Bellare,  Dec.  23rd,  1852. 
Not  common. 

A.  Ulmarius.  A  splendid  specimen  or  two  I  found  on  an  elm  stump  in 
Messrs.  Veitches'  Nursery,  Aug.  30th,  1852;  but  have  not  seen  any  since,  so 
consequently  consider  it  rare. 

A.  stypticus.  This  is  not  a  common  species  with  us,  though  it  appears  to 
be  so  in  other  places.  I  have  only  met  with  perhaps  half  a  score  specimens ; 
and  those  were  found  on  the  pei'pendicular  edges  of  flower  beds  on  the  grass, 
probably  springing  from  dead  roots  of  grass  that  are  cut  through  by  the 
edging  knife.     Sept.  1853. 

Exeter,  Sept.  30<fe,  1854. 


INJURIOUS  INSECTS,  No.  IV. 
THE  COMMON  WASP.  {VESPA  VULGARIS,  L) 

BY  J.  MC'  INTOSH,  ESQ. 

(Continued  from  page  34.J 

Before  proceeding  with  the  materials  employed  by  the  common  Wasp  in 
the  construction  of  its  dwelling,  it  will,  perhaps,  not  be  amiss  to  lay  before 
the  readers  of  The  Naturalist  some  account  of  the  destruction  committed 
by  this  insect  on  the  productions  of  the  horticulturist ;  and,  astonishing  as 
they  may  appear,  they  will  be  found  in  the  whole  to  be  pretty  correct. 

In  the  "Illustrated  London  News"  of  the  20th  of  July,  1848,  it  is  stated, 
that  Sir  John  Lubbock,  Bart.,  of  High  Elms,  Down  Kent,  having  some  time 
since  commissioned  the  North  End  schoolmaster  to  give  a  penny  for  every 
Wasp  brought  to  him,  he  had  taken,  in  all,  1,600  Wasps,  exclusive  of  those 
that  had  been  caught  by  various  persons  about  Sir  John's  estate.  Eveiy 
Wasp  destroyed  is  a  nest  annihilated,  at  this  period  of  the  year;   and, 


140  INJURIOUS   INSECTS. 

allowing  one  in  five  to  be  male,  there  are  no  less  than  1,280  nests  destroyed. 
Granting  that  the  breeders  produce,  on  an  average,  1,000  young,  there  will 
be  1,280,000  young  destroyed ;  which,  with  the  pax-ent  Wasps,  form  1,281,600 
— the  total  number  which  the  vicinity  of  High  Elms  has  been  freed  from. 
Supposing  (which  is  within  compass)  that  every  half  dozen  wasps  destroy 
2  apples,  2  plums,  1  peach,  1  pear;  the  fruit  thus  saved  from  destruction 
would  be— apples,  427,200 ;  plums,  427,200 ;  peaches,  213,600 ;  pears,  213,600. 
Keckoning  the  apples  at  10  a  penny,  plums  24  do.,  peaches  2  do.,  pears  12  do.; 
we  have  the  money  saved,  thus — in  apples,  ^173 ;  in  plums,  ^74.  3s.  4d. ;  in 
peaches,  ^445;  in  pears,  ^76.  3s.  4d. ;  total,  ^771.  6s.  8d.! 

Again  :  The  "  Gardeners  and  Farmers'  Journal "  for  July,  1848,  states  that 
the  Earl  of  Traquair,  in  Scotland,  has  for  many  years  been  in  the  habit  of 
giving  a  premium  of  threepence  per  dozen  to  the  children  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood, in  the  months  of  April  and  May;  and  that  the  present  has  not 
been  a  barren  season,  the  following  account  will  show.  The  children  are 
directed  to  attend  in  the  ancient  hall  of  Traquair  on  certain  days,  when  they 
are  drawn  up  rank  and  file,  like  a  regiment  of  soldiers,  with  their  bags  in 
hand,  filled  with  their  tiny  game.  Beginning  at  one  end  of  the  line,  the 
Wasps  are  all  counted,  and  immediately  the  young  sportsman  is  paid  ready 
cash  for  the  booty  produced;  when  off  he  goes,  like  a  lamp-lighter,  ready  to 
renew  the  sport.  On  the  6th  of  May,  22  girls  presented  219  dozens,  (one  of 
them  had  24  dozens,)  weighing  11  ounces :  9th  of  May,  24  boys  brought  380 J 
dozens,  weighing  18  ounces;  one  boy  had  34  dozens:  13th  of  May,  23  girls 
brought  375  dozens,  weighing  20  ounces;  one  fortunate  girl  had  43  dozens, 
being  the  highest  number  taken  by  one  person  that  season :  16th  of  May, 
9  boys  brought  111|^  dozens,  weighing  6  ounces;  the  highest  number  being 
26^  dozens :  20th  of  May,  31  girls  brought  151^  dozens,  weighing  7^  ounces. 
The  total,  in  round  numbers,  and  weight,  was,  14,750,  or  1,237^  dozens, 
weighing  63  ounces. 

Now,  by  following  the  rules  of  calculation  adopted  in  Kent,  let  us  see 
what  desti-uction  such  a  batch  of  Wasps  might  have  effected.  It  will  be 
observed,  that  there  was  considerably  more  than  nine  times  the  number  of 
Wasps  killed  at  Traquair  that  were  killed  in  Kent;  consequently,  the  loss  in 
fruit  and  honey  must  have  been  quite  beyond  conception.  In  apples  it 
would  be  3,844,800,  in  plums  3,844,800,  in  pears  1,922,400.  As  very  few 
peaches  are  cultivated  out  of  doors  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Ti-aquair,  we 
will  place  apricots  in  their  place,  and  at  the  same  time  give  the  crop  of 
cherries  into  the  bargain;  we  have  the  number  of  apricots,  1,922,400.  It  is 
well  known,  that  a  strong  nest  of  Wasps  will,  in  eight  or  ten  days,  render 
the  best  bee-hive  useless.  But,  leaving  the  loss  of  honey  out  of  our  calcula- 
tion, let  us  glance  at  the  loss  of  money  for  fruit  alone.  In  apples,  at  10  a 
penny,  ^£1,602;  in  plums,  24  do.,  ^£647  10s.;  in  apricots,  ^£4,105;  in  pears, 
12  do.,  ^647  10s.:  total,  .567,002!! 


INJURIOUS   INSECTS.  141 

What  I  have  stated  above  will  be  sufficient  to  show  how  destructive  must 
be  the  common  Wasp  to  cultivated  fruits.  They  also  love  to  lodge  them- 
selves in  the  neighbourhood  of  Bees.  We  have  known  a  queen  Wasp  force 
its  way  into  a  strong  bee-hive,  and  not  only  commence  building,  but  carry 
on  its  labour;  the  lawful  owners  diminishing  in  number  as  the  Wasps  in- 
creased; till  at  last  the  hive  was  destroyed,  and  the  Wasps  became  the 
tenants  for  a  time ;  when  a  dose  of  sulphur  put  an  end  to  their  right  of 
possession — in  fact,  to  their  lives  ! 

Peace  does  not  always  reign  in  the  societies  of  Wasps  Combats  often 
take  place  among  the  workers,  or  between  them  and  the  males ;  the  last 
individuals  are  more  cowardly  or  weaker  than  the  others.  These  combats 
are  seldom  fatal:  yet,  however,  we  have  watched  them  at  battle,  and  the 
result  has  been  the  death  of  the  weaker  one,  the  victor  carrying  off  the  head 
of  his  enemy  in  triumph  !  We  have  even  seen  them  set  to  work  to  carve  up, 
and  eat  piecemeal,  their  fallen  foe,  with  the  dispatch  of  a  cannibal.  . 

5,  Middle-street,  Taunton. 


A  MEMENTO  FEOM  THE  YARE. 

BY   G.  R.  TWINN,   ESQ- 

(Contimied  from  page  277,  vol.  iv.^ 

The  noon  of  the  22nd  of  June,  1854,  found  me  enjoying  the  hospitality  of 
as  kind  a  family  as  ever  God  planted  on  his  lovely  earth.  Not  only  were  the 
good  people  devoted  to  the  natural  stock  of  their  farm-yard,  but  they  had  a 
love  and  sympathy  for  all  living  things. 

"  He  prayeth  best,  who  loveth  beat  » 

All  things,  both  great  and  small." 

A  more  observant  out-door  naturalist  than  Mr.  P.,  I  at  present  am  not 
acquainted  with.  Both  he  and  his  dear  partner  are  never  happier,  than  when 
making  others  happy.  Canaries,  a  globe  of  Gold  and  Silver  Fish,  Spanish 
Fowls,  Golden  Pheasants,  pet  Lambs,  and  a  host  of  other  living  creatures 
were  there  to  amuse.  Preserved  birds,  (among  them  a  very  large  Heron,) 
and  a  fine  Otter,  (obtained  from  the  Yare,  that  meanders  through  their 
meadows,)  were  among  the  dead  creatures,  to  aflford  delight  and  instruction. 
Very  many  remarks  and  jottings  were  offered  me  by  the  good  people,  who 
had  a  fund  of  information  in -connection  with  each  object. 

In  the  afternoon,  we  rowed  down  the  Yare,  amid  the  richest  foliage 
and  most  lovely  scenery ;  gathering  the  Water  Lily  {Nymplicea  alba)  in  all  its 
beauty,  the  Water  Rush,  and  Arrow-head.    {Scirpus,  et  Sa^gitta  sagittifolia.) 


143  A    MEMENTO    FROM    THE    YARE. 

The  Water  Iris  {Iris  pseudacorus)  grew  among  the  reedy  jungles,  and  we  bi'ought 
home  bunches  of  it.  One  stem  I  obtained  had  eight  flowers  on,  and  was 
nearly  four  feet  high.  We  moved  occasionally,  or  rather  stopped,  to  secure  a 
nest  from  the  overhanging  boughs ;  that  of  a  Chafiinch  with  young,  a  Thrush's 
with  young,  nearly  half  a  score  of  the  Keed  Warbler's  we  met  with,  and  two 
of  the  Eeed  Sparrow.  In  a  hollow  recess,  at  the  very  top  of  a  sere  and  dead 
ash,  a  Green  Woodpecker  had  its  home  all  snug.  We  passed  a  party  angling 
for  Trout;  and  soon  left  them,  to  return  on  our  way  home  for  the  welcome 
tea,  so  characteristic  of  Norfolk  farm-houses,  where  an  abundance  of  good 
cream  is  ever  ready  and  most  inviting. 

After  this  repast,  the  kind  yeoman  took  his  hand-nets,  and  conducted  us 
into  the  meads,  to  a  little  runnel  that  seeks  the  Yare,  about  five  feet  wide, 
and  far  from  deep.  The  nets  were  cast,  and  his  own  promised  well ;  but, 
alas,  by  some  means,  all  escaped ;  and  they  appeared  very  fine  fish,  too,  to 
render  our  mortification  more  acute  :  but  the  net  employed  by  his  nephew,  a 
young  man  who  most  keenly  enjoyed  the  sport,  was  well  towed  and  managed. 
Surrounding  it  with  a  second  net  to  prevent  escape,  the  heavy  drag  soon  told 
of  the  spoil,  very  quickly  to  be  secured.  With  care  and  great  caution,  he 
landed  six  of  the  finest  Bream  imaginable,  of  a  thick  gi-owth,  and  well- 
conditioned  ;  the  average  weight  was  not  quite  seven  pounds  each.  It  was  an 
excellent  haul  for  a  small  hand-net,  and  gladdened  our  hearts ;  for  it  repaid 
the  previous  disappointment. 

I  carried  one  of  them  into  Essex  on  the  Saturday,  June  24th;  when  I  left, 
with  a  sorrowful  look  on  old  haunts  and  places  endeared  to  me ;  but  with  a 
satisfied  breast  at  the  warm  treatment  I  had  received  from  friends,  and  with 
a  rich  acquaintance  of  Nature's  beauty  and  God's  love,  amid  which,  for  the 
week  I  had  been  luxuriating. 

Just  as  I  started  for  the  train,  a  small  packet  was  put  into  my  hands ;  and 
it  contained  a  nice  root  of  the  Asplenium  Ruta-muraria,  or  Wall-rue,  from 
Bawburgh  church.     It  is  now  flourishing  capitally.     Sunny  Yare,  adieu ! 

The  Elms,  Moseley  Road,  Birmingham, 
Dec.  eth,  1854. 


On  the  Instinct  and  Communicative  Powers  of  the  Horse. — According  to  pro- 
mise, I  send  thee  the  anecdote  respecting  the  sagacity  of  the  Horse : — 
When  a  boy,  being  at  Whitechurch,  near  Blandford,  Dorset,  I  noticed  two 
cart-horses  that  were  driven  from  a  farm-yard  to  drink.  The  brook  was 
frozen  over,  and  one  horse  struck  with  his  foot  to  break  the  ice,  but  it  was 
too  hard  to  yield.      The  two  horses  then,  standing  side  by  side,  lifted  each 


MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES.  143 

a  foot  simultaneously,  and  causing  their  hoofs  to  descend  together,  the 
united  impulse  broke  the  ice.  Men  are  aware  that  "  union  is  strength ;" 
but  men  could  not  have  done  better.  Alexander  Pope  speaks  of  the  "  half- 
reasoning  Elephant ;"  would  not  facts,  such  as  the  above,  justify  the  epithet, 
"fully  reasoning  hox-se?" — W.  L.  Bellows,  Redruth,  20th  of  12th  month, 
1854. 

Late  appearance  of  the  Martin.  (Hirundo  urbica.) — November  19th, — A 
couple  of  young  birds  were  flying  about  at  East  Looe  to-day,  during  a  cold 
east  wind,  with  bright  sunshine. — Clement  Jackson,  East  Looe,  Cornwall, 
1st  month,  13th,  1855. 

Notes  on  the  Swift.  (Cypselus  apus.) — From  the  observations  of  many 
years,  made  at  East  Looe,  these  birds  appear  to  be  very  regular  in  their 
migrations,  being  first  observed  on  the  1st  of  May,  and  last  seen  on  the  12th 
of  August,  within  a  day  or  two  of  each  date.  About  the  beginning  of 
August,  I  have  often  observed  them,  in  considerable  numbers,  flying  high 
during  fine  weather,  as  if  exercising  their  young  previous  to  departure. 
July  12th,  1854, — I  observed  a  flight  of  about  twenty  pairs  busily  hawking 
about  our  hill ;  and  during  the  latter  pai't  of  the  month,  found  them  very 
abundant  at  Hereford  and  the  adjacent  villages.  August  10th, — Saw  a  lot  at 
Evesham,  after  which,  although  always  on  the  look  out,  did  not  see  anymore 
till  August  29th ;  a  pair  were  actively  flying  about  at  Leamington,  where  they 
continued  for  some  days.  September  2nd, — Saw  a  single  Swift  fly  into  a 
hole,  in  the  ruins  of  Kenilworth  castle,  and  watched  it  out  again,  to  make 
sure  of  its  identity.  September  22nd, — Whilst  walking  on  the  walls  of 
Chester,  saw  a  single  Swift  in  erratic  flight,  like  a  pilgrim  who  had  lost  his 
way,  and  was  ill  at  ease  keeping  apart  from  the  numerous  Swallows  on  the 
wing. — Clement  Jackson,  East  Looe,  Cornwall,  1st  month,  13th,  1855. 

Arrival  of  the  Hirundines,  Sc.,  at  Minehead,  Somerset,  in  1854. — By  Major 
Giflbrd.  Sand  Martin.  (Hirundo  riparia.) — Apiil  12th.  Swallow.  (Hirundo 
rustica.) — April  14th  one  seen,  and  several  on  the  17th.  Cuchoo.  (Cuculus 
canorus.) — April  19th.  Martin.  (Hirundo  urbica.) — April  25th,  saw  several. 
Sioift.  (Cypselus  apus.) — May  1st,  one  flying  over  the  market-place.  Time  of 
departure  in  1854. — Saw  no  Swifts  after  the  7th  August.  The  Martins  and 
Swallows  seemed  to  leave  about  the  9th  October ;  but  on  the  19tli  instant, 
the  Martins  re-appeared  in  considerable  numbers,  and  remained  up  to  the 
28th  instant.  In  1853,*  no  Swifts  were  seen  after  the  12th  August,  and  the 
Martins  and  Swallows  left  about  the  12th  October. 

Egyptian  Ooose  (Anser  Egyptiacus.) — A  fine  specimen  of  this  bird  was 
sent  to  me  a  few  weeks  back.    It  Avas  shot  on  the  Trent,  near  Repton  — F.  N. 

Burton,  Uppingham,  Rutland,  12th  March,  1855. We  should  be  glad  of 

further  particulars  as  to  this  bird  ;  especially  whether  it  had  the  appearance 
of  a  wild  bird,  or  of  one  escaped  from  confinement. — B.  R.  M. 
•  See  The  Naturalist,  vol.  iii.  p.  203. 


144  MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES. 

Oceurrenee  of  the  Iceland  Oull,  and  other  scarce  birds,  in  the  iieiglibouiliood 
of  Plymouth,  during  the  severe  frost  of  January  and  February,  1855.  The 
Iceland  Oull  (Larus  leucopterus)  was  obtained  by  the  Rev.  R.  A.  Julian,  Jan. 
30th,  on  the  Laira.  This  species  is  far  less  frequent  with  us  than  Larus 
glaucus.  Indeed,  the  only  specimen  I  know  of,  killed  in  this  locality,  is  in 
the  collection  of  Dr.  Moore,  of  Plymouth,  where  it  has  been  for  many  years. 
During  the  late  severe  weather,  some  fine  examples  of  the  Gadwall,  Goos- 
ander, and  Smew  have  been  killed ;  also  many  Bitterns.  The  cold  appears 
to  have  had  great  effect  on  the  Common  Heron,  from  the  unusual  quantity 
received  by  the  Taxidermists  of  Plymouth  for  preservation. — John  Gat- 
combe,,  Wyndham-Place,  Plymouth,  March  10th,  1855. 

A  Greater  Shearivater  (Puftinus  major)  was  taken  alive,  in  Skinner  Lane, 
Leeds,  October  6th,  1854. — R.  Hobson,  M.D.,  Leeds. 

Rare  Birds  near  Worcester. — A  few  days  since,  I  killed  near  this  place  a 
specimen  of  the  Girl  Bunting.  [Emleriza  Cirlus.)  it  was  a  male,  and  was 
feeding  on  seeds  with  a  flock  of  Emberiza  citrinella.  A  specimen  of  the  Orto- 
lan, {Emberiza  schceniclus,)  [Quere,  E.  Hortulana,  B.B.M.,]  was  also  shot  by  a 
friend  a  short  time  ago,  amongst  others  of  the  yellow  species.  These  are 
the  only  individuals  of  their  species  I  have  yet  seen  in  this  neighbour- 
hood, but  I  am  incHned  to  believe  they  are  much  more  numerous  than  is 
generally  supposed,  and  are  by  most  persons  confounded  with  the  commoner 
species,  owing  to  their  great  resemblance.  In  the  month  of  March  last, 
a  gamekeeper  brought  me  two  male  Ring  Ouzels,  {Turdus  torquatus)  which 
he  had  shot  on  Broadway  Hill.  He  had  never  seen  birds  like  them  before, 
and  called  them  "  fancy  blackbirds."  The  only  other  specimen  of  this  bird 
I  have  seen  here,  was  Idlled  some  years  ago,  in  the  autumn ;  so  that  they 
were  only  migrating  stragglers. — J.  N.  Beadles,  Surgeon,  Broadway,  Worces- 
tershire, Dec.  6th,  1854. 

Occurrence  of  Bare  Birds  at  Bedcar. — Five  specimens  of  the  Grey  Phal- 
arope  (Phalaropus  lobatus)  were  killed  here  during  the  months  of  November 
and  December,  and  other  two  seen  about  a  fortnight  ago.  A  fine  specimen 
of  that  very  rare  bird,  the  Shore  Larh,  (Alauda  alpestris,)  and  a  fine  imma- 
ture specimen  of  the  Iceland  Gull  (Larus  Icelandicus)  were  also  killed. — 
T.  S.  RuDD,  Redcar,  17th  Jan.  1855. 

jTlie  Wolf  Fish.  {Anarrhichus  lupus.) — This  fish  is  veiy  common  here,  and 
agrees  in  size  with  those  of  your  correspondent.  Our  fishermen  generally 
call  them  "WaufFs,"  and  (alas!  in  these  days  of  education)  appear  to  enter- 
tain some  little  degree  of  superstition  as  to  selling  them ;  they  invariably 
divide  the  captui-ed  fish  amongst  their  mates,  and  undoubtedly  they  well 
know  its  richness. — D.  Feeguson,  Redcar,  Oct.  5th,  1854. 


NOW  READY,  SECOND  EDITION,   (with  considerable 

ADDITIONS,)  WITH  A  COLOURED  PLATE, 

Price  Half-a-Croicn. 


THE   ENTOMOLOGISTS'   ANNUAL    FOR   1855; 

COJIPRISIXG, 

Notices  of  tfje  i^eUj  Brittsi^  Ensects  OetectetJ  m  1854 ; 

Instructions    for    Coll7«:cting,    Pbeserving,    and  Arranging  Insects; 

Anu  an  Address  to  the  Young  {Entomologists  at  Eton,  Harkow,  Wincuestek,  Rugby, 
and  at  all  other  schools. 


LONDON :— JOHN  VAN  VOORST,  1,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 

KIDD'S 
FRIENDLY   APPEALS   TO    "THE   PEOPLE." 


Honesty  needs  no  disguise,  nor  ornament. — Otway. 


Now  in  course  of  Publication,  Price  id.  (Post-free  (kl.J  each- 

No.  L— "AM  I  RIGHT?" 

No.  2.— "WHAT  DO  I  LIVE  FOR?" 

No.  3.— "W^HO  IS  TO  BLAME  ?" 

TO  BE  COSTTINUBD  OCCASXOWAZ.I.Y. 

There  can  be  comparatively  few  persons  unacquainted  with  the  geniality  of  William 
Kidd's  mind.  His  extensive  series  of  interesting  Papers  in  the  Gardener's  Chronicle, 
(ranging  over  a  number  of  years.)  has  made  him  known  in  all  quarters  of  the  world.  *  * 
He  writes  powerfully,  truthfully  and  gracefully ;  and  his  pen  is  unceasingly  active  for  the 
public  good. — Critic. 

It  is  to  the  originality  and  wholesomeness  of  his  ideas,  as  well  as  to  his  happy  and  honest 
manner  of  expressing  them,  that  William  Kidd  owes  his  great  popularity  as  a  public 
writer.  His  pictures  are  from  life.  His  portraits,  though  not  always  flattering,  are  yet 
"  correct  liknesses."  *  *  *  Anxious  to  be  exact,  he  refuses  to  build  upon  another  man's 
foundation,  and  therefore  speaks  of  the  world  and  its  inhabitants  only  as  seen  with  his  own 
eyes.  Thus  we  are  pi-esented  with  "  Studies  after  Nature," — not  caricatures  ;  facts, — not 
fiction. — Weekly  Chronicle. 

The  avowed  advocate  of  all  that  is  good,  pleasing,  amiable,  and  natural,  Mr.  Kidd  is 
unwearied  in  his  efforts  to  make  society  better  than  it  now  is.  *  *  Blessed  with  a  generous 
heart,  a  kind  spirit,  and  a  loving  disposition,  he  accomplishes  easily,  what  many  labor  at 
year  after  year, — tind  perhaps  never  accomplish  at  all. — Leeds  Intelligencer. 

LONDON:— Messrs.  GROOMBRIDGE,  No.  5,  PATERNOSTER-ROW; 

AND  TO  BE  HAD,  BY  ORDER,  OF  ALL  BOOKSELLERS  IN  TOWN  AND  COUNTRY. 


Shortly  uill  he puUlshcd,  8ro.,  j:ip.  40,  neat  Cover,  price  Is.  M.,  icith  a  Plate; 

A   COMPLETE   CATALOGUE   OF   BRITISH  MOLLUSCA, 

WITH 

A  Chapter  on  Collecting  and  Arranging  them,  together  with 
Instructions  roR  Dredging. 


The  nomenclature  adopted  is  that  of  Messrs.  Forbes  and  Hanley's  "  History  of  British 
Mollusca,"  and  for  the  convenience  of  Collectors  the  synonyms  of  "  Gray's  Edition  of 
Turton's  Land  and  Fresh-water  Shells  "  are  given.  The  Irish  Mollusca  are  marked  with 
an  asterisk. 

LONDON :   SAMUEL  HIGHLEY,  32,  FLEET-STREET. 

Or  sent  bj'-  Post  on  receiving  eighteen  penny  postage  stamps,  directed  to  the  Secretary 
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The  following  are  among  the  more  important  original  Communications  given  in  the  April 
Number :  Notes  on  some  Familiar  Facts  connected  with  Sounds  and  Hearing,  by  L.  Dow- 
den,  Esq. — On  Pectunculus  glj^cimeris,  and  on  the  Local  Range  of  Molluscous  Animals, 
by  Dr.  Farran — On  a  Species  of  Annelid  new  to  Ireland,  by  W.  Akurews,  Esq. — On  an 
Addition  to  the  Icthyology  of  Ireland,  fwith  a  Plate,J  by  W.  Anorews,  Esq. — Directions 
for  Capturing,  Setting,  and  Preserving  Lepidoptera,  by  the  Rev.  Joseph  Greene — On  the 
Occurrence  of  Lepidopus  Argyreus  in  Dublin  Bay,  by  Dr.  R.  Ball — On  Cricetus  Phocus 
sent  from  Balaklava,  by  Dr.  Carte — On  the  Capture  of  Anthocaris  belia  in  Worcestershire, 
by  J.  W.  Lea,  Esq. — Notes  on  Insects  Captured  or  Observed  in  the  Neighbourhood  of 
Dingle,  Co.  Kerry,  in  July,  1854,  by  A.  R.  Hooan — On  Fungi  Parasite  on  Insects,  with 
])articular  reference  to  recent  Irish  Specimens,  ficith  a  Plate  Woodcut, J  by  E.  Percival 
Wkioht,  Esq. — Descriptions  of  New  Insects,  Figured,  ftvith  two  Plates,)  by  A.  H.  Haliday, 
Esq. — On  a  Cnistacean  of  the  Genus  Kigas,  by  J.  Grainger,  Esq. — Catalogue  of  Irish  Mol- 
lusca,  with  Directions  for  Collecting  and  Preseiwing  them,  by  E.  Percival  Wright,  Esq. ; 
besides  many  other  minor  Communications. 

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London  :  S.  Highley,  32,  Fleet-Stbeet. 


SITUATION  WANTED, 

As  Keeper  of  a  public  or  private  Museum ;  Assistant  to  a  pi'ofessional  naturalist,  or 
exploring  party ;  or  an  appointment  to  any  situation  requiring  a  practical  knowledge  of, 
and  a  strong  predilection  for  whatever  pertains  to  Natiiral  History. 

The  advertiser  is  a  middle-aged  man  ;  has  been  long  accustomed  to  shoot,  collect,  pre- 
l)are,  set  up,  and  classify,  specimens  of  Quadrupeds,  Birds,  Shells,  Insects,  Zoophites,  and 
Marine  Algae,  and  is  a  practical  and  tasteful  Taxidermist;  and  would  render  himself 
generally  useful  to  whoever  employed  him.  It  has  been  his  practice  to  observe  the  habits 
of  animals,  recording,  and  sometimes  publishing  the  same,  and  the  appearance  of  anything 
unusual  in  the  natural  history  of  the  district  where  he  resides. 

Can  furnish  unexceptionable  references  as  to  his  qualifications,  moral  character,  and 
solier  and  active  habits.     Apply  to  J.  E.,  care  of  the  Editor  of  The  Naturalist. 


SKELETONS  FOR  SALE. 


J.  C.  HARPEE, 

sub-curator   to   the    museum   of   anatomy,    hospital,   NORWICH, 

Begs  respectfully  to  inform  Proprietors  of  public  and  private  Museums,  that  he  has  always 
on  sale,  at  reasonable  prices,  Skeletons  of  Mammalia,  Birds,  Reptiles,  &c.  Specimens 
forwarded  to  him,  either  for  natural  or  articulated  Skeletons,  will  be  found  neatly  executed. 
Moist  preparations  put  up,  guaranteed  not  to  evaporate.  Pathological  Specimens  modelled 
in  wax,  and  coloured  with  exactness,  to  represent  the  original. 

Recently  Completed. — Skeletons  of  Harlequin  Boa  (10  feet  in  length),  Ocelot,  Racoon. 
Wolf,  &c.,  &c. 

Residence — Ivy  Cottage,  Grove  Place,  Lakenham. 


COCLTAS,  printer,  YORK. 


No.  53. 


JULY,  1855. 


Price  6d. 


A  POPULAE  MONTHLY  MAGAZINE, 

[LLUSTRATIYE    OF   THE 

ANIMAL,  VEGETABLE,  AND  MINERAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    NUMEROUS    ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED   BY 

BEVERLEY  R.  MORRIS,  ESQ.,  A.B.,  M.D.,  T.C.D., 

memb:  ween:  club. 

corresrokding  member  of  the  natural  history  society  of  glasgow. 

honorary  member  of  the  literary  and  scientific  institution  of  kilkenny. 


LONDON : 

MESSRS.  GROOMBRIDGE,  5,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 

EDIXBrUGH:  JAITES  HOGG,  4,  NICOLSON-STREET. 

AND  MAY  BE  HAD  OF  ALL  BOOKSELLERS. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

.Some  Account  of  William  Dawson,  Late  of  Leeds,  Surgeon.  By  ().  A.  Moore,  Esq.  145 

MoUusca  in  the  Neighbourhood  of  Nice 151 

The  Myrtle  Bee.     By  James  S.  Walkee,  Esq 152 

.Short  Notes  from  My  Note-Book,  No.  2.     By  Chas.  H.  Dashwood,  Esq lo\} 

Nucleus  of  a  Flora  of  Gosport  and  Adjacent  Parts  of  Hampshire.     By  Dr.  John 

Rose,  Assistant  Surgeon,  E.N , 154 

•'The   Good   Time  Coming,"  Come  at  Last: — Being  Notes  on  Kecent  Rambles 

amidst  Clouds  and  Sunshine,     By  Wilmam  Kmc,  Esq 157 

<  )rnithological  Notes.    By  the  Rev.  E.  Pye  Alington 161 

Reviews. — The  Natural  History  Review,  &c.     No.  6,  April,  1855 162 

Synopsis  of  the  Edible  Fishes  at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope.    By  L.  Papi'e,  M.  D.  163 

The  Entomologist's  Annual,  for  1855,  &c.     Second  Edition      ih. 

A  Classified  List  of  British  Mosses.     By  Geo.  Dixon lb. 

A  List  of  the  British  Species  of  Geodephaga.  By  G.  Guyon.  Richmond,  Surrey  164 

Miscellaneous  Notices ih. 

TUE  QCERIST       168 


It  is  requested  that  all  Comraunications  be  addressed  in  future 
to  B.  B.  MORRIS,  M.  D.,  38,  Pawcett-street,  Bishopwear- 
mouth,  Durham. 


NOTICES  TO  CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  up  to  June  15th,  from  W.  Kidd,  Esq. — llav.  W. 
Kendall — R.  Andrews,  Esq. — G.  Guton,  Esq. 

Contributions  have  been  received  up  to  June  15th,  from  Rev.  R.  P.  Alington — W.  T. 
Fuller,  Esq,  Esq. — W.  Kidd,  Esq. — O.  A.  Moore,  Esq. 

Books  Received:  The  Natural  History  Review.  No.  6,  for  April,  1855.    London:  Highley. 
A  Synopsis  of  the  Edible  Fishes  of  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope.     By  L.  Pappe,  M.  D. 

London :  Algar  and  Street.     Pp.  34. 
The  Floricultural  Cabinet,  for  January  and  February,  1855.     London:  .Simpkin  and 

Marshall. 
A  Plea  for  Geology,  by  E.  P.  H.  Vaughan.     London:  J.  Trimen.     Pp.  20. 
The  Entomologist's  Annual  for  1855.     Second  Edition.     By  H.  T.  Stainton,   Esq. 

London :  Van  Voorst.     Pp.  153.     One  coloured  I'late. 
A  List  of  the  British  .Species  of  Geodephaga,  for  IMarking  Desiderata  and  Labelling 

Collections.     By  G.  Guyon.     Richmond:  Surrey. 
Kidd's  Treatises  on  Song  Birds.  (People's  /uJlfioti.  1 — Tlic  Canary,  by  William  Kidd. 

London ;  Groombridge.     Pp.  26. 
The  Editor  begs  to  announce  to  his  Correspondents,  that  he  has  arranged  with  his 
Printer,  so  that  the  Author  of  any  Paper  can  have  copies  of  his  Article  sent  him  })y  post 

at  the  following  rates  : — 

Two  Pages.     Voxw  Pages.     Eight  Pages. 

25  Copies  or  under     2s.  6d.  4s.  Od.  6s.  6d. 

50  Copies     3     6  6     0  9     6 

75  Copies     5     0  7     6  12     6 

f'iiiiuiiunications,  Draivlngs,  Advertisements,  etc.,  to  he  addressed  to  B.  li.  MOBJUfi,  Esq.. 
M.D.,  38,  Fawcetf -street,  Bi.'fhopirearinontli,  Durham; — Boohs  for  liev  lev;,  and  Par  eels,  to 
the  care  of  Messrs.  GROOMBRIDGE,  5,  Pat^rnoster-Row,  London. 


115 


SOME  ACCOUNT  OF  WILLIAM  DAWSON,  LATE  OF  LEEDS, 

SURGEON. 

BY   O.  A.  MOORE,  ESQ. 

WiLLTAM  Dawson,  the  subject  of  this  Notice,  was  the  son  of  James  Dawson, 
of  Leeds,  Mercer,  by  his  wife  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Joseph  Ibbetson,  Esq., 
Mayor  of  Leeds  in  1685.  His  father  had  a  numerous  family,  many  of  whom 
seem  to  have  died  in  their  infancy,  and  we  have  no  information  as  to  the 
time  of  his  birth.  That  it  was  subsequent  to  1714  is  probable,  since  he  does 
not  appear  in  the  genealogy  given  at  page  127  of  the  original  edition  of 
Thoresby's  Ducatus  Leodiensis,  although  the  pedigree  of  the  family  is  fully 
given  under  that  of  the  Brearey's,  at  page  125  of  Whitaker's  edition. 
William  was  educated  for  the  profession  of  a  Surgeon-Apothecar}^  and  pro- 
bablj^  passed  the  usual  period,  which  was  customary  at  that  time,  in  walking 
tlie  hospitals  in  London,  previous  to  his  commencing  the  practice  of  his 
profession  in  his  native  town.  There  is  in  the  possession  of  the  writer,  a 
certificate,  with  the  name  of  William  Dawson,  in  red  type  and  flowery 
margin,  purporting  to  be  printed  on  the  river  Thames,  in  the  great  frost  in 
the  month  of  January,  1739-40. 

Mr.  Dawson  commenced  practice  in  his  native  town,  Leeds,  soon  after  this 
period;  and  in  1750,  we  find  him  in  extensive  practice  there;  for,  in  that 
year,  the  parents  of  Mr  Wm.  Hey  placed  the  future  eminent  surgeon  with 
him  as  one  of  his  apprentices.  During  sevei'al  years  previous  to  this  time, 
Mr.  Dawson  had  applied  himself  to  the  study  of  Natural  History,  and  of 
Botany  in  particular.  His  researches  extended,  as  we  shall  afterwards  see, 
into  various  parts  of  the  neighbom-hood  of  Leeds  and  Settle,  and  from  the 
scanty  records  of  his  investigations  which  have  come  down  to  us,  there  is 
reason  to  regret  that  more  is  not  known  of  his  labours  in  the  pursuit  of  his 
favourite  science.  Suffice  it  to  saj',  that  a  large  proportion  of  the  rare  plants 
subsequently  discovered  in  those  parts,  had  previously  been  recorded  in  his 
MSS.  list.  The  artificial  system  of  Linnaeus  not  being  then  in  use  in  this 
country,  (the  first  edition  of  Hudson's  Flora  Anglica  was  published  in  1762,) 
Mr.  Dawson  adopted  that  of  our  illustrious  countryman,  Ray,  and  in  this 
he  instructed  his  pupil,  Mr.  Hey,  a  fact  recorded  in  Pearson's  Life  of  Hey, 
appendix,  page  131,  where  several  other  incidental  notices  of  his  master  may 
be  found.  It  will  be  sufficient  merely  to  allude  to  one  of  these,  in  which  it 
is  stated,  that  to  the  aid  aff'orded  by  his  kind  master,  under  circumstances 
where  his  life  was  endangered  from  an  imprudent  experiment  with  a  pow- 
erful opiate  remedy,  the  illustrious  Wm.  Hey,  of  Leeds,  was  indebted  for 
his  recovery. 

Mr.  Dawson  married  Mary,  daughter  of  Josiah  Dawson,  Vicar  of  Giggles- 
wick,  near  Settle  ;  {vide  Wliitaker's  History  of  Craven  ;}  but  it  does  not  appear 
VOL.  v.  H 


146  WILLIAM    DAWSON,    LATK    OF   LEEDS. 

that  lie  had  any  family.  Tlie  circumstance  is,  liowevor,  interesting,  as  sug- 
gesting means  of  informing  himself  concerning  the  Flora  of  that  district, 
which  he  may  be  supposed  to  have  possessed,  and  to  have  had  the  oppor- 
tunity of  verifying.  Several  Settle  plants,  since  recorded,  will  be  found  in 
Mr.  Dawson's  list. 

The  negociations  for  a  partnership  between  Mr.  Dawson  and  his  former 
pupil  not  having  been  successful,  he  took  his  nephew,  Mr.  James  Lucas, 
into  partnership,  and  as  he  himself  scarcely  professed  openitive  surgery,  Mr. 
Iley  had  Mr.  Lucas  associated  with  him  in  the  surgical  staff  of  the  Leeds 
Infirmary,  on  its  foundation.  The  latter  gentleman  subsequently  attained 
considerable  fame  as  a  surgeon  and  author  on  Medical  Education;  and 
having  retired  from  practice,  in  1794,  finally  settled  at  Ripon,  where  he  died, 
in  1814.  (vide  Pearson's  Life  of  Hey,  page  36.)  On  the  death  of  Mr.  Lucas' 
Avidow,  his  library,  including  several  of  Mr.  Dawson's  works  on  Natural 
History  were  sold,  as  well  as  two  large  collections  of  dried  plants.  The 
latter  were  purchased  by  Captain  Viner,  who  presented  them  to  the  Ripon 
Mechanics'  Institute.  Of  his  books,  a  few  came,  by  purchase,  into  the  pos- 
session of  the  writer,  including  Tournefort's  Institutiones  Rei  Herbarise, 
Gmelins'  Flora  Sibirica,  vol.  1,  and  an  interleaved  copy  of  Wilson's  Synopsis 
of  British  Plants,  containing,  in  MSS.,  the  localities,  of  which  the  list  given 
at  the  end  is  a  selection. 

During  1775-6,  Mr.  Dawson's  health  seems  to  have  declined,  and  he  pro- 
bably did  not  live  long  after  this  period.  Some  letters,  from  a  relative  to  a 
niece  of  his,  written  about  this  time,  allude  to  his  sufferings  in  terms  which 
evince  the  esteem  in  which  the  Naturalist  was  held  by  his  relatives  and 
friends.  These  are  now  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Lucas'  niece,  having  come 
to  her  through  her  mother,  Mrs.  Moore,  a  niece  of  Mr.  Dawson,  and  wife  of 
the  Vicar  of  Doncaster.      They  are  addressed  to  her  aunt,  Mr.  Lucas'  sister. 

Mr.  Dawson's  name,  as  a  successful  cultivator  of  botanical  science,  is  not 
wholly  unknown  to  fame,  for  we  find  him  incidentally  noticed  in  Pulteney's 
Progress  of  Botany;  and  in  Blackstone's  Specimen  Botanicum,  (piiblished  in 
London,  in  1746,)  thirteen  localities,  for  rare  plants,  are  given  on  his 
authority ;  these  latter  mostly  occur  in  his  list  appended  to  the  copy  of  Wil- 
son's Synopsis.  The  list  alluded  to,  is  entitled  "  Observations  on  the  Plants 
growing  wild  about  the  town  of  Leeds,  Avith  their  Habitats  and  Time  of 
Flowering."  This  description  is  scarcely,  however,  sufficiently  comprehen- 
sive, as  several  Settle  localities,  as  well  as  others,  are  noticed,  under  the 
heads  of  the  different  species  enumerated.  The  time  of  flowering  is  accu- 
rately specified ;  and,  in  some  cases,  it  is  used  to  fix  the  distinction  of  nearly 
allied  species.  For  instance  :  both  Epipactis  ovalis  and  Epiptactis  rubra  are 
noticed  ;  but  the  one  is  said  to  flower  in  July,  the  other  in  June.  This  kind 
of  distinction  is  sanctioned  by  the  authority  of  Sir  J.  E.  Smith,  who  calls  in 
question  the  localities  given  by  Deering,  for  Orchis  hireinn,  from  the  very 


WILUAJI    IJAWSON,    LATK    OV   LEEDS.  147 

early  period  of  flowering  mentioned  by  him.  The  plants  in  Mr.  Dawson's 
list  are  under  the  nomenclature  of  Ray,  which,  however,  are  here  altered  for 
the  modern  names,  except  in  those  instances  in  which  the  accuracy  of  the 
discrimination  of  species  is  likely  to  be  a  matter  of  question.  The  accom- 
panying account  of  the  herbarium  alluded  to,  may  possibly  be  interesting  to 
some  of  ovir  readers. 

This  Herbarium,  which  is  now  in  the  Mechanic's  Institute  at  Ripon,  con- 
sists of  four  large  vols,  folio, — three  of  these  evidently  belonging  to  one  set, 
and  containing  plants,  named,  and  with  references  to  synonyms  taken  from 
the  last  edition  of  Ray's  Synopsis.  The  hand-writing  is  that  of  Mr.  Dawson, 
and  the  plants  mostly  correctly  named :  in  those  instances  where  this  is  not 
the  case,  either  a  confusion  of  names,  or  the  absence  of  a  correct  discrimina- 
tion of  species  in  books,  will  account  for  the  differences. 

The  plants  follow  the  arrangement  of  the  Synopsis ;  commencing  with 
Fungi,  {Sponges  and  Corallines,)  Algae,  Musci,  Lichenes,  Equiseta,  &c.,  flow.er- 
ing  herbs,  and  lastly  grasses,  sedges,  and  ti'ees,  or  shrubs.  They  are  all 
placed  on  half  sheets  of  a  stout  white  paper,  to  which  they  are  gummed,  and 
have  the  name,  &c.,  at  the  side ;  but  usually  without  any  localities  assigned. 
They  seem  mostly  to  be  collected  by  Mr.  Dawson  himself,  as  in  the  other 
Herbarium,  the  specimens  of  which  are  frequently  from  tlie  collections  of 
other  botanists,  this  fact  is  stated,  as  well  as  the  locality.  The  separate 
half  sheets  are  placed  between  large  leaves  of  coarse  blue  paper,  of  Avhich 
the  book  is  composed. 

The  other  Herbarium  consists  of  but  one  whole  bound  volume  ;  it  is 
larger  than  the  other  volumes,  and  is,  like  them,  labelled  on  the  outside 
"  Hortus  Siccus."  Although  the  arrangement  is  much  the  same  as  in  the 
three  vol.  Herbarium,  the  specimens  are  not  unfrequently  the  communica- 
tion of  friends  ;  among  whom  may  be  mentioned  Dr.  Richai'dson,  attached 
to  Woodsia  hyjyerborea,  and  other  si)ecimens ;  and  under  a  specimen  of 
alchemilla  alpina,  we  are  informed,  that  the  "plants  marked  with  the 
letters  H.  E.,"  (and  they  are  numerous,)  "  I  received  from  James  Sherard, 
a  botanist  of  the  first  order,  July  15th,  1737;"  and  there  are,  accordingly, 
several  plants  named,  and  with  synonyms,  &<;.,  on  strips  of  paper,  in  Sherard's 
own  hand-writing.  A  specimen  of  campanula  hederifoUa  is  "  from  Dr. 
Dillenius."  There  are  also  various  specimens  marked  as  gathered  by  "  Mr. 
Dawson,"  which  might  lead  to  the  supposition  that  this  Herbai'ium  origin- 
ally belonged  to  a  friend  of  Mr.  William  Dawson.  It  is,  however,  probable, 
that  either  some  relative  is  meant,  or  he  thus  designates  himself;  seeing 
that  the  hand-writing  is  the  same  as  that  of  the  other  Herbarium,  and  the 
intei'leaved  copy  of  Wilson's  Synopsis.  It  contains  native  specimens  of 
several  very  rare  British  plants  ;  as,  Cypripedium  calceolus.  Orchis  hircina,  &c  , 
and  of  several  then  recently  noticed  species ;  as,  Woodsia  liyperhorea,  Centun- 
culus  minimus,  &c.     A  Herbarium  containing  both  Cryptogamic  and  Phanero- 


148  WILLIAM    DAWSON,    LATE    OF    LEEDS. 

gamio  plants,  named  and  arranged  according  to  Ray's  method,  must  certainly 
be  considered  an  interesting  object,  many  of  tlie  specimens  serving  to 
illustrate  the  synonymy  of  modern  works. 

Without  attempting  to  give  a  complete  series  of  the  Yorkshire  localities 
noticed  in  his  list,  a  selection  of  a  few  from  the  Herbarium  and  the  Synopsis 
will  no  doubt  prove  interesting,  at  least  to  Yorkshire  naturalists. 

Polystichtim  aculeatum.     Giant  Hill  woods,  and  Addle  Crag. 

Lastrea  montana, — var.  (i.     Rocks  at  Addle  Crag. 

Osmunda  regalis.  Knaresbi^o'  Forest,  about  half  a  mile  from  Harrogate, 
upon  a  bog,  near  Huick  Stone  Crag. 

Oymnocarpmm  Dryopterys.  Plentifully,  amongst  the  rocks  by  Stanebeck, 
in  Nidsdale. 

Ophioglossum  vulgatum, — fr.  May.  In  Sainton  Ings,  plentifully;  and  in 
several  pastures  and  meadows  about  the  town. 

Botrychium  lunaria.     In  the  Brekes. 

Equisetum  Telmatela.     Gifton  wood. 

sylvaticum,  /j.  Marshy  close,  the  left  hand  side  of  the  lane  leading 

from  Chapel-town  to  the  Hare  hills. 

Hippuris  vulgaris.     Near  Tadcaster  mill. 

Humulus  lupulus.     Hedges  about  Leeds,  Seacroft,  &c. 

Acetosa  rotundifoUa  repens  Eboracensis,  {Oxyria  reniformis.)  On  Gigleswick 
Scar.     Junio  floret. 

Herniaria,  {glabra.)     On  Bradford  moor.     Augusto  floret. 

Lactuca  virosa.     Hedge  side  leading  from  Halton  Dial  to  Seaci'oft. 

Inula  Heleniwm.    Close  near  St.  Peter's  Well.     Fl.  June. 

JacobcBa  Pannonica  folio  non  laeiniato,  {Cineraria  cainpestris.)  In  the  new 
field  near  Ledstone  Hall;  plentifully;  flowers  in  May. 

Cnimis  heterophyllus.     Pastures  about  Hinckle-haugh. 

Carlina  aeaulis  minore  purpurea  Jlore,  {Cnicus  acaulis.)     About  Ledstone. 

Thalictrum  Jlexuosum.    Austwick  Scar.     Fl.  July. 

^nnntlie  crocata.  Ditches,  frequently.  Marshy  close,  near  Kirkstall  abbey; 
abundantly. 

PJiellandrium.    Ditch  in  Jacob  Browne's  pasture. 

Apium  graveolens.     Ditch  near  Seacroft.     Fl.  June. 

Asperula  cynanchica.  Bramham  moor ;  parsonage  pasture,  Ledsham,  and 
about  Kippax ;  plentifully. 

Aparine  minima,  {Galium  Anglicum.)     Upon  Addle  Crag. 

Cynoglossum  officinale.  Kippax ;  road  from  Chapel-town  to  Moor-town. 
Fl.  June,  July. 

Mentha  piperita.  By  the  waterside  in  Water-lane,  the  right  hand,  leading 
from  Leeds  to  Holbeck. 

Salvia  verbenaca.     Close  near  Ledsham  church. 

Marrubium  vulgare.     Wayside  from  Garforth  to  Peckfield. 


WILLIAM    DAWSON,    LATE    OF    LEEDS.  149 

Leonurus  cardiaca.  By  the  wayside  going  by  Mr.  Brook's  house,  at  KiUing 
beck. 

Calamintha  officinalis.  Roadside  as  you  go  the  horse-way  to  Woodhouse 
Carr;  and  in  Burley-lane,  the  right  hand  of  the  hill,  leading  to  North 
Hall. 

nepeta.    Left  hand  of  the  road  leading  through  Whitechurch. 

Julio  et  Augusto  floret. 

Malva  moschata.  Pasture  near  Droamy-laith ;  and  about  Giant  Hill.  Fl. 
June  and  July. 

Potentilla  verna.  In  the  new  field  near  Ledstone  Hall ;  and  several  places 
near  Ledsham.     Fl.  May. 

Spircea  filipendula.     Ledstone  park. 

Anemone  Pulsatilla.  April  fl.  S.W.  side  of  Kippax  town  close ;  in  a  pastui-e 
near  Ledsham  church ;  and  in  the  new  field ;  plentifully. 

Rubus  saxatilis.     In  Haselwood. 

ActcBa  spicata.  Haselwood,  near  Sir  Walter  Vavasour's,  upon  a  bank  side 
near  the  hedge.     Fl.  June. 

Ootivallaria  polygonatum.  Scarrs  four  miles  from  Settle,  toward  Ingle- 
borough. 

Paris  quadrifolia.    Westwood ;  Haselwood. 

Atropa  Belladonna.     Grows  plentifully,  near  Sir  Walter  Vavasour's. 

Rhodiola  rosea.  This  I  saw,  in  company  with  Mr.  Thornbeck,  amongst  the 
rocks  at  a  place  called  Foal's  Foot,  on  Ingleborough.     Junio  floret. 

Sedum  villosum.     Moist  rocks  on  the  side  of  Ingleborough. 

Aquilegia  vulgaris.     Haselwood. 

Helleborus  viridis.  Bottom  of  the  hedge  near  Mr.  Gunnerson's  house,  the 
right  hand  as  you  go  to  Bramham  moor,  in  Kidhall  lane.     April  floret. 

Campamda  latifolia.  Near  the  road  from  Leeds  to  Scott  Avood ;  and  near 
Burley. 

Oentiana  pnewmonanthe.  Bramham  moor,  towards  Blackfen.  Fl.  July  and 
August. 

campestris.     Near  Ledstone.     Fl.  August. 

Chlora  perfoliata.     About  Ledstone  Hall,  Kippax,  &c. 

Utricularia  minor.  Upon  the  great  bog,  the  left  hand  of  Blackmoor,  lead- 
ing from  Moor-town  to  Wetherby. 

Orobanclie  major.    Near  Giant  Hill ;  and  in  Haselwood.    Fl.  May  and  June. 

Sinapiis  teniiifolia.     Walls  about  Pontefract  and  castle.     July  fl. 

Sisymbrium  Sophia.     Near  Kippax  church ;  plentifullj^ 

Monotropa  Hypopilys.  "  This  the  author  found  in  flower  in  Haselwood, 
(June  22nd,  1747,)  the  left  hand,  entering  the  wood  from  Bramham  moor." 

Astragalus  hypoglottis  In  the  new  field ;  and  in  the  pasture  near  Ledstone 
Hall;  plentifully. 

DiantJius  plumarius.     Fountains  abbey  walls. 


150  WILLIAM    DAWSON,    LATE    OF   LEEDS. 

Sapomiria  uffivlnalis.  The  left  hand  of  the  load  near  the  gate  leading  from 
Halton  to  Lord  Irwin's. 

Hypericum  Elodes.  Upon  the  bog  near  Addle  Dam ;  and  upon  the  bog 
on  Blackmoor. 

Arenaria  verna.  Roadside  from  Settle  to  Malham ;  and  on  the  Scar  at  the 
back  of  Settle. 

Drosera  longifolia.     Bramham  moor,  on  a  marshy  place  near  Blackfen. 

Geranium  sylvaticum,   By  hedges  and  in  the  field,  the  footway  to  Armley. 

Pyrola  rotundifolia  major.    Blackfen  wood  ;  and  Westwood. 

Ornithogalum  umhellatwn.     In  the  new  field,  near  Ledstone  Hall. 

Colchicum  autumnale.  About  Aberford ;  near  Swillington  ;  and  in  a  pasture 
near  the  end  of  Kidhall  lane. 

Orchis  pyramidalis.    About  Ledsham. 

Neottia  spiralis.     In  the  new  field ;  and  near  Ledstone  Hall. 

Ophrys  apifera.  In  Haselwood,  by  the  wayside,  on  the  left  hand  leading 
from  Aberforth  to  Sir  W.  Vavasour's. 

Hdbenaria  viridis.  Pastures  left  hand  of  Kidhall  lane,  near  Bramham 
moor. 

Listera  nidus  avis.  Near  footpath  leading  to  Armley;  the  end  of  Giant  Hill 
wood. — Mr.  Browne. 

cordata.     In  a  ditch  upon  Blackmoor,  amongst  the  heath  ;  the  first 

hill  beyond  Thief  lane,  left  hand  of  road  to  Wetherby. 

Epipactis  ovalis.  On  Giggleswick  Scar ;  plentifully,  July  fl. ;  and  upon  a 
bank  side  in  the  parsonage  pasture,  at  Ledsham. 

Epipactis  rubra.    Parsonage  pasture,  near  Ledsham,  June  fl. 

Andromeda polif alia.     Warrington  Moss,  Near  Ingletou. 

The  following  plants  are  noticed,  but  without  localities : — Cavcalis  Dau- 
coides,  Senecio  viscostis,  Archanyelica  officinalis,  Sison  amomum,  Petroselinum 
segetum,  Slum  inundatum. 

As  respects  the  plants  enumerated  in  the  list,  there  seems  no  reason  to 
doubt  that  Cineraria  and  Herniaria,  although  not  previously  noticed  in  any 
Yorkshire  list,  were  found  by  Mr.  Dawson.  As  regards  Oxyria,  Cnicus  acaulis, 
Epipactis  rubra,  Pyrola  rotundifolia,  more  doubt  may  reasonably  be  enter- 
tained ;  it  is  certain  that  some  of  these  have  been  confounded  with  allied 
species,  and  in  two  or  three  instances  this  occurs  in  "Sir.  Dawson's  Herba- 
rium, even  when  other  specimens  of  the  same,  correctly  named,  are  found  in 
another  place. 

Yorh,  18.5.'>. 


151 


MOLLUSCA  IN  THE  NEIGHBOURHOOD  OF  NICE. 

NAMES  FUOM  DRAPARNAUD's  "  MOLLUSQUES  TERRESTRES." 

1.  Helix  naticoides.  [Helix  aperta,  Forbes  and  Hanley.)  Very  abundant. 
It  is  collected  with  H.  aspersa,  and  eaten  by  the  people.  I  have  often  found 
it  on  the  Agave  Americana. 

2.  Helix  aspersa.     Common,  and  of  a  large  size. 

3.  Helix  nemoralis.  By  no  means  abundant.  Near  the  monastery  of 
Cimiez,  in  one  or  two  places. 

4.  Helix  candidissima.    Very  common,  especially  near  Villa  Franca 

5.  Helix  rhodostoma.  (H.  Pisana.)  On  dry  banks,  by  the  side  of  tlie 
Genoa  road. 

6.  Helix  cespitum.  {H.  ericetorum.)     Common  with  the  above. 

7.  Helix  variabilis.  [H.  virgata.)     Common. 

8.  Helix  ohvoluta.     Rare.     Near  Cimiez.     The  young  shell  very  hirsute. 

9.  Helix  vermiculata.  Among  the  Olive  plantations,  in  many  places ;  very 
vaiiable  in  colour. 

10.  Helix  elegans.     Common  on  dry  banks. 

11.  Helix  splendida.     By  the  Genoa  road;  Castle  Hill  at  Nice,  &c. 

12.  Helix  algira.    Abundant  near  Cimiez ;  occasionally  very  large. 

13.  Helix  conspurcata.     Under  stones  on  the  Castle  Hill  at  Nice. 

14.  Helix  cingulata  Within  a  few  yards  of  the  summit  of  Monte  Calvo  ; 
Olive  ground  near  Beaulieu,  but  rare. 

15.  Bulimus  decollatus.    Very  abundant  on  banks,  »S:c. 

16.  Bulimus  ventricosus.     On  wet  moss  by  the  side  of  rivulets. 

17.  Pupa  cinerea.    Very  common  on  walls. 

18.  Pupa  quadridens.    Rare.     Cimiez  ;  Monte  Albano. 

19.  Pupa  granum.     One  or  two  near  Cimiez. 

20.  Succinea  putris.     On  moss  by  the  side  of  rivulets. 

21.  Limneus  pereger.     In  streams,  but  only  of  a  small  size. 

22.  Physa  scaturiginum.     Not  common. 

23.  Bithinia  tentaculata.     In  streams,  abundant. 

24.  Clausilia  dubia.     Common  on  Avails. 

25.  Cyclostoma  elegans     Very  common  by  the  road-sidea. 

MARINE. 

1.  Conus  Mediterraneus.     Not  rare;  on  i-ocks. 

2.  Columbella  rustica.     Common  on  the  sea-shore. 

3.  Murex  olearium.     Common. 

4.  Phasianella  pullus.    Very  abundant  on  rocks  and  algre. 

5.  Cerithium  tuberculatum.    Rare. 

6.  adversum.     Rare. 

7.  reticulatum. 

8.  Littorina  neritoides.    Very  common. 


152  MOLLUSCA    IN    THE    NKIGUBOUBHOOD    ON    NICE. 

9.  Trochus  conulus.     Rather  scarce. 

10.  cinerarius.     Common. 

11.  Patella  vulgata.     Common,  but  always  small. 

12.  Bulla  lignaria.     Occasionally. 

13.  Argonauto  Argo.    Small  specimens  frequently  brought  in  by  fishermen. 
The  above  is  a  list  of  a  few  land  and  fresh-water  Shells,  which  I  collected 

last  month,  (in  the  course  of  a  very  few  days,)  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Nice 
Maidtime.  Should  any  of  your  readers  form  a  part  of  the  numerous  English 
who  yearly  hybernate  in  that  delightful  climate,  it  may  perhaps  be  of  use  to 
them.  As  all  in  the  catalogue  were  collected  in  the  course  of  three  or  four 
days,  the  list  is  no  doubt  veiy  imperfect.  I  have,  moreover,  been  unable  to 
ascertain  the  correct  names  of  several  species. — I  remain,  &c.,  J.  D. 
May  8th,  1855. 


THE  MYRTLE  BEE. 

BY   JAMES    S.    WALKER,   ESQ. 

In  the  April  number  of  your  Magazine,  I  have  read,  Avith  interest,  a  Paper 
by  O.  S.  Round,  Esq.,  on  the  "  Myrtle  Bee." 

Though  a  subscriber  to  Notes  and  Queries,  I  have  not  observed  the  dis- 
cussion to  which  this  gentleman  alludes  ;  and  my  object  in  writing  these  few 
lines  is,  merely  to  say,  that  in  New  South  Wales,  I  have  met  with  a  bird  very 
similar  to  the  Myrtle  Bee. 

It  is  a  small  species  of  Wren,  rather  smaller  than  the  Willow  Wren ;  {Syl- 
via hippolais ;)  colour,  a  dark  yelloAv;  with  two  or  three  long  feathers  in  the 
tail,  which  give  it  a  pheasant-like  appearance.  It  Avas  a  summer  visitant 
to  the  part  of  Australia  (TAVofold  Bay)  AA'here  I  resided ;  its  note  was  a  mere 
buzz;  and  its  habits  Avere  just  such  as  your  correspondent  describes.  I 
generally  met  Avith  it  in  long  SAvampy  grass ;  or,  still  more  frequently,  in 
Avheat  or  barley-fields.  On  a  still  summer's  morning,  this  little  bird  seemed 
fond  of  perching  upon  the  top  of  a  Avheat-stalk ;  but,  on  the  slightest  alarm, 
it  Avould  dive  into  cover  and  disappear.  It  left  a  strong  game  scent,  and  Avas 
a  great  nuisance  to  the  sportsman,  as  tlie  poiuteis  Avould  potter  about  after 
it  for  a  considerable  distance  ;  and  so  adroit  Avas  it  in  dodging  through  the 
grass  or  AAheat-field,  that,  at  such  times,  it  AA'as  seldom  seen,  though  I  have 
occasionally  flushed  one  with  the  dog  ;  when  thus  disturbed,  the  bird  Avould 
fly  only  a  feAv  yards,  and  disappear  in  the  first  patch  of  grass  it  came  to, 
from  whence  I  never  succeeded  in  dislodging  it. 

You  AAill  observe  hoAV  very  closely  this  description  tallies  Avith  that  of  tlie 
"  Myrtle  Bee  ;"  and  I  think  Avhat  I  have  said  corroborates  the  truth  of  Cap- 
tain BroAvn's  account. 


THE    MYRTLE    BEE.  153 

Durii\g  a  residence  of  many  years  in  Australia,  I  amused  myself,  by  en- 
deavouring to  introduce  some  of  the  English  birds  into  that  country;  and, 
although  I  did  not  succeed,  (except  with  the  Canaiy  bird,)  yet,  if  you  think 
the  account  would  be  of  sufficient  interest  to  your  readers,  I  shall  be  happy 
to  send  you  a  Paper  on  the  subject. 

Porchester  Square,  London,  April  27th,  1855, 

We  shall  be  very  glad  to  receive  the  account  referred  to. — B.  R.  M, 


SHORT  NOTES  FROM  MY  NOTE-BOOK.— No.  2. 

BY   CHARLES   H.    DASHWOOD,    ESQ. 

The  Bearded  Tit.  (Parus  hiarmicus.)  These  little  birds  make  their  appear- 
ance in  the  marshes,  in  this  neighbourhood,  about  the  second  week  in  Febru- 
ary ;  where  after  remaining  a  fortnight  or  three  weeks,  they  disappear,  and 
few,  if  any,  are  to  be  observed  during  the  rest  of  the  year. 

Mason  Wasp.  One  day  last  summer,  one  of  these  little  insects  entered 
my  room,  and  after  buzzing  abovit  for  a  short  time,  alighted  on  the  table 
near  which  I  was  sitting,  and  on  which  was  a  small  hollow  ruler.  This  was 
soon  minutely  examined  by  the  little  architect,  and  having  apparently  satis- 
fied herself  as  to  its  fitness  for  the  purpose,  she  flew  away.  In  about  five 
minutes,  she  again  made  her  appearance,  bearing  between  her  forelegs  and 
mouth,  a  small  lump  of  clay,  which  was  immediatelj''  carried  into  the  hole 
in  the  ruler.  Finding  that  she  had  thus  established  herself,  I  moved  the 
ruler  nearer  to  the  window,  and  having  fixed  it,  so  as  to  prevent  its  indus  • 
trious  little  inmate  from  being  disturbed,  I  set  myself  to  watch  her  move- 
ments. She  continued  to  work  incessantly  for  eleven  days,  bringing  a  lump 
of  clay,  about  the  size  of  a  small  hemp  seed,  to  the  nest  every  five  or  ten 
minutes.  On  the  twelfth,  it  was  completed ;  and  having  carefully  closed  the 
mouth  of  the  hole  with  clay,  she  finally  took  her  departure.  During  the 
progress  of  the  work,  she  would  frequently  arrive  at  the  window  early  in  the 
morning,  and  if  she  did  not  find  it  open,  would  wait  patiently  outside — some- 
times for  several  hours,  before  she  could  gain  admission.  What  struck  me 
most  was,  her  extreme  care,  lest  any  trace  of  her  work  should  be  discovered ; 
if  the  smallest  portion  of  earth  happened  to  be  dropped  outside  the  hole, 
it  was  carefully  gathered  up  and  carried  into  the  nest.  I  much  regret,  that, 
in  attempting  to  cut  the  ruler  open,  the  nest  was  destroyed.  The  quantity 
of  earth  taken  out  more  than  filled  a  dessert  spoon  One  Wasp,  apparently 
in  the  pupa  state,  was  found  in  the  nest.  The  Rev.  L.  Jenyns,  in  his 
"  Observations  in  Natural  History,"  gives  an  account  of  several  similar  nests, 

H  2 


154  SHORT   NOTES   FROM   MY   NOTE-BOOK. 

made  by  Wasps  of  the  genus  Odynerus.  And,  probably,  the  little  insect  un- 
der consideration,  may  belong  to  the  same  genus. 

The  Hooded  Crow.  (Gorvus  cornix.)  Was  first  seen,  October  4th,  and  has 
since  been  observed  in  larger  numbers  than  for  many  years  past. 

Departure  of  Summer  Birds  :  Cuckoo,  (Cuculus  canorus,)  last  heard,  July 
7th.  Blackcap.  (Gurruca  atricapilla.)  September  16th.  Willow  Warbler. 
(Gurrnca  troehilus.)  October  3rd.  Chiff-Chafi".  {Gurruca  liippolais.)  October  4th. 
Swift.  {Gypselus  vulgaris.)  August  25th  Sand  Martin.  {Hirundo  riparia.) 
October  5th.  House  Martin.  [Hirundo  urbica.)  October  8th.  Swallow. 
Hirundo  rustica.)  October  12th. 

The  Admiral  Butterfly.  (Vanessa  Atalanta.)  This  Butterfly,  usually  so 
common,  has,  from  some  cause  or  other,  been  very  scarce  during  the  past 
summer;  indeed  I  have  not  seen  a  single  specimen.  I  may  add,  that  this 
note,  and  all  others,  that  are  entered  in  my  note-book,  bear  reference  to  this 
immediate  neighbourhood,  except  where  the  contrary  is  mentioned. 

Tliornage,  Norfolk,  November  llth,  1854. 


NUCLEUS  OF  A  FLORA  OF  GOSPORT  AND  ADJACENT  PARTS  OF 

HAMPSHIRE. 

BY   DR.  JOHN   ROSE,   ASSISTANT   SURGEON,   R.  N. 

The  following  plants  occur  near  Gosport  and  the  adjacent  parts  of  Hamj)- 
shire. 

Nymphcea  alba.     Grange  farm. 

Papaver  hybridum.    Waste  places ;  Grange  and  Privet  farms. 

Glaucium  lutemn.     Stokes  Bay ;  and  generally  along  the  coast, 

Ghelidonium  majus.  Hedges  near  Haslar  hospital.  The  name  of  this  plant 
is  derived  from  x^Xi'Sm,  a  swallow ;  probably,  according  to  Sir  W.  J.  Hooker, 
from  that  jjlant  flowering  about  the  time  of  the  arrival  of  those  birds.  It  is 
generally  about  two  feet  high,  with  small  yellow  flowers.  The  whole  plant  is 
full  of  a  foetid  and  very  acrid  yellow  juice.  It  is  frequent  in  England,  but 
very  local  in  Scotland,  at  least  in  the  northern  counties.  It  has  been  em- 
ployed in  certain  skin  diseases,  and  Dr.  Witherington  says  it  removes  warts. 

Hesperis  matronalis,  or  Dame's  Violet,  is  found  near  Haslar.  It  has  pale, 
purplish  flowers,  which  yield  a  powerful  fragrance,  especially  in  the  evening. 
The  name  is  derived  from  't<r*i^i)i,  the  evening. 

Brassica  oleracea.  Hill  Head,  on  the  shingle.  From  this  species  oi'iginate 
the  numerous  varieties  of  cabbage. 

Silene  maritima.    Frequent  along  the  coast,  as  in  Stokes  Bay. 

Silene  nutans.     Brown  Down,  near  Gosport. 


NUCLEUS    OF    A    FLOEA    OF    GOSPORT.  155 

■  Arenaria  peploides,  Erodium  maritimum,  Lotus  angustissimus,  Tamarix  gallica, 
Rosa  rubiginosa,  are  all  found  near  Stokes  Bay. 

Ulex  nanus.    Brown  Down. 

Prunus  spinosa.  Grange  farm  ;  and  generally  distributed.  Dr.  Bromfield 
observes  that,  in  Hampshire,  Prunus  spinosa -is  linked  to  P.  insititia  and 
P.  domestica,  by  such  imperceptible  and  evanescent  degrees  of  affinity,  as  to 
defy  any  specific  formula  that  can  be  framed  to  distinguish  them. 

liosa  spinosissima.    Brown  Down. 

Pyrus  malus.    Grajige. 

Daucus  maritimus.  Sandy  places  near  the  coast.  This  is  the  ^avxos  of 
Dioscorides,  and  is  the  origin  of  our  carrot. 

Eryngium  maritimum.    Sea-coast. 

Aster  Tripolium.  Salt  marshes  along  the  road  leading  from  Alverstoke 
church  to  Gosport. 

Guscuta  Europcea.    Brown  Down. 

Ligustrum  vulgare.    Privet  farm  ;  and  pretty  generally  distributed. 

Vinca  major.     Kowner  copse  ;  and  hedges  near  Haslar. 

minor.     Ditto  ditto. 

Datura  Stramonium.  Waste  ground.  Grange.  I  have  not  yet  seen  the 
variety  with  purple  stems  and  flowers,  found  by  Dr.  Bromfield,  at  Southsea, 
Portsmouth. 

Hyoscyamus  niger.   Waste  ground.  Grange  farm ;  and  near  Haslar  barracks. 

Digitalis  purpurea.  Grange.  I  have  not  observed  the  white  variety  in  this 
county,  but  I  have  gathered  beautiful  specimens  of  it  near  Aberdeen  and 
Banff",  N.  B.  Nor  have  I  seen  the  curious  variety  with  a  spurred  corolla, 
found  by  Dr.  Bromfield  in  the  Isle  of  Wight. 

Verbena  officinalis.  Privet  farm.  This  plant,  though  pretty  common  in 
England,  is  rare  in  Ireland,  and  only  occurs  in  one  or  two  places  in  Scot- 
land. 

Salieornia  herbacea.    In  mud,  along  the  sea  shore. 

Reseda  lutea.    Plantations  near  the  sea. 

fruticulosa,  is  said  by  Hooker  to  occur  near  Gosport;  but  we  have 

not  yet  gatliei'ed  it. 

Myrica  Gale.  On  Grange  farm,  near  the  sea.  This  plant  has  an  agreeable 
odour.  Virgil  calls  it  myrica  humilis.  In  some  parts  of  Scotland,  beds  are 
made  of  the  twigs,  and  "  in  Islay  and  Jura  the  inhabitants  scent  their  clothes 
with  the  foliage." 

Iris  Pseudacorus.     Grange. 

Iris  fcetidissima.    Said  by  Hooker  to  occur  in  Hampshire. 

Neottia  spiralis.  Grass  plots,  Haslar  hospital.  This  is  the  Spiranthus 
autumnalis  of  Richard,  and  is  found  in  dry,  hilly  pastures,  in  various  parts  of 
England,  in  a  chalky  or  gravelly  soil. 

Oymnadenia  conopsea.  Moist  places;  Grange  fann. 


156  NucLEds  or  a  flora  of  gosport. 

Antirrhinum  Orontium.  Haslar  lane ;  and  several  old  walls  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood. 

Linaria  cymhalaria.     Old  wall,  Haslar  burying  ground. 

Aquilegia  vulgaris.    Plantations  ;  apparently  indigenous. 

Fumaria  solida.    Wickham  Hants  ;  but  perhaps  introduced. 

Ilex  aquifolium.  Common.  "  We  adorn  our  houses  and  churches  at 
Christmas  with  the  leaves  and  berries  of  this  beautiful  evergreen, — a  relic, 
probably,  of  Druidism." 

Euscus  aculeatus.    At  the  back  part  of  Grange  farm. 

Juncus  glaucus.     Swamps ;  Brown  Down. 

Eriophorum  angustifolium,  and  E.  polystachion.     Marshy  grounds  ;  Grange. 

Carex  pendula.    Ditches  in  moist  fields,  near  Kowner  copse. 

ErythrcBa  littoralis.  This  beautiful  little  plant  occurs  in  considerable 
abundance  on  the  common,  near  Haslar  barracks. 

Osmunda  regalis.    Grange  farm,  nearly  opposite  Osborn  House. 

Scolopendrium  vulgare.  Moist  hedges  near  Anglesey,  Gosport ;  but  rather 
local.  We  have  seen  this  handsome  fern  growing  in  great  luxuriance  in  the 
Den  of  Auchmedden,  near  Banff,  N.  B. 

Asplenium  ruta  muraria.     Old  walls,  Haslar  hospital. 

Sanguisorha  officinalis.    Pastures  between  Forton  and  Hai'dway,  Gosport, 

Cynodon  Dactylon.     Sandy  sea-shore,  near  Portsmouth. 

Sison  segetum.     Mapledurham.  Hants. 

Epilolium  angustifolium.     Near  Alton;  but  rare  in  Hants. 

Daphne  Mezereon.    Near  Andover ;  apparently  indigenous. 

Anthemis  nobilis.     Frequent  in  pastures  near  the  sea. 

Lavatera  arhorea.  Hurst  castle.  This  plant,  if  allowed  to  scatter  its  seeds 
in  a  garden,  will  spring  up  for  many  successive  years,  and  the  young  plants 
will  now  and  then  survive  one  or  more  mild  winters;  but  having  once 
blossomed  it  perishes. 

Cnicus  eriophorus.     Road  sides  ;  but  very  local. 

Imda  crithmoides.    Hurst  (sastlo. 

Solidago  campestris.    Near  Basingstoke,  Hants. 

We  give  the  following  as  occurring  in  Hampshire,  on  the  autliority  of  Sir 
W.  J.  Hooker.  Drosera  anglica,  Dianthus  prolifer,  Ilyperieum  Androsemum, 
Lathynis  palustris,  Orobus  tuberosus,  var.  /3,  New  Forest,  Hants. 

Isnardia  palustris.  Said  to  be  abundant  in  a  bog  on  Pctcrsfield  Heath ; 
also  near  Brockhurst,  Hants. 

Bryonia  dioica,  Eryngium  maritimum,  Pastinaca  sativa,  Campanula  p)ci'tula, 
Phyteuma  orbiculare,  Pulmonaria  angustifolia.     New  Forest. 

Verbascum  pulverulentum.  This  plant  is  said  to  be  found  in  a  den  near 
CuUen,  Banffshire ;  but  it  has  doubtless  been  introduced  from  the  Earl  of 
Seafield's  gardens,  at  Cullen  House. 

Melitlis  melissophyllum.    Near  Netley  abbey;  as  well  as  in  the  New  Forest. 


NUCLEUS   0¥   A   FLOBA   OF   GOSPORT.  157 

Centunculus  minimus,  Sucedafruticosa,  Humultis  lupulus,  Anaeharis  Alsinastrum, 
Leigh  Park,  near  Havant. 

Juncus  diffusus,  Scirpus  parvulus.  Said  by  Hooker  to  have  been  found  a 
few  years  ago,  "  on  a  muddy  flat,  near  Lymington ;  but  tho  place  having  been 
lately  much  altered, — the  very  spot,  perhaps, '  being  now  occupied  by  a 
swimming  bath, — it  has  since  been  searched  for  in  vain."  It  may  yet  be 
found  in  other  parts  of  the  county. 

Polypogon  Monspeliensis,  Agrostis  setacea,  Leersia  oryzoides.  Brockhurst 
Bridge.* 

I  regret  that  I  am,  at  present,  unable  to  make  the  foregoing  list  more 
complete ;  but,  such  as  it  is,  it  may  be  of  some  service  to  botanists  who  may 
visit  this  part  of  the  county.  My  best  thanks  are  due  to  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Arthur  Adams,  who  have  assisted  me  in  its  preparation,  and  with  whom  I 
have  had  the  pleasure  of  visiting  several  of  the  stations  indicated. 

Eoyixl  Hospital,  Haslar,  20th  October,  1854. 


"  THE  GOOD  TIME  COMING,"  COME  AT  LAST :— BEING  NOTES 
ON  RECENT  RAMBLES  AMIDST  CLOUDS  AND  SUNSHINE. 

BY  WILLIAM   KIDD,   ESQ. 

Get  up,  get  up!    Behold,  the  blushiag  mom 

Upon  her  wings  presents  tho  god  unshorn. 

See  how  Aurora  throws  her  fair 

Fresh-quilted  colours  through  the  wc\ 

Get  up,  sweet  slug-a-bed,  and  see 

The  dew-bespangled  herb  and  tree. 

Each  flower  has  wept,  and  bow'd  towards  the  east 

Above  an  hour  since, — and  you  not  drest! 

Nay,  not  so  much  as  out  of  bed, 

When  all  tho  birds  have  matins  said, 

And  sung  their  thankful  hymns ! — Herkick. 

It  is  vciy  usual  for  people  when  they  meet,  to  talk  of  "  the  weather  and 
the  crops."  That  is  an  Englishman's  standard  dish.  I  go  through  the  ordeal 
of  listening  to  these  dry,  statistical  facts  of  daily  observation,  with  the  reso- 
lution and  patience  of  a  martyr.  To  speak  ti-uth,  however,  the  weather  has 
been  a  legitimate  subject  of  discourse  for  some  months  past;  and  speculation 
as  to  whether  wo  ever  should  see  Spring  or  Summer  again,  has  been  lawful 
The  crops  have  been  mourned  over,  times  out  of  number, — "  all  a  dead 
failure!" — "a  sad  prospect  for  the  poor!"  &c.,  &c.     This,  and  how  much 

*  Atriplex  nidens,  has  been  found  on  the  sea-shore,  Isle  of  Wight,  by  Dr.  Bromfield.  I  have  not  found  it 
on  this  side  of  the  Hampshire  coast,  but  it  is  likely  it  may  yet  be  met  with.  It  is  a  large  coarse  plant, 
and  some  have  supposed  that,  being  introduced  by  accident,  it  is  now  only  naturalized. 


168  "THE    GOOD   time"   COME    AT   LAST. 

more  ?  Oh,  if  we  mortals  had  the  management  of  the  seasons,  how  nicely 
tee  should  arrange  these  matters !  We  should  have  sunshine  all  the  year 
round, — and  pay  the  needful  penalty,  in  the  way  of  compensation,  for  our 
folly  ! !     Which  state  of  things  is  preferable  ?    Poor  human  nature  ! 

Well, — in  spite  of  all  our  alarms,  doubts,  fears,  misgivings,  and  sufferings, 
— sweet  Spring  Jias  arrived,  bringing  lovely  Summer  in  her  train.  So, 
Messieurs  Gout,  Bronchitis,  Toothache,  Headache,  Heartache, — one  and  all, 
vanish  !  We  have  petted  you  too  long ;  kept  company  mth  you  till  we  are 
sick  of  your  presence.     Avaunt ! 

A  month  or  two  agone,  I  recorded  an  interesting  little  ramble  of  mine, 
through  snow  and  frost.  I  was,  as  I  told  you,  alone  in  my  glory.  I  could 
not  ask  any  fair  friend  to  share  with  me  the  risk  of  a  damp  foot.  That 
difficulty  exists  no  longer.  I  have  recently,  in  the  company  of  a  certain 
guardian  angel,  realised  amidst  clouds  and  sunshine,  trees,  flowers,  and 
birds,  pleasing  scenes  out  of  number,  in  which  both  could  take  an  undivided 
interest.     Man  is  "  nothing  "  without  his  associate. 

A  long  preamble  this,  to  sylvan  wanderings  and  strolls  through  Nature's 
garden !  Many,  however,  will  doubtless  thank  me  for  turning  their  minds 
into  a  pleasant  channel,  and  reminding  them  that  "  the  time  of  the  singing 
of  birds  is  come,"  with  all  its  attendant  loveliness.  If  we  have  no  time  to 
fraternise  with  Nature,  we  must  maJce  time.  Rebellion  against  custom  and 
fashion's  laws  becomes  a  duty.    Well  has  the  poet  sung, — 

"  Talk  not  of  want  of  leisure ; 

Believe  me,  time  was  made 
For  laughter,  mirth,  and  pleasure, 

Far  more  than  toil  or  trade. 
Yes,  little  short  I  hold 

That  social  state  from  madness, 
For  daily  bread  when  's  sold 

Man's  natural  right  to  gladness." 

Passing  lightly  over  the  early  part  of  May — when  fires  were  the  mile,  not 
he  exception — let  me  speak  of  May  29th;  aye,  and  of  every  day  since. 
May  29th,  was  "  Whit-Tuesday."  The  two  previous  days  had  ushered  in 
tori'ents  of  rain.  The  earth,  parched  with  drought,  had  drained,  in  feverish 
ecstacy,  every  drop  to  the  dregs.  The  trees  expanded  their  leaves  to  receive 
the  blessing,  and  all  Nature  made  meriy.  The  holiday  folk  grumbled  sadly 
at  their  disappointment ;  but/  rejoiced  exceedingly,  as  I  lay  tumbling  on 
my  pillow,  big  with  expectation  of  what  I  knew  awaited  me  in  the  vegetable 
kingdom.  And  how  melodiously  sweet  were  the  early  matins  of  the  fea- 
thered choir!  Sleep  became  irksome  two  hours  after  midnight  The  birds 
had  then  begun  their  worship;  and  I  tried  to  make  one  amongst  them. 
Surely  this  morning  sacrifice  of  adoration,  love,  and  praise,  must  be  accept- 
able to  our  all-wise  and  most  beneficent  Creator  ?  I  live  happy  in  that 
belief,  and  I  expect  to  die  happy  in  it. 


"  THE   GOOD   TIME  "   COME    AT   LAST.  159 

This  sudden  change  in  the  weather,  peculiar  to  the  season,  acted  marvel- 
lously on  the  physique  hoth  of  man  and  animals.  Nature  universally  shared 
in  the  grand  benefit.  Everything  flourished  as  if  by  magic.  Flowers 
sprang  up  actively  into  life  and  beauty  ;  insects  multiplied  by  the  million  ; 
the  growing  trees  put  forth  their  giant  strength ;  and  Nature  vowed  soon  to 
be  robed  as  became  so  lovely  a  Queen  of  Beauty.  Has  she  not  long  since 
realised  her  vow  ?  Assuredly  yes  !  Oh,  if  pen,  ink,  and  paper  Avould  but 
keep  pace  with  my  feelings,  how  I  could  dwell  upon  what  I,  and  those  dear 
to  me,  have  already  felt  during  the  past  fortnight !  The  melody  of  birds,  the 
aroma  of  flowers,  the  happy  gambols  of  innocent  children,  half-drowned  in 
the  sweet  dew  of  buttercups,  daisies,  and  cowslips, — the  Cuckoo  dodging  us 
about  everywhere  with  his  joyous  note  of  welcome  ;  these,  and  other  pleas- 
ingly-overwhelming delights,  have  revived  in  me,  day  after  day,  the  feelings 
of  childhood.  My  heart  is  younger  than  ever!  Each  hour  seems  to  draw 
a  nail  from  my  cofHn. 

The  morning  of  May  29th,  found  us  in  the  splendid  avenue  of  chesnuts, 
leading  through  Bushy  Park  to  Hampton  Court.*  The  day  was  one  of  those 
never-to-be-forgotten  days  of  loveliness  and  beauty  when  silver  clouds  ever 
and  anon  conceal  the  sun,  and  prevent  his  being  oppressively  hot, — lending, 
at  the  same  time,  a  most  charming  efiect  to  the  surrounding  landscape.  We 
had  walked  the  entire  distance ;  leisurely  strolling,  during  the  day,  over 
some  sixteen  miles  of  ground.  When  I  say  that  we  beheld  that  grove 
of  chesnuts  in  all  their  conceivable  beauty  of  lovely  apparel,  I  say  all  that 
can  be  said.  But  the  reality !  We  had  hit  on  the  identical  day  when  their 
glory  vf as  perfect.  Two  days'  rain  had  brought  them  to  their  majesty.  Oh, 
how  I  gazed  on  that  vast  assemblage  of  beauty,  as  each  group  of  flowers, 
rising  in  majestic  grandeur  above  its  fellow,  towered  upwards  to  its  lofty 
summit !  A  multitude  of  Deer  lay  basking  beneath  the  shade  of  these 
gigantic  trees.  Eooks,  too,  had  made  them  their  summer  retreat ;  and 
there  were  Thrushes,  Blackbirds,  and  Starlings  out  of  number.  The  hearts 
of  my  readers  must  here  help  me  out.  We  had  a  most  enjoyable  day;  and, 
but  for  prescribed  limits,  I  could  be  amusingly  discursive  on  the  many  in- 
teresting things  we  saw,  and  took  a  part  in. 

Whilst  approaching  that  end  of  the  avenue  leading  to  the  statue  of  Diana, 
in  the  centre  of  the  ornamental  basin,  my  self-control  was  lost.  An  un- 
accountable desire  stole  over  me  to  sing  (!) ;  and  a  strain,  dear  to  me  in  youth 
— dear  to  me  now,  was  borne  far  upon  the  breeze : 

"  The  sun  his  bright  rays  may  withhold,  Love, 
Unreflected  the  moonbeam  may  be ; 
But  ne'er  till  this  bosom  grows  cold,  Love, 
Shall  my  heart  beat  for  any  but  thee." 

That  I  delivered  this  with  amiable  effect,  I  cannot  for  one  moment  doubt. 

*  This  celebrated  avenue  exceeds  a  mile  in  length. 


ICO  "  THE    GOOD   TIME  "   COME   AT   LAST. 

I  noticed  its  effect  on  others.  Her  little  Majesty — God  bless  her  ! — had  she 
been  passing,  I  could  not  have  closed  my  throat.  The  music  was  in  my 
heart,  and  it  wanted  vent.     I  gave  it  con  exprezzione. 

There  was  passing,  at  the  time  of  my  final  effort,  a  wagon  and  a  team  of 
horses.  On  one  of  these,  sat  a  smiling  old  weather-beaten  labourer,  who, 
whip  in  hand,  and  enjoying,  evidently,  the  rays  of  sunshine  reflected  by  the 
gi-ass,  thus  saluted  me  :  "Ah,  master,  this  is  a  day  !  You  can  sing  on  a  day 
like  this, — can't  you  ?"  I  impressively  looked  "  yes  !"  to  this  simple,  artless, 
honest  question.  And  I  am  not  quite  sure  whether  I  have  not  been  rather 
proud  of  my  vocal  powers  ever  since  ! 

But  I  must  now  take  my  leave.  The  season  before  us  is  so  very  grand ; 
the  temptations  to  wander  in  Nature's  garden  are  so  overpoweringly  seduc- 
tive; and  the  good  to  be  derived  therefrom  is  so  undeniably  great, — that  I 
hope  I  have  assisted  in  animating  many  a  heart  to  go  forth  and  judge  for 
themselves.  When  we  keep  good  company,  we  must  be  good  also.  I  always 
shudder,  when  fashion  resumes  her  despotic  sway  over  those  to  whom,  for  a 
short  season,  she  has  bade  adieu  !  Alas  !  she  well  knows  when  to  calculate 
upon  their  return. 

How  soon  what  is  really  good  passes  away,  when  that  which  gave  rise  to 
a  noble  sentiment  is  beheld  no  longer  !  I  wish  I  could  have  my  way  in  this 
matter,  and  be  allowed  to  hold  forth,  viva  voce,  for  a  few  short  hours,  to  those 
who  px-efer  the  shade  of  life  to  its  substance.  If  they  did  not  do  as  I  said, 
they  should,  at  all  events,  acknowledge,  before  parting,  that  my  arguments 
were  sound.  And  who  knows  Avhether  a  per  centage  might  not  be  obtained  ? 
A  single  convert  to  Nature  is  surely  worth  a  year  of  toil. 

Before  closing  this  despatch,  let  me  for  a  single  instant  glance  at  the 
present  grand  aspect  of  the  country.  Our  dear,  good  mother, — God  bless 
her! — has  been,  for  some  days  past,  weeping.  Such  tears  of  joy  has  she  let 
fall,  that  her  children,  one  and  all,  have  sympathised  with  her  most  lovingly. 
The  hills  rejoice ;  the  valleys  shout  and  sing.  All  things,  everywhere,  are 
lavishly  plentiful  and  surpassingly  lovely.  The  smiles  and  tears  of  Nature, 
during  the  last  forty-eight  hours,  have  made  my  heart  fresher  than  a  child's. 
May  all  your  readers,  then,  join  me  feelingly  in  exclaiming, — "  Glory  be  to 
THEE,  O  God ! " 

New  Road,  Hammersmith,  June  16. 


161 
ORNITHOLOGICAL  NOTES. 

BY  THE  BEV.  R.  PYE  ALINGTON. 

In  a  former  number  of  The  Naturalist  I  had  occasion  to  mention  that  my 
brother,  Mr.  Henry  Alington  Pye,  of  Louth,  had  enclosed  from  the  sea  a 
considerable  portion  of  land,  in  the  parish  of  North  Summercoats.  Trees,  of 
course,  grow  but  slowly  upon  it,  probably  from  the  quantity  of  salt  still  in 
the  ground,  but  a  few  ashes  have  sprung  up, — fifty  or  sixty ;  at  present  tliey 
are  not  thicker  than  a  man's  wrist,  perhaps  eighteen  to  twenty  feet  high. 
This  year  they  were  thinned  out,  the  branches  left  on  the  ground.  A  pair  of 
rooks  were  noticed  busy  at  work ;  not  being  disturbed,  they  quickly  ran  up  a 
nest.  Day  after  day  others  continued  to  arrive,  until  every  one  of  these 
small  trees  were  hooded  with  a  nest.  So  low  are  the  trees,  that,  with  a  pole, 
every  nest  might  be  knocked  down ;  and  two  were  placed  so  near  to  the 
ground  that  a  tail  man  might  almost  have  jmt  his  hand  into  them;  these  two 
nests  were  destroyed  by  the  other  rooks. 

Remembering  the  remarks  of  my  nephew,  (the  Rev.  W.  W.  Cooper,  West 
Rasen,)  in  The  Naturalist,  in  his  article  on  the  Rook,  I  went  to  examine 
this  new  and  unexpected  colony,  and  found,  as  I  anticipated,  every  bird — 
"  birds  of  the  last  year  ;  "  that  is,  not  one  had  the  white  skin  which  is  so  con- 
spicuous at  the  base  of  the  bill  in  older  birds.  What  could  have  determined 
these  youngsters  so  suddenly  to  fix  upon  this  wild  and  solitary  situation  ?  No 
tree  or  rookery  within  miles ;  exposed  to  the  cutting  N.  E.  blasts  which 
during  this  spring  at  least,  have  blown  from  the  Gennan  Ocean!  More 
favourable  localities  might  surely  have  been  found,  nearer  home.  Could  the 
material  ready  at  hand  have  tempted  them  ?  Or  rather  may  it  not  have  been 
one  of  those  wonderful  interpositions  of  Providence,  for  good,  of  which  we 
are  having  continual  proofs  ?  New  land  when  first  cropped,  I  believe,  is 
peculiarly  liable  to  the  ravages  of  the  Wire  Worm ;  here,  then,  has  been 
placed  ready  at  hand,  unexpectedly,  a  scourge  and  destroyer  of  that  most 
terrible  pest;  who,  in  return  for  the  destruction  of  a  little  grain,  when  other 
food  fails,  will  in  the  end,  prove,  whatever  man  may  say,  that  an  invisible 
hand  is  ever  stretched  out  for  his  protection.  Let  the  indiscriminate 
destroyer  of  the  Rook  read  the'account  given  in  Yarrell's  British  Birds,  vol. 
ii.  pp.  93-90. 

Richard  Thorold,  Esq.,  of  Weelsby  House,  in  this  county,  had  a  few  years 
ago  two  Emus  sent  to  him,  a  present  from  Australia,  by  his  nephcAv,  A.  Grant, 
Esq.  Last  year  one  of  the  birds  laid  some  eggs,  but  deserting  them,  it  was 
supposed  that  possibly  the  two  birds  might  be  of  one  sex ;  but  this  year  the 
same  bird  has  again  laid,  and  when  I  last  heard,  was  sitting  "  close," — I 
believe  that  is  the  proper  expression ;  should  there  be  any  result,  I  M'ill 
write  more  particulars.  In  spite  of  the  cold  spring,  she  must  have  com- 
menced to  lay  her  eggs  in  March ;  the  nest  is  placed  at  the  bottom  of  a 


162  OUNITHOLOOICAL   NOTES. 

ditch  wliicli  surrounds  the  paddock  in  which  they  are  kept.  I  understand 
that  they  have  no  extra  warmth  of  shelter  during  the  winter,  only  the  open 
hovel  into  which  they  run  to  avoid  a  passing  storm. 

Monday,  16th  April, — Saw  a  gray  Crow;  also  a  tortoise-shell  Buttei-fly,  and 
a  Garden  White.  Tuesday,  17th  April, — First  Swallow.  Saturday,  21st  April, 
— Large  flight  of  Fieldfares.  Thursday,  3rd  May, — Heavy  falls  of  snow. 
Saturday,  5th  May, — Self-registering  thermometer  showed  during  the  night 
ten  degrees  of  frost.  Tuesday,  8th  May, — Heavy  hail  and  snow  hlasts. 
Monday,  14th  May, — Heard  first  Cuckoo.  Last  year  took  the  first  orange- 
tip  Butterfly  on  Wednesday,  12th  April,  then  plentiful;  this  year, — saw  the 
first  on  Saturday,  (?)  19th  May.  I  may  also  add  that,  though  now  the  21st 
of  May,  few  of  the  hedges  show  much  green ;  the  horse-chesnuts  are  not  out, 
and  not  many  of  the  heeches  show  their  leaves;  and,  from  their  appearance, 
the  old  ashes  will  not  he  in  leaf  until  July. 

Excuse  this  scrawl ;  if  you  can  make  any  use  of  it,  all  well  and  good. — 

Swinhope,  near  Great  Grimsby,  LincolnsJdre, 
May  2Ut,  1855. 


The  Natural  History  Review,  published  quarterly,  including  The  Transactions 
of  all  the  Irish  Natural  History  Societies ;  with  Woodcuts  and  Lithographic 
Hlustrations.  London  :  Highley.  Edinburgh :  Johnstone  and  Hunter. 
Dublin  :  Hodges  and  Smith.     No.  6,  April,  1855.     Price  Is.  6d. 

In  a  former  issue,  (Vol.  iv.  p.  241,)  we  x-ecommended  the  two  first  num- 
bers of  the  Natural  Histoiy  Eeview  to  our  readers,  as  deserving  eveiy  en- 
couragement and  support.  The  present  number  more  than  bears  out  the 
hoj)e  induced  by  the  appearance  of  the  earlier  issues,  and  is  full  of  most 
interesting  matter.  The  Eeports  from  the  various  Irish  Natural  History 
Societies  are  veiy  full,  and  show  that  the  publication  of  their  proceedings 
is  productive  of  much  benefit  to  science,  both  in  the  actual  addition  of  new 
members  to  our  Fauna  and  Flora,  and  in  the  increased  knowledge  of  the 
habits  and  localities  which  must  result  from  varied  observation.  The 
present  number  is  to  be  illustrated  by  four  plates ;  but  three  of  them  not 
being  completed,  will  appear  in  the  next  number.  We  regret  that  our  space 
will  not  allow  us,  on  this  occasion,  to  make  extracts,  or  give  a  summary  of 
the  contents.  We  will  only  say,  that  it  deserves,  and  we  trust  will  receive, 
ample  encouragement ;  and  wiU  prove  a  very  valuable  addition  to  the  library 
of  any  of  our  readers  who  cfin  afford  to  purchase  it. 


EEVIEWS.  163 

Synopsis  of  the  Edible  Fishes  at  the  Cape  of  Oood  Hope.  By  L.  Pappe,  M.  D. 
London  :  Algai-  and  Street,  11,  Clement-Lane.     8vo.  p.p.  34.     Price  Is. 

In  this  little  Essay,  Dr.  Pappe  has,  after  a  few  pages  of  introductory  re- 
marks, scientifically  described  the  vai-ious  edible  marine  fishes,  taken  in 
Table  Bay,  False  Bay,  and  on  the  coast  of  Hottentot  Holland.  Forty-five 
species  are  enumerated ;  but  this  list  will  probably  be  considerably  extend- 
ed, when  attention,  in  the  colony,  is  more  generally  turned  to  such  a  valuable 
national,  as  well  as  individual  source  of  wealth,  as  the  in-shore  fisheries. 
The  "Synopsis"  contains  much  important  and  accurate  information  upon 
the  various  fishes  at  present  used  for  food,  and  we  trust  may  be  only  the 
precursor  to  a  more  extended  work  by  the  same  author.  Were  such  a  work 
illustrated  by  good  woodcuts,  it  would  be  doubly  valuable.  The  following 
short  extract,  will  show  the  nature  of  the  information  to  be  obtained  from 
tliis  "  Synopsis."  "  11.  Sabgds  Capensis.  A.  Smith.  (Hottentot  fish.)  Body 
much  resembling  that  of  the  former,  but  more  attenuated  at  the  base,_and 
destitute  of  any  bands  or  vertical  stripes.  Head,  pui-plish  ;  back,  dull  bluish- 
green,  with  a  metallic  gloss ;  sides,  beneath  the  longitudinal  line,  silvery, 
with  a  reddish  tinge  ;  iris,  white.  Caught  at  all  seasons  with  the  hook;  and 
is  not  only  a  superior  table  fish,  but  forms,  when  salted  and  dried,  an  article 
of  exportation.  Mostly  confined  to  Table  Bay  and  the  west  coast,  where  it 
is  found  abundantly.  Length,  from  twelve  to  fourteen  inches."  We  trust 
that  a  rapid  sale  of  the  present  little  Work,  may  induce  the  author  to  attempt 
the  description  and  illustration  of  all  the  fishes  taken  at  the  Cape. 

The  Entomolofjist's  Annual,  for  1855  ;  comprising  Notices  of  the  New  British 
Insects  detected  in  1854.  Lepidoptera  by  the  Editor;  Hymenoptera  by  Fred- 
erick Smith ;  Coleoptera  by  E.  W.  Janson.  Edited  by  H.  T.  Stainton. 
Second  edition,  with  considerable  additions.  London  :  Van  Voorst,  1855. 
p.p.  153,  one  plate.     Price  2s.  6d. 

At  page  91,  of  the  present  volume,  we  noticed  the  first  edition  of  this 
little  work,  and  cordially  recommended  it  to  our  entomological  correspond- 
ents. The  present  edition,  in  addition  to  the  information  contained  in  the 
first,  contains  an  Address  to  Young  Entomologists  at  our  public  and  other 
Schools  ;  and  also  some  very  useful  and  intelligible  "  Instructions  in  collect- 
ing and  j)resening  Lepidoptera  and  Coleoptera."  We  shall  be  vei-y  glad 
to  find  that  this  second  edition  may  rapidly  change  owners ;  and  that  Mr. 
Stainton  may  reap  some  little  reward  for  the  time  and  expense  he  must  have 
been  at,  in  bringing  out  this  useful  volume. 

A  Clnssijied  List  of  British  Mosses;  compiled  from  Wilson's  "  Bryologia 
Britannica."  By  George  Dixon.  Ayton,  near  Stokesley,  Yorkshire.  Sent 
post-free  for  three  stamps  ;  on  thick  paper  for  four  stamps^ ;  or  100  copies 
free  for  12s.  (Jd. 


164  REVIEWS. 

We  have  much  pleasure  in  calling  the  attention  of  our  readers  to  the 
above  very  useful  and  complete  Catalogue  of  our  British  Mosses ;  it  is  in 
every  way  suitable  for  marking  desiderata  or  duplicates,  for  transmission 
through  the  post,  as  well  as  for  labelling  collections.  We  gladly  take  this 
opportunity  of  mentioning,  that  the  same  gentlemsni  has  published  classified 
lists,  for  similar  purposes,  on  many  branches  of  Natural  History ;  such,  for 
instance,  as  our  marine,  as  well  as  land  and  fresh-water  Shells,  Algae,  Lichens, 
Hepaticse,  Reptiles,  Ferns,  Zoophytes,  Grasses,  &c.  To  any  one  requiring 
catalogues  for  labelling  their  collections,  or  other  purposes,  (and  who,  that 
reads  The  Naturalist,  does  not?)  we  (jordially  recommend  Mr.  Dixon's 
series  of  catalogues,  as  we  know  them  to  be  most  carefully  compiled  and 
ai'ranged. 

A  List  of  the  British  Species  of  Geodephaga,  for  marking  desiderata  and  label- 
ling collections ;  taken  from  Mr.  Dawson's  Geodephaga  Biitannica.  By  G. 
Guyon.     Richmond :  Surrey.    Post-free,  for  four  stamps. 

The  objects  of  this  List  are  manifest;  and  we  have  no  doubt  it  will  prove 
valuable  to  all  our  Coleopterists.  The  extensive  changes  and  corrections 
made  in  the  nomenclature  and  arrangement  of  the  carnivorous  ground 
Beetles,  by  Mr.  Dawson,  will  lead  to  the  re-arrangement  of  numerous  collec- 
tions of  this  tribe,  and  this  List  will  be  a  valuable  aid  in  making  the  change. 
Mr.  Dawson  is  a  very  high  authority  in  this  branch  of  Natural  History ;  and 
though  the  changes  he  has  introduced  are  very  extensive,  we  believe  he  has 
good  grounds  for  making  them  We  have,  for  many  years,  collected  coleop- 
tera,  and  we  readily  confess,  that  Mr.  Dawson's  valuable  work  has  cleared 
away  many  of  our  difficulties.  The  List  is  printed  in  good  type,  and  on  good 
paper ;  but  owing  to  its  being  on  both  sides  of  the  sheet,  two  copies  must 
be  cut  up  in  labelling  a  collection.  It  would  have  been  an  advantage  to  Ifave 
had  some  copies  printed  on  only  one  side  of  the  paper,  as  in  "  Curtis'  Guide." 


Pisdlanms  ptias. 


Note  on  the  Rufous  Warbler,  (^don  galactodes.) — In  the  "  Zoologist,"  for 
November,  1854,  p.  4511,  there  is  a  notice  of  the  occurrence  of  this  bird  in 
Sussex,  on  the  Downs,  at  Plumpton  Bosthill,  about  six  miles  from  Brighton, 
This  note  is  unaccompanied  by  any  description,  and  as  the  bird  is  quite  new 
to  the  British  Fauna,  I  send  you  the  following,  in  the  hope  that  it  may 
prove  interesting  to  your  ornithological  readers,  and  useful  in  determining 
the  species,  should  it  again  be  met  with.  Gen.  JEdon,  Boie. — Bill,  thrush- 
like ;  the  sides  much  compressed  ;  tip,  bent,  entire  ;  gape  smooth  ;  nostrils, 
oval.     Tarsus,  lengthened;  feet,  very  strong;  toes,  short, — the  inner  shorter 


MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES. 


165 


than  the  outer ;  claws,  slender.  Wings,  moderate, — slightly  pointed.  Tail, 
ample,  rounded,  composed  of  twelve  feathers.  Sp.  JSdon  galactodes,  Temm. 
— Male :  Irides  ?  Bill,  brown, — yellowish  near  the  base  and  edges  of  the 
lower  mandible;  legs  and  feet,  yellowish-brown.  Above,  bright  reddish- 
gray  ;  from  the  bill  to  the  eye  extends  a  brown  band ;  superciliaiy  stripe, 
white,  slightly  reddish  ;  wings,  bright  brown, — the  feathers  edged  and  tip- 
ped with  reddish;  tail-feathers,  bright  chesnut,  each  with  a  large  black 
spot  near  the  end, — the  outermost  feathers  on  each  side  terminated  with 
pure  white,  the  others  with  reddish-white.  Beneath,  light  Isabella  colour ; 
sides  of  the  neck,  bi-east,  and  flanks,  tinged  with  reddish.  Length,  6J  inches. 
Female:  Not  well  known.  Described  as  follows:  Above,  brown;  rump  and 
tail,  chesnut ;  wing-feathers  and  two  middle  tail-feathers,  cinereous ;  the 
spots  at  the  extremity  of  the  tail  are  wider,  and  of  a  blackish-brown  colour. 
M.  Temminck  is  not  certain  that  the  latter  description  does  not  belong  to 
the  young  of  the  year.  He  states,  that  as  the  bird  advances  in  age,  the 
black  spots  of  the  tail  diminish  in  size.  This  species  is  found  in  Greece 
and  Egypt ;  it  is  veiy  common  in  Andalusia,  in  mountainous  valleys,  where 
it  builds  in  the  Oleanders  and  in  the  clefts  of  rocks.  Of  its  habits,  very 
little  is  known ;  Mr.  Swainson  (Birds,  II.  p.  64)  says,  judging  from  the  struc- 
ture, that  it  is  "  evidently  a  walking  bird."  The  Sussex  specimen  was  very 
wary,  always  flying  to  the  further  side  of  some  furze-bushes,  mounting  into 
the  air  about  fifteen  yards.  The  flight  is  described  as  resembling  that  of 
the  young  Ked-backed  Shrike.  The  bird  was  a  male,  and  would  soon  have 
moulted, — one  or  two  new  feathers  of  the  primaries  having  made  their  ap- 
pearance on  each  wing.  It  was  procured  by  Mr.  G.  Swaysland,  Naturalist, 
of  Brighton,  on  the  16th  of  September,  1854.  This  species  is  figured  in  the 
"  Pl9,nches  Colorees,"  251,  f.  1,  by  Werner,  in  the  "  Atlas  des  Oiseaux  d' 
Europe,"  and  in  Mr.  Gould's  "Birds  of  Europe,"  pi.  112.— John  Cavafy, 
Westbourne  Terrace,  London,  May  18th,  1855. 

Ornithological  oceurrences  in  Norfolk. — The  following  birds  have  occun-ed 
in  this  county  during  the  latter  part  of  the  past  year: — Marsh  Harrier.  (Cir- 
cus aeruginosus.) — Killed  at  Narford  in  November.  Common  Bittern.  (Botau- 
rus  stellaris.) — A  male,  in  very  fine  plumage,  killed  on  6th  Dec  ,  at  Great 
Cressingham,  by  the  Rev.  —  Warner.  Pigmy  Curlew.  (Tringa  subarquata,) 
and  Little  Stint.  (T.  minuta.) — I  have  a  specimen  of  each  of  these  birds, 
killed  near  Yarmouth,  in  September  last.  Gray  Phalarope.  (Phalaropus 
lobatus.) — Two  specimens  of  this  bird  have  come  under  my  notice,  both 
killed  near  Fakenham,  at  difierent  periods  during  the  past  autumn.  Cor- 
morant. (Phalaci-ocorax  carbo.) — Killed  at  Narford  in  November.  Gannet. 
(Sula  alba.) — An  immature  specimen,  killed  in  Boderey-field  in  November. 
It  made  a  violent  attack  upon  a  shepherd's  dog,  and  was  killed  by  the  sheep 
boy  with  a  stick.  Richardson's  Skua.  (Lestris  Richardsonii.) — Killed  near 
liynn  in  October.      Little  Auk.    (Mergulus  alle.)— Taken  near  Pentney  in 


166  MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 

November.  A  friend  of  mine,  at  Lynn,  had  one  of  these  birds  offered  to 
him  alive,  for  sale,  about  the  same  time. — T.  Southwell,  Fakenham,  Norfolk, 
Jan.  1855. 

Occurrence  of  Montagiis  Sucher  (Liparis  Montagui)  at  Banff. — There  was 
brought  on  shoi-e  here,  a  few  days  ago,  by  some  of  our  fishermen,  though 
unknown  to  them,  a  veiy  tine  specimen  of  the  above  little  tish.  It  was  found 
encased  within  the  whorls  of  a  water-worn  portion  of  one  of  our  "  roaring 
buckles,"  Fusus  Antiquus,  which  was  picked  up  by  my  young  friend  Maggy, 
from  where  the  fishermen  clean  their  lines ;  and  though  it  was  several  hours 
afterwards  before  it  was  discovered,  and  perhaps  the  greater  part  of  a  day 
out  of  its  proper  element,  the  sea,  it  was  still  alive;  but  on  being  put  into 
a  basin  of  fresh  water,  it  did  not  long  survive. — Thomas  Edward,  Banff, 
Nov.  10th,  1854. 

Sirex  Oigas,  at  Oxford. — I  obtained  a  specimen  of  Sirex  Gigas,  the  other 
day,  which  was  caught  iu  a  chemist's  shop  in  Oxford.  Opposite  the  shop 
there  was  some  fir  scaffolding,  from  which,  possibly,  it  may  have  escaped. — 
J.  F.  Whiteaves,  Oxford,  Oct.  31st,  1854. 

Late  appearance  of  the  Peacock  Butterfly,  (^^anessa  lo.) — A  specimen  of 
the  above  Butterfly  was  seen,  by  a  gentleman,  flying  in  the  south  street  of 
the  city  of  Chichester,  on  Christmas-day  morning,  the  weather  was  very  dul, 
and  cloudy. — Uncas,  Chichester,  January  1st,  1855. 

All  of  the  Genus  Vanessa  are  in  the  habit  of  hybernating,  and  may  be 
brought  out  by  any  warm  and  sunny  weather. — B.  R.  M. 

Small  Eggar, — Of  the  caterpillar  of  this  moth,  I  have,  in  my  time,  taken  a 
goodly  number.  To  the  inexperienced  entomologist,  they  will  prove  a  source 
of  disappointment ;  for  out  of  a  brood,  the  first  year,  he  will  not  perhaps 
rear  half-a-dozen.  But  let  him  not  despair,  each  succeeding  year  will  bring 
them  forth  in  larger  or  smaller  numbers.  I  have  had  them  appear  the 
seventh  year  after  entering  into  the  pupa. 

Papilio  Machaon. — Last  month,  I  had  a  number  of  chrysalies  of  this 
Buttei-fly;  of  these,  four  did  not  apj^ear  at  the  usual  period,  and  at  the 
present  time  are  alive  and  still  in  the  chrysalis ;  this  probably  is  a  provision 
of  nature,  to  prevent  the  extinction  of  the  species.  This,  however,  is  only  a 
surmise,  for  during  the  twenty  years  in  which  I  have  had  many  hundreds  of 
chiysalides,  it  never  occurred  to  me  before.  All  facts  connected  with  the 
history  of  insects  being  interesting,  I  have  sent  the  above,  with  the  hope 
that  it  may  prove  interesting  to  those  of  your  correspondents  younger  in  the 
study  of  entomology  than  myself;  and,  if  agreeable,  I  can,  from  time  to 
time,  send  you  much  interesting  matter  I'egarding  insects — their  habits, 
&c. — J.  Thorne. 

Note  on  the  treatment  which  Bees  render  to  their  tvounded. — One  day  in  the 
early  part  of  last  autumn,  as  I  and  two  friends  were  engaged  watching  the 
movements  of  a  community  of  Bees,  busy  working  at  their  cells,  our  atten- 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES.  167 

tion  was  directed  towards  an  intruder,  in  tlie  person  of  an  audacious  wasp, 
whicli  no  sooner  had  entered  the  forbidden  precincts,  than  he  commenced 
helping  himself  pretty  freely  to  the  good  things,  of  which  he  found  an  ample 
store.  His  entrance  was  observed  by  many  of  the  inmates,  and  it  was 
evident  an  universal  impression  prevailed,  that  something  unpleasant  was 
tlxe  matter.  This  state  of  feeling  was  indicated  by  a  louder  buzz,  Avhich  ap- 
peared also  to  assume  a  more  angry  tone.  The  thief,  however,  was  allowed 
to  indulge  himself  much  longer  than  we  had  anticipated.  At  last  the  time 
came  when  it  was,  in  a  very  unmistakable  manner,  intimated  to  him  that  he 
had  no  business  there,  and  that  he  could  no  longer  be  suffered  to  pilfer  with 
impunity.  This  was  done  by  one  of  the  bees,  whicli  made  a  vigorous  on- 
slaught at  the  head  of  the  wasp,  and  I  need  hardly  say  the  attack  was  replied 
to  in  equally  as  warm  a  manner,  for 

"They  tug,  they  strain;  down,  down  they  go," 

and  a  fearful  struggle  ensued  at  the  bottom  of  the  hive.  The  combatants 
appeared  to  be  very  equally  matched,  so  much  so,  that  victoiy,  for  a  time, 
seemed  doubtful.  At  last  the  poor  bee  gave  a  convulsive  shudder,  and  in- 
stantly the  wasp  disengaged  himself  and  flew  away,  feeling,  no  doubt,  pretty 
sure  that  he  had  given  a  fatal  wound.  With  the  exception  of  one  solitary 
individual,  the  bees  seemed  to  take  no  interest  as  to  the  result  of  the 
stixiggle.  This  one  kept  wheeling  round  the  duellists,  keeping,  however,  at 
a  respectful  distance ;  and  whenever  the  circumstances  of  the  fight  threw 
the  belligerents  too  near,  he,  like  the  "  Braves  Belgae"  on  a  certain  18th  of 
June,  decreased  the  danger  by  increasing  the  distance  from  it  No  sooner 
was  the  battle  over,  than  the  bee  that  had  witnessed  it  came  to  the  poor 
wounded  wretch  that  lay  quivering  on  the  well-contested  field,  to  console 
him  in  his  sufferings,  we  hoped,  or  to  take  him  to  some  hospital  cell,  and 
there  to  administer  to  him  some  well  merited  comforts.  But  no,  we  were 
very  much  mistaken,  there  was  no  "  Scutari  "  for  this  gallant  patriot,  that 
had  so  nobly  fought  for  his  queen  and  community.  The  bee  most  ruthlessly 
pushed  the  sufferer  to  the  verge  of  the  platform,  then  flew  with  him  a  few 
yards,  and  let  him  drop.  We  felt  quite  interested  in  the  poor  bee,  and  dis- 
appointed at  the  cruel  treatment  he  had  received.  I  picked  him  vip,  but  he 
was  so  far  gone,  that  he  died  in  my  hand  in  a  few  seconds  afterwards. — J.  P., 
February  7th,  1855. 

Occurrence  of  an  Owl,  new  to  Britain,  near  Leeds. — We  have  just  received 
from  our  valued  friend,  E.  Hobson,  Esq.,  M.D.,  of  Leeds,  notice  of  the  occur- 
rence, near  Leeds,  of  a  female  specimen  of  the  American  Mottled  Owl, 
Audubon.  We  hope  to  give  the  full  particulars  in  our  next. — B.  R.  M.,  June 
18th,  1855. 


168  THF.    QUERIST. 


On  Qrease  in  Insects. — I  think  it  may  be  useful  to  many  of  your"^ritomno- 
logical  readers  to  be  furnished  with  a  list  of  those  moths  (they  are  chiefly, 
it  will  be  seen,  Bomhyces)  Avhich  are  most  likely  to  "  grease  "  in  the  cabinet. 
I  would  first  observe,  that  "  prevention  is  better  than  cure."  The  best  way 
of  all  is,  to  take  out  the  inside  of  the  bodies  before  the  moths  are  first  set ; 
of  course,  this  must  be  done  very  carefully,  so  as  not  to  injure  the  down 
upon  the  insect.  It  may  be  done  as  well  just  after  the  fly  is  dry,  but  there 
is  then  more  danger  of  breaking  the  body  off.  A  very  fine  penknife,  or,  still 
better,  a  pair  of  scissors,  literally  as  sharp  as  a  razor, — the  best  being  fur- 
nished by  surgical  instrument  makers, — will  be  found  the  best  implement  for 
the  purpose.  The  mass  of  eggs  in  the  bodies  of  the  females  of  some  sorts 
are  a  fruitful  source  of  the  evil, — turning,  in  time,  into  an  oily  substance. 
All  other  I'emedies  are  only  temporary.      This  "  goes  to  the  root  of  the  evil." 

The  Puss  Moth,  (very  much.)  The  Small  Eggar,  (somewhat.) 

The  Dkinkee,  (sometimes.)  The  Lakge  Swift,  (the  males  very  much.) 

The  Laege  Eggah,  (the  males  often.)  The  Goat  Moth,  (very  much.) 

The  Herald,  (often.)  The  Boff  Tip,  (sometimes.) 

The  Buff  Ermine,  (sometimes.)'  The  Large  Sword  Grass,  (sometimes.) 

The  Garden  Tiger,  (very  often.)  The  Swallow-tailed  Moth,  (very  much.) 

F.  O.  Morris. 

On  Grease  in  Insects. — I  find  the  Spirits  of  Naptha  one  of  the  best  remedies 
for  removing  greasy  stains  from  the  bodies  of  insects,  and  also  for  prevent- 
ing the  attacks  of  Mites  in  the  cabinet;  it  being  colourless,  and  soon 
evaporating,  there  is  not  the  least  danger  of  its  injuring  the  specimens,  or 
soiling  the  most  delicate  paper. — E.  Marris,  Lynn-Road,  Wisbeach. 

Removing  Orease  from  Insects. — On  reading  the  inquiry  on  this  subject  in 
the  last  number  of  The  Naturalist,  I  was  immediately  reminded  of  an 
Article  in  The  Mechanics'  Magazine  for  December  last,  p.  531,  "  On  the 
Products  obtained  from  Coal,"  by  Professor  Grace  Calvert,  F.  C.  S.,  &c.,  in 
which  he  mentions  a  rectified  and  pui'ified  Naptha,  called  by  an  eminent 
French  chemist,  of  the  name  of  Pelouze,  "  Benzine."  It  appears  to  have 
great  facility  in  removing  spots  of  grease,  wax,  tar,  and  resin,  from  fabrics 
and  wearing  apparel,  without  injuring  the  texture,  its  colour,  or  leaving  any 
permanent  smell  or  mark.  Benzine  has,  through  Mr.  Calvert's  exertions, 
been  introduced  into  England,  and  has  been  found  most  valuable  in  brighten- 
ing velvets,  satins,  &c.  This  article  appears  to  me  well  worthy  of  a  trial,  as 
it  probably  would  remove  the  grease  without  injuring  the  specimens. — John 

FOTHERGILL,  M.  R.  C.  S. 


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CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

On  tbe  OccuiTence  of  the  American  Mottled  Owl,  (Strix  Asio,  Audubon, J  near 
Leeds.     By  Richard  Hobson,  Esq.,  M.D.,  with  a  Plate 16& 

Stalked-Eyed  Crustacea  of  Banffshire.     By  W 

On  the  Fauna  of  Wool,  near  Warcham,  Dorset.     By  J.  E.  Daniel,  Esq 

Letter  from  New  Basford.     By  J.  Moelby    , 

An  Ornithological  Rarity  in  the  North.     By  Mr.  Tiios.  Edward     

An  Afternoon's  Ramble,  or  Leisure  Hour.     By  Mr.  J.  O.  Harper 

New  Station  for  Lecaiurra  rubra,  Ach.,  (LicTien  ulmi,  Sioarts-.)   By  Geo.  Dixon,  Esq.    185 

Review.— People's  Edition.  Kidd's  Treatises  on  Song-Birds.  The  Canary.  By 
William  Kidd,  of  Hammersmith ;  Editor  of  Kidd's  Journal  and  Book  of  Nature. 
London:  Groombridge.     P.p.  26,  with  engravings.  Is 186 

Miscellaneous  Notices-   ... • 187 

The  Querist      ^9- 


172 
175 

179 
181 

182 


It  is  requested  that  all  Communications  be  addressed  in  future 
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Mr.  T.  Li-sTER— G.  Dlxon,  Esq.— W.— J.  D.~G.  B.  Clarke,  Esq. 

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m  eare  of  Messrs.  OBOOMBBIDGE,  5,  Paternoster- Bow,  London.. 


C^ffrt^Xy  <J7JUr 


}{  D'"t*tAf    alt^  cf  ifcui/^- 


109 


ON  THE  OCCURRENCE    OF  THE  AMERICAN  MOTTLED  OWL, 
{8TRIX  A8I0,  Audubon,)  NEAR  LEEDS. 

BY   RICHARD    HOBSON,    ESQ.,    M.D. 

In  accordance  with  your  request,  I  at  once  set  to  work  to  endeavour  to 
authenticate  the  fact  of  a  "Mottled  Owl"  being  killed  in  Yorkshire,  which 
Owl  is  now  in  my  possession. 

The  Owl  in  question  is  in  its  grey  plumage ;  and  was  shot  by  Joseph  Owen, 
who  then  did,  and  still  continues  to,  reside  at  Kirkstall.*  It  was  killed  in  the 
breeding  season  of  1852,  in  Hawksworth  cover,  the  property  of  Lord  Cardi- 
gan, half  a  mile  above  Kirkstall  Abbey,  on  the  banks  of  the  river  Aire, 
about  four  miles  west  of  Leeds.  At  that  period,  there  were  a  pair  of  owls; 
and,  as  far  as  Joseph  Owen  could  judge  by  moonlight,  they  appeared  to  be 
similar  in  size,  colour  and  flight.  He  at  once  saw  that  these  birds  differed 
materially  from  our  common  Screech  Owl,  and  was  therefore  extremely 
anxious  to  secure  them ;  and,  having  shot  one,  he  went  to  their  haunt,  night 
after  night,  to  obtain  the  remaining  one ;  but  this  he  unfortunately  never 
could  accomplish.  Several  other  parties  saw  the  remaining  bird,  and  fre- 
quently called  on  Owen  to  desire  him  to  go  up  to  shoot  it.  From  that 
period,  however,  it  has  not  been  seen. 

Owen,  ignorant  of  the  value  of  his  treasure,  gave  this  Owl,  in  the  flesh,  to 
a  bird-stufFer  in  Leeds,  called  Matthew  Smith ;  who  immediately  put  it  up, 
under  the  impression  that  it  was  a  "  Scops-Eared  Owl;"  and,  under  the  same 
error  in  judgment,  and,  I  may  add,  oftsiwa^e  conviction,  sold  it  tome.  On 
his  delivering  it  at  ray  house,  there  happened  to  be  present  two  excellent 
ornithologists, —  Mr.  Denny,  the  talented  Curator  of  the  Leeds  Philosophical 
Hall,  and  Mr.  Graham,  of  York,  far-famed  in  ornithological  pursuits.  The 
moment  that  Graham's  keen  eye  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  bird,  he — in  not 
a  very  conciliatory  tone,  I  admit — ci'ied  out  to  the  vendor,  "  That's  not  a 
Scops-Eared  Owl ; "  when  Mr.  Smith,  with  still  less  of  the  suaviter  in  modo, 
replied,  '■  But  I  say  it  is  a  Scops-Eared  Owl."  My  good  friend  Mr.  Waterton's 
words,  which  he  had  often  expressed  to  me  previously — "  We  bird-stuffers 
are  a  most  pugnacious  tribe  " — were  in  vivid  view ;  and  I  therefore  appealed 
to  Mr.  Denny,  who  unhesitatingly  pronounced  it  the  "  Mottled  Owl."  Mr. 
Smith,  however,  stuck  with,  if  possible,  increased  pertinacity  to  his  text ; 
until  I  produced  Catesby  and  Wilson,  both  having  figured  the  Mottled  Owl 
in  its  different  plumage,  but  under  different  names ;  viz.,  the  Red,  and  the 
Mottled  Owl ;  when  he  then,  after  Hudibras's  fashion — 
"  Convince  a  man  against  his  will,"  &c. — 

reluctantly  yielded.     Mr.  Denny  afterwards  laid  a  Scops-Eared  Owl  on  the 

•  I  have  had  a  letter  from  Owen's  employer,  Mr.  Ambrose  Butler,  who  says, 
having  »1iottlie'bird."—'R.'H. 
VOL.  V. 


170  THE    AMERICAN    MOTTLED    OWL. 

table ;  which,  by  comparison,  at  once  settled  the  dispute  beyond  a  shadow  of 
doubt. 

It  appears,  however,  that  Catesby  and  Wilson  were  in  error,  in  describing 
and  figuring  the  Little  Common  Screech  and  the  Mottled  Owl  as  distinct 
birds ;  Audubon  having  since  clearly  ascertained  that  they  are  the  same  bird, 
but  in  different  plumage.  On  reference  to  Audubon's  American  Ornitho- 
logical Biography,  published  1831,  at  page  486,  he  says:  "You  are  presented 
with  three  figures  of  this  species,  the  better  to  show  you  the  differences 
which  exist  between  the  young  and  the  full-grown  bird.  The  contrast  of 
colouring  in  these  different  stages  I  have  thought  it  necessary  to  exhibit,  as 
the  Red  Owl  of  Wilson,  and  other  naturalists,  is  merely  the  young  of  the 
bird  called  by  the  same  authors  the  Mottled  Owl ;  and  which,  in  fact,  is  the 
adult  of  the  species  under  consideration.  The  error  committed  by  the 
author  of  the  American  Ornithology,  for  many  years  misled  all  subsequent 
students  of  nature :  and  the  specific  identity  of  the  two  birds  which  he 
had  described  as  distinct  under  the  above  names,  was  first  publicly  main- 
tained by  my  friend  Charles  Lucian  Bonaparte ;  although  the  fact  was  long 
before  known  to  many  individuals  with  whom  I  was  acquainted,  as  well  as  to 
myself. 

"  The  flight  of  the  Mottled  Owl  is  smooth,  rapid,  protracted,  and  noiseless. 
It  rises,  at  times,  above  the  top  branches  of  the  highest  of  our  forest  trees, 
whilst  in  pursuit  of  large  beetles ;  and  at  other  times  sails  low  and  swiftly 
over  the  fields,  or  through  the  woods,  in  search  of  small  birds,  field-mice, 
and  moles,  from  w^hich  it  chiefly  derives  its  subsistence. 

"  On  alighting,  which  it  does  plumply,  the  Mottled  Owl  immediately  bends 
its  body,  turns  its  head  to  look  behind  it,  performs  a  curious  nod,  utters 
its  notes,  then  shakes  and  plumes  itself,  and  resumes  its  flight  in  search  of 
prey.  It  now  and  then,  while  on  wing,  produces  a  cliching  sound  with  its 
mandibles,  but  more  frequently  when  perched  near  its  mate  or  young.  This, 
I  have  thought,  is  done  by  the  bird  to  manifest  its  courage,  and  let  the 
hearer  know  that  it  is  not  to  be  meddled" with ;  although  few  birds  of  prey 
are  more  gentle  when  seized,  as  it  will  suffer  a  person  to  touch  its  feathers 
and  caress  it,  without  attempting  to  bite  or  strike  with  its  talons,  unless  at 
intervals.  I  carried  one  of  the  young  birds  represented  in  the  plate,  in  my 
coat-pocket,  from  Philadelphia  to  New  York,  travelling  alternately  by  water 
and  land.  It  remained  generally  quiet,  fed  from  the  hand,  and  never  at- 
tempted to  escape.  The  notes  of  this  Owl  are  uttered  in  a  tremulous, 
doleful  manner,  and  somewhat  resemble  the  chattering  of  the  teeth  of  a 
person  under  the  influence  of  extreme  cold,  although  much  louder.  They 
are  heard  at  a  distance  of  several  hundred  yards,  and  by  some  people  are 
thought  to  be  of  ominous  import.  The  little  fellow  is  generally  found  about 
farm-houses,  orchards,  and  gardens.  It  alights  on  the  roof,  the  fence,  or  the 
garden  gate,  and  utters  its  mournful  ditty  at  intervals  for  hours  at  a  time,  as 


THE    AMERICAK    MOTTLED    OWL.  171 

if  it  were  in  a  state  of  great  suffering ;  although  this  is  far  from  being  the 
case,  the  song  of  all  birds  being  an  indication  of  content  and  happiness. 

"  In  a  state  of  confinement,  it  continues  to  utter  its  notes  with  as  much 
satisfaction  as  if  at  liberty.  They  are  chiefly  heard  during  the  latter  part 
of  winter,  that  being  the  season  of  love,  Avhen  the  male  bird  is  particularly 
attentive  to  tJie  fair  one  which  excites  his  tender  emotions,  and  around 
which  he  flies  and  struts  much  in  the  manner  of  the  Common  Pigeon,  adding 
numerous  nods  and  bows,  the  sight  of  which  is  very  amusing  The  nest  is 
placed  in  the  bottom  of  the  hollow  trunk  of  a  tree,  often  not  a  greater 
height  than  six  or  seven  feet  from  the  ground,  at  other  times  so  high  as  from 
thirty  to  forty  feet.  It  is  composed  of  a  few  grasses  and  feathers.  The  eggs 
are  four  or  five,  of  a  nearly  globular  form,  and  pure  white.  If  not  disturbed, 
this  species  lays  only  one  set  of  eggs  in  the  season. 

"  The  young  remain  in  the  nest  until  they  are  able  to  fly.  At  first  they  are 
covered  with  a  downy  substance,  of  a  dull,  yellowish  white.  By  the  middle 
of  August  they  are  fully  feathered,  and  are  then  generally  of  the  colour 
exhibited  in  the  plate,  although  considerable  diff'erences  exist  between  indi- 
viduals :  as  I  have  seen  some  of  a  deep  chocolate  colour,  and  others  nearly 
black.  The  feathers  change  their  colours  as  the  pairing  season  advances, 
and  in  the  first  spring  the  bird  is  in  its  perfect  dress.  The  Mottled  Owl 
rests  or  spends  the  day,  either  in  a  hole  of  some  decayed  tree,  or  in  the 
thickest  part  of  the  evergreens,  which  are  found  so  abundantly  in  the 
country,  to  which  it  usually  resorts  during  the  breeding  season,  as  well  as  in 
the  depth  of  winter." 

In  1849,  Audubon  published  in  his  American  Ornithological  Biography, 
vol.  5,  page  392,  additional  interesting  observations,  fully  confirming  his 
information  given  to  the  ornithological  department  of  science  in  183 1 ;  and 
which,  now  that  the  Mottled  Owl  has  been  shot  in  Yorkshire,  must  be  doubly 
interesting.  Audubon  sajs:  "Although  this  species  inhabits  the  Oregon 
Territory  and  the  Columbia  River  district,  where  it  was  found  by  Dr.  Town- 
send,  it  is  not  mentioned  by  Dr.  Richardson  as  being  observed  in  the  Fur 
Countries.  It  is,  however,  met  with  abundantly  in  the  British  provinces  of 
New  Brunswick,  Nova  Scotia,  Newfoundland,  and  Labrador,  where  I  pro' 
cured  it.  My  friend  Dr.  Bachman  says :  '  There  is  no  doubt  about  the 
correctness  of  the  changes  of  plumage  of  this  species,  for  I  have  seen  it  in 
its  various  stages  from  red  to  grey.  I  kept  it  more  than  a  year  in  domestica- 
tion, when  it  underw'ent  all#  its  changes.  I  have  taken  the  young  red  birds 
from  the  nest,  and  the  old  in  the  same  hole  very  grey.'  The  bird  breeds  in 
the  red  state  the  following  spring,  and  does  not  become  grey  until  two  years 
old.  Specimens  have  been  procured  partially  red  and  grey,  in  the  interme- 
diate state." 

The  tufts  on  the  head  are  composed  of  a  longitudinal  series  of  ten  feathers ; 
commencing  over  the  middle  of  the  eye,  and  extending  a  quarter  of  an  inch 


172  THE    AJJEKICAN    MOTTLED    OWL. 

beyond  its  posterior  edge.  Thinking  that  many  of  the  readers  of  the 
Naturalist  would  be  gratified  by  seeing  the  Owl  figured,  I  have  obtained  the 
able  assistance  of  Mi*.  Denny,  who  has  marvellously  brought  out  eveiy 
feather.  At  a  future  period  I  may  trouble  you  again,  with  a  brief  notice  of 
some  other  rather  rare  birds,  which  have  been  shot  in  our  district. 
Leech,  July  6th,  1856. 


STALKED-EYED  CRUSTACEA  OF  BANFFSHIRE. 


Local  lists,  however  uninteresting  they  may  be  to  the  general  reader,  have 
great  advantages.  What  observatories  are  to  the  meteorologist,  local  lists 
are  to  the  natural  historian.  By  them  he  is  enabled  to  determine  the  zones 
of  animals, — one  of  the  most  interesting  subjects  of  Natural  Histoiy.  When 
there  are  added,  carefully-made  observations  regarding  the  place  of  capture, 
the  size,  colour,  &c.,  of  the  specimens,  so  much  more  is  contributed  to  the 
knowledge  regarding  each  species.  Natural  History  is  founded  on  the  ob- 
servation of  facts ;  and,  therefore,  the  more  observers  there  are,  the  more 
ground  has  the  philosopher  to  go  upon  in  tracing  the  laws  which  regulate 
the  animal  kingdom.  In  this  way,  the  observations  of  even  the  humblest 
individuals  acquire  an  importance,  and  contribute  to  the  advancement  of 
science.  Local  lists  may  also  have  the  effect  of  inducing  others  to  turn  their 
attention  to  the  study  of  Natural  History.  When  shewing  any  beautiful 
specimens,  such,  for  instance,  as  Cellipora  cervicomus,  Retepora  Beaniana, 
or  Ooniaster  equestris,  the  usual  remark  is,  "  That's  a  foi'eign  specimen." 
Curiosity  is  excited,  and,  in  some  cases,  a  desire  of  studying  the  subject 
is  engendered  ;  and,  if  it  does  not  amount  in  others  to  a  desire,  it  teaches 
them  that  they  have  not  kept  their  eyes  open ;  and  even  this  is  some- 
thing gained.  They  are  also  of  use  to  those  engaged  in  the  pursuit  of  Na- 
tural History.  They  serve  as  guides  to  them  to  look  for  such  and  such  spe- 
cies within  certain  zones,  and  thus  prevent  a  good  deal  of  trouble  and  doubt 
to][the  young  student.  But  to  advocate  the  uses  of  such  lists  with  the  read- 
ers of  The  Natubalist  seems  to  be  useless.  I  shall  therefore  proceed,  at 
once,  to  give  a  list  of  the  Stalked-Eyed  Crustacea  of  Banffshire,  with  the 
remark,  that  the  following  have  been  obtained  in  a  short  space  of  time,  and 
within  a  rather  limited  range.  All  the  specimens,  with  few  exceptions,  have 
been  obtained  by  myself. 

Long- legged  Spider-Crab.  (Stenorynchus  Pkalanginm.)  Rather  common; 
brought  up  by  the  fishing  hooks. 


STALK-EYED   CRUSTACEA   OF   BANFFSHIBE.  173 

Slender  Spider-Crab.  {Stenorynchus  tenuirostris.)  This  Crab  has  been  found 
in  the  Frith,  but  I  have  not,  as  yet,  been  so  fortunate  as  to  obtain  it  in  this 
locality. 

Scorpion  Spider-Crab.  (Inachus  Dorsettensis.)  "  Hairy  Bamler."  This  is 
very  common,  both  from  the  lines  and  from  stomachs.  Mr.  Bell  does  not 
give  their  dimensions.  I  have  got  them,  with  the  carapace  one  and  quarter 
inch  in  length,  with  the  first  pair  of  legs  four  inches  and  a  half.  Sometimes 
they  are  taken  absolutely  hid  by  Sponge,  Zoophytes,  Ascidians,  &c. 

Slender-legged  Spider-Crab.  [Inachus  leptochirus.)  This  extremely  rare 
Crab  has  been  found  in  this  district,  and  also  further  up  the  Frith  A  spe- 
cimen is  placed  in  the  Banff  museum. 

Great  Spider-Crab.  [Hyas  araneus.)  This  is  found  both  on  the  fishing 
hooks  and  in  stomachs ;  and  its  remains  are  often  strewed  along  the  beach. 

Contracted  Crab.  (Hyas  coarctatus.)  Very  common.  It  is  chiefly  got  from 
deep  water.  In  October,  1854,  I  put  it  in  a  basin  of  fresh  water,  when  it  ex- 
uded a  quantity  of  roe  ;  it  was  of  a  yellow  colour.  It  is  said,  by  Mr.  Houl- 
stone^  to  spawn  in  January.  The  species  described  as  Hyas  serratus,  is  also 
very  abundant  at  all  seasons  ;  and  usually  all  of  them  are  about  the  same  size. 

Strawberry  Crab.  {Eurynome  aspera.)  I  have  got  a  single  specimen  of  this 
beautiful  Crab ;  it  was  taken  from  deep  water,  in  the  crevice  of  a  stone. 
The  length  of  the  carapace  is  half  an  inch,  exclusive  of  the  rostrum.  The 
colour  is  pale  rose  on  the  tubercles,  while  the  other  parts  are  of  a  grayish 
colour.     Another  small  specimen  has  been  got  at  Lossiemouth,  Elgin. 

Great  Crab.  [Caneer  pagurus.)  "  Partin."  Very  common.  It  is  used  as  an 
article  of  food  by  the  people  adjoining  the  sea-coast ;  but  it  can  scarcely  be 
said  to  be  patronized  by  the  inland  inhabitants.  They  are  commonly  caught 
by  old  men  and  boys. 

?  (Pirimela  denticulata.)    One  specimen  has  been  found  by 

Mr.  Edwards,  and  is  now  lodged  in  the  Banff  museum. 

Common  Shore-Crab.  (Oareinus  Mcsnas.)  The  most  common  of  all  the 
Crustacea.  I  have  never  seen  this  used  as  food,  but  as  play-things  for 
children. 

Pennant's  Swimming-Crab.  (Portunmus  variegatus.) 

Velvet  Swimming-Crab.  (Portumis  puher.)  A  good  many  of  this  species 
have  been  met  with,  brought  up  on  fishermen's  lines.  A  specimen,  now  be- 
fore me,  measures  fully  two  inches  in  length,  and  two  inches  and  three  quar- 
ters in  breadth. 

Cleanser  Swimming-Crab.  [Portunus  depurator.)  This  appears  to  be  the 
most  abundant  of  the  swimming  crabs. 

Marbled  Swimming-Crab.  {Portunus  marmoreus.)  Rare.  A  specimen  is 
in  the  Banff  museum. 

Livid  Swimming-Crab.  (Portunus  holsatus.)  On  the  28th  April,  1855,  in  my 
"  diggings"  in  the  stomachs  of  the  fish  that  had  been  caught  on  that  day,  I 


174  STALK-EYED   (JRUSTACEA    OF   BANFFSHIRE. 

discovered  one  of  these.  At  least,  as  far  as  I  can  judge,  it  agrees  with  the 
cut  and  description  in  Mr.  Bell's  Crustacea.  The  carapace  measures  about 
half  an  inch  in  length,  and  three-quarters  in  breadth. 

Dwarf  Swimming-Crab.  {Portunns  pusillus.)     Rather  common  in  stomachs. 

Long-legged  Swimming-Crab.  {Portunus  lineppes)  On  the  same  day,  I  ob- 
tained, from  a  stomach,  a  rather  mutilated  specimen  of  what  appears  to  be 
"  this  truly  Mediterranean  species."  From  its  being  described  as  a  "  Medi- 
terranean species,"  I  was,  for  some  time,  in  doubts,  whether  to  give  it 
a  place  in  this  northern  locality;  but  after  repeated  examinations,  and  ap- 
plication of  all  my  discriminating  faculties,  I  have  chosen  to  add  it.  The 
length  of  the  carapace  is  seven-eights  of  an  inch,  and  its  breadth  is  one 
and  three-sixteenths  of  an  inch.  Its  colour  appears  to  have  been  brownish 
red  above,  and  whitish  or  yellow  below. 

Henslow's  Swimming-Ci'ab.  {Polyhim  Henslowii.)  This  is  placed  in  the 
list  on  the  authority  of  the  fishermen.  They  say  they  get  it  very  often 
swimming  in  the  Herring  nets,  in  pursuit  of  the  Herring.  When  taken  hold 
of,  its  "  nip  "  is  very  sharp 

Common  Pea  Crab.  Pinnotheres  Pisum.)  "  First  made  known,  as  a  denizen 
of  the  Moray  Frith,  by  Dr.  Innes,  Forres. 

Pennant's  Ebalia.  {Ehalia  Pennantii.)  This  Crab  has  a  charm  in  my  eyes, 
— it  is  the  first  of  my  collection ;  and  what  enhances  the  value  of  it  more  is, 
that  it  was  brought  me  by  an  old  pupil,  Andrew  Wilson,  who,  with  a  few 
others,  have  procured  for  me  some  very  fine  and  rare  specimens.  It  is  about 
five  eighths  of  an  inch  in  length,  and  is  of  a  dark  bi'ownish-red  colour. 

Bryer's  Ebalia.  {Ebalia  Bryerii.)     Very  rare. 

Cranch's  Ebalia.  {Ehalia  Cranchii.)     Not  so  rare. 

Circular  Crab.  {Atelecyclus  heterdon.)  Common.  It  is  always  found  in  deep 
water.  The  other  day,  Andrew  Peterson,  another  of  my  friends,  turned  out 
of  a  Cod's  stomach  the  great  number  of  twenty,  almost  all  full-grown. 

Northern  Stone-Crab.  {Lithodes  Maia.)  A  good  many  of  this  fine  Crab 
have *been  found.  A  specimen  is  in  the  Banff  museum,  got  near  Banff  har- 
bour. The  Rev.  Mr.  Harris  has  obtained  it  at  Gamrie.  I  have  met  with  as 
good  as  six  specimens ;  one  before  me  measures  in  length  three  inches  and  a 
half.  The  fishermen  say  they  commonly  find  them  on  "  hard  ground."  I 
have  also  found  them  in  stomachs ; — rather  harsh  eating  one  would  suppose. 
(To  he  concluded  in  our  next.) 


175 


ON  THE  FAUNA  OF  WOOL,  NEAR  WAREHAM,  DORSET. 

BY  J.  E.  DANIEL,  ESQ. 

I  FEAR  it  may  appear  presumptuous  in  one  so  ignorant  of  Natural  History 
to  attempt  to  give  a  description  of  the  Fauna  of  a  district ;  but  my  object  is, 
by  drawing  their  attention  to  the  subject,  to  induce  others,  who  may  be  more 
scientific,  to  give  their  observations  to  the  world.  And  it  seems  to  me,  that 
our  mammalia  are  sadly  neglected  in  comparison  with  other  branches  of 
animated  Nature  ;  and  from  the  unceasing  persecution  to  which  many  are 
victims,  especially  among  the  larger  species,  it  is  to  be  feared  that  they  may 
become  extinct,  even  as  that  most  interesting  animal,  the  Beaver,  {Castor 
fiber  EuropcBus,)  which  was  formerly  an  inhabitant  of  this  island,  as  I  believe 
it  still  is  of  the  banks  of  the  Rhine,  Rhone,  and  Danube.  As  regards  the 
genera  "  Vespertilio  "  and  "  Rhinolophus,"  I  feel  I  have  to  apologize  that  my 
list  is  so  meagre ;  but  they  appear  to  have  received  but  a  small  share  of  the 
attention  which  they  so  eminently  deserve  ;  hitherto,  I  have  only  been  able 
to  procure  specimens  of  the  two  which  I  shall  mention ;  as  regards  all  the 
other  animals,  I  have  been  careful  to  verify  the  facts  before  introducing 
them  to  the  notice  of  your  readers,  and  trust  they  will  excuse  all  errors  of 
omission  and  commission.  In  the  aiTangement  and  nomenclature,  I  have 
followed  "  Bell's  British  Quadrupeds,"  Van  Voorst,  1837. 

Great  Bat.  (Vespertilio  noctula.)  Not  very  common;  but  during  the  even- 
ings of  the  hot  summer  months,  perhaps  a  dozen  may  be  seen  hawking  about 
the  bridge  which  spans  the  river. 

Pipistrelle.  {V.  pipistrella.)  This  is  very  common,  and  is  often  brought  to 
me,  taken  out  of  holes,  &c.  I  was  much  amused,  one  evening,  watching 
some  hunting  on  the  river;  in  fact,  I  frequently  saw  them  skim  the  water  in 
their  rapid  flight. 

Hedgehog.  [Erinaceus  EuropcBus)  Very  abundant ;  but  unhappily  every 
boy  considers  this  inoffensive  and  useful  beast  to  be  a  fair  butt  on  which  to 
exercise  his  inherent  cruelty.  Its  food  consisting  almost  entirely  of  slugs 
and  insects,  although  occasionally  indulging  in  a  slight  vegetable  diet. 

Mole,  Want.  [Talpa  Europcea.)  I  have  seen  bushes  hung  with  dozens  of 
their  corpses  ;  and  after  the  able  articles  in  their  defence,  in  The  Naturalist, 
I  need  say  no  more  in  their  favour ;  but  I  will  take  this  opportunity  of 
stating,  that  at  Frome,  Somerset,  I  have  seen  many  specimens  of  pure  white, 
up  to  a  dull,  deep  yellow. 

Common  Shrew.  (Sorex  tetragonurtis.)  Often  found  dead,  as  neither  cats 
nor  dogs  will  eat  them,  although  most  anxious  to  deal  death  to  them.  Do 
the  carnivorous  birds  eat  them  ? 

Water  Shrew.  {Sorex  fodiens.)  "  This  beautiful  little  creature,"  from  the 
localities  which  it  inhabits — the  banks  of  ditches  and  slow  rivers — and  from 
its  so  readily  and  quietly  gliding  into  the  water,  and  there  instantly  diving 


176  THE  FAUNA  OF  WOOL,  NEAR  WARE  HAM. 

to  tlie  bottom,  is  often  unnoticed ;  but  there  is  little  doubt  it  is  veiy  gener- 
ally distributed.  About  here,  it  is  not  frequently  seen  gliding  along  the 
banks,  which  it  seems  to  do,  rather  than  run  ;  and,  upon  the  least  disturb- 
ance, disappearing  beneath  the  water.  It  is  said  to  be  quite  common  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Dorchester.     It  is  most  difficult  to  capture. 

Badger.  {Meles  taxus.)  Is  now  become  extremely  rare.  I  have  only  heard 
of  two  being  in  this  neighbourhood  for  some  time  past ;  one  was  killed  at 
Biudon  last  year,  and  the  other  a  few  weeks  back.  Their  haunts  may  be 
easily  known,  as  they  ai'e  in  the  habit  of  turning  up  cow-dung  in  search  of 
beetles  and  their  larvae.  I  always  considered  thein  both  useful  and  harm- 
less ;  but  I  have  been  told,  by  a  keeper,  that  he  knew  one  which  devoured  a 
whole  nest  of  Pheasant's  eggs,  and  replaced  them  by  the  unsavoury  con- 
sequence of  his  meal.     The  haunches  are  eaten  by  the  peasantry. 

Common  Otter.  Lutra  vulgaris.)  Dorset  is,  in  many  parts,  abundantly 
watered  by  rivers  and  brooks,  and  these  are  well  supi^lied  with  fish ;  and,  as 
may  be  supposed,  in  a  thinly  peopled  country,  our  friend  is  not  unfrequently 
met  with.  But,  alas !  he  never  has  any  chance,  it  is  always  the  trap  which 
catches  him.  How  would  my  namesake,  of  "  rural  sports  "  notoriety,  have 
grieved  at  this. 

Common  Weasel.  (Mustela  vulgaris.)  A  pest  to  the  henwife,  and  is  far  too 
abundant  to  be  agreeable.  They  must  be  very  prolific ;  for  enormous  num- 
bers are  annually  killed,  and  yet  they  never  seem  to  decrease. 

Ermine  Weasel,  Stoat.  (Mustela  erminea.)  Almost  of  as  bad  repute  as  its 
congener,  M.  vulgaris;  but  the  beautiful  change  it  ixndergoes,  when  it 
assumes  its  nieval  robe,  creates  an  interest  which  is  altogether  wanting  to 
our  other  carnivora.  The  white  specimens  are  not  unfrequent,  and  it  has 
been  noticed,  that  they  are  generally  females. 

Fitchet  Weasel,  Polecat,  Foulmart.  [Mustela  putorius.)  Now  rarely  to  be 
met  with.  I  can  only  hear  of  three  having  been  killed  lately  about  here ; 
the  last  was  a  female,  which  had  evidently  i-ecently  had  a  litter  of  pups. 

Ferret.  [Mustela  furo.)  Occasionally  taken  in  vermin  traps ;  but  sup- 
posed to  have  been  lost,  at  some  time,  by  poachers, or  rabbit  catchers. 

Common  Martin,  Martincat.  [Martes  foina.)  This  may  be  pronounced 
one  of  our  rarest  quadrupeds.  One  was  killed  about  four  years  ago,  on  the 
estate  of  Jos  Weld,  Esq.,  Lulworth  Castle ;  and  another,  on  the  estate  of 
Sir  John  Smith,  near  Dorchester.  I  believe  the  skins  of  both  were  pre- 
served, and  are  now  in  existence. 

The  Fox.  [Vulpes  vulgaris.)  This  mischievous  fellow  is  not  so  frequently 
seen  or  heard  of  about  here,  as  there  are  no  hounds  kept  in  the  immediate 
neighbourhood,  and  the  game  is  strictly  preserved.  So  whenever  Reynard's 
arrival  becomes  known,  Mr.  Keeper  forthwith  issues  a  number  of  insidious 
invitations,  in  the  shape  of  a  trap,  baited  with  a  nice  young  rabbit,  that  he 
may  become  more  intimately  acquainted  with  him  ;  however,  he  is  still  far 
from  being  rare. 


THE    FAUNA    OF    WOOL,    NEAR    WAREHAM.  177 

Squirrel.  {Sciurus  vulgaris.)  This  elegant  little  animal  is  very  abundant ; 
but  they  have  sad  enemies  in  the  woodmen,  who  say  they  do  a  great  deal  of 
damage  to  the  j^oung  trees,  eating  away  the  leading  shoots.  They  never  ap- 
pear to  form  an  article  of  food  about  here ;  but,  in  many  parts  of  France, 
are  reputed  a  great  delicacy;  and  they  are  often  to  be  seen  exposed  for  sale, 
in  great  numbers,  at  the  poulterer's  shops  in  Hungerford  and  Leadenhall 
markets. 

Dormouse.  {Myoxiis  avellanarius.)  Common ;  and  does  not  appear  to  be 
the  subject  of  such  exterminating  persecution  as  many  other  animals. 

Harvest  Mouse.  {Mus  messorius.)  It  seems  extraordinary,  that  an  animal 
so  abundant  and  so  injurious,  should  so  long  have  escaped  the  obsei'vation 
of  Naturalists,  and  that  it  should  have  been  left  to  that  acute  observer, 
Gilbert  White,  to  have  introduced  it  into  our  Fauna.  In  old  corn  ricks  it 
frequently  appears  more  numerous  than  the  common  mouse  ;  but  one  pecu- 
liarity I  have  observed,  that  dogs  will  catch  but  not  eat  them. 

Long-tailed  Field  Mouse.  {Mus  sylvaticus.)  Frequently  met  with  in  the 
woods,  where  they  climb  bushes  and  trees,  in  search  of  nuts,  acorns,  &c. 

Common  Mouse.  {Mus  imisculus.)  By  far  too  frequent  visitors  to  be  con- 
sidered desirable. 

Black  Kat.  {Mus  rattus.)  Like  the  ancient  Britons,  whose  remains  are  so 
abundant  in  this  country,  this  animal  has  been  nearly  exterminated  by  the 
invader,  the  Norman  or  Brown  Rat,  {M,  decumanus).  I  have  heard  of  one 
being  killed  at,  or  near  Wareham,  but  unfortunately  cannot  now  recall  who 
was  my  informant ;  it  is  not  unfrequently  met  with  at  Bath. 

The  Brown  Rat.  {Mus  decumanus.)  No  place  and  no  substance  seems 
tabooed  to  these  destructive  animals ;  whether  in  corn  rick,  hen  roost,  or 
turnip  field,  this,  originally  foreign  importation,  seems  equally  mischievous  ; 
and  Beetle's  Vermin  Killer  appears  to  them  merely  a  pleasant  stimulant. 

Water  Vole.  {Arvicola  amphibia.)  Without  having  had  an  opportunity  of 
personally  examining  specimens,  I  think  it  may  be  pronounced  indigenous, 
from  having  seen  it,  or  a  similar  animal,  not  unfrequently  take  to  the  water,, 
diving  and  swimming,  and  remaining  a  considerable  time. 

Field  Vole.  {Arvicola  agrestis.)  The  Rev.  W.  Kendall  found  a  single  dead 
specimen,  in  the  road,  a  short  distance  from  this  village. 

Common  Hare.  {Lepus  timidus.)  From  their  great  abundance  often  inju- 
rious to  both  cereal  and  root  crops,  and  often  producing  an  abundant  crop 
of  Jail  Birds. 

Rabbit.  {Lejms  cuniculus.)  In  addition  to  the  common  gray  variety,  black 
is  not  an  uncommon  colour ;  more  rarely,  a  pale,  fulvous  yellow ;  and  in  one 
warren,  near  East  Lulworth,  a  blue,  or  slate-coloured  variety. 

Red  Deer,  {Gervus  elapJius,)  is  now  extinct;  but  an  extract  from  Coke's 
Survey  of  Dorsetshire,  will  show  that,  at  a  comparatively  recent  date,  they 
were  to  be  found.     "  At  the  first  entrance  into  the  island,"   {i.  e.  Purbeck.) 


178  THF    FAUNA    OF    WOOL,    NEAR    WARKHAM. 

"  lietli  a  large  flatte  of  barren  lieathie  ground,  (yet  well  replenished  with  Red 
Deere,)  severed  from  the  rest  with  almost  a  continual  ridge  of  very  high 
hills." 

Fallow  Deer.  {Gervus  dama.)     In  Charborough  and  other  parks. 

Porpoise.  (Phoccena  communis.)  Living  at  some  little  distance  from  any 
seaport,  I  have  not  been  able  to  obtain  any  information  on  which  I  could 
rely  respecting  the  Cetacea ;  but  the  Porpoise  is  frequently  sporting  about 
on  the  coast,  in  large  shoals.  The  flesh  is  seldom  eaten  in  this  neighbour- 
hood, but  is  occasionally  seen  in  the  markets  of  Jersey  and  Guernsey ;  and  in 
appearance,  as  I  am  also  informed  it  is  in  taste,  not  unlike  a  loin  of  pork. 
But  in  the  Channel  Islands,  the  fishei'men  object  to  their  being  caught,  or 
disturbed,  as  they  drive  the  Sand  Eels  {Ammochjtes  Lancea)  to  the  surface, 
which  they  collect  in  large  canvas  nets,  or  bags,  and  use  for  a  bait  for 
Congers,  Cod,  et  hoc  genus  omne. 

Dolphin,  (Delphinus  delphis,)  has  been  taken  on  the  coast,  so  I  have  heard 
it  reported,  but  can  give  no  particulars. 

The  Sheep.  {Ovis  aries.)  Neither  this,  nor  the  horse,  or  dog,  are  to  be 
considered  as  Ferce  Naturce ;  but  as  there  appear  to  be  two  breeds  peculiar  to 
this  neighbourhood,  I  do  not  like  closing  this  imperfect  account  of  our 
Mammalia  witliout  noticing  them.  The  Dorset,  or  as  they  are  also  called, 
horn  and  white  faced  sheep,  are  a  large,  hardy,  horned  sheep,  which  thrive 
upon  the  marine  downs,  and  have  the  advantage  of  dropping  their  lambs 
from  two  to  three  months  eai'lier  than  other  breeds,  so  that  they  are  in  great 
request  in  many  places  as  house  lambs ;  their  wool  is  long  and  coarse,  and 
they  are  invariably  allowed  the  primitive  fashion  of  wearing  their  tails.  Their 
fleece  is  not  generally  so  heavy  as  that  of  Southdowns.  The  next  variety  is 
peculiar  to  the  island  of  Portland;  they  are  a  very  small  race  of  sheep, 
weighing  from  thirty  to  forty  pounds.  The  flesh  of  these  animals  is  very 
highly  esteemed,  and  commands  a  high  price  in  Weymouth  market ;  but  if 
removed  into  a  richer  district,  they  are  said  to  grow  much  lai'ger,  and  to  lose 
much  of  the  peculiar  flavour  which  renders  them  so  acceptable  to  the  epicu- 
rean palate. 

The  Horse.  {Equus  cahallus.)  Before  agriculture  had  made  such  strides, 
and  when  our  downs  and  heaths  were  unenclosed  and  uncultivated,  (at  least 
to  a  much  greater  extent  than  at  present,)  vast  numbers  of  a  small,  but 
strong,  useful,  forest  poney,  were  bred  in  the  neighbourhood ;  but  for  the 
general  purposes  of  the  farmer  a  larger  race  are  now  used,  and  those  of 
Shetland  are  more  fashionable,  so  that  now  but  few  are  seen. 

I  have  now  finished,  and  trust  1  have  not  quite  worn  out  all  your  patience; 
and  hope  that  this  slight  sketch  may  produce  more  from  this  and  other 
neighbourhoods. 


179 


TO  THE  EDITOK  OF  THE  NATURALIST. 

Sir, — As  a  Member  of  the  Nottingham  Operative  Entomological  and 
Natural  History  Society,  allow  me  to  express  the  sincere  gratification  I  feel 
in  the  perusal  of  your  valuable  journal ;  and  perhaps  a  sketch  of  the  rise  and 
progress  of  the  above  Society  may  not  be  uninteresting  to  some  of  your 
readei-s. 

Well,  then ;  about  two  j'^ears  ago,  some  six  or  seven  of  us,  all  working  men, 
but  lovers  of  Nature,  agreed  to  form  a  society,  and  look  into  Nature's  works. 
So  we  commenced  by  paying  one  shilling  as  entrance,  and  one  penny  per 
week  subscription,  for  the  purchase  of  works  on  Natural  Histoiy ;  and  as 
those  works  are  expensive,  we  commenced  by  taking  Morris'  British  Butter- 
flies in  parts.  By  the  end  of  three  months  we  could  count  fourteen  mem- 
bers. So  we  worked  on ;  and,  thanks  to  perseverance,  we  have  now  more 
than  thirty  members,  with  rough  hands,  or,  as  the  editor  of  the  Entomolo- 
gist's Annual  has  it,  with  fustian  jackets.  But  he,  with  many  writers  on 
Natural  History,  does  not  sufficiently  consider,  that  worldng  men  in  general 
have  not  the  education  necessary  for  understanding  the  names,  when  they 
are  all  given  in  Latin,  as  is  the  case  in  the  Entomologist's  Annual,  and  many 
other  works.  Wliy  not  give  the  English  name  as  well  as  the  Latin  one,  if  the 
work  is  intended  for  the  English  people?  It  would  induce  many  a  working 
man  to  become  a  lover  of  Nature,  instead  of  a  curse  to  the  nation ;  for,  what 
degrades  a  man  so  much  as  drink?  And  if  he  cannot  find  enjoyment  in  one 
way,  he  will  in  another.  We  have  one  member  who  has  collected  some 
thousands  of  specimens  ;  and  what  does  he  say  ?  Why,  that  if  he  had  not 
been  collecting,  the  public  house  would  have  been  his  lot ;  so  that,  if  we  only 
reform  one,  it  is  worth  trying  for.  But  it  would  not  stop  with  one,  nor  fifty, 
if  all  naturalists  were  like  Mr.  Moi'ris  ;  we  should  not  then  have  to  complain 
of  your  jaw-breaking  words;  but  I  hope  the  time  is  coming  when  we  shall 
have  more  English,  and  less  Latin ;  the  good  eff'eet  would  soon  show  itself. 
For  instance  ; — we  have  had  three  or  four  that  began  to  collect  Beetles,  and 
we  had  no  work  on  the  subject;  we  must  have  one;  and  after  inquiry,  we 
were  recommended  to  purchase  Stephen's  British  Beetles,  which  we  did  ; 
but  instead  of  that  interesting  style  which  Mr.  Morris  gave  to  his  Butterflies, 
there  is  just  the  description,  with  the  name  in  Latin  ;  so  that  the  book  is 
almost  useless  to  us,  for  the  present.  We  have  seventeen  or  eighteen  collec- 
tors of  Lepidoptera,  and  if  you  could  recommend  an  introduction  to  Entom- 
ology, with  the  price,  we  should  be  very  much  obliged  to  you ;  I  subjoin  you 
a  list  of  what  we  have  got.  Morris'  British  Butterflies,  1  vol.;  Morris' 
British  Birds,  3  vols. ;  Morris'  Naturalist,  2  vols. ;  Stephen's  British  Beetles, 
5  vols. ;  Westwood's  British  Moths,  2  vols. ;  Morris'  British  Eggs,  1  vol. ; 
Dialogues  in  Entomology,  1  vol. ;  Entomologist's  Annual,  1  vol.  These  com- 
prise the  whole  of  our  books ;  and  we  have  some  £(>.  in  the  hands  of  the 


180  LETTEK    IKOM    NEW    BASFORD. 

Treasurer.  But,  you  may  say,  you  did  not  get  all  tliat  by  your  penny  sub- 
scription ?  To  that  I  answer  no  ;  we  have  had  two  exhibitions ;  the  first,  at 
Christmas,  1853 ;  the  second,  at  Christmas,  1854.  The  exhibition  consisted  of 
111  cases  of  Birds;  one  case  of  Butterflies,  with  their  names  to  each, — in  all, 
fifty-six  species;  forty  cases,  about  two  feet  square,  of  Moths,  Flies,  Beetles, 
&c  ,  in  different  designs,  to  form  pictures ;  one  case  of  Spiders ;  four  of 
Beetles ;  three  of  Eggs ;  and  a  few  animals ;  all  belonging  to  the  different 
members.  To  the  scientific,  we  could  not  show  much  classification,  having 
but  one  case  of  Flies  for  them ;  but  it  was  not  them,  but  the  public,  that  we 
wanted  to  enlist ;  and  if  we  had  had  all  our  collection  of  insects  set  out  in 
proper  classes,  they  would  not  have  produced  the  effect  that  was  produced 
by  the  pictures ;  although  I  admit  that  a  proper  classification  is  quite  essen- 
tial, and  I  hope  by  another  year  we  shall  have  a  cabinet,  and  all  the  insects 
classed  that  we  are  in  possession  of  By  the  tw^o  exhibitions  we  cleared 
some  ^9.;  but  it  was  not  so  much  to  make  money,  as  to  induce  working  men 
to  join  the  society;  and  it  has  had  the  desired  effect.  And  what  recreation 
can  be  more  healthy,  or  interesting,  than  the  study  of  Nature  ?  And  if  there 
is  any  means  whereby  the  working  man  can  be  helped,  let  every  one  that 
can,  come  forward ;  and  by  that  means  there  wi^l  be  a  reform  in  society :  let 
cards  and  dominoes  be  exchanged  for  the  net  and  insect  box ;  the  tap-room 
for  the  fields  and  meadows ;  and  then  see  what  a  change  will  come  over  him. 
Nature  has  new  charms ;  every  step  he  takes,  something  more  wonderful 
presents  itself;  and  thus  he  becomes  a  child  of  Nature. 

I  should  like  to  hear  of  working  men  in  other  towns  forming  Natural 
History  Societies,  and  keeping  up  a  correspondence  with  each  other ;  and  by 
these  means  we  should  be  able  to  know  what  each  could  collect ;  for  what  is 
rare  in  one  place  is  plentiful  in  another ;  so,  by  mutually  exchanging  with 
each  other,  we  should  then  be  able  to  form  a  very  good  collection  at  a  very 
small  cost, — for,  as  woi-king  men,  we  could  not  send  out  a  collector,  nor  yet 
buy  many  at  a  time, — so  that  it  would  take  a  society  a  long  time  if  they  had 
to  buy  all  the  specimens  they  could  not  take  themselves,  either  Birds  or 
Insects ;  so  that  they  must  be  like  us,  and  begin  with  the  Pictures  first. 

New  Basford,  near  Nottingham,  March  \%thy  1855.  J.  morley. 

It  is  with  great  pleasure  we  insert  the  above  letter.  We  heartily  wish 
every  town  in  the  country  had  a  Natural  History  Society  among  its  working 
men.  We  sincerely  sympathize  with  Mr.  Morley  in  his  wish,  that  English 
names  were  more  frequently  added  to  descriptions  of  objects  of  Natural 
History ;  and  the  whole  study  simplified  by  using  plain  English,  whenever 
practicable.  We  know  of  no  case  in  which  the  exclusive  use  of  Latin  in  scien- 
tific works  is  of  any  advantage ;  and,  in  thousands  of  instances,  it  is  an 
clFectual  bar  to  the  use  of  the  volume  ;  and  where  (he  book  is,  in  itself,  valu- 
able, this  is  the  more  to  be  regiettcd. — B.  R.  M. 


181 


AN  ORNITHOLOGICAL  RARITY  IN  THE  NORTH. 

n 

BY  MR.  THOS.  EDWARD. 

As  was  to  have  been  expected,  from  the  extraordinary  severity  of  the 
season,  we  have  been  visited  by  many  of  the  rarer  wild-fowl ;  amongst 
which  may  be  mentioned,  as  perhaps  the  rarest  of  all,  the  Spur-Winged 
Goose,  {Plectropterus  Oamhensis,)  a  specimen  of  which  was  shot  in  this 
neighbourhood,  about  the  middle  of  last  month. 

If  I  were  allowed  to  j  udge  from  its  remarkably  lanh,  lean  appearance  when 
skinned,  which  was  wretched  in  the  extreme,  I  should  say  that  it  had  suf- 
fered very  severely  for  want  of  food.  Poor  thing !  it  had  perhaps  come  from 
a  certain  place  where  British  soldiers  are  encamped,  and  where  British 
knowledge  and  forethought  have  been  so  conspicuously  exhibited  to  the  eyes 
— the  wondering  eyes — of  an  ignorant  world ;  a  world  far  behind  us  Britons 
in  the  march  of  intellect.  It,  that  is,  the  goose,  appeared  to  me  also, — from 
the  fact  that  its  upper  parts  were  generally  of  a  dark  brownish  green,  and 
not  black ;  and  the  under  parts,  though  of  a  snowy  whiteness,  were  never- 
theless broken  into  here  and  there  by  feathers  of  a  brownish  tinge  mixed 
with  dull  gray, — to  have  been  rather  a  young  bird,  that  is,  one  not  quite 
matured.  The  back,  however,  though  not  altogether  black,  was  most  beau- 
tifully bronzed,  and,  as  it  were,  burnished  with  a  dark  green;  and  reflected  a 
most  resplendent  gloss,  when  viewed  in  the  rays  of  the  sun.  The  bill 
appeared  to  be, — or  at  least,  to  have  been,  for  it  was  somewhat  faded, — of 
dull,  reddish  orange.  The  legs  and  webs  seemed  to  have  been  of  a  deep 
flesh-colour,  the  toes  lighter.  The  spurs  with  wliich  the  wings  were  armed 
were  pretty  large  and  very  conspicuous. 

Dun-Birds  {Fuligula  ferina)  and  Widgeons  [Mareca  Penelope)  have  been 
rather  plentiful  along  our  sea-coast,  for  the  last  two  months,  or  so ;  and 
many  of  them  have  fallen  victims  to  the  gunning  part  of  the  inhabitants. 
Many  an  old  and  rusty  piece  has  been  raked  out  of  its  hiding-place  for  that 
purpose,  and  to  let  its  possessor  have  a  rap  at  the  rare  dukes,  Ducks.  Guns 
which  perhaps  have  not  seen  the  light  for  fifty  years,  have  this  season  been 
held  in  something  like  high  estimation ;  though  in  many  cases  the  hare  hand 
was  quite  sufiicient,  and,  in  numerous  instances,  a  short  stick  was  all  that 
was  needed,  to  knock  down  the  poor  half— half,  did  I  say  ?  nay — all  but 
starved  animals. 

If  proof  were  wanting,  of  the  length  and  severity  of  the  frost  and  storm 
with  which  we  have  this  winter  been  visited,  the  bare  mention  of  the  Ducks 
already  named  is  of  itself  quite  enough ;  for  in  ordinary  seasons  we  never 
have  them,  except  it  may  be  at  rare  intervals,  when  a  straggler  may  appear ; 
and  these  are  few,  very  fcAV  indeed,  and  very  far  between. 

It),  High-Street,  Banff,  March  1st,  1855, 


182 


AN  AFTERNOON'S  RAMBLE,  OR  LEISURE  HOUR. 

BY    MR.   J.    O.    HARPER. 

The  following  lines  are  penned  with  the  anticipation  of  stimulating  others 
(wlio  have  at  their  command,  sometimes,  a  leisure  hour)  to  ramble  on  the 
outskirts  of  our  cities,  and  to  observe  for  themselves  what  an  extensive  fifeld 
is  open  to  their  view  in  the  study  of  Nature's  works;  also,  to  show  what  can 
be  accomplished  in  a  few  hours,  by  an  attentive  observer  of  that  which  is 
daily  and  hourly  passing  around  them,  and  yet  so  little  noticed ;  many  hours 
— now,  perhaps,  unprotitably  spent — if  devoted  to  this  interesting  branch  of 
science,  would,  I  feel  persuaded,  ennoble  the  mind,  and  bring  us  in  com- 
munion with  the  Creator  and  Giver  of  All. 

Being  a  half-holiday  with  my  son,  we  started  on  the  5th  of  this  present 
month,  at  two  o'clock,  en  route  for  Trowse  and  Lakenham,  for  the  pui-pose  of 
obtaining  specimens  of  the  finny  tribe  for  his  Aquaria,  which  are  all  the  rage, 
at  this  period,  in  this  ancient  city, — from  the  little  urchin,  with  his  mother's 
pickle  jar,  to  the  adult  specimen  of  the  genus  homo,  and  some  very  tasteful 
ones  have  been  got  up  ;  more  especially  two,  of  large  dimensions,  adapted 
for  fish  and  zoophytes,  which  have  been  recently  addpd,  by  subscription,  to 
our  public  museum,  so  rich  in  zoological  specimens  ; — standing  out  promi- 
nently, is  an  extensive  and  valuable  collection  of  the  I'aptorial  birds  of 
Europe,  liberally  presented  by  J.  H  Gurney,  Esq.,  M.  P. 

Let  us  return  to  our  ramble :  Passing  over  the  Eastern  Union  Railway, 
Sand  Martins  (which  appeared  here  on  the  20th  of  April)  were  soaring  high 
on  outstretched  wings,  now  skimming  with  lightning  speed  in  search  of  in- 
sect prey ;  for  in  this  locality  are  two  large  gravel  pits,  one  being  situated  at 
the  back  of  my  garden,  where  these  birds  annually  congregate  and  bring 
forth  their  young.  Many  an  hour,  on  a  summer's  evening,  have  I  watched 
these,  to  me,  interesting  birds.  Proceeding  on  our  way,  we  arrived  at  the 
summit  of  Bracondale  Hill ;  in  the  valley  below,  lies  the  pretty  village  of 
Trowse,  with  its  neat  church  and  clear  running  stream ;  midway  between 
the  hill  and  village,  we  entered  a  gate  on  the  left,  passing  some  Ivy-covered 
walls,  once  the  support  of  the  far-famed  "  Carrow  Abbey ;"  then  crossing  the 
Eastern  Counties  Line,  we  arrived  at  Trowse  Meadows.  Commencing  our 
search  in  the  surrounding  ditches,  captured  several  specimens  of  the  three 
and  ten-spined  Sticklebacks;  (Gasterosteus  aeuleatus)  et  (O  pungitiis) ;  the 
former  were  all  males,  rich  in  varied  hues.  Also,  small  specimens  of  [Tinea 
vulgaris),  ( Anguilla  acutirostris) ,  and  {Petromyzon  fluviatilis) ;  these  complete 
our  capture  of  Pisces. 

Mollusca  were  exceedingly  abundant  in  the  ditches.  We  dredged  with  a 
small  net,  and  obtained  the  following : — * 

•  Should  any  of  your  correspondents  require  any  of  those  mentioned,  I  shall  be  happy  to  fonvard  them. 


AN   afternoon's    RAMBLE.  183 

Localities  near  Norwich. 

Paludina  vivipara,  male.    Not  common.     Trowse  and  Heigham. 

achatina,  male.     Common.     Trowse,  Lakenham,  and  Heigham. 

Bulimus  obscurus,  male.     Uncommon  ditto. 

Limneus  pereger,  male.     Common.  ditto. 

aurieularius,  male.     Very  fine,  common.        ditto. 

stagnalis,  male.    Very  fine,  common.     Trowse  and  Heigham. 

palustris,  male.     Common.  ditto. 

Planorbis  eorneus,  male.    Very  fine,  not  very  common. 

Trowse,  Lakenham,  and  Heigham. 

carinatus,  male.     Rare.  Trowse. 

vortex,  male.     Uncommon.  Trowse  and  Lakenham. 

marginatus,  male.     Rather  common.     Lakenham  and  Heigham. 

contortus,  male.     Uncommon.         Trowse  and  Lakenham. 

Cyclas  cornea,  male.     Uncommon.  Trowse. 

calyculata,  male.     Uncommon.  Trowse  and  Lakenham. 

Heard,  for  the  first  time  this  season,  the  well  known  note  of  the  Willow- 
Wren,  {Sylvia  trochilus,)  which  called  to  remembi'ance  an  incident  well  worthy 
of  note,  which  occurred  to  myself  and  a  brother  naturalist,  during  a  stroll 
on  the  19th  of  May,  1849.  Walking  round  Lakenham  early  in  the  morning, 
with  Mr.  M.,  who  had  recently  adopted  the  study  of  ornithology;  observing 
one  of  these  birds,  and  requiring  a  specimen  for  his  cabinet,  he  fired. 
"Down!"  says  he,  but  found  himself  in  error;  illustrating  the  old  adage — 
"  Many  a  slip  between  the  cup  and  lip."  The  bird  was  wounded,  and  was 
coming  down;  when,  to  our  great  surprise,  its  mate  flew  from  an  adjoining 
tree  to  its  rescue ;  taking  the  fractured  wing  between  its  mandibles,  it  actu- 
ally assisted  its  wounded  companion  out  of  our  reach.  "  What  do  you  think 
of  that?"  was  my  exclamation.  "Think!"  said  he,  —  "that  I  will  never 
pull  a  trigger  for  the  sake  of  gratifying  a  taste  in  collecting  birds ; "  and  I  am 
convinced  (would  that  there  were  more  like  him  !)  that  he  has  kept  his  woi'd. 
He  has  not  given  up  this  pleasing  study ;  but  is,  if  anything,  more  ardently 
attached  to  the  feathered  tribes ;  contenting  himself  with  examining  speci- 
mens gracing  the  cases  of  our  museum,  (accessible  to  non-subscribers  every 
Monday,)  and  referring  to  the  admirable  plates  of  Morris's  Biutish  Birds, 
now  publishing. 

Retracing  our  steps  from  the  river,  over  the  surface  of  which  were  skim- 
ming three  species  of  the  family  Hirundinidse,*  I  startled  a  Water- Vole. 
(Arvicola  ampJdbius.)  How  gracefully  he  glides  through  the  water !  After 
obtaining  a  portion  of  weed  evidently  to  his  palate,  he  re-appeared  upon  the 
shore,  apparently  unconscious  of  my  presence,  or  probably  is  not  so  suspi- 
cious an  animal  as  the  Mus  decumanus ;  for,  after  filling  his  rather  capacious 

*  Dates  of  their  arrival  this  year :  Swallow,  (H.  rustica,)  April  ICtli ;  Sand  Martin,  (H.  riparia,)  April  20th 
Window  Martin,  (H.  urbica,)  May  1st. 


184  AN  afternoon's  ramble. 

stomach  to  his  satisfaction,  he  commenced  cleaning  himself,  after  the  fashion 
of  the  Long-Tailed  Field-Mouse,  (Mus  sylvatieus,)*  passing  its  fore  feet 
quickly  over  its  face  and  ears ;  evidently  vs^ith  the  intention  of  removing  any 
particles  of  mud,  or  weed,  likely  to  have  adhered  in  his  recent  dive.  He 
was  now  joined  by  another,  probably  the  female;  for,  after  short  conversa- 
tion resembling  a  few  short  screams,  (quite  unintelligible  to  me,)  they 
disappeared  in  the  bank  under  my  feet,  to  finish  the  discourse  in  their  snug 
retreat. 

After  leaving  the  marshes,  we  crossed  the  high-road  between  Bracondale 
Hill  and  Trowse  railway-gate,  entering  a  narrow  road-way  called  Martineau's 
Lane ;  a  few  minutes'  walk  brought  us  to  the  bottom  of  what  is  commonly 
called  Long  John's  Hill,  and  the  entrance  to  the  village  of  Lakenham. 
Obsei-ved  three  criminals  suspended  in  the  air;  of  what  had  these  poor, 
inoffensive,  and  useful  Moles  been  guilty,  to  be  thus  strangled  in  this 
enlightened  age  ?  Requiring  one  for  a  skeleton,  I  embraced  the  opportunity, 
and  removed  them  from  the  snare  which  had  thus  deprived  them  of  that 
which  the  farmer  could  not  give  his  "freend" — life.  As  exchange  is  no 
robbery,  I  left  a  card  in  one  of  the  traps,  upon  which  I  had  hastily  scrawled 
the  following  words :  "  Misguided  destroyer !  take  a  word  in  season  from  one 
who  has  studied  the  structure  and  habits  of  this  much  persecuted  and  useful 
animal ;  in  future,  spare  your  friend." 

Crossing  Lakenham  bridge,  Ave  entered  upon  some  marshes  situ.ated  at  the 
back  of  the  mill ;  saw  only  a  fine  specimen  of  the  Common  Pike,  {Esox  lucius,) 
but  obtained  similar  specimens  of  MoUusca  as  those  taken  at  Trowse.  Rooks 
and  Starlings  were  feeding  in  large  flocks  upon  the  marshes.  Close  upon 
this  spot  are  several  ancient  Walnut-trees,  in  the  holes  of  which  Starlings 
have  built  their  nests  for  several  years;  after  much  persuasion,  with  the 
promise  of  a  few  pence,  I  succeeded  in  getting  a  boy  to  ascend  one  of  them. 
He  described  to  me,  that  the  holes  in  which  the  nests  were  placed  looked 
downwards,  and  that  the  tree  itself  was  exceedingly  decayed ;  which 
accounted  for  the  accumulation  of  what  is  commonly  called  touchwood  at 
the  base  of  the  tree.  Query :  Had  these  birds  made  the  holes,  or  merely 
enlarged  them  ? 

Returning  home,  we  passed  a  pleasant  retreat  called  Kensington  Garden, 
which  for  a  short  period  was  appropriated  to  the  exhibition  of  living  animals 
and  birds ;  and  many  excellent  and  rare  specimens  in  zoology  were  collected. 
But,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  after  being  open  to  the  public  about  eighteen 
months,  it  was  closed ;  the  proprietors  finding,  to  their  cost,  it  did  not  meet 
their  anticipations.  Leaving  this  once  pleasant  spot,  we  again  crossed  a 
branch  of  the  Eastern  Counties  line,  through  a  bye-lane,  in  which  I  picked 
up  a  specimen  of  the  Bank- Vole.  (Arvioola  pratensis.)     This  animal  is  rather 

*  I  have  kept  several  of  these  diminutive  and  highly  amusing  animals ;  they  not  having  that  peculiar 
offensive  scent,  so  characteristic  a  feature  in  the  Mus  miisculw,  and  pied  voriety. 


AN    AFTERNOON  S    RAMBLE. 


185 


common  is  this  locality ;  having  had,  for  two  years,  several  of  them  located 
in  some  grotto-work  formed  of  stone,  shells,  and  clay,  situated  in  my  garden. 
So  far,  our  stroll  was  at  an  end,  arriving  at  home  at  five  o'clock. 

Must  now  bring  my  rather  lengthened  "leisure  hour"  No.  1,  to  its  termi- 
nation, fearing  I  have  already  trespassed  too  long  on  the  patience  of  your 
readers ;  but  shall  feel  amply  rewarded,  if,  by  my  humble  endeavours,  I  am 
the  instrument  of  inducing  others  to  study  Nature  for  themselves. 

Ivy  Cottage,  Grove  Place,  May  lUh,  1855. 


NEW  STATION  FOR  LECANORA  RUBRA,   Ach., 
(LICHEN  ULMI,  Swarts.) 

BY   GEO.    DIXON,    ESQ. 

Anxious  to  visit  the  oolitic  formation  of  Yorkshire,  hoping  the  lime- 
stone of  that  series  would  yield  species  of  Lichens  not  to  be  met  with  on 
our  Cleveland  lias,  or  the  basaltic  dike  that  runs  through  it,  I  proceeded 
a  few  weeks  ago,  in  company  with  my  fi-iend  William  Mudd,  down  Bils- 
dale,  to  the  magnificent  ruins  of  Rievaulx.  We  were  both  much  disap- 
pointed in  our  expectations ;  for,  as  soon  as  the  oolite  came  on,  the  paucity 
of  species  common  on  the  lias  was  most  striking,  and  we  at  once  saw  the 
superiority  of  our  own  district  over  the  one  we  had  now  entered.  However, 
we  felt  amply  rewarded  for  our  journey,  by  discerning  on  old  Elm-trees,  on 
the  margin  of  the  Rie,  the  elegant  Lichen,  Lecanora  rubra.  In  all  our  cor- 
respondence and  exchanges  of  specimens,  it  had  not  before  come  into  our 
hand,  from  which  we  were  led  to  conclude  it  was  extremely  local.  As  the 
figure  in  English  Botany,  t.  2218,  is  from  a  specimen  found  by  Wm.  Borrer, 
on  the  bark  of  old  Elm-trees,  near  Greta  Bridge,  Yorkshire,  and  W.  J. 
Hooker  giving  the  same  locality  and  authority,  I  forwarded  the  former 
gentleman  a  specimen,  and  received  from  him  the  following  kind  note : 

"  Dear  Sir, — I  am  glad  to  see  Lecanora  rubra  from  a  new  place.  I  have 
not  a  duplicate  left  of  my  own  gathering,  nor  have  I  ever  met  with  the 
species  again,  since  I  found  it  near  Greta  Bridge  in  1810;  unless  some 
patches  of  Thallus  without  ApotJiecia,  on  Elms  near  Malvern.  I  cannot  direct 
you  to  the  one  tree  on  which  I  saw  it  in  1810.  I  only  know  that  it  was  in  a 
hedge,  near  a  footpath  by  which  I  was  walking  from  the  Inn  at  Greta  Bridge, 
to  the  bridge  over  the  Tees,  by  Eggleston  Abbey.  In  a  visit  to  Greta  Bridge, 
a  few  years  ago,  I  sought  for  the  place  in  vain,  not  finding  even  the  footpath. 

"  My  other  British  specimens  of  this  Lichen  are,  two  morsels  from  Dickson, 
marked  by  him,  '  Lichen  marmoreus,  on  tvoodj  and  another  morsel  from  Mr. 
Salwey  '  on  decayed  moss,  from   Wigmore  Castle,  Herefordshire.' — I  am,   dear 


186  NEW    STATION    FOR    LECANORA    ROBRA. 

Sir,  your  obliged  Servant,  W.  Borreb.     Henfield,  June  1 6th,  1855.     I  thank 
you  for  the  specimen." 

My  object  for  inserting  this  in  the  pages  of  The  Naturalist,  is  not  only 
to  record  the  locality,  but  to  ascertain  whether  it  has  been  met  with  by  any 
other  botanists.  If  so,  I  shall  be  most  happy  to  exchange  specimens  with 
them. 

Ayton,  near  Stokesley,  Yorkshire, 
Qth  Month,  20,  1855. 


Peoples  Edition.  Kidd's  Treatises  on  Song-Birds.  THE  CANARY.  By 
William  Kidd  of  Hammersmith.  Editor  of  Kidd's  Journal  and  Book  of 
Nature.    London :  Groombridge.  p.p.  26,  with  engravings,  Is. 

Although  we  are  no  "  bird  fancier,"  yet  loving  to  hear  them  in  their  native 
wildness  ;  we  have  been  greatly  pleased  with  the  little  volume  before  us. 
Every  point  necessary  for  a  bird's  happiness  and  comfort  under  confinement 
is  attended  to,  and  pointedly  touched  upon  with  a  master's  hand.  We  only 
trust  this  little  book  may  be  taken  as  a  manual  by  all  tliose  who  are  in  the 
habit  of  keeping  Canaries  ;  and  we  are  confident  neither  they  nor  their  birds 
will  ever  have  cause  to  regret  it.  The  spirit  of  humanity  and  sound  sense 
which  pervades  all  the  directions  cannot  be  attended  to  without  benefit  to 
both  masters,  mistresses,  and  pets ;  and  yet  there  is  a  vein  of  fun  pervading 
the  whole,  which  is  infinitely  amusing  ;  "  tria  juncta  in  uno."  As  a  specimen 
of  humanity,  sound  sense,  and  fun,  wo  quote  the  following  : 

"  In  order  to  '  pair '  your  birds  properly,  place  my  lady  in  one  small  cage,  and  my 
lord  in  another.  Suspend  them  in  the  same  room,  one  above  the  other ;  so  that  they 
may  hear  each  other,  without  obtaining  a  personal  view.  Curiosity  is  now  excited  I 
Only  act  thus  cruelly  for  one  day.  On  the  morrow,  let  the  two  cages  be  suspended 
opposite  each  other, — one  on  either  side  of  the  room.  Turn  the  wires  to  the  wall ;  and 
let  only  the  circular  hole  at  the  hack  of  the  cage  giv^  the  twain  a  '  bird's  eye  view '  of 
each  other.  Thereupon,  much  fun  will  ensue.  There  will  be  such  a  stretching  out  of 
necks  through  these  odd  little  peep-holes  !  Such  honey- dew  dropt  from  the  hps  of  the 
lovers,  as  their  eyes  come  into  seductive  contact !  All  day  long,  they  will  keep  you  in 
unceasing  merriment.  Courtships,  we  all  know,  are  droll  things.  The  little  we  see  of 
them,  tells  us  what  they  must  be  when  no  one  but  the  actors  are  together.  A-hem  1 
On  the  third  day,  trifle  with  your  prisoners  no  longer.  Art  now  must  give  place  to 
Nature.    Turn  the  two  cages  close  together  for  some  half-dozen  hours.    A  few  '  chaste 


REVIEW.  187 

salutes '  will  be  fired  through  the  wires,  as  a  matter  of  course ;  the  question  will  be 
popped  instantly ;  a  consent  will  be  warbled  forth  in  a  scarcely  audible  undertone  ;  and 
your  birds  are — married,  in  the  sight  of  God  and  man." 

We  have  no  room  for  further  extracts,  but  we  trust  our  readers  will  look 
for  themselves,  and  we  do  not  think  they  will  be  disappointed.  Those  who 
wish  for  a  more  extended  work  on  the  same  subject,  will  purchase  Mr.  Kidd's 
larger  book  on  the  same  subject,  price  6s. 

We  are  glad  to  see  that  Mr.  Kidd  is  now  occupied  in  writing  on  our  various 
other  Cage-Birds,  in  the  pages  of  the  "  Family  Economist,"  and  commenced 
in  the  July  number  with  the  Sky- Lark. 


PisalktiMs  ^jotias. 


Deformity  of  a  Chrysalis  of  Pontia  BrassiocB. — I  send  you  a  drawing  of  a 

somewhat  curious  deformity  or  irregu- 
larity in  the  position  of  the  antennae  in 
,  a  chrysalis  oi  Pontia  BrassiccB,  should  you 
think  it  worthy  of  notice. — C.  G.  Lenny, 
Eamsgate,  May,  1855. 

A  Bat  flying  in  Winter. — I  was  much  pleased  to  see  a  Bat  hawking  about 
on  the  sunny  side  of  Clement  Fore-street,  Ipswich,  on  a  veiy  cold  day  in 
January,  1854.  I  stood  for  some  time  watching  it. — George  King,  Ipswich, 
January  15th,  1855. 

Curious  Habit  of  Mice. — I  heard,  the  other  day,  from  a  friend  under  whose 
observation  the  circumstance  occurred,  and  upon  whose  veracity  I  can  rely, 
that  in  a  cellar,  among  other  grocer's  stores,  was  a  quantity  of  black  lead, 
done  up  in  paper  parcels,  and  which  were  for  convenience  placed  on  the 
floor.  The  employers  were  often  surprised  to  see  the  papers  broken  and 
othei'wise  damaged,  and  could  not  imagine  what  in  the  world  the  Mice  could 
be  about,  black  lead  being  rank  poison,  till  they  caught  some  in  traps;  when, 
to  their  great  astonishment,  they  found  that  they  had  rubbed  themselves 
on  the  black-lead  till  their  backs  shone  like  a  well  polished  grate.  No  doubt 
they  would  imagine,  as  do  many  of  our  "  gents,"  who  shine  more  by  its  than 
by  their  own  merit,  that  black-lead  added  greatly  to  their  appearance,  and 
heightened  their  charms ;  and  would  also  hope  thereby  to  captivate  more 
readily  the  unwary  members  of  the  female  sex. — W.  K.  Robertson,  Dunbar, 
February  21st,  1855. 

Do  Squirrels  suck  Eggs  } — I  must  confess,  I  hardly  can  make  up  my  mind 
to  believe  they  do ;  still,  when  one  hears  so  many  game-keepers  say  they  do, 
it  is  apt  to  cause  doubts  upon  the  matter  in  one's  own  mind.    I  will  relate 


188  MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES. 

what  was  told  me  by  a  very  respectable  man,  and  one  whose  word  I  have  no 
reason  whatever  to  doubt;  he  is  game-keeper  to  Su*  Edward  Bowater,  of 
Sotterby  Hall.  One  day  last  year,  I  observed  to  this  keeper,  what  a  quantity 
of  Squirrels  you  have  here.  He  said, — "  Yes,  Sir ;  they  increases  because 
master  don't  face  to  like  to  have  'em  killed ;  for  my  part,  I  wishes  as  how 
they  were  all  dead,  for  they  do  a  wonderful  sight  of  harm  in  the  egg  time 
Not  long  ago,  (pointing  to  a  good  sized  oak,  covered  with  ivy,)  on  that  weny 
tree,  I  saw  two  Thrushes  in  a  wonderful  taking  with  something  that  I  could 
not  at  the  time  see ;  however,  on  looking  more  closely,  I  saw  the  nest,  and 
something  on  the  top  of  it,  that  kept  moving ;  of  course  I  thought  it  was  one 
of  them  Jays,  as  is  rayther  given  to  suck  eggs  ;  so  I  fires  into  ye  nest,  and, 
to  my  surprise,  down  falls,  not  a  Jay,  but  a  Squirrel,  with  his  mouth  full  of 
yelk.  I  calls  that,  Sir,  stamming  like  being  fond  of  eggs." — J.  F. — Frostenden, 
Feb.  23rd,  1855. 

The  Honey  Buzzard.  (Pernis  apivorus.) — About  three  years  ago,  a  fine 
specimen  of  this  bird  was  caught  in  a  vermin  trap,  in  the  woods,  at  Hawnes 
Park,  Bedfordshire,  and  is  now  stufied,  and  in  possession  of  the  owner  of  the 
property.— J.  C.  T.,  St.  Peter's  College,  Feb.  23rd,  1P55. 

Curious  capture  of  a  Peregrine  Falcon.  (Falco  peregrinus.) — While  walking, 
the  other  day,  in  St.  Arthur's  Seat,  in  search  of  Botanical  Specimens,  I,  to 
my  great  astonishment,  found,  among  a  debris  of  iron  stones,  &c.,  a  dead 
specimen  of  that  truly  noble  British  Bird,  the  Peregrine  Falcon.  The  speci- 
men,— which  was  quite  fresh,  the  appearance  of  the  eyes  indicating  that  it 
had  only  been  dead  for  a  day  or  two, — was  in  beautiful  plumage,  with  the 
exception,  that  an  almost  exactly  similar  portion  of  the  tip  of  each  wing  had 
been  clipped  off,  but  still  quite  insufficient  to  hinder  the  bird's  flight  in  the 
least.  From  this  circumstance,  I  came  to  the  conclusion,  that  the  bird  had 
either  escaped  from  confinement,  or  that  the  tips  of  the  wings  had  been 
taken  off"  by  shot.  On  skinning  the  specimen  for  preseiTation,  I  found  some 
small  shot  under  the  skin ;  but  they  had  evidently  been  there  a  long  time, 
as  they  were  all  embedded  in  cysts.  I  have  been  induced  to  send  you 
this  communication  in  the  hope,  that  some  of  the  many  readers  of  The 
Naturalist  might  be  able  to  give  a  probable  explanation  of  the  occurence  of 
the  specimen  under  the  above  peculiar  circumstances. — A.  C.  Maingay,  18 
Salisbury-street,  Edinburgh,  March  19th,  1855. 

Curious  fact  in  the  Nesting  of  the  Thrush.  (Turdus  nmsicvis.) — Last  year,  at 
St.  Peter's  College,  Radley,  a  pair  of  Blackbirds  fMerula  vulgaris)  built 
among  the  ivy,  on  the  side  of  the  chapel.  Their  nest  happened  to  be  placed 
near  to  the  entrance ;  and  the  female,  after  she  had  laid  four  eggs, — being 
disturbed  by  the  constant  passing  by,  or  by  some  one  going  to  her  nest, — 
forsook  it.  I  took  the  eggs  out  of  the  nest,  and  was  surprised,  some  time 
aftenvards,  when  looking  at  the  nest,  to  see  a  bird  sitting  on  it ;  I  perceived, 
on  ai^proaching,  that  it  was  a  female  Song  Thrush;   (Turdus  musieus ;)  she 


MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES.  189 

was  sitting  on  five  eggs,  which  she  hatched,  and  I  believe  she  brought  up 
the  young  in  safety.  I  never  before  met  with  an  instance  of  a  Thrush 
making  use  of  a  deserted  nest  of  any  other  species. — I  remain,  &c.,  J.  C.  T., 
St.  Peter's  College,  December  2nd,  1854. 

Emheriza  calcarata.  (Tem.) — A  fine  specimen  of  this  rare  visitant  was 
netted,  at  Postwick,  on  the  banks  of  the  Yare,  January  19th,  1855.  Its  habits 
in  confinement  were  very  interesting.  It  exhibited  little  of  the  shy  timidity 
which  might  have  been  expected  from  it,  and  soon  became  quite  familiar 
and  confidant.  All  its  movements  upon  the  ground  bore  a  striking  resem- 
blance to  those  of  our  Skylark.  I  believe  it  was  a  male,  and  the  last  time  I 
saw  him,  he  was  apparently  in  the  enjoyment  of  excellent  "health  and 
spirits,"  with  John  Sayer,  a  bird-preserver,  in  Norwich,  whose  work  in  his 
avocation  may  fairly  compete  with  that  of  the  most  renowned  of  his  profes- 
sion. 

"  Owl's  Crown." — The  plant  provincially  known  by  this  name,  in  Norfolk,  is 
the  Filago  Oermanica,  (Common  Filago,) — via  Hooker  and  Arnott's  B.  Flora, 
p.  233.  This  plant  is  quite  a  pest  to  the  agriculturist  in  many  parts  of  this 
country,  where  the  land  is  "  light."  The  French  graphically  term  it  "  L'herhe 
inipie"  for  an  obvious  reason,  when  the  arrangement  of  flowers  is  considered. 
I  have  seen  both  Diatomacea  and  Desmidece  very  easily  separated  from 
mud,  by  placing  the  gathering  in  a  flat  vessel,  with  about  an  inch  of  water, 
and  they  will  in  a  veiy  short  time  rise  to  the  surface,  and  may  be  swept  off 
with  a  camel's  hair  pencil.  The  latter  should  be  placed  in  a  strong  light,  or 
in  the  sun,  and  in  the  course  of  an  hour  or  two,  will  not  only  have  risen,  but 
be  drawn  up  upon  the  sides  of  the  vessel,  by  the  evaporation. 

My  own  limited  experience,  and  inquiry  of  natui-alist  friends,  have  led  me 
to  agree  with  Mr.  Fox,  in  his  opinion  as  to  Thrushes  feeding  upon  the  backs 
of  Sheep.  I  have  not  unfrequently  observed  young  Starlings  so  engaged,  at 
a  time  when  their  plumage  is  so  similar  to  that  of  the  Thrush  that  at  a  little 
distance,  they  might  very  easily  be  mistaken  for  the  latter  bird. — R.  D., 
Guestwick,  Feb.  17th,  1855. 

Variety  of  the  Corn  Bunting.  (Emberiza  miliaria.)  I  have  the  pleasure  of 
communicating  to  you  the  occurrence,  in  this  neighbourhood,  of  a  very 
beautiful  variety  of  the  Corn  Bunting.  {Emberiza  miliaria.)  The  bird,  which 
I  shot  on  an  adjoining  farm,  about  ten  days  ago,  is  of  a  fine  primrose  color, 
slightly  mottled  with  brown  on  the  head  and  ear  coverts.  The  feathers  on 
the  breast  have  their  shafts  of  a  dark  brown,  which,  contrasted  with  the 
prevailing  hue,  present  an  elegant  series  of  streaks.  The  under-tail  coverts 
are  shaded  from  yellow  to  pure  white  ;  while  the  tail  itself  is  also  white,  with 
the  exception  of  two  of  the  outer  feathers,  which  are  of  the  natural  colour, 
irregularly  edged  or  tipt  with  white..  As  a  whole,  the  specimen  is  strikingly 
pi'etty  ;  and  being  in  very  sound  condition,  it  has  a  very  handsome  appear- 
ance.— H.  A.  Rannie,  Boyndie,  Banff". 


k 


1»0  MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 

The  Mountain  Finch.  (Fringilla  montifringilla.)  I  have  received  upwards 
of  three  dozen  of  these  birds,  this  winter,  which  are  far  from  being  uncom- 
mon in  this  neighbourhood,  some  occurring  every  year ;  I  never,  however, 
knew  them  so  plentiful  as  this  season, — T.  C,  Luton,  Bedfordshire,  January 
28th,  1855. 

Tlie  Hawfinch,  (Coccothraustes  vulgaris.) — Six  Hawfinches  have  come 
under  my  notice,  within  a  week.  Five  of  them  were  in  company  with  Field- 
fares.— Idem. 

The  Hawfinch.  (Coccothraustes  vulgaris.) — On  Friday  last,  three  fine  speci- 
mens of  the  HaAvfinch  {Coccothraustes  vulgaris)  were  obtained  in  this  neigh- 
bourhood, driven  here,  no  doubt,  by  the  cold  weather. — John  W.  Eccles, 
Medstead,  Alton,  Hants,  Feb.  13th,  1855. 

The  Hawfinch. — The  Hawfinch  is  frequently  found  in  the  grounds  at 
Hawnes  Park,  Bedfordshire.  I  have  one  specimen  that  was  shot  there  last 
December,  and  I  saw  several  others  at  the  same  time.  There  are  generally 
three  or  four  there  every  year;  but  I  have  not  yet  discovered  whether  they 
breed  there  or  not.— J.  C.  T.,  St.  Peter's  College,  Feb.  23rd,  1855. 

Anecdote  of  a  Sparrow  hatching  for  Moths. — As  I  was  walking  once  on  a 
high  steep  bank,  covered  with  bushes,  near  our  town,  beating  with  a  stick 
for  Moths;  a  large  Moth  flew  out,  and  was  immediately  pursued  by  a  Spar- 
row, and  captured.  It,  however,  escaped  from  its  enemy,  and  at  once  flew 
off,  pursued  by  the  Sparrow  for  a  long  way.  The  Sparrow  was,  however, 
obliged  to  give  up  the  chase,  and  returned  to  his  old  post. — George  King, 
Ipswich,  Jan.  15th,  1855. 

Tlie  Dartford  Warbler.  (Melizophilus  Provincialis.) — This  very  beautiful 
and  elegant  little  Warbler  is  not,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  generally  known  to 
be  an  inhabitant  of  this  county,  although  recorded  as  found  in  Devon  and 
Cornwall ;  and  I  have  now  the  high  gratification  of  saying,  that  I  this  day 
found  a  specimen  frozen  to  death  near  this  place.  I  also  have  several  times 
seen  a  bird  which  I  considered  to  be  this  species ;  and  Mr.  Octavius  P.  Cam- 
bridge, of  Bloxworth  House,  informs  me,  that  it  frequents  and  breeds  on 
Bloxworth  Heath ;  and  he  has  specimens  of  the  bird,  nest,  and  eggs,  in  his 
museum,  obtained  from  that  place.  It  is  a  very  delicate  bird,  and  suff"ers 
much  from  frost.  — Jno.  E.  Daniel,  Wool,  near  Wareham,  Dorset,  Feb. 
14th,  1855. 

Arrival  of  the  Cuckoo  (Cuculus  canorus)  at  Ipswich,  in  1854  — When  out  on 
the  16th  of  April,  1854,  I  saw  a  Cuckoo  flying  westward  from  the  sea ;  and 
returning  homewards  a  few  hours  afterwards,  I  observed  several  Cuckoos 
settled  on  a  large  tree.  I  thought  it  very  early. — George  King,  Ipswich, 
January  15th,  1855. 

Little  Ringed  Plover  (Charadrius  minor)  near  Lewes. — My  brother  and  self 
succeeded  in  obtaining  several  specimens  of  the  IJttle  Ringed  Plo\er,  [Char- 
adrius minor,)     and  also  a  very  good  specimen  of  the  female  Sfnew,  {Mergus 


MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES.  1^1 

alhellus,)  along  the  sea  coast  between  Cuchmere  Haven  and  Seaford,  on 
Friday  last. — G.  Grantham,  Barcome  Place,  Lewes,  February  19tli,  1855. 

Birds  near  Oxford. — The  following  birds  have  lately  been  obtained  near 
this  city.  The  Hawfinch,  {Coccothraustes  vulgaris,)  near  Eusham.  The  Bit- 
tern, (Ardea  stellaris,)  shot  near  Iffley.  And  the  Goosander,  {Mergus  mergan- 
ser,) shot  on  Pork  meadow,  near  Oxford. — J.  F.  Whiteaves,  Oxford,  February 
28th,  1855. 

A  fine  specimen  of  the  Bittern  {Botaurus  stellaris)  was  shot  at  Earith, 
Huntingdonshire,  on  the  18th  of  January  last.  It  measured  forty-three 
inches  from  the  tip  of  the  beak  to  the  extremity  of  the  claws,  and  forty-one 
inches  from  wing  to  wing.  It  was  stufi'ed  by  Mr,  Baker,  naturalist,  Cam- 
bridge, in  whose  possession  I  saw  three  other  specimens  of  the  same  bird, 
shot  about  the.  same  time  at  Dersingham  Heath,  near  Lynn,  Norfolk  — 
Thomas  George  Bonney,  St.  John's  Coll.,  Cambridge. 

Note  on  the  Canada  Goose,  (Anser  Canadensis.) — In  the  month  of  Septem- 
ber, a  few  years  since,  when  with  a  friend  on  the  banks  of  the  Laira,  in  pur- 
suit of  Yellow  Wagtails,  our  attention  was  attracted  to  a  large  bird,  at  an 
immense  height  in  the  air ;  and  which  I  suspected,  from  its  manner  of  flight, 
to  be  a  goose  of  some  kind.  After  making  several  extensive  circles,  it  came 
down  and  settled  on  the  river.  We  immediately  hired  a  boat,  to  go  in  pur- 
suit ;  but,  before  putting  off,  I  reminded  my  friend  that  he  had  only  very 
small  shot  in  his  gun.  However,  not  having  any  other  with  him,  he  was 
obliged  to  go  afloat,  charged  as  he  was.  On  approaching  the  bird,  we  found 
it  to  be  a  "  Cravat,  or  Canada  Goose ;"  and  when  at  the  distance  of  about 
eighty  yards,  it  got  up  and  flew  towards  the  head  of  the  river,  then  turned 
and  came  down  within  forty  yards  of  the  boat.  My  friend  took  a  deliberate 
aim  and  fired ;  but  the  Goose  did  not  even  flinch,  or  seem  to  take  the  slight- 
est notice  of  the  discharge.  But  after  having  proceeded  about  half  a  mile, 
it  appeared  to  fly  rather  on  one  side,  and  soon  dropped  into  the  water.  We 
again  gave  chase ;  and,  on  nearing  the  bird,  instead  of  its  attempting  to 
rise,  it  made  the  best  of  its  way  towards  the  shore  by  swimming ;  and,  on 
reaching  the  bank,  we  were  astonished  to  find,  that  its  wing  was  broken  short 
off  close  to  the  body.  On  observing  this,  my  friend  jumped  on  shore,  seized 
the  Goose  by  the  neck,  and  thus  secured  his  prize,  without  having  occasion 
to  fire  a  second  shot.  From  the  great  height  the  bird  flew,  and  the  perfect 
state  of  its  plumage  and  feet,  I  feel  confident  that  it  had  never  been  in  con- 
finement.— J.  Gatcombe,  Plymouth,  Dec.  29th,  1854. 

Sirex  Oigas  at  Luton. — I  beg  to  inform  you  of  my  recent  capture  of  a  good 
specimen  of  the  injurious  insect,  Sirex  Gigas,  of  which  I  saw  a  short  account 
in  The  Naturalist  for  July,  1854.  I  took  the  insect  in  the  yard  adjoining 
our  house  ;  it  measured  two  inches  from  head  to  tail,  and  about  two  inches 
and  a  half  across  the  wings.  I  can  now  give  Luton  as  a  new  locality  for  this 
insect. — Park-Street,  Luton,  June  26th,  1855. 


192  MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES. — THK    QUERIST. 

Depot  for  the  Sale  of  Natural  History  Apparatus,  d-c. — I  believe  I  some  time 
since  suggested  in  The  Naturalist,  how  desirable  it  would  be  to  have  some 
central  place  as  a  depot  in  London,  for  the  sale  of  the  various  apparatus  re- 
quired by  Entomologists,  Conchologists,  &c.;  and  I  have  much  pleasure  in 
informing  your  readers,  that  Mr.  Charlesworth,  curator  of  the  York  Museum, 
has  now  established  this  desideratum  at  the  following  address  :  "  Mr.  Robert 
Burch,  agent,  30  Tavistock-Street,  Covent  Garden,  London."  He  has  already 
supplied  him  with  Naturalists'  postage  boxes  of  various  sizes,  from  two  shil- 
lings per  dozen  ;  corked  ones  for  insects  ;  and  others  lined  with  lint  for  eggs ; 
also,  circular  glass-topped  boxes,  for  collections  of  eggs,  shells,  seeds,  &c., 
from  one  shilling  to  four  shillings  per  dozen  ;  marine  shell  dredges,  twenty- 
four  shillings  each ;  insect  pocket  collecting  boxes  ;  botanical  boxes  ;  geolo- 
gical hammers,  Naturalists'  packing  boxes,  &c.,  &c.  He  means,  also,  to 
supply  him  with  a  stock  of  buttei-fly  nets,  store  boxes ;  and,  ultimately, 
cabinets ;  and  these  last,  I  hope,  by  my  recommendation^  with  the  names 
already  put  in,  for  the  convenience  of  beginners ;  who,  otherwise  might  not 
know  how  much  or  how  little  space  to  leave  for  various  kinds. — F.  O.  Morris, 
Nunburnholme  Rectory,  York,  Feb.  6,  1855 


Can  your  correspondent,  John  Daniel,  Esq.,  be  correct  in  his  supposition, 
{vide  p.  13,)  that  Lophodium  rigidum,  Newn.  (Lastrea,  Presl.)  grows  "in  a  damp 
hoggy  meadow,  on  yfoolhriAgeYaxxa'}"  The  plant  grows  ^^  on  limestone  rochs 
in  mountainous  districts"  {vide  Newman's  British  Ferns,  third  edition,  p.  178,) 
and  has  only  been  clearly  ascertained  to  occur  in  three  of  the  counties  of 
the  north  of  England,  viz.,  Westmoreland,  Yorkshire,  and  Lancashire;  con- 
sequently, it  is  very  unlikely  to  occur  under  the  conditions  specified. — John 
H.  Davies,  Thirsk,  Jan.  18th,  1855. 

Alfred  Lucas  would  feel  very  much  obliged  if  anyone  could  refer  hi'm  to 
a  good  work  on  Coleopterous  Insects,  with  plates,  which  would  be  preferred 
coloured. — Park-Street,  Luton,  June  26th,  1855. 

Ansiver  to  Question  about  Swanneries. — There  are  a  considerable  number  of 
Swans  on  the  Trent,  near  Rugeley,  Staffordshire. — Thomas  George  Bonney, 
St.  John's  Coll.  Cambridge. 

We  should  feel  greatly  obliged  to  any  correspondent  who  could  favour  us 
with  specimens  of  any  Infusorial  Earths,  mounted  or  unmounted.  We 
would  endeavour  to  make  the  best  return  in  our  power. — B.  R.  M. 


WILL  BE  PUBLISHED, 

On  August  1st,  1855,  to  he  continued  montlily.  Part  I.,  royal  8vo.,  Price  One  Shilling, 
containing   Maxis  and  Illustrations : 

THE  MAGAZINE  OF  NATURAL  PHILOSOPHY; 

A  POPULAR  HISTORY  OF  SCIENCE. 

CONDUCTED    BY 

E.J.LOWE,    ESQ.,    F.R.A.S.,    F.  G.  S.,    M.B.M.S., 

Hon.  Mem.  Dublin  Nat.  Hist.  Soc,  Mem.  Geolog.  Soc.  Edinb.,  etc. 


ADDRESS. 

The  increased  interest,  manifested  in  all  brandies  of  Science,  has  made  it  appear  desirable, 
that  a  Periodical  should  be  published  sufHciently  reasonable  in  price,  so  as  to  place  the  work 
within  the  reach  of  all  who  desire  philosophical  knowledge.  Mr.  Lowe  has  consented  to 
conduct  a  Popular  Monthly  ^lagazine  bearing  the  above  title. 

Our  knowledge  of  Meteorology  has  advanced  so  rapidly  within  the  last  few  years,  that 
it  seems  absolutely  requisite  that  this  science  should  be  properly  represented  in  a  monthly 
Periodical. 

The  connection  between  the  health  of  man  and  the  changes  of  the  weather,  opens  to  us 
another  field  for  investigation;  disease  and  mortality  will  therefore  be  compared,  each 
month,  with  the  weather-changes ;  together  with  the  times  of  coming  into  leaf,  of  flower- 
ing, and  ripening  of  fruit,  of  various  plants ;  the  arrival  and  departure  of  migratory  birds, 
and  various  other  facts  in  connection  with  a  calendar  of  Nature. 

The  different  subjects  in  Astronomy  will  from  time  to  time  be  introduced ;  indeed,  tlic 
discoveries  and  iuiportant  features  newly  brought  to  light  in  every  branch  of  Science  will 
constantly  occupy  a  portion  of  the  pages  of  this  Periodical,  and  this  will  necessarily  include 
the  proceedings  of  the  Learned  Societies. 

A  map  of  the  weather,  in  conjunction  with  different  diseases,  will  be  given  every  month; 
with  other  illustrations  of  any  remarkable  or  interesting  phenomenon. 

The  expenses  of  the  work,  published  at  so  reasonable  a  price,  can  only  be  met  by  a  very 
large  circulation;  it  is  therefore  confidently  hoped,  that  all  who  are  anxious  for  the  advance- 
ment of  Science,  will  give  it  their  support. 

Contents  of  the  August  Number: 

tNTUODUcriON.  Au  Account  of  the  Neio  Sclf-regUterbvj  wet  bulb  Tlier- 

CiiAPTER  I. — A  Treatise  on  Meteorology.  moineter. 

I'he  Weather  of  June,  1855,  at  the  Beeslon  Observatory.  The  Severity  of  the  Winters  of  185i  and  18D5,  together 

I'revalent  Diseases  and  Deaths  from  various  causes,  in  with  their  destnictive  influence  upon  the  vegetable- 

June,  1850.  kingdom. 

Calendar  of  Nature  for  June,  1855.  Miscellaneous  Infonnation. 

A  History  of  the  New  Planets.  Proceedings  of  the  Learned  Societies. 

A  Description  of  the  Instruments  in  the  Beeston  Ob- 
servatory. 


LOWE'S    FOREIGN    FERNS. 


PUBLISHED  ON  JUNE  1st,   1855. 

To  he  continued  monthly,  Part  I.,  royal  8vo.,  Price  One  Shilling;  containing  Four  Colound 

Plates : 

A  NATURAL  HISTORY   OF  FERNS, 
British  and  Exotic ; 

By  E.  J.  LOWE,  ESQ.,  F.R.A.S.,  F.CI.S.,  M.B.M.S., 

Hon.  Mem.  Dublin  Nat.  Hist.  Soc,  Mem.  Geolog.  Soc.  Edinburgh,  etc. 


ADDRESS. 

