THE 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 OF 
 
 LINCOLNSHIRE ; 
 
 BEING 
 
 THE NATURAL HISTORY SECTION 
 
 OF 
 
 LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES, 
 
 
 
 From January, 1896, to Oftober, 1897. 
 
 EDITED BY 
 
 THE REV. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, 
 L.Th., F.L.S., F.G.S., 
 
 Hon. Organising Botanical Secretary of the Lincolnshire Naturalists Union ,' 
 Vicar of Cadney, Srigg. 
 
 HORNCASTLE : 
 
 W. K. MORTON, HIGH STREET. 
 1898. 
 
HORNCASTLE : 
 PRINTED BY W. K. MORTON, HIGH STREET. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 P\URING the autumn of 1895 arrangements were entered 
 *~"^ into between the Publisher of Lincolnshire Notes s* 
 Queries and the Rev. E. Adrian WoodrufFe-Peacock, 
 L.Th., F.L.S., F.G.S., Hon. Organising Secretary of the 
 Lincolnshire Naturalists Union, to publish a Natural History 
 Section of 16 pages each quarter as an annexe to the 
 Antiquarian portion of Lincolnshire Notes & ^uerles^ com- 
 mencing with the January part of Vol. V. of that periodical. 
 The two portions (Antiquarian and Natural History) were 
 kept quite distinct from each other, each having a separate 
 pagination. This arrangement was kept in force during the 
 period January, 1896 to October, 1897, when it was relinquished 
 on account of the Publisher not receiving sufficient support to 
 enable him to continue to publish without charge this section 
 relating to Natural History, in which so few took the interest 
 that was desired. Accordingly a small volume of 128 pages of 
 extremely interesting matter has alone been produced, but 
 there has been supplied a Title Page, Index, and List of 
 Contents, in order to give the volume the position of standing 
 on its own merits. 
 
 The Editor has certainly been fortunate in procuring many 
 able writers on matters Geological, Botanical, Zoological, 
 Entomological, &c., connected with the County of Lincoln 
 which are of considerable value. The very complete Place 
 Name List will serve as a guide to the student of this subject, 
 and deserves a careful perusal. 
 
 Mr. Burton's "Story of the Lincoln Gap," illustrated, is a 
 remarkable account of the laws relating to river courses ; and 
 Mr. George Sills' article on the " Archaeological History of the 
 Wash," shewing the effect the formation of the Wash had on 
 
the low-lying land between Lincoln and Nottingham, &c., 
 and even upon Lincoln itself, is one of first-class interest to 
 any Lincolnshire student of Geology. 
 
 The Publisher regrets, as much as the Editor, that his 
 efforts to found a Magazine dealing with the Natural History 
 of Lincolnshire has not met with the success that was expected, 
 but should an interest in this desirable field of work at any 
 time ever arise, he will be the first to offer a helping hand 
 as publisher, and do his best to produce a well-executed 
 publication worthy alike of the subject and of the county to 
 which he belongs. 
 
 Horncastle^ 1898. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 Prefatory Note, I. The Natural History Divisions of Lincolnshire : (a), The 
 County, 2 ; (b] Natural History Divisions, 3 j (c] Maps, 4 ; (d] The Place Name 
 List, 5 ; by Rev. E. Adrian Woodruffe-Peacock, Th., F.L.S., F.G.S. Lincolnshire 
 Natural History, by John Cordeaux, M.B.O.U., 15. The Lincolnshire Boulder 
 Committee, by the L.N.U., 26. The Contents of Birds' Crops, by Mr. F. A. 
 Dorrington, 29. The Goat Willow, by the Editor, 30. The Lincolnshire Rye-grass, 
 by the Editor, 30. The ' Blue Stone ' Boulder, Louth, Lincolnshire, by W. 
 Hampton, F.C.S., and H. Wallis Kew, F.E.S., 31. How the Land between 
 Gainsborough and Lincoln was formed, by F. M. Burton, F.L.S., F.G.S. , 32. 
 Lincolnshire Naturalists at Louth, by R. W. Goulding, 41. A Lincolnshire 
 Coleoptera Record Wanted, by Rev. A. Thornley, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., 46. A 
 Short Account of a Country Parish, by Mrs. C. E. Jarvis, 48. The Story of the 
 Lincoln Gap (part i.), by F. M. Burton, F.L.S., F.G.S., 53. Louth Antiquarian 
 and Naturalists Society, by R. W. Goulding, 61. Vertebrata of Lincolnshire, by 
 the Editor, 64. Lincolnshire (part i.), by John Cordeaux, M.B.O.U., 65. Value 
 of a Salmon Fishery on the Trent, by the Editor, 71. The Story of the Lincoln 
 Gap (part ii.), by F. M. Burton, F.L.S., F.G.S., 72. A Short Account of a Country 
 Parish (part ii.), by Mrs. C. E. Jarvis, 77. Lincolnshire (part ii.),by John Cordeaux, 
 M.B.O.U., 83. Notes on the Ice-borne Blocks of Shap Granite, &c., found in 
 Lincolnshire, by Thomas Sheppard, 94. Notes on the Ice-borne Blocks of Shap 
 Granite, &c., found in Lincolnshire, by Thomas Sheppard (part ii.), 97. An 
 Archseological History of the Wash, by Geo. Sills, 101. The Story of the Lincoln 
 Gap, by S. Bateman, no. President's Address to the Lincolnshire Naturalists 
 Union, 1896, by Rev. Canon W. W. Fowler, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., 113. The 
 Lincoln Gap, by F. M. Burton, 122. Natural History Notes; What to Note 
 and How to Make Notes, by Gregory O. Benoni, 124. 
 
 PLATES. 
 
 Sketch Map of the Natural History Divisions of Lincolnshire, to face p. I. 
 Diagram illustrating " The Story of the Lincoln Gap," to face p. 53. 
 
C S H I R E 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY DIVISIONS 
 
 OF 
 
 LINCOLNSHIRE . 
 
 Rsacock. 
 English, Jfiles 
 
 AND 
 ISLE 
 
 OP / BROUGHTON 
 HOLME! 2 
 
 I 
 
 ! GREAT 
 
 I GRIMSBY ,'" 
 
 LTFLE 
 
 \{DITTORAL) 
 
 LFORD 
 
 \) AND 
 i BURCH 
 
 AND 
 \ EAST 
 
 FEN 
 
 SWINESHEAD 
 
 AND 
 DONINCTON 
 
 17 
 
 SPALDTNO 
 
 AN D 
 HOLBEACH 
 
Lincolnshire 3\(otes & Queries. 
 
 Clje Natural ^tstorj> Section, 
 
 PREFATORY NOTE. 
 
 SIXTEEN pages per quarter have been dedicated by the 
 proprietor of this journal to advancing the study of 
 Natural History in Lincolnshire. With this end in 
 view, we propose to print a series of literary articles on every 
 branch of the subject which can interest dwellers in the 
 county. With these we hope to appeal, at once, by their 
 accuracy to the workers who are already athirst for knowledge, 
 and by their clear and simple style to those not a few who 
 require to be incited to take a greater interest in the varied 
 materials for observation that a quiet walk or drive in the 
 country will reveal. As but little space can be found for 
 Notes and Queries in such a limited number of pages, the 
 Editor has arranged with the Sectional Secretaries of the 
 Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union to render any help in their 
 power to any one applying for it, e.g.^ by naming specimens, 
 giving advice as to the best books to be consulted, or the best 
 grounds for collecting. The following list gives the names 
 and addresses of the Sectional Secretaries to whom direct 
 application should be made by post j but in case of doubt, it 
 will be better to apply to the editor of this section of the 
 journal, who will transmit the communication to the proper 
 authority, from whom a reply will be received in due course. 
 The Sectional Secretaries are : Geology, H. Cooke, F.L.S., 
 F.G.S., 123, Monks' Road, Lincoln; Phanerogamic Botany, 
 Rev. E. Adrian Woodruffe-Peacock, L.Th., F.L.S., F.G.S., 
 Cadney, Brigg ; Cryptogamic Botany, J. Larder, 33, Mercer 
 Row, Louth ; Vertebrate Zoology, John Cordeaux, M.B.O.U., 
 Great Cotes House, R.S.O., Lincolnshire; Conchology, W. D. 
 Roebuck, F.L.S., F.R.P.S.E., Sunny Bank, Leeds ; General 
 Entomology, Rev. Canon W. W. Fowler, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., 
 Lincoln ; Lepidoptera, Rev. G. H. Raynor, M.A., Panton, 
 Wragby; Coleoptera, Rev. A. Thornley, F.L.S., F.E.S., 
 South Leverton, Lincoln. 
 
 Any further information required can be obtained by 
 applying to 
 
 Cadney Vicarage^ Brigg. THE EDITOR. 
 
 Vol. 5, No. 33, Lines. N. & #. 
 Nat. Hist. Sect. 
 
2 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 THE NATURAL BISTORT 'DIVISIONS 
 OF LINCOLNSHIRE* 
 
 REV. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, L.Th., F.L.S., F.G.S., 
 
 Vicar of Cadney, Brigg, General and Botanical Secretary Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, 
 and Curator of Lincolnshire County Herbarium, 
 
 THE COUNTY. 
 
 LINCOLNSHIRE, the second county in England in size, 
 according to the last Ordnance Survey, contains 
 1,783,769-998 square acres or 2,787-140 square miles 
 of land, fresh water, salt-marsh, fore-shore and tidal water. 
 It is about 75 miles from its extreme points north and south, 
 and 45 miles in its widest part from east to west, and lies 
 between the parallels 52 degrees and 40 minutes and 53 
 degrees 43 minutes north latitude, and 56 minutes west and 
 22 minutes east longitude from the meridian of Greenwich. 
 A little more than half of the county is upland and heath of 
 the wold and cliff ranges of hills ; the rest was formerly fen, 
 marsh, and carr, but is now most thoroughly drained by 
 natural means, artificial dykes, and steam pumps. There is 
 not an acre of true fen left in the whole county. Even 
 the bogs on the sand commons are most restricted, and only 
 found in two or three parishes in north-west Lindsey. The 
 drainage has been so thoroughly carried out that in a dry 
 season the fen-farms more distant from the outfall of the rivers 
 are badly in want of water for their stock, and to keep the cattle 
 from wandering across the natural boundaries of the district, the 
 fen-dykes, which are often quite dry. The native fauna and 
 flora of the fens have quite gone, but we have the fen-dyke 
 fauna and flora in profusion, if anyone but a native can under- 
 stand the distindtion, or appreciate the effecl: which the annual 
 cleaning out and mowing the sides of our larger and smaller 
 drains, liming and manuring have had on our flora annual, 
 biennial, or perennial and the life which it sustains. 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY DIVISIONS. 
 
 The plan I have adopted for these Divisions, after many 
 useless attempts to make a geological or river-basin distribution, 
 
 * This is the greater part of an article, with alterations and additions, which 
 appeared in The Naturalist, 1895, pp. 289-301, republished by special permission. 
 
Natural History. 3 
 
 much thought, and some consultation with others interested in 
 the matter, is a purely arbitrary one, like that of the late Profes- 
 sor Babington's Flora of Cambridgeshire^ for the peculiar physical 
 features of Lincolnshire, with its 500,000 acres of fenland and 
 low hills, admit of no other. With a very few exceptions all 
 the natural history records yet published are on the parish basis ; 
 taking the larger towns as far as possible as centres the parishes 
 have been aggregated round them into divisions, always keeping 
 in view two points, (i) the work already done, and (2) railway 
 communication for future observation. The Watsonian Vice- 
 Counties, N. Lines. 54 or N. and S. Lines. 53 or S., have been 
 left inta6l, clearly separated as they are by the river Witham 
 from Boston to Lincoln, and by the Foss Dyke from Lincoln 
 to the border of Nottingham. The modern course of these 
 streams is the line of demarcation ; and as both cut through one 
 or more parishes on their way from the cathedral city to their 
 outfalls in the Wash and river Trent, these parishes have both a N. 
 and S. Vice-county number. This is also the case with parishes 
 scattered in departments referred to below. In making notes in 
 divided or scattered parishes it is an easy matter to remember 
 whether the Witham or Foss Dyke is to the north or south of 
 the place of observation. As N. contains more than three-fifths 
 of the county, and as S. is almost one-half unwooded fen-land, 
 which has been so greatly changed in fauna and flora by drainage 
 and high farming during the last hundred years, I have given 
 N. a double share of Divisions, which are therefore smaller for 
 the most part than those of S. They are shown by black 
 lines, names, and numbers on the map, and are named as follows : 
 
 NORTH LINCOLNSHIRE, 54. 
 
 I. Isle of Axholme. 7. Market Rasen. 
 
 2. Winterton and Broughton. 8. - Louth. 
 
 3. Barton and Caistor. 9. Saltfleet (Littoral). 
 
 4. Great Grimsby. lo. Horncastle and West Fen. 
 
 5.- Kirton and Gainsborough. n. - Alford and Burgh. 
 
 6. Lincoln (North). 12. Boston and East Fen. 
 
 SOUTH LINCOLNSHIRE, 53. 
 
 13. Lincoln (South). 1 6. Bourn and Stamford. 
 
 14.. Sleaford. I 7- Swineshead and Donington. 
 
 15. Grantham. 18. Spalding and Holbeach. 
 
 The numbers indicate which vice-county a record refers to 
 without the constant use of N. and S. 
 
 MAPS. 
 The best Map for field work is the index map to the six- 
 
4 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 inch Ordnance Survey. It has the parishes printed in colours, 
 and all the roads are shown. Messrs. Stanford, Cockspur 
 Street, Charing Cross, London, S.W. supply it. Sub-divisions 
 have been added to the larger divisions for the purpose of 
 facilitating more detailed work, and of more fully indicating 
 the distribution of rare and local species. These were 
 obligingly worked out by W. Denison Roebuck, F.L.S., of 
 Sunny Bank, Leeds the editor of The Naturalist who is 
 prepared to supply workers with a large scale map of Lincoln- 
 shire showing the parish boundaries, and coloured clearly to 
 to indicate all the division and sub-division. In the Sketch 
 Map of the Soils of Lincolnshire^ by A. J. Jukes Browne, 
 B.A., F.G.S., which appeared in The Naturalist with the first 
 edition of this paper, the divisions and sub-divisions are shown, 
 and are further indicated by the initial letters of the cardinal 
 points of the compass. It is not thought advisable to print 
 these initial letters after the division numbers in the place 
 name list that follows, as it would add considerably to the 
 length of this paper. All these maps can be obtained from the 
 Editor of the Natural History section of the Lincolnshire 
 Notes & Queries. 
 
 THE PLACE NAME LIST. 
 
 The following alphabetical list gives the name and division 
 number of every parish, township, hamlet, railway stations 
 which are not called after places, and remarkable physical features 
 of the county, such as fens, hills, commons, woods and waters, 
 when these places have a name of their own to be found 
 in gazetteers, directories, and maps, new and old, which have 
 come under my observation. In the rare case where a parish 
 is scattered in separate departments lying at a distance from 
 one another, or a wood, with a distinctive name, runs continu- 
 ously from one parish into the next on the boundary line of a 
 division, two only in one case three numbers are required 
 to indicate the exact spot where an observation might be made 
 or a specimen taken. The spelling of these place-names is 
 that adopted by the Post Office Directory, or if not found 
 there, which was most frequently met with in the books and 
 maps consulted. Workers in the field, who intend to use this 
 place-name list, in recording the distribution of the species they 
 are studying, should note that Railway Stations are not always 
 situated in the parish after which they are named, in the case 
 
Natural History. 5 
 
 of Dogdyke not even in the same Vice-county as the parish. 
 The sand and silt-banks of the Wash, and round the coast, as 
 well as the warp banks of the Humber and Trent, are so 
 constantly changing that they are hardly worth recording, but 
 with the latest maps to hand I have done my best; for the flora 
 of even a temporary bank of silt that rises above the wash of 
 ordinary tides in sea or river is extremely interesting, when 
 considering geographical distributions and means of dispersal. 
 
 The contractions used in this place name list are the 
 following : 
 
 E., East ; G., Great ; L., Little ; M. t Middle j N., North ; PL, Plantation ; 
 S., South ; St., Railway Station ; W., West ; Wd., Wood. 
 
 The words 'both' or 'all* in parentheses after a parish 
 name in this list implies that both or all the parishes of this 
 name are in the division indicated. 
 
 Abney Wood 
 
 15 
 
 Ashby (West) 
 
 10 
 
 Bardney 
 
 7 
 
 Aby 
 
 II 
 
 Ashby -de- la-Launde 
 
 13 
 
 Barf (Beelsby) 
 
 4 
 
 A&horpe 
 
 8 
 
 Ashby Puerorum . . 
 
 10 
 
 Barf (Blankney) 
 
 13 
 
 Acres (The) . . 
 
 4 
 
 Ash Holt 
 
 7 
 
 Barf (Howsham) 
 
 3 
 
 Addlethorpe . . 
 
 ii 
 
 Ash Lound . . 
 
 I 3 
 
 Barholme 
 
 16 
 
 Agthorpe Wood 
 
 8 
 
 Aslackby 
 
 16 
 
 Barkstone 
 
 15 
 
 Ailby 
 
 ii 
 
 Asserby 
 
 ii 
 
 Barkwith (E. & W.) 
 
 7 
 
 Ailesham 
 
 3 
 
 Asterby 
 
 8 
 
 Barlings 
 
 6 
 
 Aisby (Gainsborough 
 
 5 
 
 Aswardby (Falkingham) 
 
 14 
 
 Barnacle Pits.. 
 
 15 
 
 Aisby (Grantham) 
 
 H 
 
 Aswardby (Spilsby) 
 
 ii 
 
 Barnetby-le-Wold 
 
 3 
 
 Aisthorpe 
 
 6 
 
 Atterby 
 
 5 
 
 Barnoldby-le-Beck 
 
 4 
 
 Alford 
 
 ii 
 
 Aubourn . . . . 
 
 "3 
 
 Barnsdale (Eagle) 
 
 13 
 
 Algarkirk 
 
 17 
 
 Audleby 
 
 3 
 
 Barrowby 
 
 15 
 
 Algarkirk Allotment 
 
 14 
 
 Aukborough 
 
 2 
 
 Barrow-upon-Humbe 
 
 3 
 
 Alkborough 
 
 2 
 
 Aunby . . . . 
 
 16 
 
 Barton-upon-Humber 
 
 3 
 
 Allen's Wood 
 
 3 
 
 Aunsby . . . . 
 
 '4 
 
 Bassingham . . 
 
 13 
 
 Allington (E. & W.) 
 
 i5 
 
 Austendyke 
 
 18 
 
 Bassingthorpe 
 
 IS 
 
 Althorpe 
 
 i 
 
 Austen Fen 
 
 9 
 
 Baston 
 
 16 
 
 Alvingham . . 
 
 8 
 
 Austerby . . 
 
 16 
 
 Baumber 
 
 7 
 
 Amberhill 
 
 *7 
 
 AusterWood 
 
 16 
 
 Bayard's Leap 
 
 13 
 
 Amcotts 
 
 i 
 
 Autby 
 
 8 
 
 Bay Hall . . 
 
 12 
 
 Ancaster 
 
 J 5 
 
 Authorpe (Muckton) 
 
 8 
 
 Bayons Manor 
 
 7 
 
 Ancroft Fen . . 
 
 i 
 
 Authorpe (Hogsthorpe) 
 
 ii 
 
 Beacon Hills (Barton) 3 
 
 Anderby 
 
 ii 
 
 Aveland . . . . 
 
 16 
 
 Beacon Hill 
 
 Ann Cover . . 
 
 3 
 
 Axeltree Hurn 
 
 9 
 
 (Marsh Chapel) 9 
 
 Anthony's Clump 
 
 3 
 
 Aylesby 
 
 4 
 
 Beacon Hill 
 
 Anthony's Cover 
 
 3 
 
 Ayscoughfee Hall 
 
 18 
 
 (Thorpe-on-the-H ill) 1 3 
 
 Anwick 
 
 14 
 
 Azeby 
 
 H 
 
 Beaconthorpe. . 4. 
 
 Apley 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 Beadhouse Wood 10 
 
 Appleholme . . 
 
 8 
 
 Back Oak Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Beats (G. & L.) 10 
 
 Apple by 
 
 2 
 
 Badger Hills .. 
 
 3 
 
 Beckering . . 7 
 
 Asfordby 
 
 II 
 
 Badger Hills .. 
 
 4 
 
 Beckingham . . 13 
 
 Asgarby (Sleaford) 
 
 J 4 
 
 Badger Moor Wood . . 
 
 7 
 
 Beckingham Shores 
 
 Asgarby (Spilsby) 
 
 10 
 
 Bag Enderby . . . . 
 
 10 
 
 (Twigmoor) 2 
 
 Ashby (Brigg) 
 
 2 
 
 Bagmoor 
 
 2 
 
 Becklands . . 4. 
 
 Ashby (Grimsby) 
 
 4 
 
 Bamburgh . . . . 
 
 7 
 
 Bedlam Wood 
 
 Ashby (Partney) 
 
 II 
 
 Bamber Bridge 
 
 9 
 
 (Brocklesby) 3 
 
6 
 
 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 Bedlam Wood 
 
 
 Bonsdale 
 
 a> 
 
 (Wainfleet St. Mary) 
 
 12 
 
 Bonthorpe 
 
 . . 
 
 Beech Holt . . 
 
 H 
 
 Boothby Graffoe 
 
 . . 
 
 Beelsby 
 
 4 
 
 Boothby-in-the-Marsh 
 
 Beesby (Hawerby) 
 Beesby-on-the- Marsh 
 
 8 
 II 
 
 Boothby Pagnall 
 Booths 
 
 
 
 Belch ford 
 
 10 
 
 Boston .. 12 
 
 and 
 
 Belleau 
 
 II 
 
 Boswell 
 
 
 Belmont . . 
 
 15 
 
 Botany Bay . . 
 
 . . 
 
 Belmount . . 
 
 10 
 
 Bottesford 
 
 f t 
 
 Belnie 
 
 17 
 
 Boughton 
 
 . 
 
 Beltoft 
 
 I 
 
 Bounston Hill 
 
 
 Belton (Grantham) .. 
 
 15 
 
 Boultham 
 
 . . 
 
 Belton-in the-Isle 
 
 I 
 
 Bourn . . 
 
 
 Bendon's Cover . . 
 
 5 
 
 Bowin 
 
 
 Benington 
 
 12 
 
 Bowland's Cover 
 
 
 Bennington (Long) . . 
 
 15 
 
 Bowthorpe 
 
 , 
 
 Bennington Grange . . 
 
 15 
 
 Braceborough 
 
 
 Benniworth 
 
 7 
 
 Bracebridge . . 
 
 . . 
 
 Betty Green 
 
 9 
 
 Braceby 
 
 . . 
 
 Bickar 
 
 17 
 
 Bracken 
 
 . . 
 
 Bigby 
 
 3 
 
 Brackenborough 
 
 
 Billingborough 
 
 16 
 
 Brackendale Cover 
 
 
 Billinghay 
 
 H 
 
 Bracken (PI.) 
 
 
 Bilsby 
 
 ii 
 
 Bradley 
 
 
 Binbrook 
 
 8 
 
 Braithing Bridge 
 
 . . 
 
 Birch Holt 
 
 13 
 
 Brakin 
 
 . . 
 
 Birch Plot 
 
 13 
 
 Brakon Wood 
 
 
 Birch Wood 
 
 5 
 
 Bramble Holt 
 
 . . 
 
 Bird Hag 
 
 10 
 
 Brampton 
 
 
 Birdock Gate 
 
 15 
 
 Brampton Firs 
 
 . . 
 
 Birds' Drove 
 
 17 
 
 Brand End Plot(G.&L.) 
 
 Birke Wood 
 
 7 
 
 Brandon 
 
 
 Birkholme 
 
 15 
 
 Brandy Wharfe 
 
 
 Birk'sWood.. 
 
 10 
 
 Bransby 
 
 
 Birthorpe 
 
 16 
 
 Branston 
 
 
 Biscathorpe 
 
 8 
 
 Branswell 
 
 . . 
 
 Bishop Bridge 
 
 5 
 
 Brant Broughton 
 
 
 Bishop Norton 
 
 5 
 
 Bratland's Cover 
 
 . . 
 
 Bitchfield 
 
 15 
 
 Bratoft 
 
 
 Blackmills 
 
 3 
 
 Brattleby 
 
 
 Blackmoor 
 
 i3 
 
 Brauncewell . . 
 
 
 Blankney 
 
 13 
 
 Breachom's Wood 
 
 
 Bleasby 
 
 7 
 
 Bready Wood 
 
 
 Bloxholm 
 
 H 
 
 Break's Holt.. 
 
 
 Blow Wells (Barton) 
 
 3 
 
 Breast Sand . . 
 
 . . 
 
 BlowWells(Little Coates)4 
 
 Breeder Hills 
 
 
 Blow Wells (Tetney) 
 
 9 
 
 Bridge End . . 
 
 
 Blubber Hill .. 
 
 13 
 
 Brigg (Glamford) 
 
 . . 
 
 Blue Hills 
 
 ii 
 
 Brigsley 
 
 
 Blyborough 
 
 5 
 
 Brindwell 
 
 
 Blyton 
 
 5 
 
 Brinkhill 
 
 
 Boat Mere Creek 
 
 18 
 
 Broadgate 
 
 . . 
 
 Bogmoor (Manton) . . 
 
 2 
 
 Broadham's Cover 
 
 
 Bole Ferry 
 
 6 
 
 Brocklesby . . 
 
 . . 
 
 Bolingbroke 
 
 10 
 
 Broom Hill . . 
 
 
 Bonby 
 
 3 
 
 Brothertoft . . 
 
 
 
 5 Broughton (Brant) .. 13 
 II Broughton l Brigg) .. 2 
 13 Broughton Clays .. 13 
 1 1 Broxholme . . . . 6 
 
 15 Brumby .. ..2 
 
 13 Buckminster . . .. 16 
 17 Bucknall .. . . 7 
 
 8 Bulby 15 
 
 9 Bull Close Holt .. 13 
 
 2 Bullington (Goltho) . . 7 
 
 14 Bullington (Friskney) 12 
 
 14 Bully Hills .. ..8 
 13 Bully Wells .. ..14 
 
 16 Bumble Pit . . ..14 
 16 Bunker's Hill .. lo 
 
 4 Eurcom Sand . . 4 
 
 1 6 Burgh Beacon .. 7 
 
 1 6 Burgh-in-the-Marsh . . ii 
 13 Burgh-upon-Bain .. 8 
 
 15 Burnham (The Isle) .. i 
 13 Burnham (Ulceby) .. 3 
 
 8 Burnt Wood .. ..13 
 
 13 Burringham .. ..2 
 
 13 Burtoft .. . . I/ 
 
 4 Burton-by-Lincoln . . 6 
 13 Burton Coggles .. 15 
 
 1 Burton Ferry. . .. 6 
 
 10 Burton Gate . . 6 
 13 Burton Pedwardine .. 14 
 
 6 Burton-on-Stather . . 2 
 
 3 Burton Slate Wood .. 15 
 
 17 Burwell .. ..8 
 
 15 Bushy Leys . . . . 16 
 
 5 Buslingthorpe . . 7 
 
 6 Butler's (PL).. .. 3 
 
 13 Butterbump .. .. ii 
 
 14 Butterwick (Boston) .. 12 
 
 13 Butterwick (East) .. 2 
 
 4 Butterwick (West) . . I 
 
 11 Button Cap Holt .. II 
 6 Byard's Leap. . ..13 
 
 14 Bytham (Castle) .. 15 
 
 1 6 Bytham (Little) .. 15 
 
 15 
 
 13 Cabbage Wood .. 14 
 
 1 8 Cabourn .. 3 
 
 15 Cadeby .. ..8 
 
 16 Cadney .. .-3 
 
 3 Cadwell .. ..8 
 
 4 Caenby . . 6 
 
 1 6 Caistor .. 3 
 lo Calceby .. ..II 
 1 8 Calcethorpe .. ..8 
 
 2 Callow . . 7 
 
 3 Cammingham . . 6 
 13 Campney Lane .. 7 
 
 17 Candle Bottom .. 10 
 
Natural History. 
 
 Candlesby . . 
 
 Ti 
 
 Clump Hill .. 
 
 7 
 
 Cross Keys Wash . . 
 
 18 
 
 Canwick . . . . 
 
 J 3 
 
 Coates (G.) .. 
 
 4 
 
 Cross Moors 
 
 7 
 
 Careby 
 
 16 
 
 Coates (L.) 
 
 4 
 
 Crowland . . . . 
 
 16 
 
 Carlby 
 
 16 
 
 Coates (N.) .. 
 
 9 
 
 Crowle . . . . 
 
 I 
 
 Carlton-by-the-Ashes 
 
 15 
 
 Coates (Willingham). . 
 
 6 
 
 Croxby 
 
 4 
 
 Carlton (Castle) 
 
 8 
 
 Cocked Hat (PL) . . 
 
 13 
 
 Croxton 
 
 3 
 
 Carlton (G.) 
 
 8 
 
 Cockerington (N. & S.) 
 
 8 
 
 Culverthorpe 
 
 H 
 
 Carlton-le-Moorlands 
 
 13 
 
 Cocklode Wood 
 
 7 
 
 Cumberworth 
 
 ii 
 
 Carlton (L.) 
 
 8 
 
 Cold Bath House 
 
 6 
 
 Curdle Well 
 
 13 
 
 Carlton (N.) 
 
 6 
 
 Coldham Quarter 
 
 *3 
 
 Cuxwold . . . . 
 
 4 
 
 Carlton Scroop 
 
 15 
 
 Cold Hanworth 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 Carlton (S.) 
 
 6 
 
 Coldstead 
 
 7 
 
 Dalby 
 
 ii 
 
 Carr Holt 
 
 4 
 
 Coleby (Lincoln) 
 
 J 3 
 
 Dalderby 
 
 10 
 
 Carr House 
 
 i 
 
 Coleby (West Halton) 
 
 2 
 
 Dales Bottom 
 
 4 
 
 Carr (W.) 
 
 i 
 
 College Wood 
 
 3 
 
 Dame Amos' Holt . . 
 
 18 
 
 Carrington . . . . 
 
 10 
 
 Collow 
 
 7 
 
 Dam Ring 
 
 *5 
 
 Caseby Wood 
 
 15 
 
 Colsterworth. . 
 
 15 
 
 Dandy Holt 
 
 *3 
 
 Casewick 
 
 1 6 
 
 Combe Hill (Denton) 
 
 15 
 
 Dane Hill 
 
 16 
 
 Casthorpe 
 
 i5 
 
 Common Side 
 
 12 
 
 Daubers Hill.. 
 
 4 
 
 Castle Bytham 
 
 15 
 
 Coney Wood.. 
 
 II 
 
 Dawesmere 
 
 18 
 
 Castle Carlton 
 
 8 
 
 Coneysby 
 
 2 
 
 Daw Wood 
 
 10 
 
 Castle Dyke Wood . . 
 
 H 
 
 Coningsby .. 10 and 
 
 J 7 
 
 Decoy Cottages 
 
 
 Castle Hill Place . . 
 
 i 
 
 Conisholme 
 
 9 
 
 (Brigg) 
 
 2 
 
 Castle Hills 
 
 3 
 
 Conyer's Wood 
 
 7 
 
 Decoy Plantation 
 
 
 Castlethorpe 
 
 2 
 
 Cooksey's Caver . . 
 
 6 
 
 (Grimsby) 
 
 4 
 
 Cathorpe 
 
 II 
 
 Copping Syke 
 
 10 
 
 Deep Dale .. 
 
 8 
 
 Catley 
 
 14 
 
 Corby 
 
 15 
 
 Deeping (E. & W.) .. 
 
 16 
 
 Cawkwell 
 
 8 
 
 Corking Bridge 
 
 16 
 
 Deeping St. James . . 
 
 16 
 
 Cawthorpe (L.) 
 
 8 
 
 Corringham (G. & L.) 
 
 5 
 
 Deeping Market 
 
 16 
 
 Cawthorpe (Bourn) .. 
 
 16 
 
 Cotehouses 
 
 5 
 
 Deeping St. Nicholas 
 
 16 
 
 Cawood Hall.. 
 
 i? 
 
 Cotes Grange 
 
 8 
 
 Deer Park Wood . . 
 
 16 
 
 Cay Leys Wood 
 
 3 
 
 Counessome Cross 
 
 8 
 
 Delta Cover 
 
 3 
 
 Caythorpe . . . . 
 
 13 
 
 Counter Close 
 
 2 
 
 Dembleby 
 
 H 
 
 Central Wingland .. 
 
 18 
 
 Counter Drain . . 
 
 16 
 
 Denton 
 
 15 
 
 Chapel Hill .. 
 
 H 
 
 Counter Drove (St.) . . 
 
 16 
 
 Derrythorpe 
 
 i 
 
 Chapel (Mumby) 
 
 ii 
 
 Counthorpe 
 
 15 
 
 Dexthorpe 
 
 ii 
 
 Chase Hill .. 
 
 3 
 
 Court Leys 
 
 13 
 
 Digby 
 
 J 4 
 
 Cheal 
 
 17 
 
 Covenham (both) 
 
 8 
 
 Ding Dong 
 
 7 
 
 Cherry Holt 
 
 15 
 
 Covers (The) 
 
 8 
 
 Dirrington . . . . 
 
 14 
 
 Cherry Willingham . . 
 
 6 
 
 Covey Wood 
 
 ii 
 
 Dobbin Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Church End 
 
 12 
 
 Cowbank 
 
 ii 
 
 Dob Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Church Town 
 
 1 
 
 Cowbit 
 
 18 
 
 Doddington 
 
 
 Cindersom Well 
 
 13 
 
 Cowdyke (PI.) 
 
 8 
 
 (Skellingthorpe) 
 
 3 
 
 Claxby (Alford) 
 
 II 
 
 Cowgate Copse 
 
 16 
 
 Doddington (Dry) . . 
 
 15 
 
 Claxby (Normanby) . 
 
 7 
 
 Cow's Dyke 
 
 16 
 
 Dogdyke 
 
 H 
 
 Claxby Pluckacre 
 
 10 
 
 Coxey Hills .. 
 
 8 
 
 Dogdyke (St.) 
 
 10 
 
 Clay Hills Wood 
 
 15 
 
 Crab Tree Holt 
 
 8 
 
 Donington (Spalding) 
 
 17 
 
 Clay Hole 
 
 12 
 
 Craise Lound. . 
 
 i 
 
 Donington-on-Bain . . 
 
 8 
 
 Claypole 
 
 15 
 
 Cranwell 
 
 14 
 
 Donna Nook. . 
 
 9 
 
 Claythorpe 
 
 II 
 
 Cream Pot Wood 
 
 7 
 
 Dorrington 
 
 H 
 
 Cleatham 
 
 5 
 
 Creeton 
 
 15 
 
 Dotsey Wood 
 
 i5 
 
 Clee 
 
 4 
 
 Cressy Hall 
 
 : 7 
 
 Dove Cote 
 
 8 
 
 Cleethorpes 
 
 4 
 
 Croft 
 
 ii 
 
 Dovedale 
 
 8 
 
 Clixby 
 
 3 
 
 Crofton 
 
 H 
 
 Dow Dyke 
 
 17 
 
 Clough 
 
 17 
 
 Crosby . . . . 
 
 2 
 
 Dowsby 
 
 16 
 
 Clough Bridge 
 
 ii 
 
 Cross Close Holt 
 
 13 
 
 Dovesdale 
 
 18 
 
 Cloven Hill .. 
 
 10 
 
 Crossholme 
 
 5 
 
 Drainage Marsh 
 
 17 
 
Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 Drainage Fen.. 
 Driby 
 Drove End 
 Dry Doddington 
 Dukes Wood.. 
 Dumpin's Nook 
 
 II 
 18 
 15 
 15 
 
 10 
 
 Fenby 
 Fen Houses 
 (Somercoates) 
 Fen Houses 
 (Wigtoft) 
 Fenton (Beckingham) 
 
 4 
 9 
 
 17 
 
 !3 
 
 Fulletby .. ..10 
 Fullsby .. . . 1 6 
 Fulnetby .. .. 7 
 Fulney .. ..18 
 Fulsby .. .. 16 
 Fulstow . . . . 8 
 
 Dunham Bridge 
 
 6 
 
 Fenton (Kettlethorpe) 
 
 6 
 
 
 Dunholme 
 
 6 
 
 Ferriby (South) 
 
 3 
 
 Gainsborough . . 5 
 
 Dunkirk Cover 
 
 3 
 
 Ferry Corner Plot . . 
 
 17 
 
 Gainsthorpe . . 2 
 
 Dunsby St. Andrew 
 
 
 Ferry (E.) .. 
 
 5 
 
 Callow Dale . . ..13 
 
 Dunsby (Bourn) 
 
 16 
 
 Ferry Gate Bottom . . 
 
 3 
 
 Gallows Dale . . 6 
 
 Dunstall 
 
 5 
 
 Ferry (High).. 
 
 10 
 
 Game Traps Wood . . 1 1 
 
 Dunston 
 
 13 
 
 Ferry (W.) .. 
 
 I 
 
 Gantoft .. ..II 
 
 Dyke (Bourn) 
 
 16 
 
 Fillingham 
 
 6 
 
 Garnsgate .. . . 1 8 
 
 Dyke Fen 
 
 16 
 
 Fire Beacon . . 
 
 8 
 
 Garthorpe . . I 
 
 Dyke Outgang . . 
 
 16 
 
 Firsby (E. and W.) . . 
 
 6 
 
 Garwick . . . . 14 
 
 Dyke Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Firsby (Wainfleet) . . 
 
 ii 
 
 Gate Burton . . 6 
 
 
 
 Fishtoft . . 12 and 
 
 17 
 
 Gatliffe Wood . . 7 
 
 Eagle 
 
 13 
 
 Fiskerton 
 
 6 
 
 Gatt Sand .. .. 18 
 
 Eagle Barnsdale 
 
 13 
 
 Fitties (The) 
 
 9 
 
 GaumerHill.. .. 8 
 
 Eagle Hall 
 
 13 
 
 Five Mile (St.) 
 
 13 
 
 Gauntlet .. ..17 
 
 Eagle Woodhouse 
 
 13 
 
 Flawford 
 
 13 
 
 Gautby .. ..7 
 
 Ealand 
 
 i 
 
 Fleet (all) 
 
 18 
 
 Gayton (both) . 8 
 
 East Fen 
 
 12 
 
 Flixborough . . . . 
 
 2 
 
 Gazebo 
 
 9 
 
 East Ferry 
 
 5 
 
 Floors 
 
 12 
 
 Gedney 
 
 . 18 
 
 Eastholme 
 
 9 
 
 Fockerby 
 
 I 
 
 Gedney Hill (St.) 
 
 . 18 
 
 Eastlands Gorse 
 
 16 
 
 Fodder Dyke Bank . . 
 
 12 
 
 Gelston 
 
 15 
 
 Eastoft 
 
 i 
 
 Foldhill 
 
 12 
 
 Gibbet Hills . . 
 
 17 
 
 Easton 
 
 15 
 
 Folkingham . . . 
 
 16 
 
 Gibraltar Point 
 
 . ii 
 
 East Lound 
 
 i 
 
 Folly's Wood . . 
 
 2 
 
 Gilby.. 
 
 . 5 
 
 East Thorpe 
 
 6 
 
 Fonaby 
 
 3 
 
 Gillian Holt . . 
 
 . 8 
 
 Eastville 
 
 12 
 
 Fordington 
 
 ii 
 
 Gillswell (PI.) 
 
 . ii 
 
 Eaudyke 
 
 17 
 
 Forty Foot Bank 
 
 17 
 
 Gillwood 
 
 . 8 
 
 Eaugate 
 
 18 
 
 Fosdyke 
 
 17 
 
 Gippel 
 
 i5 
 
 Edenham 
 
 16 
 
 Foston 
 
 15 
 
 Gipsey Bridge 
 
 . 10 
 
 Edlington 
 
 10 
 
 Fotherby 
 
 8 
 
 Girsby 
 
 . 8 
 
 Elkington (N. & S.) . . 
 
 8 
 
 Foxendale . . . 
 
 10 
 
 Glanford Brigg 
 
 3 
 
 Ellarow Wood 
 
 12 
 
 Foxhole Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Glentham 
 
 . 5 
 
 Elsey 
 
 II 
 
 Foxholt 
 
 13 
 
 Glentworth . . 
 
 . 6 
 
 Elsham 
 
 3 
 
 Frampton 10, 12 and 
 
 17 
 
 Goat Close (PI.) 
 
 . 8 
 
 Elsthorpe 
 
 16 
 
 Freiston . . 12 and 
 
 17 
 
 Godnow Bridge (St.) 
 
 i 
 
 Emswell . . 
 
 5 
 
 French Drove (St.) . . 
 
 18 
 
 God's Cross . . 
 
 i 
 
 Enderby (all) 
 
 10 
 
 Friesland 
 
 13 
 
 Gokewell 
 
 2 
 
 Epworth 
 
 i 
 
 Friesthorpe 
 
 7 
 
 Goltho 
 
 7 
 
 Eskham . . . . 
 
 9 
 
 Frieston (Boston) 
 
 
 Gonerby (G. M. & L 15 
 
 Evedon 
 
 
 12 and 
 
 ij 
 
 Good Copse . . . i 
 
 Ewerby 
 
 14 
 
 Frieston (Claythorpe) 
 
 13 
 
 Goody Hatchem . 4 
 
 
 
 Friskney 
 
 12 
 
 Gorse Hill . . .14 
 
 Faldingworth 
 
 7 
 
 Frist ... 
 
 17 
 
 Gosberton .. . 17 
 
 Falkingham 
 
 16 
 
 Frith Bank 
 
 10 
 
 Goulceby .. .8 
 
 Farforth 
 
 8 
 
 Friths 'The) .. 
 
 17 
 
 Gould Dyke Bank . 18 
 
 Farlsthorpe 
 
 Ii 
 
 Frithville . . 10 and 
 
 12 
 
 Goulsby . . . 8 
 
 Farthorpe 
 
 10 
 
 Frodingham . . . . 
 
 2 
 
 Goxhill .. .3 
 
 Fellands 
 
 12 
 
 Froghall (Cadney) . . 
 
 3 
 
 Graby .. .16 
 
 Fen (E.) 
 
 12 
 
 Froghall(Wildmore).. 
 
 10 
 
 Grainsby . . . 8 
 
 Fen (W.) 
 
 IO 
 
 Frognall 
 
 16 
 
 Grainthorpe . . . 9 
 
 Fen Wood . . ... 
 
 6 
 
 Fulbeck 
 
 13 
 
 Grand father's Wood . 13 
 
Natural History. 
 
 Grange-de-Ling 
 
 6 
 
 Halltoft End.. 
 
 . 12 
 
 Grantham 
 
 *5 
 
 Haltham 
 
 . 10 
 
 Grantham Grange . . 
 
 15 
 
 Halton (E.) . . 
 
 3 
 
 Grantham's Cross . . 
 
 8 
 
 Halton Holegate 
 
 . ii 
 
 Grasby 
 
 3 
 
 Halton Skitter 
 
 3 
 
 Grass Hill (PL) 
 
 15 
 
 Halton (W.) . . 
 
 . 2 
 
 Grayingham 
 
 5 
 
 Halton Wood 
 
 . 16 
 
 Great Beats 
 
 10 
 
 Hameringham 
 
 . 10 
 
 Great Brand End Plot 
 
 *7 
 
 Hamilton Hill 
 
 J 5 
 
 Great Common . . 
 
 18 
 
 Hammock Beck 
 
 . 17 
 
 Greatford 
 
 16 
 
 Hampshire (Pi.) 
 
 . II 
 
 Grebby 
 
 1 1 
 
 Hanbeck 
 
 . 14 
 
 Greenfield 
 
 ii 
 
 Hanby 
 
 J 5 
 
 Greenhill 
 
 5 
 
 Hang Wood . . 
 
 . ii 
 
 Greenwalks . . . . 
 
 15 
 
 Hannah 
 
 . ii 
 
 Greetham 
 
 10 
 
 Hanthorpe . . 
 
 . 16 
 
 Greetwell 
 
 6 
 
 Hanworth (Cold) 
 
 . 6 
 
 Greetford 
 
 16 
 
 Hanworth (Porter) 
 
 13 
 
 Greygreen 
 
 i 
 
 Harding's (PL) 
 
 . 3 
 
 Grey Leys 
 
 H 
 
 Hardwick 
 
 . 6 
 
 Grimblethorpe 
 
 8 
 
 Hare Booth . . 
 
 . 7 
 
 Grime's Holt 
 
 4 
 
 Hareby 
 
 . 10 
 
 Grimoldby 
 
 8 
 
 Harlaxton 
 
 J 5 
 
 Grimsby (G.) 
 
 4 
 
 Harmston 
 
 . 13 
 
 Grimsby (L.) 
 
 8 
 
 Harpswell 
 
 . 5 
 
 Grimsthorpe 
 
 16 
 
 Harrington . . 
 
 . 10 
 
 Grisels Bottom 
 
 8 
 
 Harrowby 
 
 !5 
 
 Grubhill 
 
 6 
 
 Harts' Grounds 
 
 . 17 
 
 Guanockgate 
 
 18 
 
 Hartsholme . . 
 
 . 13 
 
 Gulholme 
 
 7 
 
 Haseby . . 
 
 . 14 
 
 Gunborough Wood . . 
 
 16 
 
 Hasethorpe . . 
 
 . II 
 
 Gunby (St. Nicholas).. 
 
 15 
 
 Hatcliffe 
 
 4 
 
 Gunby (Spilsby) 
 
 ii 
 
 Hathow 
 
 . 6 
 
 Gunness 
 
 2 
 
 Hatton 
 
 . 7 
 
 Gunthorpe 
 
 I 
 
 Haugh . . 
 
 . ii 
 
 Gunthorpe Sluice 
 
 18 
 
 Haugham 
 
 . 8 
 
 Guthramcote. . 
 
 16 
 
 Haughton 
 
 . 8 
 
 
 
 Haven Bank . . 
 
 . 10 
 
 Habertoft 
 
 ii 
 
 Haverholme Priory 
 
 . 14 
 
 Habrough 
 
 3 
 
 Hawerby 
 
 . 8 
 
 Hacconby 
 
 16 
 
 Hawstead Wood 
 
 . 10 
 
 Haceby 
 
 H 
 
 Hawthorn Hill 
 
 . 10 
 
 Hackthorn 
 
 6 
 
 Hawthorpe . . 
 
 J 5 
 
 Haddington 
 
 13 
 
 Haxey 
 
 i 
 
 Hagnaby (Hannah) . . 
 
 1 1 
 
 Haydor 
 
 . 14 
 
 Hagnaby (Spilsby) . . 
 
 10 
 
 Hayes (The) .. 
 
 . 5 
 
 Hag Wood 
 
 I 3 
 
 Healing 
 
 . 4 
 
 Hagworthingham 
 
 10 
 
 Heapham . . 
 
 . 6 
 
 Hainton 
 
 7 
 
 Heck Dyke . . 
 
 . I 
 
 Hale (G. & L.) 
 
 H 
 
 Heckington (both) 
 
 . 14 
 
 Halfway Houses 
 
 13 
 
 Heighington . . 
 
 13 
 
 Hall Gate 
 
 18 
 
 Hell Furse .. 
 
 . 8 
 
 Hall Hills 
 
 12 
 
 Hell Hole . . 
 
 . 14 
 
 Halliday Hill 
 
 3 
 
 Hell Holt . . 
 
 13 
 
 Hallifers 
 
 6 
 
 Helpringham . . 
 
 . 14 
 
 Hallington 
 
 8 
 
 Helsey 
 
 . ii 
 
 Hallowells' Hills . . 
 
