ALVMNVS BOOK FVND 
 

THE 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 
 
 OF 
 
 SELBORNE, 
 
 IN 
 
 THE COUNTY OF SOUTHAMPTON. 
 
 foitl) C^ngrabtngg, 
 
 1837. 
 
cimwitK PRKSS: 
 
 C. \\ II 1 1 I IM.IM M, COLI.ECE HOUSK. 
 
THE 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 
 
 OF 
 
 S E L B O R N E.' 
 
 BY THE 
 
 REV. GILBERT WHITE, M. 
 
 THE NATURALIST'S CALENDAR; 
 
 AND MISCELLANEOUS OBSERVATIONS, 
 
 EXTRACTED FROM HIS PAPERS. 
 
 
 WITH NOTES, BY EDWARD TURNER BENNETT, ESQ. 
 
 F.L.S. ETC. SECRETARY OF THE ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY; 
 AND OTHERS. 
 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 PniNTED FOK J. AND A. ARCH J LONGMAN AND CO.; BALDWIN AND CRADOCKJ 
 
 HATCHARD AND SON; R. SCHOI.F.Y ; J. G. AND F. RIVINGTON ; 
 WIIITTAKF.R AND CO.; J. DUNCAN; J. CAPESJ W. MASON ; E.HODGSON; J. BAIN 
 
 w.j. AND J. MAYNARD; J. BOHN; J. VANVOORST; 
 
 AND HOUT.STON AND SON. 
 
ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 THE Author of the following Letters takes the liberty, 
 with all proper deference, of laying before the Public his 
 idea of parochial history, which, he thinks, ought to con- 
 sist of natural productions and occurrences as well as anti- 
 quities. He is also of opinion that if stationary men would 
 pay some attention to the districts on which they reside, 
 and would publish their thoughts respecting the objects 
 that surround them, from such materials might be drawn 
 the most complete county-histories, which are still wanting 
 in several parts of this kingdom, and in particular in the 
 county of Southampton. 
 
 And here he seizes the first opportunity, though a late 
 one, of returning his most grateful acknowledgments to the 
 reverend the President and the reverend and worthy the 
 Fellows of Magdalen College, in the University of Oxford, 
 for their liberal behaviour in permitting their archives to 
 be searched by a member of their own society, so far as the 
 evidences therein contained might respect the parish and 
 priory of Selborne. To that gentleman also, and his as- 
 sistant, whose labours and attention could only be equalled 
 by the very kind manner in which they were bestowed, 
 many and great obligations are also due. 
 
 Of the authenticity of the documents above-mentioned 
 there can be no doubt, since they consist of the identical 
 deeds and records that were removed to the College from 
 the Priory at the time of its dissolution ; and, being care- 
 
 G 
 
VI ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 fully copied on the spot, may be depended on as genuine ; 
 and, never having been made public before, may gratify 
 the curiosity of the antiquary, as well as establish the 
 credit of the history. 
 
 If the writer should at all appear to have induced any of 
 his readers to pay a more ready attention to the wonders 
 of the Creation, too frequently overlooked as common 
 occurrences; or if he should by any means, through his 
 researches, have lent an helping hand towards the enlarge- 
 ment of the boundaries of historical and topographical 
 knowledge ; or if he should have thrown some small light 
 upon ancient customs and manners, and especially on those 
 that were monastic; his purpose will be fully answered. 
 But if he should not have been successful in any of these 
 his intentions, yet there remains this consolation behind 
 that these his pursuits, by keeping the body and mind 
 employed, have, under Providence, contributed to much 
 health and cheerfulness of spirits, even to old age : and, 
 what still adds to his happiness, have led him to the know- 
 ledge of a circle of gentlemen whose intelligent communi- 
 cations, as they have afforded him much pleasing infor- 
 mation, so, could he flatter himself with a continuation of 
 them, would they ever be deemed a matter of singular 
 satisfaction and improvement. 
 
 SKLBORNE, 
 Jan. 1st, 1788. 
 
BIOGRAPHICAL RECORDS 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 
 BACK VIEW OF THE RESIDENCE, AT SELBOIINE, OF THE REV. GILBERT WH1TI 
 
 GILBERT WHITE was the eldest son of John White 
 of Selborne, Esq. and of Anne the daughter of 
 Thomas Holt, rector of Streatham in Surrey. He 
 was born at Selborne on July 18, 1720; and re- 
 ceived his school-education at Basingstoke, under 
 the Rev. Thomas Warton, vicar of that place, 
 and father of those two distinguished literary 
 characters, Dr. Joseph War ion, master of Win- 
 
VIII BIOGRAPHICAL RECORDS. 
 
 Chester School ; and Mr. Thomas Warton, poetry- 
 professor at Oxford. He was admitted at Oriel 
 College, Oxford, in December, 1739, and 'took 
 his degree of bachelor of arts in June, 1743. 
 In March, 1744, he was elected fellow of his 
 college. He became master of arts in October, 
 1746, and was admitted one of the senior proc- 
 tors of the University in April, 1752. Being 
 of an unambitious temper, and strongly attached 
 to the charms of rural scenery, he early fixed 
 his residence in his native village, where he 
 spent the greater part of his life in literary occu- 
 pations, and especially in the study of nature. 
 This he followed with patient assiduity, and a 
 mind ever open to the lessons of piety and 
 benevolence which such a study is so well calcu- 
 lated to afford. Though several occasions offered 
 of settling upon a college living, he could never 
 persuade himself to quit the beloved spot, which 
 was, indeed, a peculiarly happy situation for an 
 observer. He was much esteemed by a select 
 society of intelligent and worthy friends, to whom 
 he paid occasional visits. Thus his days passed, 
 tranquil and serene, with scarcely any other vicis- 
 situdes than those of the seasons, till they closed 
 at a mature age on June 26, 1793. 
 
 I. W. 
 
PREFACE 
 
 TO THE PRESENT EDITION. 
 
 To the "few Biographical Records "'of GILBERT 
 WHITE prefixed by his nephew John to the edition 
 of 1802, and here reprinted, it is quite unnecessary 
 to add. They contain the simple annals of a good 
 man, contented with his station, and unambitious 
 of worldly honour or advantage. His refusal of 
 church preferment, which was so often within his 
 reach, arose from no distaste for the discharge of 
 his clerical functions, for during the last few years 
 of his life he officiated as curate of Selborne, and 
 he had previously done duty in the same capacity 
 in the adjoining parish of Faringdon. The*last 
 entry in the register of burials which precedes his 
 own, and precedes it only by the brief space of 
 three weeks, is attested by his signature; and a 
 baptism registered by him bears date within a fort- 
 night of his dissolution proofs that the illness 
 under which he sank was of short duration, and 
 that he continued to the last zealous in the per- 
 formance of his sacred duties. The inscription on 
 his monument, which has been removed by the 
 pious care of his surviving relatives from the exte- 
 rior to the interior of the chancel, is given at p. 527 
 of the present edition; and "a slight heave of the 
 turf, ' the fifth from the wall/ with the initials and 
 date, <G. W. ob. 1793/ on the low footstone, 
 
 b 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 marks the humble grave of the naturalist and phi- 
 losopher." No portrait remains to preserve the 
 record of his personal appearance. 
 