The  utility  of  an  illustrated  work  upon  the  Feras  cultivated  in  Great  Britain,  both  I'ritisTt 
and  Exotic,  cannot  be  doubted ;  yet,  such  a  History,  embracing  the  whole  of  the  known 
■species  indigenous  or  inti-oduccd  mto  England,  is  a  great  undertaking ;  and  there  is  not  al 


present  a  single  work  upon  this  interesting  tribe  of  plants  within  the  reach  of  the  Fern 
cultivators ;  such  works  as  the  "  Iconcs  Filicura  "  of  Hooker  and  Greville,  are  too  expensive 
for  the  majority  of  gardeners ;  whereas  the  present  book,  from  its  reasonable  price,  will 
make  it  accessible  to  all,  whilst  its  attractions  will  render  it  an  ornament  to  the  drawing- 
room  table. 

The  valuable  assistance  of  Sir  Oswald  Mosely,  Bart.,  Rolleston  Hall ;  Thomas  Moore, 
Esq.,  F.L.S.,  Chelsea;  W.Ingram,  Esq.,  Bclvoir  Castle;  R.T.Millet,  Esq.,  Penzance; 
A.  Clapham,  Esq.,  Scarborough ;  Messrs.  A.  Henderson  and  Co.,  Pine  Apple  Place ;  Messrs. 
E.  G.  Henderson  and  Co.,  Wellington  Nursery,  St.  John's  Wood ;  Mr.  Henderson,  of 
Wentworth :  Mr.  Stratton,  Cambridge  Botanic  Gardens ;  Messrs.  Veitch,  of  Exeter ;  Mr. 
Norman,  of  Hull ;  Messrs.  RoUisson,  of  Tooting ;  and  many  of  the  principal  Fern  culti- 
vators, have  been  promised. 

The  drawings  will  be  chiefly  taken  from  living  specimens  in  the  Author's  own  collection; 
and,  although  it  contains  five  hundred  species,  the  Fern  growers  of  Great  Britain  are 
respectfully  solicited  to  aid  this  publication  by  specimens  of  such  species  as  the  Author  has 
not  the  good  fortune  to  possess. 


LONDON :— Messes.  GROOMBRIDGE,  No.  6,  PATERNOSTER-ROW ; 

AND,  BY  OKDEE,    OF  ALL  BOOKSELLEKS. 


NOW  KEADY,  SECOND  EDITION,   (with  considerable 
ADDITIONS,)  WITH  A  COLOUKED  PLATE, 

P}'ice  Half-a-Crown. 


THE   ENTOMOLOGISTS'    ANNUAL    FOR   1855; 

comprising, 

Notices  of  fi^t  i^eto  BritisJj  Insects  tieteetetJ  i\x  i854 ; 

Instructions   foe   Collecting,   Pkeserving,   and  AlBbanging  Insects; 
And  an  Address  to  the  Yodng  Entomologists  at  Eton,  Harrow,  Winchester,  Rugby, 

AND   at  all   other   SCHOOLS. 


LONDON :— JOHN  VAN  VOORST,  1,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 


TO  ADVERTISERS. 

Advertisements  are  inserted  on  the  Cover  of  The  Naturalist,  on  the  following  very  low 
Terms : — |  of  a  page,  5s. — J  of  a  page,  8s.  6d. — J  of  a  page,  16s. — Whole  page,  30s. 
Bills  stitched  in,  40s. 

Advertisements  to  he  sent  not  later  tJian  the  15th  of  the  Month. 


COULTAS,  PBIMTER,  YORK. 


No.  55. 


SEPTEMBER,  1855. 


Price  6d. 


A  POPULAR  MONTHLY  MAGAZINE, 

ILLUSTRATIVE    OF   THE 

ANIMAL,  VEGETABLE.  AND  MINERAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    NUMEROUS    ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED    BY 

BEVERLEY  R.MORRIS,  ESQ.,  A.B.,  M.D.,  T.C.D., 

memb:  ween:  club. 

corresponding  member  of  the  natural  history  society  of  glasgow. 

honorary  member  of  the  literary  and  scientific  institution  of  kilkenny. 


LONDON : 
MESSRS.  GROOMBRIDGE,  5,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 

EDINBURGH;  JAMES  HOGG,  4, -NICOLSON-STREET. 

AND  MAY  BE  HAD  OP  ALL  BOOKSELLERS. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Description  of  a  Hawk  shot  in  1851,  on  the  Chevet  Park  Estate,  by  William  Severs, 
Keeper  to  the  late  Sir  T.  Pilkington.  By  R.  Hobson,  Esq.,  M.D.  fWith  a  Plate.)     193 

Effects  of  the  Severe  Weather  on  the  Hirundinidaj  at  Woburn,  Bedfordshire,  and 
the  Neighbourhood.     By  G.  B.  Clarke,  Esq 

Note  on  the  Leech     

Land  and  Fresh  Water  Shells  in  the  Vicinity  of  Oxford.    By  J.  D 

Ornithological  and  Other  Notes,  No.  2.     By  S.  Stone,  Esq 

Contributions  to  the  Icthyology  of  Banffshire.     By  W 

Letter  to  the  Editor.     By  Jno.  J.  Bkiggs,  Esq 

Miscellaneous  Notices    -     


197 
199 
200 
203 
207 
210 
213 


It  is  requested  tliat  all  Commxmieations  be  addressed  in  future 
to  B.  R.  MORRIS,  M.  D.,  38,  Fawcett-street,  Bishopwear- 
mouth,  Durham. 


NOTICES  TO  CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  up  to  August  15th,  from  O.  S.  Round,  Esq.- 
T.  P.  Feknie,  Esq.— W.  Kidd,  Esq.— Mr.  T.  Edwakd— Mr.  J.  B.  Waters- J.  Gatherer, 
Esq.— Rev.  W.  Kejjdall— S.  Stone,  Esq.— H.  T.  Stainton,  Esq.— C.  Fryer,  Esq. 

Contributions  have  been  received  up  to  August  15th,  from  C.  Fryer,  Esq.— Mr.  T. 
Bedlington-J.  MC  INTOSH,  Esq'.-R.  Hobson,  Esq.,  M.  D.-J.  J.  Briggs,  Esq.-J.  Ca- 
VAFY,  Esq.  -l 

Received:  The  Bee-Keeper's  Manual,  by  Henry  Taylor.  Fifth  Edition.  Illustrated, 
by  a  Hundred  Engravings.     London  :  Groombridge  and  Sons.  1855.     Pp.  216. 

Infusorial  Barths.-Bv,  Morris  would  feel  greatly  obliged  to  any  one  who  would  favour 
Mm  with  specimens  of  any  Infusorial  Earths,  mounted  or  unmounted;  and  would  endeavom 
to  make  the  best  return  in  his  power. 

Bishopwearmouth,  August  1855. 

The  Editor  begs  to  announce  to  his  Correspondents,  that  he  has  arranged  with  hi,- 
Printer,  so  that  the  Author  of  any  Paper  can  have  copies  of  his  Article  sent  him  by  post 

at  th«  following  rates  :— 

Two  Pages.*  Four  Pages.    Eight  Pages. 

25  Copies  or  under     2s.  6d.  4s.  Od.  6s.  6d. 

50  Copies     3     6  6     0  9     6 

75  Copies     5     0  7     6  12     6 

Communications,  Dmicings,  Advertisements,  etc.,  to  he  addressed  to  B.  B.  AIOBBIS,  Esq. 
M.D.,  38,  Fawcett-street,  Bishopioearmovtii,  Durham ,— Boohs  for  Review,  and  Parcels,  U 
thi  care  of  Messrs.  OROOMBBIDGE,  5,  Paternoster-Bow,  London.- 


193 


DESCRIPTION  OF  A  HAWK  SHOT  IN  lb51,  ON  THE  CHEVET 

PARK  ESTATE,  BY  WILLIAM   BEVERS,   KEEPER  TO   THE  LATE 

SIR  THOMAS  PILKINGTON. 

BY   RICHARD    HOBSON,    ESQ.,    M.D.,   CANTAB. 

Its  general  contour  is  that  of  a  Merlin  or  Hobby,  with  the  exception  of 
its  head,  which  is  neither  so  broad  nor  so  round.  Its  upper  mandible  is  three- 
quarters  of  an  inch  long ;  eere  orange ;  point  incurvated,  and  a  horny  white  ; 
space  between  cere  and  point  a  dusky  black;  and  immediately  behind  the 
point  there  is  a  distinct  dentate  process.  Nostrils  elliptical  in  form,  and 
oblique  in  position ;  being  about  one-eighth  of  an  inch  in  length. 

The  under  ed(je  of  the  upper  mandible  ;  from  the  angle  of  the  mouth  to 
the  point,  is  three-quarters  of  an  inch;  that  half  extending  from  the  angle 
being  orange,  and  the  remaining  half  a  horny  white.  Distance  between  the 
eyes  eleven-sixteenths ;  between  the  nostrils  three-sixteenths ;  across  the 
lower  mandible,  from  angle  to  angle  at  its  base,  eleven-sixteenths. 

The  frontal  and  vertical  regions  are  obscure  rufous;  each  feather  having  a 
dark  brown  streak  down  its  centre,  with  a  rufous  margin  laterally,  and  tipped 
with  rufous. 

On  the  occiput  there  is  a  whitish  patch,  extending  longitudinally  three- 
quarters  of  an  inch,  and  somewhat  more  transversly.  Some  of  the  fciithers 
forming  this  patch  are  perfectly  white,  whilst  others  are  streaked  down  the 
centre,  and  some  tipped  with  brown  and  rufous.  From  each  side  of  this 
white  patch,  towards  its  base,  there  is  a  trifling  extension  of  grey  right  and 
left,  towards  the  lateral  portions  of  the  neck. 

The  gular  and  jugular  portions  of  the  anterior  part  of  the  neck  are  per- 
fectly white.  The  lo7-e  is  covered  by  a  black  moustach,  half  an  inch  long,  and 
curving  up  under  the  eye.  Its  width  is  about  three-sixteenths  of  an  inch. 
From  its  upper  extreme  point,  on  each  side  of  the  head,  grow  black  bristly 
plumelets,  thinly  covering  the  cere,  and  extending  towards  the  basal  termina- 
tion of  the  dorsal  line  of  the  upper  mandible ;  but  they  do  not  grow  on  the 
dorsal  line  itself. 

The  eyelashes  are  black ;  the  supra  and  infra  ocular  spaces  being  thinly 
covered  with  short  bristly  plumelets,  some  black,  and  others  white,  on  an 
orange  ground,  which  gives  i-ather  a  predominating  orange  hue  to  these 
spaces.  The  ear  coverts  are  dark  rufous.  The  posterior  poi'tion  of  the  neck 
inferiorly  is  dark  rufous,  laterally  it  is  pale  rufous,  but  tipped  at  the  base,  and 
each  feather  streaked  down  the  centre  with  dark  brown. 

The  entire  thorax  is  rufous,  each  feather  having  a  black  brown  streak 
down  its  centre  to  the  very  tip,  and  the  remaining  portions  of  these  feathers 
altogether  rufous.  From  thence  to  the  under  tail  coverts,  the  feathers  are 
perfectly  white.  The  tibial  feathers,  extending  over  the  tai-si,  are  ali_Ydiite, 
excepting  a  rufous  tint  at  their  extremities  on  one  side  only       /^^^c3r-^4C^ 

VOL.  V.  A>  l&iV&fetfcl  o 


194  DESCRIPTION   OF   A   HAWK. 

The  short  white  feathers,  growing  anteriorly  and  laterally  on  the  upper 
portions  of  the  tarsi,  are  also  a  pure  white. 

The  under  tail  coverts  are  four  in  number  on  each  side ;  each  of  the  three 
lower  feathers  having  two  dusky  bars,  the  lower  bar  very  broad,  and  the 
upper  one  narrow.  The  remaining  upper  feather  has  only  one  narrow  bar. 
The  shafts  of  all  partake  of  the  same  colour  for  the  width  of  the  bar,  but 
they  are  white  above  and  below. 

The  tail  is  five  inches  long ;  and  its  general  colour,  on  its  upper  surface,  is 
cinereous;  the  two  outer  feathers  having  four  pale  rufous  bars,  the  longest  bar 
not  being  so  distinct  as  the  other  three. 

The  second  outer  feathers  have  five  bars,  but  they  are  imperfect.  On  the 
outer  web,  the  four  upper  incomplete  bars  are  in  union  with  the  shaft,  but  the 
fifth  is  not  so ;  none  of  these,  however,  occupy  more  than  one-half  of  the 
web  transversely. 

The  remaining  eight  feathers  have  each  five  bars,  but  are  less  distinct  than 
those  already  described;  and  the  two  centre  ones  are  much  less  so. 

On  the  upper  surface  of  the  tail,  the  shafts  are  brown ;  but  they  become 
gradually  more  pale  towards  the  tip,  and  are  entirely  white  on  the  under 
surface. 

The  two  outer  tail  feathers  are  an  inch  shorter  than  the  centre  ones.  The 
two  second  are  half  an  inch  shorter ;  the  remaining  eight  are  equal  in  length. 
The  tip  of  each  tail  feather,  for  a  quarter  of  an  inch,  is  cinereous ;  thence  to 
the  first  bar,  the  feather  is  of  a  dark  colour. 

The  general  colour  on  the  under  surface  of  the  tail  is  cinereous,  patched 
with  pale  rufous.  The  bars  are  less  distinct  than  on  the  upper  surface,  and 
the  upper  portion  of  the  outer  webs  of  the  two  outer  feathers  are  white,  but 
gradually  increase  to  cinereous  towards  their  tips.  The  dorsal  feathers 
generally  are  cinereous,  and  triflingly  tinted  with  rufous  on  their  tips.  The 
wings  are  an  inch  and  an  eighth  shorter  than  the  tail.  From  the  anterior 
bend  of  the  wing  to  its  tip,  the  length  is  7|in.  The  length  from  the  point  of 
the  upper  mandible  to  the  tip  of  the  tail,  is  10|in. 

The  upper  tail  coverts  are  speckled  with  cinereous  and  pale  rufous,  having 
a  dark  brown  longitudinal  central  stripe.  Covering  the  coverts  on  each  side 
is  a  single  white  feather. 

The  whole  of  the  primaries  and  nine  of  the  secondaries  in  the  wing,  are  a 
pure  white.  The  remaining  nvimber  of  the  secondaries  are  cinereous,  tipped 
with  rufous.  The  first  quill  feather  has  an  abrupt  notch  on  the  inner  web, 
about  an  inch  and  a  half  from  the  tip.  The  second  quill  is  gradually  narrowed 
downwards  on  its  outer  web,  commencing  to  diminish  in  width  two  inches 
and  a  half  from  its  tip,  and  has  an  abrupt  notch  on  its  inner  web,  an  inch 
and  a  quarter  from  its  tip.  The  third  quill  begins  to  narrow  two  inches  and 
a  half  from  the  tip  on  its  outer  web,  and  its  diminution  in  width  is  veiy 
gmdual. 


DE8CBIPXI0N    OF   A   HAWK.  195 

The  fourth  is  slightly  narrowed  on  its  outer  web,  about  an  inch  from  the 
tip. 

The  first  quill  feather  is  three  quarters  of  an  inch  shorter  than  the  second, 
and  the  second  is  a  quarter  of  an  inch  shorter  than  the  third,  whilst  the 
second  emd  fourth  are  equal. 

The  tarsi  and  toes  ai-e  a  pale  yellow ;  the  claws  a  very  pale  horn  colour, 
and  very  short,  small,  and  triflingly  incurvated.  The  tarsi  are  an  inch  and 
three  eighths  long,  and  a  good  deal  compressed  posteriorly.  On  the  infeiior 
and  anterior  portion  of  the  tarsus,  extending  upwards  from  its  junction  with 
the  third  toe,  there  are  six  scutella,  the  lowest  being  large. 

The  first  toe  is  three  quarters  of  an  inch  long,  and  has  eight  scutella. 

The  second  one  and  three-sixteenths,  and  has  ten  scutella. 

The  third  one  and  three-eighths  of  an  inch,  with  twenty-two  scutella. 

The  fourth  is  an  inch,  and  has  twelve  scutella. 

The  third  and  fourth,  at  their  base,  are  connected  by  a  web  three-sixteenths 
of  an  inch  in  width;  viz.,  from  the  posterior  angle  at  the  junction  of  the  toes, 
to  the  anterior  margin  of  the  web.  This  web  extends  narroivly  a  short 
distance  along  the  internal  edge  of  the  third  toe,  terminating  at  the  joint. 

This  Hawk,  which  I  have  now  described,  and  which  is  in  my  possession, 
is  either  a  variety  of  some  of  our  British  HaAvks,  or  a  new  species  in  the 
United  Kingdom. 

Varieties  in  plumage  are  not  very  unusual  in  many  of  our  British  Birds, 
but  so  strange  a  variation  as  the  present  instance  offers,  has  seldom,  if  ever, 
been  recorded  in  the  Hawk  tribe. 

Patches  of  white,  or  indeed  any  other  colour,  may  occur  indiscriminately, 
or  irregularly  here  and  there,  on  any  bird,  and  may  be  legitimately  enough 
passed  over  as  a  "  lusus  natures"  in  plumage;  but,  in  this  instance,  we  have 
one  side  of  the  bird  precisely  similar  to  the  other  side  in  its  variegated 
plumage,  and  not  in  colour  alone,  but  in  position,  extent,  and  form,  there  is 
also  e7itire  uniformity,  with  the  trifling  exception  of  the  extremities  of  the 
tibial  feathers,  previously  alluded  to.  There  is  the  same  extent  and  form  of 
greyish  stripe  extending  right  and  left  from  the  base  of  the  whitish  patch  on 
the  Occiput. 

The  wings  precisely  correspond,  the  whole  of  the  primaries  and  nine  of 
the  secondaiies  being  perfectly  white  on  both  sides  of  the  bird.  The  colour 
of  the  bars,  and  their  peculiar  and  incomplete  form  on  the  six  tail  feathers 
on  one  side,  exactly  accord  with  the  colour,  extent,  and  form  of  the  six 
feathers  on  the  other  side,  whilst  the  outer  webs  on  the  under  surface  of  the 
outer  feathers  are  alike  nearly  quite  white.  Then  with  regard  to  form  of 
feather ;  the  notches  in  the  wing  featlaers  of  this  Hawk  difler  in  position 
from  that  in  other  Hawks,  and  correspond  on  the  sides  of  this  Hawk.  Also 
the  relative  length  of  the  wing  feathers  differs  from  other  Hawks,  and  yet 
precisely  corresponds  in  each  wing  of  this  Hawk. 


IDO  DESCKIPTION    OF    A    HAWK. 

As  there  are  many  de\  iations  in  a  structural  point  of  view,  in  this  Hawk 
from  the  ordinaiy  formation  in  Hawks  of  a  similar  size  to  this,  it  may  bo 
well  to  enumerate  them  in  detail,  so  that  parties  thoroughly  inforaied  in 
Ornithology  may  be  induced  to  give  their  opinion  to  the  less  learned  in  this 
interesting  branch  of  the  natural  sciences. 

The  British  Hawks  to  which  this  bird  bears  any  similitude  whatever,  either 
in  size  or  plumage,  are  the  Merlin,  the  Hobby,  the  Orange-legged  Hobby, 
the  Kestrel,  and  the  Sparrow-Hawk.  In  the  first  place,  the  head  is  neither 
so  broad  nor  so  round  as  the  Hawks  alluded  to ;  but  it  is  quite  possible,  and 
I  believe  that  this  may  be  a  defect  in  the  stufiing,  in  the  present  specimen. 
Whilst  this  specimen  numbers  on  the  anterior  and  inferior  tarsus  six  scu- 
tella,  the  Kestrel  numbers  only  four,  the  Merlin  four,  the  Hobby  five,  the 
Orange-legged  Hobby  seven,  and  the  Sparrow-Hawk  eighteen. 

Again:  this  specimen  numbers,  on  tho  first  toe,  eight  scutella,  the  Kestrel 
seven,  the  Merlin  eight,  the  Hobby  eight,  the  Orange-legged  Hobby  five,  the 
SpaiTow-Hawk  nine. 

On  the  second  toe,  this  numbers  ten,  the  Kesti-el  nine,  the  Merlin  ten,  the 
Hobby  twelve,  the  Orange-legged  Hobby  eight,  and  the  Sparrow-Hawk  four- 
teen. 

On  the  tJdrd  toe,  this  Hawk  numbers  twenty-two,  the  Kestrel  sixteen,  the 
Merlin  twenty-one,  the  Hobby  eighteen,  the  Orange-legged  Hobby  thirteen, 
the  SpaiTow-Hawk  twenty-eight. 

On  the  fourth,  this  specimen  numbers  thirteen,  the  Kestrel  eleven,  the 
Merlin  eleven,  the  Hobby  fourteen,  the  Orange-legged  Hobby  six,  the  Spar- 
row-Hawk eighteen. 

— In  this  bird,  the  basal  web  exists  between  the  third  and  fourth  toes.  So  it 
does  in  the  Kestrel  and  Sparrow-Hawk ;  whereas  the  two  Hobbies  and  the 
Merlin  have  each  two  basal  webs 

The  notches  on  the  wing  in  this  bird  are  one  each,  on  the  first  and  second 
quill.  The  Kestrel  and  the  Merlin  have  the  same ;  but  the  two  Hobbies  have 
only  one,  which  is  on  the  first  feather. 

The  longest  feather  in  the  wing,  in  this  specimen,  is  the  third;  whereas  the 
longest  feather  in  the  Kestrel,  the  two  Hobbies,  and  the  Merlin,  is  the  second, 
and  in  the  Sparrow-Hawk  the  fourth  and  fifth,  which  are  of  equal  length. 

The  second  longest  in  this  Hawk,  is  the  second  quill ;  whilst  the  third  feather 
in  the  Kestrel,  MerUn,  Orange-legged  Hobby,  and  Sparrow-Hawk,  is  the 
second  longest  in  the  wing ;  and  in  the  Hobby,  the  second  longest  is  the  first 
feather  in  the  wing. 

The  third  in  length  in  this  bird,  is  the  first  or  outermost ;  which,  indeed,  is 
precisely  the  same  as  the  sixth,  and  precisely  the  same  as  the  outermost 
quill  in  the  Kestrel,  Merlin,  and  Orange-legged  Hobby;  but  the  sixth  in 
these  three  Hawks  does  not  equal  them,  as  is  the  case  in  this  Hawk ;  whilst 
the  third  in  length  in  the  Sparrow-Hawk  is  the  second  in  the  wing. 


DESCRIPTION    OK   A    HAWK.  197 

lu  tliis  Hawk  all  the  claws  are  a  pale  horny  white  throughout,  without  n 
Streak  or  tint  of  any  colour  whatever,  and  about  half  the  length  of  those  of 
any  of  the  five  Hawks  to  which  I  have  alluded,  and  scai-cely  incurvated  at  all. 

Nothing  but  a  possibility  of  this  Hawk  being  a  new  species  could  justify 
the  minuteness  and  consequent  extension  of  this  paper.  I  here  appear 
simply  as  endeavouring  to  be  faithful  in  description ;  which,  after  careful 
examination,  is  confirmed  in  all  its  details  by  Mr.  Denny,  the  Curator  of  the 
Philosophical  Hall  in  Leeds,  who  has  figured  the  bird  from  the  specimen  in 
my  possession.  And  I  fonvard  my  communication  to  The  Naturalist, 
specially,  for  three  reasons :  the  first,  because  I  think  it  is  the  duty  of  every 
man  to  endeavour  to  aid  his  neighbour;  the  second,  because  The  Naturalist 
is  so  ably  conducted  as  to  promote  the  science  of  Zoology  generally,  and  so 
judiciously  conducted  as  to  induce  the  worldng  as  well  as  the  idle  man  to 
add  to  his  own  and  others'  happiness;  and  the  third  reason  is,  that  I  enter- 
tain the  highest  regard  and  esteem  for  you  as  a  friend. 


EFFECTS  OF  THE  SEVEKE  WEATHER  ON  THE  HIRUNDINID^C 

AT  WOBURN,   BEDFORDSHIRE,  AND  THE 

NEIGHBOURHOOD. 

BY  O,  B.  CLARKE,  ESQ. 

Many  years  have  elapsed  since  such  a  cold,  variable,  and  t)ackward  spring 
as  this  has  occurred.  As  an  instance  let  us  take  the  few  preceding  days  on 
which  the  casualty  I  am  about  to  relate  occurred,  which  has  been  very 
beautifully  described  by  W.  Kidd,  Esq.,  in  p.  157  of  the  present  vol.;  yet 
my  account  does  not  quite  agree  with  his.  On  the  26tli  and  27th  of  May  we 
had  two  beautiful  summer  days ;  on  Monday  we  had  a  cold  change  ;  Tuesday 
and  Wednesday,  very  cold  and  windy,  the  dust,  enough  to  blind  one,  flying 
about  in  all  directions,  wind  shifting  from  north  to  north-east ;  Thursday  a 
hitter  cold  day,  wind  still  in  the  same  quarter,  very  stormy,  accompanied  with 
rain,  snoio,  and  hail,  the  thermometer  at  43 ;  it  was  on  this  day,  and  succeed- 
ing night,  that  the  above  inoffensive  creatures  perished  by  scores,  I  may  say 
by  hundreds,  in  this  neighbourhood.  Wherever  I  have  made  inquiries  the 
answer  has  been  the  same,  viz ; — On  Friday  morning,  go  where  you  will,  you 
may  see  them  scattered  about,  a  most  melancholy  sight,  where  the  poor 
creatures  fell  from  exhaustion,  cold,  and  wet,  not  being  able  to  get  any  food, 
there  they  died ;  or  in  some  instances  in  the  town,  the  little  fellows  huddled 
together,  for  the  sake  of  the  little  warmth  they  might  impart  to  each  other, 
on  some  projecting  ledge  of  a  house,  until,  completely  worn  out,  they  would 
fall  and  die ;  the  superintendent  at  our  Gas  Works  showed  me  six  swallows 
that  sat  on  the  top  of  the  pipe  which  conducts  the  gas  from  the  ovens  to  the 
purifiers,  where  it  was  so  hot  that  he  could  not  bear  his  hand ;  they  being 


198  EFFECTS   OF   SEVERE   WEATHEB  ON   HIRUNDINIDiE. 

SO  benumbed  with  cold  was  the  reason,  I  suppose,  they  did  not  feel  the  heat; 
on  the  Friday  morning,  they  were  all  found  dead  on  the  floor,  at  the  bottom 
of  the  pipe.  I  have  also  been  informed,  that,  in  an  outhouse  called  the 
boiling  house,  at  Wavendon  House,  about  three  miles  from  here,  there  were 
above  a  hundred  of  them  collected  for  the  warmth,  where  the  poor  things 
remained  huddled  together  till  they  died.  On  Sunday,  the  27th,  hundreds 
of  Martins  and  Swallows  might  have  been,  or  rather  were  seen  flying  about 
in  all  directions ;  but  you  would  have  had  a  task  to  find  either  Martins  or 
Swallows  alive  on  Friday  morning  in  the  parish.  How  difierent  this  picture 
to  what  Sir  H.  Davy  wrote  respecting  the  Swallow ;  he  says :  "  The  Swallow 
is  one  of  my  favourite  birds,  and  a  rival  of  the  Nightingale,  for  he  glads  my 
sense  of  seeing  as  much  as  the  other  does  my  sense  of  hearing.  He  is  the 
joyous  prophet  of  the  year,  the  harbinger  of  the  best  season ;  he  lives  a  life 
of  enjoyment  amongst  the  loveliest  forms  of  Nature  ;  winter  is  unknown  to  him, 
and  he  leaves  the  green  meadows  of  England  in  autumn,  for  the  myrtle  and 
orange  groves  of  Italy,  and  for  the  plains  of  Africa."  Query :  Are  Swifts 
more  hardy  than  Swallows  or  Martins  ?  Because  I  do  not  miss  any  of  them. 
I  believe  there  are  as  many  Swifts  about  here  now  as  there  were  previous  to 
the  31st  of  May.  I  think  their  powers  of  endurance  are  gi-eater  than 
either  Swallows  or  Martins,  so  that  they  are  enabled  to  endure  the  pinch- 
ings  of  hunger  better  than  either  of  the  others. 

The  winter,  and  its  eff'ects  on  the  Thrushes,  {Tardus  musicus,)  Blackbirds, 
{T.  merula,)  Fieldfares,  {T.  pilaris,)  and  Redwings,  {T.  Iliacus.)  The  past 
winter  being  unusually  severe,  and  food  very  scarce,  has  killed  a  great 
number  of  both  Blackbirds  and  Thrushes  in  this  neighbourhood;  single 
birds  have  been  found  dead,  in  numbers  of  instances,  in  the  woods ;  and  in 
Rabbit  burrows  several  have  been  found  huddled  together,  dead.  The  greater 
part  of  the  Robins  [Sylvia  ruheeula)  in  this  neighbourhood  also  died  from  the 
same  cause ;  consequently  we  have  been  deprived  this  spring  of  the  pleasure 
of  hearing  the  music  we  have  been  accustomed  to,  from  the  number  of  these 
songsters  which  used  to  frequent  this  neighbourhood.  I  have  no  doubt 
some  of  the  old  gardeners  will  say,  a  very  good  thing  too ;  we  can  very  well 
spare  them,  if  you  regret  their  loss. 

Singular  Hen's  Egg.  A  few  weeks  ago,  Mrs.  G.  Abercrombie,  of  Wavendon, 
was  much  surprised,  on  breaking  what  she  supposed  a  very  fine  Cochin 
China  fowl's  egg,  to  see  another  perfect  egg  inside  of  it,  about  the  size  of  a 
Wood  Pigeon's  egg,  with  a  shell  quite  perfect,  and  the  usual  dark  colour  of 
those  eggs.  I  have  seen  the  small  egg  adhering  to  the  shell  myself,  and  can 
therefore  vouch  for  the  accuracy  of  the  above. 

Note  on  the  red-backed  Shrike.  {Lanius  collurio.)  I  was  very  much  amused 
on  the  24th  of  May,  last  Spring,  as  I  was  walking  in  Woburn  Park ;  I  saw  a 
quantity  of  small  birds  making  a  very  strange  noise,  and  could  not  imagine 
what  could  be  the  cause  of  it ;  but  on  closer  inspection  I  saw  a  female  red- 


EFFECTS   OK   SEVERE   WEATHEH   ON    UIBDNDINID^.  11)9 

backed  Shrike  sitting  as  unconcernedly  as  possible  on  the  top  of  a  small 
silver  fir  tree,  from  which  she  flew  across  tlie  path  in  front  of  mo  to  another 
small  shrub  opposite;  when  I  was  enabled  to  detect  following  her,  and 
making  a  strange  chattering  noise,  a  Whitethroat,  Blue  Tit,  Cole  Tit,  Great 
Tit,  and  a  male  and  female  Chaffinch.  This  occurrence  reminded  me  very 
forcibly  at  tlie  time  of  a  group  of  Birds  I  saw  in  the  Great  Exliibition  of 
1851,  called  mobbing  the  Owl,  where  a  Tawny  Owl  was  represented  as  being 
disturbed  by  a  quantity  of  small  Birds  by  which  it  was  surrounded. 

Singular  situation  of  a  Rook's  nest.  The  last  two  years  a  few  Rooks  have 
taken  to  building  their  nests  on  the  tops  of  some  spruce  fir  trees  in  Woburn 
Park.  There  ai'e  plenty  of  elm  trees  close  to  them,  and  in  one  of  them  there 
is  generally  a  score  of  nests  every  year,  and  plenty  of  room  in  other  trees  for 
them  to  build  in;  yet  these  Birds  prefer  building  in  the  spruce  firs,  although 
their  nests  would  be  much  safer  in  the  elms. 

White  Wild  Hyacinth.  (Hyaeinthus  non-scriptus.)  In  answer  to  your  cor- 
respondent, S.  Hyle,  Esq.,  in  vol.  iv.  of  The  Naturalist,  p.  190,  I  beg  to  say, 
that  I  have  frequently  found  white  specimens  of  the  Wild  Hyacinth  in  this 
neighbourhood ;  they  are  by  no  means  plentiful,  but  I  have  seen  several  this 
Spring.  We  have  the  blue  ones  growing  in  countless  numbers  in  all  the 
woods  round  us;  they  are  quite  a  picture  to  look  at;  in  some  places  nothing 
but  a  mass  of  blue  to  be  seen,  relieved  here  and  there  with  beds  of  the  Lily 
of  the  Valley,  {Gonvallaria  majalis,)  with  its  delicate  white  flowers  and  exqui- 
site perfume,  which  makes  a  walk  in  our  woods  at  this  time  of  the  year  quite 
a  treat ;  I  believe  the  woods  round  us  are  considered  to  contain  a  greater 
variety  of  wild  flowers  than  are  to  be  found  elsewhere  in  the  county. 

Woburn,  July  Wth,  1855. 


NOTE  ON  THE  LEECH. 

The  other  evening,  on  looking  over  Davy's  veiy  interesting  "Account  of 
Ceylon,"  I  read  as  follows ;  and  shall  feel  much  obliged  to  any  correspondent 
of  The  Naturalist,  who  will  be  so  kind  as  to  inform  me  of  the  proper  name 
of  the  Leech  in  question,  or  any  other  information  respecting  the  same : 
"  I  allude  to  the  Leech.  This  animal  varies  much  in  its  dimensions.  The 
longest  are  seldom  more  than  half  an  inch  long,  in  a  state  of  rest;  the 
smallest  are  minute  indeed.  It  is  broadest  behind,  and  tapers  towards  the 
fore-part;  above,  it  is  roundish;  below,  flat.  Its  colour  varies  from  brown  to 
light  brown.  It  is  marked  with  three  yellow  lines,  extending  from  one 
side  to  another ;  one  dorsal  and  central,  the  others  lateral.  The  substance 
of  this  animal  is  nearly  half  transparent ;  and  in  consequence,  its  internal 
structure  may  be  seen  pretty  distinctly.  It  is  very  active,  and  moves  with 
great  rapidity,  and  is  said  at  times  to  spring.    Its  powers  of  contraction  and 


500  NOtES   ON   THE    LEECHt. 

expansion  are  very  great.  When  fully  extended  it  is  like  a  fine  cord,  and  its 
point  is  so  sharp  that  it  readily  makes  its  way  through  very  small  openings. 
It  is  peculiar  to  those  parts  of  Ceylon  which  are  subject  to  frequent  showers, 
and  is  unknown  in  those  districts  Avhich  have  a  long  dry  season.  It  is  most 
abundant  in  the  mountains  ;  not  on  the  highest  ranges,  where  the  tempera- 
ture appears  to  be  too  low  for  it ;  but  on  those  which  do  not  exceed  two  or 
three  thousand  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  It  delights  in  shady  damp 
places ;  and  is  to  be  seen  on  moist  leaves  and  stones,  more  frequently  than 
water.  In-drj^  weather  it  l-etires  into  close  damp  jungles;  and  only  in  rainy 
weather  quits  its  cover,  and  infests  the  pathways  and  open  parts  of  the 
country.  Those  who  have  no  experience  of  these  animals, — of  their  immense 
numbers,  of  their  activity,  keen  appetite,  and  love  of  blood, — can  have  no 
idea  of  the  kind  and  extent  of  annoyance  they  are  to  tfavellers  in  the  interior 
of  the  island,  of  which  they  are  the  plague.  In  rainy  weather  it  is  almost 
shocking  to  see  the  legs  of  men  on  a  long  march,  thicldy  beset  with  them 
gorged  with  blood,  and  the  blood  trickling  down  in  streams.  It  might  be 
supposed  that  there  would  be  little  difficulty  in  keeping  them  off,  but  this  is 
a  veiy  mistaken  notion  ;  for  they  crowd  to  the  attack,  and  fasten  on  quicker 
than  they  can  be  removed.  I  do  not  exaggerate  when  I  say,  that  I  have  at 
times  seen  at  least  fifty  of  them  on  a  person  at  a  time.  Their  bites,  too,  are 
much  more  troublesome  than  could  be  imagined ;  being  very  apt  to  fester, 
and  become  sores  ;  and,  in  persons  of  a  bad  habit  of  body,  to  degenerate  into 
very  great  ulcers ;  which,  in  too  many  instances,  have  occasioned  the  loss  of 
limb,  and  even  of  life!" — Abridged  from  Davy's  "Account  of  Ceylon."^- 
J.  Mc'  Intosh, 


1.AND   AND    FRESH  WATER    SHELLS    IN    THE  VICINITY   OP 

OXFORD. 

Nomenclature  from  Oray's  Turton. 


Having  derived  considerable  assistance  from  the  catalogues  of  land  and 
fre^h  water  mollusca,  which,  from  time  to  time,  have  been  published  in  The 
Natubalist,  I  have  compiled  a  list  of  what  I  have  myself  found  in  this 
neighbourhood,  for  the  most  part  within  the  last  two  months,  thinking  it 
may  be  of  use  to  any  of  your  readers  who  now  are  at  Oxford,  or  who  intend 
going  there. 

I  hope  that  the  new  collection  of  shells  in  the  Ashmolean  will  give  a  x>ush 
to  studies  of  this  kind. 

Neritina  flxtviatilis.   Comraoil.   Wytham;  on  A.  Cygneus,  Ferry  Hinksey,  &c. 


LAND  AND  FRESH  WATER  SHELLS  OF  OXFORD.  201 

Paludina  vivipara.  Ditches  and  stagnant  water.  Common.  Very  large  at 
Blenheim. 

achatina.     Streams.      Common.     Rarely  with  P.  vivipara.     The 

Cherwell,  &c. 

Bithinia  tentaculata.     Very  common. 

ventricosa.      River  near  Godstow;  in  Port  Meadow,  but  very 

sparingly ;  ditch  at  Yarnton,  but  rare. 

Valvata  piscinalis.  Common  in  rivers  and  streams.  Feny  Hinksey, 
Godstow,  &c. 

cristata.  River  in  Port  Meadow;  ditches  at  Yarnton  and  BuUingdon; 

rare. 

Vitrina  pelluoida.     Sandford  ;  Woodeaton.     Not  very  common. 

Helix  aspersa.    Very  common. 

hortensis.    A  vaiiety  with  hyaline  bands,  near  Ferry  Hinksey. 

nemoralis.    Very  common. 

hybrida.     Not  rare ;  among  nettles  in  Barton  Lane. 

Pomatia.     In  a  chalk  pit  between  Handborough  and  Stonesfield. 

arhustorum.  Common.  A  variety  Avith  white  interior  at  Ferry  Hinksey. 

Lapicida.     Quarry  at  Stow^  Wood  ;  sparingly.     Never  found  alive  but 

in  very  wet  weather,  when  it  comes  out  on  the  stalks  of  brambles. 

pulchella.    Common  on  walls  and  under  stones;  also  the  "V.  Costata." 

Cantiana.     Headington.     Abundant. 

ftdva.    Among  moss  at  Stow  Wood ;  Childswell  Farm.     Not  rare. 

aculeata.     Stow  Wood.     Rare.     Under  stones  in  damp  situations.  -  ■" 

granulata.     Said  to  have  been  found  on  BuUingdon.     "  Zoologist."  ■ 

hispida.    Very  common.  t-vi»»S»«^  ~ 

concinna.    Wytham,  among  damp  moss. 

depilata.  Not  rare.    Evidently  both  this  and  H.  concinna  are  identical 

with  H.  hispida.  rit  nrAai  tfU  .»wrthu\v  t<. 

rufescens.    Common,     "fhe^hite  variety  ifii  Wo^ce^ter  Coll.  gardens.'  ' 

virgata.     Common. 

caperata.    Equally  common.     Shotover,  Cumnor,  &c. 

ericetorum.    BuUingdon,  Woodeaton,  &c.     Common. 

Zonites  rotundatus.     Common  in  most  places,  under  stones. 

umhilicatus     Abundant  on  walls,  at  Woodeaton  and  Feny  Hinksey. 

pygmceus.    WaU  at  Woodeaton,  with  the  above,  from  tlie  young  of 

which  it  differs  materially,  in  being  flatter  and  darker  coloured.    Rare. 

alliarius.     Under  Stow  Wood ;  easily  recognised  by  the  peculiar 

smell.     Not  rare. 

cellarius.     Common.     Often  with  the  above,  at  Stow  Wood. 

luddus.    Rather  rare.     River  bank,  near  Godstow. 

crystalUmis.    In  wet  moss,  at  Stow  Wood  and  Childswell  Farm. 

Suceinea  piitris.     Common.     Very  tine  at  Iffly,  in  the  wet  meadows. 

K  2 


'i02  LAND   AND    FEESH    WATER   SHELLS   OF   OXFORP. 

Succinea  Pfdfferi.  Equally  common  with  tlie  above,  of  whicli  it  seems  to 
be  a  mere  variety. 

Bulimus  Lackamensis.     "  Stokenchurch  ;"  Norman  in  "  Zoologist." 

obscurus.    Woodeaton,  Botley  road,  Stonesfield,  &c.;  but  nowhere 

veiy  plentiful. 

Zua  lubrica.    Headington  Quarry,  Woodeaton,  &c.     Common. 

Azeca  tridens.     One  in  Headington  Quarry;  all  that  I  have  seen. 

Achatina  acicula.    At  the  roots  of  grass,  in  Headington  Quarry. 

Pupa  umhilicata.    Common  on  walls ;  Woodeaton,  FeiTy  Hinksey,  &e. 

marginata.    Abundant  on  grass  in  Headington  Quarry. 

Juniperi.     Headington  Quarry,  in  great  plenty;  the  young  are  covered 

with  a  calcareous  coating,  like  Bulimus  obscurus. 

Vertigo  edentula .  Woodeaton,  Headington  Quarry,  Stow  Wood;  but  rare 
in  all  localities. 

pusilla.    Abundant  on  a  wall  at  Woodeaton. 

Balcm  perversa.  Wall  at  Woodeaton,  with  the  above,  and  under  the  bark 
of  willow  trees. 

Clausilia  hidens.    Stow  Wood  ;  rare.     Two  specimens  near  Handborough. 

dubia.     Stow  Wood. 

■  nigricans.     Common  on  walls  and  under  stones. 

Carychium  minimum.    Wytham,  Godstow,  Stow  Wood ;  in  wet  moss. 

Limneus  auricularius.     Common  in  the  Isis,  and  very  fine. 

pereger.    Ditches;  canal,  &c.   Very  common.     The  variety  acutus 

also  common.     River  in  Port  Meadow,  &c. 

stagnalis.    Abundant,  and  very  fine.    Also  the  variety  L.  fragilis. 

—  palustris.    Near  Godstow,  Iffly,  &c.    Abundant. 

. glaber.    Ditch  near  Kennington;  rare. 

truncatulus.  On  mud  by  the  river.   Common  at  Iffly  and  Godstow. 

Amphipeplea  glutinosa.  One  specimen  taken  from  a  ditch  at  South  Hinksey. 
All  that  I  have  seen,  though  I  have  often  vainly  searched  for  it. 

Velletia  lacustris.  Ditch  between  the  Botley  road,  and  Medley  Lock;  ditch 
communicating  with  the  CherweU  behind  Summertown. 

Ancylus  Jluviatilis.  On  A.  eygneus  at  Ferry  Hinksey ;  stream  near  Wood- 
eaton ;  river  Ouse,  near  Buckingham. 

Physa  fontinalis.    Common  on  water  lilies  ;  Godstow,  Ferry  Hinksey,  &c. 

Apilexus  hypnorum.  Ditch  at  Cowley,  in  tolerable  abundance ;  but  I  have 
not  seen  it  elsewhere. 

Planorbis  corneus.     Common.    Very  fine  in  a  ditch  in  Port  Meadow. 

albus.     Rather  rare.     Ditch  communicating  with  the  CherweU 

near  the  footpath  leading  to  Water  Eaton. 

carinatus.    Ponds  and  ditches.    Common.    Animal  pale  in  colour. 

marginatus.    Ditches.   Very  common.    Animal  black,  or  nearly  so. 

-. vortex.     Ponds  and  ditches.     Very  common. 


LAND  AND  FRESH  WATER  SHELLS  OF  OXFORD.  20S 

Planorbis  spirorbiis.  Common,  and  very  similar  to  the  above.  The  Cherwell, 
Ac. 

contortus.   Amongst  Lemna  minor.  Common.    Feny  Hinksey,  &c. 

Cyclostoma  elegans.     Stow  Wood,  by  the  roadside ;  near  Eadley  school. 

Cyclas  rivicola.     The  Isis  and  Cherwell ;  very  fine.    Also  in  other  streams. 

cornea.    Ponds  and  ditches,  in  the  mud.    Very  abundant. 

"-i lacustris.    River  Ouse,  near  Buckingham ;  but  rare. 

Pisidium  obtusale.  (?)  A  small  species  found  in  a  stream  near  Woodeaton, 
and  also  in  the  Isis,  in  Port  Meadow,  I  can  only  refer  to  this  species;  though 
the  specimens  are  smaller  than  I  should  have  expected  to  find  P.  obtusale. 

pusillum.    River  Isis,  above  Godstow.     Scarce. 

pulclielliim.    Ditch  at  Cowley ;  Isis,  near  Godstow.   Rather  scarce. 

Henshwianum.     Isis,  near  Godstow.     Not  rare,  though  the  adult 

shells  are  rather  scarce.  It  appears  to  have  increased  since  the  introduction 
of  the  American  Waterweed,  (Anaeharis  alsinastnim,)  amongst  which  it  is 
found.  It  was  formerly  considered  very  rare  in  this  neighbourhood,  and  only 
a  few  specimens  were  recorded;  but  I  have  found  it  in  tolerable  abundance, 
both  in  the  Isis,  and  in  streams  at  Ferry  Hinksey  and  Wytham. 

amnicum.    Streams  at  Wytham,  Godstow,  Ferry  Hinksey,  &c. 

Anodon  cygneus.     Common  in  streams  and  ditches,  but  rarely  large.    Very 
fine  in  the  Blenheim  Lake,  and  the  "  Wolvercot  railway  cutting." 
Unio  tumidus.    The  Isis  and  Cherwell.     Common. 

Dreissena  pohjmorpha.  Abundant  in  the  Oxford  Canal ;  and  especially  in 
the  Lock,  near  Worcester  Coll.  gardens.  The  Cherwell.  On  live  shells  uf 
A.  cygneus,  in  the  "  Wolvercot  railway  cutting."    June,  1855. 


ORNITHOLOGICAL  AND  OTHER  NOTES.     No.  2. 

BY   S.    STONE,   ESQ. 

Another  "affair"  between  a  Weasel  and  a  Rabbit.  In  a  stroll,  last  spring, 
among  the  countless  thousands  of  wild  flowers,  consisting  principally  of 
Primroses,  Bluebells,  and  Wood  Anemones,  with  which  every  open  space  in 
Cokethorpe  Wood  was  covered  as  with  a  carpet  of  surpassing  richness  and 
beauty,  I  had  just  ascended  to  a  Ringdove's  nest,  which  was  placed  in  a 
Spruce  Fir,  about  fourteen  feet  from  the  ground,  and  was  feasting  my  eyes 
on  the  two  milk-white  eggs  the  nest  contained,  or  rather  which  were  lying 
upon  the  platform  of  twigs  the  Columbidse  are  in  the  habit  of  putting  to- 
gether, and  having  so  done,  make  themselves  happy  in  the  conceit  that  they 
have  really  constructed  a  nest ;  and  which  indeed  does  answer  tlie  purpose 


904  ORNITHOLOGICAL  AND   OTHER   NOTES. 

of  one  indifferently  well.  Let  us  not,  however,  despise  the  work ;  but  let  us 
reflect  for  a  moment,  that  the  same  all-wise  Being  who  guides  the  Oriole 
Weaver  of  Senegal  {Oriolus  textor)  in  the  construction  of  its  exquisitely  con- 
trived nest,  is  likewise  the  Instructor  of  our  Ringdove ;  and  then,  perhaps, 
the  conviction  will  fasten  itself  upon  us  that,  after  all,  this  simple  platform 
of  twigs  may  be  even  better  suited  to  the  requirements  of  the  bird  than  a 
more  elaborately  constructed  nest  would  have  been ;  and  that,  defective  as  it 
may  have  appeared  to  us,  it  is  in  reality  the  very  best  form  of  nest  for  this 
particular  tribe  of  birds  that  could  have  been  devised.  But  to  resume  the 
thread  of  my  story :  I  was  feasting  my  eyes  on  the  two  milk-white  eggs,  not 
with  the  intention  or  even  the  desire  of  feasting  upon  them  in  a  more  sub- 
stantial way  on  the  following  morning,  or  at  any  subsequent  period ;  nor  yet 
with  the  intention  of  transferring  them  to  my  cabinet,  nor  of  crushing  the 
hopes  of  the  fond  expectant  mother  by  appropriating  them  to  my  own  use 
in  any  way ;  but  simply  admiring  their  beautiful  oval  shape,  and  the  spotless 
purity  and  glossiness  of  surface  they  displayed,  and  feeling  moreover  inter- 
ested in  them  as  being  the  first  of  the  species  I  had  met  with  that  season, 
when  a  piercing  scream  from  a  Rabbit  struck  my  ear.  Knowing,  from  ex- 
perience, that  this  was  the  prelude  to  a  tragedy  about  to  be  performed,  I, 
obeying  a  sudden  impulse,  slid  down  from  my  position  in  the  tree,  and 
hastened  with  all  possible  expedition  to  the  spot  from  whence  the  cry  pro- 
ceeded, which  was  only  about  seventy  yards  distant ;  this,  of  course,  was 
only  the  woi'k  of  a  few  seconds,  yet,  short  as  was  the  interval,  the  fatal  blow 
had  already  been  sti-uck, — the  life  of  the  Rabbit  had  already-  ebbed  away. 
On  coming  up  to  the  place,  and  obtaining  a  glimpse  of  what  was  going  on, 
"  pop  goes  the  Weasel"  into  his  "stronghold"  beneath  the  stump  of  a  tree 
near  at  hand ;  he  doubtless  considering  it  advisable,  under  existing  circum- 
stances, as  Menschikoif  lately  did  at  the  battle  of  the  Alma,  to  "  beat  a 
hasty  retreat,"  leaving  his  victim  bleeding  and  lifeless;  it  had  ceased  to 
struggle  or  to  breathe ;  blood  was  trickling  from  a  slight  puncture  at  the 
back  of  the  neck,  yet  was  that  puncture,  though  slight,  made  with  such  fatal 
precision  as  to  cause  the  death  of  the  Rabbit  almost  momentarily;  for  it  could 
scarcely  have  been  attacked  prior  to  my  ascending  the  tree,  I  having  been 
for  some  time  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood,  and  had  any  cry  proceeded 
ft'om  it  previously,  as  assuredly  would  have  been  the  case  if  it  had  been  pre- 
viously attacked,  I  must  have  heard  it.  We  now  and  then  hear  of  a  "  prac- 
titioner," to  whose  name  the  capitals,  M.  R.  C.  S  are  carefully  appended, 
destroying  life  in  a  wonderfully  rapid  manner,  and  that,  too,  at  times  when 
least  intending  it ;  but  I  question  whether  even  the  most  skilful  of  surgeons 
could  outdo  the  humble  "  practitioner  "  before  us,  who,  without  any  preten- 
sion Avhatever  to  surgical  knowledge, — without  the  slightest  acquaintance 
with  anatomical  subjects,  was  yet  enabled,  with  unerring  certainty,  to  hit 
upon  one  of  the  principal  arteries  contained  in  the  body  operated  upon,  thus 


ORNIXHOLOGICAL   AND   OXHER   NOTES,  805 

rendering  the  death  of  the  victim  as  painless,  or,  at  any  rate,  its  sufferings 
of  as  short  duration  as  possible.  Even  here,  then, — here  in  this  deed  of 
blood,  may  the  hand  of  a  merciful  Providence  be  traced ;  for  had  not  the 
operator  been  guided  to  a  vital  part  in  his  attack,  how  prolonged  might  have 
been  the  victim's  sufferings.  To  what  horrid  mutilation  might  it  not,  while 
still  living  and  conscious,  have  been  subjected.  Truly  is  it  said  of  God — 
"  His  mercy  is  over  all  his  works." 

Birds'  nests  occurring  in  August.— 1  never  remember  having  met  with  such  a 
variety  of  nests,  containing  either  eggs  or  young  birds,  in  any  previous 
August  as  in  that  particular  month  in  1853.  The  following,  without  being 
particularly  sought  after,  were  observed  by  me  in  my  rambles  in  this  imme- 
diate neighbourhood. 

August  1st.  Nest  with  three  eggs  of  the  Black-Headed  Bunting  (Em- 
beriza  schoeniclusj.  These  eggs,  had  I  not  seen  the  bird  sitting  upon  them, 
would  have  puzzled  me  a  good  deal  in  attempting  to  trace  tlieir  "  pedigree ;" 
for  altliough  "a  strong  family  likeness"  was  plainly  discernible  among  them- 
selves, there  was  little  or  nothing  about  them  to  connect  them  with  the 
family  to  which  they  belonged  ;  there  was  an  entire  absence  of  the  beautiful 
flourishing  streaks  which  characterize  the  eggs  of  the  Buntings.  They  were 
of  a  dark,  dingy,  snuffy,  brown  colour ;  with  here  and  tliere  a  round  black 
spot. 

Kest  with  five  eggs,  the  fifth  laid  this  morning,  of  the  Tree  Spari'ow. 
(Passer  montanus.)  This  nest  was  placed  in  a  hole  in  a  decayed  limb  of  an 
Elm,  in  which  one,  and  sometimes  two  broods  of  these  birds  have  been 
annually  produced  for  several  years  past ;  and  which  I  trust  will  continue  to 
be  used  as  a  "  nursery  "  for  this  species  for  many  years  to  come,  in  defiance 
of  the  efforts  of  the  Sparrow  club  established  here,  to  annihilate  the  whole 
race. 

Nest  with  young  of  the  Common  Bunting.  (Emberiza  miliaria.) 

Nest  of  the  Land  Rail,  (Crex pratensis,)  from  which  I  saw  the  old  bird  and. 
her  newly-hatched  young  ones  run,  on  accidentally  stepping  close  to  it,  in 
my  walk  across  some  meadow  land  near  the  river  Isis. 

August  2nd.  Nest  with  three  eggs  of  the  Reed  Warbler.  (Salicaria  arun- 
dinacea.)  Ingeniously  attached  to,  and  supported  by,  the  stems  of  reeds 
growing  in  the  Isis. 

August  3rd.  Nest  with  five  eggs  of  the  Goldfinch.  (Carduelis  elegans.) 
This  is, the  smallest,  most  compact,  and  most  beautiful  nest  of  this  species 
I  have  ever  seen.  Perfect  and  entu*e  as  it  is,  its  weight  is  less  the  sixth  part 
of  an  ounce.  It  might  very  weU  pass  for  a  nest  of  one  of  the  larger  species 
of  Humming-Birds. 

Nest  with  young,  just  hatched,  of  the  Meadow  Pipit.  (Anthus pratensis.) 

August  4th.  Nest  with  fledged  young  of  the  Common  Whitethroat.  (Sylvia 
cinerea.)    On  being  disturbed,  the  occupants  of  the  nest  all  scrambled  out 


206  ORl^lTHOLOGICAL  AND   OTHER   NOTES. 

and  dispersed  themselves  among  the  surrounding  bushes.  Passing  by  on 
the  following  day,  I  found  that  they  had  returned,  and  were  again  occupying 
the  nest.  This  is  the  only  instance  I  have  met  with,  of  young  birds  return- 
ing to  the  nest  after  having  once  quitted  it. 

Nest  with  five  eggs  of  the  Redbreast.  (Erythaca  rubecula.)  One  egg  pure 
white ;  the  others  of  a  pure  white  ground,  with  spots  of  pale  yellow  at  the 
larger  end.  Without  a  strict  adherence  to  trvith,  communications  of  every 
kind  must  be  worse  than  valueless ;  I  am  therefore  compelled  candidly  to 
acknowledge,  that,  although  I  first  met  with  this  nest  on  the  day  here 
recorded,  it  had  been  lying  at  the  house  of  the  gamekeeper  of  Walter  Strick- 
land, Esq.,  who  took  it  in  Cokethorpe  Wood  ten  days  previously,  not 
knowing,  from  the  somewhat  strange  character  of  the  eggs,  to  what  bird  it 
belonged :  so  that  it  cannot  be  said  to  be  a  nest  found  in  August.  But,  as 
incubation  had  not  commenced  at  the  time  it  was  taken,  the  young  would 
not  have  been  hatched  until  some  time  in  that  month,  had  the  nest  been 
allowed  to  remain.  Under  these  circumstances,  I  have  ventured  to  introduce 
it  into  my  Journal  of  that  month. 

Nest  with  eight  eggs  of  the  Land  Rail.  This  nest  was  situated  in  the 
same  meadow,  and  within  less  than  a  hundred  yards  of  the  one  I  found  on 
the  1st. 

August  5th.  Nest  with  two  eggs,  the  second  laid  this  morning,  of  the 
Ring  Dove.  (Columba  palvmbns.)  This  nest  was  composed  of  a  platform  of 
•twigs,  upon  which  was  placed  a  substantial  layer  of  straws. 

Nest  with  two  eggs  of  the  House  Martin.  [Hirundo  urbica.) 

August  8th.  Nest  with  four  eggs  of  the  Little  Grebe,  (Podicepg  minor,) 
floating  among  flags  on  the  Isis. 

August  11th.  Nest  with  three  eggs  of  the  Yellow  Bunting.  {Embei-iza 
citrinella.) 

August  12th.  Nest  with  five  eggs  of  the  House  Sparrow.  {Passer  domes- 
ticus.) 

August  13th.    A  third  nest  of  the  Land  Rail,  containing  nine  eggs. 

Nest  with  three  eggs  of  the  Reed  Warbler,  within  a  short  distance  of  the 
one  found  on  the  2nd,  and  like  it,  suspended  among  reeds. 

August  14th.  Nest  with  two  eggs  of  the  Little  Grebe,  near  the  one  found 
on  the  8th. 

Nest  with  three  eggs  of  the  Hedge  Warbler.  (Accentor  modularis.) 

August  22nd.    A  second  nest  with  three  eggs  of  the  Yellow  Bunting. 

A  second  nest  of  the  Goldfinch,  containing  four  eggs. 

August  23rd.  Nest  with  nine  eggs  of  Quail,  (Goturnix  vulgaris,)  disclosed 
by  the  scythe  in  mowing  a  field  of  barley. 

August  31st.  Nest  with  young  of  the  Song  Thrush.  (Merula  musica,  Meyer.) 

I  have  already  stated  that  no  particular  search  was  made  after  these  nests, 
but  that  they  were  met  with  in  my  ordinary  walks.   I  have  no  doubt  but  that 


ORNITHOLOGICAL  AND   OTHER   NOTES.  207 

several  additions  might  have  been  made  to  the  list  by  a  diligent  search. 
Nothing  like  the  numbers  were  to  be  found  in  August  1854.  A  nest  of 
the  Pied  Wagtail  {Motacilla  Yarrellii,)  with  young,  was  however  found  that 
month  in  the  gardens  at  Cokethorpe  Park ;  and  many  nests,  some  with  eggs 
and  some  with  young,  of  the  Greenfinch ;  (Ooecothraustes  chloris ;)  neither  of 
which  were  observed  in  August,  1853. 

October,  1854. 


CONTRIBUTIONS  TO  THE  ICTHYOLOGY  OF  BANFFSHIRE. 

BY  W. 

(Cordinued  from  page  231,  vol.  iv.J 

Since  writing  the  former  part  of  this  contribution,  I  have  had  the  good 
fortune  to  be  put  in  a  position  to  add  considerably  to  the  list  of  Fishes 
obtained  on  the  coast  of  Banffshire.  In  following  Yarrell's  arrangement  it 
will  be  necessary  to  go  back  a  little. 

Greater  Weaver.  (Traehinus  Draco.)  A  single  specimen  of  this  fish  has 
been  recorded.  It  was  caught  a  good  many  years  ago.  One  of  the  persons 
who  assisted  in  capturing  it,  had  his  hand  wounded  by  it ;  which  caused  him 
a  great  deal  of  pain,  and  thus  impressed  upon  his  mind  the  fact  of  its 
capture. 

Striped  Red  Mullet.  (Mullus  surmuletus.)  On  the  5th  Sept.  I  obtained  a 
specimen  of  this  beautiful  fish.  It  was  taken  on  the  lines  of  the  fishermen, 
when  fishing  for  Cod,  &c.  It  was  of  a  yellow  colour,  except  in  the  parts 
where  it  had  received  some  injury,  where  it  was  of  a  blood-red  colour.  Its 
length  was  between  six  and  seven  inches.  Three  other  specimens  were  got 
at  the  same  time,  but  unfortunately  I  did  not  obtain  them.  The  Rev.  G. 
Harris  has  also  found  it  at  Gamrie,  a  romantic  village  about  eight  miles 
eastward  of  Banff. 

Sea  Scorpion.  (Cottus  scorpius.) 

Four-spined  Cottus.  (Cottus  quadricornis.) 

The  Pogge.  (Aspidophorus  Europceus.) 

Common  Sea  Bream.  {Pagellus  centrodontus.) 

Ray's  Sea  Bream.  {Brama  Baii.)    Found  at  Gamrie,  by  the  Rev.  G.  Harris. 

The  Tunny.  [TJiynnus  vulgaris.)  In  1850  one,  measuring  nine  feet  in  length, 
and  five  feet  ten  inches  in  girth,  was  killed  in  a  Salmon  net  at  Portsoy,  a 
village  about  eight  miles  westward  of  Banff. 

The  Sword-Fish.  {Xiphias  gladius.)  In  showing  some  fishermen  "  Yarrell's 
British  Fishes,"  they  identified  the  Sword-Fish,  and  remarked  that  they  had 
frequently  seen  it  in  the  frith. 


208  CONTRIBOnONS   10    THE    ICTHYOLOGY    OF    BANFFSHIRE. 

The  Scad.  [Caranx  trachurus.)  "  Buck  Mackerel."  At  times  found  in  the 
nets  along  with  the  Herring.  They  are  considered  as  useless  by  the  fisher- 
men ;  but  at  times  sold  for  a  mere  trifle  to  the  "  cadgers,"  who  carry  them 
inland  and  sell  them  to  the  country  people. 

Opah,  or  King-Fish.  (Lampris  guttatus.)  On  the  8rd  March,  1839,  a  fine 
specimen  of  this  fish  was  cast  ashore,  at  Port  Gordon,  a  village  a  little  to  the 
east  of  the  Spey.  It  measured  three  feet  ten  inches  in  length,  and  weighed 
126tb.  Another  specimen  was  found  at  the  same  place,  about  three  months 
ago. 

The  Silvery  Hair  Tail.  [Trichiurus  lepturus.)  Two  specimens  of  a  fish, 
supposed  to  be  of  the  genus  Trichiurus,  wei-e  found  dead  near  the  above 
named  village ;  one  in  November,  1810,  and  the  other  in  November,  1812. 
See  "  Yarrell's  British  Fishes." 

Regaleous  Olesne.  A  specimen  of  this  rare  fish  was  cast  ashore,  at  Crowe, 
another  fishing  village  about  a  mile  eastward  from  the  village  of  Gamrie  or 
Gardenstown.  Mr.  J.  E.  Gray,  in  his  "  Account  of  the  Bare  Fish  caught  off" 
CuUercoats,  in  1849,"  has  a  notice  of  it. 

Montagu's  Blenny.  (Blennius  Montagui.)  A  specimen  of  this  rare  fish  was 
found  by  Mr.  T.  Edwards. 

The  Gattoruginous  Blenny.  [Blennius  gattoriigine.) 

The  Shanny,  or  Shan.  {Blennius  pholis.) 

Yarrell's  Blenny.  (Blennius  Yarrellii.)  A  fine  specimen  of  this  fish  was 
found  cast  ashore,  at  Gamrie,  by  Mr.  T.  Edwards'  Maggy,  whilst  she  was 
looking  for  "  queer  things  "  for  him. 

Spotted  Gunnel.  [Murcenoides  guttata.) 

Viviparous  Blenny.  [Zoarces  viviparus.) 

Wolf-Fish.  [Anarrhieus  lupus.)  "  Sea  Cat."  This  is  rather  frequent,  and 
sometimes  of  large  size.  I  have  got  them  between  four  and  five  feet  in 
length,  and  have  been  informed  by  the  fishermen  that  they  have  seen  them 
longer.  Of  the  larger  specimens  the  colour  was  blue ;  whilst  the  smaller 
ones  were  of  a  dark  brown  colour,  and  the  young  ones  of  a  reddish  brown. 
The  flesh  is  very  white  and  fat,  and  considered  very  good  for  eating  by  the 
fishermen.  In  cooking,  they  are  skinned,  cut  into  slices,  and  boiled  in  water, 
with  a  little  salt. 

Black  Goby.  [Oohius  niger.)    One  has  been  procured  by  Mr.  T.  Edward. 

Freckled,  or  Spotted  Goby.  (Oobius  minutus.) 

One  Spotted  Goby.  {Oobius  unipunctatus.) 

Gemmeous  Dragonet,  {Callionymus  lyra.)  "Bridegroom,"  or  "Bridegreem." 
This  is  of  rather  frequent  occurrence.  Last  winter  I  obtained  as  good  as  a 
dozen ;  and  on  the  23rd  Nov.  I  obtained  three  of  them  at  once.  About  six 
inches  appears  to  be  the  usual  length,  though  I  have  got  them  longer.  They 
have  been  found  as  long  as  8^  inches  in  the  Fi-ith. 

Sordid  Dragonet.    {Callionymus  dracunculus.)     I  have  obtained  only  two 


(iONiRlBtJTIONS   TO   THE   ICTUYOLOGY   OF   BANFFSHIRE.  209 

Or  three  specimens  of  this  Dragonet.  The  Rev.  G.  Harris  has  found  it  at 
Gamrie. 

The  Fishing  Frog.  {Lophius  piscatorius.)  "  Kettach/'  Sea  Deevil,"  "  Wide 
Gab."  Frequently  found,  and  of  toany  sizes,  sometimes  the  length  of  five 
feet.  At  times  they  are  beautifully  variegated  witli  spots  of  a  dull  yellow. 
Whole  Cods  and  Lings  have  been  found  in  their  stomachs.  They  are  often 
cruelly  treated  by  the  fishermen.  Sometimes  they  will  cram  large  stones 
down  their  throats,  and  then  plunge  them  into  the  sea,  when  they  sink 
almost  without  having  any  power  over  themselves.  At  other  times  they  will 
fill  their  wide  mouths  with  the  straw  they  may  happen  to  have  in  the  boat, 
and  then  enjoy  the  fun  of  seeing  their  vain  attempts  to  get  below  the  water. 

Ballan  Wrasse.  (Labrus  bergylta.)  Several  of  this  beautiful  fish  were 
caught  during  summer,  at  the  foot  of  the  rocks,  amongst  the  sea-weeds.  It 
goes  by  the  name  of  "  Sea  Sow." 

The  Cook  Wrasse.  (Labrus  variegatus.)  A  fine  male  specimen  of  this  fish 
was  caught  by  a  fisherman  of  Macduff,  on  12th  October,  1855.  It  was  of  a 
deep  orange  colour,  the  sides  being  striped  and  spotted  with  bright  blue. 
The  head  was  striped  alternately  with  light  blue,  golden  yellow,  and  a  pale 
flesh  colour.  The  fins  were  of  an  orange  colour,  fringed  with  a  delicate  azure 
blue,  except  the  dorsal  fin,  which  merely  had  a  tinge  of  that  colour  on  its 
anterior  margin. 

Jago's  Goldsinny.  [Labrus  rupestris.)  One  specimen  cast  ashore  during  a 
storm  a  good  many  years  ago. 

Gilt  Head.  [Grenilabrus  melops.)  This  is  frequently  found  in  the  Frith, 
although  I  have  not  had  the  good  fortune  to  find  a  specimen. 

Gold  Carp.  {Cyprinus  auratus.)  This  beautiful  fish  breeds  in  great  abun- 
dance in  the  dam  of  the  flour  and  bone  mill  of  "  The  Commercial  Company," 
Macduff". 

Minnow,  (Leuciscus  phoxinus,)  is  very  abundant  in  the  Isla,  near  Keith, 
and  in  the  other  tributaries  of  the  Deveron,  in  which  it  occurs  more  sparingly. 
I  have  obtained  it  at  the  "  Rack  Mill,"  a  most  romantic  spot  on  the  banks  of 
the  Deveron,  about  two  miles  from  its  mouth. 

The  Pike,  (Esox  Indus,)  is  found  in  the  Spey. 

Gar  Fish.  (Belone  vulgaris.)  "  Green-bone,"  or  "  Green-been."  This  was 
very  plentiful  during  the  autumn.  On  the  24th  of  August  I  obtained  two. 
They  have  been  found  two  feet  and  a  half  in  length. 

Saury  Pike.  {Scomberesox  saurus.)  On  the  22nd  of  Nov.,  during  a  severe 
gale  of  wind,  Mr.  Andrew  Patterson,  a  fisherman  of  Macdiiff,  found  this  rare 
fish  in  the  harbour.  Its  length  was  one  foot  from  the  point  of  the  jaws  to  the 
caudal  fin.  The  top  of  the  head  was  of  a  deep  green  ;  the  rest  blue,  vnt\i  the 
cheeks  and  gill  divers  of  a  silvery  white.  The  back  was  of  a  deep  blue,  which 
extended  for  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch  down  the  side.  To  this  succeeded  a 
stripe,  which  appeared  blue  when  viewed  edgeways,  but  of  a  greyish  colour 


310  CONTRIBUTIONS    XO    THE    ICTUyOLOOY    OF   BANFFSHIRE. 

when  viewed  directly.  The  belly  was  of  a  silvery  white,  but  not  with  so 
strong  a  metallic  lustre  as  the  cheeks.  This  specimen  seems  to  be  the  first 
recorded  as  found  in  the  Moray  Frith. 

CTo  he  continued.J 
Macduff,  Dec.  1854. 


TO  THE  EDITOR  OF  THE  NATURALIST. 

Sir, — Allow  me,  through  the  pages  of  The  Naturalist,  to  express  to  Mr. 
Morley,  of  New  Basford,  near  Nottingham,  the  great  and  sincere  pleasure 
which  I  felt  whilst  perusing  his  simple,  unadorned,  but  excellent  letter.  The 
sentiments  which  it  breathes  are  admirable ;  and  coming  as  they  do  from  a 
member  of  the  working  classes,  are  creditable  alike  to  his  head  and  heart. 
Sincerely  do  I  wish  the  little  band  of  Naturalists  at  Nottingham  success.  In 
the  field  of  literature  that  good  old  town  has  produced  some  bright — ^yea, 
fadeless  flowers — for  the  works  of  "  Tom  Miller,"  and  William  Howitt  must 
be  read,  so  long  as  a  taste  for  rural  things  possesses  the  mind  of  the  English 
people,  and  the  author  of  "  Festus  "  must  live  in  immortal  song ;  nor  in  the 
walks  of  science  will  Hind  and  Lowe  be  forgotten ;  and  in  the  same  walk,  we 
would  fain  hope,  some  latent  star  may  be  developed  by  the  new  Society, 
destined  long  to  shine  in  "  the  firmament  of  fame."  Let  the  brave  little 
band  of  workers  be  encouraged  to  persevere  in  their  honourable  course,  by 
the  recollection  that  perseverance  will  surmount  an  Alp  of  difficulty,  and 
that  the  origin  of  some  of  the  most  distinguished  ornaments  of  science,  who 
still  live  to  enjoy  their  well-earned  honours,  was  not  more  exalted  than  their 
own.  Who  was  Gould,  the  author  of  the  magnificent  "  Birds  of  Europe  ?  " 
Originally,  I  believe,  a  Berkshire  plough-boy,  who,  with  a  natural  taste  for 
Ornithology,  has  manfully  worked  his  way  to  his  proud  position.  Who  was 
Weaver,  the  Entomologist  ?  Was  he  not  a  Birmingham  artizan  ?  I  beheve 
the  following  to  be  somewhat  near  his  history.  The  late  lamented  Dr.  Shirley 
Palmer,  of  Birmingham,  although  practicing  extensively  in  medicine,  con- 
trived to  indulge  a  taste  for  Natural  Histoiy.  He  also  strove  to  encourage 
the  taste  in  others,  whenever  an  opportunity  presented  itself  for  so  doing. 
During  the  exei'cise  of  his  profession,  one  day  a  patient  called  upon  him,  a 
pale  working  man,  evidently  much  out  of  health.  The  Doctor  discovered 
that  he  had  a  taste  for  Entomology, — or  that,  if  there  was  any  truth  in  the 
science  of  Phrenology,  he  ought  to  have, — and,  in  order  to  divert  his  mind 
from  his  disease,  and  furnish  him  with  gentle  out-door  exercise,  he  recom- 
mended to  him  the  study  of  insects ;  to  go  out  into  the  fields  aad  take  them, 


LETTER  TO   THE   EDITOR.  211 

and  then  come  home  and  arrange  them.  This  advice  was  taken.  The  Entom- 
ologist progressed  in  his  studies,  encouraged  probably  by  the  Doctor,  and  he 
eventually  collected  a  very  good  cabinet,  which,  if  we  have  been  rightly 
infoniaed,  was,  upon  his  departure  from  Birmingham,  sold  for  the  sum  of 
^1500.  Mr.  Weaver  has  continued  to  pursue  the  study  ever  since,  and  has 
had  the  pleasure  of  discovering  many  new,  or  remarkable  insects.  I  merely 
cite  the  foregoing  biography  to  show  how  much  may  be  accomplished  by 
study  and  perseverance,  even  in  the  humblest  ranks  of  life. 

The  little  band  at  Nottingham  should  not  feel  discouraged  by  the  fact 
that,  owing  to  their  being  inhabitants  of  a  town,  they  are  obliged  to  pursue 
the  object  of  their  study  somewhat  to  disadvantage.  The  love  of  Nature  is 
to  be  found  largely  developed  in  the  minds  of  many  hard  working  operatives, 
even  in  the  heart  of  the  largest  cities,  and  it  is  almost  always  combined  with 
bright  intelligence  and  singleness  of  purpose  for  its  pursuit.  In  the  humblest 
ranks  will  be  found  indefatigable  collectors  of  species  in  every  branch  of 
Natural  History — men  who  before  and  after  the  day  of  hard  toil  in  the  mill 
or  workshop,  rob  themselves  of  rest  and  sleep,  march  off  to  the  distant  moss, 
wood,  or  field,  and  satisfy  their  soul-felt  cravings  after  the  beauties  of  natvire. 
"  I  know,"  writes  my  friend  Mr.  Plant,  of  Salford,  "  many  such  ardent  col- 
lectors, and  from  my  long  intercourse  with  them  I  have  had  the  opportunity 
of  learning  that  their  special  knowledge  of  the  habits  and  characters  of  birds, 
insects,  and  flowers,  is  equal,  if  not  more  practical  and  sure,  to  that  pos- 
sessed by  our  best  writers  One  man,  a  rope-maker,  named  Edward  Jaques, 
an  honest,  kind,  and  gentle-spirited  man,  has  for  seventeen  years,  almost 
daily,  night  and  morn,  walked  to  a  distance  of  five  miles  from  Manchester, 
to  look  out  for  and  study  the  pretty  warblers  which  exist  in  that  neighbour- 
hood ;  and  of  them  I  can  say  his  knowledge  is  perfect."  How  much  is  there 
in  the  foregoing  narrative  to  encourage  the  humble  student  of  nature.  The 
labour  attendant  upon  the  acquisition  of  zoological  knowledge  may  be  great, 
but  it  is  one  of  love,  and  the  harvest  of  pleasure  which  it  brings  is  as  rich 
as  certain.  The  Rev.  J.  Bird,  who  wrote  upon  the  botany  of  Berkshire,  once 
walked  sixteen  miles  in  search  of  new  plants,  and  thought  himself  well  repaid 
by  gathering  the  rare  Pasque  flower;  and  so  anxious  were  the  Rev.  —  King, 
and  the  late  remarkable  yeoman  "  Job  Lauseley,"  as  he  was  familiarly  called, 
— both  Berkshire  men — to  see  some  Fritillary  butterflies  in  a  state  of  nature, 
that  they  walked  from  Blewbery  to  the  meadows  near  Burghfield  Bridge,  a 
distance  of  sixteen  miles,  for  the  purpose. 

A  few  words  upon  another  part  of  Mr,  Morley's  letter.  He  says ;  "  I  hope 
the  time  is  coming  when  we  shall  have  more  English  and  less  Latin  "  in  our 
works  on  Natural  History.  So  do  I,  and  expressed  the  same  opinion  some 
months  ago,  when  I  had  occasion  to  treat  of  Mr.  Stainton's  Entomological 
Annual.  Perhaps  I  may  be  allowed  to  repeat  my  remarks  in  this  place. 
"Let  the  Editor  keep  rigidly  to  his  promise  of  uniting  the  'duke'  with  the 


212  '  LETTER  TO   THE   EDITon. 

'  Utile' — the  lyopidar  with  the  scientific, — and  he  maj'  be  instrumental  in  pei*- 
forming  most  excellent  service  to  the  rising  youth  of  this  country,  by 
inducing  them  to  study  a  most  pleasant  and  instructive  science.  It  is  the 
popularization  of  science,  the  divesting  her  of  her  unlovely  garb  of  hard,  diy, 
technicalities,  that  is  so  much  required  in  the  present  day.  We  vv^ish  to  see 
our  natviral  histoiy  prodvxctions  breathing  more  of  the  freshness  of  nature, 
Zess  of  the  closet  and  museum.  'Wliilst  reading  of  birds  and  butterflies  we 
like  to  inhale  the  odours  of  flowers ;  to  feel  the  wind  kiss  our  cheeks ;  to 
catch  glimpses  of  fair  fields  and  woods  ;  and  not  only  to  find  ourselves  in 
company  with  animated  beings,  but  to  feel  ourselves  transj)orted  mentally  to 
their  natural  haunts,  and  behold  them  as  they  appear  in  life.  All  this  may 
be  accomplished,  and  still  the  scientific  nomenclature  be  retained.  We  have 
dwelt  rather  long  upon  this  point,  feeling  thoroughly  convinced  that,  if 
Natural  History  is  to  become  a  favourite  study  amongst  the  masses  of  the 
people,  such  a  course  must  be  adopted.  It  has  been  too  much  the  custom 
to  present  the  history  of  animated  creatures  to  the  casual  reader,  in  a  form, 
the  merits  of  which  were  understood  by  the  scientific  few.  The  former,  as  a 
matter  of  course,  felt  little  interest  in  that  which  he  could  not  understand, 
and  consequently  was  unable  to  appreciate.  Now,  had  the  same  subject  been 
presented  to  the  same  reader  in  an  attractive  form,  it  would  probably  have 
arrested  his  attention  ;  from  being  a  mere  reader,  he  might  have  become  an 
admirer,  and  successively  an  investigator,  a  discoverer,  and  finally  a  devoted 
student.  What  is  it  that  has  made  "  Whites  History  of  Selborne"  commend 
itself  to  the  taste  of  thousands,  whilst  many  a  more  pretenceful  work  has 
been  quietly  consigned  to  the  trunk-maker?  How  is  it  that  the  sketch  of  a 
single  jsarish  should  have  created  more  naturalists  than  almost  any  other 
book  that  was  ever  written  ?  It  is  its  fidelity  to  nature — its  absence  from 
technical  terms — the  exquisite  beauty  and  simplicity  of  its  descriptions — the 
pleasing  and  graceful  sentiments  which  it  expresses.  Such  is  the  character 
of  the  zoological  works  which  we  should  like  to  see  issued  from  the  press  in 
the  present  day ;  they  would  have  the  same  efi'ect  as  "  White  s  Selborne,"  in 
awakening  a  love  of  nature  in  the  minds  of  thousands,  not  only  of  our  own, 
but  succeeding  generations." 

Such  are  at  least  my  own  opinions,  and  by  expressing  them  I  do  not  wish 
to  cast  the  slightest  stain  upon  Mr.  Stainton's  pages.  He  has  done  much 
towards  advancing  the  cause  of  Entomology,  but  how  much  more  may  he  yet 
do.  Could  he  simplify  his  work  by  adding  the  English  to  the  Latin  names, 
give  more  coloured  figures  of  the  species  described,  and  fuller  details  of 
their  habits,  how  many  students  in  Entomology  might  he  be  the  means  of 
creating.  His  volume  in  its  present  state  is  valuable  to  a  somewhat  advanced 
student,  but  scarcely  so  to  that  class  for  whom  it  is  intended.  Suppose,  for 
instance,  a  mechanic,  or  artizan,  or  even  a  person  who  has  had  opportunities 
for  acquuing  a  more  classical  education,  wishes  to  know  something  of  insects, 


LETTER   TO   THE   EDITOK.  2.13 

aud  takes  up  Mr.  Stainton's  volume.  He  finds  tlie  introduetoi'y  chapters 
excellently  written,  and  proceeds.  He  turns  over  to  page  26.  His  eye  sees 
the  alarming  words  Anthrocera  Minos,  Petasia  nuheculosa,  Ypsolophus  Juni- 
perellus,  and  many  similar,  which  the  student-mechanic  may  well  designate 
"jaw-breaking  words."  They  are  as  incomprehensible  to  him  as  the  hiero- 
glyphics on  an  Egyptian  monument,  or  the  cuneiform  characters  on  the 
disinterred  tablets  of  Nineveh.  He  quietly  shuts  the  book,  and  lays  it  down 
in  despair ;  for  before  he  can  learn  the  mysteries  it  contains,  he  must  learn 
the  Latin  language.  Wliy  fold  up  the  name  of  an  insect  in  a  chrysalis  case 
of  Latin  ?  Why  not  adopt  the  excellent  plan  the  Eev.  F.  O.  Morris  has 
adopted,  in  his  "  British  Butterflies,"  of  making  the  English  the  leading 
term,  which  all  may  understand,  but,  in  order  to  avoid  confusion  of  species, 
appending  also  the  Latin  name  to  an  individual,  to  enable  it  at  once  to  be 
recognized  by  the  man  of  science.  Since  I  purchased  his  volume,  I  have 
been  able  to  name  every  butterfly  which  I  have  seen  in  my  district,  although 
possessing  little  knowledge  of  the  subject.  With  hundreds  of  persons  the 
pursuit  of  Entomology  resolves  itself  into  this ;  they  want  to  know  sufiicient 
of  it  to  give  a  zest  to  their  walks.  They  ramble  in  the  woods,  perhaps;  they 
notice  a  pretty  dark  butterfly,  with  spots  like  eyes  on  the  wings;  they  admire 
it ;  would  like  to  know  something  of  its  history.  They  turn  to  Morris  and 
the  enigma  is  solved.  It  proves  to  be,  in  plain  English,  The  Wood  Argus ; 
and  not,  as  in  some  works  it  would  do,  in  ugly  Latin,  HipparcMa  ^geria. 
The  rambler's  want  is  supplied;  and  having  ascertained  its  name,  its  habitat, 
and  something  of  its  habits,  he  has  formed  a  basis,  as  it  were,  to  work  upon, 
and  probably  in  his  turn  becomes  a  person  who  endeavours  to  ascertain  by 
personal  observation  still  further  of  its  history.  Thus  are  the  secrets  of 
nature  gradually  unfolded.  If  no  plate  of  the  insect,  or  English  name  and 
description  had  met  the  rambler's  eye,  but  the  dry  words  HipparcJiia  ^geria, 
he  would  not  only  have  remained  in  ignorance  of  the  popular  name  of  the 
insect,  but  even  natural  history  might  eventually  have  lost  in  him  an  ardent 
student. — John  Joseph  Briggs. 

King's  Newton,  Swarkeston,  Derby. 


A  Mallard  (Anas  boschas)  was  shot,  a  day  or  two  ago,  on  Bassenthwaite 
Lake,  in  a  bay  called  Bownass,  near  to  Bassenthwaite  church.  The  length 
of  the  bird  is  two  feet  thi-ee  inches.  Mr.  Yarrell,  in  his  history  of  the  Wild 
Duck,   mentions   the   whole   length,    twenty-four  inches.      This   specimen, 


214  MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES. 

therefore,  seems  to  be  an  exception  to  the  common  rule.  The  bird  weighs 
three  pounds  and  three-quarters. — C.  W.  Eothery,  Greta  Hall,  near  Keswick, 
March  24th,  1855. 

Additional  Heronry. — To  the  list  of  Heronries  in  England  and  Scotland, 
commenced  by  J.  Mc'  Intosh,  Esq.,  I  beg  to  add  another;  the  only  one  as 
yet,  I  believe,  recorded  in  The  Naturalist,  from  Lancashire.  It  is  situated 
in  "  Rigg's  Wood,"  Rawcliffe  Hall,  near  Garstang,  the  seat  of  R.  W.  Fance, 
Esq.  The  last  time  I  saw  the  Heronry,  (a  year  or  two  ago,)  it  consisted  of 
about  twenty  nests,  built  in  the  tallest  trees.  Two  pair  of  Herons,  also, 
had  a  fancy  to  build  every  year  in  an  extensive  Rookery,  situated  a  few 
hundred  yards  from  the  Heronry.  The  sable  community,  however, — to  pre- 
vent custom  giving  possession,  I  presume, — invariably  imposed  a  "chief" 
upon  the  fishers,  and  collected  it,  in  the  shape  of  the  materials  that  composed 
their  first  nests;  the  execution  of  which  met  with  considerable  resistance ; 
and  not  unfi-equently,  a  black  "  lord  of  the  manor "  might  be  seen  beneath 
the  trees,  rendered  hors  de  combat  by  the  powerful  beaks  of  the  Herons. 
After  the  Herons'  first  nests  had  been  thus  destroyed,  and  the  materials 
appropriated  by  the  Rooks  to  construct  their  own,  they  were  allowed  to  build 
and  bring  up  their  young  that  season,  without  further  molestation. — J.  P., 
March  10th,  1855. 

Mildness  of  the  Winter  of  1854-5. — In  the  last  week  of  December,  1854,  a 
Blackbird's  nest  was  taken  at  Sneaton  Thorp,  with  four  eggs,  and  a  Sparrow's 
nest  at  Whitby,  with  five  eggs.  Jan.  2nd,  1855 :  the  Blue  Titmouse  was 
darting  at  insects  in  the  air,  and  Redbreasts  singing,  as  in  April.  The 
Missel  Thrush  is  heard  every  morning ;  and  in  any  holly  bush  you  can  hear 
the  Blackbird  recording — (as  the  birdcatchers  call  it) — practising  those  sweet 
melodious  strains,  which  anon  will  fill  our  woodland  dales  with  enchanting 
music.  On  the  3rd  of  this  month,  a  large  ripe  wild  Strawberry  was  gathered ; 
and  there  was  a  bunch  of  fruit  and  flowers  left,  which  is  coming  fast  to 
maturity.  I  took  a  berry  of  the  same  root,  in  November,  1854,  the  largest 
wild  fruit  which  I  have  seen.  Primroses  in  bloom  are  getting  quite  common 
on  every  sunny  bank.  In  July  of  1854,  I  had  a  male  Montagu  Harrier 
brought  to  me  in  the  flesh.  It  was  shot  on  our  moors ;  and  I  had  the 
pleasure  of  seeing  the  female,  a  few  days  after,  soaring  in  the  air.  I  also 
obtained  three  eggs  from  the  person  who  brought  the  bird,  which  he  had 
taken  from  their  nest. — John  Braim,  Sleights  Bridge,  Whitby,  Jan.  10th,  1855. 

Otter. — An  immense  male  Otter  was  exhibited  in  the  Pontefract  market,  on 
3rd  of  Third  month.  (March.)  From  the  head  to  the  tail  it  measured  rather 
more  than  four  feet !  and  weighed  twenty-five  pounds !  Its  colour  was  very 
dark  brown ;  the  head  and  limbs  very  large,  and  the  tail  of  great  breadth  at 
the  base.  Mr.  Wright  informed  me,  that,  going  out  the  previous  evening 
with  dog  and  gun,  to  shoot  at  some  Wild  Geese,  his  attention  was  arrested 
by  a  fierce  combat  in  a  hollow  tree  which  grew  close  beside  the  river  Aire. 


MISCEI.LA.MEOUS   NOTICES.  316 

His  first  impression  was,  that  his  dog  was  worrying  a  fox;  when  out  backed 
the  Otter,  fiercely  snarling  at  the  dog,  and  retreating  to  the  water ;  which 
element  he  nearly  gained,  when  the  dog  fastened  on  his  head  and  held  him. 
The  gun  missing  fire,  Mr.  W.  beat  the  Otter  upon  the  head  till  it  appeared 
dead ;  and  then,  flinging  it  across  his  shoulders,  proceeded  to  carry  it  home. 
Suddenly  the  animal  gave  unmistakeable  symptoms  of  returning  animation ; 
but  another  severe  application  of  the  gun  barrel  terminated  its  existence. 
That  evening  it  weighed  twenty-six  pounds  !  It  is  almost  needless  to  add, 
that  the  dog  was  severely  lacerated  about  the  head.  Mr.  Wright  told  me 
that,  a  few  years  back,  he  shot  a  "  bitch  "  Otter  and  three  "  pups ; "  and  that 
he  occasionally  sees  individuals  in  a  "beck"  upon  his  farm. — C.  E.  Smith, 
Ackworth  School,  near  Pontefract,  3rd  Mo.  15th,  1855. 

Anecdote  of  a  Donkey. — In  your  Number  for  this  month,  your  corres- 
pondent, W.  L.  Bellowes,  relates  a  very  interesting  instance  of  the  commu- 
nicative powers  of  the  Horse.  I  was  myself,  a  few  years  back,  witness  of 
quite  as  interesting  an  exhibition  of  sagacity,  almost  approaching  to  reason- 
ing power,  in  a  quadruped  of  more  humble  character,  whose  qualities  for 
intelligence  are  generally  held  in  much  less  estimation.  Jn  a  visit  to  the 
neighbourhood  of  Marshfield,  in  Gloucestershire,  whilst  riding  slowly  along 
the  old  Roman  Fosse  road,  now  very  little  travelled  over ;  in  deep  contempla- 
tion of  the  solitude  around,  the  wild  luxuriance  of  the  trees  and  shrubs  in 
the  hedges,  tlie  long  grass,  the  Foxglove,  Hemlock  and  other  rank  and  wild- 
growing  plants,  which  almost  choked  the  ditches ;  my  attention  was  arrested 
by  a  Jackass,  standing  close  to  the  side  of  a  high  barred  gate  leading  into  a 
field,  unmindful  and  unobservant  of  all  about  him, — in  fact,  the  very  per- 
sonification of  dulness.  Can  so  stupid  looking  an  animal,  thought  I,  possess 
the  smallest  grain  of  sagacity  ?  As  I  watched  him,  his  head  moved.  (It  is 
necessary  to  remark,  the  bars  of  the  gate  were  in  a  horizontal  direction,  and 
pretty  close  together.)  By  turning  it  sideways,  with  some  difficulty  he  forced 
it  between  the  bars ;  then,  turning  it  to  its  natural  position,  his  neck  looked 
almost  throttled  between  the  bars  immediately  behind  the  head.  Surely, 
thought  I,  the  poor  creature  will  be  strangled ;  and  was  preparing  to  dis- 
mount with  a  view  of  giving  relief.  When,  lo !  after  a  minute's  pause,  he 
dexterously  lifts  the  gate  over  the  latch,  and  pushing  it  forward,  releases  his 
head  in  the  same  manner  he  introduced  it ;  and  walked  straightway  into  the 
field,  picking  and  choosing  for  himself.  There  was  a  system  and  tact 
throughout  the  performance,  conveying  an  idea  that  the  beast  knew  well 
what  he  was  about,  which  greatly  interested  me  at  the  time. — Thos.  Fuller, 
Bath,  June  4th,  1855. 

Occurrence  of  the  Bittern  in  Cambridgeshire. — In  the  earlier  part  of  Septem- 
ber, I  saw  a  Bittern  exposed  for  sale  in  a  poulterer's  shop  in  this  town.  I 
piu-chased  it,  and  sent  it  to  Mr.  Baker,  Naturalist,  &c.,  of  this  town,  for 
preservation     He  made  inquiries  for  me,  and  ascertained  that  it  had  been 


die 


BlSCELLANEOUa   NOTICES. 


shot  by  a  labourer,  near  the  station  at  Waterbeach,  in  this  county.  It  was  a 
bird  of  this  year,  and  a  very  fine  specimen. — Thomas  George  Bonney, 
St.  John's  College,  Cambridge,  December  1854. 

Bittern.  (Botaui'us  stellaris.( — A  young  bird  of  this  species  was  shot  near 
Repton,  and  is  now  in  my  collection.  Many  others  have  been  obtained  this 
winter  and  the  last,  in  Lincolnshire  and  Cambridgeshire — F.  M.  Burton, 
Uppingham,  March  12th,  1855. 

Oray  Phalarope.  (Phalaropus  lobatus.) — A  specimen  was  shot  last  Decem- 
ber, near  Lincoln. — Idem. 

Purjile  Heron.  (Ardea  purpurea.) — A  young  bird  of  this  species  was  shot 
close  to  Lincoln,  in  the  winter  of  1854. — Idem. 

Occurrence  of  the  Night  Heron  (Nycticorax  Gardeni)  in  Yorkshire. — A  speci- 
men of  this  bird  was  shot  on  the  21st  of  May  last,  on  a  pond  at  Birdsall, 
near  Malton,  by  the  keeper  of  H.  Willoughby,  Esq.,  in  whose  collection  it 
now  is.  This  is,  I  believe,  the  second  specimen  which  has  occurred  in 
Yorkshire. — David  Graham,  York,  July  24th,  1855. 

Supposed  Breeding  of  tJic  Common  Crossbill  (Loxia  curvirostra)  in  Yorkshire. 
— A  young  bird  of  this  species  was  shot  on  the  21st  of  July  last,  at  Kelfield, 
near  York,  Avhich  had  every  appearance  of  having  been  bred  there.  It  came 
to  me  in  the  flesh. — Idem. 

Ring  Ouzel.  (Turdus  torquatus.) — Last  week,  I  had  a  very  fine  specimen  of 
the  King  Ouzel  brought  to  me.  It  was  shot  in  this  neighbourhood. — T.  C, 
Luton,  Beds.,  April  23rd,  1855. 

Anomalous  Eggs. — A  Cochin  China  hen,  the  property  of  Mr.  G.  Burgess  of 
this  town,  has  laid  eleven  eggs,  which  are  very  large,  weighing  each  from  six 
to  seven  ounces.  Each  egg  contains'another  egg  considerably  smaller,  which 
has  a  perfectly  formed  yelk.  The  colour  of  the  inner  egg  is  much  darker 
than  that  of  the  outer  one. — Idem. 

Curious  Malformation  of  a  Lizard.  (Zootoca  vivipara.) — During  the  month 
of  June,  1853,  I  caught  a  specimen  of  the  Viviparous  Lizard  at  Southport, 
which  exhibited   a  curious  mal-formation  of  the  tail,  of  which  I  enclose 


you  a  drawing.  The  Lizai'd  is  now  preserved  in  my  collection.  I  should  be 
glad  of  any  explanation  of  the  cause  of  this  freak  of  Nature.— -Charles  Fryer 
Rumford-street,  Manchester. 


TO  ADVERTISERS. 

Advertisements  are  inserted  on  the  Cover  of  The  Naturalist,  on  the  following  very  low 
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BRITISH  SHELLS  AND  FOSSILS. 


E.  DAMON,  OF  Weymouth,  Dorset, 

."^applies  Collections  of  BRITISH  SHELLS,  fine  specimens,  coerectly  named,  100  speciesi 
for  52s.  6d. ;  200,  6  guineas;  300,  12  guineas.  An  Elementary  Collection  of  50  species 
(100  specimens)  for  15s.  Specimens  sent  by  post.  Improved  Dredges,  for  collecting  Shells, 
Zoophytes,  &c.  Neat  Labels  for  British  Shells.  List  of  British  Shells,  6d.  Collections, 
illustrating  100  Genera  of  recent  Shells,  30s. ;  Ditto,  of  500,  1,000,  2,000  species,  equally 
I'easonable.     Labels  for  recent  Shells. 

Fossils. — Saurian  Kemains,  Pentacrinite,  Ophiura,  Fish,  Shells,  &c.,  characteristic  of 
Blue  Lias  and  otlier  Oolite  Strata.  Elementary  Collections  of  Fossils,  to  assist  in  the 
study  of  Geology,  £1.  and  upwards.     Labels  for  Fossil  Shells, 


THE  ENTOMOLOGISTS'  ANNUAL  for  1856. 


TO  ENTOMOLOGISTS, 


It  is  particularly  requested,  that  Notices  of  New  British  Species  may  be  sent,  ou  or 
before  October  10th,  1855,  to  the  respective  authors : 

Geodephaga to  Rev.  J.  F.  Dawson. 

Coleoptera  in  general  to  E.  W.  Janson,  Esq. 
Hymenoptera        ...     to  Frederick  Smith,  Esq. 
And  Lepidoptera  ...     to 

H.  T.  STAINTON. 
Mountsfield,  Leivisham,  August  i8o5. 


N.  B.— The  ENTOMOLOGISTS'  ANNUAL  for  1855  (for  which  a  steady  weekly  demand 
still  continues)  already  rejoices  in 

A  Circulation  of  nearly  1,000. 


SITUATION  WANTED, 

As  Keeper  of  a  public  or  private  Museum ;  Assistant  to  a  professional  naturalist,  or 
exploring  party  ;  or  an  appointment  to  any  situation  requiring  a  practical  knowledge  of. 
and  a  strong  predilection  for,  whatever  pertains  to  Natural  History. 

The  advertiser  is  a  middle-aged  man;  has  long  been  accustomed  to  shoot,  collect,  pre- 
pare, set  up,  and  classify,  specimens  of  Quadrupeds,  Birds,  Shells,  Insects,  Zoophytes,  and 
Marine  Algaj,  and  is  a  practical  and  tasteful  Taxidermist ;  and  would  render  himself 
generally  useful  to  whoever  employed  him.  It  has  been  his  practice  to  observe  the  habits 
of  animals,  recording,  and  sometimes  publishing  the  same,  and  the  appearance  of  anything 
unusual  in  the  Natural  History  of  the  district  where  he  resides. 

Can  furnish  unexceptionable  references  as  to  his  qualifications,  moral  character.  jiiwC 
^ober  and  active  habits.     Apply  to  J.  E.,.  care  of  the  Etlitor  of  The  Naturalist. 


FRIENDLY   APPEALS    TO    **THE   PEOPLE. 


Honesty  needs  no  disguise,  nor  ornament. — Otway. 


Now  in  course  of  Puhllcation,  Price  4(/.  (Post-free  C)d.J  each. 

No.  1.— "AM  I  EIGHT?" 

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TO  BS  CONTINVED  OCCASIONALX.V. 

THiiKE  can  be  comparatively  few  persons  unacquainted  with  the  geniality  of  William 
Kibd's  mind.  His  extensive  series  of  interesting  Papers  in  the  Gardener's  Chronicle, 
(ranging  over  a  number  of  years,)  has  made  him  known  in  all  quarters  of  the  world.  *  * 
He  writes  powerfully,  truthfully,  and  gracefully ;  and  his  pen  is  unceasingly  active  for  the 
public  good. — Critic. 

It  is  to  the  originality  and  wholesomeness  of  his  ideas,  as  well  as  to  his  happy  and  honest 
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writer.  His  pictures  are  from  life.  His  portraits,  though  not  always  flattering,  are  yet 
"  correct  likenesses."  *  *  *  Anxious  to  be  exact,  he  refuses  to  baild  upon  another  man's 
foundation,  and  therefore  speaks  of  the  world  and  its  inhabitants  only  as  seen  with  his  own 
eyes.  Thus  we  are  presented  with  "  Studies  after  Nature," — ^not  caricatures  ;  facts, — not 
fiction. — Weekly  Chronicle. 

The  avowed  advocate  of  all  that  is  good,  pleasing,  amiable,  and  natural,  Mr.  Kidd  is 
unwearied  in  his  efforts  to  make  society  better  tlian  it  now  is.  *  *  Blessed  with  a  generous 
heart,  a  kind  spirit,  and  a  loving  disposition,  he  accomplishes  easily,  what  many  labor  at 
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LONDON :— Messrs.  GROOMBRIDGE,  No.  5,  PATERNOSTER-ROW ; 
and,  by  order,  of  all  booksellers. 


8vo.,  Price  2s. 

A  THEORY  as  to  the  PROXIMATE  CAUSE  of  INSANITY, 

together  with 
SOME  OBSERVATIONS  ON  THE  REMOTE  CAUSES  OF  THE  DISEASE; 

to   which   13   APPENDED, 

A  SHORT  ESSAY  ON  SPINAL  IRRITATION: 

BY  BEVERLEY  R.  MORRIS,  A.B.,  M.D., 

OF    TRINITY   COLLEGE,    DUBLIN: 

Medical  Visitor  in  Lunacy  to  the  Private  Asylums  in  the  North  and  West  Ridings  of 
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ALSO,  BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR,  8vo.,  Price  6d. 

OBSERVATIONS  ON  THE  CONSTRUCTION  OF  HOSPITALS  FOR  THE 

INSANE. 

LONDON  :— Messrs.  GROOMBRIDGE,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 


COULTAS,  PEINTEK,  YORK. 


No.  56. 


OCTOBER,  1855. 


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A  POPULAK  MONTHLY  MAGAZINE, 

ILLUSTRATIVE   OF   THE 

ANIMAL,  VEGETABLE,  AND   MINERAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    NUMEROUS    ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED    BY 

BEVERLEY  R.  MORRIS,  ESQ,  A.  B,  M.D,  T.C.D, 

memb:  wern:  club. 

corresponding  member  of  the  katural  history  society  of  glasgow. 

honorary  member  of  the  literary  and  scientific  ikstitction  of  kilkenny. 


LONDON : 

MESSRS.  GROOMBRIDGE,  5,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 

EDIXBUEGII:  JAMES  HOGG,  4,  NICOLSON-STREET. 

AND  MAY  BE  HAD  OF  ALL  BOOKSELLERS. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGK. 

The  Common  Squirrel.    By  J.  Mc  Intosii,  Esq 217 

A  List  of,  and  Notes  on  the  Fungi  found  in  the  Neighbourhood  of  Exeter.     By- 
Mr.  Edward  Pakfitt    219 

Occasional  Notes.     By  Mr.  M.  Westcott     221 

Nature's  Holiday,  shared  with  Two  of  her  Loving  Children.   By  W.  Kidd,  Esq.   ...  223 
The  Variety  of  the  Hawk,  Figured  in  The  Naturalist  for  September.     By  the 

Eev.  F.  O.  Morris         227 

Extracts  from  Correspondence  with  a  Brother  Naturalist.     By  F.  M.  Burton,  Esq.  229 

A  List  of  the  Zoophytes  found  on  the  Coast  of  Banffshire.     By  Mr.  T.  Edward   ...  232 

Review 238 


It  is  requested  that  all  Communications  toe  addressed  in  future 
to  B.  R.  MORRIS,  M.  D.,  38,  Pawcett-street,  Bishopwear- 
mouth,  Durham. 


NOTICES  TO  CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  up  to  September  24th,  from  R.  Hobson,  Esq.,  M.l). 
— N.  H.  Mason,  Esq. — J.  Mc  Intosh,  Esq. — H.  T.  Stainton,  Esq. — W.  H.  Watkeys,  Esq. 
— C.  AsHFORD,  Esq. — W.  Kidd,  Esq. — Mr.  M.  Westcott — E.  P.  Wright,  Esq. 

Contributions  have  been  received  up  to  September  22nd,  from  W.  Kidd,  Esq. — Mr.  G. 
King— J.  L.  C. — Rev.  F.  O.  Morris — R.  W.  Falconer,  Esq.,  M.  D. — J.  Dutton,  Esq. — 
Mr.  T.  Edward — Mr.  F.  C.  Adams — Mr.  J.  Cavafy. 

Infusorial  Earths. — Dr.  Morris  would  feel  greatly  obliged  to  any  one  who  would  favoiir 
liim  with  specimens  of  any  Infusorial  Earths,  mounted  or  unmounted;  jind  would  endeavour 
to  make  the  best  return  in  his  power. 

Bis?iqpv:earmouth,  August  1855. 

The  Editor  begs  to  announce  to  his  Correspondents,  that  he  has  arranged  with  liis 
Printer,  so  that  the  Author  of  any  Paper  can  have  copies  of  his  Article  sent  him  by  post 
at  the  following  rates  : — 

Two  Pages.     Four  Pages.     Eight  Pages. 

25  Copies  or  under     2s.  6d.  4s.  Od.  6s.  6d. 

50  Copies     3     6  6     0  9     6 

75  Copies     5     0  7     6  12     6 

Communications,  Drawings,  Advertisements,  etc.,  to  he  addressed  to  B.  JR.  MOJiBJ/S,  Esq., 
31.  D.,  38,  Faiccett-street,  Bishopwearmouth,  Durham; — Boohs  for  Beview,  and  PurceU,  io 
tlie  cure  of  Messrs.  GBOOMBBIDGE,  5,  Paternoster- Bow,  London. 


21T 


COMMON  SQUIRREL.  (8CIURU8  VULGARIS.  Linn.) 

BY  J.   MC  INTOSH,    ESQ. 

The  Sciiirus  vulgaris,  or  Common  European  Squirrel.  This  elegant  and 
active  inhabitant  of  our  woods,  is  so  generally  distributed  over  Great  Britain, 
and  so  familiar  to  every  one,  that  an  account  of  its  habits  and  manner  of 
living,  may  appear  to  some  of  the  readers  of  The  Naturalist  unnecessary. 
That  there  are,  however,  two  opinions  abroad  among  those  unacquainted  with 
God's  mighty  volume,  wherein  His  perfections  are  displayed,  as  to  the 
carnivorous  or  non-carnivorous  propensities  of  Mr.  Squirrel,  is  too  true. 
Now  it  is  to  banish,  I  hope  for  ever,  from  such  people's  minds  this  carnivo- 
rous idea,  that  I  have  taken  upon  myself  the  task  of  saying  anything  about 
the  habits  of  this  elegant  and  active  little  fellow  and  pet  of  our  childhood, 
for  which  I  hope  to  be  forgiven. 

About  the  year  1843,  the  first  public  announcement  of  the  carnivorous  pro- 
pensities of  Mr.  Skuggy  appeared  in  the  "  Gardeners'  Magazine,"  and  from 
this  journal  it  found  a  place  in  the  "  Magazine  of  Natural  History,"  which 
was  allowed  to  pass  as  current  coin,  on  the  authority  of  Mr.  Wighton,  who 
had  observed  a  tame  Squirrel,  he  had  in  confinement,  partake  of  a  morsel  of 
the  flesh  of  a  dead  bird 

This  public  announcement  meeting  the  keen  eye  of  that  veteran  of  Natural 
History,  Charles  Waterton,  Esq.,  produced  from  that  gentleman's  well  known 
and  truthful  naturalist's  pen,  the  following,  vide  Essay's  Natural  History, 
p.p.  40 — 44 :  "  Had  the  Squirrel  been  wild  in  the  woods,  at  the  time  Mr. 
Wighton  saw  it  eat  birds,  I  should  not  hesitate  to  pronounce  that  individual 
Squirrel  to  be  carnivorous.  The  single  fact  of  his  Squirrel  being  in  cap- 
tivity, at  once  precludes  the  possibility  of  the  Squirrel  family  being  raised 
to  the  rank  of  carnivorous  animals.  I  wish  we  knew  more  than  we  do  of  the 
carnivorous  propensities,  or  the  want  of  them,  in  certain  animals,  we  might 
then  be  able  to  account  tolerably  well  for  many  strange  occui'rences  which 
every  now  and  then  puzzle  us  so  much  in  the  workings  of  Zoological  gas- 
tronomy. So  unaccountable  indeed  are  sometimes  the  actions  both  of  man 
and  beast,  not  only  in  the  eating  department,  but  also  in  domestic  arrange- 
ments, that  we  might  really  fancy  the  performers  not  ,to  be  quite  right  in 
their  heads.  My  Tom-Cat,  apparently  an  excellent  mouser,  will  sometimes 
prefer  dry  biscuit  to  mutton-chop.  Sterne's  Ass  seemed  to  relish  macaroon. 
Parrots,  in  cages,  will  pull  off"  their  own  feathers  and  eat  them  by  the  dozen. 
And,  when  I  was  in  the  Mediterranean  sea,  I  saw  a  brute  in  the  shape  of  a 
man,  swallow  pieces  of  raw  fowl  (which  he  had  torn  asunder,  feathers  and 
all)."  Examples,  such  as  we  have  quoted  above,  of  the  supposed  carnivorous 
propensities  of  the  various  animals  kept  in  prisons  and  treadmills  for  the 
amusement  of  our  fellow-creatures,  might  be  enlarged  on — yes,  enough  to  fill 
a  volume  of  The  Naturalist. 

VOL.  V. 


218  COMMON   SQUIRREL. 

That  tlie  Squirrel  is  carnivorous  in  its  free  and  natural  state,  I  most 
emphatically  deny.  That  they  are,  however,  where  numerous,  wholesale 
destroyers  of  apricots,  peaches,  plums,  walnuts,  filberts,  apples,  acorns,  beech 
nuts,  the  various  cones  of  the  fir- tribe,  and  the  bark  of  old  and  young  beech, 
poplar,  and  fir  trees,  I  must  confess ;  as  we  experienced  in  the  year  1848, 
during  our  residence  at  Milton  Abbey,  in  Dorsetshire,  where  Squirrels 
abounded.  In  the  year  1847  there  was  an  abundance  of  nuts,  mast,  acorns  ; 
but  in  1848,  there  was  a  total  failure  of  these,  the  natural  food  of  the  Squir- 
rel. In  the  absence  of  nuts,  &c.,  they  commenced  a  wholesale  destruction 
on  3^oung  oak,  beech,  larch,  fir,  and  poplar  trees,  by  gnawing  the  bark  off  the 
bodies  of  the  trees  as  eff'ectually  as  if  it  had  been  done  by  the  hand  of  man. 
Nor  was  this  gnawing  done  in  small  patches,  as  we  sometimes  see  it,  even 
when  there  is  an  abundance  of  food ;  but  actually  in  pieces  of  from  one  to 
ten  feet  in  length,  and  quite  round  the  tree,  and,  in  some  cases,  to  such  a 
depth  into  the  solid  wood,  that  the  slightest  wind  broke  off"  the  tops  of  the 
trees,  giving  them  the  appearance  as  if  they  had  been  cut  off  by  some  instru- 
ment.    The  poplar  and  the  larch  trees  suffered  the  most. 

The  fact  above  related  is  also  a  convincing  proof  of  the  non-carnivorovis  . 
propensities  of  the  common  Squirrel.  If  otherwise,  there  was  an  abundance 
of  birds,  large  and  small,  quite  at  their  service,  if  they  had  been  inclined  for 
a  dinner  off  fowl,  in  the  plantations  and  woods  at  Milton  Abbey ;  yet  they 
preferred  their  vegetable  to  an  animal  dinner ! !  or  raw  eggs  ! ! !  as  we  find, 
at  page  187  of  the  present  volume  of  The  Naturalist,  they  are  accused  of 
doing,  we  must  confess,  however,  by  a  class  of  men  who  are  as  ignorant,  in 
most  cases,  of  the  habits  of  animals  and  birds  which  are  not  called  game  by 
their  employers,  as  the  ground  on  which  they  stand.  These  functionaries 
are  sure  to  have  a  finger  in  the  pie,  always  ready  witnesses  against  the  ac- 
cused or  other  victims,  and  under  such  a  circumstance  as  being  guilty  of 
"■sucking  eggs"  would  rather  shoot  a  child  than  spare  a  Squirrel!  ! !  if  it  was 
not  for  certain  legal  terrors. 

One  word  more,  and  we  have  done  for  the  present  with  the  Squirrel.  The 
Squirrel  is  easily  tamed,  and  is  frequentl}'^  kept  as  a  pet  by  many  people, 
in  what  Sir  George  Head,  in  his  "  Home  Tour"  through  the  manufacturing 
districts,  justly  calls  "  treadmills :"  he  says  "  If  there  is  one  method  more 
efficacious  than  another  to  deprive  a  Squirrel  of  liberty,  it  is  this  very  con- 
trivance, whereby,  do  what  he  will,  he  never  can  possibly  be  in  a  state  of 
rest;  when,  let  him  vary  ever  so  little,  even  for  a  moment,  from  his  central 
position,  everything  begins  tumbling  about  his  ears.  I  have  many  times  ob- 
seiTcd  the  panting  sides  of  the  little  animal,  its  breath  exliausted,  mthout 
enjoying  one  inch  of  progressive  motion,  or  one  refreshing  change  of  atti- 
tude for  minutes  together,  within  his  treadmill.  A  man  pelted  with  mud 
may  believe  he  is  hunting,  or,  laying  on  his  stomach  on  wet  grass,  think  he 
is  swimming,  as  reasonably  as  a  poor  Squirrel,  in  the  middle  of  a  whirling 


QOMMON    SQUIRREL.  219 

maize  of  wood  and  wire,  can  enjoy  liberty,  and  the  delight  of  running.  A 
quiet  house  is  a  home,  be  it  ever  so  humble  ;  but  when  the  house  itself  turns 
round,  its  homeliness  is  destroyed  altogether."  If  there  is  one  of  our 
readers  who  keeps  pet  Squirrels,  let  him  or  her,  for  one  moment,  watch  the 
poor  little  animals'  panting  sides,  and  reflect  on  what  Sir  George  Head  has 
so  truly  said.     In  conclusion,  we  can  only  say  with  the  poet^— 

"  The  Squirrel  spends  his  little  rage, 
In  jumping  round  a  rolling  cage ; 
The  cage,  as  either  side  turns  up, 
Striking  a  ring  of  bells  a-top ; 
Moved  in  the  orb,  pleased  with  the  chimes, 
The  foolish  creature  thinks  he  climbs ; 
But  here  or  there,  turn  wood  or  wire. 
He  never  gets  two  inches  higher." 

August,  1855. 


.     A  LIST  OF,  AND  NOTES  ON  THE  FUNGI  FOUND  IN  THE 
NEIGHBOURHOOD  OF  EXETER. 

BY   MR.  EDWARD   PARFITT. 

(Continued  from  page  81. J 

Cantharellus  hiatus.  On  Haldon,  among  sphagni  and  other  mosses  in  the 
bogs.  Not  common,  A  very  curious  plant.  My  specimens  were  larger  than 
those  generally  found,  being  two  inches  and  a  half  high,  by  an  inch  and  a 
half  broad  at  the  top,  where  it  is  curled  and  lobed.     Found  June  7th,  1853. 

Merulius  cerium.  Frequent  about  Exeter,  on  sticks,  &c.,  always  growing 
on  the  under  side.     Dec.  1852. 

M.  laehrymans.     Too  common  in  many  places. 

M.  pulverulentiis.  This  is  a  handsome  species,  particularly  when  it  has  a 
flat  free  siirface  to  spread  upon.  I  met  with  a  beautiful  specimen  at  Parker's- 
well  house,  spreading  over  an  old  rail  in  the  garden. 

Dadalia  quercina.  Not  very  common.  On  oak  posts  about  Exeter.  I 
met  with  a  very  fine  specimen  on  an  old  oak  gate-post  at  St.  George's  Clist. 
Api-il  17th,  1853. 

D.  hetidina.  Very  rare.  Only  one  specimen  has  come  under  my  notice.  I 
found  it  growing  on  an  oak  denuded  of  its  bark,  lying  in  the  Basin  yard, 
near  the  quay.  1850. 

D.  unicolor.     Common  on  rails  in  some  meadows  below  the  Salmon-pool. 

Polyporus  squamosus.  Rare  in  this  neighbourhood,  probably  from  there 
not  being  many  ash  trees,  the  arborescent  vegetation  being  principally  elms. 
This  species  is  very  frequent  in  Norfolk,  sometimes  growing  to  a  very  large 
size.  I  met  with  a  curious  variety  of  this  species,  Sep.  22nd,  1853.  It  was 
growing  from  the  stump  of  an  Elm  which  had  been  sawn  ofi"  even,  or  nearly 
so,  with  the  ground.     The  base  of  the  plant  was  an  immense  black  knob. 


220  FUNGI   OF    EXETER, 

from  which  sprung  four  stems,  each  about  a  foot  long,  spreading  out  at  the 
top  into  a  cornucopia-like  pileus,  a  foot  in  diameter.  The  pores  were  larger 
than  usual,  and  twice  as  long  as  wide,  and  somewhat  pentangular  in  form, 
descending  half  way  down  the  stem,  giving  it  a  beautiful  reticulated  appear- 
ance, dark  brown  towards  the  pileus,  but  gradually  approaching  to  black 
towards  the  base,  where  it  is  quite  black. 

P.  varius.     Common  on  sticks,  &c.,  everywhere. 

P.  giganteus.  In  Sir  Stafford  Northcote's  park,  on  the  roots  of  beech  trees, 
August  28th,  1854,  where  the  roots  of  the  trees  were  barely  covered  with 
turf,  these  polypori  were  growing  in  immense  numbers.  Some  of  the  roots 
•were  entirely  covered  with  plants,  for  three  or  four  feet,  and,  in  some 
instances,  more.  Plants  mostly  about  six  inches  in  height,  and  densely 
packed  and  imbricated  together,  so  as  to  form  a  solid  mass.  It  is  a  fine  and 
beautiful  species. 

P.  sulphureus.  Rare.  Only  one  plant  has  come  under  my  notice.  It  was 
brought  me  from  an  oak  tree,  by  Mr.  Packham  of  Exeter.  He  found  it  near 
Whitstone  church,  Sep.  1854. 

P.  Idspidus.  Rare.  I  have  only  seen  one  specimen,  and  that  a  very  fine 
one.  It  was  growing  on  an  old  apple-tree,  near  the  ground,  in  the  garden  at 
Parker's-well  house,  Sep.  20th,  1854. 

P.  ccesius.  Rare.  On  the  sawn-off  stump  of  a  tree  in  General  Hall's 
grounds.  Sep.  1853. 

P.  adustus.  Rare.  I  met  with  several  specimens  of  this  on  a  dead  poplar 
lying  on  the  ground  at  Coaver.  1852. 

P.  betulinus.  This  is  also  rare.  On  some  dying  beech  trees  on  the  Cowley 
Bridge  road,  about  two  miles  from  Exeter. 

P.  velutinus.     Rare.     On  some  dead  trees  in  the  Basin-yard,  Exeter. 

P.  versicolor.  Very  common  all  the  year,  on  sticks,  &c.  This  species  has 
a  very  wide  range,  as  it  is  found  over  most  of  Europe ;  and  also  extending 
to  the  East  Indies  ;  for  it  was  found  by  Dr.  Hooker  on  the  Himalayas,  about 
Nangki,  East  Nepal,  at  an  altitude  of  nine  thousand  feet,  and  at  Darjeeling. 
Also,  several  other  species  of  our  British  Fungi,  belonging  to  different 
genera,  were  found  by  the  same  gentleman. 

P.  abietinus.  Not  common.   On  the  stump  of  a  Pinus  at  Coaver.  Jan.  1853. 

P.  ulmarius.  Common  in  the  inside  of  hollow  elm  trees  all  about  this 
neighbourhood. 

P.  radiatus  Very  rare.  A  most  beautiful  species.  I  found  my  specimen 
on  a  living  alder,  near  Counties  Wear  village,  Nov.  19th,  1852.  But  I  have 
not  been  able  to  meet  with  any  since  ;  I  made  a  drawing  of  it  directly,  and 
have  since  had  the  opportunity  of  comparing  my  figure  with  that  of  Sowerby, 
and  they  are  exactly  aUke.  It  is  the  most  beautiful  of  the  genus  I  have  met 
with. 

P.  igniarius.    Not  common,  though  several  are  to  be  met  with  near  Coun- 


FUNGI    OF   EXETEB.  221 

ties  Wear,  on  some  old  willows.  There  is  one  old  tree  near  the  paper  mills, 
with  some  very  large  specimens  on  it,  where  they  have  been  for  years,  and 
are  likely  to  remain,  as  they  are  so  hard  that  no  one  can  injure  them. 

P.  ferruginosus.  Not  common.  This  is  rather  a  curious  species,  having 
much  the  appearance  of  a  resupinate  sponge,  except  in  colour,  which,  as  its 
name  denotes,  is  rust  coloured. 

P.  vulgaris.    Not  common.     Coaver.  1851. 

Boletus  luteus.  Eather  plentiful  some  years,  in  the  woods  round  Sir  J. 
Duckworth's  park. 

B.  subtomentosus.  Not  common.  I  met  with  one  large  family  of  them 
under  some  Scotch  firs  at  Coaver  in  1852,  but  have  not  seen  any  since. 

B.  Imidus.  In  the  woods  of  Sir  T.  D.  Acland,  Bart.  Sep.  14th,  1852.  Not 
common. 

(To  he  continued.) 


OCCASIONAL  NOTES. 

BY  MB.  M.  WESTCOTT. 

The  Newfoundland  Dog.  Although  anecdotes  innumerable  have  been 
written  about  the  good  qualities  of  this  noble  animal,  yet  the  subject  is  not 
exhausted  ;  nor  would  it  be,  were  there  double  the  number  related  ;  as  every 
day's  experience  displays  his  tractability,  sagacity,  and  fidelity,  in  a  fresh 
light.  Joseph  Parsons,  Esq.,  of  this  city,  has  a  fine  dog  of  the  Newfoundland 
species,  who  is  a  very  docile  and  affectionate  fellow,  to  all  with  whom  he  is 
acquainted ;  but  he  is  very  sparing  of  his  friendship  to  strangers,  nor  will 
he  hold  a  familiar  acquaintance  with  any  one,  until  he  has  seen  them  about 
the  premises  some  time.  He  is  by  no  means  a  savage  animal,  however,  for 
he  was  never  known  to  attack  any  person,  excepting  on  one  occasion,  and 
then  he  doubtless  felt  himself  in  duty  bound  to  do  so,  in  order  to  protect  his 
master's  property.  On  this  occasion,  the  subject  of  his  displeasure  was  a 
stranger  who  came  into  the  yard,  and  "  Lion,"  not  liking  his  appearance, 
followed  him  about.  The  man  unconscious  of  the  dog's  sagacity,  and  there- 
fore careless  of  his  presence,  secreted  a  chamois  skin  and  water-brush,  which 
the  groom  had  been  using,  and  was  about  leaving  the  place,  when  he  was 
pounced  upon  by  the  dog,  thrown  down  and  kept  there,  until  some  of  the 
men  came  to  his  rescue.  Before  he  left,  they  elicited  from  him  a  confession 
of  the  theft  he  had  committed ;  which,  of  course,  they  assigned  as  the 
sole  cause  of  his  having  been  so  summarily  dealt  with  by  his  detector ;  for 
strangers  are  almost  every  day  seen  in  the  yard  by  Lion,  passing  to  and 
fro,  without  the  least  attempt  at  interference. 

This  faithful  dog  is  unfortunately  troubled  with  fits ;  and  when  under  the 
influence  of  one,  he  is  terrible  to  look  upon.  The  best  remedy  for  them,  at 
the  time,  is  an  application  of  cold  water  to  the  head.    A  few  weeks  since, 


222  OCCASIONAL   NOTES. 

one  of  the  servants  came  to  me  with  the  information  that  poor  Lion  was  in  a 
fit.  I  went  and  saw  the  poor  fellow.  He  was  sitting  up  frothing  at  the  mouth ; 
his  eyes  staring  wildly,  and  his  head  working  up  and  down  violently.  He 
was  unconscious  of  everybody  and  everything.  I  conveyed  him  to  a  river 
close  by,  and  washed  his  head  well,  which  had  the  effect  of  speedily  bring- 
ing him  round.  When  he  was  recovered,  he  came  out  of  the  water  and  fol- 
lowed me ;  and,  to  my  great  surprise,  began  jumping  up  to  me,  licking  my 
hands,  and  showing  many  other  unmistakable  signs  of  gratitude,  for  the 
service  I  had  rendered  him.  I  must  confess,  I  was  somewhat  alarmed  at  his 
sudden  attachment  to  me,  fearing  it  was  the  effect  of  his  malady,  as  he  had 
never  fondled  me  in  this  manner  before.  My  fears,  however,  were  ground- 
less ;  for  ever  since  the  event,  his  attachment  to  me  has  been  unabated.  It 
was  but  yesterday,  as  I  was  passing  through  the  house,  he  saw  me  coming  ; 
and  the  poor  fellow  scarcely  knew  how  to  contain  himself,  he  seemed  so 
much  delighted  at  my  presence.  And  then,  as  on  other  occasions,  I  was 
compelled  to  tie  him  up,  to  jjrevent  him  from  following  me  about,  regardless 
of  "  who  calls."  He  is  about  twenty  years  old,  and  is  nearly  deaf, — not,  I 
believe,  from  old  age,  but  owing  to  his  excessive  fondness  for  diving,  when- 
ever he  takes  a  plunge  into  the  water.  He  is  the  pet  of  the  house,  and  is 
privileged  each  day  to  take  a  walk  with  one  or  other  of  his  amiable  young 
mistresses  ;  and  it  is  a  privilege  he  certainly  is  deserving  of,  possessing,  as 
he  does,  those  two  noble  virtues,  which  we  do  not  always  find  blended  in 
the  "  lord  of  creation,"  namely,  geatitude  and  fidelity. 

The  Snow  Bunting  {Plectrophanes  nivalis)  and  Shokt-Eaked  Owl  {Strix 
hrachyotos)  were  shot,  a  few  weeks  since,  at  Eichford  Comb,  Somerset,  and  are 
now  in  the  possesion  of  Mr.  Hooper,  Taxidermist,  of  this  city.  They  are  very 
fine  and  highly  coloured  birds,  and  uncommonly  scarce  in  our  neighbourhood. 

The  Painted  Lady  {Cynthia  Cardui)  and  Red  Admiral  [Vanessa  Atalanta). 
What  I  stated  respecting  those  two  flies,  in  The  Naturalist,  vol.  iv.  page 
172,  holds  equally  good  this  season.  I  was  noticing  it  to  some  friends,  and 
they  told  me  that  they  have  not  seen  a  single  fly  of  either  sort  this  year. 
But  the  Peacock  ( Vanessa  lo.)  and  the  Small  Tortoise  Shell  {Vanessa  Urticai) 
have  appeared  in  thousands  ;  for  not  a  day  have  I  been  abroad,  since  I  first 
observed  them,  without  seeing  them  in  dozens ;  and  indeed  I  have  counted 
as  many  as  nine  Small  Tortoise  Shells  pitched  upon  the  flowers  of  one  Fox- 
glove plant.  And  the  Peacocks  have  been  almost  as  numerous.  However, 
I  am  soriy  to  s&y  that  others  of  the  rarer  sorts  have  been  as  scarce  as  the 
abve  were  numerous. 

St.  Ciithlert-street,  Wells,  1854. 


223 

NATURE'S  HOLIDAY,  SHARED  WITH  TWO  OF  HER  LOVING 

CHILDREN. 

BY  WILLIAM  KIDD,  ESQ. 

Behold!  how  fast  advancing  o'er  the  plain 
The  rosy  Autumn  comes,  in  rosy  triumph. 
Waving  his  golden  hair!     Yon  blooming  mallow, 
That  opes  his  red  lips  to  the  kiss  of  day. 
Just  tells  his  coming, — then  retires  unseen 
To  join  his  sister  tribes  in  Flora's- bower. — Koenkb. 

I  HARDLY  need  tell  you,  or  any  of  your  kindred  readers,  that  Nature's 
children  require  little  introduction  to  each  other.  "  One  "  heart  is  common 
to  the  whole  (very  small  but  very  select)  family.  And  what  a  heart  it  is !  A 
short  preface  this,  to  a  large  volume  of  meditations,  whose  essence  must 
(unwillingly  on  my  part)  be  compressed  into  a  nutshell  of  space.  "  Brevity," 
however,  "  is  the  soul  of  wit." 

Good-fortune — Dame  Fortune  is  always  "  good,"  if  we  could  only  think  so 
— has  recently  brought  one  of  your  amiable  and  valued  correspondents, — 
John  Mc  Intosh,  into  my  immediate  neighbourhood.  Once,  and  once  only, 
had  I  seen  this  gentleman  previous  to  his  arrival  amongst  us ;  and  that  once 
was  for  a  very  few  short  hours.  An  epistle  was  of  course  immediately  fired 
oiF  by  him.  I  received  the  fire  in  my  heart,  and  returned  it, — hitting  the 
challenger  in  the  same  tender  part.    It  was  "  a  dead  shot ! " 

Wliat  could  an  epistle,  written  by  one  child  of  Nature  to  another,  contain 
at  such  a  season  as  August  ?  What  but  an  appointment  for  an  interview, 
previous  to  ranging  the  fields  in  company  ?     Exactly  so ;  that  was  it .' 

But  "  there  is  many  a  slip  'twixt  the  cup  and  the  lip."  A  severe  domestic 
affliction,  which  promised  to  end  fatally,  set  aside  (on  the  veiy  morning 
prepared  for  a  ramble)  all  possibility  of  realising  our  intended  happiness. 
It  was  my  painful  duty,  and  melancholy  pleasure,  to  tariy  by  the  bed-side  of 
the  fair  sufferer, — not  only  for  that  day,  but  for  many  days  subsequently.* 
Kind  Providence,  however,  blessed  the  means  used ;  nor  were  my  silently- 
breathed  prayers  unheard.  In  another  fortnight,  my  patient  was  becoming 
gradually  convalescent;  and  I  felt  fully  justified  in  quitting  my  post  of 
honor  for  one  day. 

Imagine,  then,  Wednesday, — August  29th,  one  of  the  very  finest  days  in 
the  Calendar  of  1855.  Our  place  of  rendezvous  was  Shepherd's  Bush;  the 
appointed  time  for  meeting  half-past  nine  a.m.  Some  few  minutes  previous 
to  the  chimes  of  the  half  hour,  had  a  curious  eye  been  taking  observations, 
there  might  have  been  seen  advancing  up  two  separate  roads  (joining  each 
other  at  right  angles)  a  pair  of  happy  faces.  These  happy  faces  were 
mounted  upon  two  flexible  pillars  of  flesh  and  blood, — the  base  of  each  being 

•  This  was  a  case  of  Cholera,  attended  by  the  most  alarming  symptoms,  the  ravages  of  which  remain 
still  but  too  visible. 


224  nature's  holiday. 

divided  into  two  pediments,  internally  animated  by  very  nimble  machinery. 
At  half-past  nine  precisely,  these  two  moving  figures  mechanically  came  into 
contact.  Then  was  there  a  right  royal  greeting  between  them.  Four  such 
hands,  and  two  such  hearts,  were  not  long  in  becoming  united.  Honesty 
and  Sincerity, — what  a  happy  union  ! 

"  We  met, — 'twas  on  the  green," 

at  Shepherd's  Bush ;  and  now  behold  us  confreres  for  the  day. 

Far  be  it  from  me  to  arrogate  the  power  of  expressing  in  words,  or 
minutely  detailing  the  impressions  made  upon  two  such  ardent  lovers  of 
Nature,  whilst  sauntering  along  under  an  azure  sky,  and  feeling  themselves 
in  the  immediate  (but  unseen)  presence  of  the  Great  Creator  of  Heaven  and 
Earth.  Those  who  are  in  the  secret  will  understand  me.  To  others  I  shall 
speak  in  parables.  If  I  could  impart  to  the  World  at  large  the  feelings  I 
hint  at,  and  Avhich  are  peculiar  to  all  true  lovers  of  Nature  at  this  jubilee  of 
the  year,  how  gladly  would  I  do  so  !  But  who  can  hope  to  regenerate  the 
hearts  which  seek  for  pleasure  in  so  opposite  a  direction  ?  Not  I !  Fashion 
and  the  love  of  gold,  versus  Nature  and  the  love  of  God.     What  a  conflict ! 

The  morning  had  dawned  with  one  of  those  grey  mists  peculiar  to  the 
season,  and  which  indicate  the  gradual  development  of  a  fine,  enjoyable 
day.  We  had  provided  accordingly.  Lightly  clad,  we  were  equal  to  some 
thirty  miles  at  least.  "  Where  shall  we  bend  our  steps  ?  "  said  I.  "  Any 
where,"  replied  my  smiling  friend.  Oh,  how  delightful  it  is,  thus  to  wander 
at  random ! 

Wood-Lane  now  stood  invitingly  before  us,  with  its  long  vista  of  hill  and 
dale,  trees  and  shrubs, — all  animated  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  by  cattle 
grazing,  and  heifers  frolicking  among  the  stunted  bushes  and  springing 
grass.  Entering  this  lane,  we  pursued  our  way  gently  forwards,  until  we 
reached  the  celebrated  Wormwood  Scrubs.  Bearing  a  little  to  the  right, 
and  then  again  to  the  left,  there  lay  before  us,  rising  in  picturesque  beautj', 
the  grand  Cemetery  of  Kensall  Green.  Thither  we  progressed,  (conversing 
on  all  sorts  of  subjects  by  the  way,)  and  were  soon  among  the  tombs. 

Two  philosophers,  educated  in  Nature's  simple  school,  could  hardly  fail  to 
find  in  this  garden  of  the  departed  food  for  much  reflection.  There  was  not 
much  "  simplicity  "  here !  But  there  was  Art  in  abundance.  Oh,  the  men- 
dacious epitaphs,  and  absurd  aspirations,  that  defiled  seven-eighths  of  these 
head-stones  !  And  what  an  endless  parade  of  "  Esquires,"  and  lordly  titles  ! 
I  will  not  relate  our  conversation,  nor  our  meditation  amongst  these  tombs. 
Suffice  it  that  if  it  was  not  profitable  to  others,  it  was  so  to  ourselves. 

After  deploring  "the  ruling  passion  strong  in  death,"   eveiy  where  so 
visibly  painted  in  letters  deeply  sculptured  in  stone, 
"  We  tnm'd  and  left  the  spot" 

The  sun  was  now  showing  us  his  lovely  face  in  right  good  earnest;  and 


nature's  holidat.  225 

his  glorious  beams  gladdened  our  royal  hearts  not  a  little.  Quaffing  to  his 
godship's  health,  by  the  road  side,  in  a  glass  of  sparkling  ale,  we  were  soon 
again  on  our  way. 

Not  to  be  tedious,  we  rambled  on  through  many  a  rich  landscape,  and 
next  came  to  an  anchor  at  Harlesdon  Green, — a  miniature  rural  village  of 
simple  beauty.  Here  we  halted  a  while,  to  gaze  around  on  the  quiet  repose 
of  Nature  and  her  happy  creatures.  *  *  *  Leaving  the  Koyal  Oak  to  the 
right,  a  little  wicket  gate  stood  before  us.  Temptingly  it  seemed  to  say, — 
enter !  We  did  so,  and  marched  gaily  forward.  Now  this  wicket  gate  con- 
ducted us,  by  a  pleasingly-tortuous  course,  through  a  long  succession  of 
beautiful  narrow  lanes,  meadows,  fields,  parks,  and  paddocks.  A  more  rural 
walk  could  hardly  be  imagined.     Did  we  not  enjoy  all  this?     Oh yes ! 

Dwelling  a  little  on  a  style,  to  survey  the  multitude  of  pretty  views  that 
dotted  the  surrounding  country  on  every  side,  and  carefully  examining 
many  of  the  little  winged  insects  that  in  their  happy  flight  crossed  our  path 
by  the  way, — we  found  ourselves  drawing  near  to  the  charming  village  of 
Willesdon,  whose  sweetly-retired  church  could  be  just  discerned  through 
the  trees.  *  *  *  We  were  now  inclined  for  a  rest,  and  I  boldly  made  up 
to  the  White  Hart  (immortalized,  together  with  the  hand  of  mine  host's  fair 
daughter,  in  a  former  number  of  The  Naturalist.)  Here  we  were  imme- 
diately "  at  home."  A  pretty  spot  is  this.  There  is  a  well-arranged  garden, 
well-filled  with  the  choice  flowers  of  the  season ;  a  noble  lawn,  smooth  and 
soft  as  any  carpet;  a  variety  of  rustic  boxes,  over-arched  with  graceful  climb- 
ing plants,  and  shaded  from  the  sun;  a  pond  abounding  in  gold  and  silver 
fish;  a  snug  hostelry,  a  civil  host  and  hostess,  and  last  not  least — Finis 
coronat  opus — there  is  the  presiding  goddess  at  the  "  little  window  "  opening 
on  the  lawn.  I  allude,  of  course,  to  the  flower  of  the  family, — mine  host  and 
hostess'  amiable  daughter.  Through  her  fair  hands  pass  all  the  good  things 
that  find  their  way  to  the  guests  without.     Happy  guests ! 

We  were  not  long  in  ensconcing  ourselves  in  a  rural  box.     Naturalists  use 

no   "ceremony"   in   these   matters.      Oh no!      Anon,   appeared   a  very 

sensible  joint  of  cold  roast  beef,  vegetables,  &c.,  &c. ;  and  such  a  tankard  of 
foaming  ale !  To  all  and  each  (having  the  respectable  appetite  which  is 
native  to  a  naturalist,)  we  did  ample  justice.  Then  we  fell  a^alking  about 
our  early  days,  our  early  perceptions,  tastes,  and  habits, — our  present  views 
of  life,  ovir  love  of  Nature,  our  indescribable  enjoyments  when  beyond  the 
foul  contact  of  cities  and  the  dwellers  therein.  My  companion  had  passed 
many  of  his  boyish  days  at  Willesdon  !  Here  was  a  theme  to  descant  on ! 
Incidents,  long  cherished,  were  here  in  many  instances  palpably  illustrated. 
There  once  stood  "the"  house ;  here  it  is  now !  There  stood  "the"  Rookery ; 
here  it  is  now !  *  *  *  Thus  flew  the  hours, — oh,  how  swiftly  !  Mending 
our  draught,  and  mournfully  gazing  on  our  repeater,  we  rose  to  depart.     Of 


^^v'tJ  nature's  holiday. 

course  our  shot  was  defrayed  at — "tlie  little  window."  That  was  only 
natural.    A — hem  ! 

Now  for  a  curious  little  reminiscence  of  the  "  White  Hart."  Entering 
the  garden,  we  heard  certain  footsteps  creeping  stealthily  behind  us.  On 
turning  round,  our  e^'es  fell  full  upon  a  curious  figure  habited  in  fustian. 
Thick-set  was  he,  and  I  imagine  uneasy  in  his  mind.  "  Who  are  you  f  "  said 
I.  "  The  waiter,"  replied  he.  "We  have  ordered,"  said  I,  "at  the  little  window." 
He  then  disappeared.  Reappearing  presently,  he  brought  with  him  our 
first  course, — and  vanished.  We  "waited"  on  ourselves  afterwards;  and 
thought  no  more  of  the  man  in  fustian.     Had  he  forgotten  us  ?     Listen ! 

When  preparing  to  leave,  our  hand  fell  on  the  latch  of  the  garden  gate, 
opening  into  the  high  road.  It  would  not  move !  The  gate  was  secured ; 
and  so  loere  we, — by  the  man  in  fustian  !  In  one  moment  (Avhere  he  came 
from  I  know  not)  this  remarkable  phenomenon  appeared  at  our  elbow.  No 
magician  could  have  summoned  him  up  more  mysteriously.  Bending  him- 
self into  the  figure  of  a  half-moon,  he  contrived  to  deliver  himself  safely 
of  the  words, — "  W-a-i-t-e-r,  Sir!"  At  the  same  instant,  the  gate  flew  open. 
We  both  stared  (well  we  might,  at  such  an  apparition !)  What  was  to  be 
done?  I  dived  into  the  recesses  of  my  coat  pocket  for  some  penny-pieces  ; 
but  before  I  could  fish  them  up,  my  companion  had  forestalled  me,  and 
slipped  a  piece  oi  real  silver  into  the  fustian  "  waiter's  "  hand.  He  clutched 
it — his  eye  rolled — his  jaw  fell — his  face  became  a  reflex  of  many  colours. 
He  was  tongue-tied  ;  and  actually  staggered  out  of  sight.  I  had  remonstrated, 
but  it  was — too  late  ! 

That  this  man  was  a  stranger  to  silver,  was  evident ;  and  intense  must 
have  been  his  agony  Avhilst  thinking  how  he  should  contrive  to  spend  so 
large  a  sum.  I  strongly  suspect  that  a  fit  of  apoplexy  must  have  quickly 
supervened;  and  much  do  I  congratulate  myself  on  not  having  been  a 
particeps  critninis  in  so  reprehensible  a  douceur.  He  may  now  be  in  a  lunatic 
asylum !  Who  knows  ?  Alas,  how  much  mischief  may  be  done  even  with  a 
"  little  sixpence !  "  Next  time  I  visit  the  White  Hart,  I  shall  assuredly  go 
in  masquerade.     So  much  for  this  little  episode. 

It  is  not  my  intention,  nor  will  space  admit  of  it,  to  describe  the  residue 
of  our  day's  ramble.  Neither  need  I  dwell  upon  the  delight  we  mutually 
experienced  in  each  other's  company.  *  *  *  On  we  went ;  turning  every 
thing  we  saw  into  a  subject  of  profitable  conversation  and  contemplation. 
From  the  minutest  object  in  creation  to  the  greatest, — Man,  all  in  turn 
occupied  our  mind  and  tongue.  Nor  were  our  external  senses  less  happily 
entertained.  There  was  the  aromatic  fragrance  of  new-mown  hay  on  every 
side  of  us ;  the  sweet  music  of  Zephyr,  dancing  gently  among  the  fairy 
leaves  of  the  trees ;  the  tinkling  of  the  sheep-bells  in  the  near  and  far  off 
distance;  and  the  lowing  of  oxen  which  were  rejoicing  (knee-deep  in  water) 
in  the  meadows  below.    Then  were  our  eyes  refreshed  by  a  sight  of  the  golden 


katcre's  holidat,  227 

grain,  which  was  being  stowed  away  in  lavish  profusion  every  where.  Men, 
women,  children, — all  were  occupied  in  the  goodly  work.  We  fell  in,  too, 
with  such  a  nice  party  of  "  cricketers,"  on  a  certain  green  sward  !  How  the 
lads  and  lasses  dealt  out  their  blows  on  the  devoted  balls !  Whizz !  they 
went;  and  how  the  young  ladies  and  their  mammas  enjoyed  the  sport !  Had 
time  permitted,  we  too  should  have  had  an  "  innings."  Those  arch  faces, 
prettily  shaded  by  "Fairy  Ring"  hats,  (umbrageous  in  their  coolness,)  told 
us  we  were  more  than  welcome  How  delightfully  eloquent  is  the  human 
eye, — when  pleased !  The  human  heart  too, — how  soft  when  properly  played 
upon ! 

This, — and  veiy  much  more.  But  I  must  come  to  a  close.  It  will  be 
gathered  from  what  I  have  said,  that  our  good  mother.  Nature,  had  finished 
all  she  had  to  do.  She  was  now  complacently  rejoicing  in  the  Avork  of  her 
delicate  hands.  All  was  hushed,  quiet,  peaceable.  The  birds,  not  yet  in  full 
livery,  (the  young  robins  excepted,  which  were  singing  merrily  throughout 
the  day,)  were  concealed  in  the  thickets.  Feeling  themselves  unclean,  they 
had  sought  retirement.  Whilst  I  now  write,  they  are  abroad  again, — their 
beauty  matchless. 

Such,  in  faint  outline,  were  the  joys  of  this  memorable  day.  I  have  re- 
corded them,  in  the  hope  of  bringing  about  more  of  these  friendly  reunions. 
They  do  the  heart  good.  Birds  of  a  feather  should  flock  together;  for  a 
Companion,  properly  so  called,  is  a  rarity,  and  "  when  found  "  should  be 
"  made  a  note  of." 

The  follies  so  fondly  hugged  by  the  World,  and  which  constitute  all  their 
so-called  happiness,  are  unworthy  of  a  sensible  man.  I  only  wish  every  body 
detested  them  as  much  as  I  do.  "  Amen !"  adds  my  companion  for  the  day. 
Never  did  two  people  sympathise  more  sweetly,  or  fraternise  more  cordially. 
Long  may  our  (un)  common  friend,  John  Mc  Intosh,  live;  and  long  may  we 
live  to  enjoy  his  company  ! 

New  Road,  Hammersmith,  Sept.  17th. 


THE  VARIETY  OF  THE  HAWK  FIGURED  IN  "  THE  NATURALIST," 
FOR  SEPTEMBER. 

BY   THE    EEVEREND   F.  0.  MORRIS. 

Dr.  Hobson,  of  Leeds,  has  been  so  obliging  as  to  forward  to  me  a  coloured 
engraving  of  this  bird.  I  have  not,  mj^self,  the  shadow  of  a  doubt  that  it  is 
a  variety  of  the  Sparrow-Hawk.  The  curiosity  of  the  instance  is,  I  think, 
that  it  is  at  one  and  the  same  time  a  hybrid  (probably)  and  a  (partial)  albino. 

That  it  is  not  a  new  and  distinct  species,  or,  at  all  events,  that  it  is  an 
albinese  individual,  is,  it  seems  to  me,  clear,  from  the  light  colour  of  the 


228  VABIETY   OF   THE    HAWK. 

claws;  and,  if  so,  its  identity  with  the  Sparrow-Hawk  is  at  once,  mejudiee, 
indicated  by  the  length  of  the  middle  toe,  and  corroborated  by  the  short 
length  of  the  wings.  That  the  comparative  length  of  the  quill-feathers  is 
not  an  unerring  characteristic,  especially  in  this  species  and  some  others,  is 
thus  referred  to  in  the  account  of  the  Sparrow-Hawk,  in  my  "  History  of 
British  Birds,"  vol.  I,  p.  153  :  "  In  some  specimens  the  fourth  quill  is  the 
longest,  the  fifth  almost  as  long  ;  in  others,  these  relative  lengths  are  trans- 
posed ;  shewing,  as  pointed  out  by  me  (the  original  observer  of  the  fact  in 
another  bird  being  tlie  late  Mr.  Sweeting)  some  years  ago,  in  The  Natural- 
ist, that  no  distinctive  character  ought  to  be  considered  as  certainly  estab- 
lished from  the  length  of  the  quill-feathers  of  the  wing."  So  also  in  my 
account  of  the  Hen-Harrier,  p.  166 :  "  Mr.  Yarrell  quotes  in  his  work  an  ob- 
servation which  I  had  recorded,  some  years  before,  in  my  magazine.  The 
Naturalist,  as  to  the  fourth  quill-feather  in  the  female  being  the  longest,  and 
the  third  in  the  male.  He  suggests  that,  in  such  cases,  the  birds  may  have 
been  killed  in  autumn,  before  the  ultimate  relative  length  of  the  feathers 
has  been  gained.  The  question,  however,  will  be  a  puzzling  one,  why  one 
feather  should  grow  faster  than  another ;  who  shall  decide  ?  A  difficulty  is 
certainly  put  in  the  way  of  founding  specific  distinctions  on  the  relative 
length  of  the  quill-feathers,  as  I  have  already  pointed  out  in  the  case  of  the 
Sparrow-Hawk,  and  shall  have  occasion  to  do  in  that  of  the  Snowy  Owl." 
Thus  also  in  the  account  of  the  last-named  bird,  p.  198 :  "  Primaries  also 
white  ;  the  first  is  sometimes  longer  than  the  fifth,  but  often  shorter." 

As  to  the  number  of  the  scutellai  on  the  tarsi  or  the  toes,  these  are  still 
less  to  be  relied  on  as  distinctive  specific  signs.  I  had  occasion  to  write  as 
follows  in  my  account  of  the  Erne,  p.  17  :  "  The  middle  toe  has  eight  long 
scales,  the  outer  one  five,  and  the  inner  and  hinder  ones  four  each.  Another 
description  assigns  to  the  first  and  second  toes  three,  to  the  third  twelve, 
and  to  the  fourth  six.  Another  describes  the  middle  toe  as  having  sixteen, 
on  the  side  or  hind  toes  six  each.  And,  again,  another  gives  thirteen  to  the 
middle  one  ;  so  that  it  seems  to  me  pretty  certain,  that  no  distinctive  char- 
acter is  to  be  derived  from  their  number;  age  may  very  possibly  have  some- 
thing to  do  with  it." 

It  is  to  be  observed  further,  that  the  basal  web  extends,  in  the  bird  figured, 
between  the  third  and  fourth  toes,  as  in  the  Sparrow-Hawk. 

White  and  other  varieties  of  Hawks  are  not  extremely  rare.  Thus,  in  the 
account  of  the  Marsh-Harrier,  I  wrote,  "Latham  describes  a  specimen  of 
this  bird  as  of  a  uniform  brown,  with  a  tinge  of  dust  colour ;  Montagu,  one 
which  had  the  head,  some  of  the  wing-coverts,  and  the  four  first  quill-feathers, 
white ;  Selby,  one  which  had  the  four  quill-feathers,  throat,  part  of  the  wing, 
and  the  outer  tail-feathers,  white ;  and  the  Rev.  Leonard  Jenyns,  one  of 
which  the  lower  half  of  the  breast  was  white ;  and  others,  spotted  with  white 
in  various  ways, — some  have  the  upper  part  of  the  breast,  and  others  part  of 


VARIETY   OF    THE    HAWK.  229 

the  back  of  tlie  neck  white ;  others,  without  the  white  head,  have  a  greyish 
spot  on  the  throat.  Sir  William  Jardine  describes  one  as  entirely  brown, 
excepting  the  forehead  and  back  of  the  head,  throat,  sides  of  the  mouth,  and 
tips  of  the  quills,  which  were  white ;  another,  pale  reddish-brown,  the  upper 
tail  coverts  and  base  of  the  outer  tail-feathers  pale  yellowish-red,  the  former 
shewing  a  bar ;  the  back  of  the  head  pure  white,  extending  over  each  eye.  I 
have  also  mentioned  a  variety  of  the  Sparrow-Hawk  itself  perfectly  white. 

Again  :  The  white  at  the  occiput  in  the  bird  figured,  seems  to  appi'oach  to 
the  same  feature  on  the  nape  of  the  Sparrow-Hawk.  The  want  of  the  cross 
bars  on  the  breast  appears  to  me  the  only  cause  of  doubt ;  but  not  only  do 
these  offer,  in  the  engraving,  indications  of  these,  but  on  the  supposition  of 
the  bird  being  a  hybrid,  their  absence  would  be  no  difiiculty. 

On  the  whole,  then,  I  conclude  that  the  bird  figured  is  a  variety  of  the 
Sparrow-Hawk,  an  albino,  and  probably  also  a  hybrid  between  that  species 
and  some  other,  either  the  kestrel,  or  the  hobby,  or  the  merlin ;  most  hkely 
the  first  name.  This  is  made  the  more  probable  by  the  consideration  of  the 
fact  that  both  species  are  so  commonly  kept  in  confinement;  for  it  seems  to 
me,  that  the  shortness  of  the  claws  may  be  accounted  for  by  the  supposition 
of  the  bird  having  been  the  progeny  of  two  tame  hawks  of  the  above-named 
species,  and  itself  to  have  made  its  escape  after  having  been  for  some  time 
kept  in  a  state,  in  which,  possibly,  as  it  would  not  require,  so  it  would  not 
further,  a  full  development  of  those  organs  of  predatory  attack. 
JSFunburnholme  Rectory,  Hayton,  Yorh,  Aug.  31,  1855. 


EXTRACTS  FROM  CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  A  BROTHER 
NATURALIST. 

BY   F.    M,   BURTON,    ESQ. 

One  of  the  finest  parts  of  N Park,  where  I  have  lately  been  staying, 

consists  of  a  noble  avenue  of  Yews,  many  of  them  of  vast  size,  one  measur- 
ing seven  yards  round  thickest  part  of  the  trunk.  In  these  trees,  which  are 
mostly  hollow,  I  found  a  large  colony  of  Jackdavvs,  from  two  to  three  nests 
in  each,  some  with  eggs,  others  containing  young,  which  on  my  peering 
down  at  them,  opened  their  wide  mouths  and  hissed ; — ^you  would  have  en- 
joyed the  sight. 

I  have  lately  been  mounting  a  couple  of  Knots  T.  Canutus,  and,  in  skinning 
them,  found  at  the  top  of  the  craniimi,  a  very  think  sort  of  flesh  covering 
the  bone  from  between  the  eyes  to  the  beak,  like  the  formation  of  a  second 
skull,  and  something  resembling  soft  bone  in  texture ;  I  have  never  met  with 
it  before  in  any  other  bird. 

Last  week,  I  shot  another  Short-eared  Owl,  S.  Brachyotos,  out  of  a  turnip 
field.     Is  this  the  only  one  of  this  tribe  that  can  see  and  hunt  in  broad  day 


330  IXTRACXS   FROM   CORRESPONDENCE. 

light  ?  There  is  a  singularity  in  the  markings  of  this  bird ;  one  of  the  cen- 
tre tail-feathers  is  perfectly  white,  while  all  the  others  are  of  the  usual  colour. 

As  some  men  were  ploughing  up  an  old  stubble-field,  near  here,  a  few  days 
ago,  they  turned  up  three  or  four  Mice  {Mus  messorius)  snugly  ensconced  in 
a  capacious  hole,  with  plenty  of  old  grass  and  other  soft  materials  to  keep 
them  warm,  and,  as  the  men  declare,  nearly  half  a  peck  of  wheat,  which  they 
must  have  carried  there,  grain  by  grain,  for  their  winter  store.  I  wonder  if 
these  mice  lie  torpid  in  the  cold  season  as  the  Dormouse  does,  only  reviving 
occasionally  in  fine  warm  weather.  I  recollect,  while  shooting  in  a  wood 
one  sunny  day  in  December,  seeing 

"The  sly  little  Dormouse  creep  out  of  her  hole," 

and  a  most  desperate  grab  I  made  at  it,  but  the  little  fellow  was  much  too 
nimble,  and  was  soon  out  of  sight  again  in  the  long  grass. 

I  think  the  two  notices  this  month,  as  to  the  Mole's  eyes,  in  The  Natur- 
alist, will  at  once  set  at  rest  this  question,  and  restore  the  poor  little  miner 
to  his  sight  again.     The  discussion  takes  us  back  to  the  Eton  Latin  grammar: 

"  Oculis  Capti  fodere  cubilia  talpse," 

■which  leads  me  to  remark,  that  a  great  many  of  the  vulgar  errors  current 
respecting  the  habits  and  manners  of  animated  life,  derive  their  origin  from 
poets  too  freely  using  their  license.  Many  people  have  an  idea  that  the 
Nightingale  feeds  entirely  on  Glow-Worms ;  of  this  absurdity  Cowper  is  of 
course  the  author;  and  there  are  many  errors  of  a  similar  kind  in  the 
writings  of  other  poets.  The  circumstance  of  the  Short-eared  Owl,  8.  Bra- 
chyotos,  preying  by  day,  is  not  singular;  as  the  Snowy  Owl,  S.  Nyctea,  and 
the  Barn  Owl,  S.  flammea,  are  known  sometimes  to  do  the  same.  I  have 
seen  the  latter  hunting  in  the  fields  in  the  breeding  time,  probably  having 
young  to  provide  for,  as  soon  as  ever  the  sun  has  gone  down,  and  when  it 
has  therefore  been  quite  light.  The  Owl  is  a  great  favourite  with  me,  but  I 
regret  to  say,  the  species  formerly  very  plentiful  in  this  neighbourhood  are 
becoming  rare.  If  people  only  knew  the  incalculable  amount  of  good  con- 
ferred on  them  by  these  persevering  mousers,  these  useful  birds  would  have 
encouragement  rather  than  ill-will.  All  the  farmei-s  round  here  say  they  rob 
the  pigeon-cotes ;  but  Waterton  has,  I  think,  satisfactorily  disposed  of  the 
accusation. 

I  am  very  sony  to  see  the  account  in  The  Naturalist,  of  the  undoubted 
predatoiy  habits  of  the  Rook,  C.frugilegus;  I  never  met  with  any  instance 
myself  of  this  bird  eating  flesh,  and  hope  it  is  of  very  uncommon  occur- 
rence ;  I  should  have  liked  much  to  have  known  the  state  of  the  weather 
and  ground  at  the  times  the  Rooks  ate  the  Partridges'  eggs,  for,  of  course, 
if  the  instances  occurred  at  very  dry  seasons,  when  the  ground  was  probably 
very  hard,  and  a  great  scarcity  of  their  insect  food  in  consequence,  it  is 


EXTRACTS  FROM  CORRESPONDENCE.  231 

reasonable  to  suppose  they  would  dine  off  eggs  rather  than  go  without  din- 
ner at  all. 

While  sauntering,  a  few  days  ago,  down  a  favourite  gi*een  lane  watching  a 
couple  of  Herons  slowly  wending  through  the  air,  cruelly  mobbed  by  a 
flock  of  Books,  a  large  Rat  ran  across  my  path  evidently  in  great  distress, 
and  presently,  following  in  its  track,  appeared  a  little  Weasel  in  pursuit. 
I  saw  no  more  of  them ;  but  from  the  exhausted  state  of  the  Rat,  I  have  no 
doubt  it  was  soon  caught.  What  astonishing  perseverance  these  little 
creatures  show  in  pursuit  of  their  prey,  it  is  almost  impossible  to  drive  them 
from  it.  I  remember,  a  few  weeks  since,  in  one  of  my  early  morning  walks, 
seeing  one  of  them  dragging  across  the  road,  a  few  yards  before  me,  a  large 
Rat,  which  was  still  quite  warm  ;  the  little  creature  abandoned  its  prey  on 
my  approach,  but  sat  in  a  ditch  near  watching ;  and  I  had  not  gone  away 
more  than  ten  yards,  when  out  it  came  again  and  carried  aAvay  the  Rat  by 
the  neck.  I  remember  also  once  an  instance  of  one  of  them  attacking  a 
full  grown  Hare,  which  it  must  have  caught  as  it  lay  asleep  ; — attracted  by 
the  animal's  cries,  I  ran  up  to  the  spot  and  put  an  end  to  the  sti-ife.  The 
Hare  was  not  much  injured,  and  both  of  them  got  away. 

A  friend  of  mine,  a  few  days  ago,  related  the  following  interesting  anec- 
dote :  He  was  walking  by  the  side  of  one  of  the  broad  drains  in  the  Lin- 
colnshire Fens,  Avhen  his  dog  suddenly  made  a  pounce  at  something  in  the 
water,  and,  after  a  little  splashing,  landed  a  small  Jack,  which  had  got  into 
shallow  water  and  could  not  make  his  escape.  My  old  dog  shewed  himself 
rather  more  than  usually  sagacious  a  few  days  since ;  he  was  thirsty,  and 
the  ground  being  quite  hard  from  the  night's  frost,  and  a  coating  of  ice  on 
the  road-side  pools,  he  made  use  of  his  paw  as  a  hammer,  and  after  breaking 
a  small  hole,  quietly  drank  his  fill. 

I  have  been  to-day  to  see  a  Gannet,  P.Bassanus,  which  was  shot  near  here, 
skinned  by  a  bird-stuffer.  Its  structure  is  most  curious ;  on  the  under  parts 
of  the  body,  the  skin  does  not,  as  in  all  other  birds  I  have  ever  seen,  adhere 
to  the  flesh,  except  down  the  centre  of  the  breast-bone,  where  it  is,  as  usual, 
fixed.  No  doubt  these  cavities  can  be  filled  with  air  at  will,  and  assist  in 
making  the  bird  more  buoyant  on  the  water,  and  so  facilitate  the  pursuit  of 
Herrings  and  other  fish  upon  which  it  feeds.  I  see,  on  referring  to  Mon- 
tagu, that  he  supposes  the  intermediate  air  preserves  it  alike  from  cold  and 
heat,  and  so  keeps  up  a  necessary  temperature.  It  is  strange  that  Montagu 
is  the  only  author  among  the  few,  whose  works  I  possess,  who  takes  notice 
of  this  great  peculiarity  in  the  formation  of  this  bird.  Yarrell,  M'Gillavey, 
and  old  Bewick  all  pass  it  over  in  silence. 

Your  anecdotes  of  the  dog  are  interesting ;  but  I  heard  one,  a  few  days 
ago,  much  more  extraordinary,  indeed  almost,  if  not  quite  beyond  belief, 


232  EXTRACTS  FROM   CORRESPONDENCE. 

marvellous  as  the  tales  about  dogs  are :  I  met,  last  year,  in  the  Highlands, 
a  gentleman  Salmon-fishing,  and  he  assured  me  that  a  little  Terrier  of  the 
Skye  breed,  which  he  had  with  him,  would,  whenever  he  hooked  a  fish,  jump 
into  the  river  and  perform  the  part  of  a  landing-net. 

In  the  grounds  in  front  of  our  house,  we  have  a  pond  with  two  small 
islands  for  the  water-fowl  to  breed  on,  and  here  I  keep  two  pairs  of  tame 
Canadian  Geese ;  during  the  winter  they  live  veiy  peaceably  together,  but 
as  soon  as  the  spring  comes  on,  the  two  ganders  become  pugnacious,  and 
separate  each  with  his  mate.  For  several  mornings  lately,  however,  the 
peace  of  the  island  has  been  much  disturbed  by  an  old  wild  gander,  who 
has  come  regularly  to  pay  his  addresses  to  one  of  the  Geese,  and  yesterday, 
succeeded  in  enticing  her  away.  I  saw  them  go,  watched  their  direction, 
fetched  my  gun  and  followed,  but  could  not  get  near  enough  to  shoot ;  I 
succeeded,  however,  in  driving  them  back  to  our  own  field,  and  continued 
the  stalk,  when  I  came  nearly  up  with  them,  the  gander,  as  before,  took 
wing,  but  the  goose  did  not  follow ;  he  flew  for  some  distance  alone,  but 
finding  his  mistress  would  not  come,  returned,  and  fell  a  victim  to  his  rash- 
ness. The  two  little  islands  I  before  mentioned,  are  each  of  them  large 
enough  to  contain  the  nests  of  a  dozen  pail's  of  Geese,  still,  so  pugnacious 
are  these  Canadians,  that,  when  one  pair  has  fixed  upon  either  island  ta 
build  their  nest,  they  will  allow  no  other  Geese  to  come  near,  though  they 
will  suffer  Ducks  and  Water-Hens  to  inhabit  it  with  impunity. 

We  have  lately  had  a  great  flood  here,  and  one  day,  while  walking  with 
my  dog  by  the  river-side,  he  started  a  Mouse  out  of  a  tuft  of  grass  close  to 
the  water's  edge,  and  being  closely  pressed,  the  little  fellow  jumped  in,  my 
dog  went  after  him,  but  just  as  he  was  getting  near  enough  to  make  a  plunge, 
the  Mouse,  to  my  astonishment,  dived,  and  I  saw  nothing  more  of  it. 

We  have  just  been  taking  up  some  old  draining-tiles,  which,  from  some 
cause  or  other,  had  become  quite  useless ;  and  on  inspection,  we  found  that 
the  roots  of  an  old  willow  had  insinuated  themselves  for  a  very  long  dis- 
tance up  the  drain,  so  as  completely  to  choke  it,  and  you  might  draw  them 
out  of  the  tiles  in  solid  pieces,  having  somewhat  the  appearance  of  peat. 

Uppingham,  February,  1855. 

(To  he  continiLed.) 


A  LIST  OF  THE  ZOOPHYTES  FOUND  ON  THE  COAST  OF 
BANFFSHIRE. 

BT   MR.  T.  EDWARD. 

Reader  !  I  have  a  wish ;  nay  more,  I  have  several ;  and  which,  if  I  could 
but  have  gratified,  would  tend  to  make  me,  perhaps,  the  happiest  man  alive. 
Doubtless  you  have  Avishes  too.     It  is,  or  it  would  appear  to  be,  a  natural,  or 


ZOOPHYTES  FODND  ON   THE   COAST  OF  BANFFSHIRE.  233 

at  least  an  inherent,  principle  or  propensity  in  man,  ever  to  be  dissatisfied, 
and  always  longing  for  something  or  other  which  he  has  not.  The  poor 
wish  to  be  rich ;  the  wealthy  pant  for  more ;  the  honoured  desires  more 
homage,  and  the  exalted  yearns  to  be  still  higher.  But,  Reader,  these  are 
not  my  wishes.  They  are  these, — and  I  think  I  have  hinted  something  of 
the  kind  to  you  before :  To  possess  the  wings  of  a  seraph,  with  the  speed  of 
thought ;  the  eye  of  the  eagle  by  day,  and  the  vision  of  the  owl  by  night ; 
never  to  grow  weary  or  tired,  so  as  neither  to  require  slumber  nor  rest ;  the 
properties  of  the  mole;  the  qualities  of  a  fish;  the  acquirements  of  the 
scholar,  and  the  talents  of  an  author,  combined  with  the  gifts  of  an  orator. 
Then,  Reader,  then, — if  all  these  gifts  were  mine, — I  would  give  you,  and  not 
only  you,  but  the  world  at  large,  something  worthy  of  your  perusal,  some- 
thing worthy  of  fair  Nature's  self;  instead  of  the  vulgar  and  almost  unmean- 
ing scraps  which  I  now  pen.  I  would  first  soar  far,  far  away,  beyond  this 
almost  imperceptible  speck  in  Nature's  map,  and  traversing  the  boundless 
immensity  of  space,  would  willingly  scale  yon  azure  vault,  where  worlds  on 
worlds  innumerable  roll.  And  having  surveyed  them  all,  and  scanned  them 
well,  and  having  visited  the  workshop  of  Creation,  I  would  again  return,  full 
of  the  mighty  and  wondrous  things  which  I  had  beheld ;  and  which,  as  we 
may  well  judge  from  what  we  see  and  know  here  below,  exhibit  the  glory, 
the  goodness,  and  the  power  of  the  universal  Architect  and  incomprehen- 
sible Author  of  all, — the  God  of  Nature. 

I  would  then  traverse  the  earth  from  pole  to  pole,  and  from  zone  to  zone. 
I  would  also  descend  into  its  bowels,  and  having  searched  for  and  procured 
its  mysterious  and  hidden  treasures, — things  curious,  things  old,  things 
lovely  and  wonderful, — strange  relics  of  periods  long  since  gone  by,  and  of 
which  we  know  but  little,  and  that  little  all  but  conjecture ;  thus  loaded 
with  the  spoils  of  former  times,  and  ages  long  anterior  to  the  creation  of 
man,  I  would  again  come  forth.  Then  would  I  go  down  to  the  ever  fruitful 
and  teeming  channels  of  the  mighty  deep,  to  search  out  the  numberless  and 
inconceivably  curious  creatures  which  inhabit  that  vast  and  watery  abyss. 
There  would  I  bask  among  the  inviting  groves  of  Zoophytes,  and  roam 
through  the  forests  of  Algae  ;  I  would  leap  among  the  coralline  rocks  ;  would 
carefully  scan  the  shelly  caverns ;  would  tread  the  slimy  path ;  creep  around 
and  over  the  sandy  hillocks ;  descend  to  the  valleys,  among  the  bleached 
skeletons  of  those  who  have  been  engulphed  by  the  angry  waves,  and  who 
there  sleep  the  watery  slumber  of  an  ocean  death.  I  would  climb  the  rocky 
precipice,  and  the  briny  mountains ;  sport  in  mid  water  with  the  finny  tribes, 
and  commune  wdth  those  that  love  to  dwell  in  old  Ocean's  darker  chambers 
and  hidden  recesses. 

All  this  done,  then  would  I  pass  from  town  to  town,  and  from  city  to  city, 
proclaiming  that  which  I  had  seen  of  the  marvellous  wonders  of  the  uni- 
verse, in  a  voice  that  should  be  heard  far  above  the  terrific  blast  of  the  war 


234  ZOOPHYTES   FOUND    ON    THE    COAST   OF   BANFFSHIRE. 

trumpet,  yet  tender  and  inviting  as  the  balmy  zephyrs  which  gently  fan  the 
summer's  eve.  Thus  would  I  seek  to  create  a  greater  love  for  the  beauties 
and  sublimities  of  Nature,  as  exhibited  in  the  handiwork  of  the  Creator. 

But  as  these  things  cannot  be,  and  trusting  that  the  readers  of  The 
Naturalist  will  take  the  will  for  the  deed,  I  will  now  begin  my  list,  already 
too  long  deferred ;  and  which,  I  regret  to  say,  is  not  quite  so  systematic  as 
I  could  have  wished. 

Alcyonium  digitatum,  or,  as  it  is  called  here,  dead-men's  paps,  sea  paps,  dead- 
men's  shrouds,  sea  fingers,  &c.,  is  frequently  brought  on  shore  by  the  fisher- 
men, in  large  masses  attached  to  shells  and  stones.  It  is  curious  to  observe 
the  strange  and  fantastic  forms  which  these  creatures  at  times  assume. 
How  they  are  loathed,  when  cast  on  shore,  by  the  generality  of  persons ! 
But  were  they  seen  in  their  proper  element  and  alive,  with  the  beautiful  leaf- 
like tentacula  of  the  little  polyps,  thousands  of  which  compose  the  living 
mass ;  these  feelings  of  disgust  would  soon  give  place  to  astonishment  and 
delight.  Touch  one  of  these  polyps,  and  it  instantly  contracts  and  ceases 
its  movements,  the  tentacula  being  withdrawn ;  whilst  the  others  still 
continue  their  labours,  seemingly  unconcious  of  their  friend's  disappearance, 
or  of  the  annoyance  which  it  had  experienced.  But  continue  the  irritation, 
and  all  will  shrink  and  hide  themselves  within  their  fleshy  home,  which  is 
itself  also,  and  at  the  same  time,  considerably  reduced  in  size.  Watch  well, 
however,  and  a  sight  well  worthy  of  your  best  attention  will,  in  a  little  while, 
greet  your  astonished  gaze.  Presently,  and  gradually,  the  Pap  will  be  seen 
to  assume  its  natural  size,  and  the  surface  all  over  appear  roughish,  being 
then  covered  with  small  protuberances.  From  these  asperities  the  numerous 
polyps  may  now  be  noticed,  one  by  one,  slowly  and  almost  imperceptibly 
emerging;  and  having  gained  a  sufficient  height,  their  slender  and  fragile 
arms,  or  tentacula,  will  also  be  observed  cautiously  expanding,  which  when 
nearly  fully  developed,  gives  to  the  whole  mass  the  enchanting  appearance 
of  a  bouquet  of  flowers  of  the  richest  dye,  or  of  a  gaudy-coloured  wreath  of 
beautiful  and  delicate  blossoms,  combined  in  one  cluster,  and  enough  to 
draw  wonder  and  admiration  even  from  the  dullest  mind. 

Alcyonium (?)    A  small  species,  generally  parasitical  on  the  stems  of 

other  Zoophytes  and  Algae. 

Alcyonidium  parasiticum,  as  its  name  denotes ;  but  also,  occasionally,  on 
shells  and  stones.     A  very  dark  species. 

Antennularia  ramosa.  Or,  as  it  is  called  here,  sea-beard,  lobstei-'s  horn 
coralline.  Frequent  on  old  shells  from  deep  water.  It  is  a  very  pretty 
species  when  fresh,  or  even  when  carefully  prepared ;  but  it  is  very  easily 
soiled  and  broken,  being  very  brittle  when  dried.  A  fisherman  residing  in 
one  of  our  neighbouring  villages  sent  me,  a  few  weeks  ago,  one  of  the  best 
and  largest  groups  of  this  species  which  I  have  ever  seen.  It  consisted  of 
four  distinct  specimens,  attached  to  a  large  old  valve  of  Cyprina  Islandica, 


ZOOPHYTES  FOUND  ON  THE  COAST  OF  BANFFSHIBE.  235 

and  arranged  three  at  regular  distances  from  eacli  other  along  the  margin ; 
and  the  fourth  in  the  centre  of  the  shell;  and  displaying  from  the  stem  of  the 
four  combined  specimens,  no  less  a  number  than  seventy-three  separate 
branches,  varying  from  a  quarter  of  an  inch  up  to  four  and  a  half  inches  in 
length,  and  exhibiting  at  one  glance,  and  in  one  little  space,  a  most  beautiful 
miniature  forest.  Most  unfortunately,  however,  the  individual  who  brought 
it  on  shore  had  kept  it,  for  several  weeks,  in  a  dirty  place,  previously  to  his 
sending  it  to  me,  and  had  otherwise  not  been  very  careful  of  it ;  so  that 
when  it  reached  me  it  was  much  broken  and  soiled.  And  although  several 
attempts  were  made  to  restore  it  to  its  pristine  beauty  and  original  standard, 
all  my  endeavours  failed  even  to  give  it  a  tolerable  appearance 

Antennularia  antennina,  or  unbranched  sea-beard.  Why  this  species  should 
have  been  set  down  as  the  young  of  the  preceding  one,  I  am  at  a  loss  to 
understand.  Setting  aside  all  other  distinctions,  the  slender,  unbranched, 
and  tubular  stems  which  are  seen  to  rise  from  one  common  root,  should  be 
enough,  one  would  think,  to  demonstrate  the  fact  of  their  being  separate 
species.  One  of  my  girls,  a  short  time  ago,  found  a  very  pretty  specimen  of 
this  species,  at  the  place  whei-e  our  fishermen  clean  their  lines.  It  was  quite 
fresh,  having  been  newly  brought  on  shoi-e.  From  the  root  spring  slender 
and  tubular  stems,  the  longest  being  one  foot  seven  inches  in  length, 
and  the  shortest  three  inches  ;   and  forming  altogether  a  splendid  specimen. 

Campanularia  dumosa.  A  very  minute  and  mossy  looking  species,  frequent 
as  a  parasite  on  Plumularia  falcata,  Tubularia  indivisa,  &c. 

G.  verticillata.    Not  so  frequent  as  the  former. 

Cellipora  pumicosa  This  knotty,  sandy  looking  Zoophyte,  is  pretty  fre- 
quent as  a  parasite  on  the  stems  of  several  other  species  ;  as  also  is  G.  ram- 
ulosa,  a  more  beautiful  species,  and  of  more  frequent  occurrence. 

G.  Skenii.     Frequent  on  old  shells  and  stones. 

Gellularia  plumosa.     On  old  shells  and  stones,  and  on  rocks  at  low  water. 

Crisia  eburnea.  A  small  but  beautiful  species  ;  abundant  as  a  parasite  on 
various  species  of  Algai. 

Eudendrium  rameum.  A  large  and  rather  heathery  looldng  species.  Rare. 
On  shells  and  stones  brought  on  shore  by  the  fishermen. 

Flustra  carbasea.    A  pretty  species  ;  on  old  shells  from  deep  water. 

F.foliacea.  Rougher  looking  than  the  last,  and  often  met  with  on  the  same 
shell. 

F.  membranacea.  A  creeping  species,  generally  found  encrusting  large 
masses  of  Algae,  particularly  the  massive  stem  and  broad  leaves  of  the 
tangle;  occasionally  assuming  a  rounded  form,  appearing  to  the  eye,  though 
not  to  the  touch,  like  Gellularia  plumosa. 

F.  Murreyana.     Smaller  than  any  of  the  preceding,  and  not  so  frequent. 

F.  truncata.  Or  as  we  have  it,  common  or  narrow-leaved  sea-wrak.  It  is 
the  most  abundant  of  all  our  Flustras,  large  masses  being  frequently  brought 


236  ZOOOHYTES   FOUND    ON    THE    COAST   OF    BANFFSHIRE^ 

on  shore  by  the  fishermen.  The  leaves  of  this  species  being  generally 
densely  crowded  together,  and  forming  large  clusters,  present,  in  some  res- 
pects, as  rich  a  field  as  the  stomachs  of  fishes,  more  especially  when  pro- 
cured in  a  fresh  state.  Many  of  the  minute  Crustacea  and  testacea,  starfish 
and  urchins,  have  I  picked  from  amongst  these  treacherous  leaves. 

Oemmellaria  lorioulata,  or  coat  of  mail  coralline.    Abundant. 

Halecium  halecinum.     On  old  shells. 

H.  muricatum.    Rare. 

Laomedea  dicJiotoma.  This  peculiar  and  thread-like  species  is  pretty  fre- 
quent with  us. 

L.  gelatinosa.    A  small  species ;  on  Algae,  pretty  frequent. 

Lepralia  hyalina.  A  very  minute  species;  on  the  stems  of  Algse.  Not 
very  plentiful. 

L.  linearis.  Frequent.  Encrusted  on  old  shells,  and,  at  times,  forming 
large  patches. 

Membranipora  pilosa.  A  small  species,  but  abundant.  I  find  it  generally 
on  Furcellaria  fastigiata ;  in  some  instances,  almost  covering  the  whole  plant, 
and  not  unfrequently  in  company  with  Orantia  compressa. 

Pennatula  phosphorea.  Sea-fern,  sea-pen,  and,  as  our  fishermen  have  it, 
cock's-comb.  This  very  pretty  and  peculiar  species  is,  at  times,  frequently 
brought  in  by  our  fishermen;  and,  at  other  times,  it  is  not  to  be  met  with. 
It  is,  of  all  the  Zoophytes  I  have  as  yet  met  with,  the  worst  to  preserve  whole 
and  in  a  good  condition ;  being  so  full  of  a  peculiarly  slimy  and  glutinous 
matter,  that  it  is  hardly  possible  to  clean  the  specimen  without  injuring  it. 
It  is  doubtless  this  fluid  which  gives  to  the  animal  its  luminous  qualities. 
I  have  seen  it  recorded,  that  this  interesting  species,  like  the  Gulf-weed, 
lives  and  grows  unattached,  and  at  the  mercy  of  winds  and  waves,  tossed 
about  over  the  ocean,  at  the  capricious  will  of  every  little  ripple.  It  may  be 
so ;  for  I  am  totally  unacquainted  with  the  fact,  or  with  the  generally 
received  opinion  on  the  subject.  But  how  comes  it  to  pass,  that  the  ex- 
tremity of  the  central  stem  or  axis,  when  procured  fresh,  has  always  the 
appearance  of  an  imderground  growth?  The  centre  stem  or  axis,  as  is  well 
known,  is  always,  like  the  rest  of  the  creature,  of  a  reddish  colour ;  but  the 
extremity  is  always  of  a  yellowish  tinge  or  sickly  hue,  similar  to  that  part 
which  is  under-ground  of  any  single-stemed  plant  which  grows  on  terra  firma. 
If  they  are  actually  a  floating  species,  I  should  think  that  they  would  be  a 
veiy  tempting  object  to  the  unscrupulous  and  voracious  Cod.  And  yet,  I 
have  never  met  with  any  in  his  capacious  crop. 

Plumalaria  Catharina.    Somewhat  rare. 

P.  falcata.  A  pretty  species,  and  somewhat  forest  looking.  Abundant. 
Brought  on  shore  on  old  shells  from  deep  water.  Also,  found  here  amongst 
the  rocks  at  low  tide. 

P.  frutescens.    A  dark  species.    Rare.    On  old  shells  from  deep  water. 


ZOOPHYTES   FOUND   ON   THE    COAST   OF   BANFFSHIRE.  337 

P.  pinnata.    A  slender  species,  and  somewhat  thread-like. 

Betepora  Beaniana.  A  most  beautiful  and  gauze-like  species.  On  old 
shells.    Rare  with  us. 

Salicornariafareiminoides.  Avery  delicate  and  beautiful  species;  possessed, 
when  dried,  of  a  peculiar  and  brilliant  lustre  ;  having  the  appearance,  when 
viewed  in  certain  lights,  of  the  twinkUng  of  as  many  stars.  On  old  shells 
and  stones. 

Sertularia  argentea.    Frequent. 

S.  cupressina.    Rare. 

S.  Jilicula.    Frequent  on  shells,  &c. 

8.  fusca.  A  small,  dark,  and  peculiar  looking  species.  Rare.  The  speci- 
men here  referred  to,  is  in  my  own  collection;  and,  I  believe,  is  the  first  of 
the  species  known  to  have  been  found  in  this  quarter.  It  would  appear, 
from  its  root-like  fibres,  to  be  a  mud-growing  species. 

;S'.  operculata.    Abundant  on  tangle  and  the  stems  of  other  Algae. 

S.  polyzonias.  A  strange  and  interlacing  little  species.  Found  interwoven 
among  others  on  old  shells,  &c. 

S.pumila.  A  small  species.  Found  abundantly  at  low  water,  investing 
almost  every  available  object.     Frequent  on  HalicJiondria panice. 

8.  rugosa.    Similar  to  the  last,  but  perhaps  not  so  plentiful. 

8.  abietina.  A  full  splendid  species.  Fine  lai'ge  specimens  are  sometimes 
brought  in  by  our  fishermen. 

Thuiaria  thuia.  Or  bottle-brush  coralline.  Another  full  and  truly  pretty 
species,  but  differing  considerably,  both  in  form  and  appearance,  from  the 
former.     On  old  shells  from  deep  water.     Rare. 

T.  articulata.    A  rather  slender  species.     On  old  shells.     Rare. 

Tubularia  indivisa.  Another  peculiar  species,  from  the  fact  that  the  long 
tubular  stem  has  the  animal  only  at  its  head  or  top  ;  whilst  the  others  have 
them  all  along, — or  nearly  so, — their  whole  stems  and  branches.  Often 
invested  with  Campanularia  dumosa,  which  gives  the  stem  a  mossy  appear- 
ance ;  as  also  with  Cellepora  pumicosa,  Tuhulipora  serpens,  &c. 

Tubulipora  phalangea.    A  low  hard  species.     On  all  shells. 

T.  serpens.  Or  horse-comb  coral.  Frequent  as  a  parasite  on  the  stems  of 
other  species.     Like  the  last,  hard,  but  more  plentiful. 

Our  Sponges  are  few  ;  I  have  met  with  : — 

Grantia  compressa.  Frequent  on  Zoophytes  and  Algae. 

Halichondria  panicea.    A  beautiful  branched  species.     Rare, 

H.  ramosa.    Luxuriantly. 

Though  thus  obliged  to  draw  to  a  close,  I  trust  that,  although  I  have  no 
hope  of  ever  enjoying  even  a  day's  ramble  in  Ocean's  bed,  I  shall  be  able, 
ere  long,  to  add  a  few  more  names  to  those  already  given.  I  shall  be  on  the 
look-out.  And  if  the  Readers  of  The  Naturalist  will  excuse  all  tlie  imper- 
fections of  the  foregoing  list,  I  shall,  at  present,  be  satisfied. 

16,  High-Street,  Banff,  Nov.  27,  1854. 


238 

The  Bee-Keeper's  Manual.    By  Henry  Taylor.    Fifth  Edition,  with  One  Hun- 
dred Engravings.    London :  Groombridge  and  Sons.     1855.    p.p.  216 

This  very  valuable  little  volume  has  now  reached  its  fifth  edition  ;  and  the 
present  is  not  merely  a  reprint  of  the  fourth  edition,  which  we  reviewed  in 
vol.  i.  p.  47,  but  contains  considerable  additions  of  new  matter,  thus  render- 
ing it  still  more  a  handbook  for  the  Apiarian.  The  humane  and  rational 
plan  of  not  Idlling  the  Bees  to  obtain  their  honey,  is  fully  illustrated  and 
proved  to  be  by  far  the  most  luci'ative  system,  and  the  various  contrivances 
to  facilitate  the  carrying  out  this  plan  practically  ai-e  most  fully  detailed,  so 
than  no  one  need  have  any  difficulty  in  adopting  it  in  their  own  Apiary. 
The  whole  work  is  eminently  practical,  and  bears  the  stamp  of  many  years 
of  patient  and  well  directed  investigation  into  the  habits  of  the  little  crea- 
tures treated  of  in  it.  The  bar-hive  system,  by  which  the  Bees  are  induced 
to  fix  their  combs  to  bars  easily  removed,  if  wished,  is  admirably  illustrated; 
and  one  hive,  called  the  bar-glass-hive,  is  well  worthy  the  attention  of  Natur- 
alists, as  by  it  the  daily  operations  of  the  Bees  may  be  readily  observed. 
Of  this  he  says — 

"  Before  we  leave  the  subject  of  bar-hives,  it  may  be  interesting  to  give  a  description 
of  one  recently  constructed  by  me  for  experimental  purposes,  as  referred  to  in  the  note 
at  page  50,  and  here  illustrated.  It  may  not  improperly  be  termed  a  light  or  observatory 
hive,  in  distinction  from  the  usual  mode  of  rendering  the  dwelling  as  dark  as  possible. 
The  hive  itself  resembles  the  bar-boxes  just  described,  as  to  its  interior  dimensions, 
bars,  crown-board,  &c. ;  but  differs,  inasmuch  as  it  is  made  simply  as  a  frame,  filled  in 
on  the  four  sides  with  thick  glass,  flush  with  the  inside  surface  of  the  wood.  For  the 
purpose  of  preventing  the  Bees  from  attachmg  the  comb  to  the  glass,  thin  upright 
strips  of  wood,  rather  more  than  half  an  inch  wide,  are  tacked  under  the  centre  of  each 
bar  at  both  ends,  extending  from  top  to  bottom  inside  the  hive.  Opportimity  has  not 
yet  been  ofiered  for  satisfactorily  testing  this  hive ;  under  any  circumstances,  however, 
whether  the  Bees  are  exposed  to  the  full  glare  of  light,  or  only  uncovered  occasion- 
ally, and  worked  as  a  common  hive,  it  ofiers  facilities  for  interesting  and  instructive 
observation ;  but  guides  or  waxed  bars  must  be  used  to  ensure  the  regularity  of  the 
combs,  and  prevent  an  obstruction  to  the  sight.  The  hive  ought  to  be  placed  in  a 
house,  and,  in  winter,  should  be  carefully  covered,  an  outer  case  or  box  going  over  all." 

Mr.  Taylor  deserves  a  substantial  vote  of  thanks  from  both  Bees  and  Bee- 
Keepers,  for  his  consistent  and  practical  advocacy  of  their  united  interests. 

Labels  for  British  Star-Fishes ;  on  a  sheet.     By  post,  3d.     By  George  Dixon. 
-  Ayton  :  near  Stokesley,  Yorkshire. 

In  a  recent  number,  we  called  attention  to  the  various  valuable  and  useful 
catalogues  of  subjects  of  British  Natural  History  brought  out  by  Mr.  Dixon 
(see  page  163) ;  we  now  notice  his  Labels  for  Biitish  Stai*-fishes  :  They  are 
printed  on  one  sheet,  in  bold,  legible  type,  in  every  way  suitable  for  label* 


REVIEW.  239 

ling  collections  of  this  curious  tribe.  In  addition  to  the  Genera  and  Species, 
the  Orders  and  Families  are  also  given,  so  that  it  forms  a  completely  classi- 
fied list  or  guide  to  an  arrangement  of  the  species.  The  nomenclature  is 
that  of  the  late  lamented  Professor  Forbes.  We  gladly  name  this  sheet  to 
our  readers,  who  will  find  it  a  great  assistance  in  arranging  their  collections 
of  our  Star-fishes. 


Heronries. — Add  to  the  list  of  Heronries,  if  not  already  included  in  it,  one 
near  "  The  Grove,"  at  Pantygoitre,  a  small  one ;  and  a  large  one  at  Court- 
Blethyn,  both  in  Monmouthshire,  and  not  far  distant  from  Abergavenny. 
This  information  obtained  from  the  Eev.  H.  Nicholl,  of  Pantygoitre. — 
R.  WiLBBAHAM  Falconer,  M.D.,  Bath. 

A  White  "  BlacJc"bird,  and  a  White  Thrush. — I  have  just  seen,  at  the  house 
of  Mr.  Atkinson,  Queen-Street,  Hammersmith,  two  interesting  birds, — one 
of  them  a  very  scarce  specimen.  Both  are  alive,  and  moulting  freely.  They 
are  perfect  Albinos, — their  feathers  being  milk-white,  and  their  eyes  pink. 
The  "Black "bird  is  very  pretty,  and  very  tame.  It  was  taken  from  the  nest, 
and  was  tlie  only  one  of  five  that  diff'ered  from  the  ordinary  character.  The 
same  with  the  White  Thrush.  This  last  is  a  tmly  symmetrical  bird ;  and 
being  very  rare  is  possessed  of  a  more  than  common  value.  Both  are  for 
sale.  The  price  demanded  is  eight  guineas  for  the  two.  I  register  this  early 
in  your  columns,  pro  bono. — ^William  Kidd,  Hammersmith,  Sep.  1st. 

Note  on  the  WoTthab,  or  Ulcab. — Lieutenant  Burton,  in  his  interesting  little 
work  on  "  Falconry  in  the  Valley  of  the  Indus,"  calls  the  XJkab,  which  attacks 
trained  Falcons,  a  Vulture.  This  is  questioned  in  the  review  of  his  book  in 
the  "Zoologist;"  and  I  find,  on  reference  to  the  "Catalogue  of  Birds  in 
Mus.  E.  I.  C,"  that  it  is  the  Aquila  ncevioides,  Cuv.  sp.  Mr.  Jerdon  (Madr. 
Journ.  L.  G.  vol.  x.  p.  68,)  says  : — "  From  Mr.  Elliot's  '  Notes'  I  extract  the 
following :  '  The  Wokhab  is  very  troublesome  in  hawking  after  the  sun  be- 
comes hot,  mistaking  the  jesses  for  some  kind  of  prey,  and  pouncing  on  the 
falcon  to  seize  it.  I  have  once  or  twice  nearly  lost  Shaheens  {Falco  peregri- 
nator)  in  consequence, — they  flying  to  great  distances  from  fear  of  the  Wok- 
hab.' " — John  Cavaey,  Westbourne  Terrace,  London,  Aug.  8,  1855. 

Sea  Swallows  (Common  Terns)  lay  their  eggs  on  the  shore  of  the  Tees.  I 
got  several  eggs  last  year.  In  1852,  I  saw  upwards  of  a  hundred  nests,  with 
three  eggs  in  each.  The  eggs  were  on  the  ground,  just  above  high-water, 
mark.  But  they  do  not  breed  there  regularly.  Some  years,  there  is  not  an 
egg  to  be  found.  I  have  never  observed  the  Terns  sitting  on  their  eggs. 
Quails  breed  here,  and  stay  all  the  year.  I  have  a  fine  male  in  my  posses- 
sion, Avhich  was  captured  in  January  1852.     Several  Quails  were  shot  during 


240  MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES. 

the  last  winter.  I  found  the  nest  of  a  Hedge  Accentor  last  year,  which  con- 
tained five  eggs.  One  of  the  eggs  is  much  smaller  than  any  egg  I  have  ever 
seen.  The  other  four  eggs  are  the  usual  size. — Thomas  Bedlington,  Com- 
mercial-Street, Middleshro',  Aug.  6th,  1855. 

CucJcoo  attending  to  its  own  young.  In  1850  a  friend  of  mine  captured  an 
adult  Cuckoo  (Cuculus  canorusj  on  the  nest  of  a  Tit  Lark,  (Alauda  trivialis,) 
which  nest  contained  a  young  Cuckoo  that  appeared  to  have  been  hatched 
three  or  four  days ;  the  Cuckoo  was  captured  by  my  friend  putting  his  hat 
over  it,  as  it  was  sitting  on  the  young  one ;  the  nest  did  not  contain  anything 
else.  He  carried  both  the  birds  home ;  the  young  Cuckoo  soon  died,  and 
the  old  one  made  its  escape  after  it  had  been  in  confinement  about  a  week. 
The  Cuckoos  were  captured  on  the  Durham  side  of  the  Tees,  about  half  a 
mile  from  Middleshro' ;  I  saw  both  the  birds,  and  am  quite  certain  there  is 
no  mistake. — Ibid. 

Thrushes  and  Starlings  Feeding  upon  the  Backs  of  Sheep. — In  No.  54,  August 
1855,  at  page  189  of  The  Naturalist,  a  correspondent  gives  his  opinion  that 
Thrushes  and  young  Starlings  feed  upon  the  backs  of  sheep.  As  my  own 
observations,  for  many  years,  lead  me  to  a  different  conclusion  on  this  point, 
I  forward  the  following  remarks,  which,  if  you  see  that  they  are  of  any  use 
in  aiding  the  cause  of  Natural  Science,  perhaps  you  will  give  them  a  corner 
in  your  Magazine.  I  have  for  many  years  noticed  the  Thrush  and  Starling 
frequently  on  the  backs  of  sheep  and  cows  ;  invariably  at  the  season  of  build- 
ing their  nests ;  seldom  young  birds,  but  old  ones.  I  was  for  a  considerable 
time  before  I  could  clearly  satisfy  myself  what  these  birds  were  engaged  in. 
Here,  however,  where  I  have  resided  for  more  than  seven  years,  and  where 
both  birds  are  quite  common,  ample  opportunities  have  been  afforded  me  of 
more  close  inspection,  and  of  forming  a  decisive  opinion.  Last  season,  and 
the  preceding,  I  watched  those  sweet  wai-blers  with  interest.  Sometimes 
one,  two,  and  even  three,  could  be  seen  upon  the  backs  of  sheep  and  cows 
in  our  pastures,  busily  engaged  picking  out  the  wool  from  the  former,  and 
the  fine  root  hairs  from  the  backs  of  the  latter.  Sometimes  the  animals 
became  restless,  and  the  birds  were  compelled  to  fly  off.  They  generally 
rested,  however,  a  few  yards  beyond,  and  so  soon  as  the  animals  settled 
again,  they  resumed  their  work;  and  after  having  got  their  bills  pretty 
well  filled  with  wool  and  hair,  they  flew  off  to  Avhere  they  were  building 
their  nests.  The  Starlings  make  their  nests  in  deep  decayed  holes  in  some 
old  trees  near  my  cottage,  and  the  Thrushes  in  the  surrounding  plantations 
I  have  repeatedly  examined  those  nests  at  this  time,  and  found  them  built 
with  hair  and  wool.  Another  bird  frequently  seen  upon  the  backs  of  sheep 
and  cows,  here,  is  the  Jackdaw,  which,  being  a  stronger  bird,  appears  to 
annoy  sheep  and  cattle  much.  This  bird  builds  its  nest  in  chimneys,  and  in 
holes  in  the  old  trees  previously  mentioned. — J.  L.  C,  Argyleshire,  August 
30th,  1855. 


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A  POPULAE  MONTHLY  MAGAZINE, 

ILLUSTRATIVE    OF   THE 

ANIMAL,  VEGETABLE,   AND   MINEKAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    NUMEROUS    ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED   BY 

BEVERLEY  R.  MORRIS,  ESQ.,  A.  B.,  M.D.,  T.C.D., 

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PAOR. 

241 
247 
250 


CONTENTS. 

Notes  OQ  the  Rook.  fCorvus  frugilegus.J    By  S.  Stone,  Esq 

Domestic  Pets. — The  Common  Squirrel.     By  Wm.  Kidd,  Esq 

Crested  Cariaraa.  (Cariama  crlstata.)     By  Mr.  J.  0.  Haupek 

Notice  of  the  Species  of  Carabiis  occurring  around  London.    By  G.  Stockley,  Esq.  253 

Characteristics  of  Common  Birds.     By  O.  S.  Round,  Esq 254 

The  Propagation  of  Hardy  Trees  and  Shrubs 257 

A  Contrast.     By  G.  R.  Twinn,  Esq 260 

Summary  of  the  Weather  for  April  and  May,  1855.     By  Mr.  T.  Lister ib. 

Review 262 

Retrospect 263 

Miscellaneous  Notices    264 


It  is  requested  that  all  Communications  be  addressed  in  future 
to  B.  R.  MORRIS,  M.  D.,  38,  Pawcett-street,  Bishopwear- 
mouth,  Durham. 


NOTICES  TO  CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  up  to  October  20th,  from  Mr.  M.  Watcotx — J.  B. 
Davies,  Esq.— H.  H.  H. 

Contributions  have  been  received  up  to  October  20th,  from  E.  Wood,  Esq. — W.  Kidd, 
Esq. — Mr.  T.  Bedlington — Rev.  F.  O.  Morris — Jas.  Dalton,  Esq. — T.  S. — J.  Brown, 
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If  H.  H.  H.  will  address  a  line  to  E.  Charlesworth,  Esq.,  Museum,  York,  he  will  proba- 
bly get  all  the  information  he  requires. 

We  have  just  received  notice  of  the  occurrence  of  a  specimen  of  the  Esquimaux  Curlew 
(Numenius  horealis)  in  Scotland.     The  particulars  will  be  given  in  our  next. 

Errata  :  Page  228,  Hue    6  from  bottom — for  dust,  read  rust. 
„     229,     ,,    11 — for  these  offer,  read  there  appear. 
,,     ih.,      ,,    16 — for  name,  read  named. 
„     231,     „      4  from  bottom — for  Mc  Gillavey,  read  Macgillivray. 

Infusorial  Earths. — Dr.  Morris  would  feel  greatly  obliged  to  any  one  who  would  favour 
him  with  specimens  of  any  Infusorial  Earths,  mounted  or  unmounted ;  and  would  endeavour 
to  make  the  best  return  in  his  power. 

Bishopwearmouth,  August  1855. 

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241 
NOTES  ON  THE  ROOK.    (CORVUS  FRUGILEOUS.)         ^.^-x 

BY   S.   STONE,    ESQ.  /vik'^- 

PROM   OBSERVATIONS  MADE   DOKINO   THE   LATE   FROST.  I       '^'{^^ 

BY   JOHN    S.  STONE,   ESQ.  ^^^/.'RAl' 

On  tlie  IStli  ult.,  a  dense  fog  prevailed,  with  a  frosty  air,  which  had  the 
effect  of  incrusting  the  branches  of  trees  and  shrubs  with  rime ;  thus  form- 
ing one  of  those  charming  scenes  with  which,  when  the  sun  breaks  through 
and  dissipates  the  mist,  we  are  sometimes  in  winter  indulged,  as  a  set-off 
against  the  general  dreariness  and  gloom  of  that  season  as  compared  with 
the  other  quarters  of  the  year.  From  circumstances  like  this,  encourage- 
ment may  be  derived,  and  a  profitable  lesson  drawn  :  we  may  learn  not  to 
despair  when  either  our  temporal  or  spiritual  prospects  appear  dark  and 
gloomy ;  for  as  the  fog  lent  its  aid,  and  indeed  was  indispensable,  in  the 
production  of  a  picture  of  extreme  purity  and  beauty,  so  may  the  darkness 
and  obscurity  in  which  we  find  our  prospects  enveloped,  be  the  very  means 
of  their  becoming  brighter  and  more  glorious  than  before.  We  are  assured 
that  "  all  things  work  together  for  good  "  to  those  who  love  God.  Often,  too, 
are  we  shown,  that  "  out  of  evil "  He  can  "  bring  forth  good." 

In  the  evening,  the  fog  continuing,  and  even  increasing  in  density,  a  large 
flock  of  Rooks,  numbering  upwards  of  a  thousand,  took  up  a  position  in  the 
rookery  at  Tei-rick  House,  where  they  remained  during  the  night.  This 
circumstance  was  not  much  to  be  wondered  at,  seeing  that  the  prosecution 
of  an  aerial  voj'^age  in  such  a  state  of  the  atmosphere,  would  have  been  about 
as  discreet  an  undertaking  as  a  voyage  across  "  the  pathless  deep  "  without 
sun,  stars  or  compass  to  steer  b}^ :  to  have  foretold  the  result  in  either  case 
would  have  been  easy  enough,  and  that  without  the  aid  of  astrology.  It 
did,  however,  occasion  much  surprise,  when,  the  next  evening,  they  again 
made  their  appearance,  and  again  composed  themselves  for  the  night.  This 
they  have  continued  to  do  regularly  from  that  date  to  the  present  time. 
Whether  they  intend  to  make  this  a  permanent  roosting  place  or  not, 
remains  to  be  seen ;  but  from  its  proximity  to  a  public  road,  and  the  trees 
being  but  few  in  number,  and  occupying  but  a  very  limited  space  in  com- 
parison with  the  usual  roosting  places  of  this  species,  I  think  it  unlikely 
that  they  will  long  continue  their  niglitly  resorts  to  it ;  their  having  done 
so  at  this  season,  or  during  any,  except  the  breeding  season,  is  an  extra- 
ordinaiy — and,  as  far  as  I  am  aware- an  unprecedented  circvmistance,  and 
therefore  Avorth  placing  on  record. 

On  the  morning  of  the  2nd  inst.,  four  of  these  birds  were  found  lying  dead 
under  the  trees.  On  the  3rd,  seventeen,  and  on  the  4th,  eighteen  more  were 
found.  Suspecting  that  they  had  been  poisoned,  my  brother  opened  several 
of  them,  when  the  cause  of  death  was  fully  explained:  there  were  no  traces 

VOL.  V.  M 


242  NOTES  ON  THE  ROOK.       j  Jj 

of  poison  to  be  discovered,  but  like  many,  too  many  of  our  brave  fellows  in 
tlie  Crimea,  unless  rumour  has  in  this  instance  maintained  the  character  she 
of  old  acquired — and  let  us  hope,  for  the  sake  of  humanity,  that  she,  in 
some  measure  at  least,  may  have  done  so — they  had  been  rendered,  by  the 
Avant  of  sufficient  nourishment,  incapable  of  battling  with  the  cold,  and 
accordingly  had,  between  the  two,  been  compelled  to  succumb, — their  crops 
containing  scarcely  a  particle  of  food  of  any  kind. 

It  may  be  remarked,  that  the  ground  had  been  covered  with  snow  since 
the  18th  ult.,  and  on  the  28th,  a  self-registering  thermometer,  which  was 
placed  in  an  exposed  situation  near  the  ground,  within  a  few  yards  of  the 
rookery,  shewed  that  the  temperature  had,  during  the  previous  night,  been 
as  low  as  11°  Fahrenheit,  being  21°  below  the  freezing-point.  On  the  1st 
and  2nd  inst.,  it  was  found  to  have  been  17°  below  freezing.  On  the  8rd,  a 
partial  thaw  took  place,  which  had  the  effect  of  clearing  the  ground  of  snow 
to  some  extent,  Avhen  the  mortality  among  the  Rooks  ceased  for  a  short 
time.  On  the  8th  and  9th,  more  snow  fell,  and  on  the  morning  of  the  latter 
day,  four  more  Rooks  were  found  to  have  perished.  On  the  10th,  the  ther- 
mometer had  marked  8°,  and  the  lives  of  fifteen  more  Rooks- were  sacrificed, 
and  their  dead  bodies  picked  up  under  the  trees.  One  individual  was  found 
with  its  head  under  its  wing,  as  though  death  had  overtaken  it  in  its  sleep  ; 
it  would  also  appear  to  have  become  rigid  and  stiff,  probably  frozen,  before 
it  fell  from  its  perch :  several  more  wei'e  observed  to  leave  their  roosting 
place  in  the  morning  in  a  deplorably  weak,  and  well  nigh  famished  condition ; 
when,  in  order  to  mitigate  their  sufferings,  and  arrest,  as  far  as  possible,  the 
progress  of  that  dreadful  mortality  which  threatened  to  decimate  their  num- 
bers, my  brother  commenced  strewing  food  for  them  in  an  adjoining  field; 
they  fought  shy,  he  tells  me,  of  this  preferred  kindness  at  first,  appearing 
strongly  to  suspect  that  some  foul  play  was  intended ;  at  length,  however, 
the  horrors  of  famine  prevailed  over  their  other  fears,  which  they  have  now 
given  to  the  winds  ;  and  day  by  day  may  be  seen  discussing,  with  the  greatest 
composure,  and  an  equal  degree  of  relish,  their  morning  or  evening  meal. 

I  am  happy  in  being  able  to  record  that  my  brother  attained  the  object 
he  had  in  view  in  providing  them  with  food ;  for  although  a  few  more  victims 
were  afterwards  discovered,  they  were  evidently  such  as  had  become  so  much 
exhausted  previously  as  to  be  past  recovery.  The  only  thing  to  be  regretted 
is,  that,  as  an  agriculturist,  and  therefore  having  a  particular — by  which  may  be 
understood  a  pecuniary — as  well  as  a  general  interest  in  the  well-being  of  the 
Rook,  he  had  not  had  recourse  to  this  expedient  sooner,  as  a  still  greater 
number  of  valuable  lives  might  then  have  been  saved.  He  had,  from  the 
commencement  of  the  severe  weather,  provided  for  the  wants  of  the  smaller 
birds,  but  had  not  dreamt  that  the  Rooks  would  have  required  assistance  at 
so  early  a  period  of  the  frost ;  their  having  been  reduced  to  the  starvation 
point,  in  so  short  a  time  after  the  appearance  of  rigorous  weather,  is  a  most 


NOTES   ON   THE   ROOK.  243 

unusual  circumstance,  and  can  only  be  accounted  for  from  the  fact  that  the 
weather,  for  a  very  long  period  before  the  frost  set  in,  had  been  of  an  un- 
usually dry  character,  so  that  there  had  been  a  great  scarcity  of  the  land  of 
food  the  Rook  mostly  depends  upon— such  as  worms,  &c. — long  before  the 
supply  was  cut  oft'  by  the  frost,  and  still  more  completely  by  the  snow. 

On  the  evening  of  the  11th,  the  snow  had  been  driven  by  the  violence  of 
the  wind  from  oft"  the  open  fields  into  the  roads  and  hollows,  where  it  had 
accumulated  in  such  immense  and  overwhelming  masses,  as  utterly  to  im- 
pede travelling  for  several  days,  until  a  passage  had  been  cut  through  it;  but 
making  ample  amends  for  the  inconvenience  it  caused,  by  the  peculiar  and 
extraordinary  beauties  it  displayed, — the  wind,  in  its  eddying  course,  causing 
it  to  assume  every  possible  variety  of  form,  often  of  the  most  fantastic  kind. 
In  some  instances,  beautiful  architectural  designs  might  be  traced.  Arches 
were  reared,  tunnels  were  formed,  and  such  a  variety  of  wonderful  devices 
exliibited,  as  could  not  fail  to  arrest  the  attention,  and  excite  the  unbounded 
admiration,  of  every  lover  of  the  beautiful  in  Nature,  who  might  have  the 
good  fortune  to  behold  them.  The  whole  forming  a  companion  scene  to  the 
one  briefly  noticed  at  the  commencement  of  these  Notes,  but  far  exceeding 
it  in  grandeur  and  sublimity.  The  cold  had  increased  since  the  previous 
day,  the  thermometer  having  this  morning  marked  6°.  From  this  date,  there 
was  but  little  variation  in  the  temperature  until  the  18th,  when  the  frost  at- 
tained its  greatest  intensity,  the  mercury  having  fallen  exactly  to  Zero.  At 
this  time,  the  cold  was,  and  had  been  for  some  days  previously,  of  the  most 
searching  character,  freezing  both  by  day  and  night,  even  in  rooms  in  which 
constant  fires  had  been  kept.  It  now  began  gradually  to  decrease,  as  in- 
dicated by  the  thermometer,  till  on  the  24th  a  rapid  thaw  commenced,  which 
has  since  continued  and  apj)ears  to  have  become  general ;  and  thus  has  end- 
ed as  interesting,  if  not  as  severe,  a  frost  as  it  has  been  my  lot  to  remember. 

The  rookery  here  has  been  for  some  years  in  a  thriving,  and  latterly,  in  a 
I'apidly  increasing  condition.  Ten  or  twelve  years  ago,  there  were  but  about 
forty  nests.  Last  year,  they  numbered  two  hundred  and  thirty-seven ;  and 
it  is  to  be  hoped  there  will,  this  year,  be  a  further  increase,  notwithstanding 
the  recent  mortaUty  which  has  occurred.  A  rookery  is  not  only  productive 
of  infinite  amusement  to  those  who  maj^  be  located  in  its  vicinity,  but  by 
attentively  observing  the  habits  and  manners  of  its  sable  inhabitants,  it  may 
also  become  highly  instructive.  It  will  not  fail  to  be  perceived,  that  although 
occasional  squabbles  take  place,  yet,  upon  the  whole,  a  degree  of  order  is 
observed  which  even  the  best  forms  of  government  among  ourselves  fail  to 
produce ;  the  occupants  of  each  nest  are  mostly  seen  quietly  attending  to 
their  own  affairs,  without  intermeddling  with  those  of  their  neighbours, 
which  is  a  great  deal  more  than  can  be  said  of  any  community  of  men,  or 
women  either.  And  then  the  unbroken,  unchanging  affection  which  is  seen 
to  exist  between  husband  and  wife,  parents  and  off"8pring,  indicates  a  state 


244  NOTES  ON    THE   KOOK. 

of  connubial  felicity  wliicli  we  may  well  aspire  to ;  but  which,  fallen  and 
depraved  as  we  are,  inheriting  as  we  do  a  corrupt  nature,  slaves  as  we  arc 
to  evil  passions,  indulging  as  we  do  in  vicious  propensities,  addicted  as  we 
are  to  excesses  of  every  kind,  we  cannot  expect  to  attain.  Note  with  what 
constancy  the  male  bird  attends  to  his  dusky  partner  while  engaged  in  the 
task  of  incubation !  How  faithfully  he  supplies  her  wants !  And  mark, 
when  the  young  are  hatched,  how  unremitting  is  the  attention  bestowed  up- 
on them  by  both  the  parents !  Day  and  night  they  are  the  objects  of  their 
affectionate  and  unceasing  solicitude.  Mark,  too,  with  what  unmistakeable 
signs  of  gratitude  the  attentions  of  the  parent  birds  are  received.  How 
tremulous  becomes  each  little  voice,  as  though  the  utterer  were  overcome  with 
emotion,  while  expressing  its  thanks  for  the  food  lovingly  brought  and  ad- 
ministered to  it !  How  reproachful  to  us  must  be  the  sound !  Who  can 
listen  to  it  and  not  be  made  to  feel  that,  in  point  of  gratitude  and  filial  affec- 
tion, man  is  infinitely  exceeded  by  "  the  fowls  of  the  air  ?"  God's  severe, 
but,  we  may  be  sure,  just  reproof  of  his  chosen  people, — "  The  Ox  knoweth 
his  owner,  and  the  Ass  his  master's  crib ;  but  Israel  doth  not  know,  my 
people  doth  not  consider,"  may  as  justly  apply  to  us.  We  go  on,  regardless 
alike  of  judgments  and  of  mercies;  exhibiting  in  our  conduct  no  dread  of 
the  one — no  thankfulness  on  account  of  the  other. 

The  voice  of  the  Rook  is  capable  of  great  expression,  independent  of  its 
change  of  tone  with  the  change  of  season  :  this  any  one  may  remark,  as  my 
brother  informs  me  he  has  often  done,  by  lending  an  ear  to  the  bird's  dismal 
croak  on  a  miserably  cold  and  stormy  day  in  winter,  and  then  contrasting  it 
with  the  cheerful  "  caAv"  it  gives  utterance  to  when  the  weather  is  calm  and 
fine  at  that  season.  The  foi-mer  note  as  clearly  expresses  the  bird's  feelings 
as  though  she  articulated  the  words — "  Dear  me !  what  an  uncomfortable 
day  to  be  sm^e  ;  it  may  be  wrong  to  complain,  but  really  it  makes  one  feel 
extremely  wretched  "  And  the  latter  note  as  plainly  as  though  she  delivered 
herself  of  this  strain  :  "  Well,  this  is  delightful  weather  for  the  time  of  year! 
beautiful!  I  quite  enjoy  it!  It  makes  one  feel  '  uncommonly  jolly.'  But 
that  I  do  not  happen  to  possess  a  musical  voice,  nor  belong  to  a  musical 
familj',  my  feelings  would  vent  themselves  in  song." 

My  brother  has  remarked  it  as  strange,  that  although,  during  the  late 
visitation,  many  dead  bodies  were  left  suspended  among  the  branches  of  the 
ti-ees,  the  survivors  appeared  to  take  no  notice  whatever  of  them ;  this,  he 
tliinks,  is  to  be  attributed  to  the  instinctive  knowledge  these  birds  must 
possess,  that  death  had  resulted  from  natural  causes,  and  in  this  I  quite 
agree  with  him :  for  had  it  been  produced  by  violence,  the  sight  of  the  dead 
bodies  of  their  companions  would  have  occasioned  no  small  amount  of  con- 
sternation, a  general  commotion,  and  no  end  of  uproar ;  there  would  have 
been  literally  "  a  row  in  the  rookery,"  and  "  a  jolly  row"  too. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark,  that  although  a  number  of  Jackdaws,  as  usual, 


NOTES   ON   THE    ROOK.  245 

attended  this  flock  of  Rooks,  sharing  their  "bed  and  board,"  not  one  of 
them  was  found  to  have  perished.  Did  a  light  heart  carry  our  friend  Jack 
through  ?  Light-heartedness  is  known  to  go  a  great  way,  as  it  also  did  in 
Shakspere's  time ;  thus  one  of  his  characters,  Antolycus  by  name,  in  the 
Winter's  Tale,  Act  4,  Scene  2 ;  sings,  or  did  sing, 

"  A  merry  heart  goes  all  the  day, 
Your  sad  tires  in  a  inile-a." 