 8 
 
 Hemingby 
 
 . 8 
 
 Hemswell . . 5 
 
 Hendale Wood . . 3 
 
 Henhole Wood . . 4 
 
 Hericho Wood . . 15 
 
 Hermitage Hill .. II 
 Heron Wood 
 
 (Broughton) 2 
 Heron Wood 
 
 (Doddington) 13 
 
 Hibaldstow . . . . 2 
 
 High Bibers Hill .. Ii 
 
 High Ferry . . . . lo 
 
 Highfield Wood . . 4 
 
 High Hall Wood .. lo 
 
 High Wood .. ..13 
 
 High Wood Decoy .. 12 
 
 Hill Dyke . . . . lo 
 
 Hill Six Acres .. 17 
 
 Hills of the Slain . . 1 1 
 
 Hinkerson's Fen .. 18 
 
 Hirst Priory . . . . I 
 
 Hoffleet Stow .. 17 
 
 Hogsthorpe . . ..II 
 
 Hogtree Wood .. 15 
 
 Holbeach (all) .. 1 8 
 
 Holdingham . . . . 14 
 
 Holland (E.) .. ..12 
 
 Holland Fen .. 14 and 17 
 
 Holland Fen Chapel . . 14 
 
 Holland House .. 18 
 
 Holland (New) . . 3 
 
 Holme (Bottesford) . . 2 
 
 Holmes (Epworth) . . I 
 
 Holmes (Louth) . . 8 
 
 Holmes Common . . 6 
 
 Holton-le-Clay . . 8 
 
 Holton-le-Moor .. 7 
 
 Holton (Wragby) . . 7 
 
 Holtonbeck Gorse .. lo 
 
 Holy well .. ..15 
 
 Holy- Well Wood .. lo 
 
 Home Decoy. . .. 12 
 
 Home Wood . . . . 7 
 
 Honey Close (PL) . . 3 
 
 Honington .. . . 15 
 
 Hood's Wood .. 1 6 
 
 Hook Hill .. ..12 
 
 Hopland (PL) ..II 
 
 Hop Lane . . . . 7 
 
 Horbling .. . . 1 6 
 
 Horkstow . . 3 
 
 Horncastle . . . . lo 
 
 Horse Acre Wood . . 7 
 
 Horse Shoe Clump . . 8 
 
 Horsington . . . . 7 
 
 Hougham .. ..IS 
 
 Hough-on-the Hill .. 15 
 
10 
 
 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 Housham (Cadney) . . 
 
 3 
 
 Ketsby 
 
 10 
 
 Legsby 
 
 7 
 
 Housham 
 
 
 Kettleby 
 
 3 
 
 Lenton 
 
 15 
 
 (Haddington) 
 
 13 
 
 Kettlethorpe 
 
 6 
 
 Leverton 
 
 12 
 
 Howdale 
 
 9 
 
 Kew's Holt .. 
 
 6 
 
 Lily Wd.(Broughton) 
 
 2 
 
 Howell 
 
 H 
 
 Kexby 
 
 6 
 
 Lily Wood (Lea) 
 
 6 
 
 How Hills .. 
 
 16 
 
 Kib Wood 
 
 2 
 
 Limber (G. & L.) 
 
 3 
 
 Howlets Gate 
 
 IT 
 
 Killingholme (N. & S.) 
 
 3 
 
 Lincoln . . 6 and 
 
 13 
 
 Howsham 
 
 3 
 
 Kinaid Ferry 
 
 i 
 
 Lincoln Heath . . 
 
 T 3 
 
 Hubbert's Bridge 
 
 17 
 
 Kingerby 
 
 7 
 
 Linwood (Blankney) . . 
 
 13 
 
 Hudson's Cover 
 
 3 
 
 Kingsforth Hall 
 
 3 
 
 Linwood (Rasen) 
 
 7 
 
 Humberstone. . 
 
 9 
 
 Kingsthorpe 
 
 7 
 
 Lissington 
 
 7 
 
 Humby (G. & L.) .. 
 
 15 
 
 Kingston Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Listoft 
 
 1 1 
 
 Hundleby 
 
 10 
 
 King's Wood 
 
 10 
 
 Little Beats 
 
 10 
 
 Hundon 
 
 3 
 
 Kirkby (E.) .. 
 
 10 
 
 Little Brand End Plot 
 
 17 
 
 Hungar Hill 
 
 4 
 
 Kirkby Green 
 
 13 
 
 Little Decoy 
 
 12 
 
 Hungerton 
 
 i5 
 
 Kirkby-la-Thorpe . . 
 
 H 
 
 Little Hawe Wood . . 
 
 15 
 
 Hum's End 
 
 12 
 
 Kirkby-by-Rasen 
 
 7 
 
 Little Lond'n (Ulceby) 
 
 4 
 
 Hurst Priory. . 
 
 I 
 
 Kirkby Underwood . . 
 
 16 
 
 Little London 
 
 
 Huttoft 
 
 II 
 
 Kirkby-on-Bain 
 
 10 
 
 (Wisbech) . . 
 
 18 
 
 Hykeham (N. & S.) . . 
 
 13 
 
 Kirkstead 
 
 10 
 
 Little Sale Wood 
 
 13 
 
 
 
 Kirmington 
 
 3 
 
 Little Scrubs 
 
 7 
 
 Immingham 
 
 4 
 
 Kirkmond-le-Mire . . 
 
 8 
 
 Little Thicket 
 
 i 
 
 Infield Wood.. 
 
 H 
 
 Kirton (Boston) lo and 
 
 17 
 
 Littleworth (Goxhill) 
 
 3 
 
 Ingham . . 
 
 6 
 
 Kirton (Lindsey) 
 
 5 
 
 Littleworth (Spalding) 
 
 16 
 
 Ingleby (all) 
 
 6 
 
 Knaith 
 
 6 
 
 Lobthorpe . . . . 
 
 15 
 
 Ingoldmells . . 
 
 ii 
 
 Knowle's Wood 
 
 7 
 
 Londonthorpe 
 
 15 
 
 Ingoldsby 
 
 15 
 
 Knowle's Carr 
 
 10 
 
 Long Bennington 
 
 15 
 
 Ingram Gorse 
 
 7 
 
 Kyme (N. & S.) 
 
 14 
 
 Long Hills 
 
 J 3 
 
 Inner Knock 
 
 ii 
 
 Kyme Tower.. 
 
 12 
 
 Long Holt 
 
 10 
 
 Irby-on-Humber 
 
 4 
 
 
 
 Long Nursery 
 
 H 
 
 Irby-in -the-Marsh .. 
 
 ii 
 
 Laceby 
 
 4 
 
 Long Owersby 
 
 7 
 
 Irford 
 
 4 
 
 Lady Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Long Sand 
 
 12 
 
 Irnham 
 
 15 
 
 Lambcroft 
 
 8 
 
 Long Sutton 
 
 18 
 
 Iver's Wood 
 
 7 
 
 Langham 
 
 II 
 
 Long Wood 
 
 15 
 
 
 
 Langmere Field 
 
 II 
 
 Lound 
 
 16 
 
 ackson's Leys 3 and 
 
 4 
 
 Langmoor Cover 
 
 3 
 
 Louth 
 
 8 
 
 ail (PI.) 
 
 ii 
 
 Langrick . . 10 and 
 
 17 
 
 Loveden Hill 
 
 15 
 
 enny's Wood 
 
 8 
 
 Langriville . . lo and 
 
 17 
 
 Lower Barf Wood . . 
 
 13 
 
 ericho Wood 
 
 15 
 
 Langtoft 
 
 16 
 
 Lower Daw Wood . . 
 
 10 
 
 ock Hedge .. 
 
 ii 
 
 Langton (Horncastle) 
 
 10 
 
 Lowfield 
 
 13 
 
 ubilee (PI.) .. 
 
 ii 
 
 Langton Low. . 
 
 7 
 
 Ludborough .. .. 
 
 8 
 
 umping Mill 
 
 7 
 
 Langton (Spilsby) 
 
 ii 
 
 Luddington 
 
 I 
 
 
 
 Langton (Wragby) . . 
 
 7 
 
 Ludford (G. &L.) .. 
 
 8 
 
 Kate's Bridges 
 
 16 
 
 Langworth 
 
 6 
 
 Ludney 
 
 9 
 
 Kay Wood 
 
 7 
 
 Laughterton 
 
 6 
 
 Lusby 
 
 10 
 
 Keadby 
 
 i 
 
 Laughton (Falkingham) 
 
 16 
 
 Lutton 
 
 18 
 
 Keal (all) 
 
 10 
 
 Laughton(Gainsbro') . . 
 
 5 
 
 
 
 Keddington 
 
 8 
 
 Lavington 
 
 15 
 
 Mablethorpe 
 
 9 
 
 Keelby 
 
 4 
 
 Lawless Wood 
 
 7 
 
 Magpie Holt 
 
 ii 
 
 Keisby 
 
 15 
 
 Lawn Wood (both) . . 
 
 10 
 
 Maidenwell 
 
 8 
 
 Kelby 
 
 H 
 
 Law's Wood 
 
 H 
 
 Maidsdyke Bridge 
 
 16 
 
 Kelfield 
 
 i 
 
 Laythorpe 
 
 10 
 
 Major Wood 
 
 13 
 
 Kellwell 
 
 2 
 
 Lea 
 
 6 
 
 Maltby (Legbourne) . . 
 
 8 
 
 Kelsey(N.) .. 
 
 3 
 
 Leadenham 
 
 13 
 
 Maltby-le-Marsh 
 
 I 
 
 Kelsey (S.) 
 
 7 
 
 Leake (both) 
 
 12 
 
 Maltby (Raithby) . . 
 
 8 
 
 Kelstern 
 
 8 
 
 Leasingham . . 
 
 H 
 
 Manby (Brigg) 
 
 2 
 
 Kenwick ^Louth) 
 
 8 
 
 Legbuurne 
 
 8 
 
 Manby (Louth) 
 
 8 
 
Natural History. 
 
 ii 
 
 Manthorpe (Bourn) . . 
 
 16 
 
 Monks' Liberty . . 
 
 6 
 
 Northlands 
 
 10 
 
 Manthorpe (Grantham) 
 
 15 
 
 Monksthorpe . . 
 
 II 
 
 Northholme 
 
 12 
 
 Manton 
 
 2 
 
 Monks' Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Northorpe 
 
 
 Mareham-le-Fen 
 
 10 
 
 Moorby .. .. 
 
 10 
 
 (Donington) 
 
 17 
 
 Mareham-on-the-Hill 
 
 10 
 
 Moorhouses 
 
 10 
 
 Northorpe (Gainsboro') 
 
 5 
 
 Marehills Wood 
 
 3 
 
 Moortown 
 
 7 
 
 Northorpe (Thurlby) . . 
 
 16 
 
 Mare Tail 
 
 1 8 
 
 Morton (Bourn) 
 
 16 
 
 Northspring Wood . . 
 
 7 
 
 Marhams (The) 
 
 14 
 
 Morton (Gainsboro') . . 
 
 5 
 
 Northway Pond 
 
 13 
 
 Markbush Wood 
 
 6 
 
 Morton (Lincoln) 
 
 13 
 
 Norton (Bishop) 
 
 5 
 
 Markby 
 
 ii 
 
 Mosswood . . . . 
 
 i 
 
 Norton Disney 
 
 J 3 
 
 Market Bridge . . 
 
 7 
 
 Moulton . . . . 
 
 18 
 
 Norton Wood 
 
 6 
 
 Market Deeping 
 
 16 
 
 Mown Rakes 
 
 i7 
 
 Nun Gotham. . 
 
 2 
 
 Market Rasen 
 
 7 
 
 Muckton 
 
 8 
 
 Nun Ormsby. . 
 
 8 
 
 Market Stainton 
 
 7 
 
 Mumby 
 
 ii 
 
 
 
 Marlborough. . 
 
 n 
 
 Munthorpe . . 
 
 II 
 
 Oaklands 
 
 4 
 
 Marsh (The) 
 
 18 
 
 
 
 Obthorpe 
 
 16 
 
 Marshall Wood 
 
 ii 
 
 Nab Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Old Don (PI.) 
 
 I 
 
 Marsh Bank 
 
 17 
 
 Natty Cake Wood . . 
 
 4 
 
 Old Orchard 
 
 13 
 
 Marsh Chapel 
 
 9 
 
 Navenby 
 
 13 
 
 Old Park Wood 
 
 s 
 
 Marston 
 
 15 
 
 Neap Houses. . 
 
 2 
 
 Old Pits Wood 
 
 H 
 
 Martin (Blankney) . . 
 
 13 
 
 Nelsam 
 
 16 
 
 Old Wood .. 
 
 13 
 
 Martin (Horncastle) . . 
 
 10 
 
 Nethergate 
 
 I 
 
 Orby 
 
 ii 
 
 Marton 
 
 6 
 
 Neftleham 
 
 6 
 
 Orford (Binbrook) . . 
 
 8 
 
 Masson Hall. . 
 
 12 
 
 Nettleton 
 
 3 
 
 Orford 
 
 
 Marvis Enderby 
 
 10 
 
 Neville Wood 
 
 13 
 
 (Stainton-le-Vale) 
 
 4 
 
 Mawthorpe (Well) . . 
 
 II 
 
 Newball 
 
 7 
 
 Orgarth Hill.. 
 
 8 
 
 Mawthorpe 
 
 
 Newbigg 
 
 i 
 
 Ormsby (N.) 
 
 8 
 
 (Willoughby) 
 
 II 
 
 Newbold 
 
 7 
 
 Ormsby (S.) 
 
 10 
 
 Mayo Hill Clump .. 
 
 7 
 
 Newclose Wood 
 
 3 
 
 Osbournbv 
 
 H 
 
 Meagrim Hall 
 
 ii 
 
 New Decoy Wood . . 
 
 13 
 
 Oseby 
 
 H 
 
 Medlam 
 
 10 
 
 New England . . 
 
 10 
 
 Osgodby (Grantham) . . 
 
 15 
 
 Megtree Hill.. 
 
 13 
 
 New Holland 
 
 3 
 
 Osgodby (Rasen) 
 
 7 
 
 Melton Ross. . 
 
 3 
 
 Newland 
 
 I 
 
 Otby 
 
 7 
 
 Mere 
 
 13 
 
 Newpark Wood 
 
 7 
 
 Outer Knock.. 
 
 ii 
 
 Merrishaw's (PI.) 
 
 14 
 
 Newsham 
 
 3 
 
 Outgate 
 
 12 
 
 Messingham 
 
 2 
 
 Newstead . . . . 
 
 3 
 
 Outhorpe 
 
 15 
 
 Metheringham 
 
 13 
 
 Newton-by-Falk ing- 
 
 
 Owersby (N. & S.) 
 
 7 
 
 Mickleburg 
 
 II 
 
 ham . . . . 
 
 H 
 
 Owmby (Searby) 
 
 3 
 
 Mickleholme 
 
 6 
 
 Newton-by-Toft 
 
 7 
 
 Owmby (Spittal) 
 
 6 
 
 Mickley Wood 
 
 15 
 
 Newton-le-Wold 
 
 8 
 
 Owston . . 
 
 I 
 
 Middle Carr 
 
 4 
 
 Newton-on-Trent 
 
 6 
 
 Oxcomb . . . . 
 
 10 
 
 Middle (PI.) 
 
 13 
 
 New York 
 
 10 
 
 Ozeby 
 
 J 4 
 
 Middle Rasen 
 
 7 
 
 Nineteen Pound 
 
 16 
 
 
 
 Middlethorpe 
 
 10 
 
 Nob Hill 
 
 8 
 
 Paddock (PL) 
 
 13 
 
 Midville 
 
 12 
 
 Nocton 
 
 13 
 
 Panton 
 
 7 
 
 Miles Cross Hill 
 
 II 
 
 Norlands 
 
 10 
 
 Park House 
 
 17 
 
 Miles Gorse Hill . . 
 
 II 
 
 Nurmanby 
 
 
 Parkinson's Wood 
 
 10 
 
 Mill Lane 
 
 7 
 
 (Scunthorpe) 
 
 2 
 
 Partney 
 
 ii 
 
 Millthorpe 
 
 16 
 
 Normanby (Spittal) . . 
 
 6 
 
 Patching Knaves 
 
 H 
 
 Milner Wood 
 
 3 
 
 Normanby (Stow) 
 
 6 
 
 Patman's Wood 
 
 H 
 
 Miningsby 
 
 10 
 
 Normanby-le-Wold . . 
 
 7 
 
 Patstone Wood 
 
 14 
 
 Minting 
 
 7 
 
 Normanton 
 
 15 
 
 Pauline's Garden 
 
 16 
 
 Moat Orchard 
 
 14 
 
 Northbeck 
 
 H 
 
 Paunton (G. and L.) . . 
 
 15 
 
 Mockery Wood 
 
 15 
 
 North Drove (St.) . . 
 
 17 
 
 Peakhill 
 
 18 
 
 Money Bridge 
 
 17 
 
 Northfield 
 
 3 
 
 Peaks Fox Cover 
 
 4 
 
 Monks' Dyke 
 
 8 
 
 North Forty Foot 
 
 
 Peaterills (The) 
 
 8 
 
 Monks' Hall.. 
 
 17 
 
 Bank 
 
 17 
 
 Pelham's Lands 
 
 '7 
 
12 
 
 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 Penny Hill .. 
 
 18 
 
 Ring Wood 
 
 ii 
 
 Scamblesby 
 
 8 
 
 Pepper Gowt Plot . . 
 
 12 
 
 Rippingale 
 
 16 
 
 Scampton . . 
 
 6 
 
 Pickhill Wath 
 
 8 
 
 Risby (High) 
 
 7 
 
 Scarle (N.) 
 
 13 
 
 Pickworth 
 
 15 
 
 Risby (Low) 
 
 2 
 
 Scartho 
 
 4 
 
 Piggin's Gorse 
 
 4 
 
 Risby (Rasen) 
 
 7 
 
 Scawby 
 
 2 
 
 Pilham 
 
 5 
 
 Risby (Roxby) 
 
 2 
 
 Scitler Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Pillar, The (Dunston) 
 
 13 
 
 Risegate 
 
 17 
 
 Scopwick 
 
 13 
 
 Pillow Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Riseholme 
 
 6 
 
 Scothern 
 
 6 
 
 Pinchbeck 
 
 *7 
 
 Rise (PI.) 
 
 J 3 
 
 Scotter 
 
 5 
 
 Podehole 
 
 17 
 
 Riverhead (Ancholme) 
 
 7 
 
 Scotterthorpe (Bourn) 
 
 16 
 
 Pointon 
 
 16 
 
 Riverhead (Lud) 
 
 8 
 
 Scotterthorpe (Brigg) . . 
 
 5 
 
 Poke's Hole 
 
 8 
 
 Robin Wood.. 
 
 H 
 
 Scottlethorpe 
 
 16 
 
 Pondclose Wood 
 
 3 
 
 Roger Sand 
 
 12 
 
 Scotton 
 
 5 
 
 Ponton (G. and L.) . . 
 
 15 
 
 Rookery Clump 
 
 7 
 
 Scott's Wood 
 
 7 
 
 Pool Decoy Wood . . 
 
 12 
 
 Ropsley . . . . 
 
 15 
 
 Scotwater Bridge 
 
 J 3 
 
 Poolham Hall 
 
 10 
 
 Rosedale 
 
 7 
 
 Scot Willoughby 
 
 H 
 
 Poplar Walk 
 
 3 
 
 Roseshole 
 
 10 
 
 Scrafield 
 
 10 
 
 Postland 
 
 16 
 
 Rothwell 
 
 4 
 
 Scrane End 
 
 12 
 
 Potter-Hanworth 
 
 13 
 
 Roughton 
 
 10 
 
 Scredington .. 
 
 !4 
 
 Prim Fen 
 
 8 
 
 Rough Wood.. 
 
 6 
 
 Scremby 
 
 I 1 
 
 Primrose Hill 
 
 3 
 
 Round Holt 
 
 !3 
 
 Scrivelsby 
 
 10 
 
 Pudding Pie Sand . . 
 
 2 
 
 Rowston 
 
 13 
 
 Scrope 
 
 18 
 
 
 
 Roxby 
 
 2 
 
 Scrubbly Wood 
 
 8 
 
 Quadring 
 
 17 
 
 Roxham 
 
 H 
 
 Scrub Close Wood . . 
 
 4 
 
 Quaker's Hill 
 
 II 
 
 Roxholme 
 
 H 
 
 Scrub Hill 
 
 10 
 
 Quarrington . . 
 
 H 
 
 Roxton . . . . 
 
 4 
 
 Scrub Holt 
 
 4 
 
 Quebeck Wood 
 
 6 
 
 Royalty Farm 
 
 17 
 
 Scrubs (The) 
 
 10 
 
 Quick Gate 
 
 16 
 
 Rubbing Pit Cover . . 
 
 8 
 
 Scrub Wood 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 Ruckholme 
 
 3 
 
 Sculler Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Raithby (Maltby) . . 
 
 8 
 
 Ruckland 
 
 8 
 
 Scunthorpe 
 
 2 
 
 Raithby (Spilsby) . . 
 
 10 
 
 Ruskington 
 
 H 
 
 Scupholme 
 
 9 
 
 Rakes Farm 
 
 17 
 
 Ryehill Cover 
 
 3 
 
 Searby 
 
 3 
 
 Ranby 
 
 7 
 
 Ryland 
 
 6 
 
 Seas End 
 
 18 
 
 Rand 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 Sedgebrook 
 
 i5 
 
 Rasen 
 
 7 
 
 St. Anne's Well 
 
 13 
 
 Sempringham 
 
 16 
 
 Rauceby (N. & S.) 
 
 14 
 
 St. Helen's Cover 
 
 3 
 
 Seven Acres Parish . . 
 
 10 
 
 Ravendale (E. & W.) 
 
 4 
 
 St. John's Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Shaw's Decoy 
 
 12 
 
 Raven Moor 
 
 7 
 
 St. Lambert's Farm . . 
 
 18 
 
 ShefTord 
 
 15 
 
 Ravens Bank. . 
 
 18 
 
 Saleby 
 
 ii 
 
 Shillingthorpe Hall . . 
 
 16 
 
 Raventhorpe . . 
 
 2 
 
 Salmonby 
 
 10 
 
 Shire Wood 
 
 10 
 
 Read's Island.. 2 and 3 
 
 Salter 
 
 II 
 
 Short Ferry 
 
 6 
 
 Reasby 
 
 7 
 
 Saltfleet 
 
 9 
 
 Showell Spring 
 
 8 
 
 Redbounv 
 
 5 
 
 Saltfleetby 
 
 9 
 
 ShufY Fen 
 
 17 
 
 Redhill 
 
 5 
 
 SalvinWood .. 
 
 5 
 
 Shurk Wood 
 
 7 
 
 Red Leys 
 
 8 
 
 Samber Wood 
 
 7 
 
 Sibsey 
 
 10 
 
 Redwell Spring 
 
 8 
 
 Sandfield 
 
 ii 
 
 Silk Willoughby 
 
 H 
 
 Reed ings (The) 
 
 10 
 
 Sand toft 
 
 I 
 
 Simon Weir 
 
 17 
 
 Reedmere Holt 
 
 4 
 
 Santon (High) 
 
 2 
 
 Sixhills 
 
 7 
 
 Reepham 
 
 6 
 
 Santon (Low) 
 
 2 
 
 Sixhundreds .. 
 
 H 
 
 Reeve's Cover 
 
 13 
 
 Sapperton 
 
 15 
 
 Skegness 
 
 ii 
 
 Reston.(N. & S.) .. 
 
 8 
 
 Sausthorpe 
 
 II 
 
 Skellingthorpe 
 
 *3 
 
 Revesby 
 
 10 
 
 Sawcliffe (Roxby) . . 
 
 2 
 
 Skelton's Decoy Wd.. 
 
 12 
 
 Riby 
 
 4 
 
 Saxby (Barton) 
 
 3 
 
 Skendleby 
 
 I I 
 
 Ridge Spires 
 
 H 
 
 Saxby (Rasen) 
 
 6 
 
 Skidbrook 
 
 9 
 
 Ridings Wood 
 
 7 
 
 Saxilby . . 6 and 
 
 13 
 
 Skiers Flash 
 
 i 
 
 Rigbolt 
 
 17 
 
 Scabcroft 
 
 2 
 
 Skillington 
 
 15 
 
 Rigsby 
 
 ii 
 
 Scalp (The) 
 
 17 
 
 Skinnand 
 
 '3 
 
Natural History. 
 
 Skirbeck 
 
 12 
 
 Stank (The) 
 
 7 
 
 Swaby 
 
 10 
 
 Skirbeck Quarter 
 
 17 
 
 Stanmore Hill 
 
 8 
 
 Swallow (Caistor) .. 
 
 4 
 
 Skitter Sand 
 
 3 
 
 Stapleford 
 
 13 
 
 Swallow Beck 
 
 *3 
 
 Slackholme 
 
 ii 
 
 Steeping (G. & L.) 
 
 ii 
 
 Swallow Pit . . . . 
 
 16 
 
 Sleaford 
 
 H 
 
 Stenigot 
 
 8 
 
 Swallow Vale 
 
 4 
 
 Sleeken End 
 
 ii 
 
 Stewton 
 
 8 
 
 Swans Holt 
 
 J 3 
 
 Sloothby 
 
 ii 
 
 Stewton Nook ng . . 
 
 8 
 
 Swarby 
 
 14 
 
 Smock Skirts 
 
 16 
 
 Steynby 
 
 i5 
 
 Swaton . . 
 
 14 
 
 Snakeholme 
 
 7 
 
 Stickford 
 
 10 
 
 Swayfield 
 
 15 
 
 Snarford 
 
 7 
 
 Stickney 
 
 10 
 
 Swinderby . . 
 
 J 3 
 
 Snelland 
 
 7 
 
 Stixwould 
 
 7 
 
 Swineshead 
 
 17 
 
 Snipe Dales 
 
 10 
 
 Stockdove Holt 
 
 13 
 
 Swinethorpe . . 
 
 
 Snitter'oy 
 
 5 
 
 Stockhill Wood 
 
 1 1 
 
 Swinhope 
 
 g 
 
 Somerby (Bigby) 
 Somerby (Corringham) 
 
 3 
 
 5 
 
 Stocking Wood 
 Stockwith (E.) 
 
 13 
 
 5 
 
 Swinn Wood 
 Swinestead 
 
 ii 
 15 
 
 S->merby (Old & New) 
 
 i5 
 
 Stoke Furlong Cover. . 
 
 8 
 
 Swinthorpe 
 
 7 
 
 Somercotes (N. & S.) , 
 
 9 
 
 Stoke (N. and S.) . . 
 
 15 
 
 Syston 
 
 15 
 
 Somersby . . 
 
 10 
 
 Stoke Rochford 
 
 15 
 
 
 
 Somerton Castle 
 
 13 
 
 Stonepit Wood 
 
 16 
 
 Tallington 
 
 16 
 
 Sotby 
 
 7 
 
 Storton 
 
 2 
 
 Tame Wood 
 
 ! 
 
 South Dale (PI.) 
 
 10 
 
 Stourton 
 
 7 
 
 Tanvats 
 
 13 
 
 South Fens (Bourn) . . 
 
 16 
 
 Stow (Billingborough) 
 
 H 
 
 Tathwell 
 
 8 
 
 Southgate 
 South-of-the-Witham 
 
 J 4 
 
 Stow (Gainsborough) 
 Stow Park (St.) 
 
 6 
 6 
 
 Tattershall 
 Tealby 
 
 10 
 
 7 
 
 (the parish) 
 
 10 
 
 Stowe 
 
 16 
 
 Temple Aslackby 
 
 16 
 
 Southorpe 
 
 5 
 
 Stragglethorpe . . 
 
 13 
 
 Temple Bellwood 
 
 i 
 
 Southrey . . . . 
 
 7 
 
 Stroxton 
 
 i5 
 
 Temple Bluer 
 
 13 
 
 Southrow 
 
 7 
 
 Stroy Wood 
 
 15 
 
 Temple Garth 
 
 5 
 
 Southwood Malting . . 
 
 15 
 
 Strubby (Woodthorpe) 
 
 ii 
 
 Temple High Grange 
 
 13 
 
 Spalding 
 
 18 
 
 Strubby (Wragby) 
 
 7 
 
 Temple Hill 
 
 15 
 
 Spanby 
 
 H 
 
 Strugg's Hill.. 
 
 17 
 
 Tennison's Holt 
 
 4 
 
 Sparrow Gorse 
 
 15 
 
 Strunch Wood 
 
 13 
 
 Tesselated Pavement . . 
 
 H 
 
 Speezeland . . . . 
 
 5 
 
 Stubber Hill 
 
 i5 
 
 Tetford 
 
 10 
 
 Spellow Hills 
 
 ii 
 
 Stubton 
 
 15 
 
 Tetley 
 
 i 
 
 Spilsby 
 
 ii 
 
 Sturgate . . . . 
 
 2 
 
 Tetney 
 
 9 
 
 Spittal 
 
 5 
 
 Sturton (G. and L.) . . 
 
 7 
 
 Thealby 
 
 2 
 
 Spittlegate . . 
 
 15 
 
 Sturton Harding 
 
 7 
 
 Theddlethorpe (both) 
 
 9 
 
 Spottle Hill 
 
 8 
 
 Sturton (Scawby) 
 
 2 
 
 Thick Thorn.. 
 
 7 
 
 Spreckle Field 
 
 H 
 
 Sturton (Stow) 
 
 6 
 
 Thimbleby 
 
 10 
 
 Spridlington 
 
 6 
 
 Sudbrook (Grantham) 
 
 i5 
 
 Thirkington Wood . . 
 
 i3 
 
 Springfield Cover 
 
 2 
 
 Sudbrooke (Wragby).. 
 
 6 
 
 Thomas Wood 
 
 3 
 
 Springs (The) 
 
 II 
 
 Sudthorpe 
 
 i3 
 
 Thonock . . 
 
 5 
 
 Springthorpe 
 
 5 
 
 Summer Castle 
 
 6 
 
 Thoresby (N.) 
 
 8 
 
 Square Wood . . . . 
 
 7 
 
 Summer Ings 
 
 9 
 
 Thoresby (S.) 
 
 ii 
 
 Stackforth Hill 
 
 4 
 
 Sunny Fleet Eau 
 
 9 
 
 Thoresthorpe . . . . 
 
 ii 
 
 Stain 
 
 ii 
 
 Surfleet 
 
 17 
 
 Thoresway 
 
 4 
 
 Stainfield (Hacconby) 
 
 16 
 
 Susworth 
 
 5 
 
 Thorganby 
 
 4 
 
 Stainfield (Wragby) . . 
 
 7 
 
 Sutterby 
 
 ii 
 
 Thorn Bush 
 
 8 
 
 Stainsby 
 
 15 
 
 Sutterton 
 
 17 
 
 Thornholme 
 
 2 
 
 Stainton (Langworth) 
 
 7 
 
 Sutton (Beckingham) 
 
 13 
 
 Thornton Abbey (St.) 
 
 3 
 
 Stainton-le-Hole . . 
 
 4 
 
 Sutton Fen Allotment 
 
 14 
 
 Thornton Curtis 
 
 3 
 
 Stainton-le-Vale 
 
 4 
 
 Sutton-in-the-Marsh. . 
 
 ii 
 
 Thornton (Horncustle) 
 
 10 
 
 Stainton (Market) 
 
 7 
 
 Sutton (Long) 
 
 18 
 
 Thornton-le-Fen 
 
 10 
 
 Stainwith 
 
 IS 
 
 Sutton-on-Sea 
 
 ii 
 
 Thornton-le -Moor . . 
 
 7 
 
 Stallingborough . . 
 
 4 
 
 Sutton St. James 
 
 18 
 
 Thorpe (E. and W.) . . 
 
 6 
 
 Stamford 
 
 16 
 
 Sutton St. Mary 
 
 18 
 
 Thorpe-in-the-Fallows 
 
 6 
 
 Stane .. 
 
 ii 
 
 Sutton St. Nicholas . . 
 
 18 
 
 Thorpe Latimer 
 
 H 
 
Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 Thorpe-on-the-Hill 
 Thorpe St. Peter 
 Thorpe (Tattershall) 
 Thorpe (The) . . 
 Thorpe Tilney 
 Threckingham 
 Thrunscoe 
 Thurlby (Alford) 
 Thurlby (Bourn) 
 Thurlby (Lincoln) 
 Thurlby Wood 
 Tiger Holt . . 
 Tillbridge Lane 
 Tilney (Thorpe) 
 Timberland . . 
 Toft (Bourn) . . 
 Toft (Newton) 
 Toft Hill 
 Tofts (The) . . 
 Tongue End . . 
 Top Barf Wood 
 Top Cover . . 
 Torksey 
 
 Torrington (E. & W 
 Tothby 
 Tothill 
 
 Tower Moor. . 
 Towes (G. and L.) 
 Towsers End . . 
 Toynton (All Saints) 
 Toynton (High) 
 Toynton (Low) 
 Toynton St. Peter 
 Troy Wood . . 
 Trusthorpe . . 
 Tumby 
 
 Tumman's Wood 
 Tupholme 
 Tupholme Priory 
 Turf Carr 
 Turpits (PI.) . . 
 Tuttle Rampier 
 Twenty (St.).. 
 Twigmoor 
 Twyford 
 Tydd (both) .. 
 Tytton Hall . . 
 
 Uckerby 
 Uffington 
 Ulceby (Alford) 
 Ulceby (Barton) 
 Upperthorpe . . 
 Upton 
 Usselby 
 Utterby 
 
 13 Waddingham.. 
 ii Waddington .. 
 10 Waddingworth 
 8 Wainfleet (all) 
 
 Wainham Beck 
 
 Waith 
 
 Walcot (Alkborough) 
 
 Walcot (Falkingham) 
 
 Walcott (Billinghay) . . 
 
 Walesby 
 
 Walkerith 
 
 Walks (The) 
 
 Walmsgate 
 
 Waltham 
 
 Warfen Ings 
 
 Warmsley Holt 
 
 Warren Lodge Wood 
 
 Wash Gould 
 
 Washingborough 
 
 13 
 
 14 
 
 4 
 
 ii 
 
 16 
 
 13 
 
 6 
 
 6 
 
 6 
 13 
 13 
 16 
 
 7 
 10 
 
 12 
 
 1 6 Washingdales Wood 
 13 Waterloo 
 
 13 
 
 6 
 
 7 
 ii 
 1 1 
 
 10 
 
 Waterloo Wood 
 
 Water Park . . 
 
 Waterside 
 
 Waythe 
 
 Weavers' Lodge 
 
 Weelsby 
 
 Welbourn . . 
 
 Welby 
 
 Well 
 
 Welhams 
 
 Well Heads . . 
 
 Wellingore . . 
 
 Wellow 
 
 Wellsdale Bottom 
 
 Well Vale . . 
 
 Welton-in-the-Marsh 
 
 Welton-le-Wold 
 
 7 
 10 
 
 IO 
 10 
 
 II 
 
 10 
 
 II 
 
 10 
 
 13 
 
 7 
 
 10 Welton (Lincoln) 
 
 1 Welton Wood 
 
 1 1 Wenghale 
 
 9 Westborough . . 
 
 1 6 Westby 
 
 2 West Carr . . 
 
 15 West End 
 1 8 West Fen 
 
 1 7 Westgate 
 Westhorpe 
 
 5 Westlaby 
 
 1 6 West Mark Knock 
 II Westmere Creek 
 
 3 Weston 
 
 I Westville 
 
 6 West Wood . . 
 
 7 West Woodside 
 
 8 Whaplode .. 
 Wharton 
 
 5 Whisby .. ..13 
 
 13 White Hall Wood .. 10 
 
 7 White Pit .. .. 10 
 
 12 White Wood.. .. 5 
 
 13 Whitton .. ..2 
 
 8 Wickenby .. . . 7 
 
 2 Wickham .. .. 18 
 1 6 Wideham .. ..13 
 14. Wigtoft .. ..17 
 
 7 Wildmore . . . . 10 
 
 5 Wildsworth . . 5 
 
 9 Wilksby .. ,.io 
 
 8 Willingham (Cherry) 6 
 4 Willingham (N. & S.) 7 
 
 9 Willingham (Stow) . . 6 
 8 Willoughby (Alford).. ii 
 
 15 Willoughby (Scot) .. 14 
 
 18 Willoughby (Silk) .. 14 
 
 13 Willoughby (West) .. 15 
 
 4 Willoughton . . 5 
 
 13 Wilsford . . . . 14 
 
 10 Wilsthorpe .. .. 16 
 8 Winceby . . . . 10 
 
 14 Windle Bridge .. 5 
 8 Winghale . . . . 7 
 
 14 Wingland (Central) .. 18 
 4 Winsoever .. .. 18 
 
 13 Winteringham .. 2 
 
 15 Winterton . . 2 
 
 1 1 Winthorpe . . . . 1 1 
 
 3 Wirehill .. ..7 
 
 16 Wisby .. ..13 
 1 3 Wispington . . 7 
 
 4 Witham (N. & S.) ..15 
 8 Witham-on-the-Hill.. 16 
 
 n Withcall .. ..8 
 
 ii Withern .. .. n 
 
 8 Woldale Trees .. 8 
 
 6 Wold Newton . . 8 
 ii Wood Enderby .. 10 
 
 7 Wood Nook .. ..15 
 15 Woodhall .. ..10 
 15 Woodhall Spa .. 10 
 
 I Woodhouse . . i 
 
 17 Woodside . . . . 10 
 10 Woodthorpe .. .. n 
 
 i Woolfits (PI.) .. 13 
 
 17 Woolsthorpe .. . . 15 
 7 Wootton . . 3 
 
 1 8 Worlaby (Brigg) .. 3 
 1 8 Worlaby (Louth) .. 10 
 18 Wothorpe .. .. 16 
 10 Wragby .. 7 
 13 Wragholme .. ..9 
 
 i Wrangle .. .. 12 
 
 18 Wrawby .. ..3 
 
 5 Wrongsome Holt .. 13 
 
Natural History. 15 
 
 Wroot .. ..i Wykeham (E. & W.) 8 Yaddlethorpe. . .. 2 
 
 Wyberton .. 10 and 17 Wykeham (Spalding) 18 Yarborough .. ..8 
 
 Wyche Drain .. n Wykes .. . . 17 Yarborough Camp .. 3 
 
 Wyham .. ..8 Wyville .. -.15 Yawthorpe .. ..5 
 
 LINCOLNSHIRE NATURAL HISTORY. 
 
 By JOHN CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U. 
 Great Cotes R.S.O., Lincolnshire. 
 
 IN rising to address you on this occasion, 1 am not 
 unmindful of the fact that I have been elected first 
 President of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, and I 
 wish now, in the first place, to thank you for having placed 
 me in so honourable a position. The object of our Society is 
 intended to bring about a thorough and systematic investigation 
 of the Natural History capabilities of the county, carried on 
 year by year, a publication, if possible, from time to time, of 
 the results, and an endeavour to create amongst all classes of 
 the population an intelligent interest and correct appreciation 
 of the various natural phenomena which surround them. 
 
 It is somewhat of a reflection on this great county that so 
 little has been done hitherto for the cause of science ; this, 
 indeed, becomes painfully apparent when we consider the 
 excellent results shown by the enterprising naturalists in the 
 two neighbouring counties of Norfolk and Yorkshire. In the 
 former, the " Norfolk and Norwich Naturalists' Society " was 
 formed in 1870, and published their first report ; the number 
 of members is now 250. The " Yorkshire Naturalists' 
 Union" came into existence previous to 1883, and the number 
 of its members is nearly 600. Both these, like our own, had 
 small beginnings ; they have, however, succeeded in extending 
 the knowledge of local Natural History. In looking forward 
 to the future, I can see no reason whatever to think that our 
 own Union will not be equally successful, and certainly in this 
 great and diversified county it will never lack material to work 
 on or fall short in variety and interest of subjects. 
 
 So far, our efforts have been individual ones, and isolated and 
 spasmodic : now, as a united band and numbering specialists 
 
 * An address, delivered at Lincoln, May 24th, 1894, to the Lincolnshire 
 Naturalists' Union, by the First President (1893). 
 
1 6 "Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 in various branches, we shall become a representative body 
 having a local habitation and name, and have much greater 
 facilities for an exchange of opinion and for the proper 
 collection and diffusion of facts. It must not, however, 
 altogether be inferred that nothing has hitherto been done by 
 the sons of Lincolnshire for the increase of physical science; 
 indeed, we have just cause of pride to see in our roll of honour 
 such names as Isaac Newton, of Woolsthorpe ; Matthew- 
 Flinders, of Donington ; John Franklin, of Spilsby ; Joseph 
 Banks, of Revesby Abbey ; and more recently, Charles 
 Anderson, of Lea. Of those now living, either within or 
 without our boundaries, who are doing good work, it would be 
 invidious to make direct personal mention ; sufficient is it to say 
 that we include amongst ourselves all that is both necessary 
 and capable for making this Union a great and a lasting 
 success. 
 
 Lincolnshire is the second largest county in England, its 
 total length being 75 miles by 45 in breadth, and containing 
 1,783,769 acres, 85 per cent, under cultivation. The surface 
 presents a very considerable diversity of character, sea-coast, 
 marsh, wold, moor, heath and fen, and some very considerable 
 woodlands with much pleasant and typical scenery without 
 anywhere rising into the grand and strikingly picturesque. 
 
 The county is not readily divided into what are called faunal 
 areas that is, districts more or less compact, with well-defined 
 boundaries, between which one or the other faunal dis- 
 tinctions can be clearly established. In taking a general 
 survey of the whole area it appears capable of being irregularly 
 divided into at least six fairly marked districts ; these are 
 I. The Marsh and Middle Marsh which is the whole of 
 the great alluvial flat which lies between the east coast 
 and the foot of the chalk wolds, as far as Spilsby. 
 II. The Fens south of Spilsby and Wainfleet and east of 
 Billinghay, Heckington, Bourn, and Market Deeping, 
 with a branch extending westward of the Witham to 
 Lincoln. 
 
 III. The Chalk Wolds. 
 
 IV. The Heath an irregular district, partly on the oolite 
 and partly on the lias, and not easily defined. In its more 
 southern portion it is split into two arms by the Witham 
 valley. It runs from S.E. to N.W., and includes the 
 heaths near Woodhall Spa, the moorland near Market 
 Rasen and below Caistor, and the commons and rabbit- 
 
Natural History. 17 
 
 warrens between Gainsboro' and Frodingham, in the 
 
 north-west of the county. 
 V. A portion of Kesteven, south of Grantham and east of 
 
 Belvoir, of which Corby is about the centre, well-wooded, 
 
 picturesque, and highly cultivated, and containing noble 
 
 parks and country seats. 
 VI. The Isle of Axholme, formerly moor, bog, and widely 
 
 extending heath and low firwood, but now 50,000 acres 
 
 of rich warp, and bounded to the north-west by the great 
 
 level of Thome waste in Yorkshire. 
 
 It must be clearly understood, however, that these divisions 
 are only approximate, and that with our present knowledge no 
 absolutely hard and fast lines can be laid down defining faunal 
 areas, and that there are yet portions of the county which it is 
 difficult to range under any of these divisions. I have en- 
 deavoured to define roughly six fairly marked districts within 
 the boundaries of Lincolnshire, and I shall now briefly enter 
 more fully into the physical peculiarities of each, and endeavour 
 to show that, notwithstanding the great changes which have 
 taken place, these still possess attractions for the naturalist. I 
 would also mention those special matters which require more 
 careful working out. 
 
 In the Marsh and Middle Marsh is included the whole of 
 the low-lying plain between the foot of the chalk wolds and 
 the sea, including the sea-coast itself and all its wide attractions. 
 The chief interest of this district rests in its ornithology more 
 particularly in the spring and autumn and in connection with 
 the migration of birds. The total number of species which 
 can fairly be admitted at the present time into the Lincolnshire 
 avifauna is somewhat doubtful. In the Humber district up to 
 this date I have been able to record 290. This compares 
 favourably with the Norfolk list of 293, and Yorkshire with 
 310. With our present knowledge as to the frequency with 
 which rare birds turn up during the period of migration, far 
 out of their ordinary route, I think we should attach very little 
 importance to the increase of any local or county list by the 
 addition of mere wanderers. The record of such is interesting 
 as showing how far some birds get driven out of their normal 
 course. The chief additions to the Humber district in late 
 years have come from Spurn, but there is no reason why 
 equally good results should not be obtained from our own 
 coast. 
 
 Vol. 5, No. 34, Lines. N. & >. B 
 
 Nat. Hist. Sect. 
 
1 8 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 The flora of the marshes and the sea-coast is a very 
 attractive and interesting one, and our knowledge of the same, 
 as well as of Lincolnshire botany generally, has been greatly 
 increased by the researches of the Rev. W. Fowler, of 
 Liversedge ; Dr. F. Arnold Lees, of Harrogate ; the Rev. 
 Adrian Wood ruffe- Peacock ; Mr. F. M. Burton ; Mr. O. 
 Thimbleby, of Spilsby, and others. 
 
 The collection of facl:s in connection with this district 
 commenced as far back as 1590, and the great naturalists of 
 former days Gerarde, Ray, Dr. Martin Lister, and Sir Joseph 
 Banks have each in turn visited and investigated its floral 
 treasures. 
 
 Before leaving this portion of the county I should like to 
 call attention to the marine mammalia, the seals, and various 
 forms of whale, grampus, porpoise, and dolphin. Although in 
 recent years considerable additions have been made to our local 
 list, we still require much further knowledge and more scientific 
 investigations. The capture of a seal or the stranding of a 
 whale and such occurrences are by no means unfrequent 
 should at once be noted, and an examination carried out on 
 the spot, careful notes and measurements made, the skull, at 
 least preserved, and where possible a photograph taken before 
 the carcase is removed. In this branch of zoology, as well as 
 ornithology, the official representative of our Vertebrate Section, 
 Mr. G. H. Caton Haigh, has done some excellent work. 
 There is, so far as I know, no list of marine fish ; the 
 colle&ion of fa&s in connection with these and with Marine 
 Zoology generally, might well be taken up by those members 
 who live near or have most frequent access to the coast. The 
 Entomology, more particularly in this district the Aquatic- 
 entomology, Conchology, and Micro-zoology and Botany, also 
 present wide fields for close and careful study. In the former 
 we have in the Rev. Canon W. W. Fowler, a member whose 
 reputation as an entomologist is not only local and national, 
 but world-wide. We must not fail to recognise, also, the good 
 services rendered by Mr. H. W. Kew, formerly of Louth, and 
 Mr. James Eardley Mason, of Alford. 
 
 There is no other faunal area in Lincolnshire where the old 
 glories have so entirely vanished as in the fenland, formerly a 
 vast level of peat-moor, morass and bog, with league beyond 
 league of shallow mere, interspersed with a vast growth of reed 
 and bull rush and various water-loving plants, and on the drier 
 portion deep sedge and doubtless some rich pasturage, with 
 
Natural History. 19 
 
 thickets of sallow, willow, birch, and sweet-gale, which before 
 the dawn of history had usurped the place of oak, Scotch fir, 
 and yew. The whole of this vast level was a paradise for wild 
 creatures, beast, bird, and fish, and predominate over all, upon 
 the peat-stained waters of the shallow lagoons floated primitive 
 man in a canoe dug out from a single tree, and using weapons 
 tipped with fractured flint or fish-bone. 
 
 Of the natural treasures of the old fenland we have but 
 scant record. Unfortunately our forefathers, when they did 
 write, cared little for depicting their natural every-day 
 surroundings, yet we must be thankful for the few precious 
 records which have come down to us of those olden times, and 
 enable us to form some idea of the extreme richness of the Fen 
 fauna and flora, from the Liber Ellensis ; the Chronicles of 
 Crowland ; and the writings of William of Malmsbury (1200); 
 Thomas Fuller j Camden's Britannia (Gough's edition) ; and 
 the naturalists Pennant, Ray, and Colonel Montagu; also the 
 quaint verses left by Michael Drayton in the Polyolbion ; and 
 by " Antiquary Hall," of Llyn, in the doggerel rhymes 
 depicting a fenman's daily life. 
 
 One aim of our Society should be the collection of any scrap, 
 oral or written, in connection with physical-archaeology, and 
 any who have opportunities of inspecting old deeds, letters, and 
 family account books, will do good service by extracting any 
 small matter which directly or indirectly bears on this subject. 
 Such entries were, no doubt, considered most trivial by the 
 original writers, but in the light of the present day they are of 
 much interest and importance. To cite one or two instances 
 alone, how little historical record is left of the Great Bustard 
 in Lincolnshire. The late Sir Charles Anderson, of Lea, in 
 1874, sent me extracts from an old account book kept by 
 Charles Anderson, at Broughton, near Brigg, from 1669 to 
 1673 :~ 
 
 " 1670, September 26 To John Hall, brought curlew - is. 
 October 23 Item to Thos. Beckett for killing 
 
 two Bustards - 2s. 
 
 Then there is a letter from the great Dr. Johnson, dated 
 January gth, 1758, to his friend, Bennet Langton of Langton, 
 acknowledging the receiving a parcel of game, amongst other 
 things a bustard which he gave to Dr. Lawrence. 
 
 A letter written to myself by the Rev. Edward Elmhirst, 
 November 29th, 1886, containing personal recollections of 
 Lincolnshire ornithology, also his communication made to the 
 
2O Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 Field newspaper, November 28th, 1886, concerning the former 
 nesting of the Hen Harriers in the moors near Market Rasen, 
 are amongst the most valuable contributions to the records of 
 county natural history in recent years. 
 
 Of infinite interest also, as throwing light on the past, 
 would be the account books and records of captures made in 
 the duck-decoys at one period so common in the marsh and 
 fen. We have never met with more than one decoy book, 
 namely, the well-kept register of the Ashby Decoy, near Brigg, 
 worked successfully for so many years by Captain Healey. 
 
 So marvellously abundant were wildfowl before the fens were 
 drained that we are told a flock of wild ducks has been 
 observed passing along from the north and north-east into the 
 east fen, in a continuous stream for eight hours together. 
 