 Although Gilbert White lived and died a ba- 
 chelor, he left a numerous family of near relations ; 
 the number of his nephews and nieces, carefully 
 noted down as they came into the world, amount- 
 ing, as we are told, to about sixty-three, at the 
 time when his diary closed. Most of his imme- 
 diate relatives appear to have been imbued witli 
 a taste for the same pursuits as those to which 
 he was himself devoted, and which we accordingly 
 find them actively engaged in promoting, either 
 independently or in connexion with him. A brief 
 notice of some of them may therefore not be unac- 
 ceptable here. 
 
 Frequent reference is made in the succeeding 
 pages to the observations of his brother John, like 
 himself in the church, and at one period Vicar 
 of Blackburn in Lancashire ; but who afterwards 
 became resident at Gibraltar, where he made large 
 collections for a Natural History of the place, 
 from the unpublished manuscript of which an ex- 
 tract is given by his brother at p. 364. This gen- 
 tleman is mentioned by Pennant in his "Literary 
 Life," while speaking of his projected " Outlines 
 of the Globe," the fifth volume of which he states 
 to be " particularly rich in drawings, made by 
 Moses Griffith, of the birds and fishes of Gibraltar, 
 communicated to me by the Rev. the late Mr. John 
 White, long resident in that fortress." 
 
 Another brother, Thomas, (to whose observa- 
 tions made at his house at South Lambeth our 
 
PREFACE. XI 
 
 author occasionally refers, but without naming 
 him) was a wholesale ironmonger in London ; but 
 quitting business with an ample fortune devoted 
 much of his time to literary pursuits, especially on 
 subjects connected with meteorology and natural 
 history. He was a Fellow of the Royal Society, 
 and author of numerous essays which appeared 
 in the " Gentleman's Magazine" between the years 
 1780 and 1790, under the signature of T. H. W. 
 Among these a series of articles on the trees of 
 Great Britain are particularly deserving of notice, 
 for the extensive information, good taste, and 
 variety of reading which they display. His mantle 
 has descended upon his son, Thomas Holt White, 
 Esq. of Enfield in Middlesex : in the " Notes on 
 Shakspeare" in which the father sometimes in- 
 dulged, we find the same spirit which induced the 
 son to inscribe his name on the list of commen- 
 tators in the variorum Shakspeare of Isaac Reid ; 
 and in his " Vindication of Milton from the censure 
 of Dr. Johnson" is contained the germ of the vigo- 
 rous and masterly " Review of Johnson's criticisms 
 on the style of Milton's English Prose," and of an 
 edition, truly classical, of the most perfect speci- 
 men of that prose, the u Areopagitica," in all the 
 purity of its original text, and clothed with all the 
 panoply of critical illustration, copious, erudite, 
 and profound. 
 
 A third brother, Benjamin, the publisher of the 
 first edition of the present work, was during much 
 of the latter half of the past century the principal 
 publisher of English books on Natural History. 
 On the death of Gilbert he succeeded to the estate 
 
Xii PREFACE. 
 
 at Selborne, and transferred his business to his 
 second son, John, who continued it until within a 
 few years of the present time. From this estab- 
 lishment emanated, among many other important 
 publications, most of the works of Ellis, Pennant, 
 Montagu, Latham, Donovan, Andrews, the elder 
 Sowerby, Curtis, Lightfoot, Lambert, and Smith. 
 The house in which the business was carried on 
 was originally distinguished, according to the 
 fashion of the times, by the sign of the Horace's 
 Head, a misreading of which gave rise to a whim- 
 sical mistake on the part of Scopoli, who, in dedi- 
 cating the several plates of his "Deliciae Florae et 
 Faunae Insubricae" to various patrons of natural 
 history, inscribed one of them as published u Aus- 
 piciis DD. DD. Beniamini Withe, et Horatii Heal, 
 Bibliopol. Londinensium." It may be added, that 
 in his " Vitae suae Vices," published at the end of 
 the third and last part of the work just quoted, the 
 same writer enumerates among the "eruditi viri 
 cum quibus commercium litterarium colui," the 
 name of "D. Withe, ex Gibraltaria." Many pas- 
 sages in the present work prove how highly Scopoli 
 was esteemed by our author, with whose family 
 these circumstances, trivial as they are, serve in 
 some degree to connect his name. 
 
 In Gilbert White's diaries mention is also made 
 of a " brother Harry." He too was in the church, 
 and rector of Fy field, near Andover, in the county 
 of Hants, whence one of the letters to Daines Bar- 
 rington is dated, and where, as appears by various 
 references in the course of the volume, a series of 
 meteorological observations were made for com- 
 
PREFACE. Xlll 
 
 parison with those registered at Selborne, South 
 Lambeth,, and Lyndon, in the county of Rutland. 
 
 The author of the observations last mentioned,, 
 those made at Lyndon, (which were continued for 
 more than half a century, and regularly published 
 in the " Philosophical Transactions," being com- 
 municated while he lived by Thomas White, who 
 occasionally added to them the comparative obser- 
 vations made by himself and his brothers,) was 
 Thomas Barker, brother-in-law of our author, 
 through marriage with his sister Ann. A brief 
 account of this gentleman, who was distinguished 
 also as a theological critic and astronomer, will be 
 found in the note at p, 17. 
 
 In the commencement of his tenth letter to Pen- 
 nant, the earliest in date of the entire series, 
 Gilbert White laments the want of neighbours 
 whose studies led them towards the pursuit of 
 natural knowledge. But from his continued cor- 
 respondence with the relatives just enumerated, 
 from his occasional visits to most of them, and 
 from the return of those visits to himself, (for his 
 house, although that of a bachelor, was always open 
 to his family and friends,) he must, in his latter 
 years, have felt this want much less sensibly, than at 
 the period when it was noted as an apology for the 
 slender progress which he then conceived himself 
 to have made in the science. Few men have the 
 good fortune to possess so many near connexions 
 engaged in pursuits so congenial with their own. 
 
 The first edition of "The Natural History and 
 Antiquities of Selborne" a work destined, from 
 the quiet simplicity of its style, the calm benevo- 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 lence of its spirit, and the close and accurate 
 observation evinced in almost every page, to be- 
 come more extensively popular than any other 
 publication on a similar subject that has yet ap- 
 peared was given to the world in quarto, in 1789, 
 four years before the death of its amiable author. 
 In 1795 Dr. Aikin selected from Gilbert White's 
 Natural History Journals, which had been regu- 
 larly kept for a period of five-and-twenty years, 
 closing only with his death, numerous additional 
 observations, and compiled from the same source 
 a calendar of the appearances of nature, which 
 together formed a thin octavo volume under the 
 title of " A Naturalist's Calendar, with Observa- 
 tions in various Branches of Natural History." 
 The " Calendar" and " Observations" were added, 
 in 1802, to a reprint of the "Natural History," 
 with some further extracts from the Journals, also 
 selected and incorporated with the previous Ob- 
 servations by Dr. Aikin. In this edition, in two 
 volumes octavo, the "Antiquities" were omitted; 
 many notes were added by Mr. Markwick, who 
 supplied a comparative Calendar founded on his 
 own observations ; and the " Biographical Re- 
 cords" of the author, which have been copied in 
 all subsequent reprints, were prefixed by his 
 nephew John, the publisher of the new edition. 
 