And  a  right  merry  heart  has  Jack,  if  his  incessant  chatter  may  be  deemed 
sufficient  evidence.  As  the  Barrister  before  the  Judge,  so  the  Jackdaw  in 
presence  of  the  staid  and  sober  Rooks,  although  he  may  fail  to  rivet  tlie 
attention,  will  nevertheless  be  sure  to  succeed  in  making  himself  heard.  And 
to  carry  the  parallel  a  step  further :  if  the  loquacity  in  the  case  of  bird  or 
Barrister  does  not  altogether  interest  or  amase  the  hearer,  it  at  any  rate 
serves  greatly  to  amuse  the  utterer,  if  we  may  be  allowed  to  judge  by  the 
self-complacency  which  usually  accompanies  its  deliveiy. 

In  concluding  these  Notes,  I  would  offer  a  remark  or  two  upon  those 
annual  exhibitions  which  take  place  at  most  rookeries — the  massacre  of  the 
young  birds.  There  are  among  us  time-honoured  customs  which  we  should 
regret  to  see  discontinued ;  but  assuredly  this  is  not  of  the  number,  for  of 
this  it  may  truly  be  remarked — 

"  It  is  a  custom 
More  honoured  in  the  breach  than  the  observance." 

Rook-pie  may,  for  aught  I  know,  be  all  very  Avell — veiy  savouiy,  and  very 
delicate  eating ;  and  equally  savouiy,  for  anything  I  know,  may  be  a  steak 
from  off"  a  nice  fat  specimen  of  that  docile  and  beautiful  creature,  the  Equus 
cahallus  of  authors.  I  am  not  sorry  that  I  cannot  speak  with  certainty  or 
from  experience  upon  this  point.  One  great  objection,  perhaps  not  the  only 
one,  to  the  flesh  of  this  creature  being  cut  up  into  steaks,  made  into  pasties, 
or  converted  into  sausage-meat,  is,  that  the  services  of  the  animal  render  it 
far  too  valuable  to  be  slaughtered  for  the  pui'pose  ;  though,  as  regards  the 
latter-named  article,  there  are,  it  must  be  acknowledged,  persons  of  a  sus- 
picious turn  of  mind,  who  are  unreasonable  enough  to  harbour  the  absurd 
notion,  or  people  who  are  mischievous  enough  to  hint  at  the  possibility  that, 
when  casualties  occur,  some  little  traffic  in  this  'Equine  "  matiere"  maj'^  be 
carried  on  between  those  respectable  gentlemen  and  accomplished  "  artistes '' 
professionally  termed  Knackers,  and  the  equally  respectable  and  not  less 
accomplished  vendors  of  sausage-meat.  I  have  but  one  remark  to  make 
upon  this  delicate  subject — a  subject  I  should  not  have  ventured  to  intro- 
duce, but  that,  by  its  introduction,  an  opportunity  is  afforded  me  of  making 
the  remark — which  is,  that  if  the  services  of  the  Rook  were  properly  under- 
stood and  appreciated,  the  veiy  same  objection  to  its  being  made  into  pie 
would  be  found  to  exist,  as  exists  in  the  case  of  the  four-footed  animal 


246  NOTES   ON    THE    ROOK. 

previously  alluded  to, — its  valuable  services  would  cause  it  to  be  considered 
far  too  expensive  an  article  for  tlie  purpose. 

What  intense  agony  must  the  fond  parents  endure  on  witnessing  the 
wholesale  slaughter  of  the  scarcely-fledged  young  birds,  whose  bodies,  ac- 
cording to  annual  custom,  are  made  to  serve  as  targets  for  the  merciless 
gunner  to  practise  upon.  How  terrible  to  the  sight  must  be  the  flash  !  How 
dreadful  in  the  ears  of  the  unhappy  parents  must  sound  the  report  from  each 
piece,  followed  as  that  flash  and  that  report  is,  by  a  scream  of  pain  from  the 
wretched  victim,  as  Avith  convulsive  energy,  or  with  the  tenacity  of  despair, 
it  clutches  and  clings  to  the  branch  previous  to  its  fall.  How  must  the  sight 
of  the  bleeding  bodies  of  the  young  cause  the  hearts  of  the  parents  to  bleed ! 
Poor  persecuted  birds !  Methinks  I  hear  ye  exclaim,  in  the  bitterness 
of  your  grief  and  distress,  as  ye  wheel  round  and  rotmd  in  circles,  powerless 
to  save  or  even  to  aid  your  hapless  off'spring, — Monsters  of  ingratitude  !  is 
this  the  return  ye  make  us  for  the  unnumbered  benefits  we  daily  and  hourly 
bestow  upon  your  race  ?  Is  it  for  this  we  have  cleared  your  fields  of  ginibs, 
and  thus  prevented  the  destruction  of  your  crops  ?  Was  it  to  have  our  little 
ones  murdered  in  cold  blood,  their  bodies  pierced,  their  limbs  broken  or  torn 
asunder,  that  we  nursed,  tended,  and  fed  them — fed  them  with  the  very 
creatures  which,  if  allowed  to  multiply  and  increase  without  interruption, 
would  have  worked  your  utter  ruin.  Oh !  ingrates  as  ye  are,  and  blind  to 
your  own  interests  !  from  the  height  at  which  we  soar  above  you,  we  look 
down  with  amazement  and  horror  ! — horror  at  the  bloody  deed,  the  heartless, 
wholesale  murders  ye  are  committing ;  and  amazement  at  the  reckless  folly, 
the  despite  to  yourselves  ye  exhibit  in  that  deed.  But  for  the  horrible  out- 
rage upon  us,  in  the  cruel  destruction  of  our  unoffending  off'spring,  of  which 
ye  are  guilty,  we  could  almost  find  it  in  our  hearts  to  pity  you.  Revenge  is 
not  in  our  nature,  nor  have  we  need  of  revenge.  Acts  of  cruelty,  deeds  of 
blood,  have  at  all  times,  and  will  to  all  time,  avenge  themselves  The  massa- 
cre of  our  little  ones  will  be  amply  avenged — avenged  in  the  failui-e  of  your 
turnip,  mangold,  and  other  root  crops,  from  the  ravages  of  myriads  of  Grubs 
and  Caterpillars,  whose  numbers  these  little  ones  would  have  kept  down,  had 
ye  not  ruthlessly  destroyed  them.  Avenged  in  the  loss  of  your  cereals  by 
whole  armies  of  Wireworms  attacking  the  root.  Avenged  by  troops  of  Slugs 
destroying  the  blade  and  young  shoots  of  your  plants.  And  when  this  has 
come  to  pass,  ye  will  perchance  repent  you  of  your  cruelty,  your  rashness 
and  folly ;  and  Avhile  mourning  over  your  own  loss,  will  peradventure  be- 
think ye  of  ours ;  and  wish  that  ye  could  restore  the  life  which  God,  for 
your  benefit,  graciously  "  gave,"  but  which  ye,  with  the  basest  ingratitude, 
and  most  wanton  cruelty  have  "  taken  away." 

February  21th,  1855. 


247 
DOMESTIC  PETS.— THE  COMMON  SQUIRREL. 

BY   WILLIAM   KIDD,   ESQ. 

Hard  is  that  heart  by  nature,  and  »nflt 

For  human  fellowship,  (as  being  void 

Of  sympathy,  and  dead  alike 

To  love  and  friendship  both,)  which  is  not  pleased 

With  sight  of  animals  enjoying  life. 

Nor  feels  their  happiness  augment  his  own.— Cowpeb. 

A  MONTHLY  gossip  with  thosG  who  love  God, — and,  by  a  natural  conse- 
quence, his  creatvires, — is  a  treat  to  me  of  tlie  highest  order.  I  say  monthly, 
because  unfortunately^  The  Naturalist  is  published  at  that  needful  interval 
of  time ;  and  is  the  only  existing  work  that  I  am  acquainted  with,  which  com- 
bines a  love  of  nature  with  profound  reverence  and  a  child-like  filial  fear  for 
the  great  and  good  Father,  by  whose  liberal  hand  we  are  all  so  bountifully 
supplied,  and  our  lives  rendered  happy.  The  love  of  God  does  indeed  bring 
with  it  that  "  peace  which  passeth  all  human  understanding  !" 

Imagine  me,  then,  on  the  morning  of  last  "  Magazine-day,"  presenting 
myself  (soon  after  eight)  at  the  door  of  my  London  bookseller  for  an  early 
copy  of  The  Naturalist.  Still  further  must  your  imagination  extend.  You 
must  behold  me,  in  your  mind's  eye,  hieing  off,  well  pleased  with  my  pur- 
chase, to  the  Harrow  hills.  There,  seated  in  the  churchj^ard  on  an  elevated 
tombstone,  which  I  selected  for  its  sentiment — there  was  engraven  on  it 
"  God  be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner !" — did  I  let  my  thoughts  nestle  between 
your  two  (ever)-green  leaves ;  looking  round,  from  time  to  time,  upon  seven 
distinct  counties  that  lay  immediately  below  me.  What  those  thoughts  Avere, 
collectively  and  individually,  you  cannot  know, — simply  because  my  pen  is 
unable  to  trace  them  on  paper.  Suffice  it,  that  though  they  are  not  trans- 
ferable, yet  were  they  truly  delightful.  I  felt  purely  happy  myself,  and 
yearned  to  make  all  the  world  (if  possible)  sharers  in  my  happy  feelings. 
This  is  an  enviable  frame  of  mind  to  be  in,  and  not  always  to  be  commanded 
at  will.  Alas,  for  our  selfishness  ;  that  too  often  blinds  us  to  our  veiy  best 
interests ! 

The  morning  was  one  of  great  beauty ;  the  mighty  sun  had  done  his  part 
in  dispersing  early  the  dews  of  the  previous  night.  The  birds  (recently 
clean  moulted)  were  abroad,  singing  their  anthems  sotto  voce.  The  Robins 
(my  special  pets)  were,  of  course,  my  musical  body-guard.  The  air  was  pure, 
the  landscape  "  ever  changing — always  new,"  the  trees  slightly  bent  before 
the  whispering  winds ;  and  ever  and  anon  some  simple  specimen  of  Nature's 
lovely  wardrobe  (now  gradually  being  laid  aside  as  no  longer  wanted)  fell 
listlessly  at  my  feet.  A  holy  calm  one  moment,  was  broken  through  the  next 
by  a  passing  breeze,  which,  gently  fanning  the  cheek,  imparted  to  it  the 
natural  glow  of  health.  Here,  then,  "  I  and  Nature  sat."  Leaving  you  to 
picture  the  pair  of  us  enjoying  The  Naturalist  in  company,  let  me  now 


248  DOMESTIC   PETS. — THE    COMMON    SQUIRREL. 

offer  a  few  comments  upon  one  of  its  Papers, — the  opening  one,  which  treats 
of  the  SquiiTel.  I  am  anxious  to  secure  a  patient  hearing,  whilst  I  enlarge  a 
little  upon  his  good  qualities  ;  also  to  enter  upon  a  friendly  defence  of  what 
our  good  friend,  Mr.  Mcintosh,  so  remorselessly  repudiates  under  the 
cognomen  of  "  treadmills."     Gently,  good  Sir ;  gently ! 

The  Squirrel  (Sciurus  vulgaris)  has  ever  been  one  of  my  special  pets.  My 
habitation  is  ornamented  by  a  variety  of  his  tribe,  formerly  choice  com- 
panions of  many  a  happy  hour,  but  now  alas !  looking  down  with  inexpres- 
sive eyes  from  behind  a  screen  of  transparent  glass.  There  they  hang — "  in 
memoriam  !  "  Nor  would  I  remove  any  of  these,  or  other  of  my  much-loved 
pets,  thus  embalmed  for  memory  to  dwell  on.  They  recall  "  the  light  of  other 
days  "  so  sweetly,  that  I  seem,  while  gazing  on  them,  to  live  that  part  of  my 
happy  life  over  again. 

Pets  of  all  kinds  are  to  be  commended,  whether  they  be  selected  from  the 
lower  World  or  the  higher.  We  must  love  something.  And  the  more  of  love- 
able  things,  the  bettef,  say  I.  Our  hearts  were  made  to  love.  Love  is  the 
fulfilling  of  every  law — human  or  divine. 

But  of  "  dumb  pets  indoors  "  I  am  becoming  shy.  They  generally  meet 
with  some  sad  fate,  and  it  is  disastrous  to  see  them  perish  without  being 
able  to  save  them.  I  cultivate  them  now  in  the  garden  ;  invite  them  to  enter 
my  window,  and  to  make  my  house  their  home.  "  Tenants  at  will "  are  they. 
They  enter  and  depart  as  their  fancy  dictates.  I  love  my  little  guests 
dearly,  and  they  love  me ;  and  as  the  season  is  now  at  hand  when  I  shall 
have  lots  of  them  to  j)rovide  for,  my  Christmas  will  (D.V.)  pass  merrily.  But 
to  the  Squirrel. 

Let  all  j'our  readers  who  would  have  a  pet  Squirrel,  procure  a  young  one. 
Those  sold  in  our  London  streets,  and  by  tricky  dealers,  are,  for  the  most 
part,  old  ones,  with  their  teeth  filed  down  to  prevent  them  biting.  They  are  of 
a  spiteful  disposition,  and  not  easily  reconcileable  to  a  cage.  Young  ones 
are  readily  tamed  by  a  person  possessed  of  an  affectionate  heart ;  and  once 
tamed,  they  are  won  for  ever.  Their  master  or  mistress  may  do  anything 
with  them.  They  will  take  no  offence,  show  no  resentment,  but  bear  all  in 
good  part.  Who  amongst  us  will  submit  to  teasing  thus  patiently, — and 
show  a  loving  spirit  under  similar  provocation?  Should  we  not  bite? 
Question ! 

In  my  earlier  days,  whilst  leading  a  life  of  single-blessedness,  and  keeping 
house  on  my  own  account,  I  made  Squirrels  my  associates.  They  had  the 
free  and  undisturbed  inin  of  my  bachelor  rooms.  And  fine  games  they  plaj'ed 
up !  My  newspapers  were,  of  course,  reduced  to  the  smallest  of  "  vulgar 
fractions,"  and  scattered  all  over  my  Turkey  carpet.  All  sorts  of  small  orna- 
ments were  transferred  from  the  mantel-shelf  to  the  top  of  my  long  crimson 
curtains ;  lumps  of  sugar  were  planted  in  cveiy  conceivable  odd  corner ; 
bread,  butter,  and  biscuits,  too,  were  ever  discernible  behind  the  cover  of 


DOMESTIC   PETS. — THE    COMMON    SQUIBREL.  249 

Isome'book.  I  pretended,  of  course,  to  punish  the  offenders,  and  tried  to 
look  angry, — raising  my  voice  as  if  in  fury.  A  long  wand  of  cedar  in  my 
hand,  gave  warning  of  the  rod  in  pickle.  But  who  could  be  cross  with  such 
merry  little  tricksters  ?  Not  I.  So  whistling  to  the  little  offenders,  a  signal 
that  they  might  descend,  (they  invariably  flew  for  refuge  into  the  tops  of  the 
crimson  curtains,)  down  they  would  come  to  breakfast,  dinner,  or  tea ;  first 
running  along  my  arm,  and  licking  my  cheek  with  fond  affection  and  a  veiy 
rough  tongue.  To  describe  the  gambols  and  playfulness  of  my  little  friends 
would  be  impossible.  They  were  as  varied  as,  to  me,  they  were  delightful. 
One  of  my  pets  was  always  to  be  found  under  my  pillow,  whither  he  retired, 
a  la  bonne  Jieure,  accompanied  by  two  or  three  Spanish  nuts.  On  going  to 
roost,  I  looked  for  my  silk-coated  playfellow  as  a  matter  of  course  ;  there  he 
was,  tucked  up  so  cosily  beside  his  nuts  !  A  kiss  from  him  was  indispens- 
able; and  I  returned  it  with  interest  before  placing  him  in  his  own  little  bed 
for  the  night.     Did  we  not  love  each  other  ! 

Here,  let  me  observe,  that  the  Squirrel  can  be,  and  is,  very  spiteful,  if 
teased  or  annoyed  by  a  stranger.  A  cruel  boy  or  girl  plaj'ing  any  tricks  with 
him,  would  pay  a  severe  penalty  for  their  rashness.  I  always  encouraged 
my  Squirrels  to  defend  themselves  in  this  way ;  and  never  punished  them 
for  practising,  successfully,  "  the  art  of  self-defence."  When  they  do  bite, 
be  it  known,  it  is  "  Skuggy — Jiis  mark  !  " 

Not  being  willing  to  trench  too  much  upon  your  valuable  space,  I  will  now 
cry  a  truce  to  anecdotes  (how  many  hundreds  could  I  relate  !)  of  the  Squirrel, 
and  say  a  few  words  about  the  rotary  cages  against  which  Mr.  Mcintosh 
and  Sir  George  Head  have  spoken  in  such  dispraise.  I  do  so  deferentially 
to  those  gentlemen,  and  would  modestly  give  my  reasons  for  a  difference  of 
opinion. 

The  Squirrel  is  a  lively  animal.  In  a  state  of  nature  he  is  for  ever  flying 
from  tree  to  tree.  A  life  of  quietness  is  to  him  a  life  of  misery.  Mercury 
himself  was  never  more  mercurial.  I  have  tried  the  "  quiet  house,"  alluded 
to  by  Mr.  Mcintosh.  The  inmate  has  scaled  its  walls,  turned  somersaults 
in  it,  exerted  all  his  powers  to  create  a  perceptible  movement  in  it.  Disap- 
pointed and  vexed,  I  have  ever  found  him  retire  to  his  inner  chamber,  and 
there  mope. 

To  satisfy  mj^self  fully  on  this  point,  I  have  frequently  placed  cages  of 
both  descriptions  on  the  floor;  first  letting  all  my  playfellows  scamper  off  in 
the  wild  pursuit  of  liberty.  Anon,  I  have  seen  them  return,  one  by  one,  to 
the  rotary  cages,  and  therein  perform,  with  the  most  evident  delight,  a  series 
of  revolutions  at  railway  speed.  All  this  testified  the  immense  pleasure  they 
derived  therefrom.  They  sought  it  eagerly,  constantly,  and  habitually.  Their 
performances  over,  they  would  stop  the  wheel,  run  up  my  legs,  salute  my 
cheek,  and  dance  a  minuet  on  my  head. 

The  ci'uelty  of  a  rotary  cage  consists  in  placing  a  uild  Squirrel  in  it,  and 

SI  3 


•■iSO  DOMESTIC   PETS. — THE   COMMON   SQUIRREL. 

then  ten-ifying  him  whilst  he  plies  the  wheel ;  thus  perpetuating  its  first 
impression,  which  is  that  of  terror.  Accustom  your  little  harlequins  to 
gymnasticise  in  these  rotary  cages,  and  only  see  how  they  will  enjoy  the  idea 
of  showing  off  their  powers  of  locomotion  ! 

I  cannot  conclude  this  Papei',  without  cordially  thanking  Mr.  Mcintosh 
for  his  unwearied  exertions  in  exposing  the  ignorance  of  those  people  who 
ivill  write  and  tell  of  what  they  do  not  understand.  The  Squirrel  carnivorous! 
What  a  monstrous  idea !  No,  no.  Give  him  nuts,  apples,  and  fruits  of  all 
kinds,  and  he  Avill  never  "  make  a  beast  of  himself." 

I  only  wish  that  our  race  were  equally  clean  feeders, — equally  temperate, 
equally  rational  and  affectionate ;  and,  let  me  add,  equally  good  companions. 
Truth  compels  me  to  say,  that  in  the  lower  World  I  have  often  found  much 
better  company  than  in  the  higher.  And  for  affection, — give  me,  all  the 
World  over,  that  of  a  bird  or  dumb  animal  before  any  other.  It  is  as  con- 
stant as  it  is  disinterested  ;  and  it  may  at  all  times  be  depended  on.  Meet 
when  you  may,  you  are  always  welcome.  Time  only  adds  to  this  affection  in 
all  its  purity. 

Who  of  us  dares  say  as  much  for  the  affection  of  any  human  being  ?  I  ask 
a  question  to  which  I  shall,  alas,  never  receive  an  answer ! 

New  Road,  Hammersmith,  Oct.  11th,  1855. 


CRESTED  CARIAMA.  (CARIAMA  CRISTATA.) 

BY   MR.   J.   0.    HARPER. 

The  genei'al  colour  of  this  bird  is  an  earthy  brown  on  the  upper  parts, 
with  fine  zigzag  markings  of  a  dai-ker  tint,  while  the  lower  parts  are  white  ; 
wing-feathers  blackish,  finely  barred  with  white  lines,  dotted  with  black ; 
beak,  coral  red,  a  light  crest,  consisting  of  a  few  disunited  feathers,  forms  an 
ornamental  tuft  on  the  front  of  the  head,  and  advances  on  the  base  of  the 
bill,  overshadowing  it;  space  around  the  eye  naked,  colour  of  which  is  light 
blue,  this  nakedness  reaching  nearly  to  the  upper  mandible.  Iris  yelloAv ; 
the  upper  eyelid  is  fringed  with  long  dark  lashes ;  and  the  neck  of  this  bird 
is  furnished  with  elongated  loose  barbed  feathers,  which  it  has  the  power 
of  elevating  to  a  considerable  extent  when  excited  or  frightened.  The 
legs  are  very  long  and  slender,  toes  short,  hind  toe  minute  and  placed 
rather  high  up  the  tarsus.  Tail  of  moderate  length  and  rounded.  Tarsi 
and  toes  orange ;  claws  black.  Total  length  of  this  specimen,  thirtj'-three 
inches. 


CRESXED    CARIAMA.  251 

Habits.  It  is  perhaps  between  the  Screamers,  Trumpeters,  (Psophia,)  and 
the  Cranes,  that  this  remarkable  bird  must  be  placed.  Inhabiting  the  great 
solitary  mountain-plains,  surrounded  by  forests,  which  extend  over  a  large 
portion  of  Brazil,  yielding  a  dwelling-place  to  this  bird  (it  is  also  found,  but 
more  rarely,  in  Paraguay)  where  its  loud  sonorous  voice  breaks  the  silence 
of  the  desert ;  it  is  almost  always  on  the  watch,  and  very  difficult  to  ap- 
proach ;  it  is  also  an  extremely  shy  bird,  stalking  slowly  over  the  jilain,  it 
descries  some  intruder  at  a  distance,  and  in  a  moment  decides  that  it  will 
remain  or  fly.  Those  who  have  had  the  best  opportunities  of  observing 
these  birds  in  their  native  wilds,  assert  that  their  capture  is  accomplished 
with  considerable  difficultj- :  as  soon  as  it  perceives  that  it  is  pursued,  it  sets 
off  with  great  rajjidity  followed  by  the  horseman,  and,  like  the  Ostrich,  so 
rapid  is  its  course,  with  many  turns  and  \vindings,  that  it  is  not  till  after 
a  long  pursuit,  that  the  bird,  wearied  out,  crouches  or  hides  itself  in  some 
friendly  bush  or  tree, — and  till  such  time  as  this  happen,  the  jjursuer  in 
vain  seeks  to  use  his  fowling  piece  or  lasso. 

The  Cariama  is  said  to  feed  on  reptiles,  insects,  and  seeds  in  its  wild  state, 
but  in  confinement,  it  will  not  refuse  Indian  corn,  and,  occasionally,  small 
pieces  of  flesh.  It  flies  badly,  and  rarely  (if  closely  pressed)  takes  wing. 
Wild  as  this  bird  is,  it  is  easily  domesticated,  and  peaceably  associates  with 
other  tenants  in  his  cage.  The  flesh  is  described  as  palatable ;  it  is  however 
rarely  used  as  food  by  the  Brazilians. 

The  nest  is  said  to  be  composed  of  dry  sticks  and  branches  covered  with 
dung,  and  placed  upon  a  low  or  moderately  high  tree.  The  eggs  are  gener- 
ally two  in  number,  sometimes,  but  rarely  three,  and  white. 

Digestive  organs.  The  tongue  of  tliis  bird  measures  one  inch  and  a  quarter 
in  length,  being  rounded  at  the  tip  and  horny,  having  a  row  of  papillae  at 
its  base,  and  measui-ing  in  width  at  this  part,  four-twelfths  of  an  inch. 

Trachea,  in  length,  nine  inches  and  a  half,  six-twelfths  of  an  inch  in 
breadth  at  its  commencement,  continuing  the  same  calibre  to  the  extent  of 
its  caitilaginous  rings ;  the  remainder  of  trachea  of  nearly  equal  breadth, 
(which  is  about  four-twelfths  of  an  inch,)  having  two  powerful  muscles  at- 
tached at  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch  above  its  bronchial  division. 

Bronchi  composed  of  twelve  distinct  rings. 

Hyoid  bones  greatly  developed,  with  powerful  muscles  attached. 

(Esophagus  extremely  villous,  of  nearly  equal  circumference  through  its 
entire  length  (measuring,  when  distended,  three  inches.) 

Proventriculous  belt  one  inch  and  a  quarter  in  depth,  the  glandules  of 
which  are  highly  developed. 

Gizzard  of  moderate  power ;  in  length  two  inches  and  a  quarter,  width 
one  inch  and  a  quarter,  depth  one  inch  and  eleven-twelfths  of  an  inch  (this 
organ,  upon  dissection,  contained  several  large  stones,  swallowed  for  the 
purpose  of  aiding  digestion.) 


353  CRESTED   CARIAMA. 

Pylorus  situated  immediately  behind  tlie  latter  organ. 

Length  of  intestines  two  feet  six  inches,  of  small  and  nearly  equal  calibre 
through  their  entire  length,  measuring  at  their  extreme  breadth,  four-twelfths 
of  an  inch. 

Caecal  appendages  highly  developed,  varying  from  eight-twelfths  to  five- 
twelfths  of  an  inch  when  inflated  :  in  length  seven  inches  and  a  half;  in  form 
they  are  first  bulging,  then  contracted — again  bulging,  then  contracting 
again. 

Cloaca  not  examined,  being  injured  by  decomposition. 

Osteological  peculiarities.  The  skeleton  of  this  singular  bird  may  be  said  to 
be  composed  of  four  distinct  orders  of  birds.  The  cranium  is  similar  in 
form  and  character  to  that  of  the  Golden  Eagle,  rather  longer  in  proportion 
to  its  breadth ;  the  upper  mandible  is  much  hooked,  and  slightly  overlapping 
the  under.  Nostrils  oval,  septum  dividing  the  orbits  perforated  by  a  single 
oval  foramen  ;  the  bone  extending  from  the  base  of  the  beak,  to  be  attached 
to  the  OS  quadratum,  (by  some,  termed  the  zygomatic  arch,)  is  slender,  par- 
ticularly so  in  its  centre;  supraocular  bone  prominent;  length  of  entire 
cranium,  four  inches  and  four-twelfths  of  an  inch;  beak  one  inch  and  a 
quarter,  breadth  across  frontal  bone  one  inch  and  a  quarter ;  occipital  region 
prominent.  Cei'vical  vertebrae  thirteen  in  number,  (including  the  atlas,)  the 
bodies  of  which  are  stout  and  broad, — the  first  four  rather  short,  the  remain- 
der elongated,  having  rather  long  transverse  processes.  Dorsal  vertebrae 
six  in  number,  the  fourth  and  fifth  anchylosed  at  their  upper  extremities. 
Caudal  vertebrae  eight  in  number,  the  last  very  broad,  flat,  and  triangular. 
Eibs  seven  in  number  on  either  side,  the  first  extremely  small,  the  second 
one  inch  longer  than  the  former,  these  are  rounded  and  free ;  the  remaining 
five,  with  their  sternal  portions,  are  stout  and  broad,  the  inner  processes  of 
medium  size  and  anchylosed.  There  is  also  a  rib,  in  a  rudimentaiy  state, 
attached  to  the  sternal  portion  of  the  last  rib  which  has  no  process.  Ster- 
num, in  profile,  resembling  that  of  a  Macaw,  having  its  crest  elevated,  body 
broad,  posterior  margin  narrow,  and  perforated  by  a  single  sinus  on  either 
side,  which  is  filled  with  a  membrane.  Furcula  weak,  the  curve  of  which 
is  directed  outwards,  having  no  process  at  the  union  of  its  ciura;  clavicle 
short,  stout,  and  spreading  little ;  scapula  broad,  short,  and  abruptly 
rounded  at  its  extremity.  Bones  of  the  wing  similar  in  form  to  those  of  the 
common  Pheasant ;  femur  stout,  rounded,  nearly  straight ;  tibia  very  long, 
fibula  gradually  tapering  and  extending  four  and  a  half  inches  on  the  outer 
side  of  the  tibial  bone ;  tarsus  of  nearly  the  same  length  as  the  tibia,  de- 
pressed and  nearly  straight ;  three  toes  before,  with  a  minute  one  behind 
placed  about  one  inch  and  a  half  up  the  tarsus,  all  furnished  with  claws, 
Avhich  ai'e  Ion"  and  much  cui'ved. 


CRESTED   CARIAMA. 


253 


Length  of 

Cervical  Vertebrae 
Dorsal  „ 

Caudal  „ 

Sacrum 
Clavicle 
Sternum 
Humerus 
Radius 
Ulna    . 

Metacarpal  Bone 
1st  digit 
1st  phalanx  , 
2nd     „ 


Inches. 

•  7| 
.  3 

.  2 

•  H 

.  2 

.  3§ 

•  H 

.  3/j 

•  3| 

•  1| 
.  Oi 
.  Oi 
.  0* 


Length  of  Inches. 

Femur  SJ 

Tibia 8 

Fibula 4  j 

Tarsus VJ 

Middle  Toe  .      2J  in.         Claw    .  ^\ 

Outer  Toe    .       IJ  „       .  -r'ij 

Inner  Toe    .      l-[\  „      .  i% 

Hind  Toe     .      OJ  „      .  t'? 


NOTICE  OF  THE  SPECIES  OF  CAKABUS,  OCCURRING  AROUND 

LONDON. 

B-X  G.  STOCKLEY,  ESQ. 


If  this  notice  should  prove  acceptable  to  the  pages  of  your  interesting 
publication,  in  my  next  communication  I  will  forward  a  similar  one  of  the 
species  of  Chrysomela  and  Coccinella,  that  I  have  met  with  in  the  same 
locality. 

Of  the  sixteen  species  of  this  genus,  according  to  Shuckard,  (seventeen  of 
some  authors,)  I  have  met  with  but  eight  in  my  rambles  in  this  vicinity, 
which  I  have  assiduously  examined ;  for  the  order  to  which  they  belong  was, 
I  believe,  about  the  first  that  engaged  my  attention  in  this  instructive  pur- 
suit, as  it  has  doubtless  done  many  of  your  readers,  often,  perhaps,  on 
account  of  the  facility  of  their  capture  and  preservation. 

Cardbus  violaceus.  A  pretty  generally  distributed  species,  occurring  more 
in  lanes  and  meadows  than  woods  ;  not  uncommon  at  the  foot  of  old  walls 
around  fields. 

C.  nemoralis.  In  this  locality,  a  very  abundant  species  ;  common  in  lanes 
in  spring  and  autumn. 

C.  catenulatus.  A  very  common  species  in  woods,  as  the  former  is  in  lanes. 
In  March  1847,  I  found  about  a  dozen  hybemating  at  the  root  of  a  tree  in 
Hainault  forest, 

C.  monilis.  Common  at  the  foot  of  old  walls,  lanes,  &c.,  especially  in 
autumn. 

C.  consitus.  Found  in  company  with  the  preceding,  which  it  somewhat 
resembles,  but  is  smaller.    It  appears  to  be  scarce  in  this  distxict. 


864  NOTICE    OF   THE    SPECIES   OF   CARABDS. 

G.  granulatus.  This  species  appears  to  be  confined  to  marshy  districts,  as 
those  around  Hackney,  &c.  I  have  never  yet  met  with  it  in  lanes,  except 
bordering  on  such  localities,  where  it  is  certainly  not  common. 

G.  arvensis.  This  pretty  insect  occurs  in  May,  on  Wanstead  Heath ;  the 
only  spot  where  I  have  as  yet  observed  it,  and  there  but  sparingly. 

G.  purjpurascens.  It  was  in  the  spring  of  1852,  when  I  first  met  with  a 
species,  in  a  field  by  Temple  Mills,  which  I  take  to  be  this  insect.  It  is  a 
very  handsome  specimen,  and  agrees  somewhat  with  the  description  of  the 
same  as  figured  and  described  in  the  second  number  of  the  "  Cabinet  of 
British  Entomology,"  but  not  with  the  figure ;  which,  if  the  blue  edging  was 
taken  from  the  thorax,  would  not  be  unlike  the  C.  violaeens.  But  it  is  not  to 
be  wondered  at,  when  we  consider  the  difiiculty  of  conveying  the  delicate 
tints  of  Nature  to  paper,  even  in  the  higher  department  of  her  works ;  how 
much  more  so,  then,  in  those  beautiful  colours  that  are  met  with  on  such 
numbers  of  the  insect  world.  But  in  spite  of  this  drawback,  it  was  a  highly 
useful  work,  and  I  much  regret  its  discontinuance. 

The  neighbourhood  of  London  seems  to  oifer  a  fair  number  of  species  of 
this  genus,  as  will  be  seen  by  enumerating  a  few  others  found  elsewhere,  as 
G.  glabratus,  in  the  mountains  of  Scotland.  G.  auratus,  found  in  France, — a 
doubtful  native.  G.  nitens,  occasionally  in  various  parts  of  the  countiy. 
G.  clathratus  may  also  be  considered  a  Scottish  insect,  though  occasionally 
found  in  other  places.  The  other  species  are  rare,  or  are  only  occasionally 
to  be  met  with,  even  in  the  localities  where  they  are  found. 
Tennyson  Terrace,  White  Post  Lane,  Hackney  Wick. 


CHAEACTERISTICS  OF  COMMON  BIRDS, 
i 

BY   0.  S.  ROUND,   ESQ. 

It  not  unfrequently  happens,  that  things  which  are  constantly  within  our 
sphere  of  observation,  are,  to  a  great  extent,  overlooked ;  not,  perhaps,  so 
much  from  being  unworthy  of  attention,  as  that  their  constant  occux'rence 
makes  them  "  cheap,"  and  we  all  know  how  much  familiarity  breeds  con- 
tempt ;  but  I  believe  that  there  is  a  gi'eat  error  in  this,  and  that  it  is  the 
cause  why  many  things  very  worthy  our  consideration  escape  record.  I  was 
led  into  this  speculation  by  watching  a  flock  of  Sparrows  sitting  on  the  walls 
of  our  farm-yard  in  the  warm  sun,  for  it  is  Spring  weather  this,  in  tempore 
Mid-winter.  Sparrows  are  common  birds  enough,  and  not  very  handsome, 
but  I  always  looked  upon  them  as  clever  birds,  a  good  test  of  which  is  that 
boys  find  it  difficult  very  often  to  obtain  a  shot  at  them,  and  therefore  they 
must  be  veiy  sharp  indeed ;  but  this  applies  almost  entirely  to  cold,  bleak, 
windy  weather,  for  in  mild  days,  and  Summer  or  Spring  time,  they  are  tame 


OHARACXEEISTICS   OF   COMMON   BIEDS.  265 

enough.  Sparrows  are  veiy  fond  of  a  farm-yard,  and  generally  congregate  in 
its  precincts,  and  where  tliere  happen  to  be  low  shrubs  in  the  immediate 
vicinity,  or  small  buildings  of  the  pig-sty  class  near,  vnR  invariably  pop  over 
the  lowest  part,  and  immediately  shroud  themselves  in  the  said  shrubs ; 
seldom  perching  on  a  topmost  branch,  and  even  if  they  do,  ready  at  any 
moment  to  drop  down  amongst  the  foliage.  There  is  not  that  repose  in 
them  that  characterises  the  Finch  or  Bunting  tribes ;  they  always  remind  me 
of  the  Jay-bird  on  the  top  of  a  post  which  turns  on  a  pivot.  I  have  remarked 
in  their  nesting  season,  that  a  Hen-sparrow  will  supply  herself  more  than 
once  with  a  new  mate,  if  she  be  widowed,  which  when  a  boy  I  have  often 
caused  her  to  be,  once  for  experiment's  sake ;  and  yet  I  have  observed  that, 
if  anything,  in  the  Winter  flocks  the  hens  appear  to  preponderate ;  and  the 
fact  of  the  getting  a  new  husband  is  the  more  singular  because,  as  a  general 
proposition,  cock-birds  are  supposed  to  be  liable  to  more  contingencies  than 
hens,  both  from  their  own  contests  and  being  always  about,  while  the  hen  is 
often  sitting,  and  moreover  is  not  so  liable  to  be  a  mark  as  her  prettier  con- 
sort ;  but  this,  like  the  hen-Chaffinch  flocks,  remains  difficult  of  explanation. 
So  much  for  the  Sparrow. 

Another  bird,  more  familiar  still,  because,  for  some  reason,  almost  sacred 
or  "  tabooed,"  as  the  South  Sea  Islanders  call  it,  is  well  worthy  of  some 
remark ;  I  mean  the  Robin.  It  has  always  been  a  matter  of  astonishment  to 
me  that,  considering  the  Robin  is  rarely  or  never  killed,  and  that  it  brings 
out  often  two  broods,  and  often  lays  six  eggs,  it  does  not  swarm  every- 
where, which  it  certainly  does  not,  and  it  is  so  familiar  and  fearless  that  I 
suppose  there  is  no  bird  more  open  to  a  fair  estimate  as  to  number  than  it 
is.  To  be  sure  he  is  very  pugnacious,  and  probably  fatal  battles  royal  con- 
tinually take  place,  but  he  conceals  his  death  marvellously  well,  for  never  do 
I  see  a  dead  Robin.  In  Spring,  the  young  of  this  bird  are  seen  everywhere, 
for  they  are  very  clamorous,  but,  like  the  swarms  of  minute  Toads  which  at 
a  particular  season  bestrew  our  path,  they  are  consumed  somehow  and 
somewhere.  It  is  a  singular  circumstance,  that  there  are  certain  of  our  most 
familiar  songsters,  which  are  the  objects  of  pecuHar  regard,  rather  indis- 
criminately, it  appears  to  me,  now  we  know  the  old  distich — 

"Martins  and  Swallows 
Are  God  Almighty's  scholars; 
Eobins  and  Wrens 
Are  God  Almighty's  cocks  and  hens." 

Or,  as  it  is  sometimes  rendered,  "  fiiends."  Here  we  have  a  strange  assem- 
blage ;  the  former,  no  doubt,  are  extremely  harmless  and  beautiful  little 
birds,  always  coursing  about  in  the  blue  heavens,  and  doing  us  yeoman's 
service,  in  disposing  of  that  vast  insect  armament,  that,  like  the  Locusts  of 
old,  would  else  be  indeed  a  plague  upon  the  land ;  but  when  we  come  to  the 
Robin,  here  is  a  bold  bird,  anything  but  soft  in  his  demeanour,  or  purely 


256  CHARACTEBISTICS   OF  COMMON   BIRDS. 

insectivorous  in  his  habits,  and  who  plays  no  insignificant  part  in  the  currant 
or  raspberry  bushes,  and  yet  he  is  spared,  whilst  other  birds,  which  are  not 
a  whit  more  destructive,  are  sacrificed  without  mercy.  I  do  not  mean  to 
advocate  the  destruction  of  this  or  any  other  bird,  and  more  especially  this, 
for  I  like  his  familiarity,  his  pretty  appearance,  and  his  sweet  song,  and 
probably  he  owes  his  safety  a  good  deal  to  all  these,  but  still  there  lurks  the 
same  inconsistency  in  the  exception  thus  made  of  him.  The  little  Wren 
may  well  be  spared,  but  the  angler  must  have  her  wings  for  flies,  and  there- 
fore, take  them  all  in  all,  of  common  birds,  the  Robin  is  the  most  honoured 
and  spared. 

Another  remark  I  remember  making,  one  Winter  time,  when  I  was  re- 
covering from  an  illness,  and  had  leisure  enough  to  look  out  of  the  window, 
more  than  anything  else,  was  this,  that  a  particular  bare  deciduous  tree  will 
be  the  especial  resort  of  all  sorts  of  birds.  Opposite  the  window  in  question 
was  a  pretty  large  Laburnum,  and  I  suppose  never  was  there  a  better  ren- 
dezvous for  the  feathered  tribes  than  this  tree.  They  did  not  appear  to 
collect  ought  from  its  bare  twigs  or  soft  buds,  but  would  perch  on  it  only, 
and  seemingly,  though  of  mixed  kinds,  in  very  good  harmony.  I  remember, 
in  particular,  the  Titmice,  {Pari,)  of  all  kinds,  might  be  seen  there,  sometimes 
three  or  four  sorts  at  once,  more  especially  the  Cole  or  Blue  Tits,  and  then 
would  come  a  Marsh  Tit,  or  a  great  Parus,  although  I  do  call  to  mind  that 
this  ■'  great  man  "  was  somewhat  reverenced  by  the  rest.  Then  a  Bullfinch 
would  pop  up ;  a  Blackbird,  a  Sparrow,  a  Chaffinch  ;  and  I  think  I  almost 
date  my  love  of  Natural  History,  or  rather  of  Ornithology,  from  that  time. 
I  only  lighted,  the  other  day,  on  some  wretched  attempts  I  then  made  to 
delineate  my  feathered  friends ;  and,  considering  that  a  shilling  paint-box  of 
those  times  was  my  only  resource,  they  might  have  been  worse.  One  of  the 
most  interesting  sights,  perhaps,  to  a  lover  of  natural  study,  is  to  see  a  bird 
"  building."  But  this  must  always  be  under  difficulty,  for  they  are  cautious 
in  this  proceeding,  and  always  more  or  less  conceal  their  little  homes. 
Swallows  and  Martins  are  perhaps  the  most  notorious,  whereas  our  neatest 
architects  work  (to  us)  a  good  deal  in  the  dark.  I  have  watched  all  kinds, 
and  should  say  that  the  bill  was  the  chief  agent,  not  only  in  bringing,  but  in 
adapting  the  materials  brought,  and  then  the  breast  in  moulding  the  interior 
to  the  circular  cup,  the  form  required.  This  is  especially  the  case  with  the 
Thnish,.who  makes  her  own  neat,  shell-like  nest  often  as  if  it  had  been 
foraied  elsewhere,  and  deposited  on  the  bare  branch.  All  these  things  are 
wonders,  and  beautiful  reflections  they  call  forth !  Look  how  the  little 
weaker  birds  go  about  almost  always  in  numbers,  whilst  the  bold,  strong 
accipiters,  who  prey  upon  them,  soar  aloft,  in  single  confidence  of  strength. 
Listen,  how  the  Night-birds  clamour  to  give  notice  of  their  whereabouts,  and 
how  kind  Nature  has  given  to  those  which  do  not  possess  feathers  for  flight 
till  an  advanced  period  of  their  existence,  the  power  of  gliding  on  beneath 


CUARACTEKISTICS   OF    COJJMON    BIRDS.  257 

the  waters,  and  has  clad  them  in  a  garb  whicih  exactly  resembles  the  brown 
and  yellow  changing  hues  of  the  aquatic  herbage  amidst  which  they  make 
their  home ;  wonders  all  around  us  ;  and  the  more  numerous  and  the  more  to 
be  admired  do  they  appear  the  more  we  think  on  them,  the  more  we  know  of 
them.  But  I  am  launching  into  an  endless  sea,  so  for  the  present  I  shall 
say  no  more. 
Lincoln's  Inn  Fields,  Jan.  1855, 


THE  PROPAGATION  OF  HARDY  TREES  AND  SHRUBS. 
(Continued  from  page  17,  vol.  iv.^ 

Order  XXI.  AQUIFOLIAC^. 

The  genera  of  this  Order  contain  three  hardy  species,  consisting  of  low 
trees  and  shrubs,  chiefly  evergreens,  having  alternate  or  opposite  leaves, 
frequently  coriaceous,  glabrous,  and  sometimes  feather-nerved.  Natives  of 
Europe  and  North  America. 

Myginda.  Sexes  hermaphrodite,  calyx  five-cleft,  corolla  deeply  four-cleft, 
Stamens  four,  inserted  in  the  base  of  the  corolla.  Fruit  one-celled,  and  one- 
seeded.     Shrubs  with  branchlets  square,  leaves  opposite,  subcoriaceous. 

Ilex.  Sexes  hermaphrodite,  very  rarely,  by  defect,  disecious,  or  polyga- 
mous. Stamens  five.  Fruit  including  four  or  five  nuts.  Evergreen  shrubs, 
with,  mostly,  coriaceous  leaves. 

Prinos.  Sexes  mostly,  by  defect,  disecious  or  polj'gamous.  Stamens  six. 
Fruit  including  six  nuts.     Shrubs  with  leaves  deciduous  or  persistent. 

Genus  I. 
Myginda.  The  Myginda.    Tetrandia  monogynia.    The  only  hardy  species  of 
this  genus  is  M.  mystifolia,  a  low  evergreen  shrub,  from  the  west  coast  of 
North  America.     The  flowers  are  small  and  white,  appearing  from  May  to 
August.    Propagated  by  cuttings  and  layers. 

Genus  II. 
Ilex.  The  Holly.     Tetrandia  Tetragj-nia.    We  have  already  described  this 
genus,  see  The  Naturalist,  vol.  iii.     Propagation  by  seeds,  cuttings,  breed- 
ing, and  grafting. 

Genus  III. 
Prinos.  Winter  Berry.  Hexandria  monogynia,  or  Polygamia  Diaecia. 
Flowers  six-cleft,  hexandrous,  usually  disecious,  or  polygamous  fi'om  abor- 
tion. Fruit  with  six  nuts.  Leaves  simple,  axillary,  deciduous  or  evergreen, 
oval  or  lanceolate,  entire  or  serrated,  dying  off  of  a  greenish  yellow.  Low 
shrubs,  natives  of  North  America.  In  habit  of  growth  all  of  this  genus  are 
more  or  less  fastigiate,  and  send  up  numerous  suckers.     Howevei",  when 


268  THE  PROPAGATION  OF  HARDY  TREES  AND  SHRUBS. 

these  suckers  are  removed,  they  make  handsome  miniature  trees.  Propaga- 
tion by  suckers,  cuttings,  and  seeds,  in  common  soil  and  sand  under  a  glass. 
Of  this  genus  we  have  six  deciduous  species,^  though  there  exists  a  doubt 
among  botanists  if  they  are  really  distinct  species.     Three  are  evergreen. 


Order  XXII. 

The  hardy  genera  of  this  order  are  six,  consisting  of  small  ornamental 
trees  or  shrubs,  often  spiny,  and  generally  deciduous.  Chiefly  natives  of 
Europe  or  North  America,  of  easy  culture,  and  propagated  by  seeds,  cuttings, 
and  layers.     They  are  distinguished  as  follows. 

Zizyphus.  Petals  five,  styles  three.  Fruit  an  ovid  mucilaginous  drupe. 
Nuts  two-celled,  seed-compressed.    Deciduous  low  trees  or  shrubs. 

Paliurus.  Petals  five,  styles  three.  Fruit  dry,  girded  with  a  broad  mem- 
branaceous wing,  three-celled,  seed  ovate.    A  spiny  shrub. 

Berchemia.  Petals  five,  styles  one,  stigma  two.  Fruit  an  oblong  dry 
drupe.    A  twining  deciduous  shrub. 

Mhamnus.  Petals,  in  some,  absent ;  calyx  five  cleft,  styles  four-cleft.  Fruit 
nearly  dry,  or  berried,  not  eatable,  one-seeded,  oblong.  Small,  deciduous,  or 
evergreen  shrubs  or  trees. 

Colletia.  Corolla  none,  calyx  five-cleft,  pitcher-shaped ;  stamens  five,  style 
ending  in  three  teeth.  Fruit,  three-celled  capsule  ;  spiny  shrubs,  with  small 
leaves. 

Ceanotlms.  Corolla,  five  petals,  each  with  a  long  claw,  and  hooded ;  style 
three,  united  as  far  as  the  middle.  Fruit  a  dry  berry,  three-celled,  seed 
ovate,  shrubs  deciduous,  or  evergreen,  leaves  mostly  ovate;  highly  orna- 
mental. 

Genus  I. 
Zizyphus.  The  jujube.  Pentandria  Di-Trigynia.  The  common  cultivated 
jujube  (Zizyphus  vulgaris)  is  the  only  hardy  species  of  this  genus  in  our 
gardens,  as  far  as  we  are  aware  of.  It  is  a  native  of  Syria,  and  other  parts 
of  Asia,  and  in  Greece.  It  is  cultivated  on  account  of  the  beauty  of  its 
foliage,  in  this  country ;  and  in  Languedoc,  on  account  of  its  fruit.  The 
taste  of  the  fruit  is  somewhat  acid ;  the  flesh  is  firm  and  succulent.  When 
dried,  it  makes  a  very  nice  preserve.  The  syrup  is  used  for  abating  fevers, 
and  purifying  the  blood,  and  in  coughs  and  catarrhs ;  lozenges,  for  the  latter 
purpose,  are  also  made  from  it.  The  stem  is  thick,  cylindrical,  somewhat 
twisted ;  bark,  brown,  rather  chopped ;  branches,  numerous,  pliant,  armed 
with  prickles ;  leaves,  alternate,  oval-oblong,  somewhat  hard;  flowers,  pale 
yellow ;  fruit,  oval-oblong,  resembling  that  of  the  olive,  red  when  ripe.  Easily 
propagated,  either  by  seeds,  cuttings,  or  by  suckers,  which  it  produces  in 
abundance. 


PKOPAGATION  OF  HABDY  TREES  AND  SHRUBS.  259 

Genus  II. 

Paliurus.  Christ's  Thorn.  Pentandria  Trigynia.  Of  this  genus  we  have 
only  one  hardy  species,  viz.,  (P.  aeuleatusj  or  Christ's  Thorn,  CP.  A.  virgatus, 
of  DonJ  a  twiggy  Christ's  Thorn,  we  consider  only  a  variation  of  (P.  acule- 
atus,  of  Lam.  Belon  asserts  that  the  crown  of  thorns  which  was  put  on  the 
head  of  Christ  before  his  crucifixion  was  composed  of  the  branches  of  this 
plant.  Josephus  says,  that,  "  this  thorn  having  sharper  prickles  than  any 
other,  in  order  that  Christ  might  be  the  more  tormented,  they  made  choice 
of  it  for  a  crown  for  him."  Hasselquist  says,  that  the  Zizyphas  spina  Christa, 
or  Christ's  Thorn  Jujube,  was  the  tree  from  which  the  crown  of  thorns  was 
made  which  was  put  upon  the  head  of  our  Saviour  during  the  cnicifixion. 
The  more  general  opinion,  however,  among  botanists,  is,  that  the  crown  was 
made  from  the  branches  of  Paliurus  aculeatus.  Medicinally,  it  is  considered 
diuretic,  and  is  said  to  be  given  with  success  in  dropsical  cases,  A  native  of 
Europe,  and  in  many  parts  is  used  for  forming  hedges  ;  propagated  by  seeds, 
cuttings,  or  by  the  roots. 

Genus  III. 

BercTiemia.  The  Berchemia.  Pentandria  monogynia.  Twining  deciduous 
shrubs,  of  which  we  have  only  one  hardy  species.  Native  of  Carolina ;  of 
easy  culture;  propagated  by  seeds,  or  cuttings  of  the  roots,  or  by  layers. 

Genus  IV. 
Bhamnus.  Buck  Thorn.  Pentandria  monogynia.  Of  this  genus  we  have 
upwards  of  twenty-five  hardy  species,  also  a  considerable  number  of  varieties, 
and  several  species  not  yet  introduced  into  this  countrj'.  They  are  deci- 
duous or  evergreen  shrubs,  one  or  two  of  them  having  the  habit  of  low  trees, 
and  some  of  them  are  procumbent,  with  numerous  strong  thorns  ;  hence  the 
name  of  ram,  or  buck  thorn.  Deserving  of  cultivation,  particularly  R. 
Alaternus,  and  its  varieties.  Also  the  following :  R.  hybridus,  R.  Alpinus, 
R.  catharticus,  R.  Frangula,  R.  saxatilis,  R.  alnifolius,  and  R.  latifolius.  Pro- 
pagated by  seeds,  cuttings  and  by  layers. 

Genus  V. 

Colletia.  The  Colletia.  Pentandria  monogynia.  Of  this  genus  we  have 
only  one  hardy  species,  viz.,  G.  Jiorrida,  a  most  desirable  addition  to  our 
hardy  Ioav  shrubs.  Propagated  by  cuttings  in  sand  under  glass,  and  by  Chilian 
seeds,  which  is  the  most  general  mode  of  propagation  in  the  nurseries. 

Genus  VI. 

Ceanothus.   Ceanothus,  or  Eed  Boot.     Pentandria  monogynia.     Of  this 

beautiful  genus  of  shrubs  we  have  a  considerable  number  of  species  and 

varieties.     They  are  highly  ornamental,  and  should  find  a  place  in  every 

garden.    Most  of  the  species  seed  freely,  and  all  are  readily  propagated  by 

cuttings,  in  a  mixture  of  sand  and  soil. 

August,  1855. 

(To  he  continued.) 


260 
A  CONTEAST. 

Blooming  'mid  Poverty's  drear  wintry  waste.— ColeeTDoe. 

Tkuly  the  openiug  season  of  the  Naturalist's  observations  has  been  a 
severe,  and  as  regards  actual  fruits,  a  scanty  one.  The  first  fortnight  of  1855 
was  a  treacherous  harbinger,  for  so  merrily  did  Blackbird,  Thrush,  and  Ked- 
breast  pipe  their  welcome  notes,  that  we  were  induced  to  prognosticate  a 
continuance  of  mild  weather ;  but  it  is  good  to  have  expectations  thwarted 
sometimes,  it  teaches  us  to  trust  to  our  Maker  more  than  man.  In  silence 
let  us  submit  to  our  Creator's  dispensations,  and  be  assured  what  seems  loss 
is  real  gain.  These  thoughts  suggested  themselves  as  I  reviewed  my  very 
scanty  Calender  for  the  late  month  February,  which  I  contrasted  with  that 
of  the  two  previous  years.  Certainly,  at  a  glance,  it  is  evident  how  intensely 
severe  our  recent  snows  and  frosts  have  been !  and  what  a  consequent  retard- 
ment has  been  given  to  out-door  Naturalists  ! 

In  February  of  1853,  I  gathered  the  groundsel,  snowdrop,  red  dead  nettle, 
the  white  nettle,  the  furze,  and  polypoddy. 

In  Februaiy  of  1854:  the  catkins,  daises,  dandelion,  red  dead  nettle,  furze, 
the  Jew's-ear  fungus,  (Pezziza  coccinea,)  primrose,  and  found  the  arum  two 
inches  above  ground ;  violets  were  abundant  on  the  meadow-banks. 

In  February  of  1855,  only  groundsel,  furze,  catkins,  and  polypoddy. 

The  first  two  calendars  are  those  of  wild  flowers  found  in  the  lanes  and 
fields  of  Rawburgh  Hill,  Norfolk;  this  last  of  Moseley  Lanes,  near  Bir- 
mingham.— Geo.  R.  Twinn,  March  7th,  1855. 


SUMMARY  OF  THE  WEATHER  FOR  APRIL  AND  MAY  1855. 

BY   SIR.  T.  LISTER. 

The  barometer  has  generally  maintained  a  high  elevation  throughout  the 
month,  in  one  instance  only  sinking  to  29  in.  on  the  10th,  its  highest  point 
being  30"65  in.,  on  the  23rd,  the  mean  for  the  month  being  30-6  in.  The 
thermometer  has  experienced  great  extremes :  its  highest  point  being  68 
deg.,  on  the  19th;  its  lowest,  26  deg.,  on  the  1st;  exhibiting  a  variation  in 
the  exti*eme  points  of  42  deg.  The  mean  temperature  of  the  month  was  44 
deg.  Rain  has  fallen  on  nine  days,  but,  until  the  28th,  in  scarcely  appreci- 
able quantities,  the  average  for  the  whole  month  being  but  three  quarters  of 
an  inch.  The  wind  has  varied  from  N.W.  to  N.E.,  and  occasionally  S.;  in 
general  moderate,  though,  in  some  instances,  high,  and  often  very  cold  for  ^^ 
the  season.  Vegetation  is  consequently  in  a  backward  state,  though  the 
Autumn-so\vn  corn  is  in  a  more  healtliy  condition  than  might  have  been 
expected.  The  leafing  and  flowering  of  plants,  and  the  arrival  of  Summer 
birds,  pi'ognosticating  seasons  truer  than  the  almanack,  all  evince  the  back- 


SUMMARY   OF   THE    WEATHER.  261 

wardness  of  Spring.  For  instance,  the  sloe  blossom,  often  flowering  by  the 
end  of  March,  has  scarcely  yet  been  seen ;  the  same  may  be  siaid  of  the 
cherry-bloom,  often  out  in  the  first  week  in  April,  and  the  crab-blossom  in 
the  middle,  which  are  not  seen  in  this  part  at  the  close.  The  beautiful 
crimson  catkins  of  the  black  poplar,  often  out  on  the  1st,  were  attaining 
their  richest  tints  on  the  30th.  The  delicate  green  leaves  of  the  birch  are 
just  producing  that  fine  effect  of  contrast  to  the  darkness  and  bareness  of 
the  surrounding  foliage,  which  is  generally  exhibited  in  the  early  part  of 
April.  Of  Winter  visitants,  few  birds,  except  occasional  flights  of  wild  geese 
and  ducks,  were  visible  after  April  commenced,  having  gone  to  their  nesting 
haunts.  Few  Field-fares  and  Ked-wings  were  seen  after  the  setting  in  of  the 
long  storm,  they,  and  many  resident  birds,  such  as  Larks,  which  previously 
were  so  numerous  as  to  be  wantonly  exterminated  by  the  gross,  were  sup- 
posed to  have  retired  towards  the  more  open  coasts.  The  rarest  Winter 
visitants  in  these  parts  were  the  little  Auk,  or  Rotch,  taken  alive  on  Nov. 
11th,  exhausted  by  its  long  flight  during  a  severe  storm.  The  Tufted-duck, 
the  Scaup-duck,  or  Pochard,  the  common  Tern,  the  common  Gull,  the 
Brambling,  or  Mountain-finch,  &c.  The  Summer  birds  which  have  already 
come,  have  arrived  in  this  order,  so  far  as  ascertained.  The  Chiffchaff",  April 
7th;  the  Wlieatear,  April  11th;  the  Swallow,  April  14th;  the  Martin,  April 
16th ;  the  Willow-wren,  April  18th;  the  Redstart,  April  18th;  the  Tree-pipit 
April  18th ;  the  Whinchat,  April  20th ;  the  Cuckoo,  April  22nd ;  the  Sand- 
martin,  April  23rd;  the  Grasshopper-warbler,  April  24th;  the  Blackcap- 
warbler,  April  26th;  the  Whitethroat,  April  28th;  the  Wood-wren,  April  30th. 
These*  arrivals  average  about  ten  days  later  than  usual,  with  the  exception  of 
the  Swallow  and  the  Cuckoo,  of  which  a  few  stragglers  were  allured  over  by 
the  fine  weather  in  the  middle  of  the  month.  The  Swallows  have  been 
noticed  for  years  to  come  to  Round-green  on  the  16th  or  17th,  where  happily 
they  rear  their  progeny  in  safety,  both  nests  and  eggs  being  protected  from 
that  violation  which  threatens,  with  other  means  of  destruction,  to  extirpate 
our  rarer  birds,  whether  doomed  to  the  cage  or  museum,  or  to  be  shot  down. 
in  mere  sport. 

May,  1855.  The  barometer  has  ranged  high  this  month,  the  greatest  eleva- 
tion being  30-20  inches  on  the  1st  and  2nd;  the  lowest  295  on  the  10th  and 
11th:  the  mean  for  the  whole  month  was  29-72  inches.  The  thermometer  ex- 
hibited wider  extremes,  the  same  wintry  reminiscences  experienced  in  March 
and  April,  having  chequered  this  usually  blooming  and  joyous  month  of  May; 
though  we  have  enjoyed  some  very  bright  and  warm  days,  there  have  been 
,  passing  storms  of  sleet,  hail,  and  snow,  as  late  as  the  29th.  The  highest  of 
the  thermometer  was  81°  on  the  26th;  the  lowest  27°  on  the  4th  and  5th. 
The  mean  for  the  month  was  46"  45'.  The  quantity  of  rain  fallen  during  tlie 
month  was  very  limited,  until  the  last  day,  when  it  exceeded  half  an  inch. 
The  registered  quantity  for  the  month  exceeds  If  inches,  falling  on  twelve 


M2  SOMMAHT   OF  THE   WEATHEB. 

days.  The  wind  has  blown  very  often  from  N.W.  to  N.E.,  occasionally 
shifting  to  W.  by  S.  and  S.W.,  veering  back  to  N.W.  and  N.  towards  the 
close  of  the  month,  with  considerable  force,  though  its  general  character 
has  been  moderate.  Vegetation  is  still  backward ;  the  fragrant  May  blossom, 
pre-eminently  characterised  by  its  name  as  an  ornament  of  the  early  part  of 
the  month,  is  scarcely  visible  now,  when  June  "  dances  with  her  blue-bell'd 
anklets  on."  The  late  rains  have  freshened  the  foliage,  the  grass  (as  yet 
scanty),  and  the  corn,  which  now  promises  well.  Of  the  summer  birds  first 
noted  this  month,  the  Sedge-warbler  and  the  Nightingale  were  heard  on  the 
10th;  the  Garden-warbler  and  Landrail  (or  Grass-quake)  on  the  12th;  the 
Grey  Fly-catcher  on  the  28th.  Most  of  them  later  than  usual ;  the  Sedge- 
warbler  coming  sometimes  on  the  22nd  of  April,  and  the  Nightingale  on  the 
25th.  The  last  bird  mentioned  has  abounded  on  all  sides  this  year,  and 
would  do  yearly,  if  undisturbed  by  bird-catchers  and  unruly  persons,  owing 
to  whom  the  sober,  thinking  portion  of  the  public  are  robbed  of  the  charm 
of  its  matchless  song. 
Bamsley,  June,  1855. 


Introductory  Text-Booh  to  Geology.    By  David  Page,  F.  G.  S.     Edinburgh  and 
London :  William  Blackwood  and  Sons.     1854. 

The  present  age  is  pre-eminently  one  of  cheap  books.  Shilling  editions 
of  Standard  Novelists,  Poets,  Historians,  and  Philosophical  Essayists,  are 
almost  as  numerous  as  readers  were  two  centuries  ago.  Nor  is  sciencte  left 
behind  in  this  march  of  cheap  intellect.  Every  other  day  we  come  upon 
books  on  the  Natural  Sciences,  so  cheap,  that  we  wonder  how  the  merely 
nominal  charge  for  the  volumes  can  pay  tlie  expense  of  woodcuts,  paper, 
printing,  and  binding.  Among  these  clieap  works  we  do  not  know  of  any 
production  better  calculated  to  repay  the  purchaser,  or  aid  the  great  social 
reform — which  ought  to  be  the  aim  of  every  writer  of  a  volume — than  that 
at  present  under  consideration.  It  contains  13G  pages  of  well  digested,  and 
really  understandable  matter,  written  evidently  by  a  master  hand,  and  got  up 
in  a  style  which  is  alike  creditable  to  the  publisher,  the  artist,  and  the 
printer ;  and  all  for  the  sum  of  one-and-sixpence.  The  work  is  divided  into 
fifteen  chapters,  and  so  arranged,  that  the  youngest  reader  may  wade  his 
way  through  it,  not  only  with  profit,  but  with  increasing  interest. 

Chapter  I.  lucidly  explains  the  nature  and  bearings  of  the  science  of 
Geology. 

Chapter  II.  explains  the  general  operations  on  the  crust  of  the  earth. 

Chapters  III.  and  IV.  are  devoted  to  the  structure  of  the  materials  com- 
posing the  earth's  crust,  and  to  a  classification  of  the  formations  into  sys- 
tems, groups,  and  series. 


REVIEW.  265 

Chapters  V.,  VI.,  and  VII.  describe  the  older  rocks,  from  the  igneous  to 
the  Silurian,  ending  with  the  Ludlow  series. 

Chapters  VIII.,  IX.,  and  X.  describe  the  rocks  between  the  old  red  sand- 
stone and  the  saliferous  marls. 

Chapters  XI.,  XII.,  and  XIII.  proceed  upwards,  from  the  oolite  series  to 
the  pliestocene  groups. 

Chapter  XIV.  is  devoted  to  the  post-tertiary  system,  comprising  the  allu- 
vial deposits,  as  great  mosses,  coral  beds,  and  other  recent  accumulations. 

Chapter  XV.  is  a  general  review  of  the  stratified  rocks,  and  the  deductions 
derived  from  such  a  review. 

Each  chapter  is  embellished  with  geological  sections,  or  well  executed 
figures  of  the  fossils  characteristic  of  the  difi'erent  strata. 

An  admirable  feature  in  the  work  is,  a  recapitulation  at  the  end  of  each 
chapter,  which,  while  it  refreshes  the  memory,  presents  the  facts  in  other 
and  more  terse  language,  thus  tending  to  impress  them  upon  the  memory. 
To  give  an  idea  of  the  pleasing  style  of  the  author,  we  quote  a  portion  of 
the  concluding  paragraph  of  the  first  chapter.  Talking  of  the  Science  of 
Geology,  he  says, — 

"  The  objects  of  research  are  scattered  everywhere  around  us.  Not  a  quarry  by  the 
way-side, — not  a  railway-cutting  through  which  we  are  carried, — ^not  a  mountain-glen 
up  which  we  cHmb, — nor  a  sea-cliff  under  which  we  wander,  but  famishes,  when  duly 
observed,  important  lessons  in  Geology.  A  hammer  to  detach  specimens,  and  a  bag 
to  carry  them  in — an  observing  eye  and  a  pair  of  wilUng  limbs,  are  nearly  all  the 
young  student  requires  for  the  field;  and  by  inspection  and  comparison  in  some 
museum  and  the  diligent  use  of  his  text-book,  he  will  very  soon  be  able  to  proceed  in 
the  study  as  a  practical  observer.  Let  him  note  every  strange  and  new  appearance, 
handle  and  preserve  every  new  specimen  with  which  he  is  not  familiar — throwing 
nothing  aside  until  he  becomes  acquainted  with  its  nature ;  and  thus,  besides  obtaining 
additional  knowledge  and  facilitating  his  progress,  he  will  shortly  acquire  the  invalua- 
ble power  of  prompt  and  accurate  discrimination." 


In  The  Naturalist  for  January  1855,  there  is  an  account  given,  by  Mr.  G. 
R.  Twinn,  of  his  having  met  with  the  nest  and  egg  of  the  Dipper,  in  the 
county  of  Norfolk.  As  no  one  else  has  as  yet  commented  on  this  statement, 
made,  it  appears,  in  reply  to  the  inquiries  of  other  naturalists  on  the  sub- 
ject, and  as  a  corroboration  of  a  previous  mention  of  the  supposed  fact,  I 
must  express  the  most  unqualified  disbelief  of  any  such  occurrence.  That 
the  nest  was  indeed  that  of  an  "  Ouzel,"  I  have  not  the  slightest  doubt ;  but, 
that  it  was  not  that  of  a  "  Water  Ouzel,"  I  feel  perfectly  certain.  No  doubt 
the  Water  Ouzel  is  "  more  local  than  rare,"  but  this  in  no  way  whatever 


264  EEVIEW. 

strengthens  the  supposition  of  its  nest  having  been  found  in  a  most  im- 
probable locality.  That  "  beautiful  attendant  foliage  "  is  at  all  "  inviting  and 
adapted  to  the  specific  habits  of  the  Water  Ouzel,"  is  altogether  a  mistaken 
fancy ;  no  one  who  has  seen  the  bird  "  at  home/'  among  the  open  stones  of 
the  brawling  stream,  will  entertain  the  notion  for  a  moment.  That  the  nest 
was  "  somewhat"  (read  "  very")  "  similar  to  a  Blackbird's  "  may  be  taken  for 
granted,  and  one  side  being  a  little  higher  than  the  other,  however  well  it 
might  have  suited  the  exact  situation,  is  by  no  means  in  accordance  with 
the,  as  far  as  I  know,  invariable  structure  of  that  of  the  Dipper.  The  bird, 
indeed,  has  been  found  in  the  "  Eastern  counties,"  in  Lincolnshire,  and  in 
Norfolk,  but  I  cannot  believe  that  the  instance  adduced  was  a  veritable  case 
of  its  building  a  nest  there.  What  was  the  colour  of  the  egg?  Was  it  a  green 
or  a  white  one  ?  This  will  decide  the  question. — F.  O.  Morris,  March  5th, 
1855. 

The  Hmvh  figured  in  September  number. — If  my  Hawk  is  only  a  variety  of 
the  Sparrow-Hawk,  how  comes  it  to  have  a  dentate  process  on  the  upper 
mandible,  which  it  has  most  distinctly  marked  ? — E.  Hobson,  M.  D.yyi^'A^fii 
Oct.  17,  1855.  /^"^i^'A:. 


Occurrence  of  the  Bee  Eater  (Merops  Apiaster)  in  the  Isle  of  Wight.  Lieu- 
tenant E.  J.  B.  Edwards,  of  the  Royal  Engineers,  shot  in  June  last,  at 
Weston,  Freshwater,  a  splendid  specimen  of  the  Bee  Eater.  This  was  com- 
municated to  me  by  Mr.  Murrow,  of  the  Royal  Albion  Hotel,  Freshwater 
Gate,  at  whose  house  Lieutenant  E.  was  stajdng  at  the  time,  and  who  saw  it 
in  the  flesh.  I  also  saw  the  person  who  sldnned  it,  viz.,  Mr.  Rogers, 
naturalist,  Freshwater,  Isle  of  Wight. 

Disappearance  of  "  Choughs "  (Fregilus  Graculus)  from  the  Isle  of  Wight, 
These  birds  were  formerly  (that  is  four  or  five  years  ago)  very  plentiful  in  the 
island,  building  about  the  high  clifi's,  from  the  Needles  to  Freshwater  Gate, 
but  are  now,  it  is  supposed,  reduced  to  a  pair  or  two.  The  last  known  to  be 
killed,  was  caught  in  the  rabbit  warren,  at  Alum  Bay,  about  two  years  since. 
They  used  to  be  as  common  as  other  crows.  A  man  named  Long,  told  me  he 
once  shot  five  at  a  shot.  A  family  named  Lea,  were  nearly  poisoned  by 
eating  them,  some  twenty  years  since.  This  was  told  me  by  Lea  himself,  (a 
coast-guard  man,)  who  partook  of  them. — John  Dutton,  St.  Peter's  Place, 
Hammersmith,  Sept  15th,  1855. 

Additions  to  the  Ornithology  of  Sussdx.  I  saw,  a  few  d^ys  ago,  at  Mr. 
Swaysland's,  a  male  and  female  Orange-legged  Hobby,  {Faleo  rufipes,) 
and  a  Blue-throated  Warbler,  {Phanicura  Suecica,)  which  were,  he  tells 
me,  captured  this  season,  near  Brighton.  These  birds  are  not  mentioned  in 
Mr.  Knox's  "  Systematic  Catalogue." — J.  Cavafy,  Brighton,  Sept.  20th,  1855. 


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TO   WHICH   IS    appended, 

A  SHORT  ESSAY  ON  SPINAL  IRRITATION: 

BY  BEVERLEY  R.  MORRIS,  A.B.,  M.D., 

OF   TRINITY  COLLEGE,   DUBLIN: 

Medical  Visitor  in  Lunacy  to  the  Private  Asylums  in  the  North  and  West  Ridings  of 
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Formerly  Physician  to  the  York  Dispensary. 

ALSO,  BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR,  8vo.,  Price  6d. 

OBSERVATIONS  ON  THE  CONSTRUCTION  OF  HOSPITALS  FOR  THE 

INSANE. 

LONDON  :— Messrs.  GROOMBRIDGE,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 


SITUATION  WANTED, 

As  Keeper  of  a  public  or  private  Museum  ;  Assistant  to  a  professional  naturalist,  or 
pxploring  party  ;  or  an  appointment  to  any  situation  requiring  a  practical  knowledge  of, 
and  a  strong  predilection  for,  whatever  pertains  to  Natural  History. 

The  advertiser  is  a  middle-aged  man ;  has  long  been  accustomed  to  shoot,  collect,  pre- 
pare, set  up,  and  classify,  specimens  of  Quadrupeds,  I'irds,  Shells,  Insects,  Zoophytes,  and 
Marine  Algfo,  and  is  a  practical  and  tasteful  Taxidermist  ;  and  would  render  himself 
generally  useful  to  whoever  employed  him.  It  has  been  his  practice  to  observe  the  habits 
of  animals,  recording,  and  sometimes  publishing  the  same,  and  the  appeai'ance  of  anything 
unusual  in  the  Natui'al  History  of  the  district  where  he  resides. 

Can  furnish  unexceptionable  references  as  to  liis  qualifications,  moral  character,  and 
sober  and  active  habits.     Apply  to  J.  E.,  care  of  the  Editor  of  The  Natuualist. 


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Now  ready,  in  royal  4to.,  elegantly  bound  in  half  morocco,  gilt  edges,  price  £2  5s. 


BRITISH  GAME  BIRDS  AND  WILD  FOWL. 

By  BEVERLEY  E.  MORRIS,  Esq.,  A.B.,  M.D.,  T.C.D., 

MEM.  WERN.  CLUB. 

This  magnificent  Work,  illustrated  with  Sixty  Coloured  Plates,  contains  Familiar  and 
Scientific  Descriptions  of  the  following  subjects  : 


Pheasant 
Cape  caillie 
Black  Grouse 
Red  Grouse 
Ptarmigan 
Partridge 

Eed-legged  Partridge 
Barbary  Partridge 
Virginian  Partridge 
Quail 

Andalusian  Quails 
Great  Bustard 
Little  l?ustnrd 
Kuffed  Bustard 
Great  Plover 
Golden  Plover 
Gray  Plover 
Dotterel 


Eider  Buck 
Steller's  Western  Duck 
King  Duck 
Velvet  Scoter 
Ooinmon  Scoter 
Surf  Scoter 
Eed-crested  Whistling 

Duck 
Pochard 
Paget's  Pochard 
Ferruginous  Ducks 
Scaup  Duck 
U'ufted  Duck 
Long-tailed  Duck 
Harlequin  Duck 
Golden  Eye 
Buffel-headed  Duck 


Ring  Dotterel  Canada  Goose 

Kentish  Plover  Hooper 

Little  Ringed  Plover  Bewick's  Swan 

Woodcock  Mute  or  Tame  Swan 

Great  Snipe  Polish  Swan 

Common  Snipe  Ruddy  Sheldrake 

Jack  Snipe  Common  Sheldrake 

Brown  Snipe  Shoveller 

Sabine's  Snipe  Gadvvall 

Grey-Lag  Goose  Pintail  Duck 

Bean  Goose  Bimaculated  Duck 

Park  Footed  Goose  Mallard 

White-fronted  Goose  Garganey  Teal 

Berniclo  Goose  Summer  Duck 

Brent  Goose  Teal 

Red-breasted  Goose  Widgeon 

Egj-ptian  Goose  American  Widgeon 
Spur-winged  Goose 

The  great  interest  which  naturally  attaches  to  our  Game  Birds  and  Wild  Fowl 
renders  it  a  matter  of  surprise  that  no  work  has  yet  appeared,  not  only  devoted  exclusively 
to  them,  but  which  should  give,  in  addition  to  the  ordinary  information  as  to  their  history, 
habits,  and  sporting  peculiarities,  accurately  coloured  figures  of  each  of  them.  The  object 
of  the  present  work  is  to  supply  this  deficiency ;  and  in  doing  this,  it  has  been  the  author's 
endeavour  to  avoid,  as  much  as  possible,  all  mere  technicalities ;  while,  at  the  same  time, 
the  most  accurate  and  complete  history  of  each  bird  is  given ;  so  that  the  sportsman 
who  never  made  Natural  History  his  study  may  find  no  difficulty  in  recognising  any  bird 
he  may  meet  with  in  his  shooting  excursions,  whether  he  confines  himself  to  the  limits  of 
the  preserves,  or  seeks  the  more  exciting  sport  to  be  met  with  on  om-  secluded  lakes  and 
sea-shores. 

THE  ILLXJSTEATIONS 

Are  from  Original  Drawings,  coloured  after  nature  in  the  most  exqiTisite  manner.     Alto- 
gether, a  more  unique  and  elaborate  volume  upon  the  subject  of  Game  Birds 
and  Wild  Fowl  has  never  been  published. 

LONDON : 
MESSRS.  GROOMBRIDGE,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 


C0ULTA8,  PEINTEE,  YORK. 


No.  58. 


DECEMBEE,  1855. 


Price  6d. 


A  POPULAE  MONTHLY  MAOAZINE, 

ILLUSTRATIVE    OF   THE 

ANIMAL,  VEGETABLE,  AND  MINEKAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    NUMEROUS    ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED   BY 

BEVERLEY  R.  MORRIS,  ESQ.,  A.B.,  M.D.,  T.C.D., 

memb:  ween:  club. 

corresponding  member  of  the  natural  history  society  op  glasgow. 

honorary  member  op  the  literary  and  scientipic  institution  op  kilkenny. 

corresronding  member  of  the  dublin  university  zoological  association. 


LONDON : 
MESSRS.  GEOOMBRIDGE,  5,  PATERNOSTER-ROW. 

EDINBURGH:  JAMES  HOGG,  4,  NICOLSON-STEEET. 

AND  MAY  BE  HAD  OF  ALL  BOOKSELLERS. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

Occurrence  of  the  Esquimaux  Curlew  in  Scotland.     By  J.  Longmuir,  Esq.,  Jun.  ...  265 

Notes  on  the  Gray  Shrike,  the  Dipper,  and  the  Chough.    By  H.  Smuuthwaite,  Esq.  268 

Notes  from  a  Bird-Nesting  Expedition  to  the  South  of  Holland.  By  W.  Bridger,  Esq.  271 

Contributions  to  a  List  of  the  Cryptogamous  Flora  of  Banffshire.     By  W 273 

Down  the  River.     By  J.  S.  Walker,  Esq 275 

Diurnal  Lepidoptera  found  in  the  Neighbourhood  of  Luton,  Beds.  By  A.  Lucas,  Esq.  276 

Reviews.— The  Natural  History  of  the  Tineina.     By  H.  T.  Stainton 278 

The  Natural  History  Review - 279 

Miscellaneous  Notices      '•''• 

9Q1 

Retrospect    -     "" 

Querist ^^"^ 


NOTICES  TO  CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  up  to  November  17  th,  from  H.  T.  Stainton  Esq. 
— E  P  Wright  Esq.— H.  F.  Wood,  Esq.— O.  S.  Round,  Esq.— S.  Stone,  Esq.— Mr.  M. 
AVestcott.— Rev.  F.  O.  Morris,— J.  H.  Davies,  Esq.— O.  Walker  Arnott,  Esq.,  M.D. 

Contributions  have  been  received  up  to  November  17th,  from  J.  Longmuir,  Esq^,  Jun. 
—Mr  J  Gaudn-er.— A.  Lucas,  Esq.— VV.  Bridger,  Esq.— J.  Brown,  Esq.— Mr.  C.  Mac 
DuRMiD.— C.  E.  Smith,  Esq.— E.  E.  H.-R.  Andrews,  Esq.— Mr.  G.  Jackson.— J.  S. 
Walker,  Esq.— Rev.  F.  O.  Morris,— J.  McIntosh,  Esq.— C.  I^ryer,  Esq.- J.  H.  Davies. 
Esq.— e!  T.  L.  Smith,  Esq. 

Will  E.  E.  H.  favour  us  with  his  name  and  address  in  confidence. 

Received  :  The  Natural  History  of  the  Tineina.  Vol.  i.  containing  Nepticula,  Part  i. ; 
Cemiostoma,  Part  i.  By  H.  T.  Stainton  ;  assisted  by  Professor  Ze  ler,  and  J.  W. 
Douglas.     London :  Van  Voorst.     1855.     8vo.  p.p.  338.     Light  Coloured  Plates. 

The  Natural  History  Review.     No.  7,  July  ;  No.  8,  October,  1855.     London  :  Samuel 
Highley.     8vo. 

Errata  :  Page  102,  line  2,  for  annally,  read  annually. 

103,  „  12  from  bottom,  for  hilarous,  read  hilarious. 

'      205,  „  6  from  bottom,  for  less  the  sixth,  read  less  than  the  sixth. 

\\     242*  ','  17  from  bottom,  for  preferred,  read  prolTered. 

',',     257,  „  14  from  bottom,  for  inystifolia,  read  myrtifolia. 

„      ib.,  „  &  from  bottom,  for  breeding,  read  budding. 

„     259,  „      4  for  a  Twiggy,  read  or  a  Twiggy. 

Infusorial  Earths.-^Br.  Morris  would  feel  greatly  obliged  to  any  one  who  would  favour 
him  with  specimens  of  any  Infusorial  Earths,  or  Diatomaceous  deposits,  mounted  or 
unmounted ;  and  would  endeavour  to  make  the  best  return  in  his  power. 

Bishopwearmouth,  Augtist  1855. 

The  Editor  begs  to  announce  to  his  Correspondents,  that  he  has  arranged  with  hi» 

Printer,  so  that  the  Author  of  any  Paper  can  have  copies  of  his  Article  sent  him  by  post 

at  the  following  rates : —  „        r^  -r^.  n  ,  t-. 

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the  care  of  Messrs.  GBOOMBBIDGE,  5,  Paternoster- Roto,  London. 


265 

OCCURRENCE  OF  THE  ESQUIMAUX  CURLEW  {NUMENIU8 
B0REALI8)  IN  SCOTLAND. 

BY  J.    LONGMtriR,    ESQ.,  JUN. 

This  bird  is  the  third,  smallest,  and  rarest  of  our  British  Curlews.  Its 
claim  to  a  place  in  the  British  fauna,  if  not  the  European  also,  rests  on  a 
single  specimen,  killed  on  the  6th  of  September,  1855,  in  the  parish  of  Dur- 
ris,  lOncardineshire,  a  few  miles  from  Aberdeen,  by  W.  R.  Cusack  Smith,  Esq., 
at  the  time  occupying  Durris  House.  The  bird  was  sent  to  be  stuffed  by 
Mr.  Mitchell,  Aberdeen  ;  and  was  examined  a  few  days  after,  by  the  writer, 
who  ascertained  it  to  be  the  Esquimaux  Curlew  {Numenius  horealis).  Un- 
luckily, it  was  not  measured  when  in  the  flesh,  and  the  sex  was  not  observed; 
but  it  appears  to  be  a  female,  in  almost  complete  winter  livery. 

Some  queries  sent  to  its  fortunate  possessor  were  most  courteously  an- 
swered in  a  letter,  from  which  the  following  passages  are  extracted :  "  I  shot 
the  bird  on  the  6th  of  this  month  (September).  I  was  standing  on  a  cairn 
of  stones,  which  is  at  the  top  of  a  hill  on  the  '  muir,'  belonging  to  Durris, 
called  Cair-monearn  ;*  and  was  looking  at  the  view,  when  my  gamekeeper 
said  to  me  that  there  was  a  Golden  Plover  close  to  me,  on  the  south-east  side 
of  the  cairn.  I  looked  and  saw  a  bird  walking  slowly  about,  just  as  a  Plover 
would  do  ;  and  as  soon  as  I  could  get  my  gun,  I  went  up  to  the  bird  and  shot 
it.  Its  flight  was  very  similar  to  that  of  a  Sea-gull.  The  bird  was  quite 
alone.  I  did  not  hear  it  utter  any  note,  and  I  think  if  it  had  done  so,  I  must 
have  heard  it.  It  seemed  very  much  disinclined  to  rise  from  the  ground ; 
and  allowed  me  to  get  within  twenty  yards  of  it." 

To  this  very  circumstantial  account,  a  few  remarks,  gleaned  from  the 
"  American  Ornithological  Biography  "  of  Audubon,  and  the  "  Fauna  Bore- 
ali-Americana "  of  Swainson  and  Richardson,  may  be  added.  It  spends  the 
summer  months  in  the  barren  tracts  within  the  arctic  circle.  A  few  days 
from  the  close  of  July,  1883,  Audubon  found  companies  of  them  making 
their  appearance  in  Labrador,  near  the  harbour  of  Bras  d'  Or.  They  came 
from  the  north,  arriving  in  dense  flocks,  much  after  the  manner  of  the  Pas- 
senger Pigeon  (Ectopistes  migratoria) .  In  early  autumn,  they  remain  a  few 
days,  while  on  their  way  southward,  in  Massachusetts,  where,  "  during  their 
short  stay,  they  are  met  with  on  the  high  sandy  hills  near  the  sea-shore." 
Their  food  consists  of  Grubs,  Grasshoppers,  and  fresh-water  insects ;  but 
principally  of  a  kind  of  crow-berry,  known  among  the  fishermen  of  Labrador 
as  the  curlew-berry.  "  It  is  a  small  black  fruit  on  a  creeping  shrub,  so  abun- 
dant, that  patches  of  several  acres  cover  the  rocks  here  and  there.  When 
the  birds  were  in  search  of  food,  they  flew  in  close  masses,  sometimes  high, 
at  other  times  low,  but  always  with  remarkable  speed,  and  performing  beau- 
tiful evolutions  in  the  air.    The  appearance  of  man  did  not  seem  to  intimidate 

*  Cue  of  tUeGi'ampiau  mnge,  some  twelve  lujiul»«<i--feetabove  aea-levej 
VOL.  V.  /^^     f^>ik^  « 


20D  THE    ESQUIMAUX  CURLEW   IN    SCOTLAND. 

tliem ;  for  they  would  alight  so  near  us,  or  pass  over  our  heads  at  so  short  a 
distance,  that  we  easily  shot  them.  While  on  the  wing,  they  emitted  an  oft- 
repeated,  soft,  whistling  note ;  but  the  moment  they  alighted  they  became 
silent.  They  ran  swiftly  along,  all  in  the  same  direction,  picldng  up  the 
berries  in  their  way ;  and  when  pursued,  would  immediately  squat  in  the 
manner  of  a  Snipe  or  Partridge,  sometimes  even  laying  their  neck  and  head 
quite  flat  on  the  ground,  until  you  came  within  a  short  distance,  when,  at  a 
single  note  from  any  one  of  the  flock,  they  would  all  immediately  scream 
and  fly  ofl".  .  .  .  They  rose  from  the  ground  by  a  single  quick  spring  in  the 
manner  of  a  Snipe,  Avhen  they  would  cut  backward,  forward,  and  all  round, 
in  a  very  curious  manner,  and  would  now  and  then  pause  in  the  air  like  a 
Hawk,  remaining  stationary  for  a  few  moments,  with  their  head  meeting  the 
wind,  when  immediately  after  they  Avould  all  suddenly  alight."  (Aud.)  While 
on  their  passage  to  the  south,  they  fly  high,  and  with  their  usual  speed ;  but 
in  no  regular  form,  such  as  a  flock  of  Wild-geese  would  assume,  sometimes 
presenting  an  extended  front,  and  sometimes  closing  up  into  a  dense  mass. 

On  its  partly  animal,  partly  vegetable  diet,  this  Curlew  appears  to  thrive 
admirably,  as  it  is  usually  extremely  fat  and  juicy,  and  aff'ords  excellent 
eating.  From  this  circumstance  it  has,  according  to  Audubon,  probably  ac- 
quired the  name  of  "  Dough-bird,"  under  which  designation  it  is  commonly 
known  to  the  inhabitants  of  Massachusetts,  although  it  holds  tlie  name  in 
common  with  several  other  birds.  Mr.  Smith's  specimen,  contrary  to  what 
might  have  been  expected,  was  so  plump,  that,  to  use  the  homely  expression 
of  the  bird-stuffer,  "  the  very  oil  was  running  out  of  it;  "  for  these  far-come 
strangers  are  more  usually  in  the  sorry,  half-starved  plight  of  the  Spur- 
winged  Goose,  ( Plectropterus  Oamhensis,)  obtained  in  Banffshire,  by  that  very 
enthusiastic  naturalist,  Mr.  Edward ;  or  even  are  so  exhausted  by  their 
fatigue  as  to  be  found  dead,  like  the  Barbary  Partridge,  near  Melton-Mow- 
bray ;  or  the  Purple  Water-hen,  near  Brandon. 

The  Copper  Indians  have  a  belief  that  this  bird,  with  several  others,  be- 
trays the  appi'oach  of  strangers  to  the  Esquimaux ;  which  may  be  explained, 
in  Dr.  Eichardson's  opinion,  by  the  circumstance,  that  this  persecuted  people 
will  be  on  the  alert,  whenever  they  perceive  a  bird  flying  anxiously  backwards 
and  forwards  over  a  particular  spot,  as  our  Lapwing  is  in  the  habit  of  doing. 

The  Esquimaux  Curlew  breeds  in  flat,  low,  marshy  ground,  laying  three  or 
four  pear-shaped  eggs  of  a  siskin  green  colour,  with  a  few  irregular  spots 
of  bright  umber-brown.  Audubon  says  nothing  of  their  nidification ;  in- 
deed, he  laments  that  he  is  unable  to  give  a  complete  history  of  the  bird 
from  personal  obseiwation ;  but  this  want  is  supplied  by  Dr.  Eichardson, 
who  obtained  their  eggs  when  on  the  expedition  to  the  northern  regions,  the 
zoology  of  which  is  so  well  described  in  the  "  Fauna  Boreali-Americana." 

Curiously  enough,  the  several  species  of  European  Curlews,  although  they 
have  an  almost  proverbially  wide  range,  are  unknown  in  North  America, 


THE   ESQUIMAUX  CURLEW   IN    SCOTLAND.  267 

where  they  are  replaced  by  others,  which,  though  closely  allied  to  those  of 
the  Old  World,  are  specifically  distinct  from  them.  This  remai-k  indeed 
applies  to  many  other  species ;  such  as,  for  example,  the  Great  Northern 
Shrike  of  America,  (Lanius  borealis,)  Avliich  is  distinct  from  our  British  one, 
the  Gray  Shrike  {L.  exeubitor.)  Our  common  species  are  the  Curlews,  by 
pre-eminence,  (Numenius  arquatus,)  and  the  Whimbrel  (A\  phceopus) ;  which 
measure  about  twenty-two  and  eighteen  inches  respectively.  Two  of  the 
principal  New  World  species,  ai-e  the  Hudson's  Bay  Curlew,  (N.  Hudsonicus,) 
which  greatly  resembles  our  Whimbrel, — one  of  the  most  obvious  distinctions 
being,  its  want  of  a  white  patch  on  the  rump ;  and  the  present  species,  which 
is  considerably  smaller-.  It  may  be  mentioned,  that  Pennant,  in  his  "  Arctic 
Zoology,"  includes  the  two  most  common  species  of  Europe,  in  his  Kams- 
chatkan  birds  ;  and  that  the  venerable  Latham,  when  acting  as  annotator  to 
one  of  the  editions  of  the  same  author's  "  British  Zoology,"  in  speaking  of 
the  Curlew,  observes,  "  A  slight  variety  of  it  also  inhabits  America."  Right 
or  wrong,  these  views  do  not  appear  to  coincide  with  the  commonly-received 
opinion  of  the  present  day ;  although  now,  that  Dr.  Cai'penter  is  about  to 
enter  the  field,  and  dispute  the  claims  of  hundreds  of  species  to  be  species 
at  all,  it  would  be  difiicult  to  detei-mine  how  matters  may  be  regarded  by  the 
race  of  ornithologists  now  in  the  nursery. 

Between  our  Curlews,  and  the  one  now  for  the  first  time  added  to  the  list, 
there  is  a  marked  "  family  likeness,"  notwithstanding  the  difference  in  size. 
The  bill  is  brownish-black,  the  basal  portion  of  the  low^er  mandible  flesh- 
coloured,  which  gradually  passes  into  the  darker  hue ;  irides  dark  brown ; 
sides  of  head  yellowish-brown,  with  brown  streaks  ;  upper  part  of  the  head 
brownish-black,  edged  with  reddish-brown ;  neck  considerably  lighter,  edged 
with  dull  white ;  upper  parts  blackish-brown,  with  light  edges ;  primary 
quills  dusky  brown,  the  first  four  shafts  white,  the  others  becoming  darker 
till  they  pass  at  length  into  pale  browTi ;  secondaries  lighter ;  rump  dark 
brown,  with  light  edges ;  upper  tail  coverts  barred  with  dark  and  light 
shades;  the  tail  composed  of  twelve  feathers,  ash  gray,  Avith  dark  brown 
bars,  edged  and  tipt  with  brownish  white  Throat,  and  a  streak  over  the 
eye,  nearly  white ;  foreneck  light  brown,  with  small  longitudinal  liver-brown 
markings ;  under  wing  coverts  chesnut,  with  irregular  brown  markings ; 
breast  and  abdomen  yellowish-gray,  tinged  with  brown ;  the  shafts  of  each 
feather  brown,  gradually  disappearing  downwards ;  the  former  with,  the 
latter  without,  dark  markings ;  feet  dark  green.  The  dimensions  agree  most 
exactly  with  those  in  the  works  of  Audubon  and  Swainson.  They  are — length, 
approximate,  fully  fourteen  inches ;  extent  of  wings  twenty-eight  inches  ;  bill 
two  inches  three  lines ;  tarsus  one  inch  ten  lines ;  middle  toe  almost  an  inch, 
its  claw  about  three  lines. 

This  Curlew  is  a  most  interesting  addition  to  the  score  or  so  of  birds  with 
which  our  Fauna  has  been  enriched  from  America,  and  is  the  fourth  or  fifth 


268  THE    ESQUIMAUX  CURLEW   IN    SCOTLAND. 

American  species  belonging  to  the  family  of  the  Sandpipers,  (SeolopaeidiB 
Sw.,)  which  has  made  its  way  to  this  countiy ;  the  others  mentioned  in 
Yarrell  being  the  Buff-breasted  Sandpiper  [Tringa  rufescens ;)  the  Pectoral 
Sandpiper,  {T.  pectoralis,)  of  which  a  second  individual  was  obtained  in 
Noi'thumberland,  this  summer ;  Schinz's  Sandpiper,  [T.  Schinzii,)  to  Avhich 
Bartram's  Tatler  (Totanus  Bartramius)  has  very  recently  been  added. 

The  writer  cannot  conclude  this,  without  acknowledging  the  opportunities 
which,  at  some  inconvenience,  have  been  given  by  Mr.  Smith  for  the  exami- 
nation of  his  specimen. 

Aberdeen,  Get.  1855. 


NOTES  ON  THE  GRAY  SHRIKE,   (LANIUS  EXGUBITOB,)   THE 

DIPPER,  (CTNGLU8  AQUATIGU8,) 

AND  THE  CHOUGH,  (FBEOILU8  OBACULU8.) 

BY   HENRY   SMURTHWATTE,    ESQ. 

The  Gray  8hrike,  (Lanius  Excubitor.)  Most  recent  writers  on  Ornithology 
appear  to  agree  in  considering  the  Great  Gray  Shrike  {Lanius  Excuhitor)  as 
merely  a  winter  visitor  to  our  island,  and  all,  as  far  as  I  can  ascertain,  deny 
that  it  ever  breeds  with  us.  Before  entering  on  the  latter  subject,  I  may 
observe,  that  although  the  bird  is  generally  considered  rare,  even  in  winter, 
it  cannot  justly  be  called  so,  as  I  do  not  recollect  a  single  year  elapsing  for 
some  time  back,  in  which  one  or  two  specimens  were  not  obtained.  Several 
instances  of  this  kind  are  chronicled  in  The  Naturalist.  Rennie  and  Mr. 
Knapp  (who  call  it  "the  Butcher  Bird,"  by  which  name  Lanius  GoUurio  also 
is  known  in  some  of  the  northern  counties)  state  that  it  breeds  in  the  vicinity 
of  their  respective  residences.  Mr.  Knapp  says,  "  It  breeds  annually  in  my 
neighbourhood ; "  and  Rennie  mentions  having  found  several  "  within  five 
miles  of  Lee,  in  Kent."  Mr.  Yarrell  notices  a  specimen  obtained  in  summer, 
in  Ash  Lane,  near  Lee,  a  circumstance  confirmatory  of  Rennie's  statement. 
Now  I  think  that  neither  of  the  persons  I  have  mentioned  are  likely  to  have 
been  mistaken  on  this  point ;  the  accuracy  of  Mr.  Knapp's  observations  is 
well  known.  YaiTcll  supposes  that,  in  some  instances,  the  eggs  of  the  Red- 
backed  Shrike  may  have  been  mistaken  for  those  of  the  larger  species,  but, 
although  they  do,  no  doubt,  vary  very  much  both  in  size  and  colour,  they 
are  rarely  or  never  so  like  those  of  Lanius  Excubitor  as  to  render  their 
identity  at  all  doubtful.  I  should  feel  greatly  obliged  to  any  of  your  corres- 
pondents who  would  favour  me  with  their  observations  on  this  subject, 
either  hy  letter,  or  through  the  medium  of  The  Naturalist. 

Tlie  Dipper,  (Cinclus  aquaticus.)  I  have  been  enabled  lately  to  see,  almost 
daily,  a  good  deal  of  the  habits  of  the  Dipper,  Ginclus  aquaticus,  during  the 
breeding  season      Since  1852,  a  pair  of  Dippers  have  (as  I  have  previously 


NOTES   ON    THE    GHAY   SHRIKE,   ETC.  269 

mentioned  in  The  Naturalist)  annually  built  tlieir  nest  under  tlie  arch  of  a 
railway  bridge  wliicb  crosses  a  small  brook,  undeterred  from  their  enterprise 
by  the  almost  deafening  noise  occasioned  by  trains  passing  ovoiliead,  and 
regardless  of  the  persecution  to  which  I  am  soriy  to  say  they  have  been 
subjected.  There  are,  I  suppose,  in  every  town,  persons  who  collect  birds 
and  eggs  merely  that  they  may  have  a  collection,  without  taking  the  least 
interest  in  the  habits,  &c.,  of  the  birds  themselves ;  my  own  neighbourhood 
is  not  free  from  persons  of  this  class,  and  the  poor  Dippers  know  it  to  their 
cost.  In  1852,  the  birds  were  three  times  plundered  of  their  nest,  contain- 
ing, on  each  occasion,  five  eggs ;  this  was  repeated  in  the  two  following  years; 
the  same  pair  of  Dippers,  although  unsuccessful  in  their  attempts  to  bring 
off  a  single  brood,  returning  every  spring  to  the  bridge ;  this  year,  1855, 
wishing  to  procure  some  eggs  for  a  fi'iend  of  mine,  I  visited  the  brook 
towards  the  end  of  March,  and  found  the  nest  containing  three  eggs ;  these 
I  removed,  as  the  birds  seldom  if  ever  desert  the  nest,  even  if  their  full 
number  be  laid ;  a  few  days  aftenvards  I  again  looked  into  the  nest,  and  it 
then  had  four  eggs.  These,  as  I  afterwards  heard,  were  taken,  and  the  bird 
laid  live  more  in  the  same  nest,  which  was  again  removed,  together  with  its 
contents.  Let  it  suffice  to  say,  that  this  persecuted  creature  has,  vip  to  this 
period,  May  15th,  constructed  five  nests,  from  which  23  eggs  have  been 
obtained,  and  she  is  now  sitting  on  two  others,  which  Avill,  I  am  afraid, 
share  the  fate  of  the  others.  When  paying  my  daily  visits  to  the  nests,  I 
found  the  birds  to  be  extremely  tame  ;  by  approaching  cautiously,  so  as  not 
to  startle  them,  I  have  frequently  seen  the  male  bird  seated  on  a  stone 
which  projected  from  the  water  immediately  below  the  nest ;  from  this  he 
frequently  dived,  and  after  remaining  under  water  for  a  few  moments,  would 
again  emerge,  and  shake  himself,  just  as  a  dog  would  have  done  under 
similar  circumstances,  covering  the  stone  with  drops  of  water.  Although  I 
■watched  attentively,  I  never  saw  any  of  the  birds  actually  Wiilking  under 
water,  but  I  do  not  at  all  deny  that  this  may  be  occasionally  done.  The 
female  often  allowed  me  to  approach  within  a  foot  of  the  nest  before  she  left 
it;  when  she  did  so,  it  was  with  a  cry  similar  to  that  which  a  Blackbird 
would  have  uttered  in  a  similar  position.  The  eggs,  when  fresh,  have  a 
beautiful  pink  hue,  which  I  have  not  observed  in  those  of  any  other  species ; 
this,  however,  fades  away  immediately  on  their  being  blown,  and  tlio  shell 
loses  in  a  few  days  a  great  deal  of  its  former  transparency.  As  I  afterwards 
found  that  the  eggs  I  had  taken  were  not  required,  I  shall  be  very  happy  to 
send  specimens  to  any  of  your  readers  who  may  be  in  want  of  them,  and  will 
Avrite  to  me  on  the  subject. 

The  Chough,  (Fregilus  graculus.)  One  of  the  most  interesting  of  our  British 
Birds,  in  my  opinion,  is  the  Chough,  {Fregilus  graculus,)  of  modern  authors. 
Unlike  the  rest  of  its  familj^,  it  confines  itself  almost  exclusively  to  the  sea 
coast;  I  say  unlike  the  rest,  for  although  the  Kaven,  Hooded  Crow,  and 


370  NOTES   ON    THE    GRAY   SHRIKE,   ETC. 

Jackdaw,  are  no  doubt  found  on  some  of  our  rocky  coasts  in  considei'able 
numbers,  yet  tliey  are  far  more  frequently  seen  in  inward  situations,  where 
the  abundance  of  timber  offers  them  insuperable  inducements  for  residing. 
We  have,  I  believe,  no  authenticated  instance  of  the  Chough  constructing  its 
nest  in  a  tree,  whilst  all  the  remainder  of  the  Corvidce  (if  the  accounts  which 
we  possess  of  the  Nutcracker's  nidification  be  coiTcct)  build  more  or  less  in 
such  a  situation.  Its  handsome  colours,  active  habits,  and  peculiar  cry, 
render  it  an  object  which  cannot  easily  be  mistaken  or  overlooked,  and  when 
we  consider  that  our  island  contains,  at  the  present  day,  more  ornithologists 
than  any  other  country  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  and  these  ever  on  the  look- 
out to  communicate  the  occurrence  of  any  rare  specimen  to  their  brother 
naturalists,  we  must  consider,  from  the  scarcity  of  notices  of  this  kind  con- 
cerning the  Chough,  that  it  is  one  of  the  most  uncommon  of  our  indigenous 
birds.  This  was  my  impression  for  some  time,  and  was  only  lately  removed 
by  the  contents  of  a  letter  which  I  received  from  S.  Clogg,  Esq.,  of  East 
Looe,  Cornwall.  This  gentleman,  who  from  the  vicinity  of  the  seacoast  to 
his  residence  is  qualified,  in  a  peculiar  degree,  to  speak  with  correctness  on 
this  subject,  says;  "It  breeds  in  the  cliffs  about  Port  Isaac,  Podstone,  &c., 
on  the  north  coast  of  Cornwall,  more  commonly  than  on  the  south ;  although 
a  few  pairs  may  be  yearly  seen  about  the  Lizard,  where,  hke  the  Jackdaw, 
they  breed  in  holes  in  the  cliffs.  In  one  of  the  numbers  of  "  Dickens' 
Household  Words  "  there  lately  appeared  a  short  paper  by  a  person  who 
once  resided  in  Cornwall,  wherein  he  stated  that  the  Chough  was  common 
in  the  cliffs  near  Mucrow,  and  that  in  the  season  the  young  birds  might  be 
bought  for  three  or  four  pence  each.  Now  I  believe  this  to  be  altogether  a 
mistake,  as  I  know  the  Jackdaw  is  commonly  called  "  Chough"  throughout 
Cornwall ;  we  have  a  very  high  cliff  close  by  us,  where  the  Daws  breed  in 
great  numbers,  which  is  called  '  Chough  Eock,'  and  should  any  one  come 
here  in  the  breeding  season,  and  offer  a  reward  for  any  number  of  Chough's 
eggs,  he  would  soon  have  an  abundant  supply  of  Daw's  eggs  brought  to  him, 
under  the  supposition  that  they  were  those  of  the  Chough ;  and  it  would  be 
no  easy  matter  to  convince  the  bearers  to  the  contrary,  they,  in  their  igno- 
rance, fully  believing  them  to  be  veritable  Chough's  eggs."  Mr.  Clogg  then 
goes  on  to  say,  that  his  friend,  Mr.  Clement  Jackson,  during  a  recent  tour  of 
the  Cornish  coast,  obsen^ed  numerous  specimens  of  F.  graculus.  If  any 
correspondent  of  The  Naturalist,  who  can  speak  from  experience  of  the 
habits  or  nidification  of  the  Chough,  will  communicate  to  you  his  observa- 
tions, he  will  add  something  to  the  rather  unsatisfactory  knowledge  which 
we  possess  of  a  most  interesting  bird,  and  very  greatly  oblige  one  at  least  of 
your  readers. 

Richmond,  YorJcsJiire,  May  Ibth,  1855. 

The  Chough  is  common  enough  among  the  cliffs  on  the  eastern  part  of 
South  Devon,  and  we  should  expect  them  to  be  so  also  in  Cornwall. — B.E.M. 


271 

NOTES  FROM  A  BIRD-NESTING  EXPEDITION  TO  THE  SOUTH 

OF  HOLLAND. 

BY   WILLIAM   BRIDGEB,   ESQ. 

The  excellent  descriptions  of  the  habits  and  nesting  places  of  many  of  the 
rarer  British  Birds,  by  the  late  Mr.  Hoy,  as  given  in  Mr.  Hewitson's 
*'  Illustrations  of  the  Eggs  of  British  Birds,"  induced  me  to  take  a  trip  to  the 
south  of  Holland. 

Accordingly,  the  7th  May  last,  I  left  this  country,  and  crossing  over  to 
Antwei-p,  found  myself,  on  the  9th,  at  ValJi»enswaard,  a  small  village,  situate  JL 
between  the  rivers  Dommel  and  Fongreep,  near  the  Belgian  frontier,  about 
seven  miles  from  the  town  of  Eindover,  and  about  twenty-eight  from  the 
still  larger  town  of  Bois  le  Due,  called  by  the  Dutch  Hertogenbosch,  (or 
"  The  Bosch,"  as  they  often  term  it,  for  shortness,)  on  the  river  Mouse. 
Here,  then,  at  the  comfortable  "  Valken  Inn,"  with  its  painted  signboard  of 
a  Hooded  Falcon,  I  took  up  my  quarters  for  the  season.  And  with  no 
flaunting  boast  has  that  Inn  derived  its  name  of  the  Falcon  Inn,  for  its  good 
owner,  Mr.  James  Bots,  was  falconer  in  England  for  years,  and  has  not 
long  retired  from  being  falconer  to  the  hawking  club  at  the  Loo  of  which  the 
king  is  the  president,  and  is  now,  as  ever,  ready  to  be  first  or  second  in 
anything  in  the  way  of  sport.  Bots,  who  speaks  English  fluently,  was  our 
constant  companion ;  and  a  better  fellow  never  lived.  Besides  Bots,  two  or 
three  others  in  the  village  speak  English,  the  girls  and  many  of  the  men 
French,  and  the  rest  Dutch,  which  resembles  bad  German.  Mr.  Baker,  a 
naturalist  of  Cambridge,  had  arrived  before  me,  and  being  on  the  same 
pursuit  as  myself,  and  being  a  good  bird-skinnei-,  materially  aided  me  in  my 
search. 

Little  Owl.  Strix  passerina.  Tem.  Kleine  steen  Uil,  Dutch  or  provincial 
name.  This  Owl  is  by  no  means  rare  there ;  a  nest  with  one  egg  in  was  taken 
before  my  arrival.  The  doctor  of  Leende,  a  village  about  four  miles  from 
Valkenswaard,  whose  name  I  do  not  recollect,  kindly  allow-ed  a  nest  of  three 
eggs  to  be  taken  from  a  hole  in  a  walnut  tree  in  his  garden ;  he  told  me  he 
was  only  too  glad  to  get  rid  of  them,  for  the  noise  they  made  at  night  was 
abominable.  The  eggs  were  taken  the  19th  June,  and  had  been  sat  upon 
some  time.  Two  broods  were,  to  my  knowledge,  hatched  out  in  the  village ; 
one  from  a  walnut  tree  in  a  garden,  and  the  other  from  a  hole  in  the  church; 
I  heard  of  the  latter  on  my  return  from  the  Loo,  where  I  had  been  to  see 
the  hawking.  I  was  desirous  of  obtaining  one  or  two  young  ones,  but  as  the 
hole  was  at  a  considerable  elevation,  and  extended  a  long  way  in,  the  only 
way  to  get  them  was,  as  Bots  said,  to  "  lime  them."  We  tried  with  two  live 
young  bii'ds,  one  evening,  but  either  we  arrived  too  late,  or  the  young  birds 
were  not  a  delicacy,  for  we  did  not  succeed.  However,  on  the  19th  June,  a 
live  mouse  with  difficulty  having  been  obtained,  we  commenced  operations. 
Having  noticed  that  the  Owls  generally  perched  in  the  early  part  of  tlie 


St3  NOtES   FROM    A   BIRD-NfeSTlNG   EXPEDITION 

evening  on  an  iron  cross  on  the  roof  at  tlie  end  of  the  church,  we  stuck  a 
short  stick  with  the  mouse  attached  by  a  string  to  it  in  the  ground  opposite ; 
at  the  side  was  stuck  a  twig,  whose  three  thin  branches,  which  were  limed, 
spread  over  the  mouse  at  a  height  of  two  or  three  inches.  This  being 
arranged  to  our  satisfaction,  we  laid  at  a  little  distance  off,  smoking  our 
pipes  and  watching  the  result.  I  had  just  bet  Bots  a  bottle  of  his  best  that 
we  should  be  again  disappointed,  when  we  observed  an  Owl  light  on  the 
cross ;  presently,  down  he  darted,  in  the  direction  of  the  mouse.  He's 
caught !  was  the  exclamation ;  and  so  it  was,  the  Owl  was  caught  and  the 
bottle  lost.  Poor  little  fellow !  he  looked  so  patient,  and  seemed  to  implore 
60  with  his  large  upraised  eyes,  that  we  almost  felt  sorry  he  was  caught. 
Another  one  was  caught  in  the  same  manner,  about  a  fortnight  later,  and 
both  these  are  now  in  the  Zoological  Gardens.  I  fed  them  upon  birds 
which  they  chiefly  contributed  to  catch,  thus  :  In  a  field  in  which  the 
herbage  was  short,  to  allow  of  the  Owl  being  seen,  we  would  fix  a  low  perch 
in  the  ground  and  tie  the  Owl  to  it,  allowing  him,  however,  by  means  of 
jesses  and  a  long  leash  plenty  of  scope.  In  front  of  the  perch,  at  a  little 
distance  from  each  other,  are  stuck  two  sticks  in  the  ground,  each  having  a 
slit  at  the  toi).  In  this  slit,  and  in  each  side  of  each  stick,  we  lightly  fixed  a 
small  twig,  with  a  slender  branch  or  two  projecting,  which  were  limed.  The 
birds,  on  coming  to  mob  the  Owl,  would  alight  on  these  tAvigs,  which,  falling 
to  the  ground  with  their  weight,  entangled  them  in  the  lime,  and  thus  they 
became  caught.  In  this  way  we  captured  Red-backed  Shrikes,  Yellow 
Hammers,  Tree  Pipits,  Whitethroats,  &c.  It  is  with  the  Little  Owl  that  the 
falconers  capture  the  Great  Gray  Shrike,  which  in  its  turn  is  used  by  them 
in  capturing  the  Falcons.  The  livelier  the  Owl  the  better  it  is  to  capture 
small  birds  with,  as  from  its  hopping  and  flying  about  it  is  the  easier  seen. 
As  soon  as  the  evening  began  to  close  in,  and  sometimes  of  a  morning,  we 
would  see  the  Little  Owl  on  the  move,  and  in  the  middle  of  the  day  he 
might  often  have  been  seen  quietly  seated  in  some  dark  cranny  or  other 
outside  the  church.  In  the  nights  in  July,  when  everything  else  was  still,  I 
would  lie  awake  with  my  window  open,  listening  to  their  "  koowit,  kwitch," 
accompanied  only  by  the  watchman's  rattle  and  his  monotonous  voice,  as  he 
went  his  rounds.  During  the  time  I  had  them  caged,  they  never  plucked 
their  birds  before  they  eat  them,  and  if  you  approached  to  look  at  them 
they  would  stand  up,  stare  at  you,  and  snap  their  bills.  The  Little  Owl 
makes  no  regular  nest,  and  lays  from  three  to  five  eggs ;  some  I  have  are 
round,  and  some  rather  oval,  but  they  are  all  of  the  same  size,  and  are  of  a 
dull  white  colour.  This  was  the  only  Owl  I  noticed  as  breeding  round 
Valkenswaard,  but  I  was  informed,  that,  at  Wahlre,  distant  about  two  miles, 
the  Barn  Owl  breeds. 
Guildford,  Oct.  Uth,  1^55. 

fTo  be  continued.) 


273 


CONTRIBUTIONS  TO  A  LIST  OF  THE  CRYPTOGAMOUS  FLORA 
OF  BANFFSHIRE. 


FERNS. 
1    Common  Polypody.  {Pohjpodium  vulgare.)    Abundant  in  all  parts  of  the 
county.     On  the  rocks  exposed  to  the  sea  it  attains  the  height  of  only  one 
or  two  inches,  scarcely  showing  its  head  above  the  moss. 

2.  Mountain  Polypody.  (P.  phegopteris.)  In  the  parish  of  Alvah,  by 
the  Rev.  A.Todd.  On  the  11th  August  I  gathered  it  near  a  romantic 
waterfall,  called  the  Dhu  Craig,  in  the  parish  of  Keith ;  one  plant  measured 
twenty-one  inches.  I  have  also  found  it  growing  at  a  great  height,  on  a  hill 
in  Strathconon,  Ross. 

3.  Tender  three-branched  Polypody.  (P.  dryopteris.)  Parish  of  Alvah, 
by  Rev.  A.  Todd. 

4.  Alpine  Polypody.  (P.  alpestre.)  This  fern  I  am  inclined  to  think 
I  gathered  at  Tarlair,  near  Macduff.  It  grew  at  the  bottom  of  some 
high  rocks,  in  a  damp  shaded  situation.  At  first  I  took  it  for  Athyriwm-filix- 
fcemina,  but  on  closer  examination  I  have  set  it  down  as  Alpine  Polypody. 

5.  Heath,  or  Mountain  Fern.  {Lastrea  Oreopteris.)  This  fern  is  most 
abundant  in  most  parts  of  the  county.  In  moist  shaded  situations  it  grows 
most  luxuriantly,  being  upwards  of  three  feet  in  many  parts.  I  observed  it 
in  great  quantities  in  many  parts  of  Ross. 

6.  Male  Fern.  {L.  filix-mas.)  Common  everywhere.  In  Gillie  Burn,  near' 
Banff,  it  attains  great  perfection,  and  remains  throughout  the  winter. 
In  the  above  named  place  I  met  with  a  frond,  in  which  one  of  the  pinna; 
was  bifid. 

7.  Narrow  prickly-toothed  Fern.  {L.  spinulosa.)  This  grows  in  the  hills 
of  Boyndie,  near  Banff,  and  in  other  places.  Being  out  one  day  collect- 
ing, I  gathered  more  specimens  than  I  could  well  examine ;  I  laid  them 
aside  till  a  more  convenient  time.  When  I  put  the  sori  under  the  glass,  I 
thought  I  saw  the  spores  in  motion.  I  looked  steadily,  and  the  spores  were 
flying  in  all  directions,  and  in  great  quantities,  so  that  the  paper  below  the 
fern  was  soon  quiet  dark.  In  my  quiet  admiration,  methought  I  heard  a 
crackling  noise ;  auribus  erectis  I  listened,  and  distinctly  heard  it ;  this  was 
a  sound  that  fell  on  the  ear  "  like  the  exquisite  music  of  a  dream,"  telling 
ihat  there  was  a  force,  a  vital  force  at  work  in  that  plant,  and  speaking  a 
tale  of  wisdom. 

8.  Broad  prickly-toothed  Fern.  {L.  dilatata.)  Quite  common,  and  in 
shaded  places  growing  to  a  large  size. 

9.  Prickly  shield  Fern.  {Polystichum  lobatum.)  I  have  found  this  in  one 
place  only, — in  the  parish  of  Botriphnie,  on  the  side  of  the  old  road  leading 
from  Keith  to  Dufftown,  near  the  small  loch  from  which  the  Isla  flows ;  it 
measured  nearly  two  feet  in  length. 


274  A  LIST  OF  THE  CRYPTOGAMOUS  FLORA  OF  BANFFSHIRE. 

10.  Brittle  Bladder  Fern.  (Oystopteris  fragilis.)  This  occurs  rather  fre- 
quently, and  in  several  varieties,  in  wells  and  on  shaded  rocks. 

11.  Mountain  Bladder  Fern.  (C.  montana.)  This  was  found  on  Ben- 
rinnes,  this  summer,  and  sent  to  Mr.  Edwards,  Banff. 

12.  Lady  Fern.  {Athyrium  Filix  fcemina.)  Very  common,  and  in  shaded 
places  growing  in  great  luxuriance.  I  have  measured  them  three  feet  in 
length. 

13.  Black  Spleen  Wort.  {Asplenium  Adiantum  nigrum.)  It  grows  near  the 
Bridge  of  Alvah,  in  small  tufts,  on  rocks  accessible  only  by  boat. 

14.  Sea  Spleenwort.  {A.  marinum.)  This  is  found  rather  plentifully,  in  a 
cave  at  Tarlair,  near  Macduff,  Banff.  One  of  the  fronds  I  pulled  was 
bifid. 

15.  Common  wall  Spleenwort.  {A.  Trichomanes.)  This  grows  in  the  Dhu 
Craig,  Keith. 

16.  Wall  Rue,  fA.  Ruta-murariaJ  grows  in  great  abundance  in  two  vaults 
in  the  old  castle  of  Balvenie  Mortlach.  One  of  them  is  entirely  covered 
with  it.  It  also  grows,  though  very  stuntedly,  on  the  highest  parts 
of  the  walls  I  could  reach. 

17.  Common  Hart's  tongue,  f  Seolopendrium  vulgare.)  It  has  not  yet  been 
my  luck  to  find  this  within  the  county.  It  is  found  in  the  den  of  Auchmed- 
don,  on  the  borders  of  it.     It  is  also  found  in  Morayshire. 

18.  Scaly  Spleenwort.  (Ceteraeh  offidnarum.)  Mr.  T.  Edwards  has  found 
this  near  Banff. 

19.  Hard  Fern,  (Blechnum  horealc,)  is  most  abundant  in  all  parts.  It 
grows  to  good  perfection  in  the  damp  ditches  in  the  woods  around  Duff 
House.  This  is  the  fern  I  found  growing  highest  on  the  hills  in  Ross.  It 
could  not  have  been  less  than  800  or  900  feet  above  the  sea  level. 

20.  Common  Brake.  {Pteris  Aquilina.)  Most  plentiful,  so  that  it  is  often 
used  as  litter  for  cattle,  and  in  some  cases,  as  food  for  horses.  I  have 
measured  it  seven  and  a  half  feet  in  length  on  the  banks  of  the  Deveron, 
Mont  Coffer. 

21.  Parsley  Fern,  [Allosorus  crispus,)  is  said  to  be  found  on  the  Burn  of  the 
Boyne. 

22.  Maiden-hair,  {Adiantum  capillus  Veneris,)  is  recorded  at  page  51  of  The 
Naturalist,  Vol.  III. 

23.  Flowering  Fern,  (Osmunda  regalis,)  was  found  some  years  ago,  by 
Dr.  Bidie,  CuUen,  at  a  place  called  Rannes,  near  CuUen. 

24.  Moonwort.  (BotrycUum  lunaria.)    Parish  of  Alvah,  by  Rev.  A.  Todd. 
Octoher  17th,  1855. 


275 
DOWN  THE  EIVER. 

BY  J.  S.  WALKER,  ESQ. 

I  LIVED  on  the  east  coast  of  Australia,  in  the  district  of  Twofold  Bay,  a 
few  miles  from  the  sea.  This  part  of  the  country  may  be  described  as  a 
succession  of  gently  undulating  well-grassed  hills,  thinly  timbered  by  dwarf 
Eucalyptus  and  Biinniiiin,  trees ;  the  Moneroo  mountains,  so  steep  as  to  be  /5<?t>*^ 
quite  impassable,  except  at  two  or  three  places,  hemmed  it  in,  their  sides 
and  summits  covered  with  huge  forest  trees,  whose  stems  were  charred  and 
blackened  by  successive  bush  fires.  Several  streams  wound  their  way 
between  groves  of  camarinse,  and  uniting  at  Bega,  emptied  themselves  into 
the  sea,  about  two  hundred  miles  to  the  south  of  Sydney.  I  say  emptied, 
but  percolated  would  be  a  better  term ;  for  these  rivers,  which  were  the 
drainage  of  sixty  or  seventy  miles  of  country,  and  which  for  several  miles 
from  its  mouth  formed  a  noble  stream,  when  it  reached  the  ocean  was 
.  separated  from  it,  during  at  least  nine  months  in  the  year,  by  a  narrow  bar 
of  sand;  the  south-eastern  gales,  which  occasionally  during  the  winter 
months  lashed  these  shores  with  the  fury  of  a  hurricane,  would  sweep  away 
the  bar,  and  allow  the  pent  up  stream  to  disgorge  itself  into  the  Pacific ;  but 
a  few  weeks  of  calm  weather  again  replaced  the  sand. 

About  eight  or  ten  miles  up  the  river  we  had  a  cattle  station ;  and  here  on 
the  banks,  at  the  veiy  water's  edge,  we  built  a  Uttle  cottage,  where,  during 
the  heats  of  summer,  we  spent  a  few  weeks  with  our  wives  and  families. 
Having  at  last  procured  a  boat  from  Sydney,  we  determined  to  take  a  trip 
"  down  the  river,"  and  explore  its  beauties ;  for  it  was  situated  in  so  lonely  a 
part  of  the  countrj^  that  only  one  or  two  white  men  had  ever  followed  its 
course  to  the  sea. 

Behold  us,  then,  one  calm  summer's  moi'ning,  prepared  for  a  start ;  two 
days'  provision,  blankets,  fowling  pieces  and  ammunition,  fishing  lines  and 
hooks,  &c.,  having  been  safely  stowed  away,  and  having  secured  the  services 
of  a  couple  of  black  fellows  to  row  the  boat,  we  gently  glide  down  the 
stream.  It  soon  begins  to  widen  to  150  yards,  and  the  water  gets  brackish; 
a  few  miles  further,  it  is  quite  salt ;  the  hills  are  steep,  and  in  some  places 
may  almost  be  called  mountains.  Now  we  pass  some  sheltered  corner, 
where  the  vegetation  is  quite  tropical ;  the  hugest  trees  are  covered  with 
climbing  plants,  and  lovely  broad-leaved  ferns;  flocks  of  Paroquets,  with 
loud  screams,  flit  by, — their  scarlet  and  golden  plumage  flashes  for  a  moment 
in  the  sun,  and  they  are  gone.  Shoals  of  Mullet  spring  from  the  water,  and 
iall  back  with  a  loud  flop  ;  then  the  black  fellows  start  up,  seize  their  spears, 
and  immediately  a  splash  in  the  water  proclaims  a  prize,  and  we  haul  into 
the  boat  a  fine  Sand  Mullet,  of  three  or  four  pounds  weight.  Now  a  flock  of 
Wild  Ducks,  with  their  necks  stretched  out,  as  if  wondering  at  our  unusual 
appearance,  with  loud  fluf-fluf;  bang  go  both  baji-rels,  and  my  friends  the 


276  DOWN   THfi    niVER. 

darkies  burst  out  into  a  loud  guffiuv,  and  exclaim  "  Stupid  you  !  "  when  it  is 
discovered  that  I  have  missed  them.  These  sable  gentlemen,  I  may  men- 
tion, were  great  favourites ;  and  as  when  one  made  a  remark  the  other  echoed 
it,  or  when  one  laughed  his  companion  joined  in  his  merriment,  therefore 
the  ladies  nicknamed  them  incontinently  Pyke  and  Pluck,  at  which  joke 
they  laughed  consumedly,  and  indeed  roared  so  loud  that  they  bade  fair  to 
startle  all  the  game.  As  we  progress,  the  river  varies  in  width,  from  a 
quarter  to  half  a  mile,  and  is  studded  with  beautiful  islands,  all  of  which  are 
covered  with  flowering  plants,  and  the  larger  ones  with  trees.  But  we  get 
down  the  river  but  slowly;  for  first  Pyke  points  out  a  long  trail  on  the 
water,  and  tells  us  it  is  a  Black  Snake  so  I  fire,  and  am  more  successful  this 
time,  for  when  we  pull  up  to  the  spot  we  find  the  animal  dead  at  the  bottom 
of  the  clear  water ;  then  we  see  what  the  blacks  call  a  Monkey,  but  which  is 
in  reality  a  small  Sloth,  seated  far  aloft,  between  the  forks  of  a  tall  gum  tree; 
Pyke,  who,  on  his  own  showing,  is  a  dead  shot,  levels  the  fatal  tube,  but, 
instead  of  bringing  down  the  "  Monkey,"  only  wounds  him ;  whereat  the 
wretched  beast  moaningly  essays  to  climb  beyond  our  reach,  and  utters  such 
plaintive  cries — the  sound  reminding  us  of  a  child  in  distress — that  we  are 
almost  tempted  to  leave  him,  a  proposal  which  both  Pyke  and  Pluck  treat 
with  great  scorn,  and  at  another  discharge  he  comes  toppling  down  into  the 
water,  and  being  examined  by  Pyke,  is  reported  to  be  very  fat,  and  so  is 
stowed  away  in  a  safe  comer  of  the  boat,  and  is  reserved  as  a  bonne  bouche  for 
their  supper.  This  little  animal,  which  is  about  the  size  of  a  large  cat,  is 
rather  rare  ;  like  the  rest  of  the  Sloths  it  lives  almost  entirely  in  the  trees- 
I  rather  think  it  is  not  marsupial,  at  all  events  it  has  this  strange  peculiarity, 
that  it  carries  its  young  one — it  has  but  one  at  a  birth — on  its  shoulders, 
whose  little  arms  grasp  firmly  the  mother's  head.  I  have  often  seen  them 
myself  in  this  odd  position.  It  is  nocturnal  in  its  habits,  but  does  not,  like 
the  Oppossum,  retire  to  the  holes  in  the  trees  during  the  day  time,  remaining 
silently  perched  upon  a  branch.     It  feeds  chiefly  upon  the  leaves  of  the  gum 

tree. 

To  he  continued. 


THE  DIURNAL  LEPIDOPTERA  FOUND  IN  THE  NEIGHBOURHOOD 
OF  LUTON,  BEDFORDSHIRE. 

BY  ALFRED  LUCAS,   ESQ. 

Havino  noticed  that  in  some  of  your  former  numbers  you  have  received 
communications  relative  to  the  various  localities  where  lepidopterous  insects 
have  been  found,  but  not  having  seen  the  south  of  Bedfordshire  among 
them,  I  thought  that  a  brief  list  of  those  insects  taken  in  that  part  might  not 
prove  entirely  void  of  interest  to  some  of  the  readers  of  The  Naturalist. 


THE    DIURNAL   LEPIDOPTERA   OF   LUTON.  277 

Gonepteryx  Rhamni.  (Brimstone  B.)  Common  in  the  spring  and  autumn. 

Colias  Edusa.  (Clouded  Yellow.)     Very  scarce.     Near  Hitchin. 

Pontia  Brassicce.  (Large  Garden  White.)     Everywhere  abundant. 

Pontia  Rapm.  (Small  White.)     Everywhere  abundant. 

Pontia  Napi.  (Gi'een- veined  White.)     Everywhere  abundant 

Pontia  Cardamines.  (Orange-tip.)     Very  common  in  May  and  June. 

Nemeobim  Lueina.  (Duke  of  Burgundy  Fritillary.)  Very  rare.   Hitch  Wood. 

Melitcea  Oinxia.  (Glanville  Fritillary.)     Occasionally  seen  in  gardens. 

Melitcea  Euphrosyne.  (Pearl-bordered  Fritillary.)    Scarce.    In  woody  places. 

Argynnis  Paphia.  (Silver-washed  Fritillary.)  Veiy  common  in  Hitch  Wood. 

Vanessa  O.  Album.  (Comma.)     Occasionally  met  with  near  woods. 

Vanessa  PolycJiloros.  (Large  Tortoise-shell.)     Not  scarce. 

Vanessa  Urticce.  (Small  Tortoise-shell.)     Abundant  everywhere. 

Vanessa  lo.  (Peacock.)     Very  common  in  autumn. 

Vanessa  Antiopa.  (Camberwell  Beauty.)     Once  seen  at  Hitchin. 

Vanessa  Atalanta.  (Red  Admiral.)     Common. 

Cynthia  Gardui.  (Painted  Lady.)     Common. 

Apatura  Iris.  (Purple  Emperor.)     Occasionally  seen  in  Hitch  Wood. 

Limenitis  Camilla,  (Wliite  Admiral.)     One  specimen  has  been  taken. 

Hipparclda  ^geria.  (Speckled  Wood.)     Common  in  woods  and  lanes. 

Hipparehia  Meganra.  (Wall )     Very  common. 

Hipparclda  Oalatliea.  (Marbled  White.)     Occasionally  taken. 

Hipparehia  Tithonus.  (Large  Heath.)     Everywhere  abundant. 

Hipparehia  Janira.  (Meadow  Brown.)     Extremely  common. 

Hipparehia  Hyperanthus.  (Ringlet.)     Abundant. 

Hipparehia  Pamphilus.  (Small  Heath.)     Common. 

Thecla  Quereus.  (Purple  Hair-streak.)     Very  scarce.     High  Down. 

Thecla  Rubi.  (Green  Hair-streak.)     Occasionally  taken. 

Lyctena  Phlceas.  (Common  Copper.)     Not  scarce. 

Polyommatus  Argiolus.  (Azure  Blue.)     Scarce.     High  Down. 

Polyommatus  Alsus.  (Small  Blue.)     Common.     High  Down. 

Polyommatus  Corydon.  (Chalk-hill  Blue.)     Common.    Warden  Hill. 

Polyommatus  Alexis.  (Common  Blue.)     Very  common. 

Polyommatus  Agestis.  (Brown  Argus.)     Scarce. 

Thymele  Alveolus.  (Grizzled.)     Common. 

Thymele  Tages.  (Dingy  Skipper.)     Scarce.     On  hills. 

Pamphila  Paniscus.  (Chequered  Skipper.)     Common. 

Pamphila  Linea.  (Small  Skipper )     Common  in  lanes. 

Pamphila  Sylvanus.  (Large  Skipper.)     Not  scarce. 

Yorh,  October  1855. 


278 

The  Natural  History  of  the  Tineina.  Vol.  i.  containing  Nepticula,  Parti. 
Cemiostoma,  Part  i.  By  H.  T.  Stainton ;  assisted  by  Professor  Zeller,  and 
J.  W.  Douglas.  London:  Van  Voorst.  1855.  8vo.  pp.  338.  Eight 
Coloured  Plates.    Price  12s. 

The  astonishing  progress  Avhich  has  of  late  years  been  made  in  Entomology, 
has  in  no  group  of  insects  been  so  obvious  as  in  that  of  the  Micro-Lepidoptera ; 
it  is  but  a  few  years  back  that  these  little  insects  were,  if  collected  at  all, 
placed  in  the  cabinet  almost  indiscriminatelj^  a  few  well  marked  and  obvious 
species  excepted.  It  is  with  sincere  gratification  that  we  hail  the  advent  of  the 
present  volume, — though  it  is  only  the  first  of  a  long  series, — as  promising 
us  much  minute  yet  distinct  information  uj)on  these  little  atoms.  No  one  is 
better  qualified  for  the  task  of  bringing  them  to  light  than  Mr.  Stainton,  and 
with  the  able  assistance  of  Professor  Zeller,  and  Mr.  Douglas,  there  can  be 
no  doubt  of  the  great  intrinsic  value  of  this  and  the  futvu'e  volumes  coming 
out  under  the  same  auspices.  One  singular,  but  very  valuable  feature  of  the 
work,  is,  that  the  text  is  given  in  English,  French,  German,  and  Latin, 
thereby  giving  it  the  chance  of  a  world-wide  dispersion,  >vithout  the  usual 
delay  attending  translations,  which,  too,  are  not  always  correct  in  giving  the 
author's  meaning.  The  insects  described  in  the  present  volume  are  the 
first  part  of  the  Genus  Nepticula,  and  the  first  part  of  Cemiostoma.  The 
details  are  most  minute,  and  embrace  all  that  is  as  yet  known  of  the  habits 
and  transformations  of  these  beautiful  little  insects.  The  description  of  each 
species  is  illustrated  by  a  series  of  beautifully  coloured  figures  of  the  cater- 
pillar, the  chiysalis,  and  the  perfect  insect,  both  magnified  and  of  the  natural 
size ;  and  each  is  accompanied  by  a  characteristic  figure  of  a  leaf  of  the  plant 
on  which  it  is  found,  as  mined  by  the  caterpillar;  for,  be  it  known,  that  these 
little  creatures  procure  their  food  by  excavating  minute  galleries  between  the 
upper  and  under  surface  of  the  leaf;  and  it  is  by  observing  and  collecting 
such  leaves,  that  most  of  the  modern  discoveries  in  this  family  have  been 
made.  To  give  some  idea  of  the  valuable  character  of  the  information 
contained  in  this  volume,  we  open  it  at  random,  and  at  page  106,  we  find 
Nepticula  fioslactella  described.  The  first  paragraph  relates  to  the  Larva,  how 
noticeable;  second  relates  to  the  Imago,  how  noticeable ;  third,  mode  of  life; 
fourth,  description  of  the  Imago,  this  is  very  full ;  fifth,  description  of  Larva  ; 
sixth,  geographical  distribution;  seventh,  synonymy;  eighth,  remarks  on  the 
synonyms ;  ninth,  observations  of  authors.  We  regret  that  our  very  limited 
space  will  only  allow  a  short  extract :  we  take  No.  3.  Mode  of  Life.  "  The 
egg  is  deposited  on  the  under  side  of  the  nut,  or  hornbean  leaf,  close  to  the 
rib ;  the  Larva  proceeds  to  mine  in  an  irregular  wavy  gallery ;  the  first  third 
of  the  mine,  the  excrement  forms  a  line  occupying  nearly  the  whole  width  ; 
then  for  a  considerable  distance  it  forms  an  irregular  series  of  blackish 


HEVIEW.  279 

grains,  still  occupying  almost  tlie  whole  of  tlie  mine ;  in  the  last  third  of  the 
mine  the  excrement  forms  a  row  of  black  grains  along  the  centre  of  the 
mine,  a  considerable  margin  being  left  on  either  side,  which  appears  whitish. 
When  full  grown,  the  larva  creeps  out  on  the  upper  surface  of  the  leaf,  and 
seeks  a  suitable  place  to  undergo  its  transformations ;  it  spins  a  moderate 
sized  rather  egg-shaped  cocoon,  of  a  whitish-yellow  colour,  the  outer  portion 
of  which  is  not  tightly  woven,  but  remains  loose  and  flossy ;  at  the  proper 
period  the  pupa  thrusts  its  head  through  the  end  of  the  cocoon,  and  the 
imago  appears." 

We  can  only  further  commend  this  volume  and  its  successors  most 
cordially  to  our  readers,  feeling  assured  that  all  who  become  purchasers, 
will  be  not  only  in  Mr.  Stainton's  debt,  but  also  ours,  for  bringing  this 
admirable  history  under  their  notice. 

The  Natural  History  Beview.    No.  7,  July ;  No.  8,  October.     1855.     London  : 
Samuel  Highly.     8vo.    2s.  Qd. 

We  have  before  called  the  attention  of  our  readers  to  this  very  useful  and 
well  conducted  periodical :  the  present  numbers  fully  sustain  the  character 
we  gave  of  a  former  number,  and  indeed  are  manifest  improvements  upon  it. 
The  July  number,  besides  eight  reviews,  and  notices  of  serials,  contains 
twelve  original  papers,  communicated  to  the  various  societies  in  Ireland. 
The  October  number,  in  addition  to  the  reviews,  &c.,  gives  us  three  valuable 
papers,  two  of  them  relating  to  the  Irish  AlgaB.  Several  of  the  papers  are 
illustrated  by  plates  in  lithography,  and  we  are  glad  to  observe  that  the 
subject  of  the  Micro-lepidoptera  has  not  been  overlooked  in  the  Sister  Isle. 
It  is  veiy  probable  that  many  additions  to  our  present  list  may  be  made  by 
our  Irish  Entomologists. 

The  Natural  History  Eeview  is  well  got  up,  both  as  to  matter  and  manner, 
and  we  trust  its  spirited  projectors  may  meet  with  the  reward  they  deserve. 


"  The  Crystal  Palace  Bobins." — Now,  alas !  Matters  of  History  only. — I  was 
much  gratified  last  year,  while  visiting  the  Sydenham  Palace,  to  observe  the 
large  number  of  Eobins  (all  so  tame !)  that  had  taken  up  their  quarters  in 
the  building;  and  I  wrote  a  lengthened  Paper  on  the  subject,  which  appeared 
in  The  Natubalist,  and  excited  considerable  attention — being  copied  into  all 
our  public  journals.  So  completely  were  these  Robins  "  at  home,"  that  they 
nested  thei-e,  introducing  themselves  and  their  young  families  at  the 
dinner  table,  and  going  through  a  whole  round  of  diverting  tricks,  to  the 
infinite  amusement  of  lookers-on.    And  how  sweetly  melodious  were  their 


280  MISCKHANEOUS, 

united  voices  within  those  twelve  acres  of  glass  !  Were  ever  such  strains 
heard  before,  under  similar  circumstances  ?  Never !  The  little  performers 
positively  sang  the  visitors  in,  and  out — trotting  along  the  floors  to  the  very 
last.  It  was  indeed  a  charming  sight !  Their  nests  were  built  in  those  ver> 
pretty  wire  flower-baskets,  so  tastefully  suspended  round  the  galleries.  I 
went  again  this  season,  to  get  a  peep  at  my  little  friends.  I  listened  for 
them  eagerly;  I  sought  for  them  carefully.  I  imitated  their  song.  Alas  !  no 
response.  All  was  cruelly  silent.  My  mind  misgave  me  that  something  was 
amiss.  Addressing  myself  to  a  young  lady,  who  I  rightly  guessed  was  a 
season-ticket  holder,  I  explained  to  her  the  cause  of  my  solicitude,  which 
had  not  escaped  her  observation.  "  Oh — sir,"  sighed  this  fair  daughter  of 
Eve,  with  a  seraphic  expression  of  countenance  yet  visible  to  my  mind's  eye 
— "those  dear  Eobins,  sir,  have  all  been  poisoned!  "  I  groaned.  On  further 
inquiry,  I  found  it  was  too  true.  They  had  been  voted  "  a  nuisance ! " — and 
poisoned  !  Who,  after  this,  shall  deny  that  "Man  is  a  savage?" — KidcHs  (W.) 
Treatise  on  the  Rohin. 

Song  of  the  Autumn  Robin. — It  is  worthy  of  remark,  that  few  of  the  old 
Robins  resume  their  song  until  the  spring.  All  the  music  we  are  treated  to 
from  this  time  to  Christmas,  is  improvised  by  the  young  birds  of  the  present 
year.  Its  freshness,  joyousness,  richness,  and  purity  are  inexpressibly 
delightful.  Our  little  friends  are  honest.  All  we  hear  is  genuine.  They 
are  happy ;  and  they  take  care  to  let  us  know  it  and  feel  it.  Just  now,  it 
does  one  good  to  listen  to  "  the  autumn  bird  in  russet  coat."  The  little 
fellow  seems  to  consider  it  his  "  mission  "  to  attend  us  wherever  we  go ;  and 
to  lighten  our  cares  by  joyously  singing  them  away.  In  the  garden,  in  the 
field,  in  the  lanes,  in  the  wood,  in  the  farm-yard,  in  the  barn,  on  the  old 
shed, — there  he  is,  looldng  out  for  us  !  And  how  merrily  does  Master  Bob 
greet  us !  His  salutation — hoAV  frank !  I  wonder  what  he  would  say  to  those 
formalists  and  "  fashionables  "  amongst  us,  who  exhibit  two  flabby  fingers  as 
conventional  tokens  of  recognition  and  affection  to  visitors  and  friends. — 
Eidd!s  [W.)  Treatise  on  the  Rohin. 

Greater  Spotted  Woodpecker.  (Picus  major.) — A  finely  coloured  male  speci- 
men of  this  bird  was  shot  at  Bottisham,  near  Cambridge,  on  the  25th  of  April, 
and  is  now  in  my  collection. — W.  C.  H.,  Cambridge. 

Crossbill,  (Loxia  curvirostra.)  A  pair  of  these  birds  were  shot  on  the  14th 
July,  1855,  in  the  grounds  of  the  Clock  House,  Beckenham.  They  were  part 
of  a  flock  of  about  thirty. — F.  C.  Adams,  the  Clock  House,  Beckenham,  Kent, 
Sept.  17th,  1855. 

During  my  stay  at  Southport  this  summer,  I  captured  a  female  specimen 
of  Trochilium  crabroniformis  on  a  sallow  tree ;  this  occurred  on  the  26th  of 
June.  Is  not  its  occurrence  so  far  north  unusual? — Charles  Fryer,  Man- 
chester, July  31st,  1855. 


MISCELLANEOUS.  281 

Variety  of  the  Pink-under-wing  Moth.  (Callimorplia  Jacobaeae.)  In  the 
Slimmer  of  1854,  Mr.  J.  Fox,  one  of  our  best  collectors,  had  rather  a  peculiar 
specimen  of  tlie  Pink-under-wing  Moth,  (Callimorpha  JaoobcBa,)  of  which  I 
send  you  an  exact  copy,  which  I  leave  you  to  describe  ;  the  Moth  was  bred 
from  the  lai'va.  Another  was  captured  on  the  wing,  by  Mr.  Towle,  one  of  our 
members  at  Newstead.  I  took  some  of  the  small  Tiger  Moth  {Nemeophila 
Plantaginii)  larvae,  in  April,  1854:  in  May,  they  went  into  chrysalis;  and  in 
June  the  perfect  insect  appeared.  One  pair  I  observed  to  copulate,  and  the 
eggs  I  kept  until  they  hatched ;  and  to  the  larvae  I  gave  some  nai-row-leaf 
plantain,  which  they  soon  began  to  feed  upon.  They  were  all  in  one  large 
flower  pot  in  the  garden,  and  yet  one  half  grew  twice  as  large  as  the  others 
and  I  could  not  account  for  it.  Up  to  September  they  fed  very  well ;  and  all 
at  once  they  left  off,  and  the  large  ones  began  to  undergo  tlie  change,  and  by 
the  5th  Sept.,  I  had  some  twelve  chrysalides,  the  others  had  been  dormant 
up  to  March  13th,  when  some  of  them  began  to  show  signs  of  re-anima- 
tion ;  those  that  changed  in  September,  lay  from  the  5th  to  the  28th,  when 
the  perfect  fly  emerged, — that  being  the  second  brood  in  the  year.     Is  the 

above  a  common  occurrence  ? — J.  Morley,  New  Basford,  Nottingham. 

Along  with  the  above,  Mr.  Morley  kindly  forwarded  a  nicely  coloured  figure 
of  the  Pink-under-wing  Moth.  The  parts  which  are  usually  crimson,  in  this 
drawing  were  of  a  yellow-ochre  colour.  In  other  respects  it  presented  the 
usual  appearances. — B.  R.  M. 

Callimorpha  Hera. — I  mentioned,  some  time  ago,  in  The  Naturalist,  the 
undoubted  fact  of  a  schoolfellow  of  mine  having  taken  Orgyia  v-nigrum  near 
Faversham  in  Kent.  Other  specimens  have  recently  been  taken  near  Can- 
terbury, in  the  same  neighbourhood.  Samouelle,  too,  gives  Darenth  wood, 
also  in  the  same  county,  as  a  locality  for  it.  I  have  recently  obtained  Calli- 
morpha Hera  from  Guernsey,  where  Dr.  Lukis  informed  me  it  is  tolerably 
common  ;  and  as  this  fine  species  has  been  likewise  expunged  from  tha 
British  List,  I  mention  this  that  it  may  be  again  restored  to  its  place  therein. 
It  clearly  ought  to  be  so,  as  the  leading  and  most  eminent  conchologists  and 
botanists  now  authoritatively  enrol  Guernsey  shells  and  plants  as  British 
species. — F.  O.  Morris,  Nunburnholrae  Rectory,  Hayton,  Yorkshire,  Aug.  8th, 
1855. 


In  No.  56  of  The  Naturalist,  page  229,  in  an  article  headed  Extracts  from 
Correspondence  with  a  Brother  Naturalist,  by  F.  M.  Burton,  Esq.,  speaking 
of  the  Gannet,  that  gentleman  says, — "  Its  structure  is  most  curious ;  on  the 
under  parts  of  the  body  the  skin  does  not,  as  in  all  other  birds  I  have  seen, 

VOL.  V.  o 


2S2  MISCELLANEOUS. 

adhere  to  tlie  flesh,  except  down  the  breast-bone,  where  it  is  as  usual  fixed," 
&c ;  and  conchides  his  notice  thus  :  "  It  is  strange  that  Montagu  is  the  onljr 
author,  among  the  few  whose  works  I  possess,  who  takes  notice  of  this  great 
peculiarity  in  the  fonnation  of  this  bird;  Yarrcll,  Macgillivray,  and  old 
Bewick,  all  pass  it  over  in  silence."  On  referring  to  Macgillivray's  History 
of  British  Birds,  vol.  v.  page  418,  I  find  the  following  remarks :  "  Although 
the  history  of  the  Gannet  is  given  much  more  fully  above  than  in  any 
British  work  known  to  me,  it  is  yet  very  imperfect,  there  being  many  details 
of  its  organisation  of  great  interest,  but  for  which  I  have  scarcely  space  left. 
The  skin,  which  can  be  inflated  by  blowing  into  a  puncture  made  in  it, 
appears  as  if  connected  with  the  subjacent  parts  only  by  shreds  and  cellular 
tissue."  He  then  mentions  what  is  said  by  Montagu,  and  adds, — "  It 
appears,  however,  much  more  probable,  that  the  singular  anatomy  of  the 
Gannet  is  connected  with  its  mode  of  plunging  after  its  prey." 

From  the  above,  I  think  it  can  scarcely  be  said  that  Macgillivray  has 
passed  over  the  subject  in  silence ;  as  to  Yarrell  and  Bewick,  I  cannot  speak, 
not  being  fortunate  enough  to  possess  a  copy  of  their  works. — John  Bkown, 
Everton,  near  Bawtry. 

October  Uth,  1855. 

Possibly  Mr.  Burton  may  have  only  referred  to  Macgillivray's  small  work 
on  British  Birds.— B.  E.  M. 


Would  it  be  correct  to  term  fruit  vegetables,  or  products  belonging  to  the 
vegetable  kingdom?  If  vegetables,  would  not  a  Greengage  tart  be  a  vege- 
table tart  ?  Is  not  the  word  "  vegetables  "  applied  to  such  roots  and  plants 
only  as  are  prepared  for  nutriment,  taken  in  conjunction  with  animal  food? 
Could  a  tree  with  propriety  be  termed  a  vegetable,  or  a  member  of  the 
vegetable  Icingdom  ?  If  a  vegetable,  would  not  a  grove  of  Oaks  be  a  grove 
of  vegetables  ?  Established  usage,  I  believe,  must  be  the  criterion  for 
decision.  For  would  it  not  be  as  ridiculous  to  call  a  beautiful  Butterfly 
an  animal  ?  the  Canary  a  sweetly  singing  animal  ?  as  it  would  be  to  term  a 
Greengage  tart  a  vegetable  tart? — G.  K.  T.,  March  11th,  1854. 

Will  any  correspondent  of  The  Natukalist  have  the  kindness  to  inform 
me  what  is  the  nature  of  the  sticky  substance  on  the  leaves  of  trees 
called  Honey  Dew,  and  whether  Bees  are  in  the  habit  of  feeding  on  it?  I 
have  heard  the  absence  of  Honey  Dew  this  year  given  as  a  reason  for  the 
scarcity  of  honey  this  Autumn. — T.  G.  Bonney,  St.  John's  Coll.,  Cambridge. 


INDEX. 


Achilloea  tomentosa,  120. 
^don  galactodes,  164. 
Anarrhiclius  lupus,  144. 
Anas  boschas,  213. 
Anser  canadensis,  191. 

Egyptiacus,  72,  143. 

Ardea  purpui'ea,  216. 

Auk,  Little,  120. 

Banff,  stalk-eyed  Crustacea  of,  172. 

Banffshire,  Cryptogamous  Flora  of,  273. 

Crustacea,  Stalk-eyed  of,  172. 

Fishes  of,  1,  59,- 127, 

Icthyology  of,  207. 

Zoophytes  of,  232. 

Bartram's  Sandpiper,  47,  49. 
Bat  flying  in  Winter,  187. 
Bee  Eater,  264. 

Bees,  Treatment  of  Wounded,  166. 
Birds  of  Terrick  House,  25,  55,  101. 

near  Oxford,  191. 

Plymouth,  72. 

Bird-nesting  in  Holland,  271. 
Bittern,  191,  215,  216. 
Botany  of  North  Lancashire,  14. 
Botaurus  stellaris,  191,  215,  216. 
Bunting,  Corn,  189. 
Buzzard,  Honey,  188. 

Callimorpha  Hera,  281. 

Jacobsese,  281. 

Carabus,  species  of  near  London,  253. 
Cariama  cristata,  250, 
Characteristics  of  common  bkds,  254. 
Charadrius  minor,  190. 

Chough,  264,  268. 
Cinclus  aquaticus,  10,  88,  263,  268. 
Coccothraustes  vulgaris,  190. 
Columba  palumbus,  46,  96. 
Contrast,  A,  260, 
Corvus  frugilegus,  241. 
Cryptogamous  Flora  of  Banffshire,  273. 
Crossbill,  Common,  2,  16. 

280. 

Crustacea,  stalk -eyed,  of  Banff,  172. 
Cuckoo,  46,  190. 

• attending  its  own  young,  240. 

Cuculus  canorus,  46,  190,  240. 
Curlew,  Esquimaux,  265, 
Cypselus  apus,  143. 

Dawson,  William,  some  account  of,  145. 
Dep6t  for  Natural  History  Apparatus,  192. 
Desmidiese,  48. 
Dipper,  10,  88,  263,  268. 


Diurnal  Lepidoptera  of  Luton,  Beds.,  276. 
Domestic  Pets,  247. 
Donkey,  Anecdote  of,  215. 
Down  the  Kiver,  275. 
Dysdera  erythrina,  66. 

Edinburgh,  Eoyal  Physical  Society,  21. 
Eggar,  Small,  166. 
Eggs,  Anomalous,  216. 

of  Foreign  Birds,  72. 

Unknown,  48. 

Emberiza  calcarata,  189. 

miliaria,  189. 

Entomological  Society  of  London,  95. 
Erythaca  rubecula,  8,  131. 
Extracts  from  correspondence,  229, 

Falco  Islandicus,  71, 

peregrinus,  45,  188. 

Fauna  of  Wool,  175. 
Ferns  near  Woolbridge,  12. 
Finch,  Mountain,  190. 

Flora  of  Gosport,  Nucleus  of,  154. 
Forbes,  Professor  Edward,  92. 
Fregilus  graculus,  264,  268. 
Fringilla,  montifringilla,  190. 
Frog,  Notes  on,  5,  62. 
Fungi  near  Exeter,  77,  137,  219. 

Glasgow  Natural  History  Society,  17,  41, 
Good  time  coming,  come  at  last,  157. 
Goose,  Canada,  191. 

Egyptian,  72,  143, 

Grease,  To  remove  from  Insects,  48,  168, 
Gull,  Iceland,  144, 

Lesser  White-winged,  144, 

Gyr  Falcon,  71, 

Hawfinch,  190, 

Hawk,  Description  of  one  shot  in  1851, 

193,  227,  264, 
Heron,  Night,  216. 

Purple,  216. 

Heronries,  214,  239. 
Hirundinidse,  143, 197. 
Hirundo  urbica,  46,  143. 
Holland,  Bird-nesting  in,  271. 
Horse,  142, 
Hyacinthus  non-scriptus,  24. 

Insects,  Injurious,  32,  1 39, 

Lanius  Excubitor,    6S- 
Larus  Islandicus,  72,  144. 


284 


Lastrsea  coUina,  48. 

Lecanora  rubra,  185. 

Leech,  Js^ote  on,  199. 

Leisure  hour,  182. 

Letter  to  the  Editor,  179. 

Lizard,  Malformation  of,  216. 

Loxia  curvirostra,  216,  280. 

Luton,  Beds.,  Diurnal  Lepidopteraof,  276. 

Lutra  vulgaris,  214. 

Mallard,  213. 

Marten,  Pine,  45. 

Martin,  46,  143. 

Melizophilus  Provincialis,  190. 

Mergulus  alle,  120. 

Merula  torquata.     See  Turdtis  torqtiatiis. 

Merops  apiaster,  264. 

Mice,  Curious  habit  of,  187. 

To  destroy,  47. 

Miscellaneous  Notices,  45,  71,  120,  142, 

164,  187,  218,  239,  264,  279. 
Mississippi,  Swamps  of,  28,  51,  81,  113, 
Moll  usca  near  Mce,  151. 

Oxford,  200. 

Thirsk,  133. 

Montagu's  Sucker,  166. 
Mustela  abietum,  45. 
Myrtle  Bee,  85,  152. 

Naturalist,  To  the  Editor  of  the,  210. 
Nature's  Holiday,  223. 
Norfolk,  Ornithological  occurrences  in,  165. 
Notes,  Occasional,  221. 

Ornithological  and  other,  203. 

Short,  153. 

Numenius  borealis,  265. 
Nycticorax  Gardeni,  216. 

Obituary,  92. 
Oi-nithological  Notes,  161. 

Karity  in  the  North,  181. 

Otter,  214. 

Ouzel,  Eing,  45,  111,  216- 

Water,  10.  88. 

Owl,  American  Mottled,  169. 

new  to  Britain,  167. 

Oxford,  Birds  near,  191. 

Papilio  Machaon,  166. 
Peacock  Butterfly,  166. 
Peregrine  Falcon,  45,  188. 
Pernis  apivorus,  188. 
Phalarope,  Gray,  71,  72,  216. 
Phalaropus  lobatus,  71,  72,  216. 
Picus  major,  280. 
Pink-under -wing  Moth,  281. 
Platalea  leucorodia,  47. 
Plover,  Little-ringed,  190. 
Plymouth,  Kare  Birds  near,  72. 
Pontia  Brassicce,  187. 
Propagation  of  hai'dy  Trees,  257. 
Puffinus  major,  144. 

Querist,  23,  47,  96,  168;  192,282. 


Ramble,  An  Afternoon's,  182. 
Rambling  Reflections,  67. 
Eana  temporaria,  5,  52. 
Redbreast,  8,  131. 
Redcar,  Rare  Birds  near,  144. 
Retrospect,  22,  263,  281. 
Ringdove,  46. 
Reviews : 

A  Classified  List  of  British  Mosses,  163. 

A  List  of  British  Geodephaga,  164. 

Baines'  Flora  of  Yorkshire,  Supplement, 
40. 

Bee-Keeper's  Manual,  5th  ed.,  238. 

Entomologist's  Annual,  91. 

Do.  do.        2nded.,  163. 

Heart's  Proper  Element,  16. 

Introductory  Text-Book  to  Geology, 
262. 

Kidd's  Treatise  on  Song  Birds :  The 
Canary,  186. 

Labels  for  British  Star-Fishes,  238. 

Natural  History  of  the  Tineina,  278. 

Natural  History  Review,  162,  279. 

Synopsis  of  Edible  Fishes  of  Cape  of 
Good  Hope,  163. 
Robin,  Song  of  the  autumn,  280. 
Robin,  The  Crystal  Palace,  279. 
Rook,  Notes  on,  241. 

Salicaria  locustella,  46. 

Sciurus,  vulgaris,  187,  217,  247. 

Seasons,  Progress  of,  34. 

Sea  Swallows,  239. 

Shearwater,  Greater,  144. 

Shell,  Expansion  and  Contraction  of,  119. 

Land  and  Fresh-  water,  near  Oxford, 

200. 

Shrike,  Gray,  268. 

SirexGigas,  166,  191. 

Societies,  Proceedings  of,  17,  21,  41,  95. 

Sparrow  hawking  for  moths,  190. 

Spider,  Notice  of  the  Red,  66. 

Spoonbill,  47. 

Spring  Ramble,  97. 

Star- Fishes  of  Moray  Frith,  73. 

Squirrel,  217,  247. 

Squirrels  :  Do  they  suck  Eggs  ?  187. 

Stint,  Little,  47. 

— ^  Temminck's,  71. 

Strix  Asio,  169. 

Suckei",  Montagu's,  166. 

Sussex,  Addition  to  Ornithology  of,  264. 

Swift,  143. 

Swanneries,  192. 

Terns.  239. 

Terrick  House,  Birds  of,  25,  55,  101. 

Thrushes  on  backs  of  Sheep,  22,  240. 

Nesting  of,  188. 

Totanus  Bartramius,  47,  49. 
Tringa  minuta,  47. 

Temminckii,  71. 

Trochilium  cralxiniformis,  280. 
Turdus  torquatuH,  45,  111,  216. 


285 


Turdus  musicus,  188. 

Vanessa  Antiopa,  48. 

lo,  166. 

Vespa  vulgaris,  32,  139. 

Warbler,  Dartford,  190. 

Grasshopper,  46. 

Rufous,  164. 

Wasp,  Common,  32,  189. 
Weather  in  April  and  May,  260. 
Wensleydale,  Two  Days  in,  121. 
White  "  Blackbird,"  239. 

"Thrush,"  239. 


Winter,  89. 

of  1854-5,  Mildness  of,  214. 

Wokhab,  Note  on  the,  239. 

Wolf-Fish,  144. 

Woodpecker,  Greater  Spotted,  280. 

Wood-Pigeon,  96. 

Woolbridge,  Ferns  near,  12. 

Wool,  Fauna  of,  175. 

Worcester,  Rare  Birds  near,  144. 

Yare,  A  Memento,  from,  141. 

Zoophytes  of  Banffshire,  232. 
Zootoca  vivipara,  216. 


286 


LIST  OF  CONTKIBUTORS. 


Adams,  P.  C,  280. 

Alington,  Rev,  R.  P.,  161. 

Baker,  J.  G.,  121. 

Beadles,  J.  N.,  144. 

Bedlington,  T.,  230,  240. 

Bellows,  W.  L.,  142. 

Bolton,  H.  E.,  119. 

Bonney,  T.  G.,  191,  192,  215,  282. 

Braim,  J.,  214. 

Bridger,  W.,  271. 

Briggs,  J.  J.,  210. 

B.  R.  M.,  46,  47,  50,  143,  166,  167,  180, 

192,281,282. 
Brown,  J.,  45,  47,  71,  281. 
Buckley,  H.,  48. 
Burton,  F.  M.,  143,  216,  229. 

Cavafy,  J.,  165,  239.  264. 
Clarke,  G.  B.,  197. 
Cooke,  E.  B.,  71. 

Daniel,  H.  24. 

Daniel,  J.  E.,  12,  175,  190. 

Dashwood,  C.  H.,  24,  153. 

Davies,  J.  B.,  48. 

Davies,  J.  H.,  96,  133,  192. 

Dixon,  G.,  185. 

Dixon,  J.,  5,  52. 

Donaldson,  G.,  28,  51,  81,  113. 

Dutton,  J.,  264. 

Eccles,  J.  W.,  190. 

Edward,  T.,  1,  47,  59, 127,  166, 181,  232. 

E.  K.  B.,  24. 

E.  M.  A.,  111. 

Falconer,  R.  W.,  M.D.,  239. 

Ferguson,  D.,  24,  144. 

Fothergill,  J.,  168. 

Fox,  J.  J.,  22. 

Fryer,  C,  28,  216. 

Fuller,  T.,  46,  215. 

Gatcombe,  J.,  45,  72,  144,  191. 
GifTord,  Major,  143. 
Graham,  D.,  216. 
Grantham,  G.,  190. 
G.  R.  T.,  282. 

Harper,  J.  O.,  182,  250. 

H.  E.  S.,  46. 

H.  H.  S.,  72. 

Hobson,  R.,  M.D.,  144,  169,  193,  264. 

.Tackson,  C,  143. 

J.  C.  T.,  188,  190. 

J.  D.,  151,  200. 


J.  F.,  166,  187. 

J.  L.  C,  240. 

J.  P.,  14,  214. 

Kidd,  W.,  8,  34,  47,  67,  157,  223,  239, 

247,  279,  280. 
King,  G.,  187,  190. 

Lenny,  C.  G.,  48,  187. 
Lister,  T.,  120,  260. 
Longman,  J.,  jun.,  265. 
Lucas,  A.,  191,  192,  276. 

Maingay,  A.  C,  188. 

Harris,  R.,  168. 

Mc  Intosh,  J.,  32,  131,139,199,217,257. 

Moffat,  A.  B.,  88. 

Moore,  O.  A.,  145. 

Morley,  J.,  179,  281. 

Morris,  Rev.  F.  O.,  168,  192,  227,  263,  281. 

Mountcastle,  H.  M.,  96. 

Parfitt,  E.,  77,  137,  219. 

Pupil  of  Professor  E.  Forbes,  92. 

Rannie,  H.  A.,  189. 
R.  D.,  189. 
Roberts,  A.,  72. 
Robertson,  W.  R.,  187. 
Rose,  J.,  M.D.,  120,  154. 
Rotheiy,  C.  W.,  89,  213. 
Round.  O.  S.,  85,  254. 
Rudd,  T.  S.,  144. 

gavile,S.  P.,  71,  72. 
Shields,  L.,  48. 
Smith,  C.  E.,  214. 
Smurthwaite,  H.,  268. 
Southwell,  T.,  48,  97,  165. 
Sowden,  Rev.  G.,  45,  46. 
Stockley,  G.,  66,  253. 
Stone,  S.,  25,  55,  101,  203,  241. 

T.  C,  190,  216. 

Tearle,  Rev.  F.,  49. 

Thome,  J.,  166. 

T.  P.  F.,  23. 

Twinn,  G.  R.,  10,  96,  141,  260. 

Uncas,  166. 

W.,  73,  172,  207,  273. 
Walker,  J.  S.,  152. 
W.  C.  H.,  48,  280. 
Westcott,  M.,  221. 
Whiteaves,  J.  F.,  166,  191. 


LIST  OF  ENGRAVINGS. 


Hawk  shot  in  1851,  193.     (Plate.) 
Pontia  Brassicce,  Chrysalis,  187. 


Strix  Asio,  169.     (Plate.) 
Zootoca  vivipara,  Var.,  216 


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CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

Geological  Excursion,     By  E.  W 1 

Eemarks   on  the    Collecting  of  Oological   Specimens.      By  HEKar 

Smtjethwaite,  Esq ' 

The  Common  Toad,    (with  Engraving,)  By  J.  M'  Intosh,  Esq, 9 

OccAsioiTAL  Notes.  The  Adventures  of  a  Cat  and  Kitten.  The 
Bittern,  Havoc  among  Sparrows.  The  Otter.  The  Primrose, 
The   Contrast.      Butterflies.      Sand    Martins,   etc.       By  Mr.  M. 

1  o 

Westcott 

Stray  Notes.     By  0.  S.  RoxiNn,  Esq 17 

Systema  Naturae.     By  The  Editok 19 

Miscellaneous  Notices. — Oared  Shrew.     An  Extraordinary  Hawk. 

Occurrence  of  the  Rose- coloured  Pastor.      Green  Sandpiper.     Bed 

Admirals,      Curious    Hatch    of    a   Hen.      Eose-coloured    Pastor. 

Mountain  Pinch.     Long-tailed  Tits.     Partridges.     Bock  Thrush. 

Ring  Ouzel.     Notes  on  Pish  and  Wild-fowl 20 

London  Entomological  Meeting 22 

To  the  Subscribers  and  Readers  of  "The   Naturalist." 22 

The   Reteospeot.— Bill  of  the   Hawk.      Moth  Mixture.— Quantity 

on  each  tree— Situation  for  Sugaring— Best  Nights 23 


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combe,  Esq.— Mr.  T.  Edward.— C.  Fryer,  Esq. 

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CONDUCTED   BY 

THE    EEV.   F.   0.   MORRIS,   B.A., 

MEMBER  01'    THE   ASUMOLEAN    SOCIETY. 

Author  of  "A  History  of  British  Birds."    "A  History  of  British  Butterflies," 

"A  History  of  the  Nests  and  Eggs  of  British  Birds." 

"A  Bible  Natural  History."     "A  Book  of  Natural  History,"  etc.,  etc. 


YOL.    YI. 

WITH   ENGRAVINGS. 


0  Lord,  how  manifold  are  Thy  works  1  in  wisdom  hast  Thou  made  them 
all:  the  earth  is  full  of  Thy  riches. — Psalm  civ,  24. 


LONDON: 

GROOMBRIDGE    AND    SONS,    PATERNOSTER    ROW. 

51  DCCC  I.VI. 


THE    J)fin*t?^ALIST. 


Vr, 


GEOLOGICAL    EXCURSION. 

BY    E.    W. 


If  your  Geological  readers  will  look  at  any  Geological  map  of  England, 
they  will  notice  a  large  patch  of  colour  (generally  blue,)  on  the  borders 
of  Yorkshire,  Lancashire,  Westmoreland,  and  Durham;  its  shape  is  an 
irregular  square,  indented  on  the  east  side  by  numerous  promontories, 
coloured  differently,  and  on  the  west  side  by  one  long  one.  This  district 
is  the  great  mountain  limestone  tract  of  Yorkshire,  the  rocks  of  which 
form  the  beds  and  sides  of  the  upper  valleys  of  all  the  great  rivers  which 
unite  in  the  Ouse,  (except  one  or  two  feeders  of  the  Aire,  which  rise  in 
the  South  Yorkshire  coal  field,  and  the  Derwent,  the  sources  of  which 
are  found  among  the  Oolites  of  Egton  Moor,)  and  the  rivers  which  water 
the  northern  half  of  Lancashire — the  Ribble,  the  Lune,  the  Hodder,  and 
others.  The  great  promontory  on  the  west,  running  so  far  into  the  lime- 
stone, is  formed  of  the  upper  Silurian  beds,  which,  penetrating  from  West- 
moreland by  Kirby  Lonsdale  and  Ingleton,  form  a  largo  square  patch 
between  Ingleton  and  Settle,  indicating  the  line  of  the  Craven  fault, 
underlying  a  greater  part  of  the  limestones  of  Craven,  and  forming  the 
base  of  the  highest  hills  in  Yorkshire.  The  promontories  penetrating  into 
the  mass  of  the  mountain  limestone  on  its  eastern  side  are  the  millstone 
grit  beds,  which  everywhere  form  the  tops  of  the  fells  which  bound  the 
deep  valleys,  and  cap  the  highest  summits. 

On  this  district  we  made  this  summer  a  short  excursion;  a  few  particu- 
lars of  which  may  prove  interesting,  if  only  the  mention  of  its  peculiar 
beauties  might  induce  others  to  visit  a  part  of  Yorkshire  not  much  trodden 
except  by  those  who  know  and  visit  it  as  being  one  of  the  best  localities 
in  England  for  studying  great  Geological  phenomena. 

It  would  be  useless  to  give  any  detailed  sketch  of  the  geology  or  natural 
history  of  the  country  we  traversed,  because  it  may  be  found  in  local 
guides,  but  more  especially  in  ^Thillips'  Geology  of  Yorkshire,"  our  guide 
throughout  our  ramble,  (for  such  it  was,)  undertaken  more  for  recreation 
than  with  any  scientific  object;  though    no  one  could  pass  through  such  a 

VOL.  VI.  B 


Z  GEOLOaiOAT,    EXCUnSION, 

grand  district  without  bringing  back  with   him^   besides   health,    many    an 
addition  to  his  store  of  knowledge. 

Our  starting-point  was  Richmond;  leaving  which  we  followed  the  course 
of  the  Swale  nearly  to  its  source,  then  crossed  the  Buttertubs  Pass  to 
llawes,  thence,  ascending  Weddale,  we  crossed  the  fells  to  Ingleton  and 
Clapham,  and  ascended  Inglebro;  from  Clapham  turning  eastward,  we  passed 
across  Ribblesdale,  and,  by  the  wild  moors  at  the  back  of  Fountains  Fell, 
returned  to  Settle;  thence  to  Clitheroe  and  Whitewell,  on  the  Hodder,  and 
through  the  Lough  of  Bolland,  to  Lancaster. 

A  description  of  the  character  of  Swaledale  will  fully  suffice  for  that  of 
Wensleydale  and  their  branch  valleys.  Its  bed  is  formed  of  the  IVIiddle 
Limestone,  called  by  Phillips  the  Yoredale  Rocks;  it  is  narrow,  being  not 
more  than  a  quarter  to  half  a  mile  in  breadth,  (Wensleydale  is  broader.) 
It  is  abundantly  wooded  with  fine  ash,  small  elm  and  oak,  and  a  great  deal 
of  planted  larch;  and  as  its  bed  rises  gradually  from  the  river  to  the  pre- 
cipitous cliSs  of  the  Upper  Limestone,  these  woods  become  much  thicker, 
lining  the  whole  side  of  the  valley  where  the  scars  are  not  too  steep; 
and  where  they  are  steep  they  cover  with  a  luxuriant  underwood  the  talus 
of  rocks  heaped  in  wild  confusion  at  their  base,  and  nestled  in  the  rugged 
fissures  of  their  broken  sides,  which  are  covered  by  clinging  masses  of 
ivy,  and  tinted  by  the  lichens  and  mosses  growing  on  their  weather-worn 
surface.  On  the  top  of  the  scars  the  moors  commence  stretching  away 
for  miles  m  heathy  swells,  often  very  boggy;  these  rounded  eminences  are 
formed  by  the  action  of  the  weather  crumbling  the  millstone  grit  beds. 

The  vegetation  of  these  valleys  is  peculiarly  rich,  and  both  below  and 
above  the  clifis  they  afford  a  fine  field  for  the  botanist.  As  they  rise  towards 
the  sources  of  the  streams  which  twist  through  them,  they  become  much 
narrower,  and  their  sides  become  higher  without  being  so  precipitous;  for 
as  the  rise  of  the  valleys  is  greater  than  the  inclination  of  the  beds  forming 
them,  in  following  their  course  upwards  they  are  found  to  rise  above  the 
upper  scar  limestone  which  then  forms  the  bottom  instead  of  the  sides  of 
the  valleys,  and  over  the  edge  of  which  these  streams  often  leap  in  cas- 
cades of  great  beauty.  The  woods  gradually  cease  above  these  falls,  but  the 
land  on  both  sides  of  the  stream  produces  rich  grass,  hence  the  staple  of 
these  dales  is  cheese;  (what  Yorkshireman  has  not  heard  of  Wensleydale 
and  Cotherstone?)  Still  higher,  the  valleys  become  very  narrow,  till  they 
end  in  deep  ravines  in  the  moors,  where  a  little  stream  of  dark  purple 
water  trickles  in  dry  weather  from  the  bog  above,  which  a  rainy  morning 
will  transform  into  a  wet  spongy  mass,  and  the  stream  into  a  sweeping 
torrent. 

A  traveller  will  find  that  a  combination  of  riding  and  walking  is  pre- 
ferable to  a  fixed  adherence  to  one  fixed  mode  of  progression;  riding  gen- 


QEOLOGICAL    EXCURSION.  6 

erally  along  the  more  level  country,  and  facing  the  hills  on  foot;  so  we 
preferred  riding  from  Eichmond  to  Muker,  where  the  ascent  of  the  But- 
tertubs  Pass  begins.  The  scenery  along  this  route  is  such  as  just  described, 
heightened  to  us  by  the  bright  light  and  pleasant  breeze  of  a  lovely  July 
morning;  and  though  the  mode  of  travelling  adopted  was  incompatible  with 
close  observation,  we  could  not  help  noticing  how  closely  autumn  seemed 
this  year  following  summer;  the  gi'eat  heat  of  the  few  past  weeks  seemed 
acting  on  vegetation  as  it  does  in  the  Arctic  regions,  and  numbers  of 
flowers  which  in  this  month  usually  make  the  banks  gay  and  lively,  were 
already  maturing  their  seed,  though  it  is  a  late  year. 

We  passed  groves  of  the  Dogwood,  (Cornus  sanguinea,)  in  full  bloom, 
and  covered,  as  it  was,  with  a  foam  of  white  blossom,  it  was  a  beautiful 
object  amid  the  dark  foliage  of  the  bird-cherry  and  holly.  The  meadows 
were  full  of  the  Sweet-scented  Orchis,  (Gymnadenia  conopsea,)  which  seems 
to  abound  everywhere  in  the  limestone;  and  we  picked  up  Arenaria  verna 
on  a  bank  of  sand  and  stones  formed  by  the  edges  of  a  freshet.  From 
Muker  across  the  Buttertubs  is  the  road  to  Hawes;  it  is  a  wild  lonely 
way,  following  the  ravine  made  by  a  torrent  which  descends  between 
Shumner  Fell  and  Lovely  Seat.  The  first-named  hill  is  an  extensive  moor 
of  great  elevation;  from  the  carboniferous  rock  forming  its  summit  a  slaty 
coal  is  mined,  which  is  used  by  the  lime-burners  and  in  the  smelting 
houses  of  the  lead- mines. 

On  the  shoulder  of  Shumner  Fell,  where  the  road  reaches  its  culminating 
point,  it  passes  by  the  so-called  Buttertubs,  which  give  their  name  to  the 
Pass.  These  are  large  deep  holes  in  the  bare  moor,  where  the  Limestone 
is  the  Productus  bed  of  the  Upper  Series;  they  are  curious  instances  of 
the  power  and  action  of  water.  Many  of  the  Limestone  beds  have  a  ten- 
dency to  split  through  the  thickness  of  their  mass  into  huge  rhomboidal 
columns,  (the  form  of  their  primitive  crystal,)  as  may  be  seen  in  the  bed 
of  any  stream  that  flows  over  this  rock;  all  disturbances,  therefore,  cause 
it  to  fissure  in  parallel  lines.  These  curious  pits  shew  this  action  well. 
They  are  formed  in  various  stages  of  growth,  if  the  expression  may  be 
permitted;  sometimes  there  is  only  a  funnel  in  the  bog-earth,  and  a  crack 
in  the  bare  rock;  in  the  next  this  crack  becomes  a  deep  rift  widened  by 
water,  which  passing  into  its  depths  has  worn  round  cylindrical  channels 
down  its  sides;  in  the  next  there  have  been  two  fissures,  with  the  separating 
mass  of  rock  worn  away  in  the  direction  of  the  line  of  crystalization,  thus 
uniting  them  by  a  diagonal  fissure;  in  another  this  mass  is  worn  away 
entirely,  making  a  deep  wide  hole;  others  are  composed  of  three  or  four, 
or  more,  of  these  parallel  fissures,  with  the  separating  walls  more  or  less 
worn  away,  sometimes  entirely  so,  when  there  is  a  yawning  gulf  of  a  hun- 
dred feet  or  more;  sometimes   only   partially    worn,   when    huge    walls    of 


4  GEOLOGICAL   EXCURSION. 

rock  project  into  the  excavation,  and  giant  columns  spring  from  its  depths 
and  assume  most  fantastic  shapes.  These  walls  and  columns  and  the  sides 
of  the  pits  are  furrowed,  and  deep  round  channels  are  cut  in  their  sides 
by  the  gurgling  waters  which  have  poured  into  them,  making  deep  funnels, 
most  probably  by  means  of  stones  twisted  round  and  round  by  the  boiling 
waters;  this  action  may  be  seen  anywhere  on  a  rocky  shore. 

But  perhaps  these  Buttertubs  will  be  better  understood  by  describing 
one  in  another  part  of  the  country,  where  the  powerful  agencies  which 
created  them  are  still  at  work.  In  a  hollow  on  the  moors  between 
Inglebro  and  Meughten  Fells,  a  tiny  rivulet  has  cut  a  deep  channel  in 
the  black  peat;  collecting  the  waters  of  the  bog,  it  increases  in  bulk  till 
it  becomes  a  small  stream;  as  its  course  is  followed,  it  is  found  to  have 
worn  its  bed  down  to  the  Limestone,  and  huge  stones  encumber  its  descent. 
Suddenly  the  water  disappears;  following  the  dry  bed  it  is  found  again 
rising  from  the  crevices  where  it  has  been  sucked  in;  the  bed  becomes 
rougher  and  more  rocky,  and  twenty  feet  at  least  below  the  level  of  the 
moor;  in  this  bed  the  stream  foams  and  tumbles,  till  the  whole  of  the  water 
precipitates  itself  into  a  deep  hole  twenty  feet  in  diameter,  and  from  two  to 
three  hundred  feet  in  depth.  It  owes  its  size  entirely  to  the  action  of 
the  stream,  which  must  have  worn  it  for  ages.  The  sides  are' quite  pre- 
cipitous, rather  overhanging  at  the  top,  and  on  looking  down,  nothing  but 
a  pale  blue   mist  can  be  seen — the  spray  of  the    falling  water. 

Thouofh  larger  and  consequently  grander  than  the  Buttertubs,  this  deep 
cavern,  (Gaping  Gyll,  as  it  is  called,)  is  not  so  picturesque;  the  water  has 
been  working  at  it  longer,  and  has  worn  away  those  elegant  columns,  and 
smoothed  the  rugged  sides  which  add  such  a  beauty  to  these  romantic 
caverns;  nor  is  the  vegetation  so  luxuriant  as  in  the  Buttertubs,  the  whole 
of  which  support  a  magnificent  crop  of  Ferns,  flourishing  luxuriantly  in 
these  cool,  shady,  moist,  and  sheltered  hollows;  their  edges  are  fringed 
by  the  hardy  BlecMum  horeale,  and  numerous  Jungermannia  tinge  the 
rock  with  their  rich  green.  The  pools  swarm  with  a  little  fresh-water 
crustacean. 

From  the  top  of  the  Pass  half-a-mile  higher  than  the  Buttertubs,  the 
eye  ranges  over  a  wide  horizon;  to  the  north  as  far  as  Water  Crag  and 
the  Kene  Standards;  to  the  south,  the  broad  top  of  Inglebro  towers  high 
above  the  surrounding  summits,  which  compose  Carn  Dod,  the  fells  at  the 
head  of  Raydale,  and  a  tossed  sea  of  mountains  which  cluster  round  the 
hollows  of  Dent  and  Sedbergh,  In  the  descent  into  VVensleydale  we  gath- 
ered Lycopodium  selago,  and  started  one  or  two  King  Ouzels — not  a  common 
bird  in  this  country. 

The  road  at  about  a  mile  from  ITawes  passes  Ilardraw  Scar,  a  beautiful 
and  well-known  waterfall;  the   stream  falls  over  the  edge  of  that   band   of 


QEOLOaiCAL    EXCDRSIOX,  5 

Limestone  which  at  Dent  produces  the  shell  marble^  and  has  worn  the 
hollow  at  the  foot  of  the  precipice  out  of  the  laminated  grits  and  shales 
which  overlie  the  Lower  Scar  or  Main  Limestone.  The  latter  appeared, 
for  the  first  time  in  our  route,  at  the  bottom  of  the  valley  in  the  bed  of 
the  Ure.  The  hills  on  each  side  of  the  valley  rise  through  the  Yoredale 
rocks  or  middle  seiies  of  the  Mountain  Limestone,  and  are  surmounted 
here  by  the  Upper  Scar  Limestone. 

In  the  fields  near  Hawes,  we  gathered  Epipadis  latifolia,  Orchis  latifolia, 
Listera  ovata,  besides  other  common  species^  and  noticed  the  luxuriance  of 
the  beautiful  melancholy  Thistle. 

We  left  Ilawes  by  Weddale;  the  morning  was  misty,  else  the  road  over 
Carn  Fell  is  better  worth  climbing;  following  the  course  of  a  stream  rising 
in  the  ridge  between  Hawes  and  Ingleton,  this  valley  is  excavated  in  the 
middle,  surmounted  on  the  south  by  the  beds  of  the  Upper  Limestone  of 
Carn  Fell,  which  here  thin  out  very  much,  and  capped  by  the  Millstone 
grits  of  Carn  Dod.  The  same  formation  shews  itself  on  the  north  side, 
except  that  the  hills  clustering  round  the  base  of  Whemside  are  much  lower 
than  Cam  Fell.  On  reaching  the  water-shed  at  Gearstones  or  Deerstones, 
the  whole  face  of  the  country  changed;  to  our  left  stood  the  broad  base  of 
Penny ghent,  its  top  shrouded  in  mist;  in  front  rose  the  tabulated  summit 
of  Inglebro;  and  to  our  right,  the  long  ridge  of  Whernside.  Two  slight 
depressions  mark  the  heads  of  Ribblesdale  and  Chapel- le-dale,  which  divide 
these  hills,  and  whose  streams  have  cut  deep  beds  through  the  Lower  Lime- 
stone, exposing  fine  sections  of  the  Silurian  rocks,  which  form  the  base  of 
all  these  hills. 

But  the  peculiar  feature  of  the  country  is  the  Lower  Limestone;  it 
stretches  away  for  miles  across  the  moor  in  straight  lines  of  mural  precipices 
a  few  feet  high,  and  when  it  begins  to  skirt  the  sides  of  the  deep  glens, 
it  descends  in  a  series  of  step-like  scars,  of  no  great  height,  but  most 
regularly  formed;  while  above  it  spreads  out  into  immense  tables  of  dry 
bare  rocks,  without  a  blade  of  grass  except  in  the  cracks  and  fissures  of 
the  Limestone.  These  rocks  form  the  platforms  upon  which  stand  the 
hills  before  us,  which  rise  through  Yoredale  and  Upper  Scar  Limestone, 
and  are  capped  by  Millstone  Grit,  in  some  of  them  worked  for  its  coal. 

The  moors  of  this  district  are  very  dry,  the  rocks  being  so  fissured  and 
broken  that  the  streams  flow  in  caverns  far  below  their  surface.  On  the 
road  to  Ingleton  many  of  these  curious  caverns  are  passed.  We  gathered 
the  Blue  Butterwort,  (Pinguicula  vulgaris,)  Arenaria  verna,  and  Saodfraga 
aizoides.  As  we  descended  to  Ingleton,  between  Inglebro  and  Whernside, 
the  Silurian  rocks  became  visible  in  vertical  strata  underlying  the  Lime- 
stone; and  here  we  first  came  on  the  line  of  the  Craven  fault,  which  has 
thrown  down  the  upper  rocks  to   such    an    extent    that    at    Burton,   near 


6  GEOLOGICAL   EXCURSIOK. 

Ingleton,  coal  is  worked  on  a  formation  wliich  a  few  miles   to   the  nortli 
is  found  at  the  very  summit  of  Whernside. 

.  Leaving  Ingleton  and  its  pretty  river^  skirting  the  base  of  Inglebro,  and 
following  the  line  of  the  Craven  fault,  we  reached  Clapham,  where  are  the 
celebrated  Inglebro  caves,  and  from  whence  is  the  easiest  ascent  to  the 
top  of  that  hill,  the  central  summit  of  the  group,  and  the  view  from 
which  is  the  most  varied  and  extensive. 

The  cave  above  Clapham  is  in  a  deep  glen,  amid  a  mass  of  most  pic- 
turesque wood.  The  entrance  is  at  the  foot  of  a  high  Limestone  precipice; 
on  one  side  of  it,  from  under  a  dark  rocky  arch,  like  that  of  a  glacier, 
issues  a  full  stream,  connected  with  that  of  Gaping  Gyll,  (a  deep  hole  at 
the  foot  of  Inglebro,)  and  receiving  the  waters  which  run  through  the  cave. 
As  we  entered  it  we  heard  them  on  all  sides,  moaning  as  they  forced  a 
way  through  its  narrow  and  devious  passages,  splashing  as  they  fell  from  rock 
to  rock  in  its  hidden  recesses,  now  issuing  into  the  cave  and  dancing  along 
in  the  more  open  channel,  then  with  a  bubble  disappearing  down  some 
funnel-like  cavity,  then  reappearing  and  forming  deep  clear  pools,  the  trans- 
parent depths  of  which  shewed  beds  of  silvery  white  spar,  and  whose  sleeping 
surface  reflected  the  elegant  yet  fantastic  shapes  of  the  sparkling  snowy 
stalactites  that  hung  from  the  roof. 

The  cave  is  formed  between  two  beds  of  rock — possibly  by  the  erosion 
of  the  softer  parts,  perhaps  by  a  slip  of  the  beds  on  each  other,  when  their 
surfaces  would  of  course  no  longer  fit  closely.  It  is  low  and  very  wide 
in  proportion  at  its  entrance,  extending  on  both  sides  till  the  floor  and 
the  roof  generally  meet  each  other.  As  we  passed  into  the  cave  it  became 
more  confined,  the  sides  being  filled  up  with  stalactite  matter  which  is 
continually,  though  very  slowly,  finishing  its  task;  in  many  places  it  is 
so  low  that  we  could  only  get  on  on  our  hands  and  knees.  The  stalac- 
tites are  found  most  frequently  on  the  lines  of  fracture  which  cross  the 
cave,  and,  where  the  rock  being  broken  the  roof  rises  higher  than  usual, 
their  form  is  generally  a  mass  of  circular  pendants;  or  else  they  assume 
the  form  of  a  tightened  skin,  tapering  at  the  bottom  to  one  side,  owing 
to  the  water  running  down  the  opposite  side,  and  increasing  the  stalactite 
laterally.  They  are  peculiarly  musical,  and  when  struck  by  the  guides 
give  out  beautiful  tones.  These  are  the  places  where  the  water  oozes 
drop  by  drop  from  the  fissures  in  the  Limestone,  which  have  permitted  it 
to  penetrate  slowly  through  its  mass,  collecting  in  its  progress  the  Car 
bonate  of  Lime   which    it  here  deposits. 

C  To  he  continued.) 


KEMARKS     ON     THE 
COLLECTING    OF    OOLOGICxVL     SPECIMENS. 

BY    HENRY    SM0UTHWAITE,    ESQ. 

During  the  last  twenty-five  years  of  the  present  century,  a  pursuit, 
or,  if  it  may  be  so  called,  a  science,  has  been  gradually  gaining  ground 
among  that  mixed  and  curious  race  of  people  who  style  themselves 
"Naturalists." 

It  was  originally,  I  believe,  confined  to  those  ragged  denizens  of  our 
country  hamlets,  who,  escaping  from  the  thraldom  of  the  village  school, 
spent  the  greater  part  of  the  stolen  hours  in  '^nesting,"  that  is  to  say, 
in  abstracting  from  the  ^^procreant  cradles,"  of  every  Chafiineh,  Song  Thrush, 
or  Blackbird  which  they  met  with,  the  eggs  it  contained,  and  having 
strung  these  together,  by  means  of  a  couple  of  yards  of  coarse  thread, 
hanging  them  up  in  some  conspicuous  part  of  the  family  mansion,  from 
which  state  of  exaltation  and  preferment,  they  were,  in  most  instances, 
speedily  ejected  by  a  ruthless  foe,  in  the   person  of  the  '^ladye-mother." 

It  was  not  long,  however,  before  individuals,  in  a  far  higher  rank  of 
life,  and  more  advanced  state  of  education,  began  to  give  their  attention 
to  this  branch  of  the  great  stream  of  ornithology.  Dr.  Latham  and  Colonel 
Montagu  were  about  the  first  who  formed  collections  of  the  eggs  of  British 
Birds,  and,  since  the  death  of  the  former  individual,  the  adherents  of 
this  fascinating  pursuit  have  annually  become  more  numerous,  so  that,  at 
the  present  day,  "Oologists"  are  quite  as  plentiful  and  persevering  as  their 
older  brethren — Entomologists  and  Conchologists. 

I  am  aware  that  egg  collectors  are  much  less  popular  than  followers 
of  either  of  the  last-named  sciences;  but  I  cannot  help  thinking  that 
those  who  condemn  the  practice  altogether,  judge  rather  too  hastily.  Did. 
it  tend  towards  rendering  the  hearts  of  mankind  cruel  and  unfeeling,  we 
should  not,  I  am  sure,  find  so  long  a  list  of  amiable  and  excellent  men, 
who  have  been  either  lovers,  or,  at  least  tolerant,  of  Oology;  I  have  re- 
marked too,  that  the  greater  number  of  those  who  are  the  most  bitter 
assailants  of  "the  barbarity  of  robbing  birds'  nests,"  are  themselves  collectors 
of  natural  objects,  and  the  very  men  who  would  place  their  "Veto"  on  a 
cabinet  of  eggs,  would  hang  with  enthusiasm  over  a  fine  specimen  of 
Sphinx  atropos,  dilating  on  the'  wiles  employed  in  capturing  it,  and  on  the 
means  by  which  it  was  deprived  of  life. 

Disregarding,  therefore  the  paltry  objections  of  such  persons,  it  must  be 
confessed  that  few  pursuits  can  equal,  in  charm  and  interest,  the  one  now 
before  us.  He  must,  indeed,  possess  but  a  very  dull  and  stagnant  mind, 
who  can  contemplate  without  emotions  the  most  pleasurable,  the  many 
lovely  scenes  which  come  under  the  observation  of  the  Oologist,  whilst  en- 


8  REMARKS    OX    OOI.OGICAL    SPECIMEN'S, 

gaged  in   his  favourite  pursuit;    take,  for  example,  the  beauties  wiiich  the 
fells  and   hills  of  some  of  our  northern  counties  present: — • 

It  is  early  morning,  in  the  month  of  May  or  June,  and  we  will  sup- 
pose the  reader  to  be  standing  by  our  side  on  the  slope  of  one  of  the 
mountainous  eminences  which  are  so  frequent  on  the  borders  of  Westmore- 
land and  Yorkshire.  A  heavy  grey  mist  hangs  over  the  surrounding  country, 
through  which  the  rising  sun  is  endeavouring,  ineflfectually  at  present,  to 
penetrate.  Unable  to  see  three  yards  before  or  on  either  side  of  us,  we 
rest  for  a  short  time  on  a  fragment  of  stone,  and  whilst  in  this  situation 
we  hoar  the  crow  of  the  cock  Grouse  within  a  few  feet  of  us;  suddenly 
his  cry  is  hushed^a  sure  sign  that  our  presence  has  become  known  to 
him;  almost  at  the  same  moment  the  sea  of  mist  is  violently  agitated,  the 
grey  pinnacles  of  rock  above  our  heads,  as  if  striving  to  shake  off  the 
embrace  of  some  huge  giant,  are  visible  for  an  instant,  and  then  quickly 
disappear. 

Again  and  again  is  the  struggle  renewed,  until  at  length,  with  one  vast 
shudder  the  mist  recoils,  and  slowly  rising,  discloses  a  scene  which  for  a 
moment  compels  us  to  pause  and  gaze  in  admiration.  Far  beneath  stretches 
one  of  those  long  expanses  of  meadow-land,  which  painters  love  so  well  to 
delineate,  unbroken  in  every  direction,  save  by  the  tiny  course  of  some 
small  mountain  rill,  which  hurries  along  with  innumerable  windings,  until 
it  is  lost  in  the  far  distance.  Behind  us  rises  the  steep  slope  of  the  moun- 
tain, faced  by  immense  masses  of  rock,  fringed  with  numerous  ferns  and 
long  tendrils  of  ivy.  Whilst  we  are  yet  gazing  on  them,  suddenly  shoots 
forth,  on  almost  silent  wing,  a  large  and  handsome  bird;  for  a  moment 
he  seems  inclined  to  dash  onward  far  into  the  open  country,  but  catching 
sight  of  us  as  we  stand  motionless,  he  hangs  suspended  high  in  air,  uttering 
at  the  same  time  a  low  complaining  wail,  which  is  almost  immediately 
answered  from  the  summit  of  the  crag,  and  he  is  joined  by  another  of  his 
species.  We  now  perceive  that  they  are  a  pair  of  Buzzards — a  bird  which, 
though  annually  becoming  more  rare,  is  still  not  uncommon  in  some  parts 
of  Westmoreland  and  Yorkshire.  Together  they  float  at  a  great  elevation, 
uttering  at  short  intervals  their  mournful  cry;  but  as  we  slowly  retire 
from  the  spot  which  they  have  fixed  upon  for  their  abode,  they  become 
fainter  and  fainter,  till  at  length  the  bird  last  observed  turns,  and  again 
seeks  the  shelter  of  the  cliffs. 

We  pursue  our  rout  along  the  steep  mountain  side,  meeting  with  various 
members  of  the  winged  tribes.  The  Snipe  starts  from  his  nest  at  our  feet 
with  that  peculiar  cry  which  has  earned  him  the  name  of  Heather  Gort; 
Curlews  wheel  around  in  abundance,  and  occasionally  we  catch  a  sight  of 
the  sprightly  little  Dunlin  (which  is  much  more  abundant  on  the  fells  than 
is  generally  supposed,)  as  he  quits  the  shelter  of  a  tuft  of  rushes  or   hea- 


THE    COMMON    TOAD. 


ther.  From  the  long  grass  we  arouse  numbers  of  Meadow  Pipits;  and  out 
of  the  small  groups  of  bushes  which  are  visible  here  and  there^  is  borne 
the  monotonous  cry  of  the  vagrant  Cuckoo. 

But  it  is  not  in  mountain  scenery  alone  that  the  Oologist  finds  pleasure; 
the  wood,  orchard,  and  meadow,  the  old  ruin,  and  the  river's  bank,  alike 
aflbrd  him  delight,  and  I  confess  that  it  will  take  more  than  ordinary 
persuasion  to  induce  rae  to  believe  that  this  delightful  pursuit  can  be 
anything  but  a  source  of  gratification  and  instruction  to  mankind.  That 
it  is  daily  becoming  more  extensively  known  and  practised  is  evident;  it 
has  even  added  a  new  branch  to  our  trades — that  of  an  egg-dealer,  and 
has  obtained  such  a  number  of  supporters  from  those  who  are  in  the  highest 
sense  of  the  word  Naturalists,  that  we  must  suppose  that  so  long  as  a 
love  for  Ornithology  exists,  so  must  it  also  for  the  sister  science  Oology. 

I  will  hereafter,  D.  V.,  say  a  few  words  on  the  actual  collecting  and 
arranging  of  eggs. 

I  should  say  that  the  eggs  mentioned  by  a  correspondent  this  month  as 
being  somewhat  like  those  of  the  Nightingale,  but  less  bulky,  were  decidedly 
those  of  the  Sedge  Warbler;  some  in  my  own  collection  are  very  nearly 
as  dark  in  colour  as  those  of  P.  luscinia,  and  are  all  marked  with  black 
hair-like  lines. 

Richmond,  October. 


THH     COMMON     TOAD,     (BUFA     VULGARIS.) 
By  J.  m'intosh,  esq. 

The  Common  Toad,  {Bufa  vulgaris,)  is  one  of  the  unfortunate  reptilia 
that  is  unjustly,  I  may  say  ignorantly,  considered  "the  most  deformed  and 
hideous  of  all  animals;"  and  what  is  worse,  the  butt  for  every  idle  and 
ignorant  barbarian  to  aim  at !  Indeed  it  is  quite  remarkable  in  the  nine- 
teenth century,  celebrated  as  it  is  for  its  free  and  universal  difi"usion  of 
knowledge; — but  not  a  knowledge  of  the  beautiful  works  of  creation,  I  am 
reluctantly  compelled  to  say.  Nor  is  there  any  chance  of  the  rising  gen- 
eration that  is,  and  is  to  come,  becoming  more  enlightened  or  rational  con- 
cerning such  things,  until  Natural  History  is  made  a  standard  part  of 
education  in  our  schools.  How  many  Sa^e  persons  do  we  actually  find 
afraid  of  this  harmless  and  interesting  reptile,  who  seem  to  have  cherished 
such  prejudices  from  their  childhood.  In  fact,  children  are  taught  from 
their  infancy  to  look  upon  the  Toad  with  horror  and  disgust.  This  pro- 
bably in  part  arises  from  the  circumstance  of  some  authors  having  alluded 
to  it  in  their  writings  in  a  doubtful  manner;  as  Shakespeare,  who,  in  his 
"As  you  like  it,"  says — 

VOL.  VI.  c 


10  THE    COMMON    TOAD. 

"Sweet  are  the  uses  of  adversity, 
Which,  like  the  Toad,  ugly  and  venomous, 
Wears  yet  a  precious  jewel  in  his  head." 

Now,  with  a  view  to  banish  from  our  minds  such  absurd  and  unjust 
antipathies  towards  this  unfortunate  reptile,  which  is  not  only  inoffensive, 
but  of  the  greatest  service  to  us  in  preserving  our  fruits  and  flowers  from 
the  ravages  of  injurious  insects,  I  purpose  to  give  an  outline  of  its  history, 
manners,  and  utility,  which  I  hope  will  be  the  means  of  sparing  the  life 
of  many  a  poor  Toad.  It  is  a  fact  well  known  to  every  Naturalist  that 
the  food  of  the  Toad  consists  of  insects;  though  all  of  them  are  perhaps 
not  aware  of  the  extent  to  which  it  preys  upon  the  larger  Gohoptera, 
and  chiefly  of  the  Carabideous  kind.  I  have  frequently  found  in  the 
stomachs  of  these  creatures  the  heads,  thoraces,  and  elytra  of  Steropus 
madidus,  a  very  common  insect  under  stones,  Omaseus  melanarius,  also  a 
very  abundant  species,  Galathus  melanocepTialus,  and  Clstdoides,  also  com- 
mon; I  have  also  found  the  elytra  of  some  of  Curculionidee.  It  also  devours 
immense  quantities  of  worms,  slugs,  earwigs,  caterpillars,  ants,  woodlice, 
and  flies  of  various  species;  I  have  seen  a  Toad  dispatch  thirty  of  these 
pests  in  two  minutes.  They  also  devour  the  common  wasp,  (Vespa  vul- 
garis,) Bomhus  terrestris,  and  Apis  melUfica,  catching  them  with  its  viscid 
agile  tongue,  with  a  rapidity  that  the  eye  can  scarcely  follow:  never  is 
the  aim  missed.  The  prey  touched  by  the  tongue  adheres  firmly,  the  viscid 
saliva  being  very  tenaceous,  and  is  instantly  carried  to  the  back  of  the 
mouth  and  swallowed.  The  senses  of  taste  and  smell  are  not  very  acute; 
their  sight,  however,  is  quick  and   accurate. 

The  usefulness  of  the  Toad  in  gardens,  particularly  under  frames  in 
green  and  hothouses,  cannot  be  too  highly  estimated;  and  instead  of  being 
considered  a  useless  ugly  reptile,  to  be  kicked  out  of  the  garden  or  stoned 
to  death,  is  worthy  of  all  the  protection  the  horticulturist  can  give  it; 
it  is  really  deserving  of  a  shady  snug  corner  in  every  greenhouse,  where 
it  may  be  petted,  and  its  curious  and  interesting  habits  observed;  for  in  this 
situation  the  Toad  is  "a  pearl  of  great  price."  They  are  easily  rendered 
familiar,  and  susceptible  of  no  inconsiderable  degree  of  attachment  to  those 
who  treat   them  with   kindness. 

Like  the  rest  of  the  Amphibia  the  Toad  becomes  torpid  during  winter, 
except  in  hothouses;  in  this  torpid  state  they  may  be  generally  found  in 
some  retired  and  sheltered  spot,  as  under  large  stones,  etc.;  and  there 
they  remain  until  the  return  of  spring  calls  them  into  a  state  of  life.  The 
Toad  has  frequently  been  found  in  holes  in  rocks  and  hollows  of  trees, 
whither  they  had  no  doubt  resorted  in  search  of  insect  food,  or  for  shelter, 
and  where  they  have  remained  until  the  cavity  has  become  partly  closed; 
which  has  given  rise  to  many  absurd    tales   respecting    their    having   been 


THE   COMMON    TOAT>,  11 

imbedded  in  tbese  retreats  for  a  thousand  years — the  living  relics  of  a 
world  gone  by,  and  coeval  with  the  rock  around  them,  which  stories  are 
mere  imaginations  of  the  brain.     Virgil  says — 

"And  Toads  in  crannies  found." 

Superstition  and  credulity  are  by  no  means  confined  to  the  vulgar  and 
illiterate;  the  minds  of  the  better  informed  are  often  biased  by  such  in- 
fluence. That  they  are  frequently  found  in  hollows  of  trees  and  rocks, 
we  are  perfectly  satisfied,  having  found  them  in  such  places  ourselves;  but 
there  has  always  been  some  small  aperture  more  or  less  communicating  with 
the  external  surface,  by  which  they  have  received  air  and  nourishment. 
In  all  the  accounts  which  we  have  read  of  the  discovery  of  imbedded 
Toads  and  Rats  in  wood,  stone,  and  coal,  the  discoverers  have  paid  more 
attention  to  the  appearance  of  the  Toad  than  to  the  minutis9  of  the  cavity 
in  which  it  was  contained;  no  doubt  the  blow  of  the  hammer  or  the  axe 
which  set  them  at  liberty  destroyed  all  trace  of  the  orifice  or  fissure 
which  admitted  them,  and  through  which  they  receive  food  and  air  till  they 
grew  too  large  to  make  their  exit.  From  experiments  made  by  ourselves, 
we  have  arrived  at  the  conclusion  that  the  Toad  cannot  exist  a  year  totally 
excluded  from  atmospheric  air  and  food.  Here,  however,  let  it  be  observed 
that  we  are  open   to  conviction. 

We  have  now  arrived  at  another  very  interesting  point  in  the  history 
of  the  Toad,  namely,  its  manner  of  birth;  and  what  we  have  to  advance 
on  this  disputed  subject  shall  be  brief  The  Toad  is  not  only  oviparous, 
but  viviparous,  according  to  circumstances;  and  there  does  not  seem  to 
be  anything  in  this  theory  so  difficult  to  admit,  as  some  writers  have 
asserted,  when  it  is  remembered  that  Aphidne  and  some  of  the  Muscidce 
are  endowed  with  the  same  power.  Moreover,  the  German  naturalists  have 
asserted  that  some  Lizards  and  Snakes  become  viviparous  when  they  are 
confined  to  dry  situations.  In  the  same  manner,  when  Toads  are  secluded 
from  water  they  are  no  longer  oviparous,  but  viviparous;  as  any  one  scep- 
tical on  this  point  may  prove  to  his  own  satisfaction,  if  he  has  the  power 
to  throw  ofi"  his  absurd  idea  of  horror  and  cruel  insults  and  persecutions  to 
which  the  poor  Toad  has  been  subjected,  from  the  days  of  yEsop  to  the 
present  day. 

The  popular  belief  in  the  poisonous  qualities  of  the  Toad  has  some  truth 
in  it.  The  milky  secretion  contained  in  the  dorsal  and  parotid  pustules  is 
a  thick,  viscous,  yellowish  liquid,  smelling  very  strong  and  acrid,  and  is 
intolerably  bitter.  In  order  to  prove  the  poisonous  qualities  of  this  secre- 
tion, we  tried  the  effects  on  two  small  birds — the  Sparrow  and  the  Chaf- 
finch, and  found  they  died  without  convulsions  in  ten  minutes.  We  also 
find  that  M.  M.  Pierre  Gratiolet  and  S.  Cloez,  in  the  "Comtes  Rendus," 
have  proved  by  a  series  of  experiments  that  this  milky  secretion  is  poisonous 


12 


THE    COMMON    TOAD. 


to  small  birds,  as  the  following  quotation  from  the  said  work  will  shew: — 
*'\Ve  tried  the  effect  of  the  secretion  of  the  Common  Toad  on  several 
small  birds;  they  all  died  in  five  or  six  minutes,  but  without  convulsions. 
They  opened  their  mouths,  tottered  as  if  drunk,  and  had  evidently  lost 
the  power  of  regulating  their  movements.  At  the  end  of  a  few  seconds 
they  shut  their  eyes,  as  if  to  sleep,  and  fell  dead." 

"The  secretion  from  the  Toad  killed  birds  after  it  had  been  dried;  two 
milligrammes  of  the  dried  poison  killed  a  Chaffinch  in  a  quarter  of  an  hour. 
The  poisonous  quality  of  this  secretion  is  not  destroyed  even  though  its 
acidity  be  neutralized  by  potash.  We  have  not  ascertained  what  internal 
derangements  are  produced  by  these  poisons;  but  we  constantly  found  in 
the  birds  which  were  killed  distinct  symptoms  of  apoplexy  in  the  region 
of  the  brain," 

The  above  experiments  clearly  prove  that  the  notion  of  the  poisonous 
qualities  of  this  milky  secretion  of  the  Toad  is  not  without  foundation;  but 
that  its  bite,  its  breath,  or  even  its  glance,  are  fraught  with  death,  etc., 
are  absurdities  which  we  hope  we  have  already  overthrown.  Our  opinion 
respecting  the  use  of  this  poison  is,  to  defend  the  reptile  against  its  enemies, 
which  are  not  a  few,  and  that  it  is  not  injurious  except  by  inoculation,  and 
that  in  rather  large  doses. 


The  Toad  has  only  four  toes  on  the  fore  feet,  as  shewn  in  our  figure 
A,  and  five  on  the  hinder,  as  shewn  in  the  figure  B.  They  are  not  web- 
bed as  in  the  frog,  but  there  is  a  small  membrane  at  the  base,  as  shewn 
in  the  sketch.  The  usual  pace  of  the  Toad  is  a  kind  of  crawl,  but  it 
has  the  power  of  leaping,  and  that  to  a  considerable  distance,  though 
not  with  the  harlequin  agility  of  the  frog.  When  alarmed  or  threatened 
with  danger  it  stops,  swells  its  body,  and  remains  till  all  danger  is  over,  as 
motionless  as  a  stone,  when  off  it  crawls  to  some  quiet  corner.  If  when 
frightened,  it  is  taken  up  in  the  hand,  small  quantities,  from  time  to  time, 
of  the  cutaneous  secretion  exudes  from  the  follicles  on  the  hand^   as  also 


OCCASIONAL    NOTES.  18 

a  discharge  of  limpid  water,  which  is  generally  supposed,  but  incorrectly^ 
to  be  the  urine,  is  by  no  means  deleterious,  and  in  my  opinion  is  only 
used  as  an  engine  of  defence,  just  as  a  cat  will  scratch,  or  a  dog  bite, 
on  a  very  slight  provocation. 

It  casts  its  skin  as  snakes  and  caterpillars  do — it  pulls  oflP  its  old  coat, 
which  splits  down  the  back  and  belly  when  it  is  too  small,  with  the 
assistance  of  its  arms  and  mouth;  and  Mr.  Bell,  in  his  "British  Reptilia," 
says,  rolls  it  up  in  a  ball  and  swallows  it.  In  reference  to  this  statement, 
I  must  confess  that  I  have  never  observed  them  guilty  of  such  acts  of 
cannibalism,  as  I  have  found  their  skins  floating  on  the  water,  or  on  the 
cellar  floor,  in  which  I  have  had  them  confined  for  observation,  and  in 
the  words  of  the  poet  must  now  conclude; — 


-"The  slippery  toad 


Casts  off  his  vesture  in  the  thorny  sliado." 


OCCASIONAL     NOTES. 

HY    MR.    M.    WESTCOTT. 

The  Adventures  of  a  Cat  and  Kitten. — A  few  weeks  since,  a  Cat  and 
Kitten,  kept  in  the  Wells  Brush  Factory,  were  missed  for  two  days. 
The  old  Cat  being  a  valuable  one,  every  inquiry  was  made  about  her 
during  the  period,  without  success,  and  she  was  given  up  as  lost.  How- 
ever, on  the  return  of  Mr  Parsons'  waggoner  from  Bridport,  where  he 
had  been  with  a  load  of  brushes,  to  the  no  small  surprise  of  the  inquirers 
of  Puss  and  Kitten,  he  turned  them  both  out  of  a  bag  iu  which  he 
had  them  confined.  They  all  were  anxious  to  know  how  he  came  by  the 
*'lost  goods,"  and  put  a  dozen  qnestions  to  him  at  once  about  them.  But 
the  only  explanation  he  could  give,  was  that  as  he  was  going  on  to  Brid- 
port, "he  kept  on  hearing  the  mewing  of  cats,  but  't  was  a  mystery  where 
it  came  from."  But  when  he  unloaded  the  brushes,  the  mystery  of  the 
mewing  was  unravelled,  for  lo  and  behold,  there  were  madam  Puss  and 
her  little  Spitfire,  rolled  up  in  one  corner  of  the  waggon,  as  comfortable 
as  could  be,  and  shewing  no  signs  of  "quitting  the  premises."  The  wag- 
goner knew  the  cats,  but,  of  course,  it  was  a  puzzle  to  him  to  know  how 
they  came  there.  However,  there  they  were;  and  to  make  sure  of  their 
being  "returned  in  good  condition,"  he  gave  them  some  moat,  and  tied 
them  up  in   the  bag  as  '^per  delivery." 

The  only  way  to  account  for  the  cats  being  in  the  waggon  is,  that  after 
it  was  loaded,  (not  before,  as  they  would  sure  to  be  seen,)  careful  Puss 
not  liking  the  site  of  her  little  one's  bed,  conveying  her  to  the  vehicle, 
deeming  it  a  safer  nursery,  and  not  so  subject  to  the  "rude  stare"  of 
passers  by.      And  to    make  Kit   contented    in    her  new    quarters,  she   lay 


14  OCCASIONAL    NOTES. 

■with  it  herself,  and  sung  it  to  sleep;  and,  no  doubt  in  the  mean  time, 
•enjoyed  a  nap  herself,   not  dreaming,  however,  of  her  approaching  journey. 

The  old  Cat  is  the  mother  of  the  "mony-toe  Kitten"  noticed  in  the 
"Naturalist,"  page  66,  vol.  iv.  And  her  present  little  adventurer  is  posses- 
sed of  four  toes  more  than  ordinary.  The  distance  they  travelled  altogether 
is  something  more  than  eighty  miles. 

The  Bittern,  (Botaurus  stellarus.)  I  saw  a  very  fine  male  bird  of  this 
species,  which  was  shot  a  few  days  ago  about  four  miles  from  here.  It 
was  in  the  water  when  fired  on,  and,  being  only  wounded  in  the  wing, 
tried  to  escape.  A  dog  went  in  pursuit,  and  when  he  nearly  came  up, 
the  wounded  bird  prepared  to  meet  him  by  spreading  his  tail  feathers, 
■opening  his  wings,  arching  his  neck,  gave  a  "war  cry,"  and  then  with 
piercing  eyes  he  glared  upon  his  assailant,  who  after  receiving  one  thrust 
from  the  valiant  bird,  could  not  be  induced  to  undergo  the  infliction  of 
a  second,  but  kept  running  round,  in  hopes  to  find  some  easier  way  of 
attack;  but  the  same  '^angry  front,"  and  blood-stained  mandibles  presented 
themselves  to  the  dog — turning  as  he  turned,  and  so  kept  him  at  bay. 
However,  a  second  shot  ended  the  scene,  and  laid  prostrate  both  the  dog 
nnd  bird! 