 Our next faunal area is very distinct and well-marked the 
 Chalk Wolds in its greatest length from Barton-on-Humber 
 to Burgh, fifty- two miles, and the greatest breadth near 
 Market Rasen, fourteen miles ; and the highest point of the 
 range, 549 ft., is near Normanby Clump, and this is the 
 highest land in the county. Before the general enclosure at 
 the commencement of the present century the wold was a wild 
 and open region, a rolling upland, more or less intersected by 
 deep valleys. These rounded hills were covered with heather 
 and heaths, coarse rough grasses, like the barren brome, and 
 Aria ctespitosa the tufted hair-grass, the most graceful if the 
 most useless of all, with thousands of acres together of gorse, 
 and ancient thorns in clumps and single. It was a district 
 most admirably fitted to the habits of that noble bird the Great 
 Bustard, and the Stone Curlew, the former probably becoming 
 nearly extinct before the commencement of the century, and 
 the latter still holding its own a few pairs annually nesting, 
 but not now on the wold. 
 
 During the last quarter of the century much good work has 
 been done with Lincolnshire geology, the most important 
 reports being in connection with the extension of the Rhcetic 
 beds, near Gainsborough, by Mr. F. M. Burton, also his 
 examination of these and the Keuper Sandstones in the same 
 district; Professor Judd's paper on the Neocomian strata; 
 Professor Morris on some Oolite sections ; Canon J. E. Cross 
 on Lincolnshire Oolites and Lias ; also Mr. Clement Reid's 
 work in connection with the new Geological Survey amongst 
 the boulder-clays, inter-glacial beds, marine gravels, post glacial 
 beds and alluvium of Northern Lincolnshire. 
 
Natural History. 21 
 
 In connection with our Geological section I would suggest 
 the appointment of a boulder committee, whose object will be 
 to take observations relative to the erratic or ice-borne blocks 
 of Lincolnshire, their character, position, size, origin and 
 height above the sea. This to be carried out on the same 
 lines generally as those adopted by the boulder committee of 
 the British Association. 
 
 The two distinct ranges of chalk and oolite which run from 
 south to north of the county form elevated tracts, which in 
 their original condition were heath and moorland, and almost 
 destitute of timber trees. Along the flanks of these hills and 
 in the intervening low country stretched the deep forests of 
 Kesteven and Lindsey the Bruneswald oak, ash, elm, beech, 
 fir, holly, yew, and hazel, sufficient remains existing in some 
 of our oldest woodlands to recall the ancient glories of the 
 land. No better "happy hunting grounds" remain to reward 
 the naturalist than these comparatively undisturbed areas. 
 Here in 1884 an example of the old British wild cat (Fells 
 catus] was taken, and the pine marten (Martes abietum] can 
 scarcely yet be extinct j bones of red deer, Bos longifrons, 
 wolf, wild boar, and beavers, have been found in the becks. 
 We have as yet no list of Lincolnshire mammals, and I shall 
 be greatly indebted to any of our members who will enable me 
 to complete a list, which is already partially prepared, with 
 notes from their respective districts. 
 
 The heath is another most charming faunal area, from the 
 fact that some few scattered portions are still in their primitive 
 condition, as in the neighbourhood of Woodhall Spa and the 
 warrens and commons of Scotton, Manton, Twigmoor, Crosby 
 and Brumby, in the north-east. The Ermin Street, that great 
 military highway of the Romans, which passed through the 
 gates of their chief fortress, Lincoln, followed the ridge of the 
 oolite from south to north to east and west of this was a 
 wide, open and continuous stretch of elevated tableland, the 
 road running through leagues of purple heather, where the 
 pink and purple shading of the common and cross-leaved 
 heaths intermingled with the yellow blooms of the petty whin 
 and sheets of pale blue hairbell, and the darker blue gentian 
 (Qentiana pneumonanthe). A glorious land it was to cross in 
 those days : the long, lone, level line of a well-kept war path, 
 stretching like a ribbon over the heath, and marked at short 
 intervals with high stones or posts as a guiding line in fog or 
 snow, in a solitude but rarely broken, except by the footfall of 
 
22 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 the legionaries and the dismal creakings of the baggage trains 
 and provision carts, while above, under the blue heaven, the 
 lark carolled as it does now, and the plaint of the golden plover 
 sounded sweet from off the moorlands. 
 
 The north-east corner of Lincolnshire, notwithstanding 
 recent changes and trade encroachments, is still rich in animal 
 and plant life, and presents a wide field for future research. 
 Further westward, and beyond the Trent, lies the Isle of 
 Axholme ; some portion adjoining the great deer chase of 
 Hatfield and Lindholme, in Yorkshire, was once the hunting- 
 ground of English kings. We must turn to the pages of 
 historians, such as Leland, De la Pryme, Dr. Stonehouse and 
 others if we wish to learn its ancient condition before the 
 enterprise of the Dutchman Vermuyden transformed its wastes 
 and swamps and demon-haunted solitudes into fertile lands, and 
 at the same time banished its indigenous flora and fauna. In 
 fact, the entire district, including Thorne waste, beyond our 
 border, and portions also east of Trent, resembled the 
 " tundras " of Lapland and northern Asia, and, like these, 
 was the breeding-home of innumerable wildfowl and waders. 
 Most suggestive of a not remote Arctic character are the 
 lingering of such plants as Selaginella selaginoides, Lycopodium 
 alpinum, recently discovered by the Rev. W. Fowler, also 
 Andromeda polifolia, and Empetrum nigrum, on Thorne waste, 
 Myrica gale, generally, and the impressions of leaves of some 
 Arctic willow in the laminated silts and peaty alluviums. 
 
 Of our sixth district, that south of Grantham and east of 
 Belvoir, I can tell you little, for excepting in passing through 
 by rail, it is a terra incognita to me. The chief attraction is 
 Grimsthorpe Park, which contains many fine oaks, hornbeams 
 and hawthorns, and a small herd of red deer interesting as the 
 only one left in the county, and descendants of those indigenous 
 deer which at one period wandered wild, free and unrestricted 
 through the length and breadth of the land. 
 
 It is customary on these occasions briefly to notice the work 
 done by the Union during the President's year of office. Two 
 meetings have been held, the first at Mablethorpe, on June 
 1 2th, about thirty attending, and Professor L. C. Miall, F.R.S., 
 of the Yorkshire College, presiding. The vertebrate section 
 (ornithology) was, perhaps, the most successful. The full 
 report of this very interesting meeting will be found in " The 
 Naturalist " for August and September, this year. 
 
Natural History. 23 
 
 The Rev. C. W. Whistler found the Natterjack toad (Bufo 
 calamlta] on the sand-hills. This is an interesting reptile and 
 very different from the common toad. It is a light yellow 
 colour, and never leaps nor does it crawl, its progression being 
 more like a run. This toad was first discovered near Revesby 
 Abbey, by Sir Joseph Banks, who made it known to the 
 naturalist Pennant. Its distribution is somewhat remarkable, 
 for it is found not only in England, but also in localities in 
 Ireland, where the common species is unknown. All the Irish 
 snakes and toads, as you know, were turned into stone by St. 
 Patrick, but this seems to have escaped the wrath of the Saint. 
 The inference is that the Natterjack succeeded in reaching 
 Ireland before that distressful isle had become severed from 
 Great Britain, which the common toad did not do, so we must 
 consider the former is the older immigrant of the two ; 
 perhaps its particular mode of progress afforded better and 
 more favourable facilities for getting over the ground. 
 
 In our investigations into the natural history of this county, 
 we must remember that at no very distant period Lincolnshire 
 was part of the mainland of Europe, and there was no North 
 Sea as we know it now, and we must therefore expect to find 
 close affinity between the fauna and flora on both sides of the 
 water. Once, no doubt, a great central river, whose debouchure 
 was over the Dogger Bank, received the waters of the rivers 
 from each side. The North Sea, if you will take the trouble 
 to look at Mr. Olsen's map, is little more than a great plain 
 covered by shallow water ; off the north-east coast of England 
 it is twenty fathoms, and as we go south even this depth is 
 exceptional. The North Sea contains some remarkable 
 depressions, one of which, the Silver Pit, is a narrow submarine 
 valley fifty fathoms in depth, forty miles off the north-east 
 coast of Lincolnshire. The intrusion of this great water, the 
 North Sea, between ourselves and the continent may have been 
 very rapid, for when the chalk barrier, which presumably at 
 one time extended eastward from Flamboro' Head (cropping 
 out again round Heligoland), was once breached and the 
 central river taken in flank, there is no reason why the great 
 level plain of intermediate Lincolnshire should not have been 
 submerged in a period even of a few days. 
 
 The second meeting was at Woodhall Spa, on August yth, 
 with a very fair attendance of members, who were taken over 
 the ground by the Rev. J. Conway Walter. The day was 
 very hot, scarcely any birds were seen and very few insects 
 
24 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 taken. The botanical section was, however, most successful, 
 and several rare plants were found, the most interesting, 
 perhaps, being the lovely dark blue gentian, in damp places on 
 the moor. I must take this opportunity of publicly expressing 
 the thanks of the Union to our Secretary, Mr. Walter F. 
 Baker, whose untiring and intelligent exertions and great 
 aptitude for organisation have done so much in setting us in 
 motion and making the Union a success. 
 
 Before closing these remarks as we are now engaged in 
 rocking the cradle of the Union I should like to say a few 
 words as to the possibilities of a future, and the taking up of a 
 useful position. There is no other county in England in 
 which the fauna and flora have so greatly altered ; large 
 numbers of birds, insects and plants have been altogether 
 destroyed, or, in the former case, driven away by enclosure and 
 drainage. It becomes therefore an imperative duty that we 
 should use our best endeavours to preserve what is left and to 
 take care that our scarcer mammals, nesting birds and surviving 
 plants are not ruthlessly destroyed and unnecessarily banished. 
 There is no sadder chapter to read than that on " Extermi- 
 nation," in Professor Newton's recently published Part I. of 
 "A Dictionary of Birds ;" it is a record of a destruction and 
 waste of life in this fair world, brought about directly or 
 indirectly by the ignorance, avarice, and greed of civilised man, 
 assisted in late years by that rage for wearing feathers that now 
 and again seizes civilised women. 
 
 Much might be accomplished if we could give our people an 
 intelligent knowledge of their natural surroundings and an 
 interest in their preservation. It would be a step in the right 
 direction if object lessons were occasionally given in our village 
 schools in connection with Natural History, illustrated from 
 those easily accessible raw materials of observation in the 
 neighbourhood, which would best illustrate the every-day life 
 of plants and animals. 
 
 I fear there is no class of men who, considering the very 
 favourable opportunities they have, are so proverbially ignorant 
 of the economy of out-door life as the gamekeepers, and so 
 systematically destroy what it is often their best interest to 
 preserve. Agriculturists, too, as a class, with but few 
 exceptions, are deplorably indifferent to, and ignorant of, the 
 most elementary principles of Natural Science. They care 
 for none of these things. In looking back, however, I am 
 proud to admit many genuine services rendered by agricultural 
 
Natural History. 25 
 
 labourers, who have walked miles to bring some curious object, 
 or to tell of some strange beast or bird seen during their daily 
 toil. 
 
 Unfortunately, in England the inculcation of scientific 
 knowledge is left almost entirely to private enterprise and in 
 the hands of such societies as ours. This is not the case in 
 foreign states, and notably so in America, where neither pains 
 nor expense are spared in instructing the people. I have now 
 before me a volume, most beautifully illustrated, recently 
 published and issued by the American Government Department 
 of Agriculture, on " The Hawks and Owls of the United 
 States." This book has been scattered wholesale, as a free 
 gift, over the land, and is intended to teach the American 
 farmer the great usefulness of birds of prey, and the good 
 which, as a rule, they confer upon him. Surely we have had 
 object lessons sufficient to bring this matter forcibly home to 
 us in that plague of field voles which has laid waste some of 
 the great sheep farms beyond the border, and the plague of 
 rats in Lincolnshire. 
 
 It is hoped that in time we shall get a museum in Lincoln. 
 The want of this has been the cause of our losing many art 
 treasures, antiquities, and natural history specimens. We have 
 lost the inimitable pictures of De Wint, the Franklin relics, 
 and many other things which ought not to have left the 
 county. 
 
 A word on our own individual and special duties as 
 naturalists ; and here I cannot do better than quote the words 
 of a late Bishop of Oxford the great Bishop Wilberforce. 
 He says : 
 
 u A good practical naturalist must be a good observer ; and 
 how many qualities are required to make up a good observer ? 
 Attention, patience, quickness to seize separate fails, discrim- 
 ination to keep them unconfused, readiness to combine them, 
 and rapidity and yet slowness of induction ; above all, perfect 
 fidelity, which can be seduced neither by the enticements of a 
 favourite theory nor by the temptation to see a little more than 
 actually happens in some passing drama." 
 
 In conclusion, it is gratifying to find that there is at least an 
 awakening and uprising on these matters in Lincolnshire, and 
 that the dry bones are moving. Let us trust that this Union 
 a real Union of hearts will inaugurate a new era. The most 
 wonderful fadfc in connection with the last half century has 
 been the progress of science. Everywhere amongst the 
 
26 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 educated and thoughtful there is a striving to search and probe 
 downwards into the very sources and origin of all life not 
 alone that we may get a deeper insight into the workings of 
 nature, but to find the key to our own position in connection 
 with the life which is everywhere about us. Men of science 
 are diligently engaged in painfully searching backwards into 
 the infinity of the past, and, considering the results already 
 attained, I think we can look forward with hope to the infinity 
 of the future. Yet, I think, when science has spoken her last 
 word, we shall still have to confess, in the words of Lincoln- 
 shire's noblest son, we are but 
 
 " An infant crying in the night : 
 An infant crying for the light : 
 And with no language but a cry." 
 
 THE LINCOLNSHIRE BOULDER 
 COMMITTEE. 
 
 A COMMITTEE has been appointed by the L. N. U. for 
 the purpose of recording all the facts they can collect 
 concerning the erratics left by the great ice sheet that 
 once overspread the county. It consists of the following 
 members : F. M. Burton, F.G.S. ; J. H. Cooke, B.Sc., 
 F.G.S. ; H. Preston, F.G.S. ; A. W. Rowe, F.G.S. ; Percy 
 F. Kendall, F.G.S. ; E. A. Woodruffe-Peacock, F.G.S. ; and 
 W. Tuckwell. They wish that the following directions should 
 be read over and acted upon in reporting to the Committee's 
 Secretary. 
 
 Shortly, in case of haste, the following points should be 
 noted : 
 
 I. Dimensions of Boulder in length, breadth, height above 
 
 Sound, 
 f what material composed ; Blue-Stone, Red Granite, 
 Grey Granite, Sandstone. 
 3. Rounded or angular, smooth or scratched. 
 More fully, the following : 
 
 (A} ISOLATED BOULDERS. 
 
 i. What is the name of the Parish, Estate, and Farm on 
 which Boulder is situated, adding nearest Town, and 
 
Natural History. 27 
 
 County, and any particular enabling its position to be 
 marked on the Ordnance map ? 
 
 2. What are dimensions of Boulder, in length, breadth, 
 and height, above ground ? 
 
 3. Is the Boulder rounded, subangular, or angular ? 
 
 4. If the Boulder is long-shaped, and has not been moved 
 by man, what is direction by compass of its longest 
 axis ? 
 
 5. If there are any natural ruts, groovings, or striations on 
 Boulder, state 
 
 (a] Their length, depth, and number. 
 
 (b] The part of Boulder striated, viz., whether top 
 or sides. 
 
 (c] Whether the striations are in the direction of the 
 longer axis, or at what angle to it ? 
 
 (d] Whether there is any difference of direction 
 between the scratches on the upper surface and 
 those on the lower surface ? Give the compass 
 bearing. 
 
 (e] Whether there are any indications by which you 
 can tell from which direction the several sets of 
 scratches were inflicted ? 
 
 [The scratches on the under side are commonly from 
 the opposite direction to those on the upper surface^ 
 though parallel to them.'] 
 
 6. What is the nature of the rock composing the Boulder ? 
 If it is of a species of rock differing from any rocks 
 adjoining it, state locality where, from personal observa- 
 tion, you know that a rock of the same nature as the 
 Boulder occurs, the distance of that locality, and its 
 bearings by compass from the Boulder. 
 
 7. If the Boulder is known by any popular name, or has 
 any legend connected with it, mention it. 
 
 8. What is the height of the Boulder above the sea ? 
 
 9. Is the Boulder indicated on any map, or does it make 
 any boundary of a County, Parish, or Estate ? 
 
 10. If there is any photograph or sketch of the Boulder, 
 please to say how the Committee can obtain it ? 
 
 11. Is the Boulder connected with any long ridges of gravel 
 or sand, or is it isolated ? 
 
 1 2. Upon what does the Boulder rest ? 
 
28 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 (B} GROUPS OF BOULDERS. 
 
 1. What is the name of the Parish, Estate, and Farm on 
 which they are situated, adding the nearest Town, and 
 County, and any particular enabling their position to be 
 marked on the Ordnance map ? 
 
 2. What are the dimensions of the smallest and largest 
 Boulders of the group ? 
 
 3. Are the Boulders rounded, subangular, or angular ? 
 
 4. If any large Boulder of the group (which has not been 
 moved by man) is long-shaped, what is the direction by 
 compass of its longest axis ? 
 
 5. If there are any natural ruts, groovings, or striations on 
 any Boulder, state 
 
 (a] Their lengths, depth, and number. 
 
 (b] The parts of the Boulder striated, viz., whether 
 top or sides. 
 
 (c] Whether the striations are in the direction of the 
 longer axis, or at what angle to it ? 
 
 (d] Whether there is any difference of direction 
 between the scratches on the upper surface and 
 those on the lower surface ? Give the compass 
 bearing. 
 
 (e] Whether there are any indications by which you 
 can tell from which direction the several sets of 
 scratches were inflicted ? 
 
 [The scratches on the under side are commonly 
 from the opposite direction to those on the upper 
 surface^ though parallel to tkem.~] 
 
 6. State 
 
 (a) Localities where rocks undoubtedly of the same 
 nature as the Boulders occur. 
 
 SBe careful to ascertain that none of the Boulders 
 ave been brought from a distance by human agency ^\ 
 
 (b) The distance of those localities and their bearings 
 by compass from the Boulders. 
 
 7. What is the nature of the rocks composing the Boulders, 
 and in what proportions do the Boulders of the various 
 rocks represented in the ground occur ? 
 
 8. What is the height of the group above the sea ? 
 
 9. Over what area does the group extend, and what 
 number of Boulders are there in the group or per acre ? 
 
Natural History. 29 
 
 With respect both to the isolated Boulders and groups of 
 Boulders described, state whether they are exposed on the 
 surface, or surrounded by any deposit. Describe the nature of 
 any deposit containing Boulders, and state whether the 
 imbedded Boulders are of the same character as those (if any) 
 upon the surface. 
 
 Please forward reports, accompanied by a specimen of the 
 rock, to the Secretary, 
 
 THE REV. W. TUCKWELL, 
 
 Waltham Reftory^ Grimsby. 
 
 THE CONTENTS OF BIRDS' CROPS. 
 
 ON the iyth of March, Mr. F. A. Dorrington, of Nettle- 
 ton Lodge, Caistor, sent me the contents of the crop of 
 the Ring Dove Columba palumbas^ L. It was one of 
 two birds shot a few days before in the wood round his place. 
 The crop of the bird I did not receive was said to contain 
 only the young spring leaves of the white clover 
 Tnfolium repens, L. This was certainly the species of Tnfolium 
 I found in the packet I received mixed up with a mass of 
 cylindrical root-fibres, some of which were rarely of a fusiform 
 shape. At the first glance I mistook these for the root-fibres 
 of the Heath Thistle Cnicus pratensis^ Willd. j a not un- 
 common species on sandy warreny ground like Nettleton, and 
 common enough on Scotton Common and elsewhere. But 
 after tasting the root-fibres of the Pilewort or Lesser Celandine 
 Ranunculus Ficaria^ L., I came to the conclusion that the 
 bird had been feeding on this plant, turned up on ground 
 newly prepared for spring-corn sowing. The Cnicus is a rare 
 plant in the neighbourhood, while the Ranunculus is common 
 enough. This suggests the idea that very much might be 
 learned concerning the varying food of our feathered population 
 if sportsmen-naturalists would carefully examine the crops of 
 all the birds they shoot. If any doubt arises, the contents 
 should be put into a corked bottle and common lamp paraffin 
 added. It is the cheapest and handiest preserving fluid I know, 
 and has the great advantage that it does not take the colour 
 
30 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries* , 
 
 out of specimens even tender plant colours for weeks. I 
 have by me some plants bottled in paraffin in June, 1892, as an 
 experiment ; the colours of the Forget-me-not, common 
 *" rimrose, and red garden variety, Veronica (7. Cham&drys^ 
 L.), Daisy, and Dandelion, are still clearly distinguishable. 
 When once bottled up and fully labelled, interesting finds can 
 be sent on the most convenient opportunity to the nearest 
 botanist, entomologist, &c., as the case may require. 
 
 E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PE ACOCK. 
 Cadney Vicarage^ Brigg. 
 
 @@ 
 
 THE GOAT WILLOW. Salix Caprea^ L. The common 
 hive-bee (Apis Mellifica, L.) in scores were very busy 
 gathering honey from a goodly-sized male tree of this 
 species in Poolthorn Cover, Howsham, on March 2ist, a very 
 mild Spring-like day. On examination of a male catkin the 
 other sex is not yet open the wedge-shaped nectary, which is 
 to be found at the back of the two stamens, i.e., between the 
 essential organs of the flower and the stalk of the catkin, 
 could be clearly seen tipped with honey. Observation was 
 attracted to the tree by the humming of the bees. Notes on 
 bees or any insects frequenting the catkins of other species of 
 willows will be thankfully received, if specimens of the leaves 
 and flowers accompany them. 
 
 THE EDITOR. 
 
 THE LINCOLNSHIRE RYE-GRASS. Lolium perenne^ L. 
 stoloniferum, G. Sinclair. " A specimen of the stolon- 
 iferous rye-grass was communicated by Mr, Whitworth, 
 from his extensive collection at Acre House. Of late years 
 much has been done in discovering new and improved varieties 
 of Lolium perenne. Mr. Whitworth has devoted much 
 attention to this subject, and the talents, judgment, and success 
 he has displayed in this important inquiry, deserve very great 
 praise. His collection of the varieties of Lolium perenne, in 
 1823 amounted to the surprising number of sixty." G. 
 Sinclair's Hort. Gram. Wobur. London, 1825. The Acre 
 House in which Mr. Whitworth lived has disappeared from 
 Normanby-le-Wold ; but the site of its garden,? where he 
 carried on his experiments on the varieties of Rye Grass, is 
 
Natural History. 31 
 
 still known. I hope to visit it this season. Can anyone give 
 me further fa&s about the late Mr. George Whitworth, and 
 supply me with specimens of his variety of L. perenne^ L. ? 
 
 THE EDITOR. 
 
 THE 'BLUE STONE' BOULDER, LOUTH, 
 LINCOLNSHIRE. 
 
 By W. HAMPTON, F.C.S., Hanky, AND H. WALLIS KEW, F.E.S., Louth* 
 
 THE Louth 'Blue Stone' is a subangular boulder of a 
 blue-black colour, about 32 inches in height and about 
 145 inches in girth, estimated to weigh from four to 
 five tons, which has existed in Louth for centuries, and now 
 rests in the yard of the c Blue Stone Printing Office ' in Mercer 
 Row. 
 
 This boulder is, doubtless, a natural monolith of glacial 
 times ; its surface, however, does not exhibit definite striae. 
 Unfortunately, its natural position is unknown, but considering 
 its large size and great weight, the presumption is that it was 
 originally found in the immediate neighbourhood of Louth. 
 
 After preparing and examining a large number of micro- 
 scopical sections, we consider the stone to be a typical Dolerite. 
 It consists of crystals of Plagioclase felspar (Labradorite) ; 
 Augite, very fresh and in large crystals ; Titaniferous Iron ; a 
 greenish-looking decomposition product (which may or may 
 not represent former Olivine) , and brownish stains, which 
 are probably due to the oxidation of the iron. As the result of 
 our examination did not exactly agree with the conclusions 
 arrived at by one who had previously examined the stone, a 
 section was submitted to Dr. Bonny, who says: 'The slide 
 contains Plagioclase felspar, probably Labrodite ; Augite ; 
 Iron Oxide (llmenite) ; and a greenish mineral of secondary 
 origin, probably indicating the former presence of a ferro- 
 magnesian-silicate. The replacing mineral is so indefinite in 
 its character that I can hardly venture to give it a name. The 
 structure of the rock is " Ophitic." It is merely a question 
 whether we should call the rock a dolerite or a diabase. It is 
 not a very typical diabase, but is a slightly altered dolerite. So 
 
 * Reprinted from The Naturalist, 1887, pp. 225-226, by special permission. 
 
32 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 practically your determination is accurate. In Scotland there 
 are many dolerites in this condition, where one man would call 
 them dolerites and others diabases.' 
 
 Formerly standing at the corner of Mercer Row the 
 principal street in Louth this boulder became a nuisance as a 
 rendezvous for loafers and idlers, on which account it was 
 removed, at a considerable expense, to the premises above- 
 mentioned. These premises were in old time a large county 
 inn, of which the c Blue Stone ' formed the material sign, and 
 there is still in Louth a publichouse, known as the c Blue Stone 
 Inn,' which has a rough representation of the boulder for its 
 sign ; there is also a tradition to the effect that it was once in 
 use as a Druidical altar stone on Julian Bower, a locality not 
 far distant from its present position. Chapter xix of Bayley's 
 'Notitiae Ludae,' 1834, is devoted to the c Blue Stone,' from 
 which the following extract may perhaps be amusing: 
 c Conjecture is endless, and the positive opinions of men who 
 have given some attention to the subject are very numerous and 
 unsatisfactory. Some think a land flood, others an influx of 
 the sea, others the Noachic flood [!] to have caused the 
 presence of this stone here.' 
 
 HOW THE LAND BETWEEN GAINS- 
 
 BOROUGH AND LINCOLN WAS 
 
 FORMED. 
 
 By F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S. * 
 
 IN addressing you on a geological subject, as I am about to 
 do, I do not forget that this is a Society of Naturalists ; 
 and as Geology, to those who have not studied it, may 
 perhaps have an uninviting aspect, I intend to avoid technical 
 details as far as possible, endeavouring at the same time to 
 show that, in point of interest, Geology comes quite up to 
 that of any other branch of natural science, and perhaps, I may 
 say, exceeds most of them. 
 
 * An address, delivered at Grimsby, November 22nd, 1894, to the Lincolnshire 
 Naturalists Union, by the second President (1894-5). 
 
Natural History. 33 
 
 Geologists divide the earth's strata, for convenience, into 3 
 great divisions Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary and as, in 
 Lincolnshire, we have representatives of the entire Secondary 
 series, from the strata above the Trias on the west to the 
 chalk on the east, this fact alone must give to the Geology of 
 the County a special interest and value. I am not, however, 
 going to speak of so wide an area now, but intend to confine 
 my address to the low flat land between Gainsborough and 
 Lincoln a distance of some 15 miles alluding to the adjoining 
 strata, only as they are necessary to explain the structure and 
 present configuration of the district. 
 
 Now, as we stand on the high ground above Gainsborough 
 and look over the Trent, we are on the oldest strata in the 
 County the Upper Keuper beds as they are called at the 
 top of the Trias or new red sandstone, the highest beds in the 
 great Primary Division ; and if we could be carried back to 
 the time when these beds were laid down, we should see, 
 instead of the present country, a vast lake, or inland sea, 
 surrounded on all sides by land, which extended far out into the 
 Atlantic on the west, and was connected with Europe on the 
 south, and with Scandinavia, over what is now the North Sea 
 or German Ocean, on the east. 
 
 This region had, for a very long period, been in a quiet, 
 tranquil state ; a great contrast to the stormy Permian age 
 which preceded it, when the Alleghany mountains of America 
 and the Pennine Chain of Derbyshire, the backbone of 
 England, were thrown up. 
 
 This vast inland sea was a fresh-water lake, which gradually 
 became salt by the concentration of its waters, like the salt 
 lakes of North America, and in which sandstones, grey and 
 red marls, salt and gypsum were deposited. 
 
 It is to this inland sea, barren as it was, that we owe the 
 rock-salt and brine springs of Worcestershire, Cheshire, and 
 Middlesborough : while, from its deposits of gypsum, or 
 hydrated sulphate of lime, we get ornamental alabaster and 
 plaster of Paris, from which Parian and other cements are 
 made. 
 
 In the railway cutting leading to Lincoln, bands of blue, 
 red, and grey Keuper marls are seen, each resting on the other. 
 They are the slow and quiet products of this great inland lake 
 and have no traces of life left in them. Suddenly, however, a 
 wonderful change takes place j for, resting on the uppermost 
 
 Vol. 5, No. 35, Lines. N. & %. c 
 
 Nat. Hist. Sea. 
 
34 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 Keuper deposit, and at the same angle with it, appears a broad 
 black band of rock, utterly different from the bed on which it 
 lies. 
 
 The Keuper marls are, as I have said, devoid of fossil 
 remains, but this new deposit abounds nay, literally swarms 
 with them ; while, instead of marly deposits, the new strata 
 consist of fissile slaty shales, full of iron pyrites >the token of 
 exuberant life and narrow bands of sandstone glittering with 
 mica : and, what adds to the wonder is, that, towards the base 
 of this deposit, there lies a thin band of rock, not more than 
 an inch in thickness, composed entirely of fish remains, bones, 
 scales, teeth, and coprolites, pressed down into a hard solid 
 mass ; while a similar bed, scarcely as thick, occurs a little 
 higher up. And how can all this have come about ? 
 
 To understand it we must know something of the world 
 we live on. 
 
 Originally a vast nebulous mass, which gradually condensed, 
 it is now (as generally accepted) a thin crust, some 25 miles 
 thick at the most, resting on a molten fluid substratum, under 
 which (as some think), lies a solid rigid core. Now a thin 
 crust over a fluid cannot be stable, and the surface therefore of 
 our globe is for ever changing, rising here and sinking there ; 
 rising in parts where denudation makes it thinner, and sinking 
 in regions where, through volcanic action or the pouring on of 
 the debris of large rivers and other similar causes, matter is 
 being piled up and the strata thickened. 
 
 And, in the region we are considering, action of this latter 
 kind had taken place. The older strata had begun to sink, 
 and, by degrees, the waters of a great ocean, coming up from 
 the south over France, were let in upon them. The inland 
 lake became an arm of the Liassic sea, and the Rhoetic beds 
 were formed. 
 
 It must not be supposed, however, that all this took place 
 suddenly. It was the result of no convulsion of nature, no 
 rending of the rocks and inrush of the sea, but it came about 
 quietly and imperceptibly, occupying as much time, probably, 
 as would be necessary for so great a change in our own days. 
 First, as the land continued to sink, would come the want of 
 drainage, then the morass, then the tidal wash, and, last of all, 
 the full open sea. It was the work of ages. 
 
 The Rhoetic beds, which owe their name to the Alps of 
 Lombardy (the ancient Rhoetia), the Grisons, and the Tyrol, 
 where they attain a considerable thickness, had not been 
 
Natural History. 35 
 
 found further to the north in England, in 1866, than at 
 Coptheath near Birmingham, and at Abbots Bromley in 
 Staffordshire ; when, in that year, as the gradients of the line 
 between Gainsborough and Lincoln were lowered, I had the 
 satisfaction of meeting with them. Since that time they have 
 been discovered, in a nearly continuous line, across England 
 from north to south, wherever the jun&ion of the Trias and 
 Lias is exposed. 
 
 Some geologists place these beds at the top of the Trias, 
 others at the base of the Lias, or Jurassic, system. This, 
 however, is a matter of small importance. They are the 
 passage beds from one great system to another, from the 
 deposits of the upper Keuper lake to those of the great Liassic 
 sea ; beds which go far to unlock the hidden story of the land 
 we are considering. 
 
 About the origin of the bone beds referred to, much 
 speculation has taken place. 
 
 Mr. Jukes Browne, in his work on "the building of the 
 British Isles," to which I am indebted for several of the facl:s 
 stated in my paper, speaks of the irruption of the sea water 
 being prejudicial to the inhabitants of the Triassic lake, "so 
 that most of them died, and their bones, scales and teeth were 
 drifted into layers on the sea floor;" but this, I think, could 
 hardly have been the case, as, apparently, the concentrated 
 saltness of the lake had, to a great extent, prevented the 
 possibility of life no trace of it, except in a few localities, 
 being met with throughout the system ; and this view Mr. 
 Jukes Brown himself bears out, when, in another part of his 
 work, speaking of the Triassic lake, he says, " the sheet of 
 water being apparently as salt, as clear, and heavy, and as 
 nearly lifeless as the modern waters of the Dead Sea, or of the 
 great salt lake of Utah." May not these beds be rather due 
 to the fishes, which the Liassic sea brought in, being killed by 
 the salinity of the waters of the inland lake ? or, perhaps, after 
 life had developed through the change of water, the land 
 temporarily rose again, or became stationary for a time, and, the 
 salinity returning, the fishes, no longer able to sustain life, 
 perished, and their remains sank, in a layer, on the sea floor. 
 
 There is another facl: of interest connected with the 
 Rhoetics which must not be omitted before we leave them, 
 and that is, that the earliest known British mammal the 
 Microlestes a small insect-eating animal is found within its 
 strata. The Rhoetic beds contain also remains of the huge 
 
36 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 Saurians which are so characteristic of the Lias and higher 
 formations ; and we are indebted to Mr. Montagu Browne, of 
 the Leicester Museum, for an account of several new species, 
 which he recorded at the recent meeting of the British 
 Association at Oxford, as well as on two former occasions. 
 Remains of Saurian life occur also in the Rhoetic strata at Lea, 
 near Gainsborough. 
 
 AND now we pass on to the Lias, the lower beds of the 
 Jurassic system, in which the ironstone bands of Frodingham 
 and Appleby are found, and change to a deep sea ; the remains 
 of which, beginning a little way to the east of Gainsborough, 
 extend right across to Lincoln, and form the material of the 
 Cliff there to within 20 feet of its summit. 
 
 This sea is one of great interest j it covered a great part 
 of England, with a portion of Ireland, and ran up far north 
 into Scotland, having rivers to feed it from the adjoining lands 
 around ; while to the south it extended down towards the 
 tropics. Its depth was considerable, and, as its strata show, 
 its waters teemed with life. Fish, reptiles, molluscs of many 
 kinds, echinoderms, insects, wood and corals are met with in 
 its layers. The insects, which, according to Westwood, 
 belong to no less than 24 families, and comprise both wood- 
 eating and herb-devouring beetles, grass-hoppers, dragon-flies, 
 and may-flies, together with the wood, were doubtless 
 brought down by the rivers which flowed into the sea ; while 
 the corals owe their presence to the extension of its waters 
 southward, enabling the products of warmer climes to push up 
 towards the north. 
 
 Amongst the mollusca the Ammonites hold the first place. 
 Chambered shells of great beauty, which have their counterpart 
 in the Nautilus of the present day ; they vary very much in 
 shape, and are so distinct that they have been used to designate 
 zones of life in describing the Liassic strata, each zone having 
 its distinct Ammonite as a characteristic feature ; and although 
 this cannot altogether be relied on, some Ammonites being 
 found in more zones than one, and not always in the zones 
 to which they give their name, yet the fact of different 
 species being found in succession one above the other, as the 
 higher beds appear, bears strong testimony to the vast period 
 of time that must have elapsed during the formation of these 
 strata. We have only to call to mind how slowly forms of 
 molluscan life, (and we may say the same of life generally), die 
 out now, and are replaced by others, to appreciate this. 
 
Natural History. 37 
 
 Taking an illustration near our own time, we find that, out 
 of the shells in the Norwich Crag at the top of the Pliocene 
 period in the Tertiary age, 85 per cent, exist at the present 
 day ; and yet, between that period and our own lies the whole 
 of the Pleistocene and Glacial age, during which the 
 Mammoth, the cave Bear and the Hyaena, the woolly 
 Rhinoceros, the great Irish Elk and other animals appeared on 
 the scene and passed away, hunted to death for the most part 
 by man. 
 
 It is, however, in the Saurians that the great interest of this 
 period centres. Huge fish-like lizards from 20 to 30 feet long 
 Icthyosaurs with eyes 14 inches in diameter, and Plesiosaurs 
 with long swan-like necks infested the shallower gulfs and 
 bays, some swimming out in the open water and feeding on 
 the fishes and Ammonites, others hiding themselves amongst 
 the tangle and in the crevices of the rocks, and darting out at 
 their passing prey, 
 
 " Dragons of the prime 
 That tare each other in their slime," 
 
 while Pterodactyls large, flying, bat-like lizards, which are 
 principally found in the higher Jurassic strata pursued their 
 victims in the air, and clung to the cliffs and rocks on shore. 
 A strange weird life indeed was that which once filled the 
 plain between Gainsborough and Lincoln, and, with other 
 deposits of the same period elsewhere, it has well been called 
 " the great dragon land." 
 
 This wonderful development of Saurian life began in the 
 Triassic age, attained its greatest energy in the Lias, and 
 finally died out, as a dominating power, in the Chalk. The 
 greater portion of it then passed, by the process of evolution, 
 into birds ; nearly every successive link in the chain having 
 been now discovered, as Professor Huxley remarked at the late 
 meeting of the British Association at Oxford. 
 
 And here, after ascending the Lincoln Cliff and passing 
 over the higher beds of the Lias on our way so well described 
 by Mr. W. D. Carr, whose removal from Lincoln we all 
 deplore as a real loss to our Society we reach the Oolite 
 capping at the top, and stand on ground made famous by many 
 a stirring event in history. Here Caesar's Roman legions 
 came and colonized. Here Norman William reared his 
 fortress against the vain force of Hereward, who lies with his 
 true forsaken wife somewhere in Crowland's precincls amid the 
 fens he kept so well. We from the same site look down, 
 
38 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 immeasurably further back, over " the great dragon land," and 
 picture again in thought the teeming life of the old Liassic sea. 
 
 AND now, having completed the building of the land 
 between Gainsborough and Lincoln, I will, as briefly as 
 possible, try to show how it attained its present shape. 
 
 To understand this we must first glance a little further to 
 the east, where, after passing over the limestones and clays of 
 the higher Jurassic seas, we reach the chalk wolds. 
 
 In these cretaceous strata we have the remains of beds 
 which must have been laid down in great ocean depths, for 
 there only are similar deposits being formed in our own day. 
 
 The Atlantic ooze, the modern equivalent of the chalk, is 
 not deposited at a less depth than about 1,000 feet, and usually 
 much deeper; and as this ooze is laid down, according to the 
 Challenger calculations, at the rate of a foot in a century 
 at the most, the chalk, which is now some 1,300 feet thick, 
 and had at one time another 1,000 feet at the top of it, which 
 has since been swept away, the time occupied in the formation 
 of these chalk beds must have been enormous. At the above 
 rate of a foot of sediment in a century, the lost 1,000 feet 
 alone would have taken 100,000 years to form. 
 
 Now, that the neighbourhood of such an ocean as this, 
 which reached from Ireland over Europe to the Crimea, should 
 have greatly affected the area we are considering, is not to be 
 wondered at. 
 
 For a long period, during the existence of the Oolite and 
 higher Jurassic seas when the land to the east of Lincoln, 
 between it and the chalk wolds, was being formed the 
 Triassic, Rhoetic, and Lias beds on the west had become dry 
 land ; but as the chalk sea grew, the weight of its deposits 
 caused the land all round to sink, and as this sea at last covered 
 nearly the whole of England and Wales, the district between 
 Gainsborough and Lincoln, with all the western land, was 
 buried far beneath its waves. 
 
 Now the action of a sea is always that of a leveller, and as, 
 in course of ages, the cretaceous ocean itself passed away, the 
 land beneath it, as it rose again to the surface, presented a 
 smooth plane of erosion, gradually sloping up to the higher 
 lands around, which had, during this epoch, remained dry 
 ground. 
 
 At this time a period when the Pyrenees were thrown up 
 England, Scotland, and Ireland were probably, as Mr. Jukes 
 Browne tells us, bound together in one mass. Land lay far 
 
Natural History. 39 
 
 out into the Atlantic on the west, and land connected Scotland 
 with Greenland through the Faroes and Iceland on the north, 
 and with Scandinavia on the east. 
 
 How far, and to what extent, the area between Gainsborough 
 and Lincoln was denuded during this great erosion, we shall 
 never know ; but as it rose higher and higher above the waves 
 the carving tools of nature were brought into play, and rain, 
 frost, and other forces of the atmosphere began their ceaseless 
 work. 
 
 Now rain may seem but a weak agent for forming hills and 
 scooping out valleys, but, with the help of frost and the 
 corroding forces of the atmosphere, without doubt it effects 
 the task. 
 
 Both hill and valley have one common origin ; they are the 
 remains of surfaces once planed and levelled by the sea, (I am 
 not here speaking of volcanic force), which, when raised above 
 the waves, were carved and cut into shape by the rain ; the 
 harder parts, the most capable of resisting erosion, forming the 
 hills, and the softer portions, the most easily denuded, forming 
 the valleys. 
 
 Rising as vapour, mist, and cloud, and falling again on the 
 earth, rain is the source of all our lakes, springs, and rivers ; 
 and, through rivers, the source of continents also, by the 
 deposition of sediment on the floors of oceans and seas, and by 
 the silting up of shallow bays and estuaries. 
 
 Its work never ceases, and, aided by frost and the chemical 
 components of the air, it penetrates and dissolves the hardest 
 rocks, and nothing is free from its action. Rivers can cut 
 only narrow channels, and it is left to rain to widen them into 
 valleys. No drop of rain runs an inch on the surface without 
 setting some soil in motion towards a lower level. 
 
 The amount of erosion depends, of course, greatly on the 
 soil on which the rain falls. On clays, like those of the Lias, 
 it works far greater havoc than on sandy or gravelly soils ; 
 though, without due thought, the reverse might appear to be 
 the case. Mr. W. Whitaker of the Geological survey, in 
 discussing the age of man at the recent British Association 
 Meeting, well observed this when he said, "When rain falls 
 on gravel and sand, which are open and porous, they say ' Oh ! 
 come in, there's plenty of room,' and in it goes and comes out 
 again as a clear spring of water at the base ; whereas, when it 
 falls on clays and stiff soils, they say c We don't want you and 
 w e won't have you,' and the rain, in response, washes hundreds 
 
40 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 of tons away from the surface," showing that resistance is not 
 always the best policy. 
 
 A good illustration of this may be seen in the district I am 
 speaking of, for Hardwick Hill, which stands out as a landmark 
 at the far end of Scotton Common, is mainly composed of 
 gravel and sand, while the unyielding clays of the Lias are 
 worn away to their present depth below the Lincoln Cliff. 
 
 For actions such as I have described unlimited time is, I 
 need not say, required j but, that given, from the planed down 
 surface of land emerging from the sea, we get the earth in its 
 present form, with its infinite variety of mountain and valley, 
 hill and dale. 
 
 Of course there are volcanic and other forces that aid in 
 the construction of the earth's surface, but they lack the 
 universality and ceaseless operation of rain, and there is no 
 time to speak of them now. 
 
 It is to the eroding action of rain that we owe, in the main, 
 the present features of " the great dragon land." 
 
 ONE more phase in the life history of the area we are 
 considering I have still to record. 
 
 After the chalk sea had disappeared, and the Tertiary age 
 which may be called the latter days of geology had set in, 
 the land underwent, for a great length of time, varying periods 
 of elevation, subsidence, and rest, during which the North 
 Sea appeared, and the principal physical features of our islands 
 were developed ; but in the later Pleistocene epoch a period 
 approaching our own days in a geological sense a great 
 change took place. The Glacial conditions, which now 
 prevail in the arctic regions, gradually invaded our land. The 
 whole country sank to a considerable depth below its present 
 level, and a great portion of Lincolnshire was covered with 
 floating ice, which scored the rocks, and poured on its surface 
 volumes of mud arid clay, mixed with stones and boulders, 
 which now pave the streets and market places of Gainsborough 
 and Lincoln. And when, at last, all this had passed away, and 
 the land had risen again to the surface, a period of subsidence 
 once more set in. The North Sea, which had come into 
 existence prior to the invasion of the ice, but had, during this 
 period, been filled up with its debris, again resumed its sway. 
 Our land, in course of time, became separated from the 
 Continent, and Great Britain, as it now is, appeared. 
 
 I should like to have spoken of a great river system, which 
 cut through the Oolite and Lias on the south and west, and 
 
Natural History. 41 
 
 poured its waters into the Wash, a system, the only remains 
 of which are seen in the Lincoln Gap, through which the 
 Trent once flowed, and where the Witham still finds its way, 
 but time will not permit of it. 
 
 I have drawn attention to the vast period of time that must 
 have been consumed during the events I have attempted to 
 describe; and this is a point that I cannot too strongly impress 
 on your memory. 
 
 I have dwelt on the structure and configuration of the land, 
 as it appeared during the several ages my paper deals with ; 
 for this is the goal that all geological investigation should aim 
 at. The special study of strata, and their embedded relics, 
 valuable as it is, is nothing, if, out of it, we do not try to build 
 up the framework of the world, as it appeared at the time these 
 strata were deposited. I do not mean in any sense to under- 
 estimate the value of such special studies. Those who labour 
 at them are the patient seekers after fa&s, without whose 
 labours it would be impossible to read the story the rocks are 
 meant to teach. And here I must bring my paper to a close. 
 
 Elevations and subsidences are still going on, though we 
 cannot see them. Attrition and denudation of the strata are 
 still proceeding, though, in our short existence, we cannot 
 trace them. Rains, frost, and rivers are still at work. The 
 " dragon land " is slowly altering year by year ; and the carving 
 and modelling of the surface will last, as long as raindrops fall, 
 and a vestige of land remains above the waves. 
 
 LINCOLNSHIRE NATURALISTS AT 
 LOUTH. 
 
 By R. W. GOULDING, 
 
 Mercer Row, Louth. 
 
 [Reprinted from the Louth Advertiser, 1894.] 
 
 THE Louth Antiquarian and Naturalists' Society joined 
 the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union at their fifth 
 meeting on Monday last. Arrangements had been 
 made for a fungus foray in Muckton, Burwell, and Haugham 
 Woods, permission to visit which had been courteously 
 granted by Porter Wilson, Esq., and Wm. Hornsby, Esq., 
 notwithstanding the facl: that the day chosen for the excursion 
 was the ist of October, when pheasant shooting begins. 
 
42 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 It was hoped that some of the visitors would form a party 
 for the investigation of the geology of Donington and district, 
 and this section was represented by Mr. F. M. Burton, 
 F.L.S., F.G.S., President of the Union, Mr. Jos. Mawer, Mr. 
 O. Burdett and Miss Burdett, who, under the leadership of 
 Mr. S. Cresswell, proceeded to Donington, thence in a westerly 
 direction towards South Willingham and back by Benniworth 
 Haven to the east end of Benniworth Tunnel, examining the 
 railway cuttings on the way. At Stenigot they diverged and 
 made for Goulceby Top, and then crossing the Heath Road 
 reached the east end of Withcall Tunnel, afterwards turning 
 towards Louth, and passing Raithby Brackens and Hubbard's 
 Valley. The party observed the marine equivalents of the 
 Weald and southern beds, and found good sections of the red 
 chalk, (a member of the Gault), the carstone, the pink chalk, 
 (near Louth), and other strata. 
 
 The fungus section was strongly represented, among the 
 party being some of the most eminent mycologists in the 
 country, the principal being Mr. George Massee, of the Royal 
 Herbarium, Kew, author of the British Fungus-Flora^ and Mr. 
 Carleton Rea, M.A., B.C.L., Worcester. Other able men 
 were Mr. H. T. Soppitt and Mr. Charles Crossland of Halifax. 
 The local members metaphorically sat at the feet of these 
 Gamaliels, whose excellent services they highly appreciated. 
 Others who joined the section were Mr. J. W. Sutcliffe of 
 Halifax, Mr. Sneath and Mr. Fieldsend of Lincoln, Mr. B. 
 Brow, Mr. T. Gelsthorp, Mr. G. Vere, Mr. V. T, Crow, and 
 Mr. R. W. Goulding of Louth, and Mr. Walter F. Baker, 
 F.E.S., the indefatigable secretary of the Union. 
 
 Some of the excursionists reached Louth on Saturday and 
 worked Hubbard's Valley, Welton Vale, and the neighbourhood 
 of Elkington before the official proceedings commenced. 
 They found the lawn in front of Elkington Hall a very 
 produ (Stive spot, their best record being the very rare Psilocybe 
 ptlulteforme. Other species of interest were Hygropkorus foeten s 
 H. glutinifer, Truholoma saponaceum (which emits a soapy odour) 
 and T. personatum^ an edible species, well known by its popular 
 name "Blewitts." On the leaves of some poppies they noticed 
 a disease, Peronospora^ which is allied to the potato disease. 
 