 A second edition in quarto of the " Natural 
 History" and "Antiquities" combined, together 
 with the " Calendar" and the enlarged " Observa- 
 tions," was published in 1813; and in this appeared 
 for the first time a few of the author's poems, of 
 no great critical pretensions, but strongly illus- 
 
PREFACE. XV 
 
 trative of his benevolent disposition and observant 
 habits. There were also added a series of agre- 
 ble notes, chiefly of a classical and literary cha- 
 racter, by the Rev. John Mitford, of Benhall in 
 the county of Suffolk, the author of a Life of Gray, 
 and of an Essay on his Poems, prefixed to an 
 edition of the works of that poet, published in 
 1816. 
 
 In 1825, the "Antiquities" were again discarded, 
 and the " Natural History" with its appendages 
 resumed the octavo form, and again appeared in 
 two volumes. From this and the preceding edi- 
 tions have originated several reprints of a larger 
 or smaller portion of our author's works, (but 
 always omitting the " Antiquities,") which have 
 been edited from time to time by Sir William Jar- 
 dine and Captain Brown, whose notes and illus- 
 trations have contributed to diffuse more widely 
 the popularity of the original. 
 
 A new edition of the entire work, in which the 
 " Antiquities" again assumed their station, ap- 
 peared in 1833 in the same form as the present, 
 under the superintendence of Mr. Rennie, who 
 added many notes of his own to those which were 
 then for the first time contributed by the Hon. and 
 Rev. W. Herbert, and to a series of observations 
 by the late Mr. Sweet on the food of soft-billed 
 birds and their treatment in captivity, a subject to 
 which the attention of that able horticulturist had 
 long been extensively and practically directed. In 
 this edition several additional sketches of local 
 scenery were introduced, from the pencil of a gen- 
 tleman who had taken great interest in the publi- 
 
XVI PREFACE. 
 
 cation ; other illustrations were also given from 
 drawings made by Mr. William Harvey; and a 
 few were contributed by Mr. W. H. Herbert, the 
 son of the gentleman whose notes formed so valu- 
 able an addition to the text. 
 
 In the course of the following year the pro- 
 prietors contemplating a speedy demand for a new 
 edition, Mr. Harvey applied on their part to my 
 brother to undertake its revision ; but his occupa- 
 tions then appeared to him to be too engrossing to 
 admit of his engaging in it even as a relaxation, 
 and he hesitated to accept the proposal. In the 
 summer of the next year, however, it was urgently 
 renewed ; and although the demands upon his time 
 had by no means diminished during the interval, the 
 harassing nature of his avocations became itself a 
 motive for accepting the offer, which afforded him 
 a justification in his own mind for obtaining a short 
 respite from the cares, vexations, and annoyances 
 of the busy and contentious world with which he 
 was unwillingly mixed up. His first intention 
 with respect to the work had been merely to give 
 the text a careful revision, to expunge such notes 
 as appeared to him to have been unnecessarily in- 
 troduced, and to add a few, a very few, of his own 
 in explanation of those passages which seemed im- 
 peratively to require illustration. But the altered 
 views with which he now undertook the publica- 
 tion suggested to him a visit to the scenes which 
 it described, both as a means of acquiring healthful 
 relaxation to himself, and in the hope of adding 
 some interesting features to the work. 
 
 It was late in October ere his engagements 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 allowed of his visit to Selborne being accomplished. 
 Here the wearied spirit sought repose and found 
 it, not in listlessness and inactivity, but in change 
 of scene and of occupation ; for never were his 
 mind or his body more actively employed than 
 during his sojourn in that secluded village. The 
 autumn was unusually prolonged ; the-oak-covered 
 hills and beechen hangers of the district still re- 
 tained their foliage in all the varied hues of that 
 changeful season ; and the sudden transition from 
 the strife and bustle of the town to the peaceful 
 serenity of such scenes as those by which he was 
 here surrounded, rendered him peculiarly alive to 
 their beauties, and deeply impressed him with the 
 infinite superiority of the glorious works of the 
 Creator over the petty objects of the eager and 
 incessant struggles of mankind. 
 
 His letters home were filled with glowing de- 
 scriptions of the picturesque scenes and objects 
 which every where met his eye ; and his first 
 impulse was to request, almost to require, of 
 Mr. Harvey to join him at Selborne, there to de- 
 lineate some of the more striking features of the 
 district, with a view to their introduction into the 
 new edition of the present work. Mr. Harvey 
 promptly responded to the friendly call ; and toge- 
 ther they traversed the neighbourhood in all direc- 
 tions in search of curious or interesting objects, 
 and reaped an ample harvest in return for their 
 grateful toil. But it soon became evident that 
 the materials which they had collected were far 
 too extensive to be used as additions to the work 
 in hand, and they determined on selecting from 
 
XV111 PREFACE. 
 
 among them such only as might fairly be appended 
 to it, reserving the mass for a separate publication 
 on " Selborne and its Vicinity/ 5 in the preparation 
 of which they eagerly and enthusiastically joined. 
 Landscapes of infinite variety and of surpassing 
 loveliness, curious and extraordinary productions 
 of nature, buildings of picturesque effect, and 
 single objects of note or interest, were sketched 
 by the one, and commented on by the other, until 
 the portfolio was literally crammed, and the utmost 
 limits of their time were reached. 
 
 Lured by the glowing descriptions which I 
 received, in company with a friend whose initials 
 will be found appended to many of the notes in 
 the present volume, 1 visited them in their retreat; 
 and for the brief space of three days joined them 
 in their excursions, participated in their enthu- 
 siasm, and witnessed the delighted feelings with 
 which they pursued their pleasing occupation. The 
 manifest improvement in my brother's health and 
 spirits made me happy in the feeling that I had 
 contributed to persuade him, reluctant as he was 
 at first to engage in it, to undertake a task which 
 had led to so gratifying a result. But time wore on : 
 his return to London could no longer be delayed, 
 and Selborne was quitted not without a painful 
 struggle. So strong a hold had it gained on his 
 affections, that I felt persuaded, whenever he could 
 tear himself away from the busy scenes of life, 
 Selborne or its immediate neighbourhood would 
 be chosen as the spot whereon to pass the remain- 
 der of his days. 
 
 His first care on his return was to prepare the 
 
PREFACE. XIX 
 
 present volume for the press : that completed, it 
 was his intention to have revised, corrected, and 
 arranged his materials for the supplementary work 
 above alluded to. But again drawn within the vor- 
 tex of conflicting passions, and compelled by his 
 official station to take an active part in proceedings 
 repugnant to his peaceful disposition, his spirits 
 flagged, and the completion of his purpose was 
 delayed until the period to which he anxiously 
 looked forward, when he could honourably and 
 without self-reproach set himself free from the 
 trammels in which he felt himself bound. Before 
 that period arrived he sank under an illness, of 
 short duration in itself, but of which the founda- 
 tions had doubtless been long previously laid. His 
 collections relating to u Selborne and its Vicinity" 
 are now in my hands, and I trust, when other 
 claims (claims of duty) have been fulfilled, that 
 those of feeling may follow as they ought in next 
 succession, and that I may be enabled to give 
 those collections to the world in a form in some 
 degree resembling that which he intended them to 
 assume. 
 