The  Bittern  is  very  rarely  met  with  in  Somersetshire,  and  indeed  it 
seems  to  be  getting  scarcer  in  England  every  year.  For  in  many  places 
where  these  noble  birds  used  to  be  plentiful,  there  is  scarcely  one  of  them 
to  be  met  with  at  the  present  day.  This  melancholy  fact  for  the  Orni- 
thologist— yes,  and  for  every  lover  of  Nature — is  becoming  more  and  more 
appai'ent,  and  may  perhaps  be  accounted  for  in  two  ways.  First,  the 
wanton  molestation  which  they  receive  from  the  merciless  gunner,  as  a 
matter  of  course,  must  every  year  thin  their  already  scanty  numbers.  For 
as  sure  as  one  of  them  approaches  the  habitation,  or  within  sight  of  the 
watchful  (fowler?)  a  gun  is  sure  to  be  brought  into  requisition,  and  its 
murderous  contents  hurled  against  the  stranger,  who  brooding  no  evil  him- 
self, anticipates  none  from  others.  Poor  unsuspicious  bird,  thy  life  has  paid 
the  forfeit! 

The  second  great  increasing  cause  of  the  scarcity  of  the  Bittern,  may 
be  attributed  to  the  cultivation  and  drainage  of  waste  lands.  It  is  well 
known  that  whatever  parts  of  the  country  undergo  such  changes,  are  sure 
to  be  deserted  by  the  Bittern,  although  they  might  have  been  chosen  spots 
for  many  years  before.  But  these  remarks  hold  good,  not  only  with  the 
bird  in  question,  but  likewise  with  many  of  our  charming  British  birds, 
which  are  only  met  with  now  as  "stragglers,"  and  even  as  such  they  seldom 
appear  in  any  part  of  the  country  without  being  a  mark  for  some  one 
to  shoot  at.  Why,  it  may  be  asked,  is  man  such  an  inveterate  enemy  to 
these  little  feathered  characters,  that  make  pleasant  our  rural  walks — cheer- 


OCCASIONAt.    NOTES.  to- 

ing  our  hearts  with  their  melodious  and  never-dying  song?     Why?  It  may  be 
asked;  and  echo  answers,   Why? 

If  men  who  wish  to  record  facts  connected  with  Natural  History,  were 
to  lay  aside  their  fatal  gun  and  love  of  slaughter,  and  encourage  the  pres- 
ence of  these  beautiful,  and  not  more  beautiful  than  useful,  little  creatures,, 
by  allowing  them  to  remain  unmolested,  where  they  long  '•lived  and  loved 
together,"  we  should  not  have  to  deplore  so  frequently  the  ''shyness," 
"scarcity,"  and,  I  may  add,  the  total  desertion  of  many  species  from  lo- 
calities In  which  they  formerly  used  to  abound. 

"Havoc  among  the  Sparrows."  Here  is  a  specimen  of  the  result  of  a 
"little  knowledge"  of  Natural  History.  A  paragraph  which  found  its  way 
Into  several  Journals  headed  as  above,  and  runs  as  follows: — "We  under- 
stand that  the  Nallsea  Association  for  the  destruction  of  Sparrows  and  other 
small  birds,  have  offered  several  prizes,  to  be  awarded  on  Easter  Monday 
next,  at  the  Royal  Oak  Inn,  Nallsea,  to  the  person  who  shall  produce  the 
largest  number  of  heads  of  small  birds."  Now  I  should  really  like  to  know  If 
the  members  of  this  grain -begrudging  association  Intend  having  the  heads 
of  these  small  birds  dished  up  to  them  for  supper  at  the  Royal  Oak  Inn, 
if  so  they  must  be  singular  epicures  to  set  their  stomachs  upon  such  tiny 
morsels,  when  they  could  purchase  a  dozen  sheep's  heads  for  half-a-dozen 
shillings,  which  would  yield  them  a  much  more  ample  meal,  and,  moreover, 
would  be  better  representatives  of  their  own  craniums.  If  the  bird-catchers 
and  other  celebrated  notorieties  were  to  sally  forth  with  trap  and  gun,  and 
succeed  In  destroying  all  the  "Sparrows  and  other  small  birds"  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Nallsea,  I  would  not  sympathise  with  the  farmers  for  the 
loss  that  some  of  their  crops  would  surely  sustain,  from  the  ravages  of  in- 
sects in  various  stages,  which  constitute  the  principal  food  of  these  outlawed, 
"mischievous,"  birds.  Surely  there  does  not  exist  a  Natural  History  Society 
in  Nallsea?  If  there  did,  I  should  suppose  that  soq  e  one  of  its  members 
would  take  upon  him  to  plead  the  Sparrow's  cause  \  in  open  court."  And 
as  he  would  be  well  acquainted  with  his  client's  character  and  mode  of 
life,  and  by  placing  his  petty  pilfering  tricks,  (for  it  must  be  admitted  he 
as  some  faults — who  has  not?)  In  juxtaposition  with  his  interesting  habits 
and  useful  qualities,  I  may  venture  to  predict  that  Mr.  Sergeant  Sparrow- 
friend  would  not  have  pleaded  in  vain.  And  there  Is  no  doubt  but  when 
the  members  of  that  shameful  association  become  better  acquainted  with, 
the  habits  and  economy  of  the  objects  of  their  destructiveness,  they  will 
feel  inclined  to  be  better  friends  in  future. 

If  they  read  Buffbn's  account  of  this  self-same  Sparrow,  they  will  see 
that  he  estimates  a  single  pair  of  these  "mischievous"  birds  to  destroy 
no  less  than  four  thousand  caterpillars  In  a  week.  What  then  must  be 
the  number  collected  by  the  Sparrow  population,  in  the   neighbourhood   of 


16:  OCCASIONAL   NOTES. 

Nailsea,  during  the  breeding  season?  And  it  is  not  only  the  caterpillars 
they  destroy,  but  likewise  the  would-be  founders  of  vast  colonies  of  these 
ravenous  creatures.  How  little  then  of  this  bird's  history  is  known,  or  if 
known,  how  meanly  appreciated.  Who  has  not  seen  a  Sparrow  in  the 
summer-time  dart  after  a  Cabbage  Butterfly,  and  make  a  meal  of  him; 
or  convey  the  captive  to  their  chirping  little  ones,  which  are  perched  on 
an  old  apple  tree  close  by,  or  pushing  their  little  heads  outside  their  feather- 
lined   nest. 

The  Otter,  (Lutra  vulgaris.)  In  the  early  part  of  last  spring,  as  Mr. 
Tayler,  brush- maker  of  this  city,  was  walking  by  Dulcot  river,  accompanied 
by  his  dog,  he  heard  a  sudden  splash  in  the  water.  The  dog  started  to 
the  spot,  and  having  strong  scent  of  something,  instantly  plunged  into  the 
stream.  The  river  here  formed  an  angle,  and  ran  under  a  thick  cover  of 
alder  brush-wood  and  nut  bushes,  and  the  water  was  about  four  feet  deep. 
The  dog  had  not  been  hunting  long  before  he  started  a  fine  Otter,  which 
plunged  under  the  cover,  but  not  quick  enough  to  prevent  being  laid  hold 
of  by  his  pursuer.  The  bushes  were  so  thick  that  Tayler  could  only  catch  a 
glimpse  of  his  white  terrier  dragged  under  water  by  his  powerful  antagonist. 
This  was  too  much  for  Tayler;  so  he  ran  along  the  stream  until  he  found 
an  easy  place  of  access  to  the  other  side,  which  he  soon  did,  and  then  ho 
was  an  "eye  witness"  of  the  affray.  His  dog  had  still  a  firm  hold  of 
the  Otter,  and  in  return  the  latter  retained  a  firm  grip  of  the  former, 
whose  blood-stained  skin  plainly  told  how  severely  he  had  been  punished  by 
his  amphibious  combatant.  Although  the  Otter  was  toothfuUy  engaged, 
still  he  did  not  like  the  appearance  of  the  dog's  master,  and  strove  to  his 
utmost  to  make  both  himself  and  the  dog  '^invisible"  under  cover,  which 
he  now  and  then  accomplished.  But  of  course  Tayler  did  not  like  to  see 
his  little  dog  cut  and  hacked,  and  covered  with  blood,  and  the  next  moment 
dragged  under  water  to  be  washed  white  again;  so  he  jumped  into  the 
water,  and  succeeded  in  giving  the  Otter  a  few  well-aimed  blows  with  a 
stout  cudgel,  which  had  the  effect  of  speedily  putting  an  end  to  the  affair. 

He  measured  three  feet  nine  inches  from  nose  to  tip  of  tail,  and  his 
bulk  altogether  may  be  gleaned  from  the  fact  of  his  weighing  something 
more  than  twenty-eight  pounds.  It  was  thought  for  a  long  time  before 
that  an  Otter  infested  the  stream,  but  it  had  not  been  clearly  proved  by 
a  sight  of  the  animal  before  the  above  event.  The  remains  of  some  fine 
trout  was  occasionally  met  with  lying  on  the  banks.  It  seems  that  he  fed 
sumptuously  on  the  aquatic  inhabitants,  as  he  was  uncommonly  fat.  It 
is  more  than  probable  that  he  would  not  have  been  taken  ^by  a  single 
dog,  if  Tayler  had  not  assisted,  as  he  was  eight  pounds  heavier  than  his 
assailant,  which  I  believe  was  a  great  advantage  on  his  side. 

The  skin  was   well  mounted  by   Frank   Sheppard,  Esq.,  in    whose  pos- 


STRAY   KOTES.  17 

sion  it  is  at  the  present  time,  together  with  many  other  quadrupeds,  birds, 
insects,  etc. 

The  Primrose,  (Primula  veris.)  On  January  17th.  several  fine  clusters 
of  these  ever-pleasing  flowers  greeted  me  as  I  rambled  by  a  little  stream; 
a  sight  which  I  think  will  not  be  witnessed  on  the  17th.  of  February  next. 

The  Contrast.  The  following  note  taken  by  me  last  year,  forms  a  strong 
contrast  with  the  present  severe  frost.  The  extraordinary  fine  weather  we 
had  this  spring,  was  very  favourable  in  bringing  out  our  early  flowers  and 
insects. 

On  the  14th.  of  February  I  saw  a  Brimstone  Butterfly;  on  the  15th. 
met  with  four  Peacock's  Eyes,  and  several  Small  Tortoise-shells.  On  the 
18th.  of  March  the  Small  White  Cabbage  Butterfly  appeared,  and  on  the 
following  day  I  observed  the  Orange-Tipped  and  Wood-PJnglet.  On  Good 
Friday  I  saw  a  Grizzled  Skipper,  and  four  or  five  Sand  Martins,  and  two 
days  afterwards  the  Chimney  Swallow  and  Martin,  {Hirundo  urhica.) 

I  have  no  doubt  some  or  all  of  the  above  species  were  seen  earlier  than 
I  have  recorded,  by  others  who  have  better  opportunities  of  observing 
than  I  have.  But,  however,  be  that  as  it  may,  it  is  a  very  rare  occur- 
rence indeed  for  them  to  be  seen  in  this  locality  so  early  in  the  season. 

Saint  Cuthhert's  Street,   Wells,  February  9th.,  1855. 


STRAY    NOTES. 

BY  0.  S.  ROUND,  ESQ. 

Since  I  last  wrote  to  you,  I  have  been  ruralizing  in  Gloucestershire, 
and  give  you  the  result  of  my  observations,  as  connected  with  Natural 
History.  The  country  was  new  to  me,  so  that  novelties  (to  me)  struck 
me  the  more  forcibly;  but  there  were  some  curious  things  also,  which  I 
think  should  be  noted,  if  they  have  not  before  been  made  the  subjects 
of  observation.  As  I  have  wandered  about  England,  the  Missletoe,  ( Viscum 
album,)  has  been  a  favourite  object  with  me,  and  I  have  observed  the 
localities  and  trees  which  it  aflects.  Now  it  appears  mostly  on  the  Thorn, 
white  or  black,  then  on  the  Elm  or  Beech,  sometimes  on  the  Oak,  and 
I  have  seen  it  on  the  Horse-Chesnut  and  Hedge-Maple;  but  in  a  very  pic- 
turesque locality  near  Dursley,  in  Gloucestershire,  where  I  have  been  staying, 
the  old  fruit-trees  of  aU  kinds  are  covered  with  it,  even  a  Walnut  had 
a  rare  crop,  vide  "The  Naturalist,"  voL  ii.,  page  183;  but  at  the  time  I 
left,  either  boys,  the  type  of  all  mischief,  or  some  other  depredators  had 
shorn  it  nearly  all  oflf  except  the  stumps,  which  were  sufficiently  numerous 
to  attest  its  presence,  and  that,  if  permitted  to  grow,  it  would  make  a 
Christmas  show  yet. 

VOL.  VI.  D 


18  STRAY   NOTES. 

The  county  is  covered  with  Beech  Hangers,  and  after  rain  it  is  very 
pretty  to  see  the  little  curls  of  mist  in  spiral  columns,  revolving  themselves 
from  the  leafy  sea;  it  is  these  things  which  brings  to  one's  eye,  as  it  were^ 
the  constant  supply  and  demand  which  is  going  on  around  us,  and  reminds 
me  of  the  first  time  I  was  in  a  shower;  it  was  in  Borrowdale,  and  I 
had  scrambled  up  pretty  high,  when  the  mist,  in  the  midst  of  which  I 
was,  became  strangely  agitated  by  contending  currents  of  air,  moisture,  and 
temperature,  no  doubt  in  action,  or  rather  causing  the  movement;  and  all  at 
once  big  drops  fell  out  of  the  mist,  and  were  actually  condensed  all  around 
within  a  yard  of  me.  The  soil  near  Dursley  is  argillaceous,  and  the  pulver- 
ised stone,  a  free  rubbly  one  not  unlike  that  found  at  Selborne,  Hampshire; 
when  moistened  is  very  like  potter's  clay,  and  gets  soapy  and  slippery,  so 
that  good  ladies  hereabouts  mount  on  pattens,  and  so  throw  oflF  their 
allegiance  to  thick  shoes,  whilst  the  gentry  come  out  in  steel-pegged  boots^ 
as  the  only  means  of  keeping  themselves  upright.  The  pasture,  however, 
for  it  is  a  verdant  valley,  is  exceedingly  rich — the  finest  grazing  county 
in  England  I  should  think;  and  the  hedges  teem  with  Scolopendria,  which 
in  some  localities,  I  am  told,  are  as  thick  and  high  as  to  be  a  good  cover 
for  game.  I  brought  a  glorious  basket-full,  and  they  quite  seem  to  luxuriate 
in  the  change  of  air,  having  never  missed  the  moving,  and  looking  as  green 
and  flourishing  as  ever.  In  the  immediate  neighbourhood  of  my  residence, 
(Bagshot  Heath,)  although  we  are  rich  in  Filices,  we  have  no  Scolopen- 
dria, although  they  are  found  about  ten  miles  off,  beyond  Windsor,  so 
that  I  was  rather  surprised  the  other  day  to  find  two  delicate  plants  of 
the  common  kind,  ( Vulgare,)  growing  in  ,'a  little  air-shaft,  leading  from 
a  cellar  in  the  village;  I  had  heard  of  it,  and  went  to  ascertain  the  fact^ 
and,  sure  enough,  there  they  were,  one  above  the  other,  clinging  to  the 
wall  quite  a  picture,  but,  notwithstanding,  I  bore  off  the  prize,  and  put 
it  in  our  ^^rock."  They  grew  on  the  bare  bricks,  with  no  more  earth  than 
creeping  mosses  usually  find;  but  this  is  a  digression,  for  I  had  another 
try  when  in  Gloucestershire,  to  bring  away  a  Cistopteris  Fragilis,  but  al- 
though I  took  great  pains,  and  moved  it  with  plenty  of  earth,  as  I  thought, 
it  became  speedily  defunct,  and  I  failed  therefore  to  preserve  it;  but  I 
shall  not  be  disheartened,  as  I  know  a  lady  who  brought  one  successfully 
from  the  Pyrenees.  There  appears  to  me  to  be  three  distinct  species  of 
Scolopendria  growing  near  Dursley,  the  common,  a  light  green  and  narrower 
one,  and  a  smaller  broad-leaved  one,  that  is  the  8.  vulgare,  the  S.  Gris- 
pum,  and  the  S.  AngustifoUum,  at  least  they  seem  to  answer  to  the  plants 
go  named  by  Mr.  Moore.  I  likewise,  found  the  Asplenium  thelypteris  in 
fine  growth,  but  I  had  enough  luggage,  and  doubted  that  it  would  come 
safely,  so  it  still  flourishes  outside  the  garden -wall  where  I  discovered  it. 
I  think  these  are  all  the  observations  I   was  led  to  make  of  this  district. 


BYSTEMA   NATURE.  19 

at  all  events  so  far  as  soil  and  its  products  are  concerned;  but  I  shall 
probably  repeat  my  visit,  and  have  more  leisure  to  pohs  about  in  search 
of  curiosities,  and  if  I  find  any,  be  assured  that  you  shall  have  the  result. 

Londorij  November^  1854. 


SYSTEMA     NATURE. 

BY    THE    REV.    F.    O.    MORRIS. 

A  systematic  catalogue  of  Nature  is  the  one  thing  which,  more  than 
any  other,  seems  to  me  to  be  wanting  to  students  of  her  page,  a  true 
'pagina  pulchra.'  As  it  is  at  present,  when  any  new  species  is  discovered, 
and  even,  it  may  be,  duly  chronicled,  its  proper  place  as  a  component  part 
of  the  great  whole  is  not  taken:  although  "secured"  it  is  kept  outside  the 
door,  in  this  or  that  ^volume,  probably  of  a  periodical  or  magazine,  and 
though  there  to  be  found  by  those  who  will  take  the  trouble  of  hunting 
for  it,  with  or  without  a  clue,  yet  to  all  others  its  existence  remains  as 
unknown  as  if  it  had  never  had  being,  or  had  never  been  introduced  to 
the  acquaintance  of  science. 

Too  well  I  know  not  only  how  imperfect  any  first  attempt  at  supplying 
such  a  desideratum  as  that  I  have  thus  briefly  indicated  the  want  of  must 
be,  but  how  still  more  imperfect  such  imperfection  will  appear  in  an  essay 
made  by  me  towards  the  filling  up  the  void.  Still  I  am  so  deeply  con- 
vinced of  the  greatness  of  the  want,  that  I  have  determined  to  endeavour 
to  carry  into  eflFect  the  idea  which  I  have  long  wished  and  intended  to 
make  an  attempt  to  work  out.  It  will,  however,  even  though  most  defi- 
cient, be  still  so  extensive  in  its  development,  that  I  must  not  take  up  a 
single  line  that  I  can  help,  even  with  the  most  necessary  apology.  I  will 
but  therefore  say  in  brief  that  the  following  is  only  meant  to  be  as  it 
were,  a  first  and  rough  ^^Proof-sheet"  of  an  ^^Annual,"  which,  when  once 
brought  to  its  temporary  end,  may  then  be  yearly  "revised,"  with  "cor- 
rections and  additions;"  until  at  last,  long  probably  after  I  myself  shall 
have  left  the  scene,  it  may,  Heres  atque  rotundus,'  shew  in  one  wide  but 
comprehensive  view  the  vast  extent  of  the  works  of  the  Great  Creator. 


OEDO  I.— Bimana. 
FAMILIA  UNICA.— Homo. 

Homo. 
Homo  sapiens. 


OEDO   II. — QUADETTMANA. 

FAMILIA  I.— SiMiA. 
troglodytes. 
Troglodytes  niger,  Schinz. 
Simla  Pan,  Donovan. 
Simla  Satyrus,  Linnceus. 
Simla  pygmaea,  Schreber. 


20 


3EistBllaurnn3  JIntias. 

Oared  Shrew,  (Sorex  remifer.) — On  the  17th,  of  October  I  shot  one  of 
these  rare  little  animals  in  a  run  of  spring  water  near  Fakenham.  On  the 
first  alarm  ho  took  to  the  water  and  swam  some  little  distance,  then  dived 
to  the  bottom,  seeming  equally  expert  at  travelling  under  the  water  as  in 
it,  till  my  desire  to  become  more  nearly  acquainted  with  him  prompted  me, 
however  much  against  my  will,  to  discharge  the  fatal  shot,  which  ended  his 
career.  I  had  on  previous  occasions  seen  two  other  individuals,  which  I 
believe  belonged  to  this  species. — T,  Southwell,  Fakenham,  November 
17th.,  1855. 

An  Extraordinary  Sawlc. — The  following  account  is  one  which  I  have 
copied  from  the  Dunstable  Chronicle  of  this  month: — Mr.  W.  Jardine,  of 
that  town,  has  for  some  time  been  in  possession  of  a  Hawk.  A  few  months 
ago  she  laid  two  eggs,  soon  after  which  she  sat  upon  them.  Her  own  eggs 
were  subsequently  removed,  and  two  Guinea-fowls'  eggs  placed  in  her  nest. 
The  Hawk  sat  upon  them  the  usual  time,  when,  to  the  surprise  of  all, 
two  fine  chickens  were  hatched,  with  which  their  step-mother  appeared 
highly  delighted,  and  over  which  she  has  continued  to  watch  with  all  the  ten- 
derness of  a  natural  parent:  the  only  thing  at  which  she  appeared  uneasy, 
and  evidently  shewed  surprise,  was  the  fact  of  her  young  picking  up  the 
moment  they  were  hatched,  and  many  were  the  efforts  whichj^she  made  to 
induce  them  to  offer  their  bills,  that  she  might  cram  in  pieces  of  raw  meat. 
— T.  Cane,  Manchester  Street,  Luton,  Beds. 

Occurrence  of  the  Eose-Coloured  Pastor. — Last  August  I  had  a  Rose- 
Coloured  Pastor  brought  me  that  was  shot  in  this  neighbourhood.  It  was 
a  young  bird  of  this  year. — Idem. 

Green  Sandpiper. — I  had  a  very  good  specimen  of  the  Green  Sandpiper 
sent  me  to  preserve  about  the  same  time. — Idem. 

Bed  Admirals. — A  correspondent  in  "The  Naturalist"  last  month  stated 
that  Red  Admirals  were  very  scarce  in  his  district,  (Wells;)  now  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Luton  they  have  beeu  more  plentiful  than  usual.  A 
friend  of  mine  captured  eight  one  afternoon,  and  I  have  caught  several 
myself. — Idem. 

Curious  Hatch  of  a  Hen. — A  Hen,  belonging  to  a  person  of  this  town, 
a  short  time,  out  of  a  sitting  of  thirteen  eggs,  hatched  fourteen  chickens. 
The  double  egg  was  not  quite  broken  through,  but  very  thin  and  cracked. 
The  birds  were  fully  formed,  but  had  evidently  exhausted  all  the  nutrition 
in  the  egg,  and  had  died  in  consequence. — Fixederick  M.  Burtox,  Upping- 
ham, October  10th.,  1855. 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES.  21 

Eose-Coloured  Pastor,  (Pastor  roseus.) — A  specimen  of  the  Rose- Coloured 
Pastor  was  brought  to  me  on  the  12th.  of  August.  It  was  shot  tlie  same 
day  near  to  Middlesbro'. — Thomas  Bedlington,  Commercial  Street,  Mid- 
dlesbro',  October  oth.,  1855. 

Mountain    Finch,     (Fringilla    montifringilla.) — Three  specimens    of    the 

Mountain   Finch  were    brought    to    me  this    morning   in  a   very    exhausted 

state;  they  were  captured  on  board  of  a  ship  last  night  as  she  was  taking 
the  Tees. — Idem, 

Long-tailed  Tits,  (Parus  caudatus.) — During  the  last  severe  winter  I  saw 
nine  Long-tailed  Tits  flying  through  the  streets  of  Middlesbro'.  I  noticed 
either  the  same  birds  or  others  of  the  species  five  successive  days.  They 
flew  very  low,  and  seemed  to  be  suffering  from  the  severity  of  the  weather. 
I  only  know  of  another  instance  of  those  birds  approaching  towns.  I  also 
saw  about  the  same  time  five  Gold-crests,  {Regulus  cristatus,)  in  a  ship 
yard.     I  captured  two  with  my  hands,  but  they  died  the  same  day. — Idem. 

Paiiridges. — I  know  of  more  than  a  dozen  instances  of  coveys  of  Par- 
tridges alighting  in  the  streets  of  Middlesbro';  generally  all  of  them  are 
captured  as  they  run  into  any  place  to  hide.  Last  year  I  saw  sixteen 
Partridges  drop  into  the  Tees,  as  they  were  attempting  to  fly  across:  they 
were  all  drowned — the  wind  was  blowing  strongly  at  the  time. — Idem. 

Each  Thrush,  (Turdus  saxitilis.) — In  June,  1852,  I  saw  a  bird  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Robin  Hood's  Bay  that  I  was  not  at  all  acquainted  with. 
I  followed  it  about  two  miles,  and  often  got  within  a  dozen  yards  of  it  by 
creeping  behind  the  hedges.  In  its  movements  it  was  very  like  a  Thrush, 
but  it  was  rather  smaller  in  size.  I  had  no  gun  with  me,  or  I  could  very 
easily  have  shot  it.  The  bird  got  shy  at  last,  I  having  followed  it  up 
very  closely.  It  finally  disappeared  in  a  plantation.  The  bird  was  the  Rock 
Thrush.  I  was  able  to  identify  the  species  in  a  moment  after  seeing  the 
coloured  figure  in  Morris's  ''British  Birds." — Idem. 

Ring  Ouzel,  (Turdus  torquatus.) — I  have  found  the  nest  of  the  Ring 
Ouzel  four  different  times  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Robin  Hoods  Bay. — Idem, 

Notes  on  Fish  mid  Wild-fowl.  During  the  last  mild  winter  some  ex- 
traordinary draughts  of  Fish  have  been  taken  in  the  River  Idle,  at  Misson^ 
but  the  arrival  of  wild-fowl  has  been  unusually  small,  scarcely  indeed  affording 
remuneration  for  the  time  and  trouble  spent  in  watching  for  these  welcome 
visitors.  Hence  the  occasions  of  "fleeting"  have  been  few  and  far  between. 
They  generally  make  their  appearance  about  dusk  in  the  evening  in  quest 
of  food.  The  distance  which  some  of  these  strangers  will  travel  in  the 
course  of  a  short  time,  is  almost  incredible  to  those  who  are  ignorant  of 
their  habits.      It  is  a  well-ascertained  fact  that  the    Eider   Duck    can    fly 


22  MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 

ninety  miles  an  hour.  Many  a  fine  Mallard  can  accomplish  quite  as  much 
in  the  same  space  of  time;  so  that,  with  suitable  weather,  their  appearance 
is  so  sudden,  and  seemingly  unlikely,  as  to  baffle  all  calculation,  except 
to  the  "old  hand."  Several  of  the  various  species — Wigeon,  Teal,  Duck, 
and  Goose,  are  frequently  shot  on  the  waters  of  the  Idle,  and  upon  the 
adjoining  lands.  The  streams,  indeed,  may  be  said  to  afford  a  livelihood 
to  some,  as  they  are  a  source  of  gratifying  diversion  to  others,  especially 
when  the  weather  is  of  such  a  character  as  to  induce  these  migratory 
visitors  to  shift  their  quarters,  to  obtain  a  supply  of  food  suitable  to  their 
habits. — John  Dixon,  Leeds,  November,  1854. 

The  London  Entomologists  will  hold  their  first  Meeting  the  first  Wed- 
nesday in  the  month  throughout  the  year,  commencing  in  February,  1856. 
This  Society  being  formed  for  the  benefit  of  the  Members  and  Science,  the 
funds  will  be  devoted  to  the  awarding  of  Prizes  to  those  members  who 
supply  the  Society  with  the  greatest  amount  of  information  respecting  the 
precise  localities  and  number  of  Insects,  in  lieu  of  the  plan  generally 
adopted  of  devoting  the  funds  to  purchasing  Cabinets,  etc.  Subscription 
Yearly,  10s.  6d.;  Entrance  Fee,  10s.  6d. 

All  Communications  to  be  addressed  to  the  Honorary  Secretary,  James 
Gardner,  52,  High  Holborn,  London. 


TO    THE     SUBSCRIBERS 
AND    READERS     OF    "THE    NATURALIST." 

Ladies  and  Gentlemen, 

It  is  with  sincere  regret  that,  after  being  connected  with  ^'The  Naturalist" 
for  five  years,  I  find  myself  obliged  to  transfer  the  agreeable  task  of  editing 
it  to  other  hands:  it  is  unnecessary  that  I  should  trouble  you  with  these: 
and  my  object  in  penning  these  few  lines  is,  in  the  first  place,  to  return 
youj  each  and  all,  my  heart-felt  thanks  for  the  kind  and  friendly  feeling 
which  has  always  met  my  endeavours  to  cater  for  your  intellectual  benefit. 
I  trust  that  the  objects  which  led  to  the  production  of  ^^The  Naturalist," 
have  been  to  a  great  extent  realized  j  namely,  the  supplying  of  the  poor 
Naturalist  with  a  cheap  and  (by  him)  readable  magazine,  in  his  favourite 
study.  Such  has  always  been  my  aim,  and  if  some  of  my  more  educated 
readers  have  occasionally  wished  for  more  scientific  matter,  I  trust  the  above 
object  may  excuse  the  apparent  want.  I  can  speak  positively  as  to  the 
fact  of  many  mechanics  and  working  men  having  been  led  by  the  perusal 
of  ^'The  Naturalist,"  to  a  most  creditable  improvement  of  their  intellectual 
powers,  and  consequently  of  their  advancement  in  the  study  of  Natural 
History. 


THE   RETROSPECT.  23 

I  have  always  had  the  sincerest  pleasure  in  aiding  such  correspondents 
by  advice  in  private  letters,  and  look  back  with  very  great  gratification  to 
this  part  of  my  pleasing  labours  I  can  only  hope  that  the  same  measure 
of  kindly  feeling  which  I  have  experienced,  may  be  extended  to  my  brother, 
the  Rev,  F,  O,  Morris,  who  in  future  will  edit  "The  Naturalist;"  I  am 
sure  that  he  will  do  his  best  to  meet  the  requirements  of  the  subscribers. 

I  will  only  farther  add,  that  I  most  sincerely  and  heartily  wish  you  each 
and  all  a  happy  New  Year,  and  be  assured  that,  although  now  ceasing  my 
official  connection  with  you,  I  shall  always  feel  the  liveliest  satisfaction 
in    the  well-being  of  "The  Naturalist." 

I  remain,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen, 

Yours  most  Faithfully, 

Beverley  R.  Morris. 


€kt  HutrnsjiEt. 

Dr.  Hobson  asks  in  the  last  number  of  ^'The  Naturalist,"  how  the  den- 
tated  process  on  the  bill  of  the  Hawk  recently  figured  is  to  be  accounted 
for,  if  it  be  supposed  to  be  merely  a  variety  of  the  Sparrow-Hawk?  The 
answer  is  as  follows: — The  birds  of  the  Hawk  kind  are  divided  into  two 
principal  classes — the  noble  and  the  ignoble.  The  former  are  subdivided 
into  two,  one  the  most  noble,  the  other  the  noble.  To  the  most  noble 
belong  the  Merlin,  the  Hobby,  and  the  Peregrine.  To  the  noble  the  Sparrow- 
Hawk,  our  only  British  example.  To  the  ignoble,  the  Buzzards,  the  Har- 
riers, and  the  Eagles.  In  the  most  noble  the  bill  is  deeply  indented;  in 
the  noble  less  so;  in  the  ignoble  it  is  almost  wanting,  a  slight  festoon 
alone  indicating  its  place.  In  the  specimen  in  question,  if  the  dentate 
process  is  more  developed  than  in  the  Sparrow-Hawk,  it  may  be  accounted 
for  on  the  supposition  I  expressed  that  the  bird  might  be  a  hybrid  between 
that  species  and  one  of  the  true  Falcons.  The  specimen  is  certainly  a  very 
curious  one,  and  I  would  desire  not  to  be  thought  to  claim  for  my  opinion 
anything  more  than  it  is  worth.  The  foot  is  my  guide; — Cinderella  was 
traced  by  her  slipper.  ^^Ex  pede  Herculem." — F.  0.  Morris,  Great  Northern 
Hotel,  London,  November  5th.,  1855. 

Moth  Mixture. — I  have  no  particular  quantity  of  each  liquid  that  I  mix 
up,  but  say  a  pound  of  sugar  to  about  a  quart  of  beer,  with  sufficient  rum 
to  make  it  enticing,  say  five  or  six  table- spoonfuls.  Rum  I  consider  in- 
dispensible;  1st.,  the  scent  attracts  the  flies;  2nd.,  its  intoxicating  quality 
stupifies  them,  and  makes  them  easier  to  take  with  chloroform;  3rd.,  it  is 
very  attractive  from  its  sweetness.  Now  this  quantity  will  not  be  sufficient 
to  last  many  nights,  if  your  trees  have  not  been  previously  anointed;   but 


24:  TUE    RETROSPECT. 

when  the  tree  is  once  well  saturated,  a  very  little  to  renew  it  will  suffice; 
but  of  this  more  hereafter.  Sugar  is  decidedly  better  than  treacle,  and  beer 
superior  to  water.  It  is  certainly  preferable  to  boil  it,  but  T  do  not  adopt 
this  plan,  as  it  wastes  the  liquor,  and  it  answers  well  without  it;  but 
sticks  better  to  the  trees  if  it  is. 

Quantity  on  each  tree. — With  regard  to  the  quantity  on  each  tree,  I  am 
quite  sure  your  friend  Mr.  H.  does  not  anoint  his  trees  sufficiently.  One 
tree  well  soaked  is  worth  a  hundred  with  only  a  little  dab  on  each;  for 
that  reason  always  stick  to  the  same  trees.  I  have  tried  both  plans,  and 
I  now  only  sugar  two  trees;  they  are  near  together,  close  to  my  house,  in 
my  garden.  This  saves  infinite  trouble  if  nothing  else.  I  put  the  mixture 
all  round  the  tree,  from  six  feet  high  quite  down  to  the  root  of  the  tree, 
and  there  frequently  take  the  best  flies.  In  addition  to  this,  if  a  fly, 
(which  it  frequently  does,)  at  the  approach  of  the  bottle  suddenly  drops 
to  the  ground,  you  are  nearly  sure  to  find  him  in  an  hour's  time  feeding 
near  the  root  of  the  tree;  if  no  bait  had  been  there  he  might  have  taken 
wing,  and  having  been  once  disturbed,  made  off"  for  good. 

I  have  tried  more  than  once  trees  at  a  distance  from  home,  but  never 
succeeded  so  well  as  I  did  upon  my  old  trees  in  the  garden.  The  sense 
of  smell  is  great  in  Moths,  and  when  once  the  air  is  impregnated,  they 
may  be  enticed,  I  am  sure,  from  great  distances,  from  the  quantity  of 
flies  I  have  found  on  a  single  tree.  I  had  forty-five  one  night  in  the 
summer,  and  nearly  as  many  only  a  few  nights  ago;  among  which  were 
Exoleta,  Siiffusa,  Meticulosa,  Oxycanthce,  C-Nigrum,  Satellitia,  and  many 
specimens    of  Plstacina,  etc. 

Situation  for  Sugaring. — Though  I  have  taken  flies  on  all,  the  stem  of 
a  tree  is  decidedly  better  than  a  rail  or  piece  of  board  fixed  in  the  hedge, 
which  I  have  tried;  1st.,  there  is  always  a  side  of  a  tree  sheltered  from 
the  wind;   2nd.,  it  is  easier  to  capture  flies  upon. 

Best  nights. — The  best  night  of  all  is  a  damp  dull  one;  all  the  better 
if  it  rains,  and  I  do  not  care  how  hard,  provided  the  sugar  is  not  washed 
off.  Wind  too  is  all  in  favour  of  the  entomologist,  one  side  of  the  tree 
at  least  will  be  sheltered.  A  moon-light  night  is  bad.  A  very  frosty 
one  will  be  probably  a  failure  altogether,  if  clear  and  bright.  In  fact  the 
finer  the  night  the  worse  chance. 

I  am  afraid  these  few  remarks  will  not  be  of  much  use  to  any  one, 
but  at  all  events,  if  any  of  your  readers  has  not  already  done  so,  let 
him  try  a  wet  night.  A  tree  once  well  soaked,  will  last  two  or  three 
nights,  and  require  but  very  little  of  the  mixture  to  renew  its  enticing 
qualities  in  future. 

Atalanta  has  been  very  common  in  this  neighbourhood  this  year,  but 
I  have  not  seen  Cardui. — R.  P.  Alington,  October  26th.,  1865. 


LATELY    PUBLISHED, 

NOTES  OF  A  YACHT  VOYAGE  TO 

HARDANGER  FJORD,  AND  THE  ADJACENT 

ESTUARIES; 

BY    C.    W.   EOTHERY,    ESQ. 

Witli  Numerous  Illustrations  on  Steel,  Stone,  and  Wood. 
Price — Coloured,  12*.  Qd.;  Plain,  IQs.  6d. 

OPINIONS    OF    THE    PEESS. 

"A  very  amusing  and  useful  addition  to  the  more  elegant  class  of  literature.  The  Author 
describes  the  scenery  which  the^lustrations  delineate  with  considerable  adroitness ;  and  having 
made  himself  familiar  with  the  character,  customs,  occupations,  and  wants  of  the  people,  he 
enlarges  upon  their  several  heads  in  a  most  graphic  and  engaging  manner." 

Yorkshire  Gazette, 

"The  descriptions  of  the  water-falls  and  mountain  scenery  are  given  with  that  fine  expres- 
sion which  adorns  the  writings  of  an  enthusiast  in  the  works  of  Nature." 

Hunt's  Yachting  Magazine. 

"Preceding  travellers,  Inglis,  Everest,  Price,  and  others,  had  given  us  much  information 
on  these  points,  (the  scenery  of  the  country,  primitive  manners  and  customs  of  the  inhabi- 
tants,) but  they  do  not  enter  so  minutely  into  detail  as  does  the  'Dabbler.' " — The  Art  Journal^ 

"The  reader  may  obtain  much  pleasant  information  respecting  the  interesting  country 
described  in  this  volume;  and  as  the  shores  of  Norway  are  no  longer  considered  too  distant 
for  the  summer  tourist  in  search  of  game,  fishing,  or  pleasure,  the  information  may  be  useful 
to  many."  Leeds  Intelligencer. 

"We  cannot  close  our  hasty  notice  without  expressing  our  admiration  of  the  style  in  which 
tlio  illustrations  are  executed,  and  the  pleasure  we  have  derived  from  the  perusal  of  the 
interesting  'Notes  of  a  Yacht  Voyage  to  Hardanger  Fjord.' "  Gumberland  Facquet. 


LONDON:    LONGMAN    AND    CO. 


8. 

d. 

10 

0 

10 

6 

8 

0 

16 

0 

FOR     DISPOSAL, 

The  following  Collections  of  BRITISH  PHENEROGAMIC  and 
CRYPTOGAMIC  PLANTS,  carefully  prepared,  scientifically 
named,  and  systematically  arranged: — 

A  Collection  of  Nine  Hundred  Flowering  Plants         .  4 

A  Fasciculus  of  Fifty  Ferns 0 

A  Fasciculus  of  Eighty  Mosses 0 

A  Fasciculus  of  One  Hundred  and  Sixty  Mosses    .        .  0 

*#*  Hare  species  on  Land,  for  supplying  desiderata. 

WILLIAM    FOGGITT, 

Tliirsk,   Yorkshire. 


Just  Published.     Price  IQs. 

A   MANUAL   OF   ELECTRICITY   AND 
GALVANISM; 

Being  the  Fourth  Edition,  entirely  re-written,  of  Lectures  on  Electricity, 
by  HENRY  M.  NOAD,  Ph.D.,  Lecturer  on  Chemistry  at  St.  George's 
Hospital,  and  Author  of  Chemical  Manipulation  and  Analysis,  &c.,  &c. 

Part  II.,  comprising — Magnetism,  Electro-dynamics,  Dia-magnetism,  and  the 
Electric  Telegraph,  nearly  ready. 

LONDON:    GEOEGE    KNIGHT    AND    Co.,    FOSTEll-LANE. 


WILL    BE    PUBLISHED, 

On  February  1st.,  1856,  in  One  Volume,  crown  8vo.,  profusely 
illustrated  with  Engravings,  plain  and  coloured, 

RUSTIC     ADORNMENTS, 

roB 
HOMES     OF     TASTE. 

And  Recreations  for  Town  Folk  in  the  Study  and  Imitation  of  Nature. 


Marine  Aquarium. 
Fresh -water  Aquarium. 
Garden  Aquarium. 
Wardian  Case. 
Fern  Case. 
Illuminated  Trees. 


COMPEISING 

Rockery. 

Fernery. 

Garden  Water  Scenery. 

Aviary,  or  Bird-House. 

Apiary,  or  Bee-House. 

Summer  Houses. 


Garden  Seats. 
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Vases  and  Miscellaneous  Gar- 
den Ornaments. 


BY     SHIRLEY     HIBBEED, 

Autlior  of  "The  Tovm  Garden." 

LONDON:    GEOOMBEIDGE    AND    SONS,    5,    PATEENOSTEE  EOW. 


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CONDUCTED    BY 

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0  Lord,  bow  manifold  are  Thy  works!    in  wisdom  hast   Thou    made  them  all:   tlie 
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LONDON: 

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36 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

Geological  Excursion.     By  E.  "W" 25 

Injurious  Insects — The  Common  "Wasp.     Ey  J.  M'  Intosh,  Esq.    ,  .         30 

The  Effects  of  Spring.     By  0.  S.  Eotjnd,  Esq. 32 

Down  the  River.     By  J.  S.  Walkee,  Esq 33 

Arrival   of   the   Hirundines,  etc.,  at  Minehead,  Somerset,  in  1855. 

By  Majok  Gifford , 

Extracts  from  my  Note  Book.     By  Majok  Gifford 36 

New  Yorkshire    Stations    for   Bare    Mosses.     By  Johk  H.  Davies, 

Esq 37 

Systema  Naturse.     By  The  Editob 38 

Three  Days  in  Caernarvonshire.     By  J.  H.  Davies,  Esq 39 

Miscellaneous  Notices. — The  Domestic  Cat.  Lateness  of  the  Chim- 
ney Swallow.  A  B.eal  Eara  Avis.  The  Mealy  Eedpole.  Green 
Sandpiper.  Oyster-catcher.  Additional  Note  on  the  Starling  in 
the  "Birds  of  Terrick."  Short  Sun  Fish.  Music  hath  charms 
for  the  Butterfly.  Plantago  lanceolata.  Boletus  squamosus.  Oc- 
currence of  Acherontia  atropos  at  Southport.     Vanessa  Atalauta. 

E-elaxing  of  Insects.     Winter  Birds 42 

Beviewing 46 

Reviews. — The  Flowering  Plants  and  Ferns  of  Great  Britain;  an 
attempt  to  classify  them  according  to  their  Geognostic  Relations. 

By   John    Gilbert    Baker.     London:    W.  and  F.   G.  Cash. 

The  Entomologist's  Annual  for  1856.     London:  Yan  Yooest.   . .  47 
Proceedings  of  Societies. — Aberdeenshire  Natural  History  Associa- 
tion           48 

The  Querist. — Extermination  of  Sparrows 48 


It  is  requested  that  all  Communications  be  addressed  in  future 
to  the  REV.  F.  O.  MORRIS,  Nunburnholme  Rectory,  Hayton, 
York. 


NOTICES    TO    CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  from  Db.  Hobson; — J.  JVI'Intosii,  Esq. 
(two;) — Miss  Emma  Beowne  (two;) — Me.  C.  Feyee; — E.  E.  H.; — Eichabd 
Clapham,  Esq.; — J.  Gatcombe,  Esq.; — Mr.  T. Edwaed  (two;) — J.  S.  Walkee, 
Esq.; — Stephen  Clogg,  Esq.; — Me.  T.  Tinkee; — Mb.  Sidney  Style; — 
E.  K.  B,; — John  Dutton,  Esq.; — Taxus; — Me.  Richaed  Beook. 

EnnATUM.— January  No.,  page  22,  line  26,  for  "these,"  read  "my  reasons  for  taking  this  step." 

Communications,  Drawings,  Advertisements,  etc.,  to  he  addressed  to  the  Rev. 
F.  O.  MORRIS,  Nunburnholme  Rcctorif,  Hayton,  York; — Books  for  Revieio 
and  Parcels,  to  the  care  of  Messrs.  GROOMBRIDGE,  5,  Paternoster 
Row,  London. 


TO    ADVEHTISERS. 

^Ulvcrlisemcnts  are  inserted  on  the  Cover  of  The  Naturalist,  on  the  following 
very  low  Terms: — |  of  a  page,  Ss. — i  of  a  page,  8s. — j  of  a  page,  16s. 
— Whole  page,  30s.     Bills  stitched  in,  40s. 
Advertisements  to  be  sent  not  later  than  the  loth,  of  the  Month. 


25 
GEOLOGICAL     EXCURSION. 

BY    E.  W. 
'  {Continued  from  page  G.) 

We  were  up  betimes  the  next  morning  to  ascend  Inglebro.  We  had 
over  niglit  a  vague  idea  of  ascending  to  see  the  sun  rise,  but  in  these 
long  days  of  July,  it  is  of  no  use  trying  to  anticipate  that  luminary, 
he  rose  in  red  glory  before  we  had  been  half  an  hour  on  our  way;  the 
ascent  is  of  course  long— five  miles  continually  up  hill  will  always  be  a 
stiflF  walk,  but  from  Clapham  it  is  very  easy — a  lady  of  our  party  managed 
it  with  very  little  fatigue;  the  ascent  is  over  dry  moors,  with  three  suc- 
cessive steep  steps,  and  as  many  broad  platforms.  When  the  first  step 
was  surmounted,  we  stood  on  the  edge  of  the  Lower  Scar  Limestone; 
the  mass  of  Inglebro  stood  in  front  of  us,  a  broad  moor  rose  gradually 
to  the  foot  of  the  next  step,  which  contained  the  Yoredale  Series,  and 
the  Upper  Scar  Limestone,  both  very  thin ;  then  came  a  second  long  plat- 
form, the  south  end  of  which  rose  a  little,  forming  a  hill  called  Little 
Inglebro. 

On  the  north  end  stood  the  oblong  mound  of  Millstone  Grit,  which 
formed  the  highest  summit.  On  the  north  and  east  sides  the  descent  is 
abrupt  to  the  Lower  Limestone  platform.  On  the  west  a  thin  belt  of  the 
middle  platform  divides  the  descent.  On  the  south,  which  is  the  accessible 
side,  the  ascent  is  made  from  the  summit  of  little  Inglebro;  the  edges  all 
round  the  top  are  broken  into  cliffs,  and  enormous  piles  of  worn  rocks 
lie  on  the  lower  and  middle  platforms,  tumbled  from  the  rugged  sides  of 
the  exposed  summit,  and  on  the  two  deep  sides  streaking  the  descent  with 
streams  of  stones.  The  top  is  oblong,  about  a  mile  in  circumference,  very 
level  and  very  dry;  it  is  everywhere  guarded  at  its  edge  by  a  rough  stone 
dyke  of  great  thickness,  the  remains  of  a  fortified  camp  held  by  some 
of  our  oppressed  or  oppressing  ancestors. 

The  view  is  very  extensive— to  the  north  stretch  the  hills  of  Teesdale, 
Swaledale,  and  Wensleydale,  in  confused  groups.  Whernside  just  opposite 
shuts  out  the  view  to  the  north-west.  A  peep  up  the  valley  of  the  Lune 
makes  the  gazer  fancy  the  sea  is  there,  (the  vista  stretches  out  as  far,) 
and  this  is  really  the  case,  if  the  right  kind  of  day  can  be  chosen,  (an 
evening  before  rain.)  To  the  west  the  view  is  closed  by  Bolland  Knots, 
and  the  numerous  wild  swells  which  form  Bolland  Forest.  To  the  south 
the  eye  ranges  over  the  beautiful  valley  of  Craven,  crossed  far  away  by 
Pendle  Hill.  To  the  south-west  rise  range  beyond  range  the  Fells  which 
hide  in  their  deep  valleys  the  head  waters  of  the  Aire,  the  Wharfe,  and 
the  Nid.  To  the  east  the  beautiful  mass  of  Pennyghent  springs  up  from 
the  valley  at  our  feet;   and  to  the  north-west  the  view  is  closed  by  Carn 

VOL.  VI,  _  E 


26  GEOLOGICAL    EXCUnSIOX. 

Dod,  and  the  hills  about  Seamer  AVater.  Below  u&  the  valley  of  Chapel- 
le-dale  cuts  so  deep  into  the  roots  of  the  hill,  that  its  bottom  is  quite 
hidden.  To  the  south  lay  the  beautiful  valleys  of  Clapham  and  Austwick, 
ending  in  deep  ravines,  which  penetrate  far  into  the  hill;  and  to  the  east 
stretches  the  desolate-looking  trough  along  which  flows  the  infant  Ribble. 

We  descended  on  the  south-east  where  the  ground  falls  steeply  from 
the  summit  to  the  Lower  Limestone,  which  here  forms  a  depression  be- 
tween Inglebro  and  Meughten  Fells — hence  it  is  not  so  dry  as  these  moors 
usually  are;  the  stream  which  falls  into  Gaping  Gyll  hole,  (formerly  des- 
cribed,) collects  the  water  from  these  bog^ri.  We  descended  into  the  beautiful 
woods  which  fill  up  the  little  valley  of  Clapham,  by  a  deep  fissure  in  the 
rocks,  which  at  first  close  together  so  as  only  just  to  admit  the  passage 
of  one  person;  they  soon  widen  into  the  high  elifis  which  form  the  side 
of  the  valley. 

Throughout  the  whole  of  this  Lower  Limestone  district,  the  moors  are 
perforated  by  deep  cavernous  holes,  and  gaping  fissures,  sometimes  a  few^ 
sometimes  many  hundred  feet  in  depth,  formed  after  the  manner  of  the 
Buttertubs;  and  in  these  sheltered  spots  must  be  sought  that  variety  of 
ferns  to  the  number  of  thirty  species,  which  are  said  to  grow  on  Inglebro; 
we  were  rather  unsuccessful,  for  we  gathered  nothing  of  any  consequence 
except  Chrysopleniuiii  oppositifolium. 

We  were  about  four  hours  ascending  and  descending,  including  all  stop- 
ages.  On  leaving  Clapham  our  road  lay  along  the  valley  to  Austwick^ 
where  we  turned  eastward  into  a  little  cross  valley  watered  by  the  Wharfe, 
On  the  south  side  of  this  valley,  immediately  under  the  broken  cliffs,  is 
found  the  northern  line  of  dislocation  of  the  Craven  fault,  where,  though 
the  Lower  Limestone  is  still  found  at  the  summit,,  yet  the  level  and  dip 
is  different  from  that  of  the  grand  Limestone  scars  of  Meughten  Fell, 
which  form  the  north  side  of  the  valley,  where  it  opens  into  Eibblesdale, 
These  last-named  scars  are  peculiarly  magnificent,  and  afford  fine  sections 
of  the  contorted  and  vertical  Silurian  shites,  with  the  limestone  laying  in 
flat  tables  on  their  worn  and  upturned  edges. 

The  valley  of  the  Ribble,  where  we  crossed  it  at  Helwith  Bridge,  is 
very  desolate;  but  the  view  of  Pennyghent,  with  its  grand  dome-shaped 
summit  rising  almost  perpendicularly  from  the  valley,  and  shewing  its  whole 
height  from  the  basal  slates  to  the  Millstone  Grit,  would  take  away  the 
murmur  from  the  lip,  even  if  the  journey  was  fatiguing. 

Crossing  the  valley  we  ascended  the  hill  which  forms  its  eastern  side,, 
(it  is  of  the  same  slaty  rock  which  is  found  in  the  whole  district  under- 
lying the  limestone,)  then  turning  a  little  southward  we  crossed  the  wild 
moors  which  form  the  head  of  Airedale,  and  stretch  away  to  Kettlewell 
dale.     To  the  lover  of  such  scenery,    and  whoever  he   is  he  will   not  care^ 


GEOLOGICAL    EXCURSIOJT,  27 

for  a   rough    hilly  road^   (the  road  is  rough^    and    pursues'  a  most    devious 
course,)  there  is  no  district  in  England  that  would  better  repay  a  visit. 

Pennyghent  was  soon  shut  out  by  the  fidge  of  Fountain's  Fell,  which 
bounded  the  district  on  the  north — on  the  south  rose  the  Ryeloaf,  and  a 
kind  of  curiously  shaped  hills  which  lay  above  Settle:  our  route  lay  in  a 
depression  between  these  ranges.  We  crossed  ridge  after  ridge  in  this 
valley,  till  at  length  the  hills  opened,  and  after  surmounting  a  steeper 
ascent  than  usual,  we  looked  down  on  the  h<;ad  of  Airedale.  To  the  left 
stretched  a  long  line  of  magnificent  craggy  cliffs,  white  almost  as  chalk; 
their  base  was  washed  by  the  calm  dark  waters  of  Malham  mere,  which 
lay  in  a  hollow  in  the  centre  of  the  rocky  plain;  some  fine  larch  woods 
planted  at  their  foot  oft  relieved  and  heightened  the  whiteness  of  the 
cliffs.  But  except  these  trees  and  a  fringe  of  reeds  round  the  lake,  no 
vegetation  higher  than  the  grass  could  be  noticed;  to  the  south  the  plain 
is  cut  up  into  long  lines  of  low  wall-like  cliffs,  which  stretch  for  miles 
across  it,  and  descend  step  after  step,  till  over  the  verge  far  down,  a  few 
thick  woods  and  glimpses  of  rich  meadows  shewed  that  the  beautiful 
valley  of  the  Aire  was  below  us.  The  road  which  twisted  down  amongst 
the  ruined  rocks  was  execrable;  and  we  were  not  sorry  to  turn  out  of  it 
on  to  a  steep  grassy  slope,  which  descended  to  the  foot  of  Malham  Cove, 
formed  by  gigantic  precipices  slightly  concave;  from  the  case  of  which 
rises  the  infant  Aire  fed  from  the  lake  above.  It  is  a  full  clear  brook 
where  it  rises  from  under  the  rock  so  gently,  that  but  for  the  quick 
stream  which  slips  away,  and  a  few  bends  in  the  water  where  it  swells  up, 
no  one  could  tell  that  it  was  so  constantly  and  strongly  flowing:  the  water 
is  so  cold  that  it  benumbs  the  hand  if  kept  in  it  for  a  few  moments.  At 
the  source  every  stone  is  crowded  with  a  beautiful  little  mollusk.  We 
gathered  here  the  fine  blue  Jacob's  Ladder,  {PoUemonium  coerulea,)  a  rare 
plant  in  England. 

Leaving  the  Cove,  and  skirting  the  high  precipices  which  mark  the  line 
of  the  Craven  Fault,  about  a  mile  further  east  we  crossed  a  little  brook, 
and  ascending  its  course  we  soon  stood  in  a  gigantic  pistern  of  rock.  The 
passage  became  still  narrower,  till  turning  a  corner  the  beautiful  burn 
of  Girsdale  Scar  fretted  and  tumbled  down  the  rocks  in  front  of  us.  A 
gigantic  screen  of  rock  must  have  formerly  closed  this  fissure,  behind  which 
the  little  stream  had  accumulated  into  a  lake,  till  its  water  flowed  over 
the  edge  of  the  cliff,  or  down  a  now  dry  ravine  on  one  side.  The  barrier 
has  been  forced,  and  now  the  brook  runs  through  a  circular  hole  which  it 
has  worn  in  the  rocky  wall.  It  reaches  the  bottom  in  two  leaps;  in  the 
first  the  stream  passes  over  the  edge  of  the  circular  cavity,  down  a  little 
channel  which  it  has  worn  in  the  face  of  the  rock  into  a  small  basin,  full 
of  stones,  round  which  it  foams  and  dashes  to  the  second  leap,   where,   as 


28  GEOLOGICAL    EXCURSION. 

it  rushes  over  the  edge,  it  is  stopped  by  a  projecting  rock;  on  whose  sur- 
face it  has  deposited  a  magnificent  fringed  stalactile  cushion,  which  splits 
up  the  water,  throwing  it  on  sides  in  glancing  lines  of  foam;  and  in  rainy 
weather  forming  a  fine  fountain-like  shoot.  This  is  the  finest  waterfall  in 
these  dales,  and  the  gloomy  fissure  which  it  has  formed  is  very  grand. 
We  gathered  the  Lesser  Rue  Weed,  {Thalidram  minus ^  which  grows  in 
great  profusion  in  the  moist  fissures  of  the  rocks. 

Leaving  Girsdale  we  rode  down  the  valley  of  the  Aire  to  Kirkly  Malham, 
then  ascended  the  hills  on  the  Moor  road  to  Settle,  (let  no  admirer  of 
the  beautiful  be  tempted  by  the  smoothness  of  the  way  to  go  to  Settle 
by  the  lower  road.)  When  we  reached  the  highest  point  of  the  moor  we 
found  that  we  were  crossing  the  last  spur  of  the  mountains,  as  they  sunk 
into  the  valley  of  Craven.  The  sun  was  setting  behind  a  dark  cloud,  the 
edges  of  which  were  fringed  with  golden  light:  a  few  bright  red  islands 
of  cloud  floated  in  a  waste  of  pale  green  weird-looking  sky,  which  filled 
up  the  horizon,  fading  as  the  eye  followed  it  into  the  deep  blue  of  the 
zenith:  the  rays  which  streamed  from  behind  the  dark  cloud  lightened  up 
the  tops  with  a  deep  red  glow,  and  threw  into  a  deep  purple  shadow  the 
base  of  the  beautiful  fells  which  rise  round  Bolton  and  the  Wharfe,  and 
stretch  in  long  lines  athwart  the  whole  of  the  eastern  horizon.  They 
threw  up  in  strong  relief  the  grand  slope  of  Pendle  Hill,  which  bounded 
the  view  and  the  valley  to  the  south,  and  shed  a  golden  mist  on  the  three 
summits  which  form  the  highest  point  of  Bolland  Forest,  throwing  into 
shade  the  deep  valleys  which  indent  the  whole  district;  while  a  gush  of 
light  barred  by  lines  of  purple  shadow  filled  the  valley  at  our  feet,  and 
slept  on  the  still  pools  which  glanced  like  burnished  brass. 

To  stand  where  we  stood,  on  the  wide  moors  with  the  dark  hills  rising 
ridge  beyond  ridge  behind  us  and  before  us,  this  lovely  scene  with  the 
fresh  breeze  of  evening  sighing  past  us — no  sound  breaking  the  stillness 
but  the  cry  of  the  startled  lapwing,  and  the  gentle  monotonous  drone  of 
a  little  brooklet,  as  it  fell  drowsily  from  rock  to  rock,  watching  the 
changing  light  as  it  stole  up  the  hill  sides  and  died  away  on  their  sum- 
mits, leaving  one  after  another  cold  and  dark,  and  making  the  rest  more 
brilliant,  could  not  but  cause  the  gazer  to  feel  how  lavish  Nature  is  of 
her  beauties,  to  any   one  who  will  but  seek  her  in  her  wild  solitudes. 

Descending  from  the  moors,  we  found  ourselves  in  Settle  almost  before 
we  could  see  the  town,  so  closely  does  it  nestle  itself  under  a  huge  rock : 
the  Eibble,  as  it  emerges  from  its  narrow  dale  into  the  open  valley  flows 
round  it. 

At  Giggleswick,  near  Settle,  at  the  point  where  the  Limestone  abuts 
upon  the  Millstone  Grit,  which  is  here  thrown  down  some  hundred  feet  in 
the  line  of  southern  dislocation  connected   with  the  Craven  Fault  are  Gig- 


GEOLOGICAL    EXCCRSIOX.  29 

gleswick  Scars,  which  skirting  the  road  from  Settle  to  Clapham,  have  a 
wide  celebrity,  though  they  seemed  to  have  no  great  pretensions  to  gran- 
deur to  us  who  had  passed  through  the  valleys  to  the  north  and  east. 

These  Scars  form  the  south-western  side  of  a  mass  of  Limestone,  thrown 
down  between  the  northern  line  of  dislocation,  which  passes  along  the 
little  valley  of  the  Wharfe,  the  southern  passing  at  their  base. 

At  Settle  we  left  the  carriage  which  had  brought  us  and  our  belong- 
ings over  some  of  the  roughest  roads  in  the  north :  humble  as  it  appeared, 
we  were  sorry  to  exchange  it  for  a  grander  one.  Our  readers  will  perhaps 
smile  at  our  regret,  but  if  they  ever  take  such  a  ramble,  and  procure  a 
butcher's  spring-cart,  they  will  know  the  comfort  of  it  too  well  to  laugh 
at  it;  it  will  enable  the  tourist  to  take  a  little  extra  luggage,  (always  a 
desideratum;)  it  will  give  him  liberty  to  ride  or  walk,  and  will  follow 
him  anywhere — almost  up  a  straight  hill  side,  and  will  save  him  the 
trouble,  (if  he  is  either  geologist  or  botanist,)  of  carrying  his  collections, 
and  they  are  sometimes  of  no  inconsiderable  weight,  through  a  long  day's 
journey.  The  only  (and  perhaps  they  were  but  fancied,)  grievances  seemed 
to  be,  that  some  of  our  party  noticed  where  we  stopped,  that  the  natives 
read  on  our  cart,  ^James  Smith,  Butcher,  Leyburn,'  and  surveying  us, 
seemed  to  speculate  as  to  which  was  the  butcher;  and  on  inquiry  for  the 
best  inn  in  the  town,  we  had  to  be  very  particular,  as  a  second  or  even 
third-rate  one  seemed  to  be  reckoned  fittest  for  people  who  travelled  in  a 
butcher's  cart. 

From  Settle  we  crossed  the  valley  over  a  cold  bleak  country,  to  the 
wooded  knolls  and  rich  meadows  round  Clitheroe:  here  the  lowest  beds 
of  the  mountain  limestone  are  well  developed,  dipping  at  a  high  angle, 
and  much  contorted:  many  of  these  beds  are  very  fossilliferous,  and  con- 
tain multitudes  of  rare  crenoids.  Mr.  Parker,  a  clever  working  geologist, 
one  of  the  martyrs  of  science,  has  a  very  fine  collection  of  the  characteristic 
fossils  of  the   district. 

From  Clitheroe  to  Whitewell  is  nine  miles,  through  rather  wild  park- 
like scenery;  we  were  still  on  the  Limestone,  the  quarries  of  which  at 
Whitewell  are  full  of  Encrinite  stems,  heads,  and  broken  arms,  and  when 
the  stone  is  found  weather-worn  in  the  dry  dykes,  the  blocks  are  quite 
rough  and  white  with  these  fossils. 

About  Whitewell  the  scenery  is  very  fine;  the  Hodder  is  a  full,  swift, 
pale  brown  mountain  river,  abounding  with  fish;  the  banks  are  wooded 
from  the  water's  edge  to  the  hill  tops;  the  woods  are  full  of  ferns,  grow- 
ing most  luxuriantly,  but  we  found  no  rare  species.  The  flora  of  the 
district  will  well  repay  a  careful  search;  and  a  very  comfortable  inn  is 
beautifully  situated  in  a  bend  of  the  river. 

From  Whitewell  we  left  by  the  road  which  ascends  the  valley   by   the 


30  INJUKIODS   INSECTS. 

side  of  the  Hodder.  It  is  a  wild  dale,  where  the  rounded  hills  arc 
higher,  but  in  their  shape  have  very  much  of  the  character  of  chalk 
hills  intersecting  each  othei* — one  hill  running  between  two  others.  As  we 
ascended  the  scenery  became  almost  savage,  and  the  valley  narrowed  till 
we  began  to  mount  the  last  steep  ascent  towards  the  summit  level,  when 
the  hills  closed  in  still  more,  rising  on  each  side  to  a  great  height.  The 
strip  of  a  road  and  a  little  tumbling  stream  nearly  filled  up  the  bottom. 
Further  on  the  pass  became  so  narrow  that  the  road  and  the  stream 
encroached  on  each  other,  and  we  were  in  the  Trough  of  Bolland.  The  hills 
on  each  side  of  this  ravine  are  Millstone  Grit,  dipping  at  a  high  angle 
and  much  twisted:  the  whole  of  this  district  has  been  very  much  dislocated. 
Leaving  the  summit  of  the  pass,  a  ride  of  a  few  miles  across  open 
moors  brought  us  into  Wyersdale,  where  on  the  road-side  we  gathered 
more  rare  ferns  than  we  had  seen  throughout  our  excursion.  Another 
hour  over  a  desolate  and  uninteresting  country,  brought  us  in  sight  of 
the  Red  Sandstone  hills  that  rise  above  Lancaster,  where  we  passed  from 
the  breezy  moors  into  a  close  railway  carriage,  and  felt  how  hot  and 
unhealthy  civilization  was. 

Virlf^nnrl     YnrHhire,   Oct.  itJi.,  1855. 


INJURIOUS     INSECTS. 


T^fTT?,    COMMON    WASP,     (VESPA     VULGARIS.) 

.    BY   J.    m'iNTOSH,    ESQ. 
^ Continued  from  page  141,  vol.  \,) 

The  building  materials  of  the  Common  Wasp,  {Vespa  vulgaris,)  were 
long  a  matter  of  conjecture  to  the  naturalist,  as  well  as  of  attraction  and 
attention  to  others.  The  indefatigable  Reaumur  informs  us  that  he  endea- 
voured, for  twenty  years,  without  success,  to  find  out  the  secret;  he 
however  was  at  last  rewarded  for  his  perseverance.  Wasps,  like  all  other 
insects  which  live  in  societies,  are  subjected  to  a  well-arranged  government, 
the  laws  of  which  remain  inviolable,  or  they  could  never  construct  a 
dwelling  so  capacious  and  well  arranged;  a  fabric  which  all  the  ingenuity 
of  man  can  never  imitate  nor  resemble.  The  sagacity  also  of  selecting  a 
proper  situation  for  their  citadel,  is  no  less  singular  than  the  symmetry 
and  elegance  of  the  building  itself,  which  is  composed  of  small  bundles  of 
ligneous  fibres,  moistened  before  being  used  with  a  glutinous  liquid,  which 
causes  them  to  adhere  together.  These  bundles  of  fibres  are,  after  being 
carried  to  the  citadel,  formed  into  a  leaf,  resembling  papier  mache,  which 
the  insect  does  by  walking  backwards  and  spreading  it  out  with  her  man- 
dibles, tongue,  and  feet,  till  it  is  almost  as  thin  as  tissue-paper. 


INJURIOUS   INSECTS.  31 

Contrary  to  tKe  buildings  of  man,  they  begin  by  forming  the  ceiling,  of 
roof,  working  downwards,  and,  notwithstanding  the  workmen  employed, 
there  is  no  confusion  or  tumult,  each  has  its  duty  to  perform,  which  it 
executes  with  the  utmost  regularity,  and  having  deposited  its  load  in  the 
proper  position,  it  again  sets  off  for  fresh  materials,  until  the  whole  i» 
completed.  One  sheet  of  such  thin  material  as  this  the  Wasp  is  well 
aware  is  not  sufficient  to  prevent  the  earth  from  falling  down  into  the 
nest,  accordingly  she  is  not  satisfied  with  her  work  until  she  has  spread 
fifteen  or  sixteen  layers,  one  above  another:  these  layers  are  not  placed,  or 
glued  together  like  a  piece  of  pasteboard,  but  with  small  intervals  between. 

I  need  hardly  state  that  everybody  has  seen  Wasps  alight  on  the  sashes 
or  wood-work  of  their  windows,  to  the  great  terror  of  the  fair  sex,  and 
gnaw  off  the  woody  fibre  with  her  mandibles;  this,  then,  is  the  material 
which  she  employs  in  constructing  her  dwelling.  In  fact.  Wasps  have 
been  paper-makers  of  the  most  perfect  and  intelligent  kind  from  the 
creation,  while  man  was  arriving  by  slow  degrees  at  the  art  of  fabricating 
this  valuable  material,*  for  some  nations  carved  their  records  on  tablets 
of  stone,  wood,  and  brass;  others  employed  the  inner  bark  of  trees,  andl 
the  skins  of  animals.  Even  the  early  attempts  of  the  Egyptians  at 
paper-making  were  very  rude,  and  the  substance  produced  was  almost 
useless;  yet  the  Wasp  was  manufacturing  the  very  material  before  their 
eyes,  and  by  very  much  the  same  process  as  man  now  does,  with  the 
aid  of  his  complicated  machinery  and  chemistry.  Still  the  Wasp  employs 
the  same  instruments,  and  the  same  materials  now  as  it  did  at  the  crea- 
tion: her  machinery  is  very  simple,  and  never  out  of  order.  These 
weapons,  or  tools,  are  two  strong  saw-like  mandibles,  playing  one  against 
the  other;  and  by  means  of  which  she  excavates  the  subterraneous  vault 
in  which  she  constructs  her  dwelling,  as  well  as  for  cutting  up  fruit  and 
flesh — their  food.  a> 

It  is  quite  astonishing  to  see  the  space  they  hollow  out  in  order  to 
afford  room  for  their  nest;  scarcely  one  issues  from  the  ground  without 
a  load  of  earth  or  a  small  stone.  When  heavy,  they  drop  their  load 
near  the  entrance,  which  soon  accumulates  into  a  little  heap;  and  which 
often  leads  to  the  discovery  of  the  nest;  however,  when  such  accidents 
do  not  occur,  the  matter  is  moved  to  a  considerable  distance  from  the 
mouth  of  the  vault,  so  as  to  be  no  inconvenience  at  a  future  period. 
Although  the  whole  structure  is  built  at  the  expense  of  so  much  labour 
and  ingenuity,  it  is  scarcely  finished  before  winter  sets  in,  when  all  per- 
ish, with  the  exception  of  a  few  benumbed  females,  who  betake  themselves 
to  their  solitary  winter  quarters,  to  appear  again  in  spring  to  fill  the 
land  with  pests. 

November,  1855. 


3a 

THE    EFFECTS    OF    SPRING. 

BY    O.  a.  ROUND,    ESQ. 

It  is  curious  to  observe  what  a  difference  of  manner  the  season  of 
Spring  communicates  to  the  feathered  tribes;  the  wildest  become  in  com- 
parison tame  and  domestic,  the  tamest  even  acquiring  a  particular  softness 
of  behaviour,  which  is  observed  in  them  at  no  other  time.  The  well-known 
Sparrow,  lean  and  Watchful  as  he  is  in  the  keen  windy  winter  weather, 
goes  about  on  the  house-tops  and  gutters  with  his  wings  drooping,  and  his 
voice,  at  other  times  harsh  and  sharp,  becomes  full  and  soft  like  a  nest- 
ling's. The  Missel  Thrush  even  mixes  with  others  of  his  kind  in  our 
shrubberies,  and  abates  something  of  his  shy  demeanour.  The  Wood- 
Pigeon  and  Bock-Dove  fly  more  slowly,  and  rising  in  an  oblique  direction 
shoot  upon  their  wings  in  a  manner  quite  unusual  to  them.  Greenfinches 
fly  about  in  the  sunbeams,  and  flutter  as  if  wounded;  and  so  do  Titlarks 
when  sitting  and  put  off  their  nests;  but  this  is  for  the  purpose  of  decoying 
away  the  intruder,  and  preventing  the  discovery  of  their  retreat,  and  will 
generally  effect  the  object. 

The  Redstart,  during  the  nesting  season,  has  so  much  the  note  of  the 
Willow  Wren,  that  until  seen  you  would  suppose  it  that  bird;  but  a  good 
naturalist  will  discover  the  difference  by  the  greater  activity  of  his  motions. 
All  the  Titmice  have  peculiar  notes  during  the  early  seasons  of  the  year; 
some  twitter  almost  like  a  Bank  Martin,  others  with  a  sound  exactly  like 
the  whetting  of  a  saw;  though  in  the  Great  Parus  some  make  a  sibilous 
note  like  the  Golden-crowned  Wren,  and  others  chatter  like  a  Blackcap  or 
Whitethroat;  our  summer  birds,  of  course,  keep  one  note,  (that  is  the  old 
ones)  whilst  with  us,  but  I  cannot  doubt  that  when  in  winter  quarters,  or 
rather  out  of  the  nesting-time,  they  abate  much  of  their  song,  as  our  own 
natives  are  found  to  do;  for  I  consider  those  kept  in  confinement  through 
our  winter,  as  no  rule,  and  have  constantly  observed  that  most  music  is 
heard  at  the  commencement  of  nesting  than  at  a  later  period;  thus, 
April,  if  the  weather  is  fine,  is  the  most  melodious  month  with  our  own 
birds,  and  perhaps  June  the  fullest  of  summer  songsters'  strains;  then  as 
the  summer  advances,  and  gets  towards  harvest,  a  sort  of  silence  prevails, 
for  so  many  birds  are  engaged  in  sitting,  that  although  it  is  a  favourite 
expression  with  writers  on  Natural  History  to  say  that  the  cock  bird  charms 
his  mate  while  sitting  with  his  song,  it  is  by  no  means  correct,  and  it 
is  certain  that  very  little  music  is  heard  at  this  time. 

The  Cuckoo,  although  its  song  is  limited  to  two  notes,  makes  a  lively 
addition  to  the  general  chorus,  but  in  July  she  leaves  us,  and  as  August 
and  September  pass  away,  so  the  other  summer  visitants  intermit  their 
song,  and  finally  depart  also,  so  that  October  finds  us  dull   enough.     Our 


DOWN    THE    RIVER. 


33 


own  kinds  indeed  resume  their  song  at  different  periods,  and  amongst  ttese 
the  Thrush  and  Redbreast  hold  the  first  place,  for  the  Skylark,  our  finest 
songster,  scarcely  sings  at  mid-day,  except  in  spring.  Perhaps  all  this  is 
as  it  should  be,  for  the  songs  of  all  our  summer  visitants,  enlivening  and 
heartful  as  they  are,  are  vastly  enhanced  by  the  scene  of  which  they 
form  a  part,  and  might  not  perhaps  assimilate  so  well  with  bare  fields 
and  leafless  trees,  whilst  the  solitary  note  of  the  Redbreast  and  Thrush 
are  first  apparent  enough  to  enliven  without  making  the  prospects  appear 
more  dreary. 

DOWN    THE    RIVER. 

BY  J.  S,  WALKER,  ESQ. 
(Continued  from  page  275,  vol.  T.^ 

At  length  we  persuade  our  friends  to  resume  their  labours  at  the  oar, 
and  glide  gently  down  the  stream;  but  our  progress  is  not  rapid,  for 
now  the  ladies  insist  upon  stopping  to  gather  wild  flowers,  which  grow 
in  thick  profusion  on  the  banks,  and  weave  garlands  to  ornament  the 
children's  broad  hats,  who  clap  their  tiny  hands  in  admiration  of  the 
brave  colours. 

As  we  round  a  projecting  bank,  we  come  suddenly  upon  a  family  of 
Black  Swans;  the  parent  birds  wing  their  way  at  our  approach,  leaving  their 
five  half-grown  young  ones  to  the  tender  mercies  of  our  guides.  Away 
we  start  in  pursuit,  and  despite  the  diving  of  the  Cygnets,  we  capture 
three,  which  are  reserved  for  pets.  They  were  easily  tamed,  and  in  a 
few  days  would  accompany  the  Tame  Geese  on  their  daily  visits  to  the 
ponds,  and  with  them  would  punctually  return  at  nightfall.  The  facility 
with  which  nearly  all  the  animals  and  birds  of  Australia  are  domesticated, 
is  one  of  the  strange  peculiarities  of  this  strange  country.  A  small  species 
of  Kangaroo  about  the  size  of  a  rabbit,  and  which  is  inelegantly  called  ,  .  / 
by  the  Settlers,  'The  Kangaroo  Rat'  is  so  soon  accustomed  to  the  loss  '^i  a  j 
of  its  freedom,  that  if  set  at  liberty  only  a  few  days  after  being  caught, 
it  will  follow  its  captor  quietly  home. 

Here  a,  huge  forest  tree  had  fallen  into  the  water,  and  on  its  dead  . 
branches  which  protruded  from  the  stream,  a  score  of  Pelicans  were 
perched,  their  large  bills  resting  placidly  upon  their  white  breasts;  doubt- 
less dreaming  of  the  shoals  of  fat  mullet  they  intend  to  devour  when 
night  comes  on;  but  they  are  too  wary  to  permit  our  approach.  Pyke 
and  Pluck  witness  their  departure  without  betraying  any  anxiety,  for  the 
flesh  is  too  rank  and  tough  even  for  the  stomach  of  a  blackfellow. 

We  see  numbers  of  Cormorants,  called  by  the  blacks  'Fisherman  Jack.' 
One  of  these  is  so  gorged  with  fish  that  it  is  actually  unable  to  fly;   and 

VOL.  VI.  F 


^4  DOWN    THE    niVER. 

a  spear  from  Pyke  transfixes  him.  We  ask  if  that  is  daintier  fare  than 
the  Pelican,  at  which  he  laughs  and  says,  *'Berry  good,  suppose  hungry." 
However,  as  the  appetite  of  an  Aboriginal  is  almost  without  limit.  Fish- 
erman Jack  is  stowed  away  with  the  rest  of  the  game,  in  case  of  the 
contingency  before  alluded  to. 

Sometimes  we  startle  a  bevy  of  Quail,  which  fly  away  swiftly,  with  the 
loud  ^whir-r-r'  peculiar  to  this  family  of  birds.  They  are  very  numerous 
at  certain  seasons  of  the  year,  for,  although  a  considerable  number  remain 
all  the  year  round,  and  breed  in  the  long  grass  of  the  flats,  yet  their 
numbers  are  prodigiously  increased  in  the  autumn.  This  partial  migration 
of  birds  is  a  very  interesting  study,  and  is,  I  think,  common  to  all  the 
Australian  birds.  Oh!  for  an  Antipodean  Gilbert  White,  to  record  simply 
and  truthfully  the  arrival  and  departure  of  our  feathered  friends;  to  tell 
us  "by  what  nice  instinct  led,"  a  portion,  and  which  portion,  of  the  same 
family  remain  the  whole  year  round,  and  the  rest  take  their  departure 
to  unknown  regions. 

There  were  large  flocks  of  little  Wax-bills  feeding  on  the  grass,  and 
the  blacks  threw  sticks  amongst  them,  and  killed  several  for  the  children. 
The  tribe  of  Frmgillidcs  in  Australia  is  by  no  means  numerous;  in  the 
district  I  am  writing  about  I  never  saw  but  two  species — the  one  above 
described,  which  is  common  enough,  and  which  in  autumn  frequents  the 
farm-yards  in  flocks  of  several  hundreds,  where  they  are  caught  by  the 
children  in  great  numbers;  and  a  larger  species,  of  which  I  have  occa- 
sionally met  with  a  few  pairs,  and  which  are  more  common  about  Sydney 
than  any  other  part  of  the  colony.  Besides  these,  I  have  seen  preserved 
in  the  museum  in  Sydney  several  specimens  of  exquisite  plumage,  some 
of  which  were  procured  by  that  adventurous  traveller.  Dr.  Leichardt, 
during  his  long  and  arduous  journey  to  the  north  coast  of  Australia. 
Alas!  poor  Leichardt!  he  and  his  brave  companions  have  doubtless  fallen 
victims  to  their  adventurous  spirit,  and  have  perished  in  the  wild  bush 
of  Australia.  No  tidings  have  been  heard  of  them  for  several  years,  and 
it  is  presumed  they  have  fallen  victims  to  the  hostility  of  some  of  the 
numerous  tribes  of  Aboriginals. 

But  to  resume.  At  last  we  hear  the  distant  roar  of  the  ocean,  and 
approach  the  end  of  our  journey.  The  river  has  become  a  broad  estuary, 
and  is  nearly  a  mile  across.  The  sea-breeze  has  set  in  strong,  and  it 
requires  the  utmost  efibrts  of  the  blacks  to  force  the  boat  against  it;  but 
after  half  an  hour's  vigorous  pulling,  we  haul  our  boat  on  a  sand  spit, 
and  land.  There  is  but  a  narrow  strip  of  sand,  scarce  twenty  yards 
across,  which  separates  us  from  the  ocean.  Beneath  a  mass  of  huge  rocks, 
piled  up  in  most  fantastic  shapes,  at  the  very  mouth  of  the  river,  we  pitch 
our  tent,  and  land  our  goods  and   chattels. 


DOWN    THE    RIVER. 


95 


Pyke  and  Pluck,  in  whose  minds  the  prevailing  impression  constantly 
exists  of  a  deficiency  in  the  larder,  and  which  no  amount  of  supply  can 
remove,  here  descry  another  lot  of  Cygnets,  and  start  by  themselves  in 
pursuit.  They  soon  return  with  a  brace,  which  present  an  odd  appearance 
as  they  gibbet  them  on  a  dead  bush;  for,  our  friends  having  stopped  a 
moment  to  light  their  pipes,  had  flung  the  birds  upon  a  heap  of  burning 
twigs  and  leaves  they  had  scraped  together  for  the  purpose,  and  the  fire 
had  blackened  but  only  partially  removed  the  feathers,  causing  the  singular 
scarecrow  look  before  alluded  to. 

But  now  a  nobler  quarry  arrests  our  attention,  for  Pyke,  who  has 
ascended  the  steep  rocks,  not  for  the  purpose  of  admiring  the  scenery,  but 
to  observe  if  haply  any  game  be  in  view,  now  descends  with  eyes  spark- 
ling with  animation,  and  tells  us  with  great  glee  that  he  has  discerned 
what  he  calls  a  Tail,  asleep  on  the  beech.  "A  Tail,  Pyke?"  we  exclaim, 
"a.  tail  of  what?"  At  which  question  both  the  darkies  almost  go  into  fits 
with  laughing;  and  Pluck,  who  prides  himself  upon  speaking  English  with 
remarkable  purity,  proceeds  hurriedly  to  explain  to  us  that  his  friend,  who 
found  it  a  much  easier  matter  to  spear  fish  than  pronounce  the  letter  S, 
meant  a  Seal.  So  we  arrange  our  plan  of  attack;  but  first  I  cut  one  of 
the  leaden  weights  of  the  fishing-line  into  slugs,  and  put  a  charge  of  them 
into  each  of  the  barrels  of  the  gun;  the  blacks  arm  themselves  each  with 
a  sapling  they  have  hastily  cut  with  their  tomahawks,  leaving  a  portion  of 
the  root  to  form  a  knob  at  the  end.  Then  taking  advantage  of  a  rough 
bank  of  sand  between  us  and  our  intended  victim,  we  steal  cautiously  up. 
The  blackfellows  are  wild  with  delight,  and  as  soon  as  we  arrive  at  a 
spot  marked  by  Pyke,  I  peep  over  the  bank,  and  within  eight  or  ten 
yards  there  lies  a  large  hair  seal.  Notwithstanding  my  caution,  the  noise 
of  my  approach  alarms  our  oily  friend,  for  he  turns  his  head  quickly 
round,  and  I  can  see  the  play  of  his  nostrils  as  he  '^scents  the  tainted 
gale."  I  think  of  Hector  in  the  Antiquary,  and  his  luckless  adventure 
with  the  Phoca,  but  I  have  not  long  to  wonder  whether  we  shall  be 
more  successful,  when  the  Seal  plunges  his  awkward  flappers  into  the  sand, 
and  begins  to  shuffle  down  towards  the  sea.  With  a  loud  yell  the  blacks 
rush  at  him ;  it  had  been  previously  arranged  that  Pyke  was  to  lead 
the  forlorn  hope  and  strike  the  first  blow.  But  the  long  teeth  and  fe- 
rocious appearance  of  the  Seal  intimidate  the  boastful  darky,  and  he 
swerves  aside.  But  almost  at  the  same  moment  Pluck  makes  him  bite 
the  dust,  (sand,)  by  a  vigorous  blow  upon  the  point  of  the  nose — the  only 
vulnerable  part,  and  as  the  wretched  Phoca  endeavours  to  recover  himself — 
it  feels  to  me  like  murder — I  discharge  both  barrels  into  its  head,  from 
within  six  yards  distance;  then  the  sticks  come  into  requisition  and  finish 
the  work.     Whereat  Pyke  bursts  into  an  extemporaneous  war-dance,  and. 


36  ARRIVAL    OF    THE    HIRUNDINES^    ETC. 

quite  regardless  of  his  cowardly  retreat,  claims  the  chief  honour  and  glory 
of  the  capture.  I  leave  the  blacks  to  skin  him  at  their  leisure,  and  re- 
turn to  my  friends. 

Then  we  commence  fishing,  and  in  a  few  minutes  have  caught  such  a 
supply  of  Schnapper,  Bream,  and  Flathead,  as  would  satisfy  even  the  cor- 
morant propensities  of  Messieurs  Pyke  and  Pluck. 

(To  be  continued.) 


ARRIVAL    OF    THE     HIRUNDINES,     ETC.,    AT    MINEHEAD, 
SOMERSET,     IN     1855. 

BY   MAJOR    GIFFORD. 

Sand  Martin,  {Hirundo  riparia,)  April  13th. — Swallow,  (Hirundo  mstica,) 
April  18th. — Cuckoo,  {Cuculus  canorus^  April  25th. — Swift,  [Gypselus 
apus,)  May  3rd. 

Time  of  departure  in  1855: — The  Swift  left  about  the  13th.  of  August. 
On  the  18th.  saw  six  flying  about  in  the  evening,  and  one  on  the  28th. 
22nd.  of  September,  saw  at  least  twenty  Swallows.  A  newspaper  account 
says  they  all  disappeared  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Shefiield  on  the  14th.; 
here  they  remained  till  the  end  of  the  month.  The  Martins  left  about 
the  8th.  of  October. 


EXTRACTS    FROM    MY     NOTE-BOOK. 

AfRiL  5th.,  1855.  The  Willow  in  blossom:  last  year  it  came  into 
bloom  the  latter  end  of  February  and  beginning  of  March.  My  bees 
were  hard  at  work  on  the  7th.  of  March  last  year,  but  up  to  this  time, 
April  5th.,  they  have  not  been  able   to  collect   any  pollen. 

April  6th.     First  Spring  morning. 

April  13th.  A  curious  coincidence  occurred  to-day;  I  was  observing  to 
my  daughter  that  the  Swallow  tribe  would  soon  make  their  appearance, 
as  the  days  were  getting  long,  and  the  insects  coming  forth,  when  on  looking 
out  of  the  window,  at  that  very  moment,  I  saw  four  or  five  Sand  Martins 
fly  over  the  house  to  the  westward;  most  probably  to  take  up  their  sum- 
mer quarters  in  the   high  cliffs  about  Lynmouth  or  Ilfracombe. 

April  17th,     Saw  the  New  Moon,  when  only   one  day  old. 

May  4th.     This  morning,  about  5  a.  m.,  the  hills  were  white  with  snow. 

May  9th.  Pear  tree  in  blossom  in  the  garden  opposite;  generally,  the 
same   tree  blossoms  in  the   beginning  of  March. 

June  28th.     Wheat  in  ear. 

November  10th.     My  bees  at  work.  Geo:  S.  J.  Gifford. 

Minehead,  Somersetshire,  Novemher  dth.,  1855. 


37 
NEW    YORKSHIRE     STATIONS     FOR    RARE    MOSSES. 

BY    JOHN    H.    DAVIES,    ESQ. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  a  few  species  of  Mosses  not  recorded  by  my 
friends  Messrs.  Baker  and  Nowell,  in  the  "Supplement  to  the  Flora  of 
Yorkshire." 

Fhascum  serraium,  Shrrb. — Bank  in  Sowerby  Flats,  near  Thirsk,  J.  G. 
Baker.     In  a  quarry  behind  the  Thirsk  Church. 

Anacalypta  lanceolata,  Rohl. — Red  Sandstone  quarry,  Leckby,  near 
Topcliffe. 

Tortula  omealis,  Brid.,  var.  B.  flaccida,  Wils. — In  a  quarry  behind 
the  Thirsk  Church;   Thomas  Pearson,  and  J.H.  D. 

Orthotrichum  pumilum,  Dicks. — On  an  Elm  tree  on  the  banks  of  the 
Codbeck,  along  Sowerby  Ings,  Thirsk;  J.G,  B. 

Orthotrichum  Bruchii,  Brid. — Not  unfrequent  in  the  dales  about  Boltby, 
near  Thirsk,  The  species  recorded  in  the  "Supplement"  as  0.  Drummondii, 
is  this  moss. 

Bryum  inclinatum,  B.  and  S. — On  a  decayed  stump  at  Carlton  Brick- 
ponds,  near  Thirsk. 

Minium  aispidatum,  Hedw. — Banks  of  the  stream  below  Bagby,  near 
Thirsk. 

Physcomitrium  ericetorum,  De  Not. — Banks  of  Gormire,  near  Thirsk; 
J.  G.  B.,  and  J.  J.  Packer. 

Bartramia  calcarea,  B,  and  S. — In  fruit  on  the  banks  of  a  stream  above 
Kepwick  Nab,  near  Thirsk,  plentiful;  J.  G.  B.  With  barren  flowers  on 
the  banks  of  a  small  stream  at  the  head  of  Yowlas  Dale,  near  Thirsk. 

Bartramia  arcuata,  Brid. — Growing  intermixed  with  the  preceding  species 
and  J5.  fontana,  at  Yowlas  Dale. 

Splachnum  sphoericum,  Hedw. — With  immature  capsules  on  the  moor 
above  Kirby  Knowle,  Thirsk,  June,  1855. 

Fissidens  viridulus,  Wahl. — Stones  on  the  banks  of  the  Rye,  Laskil,  in 
Bilsdale. 

Antitrichia  ciirtipenduh,  Brid. — Rocks  on  the  summit  of  Hood  Hill, 
near  Thirsk;   J.  G.  B. 

Cylindrothecium  Montagnei,  B.  and  S. — Shady  banks,  Malham  moor; 
John  Nowell. 

Leshea  Sprucii,  Bruch. — Shady  rocks,   Gordale;   John  Nowell. 

Leskea  polyantha,  Hedw. — Hawthorn  on  the  road-side  between  Thirsk 
and  Topcliffe. 

ITypnum  irriguum,  Hook,  and  Wils. — On  Alder  stumps  on  the  banks 
of  a  stagnant  pond  in  the  field  near  the  Holmes,  Thirsk. 

ITypnum   radicale,    P.   Beauv. — Intermixed   with    the  preceding  species. 


38 


SYSTEMA    NATUU.E. 


Hypnum  polyganium,  BRroL,,  Eur. — Marshy  ground  In  the  Sowerby  flats, 
near  Thirsk, 

Hypnum  tramulosum,  Swartz, — Eocks  on  Holwick  Scar,  Teesdale;  Dr. 
Black. 

Hypnum  Shreberi,  Willd. — In  fruit  on  the  Harableton  hills  near  Boltby, 
Thirsk. 

Hypnum  pulchellum,  Dicks. — On  stones,  Dalesgate,  near  Todmordenj 
John  Nowell. 

Oryphcea  peteromalla,  Brid. — Hawthorn  on  the  road-side,  between  Thirsk 
and  TopclifiFe. 

Thirsk,  Jamuary  dth.,   I806. 


SYSTEMA     NATURE. 

BY    THE    REV.  F.  O.  MORRIS. 
( Continued  from  page  19,) 


SiMIA. 
Simia  Satyrus,  Lat.    S.  Satyrus,  Linn. 

S.    troglodytes,    Blum.     S.    Abelii, 

Clarke.     S.  Wallichii,  Morio,  Owen. 

S.  Crossi.     Pongo  Wurmbii,  Audeh. 

Pithecus  Satyrus,  Lat. 
Simia  bicolor.     Pithecus  bicolor,  Isid 

Geoff,  Schinz. 
Simia     Lar,,     Linn.       S.   longimana, 

Schreh.     Pithecus  Lar.,     Desmar. 

HTLOBATES. 

Hylobates  syndactylus,  F.  Cuv.  Simia 
syndactyla,  Saff. 

Hylobates  albimanus,  Sc/iinz.  Simia 
Lar,,  Linn.  S.  longimauus,  Schreh. 
Fisch.     Pithecus  Lar.,  Desm. 

Hylobates  leucogenis,  Schinz.  H.  leu- 
cogeais,  Oyilhy. 

Hylobates  Hoolook,  Schinz.  Simia 
Hoolook,  Harlan. 

Hylobates  variegatus,  Schinz.  H.  agQis, 
Cuv.  H.  llaffiesii,  Geoff.  H.  Ounko, 
Less.  Simia  Lar.  minor,  Griffith. 
S.  variegata,  Fisch.  Pithecus  varie- 
gatus,  Geoff. 

Hylobates  leuciscus,  Schinz.  Pithecus 
leuciscus,  Geoff.  P.  cinereus,  Lat. 
Simia  leucisca,  Schreh.  S.  Moloch, 
Audeh.     Ungha  puti,  Raff. 


Hylobates  concolor,  Har. 

Hylobates  coromandelensis,  Schinz. 

Hylobates  entelloides,  Schinz,  Lsid 
Geoff. 

COLOBUS. 

Colobus  Guereza,  Schinz. 

Colobus  polycomos,  Schinz.  Simia 
polycomos,  Schreh.  S.  comata, 
Shaw.  Cercopithecus  comosus,  Lat. 
Ateles  comatus,    Geoff. 

Colobus  ursinus,  Schinz.  C.  polyco- 
mos, Ben. 

Colobus  Pennantii,  Schinz. 

Colobus  satanas,  Schinz,   Wat. 

Colobus  leucomerus,  Schinz,   Ogyl. 

Colobus  verus,  Schinz,  Bullet. 

Colobus  fuligiaosus,  Schinz,  Ogyl.  C. 
ferrugineus,  Kuhl.  C.  Temminkii, 
Kuhl. 

Colobus  vellerosus,  ScJiinz.  Semno- 
pitliecus  vellerosus,  Geoff. 

Colobus  bicolor,  Schinz.  Semnopithe- 
cus  bicolor,   Wesmael. 

SEMNOl'ITHECUS. 

Semnopithecus  melalophos,  F.  Cuv., 
Geoff,  Fisch,  Wag.  S.  melanophos, 
Desmar.     Simia  melalophos,    Raff. 

Semiiopithecus  rubicuudus,  Schinz. 


THREE    DAYS    IN    CARr^NARVONSIIlRE. 


39 


Semnopithecus  flarimanus,  Schinz,  Les, 
Mull. 

Semnopithecus  clirysomelas,  Schinz, 
Mull. 

Semnopithecus  comatus,  Schinz.  S. 
mitratus,  Mull.  Presbytia  mitrata, 
Eschholz.     Simia  comata,  Fisch. 

Semnopithecus  frontatus,  Schinz,  Mull. 

Semnopithecus  maurus,  Schinz,  Fisch. 
S.  Pyrrhus,  Horsf.  Cercopithecus 
maurus,  Geoff.    Simia  maura,  Schreb. 

Semnopithecus  cristatus,  Schinz.  S. 
pruinosus,  Desm,  S.  femoralis,  Mar- 
tin. 

Semnopithecus  sumatranus,  Schinz, 
Mull.      S.   femoralis,  Martin. 

Semnopithecus  Siamensis,  Schinz,  Mul. 

Semnopithecus  leucomystax,  Schinz, 
Mull. 

Semnopithecus  leucoprymnus,  Schinz, 
Cercopithecus  leucoprymnus,  Otto. 
C  latibarbatus,  Geoff.  Simia  den- 
tata,  Shatv.     S.  cephaloptera,  Fisch. 


Semnopithecus  jubatus,  Schinz,   Wag. 

Semnopithecus  cucullatus,  Schinz,  Be- 
lan.     Simia  Johnii,  Fisch. 

Semnopithecus  albogularis,  Schinz, 
Sikes. 

Semnopithecus  albo  cinereus,  Schinz. 
S.  obscurus,  Reid,  Martin.  Simia 
albo  cinerea,  Fisch. 

Semnopithecus  Entellus,  Dufresne. 

Semnopithecus  Nemaeus,  Schinz,  Cuv. 
Simia  Nema!us,  Linn.  Cercopithecus 
Nemaus,  Des.  Pygathrix  nemseus, 
Geoff.     Lasiopyga  IS^emsea,  Illig. 

Semnopithecus  nasicus,  Schinz.  Simia 
nasica,  Audeh.  S.  nasaUs,  Shaio.  S. 
rostrata,  Blumen.  S.  recurvus,  Mar- 
tin. Nasalis  larvatus,  Geoff.  1^ . 
recurvus,   Thier. 

Semnopithecus  Dussumieri,  Schinz.  Si- 
mia Johnii,  Linn. 

Semnopithecus  nobUis,  Schinz.  Pres- 
bytis  nobUis,    Gray. 

Semnopithecus  nigrimanus,  Lsid  Geoff. 


(To  he  continued.) 


THREE    DAYS    IN     CAERNARVONSHIRE. 

BY    J,  H.  DAVIES,    ESQ. 
A  Paper  read  before  the  Thirsk  Natural  History  Society. 

Westward  ho!  The  light  midsummer  mists  are  gradually  uprolling  from 
the  meadows^  and  the  well-known  mural  embankment  of  the  Hambleton 
hills  in  the  dim  grey  light  of  the  morning  is  clearly  perceptible  on  the 
verge  of  the  far  horizon.  The  passengers  have  taken  their  seats,  the  doors 
of  the  carriages  are  closed,  the  time  for  starting  has  arrived,  and  the 
engine  puflPs,  and  pants,  and  snorts,  as  if  it  shared  my  impatience  of  delay. 

Westward  ho!  We  glide  along  across  the  fertile  valley,  past  scattered 
homesteads  and  smiling  villages,  surrounded  by  meadows,  newly  shorn  by 
the  mower's  scythe,  and  corn-fields,  whose  burdens  of  golden  grain  await  the 
early  advent  of  the  sturdy  reaper.  The  willow-margined  Swale,  turbid  with 
recent  rains,  that  have  fallen  amongst  the  mountains  where  it  takes  its 
birth  is  soon  crossed,  and  the  viaduct  that  spans  the  Yore,  by  the  side 
of  spire- crowned  Ripon.     We  are   leaving  the   New    Red   Sandstone,   and 


40  THRKE   DAYS   IN   CAERNARVONSHIRE. 

entering  amongst  the  primary  formations.  These  deep  cuttings  at  Monckton 
Moor  furnish  us  with  a  good  section  by  the  aid  of  which  to  study  the 
permian  deposits.  On  the  north  the  lower  parts  of  the  valleys  of  the  Nidd 
and  Wharfe  unfold  a  varied  'panorama.  We  plunge  into  the  long  dark 
tunnel  that  pierces  the  Brawtrope  ridge,  and  emerges  again  on  the  edge 
of  a  land  of  many-windowed  and  tall-chimneyed  factories.  Kirkstall  with 
its  Abbey,  Headingly  with  its  Botanic  Gardens,  and  at  last  the  Aire  is 
reached,  and  where  streets  are  thickest,  and  the  smoke  is  densest,  we  arrest 
our  course  at  the  far-famed  metropolis  of  the  woollen  manufacture — Leeds. 

Westward  ho!  Wortley,  Churwell  and  Morley,  Birstall,  with  its  grim- 
looking  shoddy  mills,  Dewsbury,  Mirfield  Junction,  and  Staleybridge.  Another 
long  dark  tunnel,  and  we  are  through  the  Pennine  ridge,  and  in  the 
county  of  Lancaster.  Ashton  Mills  Platting,  and,  last  of  all,  Manchester 
the  mighty.  An  interval  of  rest,  and  then  again  forward.  Westward  ho! 
Through  a  flat  low-lying  country,  plentifully  interspersed  with  bogs  and 
pits,  past  Newton,  and  through  a  district  well  known  by  report,  at  least 
to  the  readers  of  the  "Bryologia  Britannica."  Gradually  a  forest  of  masts 
dawns  upon  the  sight,  and  we  are  landed  before  long  in  the  heart  of  the 
second  city  of  the  empire. 

After  an  unsuccessful  search  for  the  Bryum  cochlear  if olium,  recently  dis- 
covered by  F.  P.  Marratt,  Esq.,  at  Wavertree,  a  fine  morning  found  me 
on  board  the  Bangor  boat  "Anglesea,"  in  company  with  my  esteemed 
relative  Robert  W.  K.  Long,  of  Egremont,  and  we  were  soon  steaming 
down  the  river  at  a  rapid  rate.  As  we  glided  along,  opposite  to  them, 
the  ^'Red  Noses"  and  sand-hills  of  New  Brighton  were  gradually  enveloped 
by  a  thick  mist  which  effectually  concealed  them  from  view.  We  began 
to  fear  the  weather  would  not  prove  propitious  to  our  excursion,  but  be- 
fore long  were  delighted  to  find  the  unpardonable  symptoms  vanish  away, 
and  to  descry  the  massive  bulk  of  the  Great  Ormeshead  rising  to  view  in 
the  distance.  Reaching  Llandudno,  we  stayed  for  a  short  time  to  land 
passengers.  As  we  entered  the  Menai  we  were  regaled  by  an  extempora- 
neous concert  of  vocally  inclined  Laridce,  collected  together  on  the  lime- 
stone cliffs,  which  rise  abruptly  from  the  sea.  Steaming  through  the  strait, 
we  passed  Beaumaris  on  the  right,  where  the  profuse  growth  of  Fucus 
serratus,  in  the  vicinity  of  the  landing-stage  attracted  our  especial  attention. 
Proceeding  a  little  further  down,  we  landed  on  the  Anglesea  side,  and 
after  crossing  that  magnificent  production  of  art,  the  suspension-bridge, 
took  up  our  quarters,  pro  tern,  at  the  George  Hotel. 

If  the  views  respecting  the  influence  of  the  subjacent  rocks  upon  the 
distribution  of  species  recently  advanced  by  my  valued  friend  John  G.  Baker, 
at  the  meeting  of  the  British  Association  at  Glasgow  be  correct,  the  mus- 
cology of  the  Silurian  mountains  of  North  Wales,   should   even   at   equal 


'  THREE    DAYS    IN   CAERNARVONSHIRE.  41 

elevations,  differ  conspicuously  from  that  of  the  Oolite  of  Yorkshire.  The 
former  taken  as  a  whole  are  "engeogenous/'  the  latter  typically  ^'dysgeogenous," 
and  I  found,  as  indeed  I  was  quite  prepared  to  anticipate,  from  what  I 
had  previously  read  upon  the  subject,  a  great  contrast  to  what  I  had  been 
in  the  habit  of  seeing  at  home  in  the  species  that  presented  themselves 
to  view,  and  their  relative  prominence  and  predominance.  There  is  no 
department  of  science  that  I  should  like  better  to  attempt  to  investigate 
than  this  question,  but  unfortunately  data  are  at  present  too  scanty  to 
allow  of  satisfactory  conclusions  being  drawn. 

There  is  much  beautiful  scenery  for  the  tourist  to  admire  in  the  vicinity 
of  Bangor.  Several  rare  mosses  have  been  gathered  in  this  neighbourhood, 
amongst  which  I  may  mention  Hypnum  elodes  fluviatiUj  and  irriguum, 
and  Bryum  obconicum. 

We  left  our  Inn  about  six  o'clock,  intending  to  walk  to  Caernarvon 
that  evening.  On  the  walls  along  the  roadside  we  collected  a  few  speci- 
mens of  Ptychomitrium  polyphyllum,  B.  and  S.,  {Trichostomum,  Schwaegr,) 
and  noticed  it  more  or  less  all  the  way  between  Bangor  and  Pen  y  gwryd. 
We  were  much  struck  with  the  great  abundance  and  large  size  of  Clau- 
silia  nigricans  and  Zonites  rotundatus,  which  were  crawling  about  the  stone  • 
walls  in  all  directions;  and  some  of  the  larger  Helices — aspersa,  hyhrida, 
nemoralis,  etc.,  here  attain  most  unusual  dimensions.  About  two  miles 
from  Bangor,  we  observed  a  single  patch  of  that  elegant  and  interesting 
moss  Bryum  atropurpureum,  and,  in  close  proximity  to  it,  B.  cernuum, 
and  a  small  quantity  of  Entodhodon  Templetoni,  growing  in  the  midst  of 
a  tuft  of  that  species  so  well  known  on  the  continent  under  the  name 
of  "La  charhonniere"  Funaria  nygromtirica. 

In  the  neighbourhood  of  Caernarvon,  the  walls  are  covered  with  a  thick 
vestiture  of  LesJcea  sericea,  and  Hypnum  serpens.  Doubtless  other  species 
occur,  but  the  dusk  precluded  minute  examination.  We  reached  the  ancient 
town  about  nine  o'clock,  and  found  comfortable  quarters  at  an  inn  adjacent 
to  the  castle. 

At  an  early  hour  next  morning  we  turned  out  for  the  purpose  of  making 
acquaintance  with  the  lions  of  the  locality.  The  castle,  historically  cele- 
brated as  being  the  birth-place  of  the  second  Edward,  of  course  claimed 
a  fair  share  of  our  attention.  At  breakfast  we  set  about  inquiring  the 
distances  of  our  proposed  route.  The  waiter  gave  us  to  understand,  amongst 
other  items  of  information,  that  Dolbadarn  was  ten  miles  distant,  and  that 
an  omnibus,  trustworthy  and  excellent  in  every  respect,  etc.,  etc.,  would 
leave  the  inn  at  ten  o'clock;  but  we  considered  that  on  the  whole  we  pre- 
ferred a  more  unconfined,  if  lowlier,  method  of  locomotion. 

The  road  we  followed  was  bounded  on  either  side  with  stone  walls,  on 
which    grew    Ceratodon    purpureiis,    (Didymodon,   H.  &  T.,)    Eacomitrium 

VOL.  VI.  G 


42  MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES. 

fasciculare  and  lanuginosiun,  Hi/pnum  uncinatum,  (then  in  perfect  fruit,) 
and  several  commoner  species.  In  the  crevices  those  beautiful  ferns,  Asple- 
nium  adiantum-nigrum  and  trichomanes,  luxuriate  in  profusion;  and  we  also 
procured  examples  of  a  very  robust  form  of  Hedwigia  cileata,  (Anutan- 
gium,  H.  &  T.)  in  a  desirable  state  of  fructification.  As  the  stone  walls 
gave  place  to  shady  banks,  Pohjtrichum  piliferum  and  Pogonatum  urnigerum 
made  their  appearance,  and  where  ground  partook  of  a  boggy  character, 
Polytrichum  commune  and  its  ally  P.  formosum  shewed  themselves.  On  a 
low  building  in  a  small  village,  about  half-way  between  Caernarvon  and 
Llanberis,  we  collected  a  further  supply  of  Bryum  cernuum,  but  unfor- 
tunately the  fruit  was  too  mature  to  exhibit  fully  their  distinctive  characters. 
On  the  left-hand  side  of  the  road,  a  little  further  along,  we  had  the 
pleasure  of  finding  a  small  quantity  of  Orthotrichum  phyllantlmm  with 
gemmiparous  flowers.  Walking  along  a  short  distance  we  were  exceedingly 
gratified  in  procuring  a  few  specimens  of  that  peculiar  and  interesting 
species,   Diphyscium  foliosum. 

At  intervals  pausing  to  watch  the  variations  of  the  beautiful  landscape, 
and  staying  to  observe  or  collect  the  species  which  presented  themselves  to 
our  notice,  in  due  course  we  arrived  at  the  little  village  of  Cwm  y  glo, 
on  the  rocks  opposite  to  which  we  found  some  beautiful  specimens  of 
Bryum  capillare,  with  the  foliage  elegantly  contorted,  and  the  capsules 
presented  a  harmoniously  blended  combination  of  dark  green  and  vermilion. 

(To  be  continued.) 


Domestic  Cat. — Mrs.  E.'s  cat  had  a  kitten,  and  nursed  it  until  it  was 
quite  a  large  cat;  after  a  time  she  had  another  brood  of  kittens,  but  Mrs. 
E.  had  them  all  drowned;  then  her  first  kitten  began  to  suck  her  again, 
and  she  treated  it  quite  as  if  it  was  a  little  kitten.  One  day  Mrs.  E. 
heard  a  great  noise,  and  went  to  see  what  it  was,  when  she  found  the 
old  one  trying  to  take  the  other  by  its  back,  as  she  would  a  little  kitten, 
to  bring  it  up  stairs.  1  suppose  she  hurt  the  other  in  trying  to  do  so, 
which  caused  the  noise.  She  is  still  nursing  it,  although  it  is  now  not  far 
short  of  her  own  size,  and  much  fatter. — R.  N.  M.  M. 

Lateness  of  the  Chimney  Sioallow. — (Hirundo  rustica.)  On  Friday,  No- 
vember 2nd.,  in  the  village  of  Blunham,  in  this  county,  I  was  surprised 
to  see  three  Swallows  hawking  for  insects,  as  if  in  the  middle  of  summer. 
The  same  birds  were  seen  some  days  later  by  a  friend  of  mine  residing 
at  Blunham.— Edward  T.  L.  Smith,  Potton,  Bedfordshire,  November  lith., 
1855. 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 


43 


A  Real  Rara  Avis. — During  the  past  week  a  bird  of  unusual  size  was 
observed  flying  towards  Exmouth,  on  the  Devonshire  coast,  from  the  sea. 
On  arriving  near  land  it  wheeled  round,  and,  after  flying  back  some  dis- 
tance, was  seen  through  a  glass  to  descend  into  the  sea  near  Straight 
Point.  Two  men  immediately  put  oif,  and  were  fortunate  enough  to  cap- 
ture it.  On  examination,  it  turned  out  to  be  a  Black  Swan.  It  was 
poor  in  flesh,  and  evidently  exhausted  by  long  flight,  but  shewed  by  its 
plumage,  and  other  indications,  that  it  had  never  been  in  captivity.  It 
is  supposed  that  by  a  long  succession  of  storms  it  has  been  driven  from 
the  Pacific,  its  only  known  habitation. — "The  Times,"  October  30th.,  1855. 

Perhaps  some  of  the  Devonshire  readers  of  "The  Naturalist,"  can  give 
a  little  more  information  on  this  subject. — Idem. 

The  Mealy  Redpole. — Many  of  these  beautiful  little  birds  have  been  seen 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Leeds  since  the  beginning  of  this  month,  (November.) 
Both  old  and  young  ones  have  been  caught  by  bird-lime  in  considerable 
numbers.  The  old  birds  have  on  the  occiput  a  large  patch  of  deep  brilliant 
crimson.  The  anterior  and  lateral  portions  of  the  neck  and  breast  are 
shaded  with  a  much  lighter  crimson.  Their  length  is  five  inches;  the  wing 
from  the  carpal  joint  is  three  inches.  The  tail  is  considerably  forked. 
The  young  birds  have  a  much  less  crimson  patch  in  extent  on  the  occiput; 
none  whatever  on  the  breast  or  neck,  and  their  general  plumage  is  a  much 
lighter  shade.  The  Lesser  Redpole  has  not  been  seen  at  all. — Richard 
HoBsoN,  M.D.,  Leeds,  November  19th.,  1855. 

Green  Sandpiper. — A  pair  of  those  rare  birds  known  as  Green  Sand- 
pipers have  been  observed  to  frequent  the  Wooler  Water,  and  the  River 
Till,  adjacent,  since  the  latter  end  of  July.  A  few  weeks  ago,  George 
Culley,  Esq.,  of  Fowberry  Tower,  succeeded  in  shooting  one  of  them;  and 
during  the  late  severe  weather,  John  Thompson,  Esq.,  of  Wooler,'shot 
the  other.  Both  of  these  specimens  were  males,  and  weighed  two  ounces 
and  a  half  each. — Ifevjcastle  Paper,  March  24th.,  1855. 

Oj/ster-catcher. — On  Thursday  morning  last,  0.  C.  Harris,  Esq.  shot  a 
specimen  of  the  Pied  Oyster-catcher,  Sea-pie,  or  Olive,  {Hoematoptis  Ostralegus, 
Linn.;  L'  Haiti ievy  Bufi".)  near  Mr.  Stoke's  mill,  in  the  parish  of  Weston 
Favell,  Northamptonshire. 

Additional  Note  on  the  Starling  in  the  "Birds  of  TerricTc." — On  another 
occasion  my  attention  was  attracted  by  the  screams  of  a  pair  which  had 
young  ones  in  a  hole  perforated  by  the  Green  Woodpecker  in  an  elm,  full 
eighteen  feet  from  the  ground.  On  looking  up  I  perceived  a  Stoat,  (3Ins- 
tela  erminea,)  about  to  enter  the  hole.  How  he  managed  to  get  up  to 
that  height  I  had  not  the  opportunity  of  observing;  but  how  he  managed 
to  get  down  again  was  by  a  process  exceedingly  simple,  and  by  a  far  less 


44  MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 

circuitous  route  than  that  by  which  I  should  imagine  he  had  attained  that 
altitude,  namely,  by  coolly  letting  himself  drop  into  the  hedge-row  in  which 
the  tree  stood,  the  brushwood  receiving  him  in  the  most  friendly  manner; 
and  he  reached  'terra  firma'  as  whole  in  skin,  and  as  sound  in  limb, 
apparently  as  when  he  quitted  it, — S.  Stone. 

Short  Sun  Fish. — A  fine  specimen  of  the  Short  Sun  Fish  was  caught 
within  the  last  week  by  the  crew  of  a  collier,  while  crossing  Boston  Deeps, 
It  was  lying  on  its  side,  and  floating  upon  the  surface  of  the  water.  The 
men  struck  it  with  an  harpoon,  and  then  made  a  rope  fast  to  its  snout, 
with  which  it  was  hoisted  on  deck,  weighing  close  upon  a  ton,  at  least  so 
the  men  said,  in  whose  possession  it  was  when  I  saw  it.  Flesh,  white  and 
tough,  as  was  also  its  skin;  no  scales  could  be  seen;  mouth  very  small, 
scarcely  large  enough  to  admit  the  hand;  teeth,  none,  but  an  ivory-like 
substance,  as  far  as  I  could  judge  in  one  piece,  at  upper  and  lower  side 
of  mouth,  corresponding  to  the  human  front  teeth.  Perhaps  you  will  be 
kind  enough  to  insert   this  notice   in   the  pages  of  "The  Naturalist." 

A  word  or  two  about  this  most  excellent  work,  I  doubt  not  but  there  are 
many  beside  myself  who  would  be  much  rejoiced  to  find  its  size  increased. 
If  it  were  possible  to  double  both  size  and  price  I  think  its  usefulness 
would  be  much  added  to,  as  there  are  many  features,  most  important  to 
the  tyro  in  Natural  History,  which  this  publication  presents  over  others; 
one  in  particular,  great  simplicity,  with  that  most  desirable  absence  of  as 
many  scientific  words,  difficult  of  comprehension,  as  possible.  I  believe  these 
opinions  will  be  found  very  general  amongst  the  subscribers  to  ''The  Natu- 
ralist," as  I  am  quite  certain  it  is  a  very  great  favourite  with  all  who 
peruse  its  pages,  so  surely  this  enlargement  would  still  more  enhance  its 
value. — George  Hodge,  Seaham  Harbour,  January  10th.,  1856. 

45*,5  I  shall  be  glad  to  learn  the  opinions  of  the  readers  of  'The  Naturalist' 
as  to  the  desirableness  of  doubling  its  size  and  price.  I  have  wished  to 
do  so  myself,  and  have  a  heavy  arrear  of  MS  matter,  which  I  should  be 
glad  thus  to  keep  under;  but  I  must  know  what  my  readers  say.  They 
can  tell  me  by  post  individually; — or,  on  second  thoughts,  which  are  said 
to  be  best,  I  will  enlarge  the  magazine  as  proposed,  unless  the  subscribers, 
namely,  a  majority  of  them,  express  a  wish  to  the  contrary. — F.  0.  Mokris. 

Music  hath  charms  for  the  Butterfly. — During  the  performance  of  an 
evening  concert  in  the  Town  Hall,  Brighton,  and  whilst  Madame  Jenny 
Goldschmidt  Lind  was  delighting  the  crowded  audience  with  her  charming 
voice,  out  came  a  Peacock  Butterfly,  and  flew  about  the  Hall,  occasionally 
hovering  over  the  head  of  the  sweet  singer,  which  created  quite  an  interest 
in  its  flight;  this  it  continued  doing  for  some  time,  evidently  enjoying  the 
warmth  and   brilliancy  of  the  scene,   if  not   the  very  pleasing  notes  that 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES.  45 

charmed  all  who  heard  them.  This  concert  took  place  on  December  19th.^ 
■which  was  an  intense  cold  day,  but  the  crowded  state  of  the  Hall  occasioned 
its  being  extremely  warm,  and  no  doubt  induced  the  Peacock  to  quit  its 
hybernaculum,  under  the  delusion  that  summer  had  again  returned  with  all 
its  sunny  memories. — Sidney  Style,  Brighton. 

Plantago  lanceolata. — On  the  7th.  of  June,  1854,  whilst  entomologizing 
on  Carrington  Moss,  I  found  the  above-named  plant,  my  attention  being 
first  directed  to  it  by  its  curious  appearance.  I  have  since  shewn  it  to 
a  botanist  of  note  in  this  city,  with  whom  I  am  acquainted,  who  informed 
me  of  its  rarity. — C.  Fryer. 

Boletus  squamosus. — I  found  a  specimen  of  this  fungus  on  the  Quercus 
Kobor,  27th.  of  August,  1854.  It  weighed  five  pounds  and  a  half,  and 
measured  four  feet  ten  inches  in  circumference. — Idem. 

Occurrence  of  Acherontia  atropos  at  Southport. — A  fine  specimen  of  this 
beautiful  and  highly-prized  Moth  was  taken  here  on  the  29th.  of  August 
last.  It  was  found  by  a  gardener  amongst  some  weeds,  and  was  shortly 
after  shewn  to  me. — Idem. 

Vanessa  Atalanta. — Three  specimens  of  this  handsome  Butterfly  have 
been  taken  here  this  season.  One  of  them  was  captured  by  myself,  August 
31st.,  and  the  two  other  specimens  were  taken  by  friends,  residents  of 
the  place,  and  who  had  not  seen  it  before  for  several  seasons. — Idem. 

Relaxing  of  Insects. — Being  in  London  lately  for  a  couple  of  days,  on 
business  connected  with  the  drainage  of  my  glebe  land,  I  took  the  oppor- 
tunity of  visiting  the  British  Museum,  and  while  looking  over  the  splendid 
collection  of  foreign  insects  there,  I  was  struck  with  the  intelligent  and 
animated  expression  of  the  countenance  of  a  man  who  looked  like  a  mechanic, 
and  who  was  talking  very  eagerly  to  one  of  the  curators  about  some  insect- 
hunting.  When  he  went  away  I  enquired  his  name,  which  I  found  was 
Turner,  and  following  him  out  was  so  fortunate  as  to  overtake  him,  as 
he  had  stopped  to  speak  to  some  one  in  the  passage.  I  went  with  him 
to  his 'temporary  lodging  up  three  pair  of  stairs,  at  No.  39,  Broad  Street, 
not  far  from  the  Museum,  and  there  found  his  wife,  who  proved  to  be  as 
zealous  a  collector  as  himself  He  shewed  me  his  captures  in  the  New 
Forest  last  summer,  and  a  ^'splendid  lot"  they  were,  and  set  in  the  most 
perfect  manner.  But  what  I  wish  to  mention  more  particularly  is  the 
mode  he  shewed  me  of  relaxing  insects,  which  is  an  improvement  on  those 
I  have  hitherto  seen.  This  being  the  season  of  the  entomologists'  ^'relaxation," 
I  cannot  do  better  than  give  it,  as  it  may  be  useful  to  many.  It  is  as 
follows: — Get  an  earthen  jar  with  a  lid  or  cover  to  it,  or  if  it  has  not 
a  lid,  it  will   do  to   cover    it   over  with   a   doubled   or  trebled   cloth   well 


46 


REVIEWING. 


wetted.  Instead  of  putting  in  any  sand  or  earth  and  damping  it,  fill  the 
jar  nearly  up  with  water,  and  float  thereon  a  large  cork  or  bung,  or  piece 
of  cork,  leaving  only  room  for  the  height  of  the  pins  between  it  and  the 
lid  or  cover.  On  this  cork  stick  the  insects  that  require  to  be  relaxed, 
and  each  time  well  wet  the  cloth  cover,  or,  if  there  be  a  lid,  the  cloth 
that  should  be  put  between  it  and  the  jar  when  placed  upon  it,  or  still 
better,  sewn  to  and  round  it,  so  as  to  save  trouble.  In  twenty-four  or 
forty-eight  hours,  according  to  size,  you  will  find  your  insects  well  relaxed, 
and  without  being  wetted  as  is  often  the  case  under  the  old  plan.  There 
is  also  much  less  injury  from  mould,  or  rather,  I  should  say,  that  it  is 
considerably  postponed. — F.  0.  Mouris,  January,  8th.,  1856. 

In  a  letter  to  me  of  the  14th.  instant,  from  the  Rev.  W.  W.  Cooper, 
of  West  Rasen,  Lincolnshire,  he  writes: — "We  have  had  a  great  many 
Golden  Plover  lately,  but  the  snow-storm  has  driven  them  away.  I  hope 
when  the  mild  weather  returns  they  may  re-appear.  The  hedges  are  one 
mass  of  haws,  but  I  never  saw  so  few  of  our  winter  birds,  I  have  not 
seen  two  score  of  Fieldfares  or  Redwings,  and  I  do  not  think  there  is 
one  of  the  former  in  the  neighbourhood  now.  Woodcocks  and  Snipes  are 
also  much  scarcer  than  usual — Qucere:  the  reason?  Food  was  never  more 
abundant,  but  the  birds  have  not  made  their  appearance  at  all." 

I  insert  the  above  extract  for  the  sake  of  corroborating  the  statement, 
as  to  the  unusual  scarcity  of  winter  birds  usually  common.  I  had  observed 
the  fact  before,  but  had  not  made  any  definite  mental  note  of  it.  The 
only  supposition  I  can  suggest  is,  that  aware,  by  some  prescient  instinct, 
of  the  coming  of  the  unusually  early  hard  weather  we  have  had,  and  have 
indeed  still,  they  betook  themselves  to  the  south  to  avoid  its  severity,  and 
that  when  they  have  consumed  the  food  in  that  quarter,  they  will  eat 
their  way  down  to  us.  Possibly  something  of  this  kind  may  be  the  case 
every  year.  Certainly  I  never  remember  seeing  haws  in  greater  abundance, 
nor  of  a  more  beautifully  bright  red  colour. — F.  0.  Morris,  Nunburnholme 
Rectory,  December  22nd.,  1855. 


REVIEWING. 

I  HAVE  for  some  time  had  a  theory  on  the  subject  of  Reviews,  if  that 
can  indeed  be  called  a  theory  which  is  rather  a  perception  of  a  fact,  a 
plain  and  unmistakeable  fact,  that  the  Gentlemen  who  go  by  the  name 
of  Reviewers,  are,  at  all  events  for  the  most  part,  more  apt  to  be  for- 
ward to  display  their  own  erudition  and  talents,  than  to  care  to  display 
those  of  the  authors,  (supposing  always  that  there  be  something  in  them 
worth  displaying,)  whose  works  they  arc  imagined  to  do  honour  to  by  noticing. 


REVIEWS,  47 

Instances  of  a  contrary  kind  are  only  exceptional  ones,  and  prove  the  rule 
to  be  as  I  have  just  stated.  Let  me  here  disavow  any  personal  pique  in 
the  matter,  every  review  of  my  own  works  having  benn  favourable. 

No  doubt  they,  the  Reviewers,  are  paid  well  for  the  work  they  perform, 
and  it  answers  their  purpose  to  do  as  they  do,  but  that  the  greater  portion, 
by  about  ten  thousand  to  one,  of  what  they  put  in  print  on  the  subject, 
is  not  the  sort  of  thing  that  the  author,  whose  work  is  reviewed,  either 
wants  or  wishes,  or  cares  a  groat  about,  is  shewn  at  once  by  the  fractional 
part  of  the  same  which  he  extracts,  or  his  bookseller  for  him,  for  the 
purpose  of  notifying  to  the  public,  through  the  condensed  medium  of  an 
advertisement,  what  is,  in  the  estimation  of  the  said  Reviewer,  the  character 
of  the  volume  or  volumes  in  question.  Such  is  my  opinion  of  professional 
"Reviews  and  Reviewers,"  and  entertaining  it  pretty  strongly,  and  having 
at  the  same  time,  a  most  profound  contempt  for  the  Editorial  ^^We," 
I  do  not  intend  to  follow  what  I  pronounce  to  be  on  their  part  a  bad 
example,  but  to  take  a  precisely  opposite  course,  in  noticing  from  time  to 
time  any  works  which  ladies  or  gentlemen,  authoresses  or  authors,  may  feel 
disposed  to  forward  to  me  for  the  purpose;  that  is  to  say,  I  shall  be  as 
brief  in  such  notices  as  I  possibly  can,  and  shall  give  only  an  indication 
of  the  character  of  each  work,  to  be  useful,  (if  a  good  character  of  it 
appears  to  me  to  be  deserved,)  to  the  said  authoress  or  author.  I  have 
spoken. 

Nunhurnholme  Rectory,  Decemher,  1855.  F,  0.  MORRIS. 


t\mtm. 

The  Flowering  Plants  and  Ferns  of  Great  Britain;  an   attempt  to  classify 
them  according  to  their  Geognostic  Relations.     By  John  Gilbert  Baker, 
London :   W.  and  F.  G.  Cash. 
This  is  a  small  work   of  thirty   pages.      Its   title   indicates    its  nature. 

It  is  well  and  carefully  done,  as  might  be  expected  from  the  high  botanical 

character  of  the  author.     The  subject  has  been  hitherto  neglected  both  by 

botanists  and  geologists. 

The  Entomologist's  Annual  for  1856.  London:  Van  Voorst.  Price  2s.  6d. 
This  work  supplies,  and  well  supplies,  an  evident  desideratum.  It  gives 
much  useful  information,  such  as  a  list  of  new  species  discovered  during 
the  preceding  year,  a  list  of  British  Entomologists,  etc.,  etc.  The  writer 
is   perhaps   rather   too   off-hand  in   some   of  his   observations. 


48 

f  rnmMiigH  nf  Intiftiw. 

AherdeensMre  Natural  Iliatory  Association. — October  5th.^  1855.  Mr,  A, 
Stephen  in  the  chair. 

The  proceedings  of  the  Session,  IS/jlo-G,  were  commenced  by  an  address 
from  Mr,  J.  Longmuir,  Jun.,  which^  in  his  absence,  was  read  by  Mr.  W. 
E.  Brown.  It  consisted  principally  of  a  short  account  of  what  had  been 
already  done  in  a  few  of  the  principal  divisions  of  the  animal  kingdom  in 
Aberdeenshire,  and  of  how  much  yet  remained  to  be  accomplished.  The 
essay  was  well  received,  and  a  general  conversation  on  its  subject  ensued. 
The  Association  then  adjourned. 

The  following  are  appointed  office-bearers  for  1855-6: — Honorary — Pre- 
sident, Professor  Owen,  F.  R.  S.,  etc.;  Vice-Presidents,  Dr.  James  Moir 
and  the  Rev.  J.  Longmuir.  Ordinary — President,  Mr.  Alexander  Stephen; 
Vice-President,  Mr.  E.  Donald;  Treasurer,  Mr.  J.  Taylor;  Secretaries,  Mr. 
W.  Brown  and  Mr.  J.  Longmuir,  Jun. 

This  Association  was  established  for  the  purpose  of  studying  the  fauna 
and  flora  of  the  counties  of  Aberdeen,  Banff,  and  Kincardine. 

Such  of  the  readers  of  ''The  Naturalist"  residing  in  any  of  these  counties 
as  are  interested  in  the  advancement  of  Physical  Science  within  the  district, 
are  invited  to  communicate  with  Mr.  J.  Longmuir,  St,  Mary's  Place,  Aber- 
deen, or  with  the  other  office-bearers. 

Aberdeenshire  Natural  History  Association. — Special  Meeting,  October 
19th.  A  pro-re-natd  meeting  was  held  for  the  purpose  of  exhibiting  a 
specimen  of  the  Esquimaux  Curlew,  by  the  kind  permission  of  William 
Cusack  Smith,  Esq.,  who  shot  the  bird  on  the  6th.  of  September  last,  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  Durris  House,  Kincardineshire,  where  he  was  residing 
at  the  time.  It  was  in  beautiful  preservation.  Mr.  A.  Mitchell  exhibited 
a  fine  specimen  of  the  Ballan  Wrasse,  [Lahrus  hergylta,)  the  property  of 
Dr.  Dyce,  obtained  a  short  time  previously  in  the  vicinity;  and  an  interesting 
variety  of  the  Sparrow  Hawk,  Mr.  E.  Donald  also  shewed  some  microscopical 
preparations.     The  Association  then  adjourned. 


In  the  "Times"  of  Friday,  the  21st.  of  December,  there  was  a  letter 
from  Mr.  G.  W.  Bell,  of  Chancery  Lane,  on  the  subject  of  the  folly  of 
exterminating  Sparrows,  and  referring  to  the  "Times'"  "excellent  article" 
on  the  same  subject.  Can  any  correspondent  of  "The  Naturalist"  tell  me 
in  what  Number  of  the  "Times"  the  said  article  appeared.  A  friend  has 
sent  me  a  long  paragraph  from  the  "Times,"  copied  from  the  French  "Consti- 
tutionel." — Was  that  the  one? — P.  0.  Morris,  Nunburnholme  Rectory,  Hay- 
ton,  Yorkshire,  January  8th,,  1856. 


Now  Eeady,  with  Coloured  Plate,  Price  Half  a  Crown, 

THE   ENTOMOLOGISTS   ANNUAL   FOR 

1856. 

Contents. — Advantages  of  the  Study  of  Natural  History.  Pleasures  of 
Entomology.  List  of  British  Entomologists.  New  British  Insects  in  1855, 
with  Notices  of  the  Capture  of  Species  previously  rare.  Results  of  a  Residence 
at  Fochabers.  Objects  of  a  Collection  of  Insects.  Ghent  to  Glogau,  and  Stettin 
to  Schaffhausen,  in  search  of  Entomologists.  Important  New  Works  on  Ento- 
mology.   List  of  Entomological  Books  now  on  Sale  in  London. 


LONDON:  JOHN  VAN  VOOEST,  1,  PATEENOSTEE  EOW, 

AND   TO   BE   HAD   OF   ALL   BOOKSELLEBS,    AND  AT   ALL   RAILWAY  STATIONS. 

LATELY    PUBLISHED, 

NOTES  OF  A  YACHT  VOYAGE  TO 
HARDANGER  FJORD,  AND  THE  ADJACENT 

ESTUARIES; 

BY    C.    W.   EOTHEEY,    ESQ. 

With  Numerous  Illustrations  on  Steel,  Stone,  and  Wood. 
Price — -Coloured,  \2s.  6d.;  Plain,  10s.  6d. 

OPINIONS    OF    THE    PRESS. 

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enlarges  upon  their  several  heads  in  a  most  graphic  and  engaging  manner." 

Yorkshire  Gazette. 

**The  descriptions  of  the  water-falls  and  mountain  scenery  are  given  with  that  fine  expres- 
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Hunt's  YaMing  Magazine. 

"Preceding  travellers,  Inglis,  Everest,  Price,  and  others,  had  given  us  much  information 
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"The  reader  may  obtain  much  pleasant  information  respecting  the  interesting  country 
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to  many."  Leeds  IntelUgeneer . 

""We  cannot  close  our  hasty  notice  without  expressing  our  admiration  of  the  style  in  which 
the  illustrations  are  executed,  and  the  pleasure  we  liave  derived  from  the  perusal  of  the 
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LONDON:    LONGMAN    AND    CO. 


BUTTERFLIES    AND    MOTHS    EOR   THE    MILLION!! 


On  March  1st.  will  be  published,  price  3d.,  the  Eirst  Number  of 

A    MANUAL    OF 
BRITISH   BUTTERFLIES   AND    MOTHS. 

BY    H.    T.    STAINTON. 

This  Work  will  contain  descriptions  of  all  the  British  species,  with  popular 
readable  instructions  where  to  find  them,  and  how  to  know  them,  and  will  be 

illustrated    with   numerous    woodcuts. To    be    completed   in    about    Thirty 

Monthly  Numbers. 

*^*  The  first  Four  Parts  will  comprise  the  whole  of  the  Butterflies! 


LONDON:  JOHN  VAN  VOOEST,  1,  PATEENOSTEE  EOW. 


TO    ENTOMOLOGISTS. 


Mr.  Foxcroft  begs  to  return  his  sincere  thanks  to  the  Trustees  of  the 
British  Museum,  the  Nobility,  Gentry,  and  Clergymen,  and  also,  particularly 
to  the  Members  of  the  Entomological  Society,  for  the  pati'onage  he  has 
received  for  a  number  of  years,  and  takes  the  liberty  of  informing  them 
and  others,  that  he  intends  making  another  journey  into  Scotland,  for  the 
purjjose  of  collecting  Insects  during  the  Summer  of  1856,  from  the  15th. 
of  March,  to  jthe  beginning  of  July.  He  purposes  spending  the  rest  of 
the  season  in  Wales  and  parts  of  England  to  the  end  of  October,  making  the 
season  seven  months  and  a  half. 

Mr.  Foxcroft,  to  enable  him  to  carry  out  this  plan,  wishes  to  raise  a 
sufficient  sum  by  Subscriptions  of  £1.  3s.  each  Subscriber,  who  shall  be 
entitled  to  two  specimens  of  the  order  he  particularly  wishes  to  obtain; 
the  whole  of  the  Insects  collected  to  be  shared  in  November,  on  Mr.  F.'s 
return.  The  boxes  in  which  the  Insects  are  delivered  to  the  Subscriber, 
to  be  his  property. 

Mr.  F.  hopes  by  visiting  different  localities  to  take  many  rare  and  new 
species,  thus  affording  an  excellent  opportunity  to  Gentlemen  of  obtaining 
desirables  to  their  collections.  « 

Subscribers  are  respectfully  requested  to  send  their  Subscriptions  from 
the  1st.  of  January  to  the  1st.  of  March',;  if  by  Post  Office  Order,  to  be 
made  payable  at  210,  Oxford  Street,  London,  and  no  one  to  be  considered 
a  Subscriber  until  he  has  paid  his  Subscription  of  £1.  3s.  Any  person 
subscribing  £2.  4s.  will  be  entitled  to  specimens  of  all  the  Orders  of  Insects 
which  may  be  captured.  Subscribers  of  £1.  3s.  to  receive  two  specimens 
of  all  the  species  captured  of  such  order  as  he  may  subscribe  for.  Persons 
sending  their  own  box,  Subscription  will  be  £1.  Is.,  or  £2.  2s.  if  for 
both  Orders. 

*j^*  James  Foxcroft  has  always  a  great  variety  of  British  Insects  on  Sale. 

All  kinds  of  Collecting  and  Store  Boxes,  Cabinets,  etc.,  all  kinds  of 
Breeding  Cages,  Cabinets  for  Shells,  Fossils,  etc.,  made  to  order  on  the 
lowest  terms. 

P.S. — Persons  subscribing  for  Coleoptera  will  have  no  Lepidoptera;  those 
that  subscribe  for  Lepidoptera  will  have  no  Coleoptera. 

3,    UNION    YARD,    OXFORD    STREET,    LONDON. 


This  day  is  published,  in  a  Pamphlet  of  32  pages,  demy  8vo., 

AN  ATTEMPT  TO  CLASSIFY 

THE   FLOWERING   PLANTS   AND  FERNS 

OF  GREAT  BRITAIN, 

ACCORDING     TO    THEIR    GEOGNOSTIC    RELATIONS: 
\  Paper  read  before  the  British  Association  at  Glasgow. 

It  uuiiUiiiis  an  exposition  of  general  principles,  a  proposed  subdivision 
of  the  surface  of  Britain  into  lithological  zones,  and  a  complete  Catalogue, 
Summary,   etc. 

Price  Is.  6d.  free  by  Post. 

Subscribers'  names  to  l)c  sent  to  the  author,  J.  G.  Baker,  Tliirsk. 


LONDON:  W.  AND  F.  G.  CASK,  .5.  BTSTIOPGATE  STREET  WTTHOUT, 

AND   9<)l,Ii  .i:ET,    SOHO. 


No.  61. 


MARCH,  1856. 


Price  6d. 


im 


% 


A   POPULAR   MONTHLY   MAGAZINE, 

ILLtrSTBATIVE    OF    THE 

ANIMAL,   VEGETABLE,   AND   MINERAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    OCCASIONAL   ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED   BY 

THE    REV.  E.   0.   MOREIS,     B.A., 

Member  of  the  Aslimolean  Society,  etc. 

Author  of  "A  History  of  British  Birds."      "A  History  of  Britisli  Butterflies,' 

"A  History  of  the  Nests  and  Eggs  of  Britisii  Birds." 

"A  Bible  Natural  History."    "A  Book  of  Natural  History,"  etc.,  etc.,  etc. 


0  Lord,  how  manifold  are  Thy  works!    iu  wisdom  hast   Thou    made  them  all:   the 
earth  is  full  of  Thy  riches. — Psalm  civ.,  24. 


LONDON: 

GROOMBRIDGE  AND   SONS,  5,  PATERNOSTER  ROW. 

AND   MAY   BB   HAD   OF  ALL   BOOKSELLERS. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

The  Common  Squirrel.     By  E.  K.  B 49 

Notes  on  the  Cuckoo.     By  J,  M' Intosh^  Esq 51 

Odds  and  Ends.     By  the  Eev.  R.  P.  Alington 55 

A  Chapter  on  Instinct.     By  the  Rev.  F.  0.  Morris 67 

The  proposed  increase  of  the  Size  and   Price  of  "The  Naturalist."  60 

Three  Days  in  Caernarvonshire.     By  J.  H,  Davies,  Esq 61 

Systema  Naturae.     By  the  Rev.  F.  0.  Morris 64 

Miscellaneous  Notices. — To  the  Editor  of  '^The  Naturalist."     Oc- 
currence  of   the   Mealy  Redpole   at   Hammersmith.      The   Lime 

Tree 67 

The  Retrospect. — The  Hawk 68 

The  Querist. — Breeding  and  Rearing  of  Foreign  and  English  Birds 
in   confinement.      Spider  and   Fly.      Answer  to   F.  G.  Bonney's 

Query  in  the  December  Number 71 


NOTICES    TO    CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  from  F.  P.  Feenie,  Esq.; — E.  M.  A.; 
—Me.  J.  J.  Reeve;— O.  S.  Round,  Esq.  (five;) — Me.  "W.  Sutheeland;— 
Rev.  R.  P.  Alington; — J.  G-aeland,  Esq.; — Me.  Pass  Balshaw; — Walter 
Geegoe,  Esq.; — H.  F.  Wood,  Esq.; — H.  Smuethwaite,  Esq.; — P.  W.  West, 
Esq.;— Me.  H.  E.  Smith;— Me.  T.  Edwaed;— J.  H.  Davies,  Esq;— Rev.  J. 
B.  Geant; — E.  J.  Maude,  Esq.; — Rev.  G.  Sowden; — Miss  Emma  Beow^^ 
(two;) — P.  E.  CooMBE,  Esq.; — John  Beown,  Esq.; — Me.  Melton  Bateman; 
— SiE  J.  W.  Guise,  Baet.;— F.  P.  Moeeis,  Esq.i— W.  Tweedy,  Esq.;— F.  B. 
Cuming,  Esq.; — Aechibald  Hepbuen,  Esq.; — W. 


„        ,  -    .  -  .      .  .,    ,        -     unpn: 

donable,'  read   'unfavourable.'     Pago   41,   for    'enfreogenous,'  read  'cugeogcnous;'  for  'mjyrometrica,' 
read  'hi/i/romeMca.'    Page  42,  for   'cileata'  read  ^ciliata;'  for   'anutangium,'  read  'anictahgii 


'jium. 


^*^     Correspondents    arc    particularly    requested    to    write    the 
names  of  persons,  places,  and  things  very  distinctly. 


A  box  of  insects  has  been  received,  with  a  note  signed  "H.  S. 
Wyndham,"  but  without  the  address.  I  wish  to  thank  the  writer, 
and  take  this  mode  of  asking  for  it  that  I   may  do  so. 

F.  O.  Morris. 


Communications,  Drawinffs,  Advertisements,  etc.,  to  he  addressed  to  the  Rev. 
F.  O.  MORRIS,  Nunl>urnliulme  Rectory,  Hayton,  York; — Books  fur  Review 
and  Parcels,  to   the  care   of  Messrs.   GROOMBRIBGE,    5,  Paternoster 

RciK,  London. 


TO    ADVERTISERS. 


Advertisements  are  inserted  on  the  Cover  of  The  Naturalist,  on  the  following 
Terras: — |-  of  a  page,  4s.— i  of  a  page,  7s.— |  of  a  page,  12s.— Whole 
page,  2l8.     Bills  stitched  in,  20s. 
Advertisements  to  he  sent  not  later  than  the  \Uh.  of  the  Month. 


49 
THE    COMMON    SQUIRREL. 

BY    E.    K.    B. 

In  the  summer  of  1854  my  children  had  a  tame  Squirrel 
together  with  a  rotary  cage — which  one  of  the  correspondents  of  "The 
Naturalist"  considers  a  cruel  invention,  and  denominates  "a  treadmill/'  and 
the  use  of  which  another  defends — in  the  course  of  a  few  days  the  little 
prisoner  made  his  escape,  and  not  being  heard  of  for  about  six  weeks,  was 
considered  lost;  when,  to  the  joy  of  all,  he  was  discovered  running  about 
the  garden,  and  leaping  from  tree  to  tree,  in  the  largest  of  which  (an 
acacia,  about  forty  feet  high,  growing  at  the  bottom  of  the  garden,  and 
close  to  another  house,)  he  was  found  to  have  built  a  nest.  I  fed  him 
with  nuts,  which  I  placed  in  a  basket  suspended  from  the  tree,  and  he 
lived  happily,  and  in  excellent  health,  all  through  the  intensely  cold  winter, 
until  the  following  June,  when  he  took  his  departure,  disturbed,  as  I 
imagine,  by  some  workmen  who  were  engaged  close  to  the  tree.  I  heard 
nothing  of  him  till  last  October,  when  I  was  informed  that  a  Squirrel — 
which  I  have  not  the  slightest  doubt  is  mine — had  taken  up  his  abode  in 
a  tree  in  a  gentleman's  garden,  about  half  a  mile  off,  and  within  less 
than  that  distance  from  Westminster  Bridge,  where  he  is  now  living,  and 
if  undisturbed  will  no  doubt  continue  to  do  so.  The  district  between  his  old 
and  new  home  is  a  thickly-populated  one,  and  intersected  by  several  streets. 

While  he  resided  on  my  premises  I  constantly  saw  the  neighbouring 
cats,  which  swarm  here  as  in  most  other  urban  districts,  watch  him  with 
envious  eyes,  and  frequently  endeavour  to  catch  him,  but  he  was  invariably 
too  vigilant  and  nimble  for  his  enemies. 

I  did  not  find,  as  Mr.  Bell  states  in  his  "British  Quadrupeds,"  that  the 
Squirrel  '^remains  during  the  greater  part  of  the  winter  in  a  state  of  almost 
complete  torpidity,"  for  I  do  not  think  a  day  passed  during  that  excessively 
cold  winter,  (the  winter  of  18o4-5,)  without  my  seeing  mine  frisking  about 
the  garden,  and  a  pretty  and  interesting  sight  it  was  to  watch  him  sitting 
up  in  the  snow,  (and  sometimes  while  actually  sno.ving,)  eating  his  nuts, 
quite  regardless  of  the  bitter  blasts,  which  while  seeming  merely  to  play 
with  him,  made  all  nature  beside  shrink  before  them. 

On  one  occasion  I  was  witness  to  a  most  interesting  battle  between  my 
pet  Squirrel  and  a  tame  Raven.  The  quarrel  was  occasioned  by  some  nuts 
which  I  had  thrown  out  of  the  parlour  window,  and  which  had  attracted 
the  Raven's  attention.  The  Squirrel  was  sitting  up  in  a  corner  of  the 
garden  eating  some  of  thera,  when  the  Raven  having  gathered  up  and  hid 
all  he  could  find  at  a  short  distance  from  the  Squirrel,  at  length  approached 
close  to  the  latter  to  pick  up  the  few  that  remained  there,  when  my  furry 
pet,  after  allowing  my  feathered  one  to   approach  within   a  few  inches  of 

VOL.  VI.  H 


50  THE    COMMON    SQUIRREL. 

him  apparently  unnoticed,  (for  he  continued  up  to  this  moment  seated  on 
his  hind  legs  eating  his  nuts  in  the  most  unconcerned  manner,)  made  a 
sudden  dart  at  the  legs  of  the  other,  uttering  at  the  same  time  a  slight 
scream;  whether  he  bit  his  antagonist  or  not  I  cannot  say,  but  the  latter 
ruffled  his  feathers,  jumped  into  the  air  with  a  great  splutter  and  screaming, 
and  attempted  to  return  the  compliment;  but  the  Squirrel  was  too  nimble 
for  him,  and  most  fortunately  so,  for  one  stroke  of  the  Eaven's  powerful 
beak  would  have  cut  short  the  life  of  his  foe,  and  at  the  commencement 
of  the  fray  I  certainly  thought  my  poor  Squirrel's  days  were  numbered ;  but  he 
was  a  brave  little  fellow,  and  charged  the  Raven  in  the  manner  described 
five  or  six  times,  and  ultimately  came  off  victorious,  or  at  least  had  the 
best  of  the  fight,  for  he  remained  master  of  the  field  and  in  possession 
of  his  nuts. 

Sweet  almonds  were  the  favourite  food  of  my  Squirrel,  and  he  preferred 
these  to  all  kinds  of  nuts,  probably  because  he  had  not  the  trouble  of  cracking 
a  shell,  although  that  to  him  was  but  the  work  of  a  moment.  I  used  fre- 
quently to  fill  his  basket  with  sweet  almonds,  hazel  nuts,  chesnuts,  and 
acorns,  and  I  invariably  found  that  he  eat  them  in  the  order  enumerated, 
the  acorns  being  always  left  till  the  last.  He  drank  copiously  at  a  neigh- 
bouring roof-gutter,  which  generally  supplied  him  with  water;  but  in  the 
very  hot  dry  weather  I  know  not  where  he  went  to  quench  his  thirst, 
but  he  appeared  well  and  happy  in  all  weathers. 

While  on  the  subject  of  Squirrels,  let  me  caution  your  readers  against 
buying  those  carried  about  by  men  on  their  arms,  and  offered  as  tame 
Squirrels.  They  are  nothing  but  wild  ones  having  the  lower  jaw  teeth 
sometimes  filed  off,  but  more  frequently  extracted,  to  make  them  harmless, 
which  cruel  practice  renders  the  poor  little  animals  unable  to  take  care  of 
themselves,  or  of  tasting  nuts — their  natural  food,  and  they  almost  invariably 
pine  away,  and  ultimately  die  of  starvation.  If  the  Society  for  the  Pre- 
vention of  Cruelty  to  Animals  would  turn  its  attention  to  these  poor  little 
sufferers,  it  would,  I  think,  be  employing  its  funds  more  usefully,  and  more 
in  accordance  with  the  intention  of  its  subscribers,  than  in  squabbling  as 
to  whether  the  Christian  or  Jewish  mode  of  slaughtering  cattle  is  the 
least  painful. 

1  make  no  apology  for  offering  the  above  remarks  to  the  readers  of 
"The  Naturalist,"  for  I  think  the  fact  of  a  Squirrel  taking  up  his  abode 
and  building  a  nest  in  a  black  and  sooty  tree  in  London,  and  of  his 
engaging  in  combat  with  a  Raven,  are  such  as  have  seldom  if  ever  occurred 
before,  and  are  quite  worthy  of  being  recorded. 

Kennington  Road,  London,  November,  1855. 

With   regard   to   the  hybernation    of  the  Squirrel,   alluded   to  above,  I 


NOTES   ON    THE    CUCKOO.  61 

may  mention  that  a  few  days  ago,  in  the  middle  of  the  hard  weather  we 
have  had,  I  saw  one  busily  engaged  in  nibbling  the  haws  on  a  hedge. 
I  came  within  two  yards  of  him,  he  having,  on  seeing  me  approach,  only 
retired  to  the  thick  part  of  the  bush  he  was  in;  but  on  my  coming  thus 
close  to  him  he  took  himself  oflF. — F.  0.  Morris,  February  5th.,  1856. 


NOTES    ON    THE    CUCKOO,     (CUGULUS    GANOItUS.) 

BY    J.  MC'iNTOSH,    ESQ. 


-"There  are  still  in  thee, 


Instructive  Book  of  Nature!  many  leaves 
Which  yet  no  mortal  has  perused." 

In  addition  to  what  we  have  already  published  in  the  first  volume  of 
'^The  Naturalist,"  on  the  habits  of  this  singular  bird,  we  now  beg  to  lay 
the  following  notes  before  our  readers,  to  shew  them  that  we  are  not 
totally  unacquainted  with  the  habits  and  history  of  Cuculus  canorus  of 
Linnseus,  and  also  to  shew  that  testimonials  have  accumulated  in  our  favour, 
not  only  that  the  female  Cuckoo  does  cry  "Cuckoo"  but  that  she  on  cer- 
tain occasions  does  feed  her  own  young,  and  that  they  have  been  observed 
in  this  country  long  after  the  first  week  in  July ! 

Our  first  note  is  from  the  pen  of  Mr.  John  Middlemis,  Bentham  Hill, 
Tunbridge  Wells,  who  writes  as  follows: — ''I  am  as  sure  as  I  am  of  my 
own  existence,  that  the  female  does  utter  the  well-known  cry,  and  also  that 
the  Cuckoo  does  sometimes  feed  its  own  young.  As  proofs  of  these  asser- 
tions I  offer  the  following: — I  have  stood  within  three  feet  of  a  Cuckoo 
while  depositing  its  egg  in  the  nest  of  the  Robin,  and  I  have  heard  that 
Cuckoo  when  she  left  the  nest  after  depositing  her  egg  utter  the  pleasing 
sound  "Cuckoo"  twice,  as  distinctly  as  I  ever  heard  it  in  my  life.  I  am 
certain  it  was  the  female,  as  I  stood  in  a  cellar  where  there  is  a  small 
grated  window  surrounded  with  ivy;  a  Robin  had  made  a  nest  on  the  ledge 
of  the  window.  Happening  to  be  in  the  cellar  one  day,  and  hearing  a 
rustling  noise  at  the  window,  I  went  up  to  it,  and  saw  a  Cuckoo,  but 
in  approaching  I  had  disturbed  her,  for  she  flew  away.  I  observed  that 
all  the  eggs  (four  in  number)  of  the  Robin  had  disappeared,  and  that  the 
nest  was  empty,  (whether  the  Cuckoo  had  cast  them  out  or  not  I  cannot 
tell,  but  I  found  the  shells  on  the  ground  when  I  went  out.)  Thinking 
that  the  Cuckoo  might  return,  I  remained  at  the  window  as  quietly  as 
possible,  and  she  did  return,  but  she  exhausted  my  patience,  as  I  had  to 
sit  in  rather  a  tiring  position  in  order  to  see  her,  and  I  went  out.  On 
going  round  to  the  window  she  flew  away,  and,  as  I  have  said,  called 
"Cuckoo"  twice.     I  looked   in  the  nest  and   there  was   her  egg,  which   I 


6fi  NOTES    OX    THE    CUCKOO, 

knew  was  not   in  the  nest   before  she  returned   the   second  time.     I  may 
state  that  coming   out  of  the  cellar  and  going  round    to  the  window  did 
not   occupy  more   than    thirty  seconds.     In   watching   the   progress   of  the 
young  Cuckoo,  which  in  due  course,  under  the  fostering  care  of  the  Robin, 
made  its  appearance,   I    have  seen  from  the  same  window  a  Cuckoo  more 
than  once  bring  food   to  it.     I  well   remember  a  Cuckoo  carrying  food  to 
a  young  one,  some  ten  years  ago,  at  Kingsbury,  in  Middlesex.     I  recollect 
it  well,  as  it  was  the  first  young  Cuckoo  I  had  ever  seen,  and  I  discovered 
it  by  seeing  the  old  one  go  to  the  nest  with  something  in  its  mouth.     I  saw 
it  go   several   times,  but  I  afterwards  found   that   the   Hedge  Sparrow  did 
the  most  of  the   feeding.     I  noticed  it  particularly,  as  I  had  read   that  the 
Cuckoo  did  never  feed  its  own  young." — From  the  "Gardener's  Chronicle." 
This  interesting  and   simple  account   bears  on   the  face  of  it  the  stamp 
of  truth,  and  must  be  considered  as  most  conclusive  evidence  in  our  favour, 
(see  vol.  i.  of  "The  Naturalist,"  that  the   female    does  "cry    Cuckoo"  and 
that  she    does  on   certain  occasions   attend   to   and   feed   her   own  young! 
Some  of  our  readers  will  no  doubt  be  somewhat  surprised  at  reading  the 
very  interesting   letter  above,  as  quoted   from   the  "Gardener's  Chronicle," 
when  it  is  remembered  that  that  Journal  opened  its  pages  to  an  impudent 
denial  of  my  statements,  and  refused  me   the    means   of  replying   to   the 
writer  in  its  pages.     These  rather  capricious  gyrations  of  the  P]ditor  of  the 
Chronicle,  it   is  needless   to  say,  mean  nothing  at  all,  and   no  doubt  those 
who  read  that  Journal  have  long  since,  like  ourselves,  ceased  either  to  care 
for,  or  wonder  at  their  occurrence. 

To  the  already  many  accounts  of  Cuckoos  being  seen  and  heard  in  this 
country  long  after  the  first  week  in  July,  we  extract  the  following  from 
a  letter  in  the  "Times,"  by  the  Hev.  E.  H.  Thomson,  Lyneham  Vicarage, 
Chippenham: — "On  Friday,  the  28th.  September,  1855,  a  Cuckoo  was 
seen  and  heard  in  this  parish  by  two  boys,  one  of  them  a  son  of  mine. 
The  bird  was  on  the  wing,  uttering  his  well-known  cry  clear  and  loud, 
and  flying  in  a  north-east  direction.  The  cry  of  the  Cuckoo  is  considered 
to  cease  at  the  beginning  of  July."  Again,  a  writer  in  the  eleventh  volume 
of  "Notes  and  Queries,"  says,  "As  these  birds  arrived  late,  so  they  seem 
to  take  their  departure  late, — a  friend  having  seen  a  Cuckoo  on  the  5th. 
September,  1855." 

While  residing  at  Taunton,  Somersetshire,  during  the  years  1852  and 
1853,  we  frequently  flushed  an  adult  Cuckoo  in  the  Nurseries  there  between 
the  hours  of  nine  and  twelve,  from  August  18th,  to  September  the  5th., 
which  on  two  occasions  uttered  the  cry  of  "Cuckoo"  clear  and  loud  whilst 
flying  from  one  part  of  the  Nursery  to  the  other,  and  sorry  I  am  to  record 
that  this  bird  fell  a  prey  to  a  murderous  gun!  Here  also  1  had  the  pleasure 
and  satisfaction  of  again  witnessing  the  feeding  of  the  young  by  the  parent 


NOTES    ON    TEIE    CUCKOO.  SS* 

bird,  assisted  by  a  Hedge-Sparrow,  and  when  leaving  the  nest,  or  if  sud- 
denly disturbed,  repeat  the  cry  of  "Cuckoo,  Cuckoo."  I  had  this  last  June, 
(1855,)  the  pleasure  of  observing  the  same  occurrence  in  the  south  of 
Scotland,  namely,  in  Kirkcudbrightshire,  with  two  different  birds,  about 
two  miles  apart,  on  those  bleak  and  barren  hills  between  the  villages  of 
Lawriston  and  New  Galloway,  where  there  is  no  human  habitation  within 
miles  of  each.  In  .both  of  these  instances  the  Cuckoos  were  assisted 
by  the  joyous  Skylark;  in  both  instances  also  did  the  female  utter  the  cry 
'^Cuckoo."  I  therefore  do  pity  a  certain  Company,  who,  as  our  readers 
know,  in  an  evil  hour  bowed  the  knee  to  worship  and  glorify  one  another, 
that  Nature  should  prove  so  ungrateful  for  their  patronage,  and,  as  it  were, 
unasked,  send  such  a  flood  of  light  upon  this  matter,  as  to  annihilate  clean 
the  borrowed  light  of  their  rickety  theory!! 

In  making  the  above  remarks  I  wish  it  to  be  understood  that  I  am  not 
vain  enough  to  consider  for  one  moment  that  my  observations  on  this  sin- 
gular and  interesting  bird  are  novel  to  close  observers  of  the  wonderful  works 
of  the  Great  Almighty;  on  the  contrary,  I  am  well  aware  that  similar 
results  have  been  observed  by  more  experienced  zoologists  than  myself; 
but  the  passions  of  some  men  are  like  heavy  bodies  down  steep  hills — once 
in  motion  they  move  themselves,  and  know  no  ground  but  the  bottom. 
Every  man  ought  to  aim  at  eminence,  not  by  pulling  others  down,  but  by 
raising  himself,  and  enjoying  the  pleasures  of  his  own  superiority,  whether 
imaginary  or  real,  without  intercepting  others  who  have  truth  on  their  side, 
and  in  the  words  of  Shakspere — 

"He  who  filches  from  me  my  good  name, 
Eobs  me  of  that  which  not  enriches  him, 
But  makes  me  poor  indeed." 

We  shall  now  conclude  with  the  following  interesting  extract  from  the 
pages  of  the  "Annals  and  Magazine  of  Natural  History,"  with  which  work 
many  of  the  readers  of  "The   Naturalist"  may  not  be  acquainted: — 

"To  no  bird  is  the  gift  of  prophecy  more  commonly  attributed  than  to 
the  Cuckoo,  whose  loud  measured  voice  resounds  in  the  woods,  just  clad 
with  fresh  verdure.  The  old  German  saying,  'Wann  der  gauch  guket,' 
denotes  the  beginning  of  the  spring,  just  as,  according  to  Hesiod,  the 
song  of  the  Cuckoo  announces  the  time  of  the  spring  rains.  Two  old 
poems  describe  the  contention  of  Spring  and  Winter  about  the  Cuckoo, 
and  the  lament  of  the  herdsmen  for  him;  the  Spring  praises,  slow  Winter 
— tarda  hiems — reproaches  the  bird;  the  herdsmen  represent  him  as  taken 
away  or  drowned:   the  line  is  remarkable — 

'Tempus  adost  veris,  cuculus  modo  nompe  soporem.' 

He  announces  by  his  song  the  loveliest  season  of  the  year,  but  it  is  not 


54  NOTES    ON    THE    CUCKOO. 

stated  in  these  poems  that  he  predicts  to  man.  The  Anglo-Saxon  Codex 
Exoniensis,  146,  27,  lately  published  by  Mr,  Thorpe,  ascribes  likewise  to 
this  bird  the  announcing  of  the  year: — 

'Goacos  gear  budon,  cuculi  annum  nuntiavere.' 

The  popular  belief  still  exists  that  whoever  hears  the  cry  of  the  Cuckoo 

for  the  first  time  in  the  year  may  ask  him  how  many  more  years  he  has 

to  live.     In  Switzerland  the  children  cry  'Gugger,  wie  lang  lebi  no?'     In 

Lower  Saxony — 

'Kukuk  vam  haven, 
Wo  lange  sail  it  leven?' 

and  then  they  listen  and  count  as  many  times  as  the  bird  cries  after  it  is 
questioned 5  so  many  years  has  he  who  asks  the  question  to  live;  in  other 
places  the  saying  is  as  follows: — 

'Kukiik,  becken  V-necht,  |      'Cuckoo,  baker  boy, 

Sag  mir  recht  >       Tell  me  true 

Wie  viel,  jahr  ich  leben  soil.'  )       How  many  years  shall  I  live.' 

The  bird  is  said  to  be  a  bewitched  baker  or  miller  boy,  and  thus  has 
pale  or  meal-coloured  feathers.  In  a  dear  season  he  robbed  poor  folks  of 
their  dough,  and  when  God  blessed  the  dough  in  the  oven,  drew  it  out, 
plucked  some  off,  and  every  time  cried  out  as  he  did  so  ^Gukuk,'  (Look, 
look!)  God  therefore  punished  him,  and  turned  him  into  a  thievish  bird, 
who  continually  repeats  this  cry.  This  legend,  which  is  of  great  antiquity, 
and  resembles  that  of  the  Woodpecker,  may  at  an  early  period  have  been 
otherwise  told,  and  connected  with  it  may  have  been  the  notion  that  the 
cry  of  the  Cuckoo,  if  heard  after  St,  John's  Day,  betokens  scarcity.  In 
Sweden  he  prophecies  to  unmarried   lasses  how  many  years  they  will  have 

to  remain  single. 

Gok,  Gik,  sitt  pa  quist,  etc. 

Cuckoo,  Cuckoo,  that  sits  on  a  bough,  etc. 

If  he  cries  oftener  than  ten  times  they  say  that  he  sits  on  a  silly  bough, 
and  give  no  heed  to  his  prophecies.  Much  depends  on  the  direction  in 
which  the  Cuckoo  is  first  heard;  if  from  the  north  (that  is  the  unlucky 
side)  you  will  have  mourning  during  the  year;  from  the  east  or  west  his 
cry  portends  good  fortune.  In  Goethe's  ^Fruhling  sorakel,'  the  prophetic 
bird  announces  to  a  pair  of  lovers  their  approaching  marriage  and  the 
number  of  children.  It  is  remarkable  enough  that  our  poets  of  the  13th. 
century  do  not  mention  the  Cuckoo  as  prophecying;  the  thing  was  doubt- 
less commonly  known,  for  we  find  in  Renner,  ii.  340 — 

'Doz  weiz  der  gouch,  dcr  im  fur  ntlr 
Hat  gegatzct  hundert  jar.' 

And  we  have  a  story  related  by  the  Abbot  Theobald  of  a  certain  novice. 


ODDS    AND    ENDS,  55 

who,  assuring  himself  of  living  twenty-two  years  longer,  from  having  heard 
the  Cuckoo  repeat  its  cry  just  so  many  times,  concluded  that  it  was  need- 
less for  him  to  pass  so  long  a  period  in  mortification,  and  resolved  to  return 
and  lead  a  jolly  life  for  twenty  years,  thinking  the  remaining  two  quite 
enough  for  penitence.  From  the  regularity  of  the  time  of  his  appearance, 
the  Cuckoo  is  probably  the  bird  designated  Zitvogel  in  an  old  proverb,  in 
accordance  with  the  passage  of  Pliny,  ^Cautus  alitis  temporarii  quem  cuculum 
vocant.'  It  is  said  that  he  never  cries  before  the  3rd.  of  April,  and  never 
after  the  festival  of  St.  John ;  but  he  cannot  cry  before  he  has  devoured 
a  bird's  egg.  If  you  have  money  in  your  purse  when  he  first  cries,  all 
will  go  well  during  the  year;  and  if  you  were  fasting,  you  will  be  hungry 
the  whole  year.  When  the  Cuckoo  has  eaten  his  full  of  cherries  three 
times,  he  ceases  to  sing.  It  portends  misfortune  to  the  Servian  Naiduken 
when  the  Kukavitza  appears  early,  and  comes  out  of  the  black-wood.  The 
froth  in  the  meadows  caused  by  the  Cicado  spumaria  is  called  Cuckoo's 
spittle;  Germ.,  Keckukspeichal;  Swiss.,  Guggerspen;  Dan.,  Giogespyt,  other- 
wise Hexenspeichel — Witches'  spit;  Norw.,  Troldkioringspyc;  thus  connecting 
the  bird  with  supernatural  beings.  The  names  of  some  plants  confirm  its 
mystic  character. — Oxalis  acetocella;  Old  Germ.,  Gouches-ampfera;  Swiss., 
Gugger-sauer;  Anglo-Saxon,  Geaces-sure;  Dan.,  Giogemad,  Giogesyre.  It 
was  believed  that  this  bird  liked  to  eat  these: — Modern  Germ.,  Kukkuksbrot; 
Fr.,  Pain  de  Coucou,  Panis  cuculi;  Cuckoo-flower,  Lychnis  Floscuculi; 
Germ.,  Kukkuksblume.  The  Sclavonians  do  not  attribute  anything  bad 
or  devilish  to  this  bird,  which  they  always  represent  as  a  female  Zeshulice, 
sitting  on  an  oak,  bewailing  the  transitoriness  of  spring.  The  Servian 
Kukaritza  was  a  maiden  who  long  bewailed  her  brother's  death,  until  she 
was  changed  into  the  bird  ^Sinjo  Kukavitza,'  (the  grey.)  So  also  in  Russian 
songs  it  is  a  bird  of  mourning  and  melancholy;  and  Eussian  traditions  speak 
of  her  as  a  young  maiden  changed  by  an  enchantress." 

December  \Oih.,  1855. 


ODDS     AND     ENDS. 

BY    THE    REV.    R.    P.    ALINGTON. 

I  FEAR  the  Owl  in  this  neighbourhood  as  a  species  is  fast  disappearing. 
Is  this  the  case  generally?  The  Brown  Owl,  {Uluda  striduJa,)  I  seldom 
hear,  he  is  nearly  extinct.  His  wild  hoot  on  a  summer's  night!  how  often 
have  I  listened  to  him,  perched  on  some  old  oak,  ^^complaining  to  the 
moon!"  By-the-by,  "Ivy-mantled  tower,"  does  not  our  hooting  Owl,  the 
species  I  suppose  Gray  alludes  to,  invariably  inhabit  the  woodlands?  yet 
I  certainly  have  somewhere  read  (I  think  the  work  was  entitled  '^Ornitho- 


66  ODDS    AND    ENDS. 

logical  Recreations/')  that  there  are  instances  on  record  of  the  Barn  Owl, 
(Strix  Jlammca,)  hooting.  But  the  gun  has  done  its  work,  so  there  is  little 
chance  of  settling  this  question.  Alas!  for  the  bonny,  bonny  Owl.  The 
Swift,  too,  rejoicing  from  his  colour  I  presume,  in  a  bad  name,  has  of  late 
years  sensibly  decreased  in  numbers:  the  reason  not  so  easily  accounted 
for.  Crossbills  have  not  been  seen  here  for  some  years,  though  I  can 
remember  formerly  shooting  them  in  some  numbers  while  hanging  in  all 
attitudes  from  the  branches  of  the  firs.  The  visits  of  the  Kingfisher,  too, 
are  "few  and  far  between." 

Among  animals  the  Hedgehog  (harmless  but  persecuted)  will  not  long 
exist.  The  lively  Squirrel,  also,  has  to  exert  all  his  activity  to  escape  the 
hubbub  that  is  made  after  him  for  destroying  the  young  shoots  of  forest 
trees.  There  is  one  comfort,  however;  I  think  the  Sparrow  clubs  have 
not  only  before  them  a  very  ruinous  labour  to  themselves,  but  an  inter- 
minaUe  one  too,  and  I  therefore  hope  our  pert  little  Cock-Sparrow  will 
long  live  to  enliven  our  house-tops  in  spite  of  the  desolating  clubs. 

In  a  former  number  of  "The  Naturalist,"  (No.  53,  page  161,)  I  men- 
tioned that  an  Emu,  in  the  possession  of  Richard  Thorold,  Esq.,  of  Weelsby 
House,  Lincolnshire,  was  sitting  on  six  eggs  so  early  in  the  season  as  March. 
Notwithstanding  the  excessive  cold  spring  of  1855,  she  in  due  course  of 
time  managed  to  hatch  three  young  ones.  She  was  frequently,  as  the 
expression  goes,  'happed'  up  with  snow  at  the  bottom  of  the  ditch  in  which 
she  had  deposited  her  eggs;  nevertheless,  she  kept  her  seat  eight  weeks. 
The  young  at  first  were  striped  something  similar  to  the  young  Grebe  pictured 
in  Yarrell,  (vol.  iii.,  page  303;)  this  dress  they  very  shortly  lost,  and 
assumed  the  plumage  of  their  parents;  but  the  heads  of  the  young  birds 
are  much  darker,  and  altogether  they  appear  better  dressed  and  much 
smarter  than  the  older  ones.  Two  of  the  remaining  eggs  contained  full- 
sized  young.  The  egg  is  very  dark  green — almost  black,  and  rough,  and 
long  in  proportion  to  its  width.  The  elder  birds  are  now  about  seven 
years  old,  and  as  they  did  not  attempt  to  lay  until  1854,  it  is  possible  that 
the  Emu  may  not  enter  into  the  marriage  state  until  it  is  four  or  five 
years  old — the  period  when  the  birds  I  have  alluded  to  appeared  to  reach 
their  maturity.  The  young  ones  are  now  about  half  the  size  of  their 
parents,  and  the  female  will  attack  any  stranger  who  attempts  to  molest 
them,  and  she  is  no  mean  antagonist. 

On  the  5th.  of  December,  1855,  I  observed  a  few  Bramble  Finches,  and 
predicted  a  severe  storm,  as  these  birds  seldom  visit  this  neighbourhood, 
excepting  in  very  sharp  weather;  accordingly,  a  tremendous  snow  fell  on 
the  6th.,  but  the  storm  did  not  last  much  more  than  a  week — the  snow 
about  five  inches  on  the  level.  On  Sunday,  the  23rd.,  the  frost  was  again 
very  severe;  the  thermometer  fourteen  degrees  below  freezing  point.     During 


A    CHAPTER    ON    INSTINCT.  67 

this  time  the  Fieldfare,  wherever  a  thorn  hedge  was  left  in  a  state  fit  to 
bear  fruit,  was  very  abundant.  The  common  Wild  Duck  not  so  common, 
but  immense  flocks  of  Teal  resorted  to   Oroxby  Lake. 

Some  very  severe  weather  set  in  again  on  the  10th,  of  January,  1856 j 
the  thermometer  on  the  13th.  and  14th.  indicating  eighteen  degrees  of  frost. 
I  understand  one  of  those  now  rare  birds,  the  Bittern,  has  been  killed 
below  Louth.  I  have  heard  of  no  Swans,  Some  flocks  of  Wild  Geese 
passed  over  on  the  9th.,  ijidicating,  I  expected,  a  long  blast,  as  they  are 
seldom  seen  here  so  late  in  the  season;  but  the  heavy  rain  of  to-day,  (21st.,) 
and  the  extraordinary  mildness  of  the  latter  part  of  last  week,  causes  one 
to  think  more  of  green  peas  than  Ducks. 

By-the-by,  a  friend  told  me  last  week  that  he  had  been  asked  to  look 
at  a  rare  bird  just  shot,  somewhere,  I  believe,  near  Louth;  from  his  des- 
cription probably  the  Smew,  (Mergus  albellus,)  in  its  white  plumage. 

Snow  Buntings,  (Emberiza  nivalis,)  have  been  numerous.  I  have  made 
one  expedition  to  the  sea-coast  near  Tetney,  (the  same  spot  which  you,  Mr. 
Editor,  and  I  visited  in  company  a  few  years  ago,  and  which  circumstance 
I  dare  say  you  well  remember,)  (I  shall  not  forget  it  in  a  hurry. — F.  0.  M.) 
but  did  not  get  much  to  reward  my  trouble — innumerable  Tringse,  Gulls, 
Redshanks,  flights  of  Ducks,  all  too  wary  to  come  within  shot.  I  obtained 
Crex  porzana,  (Spotted  Rail,)  in  the  parish  of  Little   Coates  in    returning. 

Such,  except  watching  a  few  Herons  wending  their  way  to  their  accustomed 
trout  streams,  one  of  which  I  procured,  has  been  the  whole  of  my  orni- 
thological experience  of  the  past  season. 

Rectory,  Swinhope,  January  2i2nd.,  1856. 


A     CHAPTER    01^    INSTINCT. 

BY    THE    REV.    F.    0,    MORRIS. 

There  are  two  modes  of  reasoning,  which  may  be  adopted  in  an  enquiry 
into  the  mysterious  subject  of  instinct,  the  analytical  and  the  synthetical. 
In  using  the  analytical  mode  we  reason  from  the  advanced  stage  up  to 
what  may  be  called  first  principles.  In  using  the  synthetical  we  adopt 
an  opposite  procedure. 

It  seems  to  be  thought  that  a  knowledge  of  the  higher  organizations  is 
best  to  be  gained  by  the  latter  of  these  two  methods,  namely,  by  begin- 
ning with  those  forms  which  are  the  lowest  in  the  scale  of  creation, 
and  so  proceeding  upwards  gradually,  step  by  step,  to  those  which  are 
more  and  more  complicated,  until  we  reach  those  which,  so  far  as  we  are 
able  to  judge,  are  the  highest. 

There  is  indeed  one  diificulty,  or  rather  one  cause  for  hesitation,  in  the 

VOL.  \i.  I 


58  A    OHAPTER   ON    INSTINCT; 

outset,  namely,  to  trace  which  are  the  lowest  creatures  in  the  scale  of 
animate  creation;  we  can  scarcely  draw  the  line  between  the  vegetable  and 
the  animal  kingdom;  nor  do  we  know  which  kind  in  each  approaches 
nearest  to  which  in  the  other,  So  again,  in  arriving  at  the  highest  ele- 
vation it  is  diflBcult  to  know  to  what  animal  we  are  to  attribute  the  highest 
powers — powers  which  we  feel  ourselves  obliged  to  call  instinctive,  but  which 
certainly  border  so  closely  on  those  of  reason,  that  when  we  attempt  to 
reason  about  them  we  find  ourselves  at  once  out  of  our  depth,  and  are 
constrained  to  leave  the  matter  where  we  found  it,  as  to  any  conclusioa 
to  come  to,  as  being  ^'^far  above  our  thoughts." 

There  is  a  passage  in  Holy  Writ  which,  though  considered  by  some  to 
be  strained  in  having  such  a  construction  put  upon  it,,  yet  certainly  does 
appear,  because  it  appears  so  at  the  very  first  sight,  to  refer  obviously  to 
this  supposed  fact.  I  allude  to  Romans,  viii.  21,  22. — ''Because  the  creature 
itself  also  shall  be  delivered  from  the  bondage  of  corruption  into  the  glorious 
liberty  of  the  children  of  God.  For  we  know  that  the  whole  creation 
groaneth  and  travaileth  in  pain  together  until  now." 

''We  are  but  of  yesterday,  and  know  nothing ;"^  but  though  this  is 
indeed  most  true,  short-sighted  and  ignorant  as  we  are,  yet  it  may  have 
been  intended  to  put  into  our  minds  to  suspect  some  things,  which  hereafter 
we  may  find  to  have  been  so  close  to  the  truth,  as  to  have  been  the  very 
truth  itself.  We  know  not  but  that,  which  there  is  yet  so  much  cause  to 
suppose,  our  connection  with  the  invisible  world  may  be  very  much  nearer 
and  closer  than  many  at  all  think  of,  or  than  any  orre  can  know,  even  as 
Jacob  said,  (Genesis,  xxviii.  16,)  "Surely  the  LoRtx  is  in  this  place,  and 
I  knew  it  not;"  and  so,  in  like  manner,  the  creatures  around  us,  which 
we  only  consider  to  be  gifted  with  instinct,  may,  for  ought  we  know  to 
the  contrary,  and  which  there  is  such  abundant  reason  to  think,  be  en- 
dowed with  powers  far  beyond  mere  instinct,  so  called; — powers,  which  if 
not  identical  with  our  own,  may  yet  be  closely  akin  to  them.  What  a 
constraining  effect  should  this  thought  have  upon  us  iu  all  our  dealings 
with  the  dumb  animals,  which,  though  certainly  Got>  has  placed  in  subjec- 
tion under  us,  yet,  as  certainly.  He  has  not  so  placed  to  be  any  otherwise 
than  well  treated  by  us.  Who  knows  but  that  in- the  nest  world,  even 
animals  may  be  restored  to ;  their  bodies,  and  may  live  again.  Reason 
suggests  at  least  this  to  us,  and  what  says  revelation  in  the  passage  already 
quoted  ? 

But  I  have  said  enough  by  way  of  introduction,  and  I  will,  by  and  by, 
shew,  by  several  striking  instances,  how  much  greater  powers  of,  so  to  call 
them,  the  mental  faculties  there  are  in  many,  in  so  many,  animals,  than 
we  may  at  all  have  thought  of,  and  if  in  any  individuals  of  a  species,  why 
not  the  same,  even  if  supposed  to  be  latent  and  dormant,  in   every  other 


A    CHAPTER    ON    INSTINCT.  59 

individual  of  the  species;  and  if  in  one  species,  why  not  in  a,nother;  why 
not  in  every  one  of  the  genus  to  which  it  belongs,  why  not  in  every  genus, 
why  not  in  all;  diflferent  perhaps  indeed  in  many  respects  from  each  other, 
even  as  all  may  be  from  us;  and  yet,  as  in  the  living  principle,  so  in  the 
mental  one,  all  partaking  of  one  and  the  same  immortality. 

Now,  as  before  briefly  mentioned,  there  are  some  living  creatures  whose 
organization  is  so  imperfect,  speaking  comparatively,  and  in  the  only  way 
in  which  we  can  speak  of  them,  that  the  whole  duty  of  their  existence 
appears  to  be  to  live.  Doubtless  they  have  their  good  and  valuable  use, 
but  in  our  blindness  we  cannot  trace  it.  Actions,  properly  so  called,  they 
have  none — to  discharge  the  functions  of  their  being  is  all  that  they  are 
gifted  with  the  ability  to  do.  They  move  indeed,  attracted  to,  or  repelled 
from,  that  which  is  hurtful  or  disagreeable  to  themselves,  and  this,  beyond 
the  power  to  desire  nourishment  from  whatever  suitable  matter  they  may 
be  surrounded  by,  is  all  of  which  they  are  capable. 

The  instances  adduced  in  the  following  observations  I  have  gathered 
from  difierent  sources — "nee  mens  hie  sermo  est."  The  whole  subject  is  a 
very  wonderful  and  deeply-interesting  one. 

Some  mosses,  as  for  instance  the  Club  Moss  of  California,  will,  after 
they  are  actually  dead,  expand  their  leaves  when  moisture  is  applied  to 
them,  and  appear  as  if  revivified,  although  they  have  no  real  life  within 
them.  Thus,  too,  the  Hair  Moss  of  Lapland,  used  by  the  inhabitants  of 
that  frozen  region  for  bedding,  if  it  becomes  too  dry  for  comfort,  is  relaxed, 
as  pointed  out  by  Linnaeus,  by  being  moistened.  The  Hydra,  a  species 
of  the  Polypus  tribe,  if  it  be  turned  inside  out,  that  which  was  the  inside 
assumes  the  part  which  the  original  outside  had  previously  possessed,  and 
the  new  inside  conveys  the  like  nourishment  to  the  other  which  it  had  pre- 
viously received  from  it.  The  common  snail  will  remain  torpid  until 
moisture  in  the  weather  calls  it  forth  to  active  movement,  and  at  such 
times  you  will  also  see  the  frog  and  the  toad  unusually  alert.  They 
remain  in  some  degree  sluggish  and  insensible  until  the  dew  from  Heaven, 
which  re-invigorates  them,  is  sent;  and  this  their  habit  will  doubtless  in 
some  degree  explain  the  fact  of  their  having  in  so  many  well-authenticated 
instances,  been  found  imbedded  in  airless  cavities,  for  ages  and  for  genera- 
tions. The  like  atmospheric  changes  affect  the  leach  in  the  glass  of  water, 
the  fish  in  the  depths  of  the  river  or  the  sea;  and  even  the  housemaid, 
(I  quote  from  a  well-known  writer,)  may  philosophize  when  she  sees  the  cat 
washing  its  face;  and  the  herd-boy  be  led  to  consider  when  he  observes 
the  hog  carrying  straw  in  its  mouth,  in  anticipation  of  the  rain  that  is 
about  to   fall. 

But  to  return  to  the  lower  forms.  Some  of  the  molluscous  animals — a 
step  higher  in  the  scale  of  creation — are  possessed  indeed  of  nervous  portions. 


60  THE    PROPOSED    INCREASE    OF    ^^THE    NATURALIST." 

which  yet  are  connected  with  no  brain  as  a  common  centre j  and  it  appears 
certain  that  some  creatures  live  in  a  state  of  unconscious  existence^  only 
capable  of  being  excited  to  feelings  of  irritation,  complacently  vegetating  all 
the  rest  of  their  life  without  any  voluntary  action  whatever.  The  scalops 
and  some  of  the  star-fishes  have  eye-like  spots,  which  receive  impressions  of 
light,  although  they  give  no  power  to  the  creature  to  discern  external 
objects.  Others,  again,  though  incapable  of  motion,  yet  are  furnished  with 
an  extension,  answering  in  some  degree  to  a  foot,  by  which  they  are 
enabled  to  steady  their  fixed  position. 

C To  he  continued.') 


THE    PROPOSED     INCREASE    OF     THE    SIZE    AND     PRICE 
OF     "THE     NATURALIST." 

I  AVAS  in  much  difiiculty  to  know  how  to  act  for  the  best.  I  have  had 
very  few  letters  against  the  proposed  change,  and  very  many  more,  (though 
they  were  not  asked  for,  but  only  such  as  might  contain  the  contrary 
opinion,)  in  favour  of  it.  Still,  as  those  who  are  against  it  may  be  so  on 
the  score  of  necessary  economy,  I  cannot  but  feel  that  one  such  ought  to 
outweigh  a  hundred  others;  for  the  cheapness  of  the  magazine  need  not 
prevent  any  person  from  taking  it  in,  whereas  the  comparative  dearness  of 
it  might  hinder  some.  It  is  like  the  case  of  the  writing  of  sermons,  a  rule 
which  I  have  myself  systematically  acted  on,  Preach  for  the  poor,  so  as 
to  be  understood  by  them,  and  you  must  include  the  rich  in  the  ability 
to  comprehend;  while  if  you  preach  what  the  latter  only  can  understand, 
the  former  lose  the  benefit,  which  you  ought  to  desire  equally  to  convey 
to  them.  'SSaxon  words  and  short  sentences"  you  will  find,  my  reverend 
brethren,  to  be  your  most  useful  motto.  Nay,  in  one  of  the  letters  alluded 
to  above,  the  reason  assigned  for  the  writer's  being  against  the  proposed 
change  was  on  account  of  the  expense,  and  this  by  a  worthy  "Country 
Parson,"  none  the  less  worthy  for  being  a  zealous  ornithologist. 

I  hope  you,  my  lay  brethren,  will  not  take  for  granted  the  opinion  of 
the  landlady  in  "Doctor  Syntax,"  an  opinion  entertained  by  others,  whom 
candid  opinion  might  teach  better. — 

Syntax. — "And  for  j'our  beef,  and  beer,  and  tea, 

You  kindly  charge  me — one  pound  three!" 

Hostess. — '"Tis  cheap  as  dirt;  for  well  I  know 

How  things  with  Country  Curates  go." 

So  does  the  Editor  of  "The  Naturalist." — "Quorum  pars  fui." 

"This  is  the  second  time  of  asking." — 

I  forbid  the  Banns. — 
"The  Naturalist"  remains  at  its  present  price. 


61 
THREE    DAYS    IN    CAERNARVONSHIRE. 

BY   J.  H.  DA  VIES,    ESQ. 

A  Paper  read  before  the  Thirsk  Natural  History  Society. 

(Contimied  from  page  A2.) 

A  SHORT  distance  beyond  Cwm  y  glo,  a  pond  literally  covered  with  the 
beautiful  flowers  of  the  White  Water  Lily,  (Nymphcea  alba,)  gladdened  our 
eyes.  During  the  last  five  minutes  we  had  been  wondering  from  whence  the 
delicious  perfume  arose,  which  we  had  been  enjoying,  and  here  the  enigma 
was  solved.  Nor  were  the  banks  of  the  pool  without  their  special  attrac- 
tions in  Campylopus  longipilus,  Trichostomuvi  flexicauli,  Hypnum  cordifolium, 
several  species  of  Sphagnum,  and  various  other  aquatic  mosses.  A  short 
distance  from  the  pool  we  gathered  Splachnum  ampuUaceum,  a  species  which, 
to  be  properly  appreciated,  should  be  seen  in  its  natural  condition.  At  this 
point  some  wild  and  mountainous  scenery  commences.  Climbing  Pen  y  llyn 
we  had  a  magnificent  view  of  Llyn  Padarn,  the  glassy  surface  of  which 
was  glistening  in  the  sun — a  perfect  picture  of  sublimity  and  grandeur. 
Nor  was  our  climb  up  the  hill  side  without  its  advantages  in  a  bryological 
point  of  view,  for  we  were  so  fortunate  as  to  collect  SpJiagnum  molluscum 
in  fruit,  intermixed  with  barren  8.  squamosum,  fruitful  specimens  of  Hypnum 
fluitans,  Aulocomnion  palustre,  (Bryum,  Hed.,)  and  Leucohryum  glaucum,^ 
{pieracium,  Hed.)  Descending  tie  hill  we  observed  a  few  fronds  of  Botry- 
chium  lunaria,  (Moon-wortj)  on  the  rocks  at  the  commencement  of  Llyn 
Padarn,  Bartramia  arcuata,  Ptycliomitrium  polypTiyllum,  and  two  or  three 
species  of  Racomitrium  occur  in  considerable  quantities,  and  Fontinalis 
antipyretica  floats  in  the  water.  On  the  opposite  side  of  the  road  we  col- 
lected another  species  of  my  favourite  genus,  Bartramia  fontana,  in  beautiful 
fruit,  and  with  three  flowers;  and  very  near  it  we  found  a  species  also  with 
^  flowers,  which  at  the  time  I  supposed  was  B.  calcarea,  and  I  left 
the  locality  under  the  impression  that  I  had  put  some  specimens  in  my 
vasculum,  but  on  reaching  home  was  disappointed  in  finding  such  was  not 
the  case.  The  author  of  the  '^Bryologia  Britannica"  informs  me  that  this 
species  has  not  been  noticed  within  the  limits  of  the  principality,  although 
he  has  found  it  in  Cheshire,  so  that  it  is  likely  I  may  be  mistaken,  but 
think  it  worth  while  to  make  this  note  on  the  chance  that  some  of  my 
readers  may  sooner  or  later  have  an  opportunity  of  investigating  the 
locality.  We  found  nothing  of  importance  between  this  place  and  Dolbadan, 
which  we  reached  about  noon. 

Having  fixed  upon  spending  the  night  here,  we  arranged  matters  at  the 

•  My  collection  contaias  fertile  specimens  of  this  species  from  my  obliging  correspondent, 
Edward  Parfitt,  Esq.,  of  Exeter;  and  I  have  seen  others  gathered,  by  Edward  Hobson,  in 
the  herbai'ium  of  my  friend  John  H.  Baker. 


62  THREE    DAYS    IN    CAERNARVONSHIRE. 

inn,  and  then  shaped  our  course  in  the  direction  of  the  Castle.  On  the 
way  we  collected  a  little  more  Dlphyscium  foliosum,  intermixed  with  Pogon- 
Kttum  alvides,  and  on  the  slate  rocks  in  the  wood  below  the  Castle  Hi/pnum 
elegans  in  considerable  abundance,  and  Mnium  hornum^  undulatum,  and 
pundatum  and  Hypnum  loreum.  The  Castle,  consisting  only  of  a  single 
circular  ivy- covered  tower,  is  situated  on  a  rock  on  the  bank  of  Llyn  Peris. 
From  this  rock  I  have  specimens  of  Hedwigidium  imberbe,  collected  by  my 
esteemed  friend  Mr.  Nowell,  of  Todmorden,  but  was  not  fortunate  enough 
to  find  it  for  myself. 

After  visiting  this  place  we  ascended  a  hill,  called  the  "Foot  of  Snowdon," 
where  Hypnuin  scorpoides  grows  on  the  moist  rocks  in  huge  masses,  and 
near  the  summit  Campylopus  longipilus  and  Andrcea  Eothii  are  to  be  pro- 
cured. Mr.  Wilson,  to  whom  I  sent  specimens  of  the  Campylojms,  remarks, 
-s-  o  o  "It  should  at  any  rate  be  called  var.  colons,  for  there  is  a  total  ab- 
sence of  the  long  diaphanous  tips  to  the  leaves  which  designate  G.  longipilus." 

We  were  much  struck  with  a  large  patch  of  Allosorus  crispus,  the  bright 
green  fronds  of  which  contrasted  finely  with  the  grey  rocks  on  which  it  grew. 
I  think  I  shall  never  forget  the  sights  we  saw,  and  the  sounds  we  heard, 
from  that  "misty  mountain  top," — the  craggy  rocks  on  which  we  stood, 
behind  us  the  sharp  barren  peaks  of  the  mountains  rising  up  to  the  clouds, 
the  picturesque  ruins  of  Dolbadarn  Castle  in  the  valley  beneath,  and  beyond 
it  the  deep  waters  of  Llyn  Peris,  whilst  further  still  might  be  seen  the 
slate  quarries,  dug  deep  in  the  interior  of  the  mountain.  But  hark!  that 
sound  which  strikes  upon  the  ear,  and  echoes  from  crag  to  crag.  It  is 
a  blast  of  the  horn  from  the  quarries  of  AUt,  Du!  the  signal  which  inti- 
mates that  the  blasting  operations  have  reached  a  crisis.  If  you  are  within 
reach  of  danger,  sauve  qui  pent.  Then  breaks  out  the  rolling  roar  of 
repeated  reverberations,  now  echoing  and  re-echoing  amongst  the  rocks  and 
mountains,  and  then  dying  slowly  and  gently  away  like  the  sounds  of 
distant  thunder. 

Descending  from  the  eminence  on  which  we  stood  we  again  obtained 
some  exquisitely  beautiful  specimens  of  Splachnum  ampullaccum,  and  as  we 
continued  our  downward  route  we  had  the  pleasure  of  adding  another  species, 
Macomilrium  pratemum,  to  the  contents  of  our  tin.  The  form  we  col- 
lected was  in  external  appearance  not  very  unlike  Grinimia  patens.  On 
a  large  stone  in  juxtaposition  with  Hymenophyllum  Wilsoni  we  gathered  a 
quantity  of  the  elegant  Jungermannia  j uniperina.  J.  asplenoides  and  albicans 
were  common  in  several  places. 

After  dinner  we  walked  on  to  see  the  falls  of  Caunant  Mawr.  We 
entered  the  narrow  dell — through  which  the  stream  flows — at  its  com- 
mencement— 

"A  stern  and  lone  yet  lovely  road;" 


THREE    DAYS    IN    CAERXAKVONSHIIIK.  63 

altogether  the  scene  reminded  us  of  those  expressive  lines  of  Scott. — 

"It  seemed  some  mountain  rent  and  riven, 
A  passage  for  the  stream  had  given, 
So  high  the  cliffs  of  limestone  grey 
Hung  beetling  o'er  the  torrent  way, 
Yielding  along  their  rugged  base, 
A  flinty  foot-path's  niggard  space, 
Where  he  who  winds  'twixt  rock  and  wave, 
May  hear  the  headlong  torrent  rave, 
And  like  a  steed  in  frantic  fit, 
•  l"hat  flings  the  froth  from  curb  and  bit, 

May  hear  her  chafe,  her  waves  to  spray, 
O'er  every  rock  that  bars  her  way." 

ROKEBY. 

On  the  rocks  we  met  with  Hypnum  ruscifolium  and  plumosum,  and 
Bacomitrium  aceculare,  and  the  trees  which  cover  the  sides  of  the  glen 
produce  OiihotricJium  Brucliii,  and  a  profusion  of  Dicranum  scoparium, 
(Dillenii.)  We  were  agreeably  surprised  to  find  Orthotrichum  Hutchinse 
growing  on  the  rocks  in  this  romantic  ravine;  it  was  in  beautiful  fruity 
but  we  were  only  able  to  procure  a  single  tuft.  Hypnum  heteropterum 
and  a  small  form  of  Notliecium  myosuroides  were  obtained  from  the  shady 
rocks.  Just  before  reaching  the  point  from  which  we  obtained  a  view  of 
the  falls,  a  species  growing  on  some  loose  rocks  attracted  our  attention. 
It  proved  to  be  a  mixture  of  Gampyhpus  longipilus  and  flexuosus.  Mr. 
Wilson,  who  appears  to  have  doubted  the  specific  distinctions  of  the  two, 
regards  it  as  an  important  fact. — Perhaps  I  cannot  do  better  than  intro- 
duce a  quotation  from  his  letter: — "It  is  interesting,  because  it  supplies 
additional  proof  of  the  specific  diversity  of  G.  longipilus  and  flexuosus,  which 
seem  here  to  have  grown  intermixed,  and  therefore  under  precisely  the  same 
local  influence." 

Turning  an  angle  of  the  dell  a  scene  of  magnificent  grandeur  lay  before 
us. — The  falls  of  Caunant  Mawr — the  glittering  waters  come  dashing  head- 
long through  a  dark  cHasm,  then  turning  suddenly  aslant,  rush  with  fierce 
impetuosity  down  the  face  of  the  huge  boulder,  and  fall  in  a  boiling  torrent 
into  the  pool  beneath :  a  scene  worthy  the  glowing  pen  of  a  Scott,  or  the 
'^pencil  pregnant  with  celestial  hues"  of  a  Turner. 

On  the  left  the  precipitous  side  of  the  glen  is  covered  with  tall  trees, 
on  the  right  the  steep  bank  clothed  with  various  species  of  beautiful  ferna 
and  numberless  Hieracia,  and  in  the  back-ground  peak  above  peak  suddenly 
up-swelling  to  their  culmination.  Amongst  the  mosses  growing  within  reach 
of  the  spray  we  noticed  Bacomitrium  pratensum,  or,  as  Braun  has  charac- 
teristically named  it,  B.  cataradarum,  of  a  large  size,  and  with  bright  brown 
capsules.  In  the  stream  above  the  falls  we  gathered  Fontinalis  squamosa, 
and  on  the   rocks   in   its  vicinity  Andrcea  Bothii  occurred   in  fruit,  and   a 


64 


SYSTEMA    NATURiE. 


beautiful  Sphagnum,  probably  S.  contortum,  was  found  in  the  wet  sears  a 
little  higher  up. 

We  followed  the^course  of  the  rivulet  for  a  short  distance,  but  met 
with  nothing  of  inip*tance,  save  some  charming  views  of  mountain  scenery, 
which  an  enthusiastic  artist  was  engaged  in  copying  on  his  canvass.  Our 
downward  course  lay  through  a  wood,  in  which  amongst  other  things  we 
obtained  Dicranum  squamosum. 

(To  he  continued.) 


SYSTEMA    NATURE. 

BY    THE    nEV.  F,  0.  MORRIS. 
( Continued  from  page  39.} 


Ceecopithecus. 

Cercopithecus  sabseus,  Schinz.     Simla 

sabsea,  Shreb.  Cuv. 
Cercopithecus   griseo-viridis,  Des.     C. 

griseus,  Cuv. 
Cercopithecus  pygerythrus,  Schinz. 
Cercopithecus  tantatus,  Schinz,  Ogilhy. 
Cercopithecus  faunus,  Schinz.     C.  cy- 
nosurus,   Geoff.  Scop.  Kuhl.     Simla 
faunus,  Linn.  Schreb. 
Cercopithecus      melarhlnus,       Schinz, 

Geoff.  Des.     C.  talapoln,  Schreb. 

Cercopithecus  tephrops,  Bennet,  Schinz. 

Cercopithecus  petaurlsta,  Schinz.   Simla 

petaurlsta,     Schreb.       S.     ascanlus, 

Schreb. 

Cercopithecus  nictltans,  Schinz.  Laslo- 

pyga  nictltans,  Illig. 
Cercopithecus  pogonlas,  Schinz,  Benn. 
Cercopithecus   Diana,  Schinz.      Simla 

Diana,  Linn.  Audeb.  Schreb. 
Cercopithecus   dladematus,   Geoff.     C. 
Diana,  Cuv.     Simla  leucampyx,  Fis. 
Cercopithecus  fuliglnosus,  Schinz.     Si- 
mla sethiops,  Linn.  Schreb. 
Cercopithecus    ajthiops,    Schinz,    Cuv. 
Simla  sethiops,  Linn.  Schreb.     Cer- 
cocebus   ajthlops,    Geoff. 
Cercopithecus  cephus,    Schinz,   Desm, 
Cuv.     Simla   cephus,  Linn.  Schreb. 
Cercopithecus  mona,  Geoff.  Desm.  Cuv. 


C.  albogularls,  Sj/Jces.     Simla  mona, 

Schreb.     S.  monacha,  Schreb. 
Cercopithecus     erythrotls,     Schinz. 

Water. 
Cercopithecus  Martini,  Schinz,  Water. 
Cercopithecus  Campbelli,   Waterhouse. 
Cercopithecus    ruber,    Schinz,    Desm. 

Cuv.     Slmla'rubra,  Linn.     S.  rufa, 

Schreb.     S.  patas,  Schreb. 
Cercopithecus  pyrrhonotus,  Ehrenbertf. 
Cercopithecus  lablatus,  Isid  Geoff. 
Cercopithecus  monoldes,  Schinz. 
Cercopithecus  Lalandll,  Schinz. 
Cercopithecus  Burnettll,   Gray. 
Cercopithecus  Rolaway,  Schinz.    Simla 

Holaway,  Schreb. 
Cercopithecus  rufo-vlrldis,  Lsid  Geoff". 

Schinz. 
Cercopithecus  melarhlnus,  Schinz. 
Cercopithecus  caplllatus,  ScMnz.     My- 
oplthecus  capUlatus,  Isid  Geoff. 

MACACrUS. 

Macacus  cynamolgus,  Schinz.  M.  Irus, 
F.  Cuv.  Simla  cynamolgus,  Linn. 
S.  aygnla,  Linn.  S.  cynocephalus, 
Linn. 

Macacus  aureus,  Schinz.  Simla  Mu- 
latta,  Shato,  Fisch.  Semnoplthecus 
aureus,  Ijcss. 

Macacus  slnlcus,  Schinz.  Cercopithe- 
cus sinlcus,  Geoff.  Simla  sinica, 
Schreb.  Cuv. 


SYSTEMA   NATUBiE. 


65 


Macacus  radiatus,  ScMnz.  Cercocebus 
radiatus,  Geoff.  Simla  radiata,  Fis. 
S.  sinica,  Linn. 

Macacus  Silenus,  ScMnz.  Cercopitlie- 
CU8  vetulus,  Frnl.  C.  senex,  Hrxl. 
Simla  Silenus,  Linn.  S.  veter,  Linn. 
Papio  Silenus,  Geoff.  Pitliecus  sile- 
nus, Desm. 

Macacus  Rhesus,  ScMnz.  Simla  ery- 
thraca,  Schreb.  Inuus  erytlira;us, 
Wagner. 

Macacus  Assamenis,  ScMnz. 

Macacus  nemestrlnus,  ScMnz.  Simla 
nemestrina,  Linn.  Schreb.  S.  platy- 
pygos,  Cuv.     S.  corpolegos,  Eaff. 

Macacus  arctoides,   Guerin. 

Macacus  fusco  ater,  ScMnz.  Papio 
ochreatus,   Ogilby. 

Macacus  speciosus,  ScMnz,  Cuv. 

Macacus  melanotus,  Ogilby,  Cuv. 

Macacus  Oinops,  ScMnz. 

Macacus  Pelops,  ScMnz. 

Macacus  ecaudatus,  ScMnz.  M.  inuus 
Audeb^  Inuus  ecaudatus,  KuM,  Ge- 
off. Cynocephalus  Inuus,  Lat.  Pith- 
ecus  Inuus,  Desm.  Simla  sylvanus, 
Linn.  Schreb.    S.  plthecus,  Schreb. 

Macacus  maurus,  F.  Cuv.  Geoff.  Ma- 
gus mauras,  Less.  Simla  Cuvleri, 
Fisch. 

CYNOCEPHALTJS. 

Cynoceplialus  Gelada,  ScMnz.  Maca- 
cus Gelada,  Itupp. 

Cynocephalus  Hamadryas,  ScMnz.  C. 
Wagleri,  Agas.     Simla  Hamadryas, 

.  Linn.  Papio  Hamadryas,  Kuhl, 
Schreb. 

Cynocephalus  Babuln,  Desm.  Papio 
cynocephalus,  Geoff.  Simla  basUicus, 
Schreb.     S.  anubis,  Schreb. 

Cynocephalus  sphinx,  Schinz.  C.  Pa- 
pio, Desm.  Cuv.  Simla  sphinx, 
Linn.  Schreb. 

Cynocephalus  ursinus,  ScMnz.  Simla 
sphingiola,  Herm.  Schreb.  S.  por- 
caria,  Schreb.      S.   comata,    Schreb. 

VOL.  VI. 


S.  sylvestrls,  Schreb. 

Cynocephalus  Mormon,  ScMnz.  Si- 
mla Maimon,  Schreb.  S.  Mormon, 
Schreb. 

Cynocephalus  leucophseus,  Desm.  Cuv. 
Simla  leucQphsea,  Cuv.  Inuus  leu- 
cophaeus,  Kuhl. 

Cynocephalus  niger.   Gray,    Schinz. 

Cynocephalus  Toth,  Ogilby,  Schinz. 

Cynocephalus  Choras,  Ogilby,  Schinz. 


Ateles  panlscus,  Linn.    Simia  paniscus, 

Linn.  Schreb.  Kuhl,  Desm.  Cuv. 
Ateles  Chamek,  Fisch.    A.  subpenta- 

dactylus,  Desm.  Less.     Cebus  pen- 

tadactylus,  Blainv. 
Ateles  ater,  Schinz. 
Ateles  marginatus,  Geoff.  Desm.  Kuhl, 

Cuv.    A.  frontahs,  Benn. 
Ateles  Belzebuth,   Geoff.  Kuhl,  Desm. 

Cuv.    A.  fullglnosus,  Kuhl.    Cebus 

Brlssonii,  Fisch.  Schreb. 
Ateles  melanochir,  Schinz,   Cuv. 
Ateles  hybrldus,    Geoff.   Guerin.     Ce- 
bus hybrldus,  Fisch. 
Ateles  fullglnosus,  Kuhl. 
Ateles  hypoxanthus,  Prinz  Max.  Bra- 

chyteles  macrotarsus,  Spix.    Eriodes 

tuberifer,  Geoff. 
Ateles    arachnoides,    Schinz.       Cebus 

arachnoides,  Fisch. 
Ateles  frontatus,  Schinz.    Eriodes  fron- 

tatus,  Gray.     Brachyteles  frontatus. 

Gray. 

LAGOTHEIX. 

Lagothrix  cana,  Humb.  Geoff.  Kuhl, 
Desm.  L.  Humboldtil,  Geoff.  Si- 
mia cana,  Sumb.  S.  lagotrlcha, 
Humb.  Gastrimargus  ohvaceus, 
Spix.     Cebus  canus,  Fisch. 

Lagothrix  infumata,  Schinz.  Gastri- 
margus  infumatus,  Spix. 

Lagothrix  Poppigil,  ScMnz. 


Mycetes  seniculus,  Kuhl.    M.  fuscus, 

K 


66 


SrSTEMA   KATDR^. 


Kuhl.  Stentor  seniculua,  Geoff". 
Simla  seniculus,  Zinn. 

Mycetes  chrysurus,  Schinz.  Stentor 
clirysurus,  Geoff. 

Mycetes  Caraya,  Schinz.  M.  niger,  Des. 
Kuhl.  M.  barbatus,  Spix.  M.  dis- 
color, Spix.  M.  rufimanus,  Kuhl. 
Stentor  niger,  Geoff.  S.  stramineus, 
Geoff.  Kuhl,  Spix.  Simia  Beelzebutli, 
Linn.     S.  Caraya,  Humb. 

Mycetes  flavicaudus,  Schinz. 

CEBtrs, 

Cebus  currifer,  Prinz  Max.  C.  lu- 
natus,  Kuh.l     C.  cristatus,  Zicss. 

Cebus  Azarse,  Schinz.  C.  fatuellus, 
F.  Cuv.  Fisch.  Prinz  Max.  C.  niger, 
Geoff.  C.  Buffonii,  Less.  Simia  fa- 
tuellus, Schrcb. 

Cebus  robustus,  Schinz,  Griff.  C.  ma- 
crocepkalus,  Spix.  C.  cucuUatus, 
Spin.     C.  frontatus,  Kuhl. 

Cebus  Xantliostemos,  Griff.  Prinz 
Max.  C.  Xantbocepbalus,  Spix.  C. 
Monachus,  Geoff.  C.  libidinosus, 
Spix.     C,  variegatus.  Griff. 

C.  bypoleucos,  Schinz. 

Cebus  flavus,  Schinz.  C.  fulvus,  Des.  C. 
Brissonii,  Less.     Simia  flava,  Schr. 

Cebus  apeUa,  Schinz,  Humb.  Griff. 
Desm.  C.  griseus,  Fisch.  C.  niger, 
Fisch.  Simia  apeUa,  Schreb.  Calli- 
tbrix  apella,  Geo.  C.  frontatus,  Kuhl. 

Cebus  capucinus,  Schinz.  C.  barbatus, 
Geoff.  C.  gracilis,  Spix.  Simia  capu- 
cina,  Linn. 

Cebus  griseus,  Pbppig,  Schinz. 

Cebus  albifrons,  Geoff.  Simia  albi- 
frons,  Humb. 

Cebus  cbrysopus,  Schinz.  Simia  chry- 
sopus,  Linn. 

CALLITHEIX. 

Callithrix    personatus,    Geoff.    Schinz. 

Simia  personatus,  Humb. 
Callithrix    melanochir,    Prinz    Max, 

Kuhl,   Schinz.     C.  nigrifrons,  Spix. 

C.  cinerascens,  Spix. 

(To  he 


Callithrix  donaeopKilus,  Orbig.  Schinz. 
Callithrix  Moloch,  Hoff.  Schinz. 
Callithrix  infulatus,  Lich.  Schinz. 
Callithrix  lugens,    Geoff.    Schinz.     C. 

torquata,  Hoff.      C.  amictus,  Geoff. 

Simia  torquata,  Humb. 
Callithrix  cupreus,  Schinz.     C.  cuprea, 

Spix. 
Callithrix  brunnea,  Natt.  Schinz. 
Callithrix  calligata,  Natt.  Wag.  Schinz. 

CHRYSOTHKIX. 

Chrysothrix  sciurens,  Schinz.  C.  Bol- 
iviensis,  Geoff.  Callithrix  sciurea, 
Kuhl,  Cuv.  C.  entomophagus,  c^'Or- 
bigny.     Simia  sciurea,  Shreb. 

Chrysothrix  entomophaga,  Schinz. 

NYCTIPITHECUS. 

Nyctipithecus  trivirgatus,  Schinz.  IS". 
felinus,  Spix.  N.  Duruculi,  Less. 
N.  voeiferans,  Spix.  Aotus  trivir- 
gatus, Humb.  Nocthora  trivirgata, 
Cuv.     Pithecia  miriquina,  Kuhl. 

PITHECIA. 

Pithecia  satanas,  Schinz.  Simia  sata- 
nas,  Humb. 

Pithecia  Israelita,  Schinz.  Brachiurus 
Israelita,  Spix. 

Pithecia  monachus,  Geoff.  Fisch.  Schinz. 
P.  inusta,  Spix.  P.  rufibarba,  Kuhl. 
P.  hirsuta,  Spix. 

Pithecia  rufiventer,  Schinz.  P.  capU- 
lamentosa,  Spix.  P.  noctuma,  Les. 
P.  rufibarbata,  Kuhl.  Simia  rufi- 
venter, Humb. 

Pithecia  leucocephala,  Geoff.  Schinz. 
P.  ochrocephala,  KM.  P.  inusta, 
Spix.  Simia  pithecia,  Schreb.  S.  leu- 
cocephala, Aud.  Cebus  leucocephalus, 
Fisch.    Callithrix  leucocephala,  Lat. 

Pithecia  Guapo,  Poppig,  Schinz. 

Pithecia  melanocephala,  Geoff.  Schinz. 
Simia  melanocephala,  Humb.  Bra- 
chyurus  Ouakary,  Spix.  Cacajao 
melanocephalus.  Less. 

Pithecia  Pogonias,   Gray,  Schinz. 

Pithecia  irrorata,  Schinz. 
continued.) 


67 

TO    THE    EDITOR    OP    ^^THE    NATURALIST." 

I  was  surprised  at  seeing  portions  of  a  letter  of  mine  to  Mr,  Stnurthwaite, 
of  Richmond,  inserted  in  the  December  number  of  "The  Naturalist/'  and 
as  that  letter  was  written  to  shew  the  great  scarcity  of  the  Chough  in  this 
county,  I  am  at  a  loss  to  know  how  the  contents  could  have  removed 
Mr.  S.'s  former  impression  on  the  subject,  nor  did  it  seem  to  have  that 
effect  on  him  at  the  time,  for  in  his  reply  to  me  in  a  letter,  written  on 
the  31st.  October,  1854,  he  says,  "The  highly  interesting  information  which 
you  so  kindly  gave  me  with  regard  to  the  Chough,  is,  I  think,  important 
in  more  ways  than  one;  it  proves  that  the  bird  is  more  rare  in  Cornwall 
than  is  generally  supposed,  and  would  deter  many  from  making  a  useless 
excursion  to  that  coast  for  the  purpose  of  obtaining  its  eggs — a  project  which 
I  have  frequently  heard  discussed."  I  think  this  extract  clearly  shews  that 
Mr.  S.  fully  understood  the  tenor  of  my  letter  to  him.  As  Mr.  S.  is  now 
in  Germany  I  would  wish  to  correct  an  error  or  two  which  have  crept 
into  his  copy,  as  printed  in  "The  Naturalist." — 'Podstone,'  should  be  ^Pad- 
stow;'  'Mucrow,'  should  be  ^The  Manacles;'  and  I  cannot  help  thinking 
'numerous  specimens'  never  appeared  in  my  letter.  With  respect  to  your 
note  at  the  foot  of  Mr.  S.'s  paper,  I  can  only  say  that  I  have  been  a 
resident  in  Cornwall  all  my  life-time,  have  several  times  visited  the  north 
coast,  and  for  nearly  sixteen  years  have  lived  on  the  south  coast,  eastern 
division,  and  have  never  yet  seen  a  living  specimen  of  the  Chough;  and 
Mr.  Jackson,  who,  I  believe,  is  surpassed  by  few  as  a  practical  out-of-door 
ornithologist,  and  has  resided  in  Looe  upwards  of  thirty  years,  has  seen 
but  one  specimen  in  this  locality  during  that  period;  and  on  two  occasions, 
on  visiting  the  western  portion  of  the  south  coast  of  this  county,  from  the 
Lizard  to  the  Land's  End,  saw  but  seven  specimens  on  the  first,  and  three 
on  the  last  visit;  surely  this  does  not  say  much  for  their  being  abundant 
in  Cornwall.  In  what  locality  on  the  South  Devon  coast  are  they  to  be 
commonly  found?  For  years  past  I  have  been  trying  to  procure  eggs  of 
the  Chough  in  this  county,  and  have  not  yet  succeeded. — Stephen  Clogg, 
Looe,  December  18th.,  1855, 

Occurrence  of  the  Mealy  Redpole  (Fringilla  borealis)  at  Hammersmith. — 
On  going  through  Leadenhall  Market  about  a  month  since,  accompanied  by 
a  friend,  we  saw  high  up  amongst  others  at  the  live-bird  sellers,  a  bird  that 
attracted  our  attention,  and  the  next  day  my  friend  bought  it,  intending 
to  keep  it  alive,  but  it  soon  died,  and  he  sent  it  to  me  for  my  collection. 
This  was  the  Mealy  Redpole,  Since  that  time  I  have  known  one  bird- 
catcher  of  this  place  take  seven,  three  of  which  I  purchased;  and  another 
told  me    he  had   taken  about   two    dozen.     On  writing   to   that   excellent 


68  THE   RETROSPECT. 

young  naturalist,  Mr.  James  Gardner,  of  52,  High  Holborn,  offering  to  get 
him  some,  he  replied  that  he  had  then  twenty-four  in  the  flesh.  That  they 
occur  here  only  occasionally  I  am  certain,  never  having  seen  any  before. 
In  the  Rev.  F.  0.  Morris's  splendid,  cheap,  and  coloured  work  on  British 
Birds,  a  work  that  no  young  naturalist  wishing  to  attain  eminence  in  his 
profession  ought  to  be  without,  and  from  which,  without  any  flattery,  I  can 
say  ■  I  have  learnt  more  about  birds  than  I  could  have  done  from  any  other 
work  on  the  subject;  the  author  says,  "In  England  it  is  in  general  only 
rarely  met  with,  but  great  numbers  are  said  to  have  been  taken  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  London  about  the  year  1827,  and  also  in  1829."  He 
then  mentions  where  a  few  others  have  been  taken,  and  goes  on  to  say 
that  it  is  an  inhabitant  of  Greenland.  Whether  its  leaving  its  ice-bound 
habitat,  and  coming  to  our  more  genial  clime,  augurs  a  severe  winter,  I 
leave  it  to  those  who  are  wiser  in  those  matters  than  myself  to  determine. 
— John  Button,  St.  Peter's  Place,  Hammersmith,  December  15th.,  1855. 