 On Monday morning the party left Louth station at 10.12, 
 booking for Authorpe, whence they proceeded through 
 Muckton, Burwell and Haugham Woods, returning by drag 
 from Cawthorpe Lane. Early in the day a specimen of grass 
 
Natural History. 43 
 
 affected by the blight Ergot was found. This ergot results 
 from the growth of a fungus (Cla^lceps purpurea\ known for 
 its medicinal and other properties. It converts the ovary of 
 the grain (particularly rye) into an elongated cylindrical 
 excrescence resembling a horn or spur, which is first red, then 
 lead-coloured and finally black with a white interior. A writer 
 on fungi states that where rye is extensively cultivated, grains 
 diseased in this way often compose a considerable part of the 
 bread produced, and thus not infrequently give rise to ergotism, 
 one of the most distressing diseases to which the human frame 
 is liable, and "on the Continent," says Johnston, "rye 
 gangrene of the limbs, induced by eating bread made from the 
 ergotised grain, has proved fatal." It is highly important that 
 farmers should carefully pick out any ergoted grains he may per- 
 ceive, for, if neglected, they may result in very serious mischief. 
 
 The records of the day were numerous, about 120 species in 
 all, many of them being known by polysyllabic Latin names, 
 which to the uninitiated did not appear to fulfil the conditions 
 of Mr. Weller's definition of " a wery good name and a easy 
 one to spell." Very few species have English names. We 
 were, however, introduced to the " Liberty Cap," though we 
 were told that in all probability we should not survive to tell 
 the tale if we were rash enough to eat the little conical 
 Agaricus which popularly goes by that name. We were of 
 opinion, moreover, that we could more easily remember 
 " Candle-snufT fungus " than Xylaria hypoxylon^ which we were 
 informed is the proper designation of the little fungus which 
 closely resembles the burnt wick of a candle. " Come eat us " 
 sounds an excellently appropriate name for a delicious fungus 
 whose acquaintance we rejoiced to make, and we congratulate 
 the people of Huddersfield who have substituted this name for 
 Coprinus comatus. One other English name we heard, and that 
 was the "Vegetable Beefsteak," a term which exactly describes 
 the appearance of Fistulina hepatlca. This fine fungus grows 
 in England only on oak trees. Canon du Port (of Denver), 
 who joined the party at tea, said that it was very good eating, 
 and he gave some directions for cooking it properly. 
 
 Of edible species some 30 were found, some of them being 
 of great interest. For instance, Coprinus atramentarius^ 
 described by the experts as a delicacy, and as the mushroom 
 par excellence for ketchup making, is of a dark, inky colour, 
 and a durable ink was formerly made from it. Hygrophorus 
 psittacinus is noted for its beautiful green and yellow hue. 
 
44 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 ClcTvaria fusiformis and C.fragilis bear a cluster of yellow fruit 
 shaped like long clubs, and the snowy Hygrophorus nfpeus is as 
 delicate as it is said to be dainty. 
 
 Turning to inedible fungi, the best find was considered to 
 be 'Psilocybe pllulteforme (which had also been obtained at 
 Elkington). Another good record was the local Chlorosplenlum 
 teruginosum. This small fungus is a rich green in point of 
 colour, and its mycelium (or spawn), which is of the same hue, 
 gives a green stain to wood, and wood so stained was formerly 
 used for Tunbridge ware. The large yellow Phollota speclabilis 
 was conspicuous. CRtpcybe fragrans has a pleasant spicy odour, 
 and Russula nigricam turns black when mature. Xylaria 
 polymorpha is dead black in colour and is surprisingly heavy. 
 The genus LaRarlus (which emits when squeezed a milky- 
 looking fluid) was represented by various species, many of 
 them being extremely plentiful, e.g., L. quietus (the liquid of 
 which has an oily smell), L. vellenus (which assumes a cup- 
 shape when mature), L. pyrogalus (the milk of which is very 
 acrid), and L. pubescens. One of the most abundant kinds 
 was nArmillaria mellea^ so called because it is honey-coloured. 
 On the whole the district is fairly good and appears to be 
 particularly productive of microscopic forms. 
 
 The botanists in search of flowering plants had but a small 
 record. The early part of October is not a favourable time 
 for collectors of phanerogams, and hence very few specimens 
 were discovered. We may, however, mention the hedge 
 Stone-wort (Sison amomum\ the Dwarf-spurge {Euphorbia 
 exlgua\ the Musk Mallow (Malva moschata)^ the Hoary 
 Ragwort (Senecio erucifolia\ and the Skull-cap (Scutellaria 
 galericulata\ which was in abundance in Haugham Wood. 
 
 A meat tea was provided at the "King's Head" at 5.15, 
 and the party then received several additions, among them 
 being Mr. C. M. Nesbitt (President of the Louth Society), 
 Mr. Joseph Larder and Mr. J. B, Robinson. After tea 
 sectional and business meetings were held. The accounts 
 were passed ; the thanks of the Union were voted to Mr. 
 Wilson and Mr. Hornsby ; Mr. Fieldsend was elected assistant 
 secretary in the place of Mr. Coe ; it was decided that the 
 annual meeting of the Union should be held at Grimsby on 
 the 22nd of November ; a sum of ^3 35. was voted to the 
 Rev. E. Adrian Woodruffe-Peacock in aid of the purchase of 
 cases for the plants which he has collected for the county 
 herbarium j and it was announced by the President that it was 
 
Natural History. 45 
 
 probable that rooms in the Old Prison in the Castle Grounds at 
 Lincoln would be set apart for a county museum. It was also 
 resolved that the transactions of the Union should be published. 
 
 After the meeting the fungi were named and were exhibited 
 at the Committee Room of the Mechanics' Institution, and at 
 9.15 Mr. Massee delivered a lecture, taking Fungi as his 
 subject, and drawing particular attention to many of the 
 specimens on the table. He treated his theme from the 
 evolutionary standpoint, indicating broadly the relative devel- 
 opment of different types. His first illustration was the flat 
 stereum which lies along the soil or rotten log, and is simply a 
 fruit mass. He pointed out that what is popularly understood 
 to be the fungus is in reality its fruit, which fruit bears a 
 similar relation to the mycelium that an apple bears to the tree 
 on which it grows. Mycelium is the technical word for the 
 spawn or vegetative and productive part of the fungus which 
 creeps underground or under bark and creates the material of 
 which the fruit is the visible sign. He then described nftzri<7, 
 Craterellus and other well-defined and more highly specialised 
 forms. Referring to edible species, he said he did not believe 
 in any of the old rule of thumb methods of discrimination. 
 Edible fungi had distinct characteristics and these characteristics 
 had to be learned. He suggested that anyone who was desirous 
 of pursuing the study should obtain Dr. M. C. Cooke's 
 excellent book on Edible Fungi. He proceeded to state that 
 there were two groups of poisonous forms, the alkaloids and 
 toxalbumins. When the albumen is coagulated, then these 
 latter forms are innoxious and may be eaten with safety. 
 Many of the so-called poisoning cases were in his opinion not 
 due to the actual poison of the fungus, but might very probably 
 be attributed to the fact that the fungus had been eaten to 
 excess. In some cases it was dangerous to drink spirituous 
 liquors after a meal of fungi, for it happens that some of the 
 poisons are not soluble in water, whereas they are in spirit. 
 Thus one man may eat certain kinds of fungi and not take 
 the slightest harm, whereas another man may eat out of the 
 same dish and then may have a couple of glasses of whisky, 
 the result being that the poison would be liberated by the 
 action of the spirit and would perhaps prove fatal. Cases of 
 this sort are well known. 
 
 Mr. Massee was cordially thanked for his lecture on the 
 motion of Mr. Burton, seconded by Mr. B. Crow. In 
 acknowledging the vote, the lecturer said he hoped that one of 
 
46 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 the results of his talk would be that those present would at 
 least refrain from injuring toadstools when they saw them. 
 He ventured to make that suggestion because he knew that 
 many Englishmen appeared to consider it their duty to go out 
 of their way to kick over toadstools, and felt an inward 
 satisfaction when they had done so. 
 
 On Tuesday, Canon Du Port, Mr. Massee, Mr. Rea, Mr. 
 Jos. Larder, Mr. J. B. Robinson and Mr. T. H. Burditt 
 explored Acthorpe and adjoining woods and were well satisfied 
 with their discoveries. The first wood examined was the 
 larch plantation at Fotherby, and this proved the best of those 
 visited, the fungus flora being totally distinct from that seen on 
 Monday. The specimens, however, were of too critical a 
 character to enable a decision to be given on the spot. Among 
 those found were Spathularia flcfyida, Hygrophorus psittacinus^ 
 Stropharla teruginosa, which has a very pretty bluish colour, 
 Laftarius blennius and Tricholoma rutllans. Among ferns were 
 noticed Nephrodium dilatatum and N. Fillx-mas^ specimens of 
 the latter being very generally sterile. 
 
 A LINCOLNSHIRE COLEOPTERA 
 RECORD WANTED. 
 
 By REV. A. THORNLEY, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., 
 
 South Leverton, Lincoln. 
 
 MY objecl: in this short paper is to induce Lincolnshire 
 people to assist us in making complete the Natural 
 History record for the county. 1 believe a great 
 many would help if they only knew how. They think that a 
 great deal of time and a great deal of knowledge is necessary 
 before they can do anything useful towards this objecl:. This 
 is indeed not so. All that we would ask for is the collection 
 of material. There are many friends, specialists in particular 
 departments, always ready to work it out. In this paper I 
 plead especially on behalf of the Coleoptera or Beetles, not 
 that I consider these as surpassing in interest any of the other 
 productions of nature, but I hope by means of them to 
 illustrate how much interesting and useful work may be done. 
 It will be necessary to point out at once that for our purpose 
 
Natural History. 47 
 
 the record is more important than the specimen, as the object 
 of this inquiry is not to accumulate a handsome collection of 
 inse6ts so much as to study the distribution, variation and life 
 habits of each species. Beginning with locality we work to 
 the county, from this to the country and so on until the 
 gathered results give us full information as to the distribution 
 and variation of the species in the world. I will venture to 
 say that no more absorbing problems come within the view of 
 the naturalist than those connected with the range and 
 variation of species. When many records are possible it is 
 not an uncommon thing to discover that species usually 
 considered common are much more local than was expected, 
 and that so-called rarieties are much more generally distributed 
 than was known. Then again the study of habit and life 
 history is a great deal more profitable than the mere amassing 
 of specimens for show. So much then for the general objects 
 which the true naturalist will keep in view. I might spend a 
 much longer time dwelling on the pure delight of such an 
 investigation, its interest and exhilaration the best tonic and 
 stimulant to health and spirits possible. Think of the profusion 
 of living things around us. The other afternoon one dip of 
 the water net brought up an amazing number of bugs, amongst 
 which were no less than five species of Corixa ; and out of 
 this same little village pond, a very ordinary one, I have taken 
 fifteen species of water-beetle. As I am not writing for 
 experts, a few words as to ways and means may be useful to 
 some. Natural ingenuity will suggest a great many more 
 than are mentioned here. Let our friends then provide them- 
 selves with a small bottle the rounder the better well corked. 
 Through the cork insert a large quill, with a little plug to close 
 the outside end of it. Through the quill he drops in tiny 
 insects from the palm of the hand. He should put inside a 
 little blotting paper or crushed laurel leaf. An old umbrella, a 
 good strong water net, a large white canvas sweeping net and 
 a few small strong glass tubes to go in his waistcoat pocket 
 these will rig out our friend with almost all he wants. His 
 operations may be briefly summed up under six heads all 
 quite obvious : (i) turn over all decent sized stones ; (ii) beat 
 into umbrella trees and shrubs ; (iii) sweep herbage with the 
 bag net ; (iv) fish streams and ponds (particularly close to the 
 banks) with the water net j (v) shake out moss and litter of 
 every kind over paper ; (vi) cut up old bark and rotten tree 
 stumps with an old knife. A few words as to killing insects 
 
48 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 may be useful. Laurel leaf will kill many, but a nice cyanide 
 bottle may be made by filling a large-mouthed bottle for a 
 quarter of its depth with plaister of Paris, moist, and before it 
 sets insert a few pieces of cyanide. When it is hard and dry, 
 a piece of blotting paper may be cut to the required shape and 
 put on the top of the plaister. Keep well corked and you will 
 have no more useful instrument in your collection. Beetles and 
 all hard insects may be well killed by putting them for a few 
 seconds into absolutely boiling water, which kills instantaneously. 
 But above all do not forget to make a proper record of date 
 and place of capture this is imperative ; any other data you 
 like to add, e.g., meteorological conditions, food plant, peculiar 
 habits, will be very valuable. It only remains to say that 
 Lincolnshire with its varied conditions of soil and level, with 
 its sea board and varied climate, should be a very good county 
 indeed for entomology. The few localities in which I have 
 worked have invariably yielded good results. I need hardly 
 say that I shall be glad at any time to name and report upon 
 beetles, and possibly other inseds ; and I am quite sure that I 
 can add that any of the various sectional secretaries of the 
 Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union will be glad to do the same. 
 The insects can be sent in quills or glass tubes in small boxes 
 easily through post, the return postage being sent with them if 
 they are to be returned. A report upon them will then be sent 
 to the sender at the first opportunity. 
 
 A SHORT ACCOUNT OF A COUNTRY 
 PARISH ; 
 
 With some notes relative to the effefts of game preserving on its 
 Natural History. 
 
 By MRS. C. E. JARVIS. 
 
 PART I. 
 
 THE parish of Hatton contains 1831 acres, of which 
 about 270 are woods. It belongs entirely to one 
 owner, who rears from 1000 to 2000 pheasants 
 annually. In the adjoining parishes game is also preserved, so 
 that the effect on animal life is about equal for some miles 
 round. The soil is mostly stiff* clay but part is sand. 
 
Natural History. 49 
 
 And first as to the inhabitants 157 in number according to 
 the last census. The houses number 36, of which five may 
 be described as farm houses. The largest farm contains 
 between 300 and 400 acres, the others less than 200 each. 
 There are two other small holdings and the blacksmith and 
 carpenter each farm a few acres. A wheelwright and a shoe- 
 maker represent other trades. There is a small general shop 
 and a brickyard, and everyone has a garden ; there is also one 
 public house. The Lincolnshire custom of hiring garthmen, 
 shepherds, waggoners and labourers by the year, "confined 
 men " as they are called, causes a constant change among 
 them, so that though the farms seldom change hands, only half 
 the inhabitants can be considered as constant residents. The 
 good old Lincolnshire dialect, with many words of Danish 
 origin, is still spoken, and though it may become extinct: in 
 course of time through the compulsory Education Act, it will 
 not be so soon as some people think. As long as children can 
 contrive to pass the 4th Standard and go to work at 12 years 
 old they soon forget most of what they learn at school and 
 revert to the expressive language of their parents. A farmer 
 who was asked his opinion of technical education said, the 
 most useful thing a boy could learn was to hold a gate open for 
 a flock of sheep to go through whilst they were being counted. 
 
 The following are some of the words still in use : Bottle, a 
 bundle of hay or straw ; fell, ferocious ; fierce, lively ; flea, 
 fly ; gam, near " Gain of a road " j odd, solitary " An odd 
 house " j low, short " A low woman " ; thacf^ thatch ; fyear, 
 this year ; wankle, weakly. 
 
 There is no actual village, most of the houses being scattered 
 in pairs about the farms, but that part of the parish nearest the 
 church is called the "Town": there is the "Town-end 
 close " ; and, till lately, the " Town-end gate " lead into some 
 unenclosed fields, now fenced off. Twenty-five years ago, the 
 Rectory and most, if not all, of the cottages were of " stud 
 and mud," with a large open chimney. One only remains as 
 it was, the rest have been replaced by commodious but ugly 
 brick and slated tenements, or altogether altered and roofed 
 with tiles. The old Re6tory was demolished in 1870, and the 
 architect judged by the chamfered oak beams that it was 500 
 years old. Until 1874 the nearest station was seven miles 
 distant, and many people had never been in a train, much less 
 seen the sea ; a visit to the market town on foot or by carrier 
 
 Vol. 5, No. 36, Lines. N. &f #. 
 Nat. Hist. &ff. 
 
50 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries* 
 
 was all the outing they aspired to : now there is a -station at 
 half the distance, and they travel more, occasionally going by 
 an excursion train to the seaside. 
 
 Bank Holidays pass almost unnoticed, but May I4th, or 
 Pag-rag day, is a great event, when the single firm servants, 
 male and female, leave their places, or at least take a week's 
 holiday, and spend the time in visiting their friends and going 
 round to the different markets. The married men decide 
 whether they will remain with their masters at Candlemas ; 
 they have the privilege of attending what is called the 
 labourers' market soon after that date, when they hire them- 
 selves again and leave their old places April 6th. The life of 
 an agricultural labourer has the advantage of being healthy ; 
 they are seldom ill and often live to a great age ; their work, 
 if on a day farm, is heavy, but it is slow they need not hurry 
 except in harvest time ; their food consists of bacon, bread, 
 potatoes and other vegetables, butcher's meat once a week if 
 they can afford it, with tea and sometimes beer ; milk is not 
 always obtainable, and they use butter sparingly. The lads 
 who board with the foreman have plenty of bread and milk 
 and bacon every day, tea or coffee on Sundays. On the other 
 hand their hours are long : in summer from three or four 
 o'clock till nearly dark, and the married men have no holiday 
 except at their own expense ; no wonder all the sharpest boys 
 want to be clerks or go on the railway, where they have some 
 time to themselves, at least on Sundays. If farmers would 
 give each man a week's holiday, and a day off occasionally to 
 work in his garden or go to a neighbouring fair or flower show, 
 he would be much more content. Some arrangement should 
 also be made to give the garthmen and shepherds assistance on 
 Sunday ; they like to have the chance of putting on their best 
 clothes, which they seldom do except to attend a funeral. 
 
 The Reading-room at Hatton is self-supporting, and, for so 
 small and scattered a parish, much appreciated in winter, 
 besides being useful for meetings, teas, etc., at other times. 
 The married labourers do not patronize it, because they 
 naturally prefer their own firesides when once they get home ; 
 but it is a pity the lads are not encouraged to make more use 
 of it, instead of spending their evenings in stables and out- 
 houses. 
 
 ANIMALS. 
 
 About 20 years ago the old keeper was pensioned, and his 
 nephew, an intelligent young man, took his place. Till then 
 
Natural History. 51 
 
 scarcely any game was reared and foxes were plentiful. Several 
 foxhound puppies were " walked " by the farmers, whose wives 
 complained, not only of the quantity of bread and milk they 
 consumed but of the devastations caused by the foxes amongst 
 their poultry even in broad daylight, whilst those people living 
 near the coverts could hear them barking at night and see the 
 cubs playing about in the early morning. In winter, the 
 hounds in full cry afforded frequent excitement for the labourers 
 and school children. 
 
 All this is changed : the foxhound puppies have long since 
 vanished, as have the foxes, with the exception of a few 
 outsiders attracted by the game ; they are not encouraged to 
 stay and breed. 
 
 The present keeper has given me some interesting informa- 
 tion about some of the quadrupeds and birds, which I will 
 transcribe in his own words. He says : u I have never seen or 
 heard of a badger at Hatton. I trapped a marten in Hatton 
 Wood about 15 years ago ; I have never heard of another one 
 at Hatton since that time. We had a polecat here some four 
 or five years ago ; it was caught in the rabbit traps at Panton 
 shortly after we had seen it. I know of four kinds of mice 
 the two kinds that live in the fields, the indoor mouse, and the 
 dormouse. One of the field mice is reddish, with a long tail 
 and a dark bright eye (Mus syivatica). The other one is a 
 dark mouse, what we call the grass mouse ; you may see plenty 
 of them in the summer in the hay field ; I do not remember 
 seeing one of them at any other time of the year j they have a 
 short face and rather large head, with a short tail ; colour very 
 much the same as the house mouse ; it is much bigger and 
 heavier looking than any of the others (^rvlcola pratansis}. 
 The dormouse I have seen twice ; once in Chamber's Wood 
 when shooting, two of them were picked up together in a 
 sleeping condition ; if I remember right they were found in a 
 nest of dead leaves ; the other I saw in Hatton Wood. We 
 have had a lot of stoats this summer (1891)." 
 
 In February, 1890, I saw a white stoat with a black tail run 
 from under some large trees across a field to a sunk fence in 
 the middle of the day. There was always a pair of bats about 
 the ivy-covered Rectory, probably Vesperugo pipistullus ; they 
 were to be seen at dark from March to November, and 
 occasionally in winter in very mild weather. 
 
 The hedgehog is not yet quite extinct, though the keepers 
 trap and otherwise slay a few every year. I once had the 
 
52 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 pleasure of letting one out of a trap ; it was caught by the 
 hind leg, and ran off not much the worse. The hedgehog's 
 little grunt as it runs along a dry ditch in an evening is one of 
 the pleasantest summer sounds. 
 
 The shrew is common, and dead ones are frequently seen, 
 perhaps, as suggested by Mr. J. E. Taylor in Underground^ 
 carried off by an epidemic caused by want of food. 
 
 The mole is plentiful in the lighter land, it does not work so 
 much in clay ; formerly a mole-catcher (as well as a rat-catcher) 
 was appointed every year by the Vestry, but both offices are 
 now abolished. 
 
 The squirrel is another victim to game preserving ; it is shot 
 at whenever seen, its chief crime being that it nibbles off the 
 lead of the spruces. An odd one or two found an asylum 
 about the Rectory grounds, where stood the only beech tree of 
 any size in the parish, which no doubt attracted the squirrels 
 in the autumn. I once, to my surprise, watched a squirrel 
 eating a fungus, which it held in its paw and nibbled as if it 
 were a biscuit. The fact was new to me, but on making 
 enquiry in the Naturalist and elsewhere, I found it was not 
 unknown. 
 
 Rats are among the animals which profit by the preservation 
 of game. An M.F.H. once told me a fox enjoys nothing 
 more than a fine fat rat, which shows that Reynard is of some 
 use besides affording sport. The extermination of hawks, 
 owls, magpies, and jays is also accountable for the great 
 increase in the number of rats. In autumn and winter when 
 the becks and ditches are full of water, they betake themselves 
 to farmyards and stick heaps, and though the farmers may kill 
 hundreds when threshing, it does not seem to diminish their 
 numbers. 
 
 The water vole is a harmless animal and allowed to live in 
 peace by the side of the beck. I have watched a pair of them 
 from a bridge, sitting on the water plants and nibbling away at 
 their evening meal, either unaware or oblivious of my presence. 
 
 We now come to those highly-favoured races, hares and 
 rabbits, which next to pheasants and partridges are most 
 thought of. Their numbers vary according as the season is 
 wet or dry. As many as sixty hares are sometimes shot in a 
 day, and very fine ones they are, weighing 10 or 12 pounds. 
 Twenty hares have been counted in one large field of white 
 clover in winter ; but though farmers complain of having to 
 feed so many, they do not cause so much havoc as rabbits, 
 
Natural History. 53 
 
 because they are spread more evenly over the country, whilst 
 rabbits keep to one side of a wood or hedge, and eat the corn 
 crops till they look as if they had been mown for a certain 
 distance, besides which they waste so much, never picking up 
 again what they have once let fall. According to the keepers, 
 rabbits are quite scarce at Hatton, and it is true they do not 
 multiply so quickly on clay as on sandy land, but they are 
 carefully preserved as food for any stray fox, and to be mixed 
 with pheasant food when boiled. Now and then a day is given 
 to rabbit shooting, when between 300 and 400 are shot, so 
 they can hardly be considered scarce. A few black ones exist 
 and are generally spared. 
 
 List of mammals : Bat (Pesperugo plpistrellus\ hedgehog, 
 (Erinaceus Europ&us\ shrew (Tor ex tetragonarus\ mole (Talpa 
 Europ<za\ marten (Maries folna\ stoat (Mustela ermlnea\ 
 polecat (Mustela putorius\ fox (Canes vulpes\ squirrel (Scuirus 
 vulgarls\ rat (Mus decumanus\ field mouse (Mm syl*patica\ 
 house mouse (Mus musculus}^ grass mouse (Ar'vicola agrestls\ 
 water rat (Ar^icola amphibia}^ hare (Lepus Europ<zus\ rabbit 
 (Lepus cuniculus\ dormouse (Myoxus cTpellanarius}. 
 
 Reptiles are represented by the slow-worm ( Jf nguis fragllis\ 
 the grass snake (Tropidonotus natrlx\ two sorts of newts, and I 
 once saw a lizard. The frog (Rana Temporarla] is common in 
 and near certain ponds, and the toad (Bup *vulgaris] about 
 gardens. 
 
 THE STORY OF THE LINCOLN GAP. 
 
 By F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., 
 
 President of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, being the Presidential Address, 
 deliver ed at Lincoln, 1895. 
 
 PART I. 
 
 A TRAVELLER starting from the Trent side, and jour- 
 neying eastwards across Lincolnshire, might reasonably 
 suppose, as he met with escarpment after escarpment 
 first the Triassic and Rhcetic, then the Oolitic, and lastly that 
 of the Chalk, with, here and there, lesser intermediate ridges 
 
 * Re-published, with alterations and additions, from The Naturalist, 1895, 
 pp. 273-280, by special permission. 
 
54 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 that the sea had been at work in forming the surface of the 
 land; but his impression would be wrong. True that, since 
 the land rose from under the deep chalk ocean, it has under- 
 gone various periods of subsidence, elevation, and rest, and has 
 been covered by the waters of the sea at various times ; true 
 that, in the ice period, the whole of the land sank to a consid- 
 erable depth below its present level, and, therefore, true that 
 the surface has been to some extent modified by the sea yet, 
 for all that, there are distinct proofs, both positive and negative, 
 that it is to the action of rain and rivers that the present con- 
 figuration of the land is due. 
 
 In order to understand this, we cannot do better than con- 
 sider how the gap through the Oolite escarpment at Lincoln 
 was formed, as from it we get a clue to all the rest. 
 
 In my address last year I alluded to a great river system 
 coming from the South and West, the only remains of it being 
 the Witham. 
 
 Rivers cut narrow gorges or channels, and it is left to rains 
 and sub-aerial forces to widen them into valleys. The fiords 
 of Norway and the canons of America are the work of rivers ; 
 but no one will give the Witham the credit of having cut 
 through the Lincoln Gap, so we must look for a more power- 
 ful and efficient agent, and we find it in the Trent. 
 
 In considering this, it is most important that we should bear 
 in mind the difference in the height of the land before the gap 
 was formed, and at the present time. 
 
 To enable a river to cut through rocks, whether hard or 
 soft, it must, of necessity, start from higher ground than the 
 land it runs over ; it must in fact have a downward slope to 
 work on, and cannot go uphill. The land, therefore, to the 
 West of Lincoln must at one time have been higher, instead of 
 lower, than the present cliff, otherwise the gap could not have 
 been made ; or, as Mr. Jukes-Brown, in his paper " On the 
 relative ages of certain river-valleys in Lincolnshire," puts it : 
 "The original direction of all rivers which cut through ridges 
 was determined by the general slope of the ancient surface 
 over which they began to run." This being borne in mind, 
 what evidence is there to show that the Trent once flowed 
 through the gap on which Lincoln is built ? 
 
 The river itself is one of considerable volume. It is the 
 combined issue of several streams, having their sources in 
 Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, and Leicestershire, 
 and it flows, as far as Newark, in a north-easterly direction ; 
 
Natural History. 55 
 
 there, however, it leaves its course and bends to the north, 
 skirting the low Triassic and Rhcetic escarpment on the west, 
 "as if it had not been able to cross that comparatively slight 
 obstruction"; then, continuing past Gainsborough, it flows on 
 northwards until it is lost in the Humber. 
 
 Now that this northward bend of the Trent, after reaching 
 Newark, is of comparatively recent origin, and that it formerly 
 continued its north-easterly course, and flowed through the gap 
 at Lincoln, is capable of proof; and the credit of suggesting 
 this is due to Mr. Penning, of the Geological Survey, when he 
 was engaged, in 1878, in mapping the gravel beds round 
 Lincoln. 
 
 And what are the proofs ? First, it is, as Mr. Jukes-Browne 
 says in his paper before referred to, "a significant fact that if 
 the general course of the Trent, south-west of Newark, be 
 prolonged to the north-east, it points to the great gap in the 
 Oolitic escarpment at Lincoln through which the river 
 Witham now flows " ; but it is more significant to find that, 
 all along this north-east track, lie vast beds of ancient gravel 
 deposits, showing clear traces of river action, distinct from the 
 other and more modern gravels around (which latter, as I shall 
 show later on, are the result of floods to which the Trent has 
 always been greatly liable) ; and still more significant is the 
 fact that these ancient gravel beds carry with them incontestable 
 proofs of their origin, being " largely made up of rounded 
 pebbles of quartzite, hornstone, and other old rocks, which 
 have evidently been derived from the triassic pebble-beds 
 beyond Newark on the west " ; and as these ancient gravels, 
 with their component pebbles, are found in large quantities, 
 not only between Newark and Lincoln to the west of the gap, 
 but right through and far beyond it, on the east, they could 
 have been brought there only by the Trent, otherwise there is 
 no way of accounting for them. 
 
 All this is, I submit, sufficient to convince any reasonable 
 mind that the present course of the river Trent is not its 
 original one, but that, ages ago, in early pre-glacial times (as 
 I think), and not post-glacial, as Mr. Jukes-Browne suggests 
 it passed through the Lincoln Gap to the fen-land beyond, 
 which was then probably an open bay. 
 
 My reason for putting the date back to pre-glacial times is 
 that the submergence of the land in the eastern part of 
 England, during that age, was not sufficient to wear away its 
 then existing contour to any great extent ; and the denudation 
 
56 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 of the Keuper strata, where the Trent now flows, weak as 
 these strata are, must have consumed a very long period of time. 
 
 We have now to enquire how the change came about ; and, 
 to understand it, we must learn something of the laws relating 
 to river courses. 
 
 Rivers may be roughly divided into two main classes, 
 "primary" and "secondary." The "primary" or, as they 
 are sometimes called, transverse rivers, from their running with 
 the dip, transverse to the strike of the beds take their rise on 
 any elevated ground, and, having a gradual slope towards the 
 sea, cut in a more or less direct line through hard ridges and 
 soft strata alike j and the valleys they form in their course, 
 with the aid of rain and atmospheric agencies, are known as 
 transverse valleys ; while the streams which flow into them 
 on the sides, and which follow the strike of the strata, cutting 
 through the softer and weaker beds between the ridges, are 
 known as " secondary " or subsequent rivers, and their valleys 
 longitudinal. These "subsequent " streams may be, and they 
 sometimes are, of greater length than the "primary" rivers j 
 and, as they deepen their beds and widen their valleys, they 
 leave the hard ridges, parallel to which they run, standing out 
 as inland cliffs or escarpments (the formation of "longitudinal " 
 valleys, and of inland escarpments, being, in fact, in each case 
 the result of one and the same process). Again, as time goes 
 on, and the " longitudinal " valleys are pushed further back, 
 these "subsequent" rivers sometimes succeed in tapping, or 
 capturing, other rivers and streams flowing at a higher level 
 than themselves, which they happen to reach. 
 
 The Trent was a " primary " stream when it first started on 
 its course from the high district in the west a time when the 
 Derbyshire hills were hundreds of feet higher than they now 
 are and, finding a gradual slope towards the east, thither, of 
 necessity, it directed its steps, cutting through opposing ridges 
 and the more yielding strata alike till it reached the sea. 
 
 The Humber, too, was a " primary " river when, ages ago, 
 it left its cradle in the Yorkshire hills ; and in its lower course 
 it is one still, or rather the beheaded remains of one, for its 
 upper streams which Prof. Davis thinks may have been 
 somewhere about Halifax or Huddersfield are lost. This 
 river, as it reached our land, had the same ridges to cut through 
 as the Trent the Triassic, Oolite, and Chalk and it, too, 
 found an outlet in the eastern sea. 
 
 At that time, however, as now, it lay at a lower level than 
 
Natural History. 57 
 
 the Trent ; and, as it deepened its bed, a " longitudinal " 
 valley began to form on the soft Keuper marls to the south, 
 where the Trent now flows. 
 
 The river Idle, which runs into the Trent a little to the 
 north of Gainsborough and was then an independent stream 
 draining the land round Mansfield where it rises flowed down 
 this valley, deepening and widening it continually, till it 
 reached the Humber. Other brooks and rivulets, collecting 
 from the land around, helped on the work ; and, as this went 
 on year after year, and the valley was pushed back further to 
 the south, the Trent was reached at last, and tapped near 
 Newark ; perhaps, as Mr. Jukes-Brown suggests, " on the 
 occasion of some great flood, when the last intervening barrier 
 gave way." 
 
 Whether this is correct or not and something of the kind 
 may have easily occurred I cannot doubt that, for a very long 
 time afterwards, the two opposing channels struggled for the 
 supremacy, and that the river flowed both ways ; but, as the 
 Humber continued deepening its bed, and, as a consequence, 
 deepening and pushing back its " longitudinal " valley also, 
 while the land between Newark and Lincoln, where the old 
 channel ran, was reduced almost to a level, the result was 
 inevitable ; the captured Trent gave way at last to the yielding 
 marls of the Keuper, and no longer a " primary " but a 
 " subsequent " stream became a tributary of the Humber. 
 
 A reference to the accompanying diagram will tend to make 
 this more clear. 
 
 This is but a mere outline of the subject, and those who 
 wish to know more of it should read Mr. Jukes-Browne's 
 paper ; and also an article in the magazine of the Royal 
 Geographical Society, February, 1895, by William Morris 
 Davis, Professor of Physical Geography, Harvard University, 
 u On the Development of certain English Rivers," which deals 
 with the subjecl: more fully and elaborately than has been 
 attempted by any previous author. A careful perusal of this 
 most able and instructive paper will well repay the reader for 
 his trouble ; and, at the risk of wearying you with somewhat 
 technical details, the following short summary of the views put 
 forth in it will not, I think, be out of place. 
 
 Prof. Davis begins his paper with the following thesis : 
 
 "The rivers of Eastern England have been developed, in 
 their present course, by the spontaneous growth of drainage 
 lines on an original gently inclined plane, composed of 
 
58 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 sedimentary strata of varying resistance. In the course of 
 this development the land has been, at least once, worn down 
 to a lowland of faint relief, and afterwards broadly uplifted, 
 thus opening a second cycle of denudation, and reviving the 
 rivers to new activity ; and, in the second cycle of denudation, 
 the adjustment of streams to structures has been carried to a 
 higher degree of perfection than it could have reached in the 
 first cycle." He then goes on to differ with previous authors 
 and workers on the subject Ramsay, Greenwood, Foster, 
 Topley, Whittaker, Green, Jukes-Browne, and others in the 
 fact of their starting the drainage of rivers on planes of 
 "marine erosion," whereas he urges that rivers, and sub-aerial 
 forces, account for it all. By such latter agencies, he thinks, 
 and thinks rightly, that land surfaces, hard and soft alike, may in 
 time be reduced almost to a level a "peneplain" as he terms it. 
 You will have noticed in his thesis that he speaks of the 
 land, after being worn down to a lowland of faint relief, being 
 broadly uplifted again, "thus opening a second cycle of 
 denudation, and reviving the rivers to new activity." The 
 features of this second cycle, he points out, will differ in two 
 significant respects from those of the first. There would be, 
 in the first place, at the beginning of the initial cycle, no 
 subsequent streams, all the drainage would be trans^perse^ or 
 consequent as he terms it. At the beginning of the second 
 cycle the greater part of the drainage would be revived along 
 the subsequent streams left by the first cycle at the end of its 
 career ; and, with this gain to start with, the adjustmentS'of 
 the second cycle would naturally exceed those of the first. 
 Then, in the second place, the escarpments, or ridges, left by 
 the first cycle would, for some time, retain the even form they 
 were reduced to at the close of that cycle ; and, when these 
 two special features occur together in a region, it can, he says, 
 "hardly be doubted that two cycles of sub-aerial denudation 
 have been, more or less, completely passed through in its 
 geographical development." He then goes on to show that 
 this theory is pertinent to the development of the newer rivers 
 of England ; for everything, as he says, points to the former 
 higher stand, and greater mass, of the land in the west in the 
 first instance ; then to the consequent or transverse streams that 
 flowed from this high land to the eastern sea ; then to the 
 development of subsequent streams along the weaker strata, and 
 the diverting and tapping of the primary transverse courses as 
 a necessary sequence. 
 
Natural History. 59 
 
 He then considers the evidence indicating that at least two 
 cycles of sub-aerial denudation have been involved for the 
 development of the geographical features of the east of 
 England, the first cycle having reached old age, the second 
 being, at present, in its maturity. " Look," he says, " at the 
 remarkable evenness of the Oolite and Chalk uplands in 
 Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and other counties." " Remember," 
 he adds, " that the most reasonable view concerning the 
 original extension of the strata of these uplands would carry 
 them high up in the air over the Midland Triassic lowland, 
 and then ask how denudation could reduce the original 
 constructional extension of these strata to the even uplands 
 they now present." " These uplands," he says, " seem to be 
 remnants of a 'peneplain' of sub-aerial denudation, for the 
 reason that their drainage is accomplished, in great part, by 
 subsequent streams (as should be the case if the present streams 
 are the revived successors of those of a former cycle of 
 atmospheric denudation), and not by streams imperfectly 
 adjusted to the structures (as should be the case if the region 
 had been denuded afresh by marine action, and then elevated 
 to its present height)." "Marine denudation," he reiterates, 
 (and this is a well-known physical axiom) " distinctly requires 
 the suppression of all previous drainage systems, and the 
 inception of a new system of streams entirely independent of 
 those beneath ; while the hypothesis of sub-aerial denudation, 
 as distinctly requires the retention of a previously adjusted 
 drainage system as a foundation to start with." Marine 
 denudation demanding a drainage without subsequent streams ; 
 sub-aerial denudation equally demanding a considerable 
 number of subsequent streams at the time of upheaval. 
 
 Prof. Davis then takes individual rivers in Yorkshire, 
 Lincolnshire, and elsewhere, and points out some of the most 
 important captures that have been made by the subsequent 
 streams, as in the case of the Humber and Trent, and he 
 suggests that portions of the original consequent or transverse 
 rivers may be looked for in various localities \ and, for my part, 
 I do not know any more interesting occupation for a geologist 
 than to search for such portions, and to try to make out how, 
 and by what means, their courses have been changed.* 
 
 After the Trent was captured, it would no doubt, for a long 
 time, have a tendency to resort to its original course in times 
 
 * See note at end. 
 
60 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 of flood. The Triassic and Rhoetic escarpment, which now 
 bounds it on the east, is a very weak one at the best ; and 
 only here and there, in places like Gate Burton, Gainsborough, 
 and Burton Stather, does it present anything like a formidable 
 barrier ; while, in many parts, it is a mere bank, and scarcely 
 that ; but', as years went on, and its new channel through the 
 soft Keuper marls was deepened, this tendency would gradually 
 diminish. 
 
 The Trent has always been liable to floods. Before its 
 course was changed the narrowness of the Lincoln outlet 
 prevented any rush of water getting away quickly ; and the 
 wide extent of ground covered by gravel deposits between 
 Newark and Lincoln shows how greatly the land around was 
 flooded. 
 
 At that distant period, also, a powerful tributary, which has 
 left its mark on the land in the shape of an ancient gravel-bed, 
 entered the Trent near Lincoln, adding to the difficulty. 
 
 This stream, according to Mr. Jukes-Browne, had its source 
 among the hills near Belvoir Castle, where the small river 
 Devon, its modern representative, now rises. 
 
 Other similar streams would doubtless drain into the river 
 from the "longitudinal" valleys on either side, making matters 
 worse, so that, in time of flood, the entire area west of Lincoln 
 would often, for weeks together, be a sea of water. The river 
 Witham, however, at this period followed a course of its own. 
 Instead of running into Brayford, at the foot of the Oolite 
 escarpment at Lincoln, as it now does, it passed, as a "transverse" 
 stream, through that escarpment at Ancaster, and flowed thence 
 into the Wash. How it came to take its present course is not 
 exactly known. It was certainly after the Trent had been 
 captured by the Humber, and it may have been due to the 
 wearing back of the " longitudinal " valley in which it now 
 runs ; but, as there are signs of the uplifting of the land in the 
 neighbourhood of the Ancaster gap, through which it formerly 
 flowed, it may, in this way, have been turned aside and forced 
 into its present channel. Prof. Davis thinks its course was 
 changed by capture, and says " One of the greatest successes 
 of the Trent was the capture of the upper Witham, as 
 explained by Mr. Jukes-Browne." As a fa el, however, the 
 latter leaves the question open, and I am inclined to think, 
 indeed I see no reason to doubt, that the channel was turned 
 by the elevation of the land at Ancaster, where there has been 
 a distinct uplifting of the strata. 
 
Natural History. 61 
 
 Recently, at one of the meetings of the Lincolnshire 
 Naturalists' Union at Sleaford, I had an opportunity of 
 examining this district, and, in a pit called " Greylees," a few 
 miles east of the Ancaster Gap, I made the following note : 
 " in this pit the rubble at the top of the Oolite is much broken 
 up and contorted, dipping in every direction, and curved and 
 folded in an extraordinary manner, and on the south side of it 
 the underlying rocks show signs of folding. This may be 
 connected with the uplift in the Gap through the Oolite cliff 
 at Ancaster, which lies a few miles off to the west, where the 
 Witham once flowed ; and the disturbance of the rubble may 
 be due to the same cause." 
 
 The present straight course of the Witham into Brayford, 
 as it approaches Lincoln, is due to modern requirements. 
 Formerly it branched off westward into Boultham parish, 
 where it was joined by the Till, coming from the opposite 
 "longitudinal" valley, half a mile, or more, west of the present 
 High Bridge at Lincoln, before passing through the Gap. 
 
 LOUTH ANTIQUARIAN AND NATUR- 
 ALISTS' SOCIETY. 
 
 By R. W. GOULDING. 
 
 [Reprinted from the Louth Advertiser, 6 July, 1895.] 
 
 IT is frequently made a ground of complaint against 
 Lincolnshire men that they have done very little towards 
 the elucidation of their county fauna and flora. Now, 
 however true that may be of Lincolnshire as a whole, still 
 there are certain districts of the county the flora of which has 
 been diligently worked, and against these districts the reproach 
 cannot fairly be brought. In Louth, for instance, for many 
 years past there have been at least a few zealous adherents of 
 
6 2 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 botanical science, and scanty though their numbers have been, 
 yet their unobtrusive and careful investigations have yielded, 
 and still are yielding, excellent results. Prominent among the 
 local botanists of 40 years ago were the two brothers Thomas 
 Wemyss Bogg and Edward B. Bogg, who not only collected, 
 preserved and named their specimens, but also recorded the 
 localities where, and the dates when, the said specimens were 
 found. Their valuable collections have been recently handed 
 over to the Rev. E. Adrian Woodruffe-Peacock, who is the 
 custodian of the herbarium which is being formed to represent 
 the botany of the entire county. Contemporary with the 
 Boggs, and with enthusiasm akin to theirs, was the Rev. John 
 Theodore Barker, a man of enlightened mind and attractive 
 personality, who was the author of a pleasant little book 
 entitled "The Beauty of Flowers in Field and Wood," and 
 who was for a number of years the esteemed President of the 
 Louth Mechanics' Institution. Mr. Barker's tenure of the 
 office is memorable by reason of the fact that during it he 
 furthered the interests of the branch of science to which he 
 was devoted by conducting classes for botanical study ; and his 
 efforts were so far successful that he communicated some of his 
 own enthusiasm to men like Mr. T. W. Wallis and Mr. B. 
 Crow, the former of whom thoroughly explored the district 
 and formed a herbarium which contains some seven or eight 
 hundred specimens, while the latter still continues his 
 researches with undiminished ardour and activity. Except, 
 however, in these and a few other isolated instances, interest in 
 local botany seemed steadily to decline after Mr. Barker's 
 removal from Louth. But in process of time Mr. Harry Kew 
 arose, and he stirred up his friends and by and by persuaded 
 four of them to join him in forming the Louth Naturalists' 
 Society (the first society of its kind in Lincolnshire), and the 
 somewhat flagging zeal of the elder generation received a fresh 
 impetus. This was in 1884; some four years later the 
 members deemed it advisable to enlarge their borders, and the 
 society was re-organised as the Louth Antiquarian and 
 Naturalists' Society. They have, from time to time, by means 
 of lectures, excursions and exhibitions of specimens, taken 
 many opportunities of endeavouring to advance the objects for 
 the promotion of which they were constituted ; and, so far as 
 botany is concerned, they hope that they are doing some really 
 useful educational work. During the summer months their 
 museum is open on Monday evenings, and flowering plants are 
 
Natural History. 63 
 
 usually exhibited and named for the benefit of any members 
 who are interested in the study and who care to attend. 
 
 But theirs have not been the only efforts recently put forth 
 to diffuse a knowledge of local botany, for during the past 
 winter the technical committee of the Mechanics' institution 
 laudably spent some of the funds at their disposal in engaging 
 a competent instructor, in the person of Professor J. W. Carr 
 of, Nottingham, to deliver a course of four lectures upon 
 " Plant Life," which lectures proved to be highly interesting 
 and were much appreciated. At the end of his course the 
 Professor intimated his willingness to spend an afternoon with 
 the students in pradtical field work, if such proceeding were 
 deemed desirable. The Antiquarian and Naturalists' Society 
 cordially approved the suggestion and took the initiative in 
 arranging for a ramble, the day chosen being Thursday, June 
 2yth. 
 
 The time for meeting at the London Road Railway Bridge 
 was two o'clock, but, owing to the threatening weather and 
 the attractions of an auspicious celebration at the Parish 
 Church, the party was less numerous than had been anticipated. 
 The faithful, tenacious few, however, whose fixed resolutions 
 quailed not before the menaces of Jupiter Tonans et Pluvius, 
 spent about four hours very pleasantly in wandering over 
 Coxey Hills in company with Mr. Carr, whose ample know- 
 ledge and experience enabled him to impart various hints and 
 bits of information which were novel to his hearers. In one 
 cornfield the bladder campion (Silene cucubalus) was very 
 common, and Mr. Carr pointed out a nameless variety, with a 
 kind of fringe round the edges of the leaves, which he 
 described as being intermediate between the type and the 
 variety puberula. This field also produced lamb's lettuce 
 (Valerianella dentata\ shepherd's needle, greater knapweed 
 (Centaurea scabiosd] and scabious (Scabiosa arvensis}. In the 
 next field, which was a pasture, a good find was made by 
 Master Hall, whose acute eyes detected a solitary specimen of 
 the dropwort (Spiraea filipenduld], which has not in recent times 
 been recorded for the immediate locality. Other plants 
 gathered in the same field were : Purging flax (Linum 
 catharticum\ betony (Stachys betonica\ helleborine orchis 
 (Epipacfis latifolid), tway blade {Lister a o^ata\ lady's mantle 
 (Alchemilla vulgaris\ and pepper saxifrage (Silaus pratensis). 
 Among the other plants noted were the great burnet, spurge 
 (Euphorbia amygdaloides)^ tufted vetch, water bedstraw (Gallurn 
 
64 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 palustre)^ fragrant orchis, milk wort (Pimpinella major\ hedge 
 wound wort, St. John's wort (Hypericum quadratum), black 
 bryony, My os at is ctespitosa, Chara fragilis^ Apium nodiflorum^ 
 eyebright, giant bell-flower (not in bloom), meadow sweet, 
 sneeze wort, cat's ear (Hypochoeris radicata), Leontodon hirtus^ 
 L.hispidus, Conopodium denudatum, Cerastium trfyiale, Potamogeton 
 crispus^ P. natans and Tormentil. Among grasses and sedges 
 the following may be mentioned : Dog's-tail grass (Cynosurus 
 cristatus\ float grass ((jlyceria plicata\ meadow soft grass 
 (Holcus mollis\ Car ex dlsticha, Arrenatherum avenaceum^ Juncus 
 effusus^ J. conglomerates^ Heleocharis palustris^ and Brachypodlum 
 pinnatum. 
 
 VERTEBRATA OF LINCOLNSHIRE. 
 
 MAY I appeal to all true lovers of natural history for local 
 lists of animals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fishes. 
 The lists that have already come to hand have been 
 run into a Locality Register^ like that for the Flora, with a 
 view, as the facts accumulate, to working out the distribution 
 of species according to the Natural History Division Scheme, 
 lately published in The Naturalist and Lincolnshire Notes & 
 Queries. 
 
 Bare lists are of great value, but all interesting information 
 should be added for publication. In the case of rare specimens 
 and eggs there should be a note not only of the date, place, and 
 name of Collector, but also where these valuable finds are now 
 preserved. Full notes of specimens that have passed through 
 the hands of professional naturalists are simply invaluable 
 they see so much. 
 