 In the present edition of the works of Gilbert 
 White my brother's first object was to insure the 
 purity of the text by a careful comparison through- 
 out with the original editions. From these no 
 deviation has been admitted, with the exception 
 of some half dozen sentences which the scrupulous 
 delicacy of a gentleman who has added much to 
 the interest of the work had, in the last edition, 
 converted into Greek, in which language, in defe- 
 rence to his particular request, they have been 
 
XX PREFACE. 
 
 retained in the present. The documents connected 
 with the Priory of Selborne which formed the 
 appendix to the "Antiquities/ 5 and which were 
 omitted in the last edition, have now been replaced 
 in the form of notes on the passages to which they 
 severally refer, with the single exception of the 
 "Visitatio Notabilis," a document of very great 
 length, the partial abstract of which given by our 
 author is now completed, the additions being 
 included within brackets. A few other additions 
 to the "Antiquities" have also been introduced 
 in the text, and are distinguished in the same 
 manner. 
 
 No portion of the original text has been omitted, 
 and all the additions to the " Observations" which 
 have been made in the several editions have been 
 retained. The present volume consequently con- 
 tains the entire published works of Gilbert White, 
 with the exception of some farther selections from 
 his Journals, which have been lately given in the 
 second series of Mr. Jesse's " Gleanings in Natural 
 History." It is closed by a much more copious 
 index than had previously been subjoined, founded 
 on the basis of that appended to the original edi- 
 tion, but with very numerous additions. 
 
 Extensive additions have also been made to the 
 illustrations. The views of local scenery intro- 
 duced into the last edition have been carefully 
 compared by Mr. Harvey with their originals in 
 nature ; and others have been added by him from 
 sketches made during his visit. He has given 
 numerous figures of quadrupeds, birds, insects, 
 and other objects of interest, mentioned in the 
 
PREFACE. XXI 
 
 text; and it should also be observed that Mr. Her- 
 bert has kindly communicated some additional 
 sketches illustrative of the characters of the diffe- 
 rent species of willow-wren, to the distinctions of 
 which he has paid so much attention. 
 
 Of the notes contained in the previous editions 
 a few have been omitted as irrelevant jor unneces- 
 sary. Those of Markwick and others on the 
 " Observations/' which had been formerly printed 
 as part of the text, have been reduced to their 
 proper station at the foot of the pages to which 
 they refer. Many others have been added illus- 
 trative of the wide range of subjects treated of by 
 the author ; in most cases confirming, in some few 
 correcting, the statements of the text, and accom- 
 modating it to the constantly progressive state of 
 natural science, of which they occasionally take a 
 more extended view. Of these a large proportion 
 are from the pen of my brother, but not a few have 
 been contributed by the kindness of his friends : to 
 all of them the initials of the writers are attached. 
 The Hon. and Rev. W. Herbert has again drawn 
 largely on his stores of information connected with 
 ornithology and other branches of natural history; 
 arid Messrs. Bell, Owen, YarrelL, and G. Daniell, 
 (the friend to whom I have before alluded as ac- 
 companying me in my short visit to Selborne,) 
 have by their numerous notes contributed to en- 
 hance the zoological interest of this edition. To 
 each and all of these kind and estimable friends I 
 can but offer in my brother's name the now melan- 
 choly tribute of his thanks. 
 
 Those thanks are also in an especial manner 
 
XX11 PREFACE. 
 
 due to Mrs. White, a niece of our author, and the 
 present representative of the family in Selborne, 
 and to her niece Miss Georgiana ; to both of whom 
 my brother was indebted during his residence in 
 the village for much kind assistance. By the latter 
 the remains of the old tortoise, so often mentioned 
 in the succeeding pages, were rescued from ob- 
 scurity, and an opportunity afforded of paying a 
 well-merited compliment to the memory of her 
 relative, by the dedication of it to his name, which 
 it is hoped will stand the test of future investiga- 
 tion. These remains, and the painting by Elmer 
 of the supposed hybrid pheasant, which has been 
 the subject of so much discussion, are almost the 
 only personal relics of Gilbert White that are now 
 preserved in his former habitation. 
 
 From two other members of the family, resident 
 in the immediate neighbourhood, my brother also 
 met with much polite attention: the Rev. Edmund 
 White, Vicar of Newton- Valence, who is referred 
 to by his uncle in the following pages as "Mr. 
 White of Newton," which living he held for some 
 years previous to his uncle's death ; and the Rev. 
 Thomas Bissland, Rector of Hartley Maudytt, and 
 author of a Volume of Sermons lately published, 
 who is married to a grand-niece of our author, 
 and takes a great interest in every thing connected 
 with his name. 
 
 Among the residents of Selborne to whom my 
 brother was particularly indebted, the Rev. W. R. 
 Cobbold, the present Vicar, is entitled to an espe- 
 cial acknowledgment for his kind and unwearied 
 attentions, as well as for the warm interest which 
 
PREFACE. XX111 
 
 he took in my brother's views, and the ready zeal 
 with which he assisted in promoting them. From 
 many other inhabitants of the village and its neigh- 
 bourhood my brother also received numerous testi- 
 monies of their good feeling towards himself and 
 the objects which he had in view. 
 
 A month has not elapsed since I .had fondly 
 anticipated that this Preface would have been 
 written by the hand of him who prepared the 
 volume for the press. To the last his interest in 
 the work continued unabated : the corrections to 
 the earlier printed sheets of the " Antiquities" were 
 made by me at his bed-side and under his direc- 
 tions; and only three or four sheets remained 
 unrevised at the time of his death. His last in- 
 structions to me on any subject of worldly interest 
 had reference to the distribution of certain copies 
 of the book. I may therefore perhaps be excused for 
 having dwelt so long on topics of no great interest 
 to the world at large, and for giving way in some 
 degree to feelings which, although I may strive to 
 moderate, I cannot altogether repress. The time 
 may come when I may be able to write more 
 calmly on the subject, and when I may attempt to 
 pay a fitting tribute to the memory of one who 
 from infancy upwards was my best and truest 
 guide, counsellor, and friend. 
 
 I. J. B. 
 
 BULSTRODE STREET, 
 Sept. 15, 1836. 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 THE Hermitage, in the title page. 
 