Lime  Tree. — A  small  Lime  Tree  in  front  of  a  house  a  few  doors  from 
mine  in  the  Kennington  Road,  has  this  year  put  forth  a  second  crop  of 
leaves,  and  is  now  (in  November)  in  full  spring  garb,  while  all  its  neigh- 
bours exhibit  nothing  but  bare  boughs. — E.  K.  B.,  Kennington  Road,  London, 
November,  1855. 


€\t  Urtrnspftt. 

Bo  not  for  a  moment  imagine  that  a  Lillyputian  in  ornithology  has 
the  audacity  to  contest  with  a  Leviathan  in  that  interesting  branch  of 
Natural  History.  I  wish  to  appear  in  "The  Naturalist"  simply  as  a  recorder 
of  facts — to  describe  Nature  as  I  find  her,  and  thereby  invite  inferences  to 
be  deduced  by  our  ornithologists  most  eminent  in  that  department  of  science. 

You  state  that  the  Hawk  figured  in  No.  55  of  "The  Naturalist,"  is,  in 
your  opinion,  either  a  variety  of  the  Sparrow  Hawk,  or  probably  an  hybrid 
between  the  Kestrel  and  the  Sparrow  Hawk.  By  the  way  I  may,  in  limine, 
remark  how  strange  it  is  that  with  living  authorities  such  as  Selby,  Yarrell, 
and  Jardine,  we  have  not  been  favoured  puhlicMy  with  a  single  line  from 
our  ornithological  literati  as  regards  this  Hawk.  My  description  of  it  may 
have  been  deficient,  but  in  order  to  make  it  as  intelligible  as  possible  to 
the  readers  of  "The  Naturalist,"  I  obtained  Mr.  Benny's  assistance  to 
figure  it  in  the  same  number,  and  I  did  so  chiefly  to  tempt  opinions  from 
men,  whom  we  naturally  look  up  to  in  order  to  set  us  right.  You,  Sir, 
are  an  exception  to  this  omission,  and  your  remarks  have  induced  me  to  offer 
to  your  readers  a  still  further  explanation. 

With  respect  to  this  Hawk  being  a  "variety  of  the  Sparrow  Hawk," 
it  appears  to   me   that  authors  regard  varieties  of  the  Sparrow  Hawk   as 


'the  retrospect,  '^9 

chiefly  consisting  in  difference  in  size  and  colour.  Macgillivray,  for  Instance, 
says  differences  as  to  size  between  individuals,  even  of  the  same  sex^  are 
such  that  many  persons  have  supposed  the  Sparrow  Hawk  divisible  into 
several  species.  Males,  he  says,  vary  an  inch  and  a  half,  and  females  as 
much  as  three  inches;  and  he  adds  that  "the  Scutellae  are  pretty  regular 
as  to  number  in  this  species." 

Now,  on  the  first,  second,  third,  and  fourth  toes,  the  Hawk  I  possess 
numbers,  respectively,  eight,  ten,  twenty- two,  thirteen,  scutellae;  whereas 
the  Sparrow  Hawk  numbers  nine,  fourteen,  twenty -eight,  and  eighteen. 
Surely  that  acute  observer  of  Kature  never  could  have  applied  pretty  regular 
to  this  marked  discrepancy. 

In  the  unknown  Hawk  the  tarsi  are  an  inch  and  three  eighths,  whereas 
the  tarsi  of  the  Sparrow  Hawk  (male)  are  two  inches  and  one-eighth,  and 
of  the  female,  two  inches  and  five-eighths.  The  claws  in  the  unknown 
Hawk  are  a  pale  horny  white,  with  scarcely  any  incurvation,  and  not  half 
the  length  of  the  claws  of  the  Sparrow  Hawk,  which  are,  according  to 
Selby,  "long,  strong,  black,  and  hooked."  According  to  Yarrell,  "curved, 
sharp,  and  black."  According  to  Morris,  black,  pale  bluish  at  the  base." 
According  to   Bewick,  "black."     According  to  Jardine,  "sharp  and  hooked." 

This  difference  as  regards  the  claws  in  colour,  length,  and  form,  seems 
to  be  extreme  in  merely  a  variety. 

The  length  of  tail  in  the  unknown  Hawk  is  five  inches;  in  the  male 
Sparrow  Hawk  it  is  six  inches,  in  the  female  seven  inches  and  a  quarter. 
The  outer  tail  feathers  in  the  unknown  Hawk  are  an  inch  shorter  than 
the  eight  central  ones,  whilst  in  both  the  male  and  female  Sparrow  Hawk 
they  are  not  more  than  one-sixteenth  of  an  inch  shorter.  The  second 
outer  feathers  in  the  unknown  Hawk  are  half  an  inch  shorter  than  the 
eight  central  ones,  whilst  in  the  male  and  female  Sparrow  Hawk  they  are 
equal.  This  difference  in  the  tail  seems  to  me  to  be  too  wide  to  be  merely 
accidental.  In  the  unknown  Hawk  the  length  of  the  tail  extends  an  inch 
beyond  the  tip  of  the  wing,  whereas  the  tail  in  both  male  and  female  of 
the  Sparrow  Hawk  extends  three  inches  beyond  the  tip  of  the  wings. 

In  the  unknown  Hawk  the  length  from  the  anterior  bend  of  the  wing 
to  its  tip  is  seven  inches  and  three-quarters;  whilst  In  the  male  Spar- 
row Hawk  it  Is  seven  inches  and  five-eighths,  and  in  the  female  nine 
Inches.  The  longest  feather  In  the  wing  of  the  unknown  Hawk  is  the 
third,  whereas  in  the  Sparrow  Hawk  the  longest  feathers  are  the  fourth 
and  fifth.  In  the  unknown  Hawk  the  second  longest  feather  In  the  wing 
Is  the  second  quill,  whilst  the  second  longest  in  the  Sparrow  Hawk  is  the 
third  quill.  The  third  longest  feather  in  the  unknown  Hawk  Is  the  outer- 
most quill,  whilst  the  third  longest  in  the  Sparrow  Hawk  Is  the  second 
feather  In  the  wing. 


70  THE    RETEOSPECT. 

The  first  quill  feather  in  the  unknown  Hawk  has  an  abrupt  notch  on 
the  inner  web,  an  inch  and  a  half  from  the  tip;  whereas  the  notch  on 
the  first  feather  in  the  male  Sparrow  Plawk  is  two  inches  and  three- 
quarters,  and  in  the  female  three  inches  from  the  tip.  The  second  quill 
feather  in  the  unknown  Hawk  has  an  abrupt  notch  on  its  inner  web,  one 
inch  and  a  quarter  from  the  tip,  and  is  gradually  narrowed  on  its  outer 
web,  commencing  two  inches  and  a  half  from  the  tip;  whilst  the  second 
quill  feather  in  the  male  Sparrow  Hawk  has  a  notch  on  its  inner  web  two 
inches  and  a  half  from  the  tip,  and  the  narrowing  on  the  outer  web  of 
the  second  quill  commences  in  the  male  Sparrow  Hawk  three  inches  and 
three-eighths  from  the  tip,  and  four  inches  and  a  quarter  from  the  tip  in 
the  female.  The  third  and  remaining  quill  feathers  in  the  wing  of  the 
unknown  Hawk  have  no  notch  on  their  inner  web;  whereas  in  the  male 
and  female  Sparrow  Hawk  the  third  and  fourth  quill  feathers  are  notched, 
and  in  the  male  on  the  outer  web  it  suddenly  begins  to  narrow  upwards  of 
three  inches,  and  in  the  female  three  inches  and  three-quarters  from  the 
tip  of  the   wing. 

In  the  unknown  Hawk  the  dentate  process  is  distinct,  and  is  evidently 
that  of  a  true  Falcon;  whereas  in  the  Sparrow  Hawk  there  is  no  positive 
tooth,  and  the  point  of  the  festoon  is  not  near  the  tip  of  the  upper  man- 
dible, as  in  the  true  Falcons,  but  about  the  middle  of  the  mandible.  In 
the  unknown  Hawk  the  upper  mandible  is  three-quarters  of  an  inch  in 
length;  in  the  male  Sparrow  Hawk  it  is  half  an  inch,  and  in  the  female 
eleven-sixteenths  of  an  inch. 

In  the  unknown  Hawk  the  distance  between  the  nostrils  is  three-six- 
teenths of  an  inch;  in  the  male  Sparrow  Hawk  it  is  two-sixteenths,  and  in 
the  female  three  sixteenths  of  an  inch.  In  the  unknown  Hawk  the  gape, 
from  angle  to  angle  at  the  base  of  the  mouth,  is  three-quarters  of  an  inch; 
in  the  male  Sparrow  Hawk  it  is  half  an  inch,  and  in  the  female  it  is 
ten-sixteenths. 

I  will  now,  as  you  seem  to  encourage  the  idea  that  the  unknown  Hawk 
is  a  hybrid  between  the  Kestrel  and  Sparrow  Hawk,  give  various  com- 
parisons in  detail  with  the   Kestrel. 

In  the  unknown  Hawk  on  the  first,  second,  third,  and  fourth  toes,  the 
scutelloQ  number,  respectively,  eight,  ten,  twenty  two,  and  thirteen;  in  the 
Kestrel  the  numbers  are  seven,  nine,  sixteen,  and  eleven.  In  the  unknown 
Hawk,  from  the  anterior  band  of  the  wing  to  its  tip,  the  length  is  seven 
inches  and  three-quarters;  whereas  in  the  Kestrel  it  is  ten  inches.  In  the 
unknown  Hawk  the  distance  from  the  tip  of  the  wing  to  the  tip  of  the 
tail  is  one  inch  and  one-eighth;  in  the  Kestrel  it  is  two  inches.  In  the 
unknown  Hawk  the  longest  feather  in  the  wing  is  the  third,  whilst  in  the 
Kestrel  the  longest  quill  feather  is  the  second  in  the  wing. 


THE    QUERIST,  71 

The  claws  of  the  unknown  Hawk  are  pale  horny  white^  whilst  the  claws 
of  the  Kestrel  are  black;  the  claws  of  the  former  are  much  shorter^  much 
less  incurvated,  and  much  more  slender,  than  the  claws  of  the  latter.  The 
tail  of  the  unknown  Hawk  is  five  inches  in  lengthy  whilst  that  of  the 
Kestrel  is  seven  and  a  quarter. 

The  tarsi  of  the  unknown  Hawk  measure  one  inch  and  three- eighths^ 
whilst  the  tarsi  of  the  Kestrel  measure  one  inch  and  three-quarters.  The 
first,  second,  third,  and  fourth  toes  of  the  unknown  Hawk  measure,  res- 
pectively, three-fourths  of  an  inch,  three-sixteenths,  one  inch  and  three- 
eighths,  and  one  inch;  whilst  those  of  the  Kestrel  are  nine-sixteenths  of 
an  inch,  three-fourths,  one  inch,  and  thirteen-sixteenths;  of  the  male  Sparrow 
Hawk,  five- eighths  of  an  inch,  three-fourths,  one  inch  and  a  half,  and 
seven-eighths;  and  of  the  female  Sparrow  Hawk,  five-eighths  of  an  inch^ 
three-fourths,  one  inch,  and  thirteen-sixteenths. 

With  regard  to  the  shortness  of  the  claws  in  the  unknown  Hawk,  as  a 
consequence,  in  your  opinion,  of  its  being  the  produce  of  two  tame  or 
domesticated  Hawks,  I  beg  leave  to  diflfer  from  you.  In  the  first  place, 
the  claws  of  birds  kept  in  confinement  invariably  len^hen  so  much  that 
they  frequently  require  to  be  cut  shorter;  and  I  am  equally  sceptical  as  to 
any  influence  exercised  over  the  claws  of  the  young  Hawk,  although  the 
claws  of  the  parent  were  entirely  worn  away. 

If  this  Hawk  be  simply  a  "variety,"  or  even  a  "hybrid,"  why  not  allow 
the  Merlin  to  have  a  share  in  his  production? 

Leedsj  January  11th.,  1856.  Kichard  Hobson,  M.D. 


'^t  (£inmt 

Will  any  of  your  numerous  readers  give  me  authentic  information  as  to 
the  breeding  and  rearing  of  Foreign  and  English  birds  in  confinement.  A 
friend  of  mine  who  has  a  very  large  Aviary  has  been  quite  unsuccessful 
in  this  respect.  The  St.  Helena  Waxbills  have  constructed  several  nests, 
but  they  have  never  laid  eggs.  More  than  one  species  of  these  small 
passerine  birds  have  been  very  busy  with  the  business  of  nidification,  and 
have  done  some  mischief  to  the  shrubs  and  plants,  by  breaking  ofi"  the 
slender  tops  wherewith  to  construct  their  nests,  but  no  sooner  is  one  finished, 
than  they  commence  another.  I  have  heard  that  the  Nightingale  has  been 
known  to  breed  and  rear  young  ones  in  confinement,  but  I  am  very  doubtful 
of  it,  as  these  birds  could  not  find  a  sufficiency  of  insect  food  for  their 
nestlings.  Bechstein  states  that  the  Siskin,  Goldfinch,  and  several  others, 
will  breed  regularly,  even  in  a  room,  but  my  experience  is  directly  con- 
trary to  this.  Whilst  on  this  subject,  I  should  like  to  hear  from  your 
correspondent,  who   stated   some  months    since  that  an  Emu,  belonging   to 


72  THE    QUERIST. 

a  friend  of  his,  was  sitting  upon  a  clutcli  of  eggs,  whether  the  young  were 
hatched  and  reared."'  I  may  mention  that  the  Warbling  Paraquet  of  New 
Holland  will  breed  in  confinement.  At  a  dealer's  near  the  London  Docks, 
I  saw  several  nests  containing  both  eggs  and  young;  and  I  have  been  told 
that  the  bird-dealers  in  Paris  breed  them  regularly  for  sale. — J.  S.  Walker, 
December  11th.,  1855. 

In  an  old  edition  of  that  curious  and  entertaining  work  of  Bellamy's, 
^'Spectacle  de  la  Nature,"  occurs  the  following  interesting  account  of  a 
battle  between  a  Spider  and  a  Fly: — The  insect  generally  known  by  the 
name  of  the  ratenous  caterpillar,  whose  principal  food  is  the  leaves  of  the 
elm,  sometimes  produces  a  large  Fly  that  will  join  battle  with  the  Spider. 
The  intrepid  Fly  in  a  moment  rudely  attacks  the  Spider,  who  lies  in  am- 
buscade in  the  centre  of  his  web;  down  falls  the  Spider  alarmed  at  the 
shock,  but  spinning  with  all  his  might.  The  Fly  takes  the  advantage  of 
confusion,  gives  him  no  quarter,  drags  him  upon  the  ground,  and  breaks 
his  legs.  After  this,  fierce  with  resentment,  he  takes  a  tour  round  his 
adversary,  with  intent  either  to  secure  him,  without  running  the  hazard 
of  a  second  engagement,  or  to  testify  the  joy  he  conceives  on  the  conquest 
gained  over  the  implacable  enemy  of  his  whole  species.  When  he  has 
thus  wheeled  three  times  round  his  captive,  he  fastens  upon  him,  and  con- 
veys him  into  the  air.  I  am  curious  to  know  the  name  of  this  ravenous 
Caterpillar,  and  the  heroic  Ichneumon  Fly  which  treated  the  Spider  in  the 
same  Way  Achilles  did  the  unhappy  Hector,  when,  after  conquering  and 
disarming  his  foe,  he  played  the  tyrant  over  him,  and  conveyed  him  to 
his  tent.^^SiDNEY  Style,  Brighton. 

Answer  to  T.  O.  Bonney's  Query  in  "The  Naturalist"  for  Decemher. — 
Honey-dew  is  the  name  given  to  the  gummy  coating  found  on  the  leaves 
of  trees  and  plants,  and  is  nothing  more  than  the  excrement  of  the  insects 
called  Aphides,  of  which  the  most  familiar  examples  are  Aphis  quercus,  A. 
fa})(2^  and  A.  malt,  all  of  which  I  have  seen  at  different  seasons.  If  writing 
paper  be  placed  under  the  leaves  of  the  plant  on  which  the  Aphis  is 
feeding,  it  will  become  as  thickly  covered  as  the  leaves.  The  fecundity 
of  this  species  is  very  great.  Reaumur  proved  by  experiment  one  Aphis 
to  be  parent  of  5,904-,900  descendants.  The  Aphides  were  thought  by 
the  old  writers  on  Natural  History  to  be  produced  from  a  plastic  fluid 
voided  by  Ants,  from  the  circumstance  of  their  always  being  found  where 
Ants  were  numerous.  (See  Godart  ii,,  Exp.  22.) — Charles  Fryer,  83, 
Rumford  Street,  Manchester,  December  5th.,  1855. 

'^Hips    and   Haws." — What  are   Hips? — F.  O.  Morris,   Nunburnholme 
Rectory,  December  22nd.,  1855. 
*  The  writer  will  see  thi.s  quere  noticed  by  anticipation  in  ttaf^^haHl ^pabe r . — F.O.M. 


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LATELY    PUBLISHED, 

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LONDON:    GROOMBRIDGE    AND    SONS,    PATERNOSTER    ROW. 


TO    ENTOMOLOGISTS. 

Mr.  Foxcroft  begs  to  return  his  sincere  thanks  to  the  Trustees  of  the 
British  Museum,  the  Nobility,  Gentry,  and  Clergymen,  and  also,  particularly 
to  the  Members  of  the  Entomological  Society,  for  the  patronage  he  has 
received  for  a  number  of  years,  and  takes  the  liberty  of  informing  them 
and  others,  that  he  intends  rnaking  another  journey  into  Scotland,  for  the 
purpose  of  collecting  Insects  during  the  Summer  of  1856,  from  the  15th. 
of  March,  to  [the  beginning  of  July,  He  purposes  spending  the  rest  of 
the  season  in  "Wales  and  parts  of  England  to  the  end  of  October,  making  the 
season  seven  months  ancl  a  half. 

Mr.  Eoxcroft,  to  enable  him  to  carry  out  this  plan,  wishes  to  raise  a 
sufficient  sum  by  Subscriptions  of  £1.  3s.  each  Subscriber,  who  shall  be 
entitled  to  two  specimens  of  the  order  he  particularly  wishes  to  obtain; 
the  whole  of  the  Insects  collected  to  be  shared  in  November,  on  Mr.  E.'s 
return.  The  boxes  in  which  the  Insects  are  delivered  to  the  Subscriber, 
to  be  his  property. 

Mr.  F.  hopes  by  visiting  different  localities  to  take  many  rare  and  new 
species,  thus  affording  an  excellent  opportunity  to  Gentlemen  of  obtaining 
desirables  to  their  collections. 

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subscribing  £2.  4s.  will  be  entitled  to  specimens  of  all  the  Orders  of  Insects 
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of  all  the  species  captured  of  such  order  as  ho  may  subscribe  for.  Persons 
sending  their  ov»'n  box,  Subscription  will  be  £1.  Is.,  or  £2.  2s.  if  for 
both  Orders. 

%*  James  Foxcroft  has  always  a  great  variety  of  British  Insects  on  Sale. 

All  kinds  of  Collecting  and  vStore  Boxes,  Cabinets,  etc.,  all  kinds  of 
Breeding  Cages,  Cabinets  for  Shells,  Fossils,  etc.,  made  to  order  on  the 
lowest  terms. 

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3,    UNION    YARD,    OXFORD    STREET,    LONDON. 


No.  62. 


APRIL,   1856. 


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A   POPULAE   MONTHLY   MAGAZINE, 


ILLUSTEATIVE    OF    THE 


ANIMAL,   VEGETABLE,   AND   MINERAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    OCCASIONAL    ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED    BY 

THE    EEV.  P.   0.   MORRIS,     B.A., 

Member  of  the  Ashmolean  Society,  etc. 

Author  of  "A  History  of  British  Birds."       "A  History  of  British  Butterflies,' 

"A  History  of  the  Nests  and  Eggs  of  British  Birds." 

"A  Bible  Natural  History."    "A  Book  of  Natural  Historj-,"  etc.,  etc.,  etc. 


0  Lord,  how  manifold  are  Thy  works!    in  wisdom  hast   Thou    made  them  all:   the 
earth  is  full  of  Thy  riches. — Psalm  civ.,  24. 


LONDON : 

GROOMBRIDGE   AND   SONS,  o,  PATERNOSTER  ROW. 

AND   MAY   BE   HAD   OF   ALL   BOOKSELLEBfi. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

The  Voices  of  Birds.     By  O.  S.  Round,  Esq 73 

A  Chapter  on  Instinct.     By  the  Rev,  F.  0.  Morris 75 

A  Day's  Coachologising  on  the  Islet  of  Herm.     By  W.  V.  Guise,  Esq.         77 

A  Second  Medley.     By  W 80 

Three  Days  in  Caernarvonshire.     By  J.  H,  Da  vies,  Esq 82 

Moth  Hunting^  or  an  Evening  in  a,  Wood. — Leaf  T.     By  Mk.  T. 

Edward 84 

Systema  Naturae.     By   The  Editor 88 

Miscellaneous  Notices. — Anecdote  of  a  Horse.  Two  Eagles  Shot. 
The  Little  Bustard.  The  Blackstart.  Flight  of  Martins.  Scarcity 
of  Birds.  Occurrence  of  the  Great  Plover  and  Spotted  Crake, 
in  Devon.  The  Ring  Ouzel.  Occurrence  of  Rare  Birds. 
English   Names  for  Butterflies  and   Moths.      Callimorpha    Hera. 

A    Christmas  Novelty.     Late  Blossoming  of  the    Laburnum 90 

Retrospect. — The  ^^Great  Unknown"  Hawk 95 

Reviews. — The  Entomologist's  Annual. Rustic  Adornments,  for 

Homes  of  Taste.     By  Shirley  Hibberd.    Price  10s.  6d.     London: 

Groombridge  and  Sons *. 96 

Proceedings    of    Societies. — The   London  Working   Entomologists' 

Society 96 


NOTICES    TO    CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  from  Mb.  James  Gaednek: — J.  J.  R.  •, 
— Miss  GiFFOED: — James  S.Walker,  Esq.: — Mr.  Robert  Anderson: — Mr. 
J.  Melhuish  (two:) — Mr.  C.  Fryer: — Mr.  W.  Brooks  Gates: — W.  V.  Guise, 
Esq: — O.  S.  Round,  Eeq.: — Ms.  Thomas  Armstrong  (two;) — Rev.  Walter 
Kendall: — J.  H.  Davies,  Esq.:— F.  P.  Febnie,  Esq.:— Mb.  E.  Simpkin: — 
Mb.  T.  S.  Tinker. 

^^     Correspondents    are    particularly    requested    to     write    the 
names  of  persons,  places,  and  things  very  distinctly. 


Communications,  Drawings,  Advertisements,  etc.,  to  he  addressed  to  the  Rev. 
F.  O.  MORRIS,  Nunburnholme  Rectori/,  Iluyton,  York; — Books  for  Review 
and  Fai'cels,  to  the  care  of  Messrs.  GROOMBRIDGE,  5,  Faiernostei- 
Roto,  London. 


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73 

THE    VOICES     OF     BIRDS. 

BY    0.  S.  ROUND,    ESQ. 

In  wandering  among  sylvan  solitudes,  it  has  always  been  my  dellghr  to" 
be  a  silent  observer  of  the  ways  of  nature's  sweet  choristers,  and  many  a 
delightful  hour  have  I  thus  spent,  far  from  the  din  of  population,  when 
the  warm  sun  of  early  summer  shed  a  delicious  fragrance  and  a  soft  green 
light  amid  the  branches  of  the  oak  or  beech,  whose  callow  leaves  formed 
so  refreshing  a  medium  between  the  eye  and  the  brilliant  beams  of  the 
bright  orb  of  day.  At  these  seasons  there  might  be  said  to  have  been 
a  full  "band"  of  sweet  untaught  music;  but,  besides  the  song  of  the  pretty 
feathered  performers,  their  voices  were  no  less  a  subject  of  attention. 
Gilbert  White  has  some  excellent  remarks  upon  this  matter,  and,  if  I 
mistake  not,  speaks  generally  as  well  as  specially,  and  indeed,  no  one  who 
has  ears  open  to  what  passes  around,  can  have  failed  to  be  struck  with 
the  language  of  the  feathered  tribes. 

That  all  animals  have  some  mode  of  communicating  with  each  other, 
there  can  be  no  doubt;  of  course  we  must  ever  remain  ignorant  of  its  true 
nature  and  extent,  but  the  fact  is  palpable  enough,  and  known  to  every  one. 
Thus,  cries  of  defiance,  menace,  or  endearment,  are  common  to  all;  and 
even  the  little  glow-worm  "hangs  out  her  lamp"  as  a  kind  of  hieroglyphic 
invitation  to  her  mate.  Animals,  however,  compared  with  birds,  are  not 
rich  in  language,  properly  so  called,  and  the  neigh  of  the  horse,  the  bark 
or  snarl  of  the  dog,  or  the  mew  of  the  cat  in  its  varied  phases  and  in- 
tonations, is  about  the  apparent  extent  of  their  vocal  powers.  With  birds 
it  is  diflferent,  for,  by  the  least  observation,  it  will  be  seen  that  their 
colloquial  powers  are  very  great.  Let  us  just  instance  domestic  poultry, 
who  are  certainly  not  in  any  sense  singing  birds,  and  see  how,  from  the 
rising  to  the  setting  of  the  sun,  their  conversation  continues.  First,  honest 
chanticleer  no  sooner  snuffs  the  morning  air,  than  he  proclaims  the  fact  in 
a  loud  voice,  that  seems  to  say  ^'It  is  light  again,  why  be  ye  there 
slumbering?"  then  there  is  the  cackling  and  commotion  attendant  upon 
such  early  rising;  no  movement  is  taken  without  a  loud  proclamation 
of  the  event,  as  if  the  excitement  was  too  great  to  be  passed  by  in 
silence.  Then  begins  the  business  of  the  day;  the  dewy  grass  is  explored 
for  stray  worms  and  spiders  who  are  basking  on  their  floating  cradles  in 
the  early  beams,  or  any  luckless  entomological  specimen  that  shews  its 
head  above  ground;  and  when  the  dunghill  monarch  chances  to  find  some 
uncommon  prize,  how  he  exults  over  the  capture,  and  calls  his  Harem  around 
him,  to  share  in  the  repast.  Then  there  is  what  is  called  the  "prating," 
said  to  be  a  forerunner  of  laying,  and  a  multitude  of  sounds,  all  modifications 
of  a  croak  or  a  scream,  which  is  sometimes  so  singular  that  I  have  been 

VOL,  VI.  L 


74  THE    VOICES    OF    HIUBS. 

startled  by  it,  and  have  been  at  first  at  a  loss  to  account  for  the  sound. 
Then,  if  a  large  bird  happen  to  fly  past,  what  a  significant  cry  of  warning 
the  cock  utters;  and  how  all  the  stray  hens  and  chickens  immediately  take 
shelter;  this  is  so  direct  in  its  character  and  effects  that  there  is  no  mis- 
taking that  it  is  understood  as  well  as  if  it  said  "Beware,  a  Hawk  is 
near,"  or  any  other  analogous  sentence  of  warning.  Then  there  is  the 
rejoicing  when  the  egg  has  been  laid,  in  which  the  cock  and  sometimes 
the  other  hens  so  readily  join;  and  last,  but  not  least,  the  fuss  and  arrange- 
ment and  the  "talk"  that  is  going  on  whilst  the  arrangements  for  the 
night  are  being  made;  truly  it  is  worthy  studying,  and  I  have  often  done 
so    with  as  much   entertainment  as  curiosity. 

And  this  reminds  me  that  this  cry  of  warning  is,  I  think,  the  com- 
monest portion  of  the  conversation  of  birds.  Listen  to  the  loud  cries  of 
all  small  birds  when  a  Hawk  is  in  the  vicinity,  particularly  of  the  Swallow 
tribe;  call  to  mind  as  you  walked  by  the  hedge-row  in  summer  how  the 
harsh  chatter  of  the  Whitethroat  sounded  from  the  thickness  of  the  brake, 
and  how  the  inward  note  of  the  Bullfinch  was  heard  amidst  the  evergreen 
foliage.  The  Common  Sparrow  has  a  peculiarly  warning  cry,  short  and 
brief  as  it  is;  and  I  have  often  remarked  how  almost  certainly  you  may 
know  whether  it  is  a  wet  morning,  before  you  open  your  shutters,  by  the 
peculiar  clamour  which  these  birds  make  on  such  occasions;  it  is  not  easy, 
of  course,  to  discover  why  this  is,  but  it  has  an  uncomfortable  sound,  as 
if  they  were  very  ill  at  ease,  and  disliked  their  tails  getting  so  very  wet; 
for,  be  it  remembered,  all  moisture  runs  down  them,  and  I  have  often 
shot  birds  just  after  a  wet  day,  when  they  were  as  dry  as  bones — except 
the  tail.  In  fact  from  the  time  the  bird  breaks  the  egg  this  language 
is  kept  up,  and  it  is  notorious  how  the  return  of  the  mother  to  the  nest 
is  welcomed;  next,  what  cries  of  rivalry  and  anxiety  are  heard,  faint  though 
they  be;  and  next  the  gradually  subsiding  sound  that  betokens  as  much 
as  anything  can  betoken,  that  the  morsel  has  been  received,  and  has  given 
satisfaction. 

There  is  another  thing  which,  to  the  observer  of  nature,  is  as  well  known 
as  all  these,  namely,  the  difference  which  is  perceptible  in  spring  from  other 
seasons  in  the  "voices  of  birds;"  this,  of  course,  is  almost  wholly  confined 
to  our  native  birds,  for  the  others  are  gay  gentlemen,  who  only,  with  us, 
revel  in  the  sunshine;  and  therefore  we  know  little  or  nothing  of  their  winter 
habits,  that  is  in  a  wild  state;  whilst  those  that  are  strictly  ours,  we  have 
an  opportunity  of  watching,  if  we  feel  so  disposed,  at  all  seasons.  The 
wary  Sparrow,  the  taciturn  Greenfinch,  the  Golden-crowned  Wren,  and 
every  songster  with  which  we  are  familiar,  have  spring  notes  and  manners, 
springing  from  that  mysterious  influence  which  domestic  cares  and  objects 
BO  unerringly  excite;  and  upon  this  it   is  quite  unnecessary  to  dilate. 


I 


A    CHAPTER    ON    INSTINCT.  iO 

Again,  the  voices  of  birds  are  very  descriptive  of  tlieir  various  characters. 
The  soft  inward  notes  of  the  fruit- eating  and  insectivorous  birds  proclaim 
their  harmless  habits,  while  the  discordant  notes  of  others  point  them  out 
at  once,  either  as  predaceous  or  so  in  a  modified  degree.  It  is  remarkable 
that  amongst  water-birds  there  are  no  songsters;  as  if  the  murmuring  of 
the  brook,  or  the  roar  of  the  ocean  ought  not  to  be  broken  by  any  other 
sound.  It  is  true  there  is  the  Reed  Wren,  or  Salicaria,  a  "sweet  polyglot," 
as  Gilbert  White  aptly  calls  it,  and  the  Water-pyot,  which  have  sweet 
inward  "trillin::rs;"  but  when  we  come  to  the  Ducks,  Gulls,  Terns,  and 
Tringas,  we  all  know  very  well  what  sort  of  music  they  make;  but  still  each 
of  them  has  its  "voices"  too;  and  the  common  Ducks  and  Geese  of  domes- 
tication, if  watched,  will  be  found  to  furnish  as  good  an  example  of  my 
proposition  as  the  Gallince;  and  so  would  probably  many  more  kinds,  had 
we  the  same  opportunity  of  observing  them.  The  Swan  is  said  to  sing, 
but  when  I  first  heard  the  Hooper  or  Wild  Swan,  I  paid  it  the  very 
bad  compliment  to  mistake  it  for  the  turning  of  a  rusty  hinge. 

The  song  of  birds,  that  charming  attribute  which  distinguishes  them 
from  all  other  creatures,  the  human  race  not  excepted,  I  shall  perhaps 
speak  of  hereafter,  but  for  the  present  shall  content  myself  with  these 
observations. 

Pembroke  Square,  Kensington,  February,  1856. 


A     CHAPTER     ON     INSTINCT. 

BY    THE    REV.    F.    0.    MORRIS. 
(  Continued  from  page  60.  J 

The  Gasteropods,  or  cuttle-fish,  still  more  advanced,  endowed  with  some- 
thing approaching  to  a  brain,  are  enabled  to  move  towards  an  object  as 
if  with  curiosity,  and  if  alarmed  by  it,  are  to  be  seen  suffused  with  a  blush 
of  red,  and  then  they  eject  the  contents  of  an  ink-bag,  which  Nature  has 
furnished  them  with  for  a  protection,  and  hide  themselves  from  the  obserr 
vation  of  the  enemy  that  they  dread. 

A  step  farther  in  the  scale  of  creation  we  meet  with  the  class  of  star- 
fishes. These  give  the  first  manifestation  of  a  true  nervous  system,  for 
though  apparently  sluggish,  and  devoid  of  all  intelligence,  they  display  an 
instinctive  sagacity  in  choosing  and  seeking  for  their  food.  So  also  the 
common  sea-hog,  sea-egg,  or  echinus,  though  seemingly  destitute  of-  every 
sense,  and  unable  either  to  see  or  hear,  will  ascend  up  and  descend  into 
the  trap  set  to  catch  crabs,  and  when  it  wishes,  will  ascend  again  to  the 
bait,  and  choose  that  which  it  seems  to  prefer. 

It  would  appear  to  be  a  certain  fact  that  many  animals  have  nerves  of 


76  A    CHAPTER    OX    INSTISCT. 

sense  altogether  different  from  any  which  man  possesses^  and  which  he 
therefore  can  form  no  idea  of.  The  migratory  impulse  may  be  an  instance 
of  this,  and  from  some  capacity  of  knowledge  hidden  from  us,  the  pig, 
as  before  observed,  carries  straw  in  its  mouth  before  a  high  wind,  as  if 
conscious  that  it  needed  to  shelter  itself  better,  and  the  cat  washes  her 
face  when  damp  weather  is  approaching;  and  both  of  these  not  only  many 
hours  at  least  before  the  actual  change  takes  place,  but  many  even  before 
any  indication  of  it  appears  to  our  own  less  keen  foresight. 

Very  possibly,  indeed,  many  of  the  creatures  themselves  may  be  unaware 
of  any  meaning  or  motive  in  their  own  actions,  but  in  other  instances  the 
contrary  is  the  case,  as  proved  by  a  preparation  for  a  change  of  place. 
Even  we  ourselves  perform  some  actions  mechanically,  and  without  the 
exercise  of  the  will;  as,  for  example,  in  swallowing,  we  exercise  choice  in 
taking  food,  but  none  in  swallowing  it,  after  once  it  has  come  in  contact 
with  that  part  of  the  throat  called  the  Isthmus  faucium.  Thus,  the  oyster 
opens  its  shell  at  the  flow  of  the  tide,  and  shuts  it  against  any  object  that 
comes  in  contact  with  it;  and  thus  the  boa-constrictor  must  go  through 
a  certain  routine  in  swallowing  its  food. 

In  coming  to  the  higher  class  of  living  beings,  it  must  be  remembered 
that  the  organizations  which  alone  are  possessed  by  the  inferior  creatures 
arc  not  left  behind — they  are  only  added  on  to  by  new  tissues,  being  sup- 
plied seriatim  in  addition  to  those  possessed  by  the  lowest  order  in  creation. 
There  is  a  progressive  scale  in  the  order  of  Nature,  although  it  be  true  at 
the  same  time  that  there  are  some  animals  which  stand  out,  as  it  were, 
from  the  line,  exhibiting  an  approach  to  other  creatures  even  of  a  different 
order.  Thus  the  feet  of  the  Kangaroo  exhibit  a  visible  approach  to  those 
of  a  bird;  and  again  another  animal,  the  Ornithorynchus  has  an  actual  bill, 
resembling  that  of  a  duck;  a  species  of  reptile,  too,  so  to  call  it,  the 
Lepidosiren  annedeus,  partakes  at  the  same  time  so  much  of  the  nature  of 
a  fish  as  to  leave  it  uncertain  to  which  class  it  belongs,  only  that  its  going 
into  a  torpid  state,  enveloping  itself  in  the  mud,  shews  that  it  has  an  afiinity 
to  the  former  class. 

But  to  proceed  to  illustrations  of  the  varied  instincts  of  some  few  of 
the  different  animals  placed  higher  in  the  scale  of  creation  than  those  I 
have  already  spoken  of.  Some  actions  vary  with  the  age  of  the  animal; 
others  are  chronic,  and  distinctive  of  the  species. 

Many  of  these  are  so  striking,  that  some  have  gone  so  far  as  to  assign 
positively  to  animals  an  imdying  soul,  on  the  strength  of  the  text  before 
referred  to;  but  whether  this  be  so  or  not,  a  point  we  may  not  too  cu- 
riously inquire  into  with  effect,  it  does  seem  that  some  animals  of  the 
higher  ranks  of  creation,  are,  beyond  all  question,  able  to  exercise  what  we 
have  no   name  for,  if  we  do  not  call  it  a  reasoning  faculty.      Locke,    the 


CONOIIOLOOY    OF    HEKM.  77 

celebated  author  of  the  "Essay  on  the  human  understanding,"  says,  '4t 
seems  as  evident  that  some  of  them  do  in  certain  instances  reason,  as  that 
they  have  sense,  but  only  in  particular  ideas,  just  as  they  received  them 
frona  the  senses.  They  are,  the  best  of  them,  tied  up  within  narrow  bounds, 
and  have  not,  I  think,  the  faculty  to  enlarge  them  by  any  kind  of  abstraction." 
The  author  of  the  "Natural  History  of  Animals,"  asserts  of  thera  that 
their  actions  are  "performed  with  a  view  to  consequences,  the  result  of  a 
train   of  reasoning  in   the  mind   of  the    animal." 

'^rhis  every  one  of  any  observation  must  corroborate,  while  he  allows, 
with  the  author  just  referred  to,  that  they  are  "remarkably  deficient  when 
compared  with  those  of  menj  that  they  cannot  take  so  full  a  review  of  the 
past,  nor  look  forward  with  so  penetrating  an  eye  to  the  future;  that  they 
do  not  accumulate  observation  on  observation,  or  add  the  experience  of  one 
generation  to  that  of  another."  Another  writer  of  eminence  says,  "We 
shall  readily  allow  that  some  of  the  inferior  animals  seem  to  have  per- 
ception of  particular  truths,  and,  within  very  narrow  limits,  the  faculty  of 
reason." 

Instinct  has  been  defined  to  be  a  certain  power  "by  which,  independent 
of  all  instruction  or  experience,  without  deliberation,  and  without  having 
any  end  in  view,"  beyond  an  immediate  one,  "animals  are  unerringly 
directed  to  do,  spontaneously,  whatever  is  necessary  for  the  preservation  of 
the  individual,  or  the  continuation  of  its  kind."  On  the  other  hand, 
"Reason,"  says  Ur.  Reid,  "has  two  offices,  or  degrees;  the  first  is  to  judge 
of  things  self  evident;  the  second,  to  draw  conclusions  that  are  not  self- 
evident  from  things  that  are."  That  all  animals  have  instinct  is  a  plain 
matter  of  fact. 

Now  do  certain  animals,  in  addition  to  such,  their  instinctive  actions, 
perform  any  which  may  be  called  rational  actions?  Do  they  draw  conclusions 
from  certain  facts,  and  act  on  the  experience  that  they  have  gained,  and 
that  even,  perhaps,  in  a  way  which  may  be  opposed  to  their  instinctive 
notions?  Might  not  volumes  be  written  on  the  apparently  reasoning 
actions  of  the  Elephant,  the  Horse,  and  the  Dog?  Nay,  is  there  not  much 
to  be  said  on  this  head,  even  of  the  Ass,  the  Hog,  and  the  Goose — 
animals  whose  very  names  are  by-words  for  expressing  stupidity  and 
sirapleness? 

(  2'o  be  continued.) 


A    DAY'S    CONCHOLOGISING    ON    THE    ISLET    OF    HERM. 

BV    W.    V.    GUISE,    ESQ.,    F.G.S. 

Who  knows  anything  of  the  little  islet   of  Herm?      Its   very  name  is 
omitted  from   the  lists  of  the  Channel  Islands  in  many  of  the  elementary 


78  CONCHOLOGY    OF    HERM, 

geographies.  Yet  is  Herm  a  very  notable  islet,  some  three  miles  in  cir- 
cumference, abounding  in  interest  to  the  antiquary,  and  as  forming  one 
of  that  remarkable  Archipelago  of  primitive  rocks,  comprising  Alderney, 
Guernsey,  Serq,  and  Jethou,  not  wanting  in  claims  to  special  and  separate 
consideration,  but  especially  noticeable  in  respect  of  the  field  it  offers  for 
the  study  of  Marine  Zoology,  in  which  regard  it  is  not  surpassed  in 
interest  by  any   spot  of  similar  extent  in   the   British    dominions. 

In  the  summer  of  1854,  in  the  course  of  a  ramble  amongst  the  Channel 
Islands,  I  passed  two  days  at  Herra,  (amongst  the  most  enjoyable  I  have 
ever  spent,)  in  company  with  a  friend,  who  like  myself,  was  bent  upon 
investigating  the   "treasures  of  the  deep." 

I  must  premise,  by  way  of  hint  to  those  who  may  come  after,  that 
our  accommodation  was  somewhat  of  the  roughest.  Half  a  dozen  i-ude 
stone  cottages  suffice  to  shelter  the  fisher  population  of  the  island,  two 
of  which  adjoining  each  other,  under  the  proprietorship  of  Mr.  Touzeau, 
offered,  at  that  time,  the  only  accommodation  to  be  found  for  visitors. 
This  was  our  head-quarters,  and  comprised  a  small  and  scantily-furnished 
sitting-room  down-stairs,  and  a  double-bedded  sleeping  apartment  above; 
not  luxurious,  but  still  sufficient  for  our  requirements;  nor  should  we 
have  had  much  to  complain  of,  had  the  commissariat  been  placed  upon  a 
somewhat  better  footing;  but,  being  dependent  upon  Guernsey  for  sup- 
plies of  every  description,  if  the  weather  is  from  any  cause  unfavourable, 
these  supplies  are  absolutely  cut  off,  and  there  is  nothing  left  in  that 
case  but  to  dine  with  Duke  Humphrey,  or  to  make  as  good  a  dinner  as 
you  can  of  the  produce  of  the  fishermen's  nets;  which  latter  was  our 
alternative;    and  although,  as  Horace  says, 

"Jejunus  raro  stomachus  vulgaria  temnit," 

still,  boiled  bass  and  salt  is  rather  vapid  food.  Milk,  too,  was  hardly 
procurable,  a  small  teacup-full  morning  and  evening  being  all  that  the 
sole  farmer  in  the  island  could  supply;  and  as  our  host's  coffee  was 
extremely  acrid,  we  should  have  been  hard  put  to  it  in  the  matter  of 
beverages  had  he  not  fortunately  possessed  a  good  stock  of  'bitter  ale* 
in  bottle,  with  the  aid  of  which  we  made  shift  to  get  on  tolerably  well. 

It  will  be  seen  from  this  that  while  under  the  roof  of  'old  Touzeau,' 
we  did  not  lead  the  life  of  Sybarites,  but  our  time  was  so  fully  and 
agreeably  employed  while  in-doors,  in  examining,  cleaning,  and  arranging 
the  spoils  collected  during  the  day,  that  our  gastronomic  deficiencies  came 
to  be  regarded  as  matters  of  very  insignificant  concern. 

We  had  selected  for  our  visit  to  Herm  the  period  of  the  lowest  spring- 
tides, and  were  gratified  on  the  first  morning  after  our  arrival  by  seeing  the 
sea-bottom  laid  bare  to  a  considerable  distance  from  the  coast,  upon  which 


COUCHOLOGY    OF    HERM.  79 

the  whole  population  of  both  sexes  and  of  all  ages,  had  turned'  out  with 
their  baskets  on  their  backs,  to  take  advantage  of  the  occasion  to  seek 
for  shell-fish. 

Touzeau  was  our  guide,  and  a  very  useful  and  intelligent  one  we  found 
him;  for  having  been  in  the  habit  of  accompanying  some  of  our  most  sci- 
entific and  persevering  marine  naturalists  in  their  researches  upon  these 
coasts,  he  was  well  acquainted  with  the  shell  rarities  and  their  habitats. 
He  at  once  led  us  away  from  the  muddy  flats  immediately  before  us,  to 
a  rocky  point  nearly  a  mile  distant,  towards  which  all  the  fishermen  and 
women  likewise  directed  their  course. 

Having  arrived  at  our  hunting-ground,  we  proceeded  at  once  to  turn 
over  the  stones  and  large  pieces  of  rock  which  lay  profusely  scattered 
around;  and  none  but  an  enthusiastic  naturalist  can  understand  the  glorious 
excitement  of  stone-turning  upon  a  rich  coast,  such  as  this.  It  was  no 
mere  child's  play,  either,  for  many  of  the  rocks  were  of  a  size  to  require 
our  united  forces  to  move;  moreover,  we  were  always  mid-leg  deep  in 
water,  and  sometimes,  in  wading  from  one  place  to  another,  nearly  up  to 
our  waists;  but  we  were  rewarded  by  perpetual  discoveries  of  novelties  or 
rarities,  or  else  of  some  unusually  large  or  finely-developed  specimen,  and 
loud  and  eager  were  the  shouts  from  one  to  the  other  as  each  successive 
block  was  turned  over,  and  fresh  treasures  displayed  themselves  to  the 
eye  and  grasp  of  the  delighted  seekers. 

Here  were  the  large  tropical-looking  Ear- shell,  {Haliotis  tuherculata,)  in 
abundance — a  Mediterranean  form,  of  which  the  Channel  Islands  constitute 
the  northern  limit;  these  adhered  to  the  stones  with  marvellous  tenacity, 
and  were  only  to  be  dislodged  by  a  sudden  and  severe  blow.  Under  the 
name  of  "Ormers,"  they  are  much  sought  for,  and  largely  consumed  by 
the  inhabitants  of  the  Channel  Islands,  who  esteem  them  excellent  meat;  but 
to  us  they  proved  tough,  strong,  and  disagreeable,  though  cooked  by 
Touzeau's  fair   daughter  after  the  most  approved   fashion. 

Besides  these,  we  found  adhering  to  rocks  and  stones,  Anomia  ephippium, 
and  striata,  Acmcea  virginea,  Area  lactea,  and  tetragona,  Einarginula 
reticulata,  Fissurella  reticulata,  Chiton  discrepans,  Trochus  exiguus,  and 
striatus,  Marex  corallinus,  (this  latter  in  great  abundance,)  and  lastly,  that 
most  peculiar  and  interesting  bivalve  Galeomma  Turtoni,  the  desire  of  seeing 
which  in  its  natural  habitat,  had  largely  influenced  us  in  selecting  Herm 
for  our  conchologising  ground.  It  is  found  but  sparingly,  and  only  at  one 
point  on  the  coast,  which,  without  the  guidance  of  Touzeau,  we  should 
probably  never  have  discovered;  as  it  was  we  did  not  obtain  more  than 
half  a  dozen  examples,  none  of  which  were  large :  but  it  was  most 
interesting  to  observe  the  mollusk  adhering  with  expanded  valves  to  the 
under  side  of  stones,  its  white   mantle  covering  the   shell   externally,    and 


80  A    SFX'OND    MEDLEY. 

giving  it  a  very  peculiar,  and,  (if  I  may  use  the  expression,)  Bulloea-like 
appearance. 

Concealed  beneath  stones  we  found  two  individuals  of  Octopus  vulgaris, 
or  Common  Poulpe,  called  by  the  fishermen  "blood- suckers;"  they  seek 
them  for  bait  for  congers;  and  strange  tales  are  told  of  narrow  escapes 
from  death  by  those  who,  having  incautiously  inserted  their  hands  beneath 
rocks,  in  quest  of  the  bait,  have  been  detained  by  the  arms  and  sucking- 
disks  of  the  Octopus,  until  their  cries  have  drawn  assistance  barely  in  time 
to  rescue  them  from   the  returning  tide. 

The  whereabouts  of  these  Octopi  was  revealed  to  us  by  the  heaps  of 
shells  at  the  mouth  of  their  burrow,  whose  owners  had  furnished  a  meal 
to  the  rapacious  Ogre  within.  When  drawn  out  of  their  place  of  con- 
cealment, they  shuffled  about  in  a  strange  awkward  fashion  with  their  long 
arms,  and  rolled  their  great  eyes  in  a  very  hideous  and  distracted  manner. 
Pliny  has  a  great  deal  to  say  concerning  these  Polypi,  as  he  calls  the 
Cuttle-fish  tribe,  in  the  Ninth  Book  of  his  Natural  History,  chap,  xxix., 
from  which  I  extract  the  following  account,  taken  from  the  quaint  trans- 
lation by  Philemon  Holland,  as  bearing  especially  upon  what  I  have  just 
related : — 

"Of  all  soft  fishes  they  only  go  out  of  the  water  to  dry  land,  especially 
into  some  rough  place,  for  they  cannot  abide  those  that  are  plaine  and 
even.  They  live  upon  Shel-fishes,  and  with  their  haires  or  strings  that 
they  have,  they  will  twine  about  their  shels  and  crack  them  to  pieces; 
wherefore  a  man  may  know  where  they  lie  and  make  their  abode,  by  a 
number  of  shels  that  lie  before  their  nest.  And  albeit  otherwise  it  be  a 
very  brutish  and  senslesse  creature,  so  foolish  withall,  that  it  will  swim 
and  come  to  a  man's  hand;  yet  it  seems,  after  a  sort,  to  be  witty  and 
wise,  keeping  a  house  and  maintaining  a  familie;  for  all  that  they  can 
take  they  carry  home  to  their  nest.  When  they  have  eaten  the  meat  of 
the  fishes,  they  throw  the  empty  shels  out  of  dores,  and  lie,  as  it  were, 
in   ambuscado  behind,  to  watch  and  catch  fishes  that  swim  me  thither." 

(To  be  continued.) 


A     SECOND     MEDLEY. 


Worm  Pipe  Fish,  {Syngnathus  anguineus.) — This  fish  was  rather  plen- 
tiful here  during  autumn.  I  received  the  first  specimen  on  the  8th.  of 
September;  since  that  time  I  have  obtained  as  good  as  a  dozen.  The 
longest  measures  eleven  inches  and  a  half.  The  colours  vary  from  a  pale 
olive  green  to  a  very  dark  green;  in  a  few  it  was  almost  black.     When  at 


A    SKCOXD    MEDLEY. 


81 


fest  ill  a  basin  of  water  they  lay  with  the  tail  twisted  round  the  body 
hear  the  head. 

Bib,  (MorrJiua  lusca,)  has  been  rather  plentiful. 

Cook  Wrasse,  (Lairus  mixtus.)^-A.  specimen  of  this  rare  and  beautiful 
fish  was  caught  by  hook  by  a  Macduff  fisherman  on  the  8th.  of  November, 
and  kindly  presented  to  me.  It  was  of  small  size,  its  length  was  ten 
inches  and  a  half,  and  its  depth  two  inches  and  seven-tenths;  from  the 
nose  to  the  dorsal  fin  it  measured  three  inches  and  three-tenths,  to  the 
eye  one  inch  and  a  half,  and  to  the  vent  five  inches  and  seven-tenths. 
It  is  impossible  to  do  anything  like  justice  to  its  colours  by  word  painting. 
A  little  below  the  eyes  was  a  band  of  blue,  shaped  somewhat  like  a  horse- 
shoe; between  the  eyes  was  a  straight  one,  and  a  little  behind  this  second 
a  third;  about  half-way  between  the  last  line  and  the  dorsal  fin  was  a 
large  round  spot  of  blue.  The  cheeks  were  striped  with  blue  and  orange; 
along  the  sides  were  numerous  blue  spots,  that  appeared  to  have  formed  a 
continuous  line  when  in  life.  The  dorsal  fin  orange,  with  a  spot  of  blue 
about  an  inch  long  on  the  anterior  part,  and  tipped  with  blue;  the  tail 
was  blue;  pectoral  fins  orange  with  a  spot  of  blue  at  the  root,  ventral 
fins  orange  with  a  spot  of  blue  on  the  lower  edge.  The  eyes  were  covel'ed 
with  large  inflated   bags. 

Unctuous  Sucker,  (Liparis  vulgaris.') — -On  the  15th.  of  November,  a 
specimen  of  this  fish,  rather  rare  here,  was  brought  me  by  a  boy  who 
was  foraging  for  me,  after  the  boats  had  arrived.  It  was  beautifully 
marked. 

Porbeagle,  (Lamna  cornuhica.) — A  specimen  of  this  Shark  was  caught 
by  a  boat  belonging  to  Macduff,  on  November  21st,  It  had  seized  the 
cod-hook,  and  feeling  itself  caught,  had  struggled  to  get  free,  but  it  became 
more  and  more  entangled;  when  taken  into  the  boat  it  was  quite  dead. 
Some  of  its  dimensions  were  as  follows: — Length  from  nose  to  tail  six 
feet,  from  nose  to  eye  five  inches,  to  ventral  fin  one  foot  eleven  inches, 
to  dorsal  fin  two  feet  five  inches,  to  nostril  three  inches  and  a  half;  girth 
three  feet  ten  inches  and  a  half,  height  of  dorsal  fin  one  foot  one  inch 
and  a  half,  length  of  pectoral  fin  one  foot  five  inches;  upper  lobe  of  tail 
one  foot  nine  inches,  lower  one  foot  three  inches.  When  Mr,  Edward 
opened  it  he  found  in  its  stomach  a  cod-fish  cut  in  two,  the  skeleton  of 
another  fish,  and  a  good  many  other  bones. 

Lemon  Dab,  Platessa  microcepJiala.) — On  November  23rd.,  was  brought 
me  a  specimen  of  this  rather  rare  fish.  Its  length  was  seven  inches,  and 
its  depth  two  inches  and  nine-sixteenths,  exclusive  of  the  fins,  which  each 
measured  three-quarters  of  an  inch.     The  anal  was  an  inch  and  a  half  long» 

So  much  for  fish;  the  remainder  of  our  remarks  shall  develop  themselves 
into  what  relates  to  two  birds  and  a  moth. 

VOL.  VL  u 


82  THREE   DAYS    IN    CAEnNARVONSHIRE. 

Crossbill,  (Loxia  curvirostra.) — Being  on  a  visit  to  Keith,  T  called  on 
Mr.  J.  Clayton,  Druggist,  who  employs  his  spare  hours  in  bird-stuffing;  and 
in  his  collection  found  two  Crossbills  that  had  been  shot  near  Keith.  They 
are  rather  plentiful  near  Dufftown,  and  they  have  been  observed  near  Banff, 
so  that  Banffshire  may  be  set  down  as  well  supplied  with   thena. 

Nightjar,  (^Capi'imulgun  Fniropceus.) — Well  do  I  remember  the  occurrence 
of  this  bird  near  Keith,  many  years  ago,  when  I  was  a  boy.  In  the  still 
evenings,  when  out  at  play,  suddenly  wonld  the  jar  of  the  bird  startle  me, 
and  bring  a  sort  of  fear  over  me;  and  I  can  look  back  with  a  kind  of 
pleasure  on  the  superstitious  dread  I  had  of  it.  From  what  T  felt  then 
I  can  form  a  notion  of  hovr  the  bird  has  been  elevated  to  so  high  a  place 
in   popular  superstition. 

Unicorn  Moth,  {Sphinx  convolvuli .) — A  specimen  of  this  Moth  was  caught 
by  Dr.  Bidie,  Cullen,  in  one  of  the  windows  of  the  F.  C,  School,  Port- 
nockie,  about  the  end  of  August.  Another  was  caught  about  the  same 
time  in  Macduff,  and  is  now  in  my  incipient  collection,  of  which,  perhaps, 
more  afterwards. 

Macduff,  January  l^tJi.,  1856. 


THREE    DAYS    IN     CAERNARVONSHIRE. 

BT   J.  H.  DA  TIES,    ESQ. 

A  Paper  read  before  the  Thirsk  !N"a:tural  History  Society, 

(Conduded  from  page  64.^ 

.Returning  to  our  inn,  we  engaged  a  gnide  to  take  tis  up  Snowdon  at 
an  early  hour  the  following  morning.  The  morning  arrived,  and  the  guide 
awoke  us  at  the  appointed  time.  I  looked  out  of  the  window,  but  where 
we  bad  hoped  to  see  golden  Aurora  fringing  the  eastern  hills  with  the 
glorious  beams  of  her  brightness,  were  huge  clouds  of  mist,  choking  up  the 
valleys,  and  concealing  the  mountains  from  view.  At  seven  o'clock  it  was 
the  same,  with  the  addition  of  a  thick  drizzly  rain,  and  we  were  reluctantly 
forced  to  give  up  the  idea  of  the  proposed  ascent;  but  we  thonght  of  the 
pass  of  Llanberis,  which  otherwise  we  should  have  missed,  and  were  con- 
soled. A  month  might  very  well  be  spent  in  exploring  the  rocky  moun- 
tains of  the  vicinity. 

At  the  end  of  Llyn  Peris  a  quantity  of  Dicranum  squarrosum  was 
noticed  in  addition  to  that  foimd  in  the  other  locality.  By  the  time  we 
reached  here  the  rain  had  ceased,  and  when  we  arrived  at  the  antique 
village  of  Llanberis,  the  sun  broke  out  from  its  covering  of  clouds,  and 
■under  these  favourable  auspices,  we  entered  the  Pass,     It  i»  a  perfect  chaoa 


THREE   BAYS   IN    CAERNARVONSHIRE.  83 

of  rocks,  ^^variously  up-piled/*  and  tumbled  about  in  the  most  picturesque 
confusion.  A  scene  of  such  a  desolate  character,  jmd  at  the  same  time  so 
grand  and  magnificent  in  its  loneliness  can  scarcely  be  surpassed.  From 
the  path,  winding  as  it  does,  sometimes  at  the  bottom  of  the  rocky  gorge, 
and  sometimes  along  the  mountain  side,  exquisite  views  of  the  different 
features  of  the  Pass  are  obtained;  huge  grey  boulders  form  the  predomi- 
nating characteristic,  the  monotony  of  which  is  occasionally  broken  by  some 
silver  streamlet  tumbling  amongst  the  rocks.  For  the  whole  length  of  the 
Pass,  a  distance  of  three  miles,  not  a  tree  or  shrub  is  to  be  seen,  but  in 
many  places — ■ 

" o'er  the  jutting  rocks  soft  mosses  creep, 

Or  coloured  lichens  with  slow  oozing  weep." 

In  the  rivulet  near  the  stupendous  rock,  called  Ynys  Hettws,  (said  to 
have  fallen  from  the  side  of  Y  Glyder  Fawr,)  Fontinalis  squamosa  occurred 
in  large  masses,  which  darkened  the  stream,  and  was  much  more  luxuriant 
than  we  meet  with  it  at  home.  At  the  same  place  Grimmia  Donniana 
(in  fr.)  grows  on  the  rocks,  and  Diphyscium  foliosum  is  very  plentiful 
throughout  the  Pass:  specimens  were  procured  with  stems  an  inch  long^ 
Ptychomitrium  polyphyllum,  liacomitrium  lanuginosum,  fasciculare,  and 
helerostichum,  Leucohryum  glaucum,  Cumpyhpus  longipilus,  Andrcea  alpina 
and  Rothii,  Aulocomnion  paludre,  Bartramia  fontana  and  arcuata,  and 
Uedwigia  cillata  are  comparatively  common.  We  had  the  pleasure  of  in- 
creasing our  store  by  the  addition  of  Bryum  elongatum,  which  grows  in 
the  crevices  of  the  rocks  near  the  summit  of  the  Pass,  (Gorphwysfa;)  and 
close  to  the  same  place  we  also  obtained  some  fine  examples  of  Andrcea 
alpina,  two  inches  and  a  half  long,  from  a  wet  rock  literally  covered  with 
this  beautiful  alpine  species. 

From  Pen  y  Gwryd  the  tourist  has  a  series  of  views  of  matchless  beauty; 
on  the  right  the  lovely  Nant  Gwynant,  or  the  Vale  of  Waters,  (the  route 
to  Bedgellert;)  on  the  left  and  behind  the  cloud-capped  mountains,  and  in 
front,  the  Vale  of  Mymbyr,  through  which  winds  the  road  to  Capel  Curig, 
Bryum  elongatum  and  Grimmia  Donniana,  which  we  have  before  noticed, 
were  found  in  large  quantities.  Midway  between  Pen  y  Gwryd  and  Capel 
Curig  we  had  the  pleasure  to  meet  with  examples  of  Bryum  alpinum,  which 
were  rendered  doubly  valuable  by  the  presence  of  fruit.  Passing  through 
a  tract  of  country — 

"So  wondrous  fair  the  whole  might  seem 
The  scenery  of  fairy  dream," 

before  long  we  came  to  Capel  Curig,  halted  a  short  time  at  the  inn 
for  refreshment,  and  afterwards  had  a  pull  on  the  Llyn,  from  which  we 
had  a  fine  view  of  Snowdon,  and  then  proceeded  on  our  route,  intending 
to  walk  to   Bcttws  y  Coed,  and  spend  the  night  there. 


84  MOTH    HUNTING. 

From  Pont  Gyfjng  we  had  a  beautiful  view  of  the  Lugwy,  which  was 
tumbling  in  cascade-like  descents  over  the  miniature  crags  that  embarrassed 
its  progress,  and  noticed  Encalypta  streptocarpa  in  a  dry  and  parched  con- 
dition on  the  walls. 

"And  now  the  orb  of  day  had  reached 
Its  maximum  on  high," 

shining  with  tropical  fervour,  and  save  a  group  of  massive  cumuli  gently 
floating  on  in  the  distance,  the  sky  was  devoid  of  clouds,  so  that  we  were 
glad  to  take  possession  of  a  car  which  was  passing.  We  stayed  to  see 
the  Rhayadr  y  VVennol,  (Swallow  Waterfall,)  which  had  a  fine  and  imposing 
appearance,  enhanced  by  the  delightful  scenery  with  which  it  was  surrounded, 
and  brought  away  some  specimens  of  Hypnum  flagellure  as  a  souvenir.  As 
the  car  was  bound  for  Llanrwst,  we  determined  to  make  the  most  of  the 
opportunity  of  getting  forward,  and  arrived  at  our  destination  at  six  o'clock. 
On  the  Denbighshire  bank  of  the  Conway  we  gathered  Cindidotus  fon- 
tinaloides,  but  the  specimens  were  not  suitable  for  examination.  We  visited 
the  antiquated  church,  and  viewed  the  curiosities  contained  therein.  We 
breakfasted  at  four  the  following  morning,  and  started  in  right  good  earnest 
for  Conway.  Bartramia  fantana  was  found  in  good  fruit,  but  we  noticed 
no  species  which  have  not  before  been  mentioned.  By  nine  o'clock  we 
reached  Conway,  and  spent  a  short  time  in  observing  the  different  objects 
of  interest  which  it  presents.  The  Castle  and  Suspension  Bridge  were  lost 
to  view  as  we  turned  an  angle  of  the  road  on  our  way  to  Llandudno, 
which  we  reached  in  time  to  jump  on  board  the  steamer  which  passes  there 
about  eleven  o'clock,  and  arrived  in   Liverpool  again  at  three. 

Thirsk,  November^  185o. 


MOTH     HUNTING;     OR    AN     EVENING     IN     A     WOOD: 
BEING  TWO  LEAVES  FROM   THE  LIFE  OP  A  NATURALIST. 

BY    MR.    THOMAS    KDWARD. 
LEAF    I, 

Now  you  must  know  that,  although  neither  an  ant-eater,  a  bat,  a 
chameleon,  a  swallow,  a  bee-hawk,  nor  yet  belonging  to  the  genus  Mus- 
cicapidcr.,  still  I  am  somehow  or  other  remarkably  fond  of  insects  of  every 
description,  and  have  always  been  so;  except,  it  may  be,  for  three  or  four 
different  kinds,  which  I  really  must  say  I  do  not  care  much  about;  and 
in  fact  never  did,  since  first  I  had  the  least  idea  of  them.  You  must 
also  understand,  that  is,  if  you  do  not  already  know,  that   some  of  these 


MOTH    HUNTING. 


85 


fragile  and  fairy -like  creatures  fly  by  night  as  well  as  by  day;  so  that,  to 
get  acquainted  with,  as  likewise  to  capture  them,  you  must  become  a 
nocturnal  as  well  as  a  diurnal  and  frequent  visitor  to  their  various  and 
respective  abodes. 

But,  besides  being  thus  so  passionately  fond  of  insects,  I  am  also  par- 
ticularly partial  to  four-footed,  aye,  and  to  two-footed  animals  of  every 
sort.  In  fact,  and  in  short  I  have,  and  it  would  seem  that  I  have 
been  born  with  it,  a  most  inordinate,  and  perhaps  unexampled,  either 
in  this  country  or  in  any  other,  predilection  for  everything  of  this  kind, 
whatsoever  be  the  number  of  their  feet  or  legs,  or  whether  they  have 
any  or  none  at  all;  all  is  one  to  me,  providing  they  are  of  Nature's 
handiwork. 

Accordingly,  and  one  evening  in  particular,  just  such  a  one  as  I 
could  have  wished  for,  and  one  which  gave  the  highest  promise  of  an 
abundant  ^tak,'  being  fair  and  mild,  away  I  strolled,  with  collecting  box 
under  my  arm,  my  phial  of  chloroform  in  my  pocket,  and  heart  as  light 
as  a  feather,  in  the  hope  of  being  in  some  measure  able,  at  least  for 
the  time  being,  to  allay  my  extraordinary,  continual,  and  I  may  in  all 
truth  say,  insatiable  craving  for  these  things;  as  also  to  see  what  I  could 
see,  and  hear  what  I  could  hear.  It  was  rather  beyond  midsummer  than 
otherwise,  and  as  usual  I  was  alone,  that  is  so  far  as  regarded  my  own 
species.  Glad  that  my  daily  task  was  done,  and  that  my  toil-worn  body 
was  again  for  a  little  from  torturing  labour  free,  0  how  merrily  I  bounded 
along,  never  a  king  so  happy,  and  ever  and  anon  snapping  at  my  prey  as 
they  issued  from  their  sylvan  and  grassy  homes — harbingers  of  the  coming 
night — in  the  hope  and  with  the  intention,  no  doubt,  like  myself,  to  enjoy 
the  beauties  of  eventide. 

My  heat,  for  I  had  now  taken  up  one  that  I  might  the  better  secure 
and  watch  my  game,  lay  along  a  narrow  foot-path  of  considerable  length, 
but  of  course,  the  portion  I  trod,  that  is,  backwards  and  forwards,  was 
only  perhaps  from  a  hundred  to  a  hundred  and  twenty  yards  long.  It  was 
in  a  woody  dale,  a  most  romantic  and  secluded  spot,  and  close  by  a  river's 
side,  whose  soft  and  balmy-like  murmurings  mingled  with  the  evening  songs 
of  the  joyous  birds,  particularly  that  of  the  mellow  Thrush,  which,  as  he 
poured  forth  his  farewell  requiem  to  the  departing  day,  fell  gently  and 
sweetly  on  the  listening  ear. 

The  sun  went  down,  and  twilight  having  spread  her  mantle  of  dark 
grey,  the  voice  of  music  ceased.  The  Swallow,  [Hirundo  riparia.)  flew 
to  its  nest,  the  lark  to  his  mossy  bed,  the  butterfly  disappeared,  the  hum 
of  the  bee  was  heard  no  more,  the  grasshopper  had  sounded  his  last 
chirp  for  the  day,  and  all  seemed  to  have  gone  to  rest  and  repose, 
except  the  river,    myself,  and    the   nocturnals   which   were   now   beginning 


86  MOTH    HUNTING. 

to  peep  from  their  hiding-places  in  considerable  numhers,  hut  still  I 
kept  my  busy  path.  Now  moving  slowly,  now  a  little  quicker,  now  a 
dead  halt  or  nearly  so,  and  now — no,  not  yet — it  is  gone;  but  now,  yes 
now,  a  run,  a  run,  and  a  swoop;  but  no,  it  is  gone — yes,  fairly  oflF: 
but  here  is  another.  Come  away  my  fine  fellow!  O  you  may  dart 
and  dance  as  you  like,  but  I'll  snap  you  as  soon  as  you  come  a  little 
nearer;  so  here  goes,  and  down  he  falls;  a  specimen  is  boxed,  a  drop  or 
two  of  the  drowsy  liquid  and  all  is  right;  the  insect  sleeps  its  last  slumber, 
and  as  perfect  as  if  still  in  nature's  hands. 

Away  I  go  again;  now  stooping,  now  erect,  now  bending  forward,  and 
stretching  out  a  neck  as  long  as  any  gander's,  and  with  strained  eyeballs 
peeping  here  and  peeping  there,  now  to  this  and  now  to  that  side,  and 
now  turning  suddenly  round,  as  if  fire  or  something  worse  had  been  at  my 
heels;  and  another  run,  then  a  halt.  It  has  gone,  no,  see,  there  it  is 
again;  yes,  and  see  how  it  goes,  how  it  bobs  up  and  down;  but  I  must 
fly,  so  away  I  run  again,  with  arms  going  round  like  the  wings  of  a 
windmill;  and — bravo;  another  captive  is  boxed,  pinned,  and  dosed,  and 
as  perfect  as  the  last. 

So  on  I  went,  and  all  the  same  time  listening  to  the  doleful  and 
melancholy  wailing  of  the  Owl,  the  spinning-wheel-like  hirr,  bin;  of  the 
Nightjar,  (Caprimulgtts  Europoeus,)  and  the  occasional  barking  of  the  fleet 
and  lightsome  little  Roe,  the  pride  of  our  lowland  woods,  as  they  now, 
too,  had  stealthly  crept  out  of  their  secret  retreats  to  pursue  their  night's 
peregrinations,  and  now  and  then  all  the  while  boxing  another  culprit.  In 
this  fashion,  time,  as  it  always  does  on  such  and  similar  occasions,  passed 
rapidly — too  rapidly  but  pleasantly — away;  nay,  flew  unconsciously,  as  it 
were,  so  that  the  shades  of  night  were  now  fast  settling  down,  but  yet  I 
thought  not  of  home  or  giving  up  the  chase.  I  still  could  in  some  measure 
see  the  objects  of  my  solicitude  and  search,  as  they  passed  between  the 
branches  of  the  trees,  and  betwixt  me  and  the  sky;  or  dropped  from  the 
luxuriant  foliage  overhead,  or  darted  like  an  arrow  or  shadow  by,  or  lightly 
fanned  the  tops  of  the  long  and  waving  grasses  and  graceful  ferns — all  pur- 
suing their  little  joys.  Some  to  sip  the  nectar  from  the  juicy  flowers,  and 
others  to  woo  their  fond  and  expectant  mates,  and  hold  their  sweet  embraces 
until  morning's  dawn. 

Thus  far  and  all  went  well,  but  a  change  was  about  to  come  over  the 
scene.  I  had  succeeded  wonderfully,  having  managed  to  secure  a  pretty  large 
number  of  first-rate  specimens,  amongst  which  I  found  a  good  many  of  the 
rarer  species,  such  as  the  Oak  Egger-Moth,  {Lasiocampa  quercus,)  Unicorn 
Hawk-Moth,  (Sphinx  convolvuli,)  Cream-spot  Tiger-Moth,  {Arctia  villica,) 
Angle  Shades,  {I'hlogophora  meticulosa,)  Beautiful  China-Mark,  [Hydrocampa 
nymphceata,)  and  Green  Silver-lines,  (Hylophila  prasinana^  etc.,  and  some 


MOTH    IIITNTINO.  '  87 

new  species;  and  expected  from  the  enchanting  beauty  and  stillness  of  the 
night  to  have  procured  many  more.     But  no! 

Doubtless  you  have  heard  the  old  adage,  and  may  perhaps  know  some- 
thing of  it  experimentally  yourself,  that  "the  course  of  true  love  never  did 
run  smooth."  Now  there  is  nothing  more  applicable  to  those  in  pursuit  of 
Nature  than  this.  I  have  experienced  it  often,  and  that  tco^  although 
not  at  the  time  running  after  or  hunting  any  of  the  fairest  and  sweetest 
gems  which  ever  smiled  on  man,  or  creation  ever  exhibited  upon  on  this  low 
earth,  and   so  it   happened  again  that  evening. 

Stepping  slowly  but  watchfully  along,  and  whistling,  or  rather  croning 
to  myself,  "There 's  nae  luck  about  the  house,"  etc.,  rejoicing,  as  it  were^ 
over  my  good  fortune,  and  with  hat  in  hand  ready  for  another  swoop, 
when  something  large,  very  large,  and  tremendously  long,  on  the  path  right 
in  front,  and  coming  in  my  direction,  caught  my  astonished  sight.  Well, 
if  every  limb  did  not  shake  like  an  aspen  leaf,  and  every  bone  in  me  did 
not  crack  and  quake  with  downright  fear,  as  I  beheld  the  hideous-looking 
beast.  The  whistling,  as  you  may  easily  guess,  instantly  ceased,  and  coming 
to  a  stand-still,  I  could  not  help  wondering  as  I  beheld  the  moving  mass 
drawing  slowly  it  is  true,  yet  steadily,  towards  me,  what  in  the  world  the 
creature  could  possibly  be;  what  grizzly  apparition,  or  midnight  monster, 
or  unearthly  thing  it  was,  and  how,  or  by  what  strange  means  it  had  come 
there.  No,  I  am  sure,  positively  sure,  I  had  never  seen  such,  or  anything 
like  such,  a  creature  in  all  n)y  life  before.  How  long,  how  dreadfully  long, 
it  looked,  and  how  shaggy.  Why  the  great,  big,  and  now  in  some  measure 
common,  though  I  am  inclined  to  doubt  fictitious,  Sea-Serpent,  seemed 
nothing  at  all  to  it  in  length  and  bulk — and  still  progressing  towards  me. 
What  was  to  be  done?  or  what  could  I  do?  I  was  totally  unarmed — not 
so  much  as  a  sixpenny  blade  upon  me.  'T  is  quite  true  I  possessed  a  good 
piece,  but  what  of  that?  it  was,  and  unluckily  too,  nearly  two  miles  off, 
and  could  not,  therefore,  be  called  to  my  aid. 

Pondering,  being  puzzled  and  almost  bewildered  what  to  do,  and  the 
monster  still  advancing,  fear  at  last  came  to  my  aid,  by  whispering  in 
my  ear,  "Fly,  fly,"  an  advice  which  I  was  about  to  put  into  execution, 
when  courage,  not  being  altogether  dead,  shouted,  "No,  no,  stand  like  a 
man,  and  a  true  naturalist,  and  see  the  last  of  it."  Aye,  thinks  I  to 
myself,  stand,  and  for  aught  I  know,  be  worried  alive,  insects,  box,  and 
all,  or  perhaps  torn  to  pieces,  just  according  to  the  caprice  of  the  brute. 
Well,  no,  I  did  not  exactly  faint,  for  if  I  had,  I  most  assuredly  should 
have  been  gone;  but  I  freely  confess  I  felt  a  little  squeamish.  It  was  now 
all  but  dark — dark  for  that  time  of  the  year— and  I  was  still  unarmed, 
and  help,  why  help  was  entirely  out  of  the  question;  so  that  if  I  did 
stand,  and  a  hand  to  hand,  or  rather  a  hand  to  paw  affair  take  place,  I 


88 


SYSTEMA   KATCR.E. 


would,  as  a  matter  of  course,  have  to  fight  it  out  unaided  and  alone.  Ter- 
rible though  the  alternative  was,  and  courage  having  gained  the  mastery, 
and  my  senses  and  wonted  composure  returning,  the  affright  wore  off,  and 
as  I  never  had  as  yet  seen  the  animal  going  at  large  in  this  country, 
either  by  night  or  day,  that  I  was  afraid  of,  or  even  thought  of  run- 
ning from,  the  idea  of  doing  so  now  could  not  be  entertained  for  a  single 
moment  longer,  especially  considering,  too,  that  the  one  in  question  might 
turn  out  a  rarity,  if  not  indeed  a  nondescript. 

What,  run,  and  not  at  least  make  an  attempt  at  a  capture?  0  fie! 
that  would  never  do.  What!  disgrace  the  name  of  Naturalist  by  so  cowardly 
an  act? — No  never!  Well,  I  was  now  not  only  determined  not  to  run, 
but  to  lay  hold  of,  and  secure  it,  if  at  all  possible,  whatever  it  was,  and 
be  the  consequences  what  they  might.  Aye,  and  truly,  if  it  did  not  turn 
out  to  be,  as  I  thought  it  would,  the  Old  Boy  himself,  or  a  resemblance, 
then  in  that  case  I  of  course  would  have  made  my  feet  my  friends,  and 
that,  too,  in  the  quickest  and  the  shortest  way  possible;  for  the  Parson 
of  the  parish  says  the  further  we  keep  from  the  Devil,  and  out  of  his 
way,  the  better.  Now  you  see  if  we  are,  as  I  hope  we  all  are,  true 
Christians,  we  must  believe  his  Reverence. 

Accordingly,  and  with  the  view  of  ascertaining  my  intended  antagonist's 
real  form  and  true  position,  that  I  might  the  better  arrange  my  mode  of 
attack,  I  would  now  and  again  take  another  sly  peep  at  him,  to  reconnoitre, 
as  it  were,  to  see  if  anything  like  horns,  or  a  cloven  foot,  stood  in  the 
way;  when  lo  and  behold,  instead  of  one,  I  beheld — beheld  what? — whj' 
no  fewer  than  three — three  large  and  full  Badgers,  and  not  Devils,  each 
a  short  distance  behind  the  other,  and  .  the  foremost  only  about  sixteen 
yards  from  where  I  stood. 

Banff,  October,  1855. 


SYSTEMA    NATURiE. 

BY  THE  REV.  P.  0.  MORRIS. 
( Continued  from  page  66.) 


SAPAtB. 
Hapale  Jacchus,  KuJd.     H.  leucotis, 

Less.   Jacchus  vulgaris,  Geoff,  Fisch. 

Simia   Ja«chus,  Linn.     Midas  albi- 

collis,  Spix. 
Hapale  leucocephala,  Schinz.    Jacchus 

leuchocephalus,  Geoff. 


Hapale  pencillata,  Sehinz.  H.  melan* 
otis,  Less.  Jacchus  pencillatus, 
Geoff.  J.  pygmaeus,  Spix.  Simia 
pencillata,  Humb. 

Hapale  aurita,  Schinz.  Jacclius  auri* 
tus,   Geoff.     Simia  aurita,  Humb. 

Hapale  liumeralifer,  Schinz, 


SYSTEMA    NATURiE. 


89 


Hapale  melanura,  Kuhl,  Schinz.  Jac- 
chus  melanurus,  Geajf.  Simla  me- 
lanura, Humb. 

Hapale  argentata,  Schinz.  Jacclius 
argentatus,  Geoff.  Simla  argentata, 
Schreh. 

Hapale  Midas,  Schinz.  Midas  rufima- 
nus,  Geoff.  M.  Tamarin,  Less-  Si- 
mia  Midas,  Linn. 

Hapale  Ursula,  Schinz.  Jacchus  ursu- 
lus,  Desm.  Midas  ursulus,  Kuhl, 
Geoff.  Saguinus  ursulus,  Iloff.  Si- 
mla Ursula,  Humb. 

Hapale  lablata,  Schinz.  Midas  labia- 
tus,  Geoff.  Kuhl.  Fisch.  Humh.  M. 
mystax,  Spix.  M.  nlgricollis,  Sjoix. 
M.  fusclcollis,  Spix. 

Midas  albifrons,  Schinz.  Simla  albl- 
frons,  Thunh. 

Hapale  nigra,  Schinz.  Jacchus  nlger, 
Poppig. 

Hapale  Eosalla,  Schinz.  Midas  Rosa- 
lia, Geoff.  Jacobus  Kosalia,  Desm. 
Simla  Rosalia,  Schreb.  Leontopitk- 
ecus  Marikina,  Less. 

Hapale  cbrysomelas,  Schinz.  Leonto- 
pitbecus  ater,  Less. 

Hapale  cbrysopyga,  Schinz. 

Hapale  leonlna,  Schinz.  Midas  leoni- 
nus,  Geoff.  Kuhl.  Humb.  Leonto- 
pitbecus  fascus,  Less. 

Hapale  bicolor,  Schinz.  Midas  bicolor, 
Spix. 

Hapale  cedipus,  Schinz.  Simla  oedlpus, 
Linn,  Schreb.  Midas  oedlpus,  Geoff, 
Kuhl.  Jacobus  oedlpus,  Desm.  (E- 
dlpus  Tltl,  Less. 

Hapale  obrysoleuoos,  Natt. 

FAMILIA   II.— Peosimi^. 

LEHUBIKI. 

Lemur  Catta,  Linn.  Schreb.  Proslmia 
catta.  Less. 

Lemur  mongos,  Linn.  Proslmia  mon- 
gos,  Less.  Lemur  melanooepbalus, 
Cuv.  Lemur  proslmia  collaris,  Giriff. 

VOL.  VI. 


Lemur  mlcromongus,  Schinz.  L.  mon- 
gos, Linn.  Schreb.  Geoff.  Desm. 
Fisch.     Proslmia  mioromongos,  Les. 

Lemur  maoromongus,  Schinz.  L.  mon- 
gos, Linn.  L.  fulvus,  Fisch.  Pro- 
slmia macromongos,  Less.  P.  fulvxis, 
Griff. 

Lemur  Bugl,  ScJiinz.  L.  anjouanensls, 
Geoff.  Proslmia  fusoa,  Briss.  P. 
Bugl,  Less. 

Lemur  rufus,  Griff.  Audeb.  Schinz. 
Proslmia  rufa.  Less. 

Lemur  albimanus.  Griff.  L.  mongos, 
Geoff.     Proslmia  albimana.  Less. 

Lemur  Brlssonli,  Schinz.  L.  mongos, 
Linn. 

Lemur  albifrons.  Griff".  Geoff.  Schinz. 
Proslmia  albifrons.  Less. 

Lemur  rufifrons,  Bennet,  Schinz. 

Lemur  ocularis,  Schinz.  L.  nigrlfrons, 
Geoff.     Proslmia  nlgrifrons.  Griff. 

Lemur  Frederici,   Schinz. 

Lemur  Macaco,  Linn.  Schinz.  Pro- 
slmia Macaco,  Less. 

Lemiir  ruber,  Commer.  Schinz.  Pro- 
slmia erytbromela.  Less. 

Lemur  coronatus.  Gray. 

CHIEOGALETTS. 

Cbirogaleus  Commersonil,  Schinz.     C. 

major,  Geoff.     C.  medlus,  Geoff. 
Cbirogaleus  Smitbll,  Gray. 

MTOCEBUS. 

Myocebus  puslllus,  Schinz.  M.  pal- 
marum.  Less.  Lemur  puslllus,  Au- 
deb. L.  mlnutus,  Cuv.  L.  murlnus, 
Blain.     Cbelrogaleus   minor,  Geoff. 

SCAETES. 

Scartes  murlnus,  Gray.  Lemur  mu- 
rinus.  Mill.  Otobcnus  Madagasca- 
riensls.  Less.  Scartes  murlnus, 
Schinz. 

Scartes    rufus,    Schinz.      Cbirogaleus 
Commersonsii,     Vigors     et    Horsf. 
Gliscebus  rufus.  Less. 
N 


90 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 


MICEOCEBtrS. 

Microcebus  griseus,  Schinz.  Clieiro- 
galeiia  Milii,  Geoff".  Mioxicebus 
griseus,  Less. 

Microcebus  rufus,  Wacf.  Schinz.  Gra- 
lago  Demidoffii,  Fisch.  Lemur  mu- 
rinus,  Penn.  Mioxicebus  rufus,  Less. 

STENOPS. 

Stenops  tardigradus,  Waff.  Nycti- 
bus  Bengalensis,  Geoff.  Lemur  tar- 
digradus. 

Stenops  Javanicus,  Schinz. 

Stenops  gracilis,  Schinz.  Nycticebus 
Lori,  Fisch.  Lori  gracilis,  Geoff". 
Lemur  Ceylonicus,  Fisch.  Schreh. 

Pebodictictjs. 
Perodicticus    Potto,    Schinz.      Lemur 
Potto,    Linn.       Nycticebus     Potto, 
Fisch. 

GALAGO. 


Galago  crassicaudatus,   Geoff. 
Galago  senegalensis,  Geoff. 
Galago  Alleni,   Water. 
Galago   Moboli,  Smith.  Schinz. 
Galago  Gametti,  Ogilhy. 
Galago  minor,   Gray. 


TAHSIUS. 

Tarsius  spectrum,  Geoff.  Schinz.  T. 
Daubentonii,  Fisch.  T.  bancanus, 
Sorsf.  T.  fuscomanus,  Fisch.  Le- 
mur spectrum.  Pall.  Didelpbis 
macrotarsus,  Schreb. 

LICHANOTUS. 

Lichanotus  Indri,  Schinz.  Lemur 
Indri,  Schreh.  Indri  brevicaudatus, 
Geoff.     Pitbelemur  Indri,  Less. 

HABEOCEBUS. 

Habrocebus  lanatus,  Schinz.  Indri  lon- 
gicaudatus,  Geoff.  Lemur  lanatus, 
Schreh.  L.  laniger,  Linn.  Semno- 
cebus  Avabi,  Less. 

Habrocebus  Diadema,  Schinz.  Pro- 
pitbecus  Diadema,  Penn. 


GALEOPITHECUS. 

Galeopitbecus  variegatus,  Geoff.  Schreh. 

G.  volans,   Geoff.     G.  TemminckiiP 

Water.    Lemur  volans,  Linn. 
Galeopitbecus    undatus,    Schinz.      G. 

volans.    Pall. 
Galeopitbecus     pbtUipinensis,     Water. 

G.  macrourus,  Temm.l 
(To  be  continued.) 


Anecdote  of  the  Horse. — It  is  interesting  to  observe  how  any  very  powerful 
feeling  will  arouse  a  wonderful  amount  of  sense  in  the  dullest  and  most 
stupid  of  animals.  A  curious  instance  of  this  oame  under  my  notice  a 
short  time  ago.  An  old  cart  mare,  belonging  to  a  man  in  the  village,  that 
looked  as  if  it  had  scarcely  sense  to  do  its  work,  and  would  certes  be  the 
last  animal  in  the  world  one  would  expect  to  shew  any  powers  of  mind, 
had  a  foal  this  summer,  and  one  day  the  old  mare  came  galloping  up  the 
village  to  its  owner's  door,  neighing,  and  seeming  very  uneasy.  Its  master 
noticing  it,  said,  "Something  must  be  wrong;"  and  he  went  out.  The  marc 
trotted  off  neighing,  and  then  returned  to  him;  so  he  followed  her,  and 
she  led  him  to  the  mill  dam,  where  he  found  her  foal  had  fallen  in,  and 
was  nearly  drowned.  Having  recovered  her  foal,  the  old  mare  has  relapsed 
into  a  most  profound  state  of  stupidity,  though  I  always  look  at  her  with 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES.  91 

a  feeling  of  great  respect,  knowing  how  deep  the  love  must  be  that  could 
call  forth  such  an  unwonted  energy  of  mind  and  promptitude  of  action. — 
E.  E.  H.,  Mickley,  near  Ripon,  October  23rd.,  1855. 

Two  Earjles  shot. — Last  week  a  lad,  named  Kenneth  Macdonald,  in  the 
employment  of  Mr.  Cameron  Tallisker,  Skye,  whose  exploits  among  Eagle 
cliffs  we  have  before  had  occasion  to  notice,  succeeded  in  shooting  two 
Eagles,  right  and  left.  What  makes  the  feat  extraordinary,  is  that  the 
birds  are  of  different  species,  one  being  a  White-tailed,  or  Sea  Eagle,  and 
the  other  a  Golden  Eagle."*'  Macdonald  discovered  them  preying  upon  the 
carcass  of  a  sheep;  at  his  approach  they  rose  simultaneously,  and  while 
mounting  rapidly  upwards  he  fired  right  and  left,  and  brought  both  the 
birds  down.  The  Sea  Eagle  is  a  magnificent  specimen,  perfect  in  every 
point,  and  measuring  no  less  than  seven  feet  three  inches  from  tip  to  tip. 
The  Golden  Eagle  was  a  younger  bird;  it  measured  six  feet  six  inches  from 
tip  to  tip. — Inverness  Courier,  February  8th.,  1856. 

FROM    "the    times." 

The  Little  Bustard. — In  passing  through  Alford,  in  Lincolnshire,  a  few 
days  ago,  I  observed  a  very  beautiful  female  specimen  of  this  bird  stuffed 
in  a  druggist's  shop;  upon  inquiry,  I  ascertained  that  it  had  been  shot  a 
week  or  two  before  at  Bilsby,  near  that  town.  As  I  had  previously  thought 
that  this  bird  was  now  quite  extinct  in  these  islands,  I  have  determined  to 
send  the  fact  to  you  for  publication,  for  the  information  of  those  naturalists 
who  are  as  ignorant  as  myself. — Observer,  January  29th.,  1856. 

In  a  recent  copy  of  your  paper  a  letter  appeared,  signed  "Observer," 
noticing  the  capture  of  a  specimen  of  the  above  species,  under  the  idea  that 
it  had  become  extinct  in  England.  Although  it  is  of  rare  occurrence,  I  have 
known  during  the  last  twenty  years  of  several  Cornish  examples,  and  about 
two  years  since  two  were  shot  in  this  immediate  neighbourhood,  and  a  third 
seen.  One  of  the  above  individuals  I  bought  at  a  game  shop  in  Penzance, 
and  it  was  offered  as  a  curious  specimen  of  the  Silver  Pheasant,  It  was  a 
female  bird,  in  very  perfect  plumage,  and  is  now  preserved  in  my  Museum. 
— Edward  Hearle  Rodd,  Penzance,  Feb.  1st.,  1856. 

Observing  by  a  letter  in  your  impression  of  to-day  that  a  specimen  of  the 
Small  Bustard  has  lately  been  killed  in  Lincolnshire,  I  venture  to  intrude 
myself  on  your  notice,  and  to  state  that  a  specimen  of  the  Great  Bustard 
{Otis  tarda  of  Linnseus)  has  recently  (3rd.  of  January  inst.)  been  taken  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  Hungerford,  where  I  reside,  and  just  on  the  borders 
of  Wilts,  and  Berks.  It  is  a  male  bird,  and  is  a  very  fine  specimen. — 
W.  H.  Rowland,  Hungerford,  Berks,  Jan.  29th.,  1856. 

*  I  doubt  this  very  much. — F.  0,  MoKRis. 


92  MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES. 

The  Blackstart. — There  have  been  a  few  specimens  of  the  Blackstart  here 
this  autumn  in  the  usual  sombre  plumage  of  the  season;  whether  they  are 
young  birds,  or  all  take  the  same  plumage  prior  to  their  migration,  I  have 
not  yet  been  able  to  determine,  but  I  have  never  in  the  autumn  found  them 
but  in  the  same  state  of  plumage. — Stephen  Clogg,  Looe,  Dec.  18th.,  1855. 

Flight  of  Martins. — On  the  29th.  of  November  I  saw  a  large  flight  of 
Martins  here,  and  although  there  had  been  very  severe  frost,  they  did  not 
appear  very  weak.  One  was  shot,  with  the  intention  of  being  preserved,  but 
it  was  not  found  in  sufficient  good  plumage  for  that  purpose,  not  having 
got  rid  of  its  nest  feathers.  It  was  very  plump  in  flesh.  On  the  4th.  of 
this  month  I  also  saw  four  Martins  flying  about,  but  appearing  in  very  poor 
plight,  as  we  had  one  of  the  severest  frosts  the  night  before  I  ever  remember 
at  this  time  of  the  year, — Idem. 

Scarcity  of  Birds. — Last  winter  made  sad  havoc  with  the  Thrush  tribe, 
nor  do  they  seem  to  have  much  recruited  during  the  summer,  as  we  scarcely 
see  any  Blackbirds  or  Thrushes  in  haunts  where  in  former  years  they  were 
to  be  found  by  dozens.  I  took  a  walk  of  many  miles  in  the  country  last 
week,  through  lanes,  open  pastures,  and  on  the  sea  coast,  and  saw  but  one 
solitary  Blackbird  during  my  walk.  Fieldfares  and  Redwings  have  not  yet 
arrived,  but  here  and  there  a  few  Starlings  are  to  be  seen;  in  fact,  birds  of 
all  kinds  are  scarcer  in  this  neighbourhood  than  I  ever  before  remember. 
— Idem. 

Occurrence  of  the  Great  Plover  and  Spotted  Crake  in  Devon. — On  the 
24th.  of  last  month  I  bought  an  adult  specimen  of  the  Great  Plover,  or 
Thick-knee,  {(Edicnemus  crepitans,)  in  the  Plymouth  Market,  killed  in  the 
neighbourhood.  I  believe  that  it  is  not  generally  known  that  the  enlarge- 
ment of  the  knee-joints  and  tarsi  in  this  species  is  confined  to  young  birds 
only.  This  I  have  found  to  be  the  case  from  repeated  examination.  A 
similar  peculiarity  of  formation  I  have  observed  to  exist  in  the  legs  of  the 
young  Green  Sandpiper.  A  fine  example  of  the  Spotted  Crake  (Crex por- 
zana)  was  obtained  in  the  vicinity  of  Plymouth  a  short  time  since,  and 
some  others  seen  in  the  same  locality. — John  Gatcombe,  Wyndham  Place, 
Plymouth,  December  3rd.,  1855. 

The  Ring  Ouzel. — A  Eing  Ouzel  (a  hen)  was  shot  here,  and  sent  to  me 
on  the  2nd.  of  February  of  this  year.  I  mention  this  as  a  rare  case,  for 
"White,  in  his  "Natural  History  of  Selborne,"  says  that  Ouzels  migrate  in 
the  autumn  from  the  north  to  the  south;  and  the  old  people  here  consider 
the  appearance  of  an  Ouzel  as  a  sign  of  approaching  summer.  But  I  see 
that  White  also  says,  "the  Ring  Ouzel  stays  in  Scotland  the  whole  year 
round;"  perhaps  then,  as  this  is  the  case,  it  may  occur  that  an  occasional 
Ouzel  may  be  left  behind   in  their  migrations;    and   this  may  account  for 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES.  93 

the  fact  of  the  one  already  referred  to  being  here.  It  is  however  considered 
as  a  rare  thing  by  the  people. — Joseph  B.  Grant,  Oxenhope  Parsonage,  near 
Keighley,  Yorkshire. 

The  Ring  Ouzel. — Having  always  understood  that  the  Ring,  or  Rock  Ouzel, 
as  it  is  here  more  generally  called,  left  this  country  in  October,  I  was  much 
surprised  on  Monday  morning  last,  the  24th.  inst.,  to  see  one  in  the  garden 
in  front  of  our  house  come  to  feed  upon  some  berries  of  the  mountain  ash, 
some  trees  of  which  grow  close  to  the  house.  There  was  at  the  same  time 
in  the  garden  a  male  Blackbird  come  for  the  same  purpose,  but  that  caused 
me  no  surprise,  as  it  is  almost  their  daily  practice  whilst  the  berries  last, 
and  also  with  Throstles  too.  I  don't  recollect  seeing  the  Ring  Ouzel  so  late 
in  the  season  before.  I  thought  I  had  some  notes  of  having  seen  now  and 
then  a  straggler  in  the  beginning  of  the  month  of  November  at  diflFerent 
times,  but  I  cannot  now  find  them,  but  I  every  year  meet  with  them  in 
packs  of  from  six  or  eight  up  to  twenty  or  more  upon  the  moors  in  this 
neighbourhood  in  the  latter  part  of  the  year  (August  and  September,)  feeding 
upon  the  bilberries,  which  grow  abundantly  upon  the  moors.  They  generally 
arrive  here  the  first  week  in  x\pril,  about  the  6th.,  7th.,  or  8th.  Some  five 
or  six  years  ago  1  recollect  meeting  with  one  that  had  just  arrived;  I  think 
it  was  on  the  7th.  of  April,  which  appeared  in  a  very  weakly  condition,  for 
it  allowed  me  to  go  very  near  to  it  before  it  would  move.  I  set  it  up  two 
or  thi-ee  times,  and  followed  it  until  it  flew  into  a  thorn  tree,  where  it 
allowed  me  to  approach  within  about  ten  yards  of  it;  and  there  I  heard  it 
commence  singing  in  a  low  tone,  very  much  like  a  Throstle,  quite  different 
to  the  song  that  it  usually  has  during  the  breeding-season.  The  notes  were 
more  like  the  notes  of  the  Throstle  than  any  other  bird  with  which  I  could 
compare  them. — T.  S.  Tinker,  Hepworth,  Holmfirth,  Dec.  26th.,  1855. 

Occurrence  of  Rare  Birds. — A  Little  Bittern  was  shot  at  Hilsea,  Hants,  in 
1851;  now  in  my  collection.  Hen  Harrier  shot  at  Horndean,  Hants,  also 
in  my  collection.  A  fine  specimen  of  the  Great  Black-backed  Gull,  which 
I  have  in  first  year's  plumage,  was  shot  in  the  vicinity. — P.  W.  West,  East 
Cosham  Lodge,  near  Portsmouth,  Hants,  January  24th.,  1856. 

English  Names  for  Butterflies  and  Motlis. — I  should  like  to  say  a  few 
words  on  behalf  of  English  names  for  Butterflies  and  Moths.  The  English 
names  would  be  much  more  easy,  both  to  pronouce  and  to  remember,  than 
the  scientific  ones  by  the  unlearned  student,  and  the  public  in  general.  If 
we  have  English  names  for  flowers,  plants,  and  animals,  why  not  for  Butterflies 
and  Moths?  Who  calls  the  Daisy  the  Bellis  perennis;  then  why  should  we 
be  obliged  to  call  the  Wood  Argus  Satyrus  JEgeriaf  Withjespect  to  Mr. 
Stainton's  remark  that  we  should  have  to  learn  two  names  instead  of  one,  I 
reply  we  should  almost  as  easily  learn  the  two  together  as  the  scientific  one 


94  MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 

only;  and  again,  with  respect  to  the  'Wood  Argus'  being  called  the  SSpeckled 
Wood'  near  town,  that  is  the  fault  of  having  no  supreme  authority.  Let 
the  Entomological  Society  be  the  authority,  and  furnish  the  English  names^ 
(as  the  "College  of  Surgeons"  is  the  authority  in  England  for  the  names  of 
drugs  and  chemicals,)  and  not  only  would  the  students  in  Entomology  soon 
learn  them,  but  the  public  would  become  better  acquainted  with  the  beautiful 
Insect  World  around  them.  Mr,  Albert  Smith,  in  his  "Ascent  of  Mont 
Blanc"  entertainment,  mentions  his  delight  at  the  appearance  of  the  elegant 
striped  "Scarce  Swallow-tail"  (Butterfly;)  or  the  beautiful  bright  Vermilion 
or  Mountain  (as  the  name  may  be  decided  upon)  Tiger  Moth,  instead  of  the 
"Papilio  podallrius"  or  the  ^'Callimorpha  Hera"  which  nine-tenths  of  the 
audience  would  not  be  able  to  understand  or  remember.  In  fact,  we  should 
find  many  beautiful  insects  creeping  from  the  leaves  of  Nature  into  those 
of  Art — those  of  our  newspapers,  journals,  and  books,  if  they  had  but 
proper  names. — J.  J.  E.,  Newhaven,  Sussex,  February  14th.,  1856. 

Gallimorplia  Hera. — I  noticed  your  remark  upon  Calllmorpha  Hera  in  "The 
Naturalist."  Thinking  that,  perhaps,  you  have  not  seen  the  "Zoologist"  for 
this  month,  I  would  inform  you  that  a  specimen  was  caught  here  by  a  little 
girl  at  the  corner  of  the  principal  street;  it  was  flying,  and  she  brought  it 
into  my  shop,  and  it  flew  on  to  the  window.  It  was  a  nice  specimen,  and  I 
gave  it  to  my  friend  Mr.  Cooke,  of  Brighton,  who  has  a  very  superior  collection 
of  Moths  and  Butterflies.  Mr.  Cooke  has  had  it  exhibited  in  London  before 
the  Entomological  Society,  but  they  will  not  as  yet  admit  it  as  British;  but 
as  there  is  no  one  here  but  myself  who  takes  an  interest  in  these  things,  and 
as  any  travellers  passing  through  here  with  the  Pupa  from  France  or  the 
Channel  Islands,  would  scarcely  allow  the  perfect  insect  to  escape,  I  think 
it  should  be  admitted  as  British.  Mr.  Cooke  says  he  saw  one  flying  at 
Hastings  a  few  years  ago,  but  could  not  catch  it;  he  also  saw  the  wing  of 
one  in  a  spider's  web. — Idem. 

A  Christmas  Novelty. — At  a  large  and  good  Show  of  Poultry,  etc.,  the  other 
day  in  Liverpool,  a  box  containing  some  fine  Butterflies  were  exhibited.  They 
appear  to  have  been  captured  on  the  26th.  of  December,  to  the  number  of 
thirty- six,  by  Mr.  William  Banning,  in  his  garden  at  Grebe,  Isle  of  Man; 
since  which  they  have  been  kept  in  a  wooden  box,  with  glass  cover,  and  regu- 
larly supplied  with  food.  Several,  however,  died  on  their  passage  to  Liverpool 
the  others  appearing  in  a  torpid  state  till  brought  to  a  brisk  fire,  when  they 
soon  spread  their  beautiful  variegated  wings.  Not  having  had  the  pleasure  of 
seeing  the  above  unseasonable  visitors,  I  cannot  speak  to  the  species,  but  take 
them  to  have  belonged  or  akin  to  the  Fritillary. — II.  Ecroyd  Smith,  4, 
Huskisson  Terrace,  Egremont,  January  26th.,  1856. 

Late  Blossoming  of  the  Laburnum. — The  second  blossoming  in^  a  season 


THE    RETROSPECT.       REVIEWS.  95 

of  a  Laburnum  tree  has  just  oeeurred  (November)  in  my  immediate  neighbour- 
hood. This  tree,  trained  up  the  front  of  a  house,  one  of  a  terrace,  is  protected 
by  it  from  the  north  and  easterly  winds,  and  thus  far  the  conditions  may  be 
considered  favourable;  but  I  believe  that  such  an  occurrence  is  by  no  means 
frequent.  A  friend  of  mine,  Joseph  Clarke,  Esq.,  of  The  Roos,  Saffron 
Waldon,  (a  well-known  Essex  naturalist,)  informs  me  of  a  similar  occurrence 
at  Andover,  Hants,  noticed  by  him  some  fifteen  years  ago.  He  also  states 
that  a  bush  of  Elder,  (Sambucus  nigra,)  which  stands  near  his  house,  is  always 
clothed  with  a  crop  of  blossoms  after  the  berries  from  the  first  have  ripened. 
Apple  and  pear  trees  will  also  occasionally  blossom  twice  in  the  year  with  us, 
and  probably  other  instances  occur,  which  it  would  be  interesting  to  know  of, 
would  some  of  your  numerous  country  readers  but  take  the  trouble  to  record 
them. — Idem. 


The  "Great  Unknown"  Haiok. — Dr.  Hobson  need  make  no  apology  for 
his  remarks  on  this  bird.  They  are  exceedingly  accurate;  worthy  of  Mac- 
gillivray  himself,  and  higher  praise  cannot  be  awarded.  I  have  myself 
little  to  add  to  what  I  before  said.  The  diflFerences  in  size  and  colour 
spoken  of  as  attaching  to  the  Sparrow-Hawk,  have  reference  to  ordinary 
birds  of  the  kind;  but  the  individual  in  question  is  certainly  an  extraordinary 
one.  As  to  Macgillivray's  remark  that  the  scutellce  in  the  Sparrow-Hawk 
are  '^pretty  regular,"  I  have  already  shewn  that  he  lays  far  too  much  stress 
on  their  number,  as  distinctive.  Besides,  even  if  there  were  anything  in 
their  number  as  a  specific  characteristic,  a  hybrid,  (which  it  is  one  of  the 
suppositions  that  the  present  bird  is,)  would  be  expected  to  share  in  the 
double  variety  of  the  numbers  in  each  of  its  ^^component  parts."  The 
same  remark  applies  to  the  length  of  the  legs,  the  wing  feathers,  etc. 
Dr.  Hobson  certainly  now  proves,  I  think,  that  it  is  not  a  variety  of  the 
Sparrow-Hawk  alone,  but  that  (if  not  a  new  species,)  it  is  made  up  of 
some  two  different  ones,  between  which  it  is  a   hybrid. 

''Why  not  allow  the  Merlin  to  have  a  share  in  his  production  ?"  I  am 
far  from  denying  any  such  possibility.  I  can  but  say  that  the  first  impression 
that  the  'tout  ensemble'  of  the  bird,  its  piebald  appearance,  conveys,  is 
that  it  is  a  pied  variety;  the  colour  of  the  claws  is  in  favour  of  the 
supposed  albinism ;  and  a  closer  inspection  leads  me  to  the  further  supposition 
that  it  may  be  a  hybrid. — F.  O.  Morris,  February  23rd.,  1856, 


tximm. 

The  name  of  the  author  of  the  "Entomologist's  Annual,"   was   inadver- 
;•  tently    omitted   in    the    notice  of  the    work   in  the   February  number   of 


96  PROCEEDINGS    OF    SOCIETIES. 

"The  Naturalist."     It    is   by  Mr.  H.  T.  Stainton;   one    of  the   best    Ento- 
mologists of  the  day. 

Rustic  Adornments,  for   Homes   of  Taste.      By  Shirley  Hibberd,      Price 
lOs.  6d.     London:   Groombridoe  and  Sons. 

This  is  a  beautifully  got-up  volume,  and  really  and  truly  an  '^Ornament 
to  the  drawing-room  table."  The  book  itself  is  anything  but  a  "rustic" 
adornment.  It  will  be  found  an  internal  decoration,  as  well  as  calculated 
to  improve  vastly  the  "externals"  of  every  suburban  home,  whose  owner 
•would  exhibit  himself  as  a  man    of  taste. 

Those  who  remember  the  philanthropic  wish  of  poor  Suttum,  uttered  to 
Mr.  Layard  as  he  waded  his  mare  through  a  sea  of  bright  blossoms  on 
the  plain  of  Nineveh, — "Ya!  what  do  the  dwellers  in  cities  know  of  true 
happiness?  God  have  pity  on  them!  They  have  never  seen  grass  or  flowers! 
What  delight  has  God  given  us  equal  to  this?  It  is  the  only  thing  worth 
living  for!" — will  hail  the  publication  of  Mr.  Hibberd's  work  as  a  practical 
commentary  on  Suttura's  kindly  sentiment,  which  every  one  who  loves  the 
country  for  the  country's  sake  will  share  with  him  towards  those  who  have 
the  misfortune  to  be  dwellers  in  towns. 

Such  works  as  the  present  are  the  only  means  of  advancing  the  reali- 
zation of  the  "Rus  in  Urbe;"  and  here  moreover  we  have  literally  the  sea 
brought  upon  dry  land,  and  the  earth  as  it  were  carried  down  to  the 
depth  of  the  ocean,  and  we  upon  it.  The  letter-press  portion  of  the 
present  work  appears  to  be  all  that  it  ought  to  be;  and  the  illustrations, 
which  are  very  numerous,  and  many  of  them  beautifully  coloured,  are  likewise 
all  that  can  be  wished  or  wanted.  In  a  word,  the  matter  and  manner 
of  the  work  coincide  happily,  and  each  in  turn  well  illustrat«ftr4Jl6  other. 


l^rnmMngs  nf  IntiBtiBi 


The  London  Working  Entomologists'  Society  held  their  first  meeting  on 
Wednesday,  February  6th.,  when  the  Rev.  F.  0.  Morris  was  elected  Presi- 
dent; R.  G.  Schofield,  F.G.S.,  Vice-President;  Mr.  E.  Dow,  Auditor;  and 
Mr.  James  Gardner,  Hon.  Secretary. 

The  following  donations  were  received,  and  a  vote  of  thanks  passed  for 
each, — "The  Naturalist"  for  January  and  February,  by  the  Editor;  the 
"Zoologist"  for  January  and  February,  by  the  Editor. 

Some  specimens  of  P.  cassinea  were  exhibited,  also  a  new  plan  of  relaxing 
insects. 

Several  insects  were  mentioned  for  exhibition  at  the  next  meeting;  also 
a  new  description  of  Larva  Box. 


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Member  of  the  Ashmolean  Society,  etc. 

Author  of  "A  History  of  British  Birds."      "A  History  of  British  Butterflies.' 

"A  History  of  the  Nests  and  Eggs  of  British  Birds." 

"A  Bible  Natural  History."    "A  Book  of  Natural  History, "'etc.,  etc,  etc. 


0  Lord,  bow  manifold  are  Thy  works!    in  wisdom  hast   Thou    made  them  all:    the 
earth  is  full  of  Thy  riches. — Psalm  civ.,  24. 


LONDON: 

QROOMBRIDGE   AND   SONS,  5,  PATERNOSTER  ROW. 

AND  MAY  BB  HAD  OF  ALL  BOOKSELLERS. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE, 

Characteristics  of  Common  Birds.     By  0,  S.  Round,  Esq 97 

Down  the  River.     By  E.  S.  Walker,  Esq 99 

Moth  Hunting;  or  an  Evening  in  a  Wood. — Leaf  II.     By  Mr.  T. 

Edward 104 

Hints  to  Insect  Collectors.     By  Taxus 107 

A  Day's  Conchologizing  on  the  Islet  of  Herm.    By  W.  V.  Guise,  Esq.  Ill 

Systema  Naturae.     By  The  Editor 114 

Miscellaneous  Notices. — The  Peregrine  Falcon.  The  Great  Bus- 
tard. Common  Bittern.  The  Eider  Duck.  The  Spotted  Crake. 
Common  Scoter.  Common  Crossbill.  Scarcity  of  "Birds  about 
Richmond.    The  Myrtle  Bee.    Malformation  of  Plantago  lanceolata.       115 

Review. — Taxidermy  made  Easy;  being  Plain  and  Practical  Direc- 
tions for  Preserving,  Setting  up,  and  Embellishing  in  the  most 
approved  style,  all  kinds  of  Quadrupeds,  Birds,  Fishes,  Reptiles, 
Insects,  etc.;  with  Notes  and  Illustrations.  By  John  Tyrer, 
Taxidermist,  Chatham,  Kent.  Price  2s.  6d.  Sold  at  52,  High 
Holborn,  London 118 

Proceedings  of   Societies. — The   London    Working    Entomologists' 

Society 118 

The  Querist. — Hips  and  Haws 118 


NOTICES    TO    CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  from  W.  Sutherland,  Esq.; — G. 
Hodge,  Esq.; — K.  G.  Schofield,  Esq.; — Robert  Daykin,  Esq.; — O.  S. 
Round,  Esq. 

*^*  Correspondents  are  particularly  requested  to  write  the 
names  of  persons,   places,   and  things  very  distinctly. 


Communications,  Dratoings,  Advertisements,  etc.,  to  be  addressed  to  the  Rev. 
F.  O.  MORRIS,  Niinhurnholme  Rectory,  Hayton,  York; — Books  for  Revieio 
and  Parcels,  to  the  care  of  Messrs.  GROO  MB  RIDGE,  5,  Paternoster 
Row,  London. 


TO    ADVERTISERS. 


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97 


CHARACTERISTICS    OF    COMMON     BIRD; 

BY    O.    S.    ROtJND,    ESQ. 

Solitude  is  the  parent  of  contemplation,  without  which  notT 
depends  upon  observation  merely  can  produce  a  lasting  or  accurate  impres- 
sion on  the  mind;  and  this  applies  with  the  greatest  force  to  objects 
constantly  before  us,  and  which,  from  their  very  ftimiliarity,  require  an 
exertion  of  the  mental  facultiea  to  think  about,  before  they  can  be  fully 
understood.  Now,  in  my  lonely  wanderings  on  the  moor  or  in  the  covert, 
I  have  often  been  led  to  make  this  remark  to  myself,  and  as  often  felt 
a  great  satisfaction  in  the  reflection,  how  great  a  field  there  was  for 
the  luxury  of  uninterrupted  thought  to  be  found  in  the  great  storehouses 
of  nature.  The  observations  I  have  been  thus  led  into  were  of  two 
classes,  the  agreeable  or  amusive,  and  those  which  partook  of  freedom  of 
range. 

As  I  watched  the  motions  of  the  newly-arrived  summer  visitants,  it  was 
with  no  small  interest  that  I  considered  the  journey  they  had  lately  made 
to  come  to  us;  they  always  seemed  to  me  to  be  endowed  with  a  certain 
degree  of  novelty  and  freshness;  and  the  wild  laughing  notes  of  the  Willow 
Wrens,  and  the  full  song  of  the  Blackcap  or  Whitethi-oat,  heard  amidst 
the  bright  beams  and  bright  green  of  a  really  May  day,  were  always  very 
refreshing  to  me.  Association,  no  doubt,  has  a  good  deal  to  do  with  this, 
for,  call  to  mind  a  bitter  day,  as  May  too  often  shews  in  our  country, 
and  fancy  one  of  these  pretty  creatures  hanging  amidst  the  scarcely-leaved 
boughs  of  a  birch  tree,  and  the  reminiscence  will  probably  have  something 
chilling  in  it,  rather  than  enlivening.  I  suppose  that  these  gentry  are  tired 
with  their  journey,  however  flittingly  it  may  have  been  performed;  at  all  events, 
it  is  some  time  before  they  are  troubled  with  domestic  cares;  as  to  the  Cuckoo, 
as  is  notorious,  he  disdains  them  altogether,  and  thoroughly  enjoys  himself 
like  a  real  gentleman,  seeming  to  consider  that  the  sunshine  was  made 
specially  for  him,  and  all  bird-kind  as  the  nurses  of  his  scattered  offspring. 

If  the  weather  be  unpropitious  and  the  spring  backward,  so  that  we  say 
''When  will  warm  weather  come?"  it  is  very  curious  to  observe  how  silent 
we  are,  no  Chiff-chaffing,  (although,  by  the  way,  this  lively  little  fellow 
does  sing  in  the  cold  weather  sometimes,)  at  all  events,  little  general  sum- 
mer music;  but  let  a  really  hot  morning  come  upon  us  suddenly,  and  what 
a  chorus  there  is;  to  use  a  common  phrase,  it  is  quite  'stunning.'  How 
my  Lord  Chaffinch  revels  on  the  leader  of  the  tall  fir.  Greenfinches  chirrup 
away  amongst  the  garden  hedges,  the  Lark  carols  above  the  mist,  and  every 
tiny  throat  proclaims  the  presence  of  songster  upon  songster,  here,  there, 
and  everywhere.     It  is  a  charming  thing  to  listen  to. 

VOL.  VI.  o 


98  CHARACTEniSTICS    OF    COMMON    BIRDS. 

"How  sweet  in  the  raoniing  to  wake  from  your  slumber, 
The  sun  shining  joj'ouslj'  into  your  room, 
Whilst  in  woods  aud  by  meadows,  the  birds  out  of  number, 
Send  forth  tlicir  blithe  notes  'mid  the  purest  perfume. 

You  rise  from  your  couch  from  the  sweetest  of  visions, 

A  dreamy  oblivion  of  gentle  repose. 
And  slumbering  and  waking,  such  tender  transitions, 

Tou  know  not  the  dawning,  you  feel  not  the  close. 

Too  perfect  to  last,  and  too  full  of  sweet  rapture. 

Such  hours  are  bright  gleams  in  the  memory  of  time; 

Then,  oh!  let  lis  store  the  invaluable   capture. 
And  mingling  the  lovely,  still  feel  the  sublime!" 

From   this  we  roam  forth  upon  the  heathy  whilst  the  dew  drops  still  hang 
upon  the  grass-tops;  how  sweet  the  air  is,  how  free  the  scene, 

"Tt  is  a  feast  to  linger  there. 
If  only  'twere  to  think." 

But  there  is  much  more  than  this;  we  have  not  gone  far  before  up  springs 
the  Titlark,  and  flits  about  at  a  short  height,  with  his  sharp  crj;  and 
perhaps,  above  the  wreaths  of  mist  that  wrap  the  hills  like  a  fleecy  mantle, 
the  Kestrel  goes  skimming  along,  ever  and  anon  pausing  with  out.spread 
wings,  and  again  away  in  search  of  a  quarry.  Then  there  is  always  the 
Peewit  with  his  eccentric  movements,  diving  and  uttering  his  own  name 
in  very  pleasantry.  Try  to  find  his  nest;  you  will  be  puzzled;  it  id 
open  enough;  but  where?  aye,  that  is  the  question;  so  like  spotted  stones 
of  the  moor,  are  the  eggs,  so  unconspicuously  coloured  and  hued,  and  you 
must  watch,  and  closely  too,  before  you  can  find  them.  I  remember  an 
old  man  who  got  a  precarious  subsistence  by  vending  those  eggs,  and 
broom-making,  and  who  was  known  as  'old  Chick'  for  many  years  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Chobham  bogs,  and  he  was  a  dead  hand  at  finding  the 
nests  of  the  Peewit;  and  the  story  went  that  some  friend,  having  advised 
him  that  he  could  obtain  a  large  price  for  his  commodity  in  London, 
thither  with  a  vast  store  in  a  basket  on  his  back  he  trudged;  but  alas! 
for  his  want  of  foresight,  his  iron-shod  heels  no  sooner  reached  the  smooth 
pavement  at  Hyde  Park  corner,  than  poor  old  Chick  came  sprawling  with 
his  eggs,  which  were  broken  in  the  fall;  and  what  was  worse,  he  got 
nothing  but  ridicule   when   he   returned  to  his  moors. 

I  shall  take  warning  by  his  fate,  and  not  carry  all  my  treasure  at  once 
to  market;  so  for  the  present  I  shall  'intromit.' 

Pembroke  Square,   Kensington,  February,  1856. 


99 


DOWN     THE     RIVER. 

BY    J.    S.    WALKER,    ESQ. 
(Concluded  from  page  ZQ.) 

The  serious  business  of  the  day  commences,  and  we  make  preparations 
for  dinner;  the  hampers  are  unpacked,  and  one  of  the  ladies  assumes  the 
responsible  office  of  cook.  The  kettle  is  slung  across  the  fire,  and  the 
fish  we  Have  just  caught  are  hissing  in  the  frying-pan.  Seating  ourselves 
in  a  circle  on  the  ground,  we  partake  of  a  substantial  repast. 

Soon  after  we  are  joined  by  another  black,  nicknamed  Ramrod — very 
inaptly — for  he  is,  unlike  the  majority  of  his  brethren,  nearly  bent  double, 
and  walks  in  a  halting  manner,  as  if  he  were  lame,  probably  in  consequence 
of  a  fall  from  a  tree  whilst  in  quest  of  opossums.  But  his  fame  is  great 
as  a  skilful  fisherman,  and  woe  to  the  luckless  mullet  which  swims  within 
the  gaze  of  that  eagle  eye.  Ramrod  has  paddled  after  us  in  his  canoe, 
and  is  attended  with  three  or  four  large  curs — gaunt,  mangy,  and  half- 
starved,  as  is  the  case  with  all  the  blackfellows'  dogs.  The  canoe  is  the 
frailest  of  vessels,  made  by  simply  stripping  a  sheet  of  bark  from  the  tree 
and  tying  the  ends  together.  It  is  about  seven  feet  in  length,  and  six 
or  eight  inches  in  width,  and  is  so  light  as  to  be  easily  carried  on  the 
head.  Ramrod's  arrival  is  hailed  with  great  delight  by  his  friends,  as  a 
welcome  addition  to  our  party. 

By  this  time  as  night  has  come  on,  and  the  children  are  fast  asleep  in 

their  blankets,  I  stroll  down  to  the  sea-shore.     Nothing    can  surpass   the 

loveliness  of  an   Australian  night.     The   sea-breeze   has  died   away,    and   a 

faint  balmy  air,  heavy  with  the  perfume  of  the  Wild  Clematis,  hardly  ripples 

the  still  waters  of  the  lake.     At  my  feet  the  waves   of  the  Pacific  Ocean 

come  rolling  in,  their  crests  burnished  like  gold  with  phosphorescent  light; 

the  black  rocks  frown  around  me,  and  the  distant   hills  are  almost  hidden 

in  darkness,  but  1  can   discern  the  fringe  of  tall  forest  trees  which  crown 

their  summits,  standing  out  sharp    and   crisp   against   the   clear    blue   sky. 

The  picturesque  eflect  is  much  heightened  by  the  blacks,  who  have  waded 

into  the  shallows  with  torches  made  of   bark,    from    which   long   trails   of 

fire  fall  into  the  water,  as  the  fishermen  run  to  and  fro.     The  shouts  and 

laughing  of  the  blacks  in  the  distance,  the  splash  of  fish  in  the  lake,  the 

shrill  wild  scream  of  the  Curlew,   and   far   overhead  the  plaintive   call   of 

the  Black  Swans,  as  they  wing  their   way   to    the   fresh-water    lagoons    of 

the  interior;  a  Dingo,   or  Wild   Dog,   which   from   one    of  the   headlands 

serenades  us  with  dismal  bowlings, 

"The  wolf's  long  howl  from  Oonalacha's  shore;" 
but  above  all 

"The  murmuring  surge 
That  on  the  unnumber'd  idle  pebbles  chafes." 


100  DOWN   THE   RIVER. 

All  these  form  such  a  strange  admixture  of  sounds,  as  can  only  be  heard 
in  such  a  scene,  and  at  such  a  time  as  I  have  attempted  to  describe. 

I  wait  here  until  the  blacks  have  returned,  and  then  walk  over  to  their 
camp.  Fragments  of  fish  and  bones  are  strewed  around,  and  the  dogs  are 
engaged  in  the  somewhat  difficult  process  of  eating  them.  Their  owner 
and  his  two  friends  are  busy  at  a  game  of  cards — such  cards !  The  pack 
is  evidently  imperfect,  and  begrimed  with  dirt,  but  the  players  are  quite 
satisfied,  and  deal  them  round  with  the  utmost  gravity.  I  have  often 
watched  the  blacks  on  former  occasions,  but  could  never  for  the  life  of 
me  discover  what  game  they  were  playing,  or  whether  they  were  guided 
by  any  rules,  and  I  was  ultimately  obliged  to  come  to  the  conclusion  that 
the  smartest  man  took  up  the  trick.  As  each  played  when  he  thought 
fit,  it  would  frequently  happen  that  one  would  be  left  without  any  cards 
in  his  hand,  but  noways  disconcerted,  he  would  quietly  watch  the  others 
until  the  next  deal.  However,  they  scorn  the  idea  of  playing  '%r  love," 
and  indeed  have  as  aristocratic  a  taste  for  gambling  as  if  they  had  been 
born  in  Belgravia.  It  is  not  considered  at  all  necessary  that  the  stakes 
should  approximate  in  value,  each  man  stakes  what  he  has  got — one  a 
pipe,  another  a  knife,  and  another  a  pair  of  trowsers,  and  the  fortunate 
winner  takes  up  the  stakes,  to  the  perfect  contentment  of  the  losers. 

When  the  game  is  finished  I  seat  myself  by  the  fire,  and  Ramrod  and 
I  engage  in  an  animated  conversation.  He  tells  me  that,  many  years  ago, 
he  camped  with  his  tribe  on  this  very  spot,  on  a  fishing  excursion  down 
the  river,  when  he  was  a  little  piccaninny,  which  I  guess  to  be  about 
forty  years  ago;  and  that  here  he  saw,  for  the  first  time,  a  white  man. 
I  wish  I  could  imitate  his  graphic  description,  spoken  in  that  peculiar 
patois  commonly  called  "broken  English,"  which  is  adopted  in  all  com- 
munications with  the  blacks.  It  was  nearly  sundown  when  one  of  the 
women  discovered  a  human  being  walking  towards  them  along  the  sea-shore; 
with  a  yell  of  terror  the  whole  tribe,  men,  women,  and  children,  plunged 
into  the  lake,  and  swam  across;  but  Ramrod  being  unable  to  follow,  hid 
himself  amongst  the  tall  reeds,  and  watched  with  breathless  interest  the 
proceedings  of  the  stranger. 

Attracted  by  the  smoke  of  the  fires  the  white  man  came  up  to  the 
camp,  and  greedily  devoured  the  half  cooked  fish  which  the  natives  had 
left  in  their  precipitate  retreat.  Doubtless  he  was  some  poor  mariner  whose 
vessel  had  been  wrecked  on  the  coast,  and  was  now  endeavouring  to  make 
his  way  to  Sidney,  distant  some  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles.  His  clothes 
were  torn  to  rags,  he  was  footsore  and  weary.  Ramrod  with  that  talent 
of  mimicry  peculiar  to  all  savages,  illustrated  his  condition  by  hobbling 
backwards  and  forwards  in  front  of  the  fire,  elongating  his  face  to  describe 
the  white  man's  gaunt  look,  and  casting  quick  and  frightened   glances   on 


DOWN   THE    RtVEn.  101 

every  side,  which  brought  the  scene  moat  forcibly  before  me.  Then  des- 
crying the  blacks  on  the  opposite  shore,  he  tried  to  induce  them  to  return, 
by  waving  his  hands,  and  holding  out  a  iinife  for  their  acceptance.  Alas! 
poor  wanderer,  his  journey  was  nearly  ended,  he  was  soon  to  reach  that 
haven  "where  the  weary  are  at  rest."  He  sat  upon  a  log  and  watched 
the  blacks  until  nightfall,  and  then  laid  himself  down  to  sleep.  Just 
before  dawn  of  day,  the  blacks,  as  is  always  their  custom,  attacked  him, 
one  of  them  threw  a  spear,  which  passed  through  his  leg;  he  stood  upright, 
but  made  no  attempt  at  escape  or  defence,  and  burying  his  face  in  his 
hands  awaited  his  fate.  The  savages  then  rushed  in  upon  him,  and  put 
him  to  death  with  their  clubs. 

Ramrod  concluded  by  informing  me  that  his  late  respected  father  appro- 
priated one  of  the  white  man's  hands,  which  ghastly  trophy  he  carried  about 
with  him  for  many  days. 

"But  Ramrod,"  I  ask,  "tell  me  the  truth ;  did  your  tribe  eat  that  poor 
fellow?"  Ramrod  hangs  down  his  head,  and  looks  rather  ashamed,  but 
only  mutters  "pah!"  and  lights  his  pipe  by  way  of  changing  the  conversa- 
tion; he  is  evidently  not  pleased  with  my  question,  and  coils  himself  up 
for  sleep,  so  I  betake  myself  to  the  tent,  and  follow  his  example. 

We  rise  early  the  next  morning,  and  find  that  the  Fish-Eagle  and  Crows 
have  been  beforehand  with  us,  and  have  stolen  the  best  of  our  fish  which 
we  left  during  the  night  on  the  sand.  The  history  of  the  Australian 
Crow  is  rather  an  interesting  one.  They  are  extremely  numerous  in  every 
part  of  Australia,  but  always  prefer  to  be  near  the  abode  of  man.  Of 
course,  like  all  the  Corvidce,  they  are  arrant  thieves;  they  will  pick  font 
the  eyes  of  the  young  lambs  and  pigs:  a  fat  duckling  is  a  much  desired 
prize.  I  have  watched  one  of  them  walking  sideways  round  a  hen  with 
a  clutch  of  young  ducks,  which,  aware  of  the  intention  of  their  enemy, 
have  huddled  round  their  foster-parent,  who  with  drooping  wings  and  fierce 
duckings,  presents  a  bold  front  to  Mr.  Corax;  but  unless  driven  away,  he 
is  almost  always  successful.  He  inserts  his  beak  under  the  little  duck, 
and  turns  it  on  its  back;  in  which  helpless  state  he  seizes  it  in  his  bill, 
and  makes  off  with  it  to  some  decayed  stump,  where,  with  a  croak  of  triumph, 
he  devours  it  at  his  leisure.  The  Crow  will  also  take  the  eggs  and  callow 
young  of  the  domestic  pigeon  from  the  dove-cote.  On  one  occasion,  having 
suffered  much  in  this  way  from  the  attacks  of  a  particular  Crow,  I  put 
two  pieces  of  meat,  each  containing  a  small  dose  of  strychnine,  on  the 
top  of  an  old  out- house;  my  friend  devoured  both  pieces  in  a  moment, 
and  then  flew  away  to  a  neighbouring  tree,  when  he  was  joined  by  his 
spouse;  and  I  was  much  amused  when  I  saw  him,  as  a  delicate  mark  of 
connubial  attention,  disgorge  one  portion  into  her  beak:  in  less  than  five 
minutes  both  dropped  dead  at  the  foot   of  the   tree.     But  they  are  useful 


102  DOWN    THE    RIVER. 

as  scavengers,  and  share  with  the  vultures  the  dead  carcases  of  the  oxen 
and  horses  which  have  died  in  the  bush.  It  is,  however,  a  curious  fact 
that  although  so  numerous,  I  never  yet  heard  of  any  one  who  had  found 
their  nests,  nor  did  I  ever  see  a  young  one.  I  am  quite  unable  to  account 
for  this,  as  in  the  breeding-season  they  are  as  common  around  our  home- 
steads as  at  any  other  time. 

After  breakfast  we  ferry  the  ladies  and  children  across  the  water,  as  the 
former  are  anxious  to  make  sketches,  and  we  ourselves  return  to  the  sand 
bank  and  join  the  blacks  who  have  commenced  fishing.  Ramrod,  in  a 
state  of  great  excitement,  directs  our  attention  to  a  belt  of  scrub  about  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  distant,  and  we  observe  with  surprise  that  three  large 
animals  are  feeding  there,  with  whose  appearance  we  are  quite  unacquainted. 
As  soon  as  they  see  us  they  raise  their  long  necks,  and  gallop  awkwardly 
towards  us,  uttering  a  strange  guttural  sound.  We  discover  them  to  be 
Camels,  two  females  and  one  male;  their  appearance  is  so  threatening  that, 
although  we  believe  them  quite  harmless,  yet  we  all  make  a  rush  to  the 
boat,  and  push  oflf  into  the  stream;  after  surveying  us  for  a  few  minutes 
they  return  to  their  feeding  grounds,  and  disappear  in  the  forest.  The 
history  of  these  Camels  is  this: — A  gentleman  residing  at  Twofold  Bay, 
had,  many  years  before,  imported  a  pair  with  the  view  of  making  use  of 
them  as  beasts  of  burden;  but  they  were  not  found  to  answer — the  ground 
was  too  hard  and  stony  for  their  wide  feet;  and  they  were  also  very 
troublesome — breaking  down  the  fences,  and  destroying  the  crops,  added  to 
which,  they  were  objects  of  such  intense  dread  to  the  horses  and  cattle, 
that  whenever  they  made  their  appearance,  the  former  would  break  out 
of  their  enclosures  and  take  to  the  bush,  and  on  this  account,  the  stock- 
men secretly  destroyed  the  young  of  the  camel   soon    after   it    was   born. 

The  female  ultimately  died,  and  the  male,  having  its  liberty,  took  up 
its  abode  on  the  banks  of  a  salt-water  river  some  miles  up  the  coast,  near 
the  hut  of  a  small  farmer,  who  made  use  of  it  as  a  ferry-boat  to  convey 
goods  across  the  river,  and  levied  a  sort  of  toll  on  every  traveller  who 
required  its  services.  An  amusing  story  is  told  of  a  pedlar  who  refused 
to  submit  to  the  tax,  and  as  the  Camel  was  perfectly  quiet,  he  loaded  it 
with  his  wares,  and  perching  himself  on  the  top,  guided  it  into  the  stream ; 
but  when  half-way  across,  the  farmer,  who  had  watched  his  proceedings 
with  great  disgust,  called  out  ^couchez,'  upon  which  the  obedient  animal 
recognised  the  well-known  voice,  and  laid  himself  down,  and  the  unfortu- 
nate pedlar  with  his  wares  was  precipitated  into  the  water. 

A  few  years  later,  the  Government  imported  three  more  Camels,  with 
the  intention,  I  believe,  of  employing  them  in  an  exploring  expedition  into 
the  interior — a  purpose  for  which  they  were  well  adapted;  but  the  male 
died,    and    the    two    females   were   ultimately  sent   to    Twofold    Bay,    and 


DOWN   THE   mVER.  103' 

having  been  joined  by  the  old  male,  were  set  at  liberty  "down  the  river," 
where  they  have  remained  ever  since.  Before  I  left  Australia  they  had 
increased  to  seven,  but  the  young  ones  had  become  so  wild  that  it  was 
impossible  to  approach  them;  and  I  know  not  how  they  can  ever  be  cap- 
tured alive.  The  original  idea  was,  that  in  seasons  of  drought,  which  are 
unfortunately  but  too  prevalent  in  Australia,  when  the  pasturage  is  burnt 
up  and  the  ponds  and  water-courses  dry,  the  Camel  M'ould  be  enabled  to 
subsist  by  browsing  upon  the  leaves  of  the  trees;  but  the  forest  is  com- 
posed almost  entirely  of  gum  trees,  {Eucalyptus,)  the  leaves  of  which  are  so 
extremely  astringent,  that  the  Camel  rejects  them;  nor  in  a  country  where 
horres  are  so  numerous  is  there,  I  think,  any  necessity  for  them. 

Our  hands  are  so  chafed  and  sore  with  the  fishing  lines,  that  we  leave 
the  blacks  to  pursue  their  sport  alone,  and  stroll  with  our  guns  along  the 
shore  of  the  much-sounding  sea.  A  large  Owl  sits  blinking  upon  the  top- 
most branch  of  a  dead  tree,  and  ofiers  a  most  tempting  shot,  but  we  spare 
his  life,  and  as  he  flies  away  we  think  of  Beattie's  ode — 

"Whence  the  scared  Owl  on  pinions  grey, 
Breaks  from  the  rustling  boughs, 
And  down  the  lone  vale  sails  away  • 

To  more  profound  repose." 

Wc  observe  many  tracks  of  Kangaroo  and  Emu,  and  are  fortunate 
enough  to  get  a  glimpse  of  a  pair  of  the  latter.  These  birds  are  becoming 
extremely  scarce,  and  disappear  sooner  than  the  Kangaroo  from  what  are 
called  the  Settled  Districts.  Their  habits  are  too  well  known  to  require 
any  description.  I  was  once  out  hunting  when  we  had  a  long  ^run'  with 
an  Emu.  We  were  drawing  a  thick  piece  of  underwood  when,  to  our 
astonishment,  an  Emu  broke  cover  in  full  sight  of  the  pack  of  foxhounds. 
It  was  killed,  but  there  was  no  one  "in  at  the  death,"  for  the  Emu  ia 
both  swift  of  foot,  and  of  amazing  powers  of  endurance.  I  have  heard  of 
two  instances  in  which  they  were  hunted  with  a  pack  of  fast  foxhounds 
near  Melbourne,  the  one  was  killed  at  a  distance  of  twenty-five,  and  the 
other  at  thirty-five  miles  from  whence  the  chase  commenced. 

A  curious  circumstance  occurred  on  this  ramble.  Feeling  somewhat 
fatigued  I  laid  down  under  a  tree,  and  my  companion  sauntered  away  to 
have  a  shot  at  some  Wild  Ducks;  I  heard  the  report  of  his  gun,  and  about 
ten  minutes  afterwards  a  large  F'ish-Eagle  perched  overhead  on  the  tree. 
Looking  up  I  saw  he  had  got  a  Wild  Duck  in  his  talons;  I  shouted  out 
and  threw  a  stick  at  him,  and  he  was  so  scared  that  he  dropped  his  prize; 
and  my  friend  was  much  surprised  when  he  returned  to  find  me  in  pos- 
session of  the  bird  which  he  said  he  had  wounded,  but  that  it  flew  out 
I  to  sea,  where  it  had  been  captured  by  my  retriever. 

But  the  day  is  now  far  advanced,  and  we  are  many  miles  distant  from 


104  MOTH    HUNTING. 

home,  the  tent  is  struck,  and  with  the  game  and  fish  stowed  away  in 
the  boat.  The  ladies  and  children  are  on  the  opposite  shore  gathering 
flowers  and  plants,  and  as  we  row  the  boat  across,  we  rest  on  our  oars  close 
to  the  bank,  and  I  take  "a  last  fond  look"  at  those  pleasant  scenes  which 
I  shall  never  see  again. 

A  little  girl  stands  upon  a  rock,  and  as  she  recognises  us,  her  dark 
eyes  flash  with  pleasure,  and  a  merry  laugh  greets  our  approach.  Her 
lap  is  full  of  the  wax-like  flowers  of  the  Epacris,  and  the  wanton  wind 
plays  amongst  the  brown  tresses  of  her  hair.  As  I  gaze  the  scene  grows 
blurred  and  indistinct,  for  I  am  looking  at  it  through  my  tears.  Woe 
for  the  brown  ringlets,  and  woe  for  the  sad  parents'  hearts,  for  the  little 
form  sleeps  now  in  the  cemetery  at  Kensall  Green;  there  withered  and 
dead  she  lies,  that  little  Australian  flower.  For  "the  wind  hath  passed 
over  it  and  it  is  gone,  and  the  place   thereof  shall  know  it  no  more." 

Then  we  hoist  our  sail  to  the  freshening  sea-breeze,  the  water  is  parted 
at  the  bows  with  a  pleasant  lap-lapping  sound,  the  Bell-birds  ring  out  a 
mournful  peal  from  the  Tea -tree  scrub,  as  we  glide  swiftly  by,  and  so 
ends  our  trip  "Down  the  River."* 


MOTH    HUNTING;    OR   AN   EVENING  IN   A   WOOD: 
BEING  TWO  LEAVES   FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  A  NATURALIST. 

BY    MR.    THOMAS    EDWARD. 

f  Concluded  from  page  88. ) 

LEAF   II. 

Well,  I  declare,  how  strange,  how  very  strange  I  must  have  looked, 
had  any  one  seen  me,  on  discovering  my  error.  What  will  not  an  over- 
heated, or  an  over -taxed  fancy  do  or  pourtray  at  times  to  itself?  In  this 
case,  however,  distance  and  the  gloom  of  the  place  had  both  aided  to 
deceive.  But,  by-the-bye,  there  was  no  very  great  mistake,  if  any,  after 
all.  The  monster,  or  rather  the  nondescript,  it  is  true  had  vanished,  by 
assuming  a  new  and  well-known  form,  or  rather  forms,  but  then  I  had 
been  for  many  years  on  the  look-out  for  a  Badger,  for  a  literary  a^  well 
as  a  scientific  purpose,  and  had  never  as  yet  obtained  one,  and  now 
that  I  had  no  fewer  than  three  almost  within  my  longing  grasp,  why 
the  very  idea  was  intoxicating  in  the  extreme.  But  how  was  I  to  act  in 
order  to  procure  one.  Ahl  there  was  the  rub,  or  rather  the  difficulty. 
I  had  three  to  deal  with  now  instead  of  one,  and  just  in  the  same  way, 
for  I  saw  no  other,  as  I  intended  at  first  when  I  thought  I  had  the  old 
chap  himself  to  deal  with,  namely,  to  fall  down  upon  as  soon  as  they 
came  up  to  me,  and  grapple  with  as  many  as  I  could  get  hold  of  in  order 

*  I  should  be  glad  of  some  more  sucli  well-written  papers  from  Mr.  Walker. — F.  0.  Morbis. 


MOTH    HUNTING.  105 

the  better  at  least  to  secure  one  if  not  more,  for  I  confess  I  had  an  eye 
to  two.  Some  will  no  doubt  smile  at  this  my  dog-like  premeditated  mode 
of  procedure,  and  call  it  the  very  height  of  foolishness;  whilst  not  a  few 
may  say,  or  rather  think,  "Surely  the  fellow  has  been  mad,  or  something 
worse,  or  such  a  project  would  never  have  entered  his  head,"  "Well,  per- 
haps I  am  a  little  crazy.  Naturalists,  however,  are  a  strange  and  singular 
class  of  beings,  often  laughed  at,  and  often  spoken  lightly  of.  Well,  .never 
mind,  I  don't  cave,  say  and  think  as  you  will,  I  have  been  at  the  trade 
before,  and  know  something  of  the  matter.  I  remember  on  one  occasion 
in  particular,  and  when  other  four,  like  myself,  being  at  the  time  but  a 
bo}'',  took  to  their  heels  and  ran  for  it,  mastering  and  securing  a  very 
large  litter  in  this  self-same  way,  and  was  only  bit  once  in  doing  so. 

My  whole  object  being  now  to  obtain  one  of  these,  I  prepared  accord- 
ingly; but  unfortunately  having,  unthinkingly,  moved  rather  much,  my 
presence  became  known  sooner  than  I  wished  or  intended,  so  that  I  had 
the  mortification  and  disappointment  of  seeing  all  three  wheel  right  round, 
and  commence  a  retrograde  movement,  at  full  speed,  back  the  road  they 
came.  I  saw  my  misfortune  at  once,  and  deplored  it,  too.  However,  and 
as  I  thought  a  chance  might  yet  remain,  down  went  my  hat,  not  wishing 
to  be  encumbered  with  it,  my  coat  buttoned  to  the  chin,  and  a  napkin 
tied  round  my  left  hand,  by  way  of  a  shield,  whilst  my  other  grasped  my 
collecting  box,  intending  to  use  it  by  way  of  a  hammer,  if  needs  were 
— having  in  the  spur  of  the  moment  entirely  forgot  its  valuable  and  pre- 
cious contents — and  off  I  bolted,  nay,  rather  flew  like  a  race-horse.  My 
intention  still  being,  as  it  was  at  first,  as  soon  as  I  made  up  to  them,  which 
I  knew  I  should  if  they  kept  the  path  for  any  length  of  time,  stretch 
myself  on  all  three,  if  possible,  so  that  I   might  secure  one. 

What  a  scene  for  any  one  to  have  been  an  eye-witness  of.  The 
three  Badgers  hobbling  away  at  the  very  hardest,  and  their  pursuer  flying 
like  one  totally  deranged  or  bewitched,  at  the  full  top  of  his  speed.  No, 
I  am  sure,  there  is  not,  nor  ever  was,  nor  in  all  probability  ever  will 
be,  such  a  picture  in  all  the  National  Gallery,  nor  in  any  other  Gallery, 
or  place  of  exhibition,  open  to  public  gaze. 

It  so  happened,  however,  that  the  ground  beyond  and  next  to  the  side 
of  the  path  at  which  the  Badgers  were  running,  was  in  many  places  remark- 
ably steep  and  rugged,  and  at  the  bottom  flowed  the  river  already  spoken  of. 
Now  my  fears  were  that  they  would  turn  off  in  that  direction  before  I  could 
get  up  to  them,  as  there  were  plenty  of  rabbit-burrows,  in  which  they  would 
have  found  both  safety  and  shelter,  and  to  have  followed,  or  made  an 
attempt  to  have  followed  them  there,  would  have  been  worse  than  sheer 
madness,  as,  doubtless,  the  river  or  its  bed  would  have  been  the  first  landing. 
But  what  will  not  wild  enthusiasts  do,  or  dare  to  do?     We  shall  see. 

VOL.  VI.  p 


106  MOTH    HUNTING. 

Well  away,  away  we  ran,  still  labouring,  and  up,  up  I  was  getting, 
gaining  on  them  rapidly;  for  you  must  know  that  although  Badgers  bite 
desperately,  they  cannot  run  fast;^  and  as  for  myself  I  must  tell  you  that 
I  was  then  running  as  never  man  ran  before,  nor  since,  nor  ever  will, 
for  my  feet  scarcely  touched  the  ground.  But  alas,  and  as  I  had  antici- 
pated, just  as  I  neared  and  was  about  to  close  with  them,  I  saw  the 
beginning  of  my  worst  fears  realized.  Off  went  one  down  the  declivity, 
away  went  the. second,  and  now — now  came  the  exciting  moment,  as  round 
turned  the  third  and  last  broadside,  to  follow  his  companions;  and,  as 
with  one  last,  desperate,  and  supernatural-like  eflfort,  having  summoned  up 
every  remaining  particle  of  strength  and  breath  for  the  purpose,  I  sprang 
with  one  bound  to  the  spot,  all  hope  of  my  former  plan  being  now 
at  an  end,  and  another  having  suddenly  seized  my  brain,  I  gave  him  such  a 
coup  de  grace  with  my  right  foot  on  the  hind  quarter  as  sent  him 
reeling  and  no  doubt  wreathing  in  the  air  like  a  shuttlecock,  though 
perhaps  not  quite  so  high;  my  object  being  to  have  followed  up  the  assault, 
and  to  have  set  upon  him  as  soon  as  he  came  down,  and  before  he  could 
have  had  time  again  to  have  got  himself  properly  righted,  so  that  he 
would  or  might  have  fallen  an  easy  prey.  But  no;  I  did  indeed  see  him 
go  up,  but  when  he  came  down  again,  or  whether  he  is  yet  down  or  not 
I  positively  cannot  tell;  for  no  sooner  did  my  foot  came  in  contact  with 
his  extremity,  than  the  other,  not  willing,  as  it  would  seem,  to  be  behind 
its  fellow,  rose  too,  and  with  as  little  ceremony  as  if  I  had  been  on  the 
smoothest  piece  of  ice.  Up,  up  and  away  flew  my  collecting  box,  and 
down,  yes  down  to  be  sure  I  went.  What,  down  the  steep  and  right  into 
the  stream?  0  no,  but  I  wish  I  had,  for  I  might  have  fared  better 
than  I  did,  but  down  on  my  poor  back  right  on  the  hard  path  I  came, 
as  flat  as  a  flounder.  Yes,  there  lay  the  poor  old  naturalist,  the  very 
picture  of  death,  and  once  more  reaping  the  choice  fruits  of  his  enthu- 
siasm, or  perhaps,  as  some  would  say,  foolishness.  Well,  no  matter, 
and  just  any  way  you  like;  for  it  has  ever  been,  and  I  am  sore  afraid 
will  ever  be  so  to  the  end;  at  least  his  mother  used  to  say  when  he  was 
.-a  loon,  "Weel,  weel  Tam,  ye'll  never  halt  till  ye  be  drowned,  or  else  gotten 
dead  in  some  wood  and  devoured   wi'  beasts." 

How  long  I  lay  I  cannot  tell,  but  it  must  have  been  some  considerable 
time.  Coming  to  myself  again,  however,  and  recollection  having  in  some 
measure  returned,  my  first  impulse  was  to  feel  if  both  legs  were  still 
attached;  for  I  had  a  sort  of  faint  notion  that  at  least  one  of  them  flew 

*  Can't  they !  Some  of  my  schoolfellows  will  have  with  me  I  entertain  no  doubt — at 
least  I  can  answer  for  myself^a  considerable  amount  of  difference  of  opinion  about  this. 
"What  a  tale  I  could  unfold  of  school-days !  Perhaps  I  may  open  a  page  of  it  some  time 
or  other.— F.  0.  Moruis. 


HINTS    TO    INSECT    COLLECTORS.  ,  107 

after  the  Badger.  Satisfied  here,  and  wondering  from  the  pain  proceeding 
from  another  quarter  if  my  head  was  also  adhering,  my  hand  wandered 
there  next,  and  found  it  to  be  near  about  its  proper  place,  and  though  not 
shattered  to  pieces  as  I  expected,  I  discovered  that  I  had  gained  a  pretty  large 
addition  to  the  back  part,  in  the  form  of  a  new  bump,  fully  as  big  as  a 
Turkey's  egg,  and  which  I  leave  to  some  friendly  phrenologist  to  name. 

Attempting  to  rise,  and  having  once  more  gained  my  feet,  I  could  not 
help  recalling  to  mind  the  words  of  Walter  Kelpie,  when  his  honour  ex- 
claimed on  one  occasion  after  a  hard  piece  of  work,  "Sair  back,  and  sair 
beans,  earn  at  mill  o'  Mangie's  steans;"  for  although  I  had  not  been 
turning  mill-stones  like  Kelpie,  still  I  felt  a  good  deal  sore,  and  not  a  little 
confused;  but  I  must  not  complain;  and  as  all  further  entomologizing 
prospect  was  at  an  end,  I  would  look  about  for  my  box  and  hat,  with  the 
view  of  returning  for  the  night,  but  found  it  too  dark  to  obtain  the  former, 
which  was  met  with  fully  thirty  yards  from  where  I  fell.  I  found  my 
hat  where  I  dropped  it,  and  on  attempting  to  put  in  on,  was  rather 
sharply  and  painfully  reminded  of  my  new  acquisition,  and  being  a  pretty 
tight  fit  before,  I  had  no  other  alternative  but  to  walk  home,  which  I  did, 
with  hat   in  hand,  and  wondering  what  had  become   of  my  shaggy  friend. 

But  though  my  insect  careering  was  thus  brought  to  a  close  for  that 
evening,  not  so  my  badgereering;  for  that  same  night,  my  cranium,  new 
bump,  and  all,  was  so  crammed  full  of  them,  that  I  would  have  shot 
poor  baderens  (the  cat)  in  my  bed-room,  where  she  chanced  to  be  making 
a  little  bit  of  a  noise,  (after  a  mouse  perhaps,)  for  one;  having  risen  in 
my  sleep  and  loaded  one  of  the  barrels  of  my  gun  for  that  very  purpose, 
and  was  just  in  the  act  of  putting  a  cap  on  the  nipple  when  I  awoke. 

Banf,  October,  1855. 


HINTS  TO  INSECT  COLLECTORS. 

BY    TAXUS. 

Having  had  personal  experience  in  the  difficulties  and  doubts  which  beset 
the  young  Naturalist's  path,  I  submit  for  his  instruction,  whether  he  be 
a  schoolboy  or  a  working-man,  a  few  simple  hints  for  his  guidance,  as  an 
earnest  of  my  wish  for  his  progress  in  the  delightful  study  of  Insects. 
When  we  consider  the  comparative  abundance  of  Insects  in  every  locality, 
their  wondrous  ways  and  works,  the  simple  apparatus  required  for  captur- 
ing them,  and  the  small  space  required  for  storing  specimens;  the  habits  of 
bodily  activity,  of  accurate  observation  and  thoughtful  research,  demanded 
in  collecting  and  arranging  them;  the  reflex  influence  which  the  cultivation 
of  such  habits  during  the  leisure  hours  of  school- tasks  or  daily  toil  must 
exert  on  the  formation  of  character,   there   is   perhaps    no    department   of 


108  HINTS    TO    INSECT   COLLECTORS. 

the  animal  kingdom    so  suitable  for  engaging  the   attention   of  these   two 
classes  of  students. 

There  is  comparatively  little  good  to  be  derived  from  reading  books  on 
the  subject,  unless  specimens  or  accurate  figures  are  at  hand.  In  every 
case  it  is  best  to  form  a  collection  of  British  Insects,  so  as  to  obtain  a 
comprehensive  view  of  the  subject,  and  then  devote  a  season  or  more  to 
the  study  of  each  order  in  succession,  or  at  once  to  devote  the  whole 
attention  to  one  order.  A  little  experience  will  soon  point  out  the  pro- 
priety of  such  a  course  of  action.  Butterflies,  Moths,  and  Beetles,  have 
the  greatest  number  of  votaries. 

The  student  should  endeavour  to  obtain  practical  instruction  in  collecting, 
setting,  and  arranging  specimens,  from  some  experienced  person  in  his 
neighbourhood,  or  else  he  must  seek  information  in  books. 

There  are  now  several  booksellers  in  London,  who  advertise  a  reduction 
of  two-pence  on  every  shilling,  for  cash,  on  the  published  price  of  every 
new  book,  and  their  practice  is  now  followed  by  several  booksellers  in 
many  of  the  large  towns  in  the  country.  It  is  well  to  attend  sales  of 
books,  to  obtain  priced  lists,  and  to  frequent  second-hand  bookshops,  for 
if  books  are  perfect,  a  little  soiling  is  of  no  consequence  to  the  earnest 
student,  to  whom  every  penny  saved  is  a  penny  gained  for  some  other 
useful  purpose.       "^       "''       '* 

"Ingpen's  Instructions  on  collecting  Insects,"  3s.  6d.,  is  the  best  work 
on  the  subject.  "Newman's  Familiar  Introduction  to  Entomology,"  12s., 
is  very  comprehensive,  but  it  is  now  behind  the  age.  "Duncan's  Intro- 
duction to  Entomology,"  "Naturalists'  Library,"  4s.  6d.,  is  less  comprehensive 
but  yet  worthy  of  attention.  "Westwood's  Entomologists'  Text  Book," 
7s.  Gd.,  is  an  excellent  work.  In  all  matters  relating  to  the  habits,  instincts, 
etc.,  the  "Introduction  to  Entomology,"  by  Kirby  and  Spence,  stands 
unrivalled;  the  later  editions  in  two  volumes  30s.,  are  restricted  to  the 
above  subjects,  but  if  the  older  and  more  comprehensive  editions  in  four 
volumes  can  be  purchased  at  the  same  price,  so  much  the  better.  In  the 
"Library  of  Entertaining  Knowledge,"  the  volumes  on  "Insect-Miscellanies" 
— "Architecture  and  Transformations,"  at  3s.  6d.  each,  as  well  as  the 
re- issue  of  two  of  these  volumes  in  "Knight's  Shilling  Series,"  are  very 
instructive.  A  cheap  comprehensive  Introduction  is  much  to  be  desired, 
but  for  want  of  such,  the  student  must  be  content  with  "Ingpen's  Instruc- 
tions," and  "Westwood's  Text  Book." 

There  is  no  complete  work  on  British  Insects;  the  nearest  approximations 
thereto  are  the  large,  expensive,  and  incomplete  publications  of  Stephens 
— "Illustrations  of  British  Entomology,"  12  vols.,  <£8  8s.,  (Bohn;)  and 
Curtis'  "British  Entomology,"  16  vols.,  ,£21.  There  is  a  Synopsis  of  the 
Genera  of  British  Insects,  appended  to  Westwood's  valuable  "Classification 


HINTS   TO   INSECT   COLLECTORS.  109 

of  Insects,"  2  vols.,  18s.  (II,  Bohn.)  The  writer  has  a  grateful  recollec- 
tion of  "Samouelle's  Entomologist's  Useful  Compendium,"  18s.;  if  it  can 
be  purchased  at  half-price,  and  if  the  student  will  master  its  old  Linnean 
genera,  he  will  find  that  knowledge  an  excellent  introduction  to  the  families 
of  later  Authors.  Miss  Catlow's  ^'Popular  Introduction  to  British  Ento- 
mology," price  10s.  6d.,  is  very  suitable  for  young  folks. 

In  the  list  of  useful  works  on  special  orders  of  insects,  "Spry  and 
Shuchard's  Outlines  of  British  Coleoptera,"  18s.,  contains  a  figure  and  de- 
scription of  one  Beetle  belonging  to  each  genus;  Stephens'  "Manual  of 
British  Coleoptera,"  12s.,  describes  all  the  species  then  known;  Murray's 
"Coleoptera  Scotica,"  28.,  is  a  useful  list  (without  descriptions)  of  the  species 
which  have  been  captured  in  that  country;  and  a  second-hand  copy  of 
Wilson  and  Duncan's  "Entomologia  Edinensis,"  (Coleoptera)  12s.,  is  an 
excellent  manual  for  the  south  of  Scotland,  being  at  once  both  introduc- 
tory and  descriptive.  "Westwood'a  British  Butterflies,"  8vo.  15s.,  185o, 
and  Morris's  work  on  the  same,  at  20s.,  are  our  best  authorities;  and 
Wood's  "Index  Entomologicus,"  new  edition  by  Westwood,  8vo.,  with 
coloured  plates,  £4:  4s.,  is,  on  the  whole,  perhaps  the  best  work  on 
British  Moths. 

Mr.  Stainton  has  announced  a  very  cheap  work  on  those  insects  at  3d. 
per  number,  which  will  doubtless  become  the  young  naturalist's  manual. 
There  are  several  expensive  illustrated  works  on  this  order,  which  are  of 
little  repute  amongst  modern  authors.  Amongst  the  older  works  the  volume 
on  Butterflies,  4s.  6d.,  in  "Naturalist's  Library,"  is  worthy  of  notice,  as 
it  contains  figures  and  descriptions  of  all  the  species;  the  volume  on  Moths 
is  good,  but  only  includes  a  very  small  proportion  of  the  species.  Smith's 
"British  Bees,"  6s.,  with  a  few  plates  and  descriptions,  is  the  standard  work; 
and  along  with  the  other  British  Museum  catalogues,  can  be  procured 
from  E.  Newman,  9,  Devonshire  Street,  Bishop  Street,  London.  Two 
volumes  on  the  Diptera,  or  Two-winged  Flies,  at  £l  5s.  each,  have  been 
published  by  L.  Reeve,  Henrietta  Street,  Co  vent  Garden;  and  other  works 
on  our  native  insects  are  in  course  of  preparation.  Every  student  should, 
if  possible,  purchase  the  second  edition  of  "The  Entomologist's  Annual" 
for  1855,  and  the  volume  for  this  year,  2s.  6d.  each;  both  contain  most 
valuable  instructions  for  collecting  different  orders  of  insects,  notices  of  use- 
ful books,  and  aids  to  progress,  and  the  Editor,  Mr.  Stainton,  gives  many 
notable  proofs  of  anxiety  to  forward  this  charming  study  amongst  all  classes 
of  his  countrymen. 

How  is  the  poor  student  to  procure  funds  for  the  purchase  of  books 
and  apparatus?  The  son  of  a  rich  man  may  meet  with  a  refusal  from 
his  parents,  but  let  him  shew  his  earnestness  by  persevering  in  collecting 
with  the  simplest  apparatus,  and  by  never  neglecting   his  studies,  and  by 


110  HINT8   TO    INSECT   COLLECTORS. 

denying  himself  every  little  luxury;  such  a  course  of  conduct  will  sooner 
or  later  meet  its  reward.  The  son  of  the  poor  man  and  the  working 
man  must  pursue  the  same  course  of  self-denial;  they  should  endeavour 
to  induce  a  few  companions  to  club  together,  and  purchase  Ingpen's  ^'In- 
structions in  collecting,"  and  the  simplest  apparatus. 

A  ring  for  a  net  may  be  formed  of  four  feet  and  a  half  of  iron  wire, 
a  little  thinner  than  a  common  pencil;  fashion  it  into  a  hoop  about  thirteen 
inches  in  diameter,  leaving  about  seven  inches  at  each  end  of  the  wire  to 
form  a  handle;  fasten  these  in  two  grooves  cut  in  a  walking-stick,  by  means 
of  a  stout  cord  wetted,  and  tighten  the  latter  by  a  nail  or  peg  of  hard 
wood  used  as  a  wrench,  securing  the  whole  with  a  string.  A  still  cheaper 
style  may  be  to  take  a  stout  walking-stick,  bore  two  holes  on  the  same 
plane,  one  foot  apart,  first  with  a  small  gimlet,  then  with  a  red-hot 
skewer;  put  an  iron  wire  three  feet  long  into  the  fire  till  it  is  red-hot, 
when  cool  it  will  bend  nicely;  pass  it  through  the  two  holes  in  the  stick, 
and  tie  or  weld  the  ends  together.  A  rattan  cane,  which  costs  a  half- 
penny at  the  saddler's,  if  steeped  in  boiling  water  for  an  hour  and 
slightly  thinned  down,  fitted  to  the  above  is  better  for  use  than  to  pine 
after  expensive  apparatus:  the  stick  across  the  ring  need  not  be  a  grave 
objection. 

There  are  three  descriptions  of  net  used;  one  of  cheese  cloth,  fourteen 
inches  deep,  for  water-insects;  another  of  the  same  dimensions  of  stout 
unbleached  cotton,  for  sweeping  herbage;  and  the  third  a  bag  of  white  net  or 
book  muslin,  with  meshes  wide  enough  to  admit  the  passage  of  a  pin's 
head,  about  twenty-seven  inches  deep,  fashioned  like  a  sugar-loaf,  for  all 
flying  insects.  These  nets  are  sewed  to  the  ring,  and  their  removal  is  a  tedious 
operation;  but  where  expense  is  no  object,  a  net- ring  and  handle  like  an 
angler's  landing  net,  and  a  series  of  nets  provided  with  welts,  will  admit 
of  a  ready  substitution.  Besides  these  nets,  a  pocket  net  may  be  made 
of  thin  copper  wire,  with  a  bag  two  and  a  half  times  the  diameter;  with 
such  a  tiny  affair  the  writer  has  taken  many  good  insects  in  his  daily 
walks,  not  forgetting  the  ever  ready  forefinger  and  thumb  wetted  for  the 
occasion  if  the  capture  is  a  Beetle. 

An  umbrella  is  useful  for  placing  below  bushes  and  hedges,  for  such 
insects  as  may  drop  down  when  these  are  beaten  with  a  stick.  For 
Beetles,  a  wide-mouthed  bottle,  about  three  inches  high,  with  a  cork  fas- 
tened by  a  string,  containing  a  little  spirit  of  any  sort;  or  else  dry  and 
furnished  with  several  small  pieces  of  blotting  paper,  and  a  cut  leaf  of 
the  common  laurel  or  some  morsels  of  camphor;  a  few  tin  boxes  or  tubes 
for  the  larger  kinds,  and  a  few  quills  stopped  at  one  end  with  wax  and 
fitted  with  a  cork,  for  the  smaller  species.  Pill  boxes,  which  can  be  pur- 
chased in  nests  or  sets  from  the  apothecary,  but  cheapest  in  packets  con- 


CONCHOLOOY   OF    TIERM,  111 

taining  a  dozen  sets  for  sixpence  from  wholesale  toy-men,  are  used  for  most 
other  insects,  except  the  Butterfly,  which,  when  captured,  is  seized  below 
the  wings  between  a  fold  of  the  net,  the  body  is  smartly  compressed  by 
the  thumb  nail  till  dead,  it  is  then  lifted  by  the  feelers  by  the  right 
hand,  placed  between  the  finger  and  thumb  of  the  left  hand,  and  trans- 
fixed with  a  pin  between  the  fore  wings,  until  the  point  projects  about  a 
quarter  of  an  inch  below.  It  is  then  stuck  in  the  collecting  box,  and  the 
wings  confined  with  a  few  braces,  which  are  best  carried  in  an  old  match 
box. 

When  bees  and  the  larger  flies  are  not  boxed,  then  the  captive 
is  confined  between  the  folds  of  the  net  on  the  collector's  knee,  and  a 
pin  is  thrust  between  the  wings;  the  hand  is  then  passed  into  the  net, 
and  the  pin's  point  is  seized,  and  its  head  is  drawn  through  the  mesh  of 
the  net.  To  box  an  insect,  secure  it  between  a  fold  of  the  net,  take  a 
pill-box  from  the  right-hand  pocket,  seize  the  lid  between  your  teeth, 
place  the  handle  of  the  net  between  your  knees,  push  the  net  below  the 
insect  so  as  to  confine  it  under  one  ply  of  the  net,  secure  it  with  the 
left  hand,  then  pass  the  lid  forwards.  A  pin-cushion  is  made  of  four  or 
five  plies  of  flannel  sewed  between   two  cards. 

Wooden  toy-boxes  can  be  purchased  in  nests  at  a  reasonable  price  from 
wholesale  toy-men — a  suitable  size  may  be  selected  for  the  pocket;  or  an 
old  Seidlitz  or  ginger  beer  powder  box;  these  may  be  strengthened  by  pasting 
slips  of  paper  on  the  corners  both  inside  and  outside.  If  a  suitable  sheet 
of  cork  cannot  be  procured,  cut  bottle  corks  into  pieces  about  a  quarter  of 
an  inch  square,  and  place  them  half  an  inch  apart  on  the  bottom  and  top 
of  the  box,  if  it  is  deep  enough  for  that  purpose,  with  a  small  bag  of 
camphor,  or,  what  is  better,   bruised  laurel  leaves  pinned  in  a   corner. 

(To  be  conti7iued.) 


A    DAY'S    CONCHOLOGISING    ON    THE    ISLET    OF    HERAL 

BY    W.    V.    GUISE,    ESQ.,    F.G.S. 
(  Conclvded  from  page  80,  _) 

Amongst  the  rocks  were  scattered  numerous  pools,  whose  sides,  clothed 
with  Algae,  afforded  a  refuge  to  other  tribes,  not  less  attractive  and  inter- 
esting. Here  the  Lima  might  be  seen  shooting  through  the  water  like 
a  meteor,  the  bright  scarlet  of  its  branchial  fringes  in  vivid  contrast  with 
the  milk-white  valves;  while,  disturbed  by  the  intrusive  net,  strange  ghost- 
like forms  of  Crustaceans  darted  from  under  the  veil  of  sea-weed,  and, 
half-seen  for  a  moment,  hastened  to  conceal  themselves  in  the  deepest  recesses 
of  the  pool.  It  was  in  such  a  spot  that  I  had  the  good  fortune  to 
effect  by  far  the  most   remarkable   capture   which    I    made    during   my   ex- 


112  06NCH0L0GV   OP    HERM. 

aminatlon  of  this  coast.  I  was  endeavouring  to  catch,  with  a  small  hand- 
dredge,  an  individual  of  Peden  varius,  which,  with  flapping  valves,  was 
flying  to  and  fro  through  the  water;  when  some  shrimp-like  animal  of  a 
vivid  scarlet  hue  shot  suddenly  from  jbencath  the  sea-weed.  I  at  once 
directed  all  my  efforts  to  the  capture  of  the  stranger;  and  after  a  long 
hunt,  having,  as  I  thought,  more  than  once  lost  him  amongst  the  tangled 
streams  of  weed,  I  at  length,  (quite  trembling  with  the  excitement  of  the 
chase,)  had  the  satisfaction  of  viewing  the  object  of  my  pursuit  safely 
netted.  Touzeau  called  it  the  "red  shrimp,"  and  pronounced  it  scarce; 
for  myself,  as  I  surveyed  its  hue  of  brilliant  scarlet,  and  the  two  large 
and  powerful  chelas,  I  felt  sure  I  had  got  a  prize — probably  Alpheus  ruber, 
a  Mediterranean  species  of  extraordinary  rarity  in  our  seas.  But  when,  at 
a  later  period,  I  had  leisure  to  examine  the  specimen  microscopically,  and 
to  compare  it  with  the  descriptions  in  the  elaborate  work  of  Milne  Edwards, 
on  the  Crustacea,  I  had  the  satisfaction  of  finding  that  I  was  the  fortu- 
nate discoverer  of  a  new  species  of  Alpheus,  to  which  I  gave  the  name  of 
Affmis,  an  account  of  which  will  be  found  in  the  "Annals  and  Magazine 
of  Natural  History,  vol.  xiv.  page  275. 

The  tide  beginning  to  turn,  we  removed  to  a  more  sandy  portion  of 
the  coast  in  search  of  the  Mollusca  which  more  especially  affect  an  arena- 
ceous habitat,  (having  previously  provided  ourselves  with  a  spade  for  the 
purpose  of  digging  for  the  burrowing  species.)  We  made  our  way  to  the 
very  verge  of  the  returning  tide,  for  the  natural  instinct  of  the  burrowing 
Mollusca  inducing  them  on  the  reflux  of  the  tide  to  rise  towards  the 
surface  to  meet  it,  their  discovery  is  thus  rendered  more  easy.  Never- 
theless, in  the  case  of  those  endowed  with  long  syphons,  it  is  by  no  means 
an  easy  matter  to  obtain  them  even  when  their  presence  is  ascertained, 
as,  by  the  aid  of  their  muscular  foot,  they  burrow  downwards  in  the 
sand  with  such  extraordinary  rapidity,  that,  added  to  the  diflUculty  of 
keeping  the  hole  clear  of  water  while  digging,  it  requires  no  ordinary 
adroitness  to  take  them,  even  after  much  practice,  many  being  broken  in 
the  process,  and  many  more  escaping  altogether.  We  were,  however, 
successful  in  procuring  several  good  specimens  of  Lutraria  ohlonga,  an 
uncommon  species,  of  which  we  were  especially  in  quest;  and  an  abundance 
of  the  following  genera: — Venus  verrucosa,  which  abounds  on  this  coast, 
and  occupies  the  place  as  an  edible  mollusk  that  the  Cockle  does 
among  ourselves;  this  latter,  Gardium  edule,  being  rather  scarce.  Psani- 
mohia  vespertina,  Tellina  crassa  and  donacina,  Tapes  virginea  and  aurea, 
Artemis  exoleta,  &c.;  of  Venas  casina,  we  took  only  one  example.  The 
curious  Sea  Mouse,  Aphrodite  aculeata,  was  abundant;  and  amongst  the 
Crustacea  Tliia  polita  and  Pirimela  denticulata  were  obtained;  both  uncommon 
— the  former  rare. 


CONCHOLOGY    OF    HERM. 


113 


I  here  bring  to  a  close  this  record  of  a  day's  naturalizing  at  Herm,  not 
without  a  hope  that  what  I  have  written  may  induce  other  lovers  of 
Natural  History  to  explore  a  locality  which  offers  unusual  facilities  for  the 
study  of  Marine  Zoology;  and  which  would,  I  feel  assured,  richly  reward 
any  one  going  thither  with  proper  appliances  and  means,  and  having  suffi- 
cient leisure  to  devote  to  a   thorough  investigation   of  the  ground. 

In  conclusion,  I  would  merely  add  as  a  hint  to  those  who  may  follow 
ray  footsteps,  that,  having  an  eye  to  creature  comforts,  which  I  have  shewn 
do  not  abound  in  Herm,  I  would  advise  that  a  bottle  of  Harvey's  Sauce 
and  a  pot  of  Cocoa  Paste  should  form  part  of  the  travelling  equipage  of 
the  visitor;  armed  with  which  concomitants,  he  may  dine  well  of  boiled 
Bass,  and  defy  the  acrid  flavour  of  mine  host's  coffee. 

Annexed  is  a  list  of  our  principal  zoological  captures,  whether  by  hand 
or  dredge: —        • 

MOLLUSCA. 


Thracia  phaseolina, 
Psammobia  vespertina, 
Tellina  crassa, 

"      donacina, 

"      tellinella, 
Donax  politus,  (very  rare,) 
Ijutraria  oblonga. 
Tapes  pullastra, 

"  „  virginea, 

"      aurea, 
Venus  verrucosa, 

"      casina, 

"      fasciata, 
Artemis  exoleta, 

Xantho  rivulosa, 
Pilumnus  hirtellus, 
Pirimela  denticulata, 
Porcellana  platycheles, 

Ophiura  texturata, 
Ophiocoma  rosula, 
Solaster  papposa. 


Lucina  lactea, 
Kellia  suborbicularis, 
Galeomma  Turtoni, 
Mytilus  barbatus, 
Area  tetragona, 

'^      lactea, 
Pectunculus  glycimeris, 
Nucula  nucleus, 
Lima  hians, 
Pecten  varius, 
Anomia  ephippium, 

"       striata. 
Chiton  discrepans, 
"^       cinereus, 

CRUSTACKA. 

Portunus  puber, 
Thia  polita, 
Ebalia  Pennantii, 

ECHINODERMATA, 

Asterina  gibbosa, 
Palmipes  membranaceus, 
Echinus  sphaera  (unusually 


Chiton  asellus, 

"       lasvis, 
Acmasa  virginea, 
Calyptraea  sinensis, 
Fissurella  reticulata, 
Eraarginula  reticulata, 
Trochus  exiguus, 
''       striatus, 
"       umbilicatus, 
Natica  nitida, 
Murex  corallinus, 
Haliotis  tuberculata, 
Cypraea  europaea. 


Pisa  Gibbsii, 
Galathea   strigosa, 
Alpheus  affinis,  (new  sp.) 


large.) 
Echinocyamus  pusillus. 


ZOOPHYTA. 

Gorgonia  verrucosa,  dredged  in  deep  water,  (unusually  fine.) 


VOL.  VI. 


114 


SYSTEMA      NATURE. 

BY    THE    REV.  P,  0.  MORRIS. 


(  Continued 

OEDO    III, 
PAMILIA  I.— Feugivesa. 
Pteeopus. 
Pteropus    edulis,    Geoff.    Schinz.      P. 

Javauicus,   Honf.  Temm. 
Pteropus  jubatus,   Eshh.   Schinz.      P. 

pyrrocephalus,  Meyer. 
Pteropus  Edwardsii,  Geoff.  ScUnz. 
Pteropus  Assamensis.  ScJiinz. 
Pteropus  funereus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Pteropus  phaiops,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Pteropus  poliocephalus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Pteropus  chrysoproctus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Pteropus  Macloti,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Pteropus   dasymallus,    Temm.    Schinz. 

P.  rubricollis,  Sieb. 
Pteropus  pselaphon,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Pteropus  vulgaris,  Geoff.  Schinz.   Ves- 
pertilio  Vampyrus,  Linn.     V.  mau- 
ritianus,  Commers. 
Pteropus  rubricollis,  Geoff.  Schinz.    P. 
coUaris,    Lich.      P.   fuscus,    Briss. 
Vespertilio  Vampyrus,  Temm. 
Pteropus  alecto,  Temm.  Schinz, 
Pteropus  pallidus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Pteropus    keraudrenius,    Schinz.      P. 

marianus,  Desm. 
Pteropus    tonganus,    Temm.     Quay  et 

Gaimard.  Schinz. 
Pteropus   Vanicorensis,    Temm.    Quoy 

et  Gaim.  Schinz. 
Pteropus    Dussumieri,    Geoff.    Temm. 

Schinz. 
Pteropus  griseus,  Geoff.  Temm.  Schinz. 
Pteropus  personatus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Pteropus  labiatus,  Temm.  Schinz.     P. 
Whitei,  Ben.    P.  epimophorus,  Ben. 
Pteropus  scboensis,   Rilpp.  Schinz. 
Pteropus    stramineus,     Geoff.     Temm. 

Schinz. 
Pteropus    Greoffroyii,    Temm.    Schinz. 
P.  iEgyptiacus,  Fisch.  Geoff. 


from  page  90.J 

— Cheieopteea. 

Pteropus  Leschenaultii,  Desm.  Temm. 
Schinz. 

Pteropus  amplexicaudatus,  Geoff.  Tem. 

Schinz. 
Pteropus  Hottentottus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Pteropus  Leachii,   Temm.   Schinz. 
Pteropus    marginatus,     Geoff.    Temm. 
Schinz.        Cynopterus     marginatus, 
F.  Guv. 
Pteropus  titthaecbfilus,   Tem.   Schinz. 

Pachysoma  tittaecbailus,  Temm. 
Pteropus  brachyotis,    Schinz.    Pachy- 

soma  brachyotis,  Mull. 
Pteropus  brevicaudatus,  Schinz.     Pa- 
chysoma  brevicaudatum,  Mtill.  Tem. 
Pteropus  Diardi,  Schinz.     Pachysoma 

Diardi,   Geoff. 
Pteropus  ecaudatus,  Schinz.    Paebyso- 
ma    ecaudatum,    Temm.        Megjera 
ecaudata.  Mull. 
Pteropus  melanocephalus,  Schinz.    Pa- 
cbysoma     melanocepbalum,      Geoff. 
Temm. 
Pteropus  Grambianus,    Ogilhy,  Schinz. 
Pteropus  macrocephalus,  Ogil.  Schinz. 
Pteropus  pyrrocephalus,  Schinz. 
Pteropus  argentatus,  Grray,  Schinz. 

MACBOGLOSSUS. 

Macroglossus  minimus,  Temm.  Schmz. 
Pteropus  minimus,  Geoff.  P.  ros- 
tratus,  Horsf. 

HAEPYIA. 

Harpyia  Cephalotes,  Schinz.  H.  Pal- 
lasii,  Temm.  Cephalotes  Pallasii, 
Geoff.    Vespertilio  cephalotes.  Ball. 

HYPODEEMA. 

Hypoderma  Peronii,  Schinz.  H.  mo- 
luccensis,  Q,uoy  et  Gaimard.  Ceph- 
alotes Peronii,  Geoff.  Fisch.  Ptero- 
pus palliatus,  Geoff. 


MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES. 


11/ 


FAMILIA    II. 
Cheieopteea  entomophaga. 

DYSOPES. 

Dysopes  Savii,  Schinz.  Dinops  Ces- 
toni,  Savi. 

Dysopes  Riippellii,  Temm.  Schinz. 

Dysopes  Greoffroyi,  Schinz.  Nyctino- 
mus  ^gyptiacus,  Geoff.  Molossus 
-^gyptiacus,  Fisch. 

Dysopes  pumilus,  Geoff,  Rilpp.  Schinz. 

Dysopes  torquatus,  Schinz,  D.  cliei- 
ropus,  Temm.  Cheiromeles  torqua- 
tus, Horsf.  Molossus  cheiropus, 
Less.     M.  torquatus,  Fisch. 

Dysopes  plicatus,  Schinz.  Nyctinomus 
Bengalensis,  Geoff.  Vespertilio  pli> 
catus,  Buchanan. 

Dysopes  tenuis,  Schinz.  Nyctinomus 
tenuis,  Fisch. 

Dysopes  dilatatus,  Schinz.  Nyctino- 
mus  dilatatus,  Hortf.  Less.  Fisch. 

Dysopes  Alecto,  Schinz,  Molossus 
ursinus,  Spix. 

Dysopes  perotis,  Schinz,  D.  rufus, 
Temm.     Molossus  rufus,  Geoff. 

Dysopes  rufo-castaneus,  Schinz,  Mo- 
lossus nasutus,  Spix. 

Dysopes  abrasus,  Temm,  Schinz, 

Dysopes  nasutus,  Temm.  Schinz.  Nyc- 
tinomus  Braziliensis,  Geoff. 

Dysopus  velox,  Temm.  Schinz,  Mo- 
lossus tropidorhynchus,  Gray, 

Dysopes  fumaritis,  Spix.  Schinz.  Mo- 
lossus obscurus,   Geoff. 


Dysopes  laticaudatus,  Schinz.  Molos- 
sus laticaudatus,   Geoff. 

Dysopes  coecus,  Schinz.  Molossus 
coecus,  JRengg. 

Dysopes  crassicaudatus,  Schinz.  Mo- 
lossus crassieaudatus.  Geoff. 

Dysopes  castaneus,  Schinz.  Molossus 
castaneus,   Geoff. 

Dysopes  macrotis,  Schinz.  Nyctino- 
mus  macrotis.   Gray. 

Dysopes  moxensis,  Schinz.  Molossus 
moxensis,  D'  Orbigny. 

Dysopes  rugosus,  Schinz.  Molossus 
rugosus,  D' Orbigny. 

Dysopes  longicaudatus,  Schinz.  Mo- 
lossus longicaudatus,  Geoff.  Vesper- 
tilio molossus.  Pall. 

Dysopes  amplexicaudatus,  Geof.  Schinz. 

Dysopes  fusciventer,  Schinz. 

Dysopes  acuticaudatus,  Schinz.  Mu- 
lossus  acuticaudatus,  Desm. 

Dysopes  ater,  Schinz.  Molossus  ater, 
Geof. 

Dysopes  fuliginosus,  Schinz.  Molos- 
sus fuliginosus.    Gray. 

Dysopes  Norfolkensis,  Schinz. 

Dysopes   thyropterus,    Schinz. 

Dysopes    ferox,    Schinz.      Molossus 
feroi.  Pop. 

Dysopes  longimanus.   Wag.  Schinz. 

Dysopes  leucopleura,  Watt.  Schinz. 

Dysopes  glaucinus.  Watt.  Schinz. 

Dysopes  bolosericeus,  Watt.  Schinz. 

Dysopes  albus,  Watt.  Schinz. 

Dysopes  auritus.  Watt.  Schinz. 

Dysopes  gracilis,  Watt,  Schinz. 


(To  be  continued.) 


3^{sallnnpnii3  Sntitts. 

The  Peregrine  Falcon. — On  December  26th.  last,  a  beautiful  male  Pere- 
grine Falcon  was  shot  by  a  friend  of  mine,  in  a  field  not  a  hundred  yards 
from  the  house  in  which  I  was  staying,  at  Neatishead,  in  the  county  of 
Norfolk,  at  about  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.     It  is  not  twelve   months 


116  MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 

since  a  beautiful  Goshawk  was  shot  within  half  a  mile  of  the  same  place. 
The  Falcon  was  presented  to  me,  and  has  been  preserved. — M.  C.  Cooke, 
Trinity  Church  Schools,  Carlisle  Street,  Lambeth,  January  26th.,  1856. 

The  Great  Bustard,  (Otis  tarda.) — A  female  of  this  species  was  shot  in 
a  turnip  field,  near  Lee's  Hill,  Kingswater,  near  Brampton,  on  the  8th. 
of  March,  1854. — T.  Armstrong,  10,  Barwis  Court,  English  Street,  Carlisle. 

Common  Bittern,  (Botaurus  stellaris.) — A  fine  specimen  of  this  bird  was 
shot  on  Todhill's  moss,  four  miles  from  Carlisle,  by  the  gamekeeper  of 
G.  G.  Mouusey,  Esq.,  on  the  6th.  of  January,  1856. — Idem. 

The  Eider  Duck,  (Anas  moUissima.) — A  female  bird  was  shot  on  the 
15th.  of  November,  1855,  close  to  Hest  Bank  Station,  and  is  now  in  my 
possession;  it  was  shot  on  the  break -water  in  Morecombe  Bay. — Idem. 

The  Spotted  Crake,  (Crex  porzana.) — One  old  bird  and  two  young  ones 
were  shot  on  the  7th.  of  September,  on  Monk-hill  Lough,  one  of  which 
fell  into  my  hands. — Idem. 

Common  Scoter,  (Anas  nigra.) — A  male  of  this  species  was  shot  on  the 
23rd.  of  February,  1856,  at  Port  Carlisle. — Idem. 

Two  or  three  parties  in  our  neighbourhood  have  caught  the  Common 
Crossbill,  and  who  have  it  in  confinement,  and  find  it  very  tractable;  they 
feed  directly,  and  will  drink  out  of  a  cup  like  a  bird  that  has  been  years 
in  the  cage.  One  party  opens  the  cage  door  and  lets  the  bird  out;  it  climbs 
about  the  outside  of  the  cage,  similar  to  a  Parrot. — Idem. 

Scarcity  of  Birds  about  Richmond. — Seldom  has  a  winter  past  with  fewer 
records  of  rare  feathered  visitors;  even  the  Lesser  Redpoles,  and  other  small 
birds,  which  are  during  the  dead  months  usually  to  be  seen  in  this  neighbour- 
hood in  large  flocks,  are  totally  wanting;  neither  do  the  Yellow  Buntings 
and  Chaffinches  congregate  in  such  numbers  as  usual.  I  have  generally  been 
able  to  record  some  of  the  rarer  of  the  Anatidee  having  been  taken  or  killed 
here  in  the  months  of  December  or  January,  but  this  year  I  am  unable  to  do 
so,  for,  with  the  exception  of  a  Golden  Eye,  seen  on  the  Swale  in  the  latter 
end  of  November,  no  mention  whatever  of  Ducks  has  reached  me.  A  small 
flock  of  Crossbills  were  seen  last  week  a  few  miles  above  Richmond;  and 
a  pair,  male  and  female,  were  killed.  I  quite  agree  with  you  in  considering 
that  Haws  are  this  year  unusually  numerous,  and  also  much  brighter  in  colour 
than  usual.  I  made  the  same  remark  with  regard  to  the  berries  of  the  holly. 
— Henry  Smurthwaite,  Richmond,  Yorkshire,  February  3rd.,  1856. 

The  Myrtle  Bee. — In  the  April  number  of  the  fifth  volume  of  '"'The 
Naturalist,"  a  paper  under  the  above  title  appeared  from  my  pen,  the 
result  of  a  communication  made  to  the  "Notes  and  Queries"  on  the  sub- 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES, 


117 


ject  of  a  ^^nondescript  bird"  noticed  some  years  ago,  in  some  marshy  ground 
forming  part  of  what,  two  years  since,  was  the  Guards'  quarter  in  the 
Camp  at  Chobham.  In  the  July  number,  page  152  of  that  volume,  a 
communication  appeared  from  Mr.  J.  S.  Walker,  of  Porchester  Square, 
London,  on  the  subject,  and  speaking  from  personal  experience  of  a  bird 
similar  in  appearance  and  habits  which  he  had  met  with  in  Australia. 
Matters  of  pressing  import  at  that  time  prevented  my  paying  particular 
attention  to  the  subject;  but  in  collecting  my  numbers  for  the  binder,  and 
with  more  present  leisure,  it  now  recurs  to  my  mind  that,  some  years 
since,  I  had  a  number  of  Australian  bird  skins  given  to  me,  and  amongst 
the  rest  the  bird  in  question,  namely,  the  Emeu  Wren,  and  I  think  now 
in  my-  brother's  possession  as  a  stuffed  specimen,  exactly  answering  Captain 
Brown's  description;  a  vivid  idea  of  which  was  ever  and  anon  floating  through 
my  brain,  but  which,  like  many  other  such  ideas,  I  have  not  until  now 
been  able  to  realize;  although,  all  the  time  Captain  Brown  was  relating 
the  circumstance,  I  was  considering  when  and  where  I  had  met  with  such 
a  creature.  My  impression,  however,  is,  that  the  bird  I  speak  of  was  not 
quite  so  small  as  the  Captain  describes,  and  that  its  plumage,  instead  of 
sooty  black,  was  what  painters  call  "vandyke  brown."  The  valuable 
addition  made  by  Mr.  J.  S.  Walker,  to  the  account  of  its  habits,  makes  it 
highly  probable  that  the  birds  are  the  same,  though  whether  now  extinct  in 
this  country  remains  to  be  seen. — 0.  S.  Round,  Pembroke  Square,  Ken- 
sington, February  5th.,  1856. 


Malformation  of  Plantago  lanceolata. — In  the  February  number  of  "The 
Naturalist,"  page  45,  the  accompanying  engraving  of  a  curious  variety  of 
Plantago  lanceolata,  was  unfortunately  omitted;  so  that  a  very  common 
plant  was  erroneously  made  to  appear  as  if  considered  a  rare  one.  The 
remark  was  intended  to  refer  to  the  malformation,  not  to  the  plant  itself. 
P.  0.  Morris. 


118 

Taxidermy  made  Easy;  "being  Plain  and  Practical  Directions  for  Preserving, 
Setting  up,  and  Embellishing  in  the  most  approved  style,  all  kinds  of 
Quadrupeds,  Birds,  Fishes,  Reptiles,  Insects,  etc.,  loith  Notes  and  Illus- 
trations. By  John  Tyrer.  Taxidermist,  Chatham,  Kent.  Price  2s.  6d. 
Sold  at    52,  High  Holborn,  London. 

I  REMEMBER,  many  years  ago,  seeing  this  book,  or  some  one  with  a 
similar  title,  adverted  to,  and  being  puzzled  at  the  time  to  know  what 
^'Taxidermy"  meant.  Miss  Edgeworth,  in  one  of  her  works,  observes  that 
there  may  possibly  be  within  the  compass  of  the  civilized  world,  though 
no  school-boy  will  believe  in  the  possibility,  some  individual  so  barbarously 
ignorant  as  not  to  know  the  meaning  of  the  word  fag;  she  accordingly  gives 
the  unlearned  the  meaning,  as  derived  from  the  Latin  fatigo — to  weary. 
As  there  may,  in  like  manner,  be  some  one  ignorant,  in  common  with 
myself  once,  of  the  meaning  of  the  present  word,  I  beg  leave  to  state  that 
it  is  derived  from  two  Greek  words — tasso — to  set  in  order,  and  derma — a 
skin.  The  title,  then,  of  the  book  bespeaks  the  nature  of  its  contents; 
and  I  have  only  further  to  observe  that  there  are  many  valuable  receipts 
given  in  its  pages,  and  instructions  in  the  art.  Mr.  Tyrer  is  evidently  no 
Tyro  in  it. 

f  rnmMngs  nf  InriBtitB. 

The  London  Working  Entomologists'  Society  held  their  second  meeting 
this  season  on  Wednesday  Feb.  6th.,  at  52,  High  Holborn,  R.  G,  Schofield, 
Esq.  Vice-President,  in  the  chair,  when  Edward  Newman,  Esq.  was  elected 
a  member. 

A  new  and  novel  description  of  larva  box  was  exhibited;  also  two 
boxes  of  Insects  captured  last  season;   among  them  were  a  few  novelties. 


Hips  and  Bates. — What  are  Hips?  The  ripe  fruit  of  the  rose  is  so 
called.  The  Conserve  of  Hips  (Conserva  Rosce  Canince)  of  the  apothecary 
is  made  from  the  pulp  of  the  Hips,  deprived  of  the  hairs  and  boiled  with 
sugar. — 'J.  P.  Pernie,  Kimbolton,  March  1st.,   1856. 

"Hips  and  Haivs." — What  are  Hips? — The  question  asked  in  "The 
Naturalist"  for  the  present  month  is  answered  in  that  volume  which  is  a 
compendium  of  all  philosophy,  of  many  facts,  and  of  not  a  little  natural 
history — Shakspere.  In  "Timon  of  Athens,"  (Act  iv.  Scene  3,)  that  noble 
Athenian  rebukes  the  thieves,  when  they  plead  want,  by  reminding  them — 


THE    QUERIST,  119 

"Behold  the  earth  hath  roots; 
Within  this  mile  hreak  forth  a  hundred  springs; 
The  oaks  bear  mast,  the  briars  scarlet  hips." 

The  question,  "What  are  Hips?"  is  therefore  easily  answered: — they  are 
the  fruit  of  the  wild  rose.  But  there  is  an  episode  connected  with  thia 
subject  which  has  few  equals  in  the  history  of  words  and  the  blunders  of 
commentators.     Dr.  Johnson,  in   his  folio   Dictionary,   gives   the  following 

definition : — 

"Heps— Hawthorn  berries,  commonly  called  Hips;" 

with  the  inconsistent  quotation* — 

"In  hard  winters  there  is  observed  great  plenty  of  heps  and  haws,  which  preserve  the 
small  birds  from  starving." — Bacon. 

Now,  as  haivs  are,  beyond  all  question,  the  berries  of  the  hawthorn.  Dr. 
Johnson  ought  to  have  seen  that  heps  could  not  also  be  "hawthorn  berries," 
or  Bacon  would  have  written  "heps  or  haws,"  instead  of  "heps  and  haws." 
And  as  this  quotation  from  Bacon  appears  to  have  monopolised  the  atten- 
tion of  most  Dictionary-compilers,  (to  the  exclusion  of  the  more  apposite 
one  from  Shakspere,)  they  have  made  some  singular  guesses  as  to  what 
^^hips"  are,  seeing  that  they  are  not  "haws."  In  the  8vo.  edition  of  Bailey's 
Dictionary  (London,  1733)  are  the  following  definitions: —  - 

"Haw  (of  Hagan,  Sax.) — A  sort  of  berry,  the  fruit  of  the  white-thorn." 
"Hip,  Hep  (Heope,  Sax.) — A  berry,  the  fruit  of  the  large  bramble." 

But  as  the  bramble  is  the  black-herry,  and  as  heps   are  scarlet,  Guess  No. 

2,  was  no  nearer  the  mark  than  Dr.  Johnson's.     Dyche's  Dictionary  supplies 

another  supposition  equally  unsatisfactory  in  a  double  definition  of  the  word 

in  question.     Defining  "haw"  as  "the  fruit  of  the  white-thorn  tree  or  bush," 

he  gives — 

"Hips — The  berries  or  fruit  of  the  large  bramble." 
"Heps  or  Hips — The  fruit  of  the  black-thorn  tree." 

Scott's  Folio  edition  of  Bailey  (Lond:  1765)  gives  the  four  following  defi- 
nitions of  "Hips  and  Haws:" — 

"Hip  (Heopa,  Sax.) — The  fruit  of  the  briar  or  dog-rose."    "Store  of  haws  and  hips." — Bacon. 

"Heps  or  Hips. — The  fruit  of  the  black-thorn  shrub,  commonly  written  hips." — Bacon. 

"Haw  (Hag,  Haeg,  Sax.) — The  berry  and  seed  of  the  hawthorn." 

"Haw  (Hagan,  Sax.) — A  berry,  the  fruit  of  the  white-thorn." 

Here  we  find  the  true  account  given  in  the  first  case  as  to  the  thing 
itself,  and  in  the  second  as  to  its  relative  orthography  and  pronunciation. 
Derived  from  the  Saxon  Heopa,  the  word  is  almost  universally  pronounced 
hep,  but  written  hip.  Whereas  Dr.  Johnson,  not  content  with  the  egregious 
blunder  that  hips  are  haws,  spells  the  word  heps,  but  tells  us  the  berries 

»  I  cannot  see  the  inconsistency  here ;  the  quotation  could  only  properly  be  made  in  its  entirety.  The 
reference  is  to  be  made  by  the  reader,  only  quoad  it  applies,  namely,  to  the  heps.— F.  O.  Mobris. 


120  THE    QUERIST. 

are  ^^commonly  called  hips."  Walker,  in  his  '^Critical  (?)  Pronouncing 
Dictionary,"  has  fallen  into  the  same  error,  giving  the  word  "Heps"  as 
pronounced  "hips,"  though  in   his  definition   he   says — • 

"The  fruit  of  the  dog-rose,  commonly  written  hips." 

The  "Encyclopaedia  Londinensis,"  (a.d.  1810,)  gives  the  word  thus — 

"Hkps. — Hawthorn  berries,  commonly  written  Xn^s."  —Ainsworth. 

■with  the  above  quotation  from  Bacon.  And  not  needlessly  to  multiply 
quotations,  the  8vo.  edition  of  Johnson's  Dictionary,  though  it  professes  to 
be  "abstracted  from  the   Folio  edition,"  gives  the  word 

"Heps— The  berries  of  the  brier  or  dog-rose,  commonly  written  hiT^s."  —Ainsworth. 

Not  having  Ainsworth  at  hand,  I  am  unable  to  tell  whether  the  Ency- 
clopaedia or  the  Octavo  have  correctly  quoted  that  authority.  There  is  no 
need  to  refer  to  more  recent  works.  But  I  may,  in  conclusion,  mention 
as  an  interesting  relic,  (amongst  many  others  of  a  similar  kind  in  this 
parish,)  of  the  Saxon  original,  whence  springs  our  modern  "haw"  and  ^'haw- 
thorn," that  to  this  day  the  red  berries  of  the  thorn-tree  are  called  haegs, 
and  have  with  us  no  other  name.  The  edition  of  the  "Imperial  Dictionary," 
(Blackie,  1850,)  however  traces  the  word  further  than  we  have  surviving 
links  to  follow,  when  he  says — 

"Haw  (Sax.  Haeg,  Hag,  G.  Heck,  Ban.  Hek,  Hekke,  a  hedge.)— The  berry  and  seed  of 
the  hawthorn,  that  is,  hedge-thorn." 

We  have  heclcs  in  the  sides  of  our  carts,  but  no  such  word  as  haeg-thorn 
to  link  the  graver  Saxon  sound,  haeg,  with  the  acute  Danish,  hekke.  Still 
as  the  Germans  have  their  hayedorn,  the  Swedes  hagtorn,  and  the  Danes 
hagetorn,  it  is  evident  there  was  once  such  a  word,  but  that  haeg  has 
become  haw,  as,  by  a  like  metamorphosis,  saeg  (which  is  still  common  with 
us  as  the  name  of  a  well-known  joiner's  tool)  has  in  general  become  saw. 
— E.J.  Walker,  Guardian  Office,  Halifax,  ■  March  12th.,  1856. 

Hips  and  Haws. — With  reference  to  your  inquiry  in  the  last  month's 
'^Naturalist,"  I  apprehend  that  Hips  are  the  fruit  of  the  wild  or  hedge- 
Tose,  as  haws  are  of  the  thorn;  at  least  such  is  the  distinction  here,  the 
common  term  being  "heps  and  hagues."  In  a  glossary  of  words  peculiar 
to  this  district,  appended  to  Scatcherd's  History  of  the  neighbouring  town- 
ship of  Morley,  I  find  the  following: — 

"Haguks — The  fruit  of  the  hawthorn;  hence  'Hagbush  Lane,  near  London. 
Heps — The  fruit  of  the  briar." 

— R.,  Wortley,  Leeds,  March,    1856. 

Similar  replies  have  been  furnished  by  Messieurs.  John  H.  Davies^T.  S. 
Tinker,  and  E.  Simpkin,  the  Eev.  R.  P.  Alington  and  the 
— F.  0.  Morris, 


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"A  History  of  the  Nests  and  Eggs  of  British  Biids." 

"A  Bible  Natural  History."    "A  Book  of  Natural  History,"  etc.,  etc.,  etc. 


0  Lord,  how  manifold  are  Thy  works!    in  wisdom  hast   Thou   made  them  all:   the 
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LONDON: 

GROOMBRIDGE  AND   SONS,  5,  PATERNOSTER  ROW. 


AND  MAY  BE  HAD  OP  ALL  BOOKSELLERS. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

Extracts    from    Correspondence  with    a    Brother    Naturalist.     By 

F.  M.  Burton,  Esq 121 

Amateur  Naturalists.     By  Mr.  Pass  Balshaw 125 

Inquiry  for  the   Naturalist^    (with  Engraving.) 127 

Hints  to  Insect  Collectors.     By  Taxus 128 

Notes  on  the  Cryology  of  Ladhill  Gill.  (North    Yorkshire.)     By  J. 

H.   Davies,    Esq 133 

Design  for  a  New  Larva  Box.     By  Mr.  E.  G.  Schofield.     (with 

Engravings.)  135 

List  of  Cryptogamous  Flora  found  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Ripon^ 

Yorkshire.     By  Miss  Emily  E.  Harkisox 186 

Beginning  of  the  Hunting  Season.     By  The  Editor 137 

Miscellaneous  Notices. — Snow  Bunting.     Bewick's  Swan.     Mealy 

Redpole.      Golden-eye.      Early  Breeding   of  the   Dipper.      The 

Cornish  Chough.     Common  Frog 139 

The  Retrospect. — The  "Great  Unknown"  Hawk.  Microscopes....  141 
Proceedings  of  Societies. — The  London  Working   Entomologists' 

Society.  144 

The  Querist. — Why  are  Birds  so  scarce  in  certain  districts,  etc.?         144 


NOTICES    TO    CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  from  Dk.  Hobson  ; — Mk.  R.  Andbews 
(two;) — Me.  Henet  Weaver; — Mr.  R.  Maeeis  (two;) — O.  S.  Round,  Esq.; 
— Rev.  J.  F.  Daw'son; — R.  G.  Temple,  Esq.; — Me.  J.  Melhuish. 

\*  Correspondents  are  particularly  requested  to  write  the 
names  of  persons,   places,  and  things  very  DISTI^XTLY. 


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CATLOW'S   POPULAR   CONCHOLOGY; 

OR,    THE    SHELL    CABINET 
ARRANGED    ACCORDING   TO    THE    MODERN    SYSTEM. 

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Second  Edition,  much  improved. 


LONDON:  LONGMAN,  BROWN,  GREEN,  AND  LONGMANS. 


121 


EXTRACTS     FROM 
CORRESPONDENCE    WITH    A     BROTHER    NATURAL 

BY    F.    M.    BURTON,    ESQ. 
( Continued  from  page  232,   vol.  v.  J 

As  you  have  no  duck  decoys  in  your  neighbourhood,  the  following 
account  of  one  of  the  few  left  in  the  fens  of  Lincolnshire  may  not  prove 
uninteresting.  Imagine  a  fine  winter's  morning,  with  a  brisk  wind  and 
sharp  frost,  but  not  too  cold  to  congeal  the  water,  and  all  just  ready  to  start, 
the  Flapper  having  previously  ascertained  that  a  flight  of  Ducks  came  in 
over-night.  About  three  or  four  hundred  yards  from  the  house  is  a  tall  thick 
plantation,  in  the  centre  of  which  lies  the  decoy — a  narrow  winding  sheet  of 
water  covering  about  seven  acres,  in  shape  something  like  a  curved  kidney- 
bean,  with  one  end  divided  into  five  points.  Leading  to  this  pond  are  several 
very  narrow  winding  foot  paths  through  the  plantation,  capable  of  admitting 
only  one  person  at  a  time.  Down  one  of  these  paths  the  whole  party 
starts,  preceded  by  the  P'lapper  or  Driver  as  he  is  sometimes  called,  dressed 
from  top  to  toe  in  scarlet,  with  huge  flaps  of  cloth  of  the  same  colour 
depending  from  his  arras.  Each  person  carries  a  piece  of  lighted  turf  to  his 
nose,  to  keep  the  Ducks  from  scenting  him,  so  accurate  is  their  sense  of  smell. 

On  approaching  the  brink  of  the  pond,  which  is  enclosed  all  round 
with  a  thick  barrier  of  rushes,  the  Flapper,  having  cautiously  ascertained 
whereabouts  the  birds  are  lying,  rolls  over  the  bank  a  piece  of  bread, 
which  is  immediately  followed  by  a  little  dog  trained  for  the  purpose;  and 
as  soon  as  the  decoy  Ducks  see  him  they  make  straight  for  him,  leading 
on  the  wild  birds  to  a  concealed  net  at  the  head  of  the  pond.  The  Flapper 
having  by  this  method  once  or  twice  repeated,  according  to  the  distance 
of  the  birds  from  the  netting,  drawn  them  up  to  one  of  the  heads  of  the 
water,  goes  quickly  to  a  place  a  little  distance  down,  where  he  can  see 
the  Ducks  and  be  seen  by  them,  and  commences  jumping  and  shaking  his 
large  red  flaps  about  like  a  madman.  The  decoys  immediately  on  the 
given  signal  dive,  and  leave  their  unfortunate  dupes  alone,  with  their 
heads  turned  towards  the  mouth  of  the  netting,  into  which  they  invariably 
fly,  not  being  able  to  turn  round  quick  enough  to  make  their  escape,  on 
account  of  the  shortness  of  their   tails.* 

The  owner  of  this  decoy  has  a  peculiar  method  of  catching  Rabbits,  by 
a  broad  plank  of  wood  placed  over  a  pit,  on  which  turnips  are  laid  for 
the  animals  to  feed  on;  and  when  a  sufiicient  number  is  collected  on  the 
top,  a  man  concealed  in  a  thicket  near,  pulls  away  the  wood  from  the 
mouth    of  the   hole    by  a   rope,   and   the    Rabbits   fall   in.      This  plan   is 

*  The  correctness  of  this  suggestion  is,  I  think,  prohlematical. — F.  0.  Mokris. 
VOL.  VI.  E 


122  EXTRACTS  FROM  CORRESPONDENCE. 

adopted  in  various  parts  of  Lincolnshire,  but  on  a  better  principle.  The 
machine  consists  of  a  piece  of  wood  turning  on  a  pivot,  and  precipitating 
the  Rabbit  treading  on  it  by  its  own  weight  to  the  bottom. 

To-day  I  have  been  for  my  first  spring  observation -walk  as  I  call  it, 
not  that  I  ever  allow  myself  to  walk  without  taking  notice  of  facts 
presenting  themselves  connected  with  nature,  but  for  some  years  past  I 
have  always  at  this  season  been  in  the  habit  of  following  two  or  three 
times  in  the  week  one  particular  track,  which,  from  the  advantages  it 
affords  for  observing  the  various  changes  from  winter  to  spring,  is  a  favourite 
haunt  with  me.  My  route  lies  across  some  fields  to  one  of  the  prettiest 
brook  streams  this  county  possesses,  and  where  in  the  winter  season  I 
occasionally  shoot  a  Wild  Duck  or  Wigeon.  At  this  time  of  the  year, 
however,  one  cares  not  to  kill;  but,  laying  aside  all  those  destructive  pro- 
pensities so  inherent  in  our  nature,  we  regard  the  feathered  tribe,  even 
Partridges,  Pheasants,  and  Wild  Ducks  with  a  friendly  interest,  and  almost 
wonder  how  we  can  at  other  times  wage  such  determined  war  against 
them,  and  call  it  sport. 

About  a  mile  from  home  a  steep-hanging  bank  with  trees  of  various 
kinds,  and  plenty  of  underwood  and  brushwood  overlooks  the  brook;  and 
as  this  spinney  faces  the  east,  it  is  a  place  of  great  resort  for  all  sorts 
of  birds,  which  always  prefer  woods  with  eastern  or  south-eastern  aspects, 
as  they  have  in  them  all  the  morning  and  much  of  the  midday  sun.  At 
this  place  I  have  generally  first  noticed  the  arrivals  of  the  summer  birds;  but 
it  is  yet  too  early  for  many  of  them  to  come  over.  Under  this  bank,  along 
the  brook  side,  my  dog  had  great  fun  with  the  numerous  Water-hens 
which  inhabit  the  thick  segs  hereabout;  it  was  very  amusing  to  watch  her 
come  up  to  a  spot  where  one  of  these  birds  was  hiding  itself  underneath 
the  bank;  she  would  stand  for  some  time  as  if  in  doubt  whether  or  not 
to  plunge  into  the  water  after  it,  or  to  try  and  scratch  through  the  earth 
and  reeds;  but  her  deliberation  generally  ended  with  a  plunge,  invariably 
without  success,  the  bird  diving  immediately  it  heard  the  splash.  I  had 
here  a  good  opportunity  of  watching  one  of  these  birds  as  it  dived  up  the 
stream  close  by  the  side  of  the  bank  for  some  distance;  and  as  the  water 
was  as  clear  as  crystal,  I  could  see  very  distinctly  the  ^roodus  operandi.' 
It  propels  itself  almost  entirely  by  great  exertion  of  the  wings;  it  appeared 
a  very  great  efibrt  to  it  to  keep  beneath  the  surface,  and  the  legs,  though 
they  did  go  through  the  movement  of  swimming,  did  not  seem  to  assist 
its  progress  much,  but  probably  helped  to  keep  its  course  straight.  You 
may  find  plenty  of  Water-hens'  nests  along  this  brook  in  May  or  sometimes 
earlier;  they  generally  lay  six  or  seven  eggs,  though  I  have  often  known 
more,  and  once  met  with  a  nest  with  fourteen  eggs,  which  1  have  no 
doubt  were   the    produce    of  two   birds.     Their  nests    are  more  frequently 


KXTRACTS   FROM   CORRKSPONDENOE.  123 

built  in  the  segs,  but  often  in  the  hawthorn  bushes  three  or  four  feet 
above  the  water. 

Wood-pigeons  were  cooing  in  all  directions,  and  have  become  suddenly 
almost  tame,  not  keeping  so  much  in  flocks,  but  one  or  two  flying  out  of 
almost  every  tree;  several  came  within  easy  gun-shot  of  me — how  different 
this  boldness  from  their  extreme  caution  at  other  seasons.  I  beard,  too, 
the  hoarse  laugh  of  the  Green  Woodpecker  for  the  first  time  to-day;  they 
are  mute  and  sulky  during  the  winter,  they  have  then  enough  to  do  to 
maintain  themselves;  but  now  they. appear  quite  lively,  and  fly  about  with 
their  peculiar  wavy  motion  from  one  tree  to  another,  laughing  with  delight 
at  the  thought  that  insect  food  will  so  soon  abound  again,  and  furnish 
sustenance  for  themselves  and  young.  I  cannot  say  that  their  note  is  a 
pleasing  one,  but  still  I  like  to  hear  it;  it  is  the  voice  of  a  bird,  and 
reminds  one  of  returning  spring. 

Farther  on  in  my  walk,  having  crossed  the  brook  at  the  mill,  and  return- 
ing towards  home  on  the  other  side,  I  came  to  a  Rookery  which  has  existed 
probably  from  the  '^^time  whereof  the  memory  of  man  runneth"  not  to  the 
contrary;  the  nests  are  always  built  in  the  very  highest  branches  of  some 
noble  old  elms,  and  never  lower  down  than  some  ten  or  a  dozen  feet 
from  the  top,  the  consequence  is,  that,  as  in  the  old  Rookery  at  Rugby, 
the  first  high  wind  destroys  the  work  of  weeks,  blowing  many  nests  quite 
out  of  the  trees,  and  overturning  many  more. 

I  was  much  pleased  with  the  account  in  your  last  letter  of  your  first 
spring  walk;  I  took  mine  a  few  weeks  back,  and  though  the  season  was 
then  not  very  far  advanced,  yet  1  trust  you  may  think  some  of  the 
incidents  I  met  with  worthy  of  a  passing  note.  I  took  the  train  to  a 
village  about  six  miles  distant,  and  started  ofi^  through  some  woods,  which 
stretch  around  for  a  great  distance,  principally  oak  and  fir,  and  abounding 
with  interest  in  all  the  branches  of  our  kindred  pursuit.  Here,  while 
walking  on  the  sunny  side  of  a  small  bank,  I  heard  a  slight  rustling  at 
my  feet,  and  on  looking  down  observed  a  little  mouse  running  and  snuffing 
about  the  green  leaves;  presently  it  broke  off"  one  from  a  piece  of  ground 
ivy,  and  disappeared  with  it  in  its  mouth  down  a  hole,  pleased  enough  no 
doubt  at  having  found  so  soft  a  lining  for  its  nest;  this  was  repeated  several 
times  while  I  was  standing  close  to. 

A  little  further  on  I  came  to  the  nest  of  the  large  Red  Ant,  (Formica 
rufa,)  a  great  pest  in  these  woods.  The  nests  of  these  little  creatures  are 
wonderfully  large  considering  their  size,  composed  of  dried  leaves,  sticks, 
straws,  and  rubbish;  they  sometimes  attain  the  height  of  four  feet  and 
upwards.  All  day  long  in  the  warm  summer  season,  those  Ants  may  be 
seen  incessantly  toiling  in  a  straight  line  up  and  down  the  stems  of  the 
oak  or  fir  trees  near,  seizing  on  any  luckless  fly  that  may  happen  to  settle 


124  EXTRACTS    FROM    (X)RRESPONDENCE. 

in  their  path,  or  carrying  home  any  little  bit  of  stick  or  rubbish  they  may 
meet  with  for  the  repairs  of  their  vast  dwelling,  which  is  continually  get- 
ting injured  by  the  summer  showers  and  "other  inevitable  accidents." 

The  nest  in  question  was  only  about  two  feet  high,  and  about  six  round 
the  base;  and  it  being  a  fine  warm  sunny  day,  the  Ants,  like  the  people 
we  read  of  in  Eastern  story,  had  all  come  out  for  an  airing  on  the  roof; 
there  they  lay  all  perfectly  still,  one  over  the  other,  enjoying  what  Kirby 
calls  "the  height  of  formic  felicity" — an  idle  listless  day  of  sunshine. 
Poor  things!  they  are  not  often  accused  of  idleness,  and  by  this  time  they 
have  no  doubt  commenced  their  daily  toil  in  right  good  earnest,  bringing 
up  their  pupae  during  the  day  near  the  surface,  to  catch  the  warm  rays 
of  the  sun,  and  collecting  materials  to  repair  the  inroads  of  the  winter 
months. 

Seeing  the  dark  mass  thus  congregated  together,  I  gently  inserted  my 
stick  underneath,  and  caused  the  ground  to  quake,  and  what  a  hubbub 
followed;  where  everything  had  just  before  been  quiet  all  was  now  in  con- 
fusion, but  in  an  incredibly  short  space  of  time,  scarcely  an  Ant  was  to 
be  seen,  all  had  vanished  down  the  subterranean  passages  of  their  curious 
abode,  and  soon  no  signs  of  life  were  visible,  except  here  and  there  when 
an  occasional  sentry  ran  with  the  utmost  speed  from  one  entrance  to 
another,  as  if  the  entire  safety  of  the  citadel  depended  upon  its  individual 
exertions. 