 I want notes especially on the old English Black Rat, Voles, 
 Shrews, Mice, Bats, and Seals and Fish of our coast line. 
 
 Everyone's information will be most fully acknowledged. 
 
 THE EDITOR. 
 
Natural History. 65 
 
 LINCOLNSHIRE.* 
 
 By JOHN CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., 
 
 Great Cotes, R.S.O., Lincoln , Convener of the British Association Committee on the 
 Migration of Birds. 
 
 IT is somewhat curious that even in the present day so 
 much misconception should linger in connection with the 
 second in size of English shires, popularly invested with 
 fens and fogs, ague and marsh fever; a haunt of wild-fowl and 
 waders, reeds and watercress : where the rainfall is excessive, 
 floods the order and not the exception. One of the greatest 
 of modern authors adds to this general prejudice when in 
 commencing his workf he writes 'it was raining down in 
 Lincolnshire,' a remark perhaps as little complimentary as that 
 of Henry VIII., who speaks of the county as 'being one of 
 the most brute and beastly of the whole realm, and of the 
 least experience.'! Even at the commencement of the present 
 century Lincolnshire was comparatively a terra incognita^ and 
 was looked upon as the ultima Thu/e of English counties. This 
 isolation probably in great part due to its position with the 
 broad frontage of a great tidal river and the sea to the north, 
 east, and south-east, separated also, as in the Isle of Axholme 
 and the fens, by impassable swamps and morasses from the rest 
 of England. Thus it came to pass that Lincolnshire folks 
 were considered behind the age, and it is yet somewhat of a 
 reflection on the literary enterprise of the shire that, notwith- 
 standing the materials ready to hand, it should stand almost 
 alone in having no county history, 
 
 From north to south, Lincolnshire extends seventy-five 
 miles, and from east to west forty-five. The area is 1,767,962 
 acres the Isle of Axholme containing 50,000; of the whole a 
 very small portion, 5,762 acres, now remains which is not 
 either cultivated or in pasture. Fuller in quaint language 
 likens it to c a bended bow, the sea making the back, the rivers 
 Welland and Humber the two horns thereof, whilst Trent 
 
 * Reprinted from The Naturalist, 1886, p. i, by special permission, 
 f Charles Dickens, Bleak House. 
 
 JFroude, History of England (Ed. 1870), Vol. II., p. 527. 
 Vol. 5, No. 37, Lines. N. & 9. _ 
 
 Nat. Hist. Sea. 
 
66 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 hangeth down like a broken string, as being somewhat of the 
 shortest.* 
 
 At the time of the Roman invasion Lincolnshire formed 
 part of the territories of the powerful tribe of the Coritani, 
 their district also comprising Rutland, part of Nottinghamshire, 
 the whole of Leicestershire, and some portion of Warwick- 
 shire,f Lindum being their chief city and stronghold, their 
 frontier fortresses at Gainsborough, Aukborough, Yarborough 
 Camp, and Caistor predominating the Trent and Humber, 
 which rivers separated them to the north and north-east from 
 their equally powerful neighbours the Brigantes. When the 
 Romans, probably under Ostorius, about A.D. 70, seized 
 Lincoln, they appreciated its commanding site and strongly 
 fortified it. Subsequently it became a chief fortress one of 
 the nine Coloniae held by veterans of the legions on condition 
 of rendering military service. They appear also to have 
 utilised for defensive purposes the remaining strongholds of the 
 tribe along the northern frontier, connecting them by roads, 
 yia Militares et Vicinales. Of these the most remarkable is 
 the Ermine Street running above Grantham to Ancaster and 
 Lincoln, and then leaving the camp at the Newport Arch, the 
 most perfect Roman gateway existing in the country, it ran in 
 a direct line to the north through Kirton-in-Lindsey to Win- 
 tringham-on-the-Humber, where there was a ferry at Brough 
 on the Yorkshire side, and hence on to York. Through a 
 considerable portion of its course the 'old strete' is still used 
 for purposes of traffic, in others, as over part of Lincoln Heath 
 and near its northern extremity, it is a wide green lane bordered 
 by gorse, whin, and bramble thicket; and in solitudes which 
 once echoed to the tramp of the cohorts and the heavy rumbling 
 of baggage trains, and in more recent days the march of great 
 English armies towards Scotland, we now listen to the warbling 
 of innumerable linnets, or the monotonous song of the yellow- 
 hammer. The eastern face of the fortress ran nearly in line 
 with the transepts of the present Minster, which stands partly 
 within and partly without the camp. From its commanding 
 position, overlooking an immense extent of country, it must 
 have been practically impregnable. Those indeed who have 
 climbed the steep slopes from the lower town to the castle- 
 yard can form some estimate of its strength, when massive 
 
 * Worthies of England, Nicholls' Ed., 1811, Vol. II., p. i. 
 
 f M. H. Bloxam, Lindum civitas Coritanorum. Line. Diocesan Arch. Soc. 34th 
 Report, 1877, p. 41 et seq. 
 
Natural History. 67 
 
 wall* was lined with the hardy veterans of the VI. and X. 
 Legions, when iron darts from catapult hurtled through the air, 
 and huge stones from the balistae bounded down the slopes. 
 
 Of the successive waves of conquerors Saxon, Dane, and 
 Norman which during the six centuries subsequent to the 
 Roman occupation swept over Lincolnshire, none have so 
 indelibly left their mark as the Dane. The county is still 
 England's Denmark, and the names of 292 towns and villages 
 indicate the prevalence of the Danish element. Of these 212 
 have the termination by, 63 have thorpe, one has with, four 
 have toft, eight have becf^ and three have dale.\ Nowhere 
 else, except in Holderness, have the repeated Danish invasions 
 left such landmarks. And, just as in the present the emigrant 
 from our shores to the backwoods of America gives to his 
 small freehold the name of the old home beyond the seas, so 
 likewise his Danish fore-elders, for everywhere in Denmark we 
 find names having close affinity to Lincolnshire villages. J 
 Mr. Freeman shows how the Danish invasions of eastern 
 England may be divided into three periods simple plunder, 
 period of settlement, political conquest. Terrible indeed 
 were the ravages, of which oral tradition still lingers, of these 
 ferocious sea-rovers during the first period. Loosing from the 
 opposite shores of the North Sea in the early spring, they sped 
 across in the long ships with big main-sails spread, wing and 
 wing, running before the east wind and tossing the salt spray 
 above the splendours of their richly-blazoned prows, like 
 falcons swooping on their prey. The Humber offered unusual 
 facilities for landing; berthing their galleys in the muddy 
 creeks, as Gaimsby and Tetney havens, where at low-water 
 they lay like painted serpents in the slimy ooze creeks to 
 which the song of Kal U the son of Kali is as yet equally 
 applicable as then : 
 
 Unpleasantly we have been wading 
 In the mud a weary five week, 
 Dirt we had indeed in plenty 
 When we lay in Grimsby harbour. 
 
 * The walls of Roman Lincoln are computed at 10 to 12 feet thick, and 20 to 25 
 feet high. The area of the camp was about six or seven acres. Line. Diocesan 
 Arch. Soc. report, 1876, pp. 178, 179. 
 
 f Freeman's Norman Conquest, Vol. I, p. 437. 
 
 J The whole subject of the occupation and settlement of Lincolnshire by the 
 Danes has been most ably and exhaustively treated by the Rev. G. S. Streatfeild, in 
 Lincolnshire and the Danes. (Kegan Paul, Trench and Co., London, 1884.) 
 
 Freeman, Norman Conquest ,V 'ol. I., pp. 12, 43 seq. 
 
 ^[ Orkneyinga Saga, Anderson's Ed., p. 76. 
 
68 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 There is scarcely a church on our eastern coast which shows 
 not, in some part or other of its structure, red and calcined 
 stones suggestive of Danish ravage ; and it is by no means 
 improbable, as is asserted,* that beneath the broad-headed nails 
 which stud the oaken doors may still be found some withered 
 fragment of the skin of sacrilegious viking. 
 
 Of dread potent was the hoisting on the Saxon shore of the 
 Raven banner, surnamed the ' Landwaster ' ; 
 
 For there 
 
 Was shedding of blood and rending of hair, 
 Rape of maiden, and slaughter of priest, 
 Gathering of ravens and wolves to the feast. 
 
 Yet one hundred years later throughout the peaceful Danelagh 
 the savage marauder had become transformed into the peaceful 
 tiller of the soil. What the physical characters of the county 
 were in the second period we may conjecture from the positions 
 chosen by these vikings or ' creekers ' for their permanent 
 homes, placed at regular intervals on the slopes or near the foot 
 of the uplands, overlooking the low country or marsh. The 
 house or by rising on a foundation of stone chalk quarried 
 from the wold the upper part of c stud and mud ' with wattled 
 outbuildings and c crews,' surrounded by 'garth* and ^wong? 
 Above them stretched the open wold, rolling uplands of heather 
 and gorse, and coarse tussocks of tAira ccespitosa and the barren 
 brome grass, stretches of brake bright green in spring and 
 golden-brown in the autumn ; here and there solitary 
 hawthorns quite grey with lichen, storm-twisted and venerable ; 
 and on the highest ridges many a tumulus and c hoe ' long 
 since obliterated by the destroying plough. A land without 
 inhabitant; the haunt of bustard and stone curlew, golden 
 plover and dotterel, where in deep dales by chalk stream sides 
 the otter had his home, and in the twilight the red deer and 
 roe came down to graze. Below the wold, covering much of 
 what is now known as the middle marsh, stretched the wide 
 forest of oak, beech and elm, with an undergrowth of holly, 
 hazel, and yew ; dense thickets of blackthorn and bramble, 
 where lurked the grey wolf, wild boar, and wild cat; and 
 above falcon, kite, and buzzard held almost undisputed posses- 
 
 * In a footnote, Lincolnshire and the Danes, p. 4, Mr. Streatfeild says ' the 
 four churches with which such traditions are distinctly connected are Rochester 
 Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, and the churches of Hadstock and Copford in 
 Essex. In the case of Hadstock, the last fragments of skin did not disappear until 
 1846 ; and in that of Copford, not until 1843 (see Archaeological Journal, Vol. V., 
 p. 185 ; Vol. X., p. 167). 
 
Natural History. 69 
 
 sion. Beyond the forest was the rich pasture of the maritime 
 marshes merging into salt 'fitties,' purple with sea-lavender 
 and thrift, or grey with the frosted sea-orache, muddy stretches, 
 green with glasswort, and then the flat seabeach 
 
 A coast 
 
 Of ever-shifting sand, and far away 
 The phantom circle of a moaning sea. 
 
 Then beyond Horncastle and Spilsby, where the chalk dips 
 below the fen ' from the foot of the wolds, the green flat 
 stretched away illimitable, to an horizon where from the 
 roundness of the earth, the distant trees and islands were hulled 
 down like ships at sea. The firm horse-fen lay, bright green, 
 along the foot of the wold ; beyond it the browner peat or 
 deep fen ; and among that, dark velvet alder beds, long lines of 
 reed-rond, emerald in spring and golden under the autumn 
 sun ; shining c eas ' or river reaches ; broad meres dotted with 
 a million fowl. . . . Here and there, too, upon the far 
 horizon, rose a tall line of ashen-trees, marking some island of 
 firm rich soil. . . . Overhead the arch of heaven spread 
 more ample than elsewhere, as over the open sea ; and that 
 vastness gave, and still gives, such cloudlands, such sunrises, * -_ i| 
 such sunsets, as can be seen nowhere else within these isles.'* ^ 
 This was the land of the Girvii or Fenmen, a tribe of Angles 
 who, even in Danish days, remained practically unsubdued 
 within the fastnesses of their impassable morasses. 
 
 During the Norman period Lincolnshire contained no less 
 than ninety religious foundations Abbeys, Monasteries, 
 Preceptories of Knights Templars, alien Priories and Hospitals ; 
 four principal castles Lincoln, Tattershall, Carlton, and 
 Sleaford ; and nine crenellated or fortified mansions. Most of 
 these have entirely disappeared, and there is perhaps no other 
 county so utterly devoid of picturesque ruins. With the 
 exception of the great gateway of Thornton, near Ulceby, 
 the Western part of Crowland, and some remains at Tupholme, 
 Kirkstead, and Louth, and the castles at Lincoln, Somerton, 
 and Tattershall, scarce a remnant now remains, and even the 
 site of the buildings is in many cases with difficulty made out.f 
 Nowhere else in England, however, do we find so many 
 
 * Kingsley's Hereivard. 
 
 f For a list of Lincolnshire Religious Houses and Castles, see The Lincoln Pocket 
 Guide, 1880, pp. 178-180, by Sir C. H. J. Anderson, Bart. 
 
jo Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 interesting churches dating from early Saxon times down to 
 the close of the Perpendicular period at the end of the I5th 
 century. Perhaps the most remarkable among many is the 
 c Mother of Lincoln,' the Saxon church at Stowe, which for 
 some time was the throne of the Bishops of Lindisse, before 
 removal to Lincoln. Lincoln itself at one period contained 
 fifty-two churches, reduced in the reign of the sixth Edward 
 to thirteen. At Boston the magnificent tower of the parish 
 church, 260 feet high, the c stump,' as it is called, predominates 
 the fens, and it is a prominent object both by sea and land 
 from an immense distance. In times of fen floods the bells 
 were rung to warn the district of the impending danger.* 
 The spire of the church at Louth, in North Lincolnshire, 
 is 294 feet high, and yields to none in England for symmetrical 
 proportions and beauty of decoration. An interesting feature 
 of this church is the weathercock, which was placed in position 
 on Holy Rood-eve, 1515, being made out of a copper basin 
 taken two years previously from the Scottish king by the men 
 of Lindsey, at the battle of Flodden.f St. Guthlac's Abbey 
 of Crowland was entirely destroyed by the Danes in 870 ; but, 
 as some compensation, on its rebuilding it was richly endowed 
 with gifts by Canute not the least remarkable of these being 
 the skins of twelve polar bears for the altars, so that the feet of 
 the officiating priests might be kept warm.J Crowland at one 
 period had six bells, the 'sweetest in all England.' Much of 
 the beauty and durability of Lincolnshire churches is due to 
 the Barnack-ragstone, which in mediaeval times was carried by 
 water from the quarries of that name in Northamptonshire to 
 every part of the county. It is a coarse-grained shelly oolite, 
 and probably the most durable freestone in England. The 
 working of the stone appears to have been almost entirely 
 abandoned before the commencement of the I5th century, 
 probably from the exhaustion of the quarries. 
 
 * Miss Ingelow, herself a Lincolshire worthy, in her poem The High Tide on 
 the Coast of Lincolnshire (1571), graphically pictures the perils of fen life in flood 
 time, when the great bells of Boston rang out night and day to the warning tune of 
 * The Brides of Mavis-Enderby.' 
 
 f Lincoln Pocket Guide, p. 72. 
 
 J Monasticon Anglicanum, Dugdale, Vol. II, p. 96. 
 
 See Miller and Skertchly, The Fen/and Past and Present, 1878, pp. 78, 79. 
 
Natural History. 71 
 
 VALUE OF A SALMON FISHERY 
 ON THE TRENT. 
 
 PERHAPS the following particulars relating to the value of 
 a salmon fishery at different times during the last 130 
 years may be interesting. The particulars relate to a 
 "several" fishery on the river Trent, at East Ferry, extending 
 two miles, belonging to the manor of Scotton. 
 
 In 1743, in a rent-roll of John Hayley, lord of the manor 
 of Scotton, George Newcombe was tenant of a small farm at 
 East Ferry with the fishery, at ^35 IQS. a-year. In 1750, in 
 a rent-roll of Vansittart Hudson, then lord of the manor of 
 Scotton, Robert Goodburn was tenant of the fishery alone at 
 ^4 a-year, and widow Newcome kept the farm. 
 
 In 1752 the fishery was leased for twenty-one years to 
 Robert Goodburn at ^6 a-year; and in 1754 sub-let to 
 C. Wilkinson for ^8 a-year. In 1771 it was reduced to ^4 
 a-year. In 1801 Sir John Frederick was lord of the manor of 
 Scotton, and the fishery was rented at jio 6s. In 1802 it 
 was leased for twenty-one years to Thomas Wilkinson for 
 ^21 i Os. In 1815 the rent was reduced to ^4, and it was 
 let with the farm; so it continued down to 1867, when it was 
 separated from the farm and leased by Sir Richard Frederick, 
 lord of the manor, for seven years at j a-year. The decreased 
 value in 1815 was attributed to the introduction of steam 
 packets from Hull to Gainsborough up the Trent. The 
 salmon were prejudiced against steam as an invasion of the 
 rights of their river by such an ogre, and left; but the take of 
 salmon at this fishery has wonderfully increased in the last ten 
 years, and, as the steam packets have increased also, some 
 other reason must be assigned for the removal of the prejudice 
 in the salmon against their ancient haunts. The net profit to 
 the lessee in 1873 was ^100, and the fishermen earned ^40 
 each, thus clearly proving that the increase of the salmon in 
 the river Trent is due to the remedial measures taken by law 
 to preserve salmon, or else that this "several" fishery was let 
 very much under its value since 1815. The Trent is a late 
 river, and fish begin to run up the end of May. In 1873 tne 
 average weight of salmon taken at this fishery was I2fb. each. 
 
 THE EDITOR. 
 
72 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 THE STORY OF THE LINCOLN GAP. 
 
 By F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., 
 
 President of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, being the Presidential Address, 
 delivered at Lincoln, 1895. 
 
 PART II.* 
 
 In 1882, the late Mr. J. T. Padley well known in the 
 county as an accurate and painstaking engineer published a 
 work "On the Fens and Floods of Mid Lincolnshire," to 
 which we are indebted for much valuable information. Before 
 the Romans came, he says, " every flood of the Trent flowed 
 down to Lincoln through the Gap, and on over the fens to the 
 sea," part entering in at Friskney and Wainfleet Havens, and 
 the rest at Boston. These flood waters came mainly through 
 five openings in a range of low sandhills, extending from the 
 village of Girton in Nottinghamshire to Marton Cliff in 
 Lincolnshire. These openings are at Spaldford, Newton, the 
 Foss Dyke entrance, Torksey, and Brampton ; and the most 
 southerly one at Spaldford being the highest up the valley, 
 was the most dangerous. 
 
 The far-seeing Romans, who did so much good work in the 
 country, built banks across these openings, prior to which the 
 Trent had access through them to Lincoln ; and then, having 
 received the waters of the Till and Witham, it had to pass 
 through the narrow gap, thus raising the water to a great 
 height, as a boat chained to a stake at Motherby Hill, 340 
 yards north of Brayford, proves ; then, having gone through 
 the Gap, the water flowed down into the fens, and, being 
 joined by the Langworth river, the Bain and other streams, 
 covered all the low land down to the Wash, leaving " Swines- 
 head, Bicker, Wigtoft, Boston, Skirbeck, Sibsey, and all the 
 Holland towns (or tofts as they are called by Dugdale) mere 
 islands in the water." 
 
 The Spaldford bank, which is from 12 to 15 feet high on 
 the road from Girton to South Clifton, is a mile and a half 
 long, and stands now a mile to the east of the river ; and Mr. 
 
 g, 
 dley 
 
 Padley gives us a very graphic account of a flood which 
 
 * Lines. N. & ^., " Nat. Hist." Section, 1896, p. 53. 
 
Natural History. 73 
 
 occurred in 1795 when this bank gave way, and a great part of 
 Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire was flooded. To the west 
 of Lincoln nearly 20,000 acres were covered to the height of 
 10 feet above the present level of the land, and remained so 
 covered for three weeks, during which time the only remaining 
 communication between the villages around, and for those 
 going to Lincoln market, was by boat. The people at Saxilby 
 had to get on to the higher ground in the village, the lower 
 part being under water, and many lived in the church. The 
 frightened cattle had to be rescued by boats from the knolls on 
 which they had gathered. The water ran over the High 
 Street at Lincoln ; and, on the far side of the gap, the land was 
 converted into a sea. Such a flood as this, one would have 
 thought, would have roused up the people to look after their 
 interests j but, Mr. Padley tells us, from the time the Romans 
 first made the banks referred to, up to 1852 when one of 
 these great floods occurred beyond a temporary patching up 
 as occasion required, they were entirely neglected ; a sign both of 
 the apathy, and of the contented state of the people in those days. 
 
 This great flood of 1795 occurred at Candlemas; and it is 
 curious to note that, at Candlemas of the present year (1895), just 
 a century later, and owing to the same cause the melting of 
 the snow after a long and severe frost, when the frozen ground 
 was unable to absorb the moisture the Trent bank a little 
 above Gainsborough gave way, and this, notwithstanding the 
 resources and experiences of another 100 years. 
 
 Since the year 1852, the attempts to keep out the floods 
 from the Trent and the fens have been carried out on a more 
 systematic scale. Up to that time the low land in Boultham, 
 North and South Carlton, and Broxholme, were mere swamps 
 covered with water the greater part of the year, while the 
 fens to the east of the Gap were in a permanent state of flood. 
 
 The reclaimed land, at first, was of little value for ordinary 
 agricultural purposes, 2,500 acres at Blankney being let by 
 auction, Mr. Padley tells us, for jio per annum. Now, in 
 many of these reclaimed areas, we have the richest pasture land 
 in Lincolnshire. 
 
 Many amongst us can well remember the great changes 
 which have taken place in the fens by drainage. In the early 
 part of this century, and far later, you might look down over 
 the fen country, winter after winter, and see nothing but water 
 for miles. Skating to Boston was a common event ; long lines 
 of water-fowl flitted across the sky ; " kite upon kite " could 
 
74 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 be seen on the wing; starlings whirled about in clouds, and 
 broke down the reeds as they settled upon them ; and, where 
 now the great engineering works of Lincoln are carried on, flocks 
 of wild swans were seen, and the boomingof the bittern was heard. 
 The fens were a sure and easy means of livelihood to those 
 who dwelt in them. They netted the fish and trapped the 
 eels, they stalked and shot the wildfowl, and brought them all 
 on market days to the towns around. Many of them lived on 
 the water in house boats nearly all the year through; while 
 those on the outskirts kept large flocks of geese and sheep on 
 the rich grass lands ; and all loved their wild free life. No 
 wonder, then, that, in 1768, numbers of them, fearing the loss 
 of their old privileges, assembled to prevent the inclosure of 
 Holland Fen. Unfortunately they committed great excesses, 
 for they were a wild and lawless set. Men were shot ; horses 
 and sheep barbarously killed and mutilated ; houses and 
 haystacks burned, and much mischief was done : and, though 
 all this must be deplored, there is many a Lincolnshire man 
 left who can feel with the old fen-men yet. To many 
 amongst us the fen district is still a happy hunting-ground, 
 and a land full of beauty as well. Many there are who see in 
 it no mere level waste, but a land of glorious landscapes and 
 happy feeding cattle ; of rich sunsets and flights of birds ; a 
 land of rare water-plants and reeds ; of deep, clear pools where 
 the big pike lie ; and of 
 
 "tangled water-courses . . . , 
 Shot over with purple, and green, and yellow." 
 
 We have only now to enquire whether the sea took any part 
 in all we have been considering, or whether it was the result 
 of river action alone. 
 
 The low land to the east of the wolds has, no doubt, since 
 glacial times, been frequently covered by the sea: the Romans, 
 in fact, raised the sea bank to keep it out. The Witham also, 
 until stopped by the locks at Boston, was tidal ; and the sea 
 would often run over the land long after the fens were 
 reclaimed, and partially drained, as J. Ingelow records in her 
 well-known poem, " The High Tide on the coast of Lincoln- 
 shire, 1571"; and, even as late as 1779, Mr. Padley, in his 
 work before referred to, speaks of " many vessels on the 
 Lincolnshire coast being driven two miles in the marshes 
 during a heavy gale." 
 
 Besides this, a reference to the drift map of the Geological 
 Survey round Lincoln will show remains of marine peat, and 
 
Natural History. 75 
 
 marine fen silt, in the fens to the east of Lincoln, in the 
 parishes of Branston and Dunston ; and the skull of a Walrus 
 was not long since dug up from the peat near Ely; indicating 
 that this animal formerly inhabited the valley of the Ouse, 
 which, at that time, was probably an estuary. 
 
 To the west also, where the Trent valley lies, it is quite 
 probable that the sea occasionally covered the land in past 
 times before the river was banked ; but this would be only for 
 a time, and during exceptionally high tides ; and when we 
 think how low the land is on that side, and that the aegre, or 
 tidal wave, which runs up the Trent, is felt quite 14 miles 
 above Gainsborough, we cannot wonder at it. 
 
 In addition to this, there are proofs of the near presence of 
 the sea in the finding of recent marine shells inland. Some, 
 Mr. J. D. Carr informs me, were met with in Newland, at 
 the foot of Lincoln Cliff, during some alterations a few years 
 since. They consisted chiefly of Cardlum edule^ ZMytllus edulls^ 
 and Littorina llttorea the common cockle, mussel, and peri- 
 winkle and they were all dwarfed, as is invariably the case 
 when marine molluscs are found living in salt, or estuarine, 
 marshes, with a large admixture of fresh water. Mr. Carr, 
 in writing about them, says they were "involved in a marine 
 peat containing a good many bones, a large number being 
 those of birds ; the peat underlies the whole of Newland, 
 Guildhall Street, and Brayford, and I should think (though I 
 have seen no sections) the east side of the city also ; the whole 
 rests on the Capricornis zone of the Lias." Besides this, the 
 valve of an oyster shell, having the sandy case of a marine 
 annelid attached, mixed with bones of deer and horse, and 
 pieces of wood, was found recently in Mr. Pearson's new 
 brickyard on the Trent bank at Gainsborough, 14 feet 6 
 inches below the surface, in a bed of sand underlying warpy 
 clay ; and, as the worm case is unbroken, and in good 
 preservation, it could not have travelled far, and had probably 
 been cast up by some stronger tidal rush than usual, which 
 burst over and flooded the land. Beyond, however, these 
 temporary occupations and incursions, there is no record of sea 
 action ; and, in forming the contour of the land, its escarp- 
 ments, valleys and plains, the sea took no part. 
 
 Rivers to start the grips, and atmospheric forces to widen 
 them into valleys, is sufficient for it all. We want no other 
 aid. 
 
 Such is the story of the Lincoln Gap ; one of the many 
 
76 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 pages in nature's book which lie open at our feet, and which it 
 is our privilege to read if we will. The study of it is wide 
 and far-reaching, for, in the evolution, or development, of the 
 Trent, we have a clue to the history of many another river 
 and stream ; and, by the aid of the new and strong light 
 thrown on the subject by Prof. Davis, in his recent admirable 
 paper, we shall be able to trace the birth of many an inland 
 escarpment, valley, and plain, the origin of which is at present 
 unaccountable, or, to say the least, obscure. 
 
 NOTE. In connexion with this subject and Prof. Davis' paper, an article, which 
 appears in the July number of the Royal Geographical Soc. Mag. for this year, was 
 read before that Society on the 23rd March last, by J. E. Marr, F.R.S., Sec. Geol. 
 Soc., on " The Waterways of English Lakeland," in which he alludes to river 
 action, and speaks of the origin and diversion of the Lune and Eden in that district j 
 and in the discussion which took place after the reading of the paper, Mr. W. T. 
 Blanford, F.R.S., Treasurer of the Geol. Soc., said : 
 
 "The history of the river valleys is one of the questions of modern geology, a 
 question which has arisen within my recollection, and which was almost ignored by 
 many of the great geologists 50 years ago." ..." Rivers are of very ancient 
 origin } in many cases they are older than the mountains they traverse. All sorts of 
 explanations have been adopted for the fact that a great many rivers run across 
 mountains from side to side, and there is no doubt that all sorts of explanations may 
 be necessary, because the fact is an extraordinary one. A very simple explanation, 
 but a most obvious one when fully conceived, is the simple fact that the river existed 
 before the mountains, and as elevation gradually took place, the river kept its way, 
 cutting through the mountains. Two of the most extraordinary cases known are 
 those of the Indus and Bramaputra, cutting through the Himalayas, and actually 
 running from one side to the other of the biggest mountains in the world, and that 
 this is so is probably due to the fact that the rivers were there before the mountains 
 existed." . . . "I think that, as a contribution to the history of rivers, Mr. 
 Marr's paper is of particular interest, because he shows not only how the rivers 
 make their valleys, but also how rivers change their courses." 
 
 Dr. H. Woodward, F.R.S., late President of the Geol. Soc., who also spoke, said : 
 
 "One of the things that strikes one most is the way in which rivers have 
 continued to hold certain directions through great changes in the denudation of the 
 country." 
 
 Dr. H. R. Mill said : " It must have struck some, when Mr. Marr described 
 rivers wandering over the country, and valleys working backwards to behead and 
 capture the waters of other rivers, that the land is in a very much less stable 
 condition than they had been in the habit of thinking." . . . . "In America 
 Prof. W. Morris Davis, and in France Prof, de Lapperent, had elaborated a method 
 of studying these phenomena, and I am pleased to see that Mr. Marr, while acting 
 independently in the same direction as these gentlemen, has, for purposes of popular 
 description, avoided their terminology. In its proper place, the theoretical elucidation 
 of practical problems, a precise terminology is essential, and in introducing one for 
 such purposes Prof. Davis has rendered an inestimable service." 
 
 Mr. H. J. Mackinder, Reader in Geography at Oxford, who is one of the 
 members of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, said : 
 
 "There is one point which struck me in what Dr. Mill said just now by way of 
 commendation of Mr. Marr, that he had avoided the use of the terms with which 
 Prof. Davis had equipped this branch of the subject. I agree with him that this 
 
Natural History. 77 
 
 evening it was probably right to avoid the use of these terms, but I trust that no 
 one will carry away the idea that they are therefore without use. Mr. Davis has 
 done a very valuable thing in giving us terms which, with all due deference to 
 Dr. Mill, I cannot regard by any means as so uncouth as those with which most 
 sciences are equipped. ' Subsequent,' ' Consequent,' and so forth, enable us at once 
 to compare the rivers and parts of rivers we have studied in any particular district 
 with other rivers. During the whole evening I could not help feeling how admirably 
 the intellectual analysis implied in Mr. Davis" terminology fitted with every sentence 
 by Mr. Marr." 
 
 Mr. Marr in reply to the comments of the several speakers, said : 
 " 1 am glad to hear Mr. Mackinder take up the cudgels in favour of Prof. 
 Davis' terminology, though it is somewhat technical ; but had I used it instead of 
 hurrying over sentences which my hearers found it difficult to follow, I should have 
 been able to replace sentences with words pregnant with meaning." 
 
 I am very glad to see this worthy tribute paid to Prof. Davis' admirable 
 exposition and work. 
 
 A SHORT ACCOUNT OF A COUNTRY 
 PARISH ; 
 
 With some notes relative to the effects of game preserving on its 
 Natural History. 
 
 By MRS. C. E. JARVIS. 
 
 B 
 
 PART II.* 
 BIRDS. 
 
 IRD life is perhaps more affected by game-preservation 
 than any other, as a good gamekeeper, in the eyes of his 
 master, is one who does his best to extirpate all birds of 
 prey, as well as those of the crow tribe ; this causes a great 
 increase in the number of wood pigeons, sparrows, and other 
 small birds. 
 
 The following are either resident or migrate in spring and 
 autumn: Missel thrush, Song thrush, Field fare, Blackbird, 
 Whin-chat, Redstart, Redbreast, Nightingale, White throat, 
 Lesser White throat, Gold crest, Chiff-chaff, Willow wren, 
 Sedge warbler, Hedge sparrow, Long-tailed tit, Great tit, Cole 
 tit, Blue tit, Tree creeper, Wren, Pied wagtail, Grey wagtail, 
 Meadow pipit, Tree pipit, Spotted fly-catcher, Swallow, 
 Martin, Goldfinch, Siskin, Green-finch, Sparrow, Chaffinch, 
 Linnet, Redpoll, Bull-finch,Yellow-hammer, Sky-lark, Starling, 
 
 * Lines. N. & ^., " Nat. Hist." Section, 1896, p. 48. 
 
78 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 Jay, Magpie, Jackdaw, Carrion crow, Hooded crow, Rook, 
 Swift, Great black woodpecker, Green woodpecker, King- 
 fisher, Cuckoo, Ring-dove, Barn owl, Tawny owl, Buzzard, 
 Sparrow-hawk, Peregrine falcon, Kestrel, Mallard, Pheasant, 
 Red-legged partridge, Common partridge, Land rail, Moor hen, 
 Lapwing, Heron, Woodcock, Black-headed gull. 
 
 In addition to these, Swan, Geese, Wild duck, Pigeon, 
 Golden plover, and common Curlew have been seen to pass over 
 flying, and there may have been other and rarer birds unnoticed. 
 
 If the winter is severe the song thrushes depart, and are not 
 so plentiful the following spring. We had several blackbirds 
 more or less speckled with white, and one with a foot missing 
 frequented the Rectory garden for two years ; his misfortune 
 did not prevent him from rinding a mate. A few whin- 
 chats return every year; one pair can always be found 
 about the same hedge. Redstarts are rare, as there are no 
 stone buildings or walls in the parish ; a pair or two 
 frequent the woods. The nightingale from being a passer-by 
 remained to breed, though I never actually heard of the nest 
 being found ; on a still evening it can be heard a quarter of a 
 mile off. Nightingales have increased very much in Lincoln- 
 shire of late years. The white throat and willow wren are 
 very common, especially the latter ; the chifF-chaff less so. 
 The gold crest is plentiful in winter, and some remain to breed ; 
 I found a nest in April, 1882, full of eggs ; it was beautifully 
 made, of moss, almost as round as a ball, and suspended at the 
 end of a spruce fir branch. The parent birds attracted my 
 attention by their shrill noise. By May ist the young were 
 hatched. I only once saw a pair of tree-creepers. Pied wag- 
 tails migrate in winter, and return regularly in the middle of 
 March. In July, 1882, two young cuckoos were hatched by 
 wagtails, and brought to the garden to be fed. I noticed the 
 first on the i6th, and was able to observe it from the window. 
 On the ground it was very awkward ; when following the 
 wagtail for food it took two or three hops, then flew a little 
 way, and opened its orange-lined mouth very wide. At times 
 it sat on the edge of the sunk fence, and whilst the wagtail 
 was was searching for food running backwards and forwards ; 
 the cuckoo never ceased screaming. When the wagtail could 
 not conveniently reach its mouth it sat on its head and put the 
 food in from above. On the 23rd a second cuckoo appeared 
 with another wagtail in attendance, this cuckoo being rather 
 smaller and differently marked. 
 
Natural History. 79 
 
 I have now and then seen yellow wagtails in winter, but was 
 never sure of the species until one day in November, 1890, 
 under cover of a thick fog, I got close to a pair near the beck, 
 which proved to be Motacilla melanope^ the grey wagtail. They 
 were restless, but occasionally perched on the hedge. 
 
 Swallows are not so numerous as house martins. There 
 were two nests about the Rectory ; one glued to the inside 
 wall of the pig-stye, the other on a ledge in the coal-house or 
 sometimes on a shelf in an out-house. On Aug. 26th, 1877, 
 I saw a young buff-coloured swallow flying with others. 
 Swifts do not build in the parish, but are constantly to be seen 
 and heard in summer, especially in the evening. The goldfinch 
 has been known to nest, and the young have been reared. In 
 March, 1891, a flock of 20 visited a lime avenue leading to the 
 Rectory. Flocks of redpolls and siskins frequent the hedges 
 and shrubberies in spring arid autumn. Siskins are very tamej 
 they are fond of the seeds of the cypress, and on one occasion 
 found something in a cabbage bed they liked. Their sweet 
 song cannot be mistaken when almost all other birds are mute. 
 Of late years thousands of starlings have made a young wood, 
 in the middle of the estate and far from a road, their resting- 
 place. They arrive in flocks from all quarters and alight first 
 in hedgerow trees, where they spend some time chattering 
 before finally flying off to the wood. A good many pairs rear 
 their young in chimneys, ivy, and holes in trees ; to the best 
 of my belief they are not double brooded. 
 
 There is no large rookery; there were' about 14 nests at one 
 time in some old hedgerow elms in the "Hall Close," where 
 the old hall is said to have stood. The rooks all deserted those 
 trees one spring and came to a group of elms on the glebe, 
 within sight of their old homes. An old woman who lived 
 near said they left because the keepers fired into their nests. 
 Shooting the young ones will not drive them away, as is well 
 known, but it appears they dislike shot in their nests. Food 
 may have had something to do with the" flitting," for when there 
 was snow on the ground, the rooks would come and steal the 
 food thrown out for the small birds ; so they were given bones 
 and large crusts, which they carried off, leaving the little birds 
 to eat their crumbs in peace. 
 
 A pair of great black woodpeckers was seen in the spring of 
 1890, and one was unfortunately shot. In the autumn the 
 green woodpecker is very fond of pecking about in rank grass, 
 and looks very comical with its head held at such a curious 
 
80 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 angle, and its body very upright. A pair of kingfishers inhabit 
 the same holt as the nightingales ; the beck runs through it, 
 and they make their nest in the bank. Moorhens also build 
 there ; their nest has been found in a spruce at some distance 
 from the water. A pair of common buzzards used to build 
 year after in a wood just outside the parish boundary, and not- 
 withstanding the plundering of their nests and constant perse- 
 cution they did not desert the locality till about 1888. In 
 November, 1883, a pair was trapped in Hatton. In May, 
 1879, there was a kestrel's nest in the nightingale wood; the 
 keepers had the cruelty to wait till the young were hatched 
 before climbing the tree to take the nest, as they said if they 
 failed to shoot the old birds, at any rate they would not rear a 
 second brood. They uttered a wild plaintive cry when one 
 approached the nest tree, and as it is known they do more good 
 than harm they ought to be spared. I once saw a sparrow-hawk 
 drop a full-grown partridge, which lost a good many 
 feathers but ran off unhurt. A sparrow-hawk once dashed 
 against the window during a sewing meeting. As quick as 
 possible a woman ran out and wrung its neck. On my remon- 
 strating, she said, " If you knew the damage they do amongst 
 our poultry, you would do the same." I had it stuffed. 
 
 Ring doves at one time increased to such an extent, and did 
 so much damage to turnips and cabbages, that after the shooting 
 season the owners of the various estates agreed to shoot them 
 on one fixed evening every week, which diminished their 
 numbers to a great extent. On Oct. i4-th, 1881, a young 
 pigeon, unfledged, fell out of its nest during a gale. 
 
 There are a certain number of wild pheasants, amongst them 
 a white one now and then, but the greater number are reared 
 by hand, the eggs being collected from nests likely to be 
 disturbed, and more obtained by shutting up some of the birds 
 and setting their eggs under barn-door hens. They are brought 
 up like chickens, and remain quite tame till the shooting season, 
 running to the keepers to be fed. They give employment to 
 several men, who take it in turns to sit up all night to watch 
 the coverts and scare away foxes, etc. 
 
 Partridges are far more interesting than pheasants, being 
 more truly wild. Their call note, especially in the evening, is 
 a very pleasant sound. The land rail or corn crake is an 
 occasional visitor; I only remember one summer when they 
 stayed. They seem to me to have become scarcer, or perhaps 
 they prefer limestone to clay, for they were plentiful about 
 
Natural History. 81 
 
 Lincoln formerly. A few pairs of lapwings nest in an upland 
 pasture, and larger flocks come in winter ; their eggs are often 
 broken by the plough. Black-headed gulls are also winter 
 visitors ; they come from their breeding places at Twigmoor 
 near Brigg. Larger gulls are sometimes with them, or come 
 alone, but I never could determine the species. Larus ridibun- 
 dus loses its black head when the breeding season is over. 
 
 I will now add what the keeper said about birds in 1891 : 
 
 " We were very much troubled two years ago with a 
 perigrine falcon ; it killed a lot of partridges and some 
 pheasants ; we have had them here before, but not to stay as 
 this did, it was here for several weeks. We could not trap it, 
 as it never came a second time to eat of what it had killed. 
 Cook (an under-keeper) shot at it, it was never seen afterwards, 
 I think he must have killed it. It is two years since I saw a 
 buzzard, they are getting very scarce. We have plenty of 
 jays at Hatton Wood and Chambers' Wood, they breed 
 there ; magpies as well, but they are not as plentiful as the jays. 
 I saw near Chambers' Wood the other afternoon fifteen jays 
 fly out of a hedgerow, one after the other, into the wood. 
 
 The sparrow-hawk is very troublesome with the pheasants. 
 We have trapped and shot about eleven this season, and there are 
 several about yet ; we see very little of them until the end of 
 July. Last year I killed near the pheasants fifteen or sixteen; 
 have killed something about the same quantity for several 
 years. We have a lot of trouble with the kestrel when the 
 pheasants are first hatched ; I believe they take them for mice. 
 Perhaps you may have heard of the white partridge that was 
 bred at Hatton about three years ago. A pure white starling 
 was killed at Hatton last year." 
 
 The white partridge strayed off the property and was killed 
 and stuffed by a neighbouring land owner. 
 
 The thickness of the game upon the ground seems to 
 attract birds of prey in considerable numbers, only to be, for 
 the most part, trapped or shot. With regard 'to the noble 
 peregrine, it is well known that they will fly as far as 50 miles 
 in search of food for their young, so this one may have come 
 from the cliffs of Yorkshire or the Peak of Derbyshire. 
 
 Game rearing cannot be said to affect the botany of a district 
 to any great extent, on the whole it is in favour of the 
 botanist. The cutting down of some woods and planting of 
 others encourages certain plants, and some fields of stiff clay, 
 left in a state of nature for the benefit of the pheasants, 
 
 Vol. 5, No. 38, Lines. N. & 9. 
 Nat. Hisf. Sea. 
 
82 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 produce a great number of " weeds." One plant Polygonum 
 Fagopyrum was probably introduced as pheasant food. The 
 district, varied by woodland meadow, clay and sandy soil with 
 a small stream and mossy ponds or " pits," affords a good 
 variety of plants, the local Natural History Society having 
 collected in 1891 about 300 flowering plants exclusive of 
 sedges, rushes, and grasses. This little Society owed its 
 existence to the wheelwright, an enthusiastic botanist and 
 bird-stuffer. He was inspired at a very early age by an old 
 woman, a herbalist, to whom many came for advice, and for 
 whom he collected herbs, and thus got to know their names 
 and properties before he went to school. 
 
 Hound's tongue still grows near the house she once occupied 
 and is thought to have been introduced by her. The wheel- 
 wright inherits from his old friend a strong faith in herbs as 
 remedies, and when through an accident he lacerated one of 
 his ringers badly, he applied a plaster of adder's tongue chopped 
 up, until the wound was healed. He is the possessor of 
 several old-fashioned botanical works, such as Withering ; 
 and was acquainted with the Lenncean system only, until 
 Bentham's excellent Annual was introduced to his notice. 
 His brother, a working farmer and excellent gardener is also 
 a botanist, and when hoeing spares any weed he does not 
 know, until it has flowered and he can ascertain its name. 
 The brothers own mowing and reaping machines and when 
 working them always look out for strange plants, especially 
 among " seeds." In these and other ways they have identified 
 several which might otherwise have been overlooked, such as : 
 Senebiera Coronopus^ Melllotus officinalis, Anthyllus l/ulnerarla^ 
 Caucalls nodosa^ Anthemis nobilis, Cnicus acaulis^ Centamea 
 nigra^ variety declpiens^ Clchorium Intybus^ Picris echioides^ 
 Campanula latlfolla^ Anagallis cterulea, Samolus Valerandl^ 
 Echuim vulgar e^ Solanum nlgrum^ and Botrychium Lunar ia^ none 
 of them common in the neighbourhood. They found other 
 rarities during their botanical rambles further afield, generally 
 on a Sunday afternoon. Walking through one of their 
 meadows one day, we came across a labourer pollarding some 
 willows -, he had left in the middle of one of them a straight 
 young tree, with bark of a different colour to the willow, and, 
 being winter, denuded of the leaves. Asked what it was, he 
 said, " a wicken tree," and that his master had instructed him 
 to leave it as a curiosity, its roots probably reaching through 
 the willow to the ground. The wicken, or mountain ash, is 
 
Natural History. 83 
 
 rare in this part of Lincolnshire, except when planted in 
 woods, but it was formerly much thought of as a charm 
 against witch-craft. Rev. E. G. Cole, in his Glossary of 
 Words in use in South-west Lincolnshire^ gives the following 
 example of its use : " There's heder wicken, and there's sheder 
 wicken, one has berries, and the t'other has none ; when you 
 thought you were overlooked, if the person was he you got a 
 piece of sheder wicken, if it was she you got heder wicken, 
 and made a T with it on the hob, and then they could do 
 nowt at you." 
 
 Besides the wheelwright and his brother, all the other 
 members of the Natural History Society were successful in 
 contributing specimens to the district botany, with the result 
 above stated. White varieties of flowers frequently occur, 
 the most noteworthy being some pure white examples of 
 Scabiosa succisa in a meadow since ploughed up, and Ajuga 
 reptans^ observed to be persistent in the same place year after year. 
 
 A small hayfield full of Saxifraga granulata is worth 
 mentioning ; also that Stratiotes abides introduced into a pond 
 took root and multiplied quickly. The latest addition is 
 Epipactis latifolia^ which has appeared within the last two 
 years, and the most conspicuous, a gigantic specimen of 
 Onopordoin Acanthium^ which, most appropriately, sprang up in 
 the wheelwright's new garden and attracted great attention. 
 It measured, when in flower, about six feet high, and must 
 have been quite three feet in circumference. With this 
 wonder of nature, I will conclude my paper. 
 
 LINCOLNSHIRE.* 
 
 By JOHN CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., 
 
 Great Cotes, R.S.O., Lincoln ; Convener of the British dissociation Committee on the 
 Migration of Birds. 
 
 PART II. t 
 
 THE geological strata of Lincolnshire extend in long 
 ribbon-like bands, which generally correspond to the 
 length of the county, running nearly north and south, 
 
 * Reprinted from The Naturalist, 1886, p. I, by special permission, 
 f Lines. N.&S^ t "Nat. Hist." Section, 1897, p. 65. 
 
84 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 and with a dip to the east, overlapping in regular succession, 
 not unlike the leaves of an open book. * Much of the 
 picturesque beauty of the shire is due to the two main ranges 
 of hills, the chalk wolds and the oolite, having an easy slope to 
 the east, and more or less bold escarpments to the west. The 
 chalk or wold district commences at Barton-on-Humber, and 
 terminates near Burgh-in-the-Marsh, fifty-two miles, dipping 
 beneath the fen to appear again beyond the Wash at Hunstan- 
 ton, its greatest breadth is fourteen miles. The oolite runs 
 like a spine through the whole length of the county, and is 
 represented by a narrow band in the north and south of 
 Lincoln (where it is once cut through and divided by the bed 
 of the Witham), spreading into the wide elevated district 
 known as the c Heath,' where on its western side it forms the 
 striking escarpment called the c Cliff,' predominating the level 
 lias and new red sandstones of the Trent Valley. Between 
 these ranges of the chalk and the oolite lies the great central 
 plain of Lincolnshire greensands, gault, Kimmeridge, and 
 Oxford clays ; these all in South Lincolnshire pass beneath the 
 peats, clays, and gravels of the fens. There is still a third line 
 of elevated land formed by the Lias, Rhaetic, and red-marl beds 
 extending from the mouth of the Trent to as far as Gains- 
 borough. At its northern extremity, near Scunthorpe, is the 
 rich bed of iron ore, twenty-seven feet thick, which has already 
 added so much to the wealth and importance of this otherwise 
 poor and barren district. A section across the county from 
 east to west at its greatest breadth, passes first through the 
 chalky boulder-clay, overlaid in north-east Lincolnshire by a 
 considerable thickness of warp, and generally along the 
 maritime plain by recent alluvial deposits, sand, and clays. 
 In the Humber marshes borings for water show twelve to 
 forty-five feet of clean stoneless warp, with an occasional 
 cockle-shell ; beneath the warp is the forest bed, two and a 
 half feet in thickness, resting on about a foot of whitish clay 
 and sand. This old indigenous forest crops out at various 
 places, both within the Humber and the sea coast, at low- 
 
 *The Journals of the Geological Society contain several important papers on 
 the geology of Lincolnshire, which may be studied with advantage by those who 
 take an interest in the subject, such are ' Rhaetic beds near Gainsborough ; * Strata 
 which form the base of the Lincolnshire ivolds,' 1867, Vol. XXIII., pp. 315,227 j 
 Glacial and Post-glacial strata of Lincolnshire, Vol. XXIV., 1868, p. 146; Neocomian 
 strata of Lincolnshire, Vol. XXVI., 1870, p. 326; Lias and Oolite of north-ivest 
 Lincolnshire, Vol. XXXI., 1875, p. 115 ; Southerly extension of the Hessle Boulder Clay, 
 Vol. XXXV., 1879, p. 397. 
 