 Autograph of the Author vi 
 
 Residence of the Author, at Selborne vii 
 
 Selborne, from Dorton 1 
 
 Ostrea Carinata 12 
 
 Hollow Lane arid Bridge, near Norton 16 
 
 Approach to the Village 24 
 
 Adventure of the Dog and Hind 30 
 
 Hoopoe 47 
 
 Harvest Mice 56 
 
 Heads of the Indian Antelope 75 
 
 Wood Wren 8S 
 
 , its quill-feathers 84 
 
 Willow Wren 85 
 
 , its quill-feathers 85 
 
 Quill-feathers of the Ching-Ching 86 
 
 of the Chiff-Chaff 87 
 
 of Temminck's Wren 88 
 
 Nest of an unknown Warbler 89 
 
 MelolonthaFullo.... 119 
 
 Eagle Owl : 128 
 
 Otter 138 
 
 Stone Curlew ... 145 
 
 Goatsucker 159 
 
 Nest and Eggs of the Lesser Whitethroat 174 
 
 East Woodhay Warbler 178 
 
 Bustard 197 
 
 Sand Martin's Colony at Oakhanger 268 
 
 Nest 269 
 
 Hawkley Slip 310 
 
 Field Cricket 347 
 
 House Cricket 350 
 
 Mole Cricket and Nest 353 
 
 Stilt Plover 356 
 
 Gilbert White's Tortoise 3CI 
 
 Peregrine Falcon 377 
 
 Hen Partridge and her Brood 433 
 
 Kanatra linearis 407 
 
 Macroglossa Stellatarum 470 
 
 Grindstone Oak in the Holt Forest 481 
 
 Seal of the Priory 513 
 
 South View of Selborne Church 521 
 
 The Vicarage House 530 
 
 Temple, in the Parish of Selborne 550 
 
 The Plestor 552 
 
 Way leading to Gracious Street 627 
 
THE 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 OF 
 
 SELBORNE. 
 
 SELBORNE, FROM UORTON. 
 
 See, Sel borne spreads her boldest beauties round, 
 The varied valley, and the mountain ground, 
 Wildly majestic! What is all the pride 
 Of flats, with loads of ornament supplied? 
 Unpleasing, tasteless, impotent expense, 
 Compared with Nature's rude magnificence. 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 
 LETTER I. 
 
 TO THOMAS PENNANT, ESQUIRE. 
 
 THE parish of SELBORNE lies in the extreme eastern 
 corner of the county of Hampshire, bordering on the 
 county of Sussex, and not far from the county of 
 Surrey ; is about fifty miles south-west of London, in 
 latitude 51, and near midway between the towns of 
 B 
 
2 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 Alton and Petersfield. Being very large and extensive, 
 it abuts on twelve parishes, two of which are in 
 Sussex, viz. Trotton and Rogate. If you begin from 
 the south and proceed westward, the adjacent parishes 
 are Erashot, Newton Valence, Faringdon, Harteley 
 Mauduit 1 , Great Ward le ham 2 , Kingsley, Hedleigh, 
 Bramshot, Trotton, Rogate, Lysse, and Greatham. 
 The soils of this district are almost as various and 
 diversified as the views and aspects. The high part to 
 the south-west consists of a vast hill of chalk, rising 
 three hundred feet above the village; and is divided 
 into a sheep down, the high wood, and a long hanging 
 wood called The Hanger. The covert of this eminence 
 is altogether beech, the most lovely of all forest trees, 
 whether we consider its smooth rind or bark, its glossy 
 foliage, or graceful pendulous boughs. The down, or 
 sheep-walk, is a pleasing park-like spot, of about one 
 mile by half that space, jutting out on the verge of 
 the hill-country, where it begins to break down into 
 the plains, and commanding a very engaging view, 
 being an assemblage of hill, dale, woodlands, heath, 
 and water. The prospect is bounded to the south-east 
 and east by the vast range of mountains called the 
 Sussex Downs, by Guild Down near Guild ford, and by 
 the Downs round Dorking and Ryegate in Surrey, to 
 the north-east; which, altogether, with the country 
 
 1 In the parochial registers the orthography is Harteley Maudytt. 
 Mauduit, used by Gilbert White, is, however, a more usual reading of 
 M a Id ii it li, the name of the earliest Norman lord ; which was used subse- 
 quently to the Conquest as an adjunct to the Saxon appellation, for the 
 purpose of distinguishing this Harteley from the other Hartleys in the 
 same county to the north of it. E. T. 15. 4 
 
 2 The orthography in the text, though formal in appearance, was 
 deliberately adopted by the author, who, in his first edition, inserted all 
 deviations from it as errata: it is, consequently, preserved throughout. 
 Wordlam is a pronunciation of it not unfrequently used in the neigh- 
 bourhood : but Worldham is the more ordinary name. And in this case 
 I suspect that the vulgar are right ; Werildeham, the oldest name which 
 I find for it, belonging to an era prior to the erection in England of Nor- 
 man castles. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. X 
 
 beyond Alton and Farnham, form a noble and exten- 
 sive outline. 
 
 At the foot of this hill, one stage or step from the 
 uplands, lies the village, which consists of one single 
 straggling street, three quarters of a mile in length, in a 
 sheltered vale, and running parallel with The Hanger. 
 The houses are divided from the hill by a vein of stiff 
 clay (good wheat land), yet stand on a rock of white 
 stone, little in appearance removed from chalk; but 
 seeming so far from being calcareous, that it endures 
 extreme heat. Yet that the freestone still preserves 
 somewhat that is analogous to chalk, is plain from the 
 beeches, which descend as low as those rocks extend, 
 and no farther, and thrive as well on them, where the 
 ground is steep, as on the chalks. 
 
 The cart-way of the village divides, in a remarkable 
 manner, two very incongruous soils. To the south- 
 west is a rank clay, that requires the labour of years 
 to render it mellow; while the gardens to the north- 
 east, and small enclosures behind, consist of a warm, 
 forward, crumbling mould, called black malm, which 
 seems highly saturated with vegetable and animal 
 manure ; and these may perhaps have been the original 
 site of the town, while the woods and coverts might 
 extend down to the opposite bank. 
 
 At each end of the village, which runs from south- 
 east to north-west, arises a small rivulet: that at the 
 north-west end frequently fails ; but the other is a fine 
 perennial spring, little influenced by drought or wet 
 seasons, called Wellhead 3 . This breaks out of some 
 high grounds joining to Nore Hill, a noble chalk pro- 
 montory, remarkable for sending forth two streams 
 into two different seas. The one to the south becomes 
 
 3 This spring produced, September 14, 1781, after a severe hot sum- 
 mer, and a preceding dry spring and winter, nine gallons of water in a 
 minute, which is five hundred and forty in an hour, and twelve thousand 
 nine hundred and sixty, or two hundred and sixteen hogsheads, in twenty- 
 four hours, or one natural day. At this time many of the wells failed, 
 and all the ponds in the vales were dry. 
 
 B2 
 
4 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 a branch of the Arun, running to Arundel, and so 
 falling into the British Channel : the other to the north, 
 the Selborne stream, makes one branch of the Wey ; 
 and, meeting the Black Down stream at Hedleigh, 
 and the Alton and Farnham stream at Tilford Bridge, 
 swells into a considerable river, navigable at God ai- 
 ming; from whence it passes to Guildford, and so into 
 the Thames at Weybridge ; and thus at the Nore into 
 the German Ocean. 
 
 Our wells, at an average, run to about sixty-three 
 feet, and when sunk to that depth seldom fail; but 
 produce a fine limpid water soft to the taste, and much 
 commended by those who drink the pure element, but 
 which does not lather well with soap 4 . 
 