There  were  but  few  moths  out.  Orporabia  tortricella  was  very  abundant, 
flying  about  the  tops  of  the  young  oak  saplings  in  the  broad  sunlight; 
there  were  also  a  few  of  Diurnea  fagdla  on  the  trunks  of  the  trees.  I 
also  took  several  of  the  Yellow-horned  Moth,  {Ger-FJavicornis,)  and  one 
fine  specimen  of  Biston  prodromarius,  just  emerged  from  chrysalis.  On 
my  way  home,  whilst  walking  by  the  side  of  a  ditch  half-full  of  water,  I 
roused  a  snake,  which,  on  my  attempting  to  catch  it,  plunged  at  once 
into  the  water,  and  hid  itself  among  the  grass  and  reeds  growing  at  the 
side.  On  coming  to  the  low  lands  I  saw  a  few  Hooded  Crows  still  left, 
most  of  them  had  taken  their  departure;  before  they  went  I  was  struck 
with  the  singular  change  in  their  note,  which  usually  resembles  that  of  a 
Raven,  only  not  quite  so  hoarse;  but  now  they  uttered  a  cry  exactly  like 
the  short  sharp  bark  of  a  terrier  dog,  repeated  two  or  three  times  in  suc- 
cession. These  birds  assemble  here  in  the  month  of  October,  and  go  away 
again  about  the  end  of  March;  during  the  time  that  they  are  with  us 
they  are  sometimes  to  be  seen  singly,  and  sometimes  in  flocks  of  from 
ten  to  fifty,  according  to  the  amount  of  carrion  to  be  consumed.  I  once 
saw  an  immense  number  slowly  flying  up  the  river,  and  every  now  and 
then  some  kept  darting  out  of  the  flock  to  the  water,  endeavouring  to 
catch  the  pieces  of  stray  offal  that   were  carried  past  by  the  stream.     The 


AMATEUR    NATURALISTS.  125 

season  at  that  time  was  very  severe;  we  had  had  a  long  dry  frost,  and 
they  were  compelled  no  doubt  to  seek  their  food  in  this  way,  being  unable 
to  find  their  usual  sustenance  on  the  hard  stony  ground. 

Upjjimjham,  October  10th.,  1855. 

(To  be  continued.) 


AMATEUR     NATURALISTS. 

BY    MK.  PASS    CALSHAW. 

Pkrhaps  no  study  is  more  fascinating  than  the  study  of  Natural  History. 
Apart  from  the  technicalities  connected  with  the  systematic  and  scientific 
investigation  of  Nature,  how  charmingly  is  time  spent  when  devoted  to 
the  examination  of  the  various  objects  of  creation.  What  lofty  emotions 
can  a  single  insect  excite  in  our  breast.  With  what  wonder  and  astonish- 
ment will  a  reflecting  mind  be  filled  by  the  appearance,  the  existence,  and 
the  formation  of  the  meanest  of  God's  creatures.  The  life  in  Nature, 
extending  from  the  huge  beast  of  the  forest,  down  to  animalculas  so  minute 
as  to  require  the  human  eye  to  be  aided  by  intense  magnifying  power  ere 
they  in  the  least  become  discernible,  is  indeed  wonderful  and  past  com- 
prehension, and  ought  to  raise  our  minds  to  inquire  concerning  Him  who 
is  the  giver  of  life.  The  study  and  analization  of  such  objects  are  not  the 
work  of  the  Professor  at  the  University  alone,  neither  are  they  to  be 
confined  to  the  student  who  sits  at  his  feet.  Nature's  calls  are  universal. 
The  flower  of  the  field,  the  bird  of  the  air,  the  fish  of  the  sea,  the  creeping 
thing  that  creepeth  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  are  no  respecters  of  persons. 
All  may  study  their  habits,  examine  their  peculiarities,  and  admire  their 
beauty.  The  majestic  sun  traversing  the  canopy  of  heaven,  pours  forth 
his  genial  beams  alike  for  peasant  and  king,  gilds  and  beautifies  the  face 
of  creation  alike  for  master  and  slave. 

We  rejoice  to  see  the  study  of  Natural  History  becoming  increasingly 
popular  in  the  Collegiate  Chair  and  the  Lecture  Hall.  We  want,  however, 
to  see  not  only  more  Professional  Naturalists,  but  more  Amateur  Natura- 
lists. We  want  every  working  man  to  have  a  taste  for  the  sublime  and 
beautiful  in  Nature.  Can  we  attentively  observe  in  a  manufacturing  town 
the  operative,  as  he  hurries  to  the  bewildering,  and  almost  brain-turning 
jar  of  the  factory,  without  feeling  how  injurious  such  confining  labour  must 
be,  unless  counteracted  by  some  other  pursuit  during  leisure  hours.  What 
the  nature  of  that  pursuit  should  be  is  immensely  important  to  the  labourer, 
important  physically,  important  mentally.  With  pity  and  disgust  we  see 
thousands  rush  to  the  gin-shop  to  recruit,  as  they  madly  think,  their  wasted 
strength   and   worn-out  frames  with   the   mocking  raging  cup.     It   needs  no 


126 


AMATEUR    NATURALISTS. 


argument  to  prove  the  folly  of  such  a  course.  Instead  of  deriving  health 
of  body  and  peace  of  mind,  the  slaves  to  drink  awake  in  the  morning  with 
a  debilitated  frame,  and  a  craving  thirst  for  more  stimulants;  and  thus,  in  a 
few  years,  if  their  recreations  are  not  sought  in  another  channel,  they  reap 
the  fruit  of  their  folly  in  a  drunkard's  premature  grave.  How  then  should 
the  hard-toiling  operative's  leisure  hours  be  spent?  I  answer,  in  some 
pursuit  that  will  strengthen  the  body,  while  at  the  same  time  it  exercises 
the   mind. 

Can  any  pursuit  be  found  calculated  to  accomplish  these  two  ends? — 
Yes! — The  practical  study  of  Natural  History  offers  to  furnish  the  boon. 
In  order  to  this  practical  study  of  Nature,  we  are  called  away  from  the 
smoky  chimney  and  the  filthy,  death-harbouring  alley.  The  green  field 
becomes  our  resort  for  recreation.  The  sweet  notes  of  the  feathered  song- 
sters fall  melodiously  on  our  ears,  instead  of  the  lewd  language  so  universal 
in  town-life.  The  fresh,  bracing,  country  air  thus  refreshes  and  invigorates 
our  bodies,  while  at  the  same  time  our  mental  faculties  are  strengthened, 
our  minds  expanded,  by  the  contemplation  and  study  of  the  various  objects 
around  us,  and  by  the  lofty  ideas  imparted  to  us  by  the  grandeur  of 
Creation. 

Could  we  induce  working  men  to  adopt  the  study  of  Natural  History 
in  a  practical  manner,  we  should  feel  assured  they  would  be  better  fitted 
for  their  daily  employment,  and  have  an  increasing  desire  for  the  society 
of  the  learned  and  the  good.  As  a  proof  of  the  delights  the  study  of 
Natural  History  can  afford,  I  just  give  a  sketch  from  the  journal  of  one 
who  was  my  bosom  friend,  but  has  now  passed  away  from  earth.  He  was 
an  enthusiastic  admirer  of  Nature.  Many  happy  hours  have  we  spent  in 
the  field  and  the  wood  in  search  of  specimens  in  Botany,  Ornithology, 
Entomology,  etc.  He  was,  moreover,  the  contributor  to  the  first  volume 
of  "The  Naturalist"  of  the  article  on  "The  Habitat,  etc.,  of  the  Black- 
headed  Gull."     Listen  to  his  own  words. — 

"I  have  this  afternoon  been  a  somewhat  extended  walk  into  the  country; 
the  first  taste  of  the  truly  rural  which  I  have  for  some  time  enjoyed. 
(He  was  at  this  time  a  marked  victim  of  consumption.)  And  truly  it  was 
enjoyment  again  to  tread  the  soft  green  turf,  spangled  over  with  golden 
dandelions,  yellow  buttercups,  and  meek-eyed  white  and  purple  daisies. 
Here  and  there  too  the  pastures  were  gay  with  lilac  cardamines,  and  the 
sides  of  the  ponds  glittered  with  a  bright  display  of  marsh  marigolds,  whUe 
on  their  surface  sparkled  the  star-like  beauteous  forms  of  the  meadow  crow- 
foot. The  birds  on  every  hand  were  warbling  their  sweetest,  joyfullest 
lays,  in  glad  recording  of  the  return  of  bright  and  pleasant  spring.  But 
what  is  all  this  loveliness,  this  beauty,  this  life!  without  the  soul  in  lofty 
aspiration  can  see  God  in  it.     Tell  me  of  no  lover  of  Nature,  in  the  highest. 


INQUIRY    FOR    THE    NATURALIST. 


127 


truest  sense  of  such  a  term,  except  the  man  who  can  look  up  to  the 
reconciled  face  of  his  Father.  I  may  admire  a  statue,  a  painting,  or  some 
other  work  of  art,  but  I  cannot  love  it;  so  God's  works  may  be  admired 
by  all  His  creatures,  but  only  His  children  can  love  them." 

That  these  few  scanty  remarks  may  induce  some  of  the  talented  con- 
tributors to  "The  Naturalist,"  to  bring  the  benefits  resulting  from  the 
study  of  Natural  History  more  prominently  before  the  working  classes,  and 
thus  cause  them  to  study  for  themselves,  is  the  earnest  wish  of  the  writer. 

Airdrie,  January  25th. ^  1856. 


INQUIRY     FOR    THE     NATURALIST. 

Having  for  some  years  past  observed  in  this  neighbourhood  the  growth 
of  the  tops  of  some  sorts  of  trees  in  high  exposed  situations,  greatly 
inclining  to  the  eastward,  indeed  I  may  say  in  most  cases  due  east,  and  not 
being  able  satisfactorily  to  account  for  this  phenomena,  I  venture  to  call 
your  attention  to  it,  thinking  some  of  your  scientific  readers  may  kindly 
solve  ray  difiiculty. 

These  trees  grow  at  an  elevation  of  from  five  hundred  to  one  thousand 
feet  above  the  sea,  and  at  a  distance  of  about  twenty  to  twenty-five  miles 
in  a  direct  line  from  the  shore  of  the  Irish   Sea,  in  the  Bay  of  Morecambe. 

One  of  the   most    remarkable  with  which  I  am   acquainted,  (an    Ash,) 


is  now  growing  about  ten  chains,  or  two  hundred  and  twenty  yards,  north 
of  the  village  of  Feizor,  near  Settle;  on  the  north  side  of  the  tree  is  a 
low  limestone  scarr,  (cliff,)  from  the  base  of  which  the  ground  dips  to 
the  south,  the  upper  part  of  the  slope  being  covered  with  small  loose  stones, 
from    amongst  which   the  Ash  grows;    the  main    stem   is  three  feet   three 


128  HINTS   TO    INSECT    COLLECTORS, 

inches  in  circuraferenco,  and  rises  nearly  perpendicular  (from  A  to  B)  to 
the  height  of  five  feet  six  inches;  after  which  the  top  turns  in  nearly  a 
horizontal  direction,  and  due  east,  (from  B  to  0,)  the  additional  length  of 
thirty  feet  six  inches.  I  think  it  is  not  exposed  more  to  west  winds  than 
to  those  from  the  east,  as  one  is  as  prevalent  as  the   other. 

The  different  sorts  of  trees  in  which  this  tendency  of  the  top  towards 
the  east  is  to  be  observed,  are  the  ash,  oak,  larch,  birch,  hawthorn,  and  some 
others.  I  remember  a  larch,  which  grew  on  the  west  side  of  a  highway, 
eight  yards  wide,  the  top  of  which  reached  to  a  perpendicular  line  drawn 
from  the  east  side  of  the  road.       * 

Richard  Clapham. 

Austwick  Hall,  near  Settle,  Yorkshire,  Nov.  27th.,  18o5. 


HINTS    TO    INSECT    COLLECTOES. 

BY    TAXUS. 
( Concluded  from  page  111.) 

A  FEW  words  must  suffice  for  the  best  localities  for  insects.  For  beetles 
place  a  white  cloth  on  the  grass  in  a  wooded  glade  in  the  sun,  or  put  a 
lantern  on  it  in  a  dark  night;  sink  jars  containing  a  bit  of  flesh  in  the 
earth;  sweep  herbage  by  day,  and  by  night  put  the  contents  of  the  net 
into  a  little  bag;  collect  moss  and  lichens  in  winter,  and  place  them  on 
a  sheet  of  white  paper  in  a  uarm  room;  examine  the  bark  of  trees, 
rotten  wood,  flowers,  mushrooms,  etc.,  and  all  animal  and  vegetable  sub- 
stances going  to  decay.  Look  below  planks  and  stones,  on  land  and  in  the 
water,  and  on  wall  tops;  examine  the  margins  of  pools,  rivers,  and  wet  places, 
especially  in  the  spring,  stamping  violently  on  the  ground;  also  aquatic 
vegetation,  and  drag  the  pools.  Search  everywhere  and  at  all  seasons; 
even  in  mid-  winter  pools  may  be  dragged,  and  moss  and  rotten  trees 
broken  up  and  carried  home. 

Moths  are  attracted  by  a  lantern  carried  before  the  collector  in  woods, 
by  lights  in  a  room,  by  empty  bee-hives  and  sugar  casks,  by  a  mixture 
of  one  pound  of  brown  sugar  boiled  to  a  syrup  in  beer,  and  flavoured  with 
a  glass  of  rum;  this  daubed  into  trees  growing  on  the  margin  of  a  wood, 
about  the  height  of  the  eye,  with  a  sixpenny  paint-brush,  marking  the 
trees  with  chalk.  A  lantern,  which  may  cost  four  shillings,  besides  two 
leather  straps  to  carry  it,  and  leave  the  hands  free  to  secure  the  intoxicated 
moths  at  the  sugar  by  placing  a  pill-box  over  the  insect  and  gently  moving 
the  box  until  the  former  creeps  in.  The  flowers  of  the  honeysuckle,  sallow, 
ivy,  and  other  wild  and  garden  flowers,  are  very  attractive  from  March 
to  November.     Light  and  sugaring  are  most  attractive  in  dark  mild  weather. 


HIKTS    TO    INSECT   COLLECTORS.  129 

and  these  insects  do  not  begin  to  fly  till  after  dusk.  Many  moths,  however, 
fly  by  day,  and  it  is  well  to  beat  brushwood  and  hedges  in  summer. 
Many  beautiful  insects  are  found  reposing  on  the  north  side  of  trees  and 
palings,  rocks  and  buildings,  and  even  amongst  stones.  As  a  general  rule 
insects  abound  during  bright  warm  weather,  and  are  particularly  active 
before  a  thunder-storm.  Other  insects  than  these  two  orders  will  be  found 
in  their  season,  where  there  are  flowers  and  sunshine. 

Caterpillars  should  be  placed  in  a  tin  collecting  box,  with  air-holes,  or 
a  pasteboard  box  much  pierced  with  red-hot  wires,  partially  filled  with 
fine  moss,  and  a  leaf  of  the  plant  should  be  taken  as  a  specimen  of  its 
natural  food.  A  sprig  of  the  plant  is  stuck  into  a  vessel  containing  moist 
sand,  and  over  that  a  glass  funnel  or  cylinder  covered  with  gauze  on  the 
upper  end.  This  apparatus  is  kept  out  of  doors,  and  if  the  food  is  regu- 
larly supplied  and  kept  fresh,  many  fine  specimens  will  be  reared. 

Chrysalides  of  moths  are  found  in  greatest  abundance  at  the  foot  of  the 
alder,  willow,  oak,  elm,  and  ash;  at  a  hand's  breadth  from  the  stem  insert 
a  trowel  or  large  pocket-knife  to  the  depth  of  two  inches,  and  push  up- 
wards. Transport  the  chrysalides  in  a  box  amongst  moss.  At  home  they 
should  be  placed  in  a  rough  deal  box  covered  with  gauze  above;  in  the 
bottom  a  quantity  of  black  earth  from  a  hollow  tree  slightly  moistened, 
and  kept  moist  by  a  layer  of  moss:  keep  the  box   out   of  the  sun. 

Kill  the  beetles  by  immersing  the  collecting  bottles  or  quills,  very  cau- 
tiously at  first,  in  boiling  water  for  a  few  minutes;  even  those  which  are 
apparently  dead  in  the  spirit  bottle  ought  always  to  have  'a  hot  bath. 
Kill  bees  and  moths  by  slightly  raising  the  lids  of  the  pill-boxes;  cover 
a  pile  of  boxes  with  a  tumbler,  a  basin,  or  bell-glass;  put  a  pinch  of  pow- 
dered sulphur  on  a  flat  piece  of  stick,  light  it,  and  put  it  under  the  vessel;  in 
an  hour  repeat  the  operation,  and  in  eight  hours  afterwards  commence  setting. 

Beetles  which  are  too  small  for  piercing  should  be  placed  on  a  card 
rubbed  with  gum  tragacanth,  and  their  various  members  extended  with  a 
needle;  when  dry,  cut  the  card  in  a  neat  square  fashion,  and  mount  it 
on  a  pin  placed  behind  the  insect.  Dragon-flies,  and  some  of  the  largest 
sphinx  moths,  should  be  opened  below  and  the  bowels  extracted,  (a  little 
chalk  powder  will  absorb  the  moisture,)  and  then  stuffed  with  rolls  of 
paper  or  cotton;  these  insects  are  best  killed  by  holding  their  wings  between 
the  fingers,  and  dipping  the  bodies  into  boiling  water.  A  red-hot  needle, 
or  one  dipped  in  oxalic  acid,  (poisonous  and  corroding)  thrust  lengthwise 
into  the  body,  is  sometimes  very  useful.  Steam,  and  blotting-paper  steeped 
in  chloroform  are  also  deadly  to  many  insects. 

Any  thin  solid-headed  pin  which  is  strong  enough  to  transfix,  and  long 
enough  to  hold  the  specimen,  and  to  fix  it  firmly  into  the  cork,  is  suitable 
for  the  poor  student's  purse  and  purpose.     A  lucifer  match  with  a  needle 

VOL.  \^.  .  s 


130  HINTS    TO    INSECT    COLLECTORS. 

at  one  end  and  a  camel's  hair  brush  at  the  other,  or  the  upper  end  of  a 
feather  trimmed  like  a  brush,  with  a  needle  at  the  other  end  of  the  shaft, 
supplies  a  setting-needle;  and  a  pair  of  little  forceps  may  be  made  from 
a  thin  strip  of  tin  or  zinc,  or  a  piece  of  wire  about  five  inches  long,  bent 
in  the  middle,  and  the  ends  hammered  flat  so  that  they  may  lie  directly 
opposite  each  other.  It  is  necessary  to  have  a  piece  of  gum  tragacanth  about 
the  size  of  a  sixpence  dissolved  in  five  tea- spoonfuls  of  cold  water  in  a  bottle. 

When  cork  is  beyond  the  student's  reach  let  him  procure  a  board  and 
nail,  or  paste  on  it  two  or  three  plies  of  old  cloth,  and  paste  a  sheet 
of  writing  paper  on  the  surface;  or  ten  sheets  of  newspaper  nailed  or  pasted 
at  the  edges,  so  as  to  be  somewhat  loose,  and  thus  offering  less  resistance 
to  the  pin.  Provide  a  store  of  common  pins,  and  some  thin  card  cut 
into  triangular  slips  of  various  sizes,  with  a  pin  thrust  through  the  broad 
end,  to  act  as  braces  for  retaining  the  wings  and  legs  of  the  specimens 
in   proper  positions  until   dry. 

In  setting  beetles,  hold  the  specimen  with  its  head  from  you,  between 
the  thumb  and  forefinger  of  the  left  hand;  thrust  the  pin  through  the 
right-hand  wing  corner  near  its  centre,  till  the  point  projects  a  quarter  of 
an  inch  on  the  under  side  of  the  body;  display  the  different  parts  of  the 
mouth  by  means  of  the  little  brush  or  setting-needle,  arrange  the  feelers 
and  the  legs  in  a  natural  manner,  stick  it  firmly  in  the  setting-board, 
re-arranging  its  members,  and  securing  each  where  necessary  with  pins  and 
braces;  with  the  exception  of  the  legs  of  butterflies  and  moths,  it  is  well 
to  attend  to  these  details  in  almost  all  cases.  Moths  should  be  pinned 
after  death  when  laying  on  the  table  or  palm  of  the  hand;  if  the  head  of 
the  pin  is  slightly  inclined  forwards,  it  will  much  facilitate  the  setting  if 
the  specimen  is  afterwards  placed  perpendicularly  on  the  setting-board:  take 
care  not  to  injure  the  wings  of  moths  and  butterflies. 

The  wings  of  beetles  are  seldom  displayed,  but  those  belonging  to  other 
orders  of  insects  should  be  fully  displayed,  just  as  if  the  insect  had  been 
struck  dead  when  in  full  flight.  Butterflies  and  moths  may  be  set  with 
their  bodies  in  grooves  cut  in  cork  by  a  rat-tailed  file,  and  their  wings 
braced  down;  bees,  wasps,  dragon-flies,  and  two-winged  flies  should  have 
their  wings  displayed  flat  upon  little  tables  of  card  mounted  on  pins  and 
secured  with  smaller  braces.  All  beetles  below  a  quarter  of  an  inch  in 
length  are  liable  to  be  injured  by  the  pin;  provide  thin  cards,  rule  them 
for  the  sake  of  neatness  into  little  spaces;  one  size,  three-eighths  of  an 
inch,  by  two  and  a  half  eighths,  and  the  other  two  and  a  half  eighths 
of  an  inch  by  two-eighths  of  an  inch.  Cover  a  space  with  gum,  extend 
the  members  of  the  specimen,  wet  the  little  brush,  and  place  the  former 
on  the  card,  and  re-arrange  its  members.  When  dry  cut  out  the  stage, 
and  mount  it  on  a  pin  behind  the  specimen. 


HINTS    TO    INSECT    COLLECTORS.  131 

To  relax  specimens  that  have  become  stiff,  before  setting,  place  them 
on  damp  sand,  or  on  a  bag  containing  fifty  young  and  juicy  leaves  of 
the  common  laurel,  bruised  by  a  mallet,  in  a  covered  vessel.  A  greasy 
specimen  should  be  immersed  in  spirit  of  turpentine,  and  placed  on  a  bed 
of  calcined  magnesia  to  dry:  a  piece  of  sponge  dipped  in  spirit  of  turpentine 
helps  to  exclude  mites.  Specimens  attacked  by  these  pests  should  be 
baked  in  an  oven,  or  anointed  with  a  drop  of  this  mixture: — Equal 
parts  of  alcohol,  oil  of  anise,  and  oil  of  thyme.  A  muslin  or  gauze  cover 
sewed  to  a  light  framework  of  wire  will  keep  off  dust  whilst  the  specimens 
are  drying,  and  at  the  end  of-  a  week  or  so,  they  will  be  fit  for  the 
store-box.  The  toy-shop,  the  grocer,  the  fruiterer,  and  the  milliner  can 
supply  many  little  boxes,  which,  when  lined  entirely  with  cork,  or  even 
strips  or  little  points  of  cork  will  answer  every  useful  purpose. 

The  width  of  the  columns  into  which  the  store-boxes  are  divided,  is 
regulated  first  by  the  width  of  the  labels,  which  must  always  be  written 
or  printed  in  a  distinct  manner  on  a  slip  of  paper  an  inch  and  a  quarter 
by  half  an  inch;  and  secondly  by  the  relative  size  of  the  specimens,  and 
according  to  these  rules: — Large  beetles  and  crickets  in  pairs  side  by  side; 
bees,  flies,  and  dragon-flies,  singly,  placing  the  males  first.  Of  butterflies, 
two  specimens  of  each,  male  and  female,  one  of  each  set  in  the  natural 
way  and  the  other  displaying  the  under  side  of  the  wings.  Two  or  more 
specimens  of  other  insects  that  are  less  than  the  breadth  of  the  labels  arc 
placed  side  by  side  in  the  columns.  Measure  the  width  of  the  labels  or 
of  the  specimens  when  large,  set  off  these  points  from  left  tO  right  of  the 
store-box  in  two  lines,  one  parallel  with  the  hinge  and  the  other  with  the 
front,  and  rule  with  a  pencil. 

I  would  earnestly  advise  all  students  to  number  and  register  all  their 
specimens  after  the  following  method: — Rule  a  sheet  of  paper  into  little 
squares  of  a  quarter  of  an  inch  each,  in  the  upper  part  of  each  square 
write  the  number  from  1  up  to  thousands,  and  in  the  lower  part  56 — the 
year  of  capture:  a  new  series  should  be  commenced  in  1857.  He  should 
also  get  a  penny  pass  book,  such  as  tradesmen  use;  on  the  left-hand  side 
of  the  right-hand  page  rule  three  columns;  write  the  year  above  these 
columns,  in  the  first  column  write  the  number  of  the  specimen,  in  the 
second  the  number  of  the  month,  and  in  the  third  the  number  of  the  day 
of  the  month;  the  rest  of  the  line  is  left  blank  for  the  name  when  ascer- 
tained;   on  the  next    line    below  write   the  locality  thus: — 


1856.         1 

36  1   4    1  10  1 

1         1         1          On  Buttercups  in  Ash-mill  meadow. 

In  another  note-book  under  date  of  April  10th.,  the  following  entry  may 


132  HINTS    TO    INSECT    COLLECTORS. 

be  made,  under  the  number  36-56: — "Captured  several  little  bees  laden 
with  pollen;  they  appear  to  resemble  those  belonging  to  the  numerous 
colony  near  Redbridge  Turnpike;"  and  any  other  remarks  on  their  habits. 
In  both  sets  of  books,  the  left-hand  page  ought  invariably  to  be  left 
blank,  to  give  space  for  corrections  of  errors,  and  for  adding  additional  infor- 
mation: this  rule  ought  to  be  observed  by  every  one  in  preparing  notes 
for  publication,  both  for  his  own  and  for  the  printer's  convenience.  If 
any  student  or  club  will  form  a  collection  of  insects,  ticketed  and  registered 
in  this  faithful  and  intelligent  manner,  there  are  few  masters  in  the  science 
of  Entomology  who  would  not  be  delighted  to  inspect  and  label  the  same. 

Every  workman's  club  should  embrace  members  of  various  trades,  so  that 
all  may  contribute  their  share  of  mental  and  manual  labour  towards  its 
organization  and  success.  The  tinsmith  could  make  nice  portable  pocket 
collecting  boxes,  eight  inches  by  four  and  a  half  by  two  and  a  quarter, 
opening  in  halves  like  a  backgammon  board;  a  blacksmith  would  advise 
about  cheap  net  rings;  the  plumber  could  melt  in  his  iron  spoon  equal 
parts  of  tallow,  bees'  wax,  and  resin,  which,  when  poured  into  the  store- 
box  to  the  depth  of  three  sixteenths  of  an  inch,  and  covered  with  foolscap 
paper  is  a  good  and  cheap  substitute  for  cork;  the  carpenter  can  cut  the 
rough  cork  into  sheets  with  a  small  handsaw  or  a  sharp  knife  moistened  with 
water,  or  with  the  smallest  quantity  of  oil;  or  at  the  veneering  saw- mill 
he  can  make  sheets  of  cork  for  the  store-boxes  by  glueing  little  pieces  on 
sheets  of  paper  and  nailing  them  down  till  dry,  then  polishing  the  sur- 
face with  wood  files  and  pumice  stone,  and  after  glueing  them  into  the  box 
it  is  loaded  with  weights  till  dry:  then  fill  up  any  little  holes  in  the 
cork  with  the  above-mentioned  compound  recommended  as  a  substitute  for 
cork.  He  can  make  store-boxes  of  half-inch  deal,  secured  with  glue  and 
small  screw  nails;  each  box  may  be  seventeen  inches  by  fourteen  by  three 
and  a  half,  and  then  it  may  be  sawn  into  halves,  like  a  backgammon  box, 
adding  two  pairs  of  hinges,  a  hasp,  and  a  thin  fillet  of  hard  wood  or  zinc 
to  exclude  the  dust:  the  cost  of  the  box  without  the  cork  need  not  exceed 
three  shillings.  And  lastly  the  bookbinder  can  paper  the  box  nicely,  rule 
it  into  columns  at  right  angles  to  the  hinges,  with  pencil  lines  at  various 
distances  from  two  inches  to  half  an  inch,  and  he  may  perhaps  be  able 
to  furnish  naturalists  with  cheaper  store- boxes  of  pasteboard  than  can 
now  be  purchased.* 

Patience  and  perseverance  will,  in  this  as  in  every  other  pursuit,  receive 
their  reward  in  due  season;  and  the  writer  can  confidently  assert,  from 
personal  experience,  that  no  true-hearted  naturalist  will  ever  refuse  to 
assist  the  anxious  inquirer. 

Amongst  useful  books,  Maunder's  "Treasury  of  Natural  History,"  at 
*  The  srlazier's  aid  should'  above  all  be  called  in. — F.  0.  Morris. 


THE    BRYOLOGY    OF   LADHILL    GILL.  133 

lOs.  6d.,  is  worthy  of  notice  for  insects,  as  well  as  other  branches  of 
Natural  History.  A  watch-maker's  eye- glass  at  Is.,  which  leaves  the  operator's 
hands  at  liberty,  is  very  useful  in  setting  and  examining  insects;  and  of 
pocket  lenses,  there  is  the  single  lens  at  Is.  6d.,  and  the  very  excellent 
lens  of  three  glasses  at  3s.  6d. 

January,   1856.  • 


NOTES     ON     THE 
BRYOLOGY    OF     LADHILL     GILL,     (NORTH    YORKSHIRE.) 

BY    J.  H.  DAVIES,    ESQ. 

Op  the  dales  opening  out  towards  the  south,  that  intersect  the  moor- 
lands of  north-east  Yorkshire,  beginning  at  the  west  and  proceeding  towards 
the  sea,  Ladhill  Gill  is  the  second  that  presents  itself  to  our  attention. 
Compared  with  some  of  the  others,  its  length,  which  is  only  about  six 
miles  from  the  source  of  the  stream  on  the  wide  expanse  of  the  moor- 
lands about  midway  between  Snailesworth  and  Bilsdale,  to  its  junction  with 
the  Rye  at  Hawnby,  is  quite  inconsiderable.  At  its  commencement  the 
beds  over  which  it  runs  belong  to  the  liassic  series,  but  from  the  south- 
eastward dip  of  strata  we  gradually  pass  over  earlier  deposits  as  we  follow 
the  course  of  the  stream.  At  first  it  flows  silently  along,  undermining 
its  way  over  the  heathy  surfaces  of  the  moorland,  diversified  by  beds  of 
Sphagnum  and  Polytrichum  commune.  After  pursuing  a  tortuous  course  for 
some  distance,  the  valley  sinks  deeper,  and  the  stream  rushes  over  its  rocky 
channel  between  sloping  banks,  clothed  with  hazels  and  alders;  now  whirling 
in  eddies  amongst  the  confused  rocks,  and  forcing  its  way  between  them,  anon 
dashing  down  some  steep  declivity,  and  now  rippling  along  a  smooth  surface 
of  solid  rock.  Sometimes  the  sides  of  the  glen  are  precipitous,  and  covered 
with  trees,  principally  young  oak,  ash,  alder,  and  hazel;  sometimes  you  catch 
a  glimpse  of  the  moor,  and  sometimes  it  is  quite  exposed,  and  you  are  tempted 
to  leave  the  stream  for  a  time  to  hunt  amongst  the  rocks  and  '^stone  walls 
grey  with  mosses,"  to  find,  in  all  probability,  Hedwigia  ciliata  and  Weissia 
cirrhata.  Returning  to  the  stream,  Tetrodontium  Brownianum  may  be  seen 
on  the  shady  rocks,  which  in  some  places  overhang  it,  and  on  the  trees 
Orthotrichum  Bruchii,  Isothecium  myurum,  etc.  In  the  stream  itself  you 
may  collect  Racomitrium  aciculare,  Dicranum  Jlavescens,  Schistidium  apo- 
carpum,  (and  its  variety  rivulare,)  Hypnum  plumosum,  and  a  host  of 
others.  In  several  places  the  liassic  shale  is  entirely  exposed,  and  the 
water  constantly  dripping  down  the  surface,  prepares  excellent  situations  foi* 
such  species  as  Dicranum  squarrosum,  Hookeria  lucens,  Bartramia  fontana 
and  calcarea,  Mnium  punctatum,,  Fissidens  adiantoides,  Bryum  pallens  and 
Wuhlenbergii,  etc. 


134 


RARE    MOSSES. 


The  species  enumerated  above,  as  also  the  under-mentioned,  were  noticed 
during  a  ramble  through  the  "Gill,"  (which  occupied  perhaps  a  couple  of 
hours.)     Doubtless  many  more  remain  to  be  added. 


Sphagnum  cymbifolium 
"  acutifolium 

'^  cuspidatura 

'^  squarrosum 

Dicranum  pellucidum 
"         heteromallum 
"         scoparium 
"         majus 
"        palustre 
Leucobryum  glaucura 
Ceratodon  purpureus 
Campylopus  flexuosus 
Didymodon  rubellus 
Trichostomum  rigidulura 
Tortula  tortuosa 
"       subulata 
Grimmia  pulvinata 
Racomitrium  fasciculare 
"  lanuginosura 

"  heterostichum 

Thirsh,  April,  1856. 


Racomitrium  canescens 
Orthotrichum  aflBrie 
Tetraphis  pellucida 
Atrichum  undulatum 
Pogonatum  aloides 
Polytrichum  juniperinum 

"  piliferum 

Aulacomnion  palustre 
Bryum  nutans 

"       pseudotriquetrum 

"       capillare 
Mnium  hornum 

"       undulatum 
Funaria  hygrometrica 
Fissidens  taxifolius 
"       •  bryoides 
"         pusillus 
Leucodon  sciuroides 
Anomodon  viticulosus 
Isothecium  alopecurum 


Climacium  dendroides 
Hypnum  rutabulum 

"  prgolongum 

"  striatum 

"  ruscifolium 

"  serpens 

"  cordifolium 

"  cuspidatum 

"  Schreberi 

"  tamariscinum 

"  splendens 

"  flagellare 

"  triquetrum 

"  loreum 

"  squarrosum 

"  commutatum 

"  molluscum 

"  cuprcssiformc 

"  undulatum 
Neckera  complanata 


ADDITIONAL  YORKSHIRE   LOCALITIES  FOR   RARE   MOSSES. 

BY    J.  H.  DAVIES,    ESQ. 

Since  writing  the  list  of  "New  Yorkshire  Stations  for  Rare  Mosses," 
which  appeared  in  "The  Naturalist,"  vol.  vi.  p.  37,  the  following  have  been 
discovered  by  my  friend  Mr.  Baker,  and  myself: — 

Sphagnum  Jimbriatum,  WiLS. — Bogs  between  Hawnby  and  Arden. 

Anodus  Donianus,  B.  and  S.;  with  Seligeria  recurvata  and  llijpnum 
pumilum  on  rocks  below  Rolston  Scar. 

Tortula  vinealis,  var.  /?  jlaccida. — Has  been  observed  in  several  places 
in  the  vicinity  of  Thirsk. 

Tortula  marginata,  B.  and  S. — Rocks  below   Rolston  Scar,  Thirsk. 

Hypnum  albicans,  Neck. — In  fruit   on  thatched  roofs  at   Boltby. 

Hypnum  Teesdalii,  Smith. — Very  sparingly  on  a  stone  on  the  cast  bank 


A    NEW   LARVA    BOX. 


13t 


of  the  Codbeck,  between  Sowerby  and  Dalton,  near  Thirsk.     "Very  perfect 
specimens." — Wils.  in  litt. 

Ilypnum  radicale,  P.  Beauv. — May  probably  prove  to  be  tolerably  common 
in  the  neighbourhood. 

Thirsk,  April,  1856. 


DESIGN    FOR    A     NEW    LARVA    BOX. 

BY    MR.    R.    O.    SCHOFIELD. 

My  object  is  to  be  able  to  place  different  kinds  of  larvae,  separately, 
in  one  box,  for  the  following  reasons: — 

Firstly,  To  prevent  Larvae  from  killing  each  other,  which  frequently 
occurs  when  several  species  are  together. 

Secondly,  To  save  time,  as  in  the  ordinary  mode  of  placing  captures 
in  small  boxes,  it  generally  happens  that  the  wrong  ones  come  to  hand 
first. 

Fig.  1  represents  a  Larva  Box  of  tin,  and  which  can  be  made  of  any 
size  that  the   collector    may  fancy.     The    lid    a   is   thrown   back   to  shew 


the  partitions  b  b  b,  and  closes  against  them,  thas  forming  separate  chambers 
for  four  or  more  different  kinds  of  larvae.  When  the  food  has  been  placed 
in  the  above  chambers,  the  lid  is  fastened  down  by  a  wire  fastening  at 
c,  and  remains  shut  until  the  contents  arrive  at  their  destination. 

Fig.  2  shews  the  tubes,  d  d  d  d,  through  which  the  larvae  are  passed 
into  their  proper  compartments,  and  prevented  from  getting  out  by  corks 
made  to  fit  the  tubes,  and  attached  to  the  box  by  short  strings,  e  e  e  e. 
The  tubes  and  corks  must  not  project  more  than  is  actually  necessary 
from  the  face  of  the  box,  or  they  will  be  in  the  way.  The  lid  and 
opposite  side  of  the  box  are  to  have  perforations,  f  f  f  f,  to  allow  a  free 
circulation  of  air.  The  compartments  may  be  alphabetically  arranged  to 
prevent  any  error  in  the  disposal  of  the  captures. 

Windsor  Street,  Loiver  Norwood,  March  ISth.,  1856. 


136 


LIST    OP    ORYPTOGAMOUS    FLORA    FOUND    IN    THE 
NEIGHBOURHOOD     OF    RIPON,    YORKSHIRE. 

BY    MISS    EMILY    K.    HAREISOJT. 

Poll/podium  vulgare,  (Common  Polypody.) — Very  abundant  on  the  roots 
of  trees,  and  on  most  of  the  old  walls. 

Polypodium  phegopteris,  (Beech  Fern.) — Two  or  three  large  beds  of  it 
in  Hackfall,  opposite  a  stone  quarry  on  the  other  side  of  the  river. 

Polypodium  dryopteris,  (Tender  Three-branched  Polypody.) — Very  luxu- 
riant over  the  craggs  in  Hackfiill. 

Gistopteris  denfata,  (Toothed  Bladder  Fern.) — I  found  a  few  roots  on 
some  rocks  near  the  river,  and  others  in  Mickley  Lane. 

Cistopteris  fragilis,  (Brittle  Bladder  Fern.) — On  Tanfield  Church,  and  a 
few  plants  on  some  old  walls  near  Tanfield. 

Aspidium  Lohatum,  (Prickly  Shield  Fern.)— Extremely  common  in  all 
the  woods. 

Aspidium  aculeatmn,  (Common  Prickly  Shield  Fern.) — Very  abundant 
in  Hackfall  and  the  hedge-rows. 

Aspidium  angulare. — Very  luxuriant  in  Hackfall;  a  frond  I  gathered, 
measuring  more  than  a  yard,  and  shewing  very  distinctly  its  difference  from 
Aculeata. 

Lastrea  Filix-mas,  (Male  Fern.) — Very  common. 

Lastrea  spinulosa,  (Narrow  Prickly  Toothed  Fern.) — I  have  not  gathered 
this  myself,  but  was  shewn  some  beautiful  specimens  that  were  gathered 
in  Leckby  Carrs,  near  Topcliffe,  growing  in  a  ditch.  I  hope  to  get  some 
next  year  there. 

Lastrea  dilatata,  (Dilated  Shield  Fern.) — Very  common,  as  also  the 
varieties  Multiflorum  and  Eecurbum.  Hackfall  is  beautiful  at  the  east  end 
of  the  wood  with  these  most  lovely  of  Ferns. 

Lastrea  oreopteris,  (Mountain  Fern.) — On  the  side  of  a  hill  above  Hackfall. 

Lastrea  Fcenisecii. — I  have  found  several  roots  of  this  in  Hackfall. 

Asplerdum  Ruta-muraria,  (Wall  Rue  Spleenwort.) — Very  common  on  old 
walls, 

Asplenium  trichomanes,  (Common  Spleenwort.) — In  a  wood  near  Hackfall, 
and  on  Fountains  Abbey,  but  not  very  abundant. 

Asplenium  adiantum  nigrum,  (Black  Maiden's  Hair.) — Grows  in  Mickley 
Lane. 

Athyrium  Filix-foemina,  (Lady  Fern.) — This  graceful  Fern  makes  almost 
every  road-side  lovely.  Its  var.  1/  irrigum  is  common  in  Hackfall;  also 
var.  ^ 

Scolopendrium  vulgare,  (Common  Hart's  Tongue.) — Grows  in  the  greatest 


BEGINNING   OP   THE   HUNTING   SEASON.  137 

abundance  at  the  west  end  of  Hackfall  woods,  and  scarcely  a  plant  at  the 
east  end. 

Scolopendrium  multl/idum,  (Oleft  Hart's  Tongue.) — In  a  wood  near  Mickley 
it  is  abundant. 

Blechnum  horeale,  (Hard   Fern.) — Very  common. 

Pteris  aquilina,  (Brake.) — Very  common.  The  var.  0  caudata  I  think 
I  have  found,  but  have  not  quite  decided  whether  there  is  such  a  variety 
or  not. 

Butrychium  lunaria,  (Common  Moonwort.) — In  some  fields  near  Burnes- 
ton  and  Bedale. 

Ophioglossum  vulgatum,  (Common  Adder's  Tongue.)— I  have  never  found 
this  yet,  but  was  shewn  some  specimens  gathered  in  the  neighbourhood. 

Pilidaria  glohulifera,  (Creeping  Pillwort.) — In  a  pond  near  the  Incoming 
Lane;  it  is  quite  full  of  it.     I  have  not  seen  it  elsewhere. 

Lycopodium  clavatum,  (Stag's  Horn  Moss.) — Very  common  on  some  rough 
moorish  ground  not  far  from  Hackfall.  I  doubt  not  but  that  some  more 
of  the  Lycopodiums  grow  here,  but  I  have  not  looked  for  them. 

E(iuisetu.rii  fiaviatile,  (Great   Horse-tail.) — Common  all  over. 

Equisetum  arvense,  (Common  Horse-tail.) — Very  common. 

Equisetum  Hyemale,  (Rough  Horse-tail.) — Very  abundant  in   Hackfall. 

The  above  list  comprises  all  that  I  have  found,  but  a  closer  search 
would  discover  many  more  I  doubt  not. 

Miclcley,  near  Papon,  December,  185o. 


BEGINNING    OF    THE    HUNTING    SEASON. 

BY   THE    REV.  F.  O.  MORRIS. 

In  the  month  of  March  a  fine  specimen  of  PJiigaha  pilosaria  was  found 
on  the  window  of  my  dining-room  one  morning  before  breakfast;  a  second 
was  also  found  a  few  days  afterwards  under  the  sill  of  the  kitchen  window. 
On  the  31st.  of  March,  in  company  with  ray  friend  the  Rev.  G.  Rudston 
Read,  Rector  of  Sutton-on-Derwent,  I  went  to  "try"  Sutton  wood  at  night. 
He  baited  some  trees  with  sugar,  and  we  also  inspected  the  sallows  just 
then  coming  into  bloom,  but  only  one,  a  large  tree,  that  is,  of  that  kind, 
was  out  in  full  blossom.  We  had  not  to  wait  long  before  the  top  of  the  tree 
was  visited  by  numbers  of  Noctua,  which  however  were  out  of  the  reach  of 
our  nets,  and  sufficiently  tantalizing.  The  happy  idea  then  struck  me  of 
stepping  up  into  the  tree,  which  I  accordingly  did — a  mode  of  rising  in  the 
world,  consistent,  I  hope,  with  a  pardonable  ambition — and  then  easily  took 
several  specimens  of  Orthosia  cruda;  I  also  saw  but  "missed"  one  very 
large  moth,  which  probably  was  Calocampa  exoleta,  for  my  friend  the  Rev. 

VOL.  VI.  T 


138  BEaiNNING    OF    THE    HUNTINQ    SEASON. 

R.  P.  Alington  had,  not  long  before  written  me  word  that  he  had  found 
several  of  this  fine  insect  this  spring,  which  had  lived  through  the  winter. 
He  took  them  at  sugar  in  the  same  place,  near  his  own  house  at  Swin- 
hope,  Lincolnshire,  where  he  had  met  with  them  in  the  autumn  ^^in  profusion," 
so  much  so  as  in  the  end  not  to  think  them  worth  capturing.  That  the 
large  moth  I  saw  was  of  this  species,  is  rendered  more  probable  by  the 
fact  of  our  having  the  same  evening  found  other  autumnal  species  at  the 
sugar,  namely,   Glcea  salellitia  and  vaccinii. 

The  next  morning,  "April  the  1st.,"  we  tried  Langwith  Common,  a 
"splendid  locality,"  abounding  in  birch,  oak,  fir,  etc.,  and  took  one  each 
of  Brepha  Partlienias,  and  saw  several  others,  but  the  wind  was  so  high 
that  it  blew  them  away.  I  also  saw  three  Vanessa  G-nlhwiiy  (as  well  as 
several  7o,)  and  captured  the  first  two  of  the  former.  While  coming  up  to 
one  of  them  something  like  a  leaf  foil  down  at  the  foot  of  a  small  oak 
tree,  and  after  some  search,  thinking  it  might  possibly  be  a  moth,  I  was 
Agreeably  surprised  by  seeing  it  to  be  a  fine  Ceropacha  flavicornis,  just 
about  to  fly  off,  but  I  was  down  upon  it  in  a  trice.  On  the  trunk  of  a 
tree  I  captured  a  fine  Xylocamjya  Lithoriza. 

On  the  5th,  instant,  returning  home  from  a  friend's  house,  I  went  a 
little  round  so  as  to  come  through  Buttercrambe  Moor,  a  "first-rate  locality." 
There  I  took  another  Partlienias,  and  saw  one  or  two  more^  but  I  did 
not  stay  above  half  an  hour.  On  the  7th.  instant,  I  again  visited  Lang- 
with Common  with  Mr.  Read,  but  only  took  a  dozen  or  so  of  Chimabacche 
fagella,  another  Xylocampa  Lithoriza,  and  two   or  three  small  Tortrices. 

In  Mr.  Stainton's  ^'Entomologist's  Annual,"  for  1856,  he  gives  the  fol- 
lowing sizes  of  pins — to  be  had  of  Edelsten  and  Williams,  Crown  Court, 
Cheapside,  London — as  the  best  to  use  for  the  different  sizes  of  Lepidoptera, 
from  the  large  Sphinx  Moth  down  to  the  minute  Tinea: — Nos.  G,  8,  10, 
19,  and  20;  but  I  think  the  following  a  much  better  selection,  and  suggest 
it  with   confidence  accordingly: — JTos.  13,  8,   9,  10,  and   19. 

Of  these,  No.  13  is  for  the  Sphinges  and  larger  Bomhyces;  No.  8  for  the 
larger  Butterflies  Noctuce  and  Geometrce;  Nos.  9  and  10  for  the  smaller  Butter- 
flies, smaller  Geometrce,  and  Tortrices;  and  'No.  19  for  the  Tinece;  and 
other  the  smallest  moths.  Nos.  9  and  10  are  invaluable  sizes,  and  may  be  used 
with  the  greatest  advantage  for  all  the  sorts  of  insects  I  have  named, 
as  well  as  for  all  the  smaller  Coleoptera,  Diptera,  Hymenoptera,  etc.  The 
Smaller  the  pin  the  better  the  insect  naturally  looks;  No.  19  is,  however,  so 
very  small,  that  I  do  not  recommend  it  for  "insertion  work,"  except  for  the 
very  smallest  Moths,  where  no  other  can  be  used.  Five  sizes,  those  I  have 
mentioned,  will  be  found  amply  sufficient  for  all  purposes. 

No.  10  is  also  the  size  to  be  used  for  labels.  They,  too,  look  better 
the  smaller  the  pins,  and  this   one   is    strong  enough,  while   those  of  the 


MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES,  139 

smaller  sizes  are  not.  You  cannot  be  too  neat  in  this  respect,  or  in  any 
other.  The  labels  should  be  put  in  very  straight  and  evenly,  and  the  pin 
as  near  as  may  be  in  the  centre  of  each,  the  ends  being  kept  down  flat 
on  the  paper.  I  also  cut  the  names  of  the  authors  off,  to  this  end.  It 
is  quite  sufficient  to  have  them  in  the  book. 
April  2lst.,    1856. 

Snow  Bunting,  (Emberiza  nivalis.) — As  I  see  a  good  many  ornithological 
notices  in  "The  Naturalist,"  I  thought  it  might  be  worth  while  to  mention 
that  on  April  10th.,  -a  Snow  Bunting  was  brought  to  me  by  a  coast-guards- 
man, still  warm.  I  have  never  before  met  with  this  bird  on  the  south 
coast  so  late  in  the  spring,  and  it  was  far  advanced  towards  full  summer 
plumage,  retaining  only  a  very  faint  tinge  of  brown  on  the  top  of  the 
head,  a  tiny  speck  of  brown  on  the  back,  and  the  white  tips  of  the  black 
feathers  on  the  back.  It  was  a  most  delicate  and  beautiful  little  creature. 
In  hard  weather  I  have  repeatedly  met  with  Snow  Buntings,  but  never 
before  at  this  time,  and  Swansland,  of  Brighton,  who  has  preserved  the 
bird,  considers  it  very  rare  on  this  coast  at  this  time. — -R.  1^.  Dennis, 
Rectory,  Blatchington,  Seaford,  Sussex,  April  17th.,  185G. 

Bewick's  Swan. — The  same  coast-guardsman  brought  me  (March  4th.)  a 
specimen  of  Bewick's  Swan,  just  killed  in  a  neighbouring  river:  the  first 
Sussex-killed  specimen  recorded.  It  still  retained  a  little  rust-colour  on 
the  head,  and  a  grey  feather  'or  two  on  the  body.  Probably  it  would 
have  attained  its  full  plumage  this  spring. — Idem. 

Mealy  Redpole. — Two  of  these  beautiful  little  birds,  the  Mealy  Redpole, 
paid  us  a  short  visit  in  this  neighbourhood  on  the  16th.  of  March  last, 
the  weather  being  very  cold,  and  remained  with  us  several  days,  the  chief 
place  of  their  rendezvous  being  a  small  yard,  where  a  hay-stack  had  stood, 
surrounded  by  a  high  wall,  well  sheltered  from  the  east  and  north-easi 
wind,  which  blew  very  keenly  from  that  quarter  during  their  stay  with 
us.  They  seemed  to  relish  the  seeds  that  had  fallen  from  the  hay.  So 
tame  were  they,  and  the  wind  blowing  so  keenly,  that  they  allowed  me 
to  approach  within  five  or  six  yards  of  them,  to  examine  their  plumage, 
which  was  of  a  lightish  grey,  and  the  red  upon  their  head  was  beautiful. 
They  appeared  to  be  only  visitants  here,  and  as  soon  as  the  weather  cleared 
up,  left  us.  Their  notes  are  tunable  and  shrill,  not  unlike  those  of  the 
Canary-bird.  Having  a  desire  to  take  one  of  them  alive  to  examine,  two 
traps  were  laid  for  them,  but  both  failed.  Like  the  other  species,  the 
Twite,  of  which  we  have  many  here,  they  are  particularly  fond  of  the 
seeds  of  hay,   which  were  plentifully   supplied  to  them,  and  of  these  they 


I 


140  MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 

kindly  partook,  in  my  presence,  without  any  reserve,  at  little  more  than 
the  above-named  distance. — Robert  Daykin,  Hurst,  near  Richmond,  York- 
shire, April  7th.  1856. 

Oolden-Eye. — A  female  Golden-Eye  was  shot  last  month  on  a  piece  of 
water  in  the  Lordship  of  Staverton,  by  a  farmer  named  Wright.  I  saw 
it  yesterday,  at  a  bird-stufFer's  at  Daventry.  We  have  had  but  few  rare 
birds  here  this  winter. — W.  Brooks  Gates,  Derogate,  Northampton,  Feb- 
ruary 20th.,  1856. 

I  this  morning  took  three  fresh  eggs  from  the  nest  of  the  Dipper,  which 
bird  I  have  several  times  mentioned  in  "The  Naturalist."  I  think  there  is 
hardly  an  instance  on  record  of  its  breeding  so  early.  I  found  the  nest 
nearly  completed  on  the  23rd.  of  February. — Henry  Smurthwaite,  Rich- 
mond, Yorkshire,  March  15th.,  1856. 

TO    THE   editor    OF    '^THE    NATURALIST." 

Eeperring  to  an  inquiry  of  your  correspondent  Mr.  Smurthwaite,  re- 
specting the  Cornish  Chough,  (Fregilus  graculus,)  I  send  a  few  memoranda 
respecting  it,  on  the  principle  that  every  little  helps.  The  Chough  is  by 
no  means  an  uncommon  bird  on  many  parts  of  the  Cornish  coast,  though 
I  fear  more  rare  than  they  were  ten  years  since,  and  likely  to  be  still  more 
so  whilst  their  constant  persecution,  for  the  sake  of  procuring  specimens, 
continues.  Were  it  not  for  their  extreme  wariness,  and  the  almost  inac- 
cessible cliffs  which  they  frequent,  they  would,  ere  this,  have  been  nearly 
exterminated.  I  have  myself  met  with  them  in  tolerable  abundance  in  the 
following  localities: — Bade  Haven,  Tintagel  Head,  Port  Isaac,  Pentire, 
Newquay,  North  Perran,  Perth  Towan,  Pertreath,  Cape  Cornwall,  and  the 
Land's  End,  on  the  north  coast;  and  the  Logan  Rock,  Mullion,  Pradnack 
Head,  Thynance,  the  Lizard  Head,  and  as  far  as  the  Menacle  Point,  on  the 
south  coast;  eastward  of  this  it  becomes  more  scarce.  A  person  unacquainted 
with  their  peculiar  cry  might  however  visit  all  these  places,  and  make 
many  inquiries  for  them,  without  getting  much  satisfaction,  partly  from 
their  similarity,  when  flying,  to  the  Jackdaw,  and  partly  to  the  confusion 
of  their  names — the  term  Chough  being  always  applied  provincially  to  the 
Jackdaw,  as  remarked  by  Mr.  Clogg;  the  other  being  known  as  the  Red- 
leg.  Their  distinguishing  characteristic  is  their  note,  which  may  after  a 
little  while  be  easily  distinguished  from  that  of  the  Daw,  being  much 
wilder,  and  more  shrill.  They  are  partially  gregarious,  keeping  together 
in  flocks  of  six  or  seven  during  the  autumn,  winter,  and  early  spring,  but 
breeding  in  single  pairs,  although  occasionally  two  or  even  more  pairs  may 
chance  to  occupy  the  same  cavern;  and  this  leads  me  to  remark  that  all 
the  nests  I  have  met  with  have  been  in  caverns.  The  only  one  with 
which  I  have  had  an  opportunity  of  becoming  closely  acquainted  was  built 


THE   RETROSPECT,  J  41 

on  a  ledge  of  rock,  some  twelve  or  fourteen  feet  above  the  water,  in  a 
cavern  near  Pradnack  Head,  and  was  in  construction  very  similar  to  that 
of  the  Jackdaw.  They  breed  later  in  the  season  than  the  other  Corviduc^ 
and  I  imagine  rear  but  one  brood  in  the  year.  Their  actions  when  un- 
disturbed are  very  sprightly  and  entertaining.  I  have  watched  one  with 
a  glass  for  a  long  time  climbing  about  a  stone  wall,  hanging  by  its 
claws,  often  with  its  head  downwards,  exploring  with  its  long  bill  the 
crevices  between  the  stones,  which  no  shorter  instrument  could  get  at.  I 
have  heard  that  when  tame,  their  love  of  mischief  of  every  kind  far 
eclipses  that  of  either  Magpie  or  Jackdaw.  The  farmers  on  the  north 
coast  accuse  them  of  pulling  up  their  wheat,  and  do  their  best  to  shoot 
them,  the  endeavour  being  however,  fortunately  for  the  bird,  not  often 
crowned  with  success.  It  would  be  interesting  to  ascertain  what  makes 
the  Cornish  Chough  so  essentially  a  sea-cliif  bird,  for  that  such  it  is 
appears  certain j  here  in  Cornwall,  at  all  events,  it  never,  I  believe,  breeds 
anywhere  elsej  probably  marine  insects  form  a  principal  part  of  its  food. 
— S.  W.  Jenkin,  Liskeard,  March  27th.,  1856. 

Common  Frog. — Several  Common  Frogs  took  up  their  winter  quarters 
this  last  winter  in  a  branch  of  a  level  in  the  mines  in  our  neighbourhood, 
which  had  not  been  in  working  for  some  time  before,  three  hundred  yards 
in  from  its  mouth  where  they  entered.  At  Christmas,  on  seeing  the 
light  of  the  candle,  they  seemed,  though  it  was  keen  and  cold  at  the 
outside  of  the  mine,  to  be  very  lively,  and  moved  about  as  if  in  their 
natural  haunt.  The  place  chosen  by  these  amphibious  friends  was  a  still 
water,  with  a  soft  sludge  at  its  bottom  two  or  three  inches  deep;  and 
curious  to  say,  when  the  month  of  March  arrived,  they  began  to  obey 
the  instinct  of  Nature,  by  retracing  their  steps  back  again  to  their  old 
haunts  to  enjoy  the  warm  and  bright  rays  of  a  March  sun. — Robert 
Daykin,  Hurst,  near  Richmond,  Yorkshire,  April  7th.,  18o6. 


€\t  lUtrnspwt. 

The  "Great  Unknown"  Hawh. — "Having  been  much  engaged,  my  report 
on  the  engraving  which  you  kindly  sent  me  of  the  Hawk  in  your  posses- 
sion, has  been  delayed  longer  than  I  could  have  wished.  I  will,  however, 
now  give  you  my  opinion  as  far  as  the  portrait  and  description  of  the 
bird  enable  me  to  form  one. 

1st. — I  think  it  probable  that  the  bird  is  in  the  plumage  in  which  it 
quitted  the  nest;  but  I  think  I  can  perceive  in  the  engraving  a  tint  of 
blue  on  some  portion  of  the  back,  which  is  probably  an  indication  of  the 
bird's  having  been  about  to  assume  its  second  plumage  at  the  time  when 
it  was  killcuj. 


14:2  THE   UETROSPECT. 

2nd. — I  consider  the  specimen  to  be  a  partial  albino;  and  the  absence 
of  colouring  in  some  parts  of  the  plumage  and  in  the  claws  to  be  attributable 
to  that  cause. 

3rd. — I  believe  the  bird  to  be  a  hybrid. 

4th. — I  have  no  doubt  that  one  of  its  parents  was  a  Sparrow- Hawk. 

5th. — I  think  it  somewhat  doubtful  to  what  species  the  other  parent 
belonged;  but  on  the  whole  I  incline  to  the  belief  that  it  was  a  Hobby, 

6th. — To  shew  that  this  is  not  impossible,  I  will  give  you  an  authentic 
instance  in  point: — A  few  years  since,  the  gamekeeper  of  Henry  Kett 
Tomson,  Esq.,  of  Witchingham,  in  the  county  of  Norfolk,  discovered  a 
Hawk's  nest  in  a  plantation  belonging  to  that  gentleman.  The  gamekeeper, 
after  watching  both  the  birds  belonging  to  this  nest  on  various  occasions, 
shot  the  hen  bird  upon  the  nest,  and  the  bird  so  shot  was  a  female 
Sparrow-Hawk;  he  then  laid  wait  for  the  male  bird,  which  he  also  shot 
at  the  nest,  and  which  proved  to  be  a  Hobby:  the  nest  contained  four 
eggs.  The  gamekeeper  left  both  Hawks  lying  under  the  nest,  where  they 
were  observed  by  Mr.  Howard  Irby,  a  zealous  ornithologist,  who  was  staying 
with  Mr.  Tomson  at  the  time,  and  to  whom  I  am  indebted  for  the 
record  of  the  circumstance.  Mr.  Irby  shewed  me  at  the  time  the  skins 
of  both  the  birds,  and  also  one  of  the  eggs.  The  latter  differed  from  the 
usual  egg  of  the  Sparrow-Hawk  in  the  brown  colouring  matter  being  less 
gathered  into  blotches,  and  more  diflfused  over  the  surface  of  the  egg,  than 
is  generally  the  case  in  the  eggs  of  that  bird. — J.  H.  Gurnev,  24,  Ken- 
sington Palace  Gardens,  April  10th.,  1856." 

The  above  is  a  communication  made  to  Dr.  Hobson,  of  Leeds,  by  Mr. 
Gurney,  and  it  will  be  seen  how  closely  it  corroborates  the  suggestions  I 
had  ventured  to  make.  I  cannot,  however,  say  that  I  think  that  the  fact  of 
two  Hawks  of  different  species  having  been  shot  in  a  wood  at  the  same 
place,  is  at  all  conclusive  of  the  supposed  fact  that  they  were  a  pair,  or 
corroborative  therefore  of  the  genealogical  descent  of  the  subject  of  the 
memoir.  I  mean  that  I  think  the  supposition  that  the  Hawks  were  acci- 
dentally near  together  is  so  natural,  as  to  be  preferable  to  the  idea  that 
they  were  so  as  partners.  Likewise  also,  as  to  the  variety  of  the  egg,  I 
must  say  that  ^nil  moror,'  for  not  only  do  all  other  eggs  vary,  but  I  have 
specimens  of  those  of  the  Sparrow-Hawk  altogether  different  from  each 
other.  On  the  main  question,  however,  Mr.  Gurney's  opinion  is  a  high 
one,  and  valuable. — F.  0.  Morris. 

I  take  the  liberty  of  offering  the  following  remarks  with  reference  to  a 
subject  which  I  am  sorry  to  see  appears  to  have  very  few  representatives 
in  the  columns  of  "The  Naturalist;"  why,  I  never  could  make  out;  as 
there  must  be  many  of  its  readers  who  possess  microscopes,  but  from  some 


THE   RETROSPECT.  143 

unknown  cause,  hesitate  in  making  known  their  observations;  perhaps  a 
certain  delicacy  of  introducing  a  subject  requiring  the  assistance  of  the  very 
best  instruments  to  give  "undeniable  resiilts/'  prevents  much  valuable 
matter  being  published,  which  would  doubtless  appear  but  for  this,  and  as 
there  must  be  a  great  many  persons  engaged  in  microscopic  inquiry,  who 
like  myself,  are  unacquainted  with  any  one  else  of  the  like  pursuits, 
if  it  were  possible  to  open  a  correspondence  amongst  them,  for  the  exchange 
of  specimens  and  observations,  such  could  not  fail  to  be  highly  beneficial 
to  all  parties  concerned.  I  have  ever  been  of  opinion  that  where  two  or 
three  are  engaged  in  the  same  subject,  if  they  exchange  notes,  etc.,  they 
are  certain  to  benefit  more  than  where  each  works  separately  and  alone. 
I  have  for  some  time  been  extremely  anxious  to  meet  with  some  persons 
engaged  in  this  most  interesting  pursuit,  with  whom  I  could  exchange 
specimens  and  notes;  and  as  an  example  of  one  of  the  many  ways  in  which 
they  could  mutually  assist  each  other,  (merely  in  the  exchange  of  specimens, 
if  nothing  more,)  the  following  could  be  imagined: — I  reside  at  the  sea- 
side, and  have  ample  time  to  collect  specimens  of  Algse,  Zoophytes,  etc., 
which  some  one  resident  in  the  country  might  wish  for;  while  I  again 
might  want  some  Desmidium;  now  one  would  naturally  wish  to  know 
something  of  the  objects  sent  for,  and  would  be  likely  to  "look  up"  the 
subject,  and  thus  add  to  previous  knowledge. 

I  doubt  not  if  once  it  were  known  through  the  columns  of  that  "helping 
hand"  'The  Naturalist,*  that  certain  parties  would  be  willing  to  assist  in  mi- 
croscopic inquiry,  and  that  any  one  writing  to  them  would  get  such  informa- 
tion and  assistance  as  it  was  in  their  power  to  give,  much  more  might  be 
done;  and  many  who  spend  their  leisure  time  in  glancing  over  their  col- 
lections, and  occasionally  mounting  another  object,  would  instead,  endeavour 
with  all  their  power,  to  answer,  past  the  possibility  of  dispute,  (so  far  as 
their  instruments  would  allow,)  any  question  that  was  put  to  them;  and 
thus  not  only  have  the  satisfaction  of  knowing  that  they  were  obliging 
others,  but  at  the  same  time  be  improving  themselves,  and  acquiring  a 
better  method  of  investigation. 

To  those  advanced  in  this  study  these  remarks  do  not  apply,  as  they, 
from  their  advancement,  must  be  acquainted  with  many  of  the  most  cele- 
brated microscopists  of  the  day;  but  it  seems  a  great  pity  that  the  Tyro 
like  myself  cannot  also  have  the  advantage  of  interchange  of  observations, 
merely  from  not  knowing  any  one  to  apply  to.  I  therefore  feel  quite  certain 
that  this  merely  requires  to  be  brought  before  the  readers  of  "The  Natu- 
ralist," to  elicit  a  very  satisfactory  list  of  names  of  persons  willing  to  enter 
into  this  scheme;  and  thus  the  already  great  usefulness  of  this  publication 
would  be  still  further  enhanced. — George  Hodge,  Seaham  Harbour,  April 
3rd.,  1856. 


^<^rntrAiiig3  nf  Intirtits. 

The  London  Working  Entomologists  met  on  Wednesday,  April  2nd.,  at 
52,  High  Holborn;  Mr.  Dow  in  the  chair.  Owing  to  the  late  cold  winds 
not  many  rarities  were  shewn.  The  printed  Club  Rules  will  be  distributed 
at  the  next  meeting. 

The  following  donations  were  received,  and  a  vote  of  thanks  passed — 
"The  Naturalist,"  for  March  and  April,  by  the  Editor,  the  Eev.  F.  0. 
Morris. — James  Gardner,  Hon.  Sec. 


€\}i  (llntrist. 

A  query  occurs  in  "The  Naturalist"  for  February — "Why  are  birds  so 
scarce  in  certain  districts,  whilst  food,  as  haws,  etc.,  is  so  abundant?" 
The  following  notice  of  the  havoc  amongst  them  last  winter,  may,  I  think, 
fairly  account  for  it,  and  for  a  recurrence  of  scarcity  for  some  seasons  to 
come: — The  whole  of  the  Thrush  tribe  were  remarkably  scarce  in  this 
neighbourhood  during  the  past  summer  of  1855,  and  our  beautiful  valleys, 
which  used  to  resound  with  the  loud  notes  of  the  Missel,  the  rich  whistle 
of  the  Blackbird,  and  the  varied  and  melodious  strains  of  the  Thrush, 
were  sadly  deficient  of  their  usual  vocal  charms;  scarcely  a  bird  of  either 
species  was  to  be  heard  for  miles  around.  The  winter  migration  has  not  added 
much  to  their  numbers,  and  their  congeners,  the  Fieldfare  and  Redwing 
have  been  remarkably  scarce,  not  one  of  the  former,  so  far  as  I  am  aware 
of,  having  been  identified  in  the  neighbourhood.  These  used  to  be  our 
most  common  birds,  and  the  first  to  succumb  to  severe  weather.  An 
ornithological  friend  tells  me  that  very  few  Fieldfares  have  been  seen  at  The 
Lizard,  where  last  winter,  in  company  with  their  congeners,  they  covered 
the  country  by  thousands;  and  an  intelligent  and  observing  man  told  me 
there  last  summer  that  "not  a  tithe  of  them  escaped."  In  our  neighbour- 
hood, the  gardens  close  to  the  town  being  manured  with  sea-weed,  which 
afforded  a  scanty  supply  of  maggots,  were  covered  with  these  unfortunate 
birds  so  thickly,  that  in  one  instance,  twenty-two  Redwings  and  two  Star- 
lings were  killed  at  one  shot;  and  I  saw  starved  Redwings  (local  Win- 
nards,)  hopping  listlessly  about  the  streets.  Great  numbers,  together  with 
Starlings,  Larks,  and  other  small  birds,  perished  with  cold  and  starvation, 
besides  the  numbers  destroyed  by  the  murderous  ^'pin  and  thread"  and  gun, 
boys,  cats,  and  other  enemies.  In  a  recent  catalogue  of  Eggs,  Mr.  Wolley 
notes  "In  the  summer  of  1855,  Fieldfares  were  in  such  small  numbers  in 
Lapland,  probably  on  account  of  the  previous  severe  winter  in  the  south, 
that  I  did  not  happen  to  see  a  single  inhabited  nest."  We  have  only 
seen  one  flock  of  Redwings  here  for  the  winter,  and  observed  them  scattered 
about  the  fields  during  a  few  days  frost. — Clement  Jackson,  East  Looe. 


Now  Eeady,  vrith  Coloured  Plate,  Price  Ilalf-a- Crown, 

THE   ENTOMOLOGIST'S   ANNUAL   FOR 

1856. 

Contents. — Advantages  of  the  Study  of  Natural  History.  Pleasures  of 
Entomology.  List  of  Britisli  Entomologists.  New  British  Insects  in  1855, 
with  Notices  of  the  Capture  of  Species  previously  rare.  Results  of  a  Residence 
at  Fochabers.  Objects  of  a  Collection  oi  Insects.  Ghent  to  Glogau,  and  Stettin 
to  SchafThausen,  in  search  of  Entomologists.  Important  New  Works  on  Ento- 
mology.    List  of  Entomological  Books  now  on  Sale  iu  London. 


LONDON:    JOHN    VAN    VOORST,    1,    PATERNOSTER   ROW, 

ANU   TO    HE   HAD    OF  ALL   BOOKSELLERS,    AND   AT   ALL   KAILWAY   STATIONS. 

LATELY    PUBLISHED, 

NOTES  OF  A  YACHT  VOYAGE  TO 
HARDANGER  FJORD,  AND  THE  ADJACENT 

ESTUARIES; 

BY    C.    W.   ROTHERY,    ESQ. 

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Cabinet. 


FBIKCIPAL    CONTENTS. 


THE 


THE 


AQUARIUM : — Construction  and  Furnishing — Fountain  Aquarium — Aspect — Forma- 
tion of  Rock-work,  Corallines,  Caves,  Arches,  and  Beaches — Collecting  Specimens  for 
Stock — Notices  of  Sea-Weeds — General  Management  of  Marine  Aquaria — Fresh-water 
Aquarium — Plants  suitable  for  the  Tank — Growth  of  Ferns  in  Aquaria — Selection  of 
Fishes  for  Fresh-water  Aquaria — Gold  Fish — Amount  of  life  which  n\ay  be  sustained 
in  a  tank  of  twenty-four  gallons  capacity — "Winter  Management — Feeding — List  of 
Select  Plants — List  of  Ferns  for  Fresh-water  Tanks. 

GARDEN  AQUARIUM:— Value  of  "Water  Scenery— Plan  of  a  Small  Fountain 
Aquarium — Stocking  Garden  Aquaria — Fishes — "Water  Lilies— List  of  Bog  and  Aquatic 
Plants— Construction  of  Eock-work  Banks— Style  of  Ornaments  suited  for  Water 
Scenery — Fountains. 

WARDIAU"  CASE :— Ornamental  Value  of  the  "Wardian  Case— Its  usefulness  for  the 
Culture  of  Choice  Plants  in  Towns — Construction  and  Design — Window  Cuitiire  of  Ferns — 
Plants  adapted — Culture  of  Cacti  in  Close  Cases — The  Invalid's  Plant  Case. 

ORNAMENTS  FOR  DWELLING  ROOMS:— Table  Flowers- Preservation  of 
Cut  Flowers— Choice  of  Pots — Miniature  Plants— Cacti  and  Ferns — Illuminated  Trees — 
Transparent  Pine  Tree — Uses  at  Fetes  and  Festivals. 

THE  AVIARY: — Construction  of  a  Bird-House — Fitting-up  of  Aviaries — Uses  of  Small 
Conservatories — Aviaries  as  Garden  Ornaments — How  to  obtain  a  Cheap  Aviary — Inmates 
of  the  Aviary — The  Canary,  Goldfinch,  Linnet,  Chaffinch,  Greenfinch,  Bullfinch,  Sky- 
lark, Woodlark,   Nightingale,  Eobin,  &c.,  &c. — General  Management — Food,  &c. 

BEES  AND  BEE-HOUSES : — The  Apiary  as  an  Ornament — Rustic  Associations — Uses 
of  Suburban  Gardens — Pleasures  of  Bee-keeping — A  Code  of  Bee  Management  on  Humane 
Principles — Advantages — Hives — General  Management,   &c.,   &c. 

THE  ROCKERY :— Ornamental  uses  of  Rock-work — Mode  of  adapting  it  to  the  Embel- 
lishment of  a  Small  Garden — Structure,  Materials,  and  Situation — Rock  and  Water 
Scenery — Plants  best  adapted— Culture  of  British  Wild  Plants  on  raised  banks — Culture 
of  Alpines — List  of  Plants  for  Rockeries  and  raised  banks. 

FERNERY :— Characteristics  of  Fern  Scenery— Growth  of  Ferns  in  Towns— Superior  Beauty 
of  Cultivated  Ferns — Soil  and  Composts — Shade  and  Moisture — Selection  of  Ferns — 
Planting — Watering — Winter  Protection — Ferns  in  Pots — General  Management  of  the 
Fernery. 

GARDEN  SCENERY  AND  ORNAMENTS :— Pleasures  of  a  Garden— The  Roman 
Gardens — Italian  Gardens— Ornaments  near  the  Dwelling  House — Shrubbery  and  Rustic 
Scenes — Summer  Retreats  and  Rustic  Embellishments — Rustic  Bowers — Rustic  Furniture 
—Seats— Gates— Baskets — Arches— Wirework— Vases— Trellis,  &c.,  &c. 


LONDON:    GEOOMBRIDGE  AND    SONS,    5,  PATEENOSTEE   EOW. 


No.  65. 


JULY,   1856. 


Price  6d. 


fii 


A   POPULAR   MONTHLY   MAGAZINE, 


ILLUSTBATIVE    OF    THE 


i 


ANIMAL,   VEGETABLE,   AND   MINERAL 
KINGDOMS. 


WITH    OCCASIONAL    ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED   BY 

THE    EEV.  F.   0.   MOEEIS,     B.A., 

Member  of  the  Ashmolean  Society,  etc. 

Author  of  "A  History  of  British  Birds."       "A  History  of  British  Butterflies.' 

"A  History  of  the  Nests  and  Eggs  of  British  Biisds." 

"A  Bible  Niiturul  History."    "A  Book  of  Natural  History,"  etc.,  etc.,  etc. 


0  I.oiiD,  how  niiinifold  are  Thy  works!    in  wisdom  hast   Thou    made  them  all:   the 
earth  is  full  of  Thy  riches. — Psalm  civ.,  24. 


LONDON: 
GROOMBIIIDGE   AND   SONS,  5,  PATERNOSTER  ROW. 


AND  MAY  BB  HAD  OF  ALL  EOOKSELLEES. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

Phascolomys  Wombat.     By  S.  Hannaford,  Esq 145 

The  Flight  of  Birds.     By  0.  S.  Round,  Esq 146 

The  Birds  of  Spring.     By  R.  G.  Temple,  Esq 151 

Notice  of  a  Peculiar  Organ  in  the  Trachea  of  the  Emeu.  Com- 
municated by  Mr.  Robert  Andersox 153 

A  Chapter  on  Instinct.     By  the  Rev.  F.  0.  Morris 154 

Our  Fresh-water  Mollusca.     By  E.  M.  A 157 

Systema  Naturae.     By  The  Editor 160 

Natural  History  Societies 161 

Miscellaneous  Notices. — Anecdote  of  a  Cat.  Nidification  in 
Norfolk.  The  Eagle  lately  shot  in  the  Park.  Sparrow  War. 
The    Nightingale.     The  Shieldrake.      Ravages    of  a  Gall    Nut. 

Ants.     Method  of  Blowing  Eggs 163 

Review. — The  Autobiography  of  a  White  Cabbage  Butterfly.  By 
Michael  Westcott.  With  a  few  Introductory  Remarks  by 
Beverley  E.  Morris,  Esq.,  A.B.,  M.D.       Wells :   W.  and  R. 

George 168 

Proceedings  of  Societies. — The  London  Working   Entomologists' 

Society 168 

The  Querist. — The  Dabchick.     The  Great  Crested  Grebe,  &c....         168 


NOTICES    TO    CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  from  R.  G.  Temple,  Esq  (two;) — J.  J. 
"Walker,  Esq; — S.  Hannafokd,  Esq; — H.  F.  Wood,  Esq; — Rev.  R.  P. 
Alington;— Z;— Me.  G.  H.  Twinn;— H.  W.  F.  (two.) 

*^*  Correspondents  are  particularly  requested  to  write  the 
names  of  persons,   places,   and   things  very  distinctly. 


Communications,  Drawings,  Adverfisements,  etc.,  to  he  addressed  to  the  Rev. 
F.  O.  MORRIS,  Nunhurnholme  Rectory,  Hay  ton,  York; — Boohs  for  Revieu 
and  Parcels,  to  the  care  of  Messrs.  GROOMBRIDGE,  5,  Paternostei 
Roto,  London. 


TO    ADVERTISERS. 


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145 

PHASCOLOMYS    WOMBAT,     {DIDELPHIS.)     Shaw. 

BY    S.  HANNAFORD,    ESQ. 

I  THINK  it  the  duty  of  every  naturalist,  as  far  as  lies  in  his  power,  to 
raake  known  to  science  whatever  particulars  he  can  collect  concerning  the 
habits  and  instincts  of  those  animals  which  are  indigenous  in  that  part  of 
ihe  world  in  which  he  resides,  and  also  to  correct  where  he  can,  statements 
made  by  parties  entirely  unacquainted,  ecc  visa,  with  their  mode  of  living, 
where  they  are  at  variance  with  facts.  Never  was  correction  more  needed 
than  in  the  "Notes  on  the  Natural  History  of  Australasia,"  recently  pub- 
lished in  the  Melbourne  Monthly  Magazine,  and  1  lose  no  time  in  noticing 
them,  ere  such  absurd  ideas  become  more  generally  difiused. 

At  page  100,   speaking  of  the  Wombat,    the  writer  says — 

"Although  there  is  a  spinal  extenuation,  it  is  destitute  of  a  tail It  has  no  pouch. 

It  possesses  a  greater  quantity  of  fat  than  any  other  Australian  quadruped,  •which, 

when  boiled  down,  makes  excellent  candles The  male  shares  with  the  dam  the  duties 

of  rearing  their  young.  Each  strives  by  parental  kindness  to  exceed  the  other  in  attending 
to  their  offspring.  This  particular  tendency  on  the  part  of  the  Wombat  may  be  ordained  by 
Nature  to  compensate  for  the  loss  of  the  pouch." 

Without  noticing  these  remarks  seriatim,  I  will  describe,  for  the  inform- 
ation of  my  readers,  who  are  not  living  near  Wombat  settlements,  their 
appearance,  and   what  I  know  of  their  habits  from  actual  experience. 

The  scientific  name  of  this  extraordinary  animal  is  Phascolomys  Wombat; 
and  I  would  remark  here  how  much  I  approve  of  the  native  names  being 
used  specifically,  as  in  this  case,  for  it  facilitates  conversation  with  the 
natives,  when  wishing  to  learn  any  particulars  of  indigenous  animals  or 
plants. 

The  Wombat  belongs  to  the  Marsupial  family,  having  a  pouch,  from 
which  I  have  myself  taken  the  young.  It  is  a  thick,  short,  cluras3'-looking 
quadruped,  about  ybwr  feet  in  length,  and  weighing  about  a  hundred- weight, 
to  which  my  shoulders  have  often  borne  witness.  (Mr.  Swainson,  in  his 
"Classification  of  Quadrupeds,"  page  339,  says,  "Its  size  is  that  of  a  rabbit;" 
and  Bulwer,  in  his  clever  novel,  "The  Caxtons,"  speaks  of  it  as  "between 
a  miniature  pig  and  a  small  badger," — page  414.)  It  has  a  remarkably 
large  flat  head;  the  eyes  far  apart;  is  covered  with  a  thick  coat  of  strong 
stiff  hair,  of  a  light  brown  or  greyish  colour;  the  back  broad  and  flat; 
legs  very  short;  the  belly  almost  touching  the  ground; — in  fact,  it  has, 
as  Swainson  describes,  "a  shapeless  body,"  yet  his  drawing  is  that  of  an 
arched,  barrel-shaped  animal,  standing  higher  from  the  ground  than  is 
natural.  The  toes  on  the  fore  feet,  five  in  number,  are  all  clawed,  but  in 
the  hind  toes,  four  only  are  clawed,  the  fifth  assuming  a  tubercled  or 
rounded  appearance.  The  head,  as  well  as  the  hinder  parts  of  the  body, 
are  covered  with  a  very  thick  skin,  which  makes  capital  saddles. 
VOL.  VI.  x<^H.M/7?>v  x; 

4 


146  THE    FIJOHT    OF    BIRDS. 

Unattractive  as  these  creatures  are,  they  are  perfectly  harmless — feeding 
on  grass — and.  frota  the  immense  number  of  Wombat  holes  about  the  sea- 
coast  in  this  neighbourhood,  seem  to  have  some  -very  extensive  settlements 
'^under  the  sod,"  They  burrow  through  masses  of  the  soft  shelly  stone 
peculiar  to  this  place,  and  during  the  hreeding-season  I  have  never  seen  the 
male  in  the  same  hole  loith  the  dam. 

There  is  something  particularly  exhilarating  and  inspiriting  in  the  shooting 
of  Wombats;  the  stealing  out  at  dead  of  night  with  stealthy  footsteps; 
now  and  again  stopping  your  breath  almost,  to  listen  for  the  sound  of  the 
animal  grazing,  or  scratching  to  free  himself  from  the  enormous  ticks  which 
torment  him;  the  stalking  on  hands  and  knees,  or  crawling  along  on  face 
and  hands,  as  you  near  his  subterraneous  abode.  A  treacherous  twig  snaps! 
and  away  he  scuttles,  with  a  motion  peculiar  to  himself,  to  the  mouth  of 
his  hole,  where  he  remains  for  a  few  moments  with  ears  erect,  until  fear 
gives  way  to  hunger,  and  he  again  makes  his  appearance — anxious  moments 
these  for  the  sportsman!  the  heart  beats  high — one  single  rustle  and  all 
hopes  are  gone;  but  gently  and  more  gently  still  the  gun  is  brought  to 
the  shoulder — noiselessly  cocked,  but  not  before  the  timid  animal  has  ob- 
served the  glistening  of  the  moonbeams  on  the  barrel,  and  off  he  scuttles 
again — but  too  late  this  time,  his  head  being  pierced  through  by  a  bullet, 
and  the  sportsman  just  manages  to  rush  to  the  mouth  of  the  burrow  in 
time  to  prevent  his  crawling  into  it  to  die. 

In  every  adult  individual  I  have  ever  seen,  the  ''^spinal  extenuation" — 
a  tail  to  all  intents  and  purposes — has  been  between  three  and  four  inches 
in  length.  I  have  noticed  the  almost  entire  absence  of  fat  in  every  speci- 
men I  have  skinned,  particularly  in  the  female;  and  the  idea  of  boiling 
it  down  to  make  candles  is  really  too  absurd  to  notice. 

So  far  from  being  as  Swainson  asserts,  ^^very  slow  in  its  motions,"  its 
pace,  when  disturbed,  is  remarkably  rapid;  and  one  old  fellow,  almost  white 
with  age,  for  some  time  eluded  me  by  his  agility, 

Wannambool,  Australia,   Febrtiary  8th.,  1856. 


THE     FLIGHT     OF    BIRDS. 

BY    0.    S.    ROUND,    ESQ. 

Each  particular  bird  is  known  almost  to  a  certainty  by  its  general  ap- 
pearance and  manner  of  flying,  by  those  who  have  any  pretensions  to  the 
name  of  naturalists;  for  although  there  are  so  many  kinds  even  in  our  own 
small  island,  these  have  all  manners  of  motion  of  their  own  as  distinct  and 
distinguishable  as  our  own  countenances.  In  birds  of  the  same  order  it  is 
chiefly  that  a  man's  discrimination  is  requisite,  for  the  characters  of  others 


THE    PLIGHT    OF    BIRDS.  147 

are  sufficiently  marked.  Thus,  every  one,  naturalist  or  not,  knows  a  Pigeon 
as  it  flies  over  him,  and  will  not  mistake  it  for  a  Eook  or  any  other 
bird  of  the  same  size.  The  Rook,  if  his  general  appearance  when  near 
be  well  known,  will  hardly  be  mistaken  on  the  wing;  and  yet  unobservant 
persons  constantly  confound  him  with  the  Jackdaw,  the  Carrion  Crow,  and 
even  with  the  Raven.  It  must,  however,  be  admitted  that  a  Rook  and 
Crow  are  very  similar  on  the  wing,  but  a  glance  at  the  head  will  imme- 
diately determine  the  identity;  that  of  the  Rook  being  small  with  a  large 
bill,  more  or  less  whitish,  whilst  the  Crow  has  a  large  well-proportioned 
skull,  and  beak  to  correspond,  quite  black;  besides,  the  Crow  is  scarce 
compared  with  the  Rook,  and  never  seen  in  large  flocks,  except  the  Royston 
Crow,  whose  grey  back  instantly  distinguishes  him.  The  Raven  again,  is 
a  much  larger  bird,  and  usually  sails  in  circles  at  a  considerable  height, 
uttering  a  hoarse  croak,  or  skims  in  a  manner  hardly  to  be  confounded 
with  his  sable  relatives.  The  Jackdaw  is  so  much  smaller  than  any  of 
his  kind,  and  he  has  such  a  high  sharp  ^caw,'  which  cuts  in  as  a  sort  of 
chorus  to  the  clamours  of  a  flight  of  Rooks,  that  most  people  must  know 
him,  his  bill  being  also  black  and  his   poll  grey. 

The  Heron  is  an  elegant  bird  on  the  wing,  and  seems  buoyed  up  in  a 
very  graceful  mannner  by  its  large,  hollow,  aerial  supporters;  and ;  as  it 
skims  over  the  pool  with  head  arched  back  and  legs  thrust  out  behind 
to  perfect  its  balance,  is  only  necessary  to  be  once  known  that  it  may 
ever  after  be  recognised.  All  marine  birds,  indeed,  have  something  of  his 
manner,  and  this  arises  from  the  large  size  of  the  wings  in  proportion  to 
the  body.  The  Gull  tribe,  in  particular,  have  much  of  his  air,  but  they 
sail  more,  and  appear  lighter  and  more  buoyant.  All  sea  birds,  being 
familiarly  known  only  to  fishermen,  and  those  who  reside  near  the  coast, 
are  more  difficult  of  recognition;  there  is,  moreover,  much  more  similarity 
between  them  than  the  land  birds,  and  there  are  a  far  greater  number 
of  species  having  the  same  general  appearance  in  each  order  or  genus. 
Thus  the  Albatross  and  Cormorant  are  well  known;  but  the  Oxbirds,  Dot- 
terels, and  Turnstones,  may  be  very  easily  confounded,  or  the  Terns,  inter  se. 

Of  all  land  birds,  the  Pheasant,  perhaps,  is  most  easily  recognised,  and 
as  his  wings  are  small  for  his  weight,  great  muscular  exertion  is  requisite 
to  sustain  his  flight;  with  this  he  is  accordingly  endowed,  and  although  he 
may  not  always  fly  very  far,  the  speed  at  which  he  travels  is  very  great, 
as  he  rises  from  the  bosom  of  the  woods  uttering  his  loud  clucking  cry. 
The  Partridge  is  another  instance  of  this  kind,  the  wings  appear  perfectly 
to  spin  with  the  rapidity  of  their  motion,  and, ,  like  the  Pheasant,  it  is 
only  upon  the  acquisition  of  this  impetus,  that  they  can  ease  themselves 
by  a  cessation,  and  skim  until  they  alight.  Of  all  birds,  perhaps,  which 
may  be  regai'ded  as  having  perfect  powers  of  flight,  there  is  none  with  so 


148  THE    FlilGHT   OP    BIUDS. 

easy  a  manner  as  the  Swallow;  he  glides  over  the  stream  and  the  meadow 
with  a  continuous  and  placid  movement  from  sunrise  till  evening,  and 
seems  never  wearied;  his  life  is  aerial,  and  he  is  framed  accordingly;  his 
body  is  very  light,  and  his  wings  exquisitely  shaped  for  the  least  possible 
resistance  to  the  medium  through  which  he  glides,  at  the  same  time  that 
they  sustain  him  in  it  without  any  comparative  effort.  The  Swift,  indeed, 
possesses  the  most  wonderful  powers  of  flight,  I  suppose,  of  any  known 
bird,  but  these  are  of  a  higher  order,  and  may  almost  be  called  sublime 
in   their  magnitude. 

There  are  a  great  many  of  our  native  birds  which  merely  use  their  wings 
as  the  means  of  transporting  themselves  to  small  distances,  and  are  as  often 
dependent  on  their  perching  or  running  powers;  these  do  not  range  to  any 
distance  from  one  locality,  or  if  they  do,  it  is  by  fits  and  Sittings — a  little 
at  a  time.  Thus,  Parti'idges,  and  indeed  all  our  birds  of  the  gallinaceous 
kind,  trust  much  more  to  their  legs  than  their  wings;  except  the  Black 
Grouse,  which  are  noble  flyers,  and  go  sometimes  for  miles  when  flushed; 
whilst  the  Crow  kind  walk,  although  they  cannot  run,  and  hence  are  con- 
tinuous flyers.  There  are  others  again  who  are  continuous  flyers  only  in  a 
partial  degree,  which  perform  migrations  from  one  part  of  the  country  to 
another;  of  these,  the  Snipe,  the  Pigeon,  and  the  Eing  Ouzel  are  examples. 
There  are  others  again,  that,  although  they  are  weak  flyers,  yet  perform 
the  most  extensive  migrations;  how  this  is  performed  must  to  a  certain 
extent  be  involved  in  mystery,  these  travellers  being  so  small,  and  probably 
migrating  in  a  very  desultory  manner,  that  it  would  be  no  easy  matter  to 
observe  their  transit.  One  thing  appears  certain,  that  a  great  waste  takes 
place  in  their  numbers  somewhere,  and  considering  the  feebleness  of  their 
powers  and  the  journey  they  have  to  take,  it  is  no  wonder. 

The  tail  of  birds  being  the  great  directing  ngent,  or  rudder,  to  regulate 
flight,  alters  the  mode  of  flying,  according  to  its  shape  or  dimensions;  thus 
the  Cuckoo,  having  a  large  cuneiform  tail,  seems  to  float,  to  a  certain 
degree,  upon  the  air;  Magpies  shoot  downwards,  and  seem  to  fly  in  an 
angular  manner,  if  I  may  use  the  expression,  their  tails  being  long,  and 
more  or  less  pointed;  Jays  appear  to  be  very  loosely  formed,  and  possess 
comparatively  little  power  of  wing,  although  in  other  respects  strong  birds; 
and  hence  they  fly  in  a  very  uncertain  manner,  and  make  but  little  des- 
patch, but  then  they  are  very  wary,  and  their  flying  consists  in  dodging 
about  amongst  covert. 

The  Gallinule  and  Grebe  genus,  of  which  the  Common  Moor-hen  and 
Dab  or  Dob-chick  are  familiar  examples,  can  scarcely  be  said  to  be  flyers 
at  all,  indeed,  how  the  latter  migrates  from  one  pond  to  another,  sometimes 
for  miles,  has  long  been  a  matter  of  wonderful  conjecture  to  many,  but 
as  it   is  a   very  small   and   cunning  creature,  it    might  be  easily   imagined 


THE    FLIGHT    OF    BIRDS,  149 

that  wet  ditches  and  such  modes  of  communication  are  open  to  him  without 
much  chance  of  observation,  and  he  may  moreover  take  his  mysterious 
journeys  under  the  protecting  shades  of  night,  or  at  times  when  ordinary 
mortals  are  unconscious  of  what  is  going  on  in  this  sublunary  world.  The 
Divers  partake,  in  some  measure,  of  the  same  mode  of  flying,  but  these 
are  bold  strong  birds,  and  are,  some  of  them,  capable  of  performing  the 
most  distant  migrations;  whilst  the  Coots  and  some  others  of  the  same 
conformation,  make  very  little  progress,  and  merely  use  their  wings  for  a 
very  short  distance,  a  few  being  quite  unable  to  fly  at  all,  such  as  the 
Great  Auk  and  Apteryx. 

Hawks  are  very  various  in  their  modes  of  flight.  Kestrels  hover  over 
their  prey,  and  are  the  only  kind  that  do  so,  but  I  am  by  no  means 
certain  that  tvhenever  they  hover  it  is  over  a  quarry,  for  they  so  constantly 
do  so  temporarily,  and  again  fly  on  that  I  have  often  suspected  that  it  is 
sometimes  for  observation's  sake,  and  to  discover  some  actual  object  of 
attack;  this,  of  course,  I  only  put  forward  as  a  suspicion.  Buzzards  sail 
and  skim  most  of  their  time,  and  take  their  prey  and  build  on  the  ground; 
Sparrow-Hawks  fly  low,  and  hunt  their  ground,  taking  their  victims  on  the 
wing  or  ofi"  the  perch;  the  Hobby  and  Merlin  have  a  flirting  movement 
more  like  a  Bank  Martin;  whilst  the  marine  Falcons  and  Eagles  are  very 
sudden  and  active  in  their   evolutions. 

The  Whinchats,  Stonechats,  Redstarts,  Blackcaps,  and  that  class  of  birds 
of  the  same  make,  are  bad  flyers,  and  only  flit  small  distances  at  a  time, 
and  their  habits,  indeed,  render  more  extensive  powers  unnecessary.  Wag- 
tails, from  the  peculiar  tapering  shape  of  their  bodies  and  long  tails,  rise 
and  fall  in  curves;  so  do  Woodpeckers,  though  here  the  reason  is  not 
so  obvious,  although  no  doubt  it  arises  from  their  manner  of  opening  and 
closing  the  wings  at  every  stroke,  which  occasions  them  to  fall  a  consid- 
erable distance  until  another  impetus  is  given.  The  Finches  have  several 
manners,  but  most  of  them  close  the  wings  occasionally.  The  Buntings 
do  the  same,  except  the  Yellow  Bunting,  which  flirts  along  and  seldom 
flies  high.  The  Thrush  kind  fly  more  continuously,  except  the  Missel 
Thrush,  which  flies  high  and  rises  and  falls  in  curves  to  a  certain  extent. 

All  water-birds  have  pointed  wings,  more  or  less;  some,  such  as  the 
Duck  tribe,  fly  in  figures,  generally  in  the  form  of  a  wedge;  but  as  these 
have  long  necks,  they  form  a  sort  of  pilotage,  so  that  they  proceed  straight 
forward,  and  do  not  turn  so  readily  as  those  whose  necks  are  shorter. 
Peewits  have  large  hollow  wings,  blunt  at  the  ends,  and  these  act  so 
powerfully  that  the  body  is  thrown  upwards  at  every  stroke,  causing  a 
perpetual  jerking  movement;  this  is  observable  when  a  Heron  first  rises, 
but  of  course  on  a  larger  scale.  Creepers  of  all  kinds  fly  such  short  dis- 
tances, that  their  mode  of  flight  can  scarcely  be   illustrated;    but  I   think 


150  THE    FLIGHT    OP    BIRDS. 

it  may  be  said  to  be  swift  and   very  uncertain. 

It  is  notorious  how  diflFerent  the  manners  of  birds  are  in  spring;  and 
hence  we  must  possess  a  very  close  knowledge  of  the  manners  of  the 
tenants  of  the  air  at  all  times,  to  be  able  to  distinguish  them  readily  at  that 
season.  The  Turtle  Dove  has  so  much  the  manner  of  the  Common  Pigeon, 
that  he  may  be  easily  known,  but  he  jerks  along  very  much  after  the 
manner  of  a  skater  at  full  speed  on  the  ice.  The  motion  of  the  wings 
of  the  Snipe  genus  is  very  quick  and  continuous;  and  the  flight  of  the 
Common  or  Whole  Snipe  very  strong  and  swift,  and  generally  accompanied 
by  very  short  turns  or  twists,  especially  when  he  rises.  These  birds  have 
a  peculiarity,  not  I  believe  observed  in  any  other  kind;  it  is  their  custom 
during  the  summer  evenings  to  fly  round  in  circles  at  a  considerable  height 
over  the  moors  on  which  they  have  nests,  and  at  every  turn  they  make 
to  descend  suddenly,  at  which  movement  the  two  or  three  first  quill 
feathers  of  the  wings  are  strangely  agitated,  and  a  loud  humming  sound 
is  heard.  It  has  been  made  a  question  how  this  sound  is  produced,  but 
I  remember,  many  years  since,  taking  some  pains  to  clear  up  the  matter, 
and  doing  so  entirely,  at  least  to  my  own  satisfaction;  and  I  feel  quite 
convinced  that  it  proceeds  from  the  quill  feathers  of  the  wings  being 
opposed  to  the  air  in  a  curious  and  sudden  manner  at  a  peculiar  angle, 
I  had  often  heard  the  drumming  sound  in  warm  evenings,  and  at  the  dis- 
tance from  which  it  came  it  had  much  the  character  of  the  bleating  of 
a  sheep;  indeed  one  of  the  names  of  this  bird,  and  probably  referring  to 
this  circumstance,  is,  as  we  know,  ^'Heather-bleater."  But,  standing  imme- 
diately under  the  bird  and  observing  him  narrowly,  not  only  was  the 
motion  of  the  wings  plainly  discernible,  but  the  sound  produced  by  it  so 
palpable  in  its  nature,  that  I  feel  convinced  any  one  with  the  same 
opportunity  of  observation,  must  conclude  it  to  be  produced  by  the  air 
rushing  through  the  outer  webs  of  the  feathers  at  a  particular  angle,  a 
quivering  motion  being  given  to  the  wings  by  the  bird  at  the  same  moment. 
Every  one  has  heard  the  rushing  sound  produced  by  the  swift  flight  of 
a  bird  immediately  overhead;  this,  it  must  have  been  observed  also,  has  a 
tendency  to  a  humming  sound;  indeed,  any  surface  opposed  to  the  air,  with 
a  suflQciently  swift  motion,  will  produce  this  sound,  for  instance,  a  top.  The 
exact  mode  in  which  the  Snipe  causes  its  wing  feathers  to  produce  this  sound, 
would  not  perhaps  be  very  easy  to  explain,  but  I  am  as  convinced  that 
she  does  so  produce  it,  from  my  frequent  and  attentive  observation,  as  I 
can  be  of  any  fact  whatever  which  I  have  seen  with  my  eyes  and  heard 
with  my  ears. 

All  the  Lark  tribe  have  an  easy  manner  of  flight,  their  wings  being 
generally  large,  and  the  tertials  very  long;  most  of  them  open  and  shut 
the  wings  at  intervals;  but  with  the   smaller   kinds   of  Pipit    and  Titlark 


THE    BIRDS    OF    SPRINO.  ,161 

this  is  accompanied  by  a  jerking  and  ungraceful  motion.  The  manner  which 
the  Skylark  has  of  ascending  to  a  vast  height,  singing  all  the  time,  I  need 
not  particularly  describe,  or  that  it  is  the  Tree-lark  which  humbly  imitates 
this  peculiarity  in  spring  perching  on  the  top  of  a  tree  as  it  descends 
with  outspread  wings  and  tail.  The  Wood-lark,  that  sweet  songster,  has, 
again,  a  habit  peculiar  to  himself,  for  when  he  sings,  it  is  at  a  moderate 
height,  and  rising,  and  falling,  and  fluttering  about  the  same  region  of  air 
for  an  hour  at  a  time;  and  when  he  descends  it  is  with  the  rapidity  of 
an  arrow:  his  usual  flight  is  not  unlike  that  of  the  Skylark. 
.  The  flight  of  the  Starling  is  continuous  to  a  certain  extent,  for,  although 
they  close  their  wings  at  intervals,  there  is  usually  some  considerable  space 
between  them,  their  flight  being  very  swift  and  straightforward,  except  that 
they  take  advantage  of  every  inequality  in  the  face  of  the  country  to  screen 
them  from  opposing  currents  of  air.  They  always  fly  in  companies,  (except 
at  nesting  time,)  and  usually  go  out  in  the  same  direction,  and  very  early 
in  the  morning,  to  feed  in  the  fields,  returning  to  their  roosting-places  at 
dusk,  and  this  with  such  regularity,  that  they  may  be  waited  for  with 
great  certainty,  more  particularly,  as  small  parties  of  three  or  more  usually 
precede  the  main  body.  In  November  and  ])ecember  Wood-Pigeons  have 
the  same  habit. 

If  we  consider  the  flight  of  birds  in  a  general  point  of  view,  whether 
elegant  or  ungainly,  slow  or  swift,  it  cannot  be  denied  that  it  is  a  most 
wonderful  consideration;  and  though  no  more  astonishing,  perhaps,  than  our 
own  powers  of  locomotion,  relatively  considered,  it  is  of  a  much  more 
beautiful  character,  and  is  indeed  in  many  instances  the  very  poetry  of 
motion.  Setting  aside  the  magnitude  of  the  endowment,  the  very  blue 
Ether  receives  an  additional  charm  from  the  presence  of  these  beautiful 
creations,  whilst  the  earth  is  enlivened  by  their  activity  and  song. 

Pembroke  Square,  Kensington,  January,  1856, 


THE    BIRDS     OF     SPRING. 

BY    R.  G.  TEMPLE,    ESQ. 

The  subjoined,  from  the  ^'Chester  Chronicle,"  is  inserted  at  the  request 
of  Captain  J.  M.  Jones,  of  the  Royal  Montgomery  Rifles. 

The  fireside  season  of  winter  being  nearly  over,  and  (thanks  to  all  the 
facilities  with  which  we  are  now  blessed)  most  of  us  are  now  looking  for- 
ward to  take  our  flights  to  mountain,  lake,  or  river  for  our  summer  enjoy- 
ments, permit  me  to  draw  attention  to  what  I  fear  is  working  year  by 
year  destruction  to  many  of  those  enjoyments,  from  mere  thoughtlessness. 
I  would  not  in  any  degree  discourage  any  fair  use  of  God's  creatures,  either 


152  THE    BIRDS   OF    SPRING. 

in  the  way  of  investigation  or  even  sport;  but  a  habit  greatly  prevails  of 
useless  destruction  whenever  either  rare  beast,  bird,  or  plant  is  met  with 
in  our  rambles.  Who  that  has  read  St.  John's  delightful  book  has  not 
grieved  over  the  murder  of  the  Osprey  on  her  nest?  and  who  that  has 
delighted  himself  over  the  wilds  of  Snowdonia  has  not  mourned  over  the 
disappearance  of  many  a  rare  plant,  which  might  well  have  rewarded  the 
toils  of  climbing,  had  it  been  left  for  the  examination  of  him  who  loves 
to  see  Nature's  rarest  productions  flourishing  in  their  native  wildness?  But, 
alas!  the  hand  of  the  spoiler  must  root  it  up,  and  selfishly  appropriate 
perhaps  the  last  specimen.  If  a  rare  bird  appears  in  any  locality,  num- 
berless guns  are  at  once  bent  upon  its  death,  when  surely  a  moment's 
reflection  would  check  such  selfishness,  and  make  us  consider  that  the  more 
rare  the  bird  or  plant,  the  more  we  should  be  careful  not  to  destroy  it. 
Had  a  different  and  more  rational  spirit  prevailed,  we  might  still  have  had 
a  sight  of  the  Bustard  on  Salisbury  Plain,  and  the  Bittern  in  the  marshes 
of  Wales;  but,  alas!  we  now  look  for  these  noble  and  beautiful  works  of 
Nature  in  vain. 

Next  to  this  ignorant  mischief  is  the  wanton  destruction  of  harmless 
and  useful  birds.  The  wretched  and  wicked  habit  of  almost  all  children 
seeking  after  and  taking  birds'  nest  with  no  other  object  than  mere  wilful 
destruction,  is,  I  verily  believe,  conducive  to  many  a  wicked  propensity  in 
after  life;  but  not  to  follow  up  this  moral  strain  too  deeply,  I  would  just 
at  this  season  raise  my  voice  to  protect  three  particularly  beautiful  harm- 
less, and  useful  birds  which,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  are  often  killed  through 
prejudice  or  wantonness.  The  I^apwing,  Peewit,  or  Common  Plover,  is, 
perhaps,  one  of  the  most  elegant  inhabitants  of  air;  its  elegant  flight,  its 
plaintive  pipe,  as  it  gambols  in  airy  wheels  and  dips  over  and  around  its 
mate,  must  have  delighted  every  real  lover  of  the  rural  ramble.  One 
would  have  supposed  that  the  thousands  of  slugs  that  it  lives  upon  would 
have  made  it  a  peculiar  pet  of  the  farmer;  and  its  peculiar  vigilance  in 
giving  the  alarm  if  either  weasel,  or  crow,  or  magpie,  or  dog,  or  poacher, 
cross  its  resting-place,  ought  to  make  it  sacred  to  the  gamekeeper;  and 
yet  how  constantly  is  it  destroyed  through  sheer  thoughtlessness.  So  like- 
wise the  beautiful  White  Owl,  that  best  of  mousers,  how  rare  has  it 
become!  its  usefulness  is  without  a  drawback,  and  yet  how  wilfully  is  it 
persecuted?  I  know  scarcely  anything  so  beautiful  as  to  see  this  spirit 
of  the  early  night  silently  glide  along  the  dim  hedge-row,  and  then,  light  as 
the  foam  of  the  wave,  perch  upon  the  picturesque  stump  of  some  old  tree — 
who  would  destroy  thee,  if  they  thought  but  for  a  moment  of  thy  use- 
fulness and  beauty?  And  thirdly,  let  me  say  a  word  for  that  endless 
mocker  and  imitator,  that  croaks,  and  whistles,  and  screams,  and  warbles, 
in  mockery   of  all  its    feathered   songsters,   the    Starling,  whether  we    see 


PECULIAR  ORGAN  IN  THE  TRACHEA  OF  THE  EMEU. 


153 


hira  amongst  the  countless  myriads  of  his  winter  companions,  winging  his 
wonderful  flight  without  confusion  in  that  cloud  of  birds  which  darkens  the 
wintry  sky,  or  at  this  time  of  the  year,  when  faithful  to  his  native  roof, 
he  separates  himself  and  mate  from  that  companionship,  to  chatter  and 
flutter  on  the  old-accustomed  chimney  or  parapet;  if  we  consider  the 
countless  worms  and  insects,  their  only  food,  which  these  never-tiring  searchers 
must  consume,  no  reflective  mind  would  ever  think  of  raising  a  gun  against 
them, 

I  thus  only  broach  a  subject  which  may  most  usefully  be  carried  out 
through  all  the  tribes  of  harmless  birds;  let  each  man  have  his  pet,  and 
do  his  best  to  encourage  the  preservation  of  his  favourites.  If  I  save  but 
one,  I  shall  not  have  written  in  vain.  As  our  beloved  Cowper,  that  guile- 
less philosopher,  has  so  divinely  sung — 

"The  sum  is  this.    If  man's  convenienre,  health, 
Or  safety  interfere,  his  rights  and  claims 
Are  paramount,  and  must  extinguish  theirs. 
Else  they  are  all. — The  meanest  things  that  arc, 
As  free  to  live  and  to  enjoy  thai  life, 
As  God  was  free  to  form  them  at  the  first, 
"Who  in  His  sov' reign  wisdom  made  them  all. —  The  Task.    Book  6th. 

The  Lache,  Chester,  March  11th.,  1854. 


NOTICE     OF     A     PECULIAR     ORGAN     IN    THE     TRACHEA 
OP     THE     EMEU,     {DROMARIUS    NOVJS    HOLLANDIJE.)  - 

COJDIUNICATEU    BY    MR,  ROBERT    ANDICRSOX. 


Uudescribed  organ  -without  poucli  or  bag. 
VOL.  VI. 


Bag  or  pouch  blown  out. 
X 


154  A    CHAPIER    ON    INSTINCT, 

It  will  be  necessary  in  describing  this  organ  to  give  a  short  account  of 
the  natural  history  of  this  remarkable  bird.  The  Emeu,  peculiar  to  New 
Holland,  is  said  to  attain  a  height  of  more  than  seven  feet,  and  in  form 
closely  resembles  the  Ostrich,  Its  plumage  is  of  a  dark  brown,  mottled 
with  grey.  The  young  are  striped  with  brown  and  white.  The  wings  are 
very  small,  being  scarcely  visible  when  lapped  close  to  the  body.  Its 
flesh  resembles  that  of  an  ox.  Little  is  known  of  the  habits  of  the  animal, 
but,  from  what  has  been  gathered  by  travellers,  they  seem  to  be  some- 
thing similar  to  those  of  the  Ostrich.  The  eggs,  as  stated  by  Cuvier,  are 
six  or  seven  in  number.  In  a  carcass  given  to  me  by  Mr,  Sanderson, 
bird-stufFer  in  this  city,  I  found  a  number  of  well-developed  eggs.  The 
sternum  is  destitute  of  keel.  Its  general  appearance  is  that  of  a  helmet. 
The  posterior  margin  is  very  broad,  the  inferior  tapering  considerably  in- 
wards. The  Trachea  in  the  Emeu  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  organs 
in  the  whole  bird.  About  six  inches  from  the  lower  larynx  a  very  pecu- 
liar organ  is  seen.  It  consists  of  a  large  opening  in  the  Trachea,  covered 
by  a  thin  membranous  sack  or  pouch;  the  opening  extends  along  ten  of 
the  rings,  and  dilates  at  each  extremity  into  a  circular  foramen.  The  bag 
is  attached  all  along  the  edge  of  this  opening,  which  is  about  four  inches 
long.  The  rings  of  the  Trachea,  where  this  organ  is  situated,  are  broader 
and  more  symmetrical  in  their  arrangement  than  those  of  the  other  por- 
tion. The  sack  or  pouch  when  filled  with  air  is  about  four  inches  and  a 
half  long,  (for  it  overlaps  the  foramen,)  and  an  inch  and  a  half  in 
diameter. 

In  the  Museum  of  Comparative  Anatomy  of  the  Edinburgh  University, 
there  is  a  specimen  exhibited,  the  pouch  of  which  has  a  much  larger  cir- 
cumference than  the  one  now  described.  As  to  the  use  of  this  organ,  it 
is  diflicult  to  decide,  but  most  probably  it  is  an  organ  of  voice.  Some 
travellers  have  stated  that  the  Emeu  is  heard  during  night  to  produce  a 
loud  and  hoarse  sound.  This  noise  may  have  its  origin  in  this  organ,  but 
before  a  right  conclusion  could  be  drawn,  a  great  deal  more  would  require 
to  be  known  of  the  natural  history  and  habits  of  the  bird. 

41,  St.  Andreiv's  Square,  Edinburgh. 


A     CHAPTER    ON     INSTINCT. 

BY    THB    REV.  F.  0.  MORRIS, 
(  Contimied  from  page  17.) 

As  to  the  Dog,  being,  as  he  is,  a  favoured  companion  of  many  of  us, 
and  an  animal  from  whom  this  very  domestication  has  naturally  been  the 
means  of  drawing  forth  proofs  of  his  latent  faculties,  and  who,  from   the 


A    CHAPTKR    ON    INSTINCT.  155 

same  cause,  has  afTorded  such  abundant  opportunities  of  observing  his 
ways,  numberless  are  the  true  and  genuine  accounts  which  establish  his 
claim  to  a  high  place  in  the  animal  world. 

"With  respect  to  the  Dog,"  says  the  Rev.  J.  C.  Atkinson,  '/so  many 
are  the  tales  on  record,  which  would  amply  serve  our  purpose,  that  one 
is  at  a  loss  to  choose  from  them.  I  will,  however,  instead  of  selecting 
from  any  that  may  be  already  before  the  public,  rather  mention  one  or 
two  instances  which  have  occurred  under  my  own  observation,  or  have  been 
narrated  to  me  by  a  late  officer  of  the  Indian  army,  who  was  fully  assured 
of  the  entire  truth  of  his  narrative.  To  begin:  I  was  one  day  fishing  in 
the  Wye,  accompanied  by  a  Scotch  terrier,  the  property  of  a  neighbouring 
clerical  friend.  While  I  was  engaged  in  my  pursuit,  Pepper  was  busy 
hunting  a  narrow  bed  of  reeds  just  below  me.  In  a  few  moments  I  heard 
the  plunge  of  a  water-rat,  which  he  had  disturbed.  I  listened  for  the 
plunge  of  the  dog,  but,  to  my  surprise — for  I  knew  him  by  no  means 
slack  in  the  pursuit  of  such  game — it  did  not  follow.  I  turned  to  see  the 
reason,  and  it  was  at  once  apparent.  The  dog  had,  the  moment  the  rat 
plunged,  gone  four  or  five  yards  down  the  bank;  and  there  he  stood  at 
the  edge  of  the  water,  one  foot  up,  ready  to  dash  upon  his  victim  the 
moment  it  appeared  at  or  near  the  surface.  In  another  second  I  saw  him 
make  his  spring,  and  a  few  moments  later  he  was  at  my  feet  with  the 
dead  rat   in   his  mouth. 

Now  surely  we  cannot  say  that  the  dog  acted  thus  by  instinct.  We 
cannot  say  he  acted  Svithout  intelligence,'  S'ithout  any  view  to  consequences,' 
'without  knowing  for  what  end  or  purpose  he  acted,'  or  even  'without 
deliberation,'  and  'independently  of  experience.'  For  why  did  he  not  dash 
into  the  water  in  instant  pursuit?  Why  did  he  not  run  up-stream  in- 
stead of  in  the  contrary  direction?  Why,  because  he  must  have  judged 
of  'self-evident  things,'  and  'drawn  conclusions  from  them,'  viz.,  that  in 
the  water  the  rat  would  very  likely  elude  him, — that  the  rat  tvould  not 
swim  against,  hut  with,  a  tolerably  strong  current, — that  the  rat  must 
emerge  some  little  way  down  stream  therefore,— and  that,  if  he  went  down 
to  be  ready,  he  would  be  sure  to  capture  his  prey;  this  being  the  end 
and  motive  of  the  action  of  his  in   question. 

I  might  mention  several  other  instances  of  sagacity,  as  they  are  generally 
called,  presented  in  the  actions  of  this  same  dog.  But  I  will  rather  go 
on  to  one  performed  by  another — a  retriever,  to  use  the  name  given  in 
[sporting  phrase.  His  master  was  shooting  in  a  preserve  in  Norfolk,  which, 
Hike  multitudes  in  some  parts  of  that  county,  was  surrounded  by  a  kind 
fof  earthen  or  turfen  wall,  with  holes  or  mouses  cut  at  intervals  at  the 
bottom  of  the  wall,  to  allow  of  the  free  exit  and  ingress  of  the  game. 
|The  sportsman  shot  at  and  wounded  a  hare,  which,  however,  contrived  to 


156  A    CHAPTER    ON    INSTINCT. 

make  its  escape  through  one  of  these  holes,  and  was  not  seized  by  the 
retriever  until  it  had  gone  to  some  little  distance  on  the  common  which 
bordered  the  preserve.  On  returning  to  the  wall  with  the  hare,  the  dog 
endeavoured  to  leap  the  wall,  as  it  had  done  when  coming  out  in  pursuit. 
The  weight  of  the  hare  in  its  mouth,  however,  rendered  the  endeavour 
fruitless  once  and  again.  The  dog  soon  discontinued  its  useless  eflPorts;  but 
instead  of  returning— like  a  creature  sans  resources — to  its  master  without 
his  game,  he  quietly  trotted  along  to  one  of  the  menses,  laid  the  hare 
down  at  the  outlet,  pushed  it  as  far  through  as  he  could,  and  then  easily 
leaping  the  wall,  seized  the  hare  on  the  other  side,  dragged  it  through, 
and  carried  it  to  its  destination.  Was  all  this  done  by  mere  instinct?  or, 
rather,  was  not  this  judging  of,  and  drawing  conclusions  from,  self-evident 
things,  and   truly  acting  for  a  given  end,  or  under  a  given   motive? 

Once  again. — A  gentleman  connected  with  the  Newfoundland  fishery  was 

possessed    of  a  dog,  of  singular  fidelity  and    sagacity.     On   one  occasion   a 

boat   and  crew  in   his  employ   were    in  circumstances  of  considerable    peril, 

just  outside  a  line  of  breakers,  which,   owing   to  some   change    in   wind   or 

weather,  had,   since   the  departure  of  the   boat,  rendered  the  return-passage 

through   them  most   hazardous.     The  spectators   on   shore  were  quite  unable 

to  render  any  assistance  to  their  friends  afloat.     Much  time  had  been  spent, 

and   the  danger  seemed  to   increase  rather  than  diminish.     Our  friend,  the 

dog,  looked  on   for  a  length  of  time,  evidently  aware  of  there   being  great 

cause    for   anxiety  in    those  around.      Present!}',  however,  he    took    to    the 

water,  and    made    his  way    through    to    the    boat.     The    crew  supposed    he 

wished  to  join  them,  and   made  various  attempts  to  induce  him  to  come  on 

boa"d;  but  no!  he  would   not  go  within  their  reach,  but  continued  swimming 

abtut  a  short  distance  from  them.     After  a  while,  and  several  conmients  on  the 

peculiar  conduct  of  the  dog,  one  of  the  hands  suddenly  divined  his  apparent 

meaning:  — 'Give  him   the  end  of  a  rope,'  he   said,  'that  is  what  he  wants.' 

The  rope  was  thrown, — the  dog  seized  the   end  in  an  instant,  turned  round, 

and  made  straight  for   the   shore;    where,   a   few  moments  afterwards,  boat 

and  crew,  thanks  to  the  intelligence  of  their  four-footed  friend,  were  placed 

safe  and  undamaged.     Was  there  no  reasoning  here?  no  acting  with  a  view 

to  an   end  or  for  a  given  motive?  or  was  it  nothing  but  ordinary  instinct? 

Nay,  a  man   who  had   acted  with  such  forethought   and  presence  of  mind, 

would   have   been  thought  worthy  of  high  commendation  for  the  intellectual 

superiority  so  manifested  at  the  hour  of  need.     And  will  it   not   savour  of 

something    like   unfairness   if  we  deny  similar  credit    to   the   sagacious   and 

intelligent  dog?" 

Jt  seems  to  me  that  that  which  is  laid  down  as  necessary  to  establish 
a  doctrine  of  the  Church,  that  it  should  be  "quod  semper,  quod  obique, 
quod  ab  omnibus,"  would  do  very  well   for  a  definition  of   Instinct.     Not 


OUR   FRKSn-WATER   MOLI.OSCA.  157 

but  thcat  even  this  is  liable  to  objection,  for  many  birds  and  animals  are 
led  by  pure  instinct  to  vary  their  habits  according  to  circumstances.  Still, 
it  will  do,  as  well,  perhaps,  as  any  other  that  could  be  formed.  But,  when 
we  find  individuals  performing  actions  that  other  individuals  do  not  perform, 
and  led  by  evident  motive,  some  exhibiting  affections,  and  others  passion.«, 
not  shared  by  the  generality  of  their  kind,  and  led  by  those  affections  and 
those  passions  to  perform  actions  exactly  such  as  man,  men  guided  by 
reason,  would  perform,  what  are  we  then  to  say?  ''Equidem  credo  quod 
sit  divinitus  illis  ingenium,"  says  Virgil.  For  instance: — A  dog,  in  Scot- 
land, has  been  in  the  habit  when  his  master  went  to  market  with  him  to 
take  the  next  train,  (from  Irvine  to  Ayr,)  visit  the  cattle-market,  and 
not  finding  him,   to  come  back  again. 

C  To  be  continued.) 


OUR     FRESH-WATER     MOLLUSCA. 

BY    E.  M.  A. 

GoxcHOLOGTSTs  have  hitherto,  in  a  certain  measure,  neglected  our  Land 
and  Fresh -water  Mollusca.  It  is  true  that  their  inferiority  in  beauty  to 
their  marine  brethren  cannot  be  denied,  and  the  collector  of  them  will 
regret  the  sight,  and  sound,  and  smell  of  the  glorious  sea,  that  cheered 
and  invigorated  him  while  collecting  the  marine  species.  Of  late  years, 
however,  this  branch  of  Natural  History  has  been  more  favourably  regarded. 
Montagu  was  far  too  good  a  naturalist  to  be  ignorant  of  its  value.  Old 
Dr.  Turton's  "Manual,"  with  many  inaccuracies,  is  still  a  good  book;  and 
in  the  beautiful  work  of  Professors  Forbes  and  Hanley,  this  division  of 
Mollusca   is  treated  with   as  much  respect  as  its  more  conspicuous  relatives. 

Moreover,  when  you  turn  your  attention  to  this  part  of  creation,  you 
will  be  convinced  that  our  Land  and  Fresh-water  Shells  hardly  yield  in 
beauty  to  the  marine  species;  that  their  delicacy  of  texture  and  shape, 
and  especially  the  exquisite  adaptation  of  each  to  that  position  which  it 
is  destined  to  fill  in  the  great  scheme  of  creation,  are  well  deserving  of 
your  notice  and   study. 

I  can,  from  my  own  experience,  testify  that  a  collection  of  Land  and 
Fresh  water  Shells — call  them  snail-shells  if  you  like! — forms  of  itself  a 
most  interesting  little  cabinet.  Of  nearly  one  hundred  and  twenty  species 
found  in  Great  Britain,  but  few — say  a  dozen — are  so  rare  as  not  to  be 
procured  with  a  little  trouble.  Many  of  the  rarer  species  are  abundant  in 
the  localities  where  they  are  found,  and  I  have  discovered  that  exchanges, 
of  mutual  advantage,  may  easily  be  effected  with  brother-naturalists  in  most 
parts  of  the  kingdom. 


138  OUR    FRKSH- WATER    MOLLUSCA. 

You  have,  in  all  probability,  read  descriptions  of  the  tide-pools  left  among 
the  rocks  on  the  Devonshire  coast.  The  accounts  in  Gesso's  "Rambles," 
or  Kingsley's  "Glaucus,"  make  you  wonder  how  you  have  contrived  to  live 
so  long  by  the  sea-side  without  discovering  all  or  any  of  these  marvels  of 
Nature;  or,  if  you  live  inland,  have  inspired  you  with  a  vehement  desire 
to  proceed,  without  more  delay,  to  the  coast.  If  you  do  so,  and  follow 
the  recommendations  of  the  two  good  and  talented  authors  I  have  named, 
you  will  gain  a  somewhat  better  and  more  substantial  enjoyment  than  is 
generally  to  be  picked  up  among  the  idle  frivolities  of  a  fashionable 
**watering-place." 

But  if  relentless  fate  shuts  you  out,  as  it  does  me,  from  the  blue  ocean, 
the  nearest  ditch  in  your  neighbourhood  will  afiFord  a  not  unapt  analogy 
to  the  tide-pools^  for  which  you  sigh,  and  furnish  you  with  an  ample  field 
for  wonder  and  reflection.  Let  us  take  a  look  into  this  one,  and  in  any 
of  the  midland  or  southern  counties  of  England,  however  flat  or  uninter- 
esting they  may  be,  you  will  have  no  difl5culty  in  realizing  my  imperfect 
picture. 

It  is  a  still,  bright  day,  early  in  June,  and  as  you  peer  downwards 
into  the  deep,  quiet  water,  you  will  again  observe  with  wonder  how  every- 
thing in  Nature  teems  with  life  and  enjoyment.  At  the  bottom  of  the 
transparent  water  the  long  filamentous  leaves  of  Jlottonia  palustris  present 
an  apt  comparison  to  the  thread-like  algas  of  your  Devonshire  rock-pool, 
save  that  they  have  already  raised  above  the  surface  their  spikes  of  delicate 
pink  flowers.  You  will  see  a  good  carpeting  of  MyriophyUum  !>picatum — 
another  filamentous,  though  less  conspicuous  plant;  and,  possibly,  that 
mysterious  intruder,  Anachoris  alsinastrum  has  already  insinuated  its  soft 
green  masses  into  your  pool.  In  the  more  shallow  water  the  rigid  forms 
of  Hippuris  vulgaris  and  Iris  pseudacorus  will  probably  appear,  and  some 
of  the  deeper  water  be  shaded  with  the  broad  leaves  of  the  water-lily. 
And  now  for  the  inhabitants — their  name  is  legion — of  this  bright  and 
variegated  forest.  Those  large  beetles,  "sculling"  about  among  the  Ilottonia 
leaves,  are  the  Hydropiceus—ihe  largest  of  our  aquatic  Coleoptcra.  On 
the  soft  mud  at  the  bottom  a  couple  of  water-newts,  or  "efts,"  are  lazily 
travelling,  and  seem  to  wonder  at  the  vagaries  of  half  a  dozen  large  "horse- 
leeches," which  are  meandering  about  in  full  enjoyment  of  life  and  liberty. 
The  submerged  stalks  of  the  aquatic  plants  are  covered  with  the  young 
of  a  hundred  varieties  of  gnat  and  water-fly,  from  the  delicately-formed 
young  of  the  Tipulcs,  to  the  great  locust-like  larva  of  the  LiheJlulce.  But 
turn  from  these  wonders  to  the  Mollusca,  for  it  is  these  that  I  now  want 
you  to  notice. 

Floating  on  the  surface,  and  looking  as  if  they  were  walking  on  an  in- 
verted pane  of  glass,  are  four  or  five  species  of  Planorhis.     P.  corneus  is 


OUR    FRESH-WATER    MOLLUSCA.  159 

a  noble  and  common  species^  and  both  the  shell  and  animal  will  well  repay 
your  observation.  Those  two  compressed  species,  which  look  hardly  thicker 
than  an  ordinary  card,  are  respectively  named  Vortex  and  Spirorhis,  and  it 
requires  a  good  eye  to  discriminate  between  them.  The  other  species, 
especially  P.  nifidus,  the  rarest  of  the  genus,  affect  deeper  water.  F.  mar- 
(jinafua  and  P.  carinatus,  two  closely-allied  species,  rejoice  in  the  cool 
under- surface  of  a  water-lily  leaf.  They  may  be  most  easily  distinguished 
by  the  dark  colour   of  the   animal  of  P.  marginatus. 

Yonder  fine  shell,  tapering  up  into  a  lofty  spire,  which  also  floats  shell 
downward,  is  called  Limneus  stagnalis,  and  is  common  in  the  middle  and 
south  of  England.  It  is  found,  though  rarely,  as  far  north  as  York.  In 
Oxfordshire  it  is  sometimes  more  than  two  inches  in  length,  and  specimens 
from  the   Danube  are  said  greatly  to  exceed  ours  in  size. 

If  you  examine  the  wet  mud  by  the  side  of  your  pool  you  will  probably 
find  two  other  Limnei — palustris  and  truncatulus,  both  of  which  are  common 
though  interesting  moUusks.  Limneus  auricularius,  a  handsome  and  large 
shell  of  the  same  genus,  is  crawling  on  the  mud  at  the  bottom.  As  that 
large  leech  undulates  past  him,  he  shrinks,  as  though  alarmed,  into  his 
shell;  and  with  reason,  for  your  leech,  who  is  a  thorough  cannibal,  and 
can  rarely  gratify  his  taste  for  human  or  animal  blood,  will  not  unfre- 
quently  make  up  the  deficiency  with  the  soft  and  shrinking  body  of  the 
unfortunate  water-snail.     I  have  caught  him  in  the  act. 

In  the  deepest  part  of  the  pool  you  may,  if  you  are  fortunate,  find  a 
specimen  of  the  beautiful  and  rare  Amphipeplea  glutinosa,  whose  shell  is 
enveloped  in  a  curiously- spotted,  slimy  mantle.  When  it  is  extracted  there- 
from, it  is  of  most  delicate  and  beautiful  texture.  It  is  found,  though 
rarely,  near  Oxford,  and,  more  abundantly,  in  Norfolk. 

Nor  are  bivalves,  which  form  so  beautiful  a  part  of  the  Marine  Shells, 
unrepresented  in  our  pool.  Stir  up  the  mud  with  a  stick,  and  when  the 
water  has  cleared,  you  will  find  the  gaping  shells  of  various  species  of 
Gyclas  and  Pisidium,  which  have  left  their  beds  to  see  what  the  ^'troubling 
of  the  waters"  has  done  for  their  support.  Cyclas  lacustris  is  as  delicate 
and  beautiful  a  bivalve  as  you  can  see,  and  G.  rivicola  is  a  handsome  shell 
— very  abundant  in  the  sluggish  Oxfordshire  streams.  The  genus  Pisidium 
is  difficult  to  understand.  Perhaps  the  best  solution  is  that  of  the  naturalists 
who  affirm  that  there  are  only  three  species — amnicum,  pulchellum,  and 
pusillum.  I  have  reason  to  know  that  one  of  the  best  living  authorities 
holds  this  view. 

You  will  doubtless  find  many  other  species  which  I  need  not  now  enu- 
merate. Y'^our  apparatus  for  searching  is  simple — a  piece  of  coarse  canvass 
on  a  hoop,  at  the  end  of  a  pole,  wilt  make  as  effective  a  fresh-water  dredge 
as  you  can  desire.     A  small  ladle  of  wire-gauze  made  to  fix  on  the  end 


160 


SVSTEMA    NATUR.E. 


bf  a  walking-stick  is  also  convenient  for  fishing  up  specimens  which  yott 
may  see  at  the  bottom  of  tlie  water.  By  carrying  a  few  small  phials  you 
may  bring  home  and  examine  at  leisure  the  smaller  species. 

Perchance  I  may,  at  some  future  time,  while  away  the  solitude  of  another 
long  winter's  night,  by  writing  somewhat  of  our  land  species.  If  what  I 
have  now  scribbled  makes  you  turn  your  attention  to  this  very  interesting 
branch  of  God's  works^  my  labour  will  not  have  been  in  vain. 


SYSTEMA      NATURiE. 


BY    THE    KEV.  1?.  O.  M015RIS. 


( Continued  from  page  l\b.) 


Vespertilio. 
Vespertilio  barbastellus,  Schreh.   Tern. 

Linn.   Geoff.  Desm.   Fisch.    Schinz. 

Barbastellus  communis,  Bonap.     B. 

Daubentoaii,  Bell. 
Vespertilio  auritus,  Linn.  Schinz.    V. 

cornutus,    Faber.      V.    otus,    Boje. 

Plecotus  communis,  Less.  Desm.     P. 

brevimanus,  Jenyns. 
Vespertilio  brevimanus,  Schinz.     Ple- 

cotus  brevimanus,  Bonap.  Jenyns. 
Vespertilio  murinus,  Schinz.     V.  my- 

otis,  Bech. 
Vespertilio   Bechsteinii,   LeisL    Kuhl. 

Temm.   Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Nattereri,  Kuhl.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  mystacinus,    Leisl.    Kuhl. 

Temm.  Schinz.     V.  humeralis.  Tern. 

V.  emargiaatus,  Tem.     V.  Scliinzii, 

Brehm  1 
Vespertilio  Nillsonii,  Schinz.  V.Kuhlii. 

Nillson. 
Vespertilio  Daubentonii,  Leisl.  Kuhl^ 

Temm.   Fisch.    Schinz.      V.  emargi- 

natus,  Jen.     V.  sedilis,  Jen. 
Vespertilio    dasycneme,    Schinz,      V. 

limnophilus,  Temm. 
Vespertilio  emargiaatus,  Geoff.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Capaccini,  Bonap.   Schinz. 

V.  megapodius,  Temm. 
Vespertilio   serotinus,    Schreb.    Kuhl. 


Gray.  Bell.   Temm.    Fisch.    Schinz. 

Y .  XiOcixAfi,  Geoff .    V.  muriuus,  PaZ. 

V.  Wiedii  et  rufescens,  Brehm. 
Vespertilio  uoctula,  Schreb.  Schinz.  V. 

lasiopteris,    Schreh.       V,    proterus, 

Kuhl.     V.  ferrugineus,  Brehm.     V. 

serotinus,   Geoff. 
Vespertilio  discolor,  Kuhl.  Tem.  Fisch. 

Schinz.     V.  serotinus,   Pall. 
Vespertilio  Savii,  Bonap.  Tem.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Leucippe,    Bonap.    Temm. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Aristippe,    Bonap.    Temm. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Kuhlii,  Temm.  Schinz.    V. 

vispistrellus,  Bonap.    V.  marginatus. 

Mich.  Schreh. 
Vespertilio   albolimbatus,    Schinz.     V. 

marginatus,  Rilpp.  Temm. 
Vespertilio  Leisleri,  Kuhl.  Tem.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  brachyotos,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  ursula,   Wagner.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Pipistrellus,  Schreb.  Geoff. 

Temm.  Schinz.    V.  pygmasus.  Leach. 

V.  pusillus,  Brehm. 
Vespertilio  stenotus,   Schinz.     V.  me- 

lanotus  et  stenotus,  Brehm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  minutissimus,   Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Bonapartii,    Savi.    Bonap. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Nathusii,  Schinz. 


NATURAL    HISTORY    SOCIETIES. 


161 


Vespertilio  Alcythoe,  Bonap.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Schreibersii,  Kuhl.  Temm. 

Schinz.     V.  Ursinii,  Tom.     Miniop- 

terus  Ursiuii,  Bonap. 
Veapertilio  collaris,  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Isabellinus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  leucomelas,    Riipp.  Temm. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio  megalurus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  minutus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  tricolor,  Smuts.  Tern.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  epychrysus,  Smuts.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  platycephalus,  Smu.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Teraminckii,  Riipp.  Schinz. 

V.  lliippellii,  Fisch. 
Vespertilio  dasythrix,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  hesperida,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  molossus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  pacliypus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  macellus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  macrotis,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  circumdatus,  Tem.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  imbricatus,    Ilovf.   Temm. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Harpyia,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  suillus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Hasseltii,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  tenuis,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Abainus,   Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Akokomuli,  Tem.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio    coromandelicus,    JT.    Cuv. 

Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Horsfieldii,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  blepotis,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  papillosus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Hardwickii,  Tem.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio    adversus,     Hors.     Temm. 


Fisch.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  pictus,  Schreh.  Geoff.  Hors, 

Temm.  Schinz.    V.  Eirivoula,  Fisch. 

V.  tematanua,  Seba, 
Vespertilio  tralatitius,  Horsfield.  Tem. 

Fisch.  Schinz.     V.  Gartneri,  Kuhl. 
Vespertilio  macrodactylus,  Tem.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  timoriensis,    Geoff.   Temm. 

Fisch.  Schinz.    Plecotus  timoriensis, 

Guerin. 
Vespertilio  malayanus,  F.  Cuv.  Temm. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio  bracbypterus,  Tem.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Oreias,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespeitilio  turcomanus.  Ever.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  volgensis,  Ever.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  irretitus,   Wiegm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  phajops,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  ursinus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  ferrugiueus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Hilarii,  Schinz.     V.  de  St. 

Hilaire,  Tem.     V.  brasiliensis,  Des. 

Geoff. 
Vespertilio  carolinensis,  Geoff.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio     erythrodactylus,      Temm. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio   leucogaster,    Prinz.  Max. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio  velatns,   Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Caroli,   Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Arsinoe,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Gryphus,   F.   Cuv.    Temm, 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio    Salarii,    F.    Cuv.    Temm. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Georgianus,  F.  Cuv.  Temm. 

Schinz. 


(To  he  continued.) 


XATURAL     HISTORY     SOCIETIES. 

TO    THE    EDITOR   OF    ^^TUE    NATURALIST." 

You  have  done  so  much  to  extend  our  interest  for  natural  objects,  ■which 
I  hold  to  be  one  of  the  purest  pleasures  within  the  reach  of  human 
knowledge,  that   I    hope  you  will   lend    me  your   assistance  in    promoting 

VOL.  VI.  Y 


162  NATURAL    HISTORY    SOCIETIES. 

what  seems  of  easy  attainment,  and  of  comparatively  little  trouble.  When- 
ever I  visit  for  the  first  time  a  new  neighbourhood,  I  long  for  some  source 
of  information  as  to  its  natural  productions;  but  how  seldom  can  we  find 
any  one  who  can  say  what  birds,  what  plants,  what  geological  peculiarities, 
or  what  remains  of  antiquity  may  abound  there;  and  yet  what  would  be 
easier  than  that  each  parish  should  have  its  record  of  local  productions, 
and  local  objects  of  interest  Of  what  infinite  value  to  all  naturalists  has 
been,  and  still  continues,  *•' White's  Natural  History  of  Selborne;"  and  how 
easy  would  it  be  to  form  on  a  simple  scale  a  parish  register  of  the  natural 
and  historical  statistics  of  each   locality. 

The  clergyman  and  his  family  would  of  course  be  the  persons  to  whom 
we  should  look  in  the  first  instance  for  setting  such  a  record  on  foot; 
and  in  every  parish  would  be  found  three  or  four,  or  half  a  dozen  people 
who  would  gladly  unite  in  such  an  efiFort,  according  to  the  peculiar  pursuits 
of  each.  Let  those  who  are  fond  of  animal  life  record  the  birds,  (how  easy 
to  set  down  the  arrival  of  summer  birds,)  the  beasts,  or  the  insects,  ac- 
cording to  the  taste  of  each;  others  the  flowers,  others  the  plants,  others 
the  strata  and  formations  geological,  and  for  each  to  bring  at  some  given 
and  fixed  time  of  each  year  what  he  has  observed  or  what  he  has  discovered; 
and  have  such  statistics  arranged  every  year  in  the  form  of  a  register,  and 
kept  at  the  reading-room  or  at  the  parsonage,  open  for  inspection  and  study. 
Four  or  six  persons  in  each  locality  would  amply  sufiice,  with  no  sacrifice, 
but  on  the  contrary,  by  merely  increasing  their  own  sphere  of  pleasure  and 
information.  The  first  formation  of  such  a  record  would,  of  course,  be  the 
most  onerous;  but  I  verily  believe  that  if  the  thing  were  once  proposed, 
there  is  not  a  parish  in  which  there  would  not  be  found  plenty  of  persons 
who  would  think  it  a  pleasure  to  contribute  his  individual  exertion  to  such 
a  task;  and  when  once  formed,  the  work  of  subsequent  years  would  be  as 
nothing. 

I  was  first  impressed  with  the  desirableness  of  such  a  record  by  visiting 
a  parish  in  which  the  clergyman's  wife  had  painted  every  flower  natural 
to  the  locality,  setting  down  its  class  and  time  of  flowering:  it  formed  a 
volume  of  exquisite  beauty  and  delight.  Will  you  therefore  allow  me, 
through  your  columns,  to  suggest  the  formation  of  a  Parochial  Naturalist's 
Record.  Had  such  existed  in  the  olden  times  and  continued  down  to  the 
present,  what  a  treasure  would  it  have  been,  and  how  many  things  past 
and  for  ever  gone  and  forgotten,  would  it  have  preserved  to  us;  but  let 
us  remember  that  our  day  will  ere  long  be  the  olden  time,  and  let  us 
preserve  for  those  who  follow  what  we  have  lost  for  want  of  a  little 
thought  and  a  little  pleasurable  exertion. 

Since  writing  the  above,  I  have  been  informed  that  the  Rev.  Professor 
Henslow,  some  years  ago,  started  in  his  parish  a  local  register,  not  confined 


MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES.  163 

to  natural  objects,  but  which  embraces  all  local  facts,  and  which  is  printed 
and  distributed  annually  in  a  broad  sheet.  I  therefore  have  not  the  right 
to  claim  the  merit  of  originator  of  this  desirable  object,  though  I  had 
never  heard  of  its  adoption  when  I  wrote;  and  I  am  only  too  happy  to 
find  that  my  wish  and  purpose  are  participated  in  and  adopted  by  such; 
it  renders  the  suggestion  of  tenfold  value  being  so  confirmed. 

R.  G.  Temple. 
The  Lmhe,  Chester,  May  20th.,  1850. 


3Ki5nllnnrnttg  JfMlm, 

Anecdote  of  a  Oat. — A  gentleman  in  removing  to  a  new  residence,  (at 
Lady-day,)  took  with  him  his  cat,  which  for  the  first  few  days  appeared 
tolerably  at  home;  but  a  strange  dog  of  a  neighbouring  house  perceiving 
pussy,  rushed  after  her.  To  escape  his  fury,  she  took  refuge  in  a  tree; 
there  the  timid  creature  remained  without  any  food  for  four  days,  for  the 
dog  was  tied  up  very  near  to  the  tree.  On  his  being  removed  out  of 
sight,  the  cat  at  once  descended. — G.  R.  Twinn,  Birmingham,  May  2nd., 
1S56. 

JVidi/ication  in  Norfolk. — On  March  28th.  I  received  two  specimens  of 
the  eggs  of  the  Missel  Thrush,  taken  three  days  previously  at  Runhall. 
On  March  27th.  nests,  containing  eggs,  were  found  at  Marlingford — those 
of  the  Robin,  Song  Thrush,  and  Missel  Thrush.  Specimens  of  the  Rook's 
eggs  were  taken  at  the  close  of  February,  at  the  same  place. — Idem. 

The  Eagle  lately  shot  in  the  Park. — The  following  notice  of  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  Eagle  in  Windsor  Forest,  a  few  weeks  ago,  appears  in  the 
current  number  of  Dickens's  "Household  Words,"  under  the  heading,  "A 
Royal  Visitor."  It  is  from  the  pen  of  F.  Buckland,  Esq.,  assistant-surgeon 
of  the  2nd.  Life  Guards,  the  regiment  with  which  the  ofiicer  referred  to  in 
the  narrative  is  connected.  "The  Royal  Forest  of  Windsor  has  lately  been 
honoured  by  a  visit  from  a  royal  bird.  The  Eagle  of  the  North  visited 
the  domains  of  the  Queen  of  the  South.  The  particulars  are  as  follows: 
— On  the  afternoon  of  the  12th.  of  December  last,  as  one  of  the  officers 
of  the  garrison  of  Windsor  was  riding  in  the  Great  Park,  not  far  from 
the  statue  of  King  George  the  Third,  at  the  end  of  the  Long  Walk,  he 
was  surprised  to  see  a  large  bird  on  the  ground  gorging  himself  with  a 
rabbit.  He  advanced  towards  it,  but  the  bird  flew  up  into  a  tree.  When 
on  the  tree  it  appeared  to  have  a  chain  round  its  leg;  but  this  was  after- 
wards ascertained  to  be  a  portion  of  the  rabbit  he  had  just  been  eating. 
The  pursuer  then  made  out  clearly  that  this  large  bird  was  an  Eagle, — 
a  most  unusual  visitor  to  the  Royal   Forest.     He   rode  off,  therefore,  im- 


161  MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 

mediately ,. to  the  keeper's  lodge  with  the  news.  The  keeper^  while  mounting 
his  pony,  stated  that  this  bird  had  been  seen  about  the  Forest  four  or 
five  days,  but  had  always  kept  out  of  shot.  When  they  both  got  back 
to  the  place  where  the  bird  was  sitting,  the  keeper  concealed  himself  with 
his  gun,  while  the  officer  rode  round  the  bird,  endeaA'ouring  to  drive  him 
over  the  ambush.  Off  he  went  at  last,  but  flew  wide  of  the  keeper. 
Then  came  the  riding  part  of  the  business,  partaking  more  of  the  character 
of  a  steeple-chase  than  of  hunting.  By  dint  of  hard  and  difficult  galloping 
among  rabbit-holes,  thick  ferns,  and  open  drains,  the  Eagle  was  again 
marked  down  in  a  clump  of  trees.  Then  followed  a  little  stalking.  The 
keeper  on  bis  pony  and  his  companion  on  his  horse  advanced  carefully;  but 
the  cunning  bird  would  not  allow  them  to  come  near.  The  keeper  then 
got  off  his  pony,  and  walked  alongside  the  horse,  which  was  of  a  grey  colour, 
and  seemed  not  to  alarm  the  bird  so  much  as  the  pony,  which  was  of  a 
dark  colour.  After  a  few  steps,  the  keeper  suddenly  and  quietly  glided 
behind  a  tree,  and  the  grey  horse  and  his  rider  advanced  further.  To 
divert  the  attention  of  the  suspicious  bird,  the  latter  made  as  much  noise 
as  he  could,  tapping  the  saddle  with  his  whip,  riding  among  the  thick 
ferns,  and  pretending  all  the  careless  unconcern  he  could  assume.  In  the 
meantime  the  keeper  got  near,  and  fired  both  barrels.  The  bird  flew  away; 
but  had  been  evidently  hard  hit,  for  his  flight  was  laboured  and  near  the 
ground.  He  alighted  at  last  on  the  bough  of  a  young  tree,  where  his 
drooping  wings  and  fainting  form  made  him  look  more  like  an  old  coat 
hung  up  as  a  scarecrow  than  an  Eagle.  The  pursuers  then  both  rode  up. 
Again,  although  wounded  and  bleeding,  the  courageous  bird  started  ofi"; 
but  he  could  not  fly  far.  It  was  his  last  flight;  for,  in  another  minute 
he  dropt  dead,  shot  through  the  right  eye.  The  former  shot  had  hit  him 
in  the  body,  but  had  in  no  way  damaged  his  plumage.  Shortly  afterwards 
we  inspected  this  noble  bird,  and  found  him  to  be  a  fine  specimen  of  the 
White-tailed  Sea-Eagle.  He  measured  from  wing  to  wing  eight  feet;  the 
length  of  his  body  from  his  beak  to  his  tail  was  three  feet  two  inches; 
and  he  weighed  ten  pounds.  Fi'om  his  plumage,  which  was  in  cxeelleufc 
condition,  it  seemed  probable  that  he  was  a  wild  bird;  there  being  no 
marks  either  of  cage  or  chain  to  indicate  that  he  had  even  been  in  cap- 
tivity. His  t^kin  has  been  well  preserved  by  a  Windsor  bird-stuffer,  in  a 
well-chosen  attitude.  1'hree  or  four  years  ago,  a  Golden  Eagle  was  shot 
in  the  Forest,  and  presented  by  his  Eoyal  Highness  Prince  Albert  to 
Eton  College." 

FROM    "the    times." 

Sparrow  War. — In  further  illustration  of  the  suicidal  folly  of  Sparrow 
extermination,  permit  me  to  quote  the  opinions  on  this  subject  of  Buffon 
and  Bewick.      The   former   says, — "The  number   of  caterpillars  a  pair   of  | 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES.  165 

Sparrows  will  destroy  in  feeding  their  young  amounts  to  about  four  thou- 
sand weekly."  The  latter  naturalist,  who  took  much  interest  in  their  behalf, 
says, — ''In  the  destruction  of  caterpillars  they  are  eminently  serviceable  to 
vegetation.  They  likewise  feed  their  young  with  butterflies  and  other 
winged  insects,  each  of  which,  if  not  destroyed  in  this  manner,  would  be 
productive  of  several  hundreds  of  caterpillars."  In  country  places  the  cus- 
tom of  paying  for  "Sparrows'  heads"  out  of  the  church-rates  still  exists. 
The  churchwardens  of  Solihull,  in  Warwickshire,  annually  pay  a  considerable 
sura  for  the  destruction  of  these  unfortunate  innocents,  and  are  reimbursed, 
at  the  end  of  their  year  of  office,  by  the  trustees  of  the  parish  charities 
out  of  moneys  bequeathed  to  their  trust  for  "pious  and  charitable  uses." 
The  same  enlightened  parties  expend  a  further  sum  out  of  the  same  source 
in  the  slaughter  of  hedgehogs,  under  the  vulgar  notion  that  they  plunder 
the  udders  of  the  cows,  and  extract  the  milk.  The  principal  food  of  hedge- 
hogs consists  of  worms,  camon,  the  larvee  of  insects,  and  sometimes  the 
farinaceous  roots  of  plants.  Hence  they  are  of  considerable  service  to  man; 
and,  owing  to  the  smallness  of  the  mouth,  are  physically  incapable  of  the 
crime  alleged  against  them.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  publicity  given 
to  these  absurdities  will  attract  the  notice  of  the  Charity  Commissioners, 
and  that  that  body  will  shortly  give  the  trustees  of  Solihull  a  practical 
lesson  in  natural  history,  by  compelling  them  to  replace  the  money  they 
have  so  palpably  misapplied;  and  that  the  churchwardens  will  be  left,  should 
they  still  persist  in  their  exploded  prejudices,  to  pay  the  future  premiums 
for  "urchins'  and  Sparrows'  heads"  out  of  their  own  private  purses.  This 
effected,  and  a  conversion  to  the  opinions  of  Buffon  and  Bewick  will  cer- 
tainly and  speedily  follow. — Nash  Stephknson^  Shirley  Parsocage,  Solihull, 
December  22nd.,  I800. 

The  Niglitincjale. — I  was  out  one  morning  for  the  purpose  of  procuring 
specimens  of  our  summer-visiting  birds,  when  I  had  the  pleasure  of  hearing 
(about  five  o'clock  in  the  morning)  the  Nightingale  singing  on  the  top  of 
an  oak  tree,  which  I  should  consider  was  thirty  feet  high,  as  the  beautiful 
songster  was  on  the  very  top  of  it.  I  listened  to  it  for  some  time.  I 
had  the  good  fortune,  if  1  may  call  it  so,  to  kill  it,  and  without  any 
injury  to  the  plumage.  It  was  a  beautiful  bird,  and  much  larger  than 
others  I  have  seen.  It  is  now  with  a  female  in  my  small  collection. — J. 
Melhuish,  Taunton,  May  Ist.,  1856. 

The  Shieldrake,  (Tadorna  vulpanser.) — I  lately  purchased  a  very  fine  stuffed 
specimen  of  the  Shieldrake,  which  I  judged  from  its  plumage  and  size 
to  be  a  male  bird,  but  the  knob  on  the  bill  is  deficient.  Have  you  ever 
known  it  to  be  imperceptible  after  stuffing,  as  I  can  see  no  sign  of  it  on 
the  bill?— Idem. 


1G6  MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 

On  the  1st.  of  December  of  last  year  there  appeared  in  the  ^'Gardener's 
Chronicle"  an  alarming  account  of  the  ravages  of  a  Gall  Nut  on  the  oak 
trees  of  the  southern  counties,  more  particularly  Devon  and  Somerset.  The 
eastern  part  of  Cornwall  is  also  suffering  from  the  same  cause,  but  not  to 
such  an  extent  as  described  by  Sylvanus,  the  mischief  as  yet  being  confined 
to  the  hedge-rows,  where,  in  many  instances,  they  are  to  be  found  in  vast 
abundance:  our  woods  and  coppices  are  not  yet  attacked.  I  have  seen 
with  great  pleasure,  this  spring,  that  the  Galls  have  been  attacked  by 
birds  (I  believe  the  Titmice,)  for  the  sake  of  the  grubs,  and  that  thou- 
sands on  thousands  have  been  so  destroyed;  indeed  so  much  so  as  to 
lead  me  to  hope  that  a  great  check  will  be  found  by  this  means  to  their 
further  serious  increase.  I  have  sent  two  of  the  flies,  [Cynips  Qaercus,) 
so  says  Sylvanus,  which  I  procured  from  Galls  some  years  since;  they 
are  not  set  up  as  an  Entomologist  would  like  them,  but  perhaps  if  you 
have  not  before  seen  any,  they  may  be  of  interest  to  you.  The  Galls 
are  altogether  different  to  the  Galls  of  commerce,  being  perfectly  round, 
and  only  having  a  hard  crust,  the  remainder  being  very  like  compressed 
saw-dust,  not  of  the  dense  structure  of  the  Aleppo  Gall.  If  you  have  not 
seen  specimens  I  should  be  glad  to  forward  some  to  you.  Our  summer 
birds  are  arriving;  the  Chiff-chaff  as  early  as  the  18th.  of  March,  Whin- 
chat  on  the  19th.;  the  first  Willow  Wren  I  heard  was  on  Monday  last. 
Blackcap  on  Sunday.  Peacock  Butterflies  are  very  abundant  this  spring. 
A  few  Martins  made  their  appearance  yesterday. — Stephen  Clogg,  Looe, 
in  a  letter  to  the  Editor,  April  17th.,  1856. 

Ants. — Some  days  since  in  our  greenhouse  was  discovered  in  an  orange 
tree,  laden  with  blossom,  a  number  of  small  black  ants,  rushing  to  the 
top  of  the  branches.  No  Aphides  were  there  for  them  "to  milk,"  and 
the  conjecture  was,  that  the  soft  stems  must  be  very  attractive  to  these 
little  creatures;  for  upwards  of  a  dozen  buds  were  found  with  rough  edges, 
as  if  gnawed  off  by  them,  or  punctured  to  extract  the  sap,  which  was  the 
cause  of  their  ultimately  falling  off.  On  an  adjoining  plant  were  many  ants 
also,  and  as  that  was  a  very  recent  purchase,  it  is  supposed  the  ants  came 
with  it;  hence  their  appearance  on  the  orange-tree.  It  is  a  very  interesting 
sio^ht  to  watch  how  readily  and  hurriedly  a  troop  of  ants  will  disperse  from 
an  object,  when  once  an  alarm  has  been  given.  It  is  very  curious  and 
mysterious  how  they  communicate  their  signals,  for  the  moment  one  apprises 
another,  the  chain  seems  to  be  continued,  till  all  know  it.  Any  information 
on  this  matter  would  be  highly  interesting.  I  have  met  with  an  anecdote 
in  Bishop  Colenso's  "Ten  Weeks  in  Natal,"  which  shews  the  rapidity  with 
which  an  ant  conveyed  his  will,  or  want,  and  how  instantaneously  it  was 
attended  to.  Many  who  read  it  will,  doubtless,  be  familiar  with  scores  of 
similar    illustrations; — "At   the    place    where    we    off-saddled   and    bathed. 


MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES.  167 

("Weetien,)  Mr.  Shepherd  witnessed  a  curious  incident  in  insect  life.  He 
found  a  cockroach  on  his  coat,  (one  of  those,  no  doubt,  which  had  crept 
into  our  pockets  while  we  slept  in  the  Kaffir  hut  two  nights  before,)  and 
flipped  it  oflf  upon  the  ground.  Presently  a  large  ant  came  up,  and  nibbled 
at  him,  and  then  ran  oflF,  post-haste,  to  its  hole.  In  an  instant  it  came 
speeding  back,  with  a  troop  of  its  companions,  who  seized  on  the  unfortunate 
cockroach,  which  had  hitherto  been  lying  without  motion  in  a  state  of 
stupid  unconcern;  but  now,  becoming  aware  of  its  danger,  began  to  struggle 
violently  with  its  assailants; — but  all  in  vain;  the  ants,  with  might  and 
main,  pulling  ^one  and  all'  together,  carried  off  the  poor  wretch  for  their 
prey."  Ants  are  particularly  partial  to  sweets,  for  I  have  seen  them  swarm 
round  a  jar  of  treacle,  and  many  venture  in,  to  their  death.  I  remember 
hearing  of  a  person  once  pouring  hot  water  on  an  ant's  nest  to  destroy 
them,  and  more  than  half  of  them  escaped,  for  they  slowly  crawled  away 
from  "their  deluge."  My  informant  was  not  so  much  surprised  at  the  cruelty 
displayed,  as  the  rashness,  for  to  disturb  ants  in  any  way,  was  always 
attended  with  ill-luck. — G.  R.  Twinn,  The  Elms,  Birmingham,  May  2nd., 
1856. 

Method  of  Blowing  Eggs. — The  instruments  I  use  are  a  steel  drill  and 
glass  blowpipe,  both  of  which  may  be  procured  from  the  Repository,  30, 
Tavistock  Street,  Covent  Garden,  London.  Before  blowing  an  egg,  I  always 
cleanse  it  thoroughly  with  soap  and  water,  and  afterwards  wipe  off  the 
moisture  with  a  small  piece  of  sponge,  otherwise  the  shell  would  become 
so  slippery  that  the  risk  would  be  great  of  letting  the  egg  slip  whilst 
blowing  it.  Then  grasping  the  egg  firmly,  I,  with  a  fine  needle,  pierce 
one  side  of  it,  as  nearly  the  middle  as  possible;  if  the  colour  be  uniform, 
of  course  it  is  immaterial  at  what  point  the  puncture  be  made^  if,  however, 
the  reverse,  the  needle  should  be  introduced  at  the  place  where  the  marking 
is  least  characteristic.  Taking  now  the  drill,  I  introduce  the  point  of  it 
into  the  hole  already  made,  and  by  working  it  backward  and  forward  be- 
twixt the  forefinger  and  thumb,  giving  it  a  semi-rotatory  motion.  In  a 
very  few  turns,  if  the  egg  be  moderate  in  size,  a  hole  sufficiently  large  to 
admit  of  the  contents  being  extracted  by  means  of  the  blowpipe,  will  be 
the  result.  Next  placing  the  thin  end  of  the  glass-pipe  opposite  the  orifice 
in  the  egg,  and  blowing  sharply,  the  contents  will  speedily  escape.  The 
egg  should  now  be  thoroughly  cleansed  from  any  matter  on  which  mites 
can  feed,  by  several  internal  applications  of  cold  water,  and  being  then 
cautiously  dried  with  a  silk  handkerchief,  is  ready  for  the  cabinet.  I  ought 
to  mention  that  with  eggs  less  in  size  than  those  of  the  Dipper,  great 
caution  should  be  used  in  the  application  of  the  drill,  and  that  the  blow- 
pipe would  be  improved  by  being  constructed  of  brass. — H.  Smurthwaite, 
Richmond,  Yorkshire,  March  20th.,  1856. 


168 


t\mm. 

The  Autobiography  of  a  White  Cabbage  Butterfly.  By  MichaeI-,  Westcott. 
With  a  few  Introductory  Eemarks  by  Bkverley  R.  Morkis,  Esq.,  A.B., 
M.D.     Wells:   W.  and  II    Georgic. 

This  is  a  pleasant  little  tale,  and  well  suited  for  giving  children  a  proper 
notion  of  the  transformations  of  insects. 


l^arrrMugs  nf  IntiftiBH. 


Tlie  London  Wo7'lcing  Entomologists  held  their  usual  Monthly  Meeting 
at  52,  High  Holborn,  when  two  specimens  of  Notodonta  Carmelita,  taken 
at  West  Wickham,  were  exhibited. 

The  Secretary  begs  to  inform  the  members  that  he  has  a  cabinet  of 
British  Insects,  for  the  use  of  the  members  to  name  their  specimens  by. 
— James  Gardner,  Hon.  Sec. 


The  Dabchick. — If  this  should  meet  the  eye  of  the  Rev.  J.  C.  Atkinson, 
I  should  be  glad  if  he  would  explain  the  following  apparent  contradiction 
in  his  account  of  this  bird  in  the  ^'Zoologist:" — At  page  500,  he  writes, 
"I  do  not  remember  a  single  instance  in  which  the  Dabchick  I  was 
watching,  did  not  re- appear  after  diving,"  adding  in  a  note,  "I  speak  of 
course  of  experiments  made  when  the  state  of  the  weeds  was  such  as  both 
to  permit  me  to  make  them  with  certainty,  and  at  the  same  time  give  the 
bird  the  option  of  remaining  submerged,  if  it  would;"  and  again,  "I  never 
failed  to  see  it  again  a  few  seconds  afterwards."  Yet  in  the  following 
page,  501,  he  says,  "I  could  never  get  a  second  glimpse  of  the  little  diver 
after  he  had  once  caught  sight  of  me,  which  he  was  pretty  sure  to  do, 
at  least  as  soon  as  I  espied  him.  What  became  of  him  I  was  at  a  loss 
to  discover."— F.  O.  Morris,  April  29th.,  1856. 

In  the  edition  of  ^'Montagu's  Ornithological  Dictionary,"  for  1831,  I 
cannot  find  the  Great  Crested  Grebe  at  all.  The  editor  indeed  gives  that 
name,  but  only  as  "a,  name  for  the  Loon;"  and  on  referring  to  '^Loon," 
we  find,  as  might  be  expected,  the  Great  Northern  Diver  described.  Can 
any  one  throw  light  on  the  subject?  Also,  he  calls  the  Black  Guillemot 
the  Guillemot,  and  describes  the  Guillemot  by  the  trivial  name  of  Willock. 
— F.  O.  Morris. 


NATURAL   HISTORY   MUSEUM, 

52,  HIGH    HOLBORN,    LONDON. 

The  Largest  Collection  in  the  kingdom  of  Birds'  Eggs,  and 
Rare  Insects. 

Birds,  Animals,  etc.,  stuffed  in  the  best  possible  manner,  at 
charges  strictly  moderate. 

Specimens    on    show    at  the    Royal   Polytechnic  Institution. 

Insect  Collectors  will  do  well  to  pay  a  visit  to  the  Advertiser, 
he  having  always  on  hand  such  an  assortment  as  will  astonish  many. 
Cabinets  with  Camphor  cells  always  on  hand;  also  Store  Boxes, 
Pocket  Boxes,  Fly  Nets,  Pins,  in  fact  all  the  desiderata  required  by 
an   Entomologist. 

Manufacturer  of  English  and  French  Artificial  Eyes.  Coloured 
Birds^  Eyes,  varying  to  Pheasants'  size,  5s.  per  Gross;  a  superior 
made  Eye  for  best  work,  the  same  size,  7s.  6d.  per  Gross.  Cats', 
Dogs',  and  Foxes'  Eyes,  6d.  per  pair;  Deer's  Eyes,  Is.,  Is.  6d.,  and 
2s.,  according  to  size.     Black  Eyes  to  Skylarks',  Is.  per  Gross. 

All  Post-office  orders  payable  in  Holborn  promptly  attended  to  by 

JAMES     GARDNER. 


Price   Plalf-a-Crown. 

TAXIDERMY; 

OR, 

BIBD-STUFFING    MADE    EAST; 

Being  plain  and  practical  directions  for  learning  this  most  pleasing  art.     A  work 
alike  useful  to  the  adept  and  beginner.     No  one  should  be  without  it. 


Just  Published,  in  Two  Parts,  at  Threepence  each. 

A    MUCH-WANTED    AND    LONG-EXPECTED    ARTICLE    SUPPLIED   AT    LAST — 

A    LIST    OF    BRITISH    LEPIDOPTERA, 

with   the  Latin   and   English   Names,    (excepting   the    Tortrixes    and    Tineidts.) 
Printed  on  one  side  only,  so  as  to  be  used  for  Labels. 


LONDON: 
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52,    HIGH    HOLBOKN. 


Just  Published,  Post  8vo.,  Cloth,  price  4s. 

A   DICTIONARY   OF    BOTANICAL    TERMS. 

BY    THE    EEV.  J.   S.   HENSLOW,    M.A. 

Plustrated  by  nearly  Two  hundred  Cuts,  clearly  explaining  all  the  usual  Terms, 
both  English  and  Latin,  now  used  in  the  description  of  every  object  of  the 
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*#*  Subscribers  to   the  "Bolatiic  Garde^i  and  Botanist"  may  now  have 
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FOE    HOMES     OF     TASTE, 

And  Recreations  for  Town  Folk,  in  the  Study  and  Imitation  of  Nature. 
BY    SHIELEY    HIBBERD. 

"The  work  is  in  itself  almost  as  pleasant  an  object  of  contemplation  as  the  things  it  treats  of."~Joh>i  Bull. 

"Tlie  work  is  got  up  in  good  style,  has  many  well-executed  engravings  and  coloured  plates,  and  forms 
a  suitable  book  for  the  drawing-room  table." — Cicil  Jinyineer  and  Architect's  Journal. 

"Nothing  could  be  more  seasonable  than  this  elegant  book;  it  is  beautifully  illustrated,  and,  as  a  present 
to  those  wliom  we  love  or  esteem,  we  do  not  know  anything  more  appropriate." — Cottayp,  Gardener. 

"Aquariums,  Ward's  Cases,  Aviaries,  Fernery,  Bees,  llock-work,  Garden  Scenery,  Fountains — in  fact 
everything  delightful,  will  be  found  in  this  tasteful  volume.  The  matter  and  manner  of  the  work 
coincide  happily,  and  each  in  turn  well  illustrates  the  other." — Naturalist. 

"Hero  i.s  a  book  which  we  can  honestly  and  cordially  recommend  to  all  lovers  of  nature,  as  treating  in  a 
simple,  pleasant  way  of  the  Vivarium,  Ward's  Cases,  Aviary,  and  other  rustic  adornments.  Mr.  Hibijerd's 
book,  let  us  add,  is  embellished  with  rcniark;ible  taste."  —Leader. 

"An  extremely  pretty  volume,  nicely  illustrated.  The  most  casual  reader  will  find  something  to  interest 
and  aid  him  in  cultivating  his  acquaintance  w-ith  those  portions  of  the  animal  and  vegetable  kingdoms  which 
may  keep  his  love  of  nature  alive  in  the  city.  It  is,  indeed,  no  small  privilege  to  tind  how  much  may 
be  done,  even  in  the  crowded  street,  to  keej)  us  in  comn)unicat!on  with  a  jjlant,  a  bird,  an  inhabitant 
of  the  waters  or  the  air.  We  hold  such  subjects  of  observation  very  precious;  and  the  book  which 
teaclies  us  how  to  preserve  them  is  much  to  he  esteemed  as  a  household  friend." — Gentleman's  HuyarAne. 

"A  more  elegant  volume  for  the  puri)ose  of  its  publication  it  is  impossible  to  meet  with.  In  every 
feature  the  book  is  invaluable.  Its  binding  and  illustrations  are  as  charming  as  its  content-s  are 
interesting." — Bell's  Weeklij  Messenger. 

"It  deals  with  those  elegancies  which  charm  the  eye,  and  by  the  aid  of  which  the  humble  cottage 
may  be  c(mverted  into  a  fairy  in'ince."— Illustrated  Times. 

"The  coloured  engravings  witli  which  the  volume  is  embellished  are  numerous  and  well  executed;  in 
fine,  all  admirers  of  the  picturesque  in  rural  scenery  wiil  find  in  this  work  most  valuable  instruction  us 
to  the  means  by  which  art  may  be  employed  to  develop  and  complete  tlie  beauties  of  nature." — Morning 
Chronicle. 

"A  charming  book,  elegantly  bound  and  illustrated;  the  subjects  which  it  embraces  are  treated  with 
much  ability,  and  are  of  an  excellent  practical  character;  in  lact  it  is  a  perfect  gvra."—Floricvltural 
Cabinet. 


PEINCIPAL    CONTENTS. 


THE 


THE 


AQUAHIUM! : — Construction  and  Furnishing — Fountain  Aqnarium— Aspect — Forma- 
tion of  llock-work,  Corallines,  Caves,  Arches,  and  Beaches — Collecting  Specimens  for 
Stock — Notices  of  Sea-AVeeds — General  Management  of  Marine  Aquaria — Fresh-water 
Aquarium-^Plants  suitable  for  the  Tank — Growth  of  Ferns  in  Aquaria — Selection  of 
Fishes  for  Fresh-water  Aquaria — Gold  Fish — Amount  of  life  which  may  be  sustained 
in  a  tank  of  twenty-four  gallons  capacity — Winter  Management — Feeding — List  of 
Select  Plants — List  of  Ferns  for  Fresh-water  Tanks. 

GARDEN"  AQUARIUM :— Value  of  "Water  Scenery— Plan  of  a  Small  Fountain 
Aquarium — Stocking  Garden  Aquaria — Fishes — Water  Lilies — List  of  Bog  and  Aquatic 
Plants — Construction  of  liock-work  Banks— Style  of  Ornaments  suited  for  Water 
Scenery — Fountains. 

WARDIAK"  CASE :— Ornamental  Value  of  the  Wardian  Case— Its  usefulness  for  the 
Culture  of  (^hoice  Plants  in  Towns — Construction  and  Design — Window  Culture  of  Ferns — 
Plants  adapted— Culture  of  Cacti  in  Close  Cases— The  Invalid's  Plant  Case. 

ORNAMENTS  FOR  DWELLING  ROOMS:— Table  Flowers-Preservation  of 
Cut  Flowers — Choice  of  Pots — Miniature  Plants— Cacti  and  Ferns — Illuminated  Trees — 
Transparent  Pine  Tree — Uses  at  Fetes  and  Festivals. 

AVIARY: — Construction  of  a  Bird-House — Fitting-up  of  Aviaries — Uses  of  Small 
Conservatories — Aviaries  as  Garden  Ornaments — How  to  obtain  a  Cheap  Aviary — Inmates 
of  the  Aviary — The  Canary,  Goldfinch,  Linnet,  Chaffinch,  Greenfinch,  Bullfinch,  Sky- 
lark, Woodlark,  Nightingale,  Robin,  &c.,  &c. — General  Management — Food,  &c. 
AND  BEE-HOUSES : — Tlie  Apiary  as  an  Oi-nament — Rustic  Associations — Uses 
of  Suburban  Gardens — Pleasures  of  Bee-keeping — A  Code  of  Bee  Management  on  Humane 
Principles — Advantages — Hives — General  Management,  <S;c.,   &c. 

ROCKERY: — Ornamental  uses  of  Rock-work — Mode  of  adapting  it  to  the  Enibel- 
lishnu'nt  of  a  Small  Garden — Structure,  Materials,  and  Situation — Rock  and  Water 
Scenery — Plants  best  adapted— Culture  of  Briti.sh  Wild  Plants  on  raised  banks — Culture 
of  Alpines — List  of  Plants  for  Rockeries  and  raised  banks. 

FERNERY: — Characteristics  of  Fern  Scenery — Growth  of  Feras  in  Towns — Superior  Beauty 
of  Cultivated  Ferns — Soil  and  Composts — Shade  and  Moisture — Selection  of  Ferns — 
Planting — Watering — Winter  Protection — Ferns  in  Pots — General  Management  of  the 
Fernery. 

GARDEN  SCENERY  AND  ORNAMENTS :— Pleasures  of  a  Garden— The  Roman 
Garden.s — Italian  Gardens — Ornaments  near  tlie  Dwelling  House — Shrubbery  and  Rustic 
Scenes — Summer  Retreats  and  Rustic  Embellishments — Rustic  Bowers — Rustic  Furniture 
—Seats — Gates— Baskets— Arches— Wirework — Vases— Trellis,  &:c.,   &c. 


THE 


BEES 


THE 


LCiNDON:    GEOOMBEIDGE  AND    SONS,    5,  PATEENOSTER    EOW. 


No.  66. 


AUGUST,   1856. 


Price  6d, 


fi 


A   POPULAR   MONTHLY   MAGAZINE, 

ILLtrSTBATIVE   OF    THE 

ANIMAL,   VEGETABLE,   AND   MINERAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    OCCASIONAL    ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED   BY 

THE    REY.   F.   0.   MORRIS,     B.A., 

Member  of  the  Ashmolean  Society,  etc. 

Author  of  "A  History  of  British  Birds."      "A  History  of  British  Butterfiieg." 

"A  History  of  the  Nests  and  Eggs  of  British  Biids." 

"A  Bible  Natural  History."    "A  Book  of  Natural  History,"  etc.,  etc.,  etc. 


0  LoKD,  how  manifold  are  Thy  works!    in  wisdom  hast   Thou    made  them  all:   the 
earth  is  full  of  Thy  riches. — Psalm  civ.,  24. 


LONDON: 
GROOMBRIDGE   AND   SONS,  5,  PATERNOSTER  ROW. 


A>'D   MAY   BE   HAD   OF   ALL   BOOKSELLEKS, 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

On   the    Incongruous   Attacliment    of    Animals.     By   Mr.   Thomas 

FOGOITT 169 

The  Youth  of  Birds.     By  O.  S.  Eound,  Esq 170 

A  Third  Medley.     By  W 174 

Bird-Retreating.     By  G.  R.  Twinn,   Esq 175 

Injurious  Insects.     No.  VI.     Aphis,  Aphides,  or  Plant-lice.     By  J. 

McTntosh,  Esq 178 

On  the  Weather.     By  0.  S.  Round,   Esq 181 

The  House  Swallow.     By  G.  R.  Temple,  Esq 183 

Systema  Naturae.     By  The  Editor , 184 

Miscellaneous  Notices. — Peregrine  Falcon.  Wood  Warbler.  Grass- 
hopper Warbler.  Bittern.  Occurrence  of  the  Dotterel  in  Cam- 
bridgeshire. Common  Crossbill  and  Little  Owl.  The  Fieldfare. 
The  Dipper.     The  Bat.      Curious  Situation  for  the  Nest   of  the 

Blue  Tit.     Capture  of  Carabus  intricatus  in  Devonshire 185 

Reviews. — A  Natural  History  of  Ireland,  in  Four  Volumes.  Vol.  IV. 
Mammalia,  Reptiles,  and  Fishes;  also  Invertebrata.     By  the  late 

William  Thompson,  Esq. A  Dictionary  of  Botanical  Terms. 

By  the  Rev.  J.  S.  Henslow,  M.A. The  Sea-side  Lesson  Book. 

By  H.  G.  Adams.' The   Village   Lesson    Book.      By   Martin 

Doyle.' The  Book  and  its  Missions.     Edited  by  L.  N.  R. 

The  Natural   History    Review,   July,    1855. The    Fly-fisher's 

Entomology.      By  Alfred  Ronalds. A    Natural    History    of 

the  Animal  Kingdom.     By  W,  S.  Dallas,   F.L.S 187 

The  Querist. — Chrysalides 191 

Manchester  Museum  of  Natural  History 191 

Obituary. — Death  of  Mr.  John  Leadbeater,  F.R.S.,  etc ^ 192 


NOTICES    TO    CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  from  "W".  Webster,  Esq.; — John 
Gatcombe,  Esq.; — Rev.  A.  P.  Moeeis; — Mr.  David  Morris; — H.  Smurth- 
■WAiTE,  Esq.; — T.  Fuller,  Esq.; — Mb.  T.  Foggitt; — C.  D.  Polhill,  Esq. 

Errata, — Page  156,  for  'obique,'  read  'ubique.' Page  157,  for  'with  him,'  read  'without  him.* 

*^*  Correspondents  are  particularly  requested  to  write  the 
names  of  persons,  places,  and  things  very  distinctly. 


Communications,  Drawings,  Advertisements,  etc.,  to  he  addressed  to  the  Rev. 
F.  O.  MOBJRIS,  Nunburnhohne  Rectory,  Hayton,  Yorh; — Books  for  Review 
and  Parcels,  to  the  care  of  Messrs.  GRO'OMBRIBGE,  5,  Faternostei 
Row,  London. 

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169 
OX     THE    INCONGRUOUS     ATTACHMENT     OF     ANIMALS. 

BY    MR,  THOMAS    FOGGITT. 

In  almost  every  periodical  I  have  the  privilege  of  perusing,  many  at- 
tractive and  beautiful  anecdotes  concerning  animals  are  recorded.  Amongst 
thera  none  prove  to  me  more  interesting  than  those  illustrating  strong 
instances  of  their  affection  to  their  young,  and,  more  especially,  those 
relating  to  the  great  attachment  they  frequently  exhibit  to  .the  young  of 
other  species.  Anecdotes  on  this  subject  I  always  read  with  the  greatest 
avidity,  and  deem  them  a  fountain  from  whence  emanates  a  never-failing 
stream  of  pleasure. 

This  incongruity  of  attachment  occurs,  almost  without  exception,  when 
the  animal  is  deprived  of  a  part,  or  the  whole,  of  its  progeny;  consequently 
we  may  infer  that  it  is  occasioned  by  a  redundancy  of  superfluous  milk. 
When  so,  the  mamma3  become  over-distended,  and  the  animal  is  made  to 
suffer  the  most  extreme  pain.  It  is  then,  uttering  the  most  pitiable  cries, 
she  wanders  about  in  search  of  some  other  young,  if  not  of  her  own  kin, 
of  an  incongruous  nature,  and  when  she  has  found  the  object  of  her  per- 
ambulations, allows  thera  to  suck  her  without  the  least  prohibition,  and  at 
the  same  time  expresses  her  gratitude  by  treating  them  as  if  they  were 
her  own — fondling,  caressing,  and  watching  over  them,  defending  and  pro- 
tecting thera  from  the  encroachments  of  all  others,  which  might  look  upon 
them  with  a  suspicious  or  predatory  eye. 

Numerous  and  interesting  anecdotes  might  be  furnished  for  the  illustration 
of  this  subject,  but  the  following,  though  brief,  will  probably  suffice.  The 
first,  which  appeared  in  a  Liverpool  paper  in  the  former  part  of  the  past 
year,  I  now  bring  to   the  notice  of  the  reader: — 

^'A  cat,  belonging  to  the  Albert  Dock  Warehouse,  Liverpool,  gave  birth 
to  six  kittens.  It  was  deemed  necessary  to  destroy  four  of  thera,  and  they 
were  accordingly  drowned.  The  remaining  two  were  placed,  along  with 
the  mother,  in  some  loose  cotton,  collected  for  the  purpose  in  a  box,  in 
one  of  the  warehouse  rooms.  On  removing  the  box  a  few  mornings  after, 
to  give  puss  her  usual  breakfast,  great  curiosity  was  excited  on  seeing  a 
third  juvenile  added  to  the  number,  and  the  astonishment  was  still  greater 
when  the  third  was  discovered  to  be  a  young  rat,  which  the  cat  had  taken 
from  its  nest  in  the  night-time,  and  brought  home  as  a  companion  to  the 
kittens  she  was  then  suckling.  The  young  rat  was  very  lively,  and  was 
treated  by  the  cat  with  the  same  attention  and  care  as  if  it  were  one 
of  her  own  offspring." 

Another  instance  of  this  incongruous  attachment  I  may  as  well  narrate: 
— A  bitch,  belonging  to  a  person  at  Sutton^uadfiTi^Vhitestonecliff,  in  the 
immediate  vicinity  of  this  place,  after  giy^^  ^ligw^hf I^M  litter  of  puppies, 

VOL.  \^. 


170  THE    YOUTH    OF   BIRDS. 

was  deprived  of  three  of  them.  A  few  days  after  she  was  seen  to  leave 
the  premises,  and  be  absent  for  a  considerable  period  of  time,  and  soon 
after  her  return,  she  was  noticed  to  leave  them  again.  On  looking  at  them 
when  she  returned  a  second  time,  two  young  hares,  to  the  utter  amaze- 
ment of  the  owner,  were  found  to  be  added  to  the  number.  The  adopted 
young  were  treated  by  the  parent  animal  with  the  most  aflFectionate  ten- 
derness, and  under  her  care  they  thrived  very  well. 

Again,  according  to  E.  Jesse,  this  incongruous  attachment  in  animals  may 
arise  either  from  the  feelings  of  natural  affection,  which  every  mother  is 
possessed  of,  or  else  from  that  love  of  sociability,  and  dislike  of  being  alone, 
which  is  possessed  more  or  less  by  every  created  being.  The  subjoined 
anecdote,  taken  from  his  "Gleanings  in  Natural  History,"  will,  no  doubt, 
convey  to  the  reader  the  veracity   of  this  theory, — 

*'A  gentleman,  residing  in  Sussex,  had  a  cat  which  shewed  the  greatest 
attachment  for  a  young  blackbird,  which  was  given  to  her  by  a  stable-boy 
for  food  a  day  or  two  after  she  had  been  deprived  of  her  kittens.  She 
tended  it  with  the  greatest  care;  they  became  inseparable  companions,  and 
no  mother  could  shew  a  greater  fondness  for  her  own  offspring  than  she 
did  for  the  bird." 

Trusting  that  this  concise  paper  may  not  prove  uninteresting  to  the 
general  reader,  I  now  lay  down  my  pen,  and  bid  farewell. 

Thirsk,  April  l\th.,  1856. 

*»*  The  first  suggestion  as  to  the  supposed  pain  suffered  hy  the  parent  animal,  is  negatived 
by  the  idea  suggested  afterwards,  of  the  love  of  sociability  being  the  cause  of  the  adoption 
of  other  species;  and  still  more  by  the  fact  of  the  Blackbird  being  fostered,  as  certainly  a 
bird  could  give  no  relief;  neither  could  the  "dislike  of  being  alone"  be  the  cause,  as  in 
the  first  two  instances  mentioned  the  animals  had  some  of  their  young  left  with  them. 
Nevertheless,  Mr.  F.'s  communication  is  an  interesting  one. — F.  0.  M. 


THE    YOUTH     OF     BIRDS. 

BY    O.  S.  ROUND,    ESQ. 

We  talk  of  birds  generally  as  we  are  generally  acquainted  with  them, 
but  there  is  a  very  interesting  study  connected  with  their  lives,  which  it 
belongs  rather  to  the  "bird-fancier,"  or  to  him  who  keeps  birds,  to  consider, 
and  therefore  a  branch  of  the  subject  which  we  take  little  heed  of; — I 
mean  their  "youth,"  for  we  jump  at  once  to  their  maturity,  little  recking 
how  that  maturity  was  attained,  but  content  to  see  them  poised  on  airy 
wing,  and  gambolling  amongst  the  branches  of  our  deciduous  woods,  in  full 
possession  of  plumage  and  song.  It  may  be  said  that  their  youth  is  a  brief 
period,  and  so  it  is,  but  not  for  that  reason  to  be  disregarded,  and  more 
particularly  as  it  is  a  study  which  we  have  to  go  so  little  a  way  to  bring 
under  our   immediate  sphere   of  observation.      I  may  almost  say  that   the 


THE   YOUTH    OF    BIRDS.  171 

first  dawnings  of  our  memories,  if  we  are  country-bred,  is  connected  with 
this  subject.  What  boy  can  remember  anything  much  earlier  in  his  asso- 
ciations of  ideas,  than  the  delight  with  which  he  pounced  upon  some  luck- 
less Hedge-Sparrow's  nest,  or  saw  for  the  first  time  a  Swallow  bringing 
mud  under  the  veranda.  But  these  memories  are  connected  with  strings 
of  eggs  and  pretty  nests,  and  fall  far  short  in  interest  of  the  hatching  of 
the  eggs,  and  experience  soon  teaches  the  veriest  urchin  that  when  he  sees 
the  eggs  look  glossy,  there  is  no  more  "blowing"  for  him,  for  they  are 
'^set-hard,"  and .  very  few  ever  think  of  taking  a  nest  with  young  ones, 
unless  it  be  to  rear  up,  which  is  usually  done  by  placing  them,  nest  and 
all,  in  a  small  cage  at  the  spot  where  they  were  hatched,  and  the  old 
birds  come  and  feed  them. 

So  impressed  was  I,  in  ray  young  tender-hearted  days,  with  the  cruelty 
of  taking  young  biids,  that  I  remember  crying  as  if  my  heart  would  break, 
when  I  saw  a  village  boy  commit  the  unworthy  act,  and  witnessed  the 
agony  of  the  poor  little  parents.  It  was  a  Greenfinch's  nest,  and  the  young 
were  taken  for  mere  wantonness,  and  soon  perished  miserably,  after  they 
had  served  for  the  sport  of  an  hour.  If  birds  are  a  nuisance,  and  must 
be  destroyed,  let  it  be  done  at  once,  but  let  us  not  torture  them  unne- 
cessarily by  wounding  them  in  the  tenderest  point,  in  which,  for  the  time 
at  least,  it  is  evident  their  sensibilities  are  equal  to  our  own! 

Now,  in  the  human  subject,  youth  and  maturity  differ  so  little  that  they 
would  not  be  thought  for  a  moment  to  belong  to  distinct  races  of  beings, 
though  of  the  same  genus,  but  this  is  by  no  means  the  case  with  birds, 
and  it  needs  but  a  single  illustration  to  shew  this. — Look  at  the  young  of 
the  Redbreast,  and  tell  me  if  an  uninitiated  person,  who  had  never  seen 
one  before,  would  identify  it  with  the  parent  bird.  Just  the  case  with 
the  Cuckoo;  would  any  one  take  him  to  be  the  offspring  of  the  well-known 
harbinger  of  spring? — assuredly  they  would  not;  and  if  this  holds  good, 
as  it  does  with  many  of  our  land- birds,  how  much  more  with  those  whose 
home  is  on  the  waters;  here  even  a  good  ornithologist  may  fail,  unless  he 
has  personal  experience  in  the  matter;  in  fact,  until  a  bird  is  several  months 
old,  unless  in  the  case  of  our  summer  visitants,  he  can  hardly  be  said  to 
bear  anything  like  a  close  resemblance  to  his  parents.  There  is  certainly 
this  analogy  between  birds  and  human  creatures,  that  both  in  youth  more 
resemble  the  mother.  Thus  Pheasants,  Grouse,  Ducks  of  various  kinds, 
and  many  other  water-fowl,  and  numerous  other  species,  take  a  nice  ob- 
server to  distinguish  the  young  cock  birds  for  a  long  time  after  they  fly, 
and  we  know  very  well  that  were  it  not  for  the  turned-up  hat  amongst 
young  children,  we  should  be  puzzled  to  find  out  the  boys  sometimes. 
Amongst  the  water-fowl  indeed,  until  the  plumage  appears,  they  are  abso- 
lutely undistinguishable.     Between   land  and  water-birds  there  is  this  great 


172  THE    YOUTH    OF    BIRDS. 

distinction— that  tlie  land-birds  are  batched  with  rudimentary  and  percep- 
tible wings  and  tails,  whilst  the  water-birds  are  covered  with  down  until 
they  are  well  nigh  full-grown,  when  the  plumage  comes  suddenly  as  it  were, 
and  their  appearance  totally  alters;  and  here  we  perceive  the  hand  of 
wisdom  adapting  the  means  to  the  end;  for  what  peril  would  await  the 
denizens  of  the  woods  and  plains,  were  they  helplessly  clad  in  down  only, 
and  unable  to  raise  themselves  from  the  earth,  as  is  the  case  with  their 
aquatic  brethren  ?  Whereas  the  liquid  element,  which  is  the  home  of  these 
latter,  itself  furnishes  their  safety,  and  unless  it  is  that  pike  and  rats  get 
hold  of  a  few,  I  know  of  no  enemy  that  they  have,  and  we  know  that 
the  instances  in  which  they  fall  a  prey  to  these  are  few;  securely  hid  and 
screened  from  harm  by  the  green  water-plants,  and  the  solitude  of  the 
silent  pool,  at  ease  and  in  security  their  youth  is  past,  and  I  remember 
well,  when  a  boy,  the  delight  with  which  I  have  sat  on  the  margin  of 
such  a  scene  at  early  summer  morn,  an  unperceived  spectator  of  the  sight, 
and  watched  the  Duck  lead  forth  her  little  train  from  the  sedgy  margin 
into  the  open  water,  looking  like  dark  beads  upon  the  surface,  and  with 
what  facility,  at  the  slightest  alarm,  they  concealed  themselves,  so  as  in  a 
moment  to  be  perfectly  invisible.  But  far  prettier  and  more  interesting 
than  these  are  the  offspring  of  the  minute  water-fowl — the  Moorhens,  the 
Dobchlcks,  and  the  Teal,  like  so  many  little  black  puff-balls^  and  nothing  else. 

As  I  have  before  hinted,  our  summer  visitants  stand  on  a  different 
footing;  it  appears  in  some  sort  necessary  that  their  youth  should  be  quickly 
got  over:  for  whatever  facilities  the  Straits  of  Gibraltar  and  the  narrow 
channel  between  England  and  France  (supposing  they  crossed  at  the  nar- 
rowest possible  point)  might  afford  them,  such  a  journey  is  no  joke  to  a 
being  scarcely  three  months  old,  as  is  the  case  with  many,  and  hence  they 
speedily  arrive  at  a  very  decent  degree  of  resemblance  to  their  parents  ere 
they  depart  for  other  realms;  and  with  the  Swifts  this  is  a  real  wonder. 
Gilbert  White  took  notice  of  this,  and  I  may  be  perhaps  pardoned  for 
inserting  a  short  extract  from  his  book   upon  this  point: — ■ 

"On  the  r>th.  of  July,  1775,"  he  says,  "I  again  untiled  part  of  the  roof 
over  the  nest  of  a  Svvift;  the  dam  sat  in  the  nest,  but  so  strongly  was  she 
affected  by  natural  'storge'  for  her  brood,  which  she  supposed  to  be  in 
danger,  that,  regardless  of  her  own  safety,  she  would  not  stir,  but  lay 
sullenly  by  them,  permitting  herself  to  be  taken  in  hand.  The  squab  young 
were  brought  down  and  placed  on  the  grass-plot,  where  they  tumbled  about 
and  were  as  helpless  as  a  new-born  child.  While  we  contemplated  their 
naked  bodies,  their  unwieldly  disproportioned  ahdumina,  and  their  heads  too 
heavy  for  their  necks  to  support,  we  could  not  but  wonder  when  we  re- 
flected that  these  shiftless  beings,  in  little  more  than  a  fortnight,  would 
be  able  to  dash  through  the  air  ahnost  with  the  inconceivable  swiftness  of 


THE    YOUTH    OF    BIRDS.  173 

a  meteor,  and  perhaps  in  their  migration  must  traverse  vast  continents 
and  oceans  as  distant  as  the  equator!  so  soon  does  Nature  advance  small 
birds  to  their  '(h)elikia/  or  state  of  perfection;  while  the  progressive  growth 
of  men  and  large  quadrupeds  is  slow  ^nd  tedious," 

There  are,  however,  some  of  our  small  native  birds  which  at  once  put 
on  such  a  portion  of  their  mature  plumage  as  to  be  recognised  at  once,  as 
the  Wrens  and  the  Titmice,  whilst  the  White  Wagtail  is  grey  till  the  first 
moult,  and  Starlings  are  brown.  Woodpeckers  are  also  dark  grey  speckled, 
although  the  red  head  is  partially  developed,  and  their  shape  is  unmistakeable. 

With  regard  to  the  voices  of  young  birds,  they  are  all  more  or  less 
sibilous,  and  all  have  what  is  termed  the  "call-note" — the  first  attempts  at 
song  being  termed  ^'recording,"  and  very  pretty  these  little  attempts  at 
song  are.  I  know  of  no  prettier  sight  than  to  see  a  pair  of  little  heath 
birds,  Stonechats  for  example,  feeding  their  young — a  sight  that  I  have 
watched  for  hours,  and  when  I  returned  from  the  sweet  contemplation, 
have  felt  my  mind  refined,  as  it  were,  by  it;  indeed  thus  to  enjoy,  if  it 
is  only  an  hour,  in  such  society,  amidst  the  pure  air  of  Heaven,  rendered 
aromatic  by  the  surrounding  wild  herbage,  is  a  treat  sufiicient  at  any  time 
to  change  the  current  of  one's  thoughts  in  a  manner  very  disparaging  to 
the  scenes  of  common  life  to  which  we  must  return. 

The  only  peculiar  youth  among  birds  which  is  striking  to  the  mind,  is 
that  of  the  Cuckoo,  and  this  seems  so  unnatural,  that  there  is  not  an 
urchin,  country  bred,  who  has  not  seen  it  without  feelings  of  pity  and  curiosity. 
It  is  unnecessary  for  me  to  repeat  here  the  unceremonious  manner  in  which 
the  Cuckoo  intrudes  her  egg  into  the  nests  of  other  small  insectivorous  birds, 
usually  choosing  the  Titlark  for  that  purpose,  nor  how  equally  unceremoniously 
the  young  intruder  shoulders  out  the  real  owners,  and  takes  solitary  pos- 
session. I  suppose,  upon  the  instinct  of  self-preservation  well  known,  two 
poor  little  birds,  such  as  Titlarks,  must  work  hard  even  to  maintain  him, 
and  a  fortiori,  it  would  be  impossible  to  support  the  legitimate  brood 
with  such  an  addition.  All  this  has  been  often  told,  and  is  well  known, 
and  many  attempts  have  been  made  to  detain  this  undomestic  gentleman 
through  a  winter,  but  with  ill-success. 

The  youth  of  our  common  birds  is  a  pleasing  study,  and  ever  before  usj 
let  us  learn  from  it  the  path  of  domestic  and  parental  duty,  and  see,  as 
in  a  glass,  our  own  reciprocal  obligations  thus  figured  to  us,  what  our 
affection  as  parents  should  be,  and  what  as  children  we  owe  to  those  parents, 
who  have  wrought,  and  toiled,  and  striven  for  our  support,  watched  us 
whilst  we  slept,  and  felt  a  joy  not  to  be  told,  when  they  perceived  from 
day  to  day  our  progress  towards  maturity.  Let  us  never  fail  to  profit  by 
the  lesson,  for  all  these  things  are  "for  our  examples," 

Pemhroke  Square,  Kensington,  June  10th.,  185G. 


174 
A     Til  IE  D     MEDLEY. 

BY   W. 

"Rudis  iudigestaquc  moles." 

DoRiNCr  the  months  of  November  and  December,  I,  on  several  occasions, 
heard  the  song  of  the   Sky  Lark,   (Alauda  arvensis.) 

On  the  12th.  of  May,  notwithstanding  the  cold  and  backward  state  of 
the  season,  the  Corn  Crake  {Crea;  ^^^diensis)  was  heard  in  the  parks  around 
Duff  House. 

About  the  middle  of  June,  the  Hoopoe  (Upupa  epops)  was  seen  near 
the  same  place. 

About  the  same  time  a  specimen  of  the  Honey  Buzzard  (Perms  apivorus) 
was  shot  by  Mr.  Watt,  farmer,  Stoneyley,  on  that  farm.  It  measured  four 
feet  across  the  wings,  and  about  twenty-two  inches  in  length.  The  cere 
was  almost  of  the  same  colour  as  the  bill.  It  was  very  poor,  so  much 
so,  that  Mr.  Lemon,  bird-stuffer,  thinks  it  must  have  been  affected  with 
disease. 

To  conclude  my  observations  on  the  feathered  tribe,  I  shall  add  that  a 
pin  was  found  in  a  duck's  egg  by  one  of  the  printers  in  the  Banffshire 
Journal  Office,  some  short  time  agol  How  did  it  get  there?  A  gentleman 
in  Banff  told  me,  when  conversing  with  him  on  the  subject,  that  he  has 
himself  put  a  horse-hair  into  an  egg,  so  as  to  defy  detection,  merely  by 
pricking  a  hole  in  the  end  of  the  egg  with  a  fine  needle,  and  inserting 
the  hair. 

On  May  27th.,  during  a  rather  severe  gale  of  wind,  a  good  specimen 
of  the  Lesser-Forked  Beard  (Raniceps  trifurcatus)  was  cast  ashore  at  Mac- 
duff, and  kindly  brought  me  by  a  boy. 

On  June  7th.,  Mr.  Andrew  Wilson  hooked  a  specimen  of  the  Common 
Tope,  (Oaleus  vulgaris.)  It  measured  four  feet  ten  inches  in  length,  and 
one  foot  seven  inches  and  three-quarters  in  girth.  When  opened,  there 
were  only  a  few  small  stones  in  its  stomach. 

On  June  9th.,  Mr.  Andrew  Paterson  brought  ashore  a  small  specimen 
of  the  Lamprey,  (Pteromi/zon  marinus,) — "The  Ramper  or  Lamper  Eel." 
It  was  brought  into  the  boat  sticking  on  a  large  cod-fish. 

On  June  14th.,  during  one  of  my  fishing  excursions  among  the  stones 
and  sea-weed  at  low  water,  at  the  back  of  the  harbour  of  Macduff,  I  ob- 
tained a  very  small  specimen  of  Montagu's  Sucking-Fish,  (Liparis  Mon- 
tagui.)  It  was  doubled  up  on  the  stone  when  I  turned  it  up.  It  was 
not  over  a  quarter  of  an  inch  in  length,  and  was  of  a  very  dark  orange 
colour.  Its  eyes  were  of  a  bright  golden  colour,  with  a  blue  line  between 
them.  A  similar  blue  line  reached  from  each  eye  to  the  upper  lip,  and 
also  a  little  way  behind  the  eyes  towards  the  gill-covers.     When  put  into 


BIRP-nETREATING.  175 

a  pliial  of  water,  it  swam  in  a  very  lively  way,  and  stuck  every  now  and 
then  to  the  side  of  it. 

A  good  many  months  ago,  I  got  from  the  crevice  of  a  stone  taken 
from   deep  water,  a  fine    living   specimen  of  Area  hetragina. 

Anomia  patelliformis  appears  to  be  more  common  in  the  Frith  than  was 
supposed.  I  have  got  a  good  many  specimens.  Thracia  pTiascolina,  Tellina 
crassa,  Vemis  cassina,  Gardium  norvegicum,  and  Pentunculus  glycimeris,  have 
all  been  got — one,  two,  or  more  specimens  of  each.  But  more  of  this  here- 
after, if  all  is  well. 

My  last  capture  in  entomology  last  season  was  a  fine  male  of  the 
Vapourer  Moth,  (Orgyia  antiqua.) 

I  have  also  seen  a  specimen  of  the  Death's  Head  Sphinx,  (Acherordia 
Atropos,)  got  by  Mr.  Lemon,  between  Boyndie  and  Banff". 

As  to  our  Zoophytes,  in  a  short  time  I  hope  to  be  able  to  give  a 
pretty  fair  list;  meanwhile  be  it  known  that  I  have  got  one  specimen  of 
Caryophyllea  Smithii,  many  of  Cellipora  cervicornis,  and,  I  am  inclined  to 
think,  Cellipora  Icevis.  Many  of  Cellipora  Skenii,  Plumularia  Catherina, 
Plumularia  myriophyllum,  Sertularia  cupressina,  Betepera  Beaniana,  Thuria 
articulata,   have   also   been   found   in   greater  or   less  abundance. 

Macduff,  Banff,  June  17th.,  1856. 


BIRD-RETREATING. 

BY    O.  R.  TWINN,    ESQ. 

How  much  a  matter  of  regret  it  is  that  as  civilization  and  industry  take 
possession  of  any  locality,  and  render  it  a  busy  hive  of  men,  we  cannot 
secure  to  it  any  great  abundance  of  Nature's  lavish  gifts,  for  the  enjoy- 
ment and  contemplation  of  the  teeming  population. 

In  harmony  with  the  law  of  compensation,  I  find  that  our  gain  in  one 
method  is  met  by  loss  in  another;  and  the  natural  and  peculiar  features 
of  the  advantage  are  not  of  that  pure,  refining,  God- displaying  character, 
(though  far  be  it  from  me  to  disparage  man's  glorious  doings,)  that  so 
pre-eminently  distinguish  Nature's  works.  The  close  environment  of  a 
town,  its  noisy  hum  of  industrious  thousands,  its  rattling  wheels  and  engines, 
its  engrossment  of  every  spare  acre,  its  sacrifice  of  land,  and  tree,  and 
hedge,  from  the  open  field  or  wood,  to  become  the  narrow,  house-confronting 
street,  are  all  enemies  to  him  who  would  retain  Nature  around  in  all  her 
charms,  for  general  benefit. 

I  resided  for  many  years  near  to  an  old  city  of  weavers,  a  quiet,  dear, 
ancestral  spot^  but  my  ornithological  notices  there  were  of  occasional  House- 


1 7G  BIRD-RETREATING. 

Sparrows;  a  pair  of  Jackdaws  inhabiting  the  tower  of  one  of  the  churches; 
frequent  flights  of  Rooks,  careering  round  the  cathedral  spire;  the  spring 
migration  of  Gulls,  repairing  to  Scoulton  for  breeding;  and  a  Song-Thrush 
making  melody  in  a  central  garden  of  the  city.  But  when  you  rambled 
even  a  short  quarter  of  a  mile  beyond  the  city  walls,  you  found  an  abun- 
dance of  songsters.  Within  this  distance  I  knew  a  shrubbery  and  road, 
where  the  Nightingale  paid  a  yearly  visit. 

In  1851,  I  heard  one  of  these  pleasing  night  warblers  on  the  eve  of 
the  opening  day  of  the  Great  Exhibition;  also  on  many  successive  nights; 
but  a  youngster  fired  his  gun  in  the  dusky  hour  "for  fun,"  but  alas!  to 
frighten  the  Nightingale  away,  and  the  nest  commenced  (supposed  to  be- 
long to  this  bird)  was  necessarily  lost.  I  never  personally  met  with  an 
instance  of  its  nesting  in  Norfolk,  though  informed  it  has  done  so,  and  I 
fully  believe  it;  not  on  the  authority  of  the  case  just  mentioned,  but  be- 
cause I  possess  a  specimen  of  its  eggs  secured  (for  aught  I  know  to  the 
contrary)  in  that  county.  I  am  of  opinion  that  the  Nightingale  is  ftir 
from  an  unsocial  bird;  though  we  might  thoughtlessly  be  led  to  suppose, 
from  its  nocturnal  habits,  that  it  was;  for  it  would  not  be  difficult  to  base 
on  its  retirement  many  qualities  conjecturally.  I  do  not  state  it  to  be  a 
tame,  household  bird,  but  that  it  is  a  creature  less  fearful  (in  its  wild 
state  of  liberty)  of  man  than  many.  The  Rev.  F.  0.  Morris,  in  his  "British 
Birds,"  says,  "In  its  habits  it  is  not  shy:"  my  own  observations  convince 
me  this  is  true. 

When  I  was  a  boy  at  school,  in  a  rural  village  of  Essex,  not  far  from 
the  metropolis,  I  remember  how  great  was  my  pleasure  in  making  my  first 
acquaintance  with  this  bird.  There  were  very  large  shrubberies  and  plan- 
tations attached  to  the  Hall,  and  the  summer  visitants  were  many.  The 
Gold-crested  Wren,  the  Redstart,  the  Cuckoo,  Magpie,  and  Wood  Pigeon, 
with  many  of  the  common  birds,  furnished  me  with  my  first  specimens  in 
Oology.  In  a  circular  flower-bod,  about  four  yards  distance  from  the  dining 
room  window,  grew  a  small  variegated  holly,  and  the  top  of  this  dwarf 
tree  was  the  favourite  haunt  of  a  Nightingale.  Night  after  night  we  heard 
it,  and  lay  awake,  with  as  intense  an  enthusiasm  to  listen  to  its  com- 
mencing its  song,  and  to  gaze  on  the  sweet  bird  in  the  moonlight,  as  if 
the  morrow  were  the  herald  of  our  vacation.  In  that  bush  it  nested,  not 
three  feet  from  the  ground;  and  I  obtained  my  first  sight  of  a  Nightingale's 
egg.  Alas!  for  our  speedy  disappointment  and  loss!  The  drawing-master 
was  accustomed  to  shoot  birds,  to  obtain  their  skins  for  natural  copies  for 
us,  in  pursuing  our  studies  with  him.  One  May  morn  he  robbed  us  of 
our  Nightingale,  though  unintentionally,  for  firing  into  a  thick  clump  of 
hazels,  he  shot  it,  as  well  as  a  Linnet.  The  callow  young  perished.  No 
mate  was  retaken,  nor  were  any  proofs   given    (as   far  as    my  school-boy 


BIRP-RETKeATISO.  177 

leisure  allowed  me  observations)  of  the  female  endeavouring  to  discharge 
her  maternal   duties  after  the  loss. 

For  nearly  two  years  I  have  made  occasional  notices  of  the  feathered 
race,  in  connexion  with  the  town  of  Birmingham,  and  I  find  ,  my  belief 
confirmed,  that  active,  busy  scenes,  ^'where  men  do  congregate,"  are  direct 
means  of  driving  far  inland,  and  to  remote  habitats,  many  of  our  birds. 
There  is  scarcely  any  other  than  the  hardy,  happy  House-Sparrow  in  our 
streets.  (A  few  captive  Larks  and  Thrushes  pipe  languidly  at  occasional 
windows.)  I  have  a  note  of  one  Robin  singing  in  the  burial-ground  of 
St.  Philip's,  in  the  centre  of  our  town,  and  I  think  this  closes  my  brief 
catalogue.  But  when  I  travel  two  or  three  miles  beyond  the  factory  smoke, 
amid  the  lanes  and  fields,  even  there  the  chorus  of  birds  is  small  and 
weak,  when  contrasted  with  what  I  had  been  used  to  hear  in  an  agricultural 
county.  Last  year  we  had  in  our  garden  a  Robin  nesting,  and  rearing  its 
young.  On  the  previous  year  the  Spotted  Flycatcher  had  built,  and  speci- 
mens of  its  eggs  were  obtained,  yet  last  year  it  was  absent,  nor  at  present 
has  it  visited  us.*  A  stray  Chaffinch  lingered  with  us  about  a  fortnight, 
and  then  disappeared.  What  is  the  cause  of  this  retreat?  There  is  no 
lack  of  shrubs  and  trees;  we  have  fine  elms  and  chesnuts,  and  a  large 
extent  of  ground.  Why  do  they  quit  us?  It  is  to  be  explained  on  no 
other  ground  than  that,  as  populations  and  their  dwellings  increase,  so  con- 
sequent noise  and  activity  render  a  hundred  checks  to  deter  the  feathered 
tribes  from  retaining  their  old  haunts.  Too  true,  in  many  instances  there 
is  no  allurement  left  them,  and  they  must  retreat,  but  this  retreat  is  far 
away,  and  illustrates  the  cause  of  locality  distinguishing  more  of  our  song 
birds  than  really,  I   think,  it  otherwise  would. 

I  was  enquiring  of  a  gentleman  early  this  spring  what  made  our  singing 
visitants  so  scarce,  and  his  reply  was,  "We  wo'nt  let  them  come  near  us, 
we  drive  them  ofi";  we  give  them  chimneys  to  perch  on,  instead  of  trees; 
and  by  so  doing,  you  people  in  town  so  frighten  the  little  things,  that  we 
in  the  country  have  but  very  few  of  them — they  keep  far  away." 

In  my  strolls  this  year  I  have  heard  the  Robin,  Blackbird,  Thrush, 
Lesser  Whitethroat,  Wryneck,  Skylark,  and  Chaffinch,  and  during  the  last 
week  the  Cuckoo  has  raised  his  bi-note  cry. 

I  trust  my  remarks  may  not  be  thought  quite  useless,  as  I  believe  there 
are  very  many  agencies  at  work  beside  the  one  I  have  advanced  to  diminish 
our  number  of  British   Birds.     I  wish  not  to  lower  man,  for 

"I  love  not  man  the  less,  but  Nature  more." 

I  wish  to  do  no  more  than  direct  attention  to  the  fact  that  there  is  a 
great  retreat  and  withdrawal  going  on  of  birds,  from  the  immediate  vicinity 

*  la  not  this  accounted  for  in  the  same  sentence.'' — F.  0.  Mobris. 
YOL.  VI.  2  A 


178  INJURIOUS    INSECTS. 

of  our  very  large  and  busy  manufacturing  towns.  I  shall  be  glad  to  find 
cither  a  confirmation  or  modification  of  my  statements  in  future  numbers 
of  "The   Naturalist/'  from  various  correspondents. 

The  Elms,  Moseleij  Road,  Birmingham,  May  28^A.,  1856. 


INJURIOUS     INSECTS.— No.  VI. 
APHIS;     APHIDES,     OR    PLANT-LICE. 

BY    J.  MC'INTOSH,    ESQ. 

C  Continued  from  page  31. J 

"The  insect  pest,  powerful  though  small, 
Blighting  at  ouce  the  green  leaf  and  the  grain." 

Graham. 

The  Aphides,  or  Plant- Lice  belong  to  the  seventh  order,  Hemiptera. 
These  minute  but  destructive  insects,  which  compose  this  numerous  genus 
are  exceedingly  annoying  and  destructive  to  the  produce  of  the  cultivator 
of  the  soil,  infesting  almost  every  plant  he  cultivates  as  food,  and  many 
of  our  wild  ones,  as  well  as  our  trees,  stopping  their  growth  by  con- 
suming their  juices.  They  are  a  most  singular  race  of  insects,  living  in 
large  societies,  being  winged  and  apterous.  In  spring  they  are  viviparous, 
producing  their  young  alive  at  the  rate  of  twenty-five  or  more  a  day.  In 
the  autumn  they  are  oviparous,  which  appear  destined  to  perpetuate  the 
species,  as  the  eggs  live  through  the  winter,  while  the  individuals  perish. 
Nor  is  this  all,  for  by  a  surprising  deviation  from  the  common  laws  of 
Nature,  it  appears  from  the  writings  of  Bonnet,  Reaumur,  Latreille,  Lyonnet, 
De  Geer,  Linne,  and  others,  that  one  impregnation  of  the  female  is  suf- 
ficient for  many  successive  generations,  without  the  further  assistance  of  the 
male.  Bonnet,  who  appears  to  have  studied  these  insects  with  more  atten- 
tion than  any  other  writer,  asserts  that  he  has  witnessed  the  birth  of  nine 
generations  in  three  months  from  one  impregnation;  and  Reaumur  has  also 
proved  that  in  five  generations  one  Aphis  may  be  the  parent  of  the  as- 
tounding number  of  five  thousand  nine  hundred  and  four  millions,  nine 
hundred  thousand  descendants,  and  it  is  supposed  that  in  one  year  there 
may  be  twenty   generations. 

"This  astonishing  fecundity  exceeds  that  of  any  other  known  animal,  and 
we  cannot  wonder  that  a  creature  so  prolific  should  be  proportionably  inju- 
rious. Some  species  are  more  so  than  others.  Those  that  attack  wheat, 
oats,  and  barley,  of  which  there  are  more  kinds  than  one,  seldom  multiply 
so  fast  as  to  be  very  noxious  to  those  plants;  whilst  those  which  attack 
pulse,  spread  so  rapidly,  and  take  such  entire  possession,  that  the  crop  is 
greatly  injured,  and  sometimes  destroyed  by  them.     This  was  the  case  with 


INJURIOUS   INSECTS.  179 

respect  to  the  peas  in  the  year  1810,  when  the  produce  was  not  much 
more  than  the  seed  sown,  and  many  farmers  turned  their  swine  into  the 
pea-fields,  not  thinking  them  worth  harvesting.  This  was  universal  through- 
out the  kingdom."     (Kirby  and  Spence,  vol.  i.,  p.  177.) 

Next  to  the  locust,  plant-lice  are  the  greatest  enemies  of  the  vegetable 
world,  and,  like  them,  are  at  times  so  numerous  as  to  darken  the  air. 
"In  the  year  1785,  the  people  of  the  village  of  Selborne,  in  Hampshire, 
were  surprised  by  an  abundance  of  Aphides,  which  alighted  there.  Persons 
who  walked  the  streets  were  covered  with  them,  and  they  settled  in  such 
numbers  on  the  hedges  and  in  the  gardens,  as  to  blacken  every  leaf;  beds 
of  onions  were  quite  covered  with  them  in  six  days.  They  were  observed 
in  great  clouds  about  Farnham  at  the  same  time,  and  all  along  the  vale 
from  Farnham  to  Alton."  (G.  White,  p.  268,  ed.  1788.)  And  Mr.  Kirby 
says  that  he  once  witnessed  a  great  swarm  of  Aphides,  when  travelling  late 
in  the  year,  in  the  Isle  of  Ely;  the  air  was  so  full  of  them,  that  they 
were  constantly  flying  into  his  eyes  and  nostrils,  and  his  clothes  were  covered 
with  them;  and  in  1814,  they  were  so  abundant  for  a  few  days  in  the 
vicinity  of  Ipswich,  as  to  be  noticed  by  the  most  indifferent  observers  with 
surprise.  Upon  this  migration  the  pea,  bean,  and  hop  crops  every  year 
entirely  depend.  The  hop-grower  is  particularly  at  the  mercy  of  Aphis 
huviuli,  or  what  he  calls  the  fly.  They  are  the  barometer  that  indicates 
the  fall  and  the  rise  of  his  wealth. 

In  the  stoves  and  greenhouses  of  the  gardener  the  Aphides  often  reign 
triumphant,  and  if  they  were  not  discovered,  and  destroyed  on  their  first 
appearance,  every  plant  would  soon  be  contaminated  by  them,  and  beauty 
be  converted  into  deformity.  Some  of  the  genus  form  convenient  and 
sheltered  habitations  for  themselves,  by  causing  portions  of  the  leaves  of 
peach,  apricot,  nectarine  trees,  etc.,  to  rise  into  hollow  red  convexities;  in 
these  the  Aphides  reside,  and  with  their  rostrum  pumping  out  the  sap, 
in  a  short  time  occasion  them  to  curl  up,  and  thus  deform  the  trees,  and 
injure  the  produce.  And  who  has  not  observed  what  is  commonly  called 
lioney-dew,  upon  the  maple,  beech,  larch,  elm,  lime,  willow,  nut,  and  other 
trees?  this  is  the  secretion  of  the  Aphides,  whose  excrement  has  the  pri- 
vilege of  emulating  sugar  and  honey  in  sweetness  and  purity. 