Natural History. 85 
 
 water mark, presenting clay beds thickly interlaced with roots, 
 also scattered stumps of trees in sltu^ identified as oak, beech, 
 elm, birch, holly, yew, hazel, alder, and willow. The only 
 remains of animal life we have found was during the excavation 
 of the new docks at Grimsby the core of a horn of 'Bos 
 primlgemus. In the peat bed, probably of the same date, which 
 lies below the silt and sand of the Freshney Beck in Aylesby 
 parish, we have dug up bones of the red deer, Bos longlfrons^ 
 wolf, or large dog, wild boar, probably wild cat, and a human 
 ulna^ like the rest stained perfectly black with the peat.* 
 Below the forest bed is the boulder drift, a reddish clay filled with 
 fragments of chalk and derivative rocks, and varying from 50 
 to 300 feet in thickness. A peculiarity of the low-lying 
 districts near the sea, as at Tetney and Great Cotes, are the 
 ponds, locally known as ' blow-wells,' popularly supposed to be 
 unfathomable ; they are powerful springs, never failing in the 
 driest season, rising from the chalk through the superincumbent 
 drift and alluvium. The blow-wells in the parish of Little 
 Cotes supply the town of Grimsby with an unfailing source of 
 pure water. Many of the low-country springs in the north- 
 east districts are more or less intermittent, the flow of water 
 being regulated by the ebb and flow of the tides. Mr. 
 Clement Reid's recent researches in the north of the county, 
 more especially in connection with the old coast line at the 
 base of the wolds, f and the deposits of inter-glacial sands have 
 added much to the geological interest of the district. J The 
 examination of the sand pits at Laceby and Croxton has 
 resulted in the determination of numerous species of marine 
 shells, some yet common on the coast, others slightly northern, 
 but not Arctic, whilst some are indicative of a comparatively 
 warm and equable climate. An interesting find at Croxton is 
 Corblcula fluminalis^ of which living examples are now restricted 
 to the Nile, the Lake of Gennesareth, and some rivers of Asia. 
 
 * The great forest of Kesteven in the south of the county, of which relics 
 remain in Grimsthorpe Park, with its original herd of red deer, probably extended 
 far into Fenland proper. The buried forests beneath the peat comprise oak, elm, 
 birch, Scotch fir, yew, hazel, sallow, alder, and willow. Some of the oaks are of 
 immense size, and the wood, a specimen of which is now before me, nearly as black 
 and hard as ebony. Years after the drainage of the West Fen the exact position of 
 the great trees was made apparent to the fenmen by the rime frost lying longer 
 above them than on the surrounding fen. 
 
 t At this period the coast of Lincolnshire was represented by a chain of low- 
 lying islands of chalk, separated by narrow and deep fiords. 
 
 J ' The Geology of Holderness, and the adjoining parts of Yorkshire and 
 Lincolnshire.' Memoirs of the Geographical Survey, 1885. Clement Reid. 
 
86 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 This shell is extremely abundant at Kelsey Hill ballast pits, 
 north of the H umber, in conjunction with bones of bison, 
 leptorhine rhinoceros, and elephant. A narrow band of red 
 chalk known as the Hunstanton red chalk is traceable all 
 through Lincolnshire from Gunby to South Ferriby. The 
 summit of the wold near Pelham's Pillar is 456 feet above sea- 
 level ; the highest point is probably near Normanby clump, 
 about 549 feet. On the western slope of the wolds below 
 Caistor, and running south, there are a series of ironstones, 
 sandstones, and clays to which the term Neocomian has been 
 applied. 
 
 Still following the sectional line we find the Kimmeridge 
 clay represented in a narrow band, estimated at 600 feet in 
 thickness ; then in succession Oxford clay and Kellaway rocks, 
 passing into the cornbrash and great oolites, forming an 
 elevated belt of varying breadth through the length of the 
 county. The Liassic clays and marlstones are defined by a 
 narrow belt ten to twelve miles wide in the south, and running 
 off to a mile in width near the Humber. Lastly, on the 
 slopes of the Trent Valley are the oldest rocks in the county, 
 the Keuper sandstone. 
 
 Up to the present date Lincolnshire compares unfavourably 
 with other counties * in having no published list of the 
 Mammalia found within its bounds. The last and most 
 interesting addition to the fauna was the wild cat (Felts catus) 
 shot in the early part of March, 1883, in a small plantation 
 close to Bullington Wood, near Wragby. f The marten is 
 sparingly distributed in the chain of great woodlands which 
 extends from Wragby to Bourn, and from information recently 
 acquired, we are inclined to think it will be many years before 
 it becomes extinct. The polecat is common ; the otter still 
 lingers in the north and south ; the badger probably more 
 abundant than in any of the midland counties. The common 
 seal is frequently seen on the coast in the autumn, and on that 
 labyrinth of great sandbanks in the Wash, between Lynn and 
 Wainfleet of which some, like the Dogshead and Knock, and 
 Seal's Bank, are only covered at 'high spring tides there has been 
 
 * The list of Yorkshire Mammalia, in Clarke and Roebuck's Vertebrata, 
 includes forty-five species out of a possible sixty-nine. In Mr. T. Southwell's list 
 for the county of Norfolk, altogether forty-one species are named. 
 
 j- For a detailed account of the capture see Tkt Naturalist, Sept. 1884, p. 33 j 
 Zoologist, Sept. 1884, pp. 360-1 j Transactions of the Norfolk and Norwich 
 Naturalists' Society, Vol. III., p. 67 6a. 
 
Natural History. 87 
 
 from time immemorial a considerable colony, and doubtless 
 many young are born in the course of the season. The grey 
 seal is also found in the same locality, and with Mr. T. 
 Southwell, of Norwich,* remains the credit of adding this 
 interesting species to the respective faunas of the two 
 counties. f Of the smaller mammals the dormouse is found in 
 the south-west of the county ; J the harvest-mouse is rare, the 
 lesser shrew local, and the water shrew exceedingly plentiful. 
 Lincolnshire in the present day can boast of little of its 
 former ornithological pre-eminence ; it was truly described by 
 Fuller in his day as e the aviary of England, for the wild-foule 
 therein : remarkable for their Plenty Variety Delicious- 
 nesse.' Few and fragmentary are the records which have 
 come down to us concerning the treasures of the fens in the 
 Liber Eliensis,|| the Chronicles of Crowland,fT and from 
 William of Malm es bury** and Camden,ft and again more 
 recently in the writings of Gough,JJ Pennant, and Colonel 
 Montagu. Drayton also in quaint verse describes the 
 goodly fens and their teeming life. These passages from old 
 writers have frequently been quoted in descriptions of fen 
 scenery, and space will not permit us to do more than allude 
 to them in a general way. A glorious place in its wild natural 
 state was that old fenland before man had come in to bank and 
 drain, and a very paradise to the fowler and fisher were the 
 boggy flats where the c dark-green alders, and the pale-green 
 reeds stretched for miles round the lagoon, where the coot 
 clanked and the bittern boomed, and the sedge-bird, not 
 content with its own sweet song, mocked the notes of all the 
 birds around, while high overhead hung motionless, hawk 
 beyond hawk, buzzard beyond buzzard, kite beyond kite, as 
 far as the eye could see.'|||| Some idea may be formed of the 
 
 * Trans. Norfolk and Norwich Nat. Soc., Vol. III., p. 670. 
 
 f- We are afraid a similar joint claim cannot be set up in the north of the county 
 in respect to the recent occurrence of Sowerby's whale, Physeter bidens, within the 
 estuary of the Humber, cast up on the shore at Spurn Point in the autumn of 1885. 
 
 J See Mr. G. T. Rope, Range of the Dormouse in England and Wales, Zoo/., 
 1885, p. 207. 
 
 Worthies of England, Vol. II., p. 2. 
 
 || Ed. Stuart, 1848. 
 
 f[ Ingulph's History of Crovuland, Bonn's translation. 
 
 ** Temp. 1 100. 
 
 ft Camden's Britannia, i Ed., 1695. 
 
 H Op. cit., Gough's Ed., 1806, Vol. II, pp. 380-1. 
 
 Polyolbicn, Song 25 (Holland's oration). 
 
 HI) Kingsley, Prose idylls the fens. 
 
88 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 enormous number of wild foul frequenting the fens by the 
 facts as related by Pennant,* that in one year from only ten 
 decoys near Wainfleet 31,200 ducks were sent to London. In 
 these times a flock of wild duck has been observed passing 
 along from the north and north-east into the east fen in a 
 continuous stream for eight hours together, f 
 
 With the drainage of the fens the bird-life disappeared. 
 Gone now as habitual residents are the harriers and short-eared 
 owls, the grey geese and ducks, cormorants, grebes, and divers, 
 the bitterns, cranes, spoonbills, and storks ; gone also are the 
 smaller fowl the black-tailed god wit, the avosets, ruffs and 
 reeves, gulls and terns. J Vanished too has many a fen plant, 
 as the great fen ragwort, the giant cineraria and marsh sow- 
 thistle, whilst others like the fragrant bog-myrtle, water 
 germander, and the marsh and royal ferns manage just to retain 
 a precarious footing, and are probably sooner or later doomed 
 to extinction ; and with the lost plants and mainly perhaps 
 from that cause have disappeared many beautiful insects. 
 The great copper and swallow-tailed butterflies, the red 
 wainscot, rosy-marsh, red-leopard, and Whittlesea ermine 
 moths, and many another insect treasure too numerous to 
 mention; gone too are the myriad frogs, the 'Lincolnshire 
 nightingales,' whose night croakings well nigh drowned all 
 other sounds of fen-life. 
 
 Scarcely second to the fens in interest were the vast swamps 
 and wastes of the Isle of Axholme, which as late as the 
 commencement of the present century still swarmed with 
 various fowl. Mr. Stonehouse has left some interesting notes 
 in connection with the avifauna of this little known district, 
 having reference to the nesting of the marsh harrier, the 
 nesting habits of the bittern, and the taking of ruffs ; he also 
 says c the gyr-falcon is sometimes seen sailing over this and the 
 adjacent wastes ; it boldly attacks the largest of the feathered 
 race ; the stork, the heron, and the crane are easy vicitims ; 
 
 * British Zoology, Ed. 1768, p. 486. 
 
 fin one of the only two existing decoys worked in Lincolnshire, that of Ashby 
 near the Trent, an average of 2,741 ducks, teal, and widgeon, with some others, 
 were captured between the years 1874 and 18675 and since this 6,351 have been 
 taken in a single season, and of these 2,300 in thirty-one days, but in late years the 
 annual take appears to have somewhat fallen off. 
 
 J It is satisfactory to know that for the last four or five years the black tern has 
 nested in Lincolnshire. 
 
 The History and Topography of the Isle of Axholme, by the Rev. W. B. Stonehouse, 
 M.A., 1839. 
 
Natural History. 89 
 
 it kills hares by darting directly upon them.' * In the time of 
 James I. a great herd of red deer wandered over Hatfield 
 levels and the adjacent wastes of Lindholme, and in the 
 inquisition of 1607 it is said that the number amounted to 
 about 1,000 head, and that the herd is much impaired by 
 the depredations of the borderers. From a curious entry 
 preserved in the parish registers of Finningley in 1737, it is 
 probable that some of the herd remained down to the 
 commencement of the i8th century. 
 
 In the first twenty years of the present century, ruffs and 
 reeves were common in all the maritime marshes in the north- 
 east of the county, and we have been assured by an old sports- 
 man that he used regularly to make excursions into the 
 Stallingborough and Immingham marshes in the spring to 
 shoot ruffs and dotterel ; a friend also recently told us that he 
 had heard his grandfather, who was a great shooter, talk of 
 seeing the bank between Glee and Tetney in the spring 
 covered with ruffs and reeves, and so tired with their long 
 flight that you might almost knock them down with a stick, 
 and that he could soon shoot as many as he could carry. 
 
 On the same coast and salt-fitties at that time came 
 regularly to nest great numbers of oyster-catchers, Arctic, 
 common and lesser terns, and the ringed plover; the sheld-duck 
 also in the sandhills and warrens, and in the adjoining marsh 
 the hen harrier, spotted crake, ruffs and reeves, snipe, and 
 redshank ; still further inland, in the woods skirting the wolds, 
 the kite,f buzzard, and hobby. These were the days before 
 the gamekeeper and the trapper were known, and sportsmen 
 were well content with moderate bags, shot over dogs, and 
 with much healthy exercise. 
 
 All testimony proves the former abundance of birds in 
 Lincolnshire, and we only know of one exception to this. 
 William Cobbett, who died in 1835, in his 'Rural Rides,' 
 which extended almost over the whole of England, coming to 
 Horncastle, says : ' There is one deficiency, and that with me 
 is a great one, throughout this county of corn and grass and 
 oxen and sheep that I have come over during the last three 
 
 * In an old map MDCXXVI. of the Isle, before the drainage by Vermuyden, 
 Storkcarre's are marked between Haxey and Wroote, on the east bank of the river 
 Idle (Idille). 
 
 f The eggs of the last kite recorded as nesting in Lincolnshire were taken from 
 a nest in Bullington Wood, near Wragby, in the spring of 1870. Since this time 
 ( it has only occurred as an immigrant passing south in the autumn, 
 
90 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 weeks, the want of singing .birds. We are now just in the 
 season when they sing most. Here in all this country I have 
 seen and heard only about four skylarks, and not one other bird 
 of any description ; and of small birds that do not sing I have 
 seen only one yellow-hammer, and it was perched on the 
 rail of the pound between Boston and Sibsey.' Had he passed 
 through the same district in the autumn, when the great wave 
 of migration has set in, he would have probably written 
 differently, seeing the fields swarming with larks, chaffinches, 
 and buntings, the hedgerows alive with blackbirds, thrushes, 
 and redwings, and in the marshes, near the coast, immense 
 flocks of snow buntings, tree sparrows, linnets, and twites, as 
 well as hundreds of that characteristic bird of the county the 
 grey crow ; on the coast itself such flights of knot, godwit, 
 and grey plover as can be seen nowhere else in England. 
 
 The fresh-water fisheries of Lincolnshire had a great 
 reputation, more especially for pike and eels j enormous 
 numbers of the latter were annually taken, and they formed 
 no small part of the tribute and endowments of the monasteries 
 and religious houses. The fen eels often grew to an enormous 
 size two are mentioned by Yarrell, taken in draining a fen 
 dike, near Wisbeach, one of which weighed 27 Ibs., the other 
 25 Ibs.* The pike is plentiful in the rivers and drains of the 
 fens ; there is an old adage which says 
 
 Witham Pike 
 England has neen like ; 
 
 and another, 
 
 Ankholme eels and Witham Pike, 
 In all England are nane syke. 
 
 The pike of the Witham, however, in the present day will 
 bear no comparison with the monsters of the old fen meres, as 
 we may judge from the jaws of this fish found in the peat and 
 preserved in the Cambridge Museum. In the collection of the 
 late Mr. Frank Buckland was a pike weighing over 100 Ibs., 
 taken when Whittlesea mere was drained. Valuable salmon 
 fisheries were worked at the beginning of this century on the 
 Humber. Sir Charles Anderson t states: 'In 1806, John 
 Barrick of Barrow, gamekeeper, stated that his father rented 
 the fishery of Barrow, and that thirty years ago he was present 
 at the taking of eighteen salmon in one tide, one weighed 47 
 
 * We recently obtained one of four large eels, Angullla acutirottris, caught in a 
 trawl net at sea some miles east of Flamborough Head, 
 f The Lincoln Pocket Guide, p. 85. 
 
Natural History. 91 
 
 Ibs., another 46 Ibs., the remainder from 18 to aolbs. each, and 
 sold at 6d. per Ib. -, at Killingholme 100 salmon were caught 
 in one tide.' That curious fish the burbolt, a freshwater cod, 
 is common in the Trent and other rivers ; the barbel also is 
 plentiful, and grows to a large size ; we have known six taken 
 with a line and rod in a little over the hour, the collective 
 weight of which was 42-^ Ibs. 
 
 There are districts in Lincolnshire which require careful and 
 scientific examination before we can form a correct estimate of 
 the existing fauna and flora. Such are the low-lying flats and 
 warp islands at the junction of the Trent, Ouse, and Humber, 
 where the Avoset nested as recently as about 1840,* and the 
 rufF in 1871. Then there are the commons and warrens in 
 the north-west, near the Trent, the habitat of many rare and 
 interesting plants which thus far have escaped the ban of 
 cultivation. Here also nest, or have recently nested, the hen- 
 harrier and short-eared owl, sheld-duck, shoveller, teal, and wild 
 duck, stone curlew, rufF, redshank, snipe, dunlin, and little 
 grebe j and at Twigmoor, as well as at Manton Common, 
 thousands of black-headed gulls. The great woodlands from 
 Wragby southward to Bourn, and about Horncastle, the last 
 haunt of the wild cat, pine marten, and kite, would well repay 
 a close investigation ; also the fenny flats at the head of the 
 Wash, and the estuary itself, the home of the seal, and in the 
 autumn and winter still the chosen retreat of innumerable 
 wild fowl ; here too in the summer we have seen flights of 
 various waders and scoter, which from some cause or other 
 have not joined in the spring migration of their fellows to 
 breeding grounds fifteen hundred miles away within the 
 Arctic circle. 
 
 Of the present aspect of the shire, its rich fertility and 
 picturesque scenery we have said little ; let such as care to 
 estimate its agricultural wealth follow the wold road from 
 Barton-on-Humber, above Caistor, and through Tealby and 
 Market Stainton to Horncastle, at the season when the wide 
 expanse of the hill country is ripening to the harvest. View 
 the unbounding prospect just south of Pelham's Pillar, first 
 northward across the continuous range of the Limber and 
 Brocklesby Woods, and south-east over the rolling uplands to 
 beyond Croxby and Binbrooke, every yard of which is in the 
 highest cultivation, under corn, turnips, and artificial grasses 
 
 * Handbook of Yorkshire Vertebrata, Clarke and Roebuck, p. 72. 
 
92 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 and clover. What perhaps most strikes the observer is the 
 absence of houses or farmsteads, for the wold villages as a rule 
 lie hid away in hollows of the hills or along the main lines of 
 traffic through the valleys, and at the best it is even now a 
 thinly populated district compared with the rest of the county. 
 North-east towards the Humber the wold breaks away through 
 the Gap (the scene of a sharp cavalry skirmish between a 
 detachment of the Newark garrison and the Parliamentarian 
 horse), beyond the ancient oak and beech of Riby Park and 
 pleasant Aylesby, of shorthorn fame, with the fertile middle 
 marsh merging into the rich pastures of the maritime plain ; 
 there softened by distance, rises the graceful water tower, 300 
 feet high, towering above the blue smoke haze of Grimsby 
 like a Florentile campanile, and marking the entrance to the 
 Royal Dock ; beyond this the broad estuary of the river, Spurn 
 Point and Dimlington high land, and on the outmost verge 
 the silver sheen of the North Sea. Turning south, where the 
 wold dips steeply to the central plain, we see the red-tiled 
 houses and grey church tower of Caistor nestling in a hollow 
 of the hills, with half the county spread out like a map, field 
 succeeding field, with infinite shades of yellow, brown, and 
 green, mingled with pinewood, coppice, and hedgerow timber, 
 league beyond league to where on the blue horizon, like a 
 great rock, rises the stately pile of Remigius Lincoln 
 Minster. All honour to the great Lord Yarborough, great 
 great grandfather to the present earl, who with a lavish 
 expenditure, and aided by an enterprising tenantry, changed the 
 barren wastes into the garden of England, and who, as the 
 inscription on the pillar in the neighbouring wood states, 
 between 1787 and 1823 planted 12,552,700 trees on his 
 estates. 
 
 Take again the view from the heath road south of Lincoln, 
 above Boothby-Graffbe, looking west across Somerton Castle 
 and the level district round Newark to the furthest bounds of 
 Nottinghamshire ; southward in one broad curve sweeps the 
 wooded escarpment, mile beyond mile to Grantham, the 
 graceful spires of frequent churches marking the position of 
 each cliff village, till the oolite cliff becomes merged into that 
 lias ridge from which the lordly towers of Belvoir overlook the 
 wide vale of Trent. Still keeping our position, but facing 
 eastward, we overlook the breadth of Lincoln Heath, where 
 the finest barley is grown and the largest sheep are reared. In 
 the foreground Dunstan Pillar, a lighthouse on land, built in 
 
Natural History, 93 
 
 1751, to guide travellers over the heath. Beyond the woods 
 of Blankney rises at the edge of the fen, the massive square of 
 Tattershall Castle, built by Lord Cromwell, Treasurer to 
 Henry VIII. ; and still following the same direction, that 
 slight-looking column on the skyline is Boston 'stump,' over- 
 looking the never-ending fen. 
 
 Again, drive from Spalding to Boston in the latter part of 
 August, along one of those long, straight fen roads, bordered 
 with pollard willow and flanked by wide drains ; from each 
 reed-bed comes the rattling song of the sedge warbler, and 
 here the reed-wren suspends her nest ; the white or yellow 
 cups of water lilies float on the peat-stained dike, and beneath 
 the shadow of their rounded leaves we detect close-packed 
 shoals of roach. On each side ripening sheets of corn extend 
 to the horizon, or long rows of closely-placed c stooks ' stand in 
 serried ranks like the encampment of an army nowhere else in 
 England can we see oats and wheat with such length of straw 
 and size of head ; then there are beanfields where each stalk is 
 suggestive of that climbed by Jack in his search for the Giant's 
 home ; stretches of golden mustard, now in full flower ; fields 
 of dark-green swedes or light-green mangolds, of which each 
 root would not disgrace the stall of the seedsman in the 
 Agricultural Hall. Mighty oxen browse lazily the rich 
 pastures, dotted too with big Lincoln wethers, whose recently 
 shorn fleeces weigh from ten to even twenty pounds. From 
 every side comes the sound of busy labour the noisy rattle of 
 the reaping machines, creaking of the laden wains, and the 
 rustle of sheaves as they are pitched on the load ; and all this 
 under a sky which for intensity of blue and freedom from coal 
 smoke, might compare with that of Southern Europe. Seeing 
 all this, we may well exclaim with Cobbett that c everything 
 taken together, here in Lincolnshire are more good things than 
 man could have had the conscience to ask of God.' 
 
94 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 NOTES ON THE ICE-BORNE BLOCKS 
 OF SHAP GRANITE, St., FOUND 
 IN LINCOLNSHIRE. 
 
 By THOMAS SHEPPARD, 
 
 Hon. Secretary to Hull Scientific and Field Naturalists' Club, and Member of the 
 Glacialists 1 Association. 
 
 WHILST examining the erratics in the vicinity of Barton 
 for the newly-formed Lincolnshire Boulder Committee, 
 I found a boulder of Shap Granite, measuring 2 feet 
 6 inches by I foot 3 inches, by I foot +. This was 
 at the foot of a gatepost at the entrance to Mr. Milson's 
 mill, near the top of the hill just outside Barton, on the South 
 Ferriby Road. The granite in question was well rounded and 
 thoroughly embedded in the ground, so that its precise 
 dimensions could not be ascertained. Owing to its long 
 exposure to the atmosphere the upper part is weathered, the 
 large pink felspars being very prominent. It was in its present 
 position when Mr. Milson took charge of the place several 
 years ago, and I have no doubt it came originally from the 
 boulder clay which occurs in the neighbourhood, though up to 
 the present I have been unable to get any definite information 
 on the point. So far as I can learn, this is the first boulder of 
 Shap Granite recorded for Lincolnshire. 
 
 A few weeks later, when walking along the Humber bank 
 between South Ferriby Hall and the Chalk Pit, I was fortunate 
 enough to find a small pebble of the same rock in 'the Boulder 
 Clay at a depth of eighteen feet. I have this pebble before 
 me as I write. Though small, it is a very good sample, and 
 there is no doubt whatever that it is Shap Granite. The 
 characteristic felspars are exceptionally well shown, and, though 
 the pebble is only an inch and a half long, there are portions 
 of no less than four porphyritic crystals of felspar thereon, one 
 of them showing the 'twinning.' This specimen, it should be 
 noted, was found in the clay only about two miles from the 
 previously mentioned boulder. 
 
Natural History. 95 
 
 There are two Boulder Clays in the cliff between Ferriby 
 Chalk Pit and the Hall. The lower one, which is only a thin 
 deposit, is of a dark colour, is very compact, and contains a 
 fair quantity of boulders of different sorts, including rhomb- 
 porphyry and others of Scandinavian origin. * The upper 
 clay, however, is of a totally different character. It attains a 
 thickness of about 20 feet in its highest part, which is near the 
 centre of the cliffs, and gradually thins out towards the east 
 and west. It resembles the ' Hessle ' clay of Wood and 
 Rome,t being of a very red colour, blue-jointed in places, and 
 containing only a few pebbles (including rhomb-porphyry). 
 Large boulders are only rarely found in this upper clay. In 
 both deposits pebbles, generally of carboniferous limestone, are 
 often found beautifully ice-scratched, and sometimes even 
 polished. 
 
 On the opposite side of the Humber, at North Ferriby, is a 
 precisely similar deposit, about the same size as the bed at 
 South Ferriby, containing similar boulders (though in far 
 greater number and variety), and composed of similar beds of 
 Boulder Clay, etc. These sections have recently been fully 
 described by Mr. J. W. Stather, F.G.S. I Both Mr. Stather 
 and the writer have found boulders of Shap Granite here. 
 
 The Rev. W. Tuckwell tells me he has lately found a block 
 of Shap Granite measuring I foot by I foot, by I foot 6 inches, 
 at Irby, near Laceby, North Lincolnshire. It was c taken out 
 of an old Saxon wall,' and is 'hollowed into quern-like 
 depressions on three sides.' Of course there is no knowing 
 from where this boulder may have been carted, along with 
 other stones, to build the wall with. 
 
 Later still, Mr. J. H. Cooke, B.Sc., F.G.S., has found two 
 or three boulders of this Granite at Goxhill. 
 
 Mr. Clement Reid, F.G.S., in his c Geology of Holderness,' 
 1885, page 35, refers to a boulder of Shap Granite which he 
 found on the beach near Dimlington, and which up to that 
 time was 'the furthest point to the south-east to which Shap 
 Granite had yet been traced.' Later, Mr. John Cordeaux 
 
 * For a list of the various rocks of Scandinavian origin found in Lincolnshire, see 
 the list which accompanies my paper ' On the Occurrence of Scandinavian boulders 
 in England" (Glac. Mag., vol. iii., 1895, p. 129). 
 
 f Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc., vol. xxiv., p. 146. 
 
 | In a paper read to the Yorks. Geol. Soc. at Whitby, July, 1896. 
 
 ist Rept. Line. Boulder Committee, Naturalist for November, 1896. 
 
96 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 records a boulder of this rock at Kilnsea near Spurn.* This 
 is now in the garden of Mr. H. B. Hewetson, at Easington. 
 
 Inland, at Royston near Barnsley, which is just south of the 
 line of the Humber, this granite has been found, f and Messrs. 
 Corbett and Kendall report a boulder at Balby near Doncaster ; J 
 this and the Barton, South Ferriby, Irby, and Goxhill 
 specimens described above, are the only records that I know of 
 for the country immediately south of the Humber. 
 
 Whilst in the quarries at Wasdale Crag in Westmorland 
 last Easter (it is from this place that all the boulders of Shap 
 Granite have originally travelled) I obtained a quantity of hand 
 specimens of the rock, and shall be very pleased indeed to send 
 a piece to anyone in Lincolnshire interested in the subject, who 
 is unacquainted with the rock, in the hopes that a constant 
 look-out may be made for c Snaps.' I feel confident that many 
 other boulders of this granite will be found in Lincolnshire 
 they only require looking for. The rock cannot very well be 
 mistaken, it is a 'pepper-and-salt '-looking granite, of a pinkish 
 colour, containing large rectangular crystals of flesh-coloured 
 felspar, which vary from an inch to an inch and a half in 
 length, and are about half as wide. The matrix consists of 
 minute crystals of colourless quartz, pink felspars and black 
 mica, together with other minerals. There is also a whitish 
 variety of the same rock, the ground-mass in this case contain- 
 ing several small specks of white felspar, which give it a 
 generally whiter aspect. This granite has recently formed the 
 subject of an exhaustive paper by Messrs. Harker and Marr. 
 
 (To be continued). 
 
 * The Naturalist, 1889, p. 355. 
 
 f Mackintosh. Geol. Mag., 1871, p. 312. 
 
 J Report of Brit. Assn. Committee on Erratic Blocks, 1896. 
 
 Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc., 1891, pp. 266-328. 
 
Natural History, 97 
 
 NOTES ON THE ICE-BORNE BLOCKS 
 OF SHAP-GRANITE, &c., FOUND 
 IN LINCOLNSHIRE 
 
 (concluded). 
 
 By THOMAS SHEPPARD, 
 
 Hon. Secretary to Hull Scientific and Field Naturalists' Club, and Member of the 
 Glac'ialhts Association. 
 
 I SHOULD here like to say a few words respecting the 
 Lincolnshire Boulder Committee. It was with very great 
 pleasure that I read in Part I. of the Transactions of the 
 Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, the Presidential address of 
 Mr. J. Cordeaux, M.B.O.U., in which he proposed (p. 7) that 
 a Boulder Committee should be formed whose object would be 
 c to take observations relative to the erratic or ice-borne blocks 
 of Lincolnshire, their character, position, size, origin and 
 height above the sea. This to be carried out on the same 
 lines generally as those adopted by the Boulder Committee of 
 the British Association.' It is also gratifying to learn that 
 this suggestion has been carried out, the Committee consisting 
 of the following gentlemen : The Rev. W. Tuckwell 
 (Secretary), and Messrs. F. M. Burton, J. H. Cook, H. Preston, 
 A. W. Rowe, E. A. Woodruffe-Peacock and P. F. Kendall. 
 Though only in existence a very short period, a large amount 
 of good work has already been done. Mr. Tuckwell has put 
 on record particulars of a quantity of boulders (including some 
 Norwegian) obtained from a depth of over ten feet at 
 Grimsby,* and during the past summer the Hull Geological 
 Society and the writer have sent particulars of a large number 
 of erratics which have been observed at different places in the 
 county, to the Committee. In May last the Hull Society 
 made an excursion in the Louth neighbourhood, when Mr. 
 Tuckwell, Mr. Kendall (the Secretary of Brit. Assn. Erratic 
 
 * 23rd Report Brit. Assn. Erratic Blocks Committee, 1895. 
 Vol. 5, No. 39, Lines. N. & ^ 
 Nat. Hist. Sect. 
 
98 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 Blocks Committee), and others were also present. On this 
 occasion everybody was surprised at the large quantity of 
 boulders and rocks of foreign origin that were found on and in 
 the Boulder Clay of the district. In front of the entrance to 
 Thorp Hall, just outside Louth, on the Lincoln Road, was a 
 boulder of Augite-syenite, a characteristic Norwegian rock, 
 measuring 2 feet by I foot 8 inches, by I foot 5 inches, which 
 still retained the scratches inflicted upon it by the ice during 
 the 'Glacial Period.' Up to the time of writing, this is one of 
 the largest boulders of Augite-syenite recorded for Britain, if 
 not the largest. Steps are being taken by Captain Tennyson, 
 the owner of Thorp Hall, to preserve this boulder. 
 
 There is another Norwegian rock which was found in plenty 
 in the Boulder Clays, viz., Rhomb-porphyry. This is so called 
 on account of the large rhomb-shaped crystals of felspar 
 (orthoclase), which are embedded in a fine-grained matrix, 
 which varies in colour from slaty green to purple or brown. 
 These ' rhombs ' are especially striking on a water-worn 
 surface. 
 
 From these numerous finds it would appear that there is a 
 splendid field open for persons having a geological inclination 
 who are fortunate enough to live in the ' second largest county 
 of England.' So far as I am concerned, I shall be glad at any 
 time to render what services I can, and if any of our Lincoln- 
 shire friends would care to have specimens of the commoner of 
 the Norwegian rocks, I shall be only too pleased to have the 
 opportunity of supplying them. Mr. Tuckwell, the Secretary 
 of the Boulder Committee, would, I am sure, answer any 
 inquiries respecting the boulders of his county, or receive any 
 information respecting the erratics of any part of Lincolnshire. 
 
 With regard to the mariner in which the various far-travelled 
 stones have reached their present positions, the following is the 
 view generally accepted by those geologists who make a special 
 study of the subject. 
 
 During the last of the series of great geological events, viz., 
 the 'Glacial Period,' the climate gradually grew colder and 
 colder, and the snow accumulated on the great hill-centres of 
 the Northern Hemisphere, and probably of the whole world. 
 The cause of this it is not necessary at the present moment to 
 discuss.* 
 
 * The subject has been fully dealt with by Mr. P. F. Kendall, F.G.S., in 'The 
 Cause of an Ice Age.' Trans. Leeds Geol. Asm., part viii., 1893. 
 
Natural History. 99 
 
 As the accumulated snow was in excess of the quantity 
 annually melted, glaciers began to descend, first of all into the 
 Irish Sea from all sides, namely, North Wales, Ireland, the 
 Clyde, and the English Lake District; and into the North and 
 Baltic Seas from the Scandinavian Mountains. Year after 
 year, the glaciers increased in magnitude, and the ice flowing 
 into the Irish Sea (which is only, comparatively speaking, very 
 shallow) coalesced, entirely excluding the water,* and finally 
 diverted the ice from the Lake District over the Upper 
 Stainmoor Pass into Teesdale, down which it flowed towards 
 the North Sea. 
 
 In the meantime the ice from the Scandinavian Mountains, 
 advancing in a huge sheet (which would resemble the Green- 
 land Ice-cap of the present day), encroached upon the waters 
 of the North Sea,t and, after reaching our shores, the two 
 glaciers flowed down the east coast. The Norse ice brought 
 with it the boulders of rhomb-porphyry, augite-syenite, etc., 
 while the Teesdale glacier carried the boulders of Shap Granite, 
 c Brockram,' and other Lake District rocks, together with 
 boulders of carboniferous limestone from the sides of Teesdale 
 itself. It was at this stage, when the Scandinavian arrested the 
 progress of the Teesdale ice, that the bulk of the latter 
 glacier was diverted down the Vale of York and formed the 
 beautiful crescentric mounds around York, which have been so 
 lucidly described by Mr. Kendall.J These mounds are 
 terminal moraines. 
 
 The Boulder Clays of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, therefore, 
 not only mark the area covered by the ice, but contain boulders 
 which help to indicate the direction the ice took. 
 
 The Norwegian ice-sheet, as might be expected, laid down 
 a moraine, and this, a line of gravel hills, extends from 
 Flamborough Head into Lincolnshire, crossing the Humber at 
 Paull. During the many oscillations of the ice front the 
 moraine was over-ridden perhaps on two or three occasions. 
 
 * We have proof that it covered Snae Fell (2,034 feet), the highest peak in the 
 Isle of Man. Kendall, ' On the Glacial Geology of the Isle of Man.' Tn. Lioar 
 Manriinagh, 1894. 
 
 f The bed of the North Sea, like that of the Irish Sea, is exceedingly shallow. 
 
 I The Glaciation of Yorkshire. Proc. Torks. Geol. Soc., 1893. See also Mr. C. 
 Fox Strangways' paper in Proceedings of the same Society for 1895. 
 
 Mr. Fox Strangways' paper (just referred to) is accompanied by an excellent 
 map showing the drift-covered area of Yorkshire, and a similar map appears with 
 Mr. A. Jukes-Browne's paper in Stuart. Journ. Geol. Soc. for May, 1885, p. 115, 
 indicating the range of the Boulder Clays in the county of Lincoln. 
 
ioo Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 In addition to the great moraine just mentioned there is a 
 smaller, though none the less interesting one, a few miles to 
 the west of this large one. This moraine (for such it is) 
 crossed the Humber at North and South Ferriby, the Boulder 
 Clay cliffs on either side of that estuary being all that is left of 
 a bank of glacier debris that once existed right across the 
 river, which would no doubt at some time interfere with its 
 drainage. It was in this moraine, at a depth of eighteen feet, 
 that the pebble of Shap Granite referred to at the beginning of 
 this paper was obtained. 
 
 It should here be remarked that whilst c boulder-searching ' 
 during the past summer I found a piece of chalk thoroughly 
 embedded in the chalky rubble on which the bank of boulder 
 clay rests at South Ferriby, which was beautifully ice-scratched, 
 the striations thereon indicating that, if striated in its present 
 position, the ice which made them came from a north-easterly 
 direction. 
 
 The foregoing remarks may perhaps appear to be a rather 
 roundabout way of explaining the transportation of the 
 boulders in East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, but it must be 
 borne in mind that were it not for the fact that the Irish Sea 
 was rilled with ice to overflowing, thus causing the Lake 
 District ice to find its way into the North Sea, to be after- 
 wards dragged down by the Norwegian ice-sheet, we should not 
 have had the pleasure of finding Shap Granite in Lincolnshire ! 
 
 The whole subject is so full of interest that one could say 
 much more, but I feel I have already trespassed too much on 
 valuable space. However, I have endeavoured to show that 
 simply recording 'erratics' is not uninteresting, and it is such 
 facts as these that we must have in order to solve the com- 
 plex glacial problems that are occupying the attention of so 
 many of the geologists of to-day. No matter what theory may 
 be advanced in order to explain the presence of these boulders, 
 the records of the boulders themselves must be first taken into 
 consideration. 
 
 In conclusion, I sincerely hope that an earnest effort will be 
 made, by all who are able, to help the Lincolnshire Boulder 
 Committee in their work. The Yorkshire Boulder Committee 
 has now been in existence some ten years, and has each 
 year printed most valuable reports, though the county is far 
 from being c worked out ' yet. 
 
 The ' East Riding ' Boulder Committee, which report to 
 the Yorkshire Boulder Committee, has divided the area under 
 
Natural History. 101 
 
 its supervision into mile squares, each member taking one or 
 more of these squares and reporting all the large boulders 
 occurring in the area allotted to him. By this means a 
 systematic record is being made, and though we can hardly 
 expect our few, too few, fellow-workers in Lincolnshire to 
 adopt the same course just yet, it is to be hoped this method 
 will be carried out in time to come. 
 
 Unlike the other sections of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' 
 Union, the Geologists are able to pursue their field-work, and 
 with good result too, during the winter months. In fact, for 
 boulder recording, wet weather is decidedly preferable, as the 
 rocks show off to far greater advantage when wet, and can thus 
 be identified with much greater ease. We need only go into 
 one of the numerous c cobble '-paved yards that abound in 
 districts where Boulder Clay occurs (the 'cobbles' being 
 generally obtained from the clay) to see this. In dry weather 
 they all appear to be of similar composition, but as soon as they 
 have been thoroughly cleaned with rain, it is quite surprising 
 what a variety of granites, porphyrites, schists, limestones, 
 sandstones, etc., can be seen. This variety is also noticeable, 
 though not to such an appreciable extent, among the larger 
 erratics. 
 
 Mr. J. Lomas, speaking of striated surfaces in the Liver- 
 pool district, says c It is worth remarking that the striae more 
 thickly congregate in places where geologists reside?* Let us hope 
 that our Lincolnshire boulder reports will shortly show a 
 similar result. 
 
 AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL HISTORY OF 
 THE WASH. 
 
 By GEO. SILLS, 
 
 of St. John's College, Cambridge, M.A,, and of Lincoln's Inn, Barrister-at-Lavu. 
 
 THERE are few subjects of greater interest than the 
 change which in the course of ages has taken place in 
 our lakes and rivers. To take one or two instances : 
 The Thames was formerly an estuary, the remains of which 
 
 * Glacialists 1 Magazine, vol. iii., 1895, p. 21. 
 
Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 may still be seen in the Essex marshes. The various places 
 situate in the bed of the estuary still bear the names of 
 islands. Thus, we have Moles^y, ChesiW (now Chelsea), 
 Putney, Batters^, Bermondsra, Pits^, &c., &c. The street 
 called " The Strand " took its name from being the strand, or, 
 as we should say, " the beach " of the estuary, although it is 
 now half a mile from the present course of the river. 
 
 Lewes was formerly on an estuary, and the marks of the 
 tide may still be seen on the neighbouring hills. Between 
 there and the sea are the islands of Horsey, Hindnea, Lzngney, 
 Pevensey, &c., &c., now surrounded by dry land. 
 
 Norwich was formerly a seaport town, and remained so until 
 the sea was kept out by the bar called Yarmouth, i.e. 
 Yaremouth. 
 
 Sedgemoor was formerly a large inland lake, in proof of 
 which it is enough to say that every place in it is called an 
 island, although for many years past surrounded by dry land. 
 
 I propose in this article to show the history and change in 
 the Wash, and that Lincoln was formerly a seaport town, that 
 is to say, that it was situated on the Wash, which is now about 
 30 miles off. 
 
 In considering this question it is all-important to show what 
 the Wash was, and how far it extended. 
 
 This subject has already been considered by the Rev. Canon 
 Taylor in his Words and Places, and he comes to the conclusion 
 that the Wash was formerly six times as large as it now is, and 
 in my judgment he has rather understated than overstated the 
 case. 
 
 Let us take the present fen country and marshland, bounded 
 on the east by the highlands of Norfolk and Cambridge, on 
 the south by the counties of Huntingdon and Northampton, 
 and on the West by the highlands of Huntingdon, Northamp- 
 ton and Lincoln counties, and on the north by the highlands of 
 Lincolnshire, and we find that with the exception of two bars 
 or deltas, which I will presently mention, every place is called 
 an island. 
 
 Among other places, too numerous to mention, may be 
 noticed in Lincolnshire Sticky, Frisky, Sibs^, Gedw^y, 
 Southerly, Bardney ; in Northamptonshire Eye, Oxnea ; in 
 Cambridgeshire, Man^7, Thonz^, Whittles^, Ely i.e. Eelej^ ; 
 in Huntingdonshire Rams<?y, Sawtrey, Swathes^. 
 
 The terminals ey, ea, eye, are Saxon names for islands ; 
 while nea and ney are Scandinavian, or, as we now say, 
 
Natural History. 103 
 
 " Danish " terminals. The Saxons seem to have used their 
 terminals for any island, whether surrounded by the sea or by 
 fresh water. 
 
 The Danes, however, used the terminals nea and ney to 
 signify land surrounded by the sea. Their word for an island 
 surrounded by fresh water was holme. 
 
 It must not be forgotten that the invasion of this country 
 by the Saxons and Danes were as follows : 
 
 The Jutes about A.D. 449. 
 
 The Saxons about A.D. 477 to 495. 
 
 The Danes about 790 to A.D. 1013. 
 
 The names of those islands were therefore given not earlier 
 than A.D. 449 or later than A.D. 1013, and the importance 
 of that question consists in the fact that in those times the 
 places in question were islands surrounded by the sea. 
 
 While I am dealing with the names of places, I may here 
 mention two " bars " or " deltas " which exist in the Wash, 
 one starting at King's Lynn and running due east to Spalding, 
 and then running due north from Spalding and ending at 
 Sibsey and Wainfleet ; and the other starting at Skegness and 
 running due north to Great Grimsby. 
 
 I may dismiss the latter at once by saying that it is formed 
 by the sandhills which are blown up from the bed of the Wash 
 and so keep out the sea, and it has no bearing on my subject. 
 
 The former is however of vital importance. 
 
 In order to deal with this part of my subject, I may mention 
 that the sea flows up every tidal stream twice in about every 
 26 hours. At every influx of the sea, a time comes when the 
 fresh water running to the sea and the sea water in the river 
 are In equilibria. When that event happens, the solid matter 
 held in solution instantly begins to sink to the bottom, the 
 heavier particles first and the lighter ones afterwards. As this 
 usually happens about the same place, a bar gradually forms 
 which in time becomes a " delta." 
 
 These deltas are sometimes so important that cities are 
 built upon them, e.g. Calcutta, at the mouth of the Ganges. 
 
 Into the south and west sides of the Wash an unusual 
 number of rivers flow the Ouse, the Cam, the Nene, the 
 Welland, the Glen, the Guash, the Slea, the Witham, and the 
 Bain, flow within a short distance either directly into the 
 Wash or into rivers which flow there, the result of which has 
 been that the Wash has for many thousands of years been 
 gradually silted up ; and, as the rivers have been gradually 
 
104 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 trained out to sea in definite channels, the bar or delta in 
 question has been formed. 
 
 If we take the names of places, we shall see the rapidity 
 with which this bar has been formed. 
 
 The place called " Lynn " bears a Celtic name, and means 
 "deep water." In other words, King's Lynn occupies a place 
 which in the time of the Celts was deep water. Part of the 
 deep water is still left, and is to be found at " Lynn Deeps." 
 
 " Gedney " is compounded of two Danish words " Ged," 
 a pike ; and " Nea," an island surrounded by the sea. This 
 name could not have been given earlier than A.D. 790, when 
 the Danes first invaded us, and it suffices to say that at that 
 time the bar in question had not been sufficiently formed to 
 prevent the sea flowing from the present Wash past Gedney 
 and up to Ely and Cambridge ; while, when Lynn was deep 
 water, it seems probable that the bar had not even begun to 
 be formed, nor is it likely that it had begun, for at that time 
 the rivers in question did not reach so far, but entered the 
 Wash many miles away. To proceed with the names of 
 places, Wisbeach means the "Ouse beach," though its position 
 is so far changed that the " beach " is now at least 20 miles 
 away. 
 
 Holbeach means the " beach in the hole," but that place is 
 1 6 miles from the sea. 
 
 The tide no longer flows to Tydd, i.e. Tide, or within 
 many miles of it. 
 
 Moulton Seas End is now 8 miles from the sea. 
 
 Turning from Spalding northward, anyone driving from 
 Gosberton Risgate to Swineshead will see at a distance of 9 or 
 10 miles from the sea the small hills thrown up by the waves 
 with the marks of the tides still upon them. 
 
 In Keble's Reports^ A.D. 1685, a case is reported thus: 
 
 " Parte lessee of Sir H. Herm ">. Brownlow^ in ejectment 
 of a marsh the Plaintiff" claimed as parcel of the manor of 
 Cressy Hall, the Defendant as parcel of the Manor of 
 Newburgh in Surfleet ; but it appeared to be a marsh in 
 common to two vills, between them and their tenants 
 by prescription for sheep, being salt. The Plaintiff" also 
 claimed as derelict ; but> being overflowed by the sea at 
 springtides^ he was non-suited." 
 
 Although in the reign of Charles the 2nd the locus in quo 
 was, as appears above, overflowed by the sea, it is now about 
 12 miles from the sea. 
 
Natural History. 105 
 
 A little farther north is " Bicker Haven," which is now not 
 only dry land, but is many miles from the sea. 
 
 If we take the evidence afforded by the names of places, 
 and by the changes of modern times, we have sufficient to show 
 that much less than 2000 years ago the "bar " in question was 
 not in existence, and that at that time the Wash extended 
 from the North Sea to Ely and Cambridge on the south, and 
 on the west over the low-lying country now called the Fens, 
 up to the valley of the Witham, and so up to Lincoln. 
 
 This conclusion is fortified by history. 
 
 The Romans who stayed with us from about 55 B.C. to 
 420 A.D. seem to have found the Wash, to which they gave 
 the name of " Metaris Estuarium," in a transition state. 
 
 It was evidently rapidly silting up, and the islands which I 
 have previously mentioned were probably being formed. They 
 made the first great effort to convert part of it into dry land 
 by making the " Roman bank," which still exists on the east 
 coast of Lincolnshire, and the deep drain now called the 
 " Cardyke," I.e. the dyke in the Fens, parts of which still 
 exist. 
 
 As I have previously pointed out, the islands in question 
 were then formed or being formed, and some at least were 
 soon after inhabited, e.g. Friskney, the island of the Frisians, 
 Oxnea the Island of Oxen, Eye on which stood the Danish 
 fortress Eyeborough. 
 
 At the time of the Conquest the marshes and fens were 
 some of them covered by the sea, though if it is true as told by 
 Kingsley in the Camp of Refuge that the waters about Ely 
 teemed with fresh-water fish, the sea at that time had ceased 
 to go so far inland as Ely and Cambridge. This is, however, 
 probably a mistake of the author, for in the 43rd year of 
 Elizabeth an Act was passed to " drain the marshes and other 
 lands commonly subject to surrounding by the sea within the 
 Isle of Ely and the counties of Cambridge, Huntingdon, 
 Northampton, Lincoln, and other counties." 
 
 This Act was not carried into effect ; but in the reign of 
 Charles the 2nd and afterwards the great Bedford Level was 
 drained, which extended into several of the counties above 
 mentioned. 
 
 About 60 years ago Whittlesea Mere, a remain of the Wash, 
 was drained. 
 
 About the same time Cowbit Wash was drained. 
 