 To the north-west, north, and east of the village, is 
 a range of fair enclosures, consisting of what is called 
 white malm, a sort of rotten or rubble stone, which, 
 when turned up to the frost and rain, moulders to 
 pieces, and becomes manure to itself 5 . 
 
 Still on to the north-east, and a step lower, is a kind 
 of white land, neither chalk nor clay, neither fit for 
 pasture nor for the plough, yet kindly for hops, which 
 root deep into the freestone, and have their poles and 
 wood for charcoal growing just at hand. This white 
 soil produces the brightest hops. 
 
 As the parish still inclines down towards Wolmer 
 Forest, at the juncture of the clays and sand, the soil 
 becomes a wet sandy loam, remarkable for timber, and 
 
 * Though Mr. White says this water is soft to the taste, it is undoubt- 
 edly what would be usually called hard, the test of which is its not 
 producing a lather with soap, or with soap dissolved in spirit of wine, 
 because it contains sulphate of lime, the sulphuric acid in which, uniting 
 with the soda in the soap, sets free the tallow, composed of the margaric 
 and oleic acids ; and these acids, uniting with the lime thus set free, form 
 a soap that will not dissolve in water. From having attended rather 
 minutely to the qualities usually termed hard and soft in water, as con- 
 nected with the chemistry of bleaching, I can readily distinguish by the 
 taste alone whether water contains lime, iron, or argillaceous substances. 
 RENME. 
 
 5 This soil produces good wheat and clover. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 5 
 
 infamous for roads. The oaks of Temple and Black- 
 moor stand high in the estimation of purveyors, and 
 have furnished much naval timber ; while the trees on 
 the freestone grow large, but are what workmen call 
 shaky, and so brittle as often to fall to pieces in 
 sawing. 
 
 Beyond the sandy loam the soil becomes a hungry 
 lean sand, till it mingles with the forest; and will pro- 
 duce little without the assistance of lime nd turnips 6 . 
 
 * A science that has sprung into active existence since the days in 
 which White wrote, would have explained to him many of the facts 
 described in this Letter; and would have shown that Selborne is not 
 devoid of interest in a geological point of view. He would have learned 
 from it that the several soils which he observed and which he enume- 
 rates, forms part of a general system, to the elucidation of which they 
 are adapted materially to contribute. 
 
 The parish of Selborne is situated in the lower part of the chalk forma- 
 tion, and embraces within it the upper members of the weald. These 
 are well displayed as they occur in succession, forming strips which run 
 along the parish from north to south: in crossing it from west to east, 
 each of the strata is visited in the order of superposition. They are four 
 in number; comprising the chalk, the upper green sand, the gault, and 
 the lower green sand. In no situation are these several strata more 
 strongly marked or more clearly defined than in this district; where the 
 regularity of their succession is such as to leave no doubt of the distinc- 
 tion between the upper and the lower green sands, and between the 
 gault and the weald clay. The latter formation occurs immediately after 
 quitting the parish at Harting Comb. 
 
 The chalk constitutes the mass of the Selborne hill, which is covered, 
 towards the village, by the Hanger. A fine and lengthened swell, sloping 
 gradually at either extremity into a lower and hollowed sweep, is here 
 suddenly terminated on its eastern face by a steep descent. So rapid is 
 the slope that it is only to be ascended along an oblique cutting up the 
 side of the Hanger, {the Bostol,) or by the igzag: the Slidders, however 
 practicable for descent, cannot be climbed without considerable difficulty. 
 The Down or Common on the top of the hill, declining gradually towards 
 Newton, as well as towards the descents to the north and south of it, 
 is, in its easy sweep, characteristic of the usual condition of the chalk. 
 The steep declivity towards Selborne offers a deviation from the ordinary 
 character of the formation, connected with the convulsion by which the 
 Weald has been denuded : a convulsion, the effects of which are yet 
 more strongly marked on the abrupt declivity of Nore Hill, the next 
 adjoining promontory to the south. 
 
 The covert of the Selborne hill, as indicated in the text, is altogether 
 beech. Its upper part is a fine chalky sheep down. 
 
 The prospects visible from its elevated top are admirable for their 
 
6 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER II. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 IN the court of Norton farm-house, a manor farm to 
 the north-west of the village, on the white malms, stood 
 within these twenty years a broad-leaved elm, or wych 
 
 extent and beauty; especially those which embrace the whole of the 
 subjacent formations, and stretch away as far as the ridges of Hind 
 Head and of Black Down. These are among the most engaging of the 
 Selborne scenes. A lovely view is the one which is obtained from the 
 top of the Slidder, embracing a vast extent of varied country, and show- 
 ing, immediately beneath the observer, the principal buildings of the 
 village. 
 
 Next in succession to the chalk is the formation technically known as 
 the upper green sand ; and there are spots at Selborne in which a green 
 sand is plentifully distributed through a chalky malm. But the mass of 
 the formation which passes under this denomination consists here of the 
 freestone or firestone of the text, which lies immediately below the 
 chalk, and spreads away with a slow rise towards the east, constituting 
 a slightly sloping but a uniform flat except where its face has been broken 
 into by the force of water or the more petty power of man. In its upper 
 surface deep fissures have been formed for the discharge of the springs 
 from Nore Hill, and from the hill to the north of the village; and the 
 Lithes, and Dorton, and the Combe, and the Priory valley owe their 
 existence to this power. The rocky lanes, spoken of in Letter V., also 
 belong to this stratum : they have been cut in its upper portion princi- 
 pally by the action of long continued traffic on a friable substance ; they 
 have gradually become, from their depression, converted into water- 
 courses; and the attrition has been rendered by this means more effec- 
 tual, the fragments torn off by the wheels of the carts being perpetually 
 removed from the naked rock by the force of the water. But the most 
 strongly marked feature of this formation is the extreme regularity with 
 which it usually rises slowly in a lengthened and widely spread Hat, 
 until it terminates suddenly by an abrupt and cliff-like fall, constituting 
 a terrace or escarpment. This character belongs to the whole range of 
 the rock within the parish of Selborne and for several miles both to the 
 north and south of it. 
 
 The Selborne rock is the subsoil of the whole of the village, and of the 
 malm lands. Its upper part is of a rubbly character, constituting, in cul- 
 tivation, the white malm, celebrated for its excellent wheat: and little 
 except wheat and a few patches of hops is to be seen in the enclosed 
 fields that occupy its whole extent. In the valleys of its water-courses 
 there is good pasturage; their sides are well wooded, in some instances 
 entirely with beech, and in others with oak ; and along the edges of their 
 
OF SELBORNE. 7 
 
 hazel, Ulmus folio latissimo scabro of Ray 1 , which, though 
 it had lost a considerable leading bough in the great 
 
 little streams oaks grow kindly. The steep fronts of all the terraces 
 constitute Hangers, and these, on the malm rock, are chiefly covered 
 by oak. One of them is the Oak Hanger, still as well qualified as it was 
 a thousand years since to give name to the hamlet below it. 
 