"In  the  quality  of  the  excrement,"  says  Mr.  Curtis,  in  the  sixth  volume 
of  the  Linn.  Trans.,  "voided  by  these  insects,  there  is  something  very  ex- 
traordinary. Were  a  person  accidentally  to  take  up  a  book  in  which  it 
was  gravely  asserted  that  in  some  countries  there  were  animals  who  voided 
sugar  in  a  liquid  state,  he  would  lay  it  down,  and  regard  it  as  a  fabulous 
tale,  and  yet  such  is  literally  the  truth.  The  superior  size  of  the  Aphis 
salicis  will  enable  the  most  common  observer  to  satisfy  himself  on  this 
head.     On  looking  stedfastly  for  a  few  minutes  on  a  group  of  these  insects, 


180  INJURIOUS    INSECTS. 

while  feeding  on  the  bark  of  the  willow,  one  perceives  a  few  of  them  to 
elevate  their  bodies,  and  a  transparent  substance  evidently  drops  from  them. 
At  first  I  was  not  aware  that  the  substance  thus  dropping  from  these 
animals  was  their  excrement,  but  was  convinced  of  it  afterwards,  for  on  a 
more  accurate  examination,  I  found  it  to  proceed  from  the  extremity  of 
the  abdomen,  as  is  usual  in  other  insects.  On  placing  a  piece  of  writing 
paper  under  a  mass  of  these  insects,  it  soon  became  thickly  spotted;  holding 
it  a  longer  time,  the  spots  united,  from  the  addition  of  others,  and  the 
whole  surface  assumed  a  glossy  appearance.  I  tasted  this  substance,  and 
found  it  as  sweet  as  sugar;  and  were  it  not  for  the  number  of  ants,  wasps, 
and  flies,  which  devour  it  as  quickly  as  it  is  produced,  it  might,  no  doubt, 
be  collected  in  considerable  quantities,  and  if  subjected  to  the  process  used 
with  other  saccharine  juices,  might  be  converted  into  the  choicest  sugar  or 
sugar-candy." 

Such  is  Mr.  Curtis's  account  of  honey-dew,  with  which  we  agree,  yet 
we  find  many  well-informed  people  entertain  a  contrary  opinion.  Pliny 
could  not  account  for  this  substance,  and  hesitated  to  give  it  a  name,  and 
even  declares  himself  at  a  loss  whether  to  call  it  the  sweat  of  the  heavens, 
the  saliva  of  the  stars,  or  a  liquid  produced  by  the  purgation  of  the  air. 
We  believe  that  the  Abbe  Boissier  de  Sauvages,  of  Monpellier,  was  the 
first  to  describe  it  as  the  excrement  of  Aphides.  Duhamel  observed  it 
dripping  in  such  quantities  from  some  willows  by  a  river-side,  that  children 
were  catching  it  as  it  fell.  He  also  observes  in  "Physique  des  Arbors," 
that  it  flowed  from  nut  trees  in  equal  quantities,  a  circumstance  quite 
common  in  our  nut  trees,  from  the  Aphis  eoryli;  but  Duhamel  does  not 
consider  it  the  excrement  of  Aphides.  Dr.  Darwin,  in  "Phytologia,"  says, 
"If  it  is  voided  by  the  Aphis,  it  is  owing  to  their  penetrating  the  sap- 
vessels,  and  drinking  more  of  it   than   they  can   digest." 

That  the  Aphides  exist  not  by  consuming  the  foliage  of  plants,  upon 
which  they  are  found,  but  receive  their  nourishment  by  sucking  out  the 
juices  of  the  plants,  is  a  fact  well  known  to  every  observer  of  Nature. 
Some,  however,  assert  that  this  is  the  case  only  with  such  as  are  produced 
by  viviparous  propagation,  and  that  those  produced  from  eggs  may  eat  some 
part  of  the  foliage  in  spring,  while  they  are  in  the  larvae  state,  if  they 
ever  can  truly  be  said  to  be  in  such  a  state  of  their  existence.  Upon 
this  subject  Dr.  Darwin  says,  that  "the  Aphides  produced  from  eggs  early 
in  the  spring  may  have  a  larva  state,  and  that  during  that  state  they  may 
feed  on  the  young  leaves  of  peaches,  apricots,  nectarines,  plums,  and  cherries, 
and  thus  occasion  them  to  curl  and  die;  that  those  which  are  not  from 
the  egg,  only  puncture  the  larger  vessels  which  receive  the  vegetable  sap- 
juice  from  the  roots;  this  they  suck  up,  and  live  on  to  such  an  extent, 
that  it  passes  through   them  almost  unchanged,  falling  on  the  leaves  and 


ON    THE    WEATHER.  181 

ground  beneath,  and  produces  what  is  called  the  honey-dew,  but  that  this 
happens  only  for  a  short  time,  as  a  week  or  two  about  Midsummer,  during 
the  production  of  the  new  buds,  and  that  the  black,  powdery  material  on 
the  upper  surface  of  the  leaves  is  the  excrement  of  the  Aphides,  like  the 
black,  bitter  powder  in  the  nut-shell,  which  is  the  excrement  of  the  Gur- 
culio  nucum." 

Others  again  consider  it  an  exudation  from  the  plant  itself.  On  this 
subject  says  Mr.  Curtis,  "If  it  exuded  from  the  plant,  it  would  appear  on 
all  the  leaves  generally  and  uniformly;  whereas  its  appearance  is  extremely 
irregular,  some  having  none  of  it,  and  others  being  covered  with  it  but 
partially."  Honey-dew  never  exists,  as  has  already  been  shewn,  but  where 
there  are  Aphides,  and  the  black  substance  which  Dr.  Darwin  and  others 
consider  as  the  excrement  of  the  Aphides,  is  the  actual  excrement  (in  the 
shape  of  honey- dew)  of  these  insects,  only  dried  by  the  powerful  effects 
of  the  sun  and  air,  giving  the  surface  of  the  leaves  or  bark,  or  whatever 
it  has  fallen  upon,  a  sooty  appearance.  It  looks  like,  and  is  often  mistaken 
for,  a  kind  of  black  mildew. 

Decemher,   1855.  (To  he  continued.) 


ON     THE     WEATHER. 

Thkrk  is  a  subject  which  is  ever  in  men's  mouths,  but  seldom  flows 
from  their  pens,  but  which,  it  appears  to  me,  might  be  made  the  vehicle 
of  much  amusive  instruction,  and  shew  us  results  which,  perhaps,  we  had 
no  idea  of.  Men's  memories  are  but  fallacious  guides,  and  although  light 
and  darkness,  heat  and  cold,  dry  and  wet,  dullness  and  sunshine  are  per- 
petually before  us,  even  at  a  week's  end,  unless  we  keep  a  strict  account, 
we  can  no  more  tell  what  weather  we  have  had,  than  we  can  remember 
things  that  occurred  ar  twelvemonth  since.  1  was  drawn  into  this  train  of 
thought  by  seeing  Mr.  Clapham's  letter  upon  the  inclination  of  trees,  and 
which  I  thought  I  could  account  for  by  atmospheric  causes,  and  this  led 
me  to  look  back  many  years  through  a  series  of  old  journals,  which  I 
have  kept,  in  spite  of  the  ridicule  of  my  friends  and  relatives,  ever  since 
1838,  and  I  must  say  that  I  do  not  regret  having  done  so;  for  not  only 
have  I  found  them  sometimes  eminently  useful,  but  of  pleasant  reference 
to  days  gone  by,  chequered  as  they  must  be  by  the  tinges  of  joy  and  sorrow.* 

I  am  aware  that  a  record  of  thoughts  and  feelings,  as  well  as  events, 
might  not  always  be  desirable  to  place  at  the  mercy  of  the  multitude,  but 
what  I    have  sought  to  do  is  this,  to  set   down  as  notes  only  what  sort 

*  I  quite  agree  with  these  observations,  both  as  to  our  specdj^  forgetfulness  of  the  past 
state  of  the  weather  without  a  "time  table"  of  it,  and  also  as  to  the  usefulness  of  such  a 
record,  both  in  the  way  indicated,  and  in  other  ways  also.  I  kept  a  diary  of  the  weather 
for  some  years  myself. — F.  0.  Mohris. 


182 


ON    THE    WEATHER. 


of  day  it  was,  which  way  the  wind  blew,  and  what  were  my  occupations, 
and  where  I  was.  with  any  remarkable  occurrence  that  might  have  taken 
place.  Were  I  to  begin  again,  I  should  probably  pursue  a  different^  system; 
and  therefore  upon  this  experience  I  venture  to  suggest  that  every  lover 
of  Nature  should,  both  for  his  own  sake  and  that  of  others,  keep  a  journal 
of  the  weather.  If  he  possess  a  barometer,  thermometer,  and  rain-gauge, 
let  columns  be  assigned  to  each  of  those,  and  if  he  have  the  scientific 
means  of  ascertaining  the  altitude  of  his  position  by  the  sea-level,  let  him 
do  so;  but  it  is  within  the  reach  of  every  one  to  set  down  whether  it  be 
fine  or  wet,  hot  or  cold,  or  temperate,  and  in  what  quarter  the  wind,  and 
whether  it  changes  during  the  day  or  night,  with  a  note  of  the  hour  at 
which  the  moon  enters  another  quarter.  Now  this  seems  to  be  very  simple, 
and  yet  how  few  do  such  a  thing!  The  matter  might  be  managed  in  this 
way. — Let  there  be,  we  will  say,  six  columns,  thus — 


Therm. 


Barom. 


Wind. 


Wind  Change. 


Weather  Generally. 


Moon's  Age. 


The  pages  with  these  headings  having  a  margin  in  which,  opposite  the 
divisions,  the  day  of  the  week,  of  the  month,  and  year,  must  be  set  down, 
you  would  have  it  somewhat  in  this  manner: — 


1856. 

Therm. 

Barom. 

Wind. 

Wind  Change. 

1            Weather. 

Moon's  Age. 

June, 

Sunday 

Ut. 

65-68 

Bising 
29-30. 

W. 

South-west  at 
1  p.m. 

Dull,  wet,  and  cold, 
but  became  fine. 

In  the  6th.  day 

of  the  last 

quarter. 

Mond. 

70- 

Do. 

sw. 

Very  warm  and 
1                fine. 

1      New  Moon 
\      11-39  p.m. 

2nd. 

I  merely  suggest  the  above  plan,  and  it  is  obvious  that  much  greater 
space  must  be  allowed;  for  the  day  I  give  for  example  was  perhaps  the 
most  singular  we  have  had  of  late,  being  so  cold  as  to  set  o«e-coated 
gentry  shivering,  and  myself  among  the  number,  in  the  morning,  but  be- 
coming quite  hot  in  the  afternoon,  although  the  thermometer  in-doors  varied 
only  three  degrees,  and  the  weather  changing  entirely  in  the  night,  and 
the  morning  being  ushered  in  with  quite  a  balmy  air.  I  heartily  wish  that 
I  had  pursued  this  plan,  suggested  by  my  experience;  but  as  it  is,  my 
journals  are  kept  mostly  in  short-hand,  with  such  signs  as  I  understand, 
assisted  by  memory;  whereas  such  a  plan  as  I  now  propose  would  prove, 
I  hope,  distributively  useful;  and  if  a  digest  of  each  month  were  added,  it 
would  enable  correspondents  of  your  most  valuable  periodical  to  compare  notes 
in  its  columns,  and  thus  render  it  still  more  complete  even  than  it  now  is. 

0.   S.   KOUND. 

Pemhrolie  Squai'e,  Kensington,  June  \Oth.,  18o6. 
*  The  same.='~r.  0.  Morrip. 


183 


THE    HOUSE     SWALLOW,     {HIBUNDO    RUSTICA.) 

TO    THE   EDITOR    OP    "tHE    NATURALIST." 

Facts  in  Natural  History  are  of  so  much  more  value  than  theories, 
that  I  communicate  the  following  statement  founded  on  my  own  personal 
observation;  and  as  a  curious  contrast  is  presented  in  the  two  instances,  I 
shall  leave  them  to  the  reflection  of  your  numerous  readers. 

A  House  Swallow,  or  Chimney  Swallow,  built  last  year,  in  May,  over 
the  entrance  inside  the  porch  of  my  house;  when  she  had  about  half- 
finished  her  nest  she  stopped  from  working  at  it  for  three  days;  I  suppose  to 
give  such  foundation  time  to  be  dry,  and  get  firmness  to  support  the  super- 
structure, for  she  then  re-commenced  and  finished  her  nest;  she  laid,  and 
accomplished  her  sitting,  notwithstanding  the  continued  disturbance  of  the 
opening  and  shutting  of  the  door,  at  which  she  always  flew  ofi",  and  at 
night,  when  it  was  dark  outside,  and  light  inside  the  entrance  hall,  she 
flew  into  the  house,  and  I  caught  her  and  put  her  near  the  nest,  but  I 
had  little  hope  that  she  would  succeed  in  hatching,  which,  however,  she 
did,  and  reared  her  young  ones,  which  fled  from   the  nest  on  July  19th. 

On  the  1st.  of  August,  to  my  surprise,  I  found  (I  have  no  doubt)  the 
same  pair  of  Swallows  building  a  fresh  nest  close  by  the  former  one,  under 
the  same  diflSculties,  with  the  same  disturbance,  and  likewise  with  the  same 
success;  for  in  my  note-book,  under  the  date  of  September  11th.,  I  write, 
"The  Swallow  has  braved  all  difficulties,  hatched  and  reared  her  second 
brood,  which  took  flight  from  the  nest  to-day,"  This  somewhat  confirmed 
me  in  a  notion  I  entertained  that  few  or  no  birds  re-occupy  an  old  nest; 
but  mark  how  dangerous  it  is  to  generalize,  as  the  following  contrast  will 
prove.  This  spring,  1856,  a  Thrush  built  her  nest  in  a  laurel  bush,  close 
to  my  hall  door;  she  hatched,  and  the  young  ones  left  the  nest  on  the 
9th.  of  May,  and  she  is  now,  June  2nd.,  sitting  again  on  the  same  nest; 
a  thing  that  never  came  under  my  observation  before,  although  I  have 
been  an  observer  of  birds  for  forty  years,  except  in  the  instance  of  Star- 
lings, and  also  domestic  Pigeons,  who  usually  have  two  nests,  which  they 
alternately  make  use  of,  the  old  bird  often  sitting  on  fresh  eggs  before 
the  first  brood  has  flown.  Semble,  as  we  lawyers  say,  do  not  many  of 
our  birds  have  successive  broods  of  young  ones  even  when  not  interfered 
with.  Can  you  or  your  correspondents  enumerate  instances  coming  under 
safe  observation,  I  say  safe,  for  none  but  the  experienced  can  have  an  idea 
how  easy  it  is  to  be  misled  in  matters  of  this  kind.* 

E.  G.  Temple. 

The  Lache,  Chester^  June  2nd.,  1856. 

*  Many  birds  repair  and  add  to  their  old  nests  from  year  to  year.  I  have  also  known  a 
Greenfinch  build  on  an  old  nest  of  the  Spotted  Flycatcher. — F.  0.  Morris. 


184 


SYSTEMA      NATURiE. 


BY    THE    REV.  F.  O.  MORRIS. 
(  Continued  from  page  161. _) 


Vespertilio   subflavus,  F.  Cuv.  Temm. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio    Creeks,    F.    Cuv.    Temm. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio    crassus,    F.    Cuv.    Temm. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio  subulatus,   Godman.  Rich. 

Schinz.     V.  lucifugus,  Murtrie.     V. 

domesticus,   Green. 
Vespertilio  lepidus,   Gerv.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Dutertrei,  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  nasutus,  Shaw.  Tern.  Schinz. 

V.  maximus,   Geoff, 
Vespertilio    nigricans,     Prinz.    Max. 

Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Maugei,  Desm.  Geoff.  Wag. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio  brasiliensis,  Spix.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  parvulus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio    Isevis,    Schinz.      V.  Isevis, 

Isid  Geoff.  Fisch.  Temm. 
Vespertilio  polythrix,  Isid,  Geoff.  Tern. 

Fisch.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  villosissimus,  Geoff.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  cbiloensis,  Waterh.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  pulverulentus.  Tern.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  lacteus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  aeneobarbus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  barbatus,  Schinz. 
Vespertilio    albescens,     Geoff.    Temm. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio  ruber.  If  Orhigny.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  innoxius,  Schinz. 
Vespertilio    monticola,    Back.     Wieg. 

Schinz. 
Vespertilio  virginianus.  Bach.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Leibii,  Bach.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Californianus,  Bach.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  morio,  Schinz.    Scotophilus 

morio.   Gray.   Wiegm. 
Vespertilio  Gouldii,  Schinz.     Scotophi- 
lus Gotddii,  Gray. 


Vespertilio  austraUs,  Schinz.  Scoto- 
pbilns  australis.  Gray. 

Vespertilio  pumilus,  Schinz.  Scoto- 
philus pumilus.  Gray. 

Vespertilio  nigrescens,  Schinz.  Mosia 
nigrescens.   Gray. 

Nycticejus. 

Nycticejus  Nigrita,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Nigrita,  Schreh.  Geoff. 
Desm.  Temm. 

Nycticejus  borbonicus,  Temm.  Geoff. 
Schinz.  Vespertilio  burbonicus, 
Fisch. 

Nycticejus  leucogaster.  Hupp.  Temm. 
Schinz. 

Nycticejns  Heathii,  Hors.  Tern.  Schinz. 

Nycticejus  Temminckii,  Schinz.  Ves- 
pertilio Temminckii,  Horsf.  Fisch. 
V.  versicolor,  Temm. 

Nycticejus  Belangerii,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  Belangerii,  Belan. 

Nycticejus  noctulinus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Vespertilio  noctulinus,  Geoff.  Temm. 

Nycticejus  pruinosus,  Temm.  Fisch. 
Schinz.  Vespertilio  pruinosus,  Godm. 
Hick. 

Nycticejus  lasiurus,  Schinz.  Vesper- 
tilio lasiurus,  Linn.  Schreh.  Geoff. 
Temm.  Fisch.  V.  BlosseviUi,  Less. 
V.  bonariensis,  Less. 

Nycticejus  novseboracensis,  Temm. 
Fisch.  Schinz.  Vespertilio  novsebo- 
racensis, Linn. 

Nycticejus  varius,  Schinz. 

Nycticejus  macrotis,  Popp.  Schinz. 

Nycticejus  humeralis,  Schinz. 

Nycticejus  tesselatus,  Desm.   Schinz. 
Emballonura. 

Emballonura  monticola,  Temm.  Schinz. 

Emballonura  naso,  Schinz.  E.  saxa- 
tUis,  Temm.  Vespertiho  naso,  Prinz 
Max.    Proboscidea  saxatilis,  Spix. 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 


185 


Emballonura   canina,    Temm.    ScJdnz. 
Vespertilio  caninus,  Prinz  Max. 

Emballonura  calcarata,    Schinz.    Ves- 
pertilio calearatus,  Prinz  Max.    V. 
Maxirailiani,  Fisch.  Temm. 
Ueoceyptus. 

Urocryptus  bilineatus,    Temm.  Schinz. 

DiCLIDURUS. 

Diclidurus  albus,  Prinz  Max.  Schinz. 

MORMOPS. 

]\Iormops  Blainvillei,  Leach.  Schinz. 
Chilonycteris. 

Chilonycteris  Mc'Leayii,  Gray.  Schinz. 

Chilonycteris     cinnamomeus,     Schinz. 
Lobostoma  Ginnamomeum,   Gund. 

Cbilonycteris  quadridens,  Schinz.     Lo- 
bostoma quadridens,  Gund. 

Chilonycteris  gymnotus,  Natt.  Schinz. 

Chilonycteris  personata,   Wag.  Schinz. 

(To  he 


Chilonycteris  rubiginosa,  Natt.  Schinz. 
Chilonycteris  fuliginosa,  Graff.  Schinz. 

FUEIA. 

Furia  horrens,  F.  Cuv.  Temm.  Schinz. 

NoCTILIO. 

Noctilio  dorsatus,  Prinz  Max.  Schinz. 
N.  cristatus,  Schinz.  N.  Americanus, 
Fisch.  N.  albiventer,  Spix.  Ves- 
pertilio leporinus,  Linn.  Schreb. 

Noctilio  unicolor,  Prinz  Max.  Schinz. 
N.  rufus,  Spix. 

Noctilio  ruber,  Schinz.  Vespertilio 
ruber,  Geoff.  Desm. 

Noctilio  senex,  Schinz.  Centurio  se- 
nex.   Gray. 

Taphozous. 

Taphozous  nudiventer,  Schinz.  T.  nu- 
diventris,  Rilpp.  Temm. 

Taphozous  perforatus,  Geoff.  Temm. 
Miipp.  Schinz. 

continued. ) 


Peregrine  Falcon,  (Falco  Peregrinus.) — For  some  time  past,  and  more 
particularly  of  a  late,  a  Peregrine  Falcon  has  infested  the  woods  about 
Carnaby,  Boynton,  and  Brackendale,  where  it  has  done  considerable  injury 
by  killing  rabbits,  hares,  one  or  more  pheasants,  and  many  other  birds. 
It  was  shot  early  on  Saturday  morning  last,  in  Brackendale  wood,  by  Mr. 
Charles  Thompson,  gamekeeper  to  T.  Prickett,  Esq,  This  is  a  handsome, 
full-grown,  and  beautifully-plum  aged  bird,  weighing  two  pounds  within  half 
an   ounce. —  Yorkshire  Gazette,  May  17th.,  1856. 

TO    THE    EDITOR    OF    '^THR    NATURALIST," 

Peregrine  Falcon,  (Falco  Peregrinus.) — The  reason  I  have  contributed 
these  few  lines  to  your  most  interesting  journal  is  to  state  a  fact  about 
the  Peregrine  Falcon,  which  I  do  not  think  is  generally  known.  Many 
authors  state  that  this  bird  is  so  particular  in  its  feeding,  that  it  will 
strike  down  several  birds  previous  to  fixing  on  its  prey,  and  that  it  never 
returns  to  its  prey  after  once  feeding  on  it.  However  the  following  cir- 
cumstance will  prove  the  contrary: — A  fine  specimen  of  the  Peregrine 
Falcon,  a  two-year-old  female,  was  captured  on  the  17th,  of  March,  1854, 
under  the  following  circumstances,  at  Glenogle,  near  Loch  Earn  Head, 
Perthshire: — Mr,  Mc. Nab,  the  keeper,  was  taking  his  rounds  on  the  hills 

VOL.  VI.  2  B 


186  MISCELLANEOUS   >'0T1CKS. 

with  a  few  traps,  when  he  discovered  a  fresh-killed  Red  Grouse,  with  a 
piece  taken  out  of  the  breast.  He  immediately  set  one  of  the  traps,  and 
on  returning  next  day,  found  the  Falcon  caught  by  the  leg.  He  brought 
it  into  Stirling,  where  it  was  stuffed  by  Mr.  Allan,  of  that  town,  in  whose 
collection  it  still  remains. — H.  W.  F. 

Wood  Warbler,  (Sylvia  sylvicola.) — I  killed,  on  the  29th.  April,  a  very 
good  specimen  of  the  Wood  Warbler.  I  saw  many  more  amongst  the 
tall  beech  and  ash  trees  in  a  shrubbery,  belonging  to  —  Newton,  Esq., 
in  the  parish  of  Petmiuster,  near  this  town. — J,  Melhuish,  Taunton, 
May  1st.,  I806. 

Orasshopper  Warhler. — I  also  killed,  on  the  22nd.  of  last  month,  the 
Grasshopper  Warbler  on  Hill  Farm,  (property  of  my  own  near  Tiverton, 
Devon.) — Idem. 

Bittern. — Though  this  winter  has  not  been  severe  with  us,  I  saw  no 
less  than  seven  Bitterns,  and  all  killed  within  one  month  near  this  town. 
— Idem. 

Occurrence  of  the  Dotterel,  (Charadrius  morinellus,)  in,  Cambridgeshire. — 
An  unusually  fine  marked  female  specimen  was  shot  at  Hardwicke,  April 
24th.,  1856,  A  pair  have  since  been  shot  near  Ely. — S.  P.  Savill,  13, 
Regent   Street,  Cambridge,  May,   1856. 

Common  Crossbill  and  Little  Owl. — I  have  at  this  present  time  over 
thirty  of  the  Common  Crossbills  in  the  flesh;  shot  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Maidstone,  Kent,  and  sent  to  me  by  Mr.  Baker,  Chemist,  of  Maidstone. 
It  is  unusually  late  for  them.  Possibly  there  may  be  some  news  of  their 
breeding  here  this  year.  Mr.  B.  has  also  a  fine  Little  Owl,  {Strix passerina,) 
alive,  taken  in  his  neighbourhood, — James  Gardner,  62,  High  Holborn, 
London,  May  21st.,  1856. 

The  Fieldfare. — In  confirmation  of  Mr.  Jackson's  remarks  in  the  June 
number  of  ^'The  Naturalist,"  on  the  subject  of  the  scarcity  of  the  Field- 
fare during  the  last  winter,  I  remarked  on  Monday,  the  5th.  of  May,  a 
hawthorn  hedge,  in  the  parish  of  Thorsway,  Lincolnshire,  covered  with 
haws;  the  green  leaves  just  appearing.  Though  the  Fieldfare  is  compara- 
tively more  scarce  in  our  neighbourhood,  (probably  because  the  hedges  are 
so  closely  trimmed  as  to  prevent  the  thorn  bearing  fruit,)  still  sufficient 
numbers  generally  visit  us  to  consume  all  the  berries  that  are  lucky  enough 
to  escape  the  knife. — R.  P.  Alington,  Swinhope  Rectory,  Lincolnshire,  June 
12th.,  1856. 

On  the  10th.  of  January  in  the  present  year,  I  shot  a  Dipper  by  the 
stream  here,  about  half-a-mile  below  the  Rectory.     It   is  the  first  I  have 


REVIEWS.  187 

ever  heard  of  in  the  East  Riding.  I  thought  it  was  a  Blackbird  when  it 
first  got  up,  as  it  flew  from  the  brook  towards  a  field. — F.  0.  Morris, 
Nunburnholme  Eectory,  June  2nd.,  1856. 

On  the  30th.  of  May  there  was  a  small  Bat  flying  in  the  garden  of 
the  Rectory  in  broad  sunlight.  It  was  coursing  round  the  trees,  evidently 
hawking  for  insects,  and  continued  for  a  short  time. — F.  O.  Morris. 

In  a  box  fixed  on  a  post,  near  the  gardens  at  Thorpe  Hall,  near 
Bridlington,  letters  and  newspapers  are  deposited  through  a  slit,  for  the 
greater  convenience  of  the  foot  messenger  as  he  passes  each  way  daily 
between  Bridlington,  the  post  town,  and  the  receiving  house  at  Thwing. 
The  lid  is  secured  by  a  lock  and  key,  and  although  the  box  is  opened 
four  times  every  day  in  the  week  except  Sunday,  yet  a  pair  of  these  tiny 
pert  little  birds,  provincially  called  Billy-biters,  (Blue  Titmouse,)  have  made 
the  slit  a  means  of  ingress  and  egress,  and  actually  built  a  nest  within, 
in  which  the  female  has  already  begun  to  lay  her  eggs. —  Yorkshire  Gazette, 
May  17th.,  1856. 

Capture  of  Carabus  intricatus  in  Devonshire. — A  fine  specimen  of  that 
extremely  rare  beetle,  Carabus  intricatus,  was  taken  on  the  18th.  of  the 
present  month,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Plymouth,  by  Mrs.  Hayward,  of 
Devonport.  It  was  kept  alive  for  twenty-four  hours,  and  has  since  been 
beautifully  mounted  on  cardboard. — John  Gatcombe,  Wyndham  Place,  Ply- 
mouth, June   23rd.,  1856. 


The  Natural  History  of  Ireland,  in  Four  Volumes. —  Vol.  IV. — Mammalia, 
Beptiles,  and  Fishes;  also  Invertehrata.  By  the  late  William  Thompson, 
Esq.,  President  of  the  Natural  History  and  Philosophical  Society  of  Bel- 
fast; Corresponding  Member  of  the  Natural  History  Society  of  Boston, 
U.S.;  of  the  Academy  of  Natural  Sciences,  Philadelphia,  etc.  London: 
H.  G.  BoHN,  York  Street,  Covent  Garden.     1856, 

To  those  who  are  acquainted  with  my  "History  of  British  Birds,"  it 
will  be  unnecessary  to  state  how  high  a  value  I  have  repeatedly  had  occasion 
to  place  on  the  volume  of  the  work  on  the  Ornithology  of  Ireland,  by  the 
same  author.  To  all  others  let  me  here  say  that  the  whole  work  from 
first  to  last  is  of  the  very  highest  character  and  use.  It  is  simply  impos- 
sible for  the  Natural  History  of  any  individual  country  to  be  executed  in 
a  more  thoroughly  complete  and  admirable  manner.  The  only  drawback 
is  that  the  term  "late"  has  to  be  applied  to  the  name  of  the  gifted  and 
painstaking  author. 

A   highly-finished   engraving,   as   a  frontispiece,  which   appeai-s   to    have 


188  REVIEWS. 

been  taken  from  a  painting  by  S.  H.  Maguire,  gives  us  what  seems  to  speak 
for  itself  as  being  a  "vera  effigies"  of  the  departed  "Naturalist."  It  is  but 
a  sad  substitute  for  the  loss  of  the  original,  but  even  such  a  memento  is 
valuable  to  all  who  admire  the  eminence  of  the  deceased. 

This  fourth  volume,  which  is  of  an  octavo  size,  contains  516  pages — 
496  without   the  index.  

A  Dictionary  of  Botanical  Terms.  By  the  Rev.  J.  S.  Henslow,  j\I.A., 
Professor  of  Botany  in  the  University  of  Cambridge.  Illustrated  by  nearly 
two  hundred   cuts.     London:    Groombridge   and  Sons,  Paternoster   Row. 

So  long  ago  as  the  year  1837,  I  indicated  ray  opinion  of  the  usefulness 
of  a  rendering  into  English  of  scientific  words,  by  giving  in  "The  Naturalist" 
the  derivations  of  the  Latin  and  Greek  names  of  British  Birds;  and  in 
my  "History  of  British  Birds/'  since  published,  I  have  carried  out  the  same 
idea,  by  giving  at  the  head  of  each  article  the  meaning  or  derivation  of 
one  of  each  of  the  generic  and  specific  names  adopted  for  each  species. 

While  such  a  diversity  of  languages  are  spoken  by  different  nations,  the 
absolute  necessity  of  the  adoption  of  some  dead  language  as  a  medium  of 
intercommunication  between  scientific  persons,  must  be  at  once  apparent. 
It  is  not,  however,  every  one  that  has  received  a  University  or  classical 
education,  and  to  such,  a  translation  into  their  own  tongue  of  what  other- 
wise must  be  unintelligible,  is  a  direct  benefit — a  sort  of  Royal  Road  to  the 
knowledge  of  what  they  otherwise  could  not  know. 

The  present  work,  therefore,  will  at  once  be  seen  to  be  a  useful  one,  and 
that  it  is  well  done,  the  name  of  the  Rev.  Professor  Henslow,  so  long  one 
of  our  "Household  Words,"  will  be  a  ready  and  a  perfect  guarantee,  an 
"Indisputable  Assurance."  

The  Sea-side  Lesson   Book;  designed  to  convey  to  the  youthful  mind  a  know- 
ledge of  the  Nature  and   Uses  of  the   Common  Things  of  the  Sea-Coast. 
By  H.  G.  Adams,  Author   of  the  "Young    Naturalist's    Library,"  "Fa- 
vourite   Song   Birds,"  "A   Story  of  the    Seasons,"    etc.,   etc.      London: 
Groombridge  and  Sons,  Paternoster  Row.     1856.     p.p.  215. 
Mr.  Adams  is  now  well    known    as  a   writer,  and   he  will    lose  none  of 
the  favourable   character    he  has   acquired  by  the  present  work.      It   is  a 
nice   companion   for  young  people  when  sojourning  by  the  sea-side,  and  they 
cannot  read  it  without  learning  much.     It  is  divided  into  six  sections,  at 
the  head  of  each  of  which  is  a  vignette,  indicative  of  the  general  nature 
of  its  contents;  and  at  the  end  of  the  several  sections  is  a  series  of  ques- 
tions, by  which  the  reader's  acquirement  of  knowledge  through   its   means 
may  be  tested.     I  am  glad  to  have  been   instrumental   in  some  degree  in 
"bringing  out"  the  capabilities  of  Mr.  Adams. 


REVIEWS.  189 

The  Village  Lesson  Book,  for  the  use  of  Schools.  By  Martin  Doyle,  Author 
of  "Hints  to  Small  Farmers,"  etc.,  etc.  London:  Groombridge  and 
Sons.     1855.     Small   Duodecimo,  p.p.  116. 

I  HAPPENED  to  look  ovcr  this  book  before  noticing  its  title,  and  said 
to  myself,  '^what  a  nice  book  to  give  as  a  reward  to  our  village  school 
children!"  What  I  said  to  myself,  I  now  say  to  every  reader  of  "The 
])^aturalist"  who   may  have  a  wish  to  benefit  his  neighbours'  children. 


The  Book  and  its  Missions.  Edited  by  L.  N.  K.  London:  Bagster  and 
So.Ns.     (Specimen  Number.) 

Tins  book  having  been  sent  to  me  for  Review  in  "The  Naturalist,"  I 
gladly  notice  it  to  say  that  it  is  a  fit  and  proper  sequel  to  the  "Book 
and  its  Story,"  and  I  know  of  no  work  more  suitable  than  it  seems  in 
every  respect  for  Sunday  reading.  No  one,  I  am  sure,  who  peruses  it,  will 
have  to  complain  of  a  "dull  day."  It  is  deeply  interesting,  as  well  as 
entertaining,  and  at  the  same  time  thoroughly  instructive  in  the  best  things. 
It  is,  too,   wonderfully  cheap — the  part  being  only  Twopence! 

The  Natural  History  Review.  July,  1855.  Published  quarterly,  including 
the  Transactions  of  all  the  Irish  Natural  History  Societies.  With  Wood- 
cuts and  Lithographic  Illustrations.  London:  S.  Highley,  Fleet-Street j 
Edinburgh:  Johnstone  &  Hunter;  Dublin:  Hodges  &  Smith.  Price 
2s.  6d.     pp.  124. 

This  is  the  first  part  of  this  useful  work  that  has  come  to  my  hands 
for  review  as  present  editor  of  "The  Naturalist,"  and  I  am  glad  to  see  a 
suggestion  adopted  that  I  had  made  to  its  editor  previously,  namely,  that 
its  head-quarters  of  publication  should  be  in  London,  instead  of  in  Dublin; 
the  major  including  the  minor.  I  suggested  this  solely  with  a  view  to  the 
well-doing  of  the  work,  and  I  sincerely  trust  that  such  may  be  the  result. 
There  are  in  the  above-mentioned  part  no  fewer  than  eight  reviews  of  works 
of  more  or  less  value,  an  obituary  of  Mr.  James  E.  Garrett,  thirteen  ori- 
ginal communications,  five  notices  of  serials,  and  four  accounts  of  the  Pro- 
ceedings of  Societies. 

I  think  it  undeniable  that  a  work  of  this  kind  was  a  desideratum,  and 
I  as  confidently  assert  that  the  present  one  supplies,  and  well  supplies,  the 
want.  I  cordially  wish  it  every  success,  and  request  for  it  the  patronage 
of  every  naturalist  who  can  afiford  the  comparatively  small  sum  of  half-a- 
crown  quarterl}^,  for  so  very  good  "half-a-crown's  worth."  It  is  a  valuable 
publication. 


190  RKVIEWS. 

The  Fly- Fisher's  Entomology;  with  coloured  representations  of  the  Natural 
and  Artificial  Insect,  and  a  few  observations  and  instructions  on  Trout  and 
Grayling  Fishing.  By  Alfred  Ronalds.  With  Twenty  Coloured  Plates, 
Fifth  Edition,  revised,  with  additions  by  Piscatou.  London:  Longman, 
Brown,  Grern,  and  Longmans.     1856. 

Though  the  present,  the  fifth  edition  let  it  be  observed  of  this  work, 
is  not  put  forth  by  Mr.  Ronalds  himself,  yet  it  will  be  a  satisfaction  no 
doubt  to  all  readers  of  it  to  learn,  as  we  do  from  the  preface,  that  the 
author  is  still  living,  and  only  separated  from  the  scenes  he  describes  by 
the  diameter  of  the  globe,  namely,  that  he  is  in  Australia,  and  the  work 
has  had  there,  moreover,  his  revision  and  correction. 

Myself  a  fly-fisher  almost  from  my  childhood,  and  moreover  an  ento- 
mologist from  the  same  date,  I  feel  myself  justified  in  passing  a  criticism 
on  a  work  like  the  present,  and  though  I  by  no  means  hold  that  every 
artificial  fly  described  therein  is  risen  at  by  the  trout,  because  they  take 
it  for  the  real  species,  also  described  by  our  author,  yet  I  have  no  doubt 
that  they  will  take  them  each  and  every  one,  and  justify  the  assertion  that 
the  said  work  is  one  of  exceeding  value  to  every  lover  of  the  gentle  art. 

The  plates  are  beautifully  executed;  the  whole  work  is  well  got  up,  and 
there  is  no  one  but  can  learn  much  from  it  to  the  benefit  of  his  fishing 
basket.  The  only  fault  I  can  find  with  it  is,  that  many  more  flies  are 
described  than  are  really  necessary,  but  this  every  one  can  easily  rectify 
for  himself. 


A  Natural  History  of  the  Animal  Kingdom;  being  a  systematic  and  popular 
description  of  the  Habits,  Structure,  and  Classification  of  Animals,  arranged 
according  to  their  organization.  By  W.  S.  Dallas,  F.L.S.,  Member  of  the 
Entomological  Societies  of  London  and  Paris,  and  Corresponding  Member 
of  the  Linnaean  Society  of  Lyons.  London:  Houlston  and  Stoxeman, 
Go,   Paternoster  Row;  W.  S.  Orr  and  Co.,  Amen  Corner.     1856. 

In  this  most  valuable  work,  a  compendium  of  the  whole  range  of  Natural 
History,  the  author  begins  with  the  lowest  forms,  and  ascends,  step  by  step, 
to  those  of  the  highest  organizations.  It  is  illustrated  by  a  profusion  of 
well-executed  and  characteristic  woodcuts,  one  or  more  on  nearly  every  leaf; 
the  whole  volume,  which  is  of  octavo  size,  containing,  with  the  index,  817 
pages.  It  is  utterly  impossible  in  the  limited  space  at  my  disposal,  to  say 
what  I  would  wish  to  say  of  this  exceedingly  useful  production.  I  must 
content  myself  with  the  remark  that  it  is  altogether  of  first-rate  character, 
and  I  have  never  seen  any  work  approaching  to  it  in  excellence,  as  intended 
to  afford  an  epitomized  and  scientific  description  of  the  whole  of  animated 
Nature.     For  the  sake  of  finding  fault,  which  seems  to  be  essential  to  the 


THE    QUERIST.  191 

character  of  a  critic,  I  will  take  exception  to  the  coloured  frontispiece  and 
title-page,  which  are  very  indifferently  executed  in  almost  every  point  of  view. 


In  "The  Naturalist"  for  this  month,  June,  "Taxus"  says,  page  129, 
"Chrysalides  are  found  in  greatest  abundance  at  the  foot  of  the  alder, 
willoiv,  oak,  elm,  and  ash."  Will  he  kindly  inform  your  readers  what 
chrysalides  he  finds  at  the  foot  of  the  ash? — W.  W.. Cooper,  West  Rasen, 
June  2nd.,  1856.    (I  have  scarcely  ever  found  any  under  the  ash. — F.  O.  M.) 


MANCHESTER    MUSEUM     OF     NATURAL     HISTORY. 

RE-PRINTED    FROM    THE    "MANCHESTER    EXAMINER    AND    TIMES." 

The  subjoined  is  inserted  at  the  request  of  a  Correspondent: — 
"Sir, — I  saw  an  advertisement  in  your  paper  last  week,  which  informed 
me  that  the  Museum  of  the  Natural  History  Society,  in  Peter-Street,  would 
be  open  every  Saturday  at  threepence  each  visitor,  or  twopence  each  for 
^^parties"  of  twelve  or  upwards.  I  at  once  concluded  there  would  be  a 
rush  of  "parties,"  availing  themselves  of  such  a  true  business-like,  two- 
shillings  per-dozen  arrangement;  and,  resolving  I  would  be  there  to  see, 
not  only  the  wonders  of  "the  best  Museum  out  of  London,"  but  also  the 
quiet  looks  of  enjoyment  of  the  numerous  visitors,  I  paid  my  threepence 
at  the  entrance  hall,  and  was  glad  to  learn  that  my  stick  would  be  cared 
for  without  my  having  to  pay  the  tax  of  one  penny,  as  in  the  days  of 
yore.  This  put  me  in  capital  humour  for  enjoying  all  the  wonders  around 
me.  Having  noticed  the  stately  Giraffe,  and  given  a  nod  to  my  ancient 
friend,  Miss  Beswick,  the  Manchester  mummy,  I  entered  the  geological  room, 
which  is  free  to  visitors,  and  saw  that  wonderful  and  unique  specimen  of 
sandstone,  with  footmarks,  mentioned  by  Mr.  Hawkins  in  his  recent  lectures 
at  the  Athenaeum,  and  thence  went  through  all  the  institution.  As  I  am 
not  about  to  write  a  popular  descriptive  catalogue,  (although  I  hope  some- 
body will  do  so  early — say  in  the  style  of  the  Crystal  Palace  handbooks,) 
I  can  only  describe  the  delight  I  experienced  from  all  I  saw  in  that  ex- 
traordinary collection  of  what  is  rare,  curious,  or  beautiful,  and  the  bitter 
regret  and  disappointment  I  felt  that,  instead  of  hundreds  of  visitors  being 
present,  there  were  very  few.  As  a  lover  of  Natural  History,  I  am  anxious 
to  draw  the  attention  of  your  readers  to  the  importance  and  pleasure  of 
its  study,  and  was  glad,  therefore,  to  learn  from  one  of  the  curators,  who 
was  present  during  my  visit,  that  he  and  others  would  be  in  attendance 
every  Saturday  afternoon,  to  afford  assistance  to  all  who  may  desire  in- 
formation on  that  subject. 


192  OBITUARY, 

If  a  few  naturalists  and  geologists, — such  as  our  Binneys,  Williamsons, 
and  Grindons, — aided  by  some  of  the  working-men  naturalists,  would  but 
attend  occasionally  on  Saturdays,  and  give  short  addresses  or  friendly  hints 
explanatory  of  the  objects  in  the  cases  around  them,  a  large  amount  of 
information  might  be  thus  pleasantly  conveyed  to  inquiring  minds,  and  much 
permanent  good  effected.  But  will  a  willingness  to  teach  produce  a  desire 
to  be  taught?  I  think  it  will,  and  would  suggest  that  steps  be  forthwith 
taken  by  the  conductors  of  Sunday  Schools,  to  induce  teachers  and  elder 
schokrs  to  attend  in  "parties;"  by  the  directors  of  mechanics'  and  literary 
institutes;  by  the  various  trades'  unions,  benefit  societies,  temperance  so- 
cieties, and  bands  of  hope;  by  the  principals,  foremen,  and  overlookers  in 
warehouses,  mills,  and  workshops,  not  only  in  Manchester,  but  in  the  ad- 
jacent towns  and  villages;  in  short,  let  every  one  aid  this  object  as  a  great 
educational  agent,  and  soon  we  shall  see  our  noble  Museum  crowded  by 
earnest  students  and  lovers  of  Nature  on  each  recurring  Saturday  half  holiday. 
One  more  suggestion,  and  I  have  done.  Let  those  who  wish  to  reward 
merit,  especially  in  schools  and  workshops,  remember  that  an  expenditure 
of  only  five  shillings  will  ensure  the  admission  of  thirty  persons,  and  for 
this  small  outlay  the  donor  may  do  some  good,  and  receive  the  gratitude 
of  many.     A  word  to  the  wise  is  sufficient."  Excelsior. 


(!Dliitiiiirt[. 

It  is  with  sincere  regret  that  we  have  to  record  the  death  of  Mr.  John 
Leadbeater,  F.E.S.,  etc.,  (a  man  as  well  known  abroad  as  at  home,  for 
his  love  of  science  and  talented  productions,)  which  sad  event  took  place 
on  the  28th.  of  May,  at  his  residence,  19,  Brewer  Street,  Golden  Square, 
London,  after  a  low  fever,  in  his  o2nd.  year.  He  was  very  much  respected 
by  his  numerous  patrons  and  friends.  We  may  add  with  certainty  that  in 
the  position  in  which  he  was  placed  in  society,  no  one  ever  encouraged  the 
collectors  of  Natural  History  in  all  parts  of  the  world,  more  than  himself, 
and  his  demise  will  be  much  lamented  amongst  foreigners  of  this  class. 
The  business,  which  was  established  by  his  late  father  nearly  half  a  century 
ago,  will  be  carried  on  as  usual,  under  the  management  of  his  eldest  son, 
Mr.  Benjamin  Leadbeater.  His  second  son,  Mr.  John  Leadbeater,  in  co-oper- 
ation with  his  partner,  Mr.  Williams,  now  established  in  Melbourne,  have  been, 
and  are  now,  collecting  for  the  London  House,  (sole  agents,)  all  the  various 
branches  of  the  Natural  History  of  Australia  on  a  large  scale,  especially  Mam- 
malia, etc.,  for  anatomical  examination,  in  spirits.  The  representatives  of  the 
late  Mr.  Leadbeater  will  thus  still  be  the  means,  by  careful  researches,  of  intro- 
ducing rarities  and  novelties  to  science,  and  prove  as  useful  members  of  society 
as  he  whose  loss  we  now  deplore. — Communicated  hj  a   Correspondent. 


NATURAL   HISTOEY   MUSEUM, 

52,  HIGH    HOLBOEN,    LONDON. 

The  Largest  Collection  in  the  kingdom  of  Birds'  Eggs,  and 
Eare  Insects. 

Birds,  Animals,  etc.,  stuffed  in  the  best  possible  manner,  at 
charges  strictly  moderate. 

Specimens    on    show    at  the    Royal   Polytechnic  Institution. 

Insect  Collectors  will  do  well  to  pay  a  visit  to  the  Advertiser, 
he  having  always  on  hand  such  an  assortment  as  will  astonish  many. 
Cabinets  with  Camphor  cells  always  on  hand;  also  Store  Boxes, 
Pocket  Boxes,  Fly  Nets,  Pins,  in  fact  all  the  desiderata  required  by 
an  Entomologist. 

Manufacturer  of  English,  and  French  Artificial  Eyes.  Coloured 
Birds'  Eyes,  varying  to  Pheasants'  size,  5s.  per  Gross;  a  superior 
made  Eye  for  best  work,  the  same  size,  7s.  6d.  per  Gross.  Cats', 
Dogs',  and  Foxes'  Eyes,  6d.  per  pair;  Deer's  Eyes,  Is.,  Is.  6d.,  and 
2s.,  according  to  size.     Black  Eyes  to  Skylarks',  Is.  per  Gross. 

All  Post-office  orders  payable  in  Holborn  promptly  attended  to  by 

JAMES     GARDNER. 


Price   Half-a-Crown. 

TAXIDEEMY; 

OR, 

BIED-STUFFING    MADE    EASY; 

Being  plain  and  practical  directions  for  learning  this  most  pleasing  art.     A  work 
alike  useful  to  the  adept  and  beginner.     No  one  should  be  without  it. 


Just  Published,  in  Two  Parts,  at  Threei:)ence  each. 

A    MTJCH-WANTED   AND    LONG-EXPECTED   AETICLE    SUPPLIED   AT   LAST 

A    LIST    OF    BRITISH    LEPIDOPTERA, 

with   the   Latin    and  English   Names,    (excepting  the    Tortrixes    and    Tineidce.) 
Printed  on  one  side  only,  so  as  to  be  used  for  Labels. 


LONDON: 

JAMES    GAUDNER,    MUSEUM    OF    NATURAL    HISTORY, 

52,    HIGH   HOLBORN. 

THE   ENTOMOLOGIST'S   INVINCIBLE 
POSTAGE-BOX. 

To  Entomologists  desirous  of  exchanging  Insects,  these  boxes  are 
indispensable.  They  will  go  through  the  Post  for  Sixpence,  war- 
ranted proof  against  the  stamping  of  the  Post-Office. 

Price  per  dozen,  10s.  6d.;  a  single  Box  Post  Free  for  Is.  6d.  in 
Postage    Stamps. 

Manufactured  by  John  Bolt,  Broad  Street,  Bristol. 


NEW    BOOK  FOR   THE   COUNTRY  HOUSE. 


Just  Published,  in  Crown  8vo.,  witli  Illustrations,  plain  and  coloured, 

Price  10s.  6d, 


FOE    HOMES     OF    TASTE, 

And  Recreations  for  Town  Folk,  in  the  Study  and  Imitation  of  Nature. 
BY    SHIELEY    HIBBERD. 

"The  work  is  in  itself  almost  as  pleasant  an  object  of  contemplation  as  the  things  it  treats  of— John  Bull. 

"The  work  is  got  up  in  good  style,  has  many  well-executed  engravings  and  coloured  plates,  and  forms 
a  suitable  book  for  the  drawing-room  table." — Ciril  Engineer  and  Architect's  Journal. 

"Nothing  could  be  more  seasonable  than  this  elegant  book ;  it  is  beautifully  illustrated,  and,  as  a  present 
to  those  whom  we  love  or  esteem,  we  do  not  know  anything  more  appropriate." — Cottage  Gardener. 

"Aquariums,  Ward's  Cases,  Aviaries,  Fernery,  Bees,  kock-work.  Garden  Scenery,  Fountains — in  fact 
everythhig  delightful,  will  be  found  in  this  tasteful  volume.  The  matter  and  manner  of  the  work 
coincide  happily,  and  each  in  turn  well  illustrates  the  other." — Naturalist. 

"Here  is  a  book  which  we  can  honestly  and  cordially  recommend  to  all  lovers  of  nature,  as  treating  in  a 
simple,  pleasant  way  of  the  Vivarium,  Ward's  Cases,  Aviary,  and  other  rustic  adornments.  Mr.  IIii)berd's 
book,  let  us  add,  is  embellished  with  remarkable  taste." — Leader. 

"An  extremely  pretty  volume,  nicely  illustrated.  The  most  casual  reader  will  find  something  to  interest 
and  aid  him  in  cultivating  his  acquaintance  with  those  portions  of  the  animal  and  vegetable  kingdoms  which 
may  keep  his  love  of  nature  alive  in  the  city.  It  is,  indeed,  no  small  privilege  to  find  how  much  may 
be  done,  even  in  the  crowded  street,  to  keep  us  in  communication  with  a  plant,  a  bird,  an  inhabitant 
of  the  waters  or  the  air.  We  hold  such  subjects  of  observation  very  precious;  and  the  hook  which 
teaches  us  how  to  preserve  them  is  much  to  be  esteemed  as  a  household  friend." — Gentleman's  Magazine. 

"A  more  elegant  volume  for  tlie  purpose  of  its  publication  it  is  impossible  to  meet  with.  In  every 
feature  the  book  is  invaluable.  Its  binding  and  illustrations  are  as  charming  as  its  contents  are 
interesting." — Bell's  Weekly  Messenger. 

"It  deals  with  those  elegancies  which  charm  the  eye,  and  by  the  aid  of  which  the  humble  cottage 
may  be  converted  into  a  fairy  pcCiace."— Illustrated  Times. 

"The  coloured  engravings  with  which  the  volume  is  embellished  are  numerous  and  well  executed;  in 
fine,  all  admirers  of  the  picturesque  in  rural  scenery  will  find  in  this  work  most  valuable  instruction  as 
to  the  means  by  which  art  may  be  employed  to  develop  and  complete  the  beauties  of  nature." — Morning 
Chronicle. 

"A  charming  book,  elegantly  bound  and  illustrated;  the  subjects  which  it  embraces  are  treated  with 
much  ability,  and  are  of  an  excellent  practical  character;  in  fact  it  is  a  perfect  gem."— I'lo7-iciiltural 
Cahinct. 


PEINCIPAL    CONTENTS. 

THE  AQUAmUM : — Construction  and  Furnishing — Fountain  Aquarium — Aspect — Forma- 
tion of  Hock-work,  Corallines,  Caves,  Arches,  and  Beaches — Collecting  Specimens  for 
Stock— Notices  of  Sea-Weeds— General  Management  of  Marino  Aquaria— Fresh-water 
Aquarium — Plants  suitable  for  the  Tank — Growth  of  Ferns  in  Aquaria— Selection  of 
Fishes  for  Fresh-water  Aquaria — Gold  Fish — Amount  of  life  which  may  be  sustained 
in  a  tank  of  twenty-four  gallons  capacitj' — Winter  Management — Feeding — List  of 
Select  Plants — List  of  Ferns  for  Fresh-water  Tanks. 

THE  GARDEW  AQUAEIUM:— Value  of  AVatcr  Scenery-Plan  of  a  Small  Fountain 
Aquarium — Stocking  Garden  Aquaria — Fishes — Water  Lilies— List  of  Bog  and  Aquatic 
Plants— Construction  of  Hock-work  Banks — Style  of  Ornaments  suited  for  Water 
Scenery — Fountains. 

WARDIAN'  CASE :— Ornamental  Value  of  the  Wardian  Case— Its  usefulness  for  the 
Culture  of  Choice  Plants  in  Towns — Construction  and  Design — Window  Culture  of  Ferns — 
Plants  adapted — Culture  of  Cacti  in  Close  Cases — The  Invalid's  Plant  Case. 

OKNAMENTS  EOS,  DWELLING  BOOMS  :-Table  Flowers-Preservation  of 
Cut  Flowers — Choice  of  Pots — Miniature  Plants— Cacti  and  Ferns — Illuminated  Trees — 
Transparent  Pine  Tree — Uses  at  Fetes  and  Festivals. 

THE  AVIARY: — Construction  of  a  Bird-House — Fitting- up  of  Aviaries — Uses  of  Small 
Conservatories — Aviaries  as  Garden  Ornaments — How  to  obtain  a  Cheap  Aviary — Inmates 
of  the  Aviarv — The  Canary,  Goldfinch,  Linnet,  Chaffinch,  Greenfinch,  Bullfinch,  Sky- 
lark, Woodlurk,   Nightingale,   Robin,  &c.,  &c. — General  Management — Food,  &c. 

BEES  AND  BEE-HOUSES : — The  Apiary  as  an  Ornament — Rustic  Associations — Uses 
of  Suburban  Gardens — Pleasures  of  Bee-keeping — A  Code  of  Bee  Management  on  Humane 
Principles — Advantages — Hives — General  Management,   &c.,   &c. 

THE  ROCKERY :— Ornamental  uses  of  Eock-work— Mode  of  adapting  it  to  the  Embel- 
lishment of  a  Small  Garden — Structure,  Materials,  and  Situation — Rock  and  Water 
Scenery — Plants  best  adapted— Culture  of  British  Wild  Plants  on  raised  banks — Culture 
of  Alpines — List  of  Plants  for  Rockeries  and  raised  banks. 

FERNERY : — Characteristics  of  Fern  Scenery — Growth  of  Ferns  in  Towns — Superior  Beauty 
of  Cultivated  Ferns — Soil  and  Composts — Shade  and  Moisture — Selection  of  Ferns — 
Planting — Watering — Winter  Protection — Ferns  in  Pots — General  Management  of  the 
Fernerj'. 

GARDEN  SCENERY  AND  ORNAMENTS :— Pleasures  of  a  Garden— The  Roman 
GNrdenf — Italian  (Janlens — Ornaments  near  the  Dwelling  House — Shrubbery  and  Rustic 
Btenes — Summer  Retreats  and  Rustic  Embellishments — Rustic  Bowers — Rustic  Furniture 
-Keats — Gates — Baskets — Arches — Wirework — Vases — Trellis,  &c. ,  &c. 


LONDON:    GEOOMBEIDGE  AND    SONS,    5,  PATEENOSTEE    EOW, 


No.  67. 


SEPTEMBER,   1856. 


Price  6d. 


n 


A   POPULAR   MONTHLY   MAGAZINE, 

ILLUSTEATIVE    OF    THB 

ANIMAL,   VEGETABLE,    AND   MINERAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    OCCASIONAL    ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED    BY 

THE    EEV.   F.   0.   MOREIS,     B.A., 

Member  of  the  Ashmolean  Society,  etc. 

Author  of  "A  History  of  British  Birds."      "A  Ilistory  of  British  Butterflies. '■ 

"A  Ilistory  of  the  Nests  and  Eggs  of  Britisli  Birds," 

"A  Bible  Natural  History."    "A  Book  of  Natural  History,"  etc.,  etc  ,  etc. 


0  LoKU,  how  manifold  are  Thy  works!    in  wisdom  hast   Thou    made  them  all:   the 
earth  is  full  of  Thj-  riches. — Psalm  civ.,  24. 


LONDON: 

(JROOMBRIDGE   AND   SONS,  5,  PATERNOSTER  ROW. 


AND   MAY    BE    HAD    OF   ALL    BOCKSi:LLFK.S. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

Rare  Birds'  Nests.     By  0.  S.  Round,  Esq 193 

A  Fourth  Medley.     By  W 194 

On  the  Scarcity  of  Birds  in  certain  Districts.     By  Thos.  Fuller, 

Esq 196 

A  Visit  to  Braemar  in  1855.     By  W.  Sutherland,  Esq 200 

Botanical  Notes.     By  W.  Sutherland,  Esq 204 

Three  Days  in   the  Falkland  Islands.     By  J.  S.  Walker,  Esq.  ...  209 

Minute  Skenea,  (with  Engraving.)     By  W.  Webster,  Esq 212 

Systema  Naturaj.     By  The  Editor 213 

Miscellaneous  Notices. — Callimorpha  Hera  a  British  Insect.  Cap- 
ture of  Birds  in  Brunswick  Square,  Brighton.  Singular  treat- 
ment of  a  Fly  by  a  Wasp 215 

The  Querist. — The  Great  Crested  Grebe 216 


NOTICES    TO    CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  hare  been  received  from  Henet  F.  Wood,  Esq.; — John 
GrATCOMBE,  EsQ.  (two;) — Me.  Geoeqe  Stockley; — Mr.  David  Mokeis; — 
John  Dutton,  Esq.  ; — H.  W.  Feildon,  Esq.,  Forty-second  Royal  Highlanders ; 
— T.  SouTHWBLt,  Esq.  ; — S.  P.  Savill,  Esq.  ; — H. 

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I 


193  "Wti^m^A 

EARE    BIRDS'     NESTS.  ^i^^ALX>^^ 

BY    O.  S.  ROUJJD,    ESQ. 

As  a  general  rule,  I  consider  those  birds  alone  truly  British  which  nest 
with  us,  for  if  we  consult  our  experience,  we  shall  find  that  the  period 
of  nidification  only  can  display  to  us  the  different  habits  and  dispositions 
of  those  beautiful  objects  of  creation,  endowed,  as  they  are,  with  a  sub- 
lime power  of  overcoming  attraction,  and  so  quickly  ranging  beyond  our 
sphere  of  vision ;  nor  can  any  of  us  call  that  our  home,  which  is  not  bound 
to  us  by  some  natural  ties;  and  although  it  is  true  that  our  summer  birds 
pay  us  short  and  somewhat  selfish  visits,  deserting  us  at  the  very  time 
when  we  should  be  so  really  glad  of  their  society,  and  making  the  gloom 
of  approaching  winter  more  gloomy  still,  yet  they  pay  us  so  great  a  com- 
pliment by  making  this  country  the  scene  of  their  most  important  duties, 
that  we  cannot,  and  indeed  do  not,  doubt  for  a  moment  their  claim  to  a 
prominent  place  in  our  ornithological  calendar.  Added  to  this,  those  birds 
which  visit  us  in  winter  only  are  very  few,  and  many  of  these  few  (if 
that  is  not  an  Irishism)  are  northern  natives,  and  come  from  countries 
possessing  but  little  advantage  over  us  in  the  list  of  birds.  Amongst  these 
two  instances  of  nests  came  under  my  own  observation.  The  first  was  the 
Grosbeak,  (Coccothraustes,)  a  comparatively  rare  bird,  although  in  my  tax- 
idermial  days  I  had  seven  or  eight  specimens  sent  to  me,  and  shot  one, 
and  saw  several  wild  myself.  A  pair  of  these  birds  built  for  two  years 
successively,  if  not  longer,  and  I  think  produced  broods,  in  a  hollow  of 
an  old  tree  at  Sillwood  Park,  Sunnyhill,  near  Ascot  Heath.  I  did  not 
examine  the  nest  or  eggs,  as  when  I  chanced  to  be  there  the  hen  bird  was 
on  her  nest,  and  we  feared  to  disturb  her,  lest  she  might  desert  it,  but 
I  perfectly  well  remember  the  circumstance,  now  perhaps  some  ten  years 
since,  and  seeing  her  head  as  she  sat,  and  she  was  seen  from  day  to  day 
by  those  who  resided  in  the  house,  to  which  the  tree  was  very  near.  I 
have  also  seen  a  stuffed  specimen  of  a  young  Grosbeak,  which  was  hatched 
in  a  garden  at  Reading,  in  Berkshire,  and  which  formed  part  of  the  col- 
lection of  British  Birds  of  Mr,  John  Wheeler,  then  resident  at  Wokingham. 

The  next  instance  was  of  the  nest  and  eggs  of  the  Crossbill,  {Loxia 
curvirostra,)  which,  when  I  was  making  a  collection  of  nests,  was  brought 
to  me,  and  was  in  my  possession  until  that,  along  with  many  others,  was 
unfortunately  destroyed  by  spiders  during  a  winter  when  they  were  shut 
up  in  a  box,  and  put  aside,  the  melancholy  spectacle  presenting  itself,  when 
I  re- opened  it,  of  a  misty  plexus  of  webs,  and  each  nest  containing  a  small 
heap  of  powders— the  ashes  of  my  hopes! 

These  birds  are  by  no  means  uncommon  visitants  to  the  vicinity  of  the 
place  where  the  nest  was  found,  namely,  in  a  lane  running  through   the 

VOL.  VI.  2  c 


194  A    FOURTH    MEDLEY. 

village  of  Sunnyhill,  on  the  verge  of  Bagshot  Heath,  the  extensive  fir 
plantations  which  are  found  in  that  locality,  forming,  probably,  the  chief 
attraction.  Unfortunately  the  nest  was  taken  and  brought  to  me,  but  I 
should  much  have  preferred  being  a  witness  of  the  old  bird  sitting  upon 
it;  however  I  have  no  reason  to  doubt  the  assertion,  more  particularly  as  the 
eggs  differed  from  any  that  I  was  familiar  with.  They  were  six  in  number, 
larger  than  a  Eedbreast's,  but  of  somewhat  the  same  colour,  although 
lighter,  and  more  broadly  blotched.  The  shape  also  was  less  tapering. 
The  nest  was  composed  of  roots,  a  little  wool  and  moss,  and  very  loosely 
constructed,  and  was  placed  in  the  head  of  an  old  pollard  ash,  very  much 
in  the  same  manner  as  the  Grosbeaks  which  I  have  mentioned.  Now  Cross- 
bills are  much  more  common  visitants,  as  they  appear  in  all  seasons,  but 
chiefly  in  deep  winter  and  high  summer. 

A  third  instance  I  remember  was  of  the  Great  Snipe,  (Scolopaw  major,) 
which  for  two  successive  years  had  a  nest,  with  four  eggs,  in  the  bog 
which  lies  beneath  Ascot  Heath  race-course  to  the  south.  An  old  man, 
who  worked  for  us,  told  me  of  it,  and  I  went  with  him  and  examined 
the  eggs,  which  after-experience  taught  me  to  learn  the  nature  and  value 
of,  but  at  the  time  I  was  a  lover  of  nature,  not  a  specimen  collector, 
and  enjoyed  a  silent  pleasure  in  the  contemplation,  without  desiring  to 
adopt  and  preserve  the  object.  The  bird  was  certainly  very  large,  and 
light  coloured,  and  the  eggs  much  larger  than  those  of  the  Whole  or 
Common  Snipe,  many  of  which  breed  every  summer  in  these  same  morasses, 
and  are  of  a  lighter  brown. 

Lincoln  s-Inn-Fields,  Londo?t,  March,  1852. 


A     FOURTH     MEDLEY. 

BY    W. 

Barred-tailed  Godwit,  {Limosa  rufa.) — In  September,  1851,  a  pair 
of  these  rare  birds  were  shot  besides  a  pond,  at  a  place  called  Biaks,  parish 
of  Gamrie,  Banff. 

Sky  Lark,  (Alauda  arvensis,)  was  heard  in  full  song  on  7th.  February. 

Red-throated  Diver,  (Colymbus  septentrionalis.) — A  specimen  of  this  bird, 
rather  rare  in  this  quarter,  was  found  entangled  in  the  salmon  nets  near 
Banff,  about  the  beginning  of  March.  A  few  years  ago,  was  shot  off  Macduff, 
a  good  way  out  at  sea,  a  fine  specimen  of  Colymbus  glacialis.  The  Black- 
throated  Diver,  {Colymbus  arcticus,)  is  also  occasionally  found.  The  Red 
and  the  Black-throated  Divers  are  popularly  known  by  the  name  of  Loons. 

Corn  Crake,  (Crex  pratensis.)— On  returning,  17th.  May,  from  a  party 
in  Banff  I  was  gratified  with  the  voice  of  this  bird.  Mr.  Edward  told  me 
he  heard  it  a  few  days  before. 


A    FOURTH    MEDLEY.  195 

Swift,  (Cypselus  apus.) — On  the  same  day,  May  17th.,  I  saw  two  pairs 
of  this  bird. 

To  proceed  from  fowl  to  fish: — 

Double-spotted  Goby,  ( Gohius  Ruthersparri.) — On  April  22nd.  a  specimen 
of  this  rare  fish  was  brought  me. 

Fifteen-spined  Stickleback,  (Oasterosteus  spinachia.) — About  the  11th.  of 
May,  a  female  just  at  the  spawning  was  brought  me.  It  had  but  fourteen 
spines.  Much  about  the  same  time  specimens  of  the  Common  Pipe-Fish> 
[Syngnathus  acus,)  and  of  the  Snake  Pipe-Fish,  were  also  got. 

Miller's  Top-not,  (Rhombus  hirtus.) — A  female,  full  of  roe,  was  caught 
"in  shore"  in  the  nets  used  by  the  boys  for  catching  crabs,  on  May  17th. 
This  is  one  of  our  rarest  fishes  in  the  Frith. 

Leda  caudata. — In  the  month  of  April  I  obtained  from  a  mass  of  sand 
and  zoophytes,  a  whole  specimen  of  this  rare,  (at  least  here)  shell.  Several 
valves  have   been  formerly  got. 

Actinia  dianihus  and  A.  crassieornis. — On  May  17th.  a  fisherman  brought 
up  on  his  lines  a  lump  of  coal,  having  on  it  four  of  the  largest  Actinias 
I  ever  saw.  They  were  not  less  than  about  ten  inches  in  circumference. 
There  were  two  of  each.  One  of  A.  dianthus  was  milk-white,  and  the  other 
dusky.  One  of  A.  crassieornis  was  variegated  with  red,  the  other  was 
white,  with  orange-coloured  tentacula.  I  kept  them  for  some  days,  and  a 
prettier  sight  could  not  be  wished  for.  Can  the  creatures  have  any  pre- 
dilection for  attaching  themselves  to  coal?  or  does  it  favour  their  growth? 
From  the  number  on  the  small  piece,  and  from  their  very  large  size,  I 
concluded  so.^'' 

I  shall  conclude  my  lucubrations  at  this  time  by  a  few  words  on  a  paper, 
styled  "Inquiry  for  the  Naturalist."  I  have  observed  again  and  again  the 
same  inclination  of  trees,  but  not  towards  the  east.  In  this  district,  which 
is  in  many  parts  very  much  exposed  to  the  sea-breeze,  the  trees  all  lean 
towards  the  south,  just  because  the  cold,  biting  wind  comes  from  the  north. 
This  is  the  reason  why  the  trees  spoken  of  by  your  correspondent  lean 
towards  the  east.  The  hard,  killing  winds  blow  off  the  sea,  and  nip  the 
tender  branches.  In  proof  of  this  assertion,  I  shall'  state  what  I  have 
observed  here.  When  there  are  high  walls,  the  trees  grow  like  other 
decent  trees,  till  they  overtop  the  wall,  and  then  they  begin  to  lean  away 
from  the  sea-wind.  The  same  thing  takes  place  when  they  are  planted  in 
sheltered  hollows.  All  goes  well  till  they  lift  their  head  out  of  the  "trenches," 
and  then  whizz  goes  the  sea-breeze  into  their  bonnets,  and  turns  them  to 
the  side.  When  they  are  planted  in  clumps,  the  outside  trees  are  short 
and  stunted,  those  within  are  somewhat  taller,  and  so  on,  always  growing 

•  I  cannot  think  this,  as  coal  cannot  well  be  looked  for  under  the  sea. — F.  0.  Morris. 


196  ON    THE   SCARCITy    OF    BIRDS    IN    CERTAIN    DISTRICTS. 

higher,  so  that  the  tops  at  a  distance  look  like  an  inclined  plane.  The 
same  thing  I  have  observed  in  larch  and  fir  trees  farther  inland.  Thus 
have  I  proved  to  my  ©wn  satisfaction,  and  I  trust  to  that  of  my  readers, 
that  the  growing  of  the  trees,  described  in  "The  Naturalist,"  is  owing  to 
the  hard  wind,  although  so  far  inland. 

Macdvff,  Banff,  June  Wth.,  1856. 


ON    THE     SCARCITY     OF    BIRDS    IN    CERTAIN    DISTRICTS. 

BY    THOMAS    FULLER,    ESQ. 

Pursuing  this  subject,  I  beg  leave  to  remark,  in  addition  to  the  obser- 
vations of  Mr.  Clement  Jackson,  in  ''The  Naturalist"  for  this  month,  certain 
causes  coming  under  my  notice.  For  a  long  period  of  time  I  have  expe- 
rienced, with  great  annoyance  and  vexation,  numbers  of  my  friends  impressed 
with  the  notion  that  birds  are  destructive  to  vegetation,  and  to  fruits  par- 
ticularly, and  with  such  ideas  have  waged  continual  war  against  them.  A 
neighbour,  living  a  short  distance  from  me,  said,  exultingly,  a  few  days 
back,  that  he  had  shot  more  than  six  hundred  birds  of  various  kinds  about 
his  garden  during  the  last  year.  Another  instance  occurred  this  spring, 
whilst  walking  with  a  friend  to  a  village  at  some  little  distance.  Passing 
the  house  of  an  acquaintance,  we  were  recognised,  and  invited  to  look 
round  the  grounds,  etc.  When  near  the  garden  the  report  of  a  gun  was 
heard,  and  presently  two  youths  appeared :  they  had  been  shooting  birds  for 
preservation  of  the  fruit,  and  one  of  them  produced  from  the  capacious 
pocket  of  his  shooting-jacket  several  specimens  of  beautiful  Thrushes,  with 
lovely  spotted  breasts  and  golden  eyes.  This  was  in  April,  at  a  time  of 
the  year  when  nearly  all  birds  have  nests  and  eggs,  and  the  cock  birds, 
particularly  the  Blackbird  and  the  Thrush,  charm  us  with  their  sweet,  wild 
notes.  Soon  after  this  I  visited  a  friend  in  Berkshire,  where  I  expected 
full  enjoyment  of  the  delightful  harmony  of  these  lovely  little  songsters, 
but  had  the  disappointment  to  find  the  same  system  of  destruction  pre- 
vailing— scarcely  a  day  passed  without  the  gardener  announcing  the  capture 
of  one  or  more  nests,  either  with  eggs  or  young  birds.  Blackbirds,  Thrushes, 
Linnets,  all  were  alike  victims. 

Another  element  of  destruction  is  also  actively  developing  itself — in  the 
increase  of  domestic  cats,  if  I  may  judge  from  this  neighbourhood.  We 
are  absolutely  overrun  with  them.  It  is  worthy  of  remark,  these  animals, 
in  suburbs  and  villages,  are  not  to  be  kept  inside  of  houses  as  in  cities 
and  towns;  their  nature  and  habits  lead  them  to  roam  in  the  shrubberies 
and  gardens,  where  they  propagate  and  pursue  their  feline  propensities, 
destroying  or  scaring  away  everything  of  feathered  existence,  except  a  few 


ON    THE    SCARCITY    OF    BIRDS    IN    CERTAIN    DISTRICTS.  197 

fugitive  Sparrows,  with  nests  under  the  roofs  of  the  houses,  or  places  inac- 
cessible to  such  expert  climbers. 

These  cats  are  a  source  of  great  annoyance  to  me,  seven  or  eight  together 
are  often  to  be  seen  on  my  grass-plot,  or  scaling  the  walls,  climbing  trees, 
etc.  This  state  of  things,  I  am  inclined  to  think,  prevails  extensively: 
for  go  wherever  I  will,  the  creatures  appear  to  be  encouraged.  In  fact, 
I  have  to  reproach  myself  for  having  thoughtlessly  countenanced  the  evil, 
as  you  shall  hear: — 

When  entering  this  house,  in  the  autumn  of  last  year,  two  cats  were 
observed  prowling  about,  left,  no  doubt,  by  the  former  tenant.'  Every 
endeavour  was  used  to  drive  them  away,  but  without  success;  and  whilst 
I  was  meditating  upon  the  best  way  of  encompassing  their  destruction,  my 
domestics  pleaded  for  one  of  them,  saying  it  was  only  a  kitten,  and  very 
pretty,  and  if  I  would  permit  them  to  keep  it,  great  care  should  be  taken 
to  prevent  it  getting  into  the  garden,  and  doing  mischief.  In  an  evil 
hour  my  consent  was  given,  and  little  pussy  was  soon  at  home,  purring 
round  the  legs  of  the  kitchen  table.  Winter  passed,  as  winters  generally 
do — doors  and  windows  closed,  and  pussy  comfortably  dozing  before  the 
fire.  The  creature  grew,  and  became  a  great  favourite;  but  as  spring 
approached,  with  its  genial  atmosphere,  there  was  no  keeping  pussy  in, 
and  being  U7i  chat,  soon  betrayed  the  roving  character  of  his  gender,  not 
only  making  an  addition  to  the  vagabonds  already  infesting  us,  but  actually 
attracted  une  chatte,  (a  stranger  that  we  had  never  observed  before,)  with 
whom  he  held  nightly  serenades,  of  such  peculiar  and  unearthly  sounds,  as 
to  annoy  us  greatly.  Every  night  his  extermination  was  resolved,  but 
each  morning  he  contrived,  stealthily,  to  get  inside,  and  with  soft  velvet 
paws  attract  notice  to  his  handsome  furry  skin,  and  poor  tommy's  offence 
was  as  often  forgiven.  But  Madame  meanwhile  kept  her  footing  outside, 
and  presently  a  litter  of  kittens  appeared  in  one  of  the  outhouses.  Thus 
was  the  increase  of  these  vermin  clearly  demonstrated,  and  my  resolution 
taken  for  their  complete  extermination,  and  again,  I  regret  to  say,  diverted. 
Some  of  my  grandchildren  happened  then  to  be  staying  with  me,  and  un- 
fortunately got  acquainted  with  these  kittens  before  the  information  of  their 
existence  reached  me.  They  have  successfully  pleaded  for  two.  I  now  see 
the  consequences  of  such  weakness,  and  have  quite  made  up  my  mind  what 
to  do  coute  qui  coute. 

I  am  the  more  convinced  of  this  being  one  cause  of  the  loss  we  are 
deploring,  from  the  recollection  of  how  differently  we  were  situated  at 
our  former  residence.  There  no  cat  was  tolerated,  and  having  no  other 
house  immediately  adjoining,  we  were  not  annoyed  by  those  belonging  to 
others.  The  feathered  tribe  were  therefore  undisturbed,  and  meeting  every 
encouragement,  visited  us  in   considerable   numbers.     Blackbirds,  Thrushes, 


198  ON    THE    SCARCITY    OF    BIRDS    IN    CERTAIN    DISTRICTS. 

Kobins,  and  others^  came  close  to  our  house  for  food,  placed  daily  for  them, 
charming  us  with  their  songs  and  interesting  motions.  Boys,  too,  about 
this  neighbourhood  are  quite  as  destructive  as  cats.  Every  urchin  appears 
trained  to  the  accomplishment  of  their  ruin.  Upon  a  holiday  in  the  spring, 
the  first  pursuit  is  the  capture  of  birds'  nests,  and  you  cannot  walk  in 
the  country,  at  this  season  of  the  year,  without  meeting  the  little  plun- 
derers with  strings  of  birds'  eggs.  At  other  seasons  all  sorts  of  missiles 
are  resorted  to,  and  happy  is  he  who  can  possess  himself  with  an  old 
pistol  or  musket,  to  pop  at  every  bird  within  reach. 

No  doubt  these  doings  have  prevailed  for  a  great  length  of  time,  but 
they  have  vastly  increased  during  my  recollection,  and  it  is  reasonable  to 
conclude  the  same  system  extends  to  the  neighbourhood  of  other  cities  and 
towns. 

We  cannot  dwell  on  these  reflections  without  deep  regret;  yet  in  the 
midst  of  all,  it  is  cheering  to  think  some  portions  of  our  Island  may  yet 
be  free  from  such  wholesale  persecutions,  and  in  this  feeling  I  am  en- 
couraged to  hope  from  the  result  of  a  ramble,  on  the  19th.  instant,  in  a 
retired  part  of  Wiltshire,  about  eighteen  miles  from  this  city,  where  the 
River  Avon  flows  with  more  than  its  usual  winding  course  through  a  very 
rural  part  of  the  county.  The  sun  was  shining  gloriously,  and  the  feathered 
creation  in  full  activity;  the  Cuckoo's  note  sounded  from  every  side;  water- 
fowl started  from  the  rushes  in  the  river;  Swallows,  in  rapid  motion, 
skimmed  the  water,  and  in  quick  evolution  displayed  their  white  breasts 
to  the  sun's  rays;  Reed-Sparrows  incessantly  chirping;  Blackcaps,  with  great 
variety  of  the  Finch  tribe,  hopping  from  bush  to  bush;  Blackbirds  and 
Thrushes  in  full  song;  the  lovely  Kingfisher  displayed  his  brilliant  plumage 
with  great  effect  on  the  glistening  sun;  whilst  Herons  at  considerable  height 
were  flapping  their  way  towards  Bowood,  the  seat  of  the  Marquis  of 
Lansdowne. 

The  day  was  magnificent,  every  tree  and  shrub  in  full  foliage,  all  seemed 
full  of  life  and  animation:  the  May-flies,  so  well  known  to  anglers,  were  in 
myriads  upon  the  water,  and  fishes  rising  after  them  in  countless  numbers. 
Making  my  way  through  a  cluster  of  alder  trees,  on  an  embankment  by 
the  side  of  the  river,  the  water  from  which  having  forced  its  way  in  several 
places,  forming  channels,  and  rendering  the  ground  very  soft,  progress  be- 
came slow  and  difiicult.  Close  to  the  bank  floated  a  boat,  secured  by  a 
chain.  Whilst  debating  with  myself  upon  the  advantage  of  this  boat,  for 
avoiding  one  of  these  channels,  which  appeared  rather  too  wide  to  step 
over  with  convenience,  and  holding  on  by  one  of  the  trees  close  to  the 
edge  of  the  river  in  a  state  of  indecision,  a  remarkably  fine  Kingfisher, 
the  largest  I  ever  saw,  came  and  pitched  upon  the  edge  of  the  boat,  not 
three  feet    from  where   I  stood — the   sun   shining  directly  upon  him,  gave 


ON    THE    SCARCITY    OF    BIRDS    IN    CERTAIN    DISTRICTS.  199 

great  effect  to  his  brilliant  plumage.  He  was  perched  with  his  back  towards 
me,  and  held  a  fish  crossways  in  his  beak,  which  he  proceeded  to  beat 
against  the  edge  of  the  boat  with  considerable  force,  then  setting  it  parallel 
with  his  beak,  swallowed  it. 

I  could  easily  have  reached  him  with  my  walking-stick,  but  preferred 
the  contemplation  of  his  lovely  colours;  so,  standing  still  as  possible,  scarcely 
venturing  to  breathe,  I  continued  watching  him.  He  remained  for  some 
time  dressing  his  feathers  with  his  long  beak,  and  evidently  seemed  satisfied 
with  his  meal.  Presently  he  hopped  round,  looking  me  full  in  the  face. 
Now,  thinks  I,  he  is  off  to  a  certainty. — No,  there  he  continued  to  stand 
with  eyes  appearing  to  meet  mine,  and  affording  me  the  same  opportunity 
of  viewing  his  front  as  I  had  before  of  his  back.  Whether  he  saw  me  or 
not,  he  shewed  no  alarm,  and  appeared  perfectly  at  ease.  Being  in  high 
gratification  in  contemplating  his  brilliant  colours,  I  was  determined  to 
wait  his  full  leisure  and  watch  his  movements,  when  from  the  soft  and 
slippery  condition  of  the  bank,  my  footing  gave  way,  and,  but  for  the 
boat,  I  should  certainly  have  gone  into  the  river.  The  bird  frightened 
at  the  movement,  flew  away,  displaying  his  brilliant  colours  in  the  rays  of 
the  sun  with  great  effect. 

What  a  pity  it  is  this  most  beautiful  of  our  British  Birds  should  be 
getting  so  scarce — the  price  given  for  it  by  owners  of  museums  and  col- 
lections is  an  inducement  for  its  capture,  so  that  they  are  rarely  seen  in 
places  much  frequented. 

I  could  not  help  remarking  that  in  the  whole  course  of  my  day's  ramble, 
I  did  not  see  one  Magpie.  Prejudice  and  persecution  seem  to  have  fol- 
lowed this  unfortunate  bird  even  to  this  retired  spot;  neither  did  I  see 
one  alive  during  my  sojourn  in  Berkshire,  before  mentioned.  In  one  of 
my  walks  in  that  neighbourhood  an  incident  occurred  which  throws  some 
light  on  the  subject.  My  way  for  some  time  had  been  through  a  plan- 
tation of  considerable  extent,  my  attention  fully  taken  up  with  everything 
on  the  wing,  almost  every  variety  of  bird  came  under  view  except  the 
Magpie,  when,  upon  emerging  from  the  wood,  appeared  a  tree  with  from 
thirty  to  forty  dead  Magpies  dangling  from  its  branches.  Country  people 
seem  all  to  unite  in  the  destruction  of  this  gay  and  lively  bird.  Game- 
keepers, in  particular,  shoot  them  without  mercy,  in  the  belief  that  they 
destroy  the  eggs  of  Partridges.  Whether  there  is  any  foundation  for  it 
or  not,  seems  doubtful,  as  many  say  the  depredation  is  chargeable  to  stoats 
and  weasels;  but  even  if  such  an  act  could  be  proved,  the  offence  can  only 
exist  for  a  very  short  period  in  the  spring  of  the  year,  and  after  that 
time  he  is  employed  in  works  of  great  service  to  the  farmer,  by  destroying 
millions  of  insects  injurious  to  animals  and  vegetation.  A  foolish  super- 
stition also  prevails  respecting  the  appearance  of  this  unfortunate  bird — the 


200  A    VISIT    TO    BRAEMAR. 

sight  of  one  is  said  to  betoken  ill-luck,  and  so  on  through  a  list  of  mis- 
fortunes according  as  two  or  three  or  more  are  seen  together.  In  this  neigh- 
bourhood, during  the  present  year,  only  two  Magpies  have  come  under  my 
notice.  They  had  built  their  nest  in  a  tree,  situate  in  a  field  near  the 
village  of  Weston.  I  used  to  watch  them  frequently  with  much  interest 
before  going  into  Berkshire,  and  upon  returning  home  lost  no  time  in  going 
to  see  how  they  were  getting  on:  to  my  great  disappointment  they  were 
gone.  Upon  inquiry,  I  was  told  the  birds  had  been  shot,  and  the  nest 
destroyed.  Upon  expressing  my  sorrow  ibr  what  had  been  done,  the  answer 
was,  ''Oh!  they  are  nasty  unlucky  things,  and  we  dont  like  to  see  them." 
The  Magpie  was  always  a  great  favourite  with  me,  and  I  look  back 
with  regret  to  the  time  when  his  appearance  was  more  frequent.  Their 
habits  are  sociable,  seldom  appearing  singly.  It  was  very  interesting  to 
see  them,  with  their  gay  feathers  of  shining  black  and  white,  and  lively 
actions,  as  they  flew  across  one's  path  in  small  parties,  and  pitched  at 
short  distances,  with  pert  and  jaunty  hop  and  quick  movement  of  their 
long  tails.     (Let  me  hear  from  Mr.  Fuller  again. — F,  0.  Morris.) 

Bath,  June  SOth.,  1856. 


A    VISIT     TO     BRAEMAR    IN     1855. 

BY    W.  SUTHERLAND,    ESQ. 

Leaving  the  ''granite  city,"  on  a  bright  Monday  morning,  towards  the 
end  of  July,  (24th.,)  1855,  we  might  have  been  seen  early  on  the  after- 
noon of  the  same  day,  descending  from  the  good  old-fashioned  stage-coach, 
in  the  little  less  antiquated  village  of  Castleton  of  Braemar.  Thanks  for 
the  comparatively  rapid  transit  over  a  road  of  fifty-seven  miles  in  this 
essentially  "Hieland"  portion  of  Her  Majesty's  dominions,  to  the  shade  of 
Watt,  so  far  as  the  results  of  his  glorious  discovery  have  penetrated  these 
wilds,  and  last,  not  least,  to  the  said  stage  of  our  forefathers.  But  although 
we  have  thus  summarily  transported  ourselves  from  one  end  of  the  Dee 
almost  to  the  other,  in  the  space  of  half  a  dozen  lines,  we  lay  no  claim 
to  the  possession  of  the  faculty  celebrated  in  Eastern  story,  which  is  capable 
of  effecting  a  similar  transit  in  as  many  seconds;  and  seeing  that  we  take 
too  much  selfish  pleasure  in  "fighting  our  battles  o'er  again,"  we  cannot 
spare  the  reader  the  infliction  of  a  paragraph  on  what  we  saw  in  the  course 
of  our  journey  westward;  and  so,  by  way  of  preface,  let  him  not  suppose 
that  immediately  on  leaving  the  vicinity  of  the  sea-coast,  he  is  to  be  ushered 
into  such  scenes  of  rocky  sublimity  and  beauty  as  characterize  the  upper 
course  of  this  river. 

First,  then,  we  have  a  ridge  of  rather  tame  but  heath-clad  hills,  rising 
gradually  from  the  rocky  coast,  south  of  the  river's  mouth;  these,  if  much 


A    VISIT    TO    BRAEMAR.  201 

given  to  speculation,  you  may  consider  to  be  tbe  most  easterly  span  of 
the  Grrampians;  or  better  still,  tbe  continuation  in  ancient  Caledonia  of  tbe 
Dovrefield  range — tbe  backbone,  as  it  were,  of  Scandinavia,  wbicb,  after  a 
submarine  passage  over  the  German  Ocean,  tired,  probably  of  their  aquatic 
experiences,  think  proper  to  shew  their  noses  again  on  terra  firma  at  this 
point.  Almost  immediately  on  the  train  striking  briskly  into  the  Deeside 
line  proper,  we  begin  to  catch  glimpses  of  the  most  pleasant  woodland 
scenery,  which  now  extends  over  the  slopes  of  the  hills  we  have  already 
referred  to,  and  continues  more  or  less  to  do  so  a  good  way  beyond  the 
present  terminus  of  the  railway  at  Banchory,  (eighteen  miles  from  Aber- 
deen.) The  most  pleasant  spots,  however,  between  these  two  points,  are, 
without  doubt,  the  tastefully  laid-out  grounds  on  the  estates  of  Banchory- 
Devenick  and  Kingcausie;  the  former  the  property  of  the  then  A.  Thompson, 
Esq.,  but  now,  deservedly.  Dr.  Thompson;  the  latter  of  J,  Boswell,  Esq., 
and  sheltering  one  of  the  most  picturesque  spots  in  this  neighbourhood, 
and  moreover  one  of  those  spots  which  appear  to  be  selected  by  Flora, 
as  a  safe  asylum  for  her  rarest  and  tiniest  children — the  Corbie  Den,  well 
known  to  all  who  cultivate  the  gentle  science  in  this  district.  But  Ban- 
chory itself  is  possessed  of  no  small  share  of  attraction,  in  its  many  neat 
summer  villas,  in  delightful  and  salubrious  situations,  and  its  sylvan  walks 
of  the  most  inviting  description  by  the  banks  of  the  river,  which  here 
seem  to  be  very  well  adapted  to  the  growth  of  the  Holly,  {Ilex  aquifolium,) 
specimens  of  which,  quite  in  a  state  of  nature,  frequently  attain  the  height 
and  dimensions  of  goodly-sized  trees. 

Leaving  this  sweet  spot,  we  find  the  scenery  assuming  more  and  more 
of  a  mountainous  description,  which  indeed  increases  steadily  till  we  reach 
the  culminating  point  in  the  lofty  Ben  Macdhui,  at  whose  base  the  stream 
we  are  now  ascending,  there  indeed  a  very  little  stream,  takes  its  rise. 
To  the  north  lies  the  Hill  of  Fare,  botanically  celebrated  as  once  the  only 
known  locality  for  Garex  pauciflora  in  the  shire,  (though  now  ascertained 
to  be  of  very  extensive  distribution  indeed,  in  suitable  localities;)  histori- 
cally, as  the  scene  of  an  engagement,  in  1562,  between  the  partisans  of 
the  Earls  of  Murray  and  Gordon,  the  beautiful,  but  unfortunate  and  erring 
Queen  Mary  being  a  spectator  of  it,  as  well  as  of  Gordon's  subsequent 
execution  in  Aberdeen,  on  which  occasion  she  is  said  to  have  wept  bitterly 
— so  true  was  she  at  all  times  to  her  wayward  disposition,  at  least,  so 
saith  tradition,  as  she  points  out  Queen  Mary's  well,  situated  in  a  grassy 
glade  on  its  side.  The  next  point  of  interest  is  the  Bridge  of  Potarch, 
a  little  above  which  the  channel  of  the  river  is  suddenly  contracted  to 
the  breadth  of  fifteen  feet — the  efiect  of  a  dyke  of  felspar,  which  here 
forms  the  bank  on  one  side,  and  a  little  farther  down,  passes  completely 
under  its  bed. 

VOL.  VI.  2  D 


202  A    VISIT    TO    BRAEMAn. 

Having  thus  dipped  incidentally  into  the  geology  of  the  river's  basin^ 
we  may  remark  that  for  almost  its  whole  length,  with  few  exceptions, 
such  as  an  occasional  patch  of  crystalline  limestone,  or  a  few  detached 
strata  of  mica-schist,  the  surrounding  country  consists  either  of  granite  or 
gneiss,  which  seem  to  cover  its  surface  in  pretty  equal  proportions,  the 
former  predominating  on  the  north,  and  the  latter  on  the  south  side  of 
the  river,  which  drains  this  pretty  extensive  district.  Passing  rapidly  through 
the  villages  of  Kincardine-O'Neil  and  Aboyne,  and  catching  a  glimpse  of 
the  scared  and  rugged  hills  which  enclose  Glen  Tanar  and  Birse,  the  latter 
of  which  enjoys  something  of  a  Bajotian  reputation,  for  reasons  known  only 
to  the  natives,  we  emerge  on  a  flat  and  cheerless  moorland,  worthy,  we 
think,  of  being  put  in  competition  with  the  flir-famed  "Heath  near  Forres," 
the  scene  of  Macbeth's  encounter  with 

"These 
So  withered  and  so  wild  in  their  attire, 
That  look  not  like  the  inhabitants  o'  the  earth, 
And  yet  are  on't." 

However  the  moor  of  Dinnat  need  bear  no  such  black  character,  for 
any  disagreeable  associations  to  which  it  may  give  rise,  are  at  once  dis- 
pelled, or  ought  to  be,  on  our  reaching  its  farther  extremity,  when  its  dull 
uniformity  but  gives  greater  effect  to  the  beautiful  scenery  around  Ballater, 
whose  vicinity  we  are  now  approaching.  The  picturesque  scenery  of  this 
lovely  village  has  been  said  to  resemble  nothing  more  strikingly  than  ^'the 
steep  hills  of  the  Black  Forest  near  Wildbad,"  so  that  any  one  who  has 
been  at  the  pains  of  visiting  Wildbad,  or  other  fashionable  continental  re- 
sort, may  reconsider  his  good  taste  in  doing  so,  without  first  having  paid 
the  tribute  of  admiration  at  the  shrine  of  the  rocky  beauties  of  his  father- 
land, which,  be  it  known,  (for  in  many  circles  there  are  those  who  turn 
a  deaf  ear  to  the  fact,)  teems  with  scenery  scarcely  to  be  surpassed  in 
point  of  beauty  or  sublimity. — '^ 

Yes,  fickle  Fashion  is  a  wondrous  thing. 
But,  truly,  the  charms  of  this  spot  need  to  be  clothed  with  no  fictitious 
interest,  to  give  it  a  place  in  the  fond  memory  of  every  true  admirer  of 
Nature,  as  he  gazes  on  its  rocky  walls  of  grisly  hills,  about  whose  swarthy 
sides  the  morning  mists,  in  wavy  contortions,  "like  a  wounded  snake,  drag 
their  slow  length  along"  yonder  clump  of  dark  fir,  which  bristles  from  the 
rocky  debris  below,  and  now  disappear  over  their  lichen-painted  and  weather- 
beaten  summits,  with  the  blue  smoke  rising  languidly  in  the  still  air  from 
the  hearths  of  the  industrious  peasantry. 

And   now  that  we  have    fairly  entered   the   Highlands   by  so  worthy  a 
portal,  we  proceed  right  bi'iskly  on  our  way  to  Braemar  by  the  road  leading 
round   the  base  of  Craigen-darroch — the  Rock  of  Oaks,  from   its  southern 
*  Credo  cxperto. — F.  0.  Morris. 


A    VISIT    TO    BRAEMAR.  .  203 

exposure  being  clothed  in  a  verdant  mantle  of  bright  green  oaks^  thus 
affording  an  agreeable  contrast  to  the  fir  trees,  (Pinus  sylvestris.)  which 
form  the  staple  of  the  forest,  whether  natural  or  planted,  in  this  district. 
Unfortunately  this  colony  of  the  noble  oak  {Quercus  sessilijlora)  is  cut  down 
at  intervals  for  economical  purposes,  though  a  few  venerable  monarchs  of 
the  race  still  survive,  scattered  here  and  there  upon  Deeside.  Besides  many 
views  of  the  majestic  Lochnagar,  and  other  less  striking  hills,  the  objects 
of  interest  between  this  point  and  our  ultimate  destination  are  of  a  varied 
and  interesting  nature;  of  these,  perhaps,  the  most  worthy  of  note  are  the 
^'Birks  of  Abergeldie,"  and  Balmoral  Castle.  The  former  is  a  natural  growth, 
extending  for  many  miles  around,  of  the  fragrant  birch,  whose  pendant 
tresses  (at  least  in  one  variety)  droop  elegantly  above  our  heads,  rustling 
in  every  breeze.  No  wonder  that  such  a  proximity  should  have  excited 
the  poetic  element  in  hearts  less  susceptible  than  that  of  the  gifted  Burns, 
who,  in  his  ode,  "The  Birks  of  Aherfeldie"  (Perth,)  beginning — 

"Now  simmer  blinks  on  flowery  braes, 
And  o'er  the  crystal  streamlet  plays," 

celebrates,  in  flowing  numbers,  such  a  scene;  strangely  enough,  borrowing 
his  chorus  and  metre  from  a  song  of  older  date,  traceable  to  the  very 
locality  of  which  we  are  speaking,  the  "Birks  of  Abergeldie." 

And  now  we  near  that  pile  of  almost  dazzling  whiteness,  (a  very  light 
granite,)  nestling  in  glades  of  silvery  birch  and  more  sombre  pine,  which 
boasts  a  Eoyal  Mistress.  Let  us  then,  as  we  leave  its  receding  form,  pray 
with  every  loyal  subject,  that  she  may  in  this  her  Highland  home,  yet 
spend  many  a  happy  hour,  far  removed  from  the  cares  of  state,  in  the 
palmy  days  of  Peace.*"  Enjoying  as  we  proceed  a  combination  of  scenery 
alike  sublime,  and  fascinating  in  its  beauty,  we  are  apprised  of  our  prox- 
imity to  the  Castleton,  by  obtaining  occasional  glimpses  of  the  white  walls 
of  its  castle,  and  more  especially  by  the  up-and-down  (always  characteristic  of 
old  bridges  in  Scotland)  over  the  picturesque  bridge  that  here  spans  the  river. 

The  remainder  of  our  course  lies  along  the  base  of  Craig  Clunie,  and 
the  Lion's  Face,  (so  named  from  some  fancied  resemblance  to  the  said 
appendage  of  his  shaggy  majesty,)  whose  sides  shooting  up  almost  perpen- 
dicularly from  our  feet,  clothed  to  their  very  summits  in  a  tangled  mass 
of  vegetation,  inspire  with  something  like  dread  the  pigmies  at  their  base, 
lest  at  every  instant  they  topple  over,  and  bury  bipeds,  quadrupeds,  stage 
and  all,  in  extricable  ruin.  Without  the  occurrence  of  such  an  unlikely 
catastrophe,  however,  we  drive  merrily  into  the  capital  of  Braemar. 

The  rest  of  this  day  we  spent  in  a  pleasant  saunter  in  the  environs  of 
the  village,  and  in  the  no  less  pleasant  employment  of  making  the  acquaiu- 

*  Amen, — F.  0.  MoiiRis. 


204  BOTANICAL    NOTES.  , 

tanee,  througli  the  kind  offices  of  a  friend,  of  a  gentleman,  •who  already  on 
the  ground,  was  destined  to  be  the  much-prized  companion  of  most  of  my 
future  rambles.  I  refer  to  Mr.  Croall,  of  Montrose,  a  botanist  who  yields 
to  none  in  a  practical,  and  at  the  same  time  thoroughly  scientific  ac- 
quaintance with  the  productions  of  this  interesting  district, — add  to  which 
his  extreme  readiness  to  communicate  his  information  to  others,  a  quality 
to  which  the  writer  of  these  pages  is  indebted  for  anything  of  scientific 
interest  they  may  contain,  and  which  he  would  now  gratefully  acknowledge. 
As  I  looked  on  the  bright  heaps  of  yellow  Hieracia,  blending  with  the 
more  delicate  hues  of  Astragalus  alpinus  and  other  alpine  plants  lying  before 
me,  the  lines  of  Wordsworth  v. ere  forcibly  recalled  to  my  memory: — 

"No  floweret  blooms 
Throughout  the  lofty  ranj^e  of  these  rough  hills, 
Or  in  the  woods,  that  could  from  him  conceal 
Its  birth-place;  none  whose  figure  did  not  live 
Upon  his  touch." 

On  the  following  day  I  set  out  with  my  companion  to  Morrone,  a  pretty 
lofty  hill  to  the  west  of  the  village.  The  first  part  of  our  ascent  lay 
through  a  dense  natural  growth  of  birch,  (Betula  alba,)  whose  light  and 
silvery  drapery,  springing  from  the  most  verdant  flower-enamelled  sward 
one  could  well  wish  to  see,  stretches  quite  round  the  north  and  east  sides 
of  the  hill,  almost  unmixed  with  any  other  tree,  down  to  the  very  brink 
of  the  river.  Springing  from  a  profusion  of  common  plants,  we  perceive 
Oymnadenia  conopsea,  Geranium  sylvaticum^  Polygonum  viviparum,  with 
abundance  of  the  bright  golden  balls  of  the  Globe-flower,  (TroUius  Euro- 
pceus,)  and  the  no  less  acceptable  flowers  of  the  Primula  veris,  yet  sparingly 
in  flower.  Nor  did  the  rocks  and  trees  appear  less  niggard  than  the  lawn 
from  which  they  rose,  in  supplying  a  rich  harvest  of  the  common  crypto- 
gamic  plants,  all  of  which  it  would  be  tedious,  and  perhaps  out  of  place 
here,  to  enumerate;  suffice  it  to  mention,  I  gathered  from  the  former, 
Tortula  tortuosa^  and  the  long,  creeping,  golden  sprays  of  the  Hypnum 
sericeum ;  while  the  latter  was  no  less  rich  in  beautiful  tufts  of  Orthotricum 
Drummondi. 

(To  be  continued.) 


BOTANICAL     NOTES. 

BY    W.  SUTHERLAND,    ESQ. 


TnR  occurrence  of  white  flowers  on  plants,  which  normally  produce  coloured 
ones,  is  a  subject  of  considerable  interest  to  the  botanical  student,  connected, 
as  it  is,  with  the  colouring  principles  that  operate  in  producing  the  beautiful 
tints  which  everywhere   greet   the    eye   in    the  vegetable   kingdom.     Their 


BOTANICAL   NOTES.  205 

existence  can  be  traced  to  the  absence,  or  extreme  dilution  of  the  only 
two  colouring  agents  hitherto  discovered  in  plants,  clorophyl  and  chromule; 
and  consequently  they  may  be  expected  to  occur,  under  certain  conditions, 
in  flowers  of  all  colours,  from  the  deep  blue  tints  of  the  Cyanio  series,  as 
seen  in  many  hyacinths,  to  those  of  the  xanthic,  or  yellow  series,  so  pre- 
valent  in  the  Ranunculacece. 

As  instances  of  this  transmutation  of  colour,  we  would  specify  the  fol- 
lowing as  among  the  more  important  that  have  come  under  our  ob- 
servation : — 

SympJiytum  officinale,  (Common  Comfrey,)  with  flowers  of  a  dirty  white 
colour,  and  in  this  respect  almost  identical  with  S.  tuberosum.  This  variety 
we  have  seen  only  by  the  side  of  an  old  wall  at  Rubislaw,  about  a  mile 
distant  from  Aberdeen.  This  station  is  also  well  worth  a  visit,  from  the 
fact  of  its  producing  Tcucrium  chamoedrys,  (Wall  Germander,)  a  pretty 
little  plant,  which  beginning  to  flower  about  the  end  of  July,  bedecks  part 
of  the  wall  with  its  spikes  of  small  pink  flowers,  well  relieved  against  its 
dark  evergreen  leaves,  all  over  the  autumn  months;  and,  indeed,  on  visiting 
the  spot  in   Kovember  last,  we  saw  many  specimens  still  in  flower. 

FoJemonium  cceruleum,  (Jacob's  Ladder,)  we  have  gathered  by  the  banks 
of  a  stream  in  the  same  neighbourhood,  in  one  season  of  the  purest  white, 
while  in  another  we  found  onlj  specimens  of  the  common  blue  colour. 

Vicia  sepium,  (Hedge  Vetch.) — We  have  seen  specimens  of  this  plant 
with  white  flowers,  only  in   the   parish  of  Auchindoir,  in  this  county. 

Cnicus  palustrisj  (Marsh  Thistle,)  is  by  no  means  unfrequent  in  this 
quarter  with  white  flowers. 

Campanula  rotundifolia,  (Bell  Flower,)  is  also  of  not  unusual  occurrence 
with  this  peculiarity.  We  have  likewise  observed  in  some  plants  a  decided 
tendency  to  produce  double  flowers. 

C.  latifolia,  on  the  banks  of  the  Don,  above  Breda,  in  Alford,  (white.) 

Pedicularis  palustris,  (Marsh  Lousewort,)  producing  white  flowers,  we 
have  seen  only  near  the  upper  course  of  the  River  Dee,  as  at  the  well- 
known  Linn,  and  all  along  Glen  Dee,  to  the  foot  of  Ben  Macdhui. 

The  three  British  species  of  Heaths,  which  occur  in  this  district,  are 
all  occasionally  to  be  met  with  of  a  white  colour,  and  then  present  a  very 
pretty  appearance.  We  refer  to  Erica  tetralixy  E.  cinerea,  and  Galluna 
vulgaris.  The  former,  however,  surpasses  the  other  two  in  variety  of 
colouring;  in  some  young  patches  of  this  species  we  have  observed  four  or 
five  difierent  varieties,  ranging  from  the  white  or  pale  rose-colour  to  the 
deeper  shades  of  purple. 

Galeopsis  Tetrahit. — With  us  appears  in  tints  equally  diverse  with  those 
assumed  by  the  plant  of  which  we  have  just  spoken,  and  certainly  presents 
a  better  claim   to  the  specific  versicolor  than  the   species  which  now  bears 


206  BOTANICAL    KOTES. 

the  name.  We  suspect  this  is  another  example  of  the  "lueus  a  non  lu- 
cendo"  style,  which  calls  a  common  Plantago,  maritima,  because  it  occurs 
not  only  on  our  shores,  but  thirty  miles  inland,  (where  we  have  repeatedly 
observed  it;)  and  dubs  a  common  Gnaphalium,  sylvaticum,  because  it  never 
seeks  the  shade  of  the  umbrageous  wood. 

The  agency  of  rivers  and  currents,  in  extending  the  distribution  of  plants, 
has  long  been  recognised.  For  instance,  nothing  can  be  more  probable 
than  that  in  the  flooding  of  mountain  streams,  which  attends  the  melting 
of  the  snow  on  the  approach  of  spring,  many  seeds  of  plants  growing  along 
their  course,  will  be  swept  downwards  by  the  torrent,  and  if  accidentally 
impeded  in  their  passage,  will  vegetate  wherever  they  find  suitable  conditions. 
This  phenomenon  is  well  seen  along  the  course  of  the  Dee,  which,  for 
almost  its  whole  length,  (say  ninety  miles,)  bears  traces  of  the  Alpine  Flora, 
which  characterizes  its  head-waters,  becoming  less  marked,  however,  as  we 
near  the  German  Ocean.  But  even  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  Aberdeen, 
such  plants  as  Arahis  petrcea  and  A.  liirsuta,  may  be  gathered  in  places 
near  the  bed  of  the  river,  along  with  Trollius  Europaus,  Pimpinella  sax- 
ifraga,  Alchemilla  alpina,  Oxyria  reniformis,  Meum  athamanticum,  Galium 
horeale,  Saxifraga  aizoidcs,  Cnicus  heterophyllns ,  etc.  And,  perhaps,  we 
ought  to  refer  to  the  same  cause  the  appearance  on  the  sea-coast  of  the 
plants  mentioned  in   the    following  quotation: — 

"  *  -'^  *■  In  the  tract  extending  from  Peterhead  to  BanflP,  two 
or  more  localities  have  been  observed  for  each  of  the  following  unexpected 
plants: — Rhodiola  rosea,  Scilla  verna,  and  Saxifraga  oppositifolia.  I  have 
recent  accounts,  too,  though  not  yet  completely  verified,  of  another  Saxi- 
fraga still  more  exclusively  confined  to  the  mountains,*  having  being  detected 
on  the  same  coast." 

The  facts  here  stated  are  extracted  from  a  note  to  the  Preface  of  the 
^'J^orthern  Flora,"  that  admirable  work,  by  the  late  Dr.  Murray,  of  this 
city,  an  enthusiastic  and  successful  student  of  the  botany  of  his  native 
country,  and  who  was  too  prematurely  cut  off  for  botanical  science  in 
general,  and  the  completion  of  his  "Flora,"  which  bade  fair  to  take  a  very 
high  place  among  the  Local  Floras  of  this  country,  and  excelled  most  in 
the  completeness  and  accuracy  of  its  details. 

In  a  previous  volume  of  "The  jS^aturalist,"  considerable  attention  was 
directed  at  the  time  to  the  distribution  of  our  British  Water-Lilies — Nym- 
phcea  alba,  Nuphar  lutea,  and  Nuphar  puraila.  Of  the  occurrence  of  the 
first  two  in  this  district,  notice  was  taken  at  the  time,  as  being  the  fre- 
quent inhabitants  of  many  pools  and  lochs,  all  over  the  country.  But  it 
is  to  the  occurrence  of  the  third  that  we  wish  to  direct  attention  at  present. 

*  Perhaps  he  means  ^S.  hypjioides,  which  we  have  seen  on  the  Kincardineshire  coast, 
mostly  however  traceable  to  gardens. 


BOTANICAL    NOTES.  207 

We  /rathered  it  in  considerable  abundance  last  August  in  Loch  Kinnord, 
in  the  Croniar  district  of  this  county,  and  not  two  miles  north  of  the 
Decside  Turnpike,  (the  route  to  Braemar.)  It  also  produces  the  other 
two  species,  and  that  in  greater  abundance.  An  hour  or  two  spent  by 
the  botanist  on  the  placid  bosom  of  this  loch,  will  always  be  looked  back 
to,  as  among  the  most  pleasant  in  his  excursion.  For  yonder  little  island 
is  almost  encircled  with  a  dense  thicket  of  that  beautiful  and  rare  grass, 
Calamagrostis  epigejos ;  and  that  bay  to  the  south  affords  abundance  of 
Carex  Jiliforviis,  with  its  long  tapering  stem,  and  dark  thread-like  head  of 
flowers.  By  a  little  dexterous  'Spoking"  in  the  muddy  bottom,  you  will, 
without  doubt,  ''land"  a  few  specimens  of  Isoetes  lacustris,  or  Callitriche 
autumnalis.  Add  to  this  the  agreeable  effect  produced  by  whole  sheets  of 
yellow  and  white  Water-Lilies,  the  graceful  racemes  of  the  bluish  white 
Lobelia  Dortmanna  nodding  in  the  breeze,  and  all  surrounded  by  the  stately 
stems  of  the  Arundo  Phragmitis,  which  seem  to  keep  watch  and  ward  over 
their  more  delicate  brethren,  with  the  fringe  of  silvery  beech,  (Betula  alba,) 
that  encircles  the  loch, — all  are  but  parts  in  a  picture,  that  has  but  to 
be  seen  to  be  admired.  But  apart  from  these  purely  botanical  attractions, 
this  loch,  though  possessing  few  of  the  features  of  a  really  alpine  or  High- 
land one,  rejoices  in  not  a  few  interesting  associations  connected  with  the 
neighbourhood.  For,  skirting  its  western  shore  runs  the  rocky  ridge  of 
Culbleen,  which,  a  little  north,  finds  its  highest  elevation  in  ''Morven  of 
snow,"  both  well  known  as  the  favoured  haunts  of  Byron,  when  he  "roamed 
a  young  Highlander  over  the  heath,"  while  on  the  loch  itself  are  two 
islands,  (one  of  them  artificial,)  on  which  there  are  many  appearances  to 
lead  us  to  concur  with  the  prevalent  belief  that  here  the  ancient  Scottish 
kings  had  a  castle,  where,  in  time  of  peace,  they  spent  the  summer  months 
in  the  exercises  of  the  chase,  having  then,  in  all  probability,  to  deal  with 
far  more  formidable  game  than  now  falls  to  the  gun  of  the  keenest  sports- 
man on  the   12th.,  upon  the  adjacent  Moor  of  Dinnat. 

Gymnadenia  conopsea. — We  were  not  a  little  surprised,  two  summers 
ago,  in  re-visiting,  after  a  few  days  absence,  a  spot  on  which  this  beau- 
tiful orchid  grew  in  great  abundance,  to  find  that  all  our  little  favourites 
had  apparently  been  spirited  away  by  some  charm  or  other,  for  assuredly 
not  one  was  to  be  seen.  But,  on  closer  inspection,  we  found  that  where- 
ever  a  plant  had  been,  there  was  now  nothing,  save  a  little  funnel-shaped 
hole,  carefully  scooped  out;  and  a  little  watching  soon  revealed  the  perpe- 
trators of  this  shocking  deed  to  be  our  old  friends,  the  Rooks,  who,  for 
some  reason  or  other,  had  taken  a  liking  to  these  delicious  tubers.  By 
playing  us  this  little  trick,  Mr.  Crow  had  almost  for  the  time,  lost  in  us 
an  advocate  for  his  preservation,  and  a  believer  in  the  fact  that  he  bears 
a  very  important  and  useful  part  in  the  economy  of  Nature.     But  at  all 


208  BOTANICAT.    NOTES. 

events  we  could  scarcely  have  taken  the  advice  of  an  advertiser  in  the 
''Inverness  Courier,"  of  a  recent  date,  and  proscribed  for  him  a  doze  of 
ITux  vomica.  This  enlightened  writer,  who,  bj-the-bye,  must  either  be 
some  designing  quack,  anxious  to  "get  off"  a  box  or  two  of  his  favourite 
nostrum,  or  some  deluded  agriculturalist,  gives  the  world  at  large  the  fol- 
lowing sage  advice: — ''Dissolve  one  pound  of  Nux  vomica  in  warm  water, 
enough  to  steep  one  bushel  of  light  barley,  and  then  scatter  it  near  the 
dung-heaps  in  the  fields.  Pick  up  the  Rooks  when  sick  from  the  poison, 
as  they  may  frighten  off  others  from  eating  it,  and  put  them  in  a  heap, 
where  they  will  make  excellent  manure  (bones  and  feathers)."  This  whole- 
sale method  of  going  to  work  will  surely  stand  comparison  with  any  hitherto 
recorded  exploit  of  those  redoubtable  institutions,  "Sparrow-destroying  So- 
cieties." Such  is  another  deplorable  instance  of  the  short-sightedness  of  us 
mortals,  in   discriminating  between  our  true  and  false  friends. 

Before  concluding  these  remarks,  which  have  been  but  too  hastily  thrown 
together,  we  wish  to  say  a  few  words  on  a  plan,  which,  if  not  hitherto 
extensively  carried  out  in  practice  by  the  readers  of  "The  Naturalist,"  we 
conceive  no  reason  why  it  should  not  be.  We  refer  to  the  exchange 
of  botanical  and  other  specimens,  through  the  medium  of  this  paper,  be- 
tween such  parties  as  may  be  desirous  of  furthering  the  completion  of  their 
collections  by  this  method.  We  have  a  corner  monthly  devoted  to  the 
"Querist,"  and  another  to  the  "Retrospect,"  which  are  all  very  good  in 
their  way,  and  have  admirably  fulfilled  the  purposes  for  which  they  were 
set  on  foot.  But  why  have  we  no  Exchange?*  Much  space  would  not  be 
required,  merely  enough  to  record  the  names  and  addresses  of  parties, 
wishing  to  participate  in  the  pleasures  and  profits  calculated  to  arise  from 
this  plan,  with  perhaps  an  occasional  note  of  such  desiderata  as  are  more 
particularly  desired  by,  and  of  duplicates  at  the  disposal  of,  such  parties. 
We  believe  that  this  plan,  which  is  no  other  than  the  introduction  (if  you 
will)  of  parties  at  a  distance,  so  situated  as  to  be  mutually  serviceable  to 
each  other  in  the  collection  of  objects  of  Natural  History,  has  been  found 
far  more  effective  in  compassing  the  desired  ends,  than  the  often  clumsy 
machinery  set  on  foot  by  large  Societies,  and  otherwise,  for  the  purpose 
specified.  Besides  were  the  scheme  once  properly  organized,  an  amount  of 
information  regarding  the  distribution,  etc.,  of  species  might  be  gleaned, 
which  would  considerably  enrich  the  pages  of  "The  Naturalist"  from  time 
to  time.  It  is  under  this  impression,  gentle  reader,  that  we  have  ventured 
to  bring  this  matter  before  you  for  consideration,  and  that  at  a  time  when 
any  new  feature  in  this  periodical  might  be  very  gracefully  introduced. 

Aberdeen,  January  19th.,  1856. 

*  This  is  a  very  good  suggestion,  and  falls  in  Avith  a  similar  plan  which  I  had  myself 
thought  of.    It  shall  be  adopted.— F.  0.  Moaiiis. 


209 


THREE    DAYS    IN    THE     FALKLAND     ISLANDS. 

BY    J.  S.  WALKER,    ESQ. 

Midnight  on  the  South  Atlantic!  Through  the  driving  mist,  over  the 
surging  billows,  the  huge  steam  ship  foams  and  roars  along.  We  are  off 
Cape  Horn,  that  tempestuous  region  so  much  dreaded  by  mariners,  -whose 
sterile  rocks  oppose  the  only  barrier  to  the  long  roll  of  the  waves,  which, 
unbroken  by  any  laud  for  three  thousand  miles,  ceaselessly  lash  its  shores. 
The  ship  is  surrounded  by  icebergs  of  immense  size  and  varied  forms, 
through  which  we  carefully  thread  our  course.  At  this  season  of  the  year, 
in  these  high  latitudes,  the  night  brings  no  darkness,  and  we  pass  so  close 
to  leeward  of  one  large  berg,  that  we  can  distinctly  discern  the  icicles 
hanging  from  the  huge  caverns,  which  the  waves  have  fretted  in  its  sides, 
whilst  the  surf  breaking  with  a  noise  like  thunder,  dashes  the  spray  high 
up  on  its  icy  pinnacles.  We  look  with  wonder  and  awe  upon  the  picture 
of  desolation  it  presents.  Its  cold  surface  of  virgin  snow  has  probably 
never  been  pressed  by  any  living  creature.  The  solitude  seems  death-like, 
and  the  very  wind  as  it  passes  over  it,  comes  to  us  laden  with  a  freezing 
vapour;  but,  as  if  to  prove  that  there  is  no  place  in  the  whole  world  which 
the  Great  Creator  has  left  untenanted,  a  solitary  sea-bird,  skimming  over 
the  waves  on  rapid  wing,  flits  by,  and  is  lost  to  our  view  in  a  moment. 
Whither  can  this  wanderer  be  bound  at  this  hour  of  the  night,  and  on 
what  errand?  The  nearest  known  land  is  distant  several  hundred  miles,  and 
it  is  hastening  away  in  an  opposite  direction.  Perhaps  it  is  in  quest  of  some 
rocky  island  hitherto  undiscovered  by  man,  far  away  in  the  regions  of  thick- 
ribbed  ice,  where  it  may  build  its  nest  and  rear  its  young  in  safety.  "The 
God  of  Nature  is  its  secret  guide." 

What  a  different  scene  breaks  upon  our  view  just  one  week  later,  when, 
early  in  the  morning  of  the  last  day  of  the  year  1853,  the  Great  Britain 
slowly  steams  into  the  snug  anchorage  of  Port  Stanley,  the  capital,  and 
indeed  the  only  settlement  in  the  Falkland  Islands.  The  sea  is  as  smooth 
as  glass,  and  the  sun  shines  brightly  overhead.  Large  numbers  of  fish, 
which  the  sailors  call  Skip-Jacks,  are  leaping  from  the  water.  Terns, 
Gulls,  Whale-birds,  Cape-hens,  and  others  of  the  Palmipedes,  are  busily 
engaged  fishing.  Several  specimens  of  the  Great  Penguin,  (Spheniscus  Ma- 
gellanicus,)  poke  their  heads  above  the  surface  of  the  water  to  take  a  peep 
at  us,  and  dive  down  again  instantly,  in  a  state  of  intense  alarm.  A 
beautiful  snow-white  Gannet  hovers  over  the  ship;  whilst  in  the  distance 
long  lines  of  Wild  Geese  and  Ducks  are  crossing  the  Bay. 

At  10  A.M.  we  drop  anchor  off'  the  settlement.  The  distant  country 
looked  anything  but  inviting.  As  far  as  we  could  see  a  succession  of  rock- 
capped  hills  extended,  covered  with  grass  and  herbs  up  to  the  summits,  but 

VOL.  VI.  2  E 


210 


THREE    DAYS    IN    THE    FAT-KLAND    ISLANDS, 


not  a  vestige  of  a  bush  or  tree  on  which  the  eye  could  rest  to  break  the 
wearisome  monotony.  However  our  stay  is  to  be  very  short,  and  it  is  neces- 
sary to  make  the  most  of  our  time,  and  as  three  of  my  fellow-voyagers 
have  agreed  to  accompany  me  on  an  expedition  into  the  interior  of  the 
island,  we  hasten  on  shore  to  make  the  necessary  preparations. 

Having  secured  horses  and  the  services  of  a  Guacho  as  guide,  we  start 
early  the  following  morning  to  ride  across  the  country  to  Port  I^ouis, 
situated  on  Berkeley  Sound,  where  the  original  settlement  was  founded. 
We  are  provided  with  guns  and  a  plentiful  supply  of  ammunition,  for  we 
have  been  told  that  the  country  abounds  with  rabbits  and  wild -fowl.  We 
have  been  so  long  cooped  up  on  board  ship,  that  it  is  quite  delightful  to 
find  ourselves  once  more  in  the  saddle,  and  galloping  across  the  plain. 
After  riding  two  or  three  miles  to  the  head  of  the  bay,  we  struck  across 
the  hills  into  the  interior. 

The  first  fifteen  miles  of  our  journey  was  by  no  means  pleasant  riding. 
The  country^  or  camp,  as  the  Falklanders  term  it,  consisted  of  a  succession 
of  bogs  and  morasses;  the  horses  sinking  over  the  fetlocks  at  every  step, 
and  several  times  we  narrowly  escaped  getting  bogged.  After  struggling 
and  wading  through  this  miserable  country  for  a  couple  of  hours,  we  as- 
cended a  steep  hill,  which  is,  I  believe,  the  highest  in  East  Falkland, 
from  whence  we  had  a  splendid  view  of  the  entrance  and  harbour  of 
Port  Louis.  We  coasted  round  the  shores  of  the  bay  for  several  miles, 
and  late  in  the  evening,  tired  and  wearied,  reached  the  settlement  where 
we  were  to  pass  the  night. 

Port  Louis  consists  of  only  two  houses,  built  of  stone  (unhewn)  in  a  sub- 
stantial manner,  but  only  one  of  them  is  inhabited.  At  a  short  distance 
stands  the  ruins  of  an  old  fort,  with  a  few  dismantled  cannon,  half  buried 
in  the  ground,  and  the  remains  of  some  houses,  which  had  been  destroyed 
during  the  early  years  of  the  colony  by  an  American  brig  of  war,  in  re- 
taliation for  an  alleged  injury  perpetrated  upon  some   American  whalers. 

This  district  is  in  the  possession  of  the  original  Falkland  Island  Com- 
pany, who  own  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  sheep,  and  large  herds  of  cattle 
and  horses.  About  one-half  of  the  sheep  are  pure  bred  South-downs,  and 
the  rest  a  cross  between  that  breed  and  the  coarse  Monte  Videan  sheep. 
They  were  all  in  excellent  condition,  and  the  shepherd  assured  us  they 
throve  as  well  here  as  in  the  ''Old  country." 

The  common  grass  of  the  country  is  coarse  and  wiry,  but  there  are 
many  herbs  of  a  fattening  quality.  We  saw  a  little  white  clover  growing 
round  the  settlements,  which  seemed  to  thrive  pretty  well;  the  chief  de- 
pendence, however,  is  upon  a  long  sedgy  grass  of  the  genus  Carex.  The 
Tussac,  of  which  the  cattle  are  extremely  fond,  and  which  is  stated  to  be 
very  nutritious,  is  becoming  scarce  upon  various  parts  of  the  island,  having 


THREE    DAYS    IN    THE    FALKLAND    ISLANDS.  211 

been  eaten  down  and  destroyed  by  tbe  stock.     It  grows  somewhat  like  the 
Tree  Fern  of  Australia,  but  is  only  half  the  size. 

The  geological  formation  consists  of  sandstone  and  clay  slate.  The 
country  is  hilly,  but  the  highest  parts  are  as  boggy  as  the  flats,  and  it  is 
everywhere  covered  by  a  peaty  soil.  The  tops  of  the  mountains  are 
thickly  strewn  with  detached  boulders  of  a  coarse  white  quartz  rock.  Many 
of  these  have  fallen,  or  been  displaced  by  some  convulsion  of  nature  in 
such  a  remarkable  manner,  that  from  a  short  distance  it  is  difficult  to 
persuade  oneself  that  it  is  not  an  actual  stream  of  water;  and  on  ap- 
proaching one  of  these  rivulets  of  stones,  we  were  much  surprised  to  find 
that  we  could  distinctly  hear  the  water  brawling  along  under  the  rocks. 

The  climate  is  boisterous,  and  the  changes  of  temperature  very  sudden, 
although  the  Islanders  do  not  suffer  from  the  extremes  of  either  heat  or 
cold.  Even  in  the  midst  of  summer  they  are  subject  to  violent  snow-storms, 
which  destroy  a  great  many  cattle;  indeed,  the  weather  is  so  tempestuous, 
that  it  is  only  in  sheltered  situations  they  are  enabled  to  grow  a  few 
vegetables — the  cultivation  of  cereal  crops  is  not  even  attempted.  But 
what  gives  an  air  of  desolation  is  the  fact,  that  not  a  single  tree  is  found 
on  the  whole  of  these  wretched  islands;  and  it  was  only  in  one  or  two 
sheltered  situations  that  we  saw  a  few  stunted  bushes,  about  two  or  three 
feet  in  height. 

West  Falkland,  which  is  stated  to  possess  a  finer  climate  and  ^^camp," 
and  several  excellent  harbours,  is  uninhabited — for  what  reason  I  know 
not.  It  is  frequented  at  certain  seasons  of  the  year  by  whalers  and  sealers, 
(chiefly  American,)  and  by  vessels  in  quest  of  guano,  considerable  quantities 
of  which  are  found  on  several  of  the  rocks  and  islets. 

The  anchorage  of  Stanley  harbour  is  excellent;  it  is  easy  of  access,  and 
is  admirably  adapted  for  a  coaling  depot  for  steamers.  Berkeley  Sound  is 
also  a  good  harbour;  it  is  sheltered  from  all  winds  by  Long  Island,  which 
stretches  nearly  across  the  entrance,  leaving  a  navigable  channel  on  either 
side.  This  island  belongs  to  the  Port  Louis  Company,  and  being  of  con- 
siderable extent,  and  covered  with  Tussac  grass,  it  is  used  for  the  purpose 
of  fattening  their  cattle,  which  are  driven  across  by  the  Guachos  when 
the  tide  is  out. 

It  is  stated  that  coal  exists  in  these  islands,  but  we  saw  none,  nor  any 
indications  of  it.  Peat  is  used  for  fuel,  and  also  a  small  shrub,  which  is  of 
so  inflammable  a  nature,  that  it  burns  readily  even  when  quite  green.  When 
this  cannot  be  procured,  the  bones  of  the  cattle  and  horses  are  used  as  a 
substitute. 

The  inhabitants  depend  chiefly  for  subsistence  upon  the  produce  of  their 
guns.  At  the  house  where  we  stopped  at  Port  Louis,  the  shepherd  and 
his   family  were  without   any  bread,  but,  except   in   lieu    thereof  a    little 


212  MINUTE    SKENEA. 

maize  meal,  of  a  coarse  description,  and  a  few  dried  beans^  they  subsisted 
literally  upon  wild-fowl  and  rabbits.  The  place  was  filthy  beyond  descrip- 
tion,— cold,  dirty,  and  comfortless,  whilst  fuel  was  very  scarce  and  of  an 
inferior  quality.  We  could  not  avoid  drawing  a  comparison  between  this 
man's  condition  and  that  of  a  shepherd  in  the  country  which  we  had  just 
left,  and  as  we  did  so  we  sighed  for  the  balmy  air  and  the  blue  skies  of 
Australia. 

(To  he  continued.) 


MINUTE     SKENEA. 

TO    THE    EDITOR    OF    "tHE    NATURALIST. 


J 
1.— Highly  magnified.  2.— Natural  size. 

Through  the  kindness  of  Spence  Bate,  Esq.,  I  am  enabled  to  send  you 
a  drawing  of  an  extremely  minute  Skenea,  which  I  found  in  sand  taken 
amongst  Corallina  officinalis,  from  rock  pools  at  Gwyllyn  Vase,  near  Fal- 
mouth. It  is  involute,  like  Skenea  nitidissima,  and  equally  umbilicated 
both  above  and  below,  but  the  whorls,  which  are  three  instead  of  two 
and  a  half,  as  in  that  shell,  do  not  increase  quite  so  rapidly  in  size. 
Its  distinctive  feature  consists  in  having  three  spiral  ribs  of  a  shining 
fulvous  tint,  which  contrast  strongly  with  the  whitish  ground  colour  of  the 
shell;  one  is  situated  on  each  side,  extending  from  the  apex  to  the  orifice, 
and  the  third,  which  is  not  so  distinctly  elevated,  on  the  centre  of  the 
body. 

The  entire  volutions  appear  under  a  good  lens  distinctly  wrinkled  lon- 
gitudinally, more  especially  on  the  inner  sides,  and  under  a  still  higher 
power,  finely  striated  spirally.  The  mouth,  which  is  well  rounded,  and  does 
not  turn  to  either  side,  embraces  a  considerable  portion  of  the  body  whorl. 
The  operculum  I  have  not  been  able  to  examine.  Its  diameter  hardly 
equals  the  twentieth  of  an  inch.  As  yet  I  have  only  obtained  four  speci- 
mens, but  have  still  some  small  portion  of  the  sand  in  which  they  are 
found,   remaining  unexamined. 

If  the  shell,  as  described  above,  is  already  known,  I  should  feel  greatly 
obliged  if  any  of  your  scientific  correspondents  would  favour  me  with  the 
name. 

I  am  borne  out  in  my  opinion  that  it  is  new  to  the  British  Fauna  by  Dr. 
Battersby,  of  Torquay,  who  has  kindly  examined  the  shell.     Should  it  prove 


SYSTEMA    NATDRiE. 


213 


equally  new    to   science,  SJcenea   tricarinata    would   be    a   very  appropriate 
designation. 

It  may  be  interesting  to  some  of  your  readers  to  know  that  I  met  with 
several  fine  specimens  of  the  scarce  Crenella  costulata  in  rock  pools  in 
Mount's  Bay,  and  also  Mudiola  phaseoUna  in  some  abundance  in  the  same 
locality. 

W.  WEBSTER. 

Upton  Hall,  near  Birkenhead,  June  21st.,  1856. 


SYSTEMA      NATURiE. 

BY    THE    REV.  P.  0.  MORRIS. 
(  Continued  from  page  185.  _) 


Taphozous  senegalensis,  Desm.  Temm. 

ScJiinz. 
Taphozous  leucopterus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Taphozous  saccolaimus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Taphozous  melanopogou,  Tem.  Schinz. 
Taphozous  longimanus,  JIardw.  Linn. 

Temm.  Schinz. 
Taphozous  bicolor,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Taphozous  mauritianus.       T.  maurici- 

anus,   Geoff.  Desm.  Temm.   Schinz. 
Taphozous     lepturus,     Geoff.     Desm. 

Schinz.        Vespertilio      marsupiahs, 

Mull.     V.  lepturus,   Schreb.  Fisch. 

Temm. 

Ntcteeis. 
Nycteris  thebaica,   Geoff.  Schinz.     JN". 

Geoifroyi,  Desm.  Fisch. 
Nycteris     albiventer,     Wag.     Schreb. 

Schinz. 
JN^ycteris  affinis,  Schinz. 
Nycteris  discolor,  Wag.  Schreb.  Schinz. 
Nycteris  capensis.  Smith.  Schinz. 
Nycteris  hispida,  Schinz.    N.  Dauben- 

tonii,    Geoff.     Vespertilio    hispidus, 

Schreb. 
Nycteris  javanica,  Geoff.  Wag.  Schinz. 

Nyctophilus. 
Nyctophilus  Geoffroyi,  Leach.  Temm. 

Wag.  Fisch.  Schinz. 

Rhinopoma. 
Ehinopoma       microphyllum,       Geoff. 


Schinz. 
Rhinopoma   carolinense,   Geoff.  Desm. 

Schinz. 

Rhinolophtts. 
Rhinolophus    nobilis,     Horsf.    Temm. 

Fisch.   Schinz. 
Rhinolophus    diadema,    Geoff.    Desm. 

Fisch.  Temm..  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus    insignis,    Horsf.  Schinz. 

R.  vulgaris,  Horsf.  Temm. 
Rhinolophus    speoris,    Temm.    Schin%. 

VespertUio  speoris,  Schreb. 
Rhinolophus  griseus,  Meyer.  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus   larvatus,    Horsf.    Temm. 

Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  dukhunensis,  Sykes.  Tem. 

Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  bicolor,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus     tridens,     Geoff.    Temm. 

Fisch.  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  tricuspidatus,  Tem.  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  Commersonii,  Tem.  Geoff, 

Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  luctus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  Euryotis,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  trifoliatus,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  unihastatus,   Schinz.     R. 

ferrum     equinum,     Leach.     Bonap. 

VespertiUo  ferrum  equinum,  Schreb. 

V.  hipposideros,    Herm.       Noctilio 

ferrum  equinum,  Bech. 
Rhinolophus  chvosus,  Kretsch.  Biipp. 


I 


214 


SYSTEMA    NATURE. 


Rbinolophus   capensis,   LicJit.  Scldnz. 

R.  Geoffroyi,  Smith. 
B.liinolopliu8    Nippon,    Temtn.   Wagn. 

Sc/iinz. 
Rhinoloplius     affinis,     Horsf.     Temm. 

ScJiinz. 
E-hinoloplius  Eouxii,  Temm.  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  biliastatus,   Geoff".  Temm. 

Schinz.    E.liippocrepis,  Jjses.  Bonap. 

E..  hipposideros,  Leach.    Vespertilio 

liippocrepis,    Herm.       V.    minutus, 

Mont.     V.  ferrum    equinum,  Linn. 

Schreh. 
Rhinolophus     minor,     Temm.    Horsf. 

Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  pusillus,  Schinz.     E..  pu- 

sille,   Temm. 
Ehinolophus  comutus,   Temm.  Schinz. 
Ehinolophus       megaphyllus,       Gray, 

Schinz. 
Ehinolophus  Landeri,  Mart.  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  fumigatus,  JRilpp.  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  Morio,  Gray,  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  Martini,  Fraser.  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  pygmseus,   Cum.  Schinz. 
Rhinolophus  phihppensis,  Cum.  Schiyiz. 

Megadeema. 

Megaderma  Lyra,  Geoff.  Fisch.  Schinz. 
Megaderma  frons,  Geoff.  Leach,  Fisch. 

Schinz. 
Megaderma  spasma,  Fisch.  Schinz.   M. 

trifolium,  Geoff'.  Desm.     Vespertiho 

spasma,  Schreb. 
Megaderma       phUippinensis,        Cum. 

Schinz. 

Phyllostoma. 
Phyllostoma     macrophyUum,      Prinz 

Max.  Fisch.  Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  cirrhosum,  Schinz.    Yam- 

pyrus  cirrhosus,  Spix.      Vespertilio 

Brasiliae,  Fisch. 
Phyllostoma  crenulatum,  Geoff.  Fisch. 

Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  elongatum,   Geoff.  Fisch. 

Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  hastatum,  Geoff.  Schinz. 


Schinz.     R.  Cliffon,  Temm.  Schinz. 

P.  maximum,  Prinz  Max.    Vesper- 
tiho perspiciUatus,  Schreh.     V.  has- 

tatus,  Pallas. 
Phyllostoma  bidens,  Spix.  Schinz. 
Phyllostoma    bicolor,    Wagn.    Schinz. 

Vampyrus  soricinus,  Spix. 
Phyllostoma  brevicaudum,  Prinz  Max. 

Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  Grayi,   Water.   Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  Redmanni,  Schinz.     Mo- 

nophyllus  Redmanni,  Leach. 
Phyllostoma  silvicola,  Schinz.     Lophi- 

ostoma  silvicola,  L'  Orhigny. 
Phyllostoma      perspicillatum,      Geoff. 

Water.  Schinz.    P.  planirostre,  Spix. 

P.  obscurum,  Prinz  Max.     Vesper- 
tilio perspiciUatus,  Linn.  Fisch. 
Phyllostoma  jamaicense,  Horsf.  Schinz. 

Artibajus  jamaicensis.  Leach,  Gray. 
Phyllostoma  falcatum,    Schinz.     Arti- 

boeus  falcatus.  Gray. 
Phyllostoma  superciliatum,  Prinz  Max. 

Schinz.    P.  lituratum,  Licht.  Fisch. 
Phyllostoma    lineatum,    Geoff.   Licht. 

Fisch.   Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  brachyotum,  Prinz  Max. 

Fisch.  Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  infundibuliforme,  Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  rotundum,  Geoff.  Schinz. 
Phyllostoma    Lilium,     Geoff.    Schiiiz. 

P.    spicidatum,    Licht.      VespertUio 

hastatus,  Azara. 
Phyllostoma  spectrum,  Geoff.  Schinz. 

Vespertilio  spectrimi,  Linn.  Schreh. 

Vampyrus  spectrum,   Geoff. 
Phyllostoma  Waterhousii,  Schinz.  Ma- 

crotus  "Waterhousii,  Proceed. 
Phyllostoma  megalotis.  Gray,  Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  longifolium,  Natt.  Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  amblyotis,  Natt.  Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  discolor,  Natt.  Schinz, 
Phyllostoma  personatum,  Natt.  Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  pusillum,  Natt.  Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  Leachii,  Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  verrucata,  Schinz.     Arti- 

bseus  verrucatus,  Gray. 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES.  215 


Phyllostoma  Vampyrus,  Schinz.    Stur^ 

nira  spectrum,   Gray. 
Phyllostoma  excisum,   Wagn.  Schinz. 

(To  be  continued.) 


Phyllostoma  bilabiatum,  Schinz. 
Phyllostoma  calcaratum,  Wag.  Schinz. 


"see    the    conquering    HERA    COMES !" 

Oallimorpha  Hera  a  British  Insect. — In  ^^The  Entomologist's  Weekly 
Intelligencer/'  No.  18,  for  August  2nd.,  1856,  there  appeared  the  following 
paragraph: — "The  pen  of  a  Northern  Divine  is  about  to  prove  that  Eera 
must  be  a  British  Insect,  as  it  occurs  in  the  Channel  Islands  abundantly." 

Hereby  hangs  a  tale — "Many  a  true  word  is  spoken  in  jest.". 

In  the  "Intelligencer"  of  June  7th.,  1856,  the  following  dictum  was 
laid  down: — "The  insects  of  the  Channel  Islands  are  not  considered  as 
British."  I^ot  thinking  that  a  simple  assertion  ought  to  decide  the  matter, 
I  wrote  the  following  note  to  the  editor,  Mr.  Stainton,  but  for  reasons 
best  known  to  himself  he  never  inserted  the  reply  to  his  ^^ipse  dixi,"  the 
rationale  of  which  will  be  apparent  to  any  one  having  an  ordinary  conception 
of  the  deductions  of  common  sense: — 

Nunburnholme  Kectory,  Hayton,  York,  June  17th,,   1856. 

Dear  Sir, 

With  reference  to  the  observation  in  the  last  number 
but  one  of  the  "Intelligencer,"  that  the  "Insects  of  the  Channel  Islands 
are  not  considered  as  British,"  I  beg  leave  to  propose  the  following  questions: — 
,    1st. — Are  Guernsey  plants  considered  as  British  by  the  leading  botanists? 

2nd. — Are  Guernsey  shells  considered  as  British  by  the  leading  con- 
chologists? 

3rd. — Is  it  anywhere  else  promulgated  that  one  class  of  the  productions 
of  a  country  is  to  be  considered  as  belonging  to  that  country,  and  that 
another  class  is  not? 

4th. — By  whom,  where,  when,  and  on  what  authority  is  it  laid  down 
that  the  Insects  of  the  Channel  Islands  are  not  to  be  considered  as  British? 

Yours  truly, 

F.  0.  MORRIS. 

This  letter,  as  I  have  above  stated,  was  not  inserted,  accordingly,  on 
the  14th.  of  July,  I  wrote  to  ask  that  as  a  "matter  of  justice,"  the 
remarks  on  the  assertion  might  have  the  like  "locus  standi"  accorded  to 
them  which  had  been  given  to  it.  This  request,  which  one  would  have 
thought  the  impartiality  which  a  true  spirit  of  science  rightly  lays  claim 
to  would  have  dictated  a  compliance  with,  was  equally  unattended  to.  I 
therefore   wrote   to   ask   to   have    my  letter   returned,  and   this   was  done. 


216  THE    QUERIST. 

My  readers  have  it  here,  and  I  think  I  can  calculate  with  confidence 
upon  their  verdict  in  favour  of  Hera  "on  the  evidence." 

To  these  questions  I  now  add — 

5th. — Is  there  any  other  instance  of  the  productions  of  one  part  of  a 
country  being  considered  as  belonging  to  that  country,  and  those  of  another 
part  not? 

6th. — Which  is  farthest  from  the  English  coast,  Guernsey  or  Shetland; 
the   birds,  etc.  of  which   latter   are   on  all   hands   allowed    to   be   British? 

August  4:th.,  1856.  F.  0.  MORRIS. 

Capture  of  Birds  in  Brunswick  Square,  Brighton. — In  May,  1855,  I 
caught  a  fine  male  Nightingale  in  the  garden  enclosure  of  Brunswick 
Square,  Brighton,  as  well  as  several  Whitethroats,  Whinchats,  and  Red- 
starts, both  male  and  female.  I  have  also  seen  there  abundance  of  Willow 
Wrens  and  Chifl-Chaflfs  in  the  spring,  one  of  the  former  of  which  I  caught. 
This  year  I  again  noticed  birds  of  the  same  kind  in  Brunswick  Square, 
and  caught  several,  as  well  as  a  Sedge  Warbler.  Considering  the  publicity 
of  Brighton,  it  appears  rather  a  curious  fact  that  these  birds  should  resort 
here  annually.  The  Square  seems  to  be  a  favourite  resting-place  on  their 
first  arrival  in  this  country,  but  they  seldom  remain  more  than  two  or 
three  days. — Charles  D.  Pothill,  17,  Brunswick  Square,  Brighton,  July 
3rd.,  1856. 

Singular  treatment  of  a  Fly  ly  a  Wasp. — Last  summer  I  was  watching 
attentively  the  movements  of  a  wasp  in  a  window,  when,  suddenly,  to  my 
amazement,  it  pounced  upon  a  large  fly.  A  combat  immediately  ensued, 
in  which  the  wasp,  apparently  from  the  commencement  of  the  attack  the 
more  powerful  of  the  two,  came  off  victorious.  It  then  adopted  a  mode 
of  treatment  resembling,  on  a  small  scale,  that  practised  by  conquerors  in 
uncivilized  times — proceeding  to  put  to  death  its  fallen  foe  by  torturing  it. 
First  of  all,  the  poor  fly  was  deprived  of  its  wings,  then  mounted  and 
compelled  by  the  occasional  application  of  its  conqueror's  sting  to  run  up 
and  down  the  pane  of  glass  with  great  rapidity.  When  this  had  been 
done,  evidently  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  wasp,  it  separated  the  legs  of  the 
poor  fly  from  its  body,  and  leaving  it  in  this  deplorable  condition,  flew 
away,  as  if  triumphing  over  its  victory. — Thomas  Foggitt,  Thirsk,  July 
12th.,  1856. 


Great  Crested  Grebe. — You  will  find  the  Great  Crested  Grebe  at  page 
198  of  the  1831  edition  of  Montagu's  book,  under  the  name  of  "Gaunt." 
The  book  is,  I  think,  quite  worthless,  from  the  difficulty  of  understanding 
what  bird  Rennie  really  means  in  most  instances. — Henry  Smurthwaite, 
Richmond,  July  1st.,  1856. 


THE    COMPLETION    OF 

KIDB'S    BEITISH    BIRDS    OF    SONG; 

INCLL'DING 

ALL    THE    "WARBLERS"    AND    SUMMER    VISITORS. 

These  Popiilar  Domestic  Treatises  having  been  long  out  of  print,  and  a  New. 
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LONDON: 
GROOMBRIDGE   AND   SONS,  5,  PATERNOSTER  ROW. 

AND  MAY  BE  HAD  OF  ALL  B00KSELLEK8. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

A  Visit  to  Refley  Wood.     By  T.  S 217 

Extracts    from    Correspondence    with    a    Brother    Naturalist.       By 

Frederick  M.  Burton,  Esq 219 

A  Visit  to  Braemar  in   1855.     By  W.  Sutherland,  Esq 222 

Contributions  to  the  Ichthyology  of  Banffshire.     By  W 229 

Miscellaneous  Notices. — Anecdote  of  a  Dog.  Instinct  of  Animals. 
The  Nightingale.     Java  Sparrow.     Occurrence  of  the  Rose-coloured 

Pastor.     The  Hoopoe 234 

Notices  of  New  Publications. — Jottings  in  Australia;  being  Notes 
on  the  Flora  and  Fauna  of  Victoria,  with  a  Catalogue  of  the 
more   common    Plants,   their   Habitats,    and   time    of    Flowering. 

By  Samuel  Hannaford,    Esq 236 

Review. — Insecta  Britannica  —  Diptera.  Vol.  III.  By  Francis 
Walker,    F.  L.  S.      London:    Lovell   Reeve,    Henrietta   Street, 

Covent  Garden.     1856.     (Large  Octavo  size.)    237 

Retrospect. — Moth  Hunting 237 

On  'Change. — Botany.     Peat    Earth.     Entomology 238 

Proceedings  of  Societies. — London  Working   Entomologists'   Club.       239 
Obituary.— Death  of  Mr.  Yarrell 239 


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M.  Jones; — W.  Sutherland,  Esq.  (two;) — T.  Southwell,  Esq.; — Harcourt 
B.  Slade,  Esq.; — Mr.  James  Gardner; — E.  Percival  Wright,  Esq. 

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217 
A    VISIT    TO    REFLEY    WOOB. 

BY    T.    S. 

Two  miles  from  Lynn,  a  large  town  in  West  Norfolk,  stands  Refley 
Wood,  or,  as  it  is  more  commonly  called,  Refley  Spring;  and  a  fine  old 
wood  it  is!  Oaks  which  have  stood  for  ages,  and  still  put  forth  their 
deep  green  foliage  with  the  returning  summer,  lofty  elms,  spreading  sycamores, 
and  scented  limes  abound.  Briar  and  rose,  woodbine  and  bryony,  all  that 
renders  a  wood-scene  lovely,  are  there.  Near  its  centre,  at  the  base  of  a 
lofty  column,  runs  an  unceasing  spring  of  mineral  water,  falling  with  a 
gentle  murmur,  cool  and  refreshing,  from  the  ever  open  lion's  mouth  into 
the  basin  below;  close  by  is  the  ^'Temple,"  guarded  by  two  couchant 
sphinges,  stern  and  stony,  and  various  other  shelters  from  the  summer's 
sun  or  sudden  showers  are  close  at  hand.  And  this  lovely  spot  is  free — 
free  to  all.  Its  noble-hearted  proprietor  throws  open  its  green  shades  and 
fragrant  bowers  to  all,  poor  and  rich  without  distinction;  well  do  they 
appreciate  his  generous  care  for  their  happiness;  and  day  by  day,  all  summer 
through,  smiling  faces,  beaming  with  pleasure,  may  be  seen  leaving  their 
toil  in  factory  and  shop,  to  enjoy  nature's  beauties,  and  drink  in  health 
and  vigour  at  "the   spring." 

Many  happy  hours  have  I  spent  in  Refley  Wood,  and  if  the  reader 
will  accompany  me  we  will  join  the  cheerful  throng,  who,  on  pleasure 
bent,  wend  their  way  along  the  dusty  road,  to  enjoy  a  summer  afternoon 
in  its  cool  recesses.  Having  left  our  horse  at  the  farm-house  near  the 
gate,  we  enter  the  wood.  What  a  feeling  of  awe  creeps  over  us  as  we 
walk  beneath  its  time-hallowed  oaks,  some  shattered  and  bare,  rent  and 
riven  by  many  a  storm,  blasted  by  lightning,  and  bleached  by  sun  and. 
rain,  others  fresh  and  green,  flourishing  on  in  a  healthy  old  age,  ivy-clad 
and  wreathed  with  scented  honey-suckles.  But  we  are  not  long  left  to 
our  meditations;  sounds  of  gladness  and  laughter  break  upon  us,  and  soo^ 
we  see  the  happy  party  seated  on  the  grass  under  the  trees,  all  restraint, 
like  hats  and  bonnets,  thrown  aside,  and  each  intent  on  fun  and  the  good 
cheer  which  has  just  been  drawn  from  its  hiding-place  in  those  large 
hampers;  what  happiness  is  depicted  on  each  countenance!  who  will  say 
that  the  spirit  of  the  English  is  broken  by  work — work?  True  it  is,  such 
opportunities  are  few  and  far  between,  but  when  they  do  occur,  who  shall 
say  that  England  is  not  merry  England  still?  Now,  their  repast  over, 
they  have  retired  to  yon  open  space,  and  are  joining  in  the  sprightly 
country  dance,  (what  a  contrast  to  the  cold,  stifi",  fashionable  ball-room,) 
with  intervals  of  song;  and  some  few  happy  couples  are  stealing  away  to 
breathe  forth  their  mutual  vows  of  pure  affection  in  nature's  noblest  temple 
— disturb  them  not! 

VOL.  VI.  2  F  - 


218  A    VISIT    TO    REFLEY   WOOD. 

Let  us  leave  this  happy  party,  and,  crossing  the  adjoining  field,  seek 
nature  undisturbed.  The  gamekeeper  is  lord  there;  but  fear  not,  we  are 
privileged,  and  he  dares  not  to  molest  us.  How  often  has  the  naturalist 
to  regret  the  existence  of  such  a  functionary  as  the  gamekeeper;  just  at 
the  time  when  he  should  be  most  active,  the  Pheasants  are  laying,  and 
he  is  shut  out  from  his  favourite  haunts;  even  the  botanist  is  prevented 
from  searching  for  his  flowery  treasures,  lest  he  should  disturb  the  Phea- 
sants; and  Butterfly,  Moth,  and  Beetle  share  the  same  holiday.  The 
gamekeeper,  too,  is  often,  not  always,  an  ignorant  prejudiced  fellow,  caring 
for  nothing,  and  mercilessly  destroying  everything  as  S'ermin'  which  he 
imagines  molests  his  dear  game;  it  is  useless  trying  to  argue  with  him, 
what  he  has  believed  he  will  believe,  "and  there 's  an  end  on 't."  A  friend 
of  the  writer,  an  enthusiastic  naturalist,  was  busily  searching  for  a  Short- 
eared  Owl  which  he  had  just  lost  sight  of,  when  he  met  a  man,  in 
whom  his  eagerness  to  get  another  sight  of  the  Owl  prevented  his  recog- 
nising the  dreadful  keeper,  and  he  anxiously  asked,  "Did  you  see  a  Short- 
eared  Owl  just  now?"  "Yes."  "Oh,  which  way  did  it  go?"  "I  can  see 
it  now,"  said  the  man.  Thinking  he  had  discovered  a  clue  to  the  missing 
bird,  he  lost  no  time  in  asking  "Where?"  when  the  keeper  replied  in  a 
surly  tone,  pointing  at  the  same  time  to   our  friend.  "There  it  stands!" 

But  here  we  are  at  the  low  wood;  what  a  solemn  stillness  reigns!  it  is 
almost  oppressive;  the  ground  is  covered  with  thousands  of  flowers,  which 
fill  the  air  with  their  perfume,  and  delight  the  eye  with  their  varied  and 
beautiful  colours.  Listen  to  the  melancholy  'coo,  coo,'  of  the  Ring  Dove, 
and  now  the  distant  'caw'  of  the  watchful  Rook  steals  over  the  ear;  our 
presence  seems  to  have  awaked  the  whole  place  to  life;  the  Woodpecker 
laughs  as  it  flies  from  yon  old  ash  tree,  the  Jay  screams  harsh  and 
discordant,  and  the  Blackbird  starts  with  frightened  note  from  the  thicket. 
How  graceful  is  that  Fern,  rearing  its  pale  green  fronds  from  the  earth, 
and  those  beautiful  Foxgloves;  and  see  that  gorgeous  mass  of  yellow  Broom! 
Who  does  not  feel  the  influence  of  a  scene  like  this?  How  dead  must 
be  the  heart  which  throbs  not  with  delight  and  awe!  awe  for  that  Great 
Being  who  framed  everything  with  such  perfection  and  beauty.  The  more 
minutely  we  investigate  His  works,  the  more  shall  we  be  impressed  with 
their  beauty  and  perfection. 

"Not  a  tree, 

A  plant,  a  leaf,  a  blossom,  but  contains 

A  folio  volume;  we  may  read,  and  read. 

And  read  again,  and  still  find  something  new. 

Something  to  please,  and  something  to  instruct. 

E'en  in  the  noisome  weed." 

We  are  now  passing  through  the  Whin  cover,  where  there  is  very 
little  timber,  only  an   oak   here  and    there;    the    ground   is  covered   with 


EXTRACTS    FROM    CORRESPONDENCE.  219 

heath  and  long  grass,  and  studded  thickly  with  Whin  bushes  in  full 
bloom.  There  goes  a  Kingfisher  from  the  steep  side  of  a  pit  on  our  right; 
see  how  the  rays  of  the  setting  sun  glance  upon  its  beautiful  plumage! 
most  likely  it  has  young  ones  deep  in  the  gravelly  bank.  Whilst  fishing 
a  short  time  ago  in  a  quiet  secluded  pond  fringed  by  bushes,  one  of 
these  beautiful  little  birds  perched  on  the  end  of  my  rod,  and  there  took 
its  station  for  a  short  time;  one  involuntary  tremble  of  the  hand  and  it 
was  gone  like  a  flash  of  light. 

The  sun  has  descended  below  the  horizon,  and  it  is  already  almost  dark 
in  the  recesses  of  the  wood,  but  still  we  linger  to  enjoy  the  softness  and 
beauty  of  the  summer  night,  and  to  listen  to  the  luscious  notes  of  the 
Nightingale;  all  the  other  singing  birds  are  silenced  except  the  Whitethroat, 
which  utters  an  occasional  strain  as  we  disturb  it  in  sauntering  past;  but 
the  Wood  Owl  startles  us  with  its  'hoo-hoo,'  and  the  Nightjar  glides 
past,  hawking  for  the  moth  and  chafiPer;  hark!  there  is  its  long- continued 
^chirr-r-r-r,'  how  it  sounds  through  the  stillness  of  the  night!  and  the 
distant  baying,  too,  of  the  keeper's  dogs!  And  now  we  have  reached  the 
field  again,  and  hear  the  Land-rail  and  Partridge  calling.  Bats,  too,  are 
abroad,  and  the  moonbeams  falling  on  the  branches  of  the  old  trees,  call 
forth  strange  forms,  and  confused  masses  of  light  and  shade.  What  music 
there  is  in  the  ripple  of  the  falling  spring.  What!  our  friends  not  gone 
yet!  Like  ourselves,  the  beauty  of  the  night  has  made  them  forget  their 
homes;  but   they  seem  fatigued,  and  will  not  stay  long  behind  us. 

Farewell  dear  old  Refley!  long  may  thy  woods  resound  with  the  merry 
laugh  of  health  and  youth;  long  may  the  old  tell  of  the  days  when  they 
were  young,  as  they  smoke  the  pipe  of  peace  in  thy  shades;  and  long 
may  thy  generous  owner  live,  and  enjoy  those  blessings  he  has  so  freely 
placed  within  the  reach  of  others! 

Lynn,  July  Z\st.,  1856. 


EXTRACTS     FROM 
CORRESPONDENCE     WITH     A     BROTHER    NATURALIST. 

BY    FREDERICK    M.  BURTON,    ESQ. 
C  Continued  from  page  \2b.) 

How  interesting  the  numerous  tribes  of  insects  are  this  hot  weather, 
you  meet  with  them  in  every  possible  locality.  Last  week  I  saw  a  thin 
column  of  millions  of  black  gnats  on  the  top  of  the  broad  tower  of 
Lincoln  Cathedral;  they  formed  a  sort  of  cone  in  shape,  and  kept  just  in 
the  centre.  It  seems  strange  that  they  should  choose  such  an  elevation 
to  congregate  in.  I  remember  once,  while  the  Great  Northern  Railway 
was  forming,  going    down    a    shaft,  and  along  the    bore  of  a   half-formed 


220  EXTRACTS    FROM    CORRKSPONDENCE. 

tunnel  near  Grantham,  we  carried  candles  in  our  hands,  and  had  to 
stoop  the  whole  way,  and  y^et  in  the  very  centre  a  gnat  flew  off  the 
damp  walls,  and  fluttered  round  my  light;  in  the  same  place  also  some 
queer-looking  fungi  had  established  themselves,  as  representatives  of  the 
vegetable  world.  While  once  at  the  very  top  of  Snowdon,  on  a  windy 
and  foggy  day,  I  caught  an  ambitious  specimen  of  the  little  green  oak 
moth,  {Tortrix  viridana,)  on  the  pole  planted  on  the  summit.  I  have 
often  thought  that  a  very  interesting  account  might  be  written  of  the 
change  that  animals  make  in  their  food  at  different  times  of  the  year. 
Dogs,  for  instance,  will  eat  grass,  particularly  in  dry,  hot  weather;  and  I 
have  an  old  torn  cat  who  has  taken  lately  to  the  same  sort  of  food — he 
bites  off  a  long  blade,  and  eats  it  up  from  end  to  end  like  a  rabbit.  I 
recollect  also  seeing  a  dainty  Welsh  hen  last  year,  as  I  was  walking  from 
Dolgelly  to  Barmouth,  plucking  off  and  devouring  the  ripe  blackberries 
within  her  reach  on  the  roadside.  I  thought  at  the  time  she  did  it  for 
the  sake  of  the  grubs  within,  which,  to  my  cost,  I  remember  infested  almost 
every  berry;  but  Pheasants  will  do  the  same,  and  I  once  kept  some  of  the 
golden  species,  which  used  to  enjoy  nothing  so  well  as  a  ripe  bunch  of  grapes. 

Some  dogs  are  very  fond  of  fruit,  and  will  eat  nuts  and  walnuts, 
cracking  them  as  cleverly  as  a  Squirrel;  and  I  once  had  a  Spaniel  which 
used  to  eat  all  the  gooseberries  and  currants  within  her  reach,  and  woe  to 
the  strawberry  bed  if  she  ever  got  to  it.  The  currants  she  managed  very 
cleverly;  being  rather  old  and  asthmatical,  she  soon  found  out  that  the 
stalks  were  troublesome,  so  she  used  to  draw  the  fruit  off  between  her 
teeth,  and  leave  the  stalks  behind.  But  perhaps  the  most  extraordinary 
instance  of  this  kind  I  have  ever  met  with  relates  to  a  cat  of  mine  which 
has  acquired  a  taste  for  rice  pudding,  and  to  make  it  more  singular,  instead 
of  licking  it  off  the  plate,  like  any  common  Cat,  she  uses  her  paw  for  a 
fork,  and  feeds  herself  like   a  civilized  being. 

Last  week  the  following  singular  anecdote  was  related  to  me  of  a  hare. 
In  the  middle  of  the  river  about  half  a  mile  from  here,  there  is  an  island 
accessible  from  the  mainland  by  only  one  bridge.  A  poacher's  dog  chased 
a  hare  across  this  bridge  on  to  the  island,  and  the  owner  of  the  dog  posted 
himself  on  the  bridge  to  make  sure  of  his  game;  but  pussy  was  not  to 
be  caught  in  that  tame  way,  for  when  she  reached  the  opposite  bank  and 
found  there  was  no  way  to  escape,  she  took  a  good  spring  and  swam  safely 
across — a  distance  of  about  seventy  yards.  I  heard  also  of  another  and 
more  singular  instance  of  a  hare  taking  to  the  water,  not  from  fear,  but 
for  her  own  amusement: — A  friend  of  mine  was  going  to  a  piece  of  water 
to  shoot  a  young  Wild  Duck,  and  on  coming  in  sight  of  the  pool,  he 
saw  something  floundering  out  in  the  middle;  and  as  Otters  frequent  the 
place,  he   fancied   it  must   be  one^   and    prepared  for   a  shot;    but   to   his 


EXTRACTS   FROM    CORRESPONBENCE.  221 

surprise,  on  coming  closer,  he  found  that  it  was  a  hare  taking  a  bath, 
and  on  seeing  him  she  merely  swam  leisurely  to  the  side,  shook  herself, 
and  trotted  away. 

In  one  of  the  late  numerous  thunder-storms,  an  Elm  tree  in  this  neigh- 
bourhood was  struck  by  lightning;  some  men  who  were  taking  shelter  in 
an  adjoining  hovel,  felt  the  shock  distinctly,  and  on  the  storm  abating, 
they  found  dead ,  under  the  tree  several  Thrushes  and  three  or  four 
Starlings.  Wasps  have  been  unusually  abundant  this  season,  and  they 
creep  in  and  out  at  every  crevice.  In  my  own  peculiar  room,  I  have  a 
little  maple  sanctum  with  numerous  small  drawers,  in  one  of  which  there 
has  been,  for  some  weeks  past,  a  jar  of  black  currant  preserve  stored  away 
under  lock  and  key.  This  morning  I  was  much  amused  at  seeing  a  Wasp 
enter  the  window  and  fly  straight  to  the  drawer,  which  was  shut,  and 
march  in  through  the  keyhole  to  the  preserve.  No  doubt  the  smell 
attracted  him,  but  from  his  going  straight  up  to  the  spot,  I  imagine  he 
had  been  there  before,  and  that  the  impelling  power  which  guided  him 
was  as  much  akin  to  memory  as  instinct.  Speaking  of  memory  reminds 
me  of  an  almost  incredible  anecdote  about  a  dog,  which,  however,  comes 
from   truthful    authority: — 

A  gentleman  who  is  very  fond  of  farming,  and  a  large  breeder  of  sheep, 
was  Grouse  shooting  with  some  friends  near  Inverness,  when  he  was  much 
struck  with  the  sagacity  of  the  Highland  Colleys,  and  on  leaving  the 
country  he  took  home  a  very  fine  one  for  the  purpose  of  introducing  some 
of  the  right  sort  of  blood  into  our  own  mongrel  breed  of  sheep  dogs.  The 
dog  was  carried  by  his  new  master  from  Inverness  by  coach  to  Glasgow, 
shut  up  in  a  sort  of  cage  so  constructed  that  he  could  not  possibly  see 
anything  but  the  sky,  the  cage  being  open  at  the  top  only.  After 
passing  a  night  at  Glasgow,  he  was  conveyed  next  morning,  in  the  same 
cage,  down  the  Clyde,  and  with  his  master  proceeded  by  steamer  to  Liverpool; 
landed  there,  and  in  due  course  of  time  was  taken  on,  still  shut  up  in  the 
cage,  to  his  destination  in  this  country.  Here,  of  course,  he  was  much 
admired,  and  did  his  work  well,  until  about  three  weeks  after  his  arrival, 
when  he  was  suddenly  missed.  Every  means  was  taken,  by  advertising  and 
offering  rewards,  to  recover  him,  but  without  success;  until,  after  the  lapse 
of  a  little  time,  it  was  heard  that  a  dog  answering  the  description  of  the 
advertisement  had  been  seen  wandering  about-  the  docks  at  Liverpool  for 
several  days,  but  no  one  knew  what  had  become  of  him.  Nothing  after 
this  was  made  out  further,  until  a  short  time  afterwards,  when  a  letter 
arrived  from  the  old  shepherd  in  Scotland,  informing  the  gentleman  who 
had  purchased  the  dog  that  he  had  actually  found  his  way  back,  unaided 
and  alone,  to  his  old  master's  shealing. 

Uppingham,  August  11th.,  1856. 


222 
A     VISIT    TO     BRAEMAR    I]^     1855. 

BY    W.  SUTHERLAND,    ESQ. 
(  Continued  from  page  20-1.^ 

We  now  gradually  emerge  from  what,  in  the  case  of  this  particular  hill, 
may  be  called  the  region  of  birches,  which  now  began  to  dwindle  rapidly  in 
size  as  we  increased  our  elevation,  and  found  the  vegetation  assuming  more 
of  a  sub-alpine  character.  About  this  point  occurs,  perhaps,  the  highest 
cultivated  ground  in  Scotland,  probably  in  Britain,  in  the  shape  of  a  few 
oat  and  potatoe  fields — green  patches,  which,  as  seen  from  a  distance,  give 
a  pleasant  variety  to  the  landscape.  A  little  further  on,  upon  a  mass  of 
limestone,  which  seems  in  its  continuation  downwards  to  underlie  the  birches, 
and  again  makes  its  appearance  at  the  bridge  over  the  Clunie,  in  the 
village,  we  found  on  its  somewhat  bare  and  unpromising  surface,  such 
plants  as  Heliantliemum  vulgarc,  Potentilla  alpesfris^  Rubits  saxatilis,  Arahis 
Mrsuia,  etc.  Here  also  Mr.  C.  was  fortunate  enough  in  discovering  two 
rather  rare  mosses — Gyninostomum  Donianum  and  Weissia  latifolia.  In  the 
loose  pile  of  stones  lying  at  its  base,  we  gathered  Asplenium  viride,  which, 
as  it  was  my  first  acquaintance  with  this  beautiful  little  Fern,  I  had  some 
difficulty  in  not  confounding  with  a  commoner  congener,  A.  trichomanes, 
likewise  occurring  in  the  district,  although  the  same  difficulty  is  not  likely 
to  occur  again,  as  I,  there  and  then,  carefully  dislodged  a  young  plant 
of  it,  and  have  duly  consigned  it  to  the  somewhat  narrow  precincts  of  a 
city  flower-pot— quarters  with  which  it  seems  in  no  way  inclined  to  quarrel, 
as  even  now  (March)  it  is  gradually  uncoiling  its  little  verdant  fronds.  A 
Ci/stopteris  also  occurred  here,  which  seemed  to  belong  to  the  dentate  group 
of  that  very  variable  genus.  In  such  localities  a  large  collection  of  mosses 
and  lichens,  not  exclusively  confined  to  very  high  altitudes,  might  be  made. 
In  the  cursory  inspection  which  our  time  allowed  us  to  make,  we  gathered, 
amongst  others,  Anictavgium  ciliatum,  Tdchostomum  lanuginosum,  in  dense 
bosky  sheets,  overspreading  the  smaller  rocks;  Bartramia  pomiformis, 
Encahjpta  ciliata,  Dicranum  scoparium,  (with  several  varieties,)  Lecanora 
ventosa,  and  other  common  lichens. 

As  we  have  already  remarked,  the  vegetation  was  gradually  diverging 
from  the  type  of  the  plain,  and  at  every  step  giving  indications  of  our 
increasing  elevation,  the  order  of  the  predominant  plants  as  we  ascend  is 
as  follows: — Briza  media,  Melampyrum  pratense,  with  flowers  much  modified, 
both  in  size  and  colour,  from  their  brethren  of  the  plain,  being  smaller, 
and  of  a  lighter  tinge;  Hahenaria  viridis,  Juniperus  communis,  Narthecium 
ossifragum,  Eriophorum  vaginatum,  Salix  fusca,  scarcely  appearing  above 
the  long  heath,  {Calluna  vulgaris,)  Lasfrtxa  Oreopteris,  perhaps  the  com- 
monest of  our  Shield  Ferns  in  such  localities,  Pohjpodium  dryopteris,  Fyrola 


A    VIPIT    TO    BUAEMAR.  223 

minor,  P.  media,  and  P.  rotund/folia;  of  the  latter  species  we  saw  but  few 
plants — a  matter  of  some  regret  to  my  companion,  who  had  not  up  to 
this  time  seen  it  in  the  district.  Still  further  up  we  found  Pailus  cliamce- 
morus  mostly  out  of  flower,  but  on  that  account  no  less  beautiful,  as  all 
who  have  seen  its  ruddy  fruit  can  testify;  it  ascends  the  hills  almost  to 
their  very  summits,  which  it  is,  perhaps,  only  prevented  from  doing,  from 
physical  causes,  as  the  want  of  proper  soil. 

In  the  damper  hollows,  often  among  Sphagnum,  which  was  also  incrusted 
with  a  leprous-like  lichen,  and  sheltered  many  strange  Junffermannia;,  we 
gathered  Bryum  rostratum,  Bartramia  fontana,  Carex  pilulifera,  Epilohium 
ahinifulium,  £!.  alplnum;  while  drier  places  of  the  same  nature  afforded 
us  the  puzzling,  though  beautiful.  Gonitis  suecica,  Vaccinium  nliginosum, 
which  is  very  rarely  indeed  found  either  in  flower  or  fruit;  V.  oxijcoccus, 
a  plant  which  in  beauty  yields  to  none — not  even  the  fair  Linncea — of  all 
that  rewarded  this  day's  very  successful  forage.  The  heath  now  began  to 
be  very  stunted,  and  at  length  gave  up  the  struggle  for  existence,  as  we 
neared  the  summit,  which  is  a  flat  extent  of  quartz  rock,  profusely  covered 
with  fragments  of  the  same  formation,  affording  a  home  to  a  rather  numerous 
family  of  lichens,  such  as  Cetraria  nivalis,  in  compact  yellowish  white 
tufts;  C.  Icelandica — its  more  sprawling  relative;  Cladonia  rangiferina,  C 
uncialis,  Gyrophora  prohoscidea,  G.  erosa,  G.  cylindrica,  Gornicularia  lanata, 
G.  tristis,  (with  apothecia,)  with  Gladunia  vennicularis,  an  eccentric  lichen 
enough,  for  it  rejoices  in  no  apparent  point  of  attachment  to  the  ground 
or  any  other  surrounding  object,  and  yet  finds  means  to  retain  its  footing 
on  this  weather-beaten  summit,  in  spite  of  wind  and  weather^  but  not, 
let  me  add,  of  the  often  greedy  hands  of  the  collector.  I  cannot  here 
dilute  on  the  magnificent  view  that  now  rewarded  our  exertions,  but  hasten 
to  a  neighbouring  hill,  a  little  to  the  south,  where  we  find  nothing  new 
but  Guaphalium  supinum,  and  a  change  of  formation  to  the  mica  schist, 
containing  small  garnets,  and  indicating  our  approach  to  a  new  district, 
that  of  Glen  Callater,  which  forms  in  many  respects  the  connecting  link 
between  this  district  and  the  adjoining  one  of  Clova.  But  we  proceed  no 
farther  in  this  direction,  as  it  is  time  we  should  think  of  our  return,  and 
accordingly  we  choose  a  path  leading  round  the  back  of  the  hill,  and  thence 
almost  directly  to  the  Carr  Rocks,  which,  running  almost  parallel  with  the 
river,  form  the  northern   exposure   of  Morrone. 

As  we  jogged  down  the  now  somewhat  rapid  descent,  we  took  an 
occasional  glance  among  the  thick  patches  of  Getraria  Icelandica  for  its 
apothecia,  nor  were  we  wholly  disappointed;  they  seem  to  occur  on  a  variety 
with  a  broader  thallus  than  that  generally  found.  It  was  on  this  hill  that 
Professor  Graham,,  in  1821,  collected  the  first  British  specimen  of  this 
interesting  lichen  in  fruit.     By  the  sides  of  the  streams  we  gathered  Carex 


224  A    VrSIT   TO    BRARMAR. 

paUescens,  C.  pilaUfera,  C.  capillaris,  Juncus  triglumis,  and  Melica  nutans, 
On  the  damp  sides  of  a  rocky  linn  appeared  Orimmia  apocarpa,  Tetraphis 
pellucida,  Hookefia  lucem,  in  fruit,  while  by  the  purling  brook  appeared 
in  sunny  patches  the  star-shaped  Saxifraga  aizoides.  Be  it  remembered^ 
however,  that  by  this  time  we  had  re-entered  the  belt  of  birch  trees, 
formerly  noticed,  and  were  now  scrambling  from  one  bank  to  another, 
culling  the  gems  of  varied  hue  and  shape  that  everywhere  rose  from  their 
thyme-scented  sides — pleasure  which  was  doubly  enhanced  by  the  genial 
warmth  and  balmy  softness  which  the  declining  sun  shed  everywhere  around. 
We  have  neither  space  nor  ability  to  paint  the  charms  of  the  many  gems 
that  here,  as  elsewhere,  invited  our  attention.  I  give  the  following  as  a 
few  there  jotted  down  in  my  note-book: — Epilohium  angustifoUum,  Rosa 
sptnosissima,  Ji.  canina,  AlchemiUa  alpina,  Linncea  horealisj  Pyrola  secunda, 
Fragraria  vesca,  Asperula  odorata,  Vicia  sylvatica,  Sanicula  Europoea, 
Trientalis  Europoea,  Hypericum  pulchrura,  Carex  ftdva,  Cflava,  Polystichum 
lonchitis,  Polypodium  dryopteris,  P.  phegopteris,  BotrycMum  lunaria,  Weissia 
incurvata,  and   many  common  Hypna,  etc. 

Our  next  excursion  was  to  a  wilder  and  more  distant  locality — Ben  A'an 
and  part  of  Ben-na-bourd,  the  former  of  which  may  easily  be  recognised, 
looking  north-east  from  the  village,  as  a  long  triple  crowned  ridge,  bounding 
the  view  in  that  direction;  the  peaks,  which  are  so  characteristic  of  it, 
even  at  great  distances,  being  at  almost  equal  intervals  from  each  other — 
the  latter  as  a  mountain  rising  to  the  north  of  Ben  A'an,  and  apparently 
somewhat  higher,  though  they  both  fall  little  short  of  three  thousand  nine 
hundred  feet.  The  first  step,  of  course,  in  our  progress  will  be  to  ford,  or 
be  ferried  over,  the  river, — we  adopt  the  latter  alternative,  having  for  our 
ferryman  no  gloomy  Charon,  but  a  young  bare-legged  and  kilted  Highlander, 
who  did  his  work  right  manfully,  not  forgetting,  of  course,  to  levy  the 
accustomed  obolus;  for  all  ferrymen,  both  in  times  mytliological  and  times 
practical,  (as  ours  pre-eminently  are,)  have  considered  this  the  most  agree- 
able part  of  their  labours. 

We  are  now  on  the  Invercauld  side  of  the  water,  and  observe  the 
following  plants  in  the  meadows: — Parmelia  olivacea,  on  the  alder  and 
other  trees,  with  its  broad  shield-like  fruit  in  fine  condition;  Trichostomum 
eanescens,  Carex  ovalis,  G.  pallescens,  G.ampuUacca,  (in  ditches;)  nor  does  the 
headlong  scramble  of  the  rabbits  [Lepus  cuniculus)  to  their  holes  detract 
from  the  interest  of  this  part  of  our  walk,  which  we  now  leave  for  Glen 
Candlick  by  a  bridge,  near  which  grows  a  tree  of  Salix  jjhylicifoUa.  Up 
this  glen,  then,  for  some  distance  we  go,  collecting,  among  other  plants, 
gorgeous  specimens  of  Epilohium  angustifolium,  Brlza  media,  Melica  nutans, 
Avena  prafensis,  Molinia  coerulea,  Carex  hinervis,  Drosera  rotundifolia,  Gen- 
tiana  campestris,   (a  variety  with  white  flowers.)     Nearly  opposite  a  sturdy 


A    VISIT   TO    BRAEMAR.  225 

poplar,  (Poj)ulus  tremula,)  the  largest  indigenous  tree  of  the  kind  we  had 
seen,  we  again  strike  oflF  at  right  angles  from  our  former  line  of  march, 
and  make  directly  for  the  Craigendals,  which  lie  right  before  us.  But  in 
our  course  thither  we  encountered  several  notable  things,  which  must  be 
duly  registered;  and  first,  a  heronry,  of  small  size,  situated  in  a  clump  of 
birches  to  the  left  of  our  route;  its  occupants,  or  rather  those  who  remained 
over  the  summer  at  it,  were  apparently  all  intent  somewhere  in  their 
piscatory  avocations,  as  we  saw  none  at  this  time,  though  we  certainly  heard 
one,  as  it  flew  overhead  at  night,  uttering  its  peculiar  cry.  No  less  worthy 
of  notice  were  the  beautiful  Pritillaries,  (Argynnis  wjlaia,)  that  flew  from 
flower  to  flower,  sucking  their  honied  sweets,  and  one  is  sorely  tempted  to 
clutch  the  pretty  creature,  as  it  sits  so  temptingly  on  this  fox-glove  close 
at  hand, — but  no,  we  have  been  too  eager. 

"Elate  towards  heaven  the  beauteous  wonder  flies, 
And  leaves  the  mortal  wrapt  in  deep  surprise." 

Although  thus  coy,  in  the  bright  sunshine,  it  is  quite  an  easy  matter 
to  box  a  few  specimens  when  the  sky  is  overcast,  in  a  rather  dull  day, 
for  then  they  appear  very  languid,  and  fall  an   easy  prey  to  the  collector. 

Keeping  in  view  a  stone  on  the  Little  Craigendal,  bearing  a  fancied 
resemblance  to  a  sheep,  and  around  which  the  principal  object  of  our  search 
is  said  to  grow,  we  ascend  in  a  slanting  direction,  collecting  as  we  go, 
Salix  arenaria,  Apargia  autumnalls,  Carex  stellulata,  Polygala  vulgaris, 
Lysimachia  nemorum,  Betula  nana,  with  numerous  catkins,  which  are  rather 
rare;  Toffieldia  palusfris.  Lychnis  Floscaculi,  Festuca  ovina,  var.  vivipara, 
Listera  cordata;  and,  less  pleasant  specimens  perhaps,  by  mistake,  as  I  was 
drinking  at  a  stream,  two  specimens  of  the  small  lizard,  common  in  such 
situations,  (Zootoca  vivipara.)  The  one  I  wished  to  appropriate  was  soon 
minus  a  tail,  and  on  my  return  at  night  was  minus  altogether,  as  he  was 
nowhere  to  be  found,  notwithstanding  the  most  diligent  search. 

The  hills  of  "Muckle,"  and  "Little  Craigindal,"  separated  from  each 
other  by  Glen  Gairn,  (at  this  point  of  no  great  width,)  possess  few  features 
in  common;  the  one,  a  deim-covered,  rounded,  uninteresting  mass,  appa- 
rently incapable  of  supporting  a  very  scanty  vegetation;  the  other  being 
(at  least  on  its  northern  exposure,  with  which  a  botanist  will  have  most 
to  do)  a  terraced  wall  of  rock,  rising  almost  perpendicularly  from  the  glen 
below,  and  sheltering  in  its  many  verdant  nooks  a  rich  assortment  of  alpine 
plants.  Without  enumerating  many  species  already  incidentally  noticed, 
we  give  Veronica  alpina,  Saussurea  alpina,  Potentilla  alpestris,  Cerastium 
latifolium,  sparingly  among  loose  stones;  Dryas  octopetala,  a  perfect  moun- 
tain jewel,  alike  in  flower  and  seed,  in  both  of  which  states  we  found  it, 
covering    considerable    patches    of  ground,*    Habenaria    viridis,    Saxifraga 

VOL.  YI.  2  G 


226  A    VISIT    TO    BRAEMAR. 

oppositifolia,  Salix  myrsinites,  Carex  capillaris,  C.  rvpestrts,  (or  something 
very  like  it,  though  we  have  occasional  misgivings  that  it  may  have 
been  nothing  but  an  alpine  condition  of  C.  pulicaris. — I  should  be  delighted 
to  have  the  opinion  of  some  abler  botanist  than  myself  on  this  point;) 
Lycopodium  selago,  L.  alpinum,  L.  selayinoideSj  L.  clavatum;  nor  must  we 
omit  the  chief  object  of  our  search — Astragalus  alpinus,  which,  sure  enough, 
we  found,  profusely  mixed  with  the  greensward  over  a  space  of  considerable 
extent; — alike  acceptable  from  its  rarity,  (this  being  its  second  British 
station,)  beauty,  and  fragrance. 

Descending,  as  best  we  may,  from  our  elevated  position,  we  find  more 
stable  footing,  first,  in  a  rude  pathway,  common  among  these  hills,  and 
known  as  deer-paths,  and  ultimately  for  some  distance  along  another  path, 
boasting  alike  of  monarchial  usage — not  this  time,  however,  that  of  the 
antlered  monarch  of  the  hills,  but  of  the  Sovereign  of  these  "fortunate 
isles"  of  the  western  wave,  over  which  she  lords  it  with  sway  so  gentle, 
yet  so  gracefully  commanding.'^"  Diverging,  however,  alike  from  our  new- 
found path,  and  the  uncalled-for  digression  to  which  it  has  given  rise,  we 
commence  in  earnest  the  ascent  of  Ben-A'an — a  task  of  no  great  difficulty 
if  you  go  about  it  judiciously.  I  question  much  if  the  course  we  adopted 
would  entitle  our  being  ranked  among  the  judicious,  where  an  easy  ascent 
is  the  only  desideratum;  but  having  certain  other  objects  in  view,  and  the 
"Burn  of  Essie"  (^'of  Falls,"  as  the  keeper,  M'hom  we  here  met,  informed 
us,)  presenting  every  appearance  of  at  least  in  part  satisfying  them,  we 
must  not  repine  at  our  rugged  road  to  the  summit.  The  Burn  of  Essie 
may  be  described  as  a  succession  of  waterfalls,  varying  from  ten  to  twenty 
feet  in  height,  and  reaching  from  the  top  to  the  bottom  of  the  hill,  dashing 
from  ledge  to  ledge  of  well-smoothed  granite  in  headlong  sheets,  now  col- 
lecting its  spent  energies  before  it  shoots  over  the  next  fall,  in  some  quiet 
pool  of  crystalline  transparency,  at  the  bottom  of  which  used  to  be  often 
found  the  better  description  of  Cairngorums,  namely,  those  (in  the  opinion 
of  the  keeper)  that  are  of  a  greenish  hue.  On  its  sides  we  observed 
Gochlearia  officinalis,  (var.  Greenlandica  being  somewhat  less  common,)  Las- 
troea  oreopteris,  Polypodium  alpcstre  in  great  abundance;  a  solitary  specimen 
of  the  mountain  ash — the  roddin  of  most  potent  efficacy  in  warding  ofi^ 
all  and  sundry  attacks  from  the  so-called  "good  folk"  of  our  Highland 
glens — the  Pyrus  aucuparia  of  more  learned  society;  Vero7iica  alpina,  Viola 
canina,  and  Caltha  palustris. 

Having  duly  prepared,  by  a  hearty  luncheon,  for  an  effi^rt  which  should 
take  us  at  once  to  the  top  of  the  hill,  we  soon  reached  a  large  patch  of 
snow,  from  an   opening   in  which,  amidst   a  cloud  of  spray,  or,  to  use  a 

*  Her  Majesty,  on  one  occasion,  ascended  to  the  summit  of  Ben-na-bourd  by  a  bridle-path, 
made  by  her  command,  along  Glou  Gaii-u,  and  a  good  way  up  the  mountain. 


A    VISIT    TO    BRAEMAR.  227 

more  expressive  word,  reek,  (which  is  used  in  Scotland  alike  in  reference 
to  the  sraoke  of  a  chimney,  or  the  spray  of  a  cataract,)  the  stream,  along 
whose  course  we  had  been  clambering,  emerged.  Into  this  strange  cave 
we  penetrated  for  some  distance,  and  found  its  chief  attraction  to  be  in 
its  roof,  which  was  curiously  and  fantastically  scooped  out,  and  of  alabaster 
whiteness.  On  the  summit  itself  we  witnessed  another  of  those  scenes  which 
are  only  to  be  seen  on  our  higher  mountains — a  herd  of  the  noble  Red- 
Deer,  {Cervus  elaphusj)  feeding  leisurely  on  a  grassy  glade  opposite  us, 
headed  by  their  majestic  but  wary  leader.  They  continued  thus  for  some 
time,  and  gave  us  an  opportunity,  through  an  excellent  glass,  of  observing 
the  various  movements  of  both  old  and  young  among  them,  till  their 
delicate  sense  of  smell,  (for  they  could  hardly  have  seen  us,  ensconced  as 
we  were  behind  a  huge  stone,)  gave  intimation  of  our  proximity,  when 
they  disappeared  over  the  ridge  on  which  they  were  feeding,  at  an  easy 
trot,  their  antlers,  as  they  sunk  from  view,  appearing  like  the  dismantled 
branches  of  a  thicket  in  winter. 

"Magnificent  creature!  so  statel}'-  and  bright! 
In  the  pride  of  thy  spirit  pursuing  thj'  flight; 
For  what  hath  the  child  of  the  desert  to  dread, 
Wafting  up  his  own  mountains  that  far  beaming  head, 
Or  borne  like  a  whirlwind  down  on  the  vale; 
Hail!  king  of  the  wild  and  the  beautiful! — hail! 
Hail!  idol  divine !- whom  Nature  hath  boiTie 
O'er  a  hundred  hill  tops  since  the  mists  of  the  mom, 
Wliom  the  pilgrim,  lone  wandering  on  mountain  and  moor, 
As  the  vision  glides  by  him,  maj'  blameless  adore." 

Pkofessor  "Wilson. 

Luzula  spicata,  Statice  Armeria,  and  Juncus  trijidus,  we  found  abundantly, 
with  Azalea  prociunbens  still  in  full  flower,  enlivening  with  a  pinkish  blush 
its  dark  evergreen  leaves.  The  peak  itself  forms  a  good  example  of  the 
gradual  decomposition  of  the  granite,  being  composed  of  broad  tabular 
masses,  here  and  there  overlapped  by  other  masses,  bearing  no  unapt  re- 
semblance to  the  toppling  layers  of  an  overflowing  bumper.  Carex  rigida 
and  C.  vaglnata  formed  the  prevailing  herbage  at  its  base,  with  [here  and 
there  thick  and  pretty  tufts  of  Silene  acaulis,  creeping,  moss-like,  over  the 
stones,  and  substituting  for  their  otherwise  dull  livery  of  lichens  a  suit  of 
its  own  tiny  pink  blossoms.  In  marshy  places  we  found  Aira  alpina,  and 
many  specimens  of  an  elegant  viviparous  variety,  Saxifraga  dellaris,  Viola 
palustris,  Jungermannioe  julacea,  J.  ciliaris,  J.juniperina,  and  Conostomum 
boreale. 

In  these  mountains  Lepus  variabilis  is  of  common  occurrence,  and  one 
of  these  creatures  we  pursued  for  some  distance,  as  its  curiosity  so  far  got 
the  better  of  its  fear,  as  to  permit  us  to  come  at  times  to  very  close 
quarters.     We  may  remark  of  a  very  extensive  tract  of  greensward  near 


22S  A    VISIT    TO    BRAEMAR.  ' 

this  point,  that  the  herbage  consisted  chiefly  of  Nardus  strida,  Carex  rigida, 
and  Scirpus  ccespitosiis.  Descending  a  round  gravel-covered  shoulder  of  this 
hill,  we  crossed  a  stream  at  its  base,  on  the  banks  of  which  we  gathered 
that  beautiful  lichen,  Solcrina  crocea. 

We  were  induced  to  clirab  part  of  Ben-na-bourd,  which  rises  to  the 
west  of  the  stream  we  had  just  crossed,  from  the  prospect  which  a  ridge 
of  dripping  rocks,  covered  with  a  patch  of  yet  unnielted  snow,  afforded  of 
producing  Saxifraga  nivalis;  in  this  we  were  disappointed,  but  found  in 
its  stead  abundance  of  Bryum  Ludwigii  in  fruit,  in  which  state  it  is  said 
to  occur  but  at  rare  intervals.  It  spread  over  the  whole  surface  of  the 
wet  and  gravel-covered  declivity,  and  seemed  to  have  sent  up  its  whole 
armies  of  bright  green  capsules,  just  as  the  superincumbent  snow  had 
gradually  receded,  and  left  it  free  to  be  acted  upon  by  the  summer's  sun. 
Polytrichum  septentrionale  was  gathered  more  sparingly.  Our  journey  down 
this  glen  towards  Glen  Candlick,  frotn  which  we  had  started  in  the  morning, 
afforded  many  interesting  sights — huge  masses  of  rocks,  of  the  size  of 
ordinary  Highland  huts,  toppled  at  some  distant  date,  from  the  wild  hills 
around  us;  a  beautiful  fall,  with  the  water  falling  over  three  distinct  ledges; 
a  glimpse — all  the  grandeur  from  the  approach  of  twilight — of  the  dark 
corry  of  Benna-bourd,  and  the  snow-streaked  walls  that  gird  it.  A  few 
Splachna,  of  species  afterwards  to  be  mentioned,  lay  on  the  more  beaten  paths. 

To  pass  over  the  numerous  theories  that  have  been  started  to  account 
for  the  deposition  of  wide  tracts  of  peat,  and  the  no  less  interesting  question, 
how  many  of  our  ancient  pine  forests  have  come  by  their  end,  and  left 
but  their  blasted  skeletons  behind  without  a  younger  progeny  springing  up 
in  their  place:  the  theory,  or  rather  tradition,  prevailing  among  these 
mountains,  as  to  the  latter  fact,  is  of  too  strange  a  nature  to  be  omitted: — 

Once  upon  a  time,  there  reigned  over  this  "land  of  the  mountain  and 
the  flood"  a  king  and  queen,  who  must  be  nameless,  as  our  informant 
honoured  them  with  none;  however  his  majesty  seems  to  have  prided  himself, 
perhaps  justly,  on  the  extent  of  his  umbrageous  forests,  and  the  abundance 
of  the  noble  game  to  which  they  afforded  shelter.  Be  this  as  it  may,  he 
could  not  always  enjoy  them  without  interruption^  for  the  cares  of  state, 
or  the  din  of  war,  called  him  at  one  time  for  a  lengthened  period  from 
their  vicinity.  On  his  return  he  was  ungallant  enough  to  inquire  after 
the  welfare  of  his  forests,  before  he  bestowed  a  thought  on,  or  asked  a 
similar  question,  regarding  the  gracious  but  vindictive  lady,  his  queen,  who 
instantly  fired  with  burning  jealousy  at  these  new  objects  of  her  lord's 
affections,  ordered  them  to  be  burned  without  remorse: — and  here  assuredly 
stand  their  scorched  and  broken  stems,  in  many  instances  retaining  their 
original  position,  with  their  roots  firmly  set  in  a  coarse  soil,  which  the 
peat  now  overlies. 


THE    ICHTHYOLOGY    OF    BANFFSHIRE,  229 

It  will  afford  me  much  pleasure  to  supply,  to  the  best  of  my  power, 
parties  with  whom  any  of  the  plants  already  noticed,  or  afterwards  to  be 
noticed,  as  occurring  in  the  Mona-Eua  and  Locbnagar  groups,  may  be 
desiderata,  with  the  specimens  still  in  ray  possession. 

(To  be  continued.) 


CONTRIBUTIONS  TO   THE  ICHTHYOLOGY  OF  BANFFSHIRE. 

BY    W. 
( CoJicluded  from  page  210,  vol.  V.^ 

The  Salmon,  (Salmo  salar,)  forms  valuable  fishing  in  the  Spey  and 
Deveron. 

Grey  Trout,  (Salmo  eriox.) — "Bull  Trout."  A  pair  was  caught  two 
years  ago  in  the   Deveron. 

Salmon  Trout,  (Salmo  trutta.) — '^Tinnock."     Quite  common. 

Common  Trout,  (Salmo  fario.) — This  is  abundant  in  all  the  streams  in 
the  county.  It  varies  very  much  in  colour,  according  to  the  water  it 
inhabits. 

Herring,  (Clupea  harengus.) — The  Herring-fishery  forms  what  the  fishermen 
appropriately  call  their  'harvest.'  During  the  other  seasons  of  the  year 
much  of  their  time  is  spent  in  preparing  for  it.  The  women  and  younger 
members  of  the  family  are  employed  during  a  great  part  of  winter  and 
summer  in  mending  and  weaving  nets,  while  the  men  during  the  spring 
and  summer  months  are  engaged  in  overhauling  the  boats,  and  'barking' 
the  nets  and  sails.  The  engagements  they  may  make,  the  stations  at  which 
they  may  fish,  the  success  they  may  have,  form  the  subject  of  a  great 
part  of  their  conversation  when  together,  and  when  alone  of  their  thoughts, 
their  hopes,  and  their  fears.  They  depend  in  a  great  measure  on  it  for 
their  subsistence;  they  run  up  accounts  with  their  merchants  from  one 
fishing  to  the  other;  if  the  fishing  is  defective,  all  their  golden  expectations 
are  disappointed,  and  a  hard  winter  follows;  if  the  fishing  is  prosperous, 
old  debts  are  cleared  off,  the  children  are  newly  clad  from  top  to  toe,  and 
sent  to  school  during  the  winter  months,  and  the  spare  money  is  either 
deposited  in  the  bank,  or  expended  in  building  a  house;  for  every  fisherman 
has  the  laudable  ambition  of  having  a  "biggin  o'  his  ain;"  marriages  are 
celebrated  in  numbers,  and  come  off  with  great  eclat;  altogether  the  close 
of  a  successful  herring-fishing  is  a  time  of  great  festivity  and  rejoicing  with 
the  fishermen.  But  it  is  not  advantageous  to  the  fishing  population  alone; 
it  affords  occupation  to  great  numbers  of  women  in  salting  and  curing 
herrings,  to  the  carters  in  driving  them  to  the  curing-houses,  and  in  taking 
the  nets  to  and  from  the  fields.     A  fishing-station  during  the  season  is   a 


230  THE    ICHTHYOLOGY    OF    BANFFSHIRE, 

busy  scene,  althougli  it  may  not  be  very  agreeable  to  the  olfactory  nerves 
of  a  person   that  is  rather-fastidious. 

Leach's  Hc^'ring,  (Clupea  Leachii.) — ''There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the 
Herring  which  is  to  be  met  with  almost  every  winter  in  the  Moray  Frith,  in 
small  numbers,  is  the  one  noticed  by  Yarrell  under  this  name." — Rev.  G. 
Gordon. 

Sprat,  (Clupea  sprattus.) — "Garvies."  This  is  not  so  common  on  the 
Banff  coast  as  farther  up  the  Frith,  where,  during  some  seasons,  it  is 
caught  in  great  abundance.  During  last  autumn  they  were  taken  in  cart 
loads  to  Inverness:  they  are  used  as  bait. 

Twaite  Shad,  (Alosa  finta.) — '"Rock  Herring."  Several  of  thesfe  have 
been  found. 

Cod,  (Morrhua  vulgaris.) — ^"Keelin,"  or  "Codlin."  This  forms  a  very 
productive  fishing:  the  usual  method  of  fishing  is  by  the  line.  Some 
time  ago,  the  fishermen  sailed  with  them,  when  cured,  to  the  markets  on 
the  east  coast,  such  as  Aberdeen,  etc.,  but  this  is  now  rendered  unnecessary. 
On  such  occasions,  the  'gain  sooth,'  as  they  called  it,  they  were  in  the 
habit  of  bringing  back  a  deal  of  stoneware  with  them;  for  all  of  them 
have  a  very  strong  propensity  of  having  their  'bench'  or  'benches'  well 
stocked  with  all  sorts  of  plates,  cups  and  saucers,  etc.  A  fisherman's 
house  is  quite  a  display  in  this  line. 

Haddock,  (Morrhua  seglefinus.) — This  constitutes  the  chief  fishing  through 
the  whole  year,  except  during  the  "Herrin'-time,"  and  then  it  is  pursued 
by  old  men  and  boys,  who  are  unfit  for  the  heavy  work  of  the  Herring 
Buckie,  famous  for  its  Yellow  Haddocks,  is  situated  in  Banffshire.  The  mode 
of  curing  the  Haddock  is  as  follows: — The  fish  is  split  up,  and  laid  in 
salt  for  twenty -four  hours  or  thereabout;  it  is  then  taken  out  of  the  salt 
and  allowed  to  dry  for  a  little,  or,  as  they  call  it,  'to  dreep;'  it  is  then 
hung  in  the  smoke  of  wood.  In  many  places  they  have  small  smoking 
houses,  but  in  the  poor  and  less  refined  houses  they  hang  them  in  the 
chimney.  Formerly  they  were  carried  by  the  women,  in  creels,  into  the 
inland  districts  and  towns,  and  disposed  of  either  for  money  or  barter,  in 
the  shape  of  meal,  potatoes,  etc.;  they  left  the  fishing  villages  very  early 
in  the  morning,  so  that  they  were  far  inland  before  day-break;  they  went 
in  crowds  of  ten,  twenty,  thirty,  and  more;  and  commonly  sung  their 
peculiar  sea  songs  to  beguile  the  weary  way.  A  happy,  merry,  noisy  crew 
they  formed;  the  sight  of  such  health,  happiness,  mirth,  and  honest  industry 
made  one's  heart  glad.  For  some  time  past  there  has  prevailed  a  great 
scarcity  of  this  valuable  fish,  but  during  last  autumn  they  appeared  in 
much  greater  numbers,  but  of  small  size. 

Bib,  (Morrhua  lusca.) — Has  been  found  at  Gamrie. 

Power  Cod,  (Morrhua  minuta.) — This  little  fish  was  first  observed  in  the 


THE   ICHTHYOLOGY    OF    BANFFSHIRE.  '  231 

Frith  in  the  end  of  1853.      In  January,    18u4,    I    obtained    it  in   great 
numbers. 

Whiting,  (Merlangus  vulgaris.) — Abundant. 

Goal-fish,  (Merlangus  carbonarius.) — This  fish  is  distinguished  by  the 
fishermen  by  three  different  names,  according  to  its  age.  For  the  first 
year  it  is  called  ^'Gerrack/'  and  forms  excellent  sport  for  the  young  fisher, 
who  may  be  seen  with  eager  eyes  and  strained  neck  stretching  from  the 
jetties  and  piers,  and  the  sides  of  ships  and  boats,  hooking  them  with  his 
rude  tackle  as  fast  as  he  can  throw  it  into  the  water.  During  the  second 
year  it  goes  by  the  name  of  "Saithe."  At  the  end  of  the  second  year,  it 
removes  seaward,  and  then  bears  the  name  of  "Coal-fish,"  or  simply  "Coal." 

Pollack,  (Merlangus  pollachius.) — "Lythe."     Common. 

Hake,  (Merlucius  vulgaris.) — A  few  are  commonly  caught  in  the  Herring 
nets,  which  they  very  much  injure.  On  the  24th,  of  August,  1854,  a 
very  fine  specimen  was  brought  me.  If  I  might  be  allowed  to  say  any- 
thing of  it  as  a  fish  for  the  table,  I  consider  it  ^'very  dry." 

Ling,  (Lota  molva.) — This  is  not  so  abundant  as  the  Cod.  They  are 
cured  in  the  same  way  as  the  Cod,  and  sell  at  a  higher  'figure.' 

Three-bearded  Roclding,  (Motella  tricirratus.) — Has  been  found  at  Gararie. 

Five-bearded  RocMing,  (Motella  quinque-cirrata.) — Common. 

Torsk,  (Brosmius  vulgaris.) — This  fish  is  very  rarely  met  with. 

Lesser  Forked  Beard,  (Raniceps  trifurcatus.) — On  the  1st.  of  December, 
1854,  a  beautiful  specimen  of  this  fish  was  sent  me  by  Mr.  Andrew 
Paterson,  a  most  obliging  intelligent  young  fisherman.  It  had  been  cast 
ashore  during  a  heavy  gale  of  wind  from  the  north,  and  was  found  by  a 
cat.  Some  fishermen  saw  the  cat  bearing  away  its  prize,  and  rather 
astonished  at  the  unusual  appearance  of  the  fish,  gave  chase,  and  poor  puss 
was  forced  to  drop  its  lawfully  gotten  prey.  Some  of  them  took  it  for  a 
young  Torsk;  but  when  brought  mo,  I  immediately  identified  it  as  the 
Lesser  Forked  Beard.  It  agreed  in  every  respect  with  Yarrell's  description, 
except  that  the  lateral  lines  were  continued  in  a  curved  direction  along 
the  head,  met  on  the  nose,  and  thus  formed  on  the  head  a  kind  of  oval. 
I  regret  to  say  that  I  lost  it;  I  carefully  wrapped  it  in  damp  paper,  and 
laid  in  on  a  table  in  my  'sanctum;'  but  conceive  my  disappointment  when, 
next  morning,  I  found  only  the  head  remaining.  Alas!  it  came  by  a  cat, 
and  it  went  by  a  cat.  It  was  away,  and  there  was  no  use  in  fretting; 
I  consoled  myself  with  the  hope  that  I  should  soon  find  another  one. 

Plaice,  (Platessa  vulgaris.) — ''Plask-Fleuk."     Very  abundant. 

Flounder,  (Platessa  flesus.) — Most  abundant. 

Common   Bab,  (Platessa  limanda.) — "Grey  Fleuk."     Abundant. 

Lemon   Dab,  (Platessa  microcephala.) — "Sole  Fleuk."     Common. 

Long  Rough  Dab,  (Platessa  limandoides.) — As  far  as   I   can  learn,  only 


232  THE    ICHTnyOLOGY    OP    BANFFSniRE. 

one  specimen  of  this  has  been  observed.  I  obtained  it  in  the  spring  of 
lSo4.     ("The  Naturalist/'  vol.  iv.,  page  190.) 

Halibut,  (Hippoglossus  vulgaris.) — Common. 

Turhot,  (Rhombus  maximus.) — "Rawn  Flcuk."  Common.  It  is  fished 
for  with  the  hook;  one  was  taken  during  last  spring  in  the  Salmon  nets, 
at  Gallachy,  parish  of  Eathven,  that  would  vie  with  Domitian's  famous 
monster;  it  measured  six  feet  in  length,  four  feet  in  breadth,  and  of 
proportionate  thickness:  it  weighed  two  hundred  and  twelve  pounds.  Pis- 
catorum  consuUuin  ordained  that  it  should  be  sent  to  London.  It  was 
accordingly  packed  in  ice  and  sent  by  the  first   steamer. 

Brill,    (Rhombus  vulgaris.) 

Mailer's  Top-knot,  (Rhombus  hirtus.) — On  the  22nd.  of  September,  1854, 
I  obtained  a  specimen  of  this  beautiful  fish  from  Mr.  W.  Lyall,  another 
of  my  friends.  It  was  of  a  much  darker  colour  than  that  represented  in 
Yarrell.  The  Rev.  G.  Harris  has  also  found  it  at  Gamrie;  his  specimen 
was  likewise  very  dark. 

Sole,  (Solea  vulgaris.) — Quite  common. 

Solenette,  (Monochirus  linguatulus.) — On  the  18th.  of  June,  1854,  I 
received  a  very  fine  specimen  of  this  little  fish.  In  was  hooked  in  about 
eleven  fathoms  with  a  soft  bottom,  and  was  of  a  pule  yellow  colour. 
Another  specimen  of  a  large  size  has  been  obtained  by  the  Rev.  G.  Gordon, 
on  the  Morayshire  coast. 

Blmaculated  Sucker,  (Lepidogaster  bimaculatus.) — A  boy  that  was  col- 
lecting for  me  among  the  boats  after  their  return  from  the  fishing,  found 
one  of  these  in  a  boat.  When  put  into  a  basin  of  water  it  swam  about 
for  some  time,  and  then  firmly  fixed  itself  to  the  side,  so  that  it  required 
a  little  force  to  separate  it.     It  died  in  a  short  time. 

Lump  Suclcer,  (Cyclopterus  lumpus.) — "Paddle  Cock,"  "Paddle  Hen." 
Frequently  found  among  the  rocks. 

Montagus  Suclcer,  (Liparis  Montagui.) — A  single  specimen  was  got  by 
Mr.  T.  Edward,  in   1854. 

Sharp-nosed  Eel,  (Anguilla  acutirostris.) — Common. 

Conger,  (Conger  vulgaris.) — "Hadvel  Eel."  A  fe.v  are  caught  occasion- 
ally in  the  Salmon-nets.  The  fishermen  have  a  dread  of  them,  as  they 
are  possessed  of  such  strength,  and  are  so  difficult  to  kill.  They  say  their 
bite  is  dreadful. 

Anglesea  Morris,  (Leptocephalus  Morrisii.) — Mr.  Harris  has  obtained  it 
at  Gamrie. 

Sand  Launce,  (Ammodytes  lancea.) — '^San'  Eels,"  This  is  abundant,  and 
often  used  as  bait. 

Great  Pipe  Fish,  (Syngnathus  acus.)— I  have  obtained  two  specimens. 
Others  have  also  been  found. 


THE    ICHTHYOLOGY    OF    BANFFSHIRE.  233 

Straight-nosed  Pipe  Fish,  (Syngnathus  opliludian.) — Has  been  found  at 
Gamrie,  by  the  Rev.  G.  Harris. 

Worm  Pipe  Fish,  (Syngnathus  lurabriciformis.) — Has  been  obtained  at 
Gamrie,  by  the  Rev.  G.  Harris. 

Short  Sun  Fish,  (Orthagoriscus  Mola.) — Has  been  taken  at  Trouphcad, 
near  Gamrie. 

Ohlong  Sun  Fish,  (Orthagoriscus  oblongus.) — It  is  doubtful  whether  this 
fish  has  been  found  on  the  Banffshire  coast.  An  old  fisherman  told  me 
that  his  boat  was  once  pursued  by  a  Sun  Fish.  They  cast  stones  at  it, 
and  used  every  means  to  frighten  it  from  the  boat,  but  to  no  purpose;  it 
stuck  to  them  for  a  considerable  time,  and  then  left  of  its  own  accord. 
The  good  old  man  declares  "he  never  got  sic  a  fleg  a's  life."  From  his 
description  it  appears  to  have  been  the  oblong  Sun  Fish.  A  specimen 
was  obtained  a  few  years  ago  at  Burghcad,  in  Morayshire.  It  was  three 
feet  in  length. 

Sturgeon,  (Accipenser  Sturio.) — "In  the  years  1833,  1836,  and  1844, 
specimens  of  the  ^royal  fish,'  were  caught  on  the  south  side  of  the  Moray 
Frith."— i?ey.  G.  Gordon. 

Small-spotted  Dog-fish,  (Scylliura  canicula  )  '^Blin'  Hae."  I  have  obtained 
a  good  many  specimens. 

Blue  Shark,  (Carcharlas  glaueus.) — -In  the  month  of  September,  a  Shark, 
said  to  be  the  Blue  Shark,  was  caught  in  the  herring-nets.  I  did  not 
see  it,  and  therefore  cannot  positively  say  whether  it  was  this  Shark  or 
not.     The  fishermen  seemed  to  have  no   doubt  of  it. 

Porbeagle,  (Lamna  Cornulicas.) — Has  been  seen  on  the   coast. 

Piked  Dog-fish,  (Acanthias  vulgaris.) — 'This  Fish  is  most  abundant  and 
most  destructive  both  to  the  herring  and  to  the  nets.  They  are  used 
as  manure,  although  some  are  cured  by  being  dried  in  the  sun.  They 
are  said  to  be  of  a  strong  oily  taste. 

Greenland  Shark,  (Scymnus  Borealis.) — At  Trouphead. 

Spinous  Shark,  (Echinorhiuus  spinosus.) — One  has  been  found  at  Gamrie. 

Sharp-nosed  Batj,  (Raia  Oxyrhynchus.) 

Skate,  (Raia  Batis.) — Common. 

Thornhack,  (Raia  Clavata.) 

Starry  Bay,  (Raia  radiata.) — In  the  month  of  May,  1854,  I  obtained 
a  very  beautiful  specimen  of  this  pretty  Fish.  The  Rev.  G.  Harris  has 
found  it  at  Gamrie. 

Lampern,  (Petromyzon  fluviatilis.) — "Laraper  Eel."  Common  in  many 
of  the  streams. 

Myxine,  (Gastrobranchus  coecus.) — ^^Eelast."  Very  common.  All  I  have 
seen  were  taken  on  the  lines.     They  are  objects  of  disgust  to  the  fishermen. 

Macduff,  February  2Zrd.,  1856. 
VOL.  VI.  2  S 


234 

BlisnllnErnng  Untira 

Anecdote  of  a  Dog. — I  had  a  hen  sitting  on  some  Ducks'  eggs;  when 
she  hatched;  she  did  not  seem  to  like  the  appearance  of  the  new-comers 
at  all;  to  use  the  servant's  language  she  "could  not  abearthem;"  so  they 
were  taken  from  her,  and  put  into  a  basket,  and  fed  and  attended  to 
for  a  time  in  the  kitchen.  There  a  little  dog,  a  sort  of  half-bred  Skye 
terrier,  followed  them  and  laid  down  close  to  the  basket;  after  awhile 
she  got  into  it,  and  curling  herself  round,  took  as  much  care  of  the  Ducks 
as  she  could;  taking  them  up  from  time  to  time  in  her  mouth,  very 
gently,  and  putting  them  into  their  right  places,  but  they  were  very 
restless  and  intractable,  crawling  through  her  long  hair  and  over  her  back 
in  all  directions;  we  therefore  took  them  from  her.  It  is  more  curious 
from  her  not  having  had  any  puppies  for  two  or  three  years,  and  she 
is  an  inveterate  vermin  hunter,  and  at  first  we  feared  that  she  meant  to 
kill   the  Ducks,  mistaking  their  piping  for  vermin. — H. 

Instinct  of  Animals. — In  the  July  No.  of  "The  Naturalist,"  in  the 
'^Chapter  on  Instinct,"  reference  is  made  to  the  instinct  of  the  Dog.  I 
riend  the  following  which  occurred  to  myself  as  corroborative  of  the  above. 
I  was  walking,  some  weeks  ago,  in  a  neighbouring  town  with  a  friend, 
who  was  accompanied  by  a  small  half-bred  Italian  greyhound.  As  we 
approached  a  large  factory  the  dog  all  at  once  started  off  at  a  tangent, 
running  through  a  gentleman's  grounds  and  meeting  us  again  at  some 
distant  point,  I  remarked  upon  the  conduct  of  his  dog  to  my  friend,  who 
told  me  that  the  dog  generally  did  so  if  he  were  walking  with  it  at  the 
time  the  factory  hands  were  coming  out,  as  was  the  case  in  this  instance. 
He  said  the  "hands"  had  jeered  and  laughed  at  the  little  dog  sometimes, 
and  since  then  it  always  made  a  bend  out  of  the  main  street  in  order  to 
avoid  meeting  thera.  Surely  here  was  an  instinct  approaching  to  reason. 
We  wei*e  not  near  the  mill  at  the  time,  but  a  street  from  it;  but  the 
doo'  evidently  remembered  the  circumstance  of  the  mill  hands  laughing  at 
him,  and  therefore  to  avoid  the  like  occurrence,  acted  in  the  manner  I 
have  described. 

To  the  above  I  will  also  add  a  similar  case  of  instinct  on  the  part  of 
a  cat  belonging  to  myself.  On  July  19th.,  we  had  shut  the  horjse  up, 
all  being  out  for  a  time,  leaving  only  a  small  window  open  for  Mr,  Tom 
to  enter  or  not  as  he  pleased,  x\bout  eight  in  the  evening  I  was  coming 
home  through  the  fields  adjoining  my  garden,  when  whom  should  I  meet 
but  puss  himself,  who  thereupon  began  to  mew  and  run  before  me,  evidently 
expecting  me  to  follow.  In  fact  it  was  just  the  time  when  he  had  his 
allowance  of  new  milk,  and  no  one  being  at  home  he  had  come  into  the 
fields,  not   indeed  expecting  to  see  me,  but  because  the  servant  had  beeo 


MISCELLANEOUS   NOTICES.  235 

in  the  habit  of  going  down  those  fields;  and  puss  argued  that  she  might 
be  there  now,  and  hence  had  come  hoping  to  meet  her,  that  she  might 
give  him  his  usual  evening  allowance.  It  may  be  impossible  to  describe 
■what  instinct  really  is,  but  I  think  it  scarcely  can  be  denied  that  animals 
do  in  some  degree  possess  a  certain  power  of  reasoning. — Joseph  B.  Grant, 
Oxenhope  Parsonage,   August  9th.,   1856. 

I   wish   all    correspondents    would    give    the    English   name  as   well    as 

technical    one,    of   whatever   plant    or   insect,  etc.,  they   may  be    writing 

about.  It  would  be  a  boon  to  persons  like  myself  who  only  know  ^^the 
beginnings"  of  natural   history. — Idem. 