 Neither time nor space suffice to detail the various Acts of 
 
106 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 Parliament which were passed in the reigns of the Georges and 
 up to the present time providing for the institution of Drainage 
 Commissioners, the draining of the fens and marshes, and the 
 training of the various rivers to the sea j but, I may add that 
 if in the reign of Elizabeth the Isle of Ely was "commonly 
 subject to surrounding by the sea," it is manifest that the sea 
 must even at that time have flowed over most of the fen and 
 marshland, extending from Lincoln past Bardney, Friskney 
 to Spilsby on the north, and past Peterborough to Ely on the 
 South. 
 
 Two very interesting questions arise here. The first is 
 What caused the Wash? This question is best answered by 
 geology. Although the Wash has been in existence, certainly, 
 some thousands of years, and has been gradually reclaimed 
 from the sea, underneath its bed are large forests of well-grown 
 timber trees, for the most part consisting of oak, larch, and fir, 
 though near Crowland there is a large district called "The 
 Alderlands," which receives its name from the fact that 
 wherever digging takes place, alder trees are found beneath the 
 surface. 
 
 When it is remembered that oak, larch, and fir will only 
 flourish in fairly dry places, it follows that before the convulsion 
 of nature which sent them beneath the sea they must have 
 existed on high and dry land, and there seems no reason to 
 doubt that the forests in question were situated on land as 
 high as the neighbouring land : while, as the alder will only 
 flourish in damp low places, it follows that the land about 
 Crowland was always low. 
 
 What caused the convulsion of nature ? When it is borne 
 in mind that all these submarine forests consist of full-grown 
 trees of about the same age, it seems to follow that they were 
 overwhelmed at the same time, and seeing that the land, on 
 which they were, was suddenly lowered so much that the sea 
 flowed over it, nothing but an earthquake could have been the 
 cause. 
 
 Geologists tell us that France and England were once joined 
 together, and that the Isle of Wight was once joined to the 
 mainland of Hampshire. Is it too much to suppose that the 
 earthquake which caused that severance was also responsible 
 for the making of the Wash ? 
 
 The second question to which I have alluded is this What 
 effect would the formation of the Wash have upon the low 
 lying land between Lincoln and Nottingham, Lincoln and 
 
Natural History. 107 
 
 Leicester, Lincoln and Derby, and what effect would it have 
 upon Lincoln itself? 
 
 The earthquake in question made the Wash as a whole 
 within the limits which I have above pointed out ; and the 
 "bars" which I have above mentioned and the various islands 
 were made by natural causes in succeeding ages. 
 
 At the time of the making of the Wash, the sea would 
 naturally find its own level, and would not only flow to 
 Lincoln but up the valley of the Fosdyke and the Trent to 
 Nottingham, up the valley of the Soar to Leicester, and up the 
 valley of the Derwent to Derby. Even in such comparatively 
 modern times as the incursion of the Danes, this was still so; 
 for history tells us that they used to sail from the North Sea to 
 Lincoln, Nottingham, Derby, Leicester, and Stamford, and 
 that they made those five places their principal "burghs,' 
 I.e. fortresses. 
 
 The names of the places of the valleys in question all disclose 
 the same state of facts. Thus in the valley of the Witham we 
 have the islands "Bardn^y" and Souther-e#, or as it is now 
 spelt Southrey; and in Lincoln itself we have the Holmes, 
 i.e. the Islands and Carholme, I.e. the Island in the Fen. 
 Danish names that were given some time between the years 
 A.D. 790 and A.D. 1013. 
 
 Between Lincoln and Nottingham there are the following 
 names of islands, Torks^y, Drinsra Holme near Markham, 
 Thorw^y, Broadholm, while only four miles from Nottingham 
 is another " Holme" now called "Home Pierpoint." It may 
 well be asked, "If the Wash formerly flowed past Lincoln and 
 up the Fosdyke valley, how is it that part of Lincoln now 
 stands upon what must have been the bed of the Wash ? 
 The question is easily answered. The rivers Brant and 
 Witham flowed into the Wash somewhere about Bassingham 
 or Boultham. According to the well-known law of nature, a 
 bar was being formed probably at Lincoln itself, and this would 
 be further increased by the waters of the Trent and Derwent 
 which at that time must have flowed up the Fosdyke valley. 
 
 The Romans found it necessary to carry their Ermine-street 
 across the valley of the Witham ; and for that purpose they 
 embanked and dug out a drain up the valley of the Fosdyke, 
 and gave it the Latin name "Fossa," I.e. "dug out," "a 
 drain," to which modern times have added the word dyke. 
 They also trained the Witham and the Brant from Bassingham 
 up to Brayford, i.e. the "braw" or great ford. They also 
 
io8 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 made a deep cutting from Boultham along the east side of what 
 is now the High-street called the Sincil Dyke, and two deep 
 cross drains from the Witham to the Sincil Dyke. These 
 works still exist, though of necessity somewhat curtailed in 
 size. By this means they were able to make the present High- 
 street from Canwick common as far as the Wickenford, i.e. the 
 ford at the Vicus or village, and the Brayford. The position 
 of the church of St. Mary-le-Wigford or Wickenford, and the 
 fact that New-land was taken out of the Brayford, is abundant 
 evidence that the river at those points was a large stream, and 
 not the puny river that it now is. The fact that there were 
 two fords, one of which divided the Ermine-street, is evidence 
 that the river was too wide for a bridge, and was crossed either 
 by the ford or by boats. 
 
 The Fossa or Fossdyke was evidently afterwards continued 
 at least as far as Boston. All this is not mere conjecture, but 
 is fortified by history. 
 
 For more than 1000 years after the Romans had gone, the 
 Witham ended at the Brayford in Lincoln. 
 
 The historian, Leland, who wrote about A.D. 1550, thus 
 deals with the subject: "The river of Lindis fleateth a little 
 above Lincoln towne and maketh certain pools whereof one is 
 called " Swanne Pool." And again : "There be four ferys 
 upon the water of Lindis betwixt Lincoln and Boston. To Shut 
 Fery 5 m. Tatershaul Fery 8 m. To Dogdich Fery I m. 
 To Langreth Fery 5 m." 
 
 I have lately come across a pleasing ballad by Jean Ingelow 
 called "The High Tide on the coast of Lincolnshire, 1571." 
 In that ballad the river at Boston is called the Lindis, and not 
 the Witham. Thus the authoress speaks of " Reedy Lindis," 
 "the Lindis Flow," "the Lindis raging sped," "Sunny Lindis 
 floweth." The ballad is evidently taken from an older ballad, 
 or from tradition, in either of which events it is important as 
 corroborating Leland. 
 
 In Dugdale's History of the Embanking of the Fens there is 
 the following account of this locality : 
 
 " In the 4Qth year of Edward the 3rd (the term being then 
 kept at Lincoln) the Jurors of divers Wapentakes in that 
 county did exhibit a Presentment in the Court of King's Bench 
 importing that the channel called the Fosdyke extending itself 
 from the river of Trent at Torksey to the city of Lincoln 
 having been anciently open and full of water so that ships and 
 boats loaded with victual and other vendible commodities did 
 
Natural History. 109 
 
 use to pass to and from Nottingham, York, Kingston-upon- 
 Hull, and sundry other places and counties by the said river 
 of Trent, and so by this channel to Lincoln, and from Lincoln 
 to Boston to the great benefit of the city of Lincoln, and 
 advantage of all tradesmen passing that way, as also of the 
 whole county adjacent was then choked up for want of cleans- 
 ing and repair." 
 
 It will be noticed that the Presentment mentions not only 
 boats but ships, which used to sail from the North Sea to 
 Kingston-upon-Hull, from there to Torksey, and from Torksey 
 to Lincoln and Boston : also, that the Court of King's Bench 
 sat at Lincoln, as indeed it frequently did in the times of the 
 Norman and Plantagenet kings, in whose reigns so many 
 statutes were passed there that they are called " The Statutes 
 of Lincoln" to this day. The Presentment mentions the 
 Fosdyke as extending from Torksey to Lincoln. If that is 
 correct, it would seem to show that the channel from Lincoln 
 to Boston was first made at some time subsequent to the 
 making of the Fosdyke. 
 
 The history of the Wash dates back from times long before 
 written history; and even educated persons may draw different 
 conclusions from archaeology, the names of places, and the levels 
 of land, which is all we have to go upon in addition to the 
 comparatively modern history that we have to guide us. 
 
 It may be useful therefore for me to sum up my argument, 
 which I do thus : 
 
 The existence of forests below the bed of the Wash shows 
 that it was once dry land. The forests consisting of oak, fir, 
 and larch, the land must have been a considerable height above 
 the level of the sea. The trees comprising the submarine 
 forest being full grown and of about the same size, the convul- 
 sion of nature which hurled the land below the level of the sea 
 must have taken place at one time, and must have been what 
 we call an earthquake. This earthquake probably took place 
 at the same time as the one that divided England from France. 
 At any rate, it took place long before the date of history, for 
 Lynn, a Celtic word for deep water, shows that the Wash was 
 in existence in Celtic times. When first made, the Wash was, 
 at least, six times as large as it is now, and must have flowed 
 quite up to Lincoln, and the tide must have flowed up to 
 Nottingham, Leicester, Derby, and Stamford. Indeed the 
 name of the place Washingborough, i.e. "the Danish tribal 
 fortress on the Wash," is a strong argument that in the time 
 
no Lincolnshire Notes & Queries . 
 
 of the Danes the Wash still flowed up to Lincoln. For many 
 thousands of years the Wash has gradually silted up from 
 natural causes, until it has reached its present dimensions. 
 
 So much for the past. As to the future, it is said to be 
 prudent not to prophesy unless you know. 
 
 Seeing that, early in the reign of Her Majesty, an Act of 
 Parliament was passed to enable a company of adventurers to 
 enclose the Wash by a bank extending from Lincolnshire to 
 Norfolk, and that they were only stopped from carrying the 
 work into effect by want of funds, and seeing that Nature is 
 taking the matter into its own hands by rapidly silting up the 
 Wash, I think that I may safely prophesy that many of those 
 who do me the honour to read this article will live to see the 
 Wash once more dry land, and the coast of Lincolnshire once 
 more joined to that of Norfolk. 
 
 THE STORY OF THE LINCOLN GAP. 
 
 THE Presidential Address on this subject, delivered at 
 Lincoln in 1895, and re-published in the Natural 
 History section of Notes and Queries^ in the October 
 number of last year, is of great and wide-spreading interest. 
 The author's (Mr. J. M. Burton) object is to prove that the 
 Trent once flowed through the gap on which Lincoln is built. 
 
 Quoting from Mr. Jukes Brown, he gives several proofs of 
 his assertion, and we cannot but admire the practised manner 
 in which the quarry is scented step by step by means of the 
 ancient gravel deposits found between the great gap in the 
 oolitic escarpment at Lincoln and the river Trent. 
 
 Mr. Burton is of opinion that the course of the Trent was 
 changed in pre-glacial times, whilst Mr. Jukes Brown, he 
 tells us, suggests that the change took place in a post-glacial 
 period. 
 
 There are reasons to suppose that the view taken by the 
 latter is the more likely one. Some of these I will briefly 
 mention. 
 
 I. The village of Holme now consolidated with Langford 
 (both being on the east of the river) formerly went with 
 
Natural History. 1 1 1 
 
 N. Muskham which is on the west, and there is evidence that 
 the water or the greater portion of it once flowed between 
 Langford and Holme, and not as it does now between Holme 
 and N. Muskham. Hence the name of Langford may 
 reasonably be supposed to be derived from the " Long ford " 
 which in days of yore had to be crossed in getting from the 
 one to the other of these places. 
 
 II. There is still extant what may be called the original or 
 principal bed of the Trent, now known by the name of the 
 " Fleet," being in some parts twenty or thirty yards wide in 
 Langford Lordship, and connected by a narrow neck with the 
 Trent some three miles north of Newark. The Fleet 
 passing through Langford runs hard by the villages of South 
 and North Collingham through Besthorpe where it widens 
 into a fine sheet of water at least 150 yards wide and nearly a 
 mile long, on to Girton, where no doubt in comparatively 
 recent times a narrow channel has been cut almost at right 
 angles to take this water again to the Trent. Before this 
 channel was cut, in all probability, the Fleet, or rather the 
 ancient river, or the greater portion of it, would continue its 
 course through the low lands of Girton to Spalford, whence it 
 would go, as described by Mr. Burton, to "join the Witham a 
 short distance west of Lincoln." 
 
 III. This Fleet is about a mile, more or less, from the 
 present bed of the stream, and between them there is a series 
 of pools, apparently beginning at S. Collingham and extending 
 through N. Collingham, Besthorpe, and Girton, like links of 
 a sunken chain floating to the surface one by one at irregular 
 intervals, tracing the course of a central stream. These pools 
 have distinctive names, e.g. Cowarth, Mons pool, Black pool, 
 Leech pool, some still possessing considerable depth of water, 
 and some being rapidly silted up, stock now grazing on places 
 which can be remembered as formerly the haunts of the 
 voracious pike. 
 
 IV. There is yet another stream to be considered and this 
 is known as the " Old Trent " and runs almost from west to 
 east from that river to Spalford, dividing that hamlet from the 
 parish of S. Clifton. This still contains a good deal of water 
 till it comes within a short distance of the " High Flood 
 Bank," extending from the Spalford sandhills to South Clifton, 
 from ten to fifteen feet high, which was erected no doubt with 
 the object of changing the course of the Trent. Near this 
 spot all these streams met. And here crosses the road from 
 
112 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 Newark to Gainsborough, travellers on it being warned by 
 guide-posts " not to pass this way in flood-time." The affix 
 to the name of this hamlet may not unlikely have been derived 
 from the " ford " which had here to be waded. This Flood 
 Bank broke during an unusually high flood nearly a century 
 ago, and then it was clearly seen that the Trent waters if left 
 to themselves would again mingle with those of the Witham, 
 although the old bed of the river was entirely obliterated by the 
 blow-away sand so abundantly provided by that district. 
 
 In addition to the above-mentioned High Flood Bank there 
 is the ordinary bank along the side of the Trent, but this river 
 being constantly subject to great floods, this ordinary bank is 
 totally inadequate to prevent nearly the whole of the land 
 lying between the Trent and the Fleet from being submerged 
 sometimes to such an extent that the writer of these pages 
 has rowed over the highest hedges, and more than once has had 
 to be rowed to Girton Church on Sunday to take his duty 
 there, the churchyard, with the exception of a few feet opposite 
 the usual entrance, being entirely surrounded by the deluge. 
 
 In conclusion, it may be added that it is highly probable that 
 when the great bulk of the waters thus flowed to the Witham, 
 the present course of the Trent was also in use. In proof of 
 this it is but necessary to call attention to 
 
 1. The fact that as the water at Girton rises some 6 inches 
 at every high tide, there could have been no prima facie difficulty 
 in some of the superfluous waters of the Trent taking that 
 course. 
 
 2. The escarpment of the cliffs at Clifton. 
 
 3. The fact that there is also an " Old Trent " at Dunham, 
 some few miles lower down, this Old Trent being on the west 
 side of the river. 
 
 4. That several miles still lower down there is a place 
 called Burton Stathers, so called most likely from the " stathers " 
 or piles driven by the side of the bank, either to prevent further 
 corrosion of the river bank a favourite and well-known 
 pastime of this river or, which is still more probable, to 
 provide convenient landing for the passengers or freight of 
 boats drawn up alongside. 
 
 S. BATEMAN. 
 Tar burgh Rectory. 
 
Natural History. 113 
 
 PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS TO THE 
 LINCOLNSHIRE NATURALISTS' 
 UNION, 1896.* 
 
 By Rev. CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S. 
 
 IT is usual to estimate the success of any society or union 
 of members, and it must be allowed that, although often 
 
 misleading, the growth or decrease of the number of 
 members affords a rough method, at all events, for judging of 
 its prosperity and popularity. On December 3ist, 1895, the 
 Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union consisted of 76 members. 
 During the present year 31 new members have joined, one has 
 died, one has left the county, one has resigned, and the 
 membership of three has lapsed, owing to non-payment of 
 subscriptions ; this leaves the present number at 107 
 (including twelve life members), so that we show a net 
 increase of nineteen. This, though of course satisfactory, 
 cannot as yet be said to be an adequate representation of the 
 people in this large county who are interested in natural 
 history, and there is no doubt but that the membership might 
 be very largely increased if each of the present members would 
 endeavour to induce his friends to join the Union. 
 
 Our obituary is limited to one notice, but by the death of 
 Lord Lilford we have lost an ornithologist of world-wide 
 reputation, whose literary work is of the utmost value to 
 science, and whose ability was only equalled by his kindness 
 and generosity. 
 
 It is usually the custom in the addresses of the scientific 
 societies to allude to any important works published during the 
 year which relate to their especial subject, and it seems only 
 right that in our Union we should make allusion to scientific 
 works of any kind in which our members have taken part. 
 We ought, therefore to congratulate Miss Florence Woolward, 
 of Belton, on the conclusion of her great work on the orchids 
 
 Re-published by special permission from The Naturalist, 1897, pp. 149-156. 
 
 Vol. 5, No. 40, Lines. N. & 9. H 
 
 Not. Hist. Sect, 
 
1 1 4 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries . 
 
 of the genus Masdevallia^ a group found only in Central and 
 South America, chiefly in mountainous regions and often 
 at a great elevation. The book is especially valuable for the 
 large number of hand-coloured plates (eighty-seven) of the 
 natural size of the plants, lithographed by Miss Woolward, and 
 all drawn by her from nature, with the exception of seven 
 species, of which drawings were sent to her by botanists 
 residing in the country which is the habitat of the plants. 
 
 From the various reports which you have heard read you will 
 have gathered a fair idea of the work taken in hand by the 
 Union, and also of the work which it may be expected to 
 accomplish in the future. The excursions to Grantham and 
 neighbourhood, to Bourn, and to Great Cotes were well 
 attended, and the best thanks of all the members are due to 
 Mr. and Mrs. Cordeaux for their kind hospitality on the last 
 occasion. These excursions, however, though most enjoyable, 
 are rather pleasant meetings than opportunities for obtaining 
 great results. This, I take it, is as it should be. The object 
 of a Union like ours is to interest as large a number of people 
 as possible in natural history, geology, and kindred studies, and 
 such an interest is far better promoted by friendly gatherings such 
 as these, with a semi-scientific flavour about them, if we may 
 use the term, than by insisting upon the Union being placed 
 entirely upon a scientific basis. It is from the efforts of small 
 bodies of specialists, or even of individuals, within the Union 
 that real scientific results may be expected, and we certainly 
 have excellent examples of these efforts in the geological 
 excursions conducted by Mr. J. H. Cooke, which ought, 
 however, to have been more largely attended ; and in the 
 formation of a Boulder Committee, with the Rev. W. 
 Tuckwell as secretary j and, above all, in the formation of the 
 nucleus of a County Museum. 
 
 The mention of the Museum brings me to what is, I feel 
 sure, the most important part of my address. The great 
 object which the Union ought to set before itself is the 
 establishment of a Museum worthy of the traditions of the 
 county. The present rooms, although hitherto they have 
 excellently served their purpose, are fast becoming quite 
 inadequate. There can be no doubt that there is a strong 
 feeling in the county that such a Museum ought to be 
 established, and we feel confident that its establishment is only 
 a matter of time. Should not the Union, then, do all that it 
 can to hasten it ? It is a building that is chiefly required ; as 
 
Natural History. 115 
 
 regards the endowment, it is very probable that considerable 
 help might be given by the Technical Education Committee 
 of the County Council ; and it surely ought not to be difficult 
 to raise ^2,000 or ^3,000 from the whole county, when we 
 consider the large sum that was raised in Lincoln alone for the 
 School of Science and Art. Over and over again we hear of 
 the irreplaceable treasures that leave the county, simply because 
 there is no place to store them in for the public benefit, and if 
 the Union does nothing more than help towards the providing 
 of the much needed Museum, it will not have existed in vain. 
 In this connection I should very much like to thank Mr. 
 Fieldsend, in the name of the Union, for all he has done for 
 our present collections. 
 
 On an occasion like the present it is usual for the President of 
 a Union like ours not only to set forth the position and aims of 
 the Union, and anything of interest in its history during the 
 course of the past year, but also to say a few words on the par- 
 ticular subject in which he may himself have taken an interest. 
 
 Now, in considering the subject of this part of my address, 
 I have felt very much at a loss, for it is, of course, right that it 
 should, if possible, have some bearing upon the natural history, 
 geology or archaeology of Lincolnshire. I should hardly, 
 however, venture to do more than merely touch upon the 
 geology, botany, or ornithology of the county, in the presence 
 of several leading authorities on these subjects ; and with 
 regard to the conchology and, more particularly, the entom- 
 ology, I have made comparatively few observations, as the 
 chief part of the time which I have felt I could legitimately 
 devote to natural history has been spent on the general 
 subjects of the British Coleoptera, and lately of the Central 
 American Homoptera ; such observations, moreover, as I have 
 been able to make, have been mostly limited to the immediate 
 neighbourhood of Lincoln. I feel convinced, however, that, 
 in spite of the fact that many of the fen species have been doubt- 
 less effaced by drainage, the county will be found to be exceed- 
 ingly rich in every branch of natural history, and it is to be 
 hoped that, in the field of entomology, workers may be found 
 who will emulate such ardent geologists as Mr. F. M. Burton 
 and Mr. Cooke, such indefatigable botanists as Mr. Peacock 
 and the Rev. W. Fowler, and such world-renowned ornith- 
 ologists as Mr. Cordeaux. 
 
 If we consider the physical features of Lincolnshire we 
 shall see that it ought certainly to contain a large and varied 
 
1 1 6 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 insect fauna, for it may roughly be divided into three districts, 
 which are quite distinct in general character ; to begin with, 
 there is the large coast line, bounded by great sand-dunes, on 
 which the low thickets of the buckthorn (Rhamnus catharticus) 
 and coarse reeds and grasses give shelter to numerous good 
 insects of various orders ; in passing, we may notice that these 
 dunes in summer are the haunt of the rare Natterjack Toad 
 (Bufo calamita\ which has been found by members of the 
 Union on summer excursions to Mablethorpe and the surround- 
 ing district ; in the second place there are large expanses of 
 what was formerly fen country but now is mostly drained ; 
 there are, however, many occasional ponds and marshy corners, 
 which, we may be sure, afford a last shelter to many of the 
 fen species, especially the water insects ; and, thirdly, there are 
 the higher districts, often well wooded, which present every 
 indication of an abundance of invertebrate life ; the woods 
 towards the west are apparently outlying remnants of the 
 ancient Forest of Sherwood, which besides containing many 
 good lepidoptera, is the sole, or almost the sole, habitat of 
 several of our rarest beetles ; we might, perhaps, almost regard 
 the banks of the Trent as a fourth district, for it has an insect 
 fauna of its own ; quite recently one of the least common 
 species of British Carabidae or ground-beetles, Bembidium 
 stomoldes, has been found in large numbers near Torksey Abbey 
 by the Rev. A. Thornley, who has done a great deal of good 
 work at the beetles of both Lincolnshire and Nottingham- 
 shire. 
 
 If we look at a geological map of the county we shall find 
 that the whole south-eastern portion, comprising nearly one- 
 fourth of the county, is made up of drift or alluvial deposit ; 
 north of this, and running somewhat in a direction from N.W. 
 to S.E. are two broad strips of Upper Oolite and chalk, 
 separated by a narrow and irregular band of Lower Greensand ; 
 the western portion of the county is almost entirely taken up 
 by three fairly regular strips consisting of Lias on the extreme 
 west, then Lower Oolite and next Middle Oolite \ it would be 
 an interesting point to work out the distribution of the insect 
 fauna of these divisions ; in great measure, of course, it 
 depends upon the flora, which undoubtedly varies with the 
 geological formation, although Mr. Woodruffe-Peacock, who 
 has made this subject peculiarly his own, says that the presence 
 of humidity or dryness and the permeability or impermeability 
 of the soil has more to do with the matter than chemistry. 
 
Natural History. 1 1 7 
 
 At present the very local butterfly Hesperia paniscus (the 
 Chequered Skipper) appears to be confined to the Middle 
 Oolite district, its range extending from Bourn on the south to 
 the woods around Wickenby and Market Rasen and, perhaps, 
 further north. Most probably this is accidental, but I have no 
 record of its occurence outside this narrow strip. The 
 mention of the butterfly raises memories of many pleasant 
 afternoons, when I have seen it flying up and down with its 
 peculiarly glancing rapid flight in the glades of Newball Wood, 
 near Wragby. I remember that when I first came to Lincoln 
 I was introduced to its locality by Mr. Barber, of Lincoln (an 
 excellent taxidermist and keen naturalist, who died quite 
 young), and that there seemed to be a considerable probability 
 of the butterfly being exterminated by dealers from Hull, who 
 with the retail price fixed at 8d. or gd., were able to make a 
 very fair profit out of a good day's collecting. We were, 
 therefore, very pleased when Mr. Wordsworth, the courteous 
 agent of Earl Manvers, closed the woods entirely to all except 
 a limited number of legitimate naturalists, to whom cards of 
 admission are issued each year on application ; it is a great 
 pity that the privilege cannot be extended in many other 
 cases, but, as a rule, where woods and parks are entirely closed, 
 we shall find that too often the closure has been caused by 
 abuse of privilege ; either plants have been ruthlessly destroyed, 
 or fences damaged, or gates left open, or game disturbed. A 
 gamekeeper in Sherwood Forest once told me that a man had 
 been going about with a butterfly-net and taking pheasant 
 eggs all the time ; what wonder then if the innocent suffer 
 with the guilty. Were we the owners of property we should 
 act in the same way in the face of wanton provocation. Even 
 genuine collectors and observers are too often utterly careless. 
 One of the best localities for beetles in the whole of the 
 Midlands is entirely shut up now because someone who ought 
 to have known better threw away a match after lighting his 
 pipe and fired the whole place. This, of course, is a digression, 
 and in any case it is well that there are a large number of 
 localities which are practically inaccessible. If all the habitats 
 of our birds, insects, and flowers were open to everyone, the 
 rarer species would soon become extinct, for nothing apparently 
 can exceed the greed of the collector for gain, a person who 
 brings especial discredit upon the study of the lepidoptera, 
 which are perhaps the most marketable of all natural history 
 commodities. Of course, certain insects have become or are 
 
1 1 8 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries* 
 
 becoming extinct for reasons over which there is no control 
 notably the drainage of the Fen district. The great 
 instance, perhaps, is the Large Copper Butterfly, which has 
 not been seen for about fifty years, although there are several 
 now living who can remember the insect as quite common in 
 Yaxley and neighbouring Fens. A friend of mine, now far 
 advanced in years, once bought a boxful for a half-penny apiece, 
 and now ^7 is not an uncommon price for a good specimen. 
 Noctua subrosea is another less known fen insect which has been 
 extinguished by drainage, and Orgyia c&nosa (the Reed 
 Tussort) has comparatively recently disappeared ; Cleora 
 riduaria (the Speckled Beauty) has, I believe, not occurred for 
 many years in the New Forest ; Lyceena ads (the Mazarine 
 Blue) is already gone j and the two conspicuous butterflies, 
 Aporia crattegi (the Black-veined White) and Lyctenaarion (the 
 Large Blue) appear to be in imminent danger of complete 
 extinction ; in one or two of these cases the destruction of the 
 food plant by the burning of pasture or grazing of sheep may 
 be the cause of the disappearance, but in others the numbers 
 have certainly been much diminished by collectors, and a 
 Committee has recently been appointed by the Council of the 
 Entomological Society to enquire into the matter generally, 
 and, if possible, to devise a plan by which some of the rapidly 
 disappearing species may be yet preserved. 
 
 This, perhaps, may seem to have but little bearing upon the 
 natural history of the county, but I have not much doubt that 
 some of those now extinct insects were once common in the 
 Lincolnshire fens ; in fact, through Mr. Barber, whom I have 
 before mentioned, I thought I had secured some evidence of 
 the occurrence of the Large Copper in the county within the last 
 twenty-five or thirty years, but on examining into it, it did not 
 appear sufficiently trustworthy to found a record on. The 
 Swallow-tail Butterfly (Papilw machaon\ the most conspicuous 
 of all our British insects, ought certainly to occur in 
 Lincolnshire, and I believe that it has been found, but I cannot 
 come across any authentic record. This beautiful species will 
 soon be exterminated from its chief haunt, Wicken Fen, but it 
 will still linger in many inaccessible localities in the Norfolk 
 Broads and smaller Cambridgeshire Fens, such as Chippenham, 
 where the larvae have been found feeding on Angelica syhestrls. 
 With regard to Butterflies undoubtedly occurring in the county, 
 we have already alluded to Hesperia paniscus^ and Thecla betults 
 (the Brown Hair-streak) and Apatura iris (the Purple 
 
Natural History. 1 1 9 
 
 Emperor) are well worthy of record. A stray specimen of 
 Venessa antlopa (the Camberwell Beauty) has occurred this 
 summer at Bracebridge, Lincoln. Melit&a artemis (the Greasy 
 Fritilliary) and Melanagria galathea (the Marbled White) are 
 local but not uncommon. Of butterflies which occur 
 abundantly in many other counties, Gonepteryx rhamni (the 
 Brimstone) may be noticed as very rare, and of Satyrus tithonus 
 (the Large Heath) only three specimens have, apparently, been 
 taken. These were captured by the Rev. G. H. Raynor (from 
 whom I received some most valuable notes) at Panton, near 
 Wragby, very occasionally. The Clouded Yellow (Collas 
 edusa] is abundant, as it is in other parts of England. Of 
 Moths we cannot here give any detailed list ; but the common 
 occurrence of the Death's Head Moth caterpillar during 1895 
 and 1896 may be noticed. Unfortunately a considerable 
 number have been spoilt by the country people, who regard 
 them as venomous serpents, and will only pick them up, more 
 or less roughly, with tongs or other implements, the injury 
 caused being sufficient to produce a crippled imago. The 
 Convolvulus Hawk Moth (Sphinx convolvull}^ the Large and 
 Small Elephant Hawk Moth (Cbarocampa elpenor and C. 
 porcellus\ and the Broad and Narrow-bordered Bee Hawk 
 Macroglossa fuciformis and M. bombyliformis) have been taken 
 at Panton, and Newball and Legsby Woods ; and among other 
 things may be mentioned the Alder Moth {Acronycta alni\ 
 which used to be one of the rarest British moths, but is 
 apparently not uncommon around Lincoln, and the Swallow 
 Prominents ( Ttilodonta dicttea and P. dht<zoides\ which have 
 been found in the Lincoln and Market Rasen districts. 
 
 Amongst other orders of insects the Coleoptera, when really 
 worked and properly catalogued, will be found to comprise a 
 large number of good species. I could give a fair list of names, 
 but will not burden this address with particulars that cannot 
 be otherwise than uninteresting to any but enthusiastic beetle 
 hunters. The county is evidently rich in Hymenoptera, and 
 probably in Diptera. 
 
 For an agricultural county like Lincolnshire, however, the 
 great interest of the Entomology lies in its economic consider- 
 ations, such as the prevalence and spread of injurious insects, 
 the effects on the crops, and possible remedies. For our 
 increased knowledge of this subject we have much for which 
 to thank Miss E. A. Ormerod, who has spared no pains or 
 money to help combat these pests of the farmers, and I feel 
 
I2O Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 sure that all persons interested in her work will deeply 
 sympathise with her in the loss of her sister and energetic 
 fellow worker. 
 
 As a rule the subject of Economic Entomology is much 
 neglected by farmers, although a few well-timed precautions 
 will often save a large amount of trouble and money : in 
 nothing is the old proverb more true that a stitch in time saves 
 nine. In Lincolnshire, where the consideration of the best 
 way to deal with insect pests (especially those that attack 
 cereals) ought to be of paramount importance, the subject has 
 hardly been taken up by anyone except Mr. Ralph Lowe, of 
 Sleaford, and Mr. Eardly Mason, of Alford, who some years 
 ago made observations in certain cases of attack which were 
 of great interest. We are far behind the people of the United 
 States in this matter. There a State Entomologist is appointed, 
 whose periodic reports, in their style, fulness, and excellent 
 illustrations are models of what such reports should be. It is 
 true that Miss Ormerod issues excellent yearly reports in her 
 private capacity ; but our official reports are, as a rule, meagre 
 in the extreme, and our best entomologists have little or 
 nothing to do with them. This is much to be deplored, for 
 insect attack, more or less serious, is always present among 
 us. Occasionally there is a scare ; we can most of us recall the 
 excitement caused by what people thought to be the threatened 
 invasion of the Colorado Potato Beetle. Its importation 
 alive was strictly prohibited, the walls both in town and country 
 were placarded with illustrations and notices of precautions 
 to be taken if it arrived, and of course every harmless beetle 
 was supposed to be a Colorado Beetle. This was but 
 natural, as people who had never thought of a beetle before 
 began to look out for them, and of course found and made notes of 
 various species. The authorities of one important town 
 seriously sent up to London an ordinary large y-spot ladybird, 
 feeling confident that at last the dreaded plague had come and 
 that they were the fortunate discoverers of its advent. Most 
 of us, too, can remember the more recent scare concerning the 
 Hessian Fly, how perpetual articles regarding it kept appear- 
 ing in the papers, and how it was held up as the last straw that 
 would break the farmer's back. But the fact is that the 
 Hessian Fly is always among us : it is only on occasions (due 
 to the climate of the season favouring its increase, or other 
 causes which require careful investigation) that its attack 
 becomes serious. There are, unfortunately, many other 
 
Natural History. 121 
 
 enemies of the corn crops whose attacks are, under favourable 
 circumstances, quite as much to be feared as that of the 
 Hessian Fly. Among them we may mention the Frit Fly 
 (Oscinis frit\ the Gout Fly (Chlorops teeniopus\ the Wheat 
 Fly (Hylemyia coarctata\ the Wheat Midge or " Red 
 Maggot" (Cecidomyla trltlcl\ an insect closely allied to the 
 Hessian Fly (Cecidomyla destructor], the Saddle Fly (Diplosis 
 equestris\ first discovered as British by Mr. Mason, near 
 Alford, the Corn Aphis (dphis (Siphonophara] granarla\ the 
 Corn Sawfly (Cephus pygmteus}^ the Corn Thrips (Thrips 
 cereallum), and last, but not least, the Wire-worms, which are 
 not worms at all, but the larvae of certain beetles, and the two 
 species of " Eelworms " (Tylenchus devastatrlx and T. trltlcl\ 
 which are true nematodes or threadworms, one attacking oats, 
 rye and clover, and the other doing considerable damage at 
 times to the wheat crops. This, it must be allowed, is a 
 formidable list of pests, but fortunately, they never seem to 
 attack at once, and even in the same localities their ravages are 
 sporadic ; one farm, for instance, may be ravaged by wire- 
 worms in one year and little harmed in the next, while on an 
 adjoining farm the case may be just reversed. Evidently, then, 
 there are many problems to be solved problems requiring 
 careful examination by skilled specialists, but likely to repay a 
 hundredfold the cost of their solution. It is for this reason 
 that we would ask for the appointment of a State Entomologist 
 for Great Britain, whose duty it shall be to inspect any infected 
 district, to report on any cases of disastrous infestation of 
 which he has obtained knowledge, and to take such precaution- 
 ary measures as he may deem requisite. May I give one 
 instance of the extreme value of the researches of the 
 American State Entomologist, Professor Riley, whose recent 
 sad death by a fall from his bicycle is so much deplored by 
 entomologists throughout the world. Some years ago the 
 orange orchards of one of the orange-growing states 
 were in danger of imminent destruction by a species of 
 "mealy-bug" (leery a] , ruin stared the proprietors in the face 
 until Professor Riley, who was investigating the infestation, 
 found that a like species of " mealy bug " was found in New 
 Zealand, but did no appreciable harm there. On examining 
 into matters he found that the pest was extensively preyed 
 upon and so kept down by a small species of beetle belonging 
 to the Lady-Bird tribe (Vedalla cardlnalls\ which closely 
 resembles in size and colour our ordinary small red Lady-Bird. 
 
122 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 He therefore imported numbers of these insects to the infested 
 American districts, and on being placed on the orange trees 
 they grew and multiplied until they practically exterminated 
 the " mealy bug " within a comparatively short space of time ; 
 in fact, it is said that a certain amount of the insect had to be 
 cultivated, if we may so call it, in order to keep up the supply 
 of the Vedalia. 
 
 I had at first intended to give some account of certain of 
 the insect pests before referred to, but I find that I have 
 already trespassed too much upon your time. As you have 
 been kind enough to re-elect me as President for the year 1897, 
 I may perhaps be allowed, if all be well, to continue the 
 subject in my next presidential address. 
 
 I would conclude by again returning to the subject of the 
 Museum, and expressing a strong hope that it may not be long 
 before we obtain, through individual or collective generosity, a 
 suitable building, and in that case I feel sure that we shall soon 
 get together a collection of objects of interest which will be 
 fully worthy of this large and important county of Lincoln- 
 shire. 
 
 THE LINCOLN GAP. 
 
 THE Rev. S. Bateman in his paper, in the last number of 
 Lincolnshire Notes ff )ueries^ on my address on the 
 "Lincoln Gap," gives certain reasons for supposing that 
 the change in the Trent's course took place after, and not 
 before, the Glacial era ; but I fail to see how the reasons he 
 gives affect the question. 
 
 Some of the changes Mr. Bateman speaks of are of, compara- 
 tively, quite recent origin ; while the change in the Trent's 
 course must have occurred thousands of years ago. 
 
 Mere changes of bed are of common occurrence in the 
 history of the Trent. Indeed, whenever you meet with a river 
 with a wide, flat basal-area, like that of the Trent, you may 
 safely assume that it is continually shifting its bed the broad, 
 flat area being, in fact, the result of such shifting. 
 
 In places also where rivers form two or more channels, as 
 they often do, all but one of such channels are sometimes cut off 
 
Natural History. 123 
 
 by banking ; and this might easily have been the case with the 
 Trent in some of the localities noticed by Mr. Bateman as at 
 Dunham and elsewhere while, in other places, the course of 
 a river is often changed by the cutting off of wandering loops, 
 in order to increase the land area ; or for other useful purposes. 
 
 The escarpments which Mr. Bateman alludes to, and which 
 are records of very considerable antiquity, occur in various places 
 on the Trent sides ; but they are merely the result of the harder 
 rocks resisting the wear and tear of the water and atmosphere, 
 and they have no special bearing either on ice-action itself, or 
 the relative time of its occurrence. 
 
 The only proofs that can be accepted as to when the great 
 change in the Trent's course occurred, in relation to the 
 Glacial era, must be sought for in the usual remains left by the 
 ice, such as boulder deposits, foreign erratics, and so forth ; 
 and, as these proofs are at present wanting in the area in 
 question, until they are met with, it will be impossible to say, 
 with any authority, when the change occurred. 
 
 I quite agree, as I say in my address, that the Trent has 
 from time to time frequently gone over its old course through the 
 Lincoln Gap, especially in seasons of flood ; and, probably, it 
 did not relinquish that course for a very long period after it 
 was tapped by the drainage through the longitudinal valley on 
 the north, heading back from, and leading into, the Humber. 
 
 There is no reason to doubt that the great ice-plough, in 
 some form or other, ran up the Trent valley ; but, owing to the 
 action of the river, and the force of the tide which, at one 
 time, extended higher up, and spread further over, the adjoin- 
 ing land than it does now all traces of this event appear to 
 have been swept away ; and the only remains of water action 
 are so far, at all events, as I am myself aware of rounded 
 pebbles and gravel, such as occur in the old course through the 
 Lincoln Gap, which the river has brought down from the 
 area it drains on the west ; and which have been by the 
 force of stream and tide assorted, and re-assorted, over and 
 over again, till the problem has become a very difficult one to 
 decipher. 
 
 I quite admit the possibility of the Glacial period having 
 preceded, instead of having occurred after, the change in the 
 Trent's course, but at present it is an open question ; and until 
 the proofs, which ice-action alone can give, are obtained, it 
 must, I fear, remain so. 
 
 F. M. BURTON. 
 
124 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY NOTES. 
 
 WHAT TO NOTE AND HOW TO 
 MAKE NOTES.* 
 
 By GREGORY O. BENONI. 
 
 NO man knows how much the world has lost by some of 
 her greatest sons not having the gift or knack for it is 
 very often only the latter of jotting down their experi- 
 ences and observations in black and white. When we consider 
 the time we all waste in trifling, a few moments occupied 
 daily in writing would never be missed. But what should we 
 have in return ? The experiences of the man of action, the 
 stories of the talker, the bon-mots of the convivial and versatile 
 companion at our last field meeting, who was the soul and life 
 of the whole affair, and the notes of the observant naturalist, 
 whose opportunity of seeing what is best worth recording is 
 infinitely greater than any the late Richard Jefferies ever had, 
 if his power of clothing his memories in living language may 
 never be comparable with that "nature poet's" wonderful gift. 
 Scores of keen-minded men see things almost daily which 
 are worthy of permanent record the field-mouse in the hedge 
 stealing hip and haw, when in a prolonged frost the snow 
 wraps the ground with that thick white mantle so destructive 
 to animal and bird life or the young oak thrusting up from 
 the little creature's abandoned home and store after a mild 
 winter as the observer stalks his rabbits down the wood side. 
 But few, how few, realise the truly valuable facts amongst the 
 crowd of things they see, or take the trouble, if they know 
 how, to make a note of them. We mean to make notes that 
 will be of value in refreshing the memory at any time, or for 
 future publication. 
 
 What to note is the difficulty of all young naturalists. Mere 
 bare lists in any department of natural history, without any 
 annotations, are of comparatively little value j at most they 
 only appeal to workers at geographical distribution. The fact 
 of such species being found in a given spot is recorded, but the 
 nexus which gives the sparkling touch of life to the thing 
 
 * Reprinted by special permission from The Naturalist, July, 1897. 
 
Natural History. 125 
 
 recorded is wanting. For instance, the young botanist in 
 Lincolnshire, who knows his plants fairly well, is adding hardly 
 anything to our knowledge of nature by bare lists of species 
 which grow in his neighbourhood. But let him take the new 
 drift maps, published by the Geological Survey, in his hand as 
 he walks, and accurately note the changing flora with the 
 varying outcrops and soils he passes over, and he will just give 
 us that connecting link which makes his work live. If the 
 elevation, humidity, porosity, and impenetrability of the surface 
 has nothing to do with the distribution, he has discovered the 
 chemistry of the soil has, and a quantitative and qualitative 
 analysis of the plants will show it. He has pointed out to the 
 chemist where his work has to begin and what the problem is 
 he must settle. Had as much been known as might be 
 discovered with a little trouble on this very question of 
 geological distribution, thousands of acres would not have been 
 sown down to permanent pasture with expensive seeds, which 
 the land could not support till the passage of years had accu- 
 mulated its fertility. When a young lady drew a lovely 
 picture of the heath-covered wolds of Lincolnshire the other 
 day in a magazine article she had just missed the nexus, which 
 was all important to the truth, if not the loveliness, of her 
 description. Our wolds are chalk, but our English heaths 
 cannot stand a particle of lime in their love for silica. Our 
 wind-blown sand-hills and commons are clothed with their fair 
 pink bells, and so to a perfervid but inaccurate mind the chalk 
 hills must be, but nature having ordained it otherwise it is 
 not so. The point to catch and note for ever is the nexus or 
 connecting link between the thing observed or the action seen 
 and its environment. Nothing is there by accident, nothing 
 is done in nature without a motive, an all-sufficient reason. 
 When we observed all the birds flying in one direction on 
 Salisbury plain, as if a bush fire were behind them, we did not 
 doubt there was a very good reason, and found it later in the "dew 
 pond" at the foot of Sidbury Hill. The only open water for 
 miles on that barrow-strown height, was frequented by all the 
 birds and animals round. But the fox and rat, rabbit and hare, 
 did not visit the spot at the same time of day, nor the different 
 species of birds drink together, but we made no notes, and 
 missed the nexus, and are ignorant why to this moment. The 
 water was full of newts and lower life forms, and if we remem- 
 ber accurately a solitary species of P otamogeton^ but that was not 
 surprising, as these ponds are sometimes frequented by wild fowl. 
 
1 26 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries, 
 
 But the point to notice is that what we did not find out we 
 missed for good, first, because we did not picture before our 
 minds the connecting link and work till it was discovered; and 
 secondly, we did not make any accurate notes at the time for 
 future study. The droppings of birds were on the low firm 
 railings which kept the horses and cattle from the water, while 
 the sheep could pass under and drink their fill ; but we idly 
 tapped them into the water, regardless of the undigested seeds 
 they contained, as we watched the newts and kept a pair of 
 wood pigeons from their evening drink or bath. We never 
 made a note of what was growing round the pond to see if it 
 differed from the surrounding herbage, though we noted how 
 frequently the birds left droppings after drinking. The 
 stupidity of these lost opportunities, how vexed they make a 
 naturalist in his future work! Sidbury Hill stands on or just 
 beyond the family property of the late Sir John Astley, of 
 sporting fame, and this suggests an incident of observation 
 which only required an accurate note to have made it of value. 
 Late one day Sir John shot a wood pigeon at Elsham, in 
 Lincolnshire, with such a distended crop that he could not help 
 noticing it. Opening it, he found it not only remarkably full, 
 but was also struck by the number of the species of seeds. 
 These were sown in a flower-pot of the largest size and placed 
 in the forcing-house. A full and varied crop of the weeds of 
 our stubbles was the reward of his care, but no botanist was 
 called in to name the species and work out their numerical 
 relation, and so the value of the experiment was lost for want 
 of an accurate note. 
 
 Note-making is the simplest thing in the world, far simpler 
 than finding material worthy of permanent record, as every 
 hard-working field naturalist knows to his cost. What days 
 and weeks have we all spent fruitlessly on the look-out for 
 something new, when it was only our own stupidity which 
 prevented us seeing what was just under our noses! Though 
 we knew water plants have a wider distribution than land 
 plants, we had to visit a deep unfrozen spring twenty times in 
 the great frost of 1895 before the bright green foliage struck 
 our mind's eye, and it flashed into our vacant organ that the 
 deep warm springs in the north, and by contrast the deep cool 
 springs of the south, could keep an uniform temperature in a 
 limited area and preserve a flora and its attendant life, which 
 would become a centre of distribution should the climate 
 change to greater warmth or cold. We must brighten and 
 
Natural History. 127 
 
 polish up our faculties in the field if we would find plenty of 
 material worthy of our note-books. An unknown quantity of 
 unobserved connections lie around us the moment we leave 
 our doors ; if we do not find them some one else will. 
 
 How to make notes is our next point. If you have not 
 invented a plan a good one, mind you, of your own try this 
 one; it is perhaps the simplest and most effective yet discovered. 
 We all have our favourite books, even when we get better ; 
 Bell's Quadrupeds, 2nd ed., and Yarrell's Birds, 4th ed., are 
 ours. Now, for example, you want to make a note of the 
 long-tailed field mouse. Take a half sheet of ordinary note 
 paper and write the number of Bell's page 293 in the left-hand 
 corner, then the English or Latin name, or both if you like, 
 opposite. Underline these names, and in the right-hand 
 corner add the figure I to signify this is the first page devoted 
 to this species. Then make your notes, carefully recording 
 place, date, and fact, or anything you consider important to 
 notice. In this printed sketch the underlined parts are repro- 
 duced in Italics. 
 
 293. Mus syhaticus L. Long-tailed Field Mouse. I 
 
 Bottesford, Lines., 7.11.69. Dug out nest. There was 
 a side-bolt. Had stored acorns, nuts, and wheat. 
 
 Cadney, Lines., 24.9.93. Watched one carrying wheat 
 to its nest. 
 
 Harrington, Northamps., 8.7.89. Young oak springing up 
 
 from deserted winter store in field by Larkland Wood. 
 
 If we are dealing with our bird-notes we work just the same. 
 
 3 
 
 320. Scolopax rusticola L. Woodcock. 2 
 
 Broughton Wood, Lines., 1872. Very plentiful this year, 
 
 I hear. 
 
 The same. 1876. First seen 18.10.76. 
 Harrington, Northamps. Big fall in 1870, Mr. Cheney 
 
 told me, after rough N.E. winds. 
 
 Cadney, Lines, 1894. Watched one under hedge of oak 
 wood through field-glass turning over the dead leaves 
 and eating worms. 
 
 The left-hand figures refer to Yarrell, volume 3, page 320. 
 When the notes accumulate, a little case of deal, I2in. long, 
 Sin wide, and 3in. deep, stained throughout but varnished 
 only on the outside, keeps them neatly together, in the order 
 
ia8 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 of the left-hand numbers ; while at the same time they may be 
 turned over like the leaves of a book to find the sheet required, 
 after the general index of Bell and Yarrell has been first con- 
 sulted to give the right number. If a page gets damaged by 
 mistakes or an accident it can easily be re-copied without 
 spoiling the look of the whole series of notes, as is too often 
 the case if a book is used. It is also much easier to w.nte on 
 sheets than in a book. A more simple way than using any 
 author's order and the index to his book is to keep the notes 
 in alphabetical order. There is only one danger in doing this. 
 The nomenclature of species is so uncertain and various in 
 different authors, that cross-references have to be added for all 
 the commoner scientific names. If this is not done with great 
 care by young naturalists, notes on the same species will be 
 scattered under different scientific names throughout his whole 
 collection. But the alphabetical order has one great advantage; 
 notes on every department can be kept together in one long 
 series. When the sheets may be reckoned by thousands, as in 
 our own case, it becomes the only practical way. 
 