 In the little valleys of this formation, deeply cleft, and narrow, and 
 lengthened out, and well wooded, there is much to please the wanderer. 
 The hollow lanes, cut into the rock to the depth of eighteen or twenty 
 feet, and sometimes (though not generallyj) offering formS of picturesque 
 beauty, will also interest him. But the highest interest will be excited 
 by the views from the edges of the terraces, ranging from Harteley Park 
 to the south as far as Temple. Along these, wherever the view is not 
 intercepted by the growth of trees rising up above the level of the cliff 
 on the face of which they are rooted, the prospect is every where beau- 
 tiful. It is especially so at the points in which the terraces are occa- 
 sionally interrupted, as at the corner of Harteley Park towards Oak 
 Hanger ; and at the angle of the Temple terrace looking over the Priory. 
 The views from the terrace immediately adjoining to Temple are magni- 
 ficent. 
 
 Below the rock of the upper green sand formation is the gault; gene- 
 rally presenting a uniform level, of the most fertile character. Within 
 Selborne it exists only as a perfect flat; but to the north, in the forest 
 of The Holt, it rises into hills. It is especially distinguished by the 
 extreme richness of the water-meadows, to which its crops are entirely 
 limited ; and by the noble groves and woods of fine oaks that are every 
 where scattered over it. The luxuriant wood of this formation and the 
 greenness of its enclosures, create a fore ground of the richest character 
 to all the prospects from the terraces above it. 
 
 Last of the Selborne strata is the lower green sand; which rises, im- 
 mediately east of the gault, into ridges of various elevation, and having 
 usually a direction not very dissimilar from that of the Hanger. On the 
 verge of this are scattered various farms which have brought into culti- 
 vation, in ancient times, portions of the unpromising soil : and in these 
 situations there are meadows, and arable fields, and a few hop-grounds, 
 separated by hedge-rows in which timber trees are growing. But beyond 
 the settlements on the very edge of the sands cultivation quickly ceases ; 
 and the lean, hungry waste of Wolmer Forest succeeds, covered almost 
 entirely by heath. Excepting a few trees on its skirts towards Forest 
 Side, the Forest within Selborne is quite destitute of timber. Some 
 plantations of fir have been attempted in various parts of it, which relieve 
 in some degree, by their lengthened lines of green, the dreariness that 
 prevails. More effectual relief is afforded by the ponds which are spread 
 out in various parts of the waste, of which some are so large as to merit 
 the name of little lakes. Such is Wolmer Pond, described by Gilbert 
 White in a subsequent Letter ; and such too are the ponds known by the 
 
 ' [Ulmus montana, BAUH.] 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 storm in the year 1703, equal to a moderate tree, yet, 
 when felled, contained eight loads of timber; and, being 
 too bulky for a carriage, was sawn off at seven feet 
 above the butt, where it measured near eight feet in 
 the diameter. This elm I mention to show to what a 
 bulk planted elms may attain ; as this tree must cer- 
 tainly have been such from its situation. 
 
 In the centre of the village, and near the church, is 
 a square piece of ground surrounded by houses, and 
 vulgarly called The Plestor. In the midst of this spot 
 stood, in old times, a vast oak, with a short squat 
 body, and huge horizontal arms extending almost to 
 the extremity of the area. This venerable tree, sur- 
 rounded with stone steps, and seats above them, was 
 
 names of Hogmer and Cranmer, and the large and almost united ponds 
 at Oakhanger. 
 
 To the cultivator this division of the parish is at present almost use- 
 less. It is probable that scarcely any of it has been brought into occu- 
 pation for many ages ; and it will be long before much of it can be so far 
 reclaimed as to be at all available for farming purposes. 
 
 In the dreariness of the Forest there is a variation from the character 
 of the scenery of the adjacent strata that may interest for a while. There 
 is also a boldness, occasionally, in the form of the ridges, and an abruptness 
 in their terminations, that imparts somewhat of a mountain air to the view. 
 But it is chiefly as an adjunct to the other features of the Selborne pros- 
 pects that it avails ; and in its masses, and its heights, and its waters, it 
 forms a fine termination to most of the more extensive of them. 
 
 A general idea of the surface of the country may be formed from thus 
 passing in review the several portions of which it consists, and \\lii< li 
 succeed each other with perfect regularity. Some idea will also be 
 obtained of the delightful scenery of the neighbourhood in which the 
 author dwelt throughout his life; a scenery infinitely varied according 
 to the extent of the country included in each view, the number of the 
 strata embraced by it, and the relative proportion of each. The combi- 
 nation, in the more extensive of them, of the broad arable Hat of the 
 upper lands and their angularly edged terraces and hangers, with the rich 
 meadows and oak woods of the bottom, and the wide and bold wastes 
 and shining waters of the Forest, is above all delightful. 
 
 Some such views Mr. Harvey has represented in an account of 
 Selborne and its Vicinity which is now in preparation for the press, 
 and which will be principally devoted to the description and delineation 
 of the more interesting scenes and objects of the district ; and to the 
 imparting of other local information relating to the neighbourhood in 
 which Gilbert White lived and died. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 9 
 
 the delight of old and young, and a place of much 
 resort in summer evenings ; where the former sat in 
 grave debate, while the latter frolicked and danced 
 before them. Long might it have stood, had not the 
 amazing tempest in 1703 overturned it at once, to the 
 infinite regret of the inhabitants, and the vicar, who 
 bestowed several pounds in setting it in its place again: 
 but all his care could not avail ; the tree sprouted for a 
 time, then withered and died. This oak'l mention to 
 show to what a bulk planted oaks also may arrive : and 
 planted this tree must certainly have been, as will 
 appear from what will be said further concerning this 
 area when we enter on the antiquities of Selborne 2 . 
 
 On the Blackmoor estate there is a small wood 
 called Losel's, of a few acres, that was lately furnished 
 with a set of oaks of a peculiar growth and great 
 value ; they were tall and taper like firs, but, standing 
 near together, had very small heads, only a little brush 
 without any large limbs 3 . About twenty years ago 
 
 2 The reference in the text to another portion of the volume for other 
 particulars respecting this oak would almost render any explanation in 
 this place unnecessary. It may, however, be shortly stated that The 
 Plestor measures about forty-four yards by thirty-six, and that the oak, 
 whose branches nearly overshadowed this large space, is conjectured by 
 Gilbert White to have been, at the time when it was blown down, four 
 hundred and thirty-two years old. E. T. B. 
 
 3 Mr. White only hints in this place at the interesting effects of shelter 
 and exposure on the growth of trees. In the interior of forests and 
 crowded plantations, the wind can exert a far less mechanical effect on 
 individual trees than in exposed situations ; and, therefore, while they 
 are positively determined to push upwards to the light, they are nega- 
 tively permitted to do so by the removal of any necessity to thicken their 
 trunks for the sake of greater strength, and to contract the height of 
 them in order to afford the blast a shorter lever against the roots. On 
 the other hand, trees in an open situation are freely exposed to the 
 wind, and the large expansion of their branches gives every advantage 
 to the violence of the storm. Nature accordingly bestows greater pro- 
 portional elevation [thickness of trunk] on trees which are insulated, or 
 nearly so ; while their system of root, which, by necessity, is correlatively 
 proportional to their system of top, affords likewise heavier ballast and a 
 stronger anchorage, in order to counteract the greater spread of sail 
 displayed in the wider expansion of their branches. Trees in the interior 
 of woods, accordingly, are in general found to have their stems upright 
 
10 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 the bridge at the Toy, near Hampton Court, being 
 much decayed, some trees were wanted for the repairs 
 that were fifty feet long without bough, and would 
 measure twelve inches diameter at the little end. 
 Twenty such trees did a purveyor find in this little 
 wood, with this advantage, that many of them answered 
 the description at sixty feet. These trees were sold for 
 twenty pounds a piece. 
 