The  Nightingale. — Having  noticed  some  remarks  on  the  sociability  of 
the  Nightingale,  in  Mr.  Twinn's  very  interesting  article,  which  appeared 
in  the  last  number  of  "The  Naturalist,"  I  beg  to  offer  the  following 
account  of  some  facts  relative  to  that  bird,  which  came  under  my  notice 
in  the  spring  of  1855,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Toubridge,  in  Kent.  I 
happened  one  day,  while  in  the  garden,  to  throw  something  into  a  low  box- 
tree  which  grew  at  the  distance  of  about  twenty  yards  from  the  house, 
which  was  close  to  the  high-road,  when  I  was  startled  by  a  bird  flying 
out  in  that  peculiar  manner  which  is  usually  seen  in  the  hen  bird  when 
disturbed  while  sitting,  and  on  going  to  the  bush  I  found  a  Nightingale's 
nest,  containing  four  young  birds,  partly  fledged,  and  one  addled  egg,  which 
last  I  removed.  After  this  I  paid  daily  visits  to  the  nest  for  about  ten 
days,  during  which  time  I  frequently  observed  the  old  bird  sitting;  when, 
one  morning,  I  found  the  nest  empty,  and  I  was  half  afraid  that  the 
young  birds  had  fallen  a  prey  to  cats  or  to  hands  less  scrupulous  than 
mine;  but  as  I  afterwards  saw  a  pair  of  Nightingales  with  several  young 
ones  constantly  about  the  garden,  I  doubt  not  that  they  were  the  same  and 
had  merely  left  the  nest  sooner  than  I  had  anticipated.  During  this  time 
as  well  as  afterwards,  a  Nightingale  would  generally  remain  during  the 
greater  part  of  the  day,  as  well  as  in  the  evening,  singing  most  beauti- 
fully, and  without  any  sign  of  fear,  on  a  branch  of  a  Magnolia,  (Mag- 
nolia conspicua,)  within  three  or  four  feet  of  a  window,  close  to  which  my 
brother  was  usually  sitting.  I  may  here  observe  that  we  had  in  former 
years  heard  Nightingales  singing  night  after  night  in  some  trees  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  road,  and  that  I  had  found  an  empty  nest  the 
summer  befoi'e  in  the  same  bush  where  I  now  found  the  young  birds  and 
egg,  and  one  in  a  similar  bush  near  the  other,  but  had  failed  to  recog- 
nise them  as  Nightingales'  nests  till  I  saw  that  with  the  young  and  egg. 
As  we  removed  from  Toubridge  in  the  autumn  of  1855,  I  have  not  been 
able  to  ascertain  whether  they  returned  this  year. — H.  B.  S.,  Kensington, 
August  22nd.,  1856. 


236  NOTICES    OF    NEW    PUBLICATIONS. 

Java  Sparroxo. — A  good  specimen  of  the  Java  Sparrow  was  shot  wild 
in  the  woods  a  few  miles  from  here,  in  company  with  another  of  its 
species.  It  is  the  only  one  I  ever  heard  of  being  shot,  and  I  am  con- 
fident it  is  a  wild  bird  from  its  appearance,  also  from  the  circumstance 
of  its  having  another  bird  with  it.  If  it  had  escaped  from  any  cage,  it 
would  have  been  alone;  if  the  other  had  escaped  with  it  they  would  have 
been  sure  to  separate  before  they  got  into  the  woods;  therefore  I  imagine 
there  must  have  been  a  flight  of  them;  this  was  shot  by  a  boy,  but  he 
could  not  get  near  the  other, — J.  B.  Wateus,  Bird-stuflFer,  Hochester, 
August,   IS.jG. 

I  have  not  the  slightest  doubt  of  the  above-mentioned  birds  having  escaped  from  confine- 
ment. If  kept  in  a  cage  togetlier  tliey  would  naturally  consort  together  afterwards.  Birds 
are  often  seen  in  the  most  perfect  state  of  plumage  in  large  cages. — F.  0.  Moiaiis. 

Occurrence  of  the  Hose-coloured  Pastor,  (Turdus  roscus,)  172  CainiridgesJiire. 
— A  female  of  this  rare  bird  was  shot  at  Fulbourn,  July  21st.,  18uG. — ■ 
Samuel  Parker  Savill,  13,   llegent   Street,  Cambridge. 

Hoopoe,  (Upupa  epops.) — On  April  22nd.,  18d6,  a  specimen  in  adult 
plumage  was  shot  at  Great  Thurlow,  Suffolk:  on  dissection  it  proved  to 
be  a  female. — Idem. 


Untirfs  nf  Jilm  l^uhlirittions. 

Preparing  for  Publication  by  Subscription.  Price  5s.  paper  cover,  or  7s, 
interleaved,  bound  in  roan.  Jottings  in  Australia,  being  Notes  on  the  Flora 

.  and  Fauna  of  Victoria,  with  a  Catalogue  of  the  more  common  Plants,  their 
Habitats,  and  time  of  Floioering.  By  Samuel  Hannaford,  Esq.,  Author 
of  ''Flora  "^I'ottoniensis,"  and  late  Honorary  Secretary  of  the  Victoria 
Horticultural  Society. 

This  little  Work  has  been  undertaken  from  the  want  which  the  Author 
feels  assured  others  have  felt  in  common  with  himself,  on  newly  arriving 
in  this  country,  of  a  Work  which  would  afford  some  information,  written 
in  a  popular  form,  relative  to  the  more  common  Birds,  Insects,  Plants, 
etc.,  met  with  in  their  daily  rambles.  All  that  is  published  on  the  Natural 
History  of  Australia  is  scattered  through  the  writings  of  Travellers,  or 
written  in  the  I^atin  tongue,  which,  however  familiar  to  a  skilled  Botanist, 
is  rather  apt  to  damp  the  ardour  of  the  young  Student.  These  "Jottings," 
it  is  hoped,  will  supply  that  want,  as  they  will  be  published  in  a  conve- 
nient form  for  the  pocket,  and  interleaved  to  admit  of  copious  Notes  being 
made,  and  are  intended  merely  as  preliminary  to  Works  of  a  more  scientific 
character. 

Commuuicatioas  may  be  addrcs/scd  to   the  Publishers,  Messrs.  James  J. 


REVIEW,       THE    RETROSPKCT.  237 

Blundell  and  Co.,  44,  Collins  Street  West,  Melbourne,  or  to  the  Author, 
at  Warrnambool. 


f\mm. 

Inseda  Britannica — Diptera.  Vol.  III.  By  Francis  Walker,  F.  L.  S. 
London:  Lovell  Reeve,  Henrietta  Street,  Covent  Garden.  1856.  (Large 
Octavo  size.) 

If  the  fame  of  Mr.  Walker  as  a  first-rate  entomologist  was  not  already 
firmly  established,  this  work  would  secure  it  for  him,  replete,  as  it  is, 
with  valuable  information,  guarded  by  scientific  accuracy.  It  is  a  most 
valuable  production,  the  importance  of  which  as  a  component  part  of  the 
l^atural  History  of  the  country  cannot  be  over-rated.  Every  species  is 
described  separately  in  Latin  and  English,  and  that  most  fully,  completely, 
and  carefully. 

I  cannot  say  that  I  quite  understand  the  author's  meaning  in  the  Preface 
as  to  the  species  described,  but  this  is  a  minor  fault,  even  if  it  be  not 
more  to  be  attributed  to  my  own  dullness  of  comprehension  than  to  the 
author's  obscurity  of  expression.  The  work  itself  cannot  possibly  be  praised 
too  highly.     It  is  everything  that  a  scientific  book  ought  to  be. 


€\i  lUtrnsjiBii. 

Having  just  perused  the  four  last  numbers  of  "The  Naturalist,"  I  meet 
with  an  article  in  the  one  for  April,  at  page  84,  headed  "Moth  Hunting, 
or  an  evening  in  a  wood;"  by  Mr.  Thomas  Edward.  This  article  is 
certainly  throughout  somewhat  amusing,  but  the  captures  named  by  its 
author  deserve  especial  notice.  Mr.  Edward  asserts  that  he  captured  on 
one  and  the  same  evening  the  following  Moths,  namely,  the  Oak  Egger, 
Unicorn  Hawk  Moth,  Cream-spot  Tiger,  and  Green  Silver-lines.  Now, 
this  must  have  been,  as  he  observes,  a  most  wonderful  take,  and  I  am 
inclined  to  think  that  few,  if  any,  who  are  but  moderately  acquainted  with 
the  habits  of  these  several  speeius  will  be  ready  to  believe  the  same,  for 
the  following  reasons: — The  Oak  Egger  quits  its  chrysalis  about  the  middle 
of  July,  and  the  males  fly  during  the  afternoon,  seldom  if  ever  moving 
about  at  dusk  in  the  evening:  the  Cream-spot  Tiger  flies  from  nine  or 
ten  in  the  morning,  seemingly  to  enjoy  the  full  warmth  of  the  sun;  this 
species  is  in  its  perfect  state  from  the  middle  of  May  to  the  middle  or 
latter  end  of  June,  seldom  occurring  later  in  the  season.  The  Green 
Silver-line  flies  in  the  evening,  and  the  one  known  among  collectors  as 
the  scarce  one,  comes  forth  in  July,  the  common  one  in  May,  but  both 
arc  very  short-lived  insects,  being  soon  over  and  gone.     The  Unicorn  Hawk 


238  EXCHANGE. 

Moth  is  by  no  means  a  companion  of  any  of  the  above-named,  the  montb 
for  its  appearance  in  the  winged  state  being  September,  and  I  have  taken 
them  good  to  the  end  of  October.  In  the  year  184:6,  I  believe  that 
several  Convolvulus  Hawks  were  taken  as  early  as  the  last  week  in  August, 
but  this  was  noted  as  an  exception,  not  the  rule.  In  fact  the  summer 
of  1846  was  exceedingly  hot,  and  consequently  produced  several  of  the 
Insect  tribe  which  were  previously  considered  very  rare  or  next  to  extinct, 
for  instance,  Cehrio,  Galii,  and  Livornica  were  taken  in  many  parts  of 
England,  and  Atropos  and  Convolvuli  were  abundant  throughout  the  whole 
country.  By  the  bye,  the  whereabouts  these  species  hide  for  so  many  years, 
and  then  spring  up  so  abundantly,  would,  I  presume,  be  an  amusing  subject 
for  inquiry,  and  doubtless  would  bring  out  some  curious  speculations.  I 
should  certainly  suggest  that  Mr.  Edward  be  further  questioned  respecting 
his  statement,  as  truthful  information  must  be  insisted  upon  to  secure  the 
worth  of  "The  Naturalist."— Cornelius  Walford,  Witham,  Essex,  August, 
1856. 

I  cannot  but  express  m}^  agreement  with  the  above  remarks,  but  the  writer  must  himself 
be  mistaken  as  to  Livor)iiea  being  taken  in  many  places. — F.  0.  Moiuus. 


Botamj. — William  Sutherland,  18,  Bon-Accord  Terrace,  Aberdeen,  can 
supply  the  plants  of  the  north-east  of  Scotland,  including  the  best  alpine 
ones  in  Flora. 

Will  any  of  the  Norfolk  readers  of  "The  Naturalist"  be  kind  enough  to 
furnish  me  with  small  specimens  of  peat-earth  for  microscopical  examination; 
being  engaged  in  the  study  of  the  Diatomacea,  I  am  anxious  to  obtain 
specimens  of  earths  likely  to  contain  them  from  different  localities.  I  shall 
be  most  happy,  in  return,  to  send  infusorial  earths  from  any  of  the  fol- 
lowing localities: — Frazensbrunnen  and  Gossa,  in  Bohemia;  Obera,  in 
Luneberg,  Germany;  Thiergarten,  Berlin;  Bilin,  in  Bohemia;  and  Habichts- 
wald,  Cassel,  Germany.  Diatomaceous  deposits  from  any  locality  would  be 
extremely  acceptable,  and  would  meet  with  the  best  return  in  my  power. 
— George  Hodge,  Seaham   Harbour,  August  21st.,  1856. 

The  Rev.  F.  0.  Morris  has  duplicates  for  exchange  of  CalUmorpha  Hera, 
from  larvaa  from  Guernsey;  Vanessa  G-album,  Phragmatohia  faliginosa, 
Euthemonia  Russula,  Abraxas  ulmaria,  Fidonia  piniaria,  Argyymis  aglaia, 
Arctia  villica,  Arge  galathcea,  Notodonta  dictcea,  Platypterix  unguicula, 
Syndhus  alveolus,  Melitoea  Artemis,  Melitoea  Athalia,  Stewpes  pam'scus, 
Steropes  comma,  Thanaos  Tages,  Polyommatus  corydon,  Aplecta  nehulosa, 
and  Phlogophora  meticulosa.  He  wants  fine  Dipthera  Orion,  Notodonta 
trepida,  Zeuzera  oesculi,  Erehia  Cassiope,  and  Eremohia  ochroleuca. 


2?>9 

2|c^rntwMug3  nf  Inrijfim 

London  Worhing  Entomologists  Club.  The  Members  held  their  usuai 
Monthly  Meeting  on  Tuesday,  August  5th.  There  was  an  excellent  show 
of  Insects  captured  this  season,  amongst  them  were  the  Purple  Emperor, 
White  Admiral,  High  Brown,  Dark  Green  and  Silver-washed  Fritillaries; 
six  of  the  Skippers,  Sieve  Lackeys,  Large  Lackey,  Flat  Lackey,  Orange 
Lackey,  Dew  Lackey,  etc.,  with  a  host  of  fine  larvas,  including  the  Death's 
Head,  Oak  Prominent,  and  Lobster. — James  Gardner,  Hon.  Sec. 


DEATH     OF     MR.  YARRELL. 

BY    0.  S,  ROUND,    ESQ. 

Whilst  the  sheets  of  our  last  number  were  issuing  from  the  press,  the 
most  able  and  distinguished  of  modern  Naturalists  breathed  his  last — 
William  Yarrell, — a  name  associated  with  some  of  the  most  remarkable 
discoveries  in  modern  Physiology,  etc.,  known  and  respected  even  by  those 
who  were  not  professors  of  his  beloved  science.  Mr.  William  Yarrell  was 
born  in  1782,  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood  of  the  house  at  the  corner 
of  Ryder  Street,  St.  James',  where  he  passed  almost  the  whole  of  his  life; 
and  where  with  his  father,  and  afterwards  in  partnership  with  another 
gentleman,  he  carried  on  business  as  a  newspaper  agent,  and  which  business 
he  only  disposed  of  a  few  years  since.  A  lover  of  the  country  and  rural 
sports,  nature  was  his  study  and  delight  from  an  early  period,  and  he 
made  ;^a  valuable  collection  of  specimens  of  Natural  History;  but  it  was 
not  until  the  year  1829  that  he  became  an  author,  and  in  1840  was 
elected  a  Fellow  of  the  Linnean  Society,  a  connection  terminating  only 
with  his  life,  and  which  appears  to  have  commanded  a  very  large  share  of 
his  energies  and  talents,  for  almost  his  latest  public  act  appears  to  have 
been  the  part  he  took  in  the  Linnean  excursion  to  Guildford,  not  many 
months  since. 

Mr.  Yarrell  was  a  bachelor,  but  by  no  means  justified  the  charge  of 
selfishness  or  moroseness,  so  commonly  ascribed  to  that  condition,  being  a 
great  appreciator  of  the  amenities  of  life,  singing  an  excellent  song,  and 
distinguished  for  his  social  as  well  as  literary  qualities.  In  him  the  power 
of  talent  was  remarkably  exemplified,  for,  although  he  might  be  considered, 
strictly  speaking,  in  trade,  yet  he  mingled  in  the  highest  circles,  formed 
one  at  the  dinner  entertainments  of  our  first  statesmen,  as  well  as  in  the 
more  scientific  meetings  of  our  literati.  With  the  Zoological  Society  he 
was  connected  from  its  very  comraenceiBcnt,    and  became   eventually  vice- 


240  OBITUARY. 

president  and  treasurer  to  the  Linnean  Society;  and  that  the  Royal  Society 
did  not  enroll  his  name  amongst  its  members,  has  always  been  considered 
to  reflect  no  dishonour  upon  hira,  but  on  the  contrary,  to  be  deplored  as 
a  loss  to  that  great  body,  through  the  short-sighted  tyranny  of  some 
senseless  formality. 

The  worlcs  which  have  chiefly  distinguished  Mr.  Yarrell,  are  his  "History 
of  British  Birds,"  and  his  "History  of  British  Fishes,"  upon  which  it  would 
be  idle  to  say  one  word  of  comment,  the  public  having  awarded  them  their 
meed  of  praise.  He  was  the  discoverer  (in  conjunction  with  Mr.  Jesse) 
of  the  fact  that  eels  are  viviparous,  and  the  papers  from  his  pen  upon  a 
variety  of  subjects,  all  connected  with  natural  science,  are  as  able  as  they 
are  numerous;  it  will  only  be  necessary  to  refer  to  a  few  of  the  most 
prominent.  In  1829  he  published  "'A  description  of  a  new  species  of  Tringa 
found  in  Cambridgeshire,"  in  1830,  a  paper  on  the  "Organs  of  Voice  in 
Birds,"  and  in  1833,  "Observations  on  tlie  laws  which  appear  to  influence 
the  Assumption  and  Change  of  Plumage  in  Birds;"  in  1835,  an  ^'Account  of 
the  Apteryx  Australis"  with  "Some  Observations  on  an  Insect  detrimental 
to  Turnips."  About  the  same  time  was  written  an  article  entitled  "A 
Description  of  the  Organs  of  Voice  in  a  new  species  of  Wild  Swan,"  which 
was  communicated  to  the  Linnean  Society.  Mr.  Yarrell  then  produced  a 
paper  entitled  "A  description  of  three  new  species  of  Fresh-water  Fishes, 
of  the  genus  Leuciscus"  and  in  1853  a  paper  "On  the  Habits  of  the 
Great  Bustard."  Most  of  the  foregoing  have  been  published  in  the  annals 
of  different  scientific  societies;  and  during  the  present  year  an  able  article 
from  the  same  pen  was  published  by  the  Linnean  Society,  "On  the 
Influence  of  the   Sexual  Organs  in  modifying  External  Character." 

It  would  exceed  our  limits  even  to  refer  to  the  various  as  well  as 
numerous  productions  from  the  pen  of  this  distinguished  naturalist;  suffice 
it  to  say  that  no  vexata  questio  ever  arose  without  some  lucid  and  valuable 
observations  being  made  by  him  upon  it,  and  unlike  many  talented  men, 
he  was  never  led  away  by  his  fancy  to  advance  anything,  except  upon 
the  most  careful  investigation,  and  consequently  his  productions  have  the 
valuable  quality  of  accuracy  as  well  as  style  to  recommend  them.  Among 
these  instances,  it  may  be  mentioned  that  we  owe  to  him  the  identity  of 
the  white-bait,  and  he  had  the  honour  of  having  his  name  attached  to 
more  than  one  newly  discovered  species. 

A  few  years  since  Mr.  Yarrell  was  attacked  by  severe  indisposition, 
from  which  he  apparently  recovered,  but  it  is  probable  that  the  enemy 
worked  still  within.  Having  gone  to  Yarmouth,  he  there  expired  suddenly^ 
on  Sunday  the  31st.  of  August,  of  ossification  of  the  heart,  in  the  seventy- 
second  year  of  his  age. 

"Peace  be  to  his  ashes."  /^'ft-^-^^^^ 


EIEBY    AND    SPENCE'S    ENTOMOLOGY. 

THIED     THOUSAND     OF    THE     SEVENTH     AND     CHEAPEK    EDITION. 


Just  Publislied,  in  One  closely-printed  Volume,  of  600  pages,  crown  8vo. 

price  5s.,  cloth, 

INTRODUCTION    TO    ENTOMOLOGY; 

OR, 

ELEMENTS    OP    THE    NATURAL    HISTORY    OP    INSECTS. 

Comprising  an  Account  of  Noxious  and  Useful  Insects;  of  their  Metamorphoses, 
Food,  Stratagems,  Societies,  Motions,  Hybernation,  Instinct,  etc. 

By  WILLIAM    KIRBY,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  E.L.S.,  Ecctor  of  Barbam;  and 
WILLIAM    SPENCE,     ESQ.,  F.ll.S.,  F.L.S. 

Seventh  Edition,  (third  thousand,)  with  an  Appendix  relative  to  the  Origin 
and  Progress  of  the  Work. 

"No  work  in  the  English  languaae,  we  believe,  has  done  more  than  Kirby  and  Spenee's  learned  and 
popular  Introduction  to  spread  the  taste  for  Natural  History  at  home,  and  to  extend  for  it  the  sphere 
of  observation,  from  the  more  conspicuous  but  limited  field  which  the  Vertebrata  afford,  to  the  countless 
species  and  more  varied  history,  transformations,  and  instincts  of  the  Annulata,  and  thence  indirectly  to 
all  the  lower  forms  of  animal  life.  Nor  has  its  popularity  been  limited  to  one  tontjue  or  country;  bat 
either  throusfh  the  medium  of  translations,  or  by  the  obvious  influence  which  it  has  exercised,  ever  since, 
over  the  most  esteemed  elementary  books  in  oiher  European  languages,  the  influence  given  has  been 
propagated  extensively  in  a  widening  circle.  In  noticing  this  new  edition,  however,  it  is  with  home 
readers  we  have  to  do,  and  espociallj'  with  the  young,  who  enjoy  a  privilege  that  we  of  a  former  gene- 
ration were  debarred  from,  in  being  early  admitted  to  fields  of  instruction  and  delight,  which  some  time 

were  strictly  fenced  off  from  the   narrow  pen-fold  of   'general  education,' The   book   is,    indeed,    a 

marvel  of  cheapness,  considerably  n\orc  than  six  hundred  closely-printed  octavo  pages  for  five  shillings. 

To  our  readers,  old  and  young,— parents,  children,  teachers,  respectively, — v.e  say,  'buy  and  read;' 

enjoy,  verify,  and  enlarge,  by  the  use  of  your  own  eyes  and  faculties,  the  curious  details  in  rural  economy, 
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digested  with  equal  taste  and  judgment  by  the  learned  authors,  indissolubly  associated  in  fame  and 
remembrance,  as  they  were  in  life-long  friendship,  though  now  for  a  little  while  separated  by  a  temporal 
change.  To  the  survivor  of  the  two  wc  owe  a  very  charming  addition  to  the  volume,  in  the  shape  of 
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friendship  which,  having  originated  and  matured  tlie  undertaking,  so  long  survived  its  completion  and 
participated  its  success."— i\'a.'?«'«/  History  Rsi:kw,  July,  lo56,  p.  51. 

Foolscap  8«o,   Cloth,    Gilt,  Price  Three  Shillings, 

JUNE; 

A   BOOK   FOE   THE    COUNTRY  IN    SUMMER   TIME. 
BY     H.    T.    STAINTON. 


LONDON:  LONGMAN,  BEOWN,  GEEEN.  LONGMANS,  &  EOBEETS. 
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It  is  proposed  to  issue,  as  soon  as  a  sufficient  number  of  subscribers  can  be 
obtained  to  guarantee  the  projector  against  loss,  a  monthly  sheet,  Demy  8vo, 
to  be  entitled — 

NOTES  AND  aUERIES  FOR  NATURALISTS; 

and  to  consist  of  curious  and  interesting  facts,  in  connection  with  Natueal 
History  and  Natural  Science  generally;  such  as  gleanings  from  old  authors, 
as  well  as  modern  travellers,  and  discoverers;  extracts  from  private  note-books,  and 
published  records;  lists,  with  occasional  notices  of  all  publications,  whether  scien- 
tific or  popular,  having  relation  to  the  various  Natural  Phenomena,  which  attract 
the  attention  of  the  Botanist,  Entomologist,  Geologist,  Meteorologist, 
Mineralogist,  Ornithologist,  Zoologist,  &c.,  &c. 

NOTES     AND      QUERIES, 

with  answers  to  the  latter,  will  form  a  prominent  feature  of  the  worlc,  the  mam 
objects  of  which  will  be  to  popularize  the  study  of  Natural  History;  and  to 
afford  an  inexpensive  medium  of  communication  between  students  in  the 

GREAT    SCHOOL     OF    NATURE. 

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DISPENSARY   HOUSE,    ROCHESTER,    KENT. 

*»*  Sub:i(;nptions  ran  be  sent  in  postage  stamps,  which  will  be  returned  shoulil  the  canying 
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This  Day,  Price  Threepence,  No.  VITI.  of 

A   MANUAL   OF 
BRITISH    BUTTERFLIES    AND    MOTHS. 

BY    H.  T.  STAINTON, 

Author  of  "June;  a  Book  for  the  Country  in  Summer  Time." 

This  Work  will  contain  descriptions  of  all  the  British  species,  with  popular 
rc^adable  instructions  where  to  find  and  how  to  know  them,  and  is  illustrated  with 
numerous  wood-cuts. 

In  No.  VII.  we  an-ive  nearly  at  the  end  of  tlie  Bombyces.  The  Noctuae  com- 
mence in  No.  VIII. 

N.B. — The  Fourth  Thousand  of  No.  I.  is  now  ready. 


LONDON:    JOHN    VAN    VOOKST,    1,    PATERNOSTEE    EOW. 

AND    TO    BE   HAP   OF  ALL    liOOKSELLEKS    AND   >F.WS    AGi:NTS. 


No.  69. 


NOVEMBER,   1856. 


Price  ed. 


Ti 


A   POPULAR   MONTHLY   MAGAZINE, 

IliLTJSTEATIVE    OF    THE 

ANIMAL,   VEGETABLE,   AND   MINERAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    OCCASIONAL    ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED   BY 

THE    EEV.  E.   0.   MOREIS,     B.A., 

Member  of  the  Ashmolean  Society,  etc. 

Authov  of  "A  History  of  British  Birds."      "A  History  of  British  Buttei-flies. 

"A  History  of  the  Nests  and  Eggs  of  British  Birds." 

"A  Bible  Natural  History."    "A  Book  of  Natural  History,"  etc.,  etc.,  etc. 


0  Lord,  how  manifold  are  Thy  works!    in  wisdom  hast   Thou    made  them  all:   the 
earth  is  full  of  Thy  riches. — Ps.vlm  civ.,  24. 


LONDON: 

GROOMBEIDGE   AND    SONS,  5,  PATERNOSTER  ROAV. 

AXD  MAY  BE  HAD  OF  ALL  BOOKSELLEBS. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

The  Flycatcher.     By  0.  S.  Round,  Esq 241 

A  Visit  to  Braemar,  in  1855.      By  W.  Sutherland,  Esq 243 

A  few  words  on  commencing  a  Collection  of  Lepidoptera.     ;By  the 

Rev.  R.  p.  Alington 250 

A  Spring  Walk.     By  0.  S.  Round,  Esq 252 

A  List  of  Sizes  of  Cases  for  Birds.     By  the  Editor 255 

Systema  Naturae.     By  the  Editor 257 

The  Puffin.      By  John  Dutton,  Esq 258 

MiscELLANRous  NoTicEs. — Stormy  Petrel.  Phalarope.  Grey  Phal- 
arope.  Ring  Ouzel.  Golden  Plover.  Green  Sandpiper. 
Greenshanks.  Swallows.  Nightjar.  Golden  Orioles  and  Broad- 
billed  Sandpiper  in  Norfolk.  The  Wi-yneck.  Black-headed  Gull. 
Another  Capture  of  Carabus  intricatus  in  Devonshire;  (with 
Engraving.)      The    Shag.      Little  Gull.      Note  on  the  habits  of 

Drypta.     Early  appearance  of  a  Chrysalis 258 

Exchange. — Dried  Plants.     Land  and  Fresh- water  Shells 261 

The  Querist. — The  "Naturalist's"  Heraine 262 


NOTICES    TO    CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  from  John  Gatcombe,  Esq.; — C.  J. 
Sharp,  Esq.; — W.  Gray,  Esq.; — W.; — Thomas  Fuller,  Esq.  (two;) — R. 
Mc'Lachlan,  Esq.; — O.  S.  Round,  Esq.; — G.  R.  Twinn,  Esq.; — Walter 
Gregor,  Esq.; — R.  V.  Dennis,  Esq.; — Mr.  J.  Hardy; — Rev.  G.  Sowden; 
— E.  Dawson,  Esq.; — Frederick  M.  Burton,  Esq. ; — S.  P.  Savill,  Esq.; — 
Mrs.  Mary  Adams  (two;) — T.  E.  Wilkinson,  Esq.; — Mr.  T.  Edward; — 
W.  Brooks  Gates,  Esq.  (two;) — T.  G.  Bonney,  Esq; — Horace  Waddington, 
Esq. 

*^*  Correspondents  are  particularly  requested  to  write  the 
names  of  persons,   places,   and  things  very  distinctly. 

Yolume  I,  Price  6s.  6d.,  and  Volumes  II,  III,  IV,  and  V,  Price  7s.  6d., 
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and  Parcels,  to  the  care  of  Messrs.  GROOMBRIDGE,  5,  Paternoster 
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241 
THE     FLYCATCHER.  (  '^^■'W 


BY    0.  S.  ROUND,    KSQ.  ^<^4L 


H.^ 


I  CAx  date  my  acquaintance  with  this  bird  as  long  as  memory  serves 
me,  and  a  very  agreeable  memory  it  is;  our  biographies  seem  so  mingled, 
that,  whether  from  the  pleasure  of  these  early  associations,  which  invested 
him,  in  my  eyes,  with  a  peculiar  interest,  or  that  I  really  have  always 
liked  him,  I  cannot  say,  but  certain  it  is,  my  pleasant  ideas  and  a  little 
bird  watching  for  flies  are  ever  in  the  same  train  of  thought.  Having 
premised  so  much,  I  hope  I  may  be  pardoned  for  entering  somewhat  into 
detail.  As  Defoe  says,  ^'I  was  born  in  London,  and  like  a  drooping  plant, 
probably  for  want  of  fresh  air,  etc.,  was  taken  into  the  country  for  my  health," 
and  as  the  region  to  which  I  was  transported  was  perhaps  one  of  the 
most  salubrious  in  merry  England,  to  the  west  of  Windsor  Park,  I  very 
soon  picked  up,  and  it  is  likely  owe  my  present  existence  to  the  visit. 
This  I  was  too  young  to  remember,  but  the  consequence  was  that  from 
that  time  I  was  the  inhabitant  of  the  same  locality,  until  circumstances 
made  it  our  home,  and  twenty  years  residence  there  produced  and  fostered 
those  tastes  for  the  beauties  of  Nature,  which  have  procured  me  innu' 
merable  hours  of  innocent  enjoyment,  and  laid  a  foundation  which  I  love  to 
build  upon,  and  upon  which,  with  every  interval  of  rest  from  labour  or 
anxiety,  I  find  a  refuge  constituted  of  pleasures  ever  new  and  inexhaustible, 
for  it  is  made  up  of  the  contemplation  of  those  works  "whose  builder  and 
maker  is  God." 

It  was  a  lovely  May  afternoon,  warm  and  genial  after  a  showery  day, 
that  we  posted* to,  and  arrived  at  our  sylvan  mansion;  we  had  come  from 
the  neighbourhood  of  St.  Pancras,  and  only  imagine  the  change  from  dust 
and  dirt,  and  din  and  darkness,  to  verdure  and  freshness,  and  perfume  and 
purity;  it  was  a  change  indeed,  and  I  remember  careering  down  our  lawn 
with  my  little  sister,  and  plucking  white  daises  and  yellow  buttercups,  and 
thinking  how  delicious  it  was,  everything  looked  so  very  very  clean,  every- 
thing was  so  very  very  sweet,  and  pure,  and  fresh.  It  was  an  early  season, 
and  the  trees  formed  a  perfect  bower  of  shade.  It  was  a  moment  I  never 
have  forgotten,  and  never  shall  forget.  Around  our  porch  there  clung  a 
splendid  woodbine,  in  full  leaf  and  bloom,  and  I  was  not  long  in  discovering 
that  there  were  tenants  in  this  bower,  for  ever  and  anon  a  little  grey- 
looking  bird  would  emerge  from  or  fly  into  it.  I  suppose  I  had  the 
natural  love  for  the  thing  within  me,  for  I  remember  the  tumult  of  inter- 
ested feeling  which  the  discovery  awakened,  and  before  the  summer  was 
over  I  was  very  well  up  indeed  in  the  habits  of  these  little  birds — need 
I  say  that  they  were  Flycatchers? — the  Muscicapa  grisola  of  Linnaeus, 
the  Stciparola  of  our  countryman  Ray,  the  Beam  Bird  of  English  naturalists. 

VOL.  VI.  2  I 


242 


THE    Fr.YCATCnKR. 


On  the  occasion  I  rotor  to,  the  nest  was  made,  and  the  eggs  laid,  late 
in  May:,  but  as  the  same  pair,  I  presume,  built  there  for  many  successive 
seasons,  I  watched  them  place  almost  all  the  materials  for  their  nest,  and 
bring  forth  broods,  over  and  over  again.  They  were  very  tame,  never 
being  molested,  except  that  I  occasionally  took  a  peep  at  the  eggs  or 
young,  which  they  did  not  mind,  and  the  nest  was  just  over  the  door, 
where  we  were  going  in  and  out  all  day.  How  often  I  have  sat  learning 
my  Latin  lesson,  and  watching  them  bring  small  bits  of  wool,  and  roots, 
and  moss,  and  fix  and  weave  and  mould  it  to  their  will;  how  I  have 
observed  that  they  alwaj-s  perched  on  the  same  twig,  to  await  the  time 
when  we  were  not  actually  at  the  door  to  continue  their  architecture, 
how  certain  posts  of  vantage  were  invariably  frequented  by  them  from 
which  to  watch  for  and  take  their  prey.  Our  lawn  was  then  a  sort  of 
orchard,  filled  with  fruit-trees,  and  certain  boughs  of  these  were  always 
their  resort.  There  they  sat,  the  twig  enveloped  in  their  breast  feathers, 
for  their  little  dark  legs  are  very  short,  and  peering  round  with  quick  and 
scrutinizing  eye  in  all  directions,  until  they  saw  something,  I  suppose  worth 
flying  after,  for  the  air  was  constantly  filled  with  insects,  and  as  they  were 
not  always  catching,  but  only  every  two  or  three  minutes,  they  must 
necessarily  have  exercised  some  degree  of  discrimination.  Ever  and  anon 
they  would  attempt  a  noble  prey,  in  the  shape  of  a  moth  or  butterfly, 
and  it  was  curious  to  observe  how  they  were  sometimes  for  a  moment 
baffled,  and  how  they  flew  round  and  dodged  what  they  could  not  at  once 
seize,  but  he  never  escaped  them;  and  when  they  were  feeding  their  infant 
brood,  all  these  prizes  were  spitted,  as  it  were,  upon  the  upper  mandible 
of  their  bills,  and  made  a  perceptible  bunch  upon  it,  as  you  might  easily 
perceive. 

It  happened  in  the  case  I  refer  to  that  there  was  a  nice  little  ledge,  upon 
which  the  nest  was  quite  secure,  and  rendered  still  more  so  by  a  lateral 
branch  of  the  honeysuckle,  which  well  shielded  it,  as  with  a  protecting 
arm.  Indeed  the  position  was  well  chosen;  neither  was  it  exposed  to  the 
sun's  rays,  as  Gilbert  White  relates  of  some  short-sighted  songsters,  who 
hovered  all  day  over  their  young  with  outspread  bills  and  gaping  mouths 
to  protect  them  from  the  heat,  for  here  were  plenty  of  green  leaves,  and 
everything  indeed  as  long  as  they  stayed,  whicla  was  for  several  summers, 
went  on  very  prosperously,  and  they  usually  brought  out  two  broods  each 
year.  The  eggs,  which  were  ordinarily  five  in  number,  are  not  unlike  those 
of  the  Redbreast,  but  smaller  and  more  tapering,  and  the  young,  like  most 
summer  visitants,  very  speedily  attained  maturity,  although  occasionally  one 
unluckily  fidgetted  until  he  fell  from  the  nest,  and  in  this  way  never 
survived  to  wing  his  way  to  other  realms;  and  you  may  imagine,  as  a 
little    boy,  and  with   my  feelings,  what  a  lament  was  made  over  such   an 


A    VISIT    TO    BRAEMAR,  243 

accident.  Occasionally  my  little  friends  would  perch  upon  the  balcony  of 
the  room  where  I  slept,  and  you  may  suppose  that  I  was  as  still  as  a 
mouse  whilst  I  sat  on  the  foot  of  my  bed,  breathlessly  watching  them  quite 
closely;  what  a  privilege!  without  disturbing  them.  These  were  happy 
hours.  Give  your  children  such  a  taste,  the  benefit  is  almost  incalculable; 
only  those  who  have  experienced  it  can  realize  its  extent. 

Nor  were  their  proceedings,  when  with  us,  the  only  interest  that  attached 
us  to  them;  there  were  the  mental  speculations  I  indulged  in,  with  reference 
to  their  journeyings  to  and  fro,  where  they  went,  how  they  sped,  etc.;  and 
as  the  same  pair,  I  verily  believe,  came  to  us  each  year,  what  became  of 
the  nine  or  ten  young  ones  which  they  annually  reared.  All  these  were 
great  sources  of  mental  occupation,  and  then  the  anxiety  with  which,  about 
the  beginning  of  May,  or  end  of  April,  I  always  looked  for  their  return, 
and  they  were  pretty  regular,  within  a  few  days  usually,  and  I  fancied 
that  they  looked  jaded  and  tired,  but  they  soon  recovered  their  good  looks. 

In  after  seasons  we  had  many  pairs  of  these  birds,  besides  those  I 
have  adverted  to,  which  bred  on  the  ends  of  the  plates  of  our  outsheds  and 
in  holes  of  trees,  and  do  so  still,  but  the  woodbine  got  old  and  died,  and 
no  nest  has  graced  our  porch  for  many  a  long  year;  but  I  have  only  to 
shut  my  eyes  to  realize  the  by-gone  scene  of  my  childhood,  and  there 
sits  the  little  grey  bird  on  the  apple-tree,  and  as  he  flies  towards  the  porch 
with  his  store  of  nicest  food,  methinks  I  still  hear  the  sibilous  clamour  of 
his  offspring,  as  he  settles  on  the  nest  to  distribute  the  meal. 

PemhrolcG  Square,  Kensington,  May,  185G. 


A    VISIT    TO     BRAEMAR    IN     1855. 

BY    W.  SUTHERLAND,    ESQ. 
(  Concluded  from  page  229.  J 

Glen  Callater  and  Lochnagar,  both  stations  of  some  note,  lie  in  a 
different  direction  from  the  places  we  have  already  visited.  They  may  be 
both  most  easily  reached  by  following  the  course  of  the  Clunie,  the  stream 
which  divides  the  Castletown  into  two  distinct  portions,  and  is  indeed  the 
boundary  between  the  two  great  proprietors  in  this  district,  until  you  reach 
the  farm  of  Ahallater,  where,  turning  to  the  south,  you  enter  a  narrow 
glen,  which  towards  its  upper  end  produces  many  of  our  best  alpine  plants 
in  great  abundance.  The  journey  along  the  Clunie  will  perhaps  present 
little  of  much  interest  to  the  mere  botanical  tourist,  with  the  exception  of 
the  following  plants,  which  are  in  general  abundant  about  the  village  itself: 
— Cnicus    heterophyllus,    Galium    boreale,  Oxyria    reniformis,   Myrica    Gale, 


244  A     VISIT   TO    BRAEMAR. 

Galium  mollugo,  (Manse  avenue,)  Chrysanthemum  Leucanthemum,  Alche- 
milla  alpina,  Briza  media,  Galium  uliginosum,  var.   Witheringii. 

On  our  entrance  into  this  glen  we  turned  aside  to  examine  the  bed  of 
the  stream,  which  here  empties  itself  into  the  Clunie,  after  traversing  the 
whole  length  of  Glen  Callater.  The  rock  was  of  mica-schist,  with  the 
dip  presenting  a  very  high  angle.  The  winter  torrents  had  in  many  places 
worn  the  strata  into  very  grotesque  shapes,  and  it  appeared  very  question- 
able whether  they  had  not  been  also  instrumental  in  producing  another 
equally  strange  appearance,  though  one  by  no  means  rare  even  in  rocks  of 
a  more  durable  nature,  as  I  have  seen  cavities  of  the  same  kind  in  various 
places  along  the  Kincardineshire  coast.  1  refer  to  numerous  cylindrical 
cavities,  smoothly  and  equally  scooped  out  in  the  solid  rock,  and  always 
at  right  angles  to  its  exposed  surface,  whether  in  the  current  or  considerably 
above  it,  and  averaging  five  or  six  feet  deep.  In  one  of  these,  elevated 
above  the  course  of  the  stream,  a  noble  shield  fern  had  found  a  home, 
and  presented  an  appearance  of  no  ordinary  grace,  as  it  waved  its  stately 
fronds,  from  this  vase  of  Nature's  modelling.  This  spot,  if  minutely  examined, 
would  produce  a  goodly  list  of  cryptogamic  plants,  which  find  a  congenial 
habitat  in  its  shady  recesses;  as  it  was  we  fell  in  with  Lastrcea  Filix-mas, 
L.  spimdosa,  and  L.  dilatata,  throwing  their  broad  fronds  most  lovingly  over 
their  more  slender  relatives,  Cystopteris  fragilis,  with  many  of  its  varieties, 
as  dentata  and  angustata,  (many  of  the  best  specimens  however  being  sadly 
mutilated  by  a  minute  fungus;)  Polypodium  vulgare,  P.  phegopteris,  the 
pale  foliage  of  which  presented  a  good  contrast  to  the  darker  tints  of  the 
others;  Merchantia  hcemispherica,  several  forms  of  Bryum  ccespititium, 
Andrcea  rupestris,  while  at  the  base  of  the  rocks  producing  these,  spread 
the  green  turf,  beautifully  enamelled  with  the  pale  blue  stars  of  Veronica 
chamcsdrya,  blended,  as  they  were,  with  the  delicate  leaves  of  another  favorite 
of  our  summer  rambles,   Oxalis  acetosella. 

Oh!  that  all  could  see  and  appreciate  this  lovely  spot,  which,  like  many 
others  in  this  district,  appeals  to  the  heart,  not  so  much  by  any  proud  associa- 
tions of  by-gone  days,  or  by  the  beauty  or  sublimity  of  surrounding  objects, 
as  by  the  chaste  blending  of  Nature's  prettiest  and  often  tiniest  gems — 
by  the  still  small  voice  of  the  lowly  moss,  with  perhaps  its  associations 
of  African  adventure  and  heroic  devotion  to  science; — of  the  Veronica,  with 
its  petals  painted — one  is  almost  apt  to  think  by  a  pencil  dipped  in  the 
caerulean  tints  of  a  summer  sky; — of  the  Ferns,  luxuriating  truly  in  but 
one  absolute  colour,  but  of  it  presenting  innumerable  shades,  the  coolest 
green.  On  the  higher  banks,  as  we  again  seek  the  road,  we  gather  Hier- 
acium  Lawsoni  and  Poa  Balfourii. 

On  the  other  side  of  the  road  we  have  now  reached,  is  a  ledge  of  rocks, 
toward   which   we    now   direct   our    course.     lu   passing    over   the   ground 


A    VISIT    TO    BRAEMAR.  245 

between  them  and  the  road,  we  pick  Carex  Jlava,  G.  stellulata,  C.  dioica, 
G.  hinervis,  G.  proecox,  G.  pulicaris,  E.  tetralix,  with  white  flowers,  Genista 
anglica,  Lidera  cordata,  while  at  their  base  extend  great  beds  of  Lastrea 
neopteris;  indeed  we  have  nowhere  seen  it  in  more  abundance,  or  (which 
may  be  said  of  all  the  Ferns  we  met  with  here)  in  finer  condition;  Blech- 
num  boreale,  Polypodium  pTiegopteris,  P.  dryopteris,  and  Lastrea  spinulosa. 
On  the  rocks  themselves  little  of  consequence  was  to  be  seen,  except  Bar- 
tramia  pomiformis  in  great  abundance,  and  B.  arcuata  less  so,  with  Hypnum 
complanatum  and  H.  cupressiforme  both  in  fruit.  Towards  the  summit  the 
jet-black  berries  of  Empetrum  nigrum  were  in  profusion,  and  formed,  no 
doubt,  a  most  delectable  repast  to  a  pair  of  Ring  Ouzels,  {Turdus  torquatus,) 
which  in  wrath  apparently  at  our  unseasonable  intrusion,  or  at  their  own  rather 
dangerous  proximity  to  a  lawless  depredator,  whose  species  we  could  not 
discover,  though  we  saw  his  inaccessible  eyrie  just  below  us,  jerked  constantly 
past  us,  emitting  their  usual  querulous  note  all  the  time  we  were  enjoying 
the  beautiful  panoramic  view  of  the  Braemar  district,  which  we  have  from  this 
point.  So  much  struck  were  we  indeed  with  its  extreme  beauty,  as  to  fill 
two  or  three  pages  of  our  note-book  with  its  principal  features,  which  we 
shall  not  insult  the  reader  by  transcribing,  as  words  and  even  colours,  at 
least  in  unskilful  hands,  would  but  mar  the  picture — it  must  be  seen  to 
be  appreciated. 

We  now  pressed  onwards,  and  soon  reached  Loch  Callater,  a  beautiful 
sheet  of  water,  upwards  of  a  mile  long,  and  I  believe  aflFording  capital 
fishing,  but  certainly  few  plants,  with  the  exception  of  Lobelia  Dorlmanna. 
Having  reached  the  upper  end  of  the  Loch,  the  next  point  we  make  for 
is  the  Break-neck  fall,  which  is  now  right  before  us,  and  is  one  of  the 
prettiest  objects  in  the  whole  neighbourhood.  As  seen  from  this  point  its 
appearance  is  that  of  a  thread  of  silver  dangling  over  perpendicular  rocks, 
clad  in  a  mantle  of  the  freshest  green,  the  result,  no  doubt,  of  the  ever- 
descending  spray.  But  at  the  same  time  it  must  be  remarked  that  with 
a  change  of  geological  formation,  the  hills  in  this  direction  have  much  the 
appearance,  and  much  the  botanical  character,  of  the  Clova  hills,  with  which 
indeed  they  are  continuous,  that  is  of  a  greener  tint,  and  more  rounded 
outline  than  those  farther  to  the  north,  as  may  be  seen  even  in  the  hill 
forming  the  eastern  side  of  the  glen  at  this  point,  which  is  characterized 
by  its  bare  and  rugged  sides,  here  and  there  cut  into  chasms  and  water- 
courses, formed  by  the  storms  in  winter,  and  by  the  vegetation,  where  it 
does  occur  in  sufficient  abundance  to  lend  a  character  to  the  scene,  being 
of  the  brownish  tint  of  the  dark  heath. 

We  now  find  ourselves  at  the  base  of  the  fall,  and  taking  it  for  granted 
that  we  must  by  some  means  or  other  reach  the  summit,  commence  the 
ascent,  gathering  as  we  go  Sedum  Rliodiola,  Geranium  sylvaticum,  Anemone 


246  A    VISIT    TO    BUAEMAR. 

neinerosa,  (for  both  of  which  this  is  a  considerable  elevation,)  Saxifraga 
stellaris,  S.  aizoides,  and  S.  hypnoides.  And  now,  by  a  sudden  turn  among 
the  rocks,  when  about  half  way  up,  we  are  suddenly  confronted  with  the 
principal  leap  in  the  cascade,  which  burst  on  us  with  something  of  a  mag- 
nificent effect,  as  the  sun,  which  had  for  some  time  been  overcast,  suddenly 
shone  forth  at  that  moment,  transforming  the  thousand  drops  of  spray 
into  as  many  pearls  of  the  brightest  lustre,  and  all  surmounted  by  a  rain- 
bow of  great  beauty.  After  this  point  the  ascent  began  to  be  quite  ladder- 
like, and  was  sometimes  suggestive  of  no  very  pleasant  ideas,  as  the  objects 
in  the   plain  began  to  dwindle  so  remarkably. 

"Here's  the  plaee: — stand  still. — How  fearful 
And  dizzy  'tis,  to  cast  one's  ej'es  so  low! 
The  crows  and  choughs  that  wing  the  midway  air, 
Show  scarce  so  gross  as  beetles;  half  way  down, 
Hangs  one  that  gathers  samphire— dreadful  trade!" 

KixG  Lear. 

Now,  if  we  did  not  gather  the  veritable  Crithmum  maritimum,  or 
samphire  of  our  noble  poet,  we  gathered  something  equally  to  our  taste, 
for  everywhere  in  beds  of  the  Silene  acaulis  crept  the  branches  of  that 
most  beautiful  willow  Salix  reticulata,  with  dark,  shining,  and  beautifully- 
reticulated  leaves,  and  rosy  catkins;  while  in  the  barer  parts  grew  aS', 
arenaria  and  S.  inyrsinites.  And  now  having  reached  the  top,  and  thrown 
myself  on  the  welcome  sward  from  sheer  exhaustion — a  feeling  which  in 
such  scenes  soon  wears  off,  I  took  a  peep  into  the  corry  of  Loch  Kandor, 
a  little  to  the  west,  without,  however,  examining  its  sides,  for  want  of 
time.  In  this  place  Mr.  Croall  has  detected,  among  others,  A  llosurus  crispus, 
Salix  lanata,  (on  all  hands  regarded  as  the  belle  of  British  Willows,) 
Alopecurus  alpinus,  Phleum  alpinum,  Saxifraga  oppositi folia,  Garex  rupestris, 
Isoetes  lacustvis,  Subularia  aquatica,  and  (Edipodium  Griffithianum.  Having 
picked  up  Polypodium  alpestre,  Splachnum  sphcericum,  and  S.  vasculosum, 
we   prepared  to  make  the  best  of  our  way  down  the  glen. 

If  the  tourist,  on  reaching  Loch  Callater,  strikes  into  the  path  leading  up 
the  hill  on  the  left,  by  a  very  easy  ascent — made  so  expressly  for  the 
convenience  of  parties  using  ponies,  a  mode  of  ascending  these  mountains 
often  resorted  to — he  will  find  himself  in  an  hour  or  two,  according  to 
his  speed,  on  the  summit  of  Lochnagar.  No  such  gradual  slope  can  be 
obtained  on  the  eastern  side,  for  the  position  where  he  now  stands  is  the 
summit  of  a  solid  wall  of  granite,  shooting  perpendicularly  downwards  for, 
in  some  places,  a  thousand  feet.  It  may  easily  be  supposed  that  from 
such  a  height,  a  commanding  view  of  the  surrounding  country  may  be 
obtained;  such  is  the  case  in  a  high  degree,  but  it  is  not  for  us  to  occupy 
space  in  describing  it.     Xear  the  summit  we  saw  Splachnum  mnioides  and 


A    VISIT    TO    BRAEMAR.  247 

S.  angustatum,  often  in  considerable  masses,  growing,  as  the  habit  of  the 
genus  is,  in  Deer's  dung,  or  anything  else  that  comes  in  the  way;  it  is  by  no 
means  particular,  as  some  of  the  strange  habitats  Hooker  has  recorded  testify; 
on  stones  Parmdia  Fahluensis  and  Corniculana  lanata,  on  the  ground  a 
profusion  of  Gladonia  vermicularis,  Salix  herbacea,  and  Trientalis  JEuropoea, 
being  a  very  high  elevation  for  the  last-named  plant.  Though  it  is  a  sheer 
impossibility  to  descend  the  cliffs  themselves,  still  there  exists  at  their 
northern  extremity,  a  gully  of  considerable  size,  which  is,  or  ought  to  be, 
invariably  descended  by  plant-hunters.  Here  the  accumulation  of  gravel 
and  other  detritus  from  the  summit,  is  kept  constantly  moist,  in  common 
with  the  huge  rocks,  often  split  into  colossal  cubes  that  form  its  sides, 
and  which,  among  others,  produce  the  following  plants: — Cerastiiim  alpinum, 
Veronica  alpina,  V.  serpyllifolia,  var.  alpina,  Poa  alpina,  var.  vivipara, 
Saxifraga  rivularis,  Allosurus  crispus;  and  towards  the  base  Hieracium 
alpinum,  and  others  of  that  critical  genus,  Polytriclium  hercynicum,  P.  sep- 
tentnonale,  Oxyria  reniformis,  BInnavthus  Crida-Qalli,  Lychnis  diuriia, 
Gnaphalium  supinum,  G.  sylvaticum,  the  rare  var.  0.  After  again  reaching 
the  summit,  by  rounding  a  shoulder  of  the  hill  towards  the  north — gath- 
ering, by  the  bye,  Sibbaldia  procumbens — we  met  with  nothing  remarkable 
but  a  smart  shower  of  hail,  (August  2nd.,)  and  for  some  time  had  to 
navigate  our  course  most  warily  through  thick  mists,  which  unfortunately 
descended  before  we  had  reached  the  beaten  path.  We  were  disappointed 
in  not  finding  Carex  leporina,  which  was  added  to  the  British  Flora  from 
this  locality  some  years  since. 

In  visiting  Ben  Macdhui,  the  pedestrian  traveller  requires  the  greater 
part  of  two  days,  not  only  from  its  distance  from  his  head-quarters,  but 
also  from  the  nature  of  the  ground  over  which  he  has  to  pass.  The  earlier, 
then,  he  starts  in  the  morning  the  better,  especially  if  he  intends  to  examine 
the  Linn  of  Corrymulzie  and  the  Linn  of  Dee,  both  lying  in  the  line  of 
his  route,  and  perfectly  lionized  by  visitors  to  Braemar.  To  the  former 
we  paid  a  flying  visit  for  the  purpose  of  gathering  Melampyrum  sylvaticum, 
which  there  grows  plentifully;  its  other  botanical  productions  are  numerous, 
and,  in  conjunction  with  its  exquisite  scenery,  seldom  fail  in  exciting  the 
admiration  of  the  most  careless  observer.  Some  miles  farther  on  we  cross 
the  Linn  of  Dee  by  a  bridge,  and  descend  on  the  other  side,  to  have  a 
closer  view  of  this  most  remarkable  natural  phenomenon,  which  is  that  of 
the  accumulated  waters  of  the  Dee  above  this  point,  pressing  impetuously 
through  a  rift  in  the  rock,  (mica  schist,)  which,  in  its  whole  length,  seldom 
exceeds  a  yard  in  breadth,  and  falling  into  dark  boiling  pools  below,  where 
their  fury  is  gradually  spent.  The  road  continues  parallel  to  the  course  of 
the  river  until  we  arrive  at  the  point  where  it  suddenly  takes  a  northerly 
direction,  which  it  then  retains  to  its  very  source;  after  this  point  we  have 


248  A    VISIT    TO    r.RARMAU. 

no  road,  as  that  which  we  have  hitherto  used  goes  onwards  through  Glen 
Tilt.  We  have  now  entered  Glen  Dee^  which  is  one  of  the  routes  usually 
taken  to  our  destination,  and  pick  up  little  that  is  new  except  Molinia 
ecerulea,  Drosera  Anglica,  and  the  more  generally- diffused  JD.  rotundifolia, 
of  which  a  lady-botanist  has  furnished  the  beautiful  description  as  she 
saw  it  growing  far  from  her  fatherland  in  the  plains  of  Tasmania: — "The 
sundew,  with  its  rosette  of  round  leaves,  sitting  close  to  the  soil,  and 
sparkling  like  a  cluster  of  little  rubies,  as  the  light  glistens  on  its  dew- 
tipped  crimson   fringe." 

Every  step  now  apprises  us  that  we  are  approaching   the  vicinity  of 

"The  grisly  cliffs  which  guard 

The  infant  rills  of  Highland  Dee, 
Where  hunter's  horn  was  never  heard, 
Nor  bugle  of  the  forest  bee."  ' 

The  first  of  them  we  encounter  is  Ben  Votrin,  a  bare  and  conical  mass, 
rising  proudly  from  the  Strath,  and  having,  when  we  saw  it,  its  summit 
enveloped  in  a  dense  cloud  of  mist.  Next  in  order  on  the  western  side 
of  the  stream,  is  Cairntoul,  remarkable  for  its  height  and  numerous  corries, 
from  one  of  which  dashed  to  its  base  a  continuous  stream,  or  rather  fall, 
of  at  least  a  thousand  feet  in  length.  On  one  side  of  the  stream,  we  had 
Cairn  Vim  and  several  others,  before  reaching  Ben  Macdhui.  At  the  base 
of  one  of  these,  we  gathered  Arabia  petrcea  in  profusion.  A  little  further 
on  we  commenced  the  most  arduous  part  of  the  ascent,  by  following  the 
course  of  a  mountain  stream,  which  in  summer  seemed  to  be  fed  by  a 
field  of  snow  at  its  summit,  but  whose  torrent  must,  in  winter,  be  irre- 
sistible, as  vast  dykes  of  stones  piled  on  either  side   of  its  course   testify. 

As  we  ascended,  we  gathered  Sihhaldia  procumbus,  Gerastium  trigonum, 
Poh/podium  alpestre,  Jungermannia  cochleariformis,  Bryum  Ludwigii,  Poly- 
trichum  septentrionale,  and  Andrma  Mothii*  Skirting  the  edge  of  the 
patch  of  snow,  or  rather  ice,  at  this  season  to  which  we  have  already 
referred,  our  course  to  the  summit  lay  over  and  among  huge  slabs  of 
granite,  often  upwards  of  twelve  feet  in  length,  of  an  oblong  form,  and 
presenting  great  regularity  in  their  grouping.  This  is  the  usual  effect  of 
atmospheric  and  other  agencies  on  granite,  though  nowhere  have  we  seen 
the  process  of  decomposition  exemplified  on  a  more  gigantic  scale  than  on 
Ben  Macdhui,  where,  to  recur  to  the  ancient  fable,  if  Cyclopean  walls 
ever  did  exist,  they  are  here,  the  result  of  causes  apparently  insignificant 
and  slow  in  their  operations,  but  nevertheless  wielding  a  power  inconceivably 
mightier  than  any  which  the  mythological  dreams  of  the  ancients  ever  dared 
to  attribute  to  the  Cyclopes  and  Titans.  On  the  summit  are  a  hut  (now 
roofless)  and   cairn,   both    I   suppose   raised   by  the  government    surveyors. 

*    In  the  same  place  Mr.  Croall  has,  this  season,   (1856,)  collected  A.  nivalis. 


A    VISIT    TO    BRAEMAR.  249 

Having  ascended  the  latter,  we  look  around  for  the  few  plants  that  exist 
at  this  great  elevation,  being  prevented  from  enjoying  the  view  we  had 
anticipated  by  an  invidious  mist  that  hung  all  round,  and  shut  out  the 
prospect,  with  the  exception  of  about  twenty  yards  in  our  immediate  vicinity. 

We  saw  plenty  of  Ptarmigans  on  the  summit;  the  plants  we  found  were, 
Luzula  arcuata  in  great  abundance,  L.  spicata,  Juncus  trifidus,  Salix  herhacea, 
Silene  acaulis,  with  several  lichens  already  mentioned. 

To  seek  Loch  A'an  on  the  other  side,  with  its  famous  '^shelter  stone," 
was  our  next  object,  but  in  this  we  were  also  disappointed;  for,  despite 
map  and  compass,  so  confusing  are  these  mountain  mists,  we  emerged  into 
the  visible  world  a  good  way  down  the  hill,  and,  most  provokingly,  almost 
at  the  place  by  which  we  ascended.  Making,  therefore,  the  best  of  our 
way  to  the  base,  we  soon  had  a  fire  of  dry  heath  blazing,  (having  left 
the  region  of  trees  far  behind,  few  indeed  growing  beyond  the  Linn,) 
and  having  discussed  our  coffee  and  ^brose,'  a  Scottish  dish  of  easy  com- 
position, and  wonderfully  relished,  especially  by  the  hungry,  who  have  always 
the  additional  advantage  of  carrying  their  own  sauce  along  with  them,  we 
proceeded  in  search  of  a  bed.  Here,  however,  such  a  luxury  is  not  to 
be  obtained,  and  its  place  is  generally  supplied  by  the  sheltered  side  of  a 
stone;  such  a  place  we  soon  fell  in  with,  and  were  not  long  in  resigning 
ourselves  to  the  arms  of  Morpheus,  In  the  morning  the  same  dreary  mist 
hung  on  all  the  hills,  and  we  began  to  be  more  sensible  of  the  wild 
sublimity  and  solitude  of  the  place;  an  eflFect  which  was  much  heightened 
as  an  Eagle  came  sailing  majestically  down  the  glen  to  Ben  Votrin;  truly 
has  Hogg  described  this  very  spot  as  that  where 

"Mountain  Eagles  breed  their  young, 
And  aerial  spirits ^ride  the  gale." 

The  time  was  beguiled  with  such  thoughts  as  these,  while  our  morning 
meal  was  preparing;  nor  did  it  take  so  long  either,  as  we  had  gained 
considerable  experience  in  this  our  first  attempt  at  bachelor  house-keeping, 
from  several  ludicrous  mistakes  of  the  previous  evening.  We  now  ascended 
the  glen  to  the  ^'Wells  of  Dee,"  which  he  behind  a  vast  rampart  of  loose 
stones,  presenting  undoubted  marks  of  having  been  a  true  morrain.  The 
Dee,  then,  takes  its  rise  in  a  small  lake  of  crystalline  purity,  fed  by 
numerous  unseen  springs,  and  reflecting  in  its  bosom  the  rugged  sides  of 
the  overhanging  mountains.  Around  it  we  collected  the  following  plants: 
Polypodium  alpestre,  Veronica  alpina,  Trollius  Europoeus.  TJialictrum  alpinum, 
Luzula  spicata,  Juncus  trifidus,  Geranium  sylvaticum,,  Gerastium  trigonum, 
Arabis  petrcea,  Juniperis  communis^  var.  nana,  Cochlearia  Qreenlandica, 
and    Viola  palustris. 

We  descended  the  same  glen  for  some  distance  on  returning,  and  then 
struck  into  Glen  Lui-beg,  which  brought  us  again  to  the  Linn,  where  we 

VOL.  VI.  2  K 


250  ON   COMMENCING    A   COLLECTION   OF   LEPIDOl'TERA. 

collected  Fissidens  adiantoides  and  Hieracium  prenanthoides.  From  this 
point  to  the  village,  the  scenery  from  the  road  was  enchanting;  while  the 
weather,  which  had  been  gradually  brightening  up  since  the  morning,  was  of 
that  warm  and  genial  kind  which  can  best  be  enjoyed  only  in  scenery 
of  such  surpassing  beauty  as  all  have  acknowledged  the  Aberdeenshire 
Highlands  to  afford. 


A     FEW    WORDS    ON 
COMMENCING     A     COLLECTION     OF    LEPIDOPTERA. 

BY    THE    REV.    R.    V.    ALINGTON. 
"Do  as  I  say,  not  as  I  do." 

Although  my  collection  of  Lepidoptera  is  very  limited  and  defective,  I 
have  nevertheless  been  frequently  asked  the  following  queries: — ^' Where, 
and  how  do  you  get  these  insects? — A  question  easily  answered — "Many 
of  them  in  my  garden  with  a  gauze  net." 

"1  had  no  conception  that  such  a  variety  could  be  met  with  in  this 
country." 

"Oh,  yes,  and  hundreds  more," 

Now  it  is  just  possible  that  such  an  inquirer,  provided  he  knew 
how  to  commence  operations,  might  be  induced  to  become  at  least  a  col- 
lector from  mere  admiration  of  the  beauty  of  the  Flies  he  may  easily 
obtain;  and  who  knows  but  from  such  a  small  beginning,  he  might,  some 
time  or  other  become  a  Cuvier?  But  the  complaint  is  ever  the  same — "I 
would  if  I  knew  how."  Moreover,  how  very  frequently  is  the  "would-be- 
naturalist"  deterred  from  carrying  a  butterfly-net  from  the  fear  of  ridicule; 
but  this  very  common  evil  can  only  be  overcome  by  example  and  com- 
panionship. In  this  neighbourhood  a  man  with  an  insect-net  is  laughed  at, 
and  looked  upon  as  the  most  simple  child  in  creation;  while  in  the  more 
southern  counties,  nets  in  the  day-time  and  lamps  at  night,  meet  you  at  every 
turn.  The  want,  too,  of  plain  and  cheap  works  on  the  first  rudiments  of 
Entomology,  has  hitherto  been  a  drawback  to  the  persevering  in  this  most 
fascinating  and  delightful  of  all  pursuits.  Descriptions  of  Flies  written  in 
cramped  and  frequently  abbreviated  Latin,  will  not  be  very  tempting  to  a 
lukewarm  beginner;  but  perhaps  this  observation  may  apply  more  to  works 
on  Coleoptera  than  Lepidoptera,  of  which  I  alone  speak;  mind  you  I 
do  not  say  that  such  works  are  not  useful  or  even  necessary,  but  they 
are  only  so  to  the  professed  naturalist.  If  the  beginner  had  no  other 
encouragement  than  an  abbreviated  Latin  description,  would  he  not  at 
once  (having  at  first  to  be  tickled  like  a  trout)  give  up  the  attempt  as 
tiresome,  and  as  too  like  a  return  to  school  to  persist  in?  But  several 
works  have   of  late  years   been  published  from  which,  with  a  very  little 


ON    COMMENCING   A   COLLECTION    OP   LEPIDOPTERA.  251 

trouble,  any  one  desirous  to  do  so,  may  at  least  readily  distinguish  and 
name  his  specimens.  Among  others,  ''Morris's  British  Butterflies,"  ''British 
Moths  and  their  Transformations,"  two,  volumes,  by  J.  0.  "Westwood,  etc. 

For  the  above  reasons,  then,  I  venture  to  forward  to  "The  Naturalist" 
the  following  simple  directions  as  a  guide  to  the  Entomologist  in  his  first 
essays  in  that  pursuit,  hoping,  short  and  imperfect  as  they  are,  that  they 
may,  nevertheless,  induce  some  to  carry  the  despised  net,  and  fill  their 
chloroform  bottles  with  many  a  "scarce  article,"  The  old  proverb  is  "first 
catch  your  fish,  then  cook  him,"  first  learn  how  to  take  a  fly,  then 
to  set  and  name  it.  As  I  intend  to  confine  my  observation  simply  to 
this  ABC  of  entomology,  I  shall  give  such  directions  only  as  are  absolutely 
necessary  (and  no  more)  for  carrying  on  the  pursuit  as  an  amusement, 
and  leave  time  and  inclination,  (which  to  many  I  hope  may  not  be  wanting,.) 
to  complete  the  good  work. 

In  the  old  "Naturalist,"  edited  by  N.  Wood,  Esq.,  vol.  iii,  page  81,  I 
find  that  Mr.  Dale,  of  Glanville's  Wootton,  in  Dorsetshire,  has  an  article 
on  this  very  subject,  headed  "Hints  to  Young  Naturalists,"  but  his  list 
of  instruments  for  securing  his  prey  are  so  numerous  that  they  in  fact 
require  a  horse  to  carry  them;  and  even  then,  in  spite  of  many  a  coat 
pocket,  I  do  not  see  how  he  can  find  room  for  the  vasculura  or  sandwich 
box  and  whisky  flask,  which  he  considers  indispensable.  However,  all  this 
belongs  more  to  the  professional  naturalist,  out  upon  a  long  tour  from  home, 
than  to  the  youngster  who  intends  to  hunt  only  his  own  flower-garden,  or 
at  most  visit  the  neighbouring  wood. 

The  question  is,  then.  How  do  you  catch,  name,  and  preserve  these 
Flies?  Now,  there  are  many  plans  adopted,  but  I  think  that  the  following 
directions  will  be  found  the  ojost  simple  and  effective  for  all  common  pur- 
poses. First,  that  you  may  be  enabled  to  name  your  specimens,  you 
must  supply  yourself  with  some  works  on  Entomology,  with  good  coloured 
plates  of  each  species,  in  addition  to  having  an  accurate  description — I 
before  mentioned  Westwood  and  Morris — (N.B.  the  edition  of  Westwood 
published  in  1818  is  far  superior  as  regards  the  colouring  of  the  plates,  to 
the  one  published  in  1854.)  I  know  that  many  persons  object  to  works 
with  plates,  as  tending  to  produce  carelessness  in  research;  but  remember, 
I  only  lay  stress  upon  plates  in  this  case — in  order,  if  I  may  so  express 
myself,  to  make  the  sap  rise;  I  look  for  the  return — the  leaf  and  fruit — 
hereafter.  To  arrange  your  specimens  properly,  spend  two  shillings  and 
sixpence,  and  purchase  "H.  Doubleday's  Synonymic  List  of  British  Lepi- 
doptera."     This  may  be  left  for  an  amusement  on  a  wet  or  winter's  day. 

But  I  have  put  the  cart  before  the  horse — 1  have  named  and  classed 
my  fly  but  have  not  caught  it.  The  common  way  of  taking  the  Papilio- 
nidcB,  and  those  Moths  that  fly  early  in  the  evening,  is  with  a  net  made 


252 


A   SPRING   WALK. 


of  green  gauze,  (I  prefer  green  to  white.)  The  one  I  commonly  use,  and 
which  I  find  the  most  generally  useful,  is  the  bat-folding  one  or  clap  net, 
about  four  feet  long,  and  one  foot  six  inches  wide;  I  prefer  this 
small  size  as  a  larger  net  is  apt  to  catch  the  wind,  and  prevent 
that   quick    action    which    is  absolutely    necessary   to   secure    the 


JVbctuce,  etc.,  etc.;  there  should  be  a  division  with  a  common 
ferrule,  similar  to  that  in  a  fishing-rod,  about  a  foot  and  a  half 
from  the  top;  being  taken  to  pieces,  it  will  then  easily  go  into  a 
shooting-coat  pocket.  Having  taken  your  Fly,  you  now  want 
the  proper  pins  and  box  to  convey  it  home.  Of  pins  you  must 
have  a  large  supply,  to  be  obtained  at  Edelsten  and  Williams's, 
Crown  Court,  Cheapside,  at  various  prices  per  ounce;  the  most 
useful  sizes  I  find  to  be  8  and  10;  of  course  a  few  larger 
may  be  required — No.  13.  Your  box  had  better  be  made  of 
tin,  say  about  seven  inches  long,  by  four  and  a  half  wide,  and 
two  deep,  lined  with  sponge  on  one  side,  which,  being  kept  damp, 
will  prevent  your  specimens  becoming  dry  before  you  have  leisure 
to  set  them,  and  with  cork  on  the  other.  The  box  should  be 
round  at  both  ends,  it  will  then  go  into  a  smaller  pocket  than 
one  that  is  square.  A  small  tin  box  also  for  conveying  home  chrysalides 
should  be  your  constant  companion  in  your  daily  excursions;  such  a  one 
as  gunsmiths  use  for  keeping  copper  caps  in  will  be  found  sufficiently 
capacious  for  all  ordinary  purposes.  The  smaller  Flies  may  be  killed  by 
pressure  on  the  thorax,  having  previously  closed  the  wings  backwards;  but 
I  strongly  recommend  chloroform  for  all,  small  as  well  as  large,  therefore 
you  must  be  provided  with  a  wide-necked  bottle,  the  stopper  impregnated 
with  it,  of  which  said  bottle  more  hereafter. 

(7o  be  continued.) 


A    SPRING    WALK. 

BT    0.  S.  ROUND,    ESQ. 

The  Spring  is  certainly  a  most  charming  season,  it  must  strike  every 
one  in  this  light,  much  as  we  hear  of  cold  April  and  chilly  May,  but 
none  so  much  as  a  lover  of  Nature,  who  finds  every  hour  which  advances 
towards  the  summer  enhancing  his  pleasures,  and  increasing  the  number 
of  objects  the  study  of  which  constitutes  his  whole  delight.  It  matters 
little  that  he  has  seen  the  same  eflfects  produced  before,  the  same  train  of 
feathered  visitants  fill  the  woods  and  the  fields,  and  haunt  the  margins  of 
the  streams,  the  same  routine  acted  over  again,  in  every  subject  of  the 
vast  magazine  of  Nature;  there  is  ever  a  freshness  belonging  to  this  sub- 


A   SPRING   WALK.  253 

lime  study,  which  renders  it  ever  new,  ever  interesting;  and  much  as  he 
may  have  given  his  whole  and  undivided  attention  to  it,  there  will  per- 
petually occur  something  novel  to  add  zest  to  his  enjoyment. 

Four  or  five  months  of  comparative  dreariness  have  passed  away,  and 
the  woods  have  been  well-nigh  mute;  no  longer  the  bright  stream  of  the 
flowing  river  echoed  to  the  enlivening  twitterings  of  the  Swallow  tribes, 
nor  the  golden  orb  of  day  caused  perfume  to  exhale  from  every  tuft  of 
verdure  and  bush  of  the  forest,  nor  was  the  silence  of  the  earth,  air,  or 
grove  broken  by  one  dulcet  note.  It  is  April  in  its  earlier  youth,  and  a 
few  of  the  budding  beeches  and  sycamores  begin  to  put  forth  small  peeping 
leaves  of  the  most  beautiful  yellow  green.  The  sun  sheds  his  mild 
influence  over  the  scene,  which  partakes  of  the  two  seasons,  now  at  their 
junction.  Winter  is  gradually  giving  place  to  its  benign  successor,  and 
as  you  walk  by  the  road-side,  the  dry  leaves  which  crackle  beneath  your 
feet  are  broken  up  with  green  herbage  that  peeps  through  them,  and  is 
rising  amongst  them. 

"Oh!  'tis  a  glorious  sight;  the  heaming  rays 
Seem  to  pervade,  seek  out,  and  penetrate 
The  deepest  nooks,  the  unprotected  plains, 
The  mountain  tops,  (where  snow,  yet  lingering,  rests,) 
And  creeping  through  the  thick  and  dry  dead  leaves, 
Seem  to  search  out  the  verdure  from  beneath, 
That  lurks  within  the  earth's  unfettered  mass; 
Till,  first  at  intervals,  the  rising  germs. 
Lifting  the  crackling  crust  that  clothes  them  o'er, 
Sprout  into  view,  irregular  and  scarce; 
Then  spreading  forth  their  tender  tiny  leaves, 
O'ercome,   at  length,  their  dry  and  lifeless  vest, 
And  flourish  in  one  verdant  covering!" 

You  stop  for  the  very  purpose  of  basking  in  the  genial  warmth,  and 
whilst  thus  enjoying  the  vivifying  influence  of  the  scene,  you  hear  the  wild 
laughing  note  of  the  Willow- Wren,  and  see  the  Sulphur  Butterfly  flitting 
amid  the  brambles.  What  a  feeling  does  such  a  sound  and  such  an  object 
call  forth;  there  is  an  impulse  in  your  bosom  full  of  hope,  full  of  pleasure; 
you  know  that  these  are  the  harbingers  of  everything  that  is  lovely  on 
the  face  of  Nature,  the  very  novelty,  the  sweet  freshness  in  the  prospect, 
gladdens  the  heart,  and  gives  rise  to  the  brightest  anticipations.  Advance 
yet  one  short  month,  (having  been  resident  in  town  during  the  interval,) 
and  take  a  stroll  once  more  in  the  same  scene,  and  with  the  sun  beaming 
unclouded  upon  you.  It  is  the  perfection  of  rural  beauty,  everything  is  at 
its  brightest,  and  all  the  summer-feathered  visitants  have  arrived.  As  you 
listen  to  the  chorus  from  an  hundred  throats,  which  sounds  on  every  side, 
you  may  distinguish  at  intervals,  every  well-known,  though  long-absent 
voice.     The  Whitethroat  chats  harshly  from  the  hedge-row;  the  Blackcap 


254 


A    SPRING    WALK. 


fills  the  air  with  his  sweet,  full  notes;  the  Chaffinch  chirrups  in  plenitude 
of  song  from  some  neighbouring  bough;  and  the  Hedge-Sparrow  utters  its 
sweet  inward  notes  from  the  brake  at  your  side.  The  Woodpecker's  joyous 
laugh  echoes  through  the  green  arches  of  the  coppice;  the  Wryneck 
monotones  from  the  oak,  whilst  the  Cuckoo  is  heard  in  the  distance,  and 
what  sweet  scenes  do  you  fancy  that  distance  will  realize!  The  Swallows 
twittering  in  the  blue  ether  skim  overhead,  whilst  higher  still  the  Larks 
soar  in  the  fleecy  clouds,  or  flutter  in  mid-air,  filling  the  vault  of  heaven 
with  their  rich  melody.  These  are  moments  which  exalt  the  soul,  and 
may  be  said  to  constitute  a  sublime  pleasure. 

As  I  thus  wander  through  the  fields,  after  having  been  shut  up,  per- 
haps for  months  in  town,  I  cannot  help  reflecting  on  the  definition  of 
pleasure,  which  says  that  the  absence  of  pain  alone  constitutes  a  pleasure. 
It  is  so  no  doubt,  but  it  is  of  an  inferior  kind,  and  partakes  rather  of 
the  nature  of  ease,  which  is  certainly  a  great  species  of  enjoyment.  It  is 
this  feeling,  however,  which  doubtless  enables  us,  when  we  have  been  long 
enthralled  by  business,  and  confined  to  the  brick  walls  of  a  city,  to  enjoj' 
the  pleasing  contrast  of  a  visit  to  the  country  with  a  double  zest.  On 
this  principle,  if  the  weather  was  fine,  my  practice  was  merely  to  shake 
off"  the  dust  of  my  journey,  and  before  tasting  either  dinner  or  conversa- 
tion, to  put  on  my  shooting  jacket,  don  my  cap,  seize  my  stick,  whistle 
my  dog,  and  haste  into  the  flowery  solitudes  of  .nature.  It  comes  upon 
us  in  this  manner  with  a  novel  freshness  perfectly  enchanting,  and  the 
minutest  thing  which  habit  might  soon  cause  us  to  pass  by  unnoticed,  is 
observed  with  a  sensitiveness  to  which  at  other  times  we  are  strangers. 
Everything  wears  an  air  of  such  purity;  the  soft  breeze  that  meets  you 
is  full  of  freshness  and  perfume,  your  prospect  seems  so  unbounded,  and 
there  is  a  sweet  freedom  in  the  scene  that  communicates  itself  to  the 
spirits  in  a  joyous  impulse.  As  you  contemplate  it  you  feel  a  hilarity  you 
scarce  know  why,  and  a  propensity  to  exclaim  "This  is  pleasure."  As  you 
stand  wrapt,  as  it  were,  in  silent  yet  delighted  contemplation,  you  cast 
your  eye  aside,  and  there  sits  the  patient  little  companion  of  your  walk, 
your  dog.  Assuredly  this  faithful  animal  was  formed  to  be  the  companion 
of  man;  see  how  he  watches  and  understands  every  turn  of  your  counte- 
nance; and  as  he  sees  your  eyes  beaming  with  the  fresh  impulse  which 
has  been  given  to  your  spirits,  at  once  partakes  of  your  feelings,  and  looks 
delighted  too;  and  if  you  extend  your  hand,  licks  it  with  ecstacy — token 
of  participation  in  the  sensations  that  fill  your  own  heart.  What  can  give 
us  more  true  pleasure  than  to  have  beside  us  one  who  enters  into,  shares, 
and  agrees  with  all  our  feelings!  To  admire  Nature  is  to  adore  the  Great 
Creator,  for  you  cannot  contemplate  any  of  His  works  without  at  once  a 
pleasing  and  awful  admiration.     You  may  use  many  things  for  good,  enjoy 


SIZES   OP   CASES    FOR    BIRDS. 


255 


a  country  walk  in  this  manner^  and  you  may^  if  you  will,  obtain  an  inno- 
cent and  lasting  benefit. 

Pembroke  Square,  Kensington,  May,  1856. 


A     LIST    OF     SIZES     OF    CASES     FOR    BIKDS. 

BY    THE    REV.    F.    O.    MORRIS. 

I  GIVE  my  readers  a  paper  which  will,  I  am  inclined  to  hope,  be  found 
very  useful  to  many  ornithologists,  a  list,  namely,  of  British  Birds,  arranged 
according  to  the  size  of  the  different  cases  which  may  be  appropriately 
assigned  to  each.  I  have  made  twelve  divisions,  and  I  think  that  these 
will  be  seen  to  be  sufficient  for  the  purpose.  A  great  deal  of  trouble, 
confusion,  and  want  of  arrangement  would  be  saved  by  the  adoption  of 
some  such  method.  There  may  be  a  doubt  as  to  whether  this  or  that 
bird  would  not  be  better  adapted  to  a  case  a  size  larger  or  a  size  smaller, 
and  alterations  can  be  made  accordingly  wherever  it  may  seem  better  to 
each  collector.  Having  the  cases  made  in  a  series  of  uniform  sizes  to  hold  a 
specimen  of  each  species,  considerably  more  room  will  be  found  to  be  available, 
and  the  different  situations  occupied  by  land  and  water-birds  on  the  ground 
or  on  a  branch  will  also  yield  accommodation,  as  will  likewise  any  adaptation 
of  attitude  that  may  perhaps  in  some  extreme  instances  be  found  necessary 
or  desirable.     In  a  few  instances  the  height  and  length  must  be  reversed. 

The  following  are  the  sizes  I  have  determined  on  as  the  best,  and  I 
subjoin  a  list  of  the  birds  that  seem  likely  to  fit  in  each: — 

No.  Height.       Width.         Depth. 


No. 
1 

2 
3 

4 
5 
6 


Height. 
in. 

6 

9 
11 
12 

20 
24 


Width. 
in. 

5 

7 

9 

11 

18 
18 


Depth, 
in. 

3 
S 

4 
5 
9 
9 


7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 


26 
28 
32 
34 
36 
39 


25 

20 
18 
26 
27 
31 


10 
9 
9 
12 
11 
15 


No.  1. 
Chiff  Chaff. 
Creeper,  Common. 
Begulus,  Dalmatian. 
Kegulus,  Fire-crested. 
Regulus,  Golden-crested. 
Titmouse,  Bearded. 
Titmouse,  Blue. 
Titmouse,  Cole. 
Titmouse,  Crested. 


Titmouse,  Great. 

Titmouse,  Long-tailed. 

Titmouse,  Marsh. 

Wren. 

Wren,  Willow. 

Wren,  Wood. 

Wren,  yellow-bUled  Willow. 

No.  2. 

Accentor,  Alpine. 
Blackcap. 


256 


SIZES   OP   CASES   FOR   BIRDS. 


Bullfinch. 

Bunting,  Black-headed. 

Bunting,  Cirl. 

Bunting,  Common. 

Bunting,  Lapland. 

Bunting,  Painted. 

Bunting,  Snow. 

Chaffinch. 

Flycatcher,  Pied. 

Flycatcher,  Spotted. 

Goldfinch. 

Greenfinch. 

Hawfinch. 

Lark,  Crested. 

Lark,  Shore. 

Lark,  Short-toed. 

Lark,  Sky. 

Lark,  Wood, 

Linnet,  Common. 

Martin. 

Martin,  Sand. 

Mountain  Finch. 

Nightingale. 

Nightingale,  Thrush. 

Nuthatch. 

Ortolan, 

Pipit,  Meadow. 

Pipit,  Richard's. 

Pipit,  Eock, 

Pipit,  Tree. 

Redbreast. 

Bedpole,  Lesser. 

Eedpole,  Mealy. 

Redstart. 

Redstart,  Black. 

Siskin. 

Sparrow,  Hedge. 

Sparrow,  House, 

Sparrow,  Tree, 

Stonechat, 

Swallow. 

Twite. 

Wagtail,  Grey. 

Wagtail,  Grey-headed. 

Wagtail,  Pied. 

Wagtail,  Ray's. 


Wagtail,  White. 
Warbler,  Blue-throated. 
Warbler,  Dartford. 
Warbler,  Garden. 
Warbler,  Grasshopper. 
Warbler,  Orphean. 
Warbler,  Savi's. 
Warbler,  Sedge. 
Waxwing,  Bohemian. 
Wheatear. 
Whinchat. 

Whitethroat,  Common. 
Whitethroat,  Lesser. 
Wren,  Reed. 
Yellow-Hammer. 

No.  3. 
Blackbird. 
Crake,  Little. 

Crossbill,  American  White-winged. 
Crossbill,  Common. 
Crossbill,  Parrot, 
Crossbill,  Two-barred. 
Dipper,  Common. 
Dotterel. 
DunUn. 
Fieldfare. 
Grosbeak,  Pine. 
Hoopoe. 
Kingfisher. 
Kingfisher,  Belted. 
Knot. 

Martin,  Purple. 
Oriole,  Golden, 
Ouzel,  Ring, 
Pastor,  Rose-coloured, 
Peewit. 

Plover,  Golden. 
Plover,  Grey. 
Plover,  Kentish, 
Plover,  Little  Ringed. 
Plover,  Ringed. 
Quail,  Andalusian. 
Redwing. 
Ruff. 

Sanderling. 
(To  he  continued.) 


2o7 


SYSTEMA      NATURiE 

BY    THE    REV.  F.  0.  MORRIS, 
(  Cantinued  from  page  215.  _) 


GrLOSSOPHAGA. 

Glossophaga    amplexicaudata,     Geoff". 

Spix.     Fisch.     Schinz. 
Glossophaga    caudifera,    Schinz.       G. 

caudifer,  Geoff.     Fisch. 
Glossophaga  ecaudata,  Geoff.      Fisch. 

Schinz. 
Glossophaga  villosa,  Schinz. 
Glossophaga   soricina,    Geoff.    Schinz. 

Vespertilio  soricinus,  Fisch.  Schreh. 
Glossophaga  megalotis,  Schinz.    Phyl- 

lophora  megalotis,   Gray. 

OEDO 
FAMILIA  I, — Insectivoea. 
Erinaceus. 
Erinaceus  Europceus,  Linn.  Schreh. 

Schinz. 
Erinaceus  concolor,  Mar.  Schinz. 
Erinaceus  frontalis,  Smith,  Ben.  Schinz. 
Erinaceus  hypomelas,  Schinz. 
Erinaceus   albiventris,    Wagn.  Schreh. 

Schinz, 
Erinaceus  Pruneri,  Wagn.  Schreh. 
Schinz.  E.heterodactylus,  Sundewall. 
Erinaceus  auritus,  Pall.  Schreh.  Schinz. 
Erinaceus  brachydactylus,  Schiiiz.  E. 
auritus,  Geoff.  E.  aithiopicus,  Fhren. 
Erinaceus  libycus,  Ehren.  Wagn.  Schrh. 

Schinz. 
Erinaceus  algirus,  LerebouUet.  Schinz. 
Erinaceus  spatangus,  Benn.   Schinz, 
Erinaceus  Grayi,    Benn.    Schinz.      E. 

collaris,   Gray. 
Erinaceus  platyotis,  Sund.  Schinz. 

Eeiculus. 
Ericulus  nigricans,    Guerin.  Schinz. 
Ericulus  spinosus,  Schinz.    E.  setosus, 
Schreh.     Centetes  spinosus,  Desm. 
Centetes. 
Centetes  setosus,  Gtier.  Fisch.  Schinz. 
C.  ecaudatus.  Buff.    Erinaceus  ecau- 
datus,  Schreh. 


Glossophaga    nigra,    Schinz.      Phyllo- 
phora  nigra.   Gray. 

Braciiyphylla. 
Brachyphylla  cavemarum,  Schinz.  Bra- 
chyphylla  badia.  Gray. 

Desmodus. 
Desmodus  rufus,  Prinz  Max.  Schinz. 
Desmodus  murinus,  Schinz. 
Desmodus  d'Orbignyi,   Water.  Schinz. 

DiPHYLLA. 

I   Diphylla  ecaudata,  Spix.   Schinz. 

IV. — E.APACIA. 

I   Centetes     semispinosus.    Guv.    Besm. 
Schinz.     Setiger   variegatus,    Geoff. 
Fisch. 
Centetes  armatus,  Guer.  Schinz. 

ECHINOGALE. 

Echinogale  Telfairii,  Schinz.  Echinops 
Telfairii,  Mar. 

EUPLEEES. 

Eupleres  Goudoti,  Schinz. 
Cladobates. 

Cladobates  Tana,  Schinz.  Tupaja  Tana, 
Raff.  Ilorsf.  Fisch.  Hylogale  Tana, 
Temm. 

Cladobates  ferrugineus,  Schiiiz.  Tu- 
paja ferruginea.  Raff.  Ilorsf.  F.  Guv. 
Hylogale  ferruginea,  Temm.  Sorex- 
glis,  Fisch. 

Cladobates  Belangeri,  Schinz.  Tupaja 
de  Pegou,  Belan. 

Cladobates  speciosus,  Wagn.  Schreh. 
Schinz. 

Cladobates  Javanicus,  Schinz.  Tupaja 
Javanica,  Eorsf.  Desm.  Fisch.  Hy- 
logale Javanica,  Temm. 

Cladobates  murinus,  Schinz.  Hylogale 
murina,  Diard,  Temm. 

Hylomys. 

Hylomys  suillus,  Milll.  Schinz. 


VOL.  VI. 


(To  be  continued.) 


2  L 


2n8 

THE     PUFFIN,     {MORMON    FEATERCULA.) 

BY   JOHN    DUTTON,    ESQ. 

The  Puffin  frequents  the  high  and  almost  perpendicular  clilTs  extending 
from  Scratchell's  Bay,  near  the  Needles,  Isle  of  Wight,  to  Freshwater 
Gate,  but  more  especially  at  that  lofty  and  perpendicular  part  of  the  clifife 
called  Main  Bench,  under  the  lighthouse.  These  grand  and  imposing  cliffs^ 
by  far  the  loftiest  in  the  island,  are  about  six  hundred  feet  in  height,  and 
in  some  parts  higher.  Here,  in  the  breeding-season,  are  to  be  observed  vast 
numbers  of  them,  together  with  the  Foolish  Guillemot,  or  Willock,  (Uria 
troile,)  and  the  Razor-bill,  {Alca  tarda,)  all  of  which  build  here.  Puffin 
shooting  is  a  favourite  sport  of  the  visitors  to  this  part  of  the  island,  and 
is  in  itself  an  exceedingly  exciting  recreation,  it  being  no  unfrequent 
occurrence  for  a  party  of  three  or  four  to  kill  three  or  four  dozen  cliff 
birds  in  a  few  hours. 

The  following  remarks  are  from  "Bell's  Weekly  Messenger."  "Puffins. 
These  marine  migratory  birds,  which  visit  this  island  only  in  the  breeding- 
season,  during  the  present  month  (June)  swarm  in  the  locality  of  the 
Needles  Bocks,  at  the  western  extremity  of  the  Isle  of  Wight.  Puffin 
shooting  constitutes  a  peculiar  branch  of  the  fowler's  pursuit,  as  the  latter 
make  a  rich  harvest  from  the  feathers  they  obtain  from  these  birds.  The 
eggs  are  also  taken  in  great  quantities  from  their  nests,  which  are  built 
in  the  clefts  of  the  rocks,  and  are  applied  to  the  purposes  of  refining  and 
clarifying  sugars  on  a  very  extensive  scale." 


Stormy  Petrel. — A  Stormy  Petrel  was  shot  by  a  man  of  the  name  of 
Banks,  and  brought  to  me,  but  in  a  bad  state. — R.  V.  Dennis,  Blatching- 
ton,  near  Seaford,  Sussex,  October  4th.,  1856. 

Phalarope. — A  bird,  described  to  me  as  a  Storm  Petrel,  but  which, 
according  to  the  description  of  the  old  man  who  saw  it,  must  have  been 
a  Phalarope,  was  watched  for  three-quarters  of  an  hour,  swimming  about 
to  leeward  of  a  piece  of  wreck-timber.  He  described  it  as  swimming  more 
lightly  than   any  other  bird  he  had   ever  seen. — Idem. 

Grey  Phalarope, — I  shot  a  Grey  Phalarope  last  Monday,  in  an  adjacent 
river;  its  movements  were  peculiarly  graceful  and  light  in  the  water,  it 
flew  rapidly  like  a  Sandpiper,  and  joined  company  with  a  little  party  of 
Sandpipers  on  the  wing. — Idem. 

Riyiff  Ouzel. — An  unusual  number  of  Ring  Ouzels  have  made  their  ap- 
j>earance  on   the  hills,  feeding  on   the  black -berries,  etc.,  they  are  wild  as 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES.  259 

usual.  I  shot  six  in  very  fine  condition;  their  crops  were  crammed  with 
berries. — Idem. 

Golden  Plover. — I  have  seen  and  shot  Golden  Plovers  about  the  sheep- 
folds. — Idem. 

Green  Sandpiper. — I  yesterday  shot  the  Green  Sandpiper,  rather  a  rare 
bird  hereabouts. — Idem. 

Greenshanks. — On  Monday  I  saw  three  Greenshanks,  by  no  means  com- 
mon visitors  with  us. — Idem. 

Swallows. — On  that  day  too,  there  was  an  uncommon  assemblage  of 
Swallows  on  the  wire-fence  in  front  of  the  house:  as  they  have  been  less 
numerous  since,  it  would  seem  that  a  party  has  emigrated. — Idem. 

Nightjar. — A  pair  of  Nightjars  have  sojourned  with  us  for  some  time, 
and  their  cm-ious  mode  of  perching  lengthwise  on  a  bough,  and  their  ac- 
tive pursuit  of  insects  in  the  evening  are  very  amusing.  No  gun  is  ever 
fired  about  the  garden  or  shrubbery,  nor  any  interference  with  birds  per- 
mitted, so  that  a  variety  of  species,  both  tame  and  wild,  find  a  quiet 
retreat,  except  when  some  prowling  fox  or  cat  invades  their  territory,  or 
any  impudent  Sparrow-Hawk  makes  a  marauding  excursion. — Idem. 

Golden  Orioles  and  Broad-hilled  Sandpiper  in  Norfolk. — A  pair  of  Gol- 
den Orioles,  in  fine  plumage,  were  killed  at  Lakenham,  near  Norwich, 
about  the  middle  of  May  last;  and  a  male  specimen  of  the  Broad-billed 
Sandpiper  was  procured  about  the  same  time  at  Yarmouth. — T.  Southwell, 
Fakenham,  August,  1856. 

Wryneck. — The  occurrence  of  the  Wryneck  in  the  North  of  England, 
being,  I  believe,  decidedly  rare,  I  may  as  well  inform  you  that  one  was 
shot  in  this  parish  to-day.  For  two  days  previous  I  had  watched  it,  and 
during  this  period  it  never  strayed  far  from  one  spot.  It  was  feeding  on 
the  slight  embankment  of  a  coal-railway,  from  whence  it  flew,  when  dis- 
turbed, to  the  adjoining  hedge.  Coal  trains  were  passing  at  least  every 
quarter  of  an  hour.  When  I  first  discovered  it,  these  would  just  startle 
it  away  for  a  few  minutes;  but  to-day  I  saw  a  train  pass  within  two 
yards  of  it  without  putting  it  up. — G.  Sowden,  Houghton-le-Spring,  Dur- 
ham, October  3rd.,  1856. 

Black-headed  Gull. — When  staying  at  Great  Yarmouth,  in  Norfolk^ 
not  long  since,  I  was  taking  my  usual  ramble  on  the  beach,  far  from  the 
town,  when  I  observed  one  of  the  Gull  tribe  endeavouring  to  reach  the 
sea  across  the  sands;  perceiving  the  bird  was  wounded,  I  hastened  to  in- 
tercept its  progress,  and  after  some  little  trouble  captured  it,  when  I 
discovered  it  to  be  the  Black-headed  Gull,  {Larus  ridibundus,)  and  taking 
it  home  with  me,  kept  it  till  I  left  the   sea,   for  Walsham,    in    a    little 


260  MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 

yard;  its  food  consisting  of  shrimps,  and  such  salt-water  fish  as  I  could 
procure.  When  I  returned  to  the  country,  I  put  it  into  a  reedy  pond, 
abounding  with  fish  of  all  sorts  and  sizes,  but  imagining  the  poor  Gull 
would  not  fish  for  himself,  and  moreover,  would  not  relish  fresh-water 
fish,  I  fed  him  on  salt-water  fish;  but  his  appetite  improved  so  rapidly 
by  "country  air,"  that  I  found  it  would  not  answer  keeping  such  an  ex- 
pensive bird,  as  he  made  no  more  of  a  small  sole  than  a  shrimp.  Con- 
sequently I  changed  his  diet  to  raw  meat,  which  T  found  went  down  with 
him  quite  as  readily  as  the  fish;  by  degrees  I  left  this  off,  and  for  eight 
months  he  lived  in  that  pond,  providing  for  himself;  he  had,  however,  a  great 
propensity  for  straying  away  into  the  ploughed  fields,  and  near  the  road, 
flying  for  refuge  to  his  favourite  old  pond,  whenever  any  appearance  of  dan- 
ger alarmed  him:  till  one  ill-fated  day  for  him,  poor  fellow,  he  got  too  far, 
and  a  dog  in  the  road,  giving  chase,  he  was  unable  to  reach  his  haven 
of  refuge,  and  fell  a  victim  to  his  canine  enemy;  his  whitening,  bleached 
bones,  are  all  of  him  which  mark  the  spot  where  he  fell.  It  is  this 
same  species  which  annually  visit  Major  Wayland's  lake,  at  Scoulton,  in 
Norfolk,  and  breed  on  the  low  marshy  island  in  the  middle  of  the  water, 
I  myself  have  seen  the  air  darkened  by  these  birds;  when  alarmed,  they 
rise  from  the  water  and  their  nests,  wheeling  aloft,  and  uttering  their 
sharp  shrill  cries. — T.  E.  W. 


Another  capture  of  Carabus  intricatus  in  Devonshire. — On  Tuesday  last, 
the  9th.  instant,  Mr.  J.  J.  Reading,  of  Gibbons  Street,  Plymouth,  took  a 
very  fine  and  perfect  specimen  of  Carahus  intricatus.  This  is  the  second 
capture  of  that  rare  Beetle  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Plymouth  within  the 
last  few  months. — John  Gatcombe,  Wyndham  Place,  Plymouth,  September 
12th.,  1856. 


EXCHANGE.  261 

The  Shag,  (Pelecanus  graculus.) — A  specimen,  a  young  one,  of  the 
Shag,  was  taken  in  Cow  Lane,  in  this  town,  yesterday  morning;  it  is  in 
the  possession  of  O.  Harris,  Esq.  From  the  description  in  Bewick,  there 
can  be  no  doubt  of  its  identity. — W.  Brooks  Gates,  Derngate,  North- 
ampton, October  7th.,  1856. 

Little  Gull,  (Larus  minutus.) — T  saw  two  of  the  Little  Gull  on  Skipwith 
Common  last  First  of  September. — Edward  C.  Dawson,  Osgodby  Hall, 
Selby. 

Note  on  the  Habits  of  Drypta. — In  its  habits,  Drypta  most  resembles 
Brachimis,  hiding  among  the  damp  roots  of  long  grass,  burrowing  deeper 
in  dry  weather.  It  is  usually  gregarious,  two  or  more  being  found  to- 
gether in  the  same  turf.  Like  Brachimis  it  emits  a  white  and  vapoury 
fluid  when  alarmed;  this  at  least  was  observed  by  us  in  one  example.  In 
its  movements  it  is  less  active  than  most  of  the  Geodephaga,  becoming 
more  lively  in  the  evening.  It  sometimes  remains  perfectly  quiet  with  its 
antennas  curved  inwards  in  an  attitude  of  attention,  as  if  listening  with 
those  organs.  To  the  eye  of  a  coleopterist  the  elegant  little  Drypta, 
first  seen  among  the  moist  brown  roots  of  grass,  seems  like  a  gem  of 
beauty,  and  its  capture  must  always  give  pleasure  from  its  extreme  rarity. 
— Mary  Adams,  20,  Hampshire  Terrace,  Southsea,  Portsmouth,  October 
6th.,  1856. 

A  specimen  taken  the  first  week  in  Octobei',  was  obligingly  sent  with  the  above  descrip- 
tion.— F.  0.  Moiaus. 

A  lady  friend  of  mine  kept  a  chrysalis  for  me  which  she  had  dug  up 
in  her  garden.  It  came  out  the  27th.  of  April;  Fygo^a  Bucephala.  This 
I  suppose  is  very  early,  as  Westwood  says  June  is  the  time  for  them  to 
come  out.  May  15th.:  A  Scorched-wing,  {^urymene  Dolubr aria,)  came  out. 
May  27th.:  took  Paniscus. — W.  W.  Cooper,  West  Rasen,  June  2nd.,  1856. 


(lEitliniigB. 

Mr.  J.  Hardy,  43,  Radnor  Street,  Hulme,  Manchester,  begs,  as  an 
instalment  of  support,  to  ofler,  unconditionally,  dried  examples  of  the  fol- 
lowing plants: — Veronica  hyhrida,  Enjthroea  pulchdla,  Garex  digitata,  O. 
teretiuscula,  and  var.  Ehrarhti,  Crithmum  maritimum,  Pyrola  rotundifolia,  and 
var.  hracteata,  Lastrea  cristata,  L.  idiginosa,  L.  rigida,  Adiantum  C- Veneris, 
Ceterach  officinarum,  and  Equisetum  variegatum. 

I  remember  seeing  a  notice  as  to  the  exchange  of  Land  and  Fresh- water 
Shells  in  "The  jS^aturalist,"  bat  have  forgotten  the  particulars.  I  should 
be  glad  to  exchange  some  of  our  southern  species,  as  Helix  virgata,  car- 
thusiana,  arbustorum,  etc.,  for  northern  species. — R.  V.  Dennis,  Blachington, 
near  Seaford,  Sussex. 


262 

THE     "NATURALIST'S"    HERAINE. 

I  HAVE  received  the  two  subjoined  letters^  on  the  subject  of  the  "an- 
nexation" of  Guernsey  and  the  other  Channel  Islands,  Entomologically  as 
well  as  Botanically,  Conchologically  and   Politically,  to  Great   Britain: — 

1. — "I  am  amused,  nay  indignant,  at  the  position  Mr.  Stainton  has 
assumed  regarding  Jersey,  its  insects,  etc.,  and  especially  at  the  highly  un- 
gentlemanly  manner  in  which  he  has  treated  our  Editor,  and  make  bold  to 
say  that  I  represent  the  opinion  of  the  whole  body  of  your  readers,  nem 
con,  in  being  fully  persuaded  of  the  soundness  of  your  views  on  that 
subject,  and  unhesitatingly  declaring  the  'Northern  Divine'  in  the  right." 
— W.  S. 

2. — "I  cannot  agree  with  you  about  the  Channel  Islands,  'Jersey,  Guern- 
sey, Alderney,  and  Sark,  which  are  all  that  England  retains  of  Normandy.' 
That  was  taught  me  at  school.  These  islands  are  in  a  French  bay;  be- 
fore the  reformation  they  were  in  a  French  diocese;  and  are  now  governed 
by  Norman  law.  Not  knowing  what  botanists  or  conchologists  think  of 
the  matter  I  will  answer  your  queries  by  others: — 

1. — In  reply  to  the  question  whether  the  Shetland  or  Channel  Islands  are 
farthest  from  Britain,  I  ask  to  what  main-land  are  they  respectively  nearest? 

2. — I  have  before  me  King  John's  will.  He  is  'Rex  Ang:  Dom.  Hib: 
Dux  Norm:  et  Acquit:  Com:  An.'  If  Her  Majesty  were  still  Duchess 
of  Normandy  and  Acquitaine,  and  Countess  of  Anjou,  would  you  account 
the  productions  of  those   places   British? 

3. — Now  if  you  say  no  to  that,  I  retort  your  own   queries, 

4. — Suppose  an  elevatory  movement  to  lay  dry  the  British  Channel,  to 
which  country  would  you  conscientiously  assign  the  little  hills  which  would 
appear  in   the  plain? 

0. — Why  do  you  stop  at  the  Channel  Islands?  Why  not  include  He- 
ligoland?    Why  not  Bermuda,  or  Jamaica? 

6. — Yet  more  about  Orkney  and  Shetland.  Suppose  Denmark  or  Nor- 
•way  to  redeem  them  by  cashing  up  the  sum  for  which  they  were  mortgaged 
in  the  fifteenth  century,  do  you  think  their  productions  should  be  accounted 
Danish  or  Norse,  instead  of  British? 

7. — If  you  were  writing  the  Natural  History  of  Durham,  would  you 
include  a  plant  only  found  at  Creyke,  till  lately,  part  of  that  county, 
though  detached  forty  miles  from  it?" — Yours  truly,  W.  Gray. 

The  former  of  these  two  communications  speaks  for  itself;  the  latter 
requires  a  word  or  two  of  comment: — 

I  am  quite  sure  that  Mr.  Gray  is  too  good  and  able  a  lawyer  to  in- 
struct a  client   to  "do  as  he  says"  in   his  letter.     He    knows   as   well    as 


THE    QDERIST.  263 

I  do  that  to  ask  one  question  is  no  reply  to  another.  What  would  the 
Judge  say  to  a  witness,  who  instead  of  giving  a  plain  answer  to  a  point 
blank  question,  should  come  out  with  a  "Tu  quoque"  interrogation?  He 
would  at  once  make  out  his  '^mittimus"  and  commit  him,  unless  indeed 
he  might  think  that  he  had  saved  him  the  trouble  by  committing  himself. 

The  whole  gist  of  my  argument  was,  that  as  the  leading  Conchologists, 
and  the  leading  Botanists,  admit  Guernsey  and  Jersey  shells  and  plants  as 
British,  so  by  parity  of  reasoning  ought  Guernsey  and  Jersey  insects  to  be 
admitted  as  British  by  Entomologists.  The  main  question  I  asked  was,  why 
it  should  not  be  so?  Mr.  Gray  begins  by  saying  that  he  does  not  know 
what  the  opinions  of  the  two  former  are  on  the  subject.  I  will  therefore 
tell  him — They  are  unanimous  in  the  admission  of  Guernsey  species  as 
British. 

But  to  proceed — My  question  as  to  whether  the  Shetland  or  the  Chan- 
nel Islands  are  farthest  from  Britain,  he  answers  (qucere  answers,)  by  asking 
to  what  main-land  are  they  respectively  nearest?  I  will  answer  this, 
though  not,  I  conceive,  called  upon  by  fair  argument  to  do  so,  that  any 
one  with  a  map  before  him  will  of  course  see  that  Guernsey  is  nearer  to 
France   than   to   England;   but   I   refer  him   to  my  concluding  argument. 

His  question  No.  4  should  come  in  here,  and  is  hereby  answered  at  one 
and  the  same   time  with  the  previous  one. 

V. — "Why  stop  at  the  Channel  Islands?  Why  not  include  Heligoland? 
W^hy  not  Bermuda  ov  Jamaica?"  Because  they  are  not  part  of  "Great 
Britain  or  Ireland!"  As  well  ask,  "Why  not  include  India  and  New 
Zealand?  Why  not  Australia  and  Canada?"  Another  lesson  which  we 
have  been  taught  at  school  is,  that  the  sun  never  sets  on  the  Queen's 
dominions;  so  that  if  we  were  to  carry  out  Mr.  Gray's  ratiocination,  (not 
that  I  mean  to  imply  that  his  argument  intended  anything  but  a  "reductio 
ad  absurdum,")  the  "penitus  toto  disjecti  orbe  Britanni,"  (I  must  reduce 
the  poetry  into  plain  prose,  and  not  mind  the  "disjecti  membra  poetae,) 
must  include  in  their  local  museums  all  the  species  that  are  shone  upon 
by  the  sun  while  the  earth  revolves  on  its  axis. 

Question  III.  I  do  not  understand. 

Question  11.  may  properly  come  in  here,  and  to  it  I  reply,  (though 
again  under  protest,)  that  Mr.  Gray  could  hardly  have  adduced  an  argu- 
ment more  fatal  to  his  own  theory.  For  his  quotation,  so  far  from  calling 
Normandy  or  Aquitaine  part  of  the  Icingdom  of  "Great  Britain  and  Ireland," 
(the  only  kingdom  for  which  I  am  contending,)  expressly  distinguishes  the 
Anglia  and  Hibernia  from  these  provinces,  ^sl^,  His  Majesty  was  Icing  of 
the  former,  and  only  duke  (dux)  of  the  latter,  Mr.  Gray,  I  am  sure,  will 
be  the  last  person  to  deny  to  Her  Majesty  her  right  as  sovereign  of  Guernsey 
as  well  as  of  England,  and  if  so,  the  latter  forms  part  of  her  "kingdom 


264  THE    QUERIST. 

of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland."  If  indeed  Her  Majesty  were  only  Duchess 
of  Guernsey,  it  might  be  a  different  thing,  but  as  it  is,  the  case  is  against 
him.  "Dead  men  tell  no  tales"  must  in  future  then  be  altered  into  ''Dead 
men  tell  tales."  King  John  steps  into  the  witness  box,  but  then  turns 
round  on  the  counsel  for  the  prosecution,  and  gives  his  testimony  in  favour 
of  the  defence. 

VI. — I  may  here  mention  that  in  writing  the  article  on  this  subject  in 
the  September  "Naturalist,"  I  had  at  first  inserted  an  additional  question, 
as  a  corollary,  "Which  has  belonged  for  the  longest  period  of  time  to 
the  British  crown?"  but  having  no  book  to  refer  to  for  the  dates,  drew 
my  pen  through  what  I  had  written.  Here  again  Mr.  Gray  steps  in  to 
my  assistance.  If  the  sum  paid  in  the  fifteenth  century  were  to  be  re- 
funded, and  Orkney  and  Zetland  were  again  to  be  attached  to  old  Scan- 
dinavia, to  which  country  would  I  attach  their  productions?  This  is  not 
a  case  in  point.  To  be  a  parallel,  Orkney  and  Shetland  ought  to  have 
belonged  at  the  present  day  to  Scandinavia  as  long  as  the  Channel  Islands 
to  Britain,  for  part  of  the  argument,  and  to  be  as  near  its  shores;  but 
in  any  case  what  I  should  say  would  depend  on  what  others,  my  superiors 
in  science,  had  decided  on  the  subject.  If  they  saw  fit  to  admit  the  shells 
and  plants  of  those  islands  into  the  Scandinavian  or  the  British  Fauna, 
as  the  case   might  be,  I  would  admit  the  insects  of  the  islands  also. 

VI  r. — This  question  supposes  an  extreme  case,  and  also  fails  altogether 
in  suggesting  a  parallel.  So  far  as  it  is  to  be  answered  at  all,  I  give 
the  same  answer  to  it  that  I  have  to  No.  VI. 

IV. — "To  which  country  would  I  conscientiously  assign  the  Channel 
Islands,  if  the  Channel  itself  were  to  become  "terra  firniaV"  Conscience, 
I  fancy,  had  very  little  to  do  with  the  appropriation  of  the  islands,  but 
being  appropriated,  I  would  follow  the  leading  naturalists  in  the  appropriation 
of  their  natural  productions. 

In  conclusion,  to  shew  Mr.  Gray  that  his  argument  will  not  hold  water, 
I  will  suppose  another  extreme  case  for  him,  and  put  it,  as  he  seems  to 
prefer,  in  the  form  of  a  question.  If  there  was  an  island  in  the  exact 
centre  of  the  Atlantic  ocean,  how  would  he  be  guided  as  to  the  assignment 
of  its  natural  productions?  Would  he  assign  the  whole  to  America,  or  to 
England,  or  those  of  one  side  of  it  to  one  continent,  and  of  the  other  to 
the  other,  and  if  so,  how  would  he  keep  the  birds,  beasts,  and  insects 
from  passing  the  line  of  demarcation?  Item — Does  not  Portugal  belong 
geographically  to  Spain,  far  more  than   Guernsey   to  France? 

In  a  word,  Mr.  Gray  sets  up  his  own  opinion  above  those  of  Hooker, 
Babington,  Forbes,  and  all  modern  conchologists  and  botanists.  I  am  con- 
tent to  follow  in  their  wake. — That  is  the  only  difference  between  us. 

F.  O.  MORRIS. 


MR.    WILLIAM     PROCTOR, 

Sub-Curator  of  the  University  Museum,  Durham, 

Has  constantly  on  hand  a  large  and  valuable  Collection  of  MOUNTED  BIRDS, 
SKINS,  and  EGGS,  including  many  rare  and  valuable  specimens  from  Iceland, 
the  North  of  Scotland,  etc. 

The  works  of  Mr.  Hewdtson  and  the  late  Mr.  Yarrell  shew  the  high  estimation 
in  which  Mr.  Proctor's  specimens  were  held  by  those  gentlemen. 


Now  ready,  Vol.  I.,  in  8vo,  with  Fifteen  Plates,  comprising  very  numerous  Figures, 

Price  30s.,  cloth, 

HANDBOOK     OF     ZOOLOGY. 

BY  J.  VAN  DEE  HOETEN,  Phil.  Nat.  akd  M.D., 
Professor  of  Zoology  in  the  University  of  Leyden,  &c. 

Translated  from  the  Second  Dutch  Edition  (with  additional  References  commu- 
nicated by  the  Author)  by  the  Eev.  W.  Clark,  M.D.,  F.R.S.,  etc.,  late  Fellow 
of  Trinity  College,  and  Professor  of  Anatomy  in  the  University  of  Cambridge. 

In  Two  Volumes.     Vol.  I.  comprising  Invertehrate  Animals. 


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AND    WATEE    CABINET; 

Or  Practical  Instructions  on  the  Formation,  Stocking,  and  Management,  in  all 
Seasons,  of  Collections  of  Prosh-water  and  Marine  Life. 

BY    SHIRLEY    HIBBERD, 

Autlior  of  "Rustic  Adornments  for  Homes  of  Taste,"  &c.,  &c. 


CONTENTS. 
THE   FRESH-WATER   TANK. 

Chapter  I. — What  is  an  Aqitakium? 

The  Name  and  Object — Philosophy  of  the  Aquarium. 
Chapter  II. — Proper  Kinds  of  Vessels. 

Rectangular  Tanks — Construction  of  Tanks — Warington's  Stope-back  Tank — 
Bell  Grlasses  and  Vases — Stands  for  Vases. 
Chapter  III. — Fitting-up — E.ockwork. 

The  Bottom — Mould — Planting — The  "Water — Aspect. 
Chapter  IV. — Plants  for  the  Aquarium. 

How  to  stock  a  Tank  quickly — Selection  of  Plants — Water  Soldier — Startwort 
— VaUisneria — Anacharis — Myriophyllum — Potamogeton — Nuphar    Lutea — 
Pipewort  —  Utricularia  —  Isopelis  —  Subularia — Eanunculus  —  Hydrocaris — 
Alisma — Lemna,  etc. 
Chapter  V. — Pishes  for  the  Aquarium. 

Cyprinus  Carpio,  Gibelio,  Carassius,  Auratus,  Brama,  Leucisus,  PutUus,  Albur- 
nus,  Phoxinus,  Gobio,  Tinea,  Barbus,  Barbatula,  Cephalus — Percidce — Gas- 
terosteus. 
Chapter  VI. — Reptiles,  Mollusks,  and  Insects. 
Chapter  VII. — Selection  of  Stock. 
Chapter  VIII. — Gen.fral  Management. 

Feeding — ConfervEe — Use  of  Mollusks — Objections  to  Mollusks — Use  of  Con- 
fervoid  Growths — Periodical  Cleansing — Exhaustion  of  Oxygen — Tempera- 
ture— Dead  Specimens — Disease  of  Fishes. 

THE   MARINE   TANK. 

Chapter  I. — The  Vessel. 

Points  in  which  the  Marine  differs  from  the  Eiver  Tank — Stained  Glass. 
Chapter  II. — Fitting-up. 

The  Bottom — Hocks,  Arches,  and  Caves — The  Water — Artificial  Sea  Water 
— Marine  Salts — Management  of  Artificial  Water — Caution  to  the  Uninitiated 
— Filtering. 
Chapter  III. — Collecting  Specimens. 
Chapter  IV. — The  Plants. 
Chapter  V. — The  Animals. 

Fishes — Mollusks — Aunelides — Zoophytes — Actinia  Mesembryanthemum — An- 
guicoma,  Bellis,  Gemmacea,  Crassicornis,  Parasitica,  Dianthus,  etc. 
Chapter  VI. — What  is  Anemone? 
Chapter  VII. — General  Management. 

Grouping  of  Objects — Sulphuretted  Hydrogen — Preservation  of  the  Water — 
Aeration — Filter — Decay  of  Plants — Death  of  Anemones — Removal  of  Ob- 
jects— Density  of  the  Water — Green  Stain — Feeding — The  Syphon — Pur- 
chase of  Specimens. 

THE   WATER   CABINET. 

Chapter  I. — Construction  of  Cabinets. 

Distinctions  between  the  Cabinet  and  the  Aquarium — Construction  of  a  Cabinet 
— Glasses. 
Chapter  II. — Collecting  and  Arranging  Specimens. 

Implements  for  Collecting — Nets,  Jars,  and  Phials — Pond  Fishing. 
Chapter  III. — The  Stock. 
Chapter  IV. — Larva. 

The  Dragon  Fly— The  Gnat— The  Case  Fly. 


T-OXnoiST:     GllOOMBEIDGE    AND    SONS.     5,    PATERNOSTER   ROW. 


No.  70. 


DECEMBEB,   1856. 


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ILLUSTRATIVE    OF    THE 


ANIMAL,   VEGETABLE,   AND   MINERAL 
KINGDOMS. 

WITH    OCCASIONAL    ENGRAVINGS. 


CONDUCTED   BY 

THE    REV.  E.   0.  MOERIS,    B.A., 

Member  of  the  Ashmolean  Society,  etc. 

Author  of  "A  History  of  British  Birds."      "A  History  of  British  Butterflies.' 

"A  History  of  the  Nests  and  ILggs  of  British  Birds." 

"A  Bible  Natural  History."    "A  Book  of  Natural  History,"  etc.,  etc.,  etc. 


0  Lord,  how  manifold  are  Thy  works!    in  wisdom  hast   Thou    made  them  all:   the 
earth  is  full  of  Thy  riches. — Psalm  civ.,  24. 


LONDON: 
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AND  MAY  BB  HAD  OF  ALL  B00KSBLLEB8. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

Haunts  of  the  Town  Sparrow.     By  C  J.  S 265 

A  List  of  the  Birds  of  Nova  Scotia.     By  Lieut.  Blakiston,    and 

LiKUT.  Bland 268 

A  List  of  Sizes  of  Cases  for  Birds.     By  the  Editor 272 

A  Few  Words  on  commencing  a  Collection  of  Lepidoptcra.     By  the 

Rev.  R.  p.  Alingtox.     (With  Engravings.)    275 

On  the  Present  Condition  of  the  Classification  of  British  Lepidoptera. 

By  AuRELius  279 

Vacation  Notes — Heme  Bay.     By  O.  S.  Round,  Esq 281 

A  List  of  Epiphytes  growing  on  the  Willows  in  the  Holmes,  Thirsk. 

By  Mr.  Thomas  Foggitt 284 

Systema  Naturse.     By  the  Editor 285 

Miscellaneous  Notices. — Stormy  Petrel.  Cream-coloured  Courser.  288 
The    Querist. — Food    of   the    Larvae    of    Lithosia,      Location    of 

Chrysalides  287 

NOTICES    TO    CORRESPONDENTS. 

Communications  have  been  received  from  the  Rev.  J.  G-eeene,  (two;) — Rev. 
H.  Harper  Crewe ; — Miss  Wilkinson; — K.  C; — F.  M.  Burton,  Esq.,  (two;) 
— C.  R.  Beee,  Esq.,  (two;) — Rev.  T.  W.  Maitland; — Gervase  F.  Mathews, 
Esq.;— F.  Bond,  Esq.,  (two;)— Gr.  T.  Oldfield,  Esq.,  (two;)— Mr.  R.  D. 
Carter; — Mr.  John  Brain. 


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265 

HAUNTS    OF    THE    TOWN    SPARROW! 

BY   C.  J.  S. 

I  WOULD  forgive  my  enemy  the  greatest  wrong,  were  I  but  sure  he 
a  Sparrow.  I  am  so  used  to  their  gay,  bustling  company,  as  to  look 
upon  them  as  part  and  parcel  of  my  town  existence;  so  accustomed  to 
their  single  note,  and  to  hear  the  flutter  of  their  wings,  that  I  abjure  the 
fact  that  there  are  golden  canaries  singing  at  a  hundred  windows,  and  blithe 
goldfinches  pouring  forth  sweet  melody;  or  that  now  and  then  a  lark  may 
be  seen  far  up,  away  amid  the  blue  sky,  that  by  some  inadvertent  means 
has  strayed  from  the  vicinity  of  broad  green  meadows,  and  sweet  hawthorn- 
scented  lanes,  towards  the  great  murky  town.  I  forget  these,  knowing 
they  are  strangers  here,  tarrying  only  on  compulsion,  while  my  little  dusky 
brown  friend  is  a  native,  and  a  true  cockney. 

The  life  of  a  Town  Sparrow  constitutes  a  biography  in  itself,  so  full 
of  incident  is  it.  He  is  as  different  from  the  Pyrgita  domestica  of  the 
country,  as  is  the  pale  artizan  from  the  sunburnt  ploughboy.  Their  daily 
lives  and  habits  differ,  as  do  the  circumstances  by  which  they  are  surrounded. 

Mr.  Mudie,  somewhat  depreciating  the  interest  attached  to  the  Sparrow, 
says  that  "it  needs  no  description,  being  found  at  all  times,  and  in  all 
places."  True  it  is  common  enough;  but  how  many  things  are  there, 
which  are  termed  common  and  are  ignorantly  despised,  common  things  of 
life,  which  to  the  observer  contain  more  poetry  and  real  interest,  than 
many  so-called  rarities.  It  is  because  the  Sparrow  is  common  that  we 
love  him ;  he  is  bound  up  in  our  every-day  existence,  and  like  the  robin, 
has  been  one  of  the  Lares  of  an  English  home. 

In  the  early  morning,  when  the  country  bird  is  peeping  from  under 
the  waving  leaves,  or  merrily  saluting  the  labourer  on  the  high-road,  the 
London  Sparrow  is  up  and  doing,  while  the  streets  are  yet  comparatively 
quiet;  peeping  in  at  garret  windows,  and  with  noisy  chirp  waking  the 
laggard  sleepers,  or,  assembling  with  his  companions  to  discuss  a  meal, 
snatched  from  the  breakfast  assigned  to  the  fowls  of  neighbouring  stable- 
yards.  A  few  hours  later  in  the  day,  when  the  streets  grow  bustling,  I 
notice  that  our  friend  grows  very  important  and  bustling  too.  In  the  broad 
noonday,  with  the  glaring  sun  shining  fiercely  down  upon  the  whitened 
streets,  he  will  frisk  about,  stopping  still  upon  the  pavement  until  you 
are  close  upon  him,  thinking  of  the  recipe  concerning  certain  salt  being 
placed  upon  the  tail,  and  then  with  roguish  demeanour  he  flies  off  to 
his  companions,  or  perchance  to  settle  upon  the  bronze  nose  of  some 
giant  statue  of  a  warrior. 

He  is  busy,  too,  upon  ^Change,'  strutting  and  hopping  about  as  if  he 
only  possessed  a  true  knowledge  of  the  state  of  the  corn-market,  which  he 

VOL.  VI.  2  M 


266  HAUNTS    OF    THE    TOWN    SPARROW, 

has  received  from  some  friend  who  is  a  denizen  of  the  green  lanes,  where 
the  wheat  ears  lay  thick  upon  the  path  fallen  from  the  loaded  wain. 

He  is  fond,  too,  of  quiet  retired  courtways  in  the  city,  where  the 
quaint  old  gabled  houses  afford  him  many  a  snug  retreat,  and  he  will 
hop  upon  the  great  bow-window-sill,  gladdening  the  eyes  of  the  clerk 
sitting  within,  who  knows  that  he  will  not  disappear  till  he  gains  the 
wished-for  biscuit  crumbs^  which,  as  his  company  is  a  pleasure,  are  indef- 
initely delayed. 

Down  other  courts  too,  where  men  and  women  die  daily  by  dozens, 
and  disease  lurks  in  every  corner,  the  Sparrow  is  found,  when  other  birds, 
kept  in  cages,  die,  and  plants — poor  withered  things — can  only  be  recog- 
nised as  sapless  woody  stems.  In  these  places,  where  life  is  so  hard  to 
retain,  the  Town  Sparrow  is  as  lively  and  companionable  as  in  the  semi- 
green  railed-in  squares  of  the  West-end;  to  the  poor  he  takes  the  place  of 
the  warblers  of  the  grove,  albeit  he  has  but  a  faint,  yet  withal  a  spirited 
chirp. 

Nor  are  these  his  only  haunts.  In  the  early  morning,  passing  beneath 
the  great  black  dome  of  St.  Paul's,  through  the  low  old-fashioned  arch- 
way leading  to  the  district  of  law  and  lawyers,  we  come  suddenly  upon  a 
large  tree,  perhaps  we  have  been  attracted  thither  by  hearing  a  babel  of 
bird  voices  upon  the  morning  air;  perhaps  by  the  air  of  retirement  about 
the  place;  there  they  are  however,  filling  every  branch  and  twittering  about 
among  the  leaves,  holding  a  morning  concert  for  the  benefit  of  the  Dean 
of  St.  Paul's,  who  lives  in  the  great  house  adjoining. 

Then  in  little  out-of  the-way  city  church-yards,  so  small  in  compass, 
that  one  wonders  where  they  buried  the  dead  of  by-gone  generations,  the 
Sparrow  luxuriates  in  the  possession  of  opaque  green-ieaved  trees,  and 
hiding  amid  the  tall  rank  grass  that  in  summer-time  grows  thick  about 
the  crumbling  stone  tombs  of  deceased  burgesses. 

But  above  all,  the  Sparrow's  favourite  haunt  is  the  Fountain  in  the 
Temple,  that  green  oasis  in  the  wilderness  of  bricks  and  mortar;  how  he 
loves  the  thick  over-arching  trees  that  rustle  against  the  windows  of  law- 
chambers,  and  the  soft  grass  watered  by  the  fountain;  and  the  fountain 
itself;  oh!  the  crystal  W'aters  of  that  fountain!  leaping  up  and  falling 
again  in  diamond  sprays  upon  the  birds  beneath,  who  are  dipping  their 
notched  beaks  in  the  marble  basin,  or  smoothing  their  ruffled  plumage. 
As  cheering  and  refreshing  to  the  Town  Sparrow,  must  this  leaping,  tree- 
shaded  fountain  be,  as  it  is  to  the  weary- worn  Naturalist,  panting  to  go 
forth  into  the  boundless  domains  of  Nature.  We  can  fancy  the  Sparrows 
by  the  side  of  this  fountain,  looked  upon  by  loveable  Oliver  Goldsmith, 
in  the  leisure  moments  he  takes  while  writing  his  ^'Animated  Nature,"  or 
bluff  Johnson  while  taking  his  after-tea  walk. 


HAUNTS   OF   THE   TOWN    SPARROW.  267 

What  then,  if  ho  cannot  share  the  delights  of  the  country  Sparrow? 
■  are  there  not  a  thousand  things  in  this  vast  London  to  render  the  un- 
fettered bird  joyous,  if  he  cannot  nestle  under  the  straw- thatched  roofs, 
or  fly  through  tangled  hedges;  is  he  not  at  least  happy  and  contented 
with  his  lot? 

He  has  a  dirtier  brown  garb  than  his  brethren  of  the  fields,  and  is 
bolder  and  less  easily  frightened;  he  is  fond  too  of  charming  his  compan- 
ions from  ledge  to  ledge,  twittering  and  fluttering  most  violently  the  while; 
this  is  sometimes  in  a  playful  mood,  and  sometimes  we  fear  when  he  feels 
disposed  to  engage  in  mortal  combat.  When  fighting,  he  is  always  on 
the  wing,  and  does  not,  like  other  birds,  relish  a  "stand-up  fight."  He 
has  a  peculiar  way  too,  of  edging  up  to  solemn  hens,  with  the  intention 
of  abstracting  a  portion  of  their  food,  never  thinking  of  the  consequences 
that  may  result.  There  are  times  when  he  looks  plump  and  smooth,  and 
is  glad  of  your  company,  and  others  when  he  is  ragged  and  shy;  and  he 
has  also  a  system  of  daily  visiting,  if  you  only  scatter  a  few  crumbs,  and 
on  these  occasions  he  invariably  announces  himself. 

But  there  are  problems  connected  with  the  Town  Sparrow.  Where  he 
builds  his  nest,  or  where  his  bones  are  laid  when  life  is  gone,  are  yet  to 
be  solved.  I  have  taken  many  a  nest,  and  seen  many  more,  under  thatch 
and  tile  in  country  towns  and  villages,  but  I  never  saw,  or  heard  of  a 
Sparrow's  nest  in  London,  although  there  is  a  periodical  visitation  of  the 
young.  It  may  be  that  they  build  in  inaccessible  places,  or  that  men  are 
too  preoccupied  in  the  business  of  life,  to  notice  so  trivial  a  thing:  that 
they  do  build  is  certain,  but  where? 

Again,  London  Sparrows  never  die,  at  least  they  are  never  found  dead; 
like  the  abused  and  patient  donkey  they  are  always  in  existence,  and  the 
fact  of  either  being  found  dead  is  regarded  as  a  rare  phenomenon.  Per- 
haps they  die  in  unknown  corners  of  old  houses,  or,  what  is  more  likely, 
retire  into  the  country  to  end  their  days. 

There  are  many  other  peculiarities  that  I  have  noticed  (and  who  has  not?) 
in  my  daily  journeys  through  the  great  city,  peculiarities  that  constitute 
facts,  and  that  prove  that  even  in  the  crowded  streets,  far  away  from  all 
that  is  green  and  pleasant,  there  is  work  for  the  naturalist.  Although  he 
may  long  to  hear  the  warbling  of  other  songsters,  and  see  brighter  flowers 
and  greener  trees,  yet  he  will  find  that  the  great  book  of  nature  has  one 
chapter  devoted  to  other  lanes  and  highways  than  those  in  which  the 
brightest  flowers  bloom,  or  the  sweetest  songsters  sing. 


268 

A     LIST    OF    THE    BIRDS    OF    NOVA     SCOTIA, 
AS    FAR     AS    ASCERTAINED,    COMPILED    MOSTLY    FROM  • 
ACTUAL    OBSERVATION,    IN    THE   YEARS    1852-3-4  and  5. 

BY     UEUT.    BLAKISTON,     OF     THE     ROYAL     ARTILLERY;     AND     LIEUT.    BLAND,    OF 
THE    ROYAL    ENGINEERS. 

Those  marked  *  are  on  the  authority  of  Mr.  Andrew  Downs,  a  naturalist  resident  in  the 
countrj'. 

Land  Birds. 

Bald-headed  Eagle,  (Haliaeetus  leucocephalus.) — Resident:  not  uncommon. 
^^Osprey,  or  Fish  Hawk,  (Pandion  haliaeetus.) — Common  along  the  coast: 
breeds.  ■:i-~  --  .  ■         c  tv//j/ 

^'^  Jer-Falcon,  (Falco  Islandicus.) — Very  rare,   and   only  in  winter:    one 
instance  in   ten   years.     <   -  -  i  c^-o/ftXt^-  — 

Pigeon  Haioh,  (F.  columbarius.) — Common:  breeds. 

Sparrow  Hawk,  (F.  sparverius.) — Not  uncommon:  breeds,  i :f  u-.-^^  ul^.  (Uu..^ 

Sed-shouldered  Buzzard,  (Buteo  lineatus.) — Rather  common:  breeds. 
^Bough-legged  Buzzard,  (B.  lagopus.) — Rare.  - 

Bed-tailed,  or  American  Buzzard,  (B.  borealis.) — Not  common. 

American  Goshawk,  (Astur  atracapillus.) — Rather  common. 

Sharp-shinned  Hawk,  (A.  fuscus.) — Rather  common. 

American  Hen  Harrier,  (Circus  Hudsonicus.) — Abundant:  breeds. 
^yHawk  Owl,  (Strix  funerea.) — Common:  breeds  mostly  north.  (S*<^yr%^A-*'r 
^^Snow])  Owl,  (S.  nyctea.) — Rare  here  in  winter:  breeds  north.  ^TXytCuf- 

Long-eared  Owl,  (S.  otus.) — Not  common.  ,     Ci^^^i- . r  cek.%,>.*^  j    ,  , 

Short-eared  Owl,  (S.  brachyotos.) — Not  common. //?'>-«-«^/*xc«J  ^jkJJ*^ 

Acadian  Owl,  (Noctua  Acadica.) — Resident:  common. 
fUf^jl^tx^jTengmalms  Oivl,  (N.  Tengmalmi.) — Rare:  resident  inland. /t/V*,\^/6/i»,yP^; 
y- Sparrow  Owl,  (N.  passerina.) — Found  inland:  very  rare.  ffApi;ji^,,jL-  «K.f-f' 

Barred  Oivl,  (Syrnium  nebulosum. — Resident:  common.     ■''^'■./\ 

Great  Horned  Owl,  (Bubo  Virginianus.) — Resident:  very  common. 

Whip-poor-will,  (Caprimulgus  vociferus.) — Rare :  arrives  beginning  of  June. 

Night  Hav)k,  (C.  Virginianus.) — Abundant;  arrives  end  of  May:  breeds, 

■fChimney  Swallow,  (Hirundo  pelasgia.) — Arrives  end  of  March. 
^/*  Purjjle  Martin,   (H.  purpurea.) — Occasional. 

White-bellied  Martin,  (H.  bicolor.) — Abundant:  arrives  about  20th.  April, 

Bepublican,  or  Cliff  Swalloto,  (H.  fulvus.) — Abundant:  arrives  about  1st. 
May;  departs  about  20th.  August. 

Barn    Swallow,    (H.  rustica.) — Abundant:    arrives    about   1st.  of  May; 
departs  beginning  of  September.  _^, 

^  Bank  Swallow,  (H.  riparia.) — Inland.     '  iV;/' 

t  Is  this  English  name  the  right  one  ?    Our  English  Swallow  S.  rustica  is  the  Chimney- 
Swallow. — r.  0.  Morris. 


BIRDS   OF   NOVA.    SCOTIA.  269 

Belted  Kingfisher,  (Alcedo  alcyon.) — Common:  arrives  about  1st.  May; 
•departs  middle  of  September.  '     l..  /- 

Tyrant  Flycatcher,  (Musicapa  tyrannus.) — Common  inland:  breeds.  A,/y>A*^vvc^<'  c 

Green-crested  Flycatcher,  (M.  Acadica.) — Not  common. 

Wood  Pee-wee,  (M.  virens.) — Not  common. 

American  Redstart,  (M.  ruticilla.) — Abundant:  arrives  about  10th.  May^  \(^.^//u* 

Least  Pee-wee,  (M.  pusilla.) 

Great  American  Shrike,  (Laluus  borealis.) — Not  common:  resident  during 
winter. 

Migratory  Thrush,  or  Robin,  (Turdus  migratorius.) — Abundant:  arrives 
middle  of  April. 

Hermit  Thrush,  (T.  solitarius.) — Arrives  1st.  May:  abundant.  Nests  on 
the  ground. 

Olivaceous  Thrush,  (T.  olivaceus.) — Not  common:  nests  io  bushes. 

Cat  Bird,  (T.  felivox.) — Common  inland:  arrives  1st.  June.  /n/*.*-*^ 

Golden-crowned  Thrush,  (T.  aurocapillus.) — Common:  arrives  about  10th. 
May. 

*  Water  Thrush,  (Cinclus  Americanus.) — Inland:  rare. 

American  Pipit,  (Anthus  Ludovicianus.) — Arrives  in  flocks  about  20th. 
September:  goes  south. 

Canada  Flycatcher,  (Myiodioctes  Canadensis.) — Common  inland:  arrives 
about  10th.  May. 

Wilson's  Blackcap,  (M.  Wilsonii.) — Inland^  not  common:  arrives  about 
10th.  May. 

Yellow-rump  Warbler,  (Sylvicola  coronata.) — Abundant:  arrives  about 
24th.  April. 

*  Black-poll  Warbler,  (S.  striata.) — Rare. 

Bay-breasted  Warbler,  (S.  castanea.) — Rather  rare:  arrives  about  10th. 
May. 

Chesmd-sided  Warbler,  (S.  icterocephala.) — Common:  arrives  about  10th. 
May. 

Hemlock  Warbler,  (S.  parus.) — Resident  in  autumn:  departs  in  November. 

Black-throated  Green  Warbler,  (S.  vireus.) — Abundant:  arrives  about  10th, 
May. 

*  Cape  May  Warbler,  (S.  maritima.) — Very  rare:  one  instance  only. 
Blackburnian   Warbler,  (S.  Blackburnia.) — Not  uncommon  inland. 
Yellow-poll   Warbler,  (S.  vestiva.) — Common:  arrives  about  5th.  May. 
Bed-poll  Warbler,  (S.  petechia.) — Very  common:  arrives  about  23rd.  April. 
Yellow-back  Warbler,  (S.  Americana.) — Inland  in  hard  woods:  rare. 

^  Black-throated  Blue  Warbler,  (S.  Canadensis.) — Rare. 
Black  and  Yellow  Warbler,  (S.  maculosa.) — Abundant:  arrives  about  10th. 
May. 


270  BIRDS   OF    NOVA    SCOTIA. 

.    *  Bhie-green  Warbler,  (S.  coerulea.) — Very  rare. 

*  Mourning  Warhler,  (Trichas  Philadelphica.) — Very  rare. 
Maryland  Yellow-throat,  (T.  Marilandica.) — Abundant. 
Nashville   Warbler,  (Sylvicola  rubricapilla.)  — Rare. 

Black  and  White  Oeeper,' (Certbia  varia.) — Common:  arrives  about  10th. 
May. 

Winter  Wren,  (Troglodytes  hyemalis.) — Inland:  not  common. 

American  Goldcrest,  (Regulus  satrapa.) — Resident:  common. 

Muby-crowned   Wren,  (R.  calendula.) — Not  common. 

Blue  Bird,  (Sialia  Wilsonii.) — Occasional. 

Brown  Creeper,  (Oerthia  familiaris.) — Resident:  common. 

Blackcap  Tit,  (Parus  atricapillus.) — Abundant:  resident. 

Solitary   Vireo,  (Vireo  solitarius.) — Not  common. 

Warbling   Vireo,  (Vireo  gilvus.) — Rare. 

Bed-eyed  Vireo,  (Vireo  olivaceus.) — Very  common:  arrives  about  10th.  May. 

Cedar  Bird,  or  Waxwing,  (Bombycilla  Carolinensis.) — Arrives  in  flocks  1st. 
June;  leaves  end  of  August. 

Shore  Lark,  (Alauda  alpestris.)— Arrives  from  north  middle  of  October; 
return  from  south  20th.  March.    -^ Q^vort^rrVi 

Fox-coloured  Sparrow,  (Fringilla  iliaca.) — Breeds  north:  arrives  in  Decem- 
ber going  south;  returns  loth.  March. 

Song  Sparrow,  (F.  melodia.) — Earliest  singing  bird^  14th.  March;  goes 
south  with  Warblers. 

White-throated  Sparrow,  (F.  Pensylvanica.) — Arrives  beginning  of  April: 
abundant. 

Bay-winged  Sparroto,  (Emberiza  graminea.) — Very  rare. 

Chipping  Sparrow,  (E,  socialis.) — Inland. 

Tree  Sparrow,  (E.  Canadensis.) — Common  here  in  winter:  breeds  north. 

Snow  Bird,  (Niphoea  hyemalis.) — Very  abundant:  arrives  1st.  of  April; 
leaves  20th.  October.  '; 

Swamp  Sparrow,  (Fringilla  palustris.) — Not  uncommon:  arrives  1st.  May. 

Northern  Bedpole,  (Linaria  borealis.) — Abundant  in  flocks  during  autumn 
and  winter :  breeds  north. 

Pine  Finch,  (L.  pinus.) — Probably  resident. 

Purple  Finch,  (Fringilla  purpurea.) — Very  common:  arrives  about  27th. 
March. 

Savannah  Sparrow,  (Emberiza  Savanna.) — Abundant:  arrives  lOth.  June; 
departs  15th.  September. 

Snow  Bunting,  (E.  nivalis.) — In  flocks:  arrives  about  1st.  November; 
departs  about  20th.  March:  breeds  north. 

*  Indigo  Bird,  (Fringilla  cyanea.) — Accidental:  have  been  one  or  two 
instances. 


BIRDS    OF    NOVA    SCOTIA.  271 

American'  Goldfinch,  (Carduelis  tristis.) — Inland:  rare. 

Pine  Grosbeak,  (Corythus  enucleator.) — Here  in  winter j  some  years 
abundant:  breeds  north,  j 

Common  Crossbill,  (Loxia  curvirostra?) — Eesident./^^jni^it^  ^vw-^-rt dj«c*-''-*L 

White-winged  Crossbill,  (L.  leucoptera.) — Eesident:  common, 

Rose-breasted  Grosbeak,  (Coccoyorus  Ludovicianus.) — Inland:  rare, 

■^  Scarlet  Tanager,  (Pyranga  rubra,) — Accidental, 

Bobolink,  or  Rice  Bunting,  (Emberiza  oryzivora,) — Common  inland:  arrives 
about  1st.  May,  .     >        ,  .     \ 

^  Cow  Blackbird,  (Molothrus  pecoris.) — Occasional, 

*  Red-winged  Blackbird,  (Agelaius  phoeniceus.) — Inland:  occasional. 
Great   Grow  Blackbird,   (Quiscalus  major,) — Very  rare. 

Common  Crow  Blackbird,  or  Purple   Grackle,   (Q.  versicolor.) — Rare, 
Rusty  Grackle,  (Q,  ferruginous,) — Common:  arrives  17th,  March;  departs 
about  20th,  October, 

Raven,  (Corvus  corax.) — Resident:  not  common, 

American  Crow,  (Corvus  Americanus,) — Resident:  common, 

■^  Fish  Crow,  (C.  ossifragus,) — Resident:  rare. 

Blue  Jay,  (Garrulus  cristatus.) — Resident?  abundant.  ^  t'y4Ltv-fr<i'^on«/>6 

Canada  Jay,  (G,  Canadensis.) — Resident:  abundant,    /  a>vv-/ / /*/^  <  i  / 

*  White-breasted  Nuthatch,  (Sitta  Carolinensis.) — Autumn  and  winter: 
not  common. 

Red-bellied  Nuthatch,  (S,  Canadensis,) — Common  in  winter:  inland. 

*  Brown-headed  Nuthatch,  (S,  pusilla,) — Very  rare, 

*  Meadow  Lark,  (Sturnella  Ludovicianu^) — Very  rare;  inland:  one  instance. 
Ruby-throated  Humming  Bird,  (Trochilus   colubris.) — Abundant:    arrives 

beginning  of  April;  departs  about  20th,  September. 

Pileated   Woodpecker,  (Pious  pileatus.) — Inland:  rare:  resident. 

Hairy   Woodpecker,  (P.  villosus.) — Very  common:  resident. 

Downy  Woodpecker,  (P,  pubescens.) — Common:  resident. 

Yellow-bellied   Woodpecker,  (P,  varius.) — Inland;  not  common:    migrates. 

Arctic  Three-toed  Woodpecker,  (P.  Arcticus.) — Rather  rare:  resident. 

Golden-wing  Woodpecker,  (P,  auratus.) — Common:  arrives  about  1st,  May; 
departs  in  November, 

*'  Black-billed  Cuckoo,  (Coccyzus  erythropthalmus.) — Very  rare. 

Yellow-billed  Cuckoo,  (C,  Americanus.) — Rare;  arrives  about  1st,  June: 
breeds. 

Passenger  Pigeon,  (Columba  migratoria,) — Sometimes  very  abundant: 
arrives  about  end  of  July, 

Ruffed  Grouse,  (Tetrao  umbellus,) — Abundant;  resident:  young  fly  about 
20th,  August,         '^(r>x.^%.4ici 

Canada  Grouse,  (T.  Canadensis.) — Resident:  not  very  common. 


272 


A     LIST     OF     SIZES     OF    CASES    FOR    BIRDS. 


BY    THE    REV.  F.  0.  MORRIS. 
(  Continued  from  page  256.  _) 


No.  3. 

Sandpiper,  Bartram's. 

Sandpiper,  Curlew. 

Sandpiper,  Pectoral. 

Sandpiper,  Purple. 

Sandpiper,  Schinz's. 

Shrike,  American  Grey. 

Shrike,  Great  Grey. 

Shrike,  Eed-backed. 

Snipe,  Brown. 

Snipe,  Common. 

Snipe,  Great. 

Snipe,  Jack. 

Snipe,  Sabine's. 

Starling. 

Starling,  Red-winged. 

Stint,  Little. 

Stint,  Temminck's. 

Swallow,  Spine-taQed. 

Swift,  Common. 

Swift,  White-beUied. 

Thrush,  Gold-vented. 

Thrush,  Missel. 

Thrush,  Hock. 

Thrush,  Song. 

Thrush,  White's. 

Turnstone. 

Woodchat. 

Woodcock. 

Woodpecker,  Hairy. 

Woodpecker,  Lesser  Spotted. 

Woodpecker,  Three-toed. 

Wryneck. 

No.  4. 
Avocet. 
Bee-eater. 
Chough. 

Colin,  Virginian. 
Coot. 
Courser,  Cream-coloured. 


Crake,  Baillon's. 

Crake,  Spotted. 

Cuckoo. 

Cuckoo,  Great  Spotted. 

Cuckoo,  Yellow-bLUed. 

Dove,  Ring. 

Dove,  Rock. 

Dove,  Stock, 

Dove,  Turtle. 

Godwit,  Bar-tailed. 

Godwit,  Black-tailed. 

Grebe,  Little. 

Greenshank. 

Gull,  Buonaparte's. 

Gull,  Little. 

Hobby. 

Jay. 

Kestrel. 

Magpie. 

Merlin. 

Moorhen. 

Nightjar. 

Nutcracker. 

Owl,  Little. 

Owl,  Scops-eared. 

Owl,  Tengmalm's, 

Oyster-catcher. 

Partridge,  Barbary. 

Partridge,  Common, 

Partridge,  Red-legged. 

Phalarope,  Grey. 

Phalarope,  Red-necked. 

Pigeon,  Passenger. 

Plover,  Great. 

Pratincole,  Collared. 

Quail,  Common. 

Rail,  Land. 

Rail,  Water. 

RoUer. 

Sandpiper,  Broad-biUed. 

Sandpiper,  Buff-breasted. 

Sandpiper,  Common. 


SIZES    OF   CASES    FOR    BIRDS. 


273 


Sandpiper,  Green. 
Sandpiper,  Spotted. 
Sandpiper,  Wood. 
Stilt,  Black-winged. 
Sparrow- Hawk. 
Tern,  Lesser. 

Woodpecker,  Great  Black. 
Woodpecker,  Great  Spotted. 
Woodpecker,  Green. 

No.  5. 
Auk,  Great. 
Auk,  Little. 
Crow,  Carrion. 
Crow,  Hooded. 
Gull,  Black-headed. 
Gull,  Common. 
Gull,  Ivory. 
Gull,  Laughing. 
Gull,  Masked. 
Gull,  Boss's. 
Gull,  Sabine's. 
Jackdaw. 
Kittiwake. 
Petrel,  Bulwer's. 
Petrel,  Fork-tailed. 
Petrel,  Storm. 
Petrel,  Wilson's. 
Puffin. 
Razor-bill. 
Eook. 

Tern,  Arctic. 
Tern,  Black. 
Tern,  Caspian. 
Tern,  Common. 
Tern,  GuU-biUed. 
Tern,  Noddy. 
Tern,  Eoseate. 
Tern,  Sandwich. 
Tern,  Swift. 
Tern,  Whiskered. 
Tern,  White-winged  Black. 

No.  6. 
Duck,  Bimaculated. 
Duck,  Buffel-headed. 

VOL.  VI. 


Duck,  Eider. 

Duck,  Ferruginous. 

Duck,  Harlequin. 

Duck,  King. 

Duck,  Long-tailed. 

Duck,  Pintail. 

Duck,  Red-crested  Whistling. 

Duck,  Scaup. 

Duck,  Steller's  Western. 

Duck,  Summer. 

Duck,  Tufted. 

Duck,  Wild. 

Gadwall. 

Garganey. 

Golden-eye. 

Goosander. 

Guillemot,  Black. 

Guillemot,  Brunnich's. 

Guillemot,  Common. 

Guillemot,  Ringed. 

Gull,  Glaucous. 

GuU,  Herring.  ' 

GuU,  Iceland. 

GuU,  Lesser  Black-backed. 

Merganser,  Hooded. 

Merganser,  Red-breasted. 

Petrel,  Capped. 

Petrel,  Fulmar. 

Pochard. 

Raven. 

Redshank,  Common. 

Redshank,  Spotted. 

Scoter,  Common. 

Scoter,  Surf. 

Scoter,  Velvet. 

Shearwater,  Dusky. 

Shearwater,  Great. 

Shearwater,  Mans. 

Shieldrake,  Common. 

Shieldrake,  Ruddy. 

Shoveler. 

Skua,  Buffon's. 

Skua,  Common. 

Skua,  Pomerine. 

Skua,  Richardson's. 

Smew. 


274 


SIZES    OP   CASKS    FOR    BIRDS. 


Teal. 

Wigeon. 

Wigeon,  American. 

No.  7. 
Bittern,  Little. 
Egret,  Little. 
G-oose,  Bean. 
Groose,  Bernicle. 
Goose,  Brent. 
Goose,  Canada. 
Goose,  Chinese. 
Goose,  Egyptian. 
Goose,  Grey -lag. 
Goose,  Pink-footed. 
Goose,  E-ed-breasted. 
Goose,  Spur-winged. 
Goose,  White-fronted. 
Grouse,  Black. 
Grouse,  E.ed. 
GuU,  Great  Black-backed. 
Heron,  Night. 
Heron,  Squacco. 
Owl,  Barn. 
Owl,  Long-eared. 
Owl,  Short-eared. 
Owl,  Tawny. 
Ptarmigan. 
Whimbrel. 

No.  8. 
Bittern,  American. 
Bittern,  Common. 
Bustard,  Little. 
Bustard,  Buffed. 
Cormorant,  Common. 
Cormorant,  Green. 
Diver,  Black-throated. 
Diver,  Great  Northern. 
Diver,  Bed-throated. 
Falcon,  Jer. 
Falcon,  Peregrine. 
Falcon,  Bed-footed. 
Gannet. 
Goshawk. 
Grebe,  Eared. 
Grebe,  Great  Crested. 


Grebe,  Bed-necked. 
Grebe,  Sclavonian. 
Harrier,  Hen. 
Harrier,  Montagu's. 
Heron,  Buff-backed. 
Owl,  Eagle. 
Owl,  Hawk. 
Owl,  Snowy. 

No.  9. 

Kite. 

Kite,  Swallow-tailed. 

Pheasant. 


No.  10. 

Buzzard,  Common. 
Buzzard,  Honey. 
Buzzard,  Bough-legged. 
Curlew. 
Eagle,  Golden. 
Eagle,  Spotted. 
Eagle,  White-tailed. 
Harrier,  Marsh. 
Heron,  Great  White. 
Heron,  Purple. 
Ibis,  Glossy. 
Osprey. 
Spoonbill. 

No.  II. 

CapercaiUie. 
Heron,  Common. 
Stork,  Black. 
Stork,  White. 
Vulture,  Egyptian. 
Vulture,  Griffon. 


No.  12. 


Bustard,  Great. - 
Crane,  Common. 
Hooper. 

Swan,  Bewick's. 
Swan,  Mute. 
Swan,  Pohsh. 


276 


A    FEW    WORDS    ON 
COMMENCING     A    COLLECTION     OF     LEPIDOPTERA. 

BY    THE    REV.  R.  P.  ALINGTON. 
(  Concluded  from  page  252.  _) 

I  NOW  come  to  a  very  important  part  of  the  entomologist's  business,  the 
setting  or  spreading  out  of  the  wings  of  his  specimens,  to  dry  in  a  proper 
form.  Of  this  I  believe  there  are  three  ways  in  common  practice;  of  two 
I  shall  alone  speak,  the  other  I  believe  is  generally  adopted  abroad,  and 
called  the  French  way.  In  this  case  the  wings  slope 
upwards  from  the  board,  as  here  shewn. 

I  should  fancy  this  rather  a  difficult  way  of  setting, 
and  one  in  which  any  irregularity  would  be  very  injurious  to  the  look  of 
a  cabinet. 

Of  the  other  two  the  one  most  commonly  adopted  is  that  with  pieces  of 
card  of  various  sizes,  cut  in  the  shape  of  this  out- 
line— a  pin   through   the   broad    end.     You   must 
have  sundry  pieces  of  cork,  as   setting  boards,  or 
I  what  is  preferable,  a  double  box  lined  with  cork; 

this  will  keep  out  dust,  and  if  large  enough  will 
serve  to  keep  duplicates  in  as  well.  Having  run  your  pin  through  the 
centre  of  the  thorax  of  the  fly,  slightly  leaning  forward,  so  that  when 
stuck  into  the  board,  (the  body  of  the  fly  being  somewhat  raised,)  it 
may  stand  perfectly  straight,  as  in  the  first  of  the  following  figures;  place 
over  each  wing  a  piece  of  card,  the  wings  can  then  easily  be  brought  into 
position  with  a  pin,  as  in  the  centre  figure.  The  fly,  when  dry,  will  be 
just  in  the  reverse  position  to  that  of  the  first  plan  mentioned,  as  shewn 
in  the  third  figure. 


^^^ 


The  third  plan  is  to  set  the  flies  on  pieces  of  wood  cut  into  shape  for 
the  purpose.  The  collector  must  provide  himself  with  a  quantity  of  shapes 
of  different  sizes  to  meet  all  comers  to  the  net.  This  plan  is  perhaps  more 
applicable  to  the  larger,  while  the  previous  one  is  most  so  to  the  smaller 
species.     The  shapes  had  better  be  made  of  the  softest  wood,  to  allow  the 


276  ON    COMMENCING    A    COLLECTION    OF    LEPIDOPTERA. 

pin  easily  to  pierce  them  of  the  following  form : — 

4 


Front.  Section  of  No.  1.— Side  view. 

No.  4,  a  groove  running    front  to  back,  varying    in  depth  according   to 
the    size   of  the   body  of  the   moth   capable   of   being   set    on  the   shape. 

4 


No.  3. 

Upper  surface. 

Having  fixed  your  fly  on  the  pin,  stick  it  into  the  groove,  (No.  4,)  with 
the  insect's  head  towards  the  flat  side  or  front,  (No.  1,)  the  body  of  the 
moth  lying  in  the  groove  to  keep  it  straight,  so  that  the  wings  may  be 
just  level  with  the  surface  of  the  wood,  and  far  enough  back  to  allow  of 
the  wings  coming  well  forward;  then  draw  one  wing  down  with  a  fine  thread, 
and  holding  the  thread  fast  with  the  finger  and  thumb,  place  it  in  its  proper 
position,  then  proceed  in  a  similar  way  with  the  other  wing;  then  cover 
up  the  fly  with  pieces  of  silver  paper,  to  prevent  the  threads,  next  to  be 
bound  tightly  round,  from  marking  the  fly,  which  they  are  apt  to  do  if 
this  precaution  is  not  used;  then  wind  your  thread  over  the  whole,  round 
and  round,  to  keep  all  secure.  The  thread  under  the  silver  paper,  which 
at  first  served  to  secure  the  wings,  upon  being  left  hold  of,  (as  soon  as 
one  of  the  upper  threads  supplies  its  place,)  becomes  relaxed,  and  does  not 

therefore  injure  the  specimen.  The  insect, 
when  set,  will  be  as  in  the  engraving,  and 
if  high  enough  on  the  pin,  the  tips  of  the 
wings  will  not  touch  the  floor  of  the  cabi- 
net, an  advantage  which  the  Kev.  F.  O, 
Morris  (having  experienced  its  good  effects) 
has  pointed  out,  namely,  any  mite  once  displaced  will  not  easily  be  able 
again  to  get  upon  the  insect.  This  plan  appears  on  paper  perhaps  difficult 
to  carry  out,  but  with  a  very  little  practice  is  certainly  not  only 
exceedingly  simple,  but  well  adapted  to  show  off"  the  fly. 

The    situations    in  which    the  various    species  are  to    be  taken   must   be 
gleaned  from  the  several    books    that  are    published  on   the   subject,   (vide 


ON    COMMEKCING    A    COLLECTION    OF   LEPIDOPTERA. 


277 


''Naturalist,"  old  series,  "Hints  to  Entomologists,"  by  P.  Rylands,  Esq., 
vol.  iii.,  page  246.)  Whatever  you  do  mind  to  select  perfect  specimens;  the 
loss  of  an  Antenna  is  a  defect,  and,  remember,  flies  set  awry,  pins  not  put 
in  straight — all  spoil  the  look  of  a  cabinet.  Now  it  is  absolutely  necessary 
to  possess  a  cabinet,  or  if  the  collector  prefers  some  book-boxes  to  pre- 
serve your  flies  in,  the  latter  may  be  had  to  order  of  different  dealers, 
but  I  have  an  objection  to  them,  they  appear  to  me  to  look  dark — to 
cast  a  shadow  on  the  flies.  Perhaps  those  I  have  seen  may  have  been 
made  too  deep  or  heavy;  however  I  prefer  a  cabinet;  a  small  one  will  be 
ample  for  a  beginner,  say  thirty  inches  high,  eighteen  inches  wide,  and 
twelve  from  front  to  back,  there  or  thereabouts;  this  would  contain  twelve 
drawers.  Each  drawer  should  be  lined  with  cork,  glazed,  and  neatly  papered 
white.  Now  such  a  cabinet  might  probably  be  obtained,  second- hand,  for 
four  or  five  pounds.  The  preferable  way  is  at  once  to  pin  into  your  drawers 
Doubleday's  names  in  order  as  arranged  by  him,  neatly  cut  out,  and  leaving 
between  each  a  space  for  two  or  more  specimens;  and  as  so  small  a  cabinet 
will  not  hold  all  the  British  species,  the  more  rare  ones  may  (if  purchasing 
be  not  intended)  for  the  present  be  omitted.  Your  drawers  should  be 
divided  with  fine  pencilled  lines,  according  to  the  size  of  the  different  spceies, 
and  each  specimen  should  be  placed  exactly  one  below  the  other,  as  here 
indicated;    the  slightest  irregularity  spoils  the   look  of  a   collection.     Keep 


!"     SPHINGES    I 


L 


your  cabinet  in  a  dry  place,  and  let  each  drawer  and  every  box  you  have 
be  supplied  with  a  lump  of  camphor,  for  the  sake  of  preservation;  thus 
armed  you  may  commence  your  campaign  as  soon  as  you  have  leisure. 


278  ON   COMMENCINa    A    COLLECTION    OP    LEPIDOPTERA. 

But  before  I  conclude  I  must  say  a  few  words  on  the  subject  of  hilling 
moths.  The  old  plan  of  red-hot  needles,  boiling  water,  steam,  etc.,  gives 
an  idea  of  much  cruelty,  but  since  the  introduction  of  chloroform  these 
practices  must  be  dispensed  with;  it  is  sure  in  its  effect,  and  appears  to 
be  momentary.  The  common  practice  is  to  have,  as  I  before  said,  a  wide- 
necked  bottle,  with  a  hollow  glass  stopper,  (glass  is  necessary,  as  chloroform 
evaporates  quickly  through  cork,)  plug  up  the  stopper  with  a  piece  of  sponge, 
a  drop  of  chloroform  on  this  will  with  care  last  several  days;  but  I  have 
often  thought  that  a  bottle  with  a  false  bottom,  or  in  fact  a  stopper  at 
each  end  would  answer  well.  The  one  in  which  the  chloroform  is  placed 
would  then  never  have  to  be  taken  out  of  the  bottle  when  a  fly  was  put 
into  it,  and  would  therefore  be  less  exposed  to  the  air.  If,  too,  the  neck 
of  the  bottle  was  made  at  a  small  angle  to  the  body,  the  flies  would  more 
readily  fall  into  it. 

Having  thus  said  my  say  with  reference  chiefly  to  the  day-flying  species, 
and  those  that  may  be  taken  early  in  the  evening,  I  would  now  mention 
that  the  most  effective  plan  to  take  many  of  the  rarer  thick-bodied  flies, 
and  those  that  feed  later  at  night,  is  to  anoint  some  trees  with  a  mixture 
of  sugar,  beer,  and  rum,  (vide  "The  Naturalist,"  No.  lix.  page  23;)  no 
net  is  here  required.  Place  your  mixture  on  the  trees  at  sunset,  and  with 
a  lantern  visit  it  every  quarter  of  an  hour  or  so.  When  you  find  a 
specimen  at  the  sugar  worth  capturing,  place  your  chloroform  bottle  over  it, 
and  from  the  effect  of  the  spirit  remaining  in  it,  it  will  immediately  drop 
into  it;  cork  him  up  and  proceed  to  another  tree.  Now  there  is  only  one 
fault  that  I  find  with  chloroform,  that  is,  that  the  fly  killed  with  it 
becomes  perfectly  rigid,  and  is  often  most  difficult  to  set  properly,  the  wings 
refusing  to  spread  out.*  In  this  case  I  find  the  only  way  is  to  stick  a 
very  small  pin  through  each  wing.  This  certainly  makes  a  hole,  but  if 
cleverly  managed  is  quite  imperceptible.  When  chloroform,  too,  is  first 
put  into  a  bottle,  and  is  very  powerful,  it  is  apt  to  wet  the  flies,  and 
cause  them  to  appear  as  if  totally  destroyed,  but  a  moment's  exposure  to 
the  air,  and  they  become  completely  restored.f  By-the-by,  some  species 
inhabit  only  the  tops  of  the  highest  trees,  the  Purple  Emperor,  (Apatura 
Iris,)  for  instance,  and  some  of  the  Hairstreaks.  To  capture  these  a  loop- 
net,  made  of  gauze,  and  fixed  to  a  long  pole  or  bamboo  is  used;  when 
the  fly  settles  it  is  easily  swept  of  by  and  into  the  net. 

Now  should  your  cabinet  become  stained,  full  of  pin-holes,  etc.,  and 
require  cleaning,  use  a  wash  of  common  precipitate  of  chalk  dissolved  in 
water  with    a  little  gum;    this   is  done   easier,  and    is   preferable    to  fresh 

*  This  may  be  overcome  by  a  careful  hand  in  the  setting. — F.  0.  Morris. 
t  Loose  small  pieces  of  blotting  paper  kept  in  the  bottle  will  rectify  this. — F.  0.  Morris. 


CLASSIFICATION    OF   BRITISH    LEPIDOPTERA.  279 

papering;  it  dries  perfectly  white,  fills  up  all  holes,  and  kills  all  insects. 

Finally,  beware  of  patcMng-up  flies.  If  you  have  a  very  rare  species, 
mend  it  by  all  means  if  broken,  for  fear  you  should  not  be  able  to,  or  until 
you  do  obtain  another  specimen,  but  do  not  attempt  to  make  one  good 
fly  out  of  two  bad  ones,  (vide  "Naturalist,"  old  series,  "Hints  to  Ento- 
mologists," by  P.  Rylands,  Esq.,  vol.  iii.  page  249.)  Beware  of  dust,  damp, 
and  light;  I  mean  if  your  specimens  are  much  exposed  to  light  they 
are  liable  to  fade.  Renew  your  old  specimens  whenever  opportunity  occurs, 
and  keep  duplicates  for  the  purpose  of  exchange.  A  small  spud  fixed  to 
a  walking-stick  is  a  very  useful  companion  at  the  dead  time  of  the  year: 
by  digging  close  round  the  roots  of  oaks,  elms,  and  willows,  many  a 
good  chrysalis  may  be  found:  these  should  be  kept  in  a  box  covered  with 
a  piece  of  gauze.  If  caterpillars  be  obtained  during  the  summer,  they 
should  be  kept  in  the  same  way,  taking  especial  care  to  feed  them  every 
day  with  fresh  leaves  from  the  plants  on  which  they  were  found.  Some 
light  soil  must  be  placed  in  each  box,  an  inch  or  two  deep,  for  those 
species  that  go  underground  for  the  purpose  of  change,  and  they  should 
not  bo  disturbed  when  they  have  once  gone  down.  Excepting  in  the  very 
cold  months,  December  and  January,  some  species  of  moths  may  be  taken 
almost  every  evening,  more  especially  with  sugar,  thus  affording  to  the 
lover  of  entomology  a  never-ending  source  of  entertainment  and.  instruction. 

Rectory,  Stvinhope,  3Iay  \Oth.,  1856. 


ON    THE    PRESENT    CONDITION 
OF     THE    CLASSIFICATION     OF     BRITISH     LEPIDOPTERA. 

BY    AURELIUS. 

I  THINK  all  British  Entomologists  will  admit  that  the  present  state  of 
the  Classification  of  British  Insects  is  most  unsatisfactory,  and  more  par- 
ticularly that  branch  which  has  so  many  students — the  Lepidoptera.  During 
the  last  twenty  years  we  have  been  continually  changing  our  arrangement, 
and  I  much  fear  we  are  now  in  a  more  confused  condition  than  ever.  In 
1837,  Curtis  published  his  ^^Guide  to  an  Arrangement  of  British  Insects," 
and  everybody  labelled  their  cabinets  with  his  names.  In  1850,  Mr.  H. 
Doubleday  published  his  "Synonymic  List  of  British  Lepidoptera,"  which 
cut  down  some  of  Curtis's  families  most  unmercifully;  that  of  Peronea,  for 
instance,  from  thirty-six  to  sixteen  species!  Mr.  D.  left  out  the  Tineidce, 
and  a  new  candidate  for  fame  appeared,  and  begun  where  Mr.  D.  had 
left  ofi".  In  1852,  we  had  "The  Calendar  of  British  Tineidse,"  by  Mr. 
Stainton.  This  turned  out  to  be  very  imperfect,  and  therefore  two  years 
later  we  had  his  Optts  magnum — the  "Lepidoptera  Tineina,"  being  the  third 
volume  of  the  ^'Insecta   Britannica,"  in  which  I  suppose  this  family  have 


280  CLASSIFICATION    OF    BRITISH    LEPIDOPTERA. 

found  a  resting-place  for  a  year  or  two  more.  Meanwhile  no  one  attempts 
to  re-arrange  the  PteropJiidcB,  and  the  Cramhidce  are  removed  from  the 
Tineidce,  and  placed  at  the  end  of  the   Tortrices. 

In  1856,  we  have  a  new  work,  entitled  "A  Manual  of  British  Butter- 
flies and  Moths,"  in  which  Doubleday's  arrangement  is  not  only  ignored, 
but  not  even  alluded  to.  In  the  Butterflies,  Sphinges,  and  Bombyces,  we 
find  the  old  names  that  we  had  well-nigh  forgotten  for  years;  families  which 
had  been  united  are  again  divided  and  split  up,  while  in  the  last  number 
this  arrangement  is  left  off,  and  that  of  M.  Guenee  is  adopted  for  the 
Noduina. 

In  the  meantime  the  puzzled  student  wanders  from  book  to  book  to  find 
out  his  species.  He  finds  in  Westwood  one  name  for  his  insect,  and  in 
Wood  he  sees  it  described  by  another.  In  Doubleday  he  probably  cannot 
find  it  at  all,  and  in  Stainton  he  becomes  utterly  lost.  Well  may  the 
Neophyte  exclaim  "Alas!  what  hard  work  is  this  study  of  Entomology!" 

Now  what  is  the  plain  matter-of-fact  cause  of  all  this  absurd  trifling 
with  Science?  Simply  that  we  want  able  leaders — we  have  no  head — no 
leading  master  mind  to  extricate  us  from  the  increasing  diflBculties  produced 
by  incompetent  guides.  Take  for  instance  this  Manual.  It  ought,  as  the 
latest,  to  be  the  best.  Is  it  so?  I  do  not  wish  to  press  upon  a  hard- 
working man  who  has  done  some  good  service  in  the  cause;  but  if  I  mistake 
not,  this  Manual  will  be  found  deficient  in  practical  correctness.  For  in- 
stance, the  larva  of  Lithosia  griseola  is  described  as  "unknown."  Imme- 
diately we  have  two  entomologists  come  forward  who  know  it  perfectly 
well.  In  the  last  number  the  larvae  of  Cymatophora  ridens  and  flavicornis 
are  stated  to  be  found  in  September.  A  friend  of  mine  writes  me  word 
that  they  are  neither  of  them  ever  seen  in  that  month,  and  rarely,  if 
ever,  in  August.  Now  such  mistakes  as  these  are  quite  unpardonable  in 
a  practical  descriptive  work.  If  errors  of  this  kind  are  discovered  in  a 
work  at  random  as  it  were,  our  confidence  in  it  as  a  whole  must  be 
shaken. 

The  unsettled  state  of  the  classification  of  our  British  Insects  has  been 
incidentally  alluded  to  by  the  reviewer  of  Mr,  Dallas's  "Elements  of  En- 
tomology," in  the  "Gardener's  Chronicle"  of  October  11th.,  wherein  the 
necessity  of  uniting  under  one  competent  head  in  each  division,  for  the 
purpose  of  attaining  a  univeral  arrangement,  is  strongly  urged.  British 
Insects,  of  course,  form  but  a  small  portion  of  the  insects  of  the  world, 
and  this  it  may  be  urged  is  one  reason  why  our  classification  is  unsatis- 
factory— Granted;*  but  that  is  no  reason  why  we  should  obstruct  the 
desirable  attainment.     If  we   cannot   build  up,  we  should   not   pull   down. 

*  See  what  I  have  said  to  the  same  purport  in  the  Introduction  to  my  "History  of  British 
Birdd."— F.  0.  Mobbts. 


VACATION    NOTES.  281 

If  the  knowledge  of  English  Naturalists  is  not  sufficiently  great,  if  we  have 
no  Fabricius,  or  Linna>us,  or  Haworth,  in  modern  days,  we  should  curb 
our  own  vanity,  and  not  create  a  positive  injury  to  Science  by  making  our 
deficiencies  or  our  follies  conspicuous.  I  believe  it  is  adnaitted  that 
Guenee's  knowledge  of  the  Lepidoptera  is  very  great.  I  think  Mr.  Stainton 
has  acted  wisely  in  adopting  his  arrangement  for  the  Noduina.  I  presume 
he  will  continue  it  to  the  Pyralides  and  Geometridce,  then  we  shall  have 
somebody  else  f  suppose  for  the  Tortrices,  the  Cramhidce,  the  Tineidce,  and 
the  Pterophidce!  Cannot  British  Entomologists  in  the  meantime  come 
forward  and  unitedly  publish  a  British  list?  Such  names  as  Doubleday, 
ISTewraan,  Westwood,  and  Stainton,  united,  might  carry  great  weight  among 
us  students.  At  all  events  a  union  for  such  a  purpose  would  be  far  more 
profitable  than  what  has  been  aptly  termed  by  the  reviewer,  to  whom  I 
before  alluded,  the  wasting  of  time  over  "mere  gossip  and  polyglot  ab- 
surdities." 


VACATION    NOTES.— HERNE     BAY. 

BY    0.  S.  ROUND,    ESQ. 

WHE^f  autmun  gives  me  a  real  holiday,  how  I  revel  in  the  freedom  of 
the  thought,  and  seem  never  to  have  enough  of  out-door  life.  What  idle 
work  it  seems,  (to  use  an  anomalous  expression,)  but  remember,  we  who 
sit  on   the  sea-shore,  and  throw  pebbles  at   the   mighty  element  as  it  is 

"Chafing  with  its  shores," 

have  had  our  long  day  of  labour,  and  the  machine  wants  restj  and  perfect 
rest  it  is. 

The  primary  use  of  the  sea-side  is  the  out-door  life  which  I  spoke  of, 
and  you  see  delicate  young  ladies,  who  rise  at  midday,  perhaps,  in  the  great 
metropolis,  fresh  as  roses  newly  blown,  walking  for  dear  life  at  7  am.,  in 
the  face  of  a  stiff  breeze,  and  with  tresses  bearing  recent  witness  to  contact 
with  the  briny  tide.  Young  gentlemen,  too,  who  have  been  to  the  full  as 
much  addicted  to  court  Morpheus,  in  would-be-marine  costume,  sitting  on 
the  shingle,  cigar  in  mouth,  and  all  the  motley  assemblage,  whom  change 
of  air  and  holiday-time  distributes  so  widely  over  our  shores  at  this  turn 
of  the  year.  There  is  a  certain  degree  of  melancholy,  too,  in  it;  the 
michty  luminary  of  day  vouchsafes  us  less  and  less  of  his  company,  our 
evening  walks  are  briefer,  and  our  watches  tell  us  that  the  morning  light 
is  curtailed  of  its  (whilom)  fair  proportions;  nature  is  on  its  annual  wane; 
the  summer  visitants  have  fulfilled  the  duties  of  incubation,  and  the  air 
it  filled  with  well-fledged  representatives  of  the  order;  myriads  of  the 
Swallow  tribes  gambol  in  airy  glee  around  the  house  tops,  like  swarms  of 

VOL.  VI.  2  o 


282  VACATION    XOTES. 

bees,  or  over  the  willow  aits,  and  seem  trying  their  wings  for  a  farewell 
flight.  This  season  has  been  somewhat  an  unequal  one.  The  heat  during 
July  was  very  severe,  as  many  a  bronzed  countenance  attests;  but  there  came 
a  change,  and  the  farmer  was  fain  to  watch  the  shocks  growing  dark 
beneath  pelting  showers,  and  hope   for  better  weather. 

Having  undergone  a  severe  trial,  which  rendered  change,  and  quiet,  and 
sea-air  requisite,  we  found  them  here.  It  is  not  a  quarter  of  a  century 
since  a  few  dwellings  formed  the  whole  of  this  town,  now  scattered  and 
unfinished,  but  extensive;  bathing  was  carried  on  suh  dio,  and  where  now 
some  quarter  of  a  hundred  machines  stand  ranged,  not  one  was  to  be 
seen.  The  neighbourhood  to  the  east,  however,  has  long  been  known  as 
the  scene  of  a  geological  phenomenon,  displaying  what  is  called  the  '^descending 
cause,"  namely  the  encroachments  of  the  sea  upon  the  land.  Who  has 
not  heard  of  the  "Reculvers?"  the  ghostly  sisters  that  stand  forth,  pale  and 
mysterious,  in  the  dark  sky,  as  mementoes  of  by-gone  times!  There  has 
always  attached  a  certain  deep  interest  to  this  structure — an  almost  super- 
stitious feeling  of  awe,  from  the  peculiarity  of  its  circumstances.  Once, 
and  that  not  so  long  ago,  this  was  a  church  in  which  service  was  performed, 
standing  inland,  some  say  two  miles,  of  Roman  and  Saxon  origin,  and  the 
burial-place  of  one  of  our  earliest  rulers.  It  is  invested  with  the  character 
of  a  structural  record  of  Time's  stern  work,  as  it  now  hangs  on  the  verge 
of  the  precipice,  with  the  billows  of  a  vaster  extent  of  water  than  any 
other  part  of  our  coast  can  shew,  beating  perpetually  at  its  very  door. 
Had  it  not  been  for  the  position  it  occupies,  so  prominent  and  so  important 
in  a  maritime  point  of  view,  doubtless  decay  had  long  since  done  its  will; 
but  the  further  progress  of  this  ruthless  invader  had  been  stayed,  and  all 
that  mason's  art  could  do  to  preserve  it,  the  brethren  of  the  Trinity  house 
have  done,  and  seamen  look  for  *'old  Reculvers,"  the  pale  sisters,  as 
regularly  as  for  any  of  the  buoys  or  lights  that  float  so  frequently  on 
our  hazardous  coast. 

I  visited  this  place  some  nine  years  since,  and  trace,  in  that  time,  that  the 
hand  of  encroachment  has  not  been  idle.  The  soil  is  a  strong  loam,  in  some 
parts  mere  clay,  in  some  mingled  with  gravel;  where  there  was  then  a 
beach,  upon  which  large  masses  of  earth  and  sandstone  lay  scattered,  the 
waves  now  beat  upon  the  clifi^  itself,  for  many  hundred  yards  tottering  to 
its  fall;  walk  along  the  summit  and  you  perceive  the  same  thing,  the  path 
that  led  along  the  edge  ever  and  anon  makes  a  detour,  by  reason  of  a 
fall  of  earth  breaking  in  upon  its  line;  and  even  beyond  this  cracks  and 
fissures  meet  you  at  every  step.  It  would  probably  be  a  fruitless  task  to 
endeavour  to  explain  why  the  sea  encroaches  here  and  not  elsewhere,  or 
■why,  in  other  localities  it  recedes;  the  latter  more  fraught  with  difficulty 
than  the  former,  for  it  is  easy  to  see  how  a  yielding  soil  may  be  washed 


VACATION    NOTES.  283 

away,  when  a  mass  of  water  is  eternally  beating  upon  it;  whereas,  how 
that  mass  of  water  retires  might  be  a  riddle  impossible  of  solution,  unless 
you  could  shew  an  encroachment  on  some  other  coast  for  which  this  was  a 
compensation;  there  may  be  submarine  causes  of  which  we  can  know  nothing, 
but  so  it  is;  and  the  "sisters"  rear  their  heads,  stark  and  silent,  as  on 
the  verge  of  eternity. 

There  are  few  sea-side  places  where  verdure  ventures  so  near  the  shore. 
Elms  grow  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  the  beach,  and  a  short  half-mile  finds 
the  country  well  wooded;  but  this  is  no  doubt  capable  of  explanation,  having 
regard  to  encroachments  of  the  ocean  beyond  the  original  sea-line.  Beyond 
the  town,  eastward,  there  is  a  steep  down,  and  here  the  entomologist 
may  always  find  employment.  I  have  met  with  specimens  of  Lepidoptera 
not  common  elsewhere,  especially  of  the  order  Phaloena.  Now,  of  course, 
the  heyday  of  butterfly  life  is  past,  but  I  saw  a  good  many  of  the  Blue 
kinds  and  some  Red  Admirals.  On  the  furze  bushes  I  observed  some 
Stone  and  Whinchats,  Whitethroats,  and  Titlarks;  a  few  Wheatears, 
chiefly  young  ones,  ran  along  the  pathway  before  us,  and  a  pair  of  Flushers, 
or  Red-backed  Butcher-birds,  kept  dodging  before  us,  and  we  saw  them 
capture  a  large  Dung  Beetle  beside  the  path;  they  also  were  young  birds, 
in  that  stage  of  plumage  figured  by  Bewick  under  the  name  "Woodchat," 

There  are  some  moist  meadows  not  far  from  the  sea,  which  are  rather 
below  the  water  level;  these  have  been  for  some  time  past  the  favourite, 
resort  of  a  party  of  Swifts,  and  I  was  curious  to  see  how  long  these 
gentry  would  prolong  this  pastime,  inasmuch  as  their  time  for  departure 
drew  very  near,  and  I  began  to  think  that  September  would  still  see  them 
there;  but  instinct  was  too  strong  for  that,  and  accordingly,  the  last 
evening  of  August  saw  the  last  of  them,  and  on  the  next  day  we  looked 
for  them  in  vain. 

The  country  is  very  rich  inland,  well  wooded  and  exceedingly  picturesque. 
This  is  a  Hop  country,  and  the  crops  are  very  fine,  and  now  in  course  of 
picking,  but  the  chief  plantations  are  near  Maidstone.  Canary  seed  is 
also  in  great  luxuriance,  and  there  are  some  large  fields  unusually  fine, 
looking  much  like  wheat,  and  harvested  in  the  same  manner;  it  is  a 
graceful  circular  ear,  and  is,  I  am  told,  an  exhausting  crop,  though  it 
pays  well.  The  fishermen  complain  that  the  steamers  have  spoiled  their 
trade,  but  a  large  fleet  of  oyster  boats  come  forth  from  VVhitstable  Bay 
on  a  morning,  and  make  a  pretty  sight,  like  so  many  birds  in  search  of 
prey :  here,  also,  the  sea  has  encroached  much  of  late.  There  is  a  curious 
trade  carried  on  upon  this  portion  of  the  coast,  about  a  mile  to  the  west 
of  Heme  Bay,  where  a  group  of  four  or  five  miserable  erections,  known 
as  "Hampton  Cottages,"  stand  together,  and  send  annually  to  market 
ship-loads  of  Pyrites  for  the  manufacture  of  copperas,  which  is  picked  up 


JJ84  A    LIST    OF    EPirnVTFS. 

in  the  mud  of  which  the  shore  at  this  part  is  composed;  it  is  cast  up  by 
the  sea,  and  found  in  small  pieces,  the  largest  not  larger  than  a  finger, 
and  of  a  longi-spherical  form,  and  much  of  it  is  attached  to,  and  deposited 
on,  other  substances;  I  myself  picked  up  some  pretty  specimens.  The 
stones  and  piles  of  the  pier  are  covered  with  Barnacles  and  Mussels,  and 
there  is  scarcely  a  piece  of  weed  without  them;  but  of  other  shells  I  have 
seen  few  or  none. 

This  is  the  wrong  season  for  Marine  Ornithology,  and  accordingly,  I 
have  only  seen  the  usual  kinds  of  Gulls  and  Tringoe;  but  had  I  the 
opportunity,  I  think  I  might  make  an  extensive  collection  of  Algae;  this, 
however  requires  to  be  ^'taken  at  the  flood,"  for  sunshine  and  exposure  soon 
render  the  more  valuable  and  delicate  worthless,  and  you  must  give  yourself 
up  to  the  pursuit,  which  I  am  not  able  to  do.  But  I  have  already 
exceeded  my  limits,  so  for  the  present   I  shall  conclude. 

September,  1856. 


A    LIST    OF    EPIPHYTES    GROWING    ON    THE    WILLOWS 
IN     THE    HOLMES,     THIRSK. 

BY    MR.    THOMAS    FOGGITT. 

I  HAVE  of  late  been  much  interested  in  observing  the  way  in  which 
plants  migrate  from  one  place  to  another,  and  the  manner  in  which  they 
instal  themselves  in  situations  where  they  would  be  least  expected  to  appear. 
There  are  many  plants  which  not  unfrequently  establish  themselves  upon 
the  trees.  When  growing  in  such  situations  they  may  be  Parasites,  or 
Epiphytes — terms  which  are  sometimes  confounded,  but  which  are,  in 
reality,  considerably  difierent;  Epiphytes  merely  appearing  casually,  but 
Parasites  springing  from  the  interior  of  the  tree,  and  deriving  their  vital 
principle  and  nourishment  therefrom. 

The  annexed  list  will  probably  serve  to  illustrate  to  what  extent 
Epiphytes  may  be  found: — * 

Sycamore,  (Acer  pseudo-platanus.) — Growing  on    three  trees. 

Raspberry,   (Rubus  idacus.) — On   one. 

Brambles,  (Rubus  corylifolius  and  csesius.) — On  many,  their  drooping 
branches  pendent  over  the  waters,  or  reaching  unto  the   ground. 

Dog  Rose,  (Rosa  canina.) — Forming  a  large  bush  on  one  tree,  and 
sparingly  on  several   others. 

Haidhorn,  (Crataegus  oxycantha.) — On  five  trees,  six  or  seven  feet  high. 

*  When  preparing  this  paper,  a  friend  placed  in  my  hands  "Lees'  Pictures  of  Nature," 
and  directed  my  attention  to  a  list  of  Epiphytes  growing  on  the  Willows  on  the  banks  of 
the  Teme,  in  Worcestershire,  the  plan  of  which  list  I  immediately  adopted  for  the  construction 
of  the  present  one. 


SYSTEMA    NATURE. 


285 


Gooseberry,  (Ribes   grossularia..) — Numerous. 

Black   Currant,  (Ribes  nigrum.) — On  one  tree. 

Bed  Currant,  (Ribes  rubrum  ) — Luxuriant   on   six. 

Ash,  (Fraxinus  excelsior.) — In  considerable  abundance  on  ten  trees.  On 
a  decayed  trunk  of  Salix  alba  I  noticed  a  young  Ash  nearly  four  yards 
high. 

Hedge  Woundwort,  (Stachys  sylvatica.) — In  profusion  on  three  old  pollard 
trees. 

Wych  Elm,  (Uhnus  montana.) — On  three. 

Alder,  (Alnus  glutinosa.) — An  occasional  plant. 

Beech,  (Fagus  sjlvatica.)  — Abundant   on    two  trees. 

Oak,  (Quercus  Robur.) — On   one. 

Epilobium  raontanum. — In  great  abundance  on  many  trees.  I  dare 
venture  to  say  that  there  are  upwards  of  fifty  roots  of  this   species. 

In  addition  to  the  above  plants  I  noticed  at  the  time  of  observation, 
the  following  other  species: — Enchanter's  Nightshade,  (Circcea  Itdetiaim,) 
Nipplewort,  (Lapsana  communis,)  Dandelion,  (Leontodon  Taraxacum,)  White 
Dead-nettle,  (Lamium  album,)  Docks,  (Rumex  sanguineus,  obtusifolius,  and 
acetosa,)  Nettle,  ( Urtica  dioica,)  Poa  annua,  P.  pratensis,  and  several  other 
species  of  grasses,  growing  principally  on  the  old  pollard  trees.  Also  a 
single  plant  of  Tropceolura  majus. 

Thirsk,  August  5th.,  1856. 


SYSTEMA     NATUR.^. 


BY    THE    REV.  F.  0.  MORRIS. 


(^  Continued  from  page  257.  _) 


Gymnxjba. 

Gymnura  Eafflesii,  Sorsf.  et  Vigor. 
Schinz.  Viverra  gymnura,  Raff. 
Fisch. 

SoREX. 

Sorex  fodiens,  Pall.  Schreb.  Jen. 
Bell,  Selys,  Schinz.  S.  Dauben- 
tonii,  Erxl.  G-eoff.  S.  hydrophylus, 
Pall.  S.  bicolor,  Shaw.  S.  fluvia- 
tilis  et  fodiens,  Bech.  S.  stagnatilis, 
amphibius,  natans,  et  fodiens,  Brehm. 
S.  leucurus,  Shaw.  S.  cariuatus  et 
constrictus,  Herm.  S.  nigi'ipes,  Mel. 
S.  Hermanni,  Duv.  S.  leucodon, 
Geoff.     Crossopiis  fodiens,  stagnati- 


lis, musculus,  et  psilurus,  Wag.  Am- 
phisorex  Pennantii,  et  Crossopus 
Daubentonii,  Gray.  Amphisorex 
Linneana,   Gray. 

Sorex  remifer,  Geoff.  Schinz.  S.  cilia- 
tus.  Sower,  et  Wagn.  S.  unicolor, 
Shaw.  S.  fodiens,  var.  Wieg.  Am- 
phisorex ciliatua,  Gray.  Sorice  re- 
mifer et  coUare,  Ranz. 

Sorex  palustris,  Rich.  Gray,  Schinz. 

Sorex  vulgaris,  Linn.  Nath.  Jen.  Lenz. 
Schinz.  S.  araneus,  Linn.  S.  tetra- 
gonurus,  Herm.  Zimm.  Schreb.  Geoff. 
Selys.  S.  cunicularius,  fodiens, 
et  eremita,  Bech.  S.  concinnus, 
rhinolophus,    et   melanodon,    Wagl, 


286 


MISCELLANEOUS    NOTICES. 


S.  coronatus,  Mill.    S.  labiosus,  Jen. 

et  ScJdnz.     S.  castaneus  et  rusticus, 

Jen. 
Sorex  thoracicus,  Savi,   Schinz.     Cro- 

cidura  thoracica,  Bonap. 
Sorex  alpinus,    Schinz.      Amphisorex 

alpinus,   Duvern.  Bonap. 
Sorex  pygmseus,    Pall.   Laxm.  Nath. 

Blain.  Duvern.   Gebl.    Lenz.   Selys. 

S.  minutus  et  minutissimus,  Zimm. 

S.  minutus,  Linn.  Sckreb.     S.  exilis, 

Linn.  Gmel.    S.  minimus,   Qeoff.    S. 

coecutiens,  Laxm.  Zatoad.    S.  Grme- 

lini,  Pall. 
Sorex  brevicaudus,  Say.  Harl.  Schinz. 

S.    talpoides,    Gapp.      Corsira    tal- 

poides,   Gray. 
Sorex  Forsteri,    Rich.    Gapp.  Schinz. 

Corsira  Forsteri,   Gray,  Fors. 
Sorex  parvus,  Say.  Harl.  Schinz. 
Sorex  Ricliardsonii,  Schinz.    S.  parvus, 

Rich. 
Sorex  personatus,   Isid    Geoff.    Guer. 

Schinz. 
Sorex  araneus,  Herm.  Bech.  Geoff.  Cuv. 

Jen.   Duvern.   Lenz.    Wagn.   Fisch. 

Selys.     Schreh.    Schinz.      S.  pachy- 

rus,  Kiist.    S.  inodorus,  Savi,  Giild 

Pall.     Crocidura  moscliata,   major, 

rufa,  et  poliogastra,   Wagl. 
Sorex  leucodon,  Herm.  Duvern.   Jen. 

Nath.  Gray,  Selys.   Zawad.   Fisch. 

Schreb.  Schinz.      S.  Giildenstaedii? 


Pall.   Spitz.   Wagn.   Schreh.  Croci- 
dura leucodon,    Wagl. 
Sorex  etruscus,   Savi,    Schinz.     Croci- 
dura   etrusca,    Nath.    Selys,   Fisch. 

Schinz.     Musticolo  Toscano,  Bonap. 
Sorex  suaveolens.  Pall.  Schinz. 
Sorex  Antiuorii,  Bonap.  Schinz. 
Sorex  Gmelini,  Pall.  Schinz. 
Sorex  coeruleseens,  Shaw.  Raff,  Schinz. 

S.  pilorides.  Lever. 
Sorex  Indicus,   Geoff.  F.  Cuv.  Schinz. 

S.   Sonneratii,    Geoff.    Bellang,      S. 

giganteus,   Geoff.  Licht.   Sykes. 
Sorex    serpentarius,    Benn.     Bellang. 

S.  Indicus,  F.  Cuv. 
Sorex  francicus,   Schinz,     S.  capensis, 

Bellang. 
Sorex,  myosorus,   Pall.  Geoff.  Schinz. 

S.  murinus,  Linn.  Isid  Geoff.  Belang. 
Sorex  Perotteti,  Duvern.  Guer.  Schinz. 
Sorex     Mmalayicus,     Gray,     Weigm. 

Schinz. 
Sorex  nigresccns.  Gray,  Weigm.  Schinz. 
Sorex  flavescens,   Geoff.  Fisch.  Schinz. 
Sorex  viarius,  Bellanger,  Schinz. 
Sorex  crassicaudus,  Licht.  Duv.  Ehren. 

Schi^iz. 
Sorex  religiosus,   Geoff.  Fisch. 
Sorex  tenuis,  MUl.  Schinz. 
Sorex  cyaneus,  Duv.  Schinz. 
Sorex  infumatus,  Wag.  Schreh.  Schinz, 
Sorex  capensis,  Schinz.     S.  lierpestes, 

Duv. 


(To  be  continued.) 


Stonmj  Petrel. — One  was  taken  alive  in  the  town  of  Newmarket, 
October  17th.,  1855.  Another  was  picked  up  at  Bottisham,  in  this 
county,  October  20th.,  1855.— Samuel  Parker  Savill,  13,  Regent  Street, 
Cambridge,  October  6th.,  1856. 

Cream-coloured  Courser,  (Cursorius  Isabellinus.)  ~A  splendid  male 
specimen  of  this  rare  bird  has  been  shot  by  the  Rev.  J.  Landon,  of 
Braunton,  in  one  of  the  Braunton  marshes.  I  saw  it  in  the  shop  of 
Mr.  Fraine,  the  birdstufifer,  of  Barnstaple,  before  it  was  skinned,  and  he  is 


THE    QUERIST.  287 

going   to   preserve   it   for    Mr.    Landon. — Gervask    F.   Mathews,    Raleigh 
House,  Pilton,  near  Barnstaple,  North  Devon. 


fjIB  (flntrist. 

As  Mr.  Stainton  does  not  believe  what  Mr.  Greene  says  about  the  larvae 
of  Lithosia  feeding  occasionally  upon  other  food  than  lichens,  he  will 
probably  not  believe  me;  but  as  other  entomologists  may  perhaps  be  less 
sceptical,  I  will  give  them  the  benefit  of  my  own  experience.  Two  years 
ago,  in  the  month  of  July,  I  found  two  larvje  of  a  Lithosia  crawling  up 
the  stem  of  a  young  poplar  tree,  in  Buckinghamshire;  they  resembled  the 
common  L.  complanula,  but  the  general  colour  was  considerably  paler.  The 
undergrowth  being  principally  sallow,  I  tried  whether  they  would  eat  it; 
they  did  so  freely,  and  I  therefore  never  gave  them  any  other  food.  They 
fed  up,  spun,  and  produced  a  pair  of  Lithosia  griseola  in  August.  If  this 
is  not  conclusive  evidence  I  do  not  know  what  is.  I  have  also  bred  the 
common  Lithosia  complanula  from  larvae  fed  solely  on  crab.  In  the  last 
No.  of  the  "Manual,"  Mr.  Stainton  says  that  the  larvae  of  Ceropacha  ridens 
and  Jlavicornis  are  only  found  in  September.  Now  my  own  experience  has 
been  that  the  larvae  of  these  two  insects  are  full  fed  in  the  middle  and 
towards  the  end  of  July.  The  moths  are  both  very  early  in  their  appear- 
ance— March,  April,  and  May — and  I  very  much  doubt  if  any  one  ever  took 
the  larvae  of  either  insect  in  September,  and  very  rarely,  if  ever,  in  August. 
It  is  possible  that  a  stray  one  may  occasionally  occur  in  the  latter  month, 
but  on  examination  it  will  in  all  probability  be  found  to  be  ichneumoned, 
or  otherwise  diseased.  At  any  rate,  September  is  most  certainly  not  the 
month  to  look  for  them.  The  larvae  of  Ceropacha  jlavicornis  is  not  un- 
common in  most  places  on  birch  trees  in  June  and  July;  and  C.  ridens 
I  have  beaten  off  oaks  in  July,  in  Kent  and  Herts.  It  is  not  at  all  a 
common  larva.  They  both  spin  the  leaves  together,  like  the  nest  of  the 
Ceropacha  ridens,  only  slightly;  Flavicornis  makes  a  regular  house  for  itself, 
and  comes  out  to  feed  at  night.  Mr.  Stainton  also,  I  observe,  says  that 
the  larva  Leucania  lithanjip^ia  feeds  upon  chickweed  and  plaintain.  I  should 
feel  extremely  obliged  to  any  of  your  readers  if  they  will  inform  me  if 
they  have  ever  taken  the  larva  of  this  insect  on  either  of  these  plants. 
I  found  it  in  some  plenty  this  spring  in  May,  by  searching  at  night  with 
a  lanthern  along  the  sides  of  the  ridings  in  the  Hampshire  woods.  Although 
there  were  numerous  plants  growing  abundantly,  I  never  by  any  chance 
saw  the  larva  feeding  upon  anything  but  grass.  As  soon  as  it  gets  dark, 
they  usually  crawl  up  to  the  tops  of  the  blades  of  grass,  and  begin  to 
feed:  they  do  not  appear  to  be  particular  as  to  the  species  of  grass.  At 
the  same  time  and  place,  and  feeding  upon  the  same  food,  I  took  the 
larvae  of  Hipparchia  janira,  galatea,  and  hyperanthus,  and  Leucania  impura. 


288  THE    QUERIST, 

The  two  latter  in  great  abundance. — H.  Harper  Crewe,  Breadsall  Kectory, 
near  Derby,  October  20th.,  I806. 

In  the  "Querist"  for  August,  occurs  the  following  passage: — Taxus  says 
^'Chrysalides  are  found  in  greatest  abundance  at  the  foot  of  the  alder, 
willow,  oak,  elm,  and  ash."  Will  he  kindly  inform  your  readers  what 
chrysalides  he  finds  at  the  roots  of  the  ash?  To  this  query  is  appended 
a  remark  by  the  Editor,  "I  have  scarcely  ever  found  any  under  the 
ash."  In  default  of  any  other  reply,  it  may  be  interesting  to  Mr. 
Cooper  to  know  that  I  have  myself  taken  all  the  subjoined  species  at  the 
roots  of  that  tree,  namely,  Lithosia  rubricollis,  Phragmatobia  Menthrasti 
and  lubricipeda,  Pacilocampa  populi,  Semaphora  Psi,  Acronycta  ligustri, 
(commonly,)  S.  xanthographa,  Chersotis  plecta,  (commonly,)  Taeniocampa 
gothica,  stabilis,  instabilis,  and  cruda,  Cirraedia  xerampelina,  (not  un- 
commonly,) Xanthia  cerago,  X.  ferruginea,  Hadena  persicariae,  Phlogo- 
phora  meticulosa,  Abrostola  urticae  and  triplasia,  Ennomos  iliunaria  and 
fuscantaria,  (one,)  Odontopera  bidentaria,  Himera  pennaria,  Anisopteryx 
sescularia  ^  and  J ,  Phigalia  pilosaria,  Biston  hirtaria  and  betularia, 
(both  commonly)  Harpalyce  ruptaria,  Cheiraatobia  dilutaria,  (very  com- 
monly), and  Eupithecia  innotaria.  Will  "Taxus"  permit  me  to  ask  in 
my  turn  how,  when  professing  to  enumerate  the  best  trees  for  pupa 
digging,  he  could  possibly  omit  the  various  kinds  of  poplar,  a  tree  which 
produces,  among  many  other  species,  such  insects  as  P.  palpina,  N. 
dictaea  and  Ziczac,  A.  leporina,  C.  ocularis.  Or,  and  diluta.  He  also 
gives  alder  as  a  good  tree.  The  only  insects  I  ever  found  at  the  roots 
of  that  tree  were  N.  Dromedarius  and  P.  impluviaria.  I  believe  the 
pupa  of  C.  bicuspis  has  been  taken  on  the  trunk  of  that  tree  in  the 
north.  I  would  venture  to  suggest  to  all  pupa  diggers  that  there  is  no 
use  whatever  in  trj/ing  small  trees. — Rev.  J.  Greene,  Playford,  Ipswich. 

[I  ara  inclined  to  think  that  some,  if  not  most,  of  the  above-named  or 
other  species,  when  found  at  the  roots  of  ash  trees,  have  onl}'  crawled 
thither  in  their  wanderings  to  bury  themselves,  finding  appropriate  shelter 
here  and  there.  We  all  know  from  every-day  experience  how  the  cater- 
pillars of  a  vast  variety  of  Moths  thus  crawl  about;  for  instance,  of  the 
above,  Menthrasti  and  Lubricipeda.  I  shall  be  glad  to  hear  what  (if 
any)  species  Mr.  Greene  has  himaelf  fed  in  confinement  on  the  ash.  With 
regard  to  the  alder,  I  have  known  the  larva  of  Alni  taken  from  it; 
such,  indeed,  is  imported  by  its  name  to  be  its  proper  food,  but  I 
suppose  Mr.  Greene  intends  only  to  speak  of  the  chrysalides  found  at  the 
roots,  and  the  one  in  question,  I  imagine,  spins  a  web.  With  regard  to 
the  poplar,  Mr.  Greene  is  perfectly  right;  it  ought  to  be  with  entomolo- 
gists as  it  is  often  popularly  called,  the  popular  tree. — F.  O.  Morris.] 


INDEX. 


Acherontia  atropos,  45. 

Adventure  of  a  Cat  and  Kitten,  13. 

Amateur  Naturalists,  125. 

Ants,  166. 

Animals,  Attachment  of,  169. 

Instinct  of,  234. 

Arrival  of  Hirundines,  36. 

Bat,  187. 

Bee,  Myrtle,  U6. 

Bib,  81. 

-Birds,  A  List  of  Sizes  of  Cases  for,  255,  272. 
,  Breeding  and  Rearing  of  in  Confine- 
ment, 71. 

Capture  of  at  Brighton,  216. 

Flight  of,  146. 

Nests,  Rare,  193. 

.  —    of  Nova  Scotia,  268. 

of  Spring,  151. 

Rare,  93. 

■  Retreating,  175. 

Scarcity  of,  46,  92,  116,  144,  196. 

The  Voices  of,  73. 

The  Youth  of,  170.. 

Winter,  46. 

■  Bittern,  Common,  14,  116,  186. 

Little,  93. 

Black-headed  Gull,  259. 
Blackstart,  92. 

Blue  Tit,   187. 

Boletus  squamosus,  45. 

Botanical  Notes,  204. 

Botany,  238,  261. 

Braemar,  A  Visit  to,  200,  222,  243. 
,  Broad-billed  Sandpiper,  259. 

Bryology  of  Ludhill  Gill,  Notes  on  the,  133. 
•Bunting,  Snow,  139. 

Bustard,  Great,  91,  116. 
■ Little,  91. 

Butterflies  and  Moths,  English  Names  for,  93. 

Butterfly,  Music  hath  Charms  for  the,  44. 

Caernarvonshire,  Three  Days  in,   39,  61,  82. 
Callimorpha  Hera,  94,  215. 
Carabus  intricatus.  187,  260. 
Cat,  Domestic,  42,  163. 
Chimney  Swallow,  Lateness  of  the,  42. 
Chough,  67,  140. 
Christmas  Novelty,  94. 
Chrysalides,  Location  of,   191,  288. 
Chrysalis,  Early  appearance  of  a,  261. 
Common  Birds,  Characteristics  of,  97. 
Couchologizing  on  the  Islet  of  Herm,  77,  HI. 
Cook  Wrasse,  81. 
Courser,  Cream-coloured,  286. 
Crake,  Spotted,  92,  116. 
VOL.  VI. 


^rossbill,  Common,  116,  186. 
Cryptogamous  Flora,  List  of,  136. 
Cuckoo,  Notes  on  the,  51. 
Curious  Hatch  of  a  Hen,  20. 

Dabchick,  168. 
Dipper,  140,  186, 
Dog,  Anecdote  of  a,  234. 
^Dotterel,  186. 
Down  the  River,  33,  99. 
Drvpta,  Note  on  the  Habits  of,  261. 
Duck,  Eider,   116. 

Eagles,  91,  163. 

,Eggs,  Method  of  blowing,  167. 
Emeu,  Trachea  of  the,  153. 
English  Names  for  Butterflies  and  Moths,  93. 
Entomological  Society  of  London,  22. 
Entomology,  238. 
Epiphytes,  A  List  of,   284. 
Exchange,  238,  261. 
Extracts  from  Correspondence,  121,  219. 
from  my  Note-book,  36. 

•Falcon,  Peregrine,  115,  185. 

Falkland  Islands,  Three  Days  in  the,  209. 

Fieldfare,  186. 
^Finch,  Moimtain,  21. 

Fish  and  Wildfowl,  Notes  on,   21. 

Flycatcher,  241. 

Frog,   Common,  141. 

Gall  Nut,  166. 
Geological  Excursion,  1,  25. 
Golden-Eye,  140. 
•Goshawk,  116. 

Grebe,  Great-crested,  168,   216. 
Greenshanks,   259. 
Gull,  Black-headed,  259. 
. Little,  261. 

Hatch  of  a  Hen,  Curious.  20. 
Havoc  among-  Sparrows,  15. 
Hawk,  Unknown,  68. 

An  Extraordinary,  20. 

Bill  of  the   New,  23. 

The  Great  Unknown,  95,  141. 

Hints  to  Insect  Collectors,  107,  128. 

Hips  and  Haws,  72,  118. 

Hirundines,  Arrival  of  the,   36. 

Hoopoe,  236. 

Horse,  Anecdote  of  the,  90. 

House  Swallow,  183. 

Hunting-Season,  Beginning  of  the,  137. 

Ichthyology  of  Banffshire,  229, 
2  P 


290 


Inquiry  for  the  Naturalist,  127. 
Insect  Collectors,  Hints  to,   107,    128. 
Insects,  Injurious,  30,  178. 

■ Ilelaxing  of,  4.5. 

Instinct,  A  Chapter  on,  57,  75,  154. 

Laburnum,  T.ate  Blossoming  of,  94. 
Labrus  niixtus,   81. 
Lamna  cornubica,  81. 
Larva  Box,  Design  for  a  New,  135. 
Lurvte  of  Lithosia,  Food  of  the,  287. 
Leadbeater,  Mr.  T.,  Death  pf,   192. 
Lemon  Dab,  81. 

Lepidoptera,  A  few  words  on  Collecting,  250, 
275. 

Classification  of  British,  279. 

Lime  Tree,  68. 
Liparis  vulgaris,  81. 

Martins,  92. 

Medley,  A   Second,  80, 

A  Third,  174. 

A  Fourth,    194. 

Microscopes.  142. 

Miscellaneous  Notices,  20,  42,  67,  90,  115, 
139,  163,  185,  215,  234,  2-58,  286. 

Mollusca,  Fresh-water,  157. 

Morrhua  lusca,  81. 

Mosses,  Rare,  New  Yorkshire  Stations  for, 
37,  134.  / 

Moth-IIunting,  84,  104,  237.  ^ 
Mixture,  23. 

Natural  History,  Museum  of,  191. 

Natural  History  Societies,  161, 

Naturalist,  Proposed  Increase  of  the  size  and 

price  of  the,  60. 
Naturalists,  Amateur,  125. 
"Naturalists"   Heraine,  262. 
Nidification  in  Norfolk,  163. 
Nightingale,  165,   235. 
Nightjar,  259. 
Notes,  Occasional,  13. 

Stray,  17. 

Vacation,  281. 

Notices  of  Now  Publications,  236. 

Obituary,  192,  239. 

Odds  and  Ends,  55. 
•Oological  Specimens,  Collecting  of,  7. 

Oriole,  Golden,  259, 

Otter,  16. 

Ouzel,  King,  21,   92,  93,  258. 
-Owl,  Little,  186. 

Oyster- Catcher,  43. 

Partridge,  21. 

Pastor,  Rose-coloured,  20,  21,   236. 

Peat  Earth,  238. 

Petrel,   Stormy,  258,  286. 
-Phalarope,  258. 

Plantago  lanceolata,  45,  117. 

Platessd  microcephala,  81. 

Plover,  Golden,  259. 
^ Great,  92. 

Primrose,  17. 

Proceedings  of  Societies,  48,  96,  118,  144, 
168,  239. 

Puffin,  258. 


y 


Querist,  48,  71,    118,    144,    168,   191,  216, 

262,  287. 
Query,  Answer  to,  72. 

-Eara   Avis,  A  Real,  43. 
Red  Admirals,  20. 
-Redpolc,  Mealy,  43,  67,  139. 
Refley  Wood,  A  Visit  to,  217. 
Retrospect,  23,  68,  95,  141,  237. 
Reviewing,  46. 
Reviews  : — 

A  Natural  History  of  the  Animal  Kingdom, 
190. 

Autobiography  of  a  White  Butterfly,  168. 

Dictionary  of  Botanical  Terms,    188. 

Insccta  Britannica — Diptera,  237. 

Natural  History  of  Ireland,   187. 

Rustic  Adornments  for  Homes  of  Taste,  96. 

Taxidermy  made  Easy,   118. 

Th(!  Book  and  its   Missions,  189. 

The  Entomologist's  Annual,    47,  95. 

The  Flowering  Plants  and  Ferns  of  Great 
Britain,  47. 

The  Flv-fisher's  Entomology,  190. 

The   Natural  History  Review,    189. 

The  Sea-side  Lesson  Book,   188. 

The  Village  Lesson  Book,   189. 

.^Sandpiper,  Broad-billed,  259. 
,.. Green,  20,  43,  2-59. 

Scoter,  Common,  116. 

Shag,  261. 

Shark,  Porbeagle,   81. 

Shells,  Land  and  Fresh-water,  261. 

Shieldrake,  164. 

Shrew,  Oared,   20. 

Singular  Treatment  of  a  Fly  by  a  Wasp,  216. 

Skenea,  Minute,  212. 
'Sparrow,  Java,  236. 

—  Town,  Haunts  of  the,  265. 
War,  48,  164. 

Spider  and  Fly,  72. 
Spring,  The  Effects  of,  32. 

Walk  in,   252. 

Squirrel,  Common,   49. 

Starling,  43. 

Subscribers  and  Readers  of  "The  Naturalist," 

To  the,  22. 
Sun-fish,  Short,  44. 
Swallow,  House,  183,  2-59. 
^-Swan,  Bewick's,  139. 
Svstema  Naturae,  19,  38,  64,  88,  114,  160, 

184,  213,  257,  285. 

.-Thrush,  Eock,  21. 
Tit,  Blue,  Nest  of  the,  187. 

Long-tailed,   21. 

Toad,  Common,  9. 

Vanessa  Atalanta,  45. 

Warbler,  Wood,  186. 

Grasshopper,  186. 

Weather,  On   the   181. 
Wombat,  145. 

Worm  Pipe  Fish,  81. 
Wryneck,  259. 

Yarrcll,  Mr.,  Death  of,  329. 


291 


LIST     OF    CONTRIBUTORS. 


Adams,  Mary,  261. 

Alington,  Eev.  11.  P.,"  23,  55,  186,  250,  275. 

Anderson,   K.,   153. 

Armstrong.  T.,  116. 

Aurelius,  279. 

Balshaw,  P.,    125. 
Bedlington,  T.,  21. 
Blakiston,  Lieut.,  268. 
Bland,  Lieut.,  268. 
Burton,  F.  M.,  20,  121,  219. 

Cane,  T.,  20. 

C.  J.  S.,  265. 

Clapham,  R.,  127. 

Clogg,  S.,  67.  92,  166. 

Cooke,  M.  C,  116. 

Cooper,   Eer.  W.  W.,   46,  191,  261. 

Crewe,  Eev.  H.  H.,  288. 

Davies,  J.  H.,  37,  39,  61,  82,  133,  134. 
Dawson,  E.  C,  261. 
Daykin,   E.,   140,   141. 
Dennis,  E.  N.,  139,  258,  261. 
Dixon,  J.,  21. 
Dutton,  J.,  68,  258. 

Edward,  T.,  84,  104, 
E.  E.  H.,  91, 
E.  K.  B.,  49,  68. 
E.  M.  A.,    157. 
E.  W.,  1,  25. 
Excelsior,  192. 

Femie,  J.  P.,   118. 
Foggitt,  T.,   169,  216,  284. 
Fryer,  C,  45,  72. 
Fuller,   T.,   196. 

Gardner,   J.,  186. 
Ga  ccmbe,  J.,  92,   187,  260. 
Gates,  W.  B.,   140,  261. 
Gifford,  Major  George  S.  J.,  36. 
Grant,  Eev.  J.  B.,  92,  234,  235. 
Greene,  Eev.  J.,   288. 
Guise,  W.  v.,  77,   111. 
Gurney,  J.  H.,  141. 

H.,  234, 

Hannaford,  S.,   145. 
Hardy,  J.,  261. 
Harrison,  Emily  E.,    136. 
H.   B.  S.,  235. 
Hobson,  E.,  43,  68. 
Hodge,  G.,  44,   142,  238. 


H.  W.  F.,  185. 

Jackson,  C,  144. 
Jenkin,  S.  W.,  140. 
J.  J.  E.,   94. 

Mathews,  J.  F.,  287. 

Mc'Intosh,  J.,  9,  30,  51,  178. 

Melhuish,   J.,  165,   186. 

Morris,  B.  E.,  22. 

Morris,  Eev.  F.  0.,  19,  23,  38,  44,  45,  46, 
47,  48,  50,  57,  60,  64,  72,  75,  88,  95, 
96,  114,  117,  120,  137,  142,  154,  160, 
168,  184,  187,  213,  215,  216,  238,  255, 
257,  262,  272,   285,  288. 

Newcastle  Paper,  48. 

Polhill,   C.  D.,  216. 

E.,  120. 

E.   N.  M.  M.,  42. 

Eodd,  E.  H.,  91. 

Bound,  0.  S.,  17,  32,  73,  97,  116,  146,  170. 

181,  193,  239,  241,  252,  281. 
Eowland,  W.  H.,  91. 

Savill,   S.  P.,  186,  236,  286. 

Schofield,  E.  G.,  135. 

Smith,    Edward  T.  L.,  42. 

Smith,    H.   E.,  94. 

Sraurthwaite,  II.,  7,  116,  140,  167,  216. 

Southwell,  T.,   20,   259. 

Sowden,  Eev.  G.,  259. 

Stephenson,   N.,   164. 

Stone,   S.,   43. 

Style,  S.,  44,    72. 

Sutherland,   W.,  200,  204,  222,  238,  243. 

Taxus,    107,    128. 

T.  E.  W.,  260. 

Temple,   E.  G.,   151,   161,   183. 

Tinker,  T.  S.,  93. 

T.    S.,   217. 

Twinn,  G.  E.,  163,  167,  175. 

"W.,  80,  174,  194,  229. 
Walford,  C,  238. 
Walker,   E.  J.,  120,  209. 
Walker  J.  S.,  33,  71,  99,  209. 
Waters,  J.  B.,   236. 
Webster,   W.,  212. 
Westcott,   M.,   13. 
West,  P.  W.,  93. 


LIST    OF    EJ^GRAVINGS. 


Bat-folding  Net,  252. 
Common  Toad,   12. 
Diagrams,  etc.,  275,  276,  277 
Plantago  lanceolata,  117. 
Tree,  127. 


New  Larva  Box,    135. 
Trachea  of  the  Emeu,   153. 
Minute  Skenea,   212. 
Carabus  intricatus,  260. 


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