 A friend of the cynical order, who knows his own foibles as 
 well as he sees other men's, suggested that note paper is a 
 handy size for illustrations, and pointed out how they enrich 
 any collection of notes. He enclosed one as a specimen of 
 what these should be like a sketch of a bird shot with an 
 ounce of water instead of lead. He maintained he had never 
 heard of water-shooting till we told him how to proceed. 
 Whether in his hands it has been successful in saving damage 
 to the plumage of delicate birds we cannot say, as his cartoon 
 is the last communication we have had on the subject. 
 
 In another paper we purpose to make a selection from the 
 notes of a North Lincolnshire naturalist to illustrate how 
 interesting these casual jottings, which only take a few minutes 
 to carefully observe and record, become as facts accumulate in 
 the passage of years. 
 
INDEX 
 
 Natural History Section, 
 
INDEX. 
 
 ABBEYS of Lincolnshire, 69. 
 Address of Presidents, 15, 113. 
 Agricultural Wealth of Lincolnshire, 91. 
 Anderson, the late Sir Charles, 16, 19, 90. 
 Animals noticed at Hatton, 50. 
 Antiquarian and Naturalists Society, 
 
 Louth, 61. 
 
 Archxological History of the Wash, 101. 
 Areas, Faunal, 16. 
 Ashby Decoy, 20. 
 Axholme, Isle of, 17, 22. 
 
 BANKS, Sir Joseph, 23. 
 
 Barker, Rev. J. T., botanist, 62. 
 
 Bars or Deltas, how formed, 103. 
 
 Bateman, Rev. S. (criticism), no. 
 
 Benoni, G. O., How to make notes, 124. 
 
 Birds, Alleged deficiency of, 89. 
 
 crops, Contents of, 29. 
 Disappearance of, 88. 
 Nesting places of, 91. 
 Noticed at Hatton, 77. 
 of the Fen, 87. 
 of the Marsh, 89. 
 Blocks of Shap-granite, Ice-borne, 94. 
 Blue-stone Boulder, Louth, 31. 
 Boulder Committee, 26, 97. 
 Boulders, 31, 94- 
 
 Bogg, T. W. and E. B., botanists, 62. 
 Burton, F. M., Papers by, 32, 53, 72, 122. 
 
 CHALK Wolds, 20. 
 Coleoptera, Record wanted, 46. 
 Commons, 21, 91. 
 Contents of Birds' crops, 29. 
 Cordeaux, John, Papers by, 15, 65, 83. 
 Corn Crops, Enemies of, 120. 
 Country Parish, Short account of, 48, 77, 
 County of Lincoln, 2. 
 Crowland, 1 06. 
 
 DANELAGH, 68. 
 
 Danes in Lincolnshire, 67, 103, 107. 
 Divisions, Natural History, 2. 
 
 ECONOMIC Entomology, 120. 
 Editor, Notes by, i, 30, 64, 71. 
 Ermine Street, 21. 
 
 FENS, 93. 
 
 Insects of, 88, us. 
 Fish, 90. 
 Fisheries, 90. 
 
 Fishery, Salmon, Value of, 71. 
 Flora near Louth, 61. 
 Forests, Submarine, 109. 
 Fossdyke, 107. 
 Fowler, Rev. Canon W. W., Presidents 
 
 Address, 113. 
 Fungus Foray near Louth, 41. 
 
 GOAT Willow (note), 30- 
 Goulding,R.W., Meetings at Louth, 4.1,61. 
 
 HAMPTON and Kew (joint paper), 31 
 
 ICE-BORNE blocks of Shap-granite, 94. 
 Insects, 88, 117. 
 
 LAND between Gainsborough and Lincoln i 
 
 how formed, 32. 
 Lincoln Gap, Story of, 53, 7 2 - 
 (criticism), no. 
 (reply), I"- 
 
 Lincolnshire (a paper), 65, 83. 
 
 Boulder Committee, 26. 
 Natural History, 15. 
 Natural History Divisions, 2. 
 Naturalists at Louth, 41, 6l. 
 Rye-grass, 30. 
 Vertebrata of, list wanted, 
 
 64. 
 Louth, Blue Stone Boulder, 31. 
 
 Antiquarian and Naturalists Soci- 
 ety, 6 1. 
 
132 
 
 MAMMALIA, 50, 86. 
 
 Index. 
 
 NATURAL History Notes ; what to note, 
 
 and how to make notes, 124. 
 Natural History Divisions of Lincoln- 
 shire, 2. 
 
 of Lincolnshire, 15. 
 
 Note on Ice-borne blocks of Shap, 94. 
 
 Prefatory, I. 
 Notes, how to make them, 124. 
 
 PEACOCK, Rev. E. A. Woodruffe-, Paper 
 
 by, 2. 
 Place Name List, 4. 
 
 Prefatory Note, i. 
 
 SALMON Fishery, Value of, 71. 
 Sheppard, T., Notes on Shap, 94. 
 Sills, G., Paper by, 101. 
 
 THORNLEY, A., Coleoptera Record wanted, 
 46. 
 
 VALUE of Salmon Fishery on Trent, 71. 
 Vertebrata of Lincolnshire, list wanted, 
 64. 
 
 WASH, Archaeological History of, 101. 
 
r oL. I. No. i. JANUARY, 1896. PRICE is. 
 
 The Natural History Seffiion 
 
 OF 
 
 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 A QUARTERLY JOURNAL 
 
 DEVOTED TO 
 
 TSotany, Qonchology, Entomology, Geology, Ornithology, and Zoology, 
 
 &c., of the Bounty. 
 
 Edited by 
 
 The Rev. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, 
 L.Th., F.L.S., F.G.S., 
 
 Hon. Organising and Botanical Sec. of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, 
 Vicar of Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE. PAGE. 
 
 'refatory Note i Lincolnshire Natural History 15 
 
 7he Natural History Divisions of Lincolnshire 
 (with Map) 2 
 
 HORNCASTLE : 
 Printed by W. K. MORTON, 27, HIGH STREET. 
 
 LONDON: CHAS. J. CLARK, 4, LINCOLN'S INN FIELDS, W.C. 
 Entered at Stationers' Hall.] [^/ Right Reserved. 
 
u. LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 THIS SPACE 
 
 FOR 
 ADVERTISEMENTS. 
 
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VOL. I. No. 2. APRIL, 1896. PRICE is. 
 
 "The Natural History Section 
 
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 A QUARTERLY JOURNAL 
 
 DEVOTED TO 
 
 ^Botany, fynchology, Entomology, Geology, Ornithology, and Zoology, 
 
 &c., of the Bounty. 
 
 Edited by 
 
 The Rev. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, 
 L.Th., F.L.S., F.G.S., 
 
 Hon. Organising and Botanical Sec. of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, 
 Vicar of Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE. | PACK. 
 
 Lincolnshire Natural History (Contiuued] . . 17 
 
 The Lincolnshire Boulder Committee ... 26 
 
 The Contents of Birds' Crops 29 
 
 The Goat Willow 3 
 
 The Lincolnshire Rye-grass 30 
 
 The ' Blue Stone ' Boulder, Louth . ... 31 
 How the Land between Gainsborough and 
 
 Lincoln was formed 32 
 
 HORNCASTLE : 
 Printed by W. K. MORTON, 27, HIGH STREET. 
 
 LONDON : CHAS. J. CLARK, 4, LINCOLN'S INN FIELDS, W.C. 
 Entered at Stationers' Hall.] O*// R'g^s Reserved. 
 
ii. LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 THIS SPACE 
 FOR 
 
 ADVERTISEMENTS. 
 
NATURAL HISTORY. 
 
 THIS SPACE 
 
 FOR 
 ADVERTISEMENTS. 
 
iv. LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 THIS SPACE 
 
 FOR 
 ADVERTISEMENTS. 
 
'OL. I. No. 3. JULY, 1896. PRICE is. 
 
 The Natural History Section 
 
 OF 
 
 incolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 A QUARTERLY JOURNAL 
 
 DEVOTED TO 
 
 Botany, Qonchology, entomology, Geology, Ornithology, and Zoology, 
 
 &c., of the Qounty. 
 
 Edited by 
 
 The Rev. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, 
 
 L.Th., F.L.S., F.G.S., 
 
 Hon. Organising and Botanical Sec. of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, 
 Vicar of Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 How the Land between Gainsborough and 
 
 Lincoln was formed (continued] ... 33 
 Lincolnshire Naturalists at Louth .... 4 1 I 
 
 A Lincolnshire Coleoptera Record Wanted . 46 
 A Short Account of a Country Parish . . 48 
 
 HORNCASTLE : 
 
 Printed by W. K. MORTON, 27, HIGH STREET. 
 
 LONDON : CHAS. J. CLARK, 4, LINCOLN'S INN FIELDS, W.C. 
 Entered at Stationer? Hall.-] ^ ***** Reuroed ' 
 
LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 THIS SPACE 
 FOR 
 
 ADVERTISEMENTS. 
 
NATURAL HISTORY. 
 
 THIS SPACE 
 FOR 
 
 ADVERTISEMENTS. 
 
LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 THIS SPACE 
 FOR 
 
 ADVERTISEMENTS. 
 
VOL. I. No. 4 . OCTOBER, 1896. PRICE " 
 
 I The Natural History Settion 
 
 OF 
 
 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 A QUARTERLY JOURNAL 
 
 DEVOTED TO 
 
 ^Botany, Cchology, Entomology, Geology, Ornithology, and Zoology, 
 
 &c., of the Bounty. 
 
 Edited by 
 
 The Rev. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, 
 L.Th., F.L.S., F.G.S., 
 
 Hon. Organising and Botanical Sec. of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, 
 Vicar of Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 The Story of the Lincoln Gap (Part i.). . 53 
 Louth Antiquarian and Naturalists' Society . 6 1 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 Vertebrata of Lincolnshire 64 
 
 Entered at Stationers' Hall.-] 
 
 HORNCASTLE : 
 Printed by W. K. MORTON, 27, HIGH STREET. 
 
 LONDON : CHAS. J. CLARK, 4, LINCOLN'S INN FIELDS, W.C. 
 
 R " erwd ' 
 
LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 Lincolnshire N aturalists* Union 
 
 1896. 
 
 f rmtotrt : 
 
 REV. CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., The School House, Lincoln. 
 
 JOHN CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., GREAT COTES, R.S.O. (Pres. 1893) j 
 
 F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough, (Pres. 1894-5). 
 
 F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough. 
 
 H0* <r0imismg %ttuixtQ\ 
 
 REV. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, L.TH., F.L.S., F.G.S., Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 'Urn. Qmztmt $emtarj|: 
 
 R. W. GOULDINO, 20 Mercer Row, Louth. 
 
 VERTEBRATE ZOOLOGY. . 
 
 President : G. H. CATON-HAIGH, Grainsby, Great Grimsby. 
 Secretary : J. CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., Great Cotes, Ulceby. 
 
 CONCHOLOGY. 
 
 President: J. H. COOKE, B.SC., F.L.S., F.G.S., 123, Monks' Road, Lincoln. 
 Secretary : W. D. ROEBUCK, F.L.S., Sunny Bank, Leeds. 
 
 ENTOMOLOGY. 
 
 President : CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., Lincoln. 
 Secretaries : REV. G. H. RAYNOR, M.A., Panton, Wragby ; Rev. A. THORNLEY, 
 M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., Leverton, Lincoln. 
 
 BOTANY. 
 
 President : REV. W. FOWLER, M.A., Liversedge, Normanton. 
 
 Pheenogamic Secretary : REV. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, L.TH., F.L.S., 
 F.G.S., Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 Cryptogamic Secretary: J. LARDER, Mercer Row, Louth. 
 
 GEOLOGY. 
 
 President: F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Gainsborough. 
 
 Secretary: J. H. COOKE, B.SC., F.L.S., F.G.S., 123, Monks' Road, Lincoln. 
 
NATURAL HISTORY. 
 
 ant! 
 
 The Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union was formed to promote the thorough 
 investigation of the fauna, flora, and physical features of the county, to bring 
 together workers interested in the same pursuits, and to increase the interest in, and 
 study of, every branch of Natural History. 
 
 Field meetings will be held at least three times a year, alternately in the northern 
 and southern divisions of the county j there will also be one general meeting yearly 
 for the transaction of the business of the Society, and for the retiring President's 
 address : this will be held at Lincoln. Before each field meeting, arrangements will 
 be made for the investigation of the locality chosen, and a detailed programme will 
 be printed and issued to members. At the close of the day's investigations, sectional 
 and general meetings will be held for the purpose of ascertaining the scientific 
 results of the day's proceedings. 
 
 The Sections are five in number, as under : 
 
 Vertebrate Zoology ; Conchology j Entomology j Botany 5 and Geology. After 
 each excursion the Secretary or Secretaries of each section will furnish to the 
 Organising Secretary a detailed and descriptive report of the work done by his or 
 their section. These combined reports will then be published in the " Naturalist." 
 
 The minimum subscription is 53., payable in advance. The payment of one sum 
 of 5 constitutes a life member. Those subscribing los. 6d. or more, receive, if 
 they apply by letter, either the " Naturalist," or the " Lincolnshire Notes and 
 Queries " as they desire. 
 
 Subscriptions are to be paid only to the Assistant Secretary, Mr. R. W. Goulding, 2O 
 Mercer ROIU, Louth, 'who will send receipts. 
 
 Members will be entitled to free admission to all meetings and excursions, and to 
 possess the card of membership, ivhich card ivilt entitle the holder to special railivay 
 privileges for each excursion. 
 
 The officers of the Union consist of a President, Vice-Presidents, one or more 
 general Secretaries, and for each section a President and one or more Secretaries. 
 The President shall be elected annually. He must be connected with Lincolnshire 
 either by birth, residence, or scientific work. At the close of his term of office he 
 becomes a permanent Vice-President. 
 
 The Executive Committee consists of all Members who serve in, or have at any 
 time served in, the offices of President, or Secretary of the Union, or its sections. 
 This Committee has the sole management of all affairs of the Union, subject to the 
 approval of the Committee of the whole Union, to which it reports fully at the 
 annual Lincoln meeting. 
 
 Ladies and Gentlemen desirous of becoming Members of the Union should apply 
 to the Organising Secretary for nomination papers. A new member requires to be 
 proposed and seconded, and the paper must be countersigned by the President or one 
 of the Vice-Presidents of the Union. 
 
 Correspondence with respect to Field and Sectional Meetings and organisation 
 generally should be addressed to Rev. E. Adrian Woodruffe-Peacock, Cadney 
 Vicarage, Brigg. 
 
 It is hoped that all members will interest themselves in the work of the Union. 
 Proposal Forms will be sent to each member applying for them. 
 
LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 FIELD MEETINGS, 1896. 
 
 The Field Meetings arranged for Season 1896 are the following : 
 
 Grantham, Nat. Hist. Div. 15, in June, with a drive to Ancaster, under the 
 guidance of Mr. Henry Preston, F.G.S. 
 
 Bourne, Nat. Hist. Div. 16 can be thoroughly worked, in July. 
 
 Great Cotes, Nat. Hist. Div. 4, in September, when Mr. John Cordeaux, M.B.O.U., 
 leads and entertains the Union. 
 
 General Meeting, with President's Address, Thursday, October 29th, 
 
 ^y ^^ ^^ ^y ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ 
 
 A Lincolnshire Museum. 
 
 Hon. Curator and Taxidermist ; ALFRED FIELDSEND, 2, Norman Street, Lincoln. 
 
 Chairman: F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough. 
 Secretary : G. M. LOWE, M.D., C.M., M.R.C.P., Castle Hill House, Lincoln. 
 
 JOHN CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., Great Cotes,. Ulceby. 
 REV. CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., The School House, Lincoln. 
 
 THE VERY REV. THE DEAN OF LINCOLN. 
 
 REV. W. FOWLER, M.A., Liversedge, Normanton. 
 
 W. J. CANT, L.R.C.P., M.R.C.S., L.S.A., Lindum Road, Lincoln. 
 
 REV. A. W. ROWE, M.A., F.G.S. , Newport, Lincoln. 
 
 J. H. COOKE, B.SC., F.L.S, F.G.S., 123, Monks' Road, Lincoln. 
 
 REV. CANON HARVEY, F.S.A., Navenby Reclory, Lincoln. 
 
 REV. CANON MADDISON, F.S.A., Vicars' Court, Lincoln. 
 
 REV. A. H. SUTTON, Brant Broughton Redlory, Newark. 
 
 E. MANSEL SYMPSON, ESQ_., M.D., Lincoln. 
 Hon. Member of Committee : Jos. RUSTON, Eso^., J.P. 
 
 With power to add to their number Members of the Union or gentlemen interested 
 in the history, antiquities, and educational questions of the county. 
 
 The County Committee have lent the L.N.U. the use of a suite of rooms, free of 
 rent, in the Castle Gateway as a temporary Museum. Mr. A. Fieldsend has kindly 
 consented to act as Honorary Curator and Taxidermist, and all specimens may be 
 sent to him. 
 
 F. M. BURTON, F.G.S. J. H. COOKE, F.G.S. 
 
 REV. E. A. WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, F.G.S. H. PRESTON, F.G.S. 
 
 REV. A. W. ROWE, F.G.S. REV. W. TUCKWELL, Secretary. 
 
 With power to add to their number ; for the purpose of investigating and recording 
 the erratics and boulders of the County. 
 
( VoL. I. No. 5. 
 
 JANUARY, 1897. 
 
 PRICE is. 
 
 Natural History Seffiion 
 
 OF 
 
 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 A QUARTERLY JOURNAL 
 
 DEVOTED TO 
 
 ^Botany, Qonchology, Entomology, Geology, Ornithology, and Zoology, 
 
 &c., of the Bounty. 
 
 Edited by 
 
 The Rev. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, 
 
 L.Th., F.L.S., F.G.S., 
 
 Hon. Organising and Botanical Sec. of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, 
 Vicar of Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 Lincolnshire 65 
 
 Value of a Salmon Fishery on the Trent ... 71 
 
 The Story of the Lincoln Gap (Part II) . 7Z 
 A Short Account of a Country Parish . 77 
 
 HORNCASTLE : 
 
 Printed by W. K. MORTON, 27, HIGH STREET. 
 
 LONDON: CHAS. J. CLARK, 4, LINCOLN'S INN FIELDS, W.C. 
 Entered at Stationers Hall? [All Rights Reserved. 
 
LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, 
 
 1896. 
 
 REV. CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., The School House, Lincoln. 
 
 JOHN CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., GREAT COTES, R.S.O. (Pres. 1893) ; 
 
 F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough, (Pres. 1894-5). 
 
 F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough.. 
 
 Drm* rpttism.0 jte-eiarg: 
 
 REV. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, L.TH., F.L.S., F.G.S., Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 Hum. gtssistsnt jertarg: 
 
 R. W. GOULDING, 20 Mercer Row, Louth. 
 
 VERTEBRATE ZOOLOGY. 
 
 President: G. H. CATON-HAIGH, Grainsby, Great Grimsby. 
 Secretary : J. CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., Great Cotes, Ulceby. 
 
 CONCHOLOGY. 
 
 President: J. H. COOKE, B.SC., F.L.S., F.G.S., 123, Monks' Road, Lincoln. 
 Secretary : W. D. ROEBUCK, F.L.S., Sunny Bank, Leeds. 
 
 ENTOMOLOGY. 
 
 President : CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., Lincoln. 
 Secretaries : REV. G. H. RAYNOR, M.A., Panton, Wragby ; Rev. A. THORNLEY, 
 M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., Leverton, Lincoln. 
 
 BOTANY. 
 
 President : REV. W. FOWLER, M.A., Liversedge, Normanton. 
 
 PJuenogan&c Secretary: REV. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, L.TH., *.L.S., 
 F.G.S., Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 Cryptogamic Secretary: J. LARDER, Mercer Row, Louth. 
 
 GEOLOGY. 
 
 President : F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Gainsborough. 
 
 Secretary: J. H. COOKE, B.SC., F.L.S., F.G.S., 123, Monks' Road, Lincoln. 
 
NATURAL HISTORY. 
 
 anti 3&ule0 
 
 The Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union was formed to promote the thorough 
 investigation of the fauna, flora, and physical features of the county, to bring 
 together workers interested in the same pursuits, and to increase the interest in, and 
 study of, every branch of Natural History. 
 
 Field meetings will be held at least three times a year, alternately in the northern 
 and southern divisions of the county ; there will also be one general meeting yearly 
 for the transaction of the business of the Society, and for the retiring President'* 
 address : this will be held at Lincoln. Before each field meeting, arrangements will 
 be made for the investigation of the locality chosen, and a detailed programme will 
 be printed and issued to members. At the close of the day's investigations, sectional 
 and general meetings will be held for the purpose of ascertaining the scientific 
 results of the day's proceedings. 
 
 The Sections are five in number, as under : 
 
 Vertebrate Zoology ; Conchology ; Entomology ; Botany ; and Geology. After 
 each excursion the Secretary or Secretaries of each section will furnish to the 
 Organising Secretary a detailed and descriptive report of the work done by his or 
 their section. These combined reports will then be published in the " Naturalist." 
 
 The minimum subscription is 55., payable in advance. The payment of one sum 
 of 5 constitutes a life member. Those subscribing los. 6d. or more, receive, it 
 they apply by letter, either the " Naturalist," or the " Lincolnshire Notes and 
 Queries " as they desire. 
 
 Subscriptions are to be paid only to the Assistant Secretary, Mr. R. W. Goulding, 20 
 Mercer Rcnv, Louth, ivho will send receipts, 
 
 Members will be entitled to free admission to all meetings and excursions, and to 
 possess the card of membership, ivhich card will entitle the holder to special railway 
 privileges for each excursion. 
 
 The officers of the Union consist of a President, Vice-Presidents, one or more 
 general Secretaries, and for each section a President and one or more Secretaries. 
 The President shall be elected annually. He must be connected with Lincolnshire 
 either by birth, residence, or scientific work. At the close of his term of office he 
 becomes a permanent Vice-President, 
 
 The Executive Committee consists of all Members who serve in, or have at any 
 time served in, the offices of President, or Secretary of the Union, or its sections, 
 This Committee has the sole management of all affairs of the Union, subject to the 
 approval of the Committee of the whole Union, to which it reports fully at the 
 annual Lincoln meeting. 
 
 Ladies and Gentlemen desirous of becoming Members of the Union should apply 
 to the Organising Secretary for nomination papers. A new member requires to be 
 proposed and seconded, and the paper must be countersigned by the President or one 
 of the Vice-Presidents of the Union. 
 
 Correspondence with respect to Field and Sectional Meetings and organisation 
 generally should be addressed to Rev. E. Adrian Woodruffe-Peacock, Cadney 
 Vicarage, Brigg. 
 
 It is hoped that all members will interest themselves in the work of the Union. 
 Proposal Forms will be sent to each member applying for them. 
 
LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 FIELD MEETINGS, 1896. 
 
 The Field Meetings arranged for Season 1896 are the following : 
 
 Grantham, Nat. Hist. Div. 15, in June, with a drive to Ancaster, under the 
 guidance of Mr. Henry Preston, F.G.S. 
 
 Bourne, Nat. Hist. Div. 16 can be thoroughly worked, in July. 
 
 Great Cotes, Nat. Hist. Div. 4, in September, when Mr. John Cordeaux, M.B.O.U., 
 leads and entertains the Union. 
 
 General Meeting, with President's Address, Thursday, October 29th. 
 
 &y ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ 
 
 A Lincolnshire Museum. 
 
 Hon. Curator and Taxidermist : ALFRED FIELDSEND, 2, Norman Street, Lincoln. 
 
 Chairman: F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough. 
 Secretary: G. M. LOWE, M.D., C.M., M.R.C.P., Castle Hill House, Lincoln. 
 
 JOHN CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., Great Cotes, Ulceby. 
 REV. CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., The School House, Lincoln. 
 
 THE VERY REV. THE DEAN OF LINCOLN. 
 
 REV. W. FOWLER, M.A., Liversedge, Normanton. 
 
 W. J. CANT, L.R.C.P., M.R.C.S., L.S.A., Lindum Road, Lincoln. 
 
 REV. A. W. ROWE, M.A., F.G.S., Newport, Lincoln. 
 
 J. H. COOKE, B.SC., F.L.S, F.G.S., 123, Monks' Road, Lincoln. 
 
 REV. CANON HARVEY, F.S.A., Navenby Reftory, Lincoln. 
 
 REV. CANON MADDISON, F.S.A., Vicars' Court, Lincoln. 
 
 REV. A. H. SUTTON, Brant Broughton Redlory, Newark. 
 
 E. MANSEL SYMPSON, Esq_., M.D., Lincoln. 
 Hon. Member of Committee : Jos. RUSTON, ESQ_., J.P. 
 
 With power to add to their number Members of the Union or gentlemen interested 
 in the history, antiquities, and educational questions of the county. 
 
 The County Committee have lent the L.N.U. the use of a suite of rooms, free of 
 rent, in the Castle Gateway as a temporary Museum. Mr. A. Fieldsend has kindly 
 consented to act as Honorary Curator and Taxidermist, and all specimens may be 
 sent to him. 
 
 F. M. BURTON, F.G.S. J. H. COOKE, F.G.S. 
 
 REV. E. A. WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, F.G.S. H. PRESTON, F.G.S. 
 
 REV. A. W. ROWE, F.G.S. REV. W. TUCKWELL, Secretary. 
 
 With power to add to their number j for the purpose of investigating and recording 
 the erratics and boulders of the County. 
 
VOL. I. No. 6. APRIL, 1897. PRICE is. 
 
 The Natural History Section 
 
 OF 
 
 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 A QUARTERLY JOURNAL 
 
 DEVOTED TO 
 
 ^Botany, fynchology, Entomology, Geology, Ornithology, and Zoology, 
 
 &c., of the Qounty. 
 
 Edited by 
 
 The Rev. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, 
 
 L.Th., F.L.S., F.G.S., 
 
 Hon. Organising and Botanical Sec. of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, 
 Vicar of Cadney, Brlgg. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Lincolnshire (Part II.) 83 
 
 Notes on Ice-borne Blocks of Shap 
 
 Granite, &c., found in Lincolnshire... 94 
 
 HORNCASTLE : 
 Printed by W. K. MORTON, 27, HIGH STREET. 
 
 LONDON: CHAS. T. CLARK, 4, LINCOLN'S INN FIELDS, W.C. 
 Entered at Stationers' Hall,~\ [All Rights Reserved. 
 
LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 Lincolnshire N aturalists* Union, 
 
 1897. 
 
 REV. CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., The School House, Lincoln. 
 
 JOHN CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., GREAT COTES, R.S.O. (Pres. 1893) ; 
 
 F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough, (P es. 1894.- j) 
 
 rr. 
 
 F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough,, 
 
 0H, 
 
 REV. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, L.TH., F.L.S., F.G.S., Cadney, Brigg 
 
 HSU, gusmfcmt 
 
 R. W. GOULDING, 20 Mercer Row, Louth. 
 
 VERTEBRATE ZOOLOGY. 
 
 President : G. H. CATON-HAIGH, Grainsby, Great Grimsby. 
 Secretary : J. CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., Great Cotes, Ulceby. 
 
 CONCHOLOGY. 
 
 President : J. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Gainsborough. 
 Secretary : W. D. ROEBUCK, F.L.S., Sunny Bank, Leeds. 
 
 ENTOMOLOGY. 
 
 President : CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., Lincoln. 
 Secretary: REV. A. THORNLEY, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., Leverton, Lincoln. 
 
 BOTANY. 
 
 President : REV. W. FOWLER, M.A., Liversedge, Normanton. 
 
 P ktenogarrac Secretary: REV. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, L.TH., " I-.L.S., 
 F.G.S., Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 Cryptogamic Secretary: J. LARDER, Mercer Row, Louth. 
 
 GEOLOGY. 
 
 President : F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Gainsborough. 
 Secretary : H. PRESTON, F.G.S., Hawthornden Villa, Grantham. 
 
NATURAL HISTORY. 
 
 ann 
 
 The Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union was formed to promote the thorough 
 investigation of the fauna, flora, and physical features of the county, to bring 
 together workers interested in the same pursuits, and to increase the interest in, and 
 study of, every branch of Natural History. 
 
 Field meetings will be held at least three times a year, alternately in the northern 
 and southern divisions of the county ; there will also be one general meeting yearly 
 for the transaction of the business of the Society, and for the retiring President's 
 address : this will be held at Lincoln. Before each field meeting, arrangements will 
 be made for the investigation of the locality chosen, and a detailed programme will 
 be printed and issued to members. At the close of the day's investigations, sectional 
 and general meetings will be held for the purpose of ascertaining the scientific 
 results of the day's proceedings. 
 
 The Sections are five in number, as under : 
 
 Vertebrate Zoology ; Conchology ; Entomology ; Botany ; and Geology. After 
 each excursion the Secretary or Secretaries of each section will furnish to the 
 Organising Secretary a detailed and descriptive report of the work done by his or 
 their section. These combined reports will then be published in the " Naturalist." 
 
 The minimum subscription is 55., payable in advance. The payment of one sum 
 of 5 constitutes a life member. Those subscribing los. 6d. or more, receive, if 
 they apply by letter, either the " Naturalist," or the " Lincolnshire Notes and 
 Queries " as they desire. 
 
 Subscriptions are to be paid only to the Assistant Secretary, Mr. R. W. Goulding, 20 
 Mercer Row, Louth, luho 'will send receipts. 
 
 Members will be entitled to free admission to all meetings and excursions, and to 
 possess the card of membership, 'which card 'will entitle the holder to special railivay 
 privileges for each excursion. 
 
 The officers of the Union, consist of a President, Vice-Presidents, one or more 
 general Secretaries, and for each section a President and one or more Secretaries. 
 The President shall be elected annually. He must be connected with Lincolnshire 
 either by birth, residence, or scientific work. At the close of his term of office he 
 becomes a permanent Vice-President. 
 
 The Executive Committee consists of all Members who serve in, or have at anj 
 time served in, the offices of President, or Secretary of the Union, or its sections. 
 This Committee has the sole management of all affairs of the Union, subject to the 
 approval of the Committee of the whole Union, to which it reports fully at the 
 annual Lincoln meeting. 
 
 Ladies and Gentlemen desirous of becoming Members of the Union should apply 
 to the Organising Secretary for nomination papers. A new member requires to be 
 proposed and seconded, and the paper must be countersigned by the President or ont 
 of the Vice-Presidents of the Union. 
 
 Correspondence with respect to Field and Sectional Meetings and organisation 
 generally should be addressed to Rev. E. Adrian Woodruffe-Peacock, Cadney 
 Vicarage, Brigg. 
 
 It is hoped that all members will interest themselves in the work of the Union. 
 Proposal Forms will be sent to each member applying for them. 
 
iv. LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 FIELD MEETINGS, 1897. 
 
 The Field Meetings arranged for Season 1897 are the following : 
 June, GAINSBOROUGH in Divs. 5 & 6, a two days' meeting. 
 July. SPALDING, in Divs. 17 & 18, a two days' meeting. 
 August. TUMBY WOOD, Div. 10, a one day's meeting". 
 September. BOSTON, in Divs. 12 & 17, a two days' meeting. 
 
 A Lincolnshire Museum. 
 
 Chairman: F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough. 
 
 Secretary : G. M. LOWE, M.D., C.M., M.R.C.P., Castle Hill House, Lincoln. 
 
 W. J. CANT, L.R.C.P., M.R.C.S., L.S.A., Lindum Road, Lincoln. 
 
 JOHN CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., Great Cotes, Ulceby. 
 REV. CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., The School House, Lincoln. 
 
 THE VERY REV. THE DEAN OF LINCOLN. 
 A. FIELDSEND, 2, Norman Street, Lincoln (Hon. Curator of Museum}. 
 
 REV. W. FOWLER, M.A., Liversedge, Normanton. 
 
 G. A. GRIERSON, F.L.S., 312, High Street, Lincoln (Hon. Curator of County Herbarium), 
 REV. CANON A. W. ROWE, M.A., F.G.S., Newport, Lincoln. 
 
 Antiquarian Members : 
 
 REV. CANON HARVEY, F.S.A., Navenby Rectory, Lincoln. 
 REV. CANON MADDISON, F.S.A., Vicars' Court, Lincoln. 
 REV. A. F. SUTTON, Brant Broughton Rectory, Newark. 
 
 E. MANSEL SYMPSON, ESQ_., M.D., Lincoln. 
 Hon. Member of Committee : Jos. RUSTON, Eso^., J.P. 
 
 The County Committee have lent the L.N.U. the use of a suite of rooms, free of 
 rent, in the Castle Gateway as a temporary Museum. Mr. A. Fieldsend has kindly 
 consented to act as Honorary Curator and Taxidermist, and all specimens may be 
 sent to him. 
 
 The Museum will mainly be a collection of objects carefully selected to illustrate 
 Lincolnshire, and so arranged and described that they may be a means of instruction 
 t o the student as well as of interest to all. 
 
 It is hoped that all members will interest themselves in obtaining donations and 
 articles for the Museum. 
 
VOL. I. No. 7. JULY, 1897. PRICE is. 
 
 The Natural History Section 
 
 OF 
 
 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 A QUARTERLY JOURNAL 
 
 DEVOTED TO 
 
 'Botany, Qonchology, Entomology, Geology, Ornithology, and Zoology ', 
 
 &c., of the (Bounty. 
 
 Edited by 
 
 The Rev. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, 
 
 L.Th., F.L.S., F.G.S., 
 
 Hon. Organising and Botanical Sec. of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, 
 Vicar of Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Notes on Ice-borne Blocks of Shap 
 Granite, &c., found in Lincolnshire 
 (concluded) 0,7 
 
 PAGE 
 
 An Archaeological History of the Wash... 101 
 The Story of the Lincoln Gap no 
 
 HORNCASTLE : 
 
 Printed by W. K. MORTON, 27, HIGH STREET. 
 
 LONDON: CHAS. J. CLARK, 4, LINCOLN'S INN FIELDS, W.C. 
 Entered at Stationers' Hall.'] {All Rights Reserved. 
 
LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 Lincolnshire N aturalists* Union. 
 
 i8 97 . 
 
 REV. CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., The School House, Lincoln. 
 
 JOHN CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., GREAT COTES, R.S.O. (Pres. 1893) ; 
 
 F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough, (Pres. 189^-5) 
 
 F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough 
 
 H0tt, (Ifrgjmismg %ttutm%i . 
 
 REV. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, L.TH., F.L.S., F.G.S. Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 Urn*, gtssistewt ^tejeterg : 
 
 R. W. GOULDING, 20 Mercer Row, Louth. 
 
 VERTEBRATE ZOOLOGY. 
 
 President: G. H. CATON-HAIGH, Grainsby, Great Grimsby. 
 Secretary : J. CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., Great Cotes, Ulceby. 
 
 CONCHOLOGY. 
 
 President : J. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Gainsborough. 
 Secretary : W. D. ROEBUCK, F.L.S., Sunny Bank, Leeds. 
 
 ENTOMOLOGY. 
 
 President : CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., Lincoln. 
 Secretary : REV. A. THORNLEY, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., Leverton, Lincoln. 
 
 BOTANY. 
 
 President : REV. W. FOWLER, M.A., Liversedge, Normanton. 
 
 fhtfnogamic Secretary : REV. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, L.TH., F.L.S., 
 F.G.S., Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 Cryptogamic Secretary: J. LARDER, Mercer Row, Louth. 
 
 GEOLOGY. 
 
 President : F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Gainsborough. 
 Secretary : H. PRESTON, F.G.S., Hawthornden Villa, Grantham 
 
NATURAL HISTORY. 
 
 anti 
 
 The Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union was formed to promote the thorough 
 investigation of the fauna, flora, and physical features of the county, to bring 
 together workers interested in the same pursuits, and to increase the interest in, and 
 study of, every branch of Natural History. 
 
 Field meetings will be held at least three times a year, alternately in the northern 
 and southern divisions of the county ; there will also be one general meeting yearly 
 for the transaction of the business of the Society, and for the retiring President's 
 address : this will be held at Lincoln. Before each field meeting, arrangements will 
 be made for the investigation of the locality chosen, and a detailed programme will 
 be printed and issued to members. At the close of the day's investigations, sectional 
 and general meetings will be held for the purpose of ascertaining the scientific 
 results of the day's proceedings. 
 
 The Sections are five in number, as under : 
 
 Vertebrate Zoology 5 Conchology ; Entomology ; Botany ; and Geology. After 
 each excursion the Secretary or Secretaries of each section will furnish to the 
 Organising Secretary a detailed and descriptive report of the work done by his or 
 their section. These combined reports will then be published in the " Naturalist." 
 
 The minimum subscription is 55., payable in advance. The payment of one sum 
 of 5 constitutes a life member. Those subscribing los. 6d. or more, receive, it 
 they apply by letter, either the " Naturalist," or the " Lincolnshire Notes and 
 Queries " as they desire. 
 
 Subscriptions are to be paid only to the Assistant Secretary, Mr. R. W. Goulding, 2O 
 Mercer Roiu, L.outh, <who will send receipts. 
 
 Members will be entitled to free admission to all meetings and excursions, and to 
 possess the card of membership, 'which card ivill entitle the holder to special railway 
 privileges for each excursion. 
 
 The officers of the Union consist of a President, Vice-Presidents, one or more 
 general Secretaries, and for each section a President and one or more Secretaries. 
 The President shall be elected annually. He must be connected with Lincolnshire 
 either by birth, residence, or scientific work. At the close of his term of office he 
 becomes a permanent Vice-President. 
 
 The Executive Committee consists of all Members who serve in, or have at any 
 time served in, the offices of President, or Secretary of the Union, or its sections, 
 This Committee has the sole management of all affairs of the Union, subject to the 
 approval of the Committee of the whole Union, to which it reports fully at the 
 annual Lincoln meeting. 
 
 Ladies and Gentlemen desirous of becoming Members of the Union should apply 
 to the Organising Secretary for nomination papers. A new member requires to be 
 proposed and seconded, and the paper must be countersigned by the President or one 
 of the Vice-Presidents of the Union. 
 
 Correspondence with respect to Field and Sectional Meetings and organisation 
 generally should be addressed to Rev. E. Adrian Woodruffe-Peacock, Cadney 
 Vicarage, Brigg. 
 
 It is hoped that all members will interest themselves in the work of the Union. 
 Proposal Forms will be sent to each member applying for them. 
 
LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 FIELD MEETINGS, 1897. 
 
 The Field Meetings arranged for Season 1897 are the following : 
 June. GAINSBOROUGH in Divs. 5 & 6, a two days' meeting 
 July. - SPALDING, in Divs. 17 & 18, a two days' meeting. 
 August. TUMBY WOOD, Div. 10, a one day's meeting-. 
 September. BOSTON, in Divs. 12 & 17, a two days' meeting. 
 
 A Lincolnshire Museum. 
 
 Chairman: F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough. 
 
 Secretary: G. M. LOWE, M.D., C.M., M.R.C.P., Castle Hill House, Lincoln. 
 
 W. J. CANT, L.R.C.P., M.R.C.S., L.S.A., Lindum Road, Lincoln. 
 
 JOHN CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., Great Cotes, Ulceby. 
 REV. CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., The School House, Lincoln. 
 
 THE VERY REV. THE DEAN OF LINCOLN. 
 A. FIELDSEND, 2, Norman Street, Lincoln (Hon. Curator of Museum}. 
 
 REV. W. FOWLER, M.A., Liversedge, Normanton. 
 
 G. A. GRIERSON, F.L.S., 312, High Street, Lincoln (Hon. Curator of County Herbarium}. 
 REV. CANON A. W. ROWE, M.A., F.G.S., Newport, Lincoln. 
 
 Antiquarian Members : 
 
 REV. CANON HARVEY, F.S.A., Navenby Reclory, Lincoln. 
 REV. CANON MADDISON, F.S.A., Vicars' Court, Lincoln. 
 REV. A. F. SUTTON, Brant Broughton Reclory, Newark. 
 
 E. MANSEL SYMPSON, Eso^., M.D., Lincoln. 
 Hon. Member of Committee : Jos. RUSTON, Eso^., j.p. 
 
 The County Committee have lent the L.N.U. the use of a suite of rooms, free of 
 rent, in the Castle Gateway as a temporary Museum. Mr. A. Fieldsend has kindly 
 consented to act as Honorary Curator and Taxidermist, and all specimens may be 
 sent to him. 
 
 The Museum will mainly be a collection of objects carefully selected to illustrate 
 Lincolnshire, and so arranged and described that they may be a means of instruction 
 to the student as well as of interest to all. 
 
 It is hoped that all members will interest themselves in obtaining donations and 
 articles for the Museum. 
 
AOL. I. No. 8. OCTOBER, 1897. PRICE is. 
 
 The Natural History Seffiion 
 
 OF 
 
 Lincolnshire Notes & Queries. 
 
 A QUARTERLY JOURNAL 
 
 DEVOTED TO 
 
 'Botany, fynchology, Sntomology, Geology, Ornithology, and Zoology, 
 
 &c., of the Bounty. 
 
 Edited by 
 
 The Rev. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, 
 
 L.Th., F.L.S., F.G.S., 
 
 Hon. Organising tnd Botanical Sec. of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, 
 Vicar of Cadney, Srigg. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 President's Address to the Lincolnshire 
 Naturalists' Union, 1896 
 
 The Lincoln Gap I22 
 
 Natural History Notes 124 
 
 HORNCASTLE : 
 Printed by W. K. MORTON, 27, HIGH STREET. 
 
 LONDON: W. P. W. PHILLIMORE, 124, CHANCERY LANE. 
 Entered at Stationed Hall.} \* U Ri Z Ats *'. 
 
LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 Lincolnshire N aturalists* Union, 
 
 1897. 
 
 REV. CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., The School House, Lincoln. 
 
 JOHN CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., GREAT COTES, R.S.O. (Pres. 1893) j 
 F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough, (Pres. 
 
 F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough, 
 
 H0H, @r0aiaitt0 gtcutwit: 
 
 REV. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, L.TH., F.L.S., F.G.S., Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 J|0tf, ^mJSfcmt %ttUi%tQ\ 
 R. W. GOULDING, 20 Mercer Row, Louth. 
 
 VERTEBRATE ZOOLOGY. 
 
 President: G. H. CATON-HAIGH, Grainsby, Great Grimsby. 
 Secretary : J. CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., Great Cotes, Ulceby. 
 
 CONCHOLOGY. 
 
 President : F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Gainsborough. 
 Secretary : W. D. ROEBUCK, F.L.S., Sunny Bank, Leeds. 
 
 ENTOMOLOGY. 
 
 President : CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., Lincoln. 
 Secretary : REV. A. THORNLEY, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., Leverton, Lincoln. 
 
 BOTANY. 
 President: REV. W. FOWLER, M.A., Liversedge, Normanton. 
 
 Pheenogamic Secretary : REV. E. ADRIAN WOODRUFFE-PEACOCK, L.TH., F.L.S. 
 F.G.S., Cadney, Brigg. 
 
 Cryptogamic Secretary : J. LARDER, Mercer Row, Louth. 
 
 GEOLOGY. 
 
 President : F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Gainsborough. 
 Secretary : H. PRESTON, F.G.S., Hawthornden Villa, Grantham, 
 
NATURAL HISTORY. iii. 
 
 ann 
 
 The Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union was formed to promote the thorough 
 investigation of the fauna, flora, and physical features of the county, to bring 
 together workers interested in the same pursuits, and to increase the interest in, and 
 study of, every branch of Natural History. 
 
 Field meetings will be held at least three times a year, alternately in the northern 
 and southern divisions of the county j there will also be one general meeting yearly 
 for the transaction of the business of the Society, and for the retiring President's 
 address : this will be held at Lincoln. Before each field meeting, arrangements will 
 be made for the investigation of the locality chosen, and a detailed programme will 
 be printed and issued to members. At the close of the day's investigations, sectional 
 and general meetings will be held for the purpose of ascertaining the scientific 
 results of the day's proceedings. 
 
 The Sections are five in number, as under : 
 
 Vertebrate Zoology ; Conchology j Entomology j Botany ; and Geology. After 
 each excursion the Secretary or Secretaries of each section will furnish to the 
 Organising Secretary a detailed and descriptive report of the work done by his or 
 their section. These combined reports will then be published in the " Naturalist." 
 
 The minimum subscription is 53., payable in advance. The payment of one sum 
 of ^5 constitutes a life member. Those subscribing los. 6d. or more, receive, if 
 they apply by letter, either the " Naturalist," or the " Lincolnshire Notes and 
 Queries " as they desire. 
 
 Subscriptions are to be paid only to the Assistant Secretary, Mr, R. W. Goulding, 20 
 Mercer Row, Louth, r who ivill send receipts, 
 
 Members will be entitled to free admission to all meetings and excursions, and to 
 possess the card of membership, which card will entitle the holder to special railway 
 privileges for each excursion. 
 
 The officers of the Union consist of a President, Vice-Presidents, one or more 
 general Secretaries, and for each section a President and one or more Secretaries. 
 The President shall be elected annually. He must be connected with Lincolnshire 
 either by birth, residence, or scientific work. At the close of his term of office he 
 becomes a permanent Vice-President. 
 
 The Executive Committee consists of all Members who serve in, or have at any 
 time served in, the offices of President, or Secretary of the Union, or its sections, 
 This Committee has the sole management of all affairs of the Union, subject to the 
 approval of the Committee of the whole Union, to which it reports fully at the 
 annual Lincoln meeting. 
 
 Ladies and Gentlemen desirous of becoming Members of the Union should apply 
 to the Organising Secretary for nomination papers. A new member requires to be 
 proposed and seconded, and the paper must be countersigned by the President or one 
 of the Vice-Presidents of the Union. 
 
 Correspondence with respect to Field and Sectional Meetings and organisation 
 generally should be addressed to Rev. E. Adrian Woodruffe-Peacock, Cadney 
 Vicarage, Brigg. 
 
 It is hoped that all members will interest themselves in the work of the Union 
 Proposal Forms will be sent to each member applying for them. 
 
iv. LINCOLNSHIRE NOTES & QUERIES. 
 
 FIELD MEETINGS, 1897. 
 
 The Field Meetings arranged for Season 1897 are the following : 
 June. GAINSBOROUGH, in Divs. 5 & 6, a two days' meeting 
 July. SPALDING, in Divs. 17 & 18, a two days' meeting. 
 August. TUMBY WOOD, Div. 10, a one day's meeting 1 . 
 September. BOSTON, in Divs. 12 & 17, a two days' meeting. 
 
 A Lincolnshire Museum, 
 
 Chairman: F. M. BURTON, F.L.S., F.G.S., Highfield, Gainsborough. 
 
 Secretary: G. M. LOWE, M.D., C.M., M.R.C.P., Castle Hill House, Lincoln. 
 
 W. J. CANT, L.R.C.P., M.R.C.S., L.S.A., Lindum Road, Lincoln. 
 
 JOHN CORDEAUX, M.B.O.U., Great Cotes, Ulceby. 
 REV. CANON W. W. FOWLER, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., The School House, Lincoln. 
 
 THE VERY REV. THE DEAN OF LINCOLN. 
 A. FIELDSEND, 2, Norman Street, Lincoln (Hon. Curator of Museum). 
 
 REV. W. FOWLER, M.A., Liversedge, Normanton. 
 
 G. A. GRIERSON, F.L.S., 312, High Street, Lincoln (Hon. Curator of County Herbarium). 
 REV. CANON A. W. ROWE, M.A., F.G.S., Newport, Lincoln. 
 
 Antiquarian Members : 
 
 REV. CANON HARVEY, F.S.A., Navenby Reftory, Lincoln. 
 REV. CANON MADDISON, F.S.A., Vicars' Court, Lincoln. 
 REV. A. F. SUTTON, Brant Broughton Re&ory, Newark. 
 
 E. MANSEL SYMPSON, ESQ_., M.D., Lincoln. 
 Hon. Member of Committee : Jos. RUSTON, Eso^., J.P. 
 
 The County Committee have lent the L.N.U. the use of a suite of rooms, free of 
 rent, in the Castle Gateway as a temporary Museum. Mr. A. Fieldsend has kindly 
 consented to act as Honorary Curator and Taxidermist, and all specimens may be 
 sent to him. 
 
 The Museum will mainly be a collection of objects carefully selected to illustrate 
 Lincolnshire, and so arranged and described that they may be a means of instruction 
 to the student as well as of interest to all. 
 
 It is hoped that all members will interest themselves in obtaining donations and 
 articles for the Museum. 
 
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