 In the centre of this grove there stood an oak, which, 
 though shapely and tall on the whole, bulged out into 
 a large excrescence about the middle of the stem. On 
 this a pair of ravens had fixed their residence for such 
 a series of years, that the oak was distinguished by 
 the title of The Raven Tree. Many were the attempts 
 of the neighbouring youths to get at this eyry : the 
 difficulty whetted their inclinations, and each was 
 ambitious of surmounting the arduous task. But, when 
 they arrived at the swelling, it jutted out so in their 
 way, and was so far beyond their grasp, that the most 
 daring lads w r ere awed, and acknowledged the under- 
 taking to be too hazardous. So the ravens built on, 
 nest upon nest, in perfect security, till the fatal day 
 arrived in which the wood was to be levelled. It was 
 in the month of February, when those birds usually 
 sit. The saw was applied to the butt, the wedges were 
 inserted into the opening, the woods echoed to the 
 heavy blows of the beetle or mallet, the tree nodded to 
 its fall; but still the dam sat on. At last, when it 
 gave way, the bird was flung from her nest; and, 
 though her parental affection deserved a better fate, 
 was whipped down by the twigs, w r hich brought her 
 dead to the ground. 
 
 and stately ; their bark glossy and beautiful ; their tops small and thinly 
 provided with branches; and their roots, in the same way, spare and 
 scanty, but in due proportion to the tops- Trees, on the other hand, in 
 open exposures, have their stems stout and short; their bark thick and 
 coarse ; their tops extensive and spreading ; their branches often reaching 
 to the ground ; and their roots extensive like their tops, and throwing 
 themselves out on every side. RENNIE. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 11 
 
 LETTER III. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 THE fossil shells of this district, and sorts of stone, 
 such as have fallen within my observation, must not be 
 passed over in silence. And first I must -mention, as a 
 great curiosity, a specimen that was ploughed up in the 
 chalky fields, near the side of the Down, and given to 
 me for the singularity of its appearance, which, to an 
 incurious eye, seems like a petrified fish of about four 
 inches long, the cardo passing for a head and mouth. It 
 is in reality a bivalve of the Linnaean genus of Mytilus 
 and the species of Crista Galli; called by Lister, 
 Rastellum ; by Rumphius, Ostreum plicatum minus ; by 
 D'Argenville, Auris Porci, s. Crista Galli ; and by those 
 who make collections, cock's comb. Though I applied 
 to several such in London, I never could meet with an 
 entire specimen ; nor could I ever find in books any 
 engraving from a perfect one. In the superb museum 
 at Leicester House *, permission was given me to exa- 
 
 1 The superb museum at Leicester House, originally the property of 
 Sir Ashton Lever, and long known as the Leverian Museum, is charac- 
 terized by Pennant as magnificent and instructive, and as " the most 
 astonishing collection of the subjects of natural history ever collected, in 
 so short a space, by any individual. To the disgrace of our kingdom, 
 after the first burst of wonder was over, it became neglected ; and when 
 it was offered to the public, by the chance of a guinea lottery, only eight 
 thousand out of thirty-six thousand tickets were sold. Finally, the 
 capricious goddess frowned on the spirited proprietor of such a number 
 of tickets, and transferred the treasure to the possessor of only two, 
 Mr. Parkinson." The successful candidate for fortune's favours proved 
 that they were not ill bestowed upon him, by continually adding, in the 
 most liberal manner, to the collection which had thus come into his 
 possession, and by building, expressly for its reception, near the south 
 end of Blackfriars Bridge, a house (subsequently appropriated to the 
 Surrey Institution) in which the specimens of natural history and of art, 
 of which the museum consisted, were exhibited for many years. They 
 were finally disposed of by auction, in 1806. Some idea may be formed 
 of the extent of the collection at that time by the duration of the sale for 
 sixty-five days, and by the number of the lots, which amounted to 7879. 
 E. T. B. 
 
12 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 mine for this article; and though I was disappointed 
 as to the fossil, I was highly gratified with the sight of 
 several of the shells themselves in high preservation. 
 This bivalve is only known to inhabit the Indian ocean, 
 where it fixes itself to a zoophyte, known by the name 
 Gorgonia. The curious foldings of the suture the one 
 into the other, the alternate flutings or grooves, and 
 the curved form of my specimen being much easier 
 expressed by the pencil than by words, I have caused 
 it to be drawn and engraved 2 . 
 
 OSTRKA CAR1NATA. 
 
 a Notwithstanding the great care which was evidently bestowed by 
 the author on the identification of his fossil shell, he was by no means so 
 successful in the results of his research as he deserved to be : it is cer- 
 tainly not the analogue of the cock's comb oyster, the Mytilus Crist a. 
 Galli of Linnaeus and Ostrea Crista Galli of Lamarck ; but belongs to an 
 altogether different species which has not, so far at least as conchologists 
 yet know, any living analogue. The figures given above, which are 
 copied from those of the original edition, represent a shell of the species 
 to which, on account of the strong ridge or keel along the middle of 
 each of its valves, Lamarck gave the name of Ostrea carinata. It has 
 repeatedly been figured, since the first publication of the Natural History 
 of Selborne, as well in foreign as in English works: and, by a curious 
 coincidence, in the Genera of Recent and Fossil Shells, by Mr. G. B. 
 Sowerby, one plate contains representations both of this fossil (from a 
 gigantic specimen) and of the cock's comb oyster, to which Gilbert White 
 referred it. Though both are plaited oysters, the plaits or folds are 
 disposed in a manner altogether dissimilar in the two shells : in the 
 cock's comb oyster they are in the longitudinal direction of the shell, 
 which, moreover, is rounded in its general outline ; in the keeled oyster 
 they pass transversely on each side from a ridge which is continued 
 along the middle of a considerably produced shell. 
 
 The statement in the text, that it was obtained in the chalky fields, 
 renders it necessary to caution the reader against regarding it as a chalk 
 
OF SELBORNE. 13 
 
 Cornua Ammonis are very common about this village 3 . 
 As we were cutting an inclining path up The Hanger, 
 the labourers found them frequently on that steep, just 
 under the soil, in the chalk, and of a considerable size. 
 In the lane above Well-head, in the way to Ernshot, 
 they abound in the bank in a darkish sort of marl ; 
 and are usually very small and soft: but in Clay's 
 Pond, a little farther on, at the end of the pit, where 
 the soil is dug out for manure, I have "-occasionally 
 observed them of large dimensions, perhaps fourteen 
 or sixteen inches in diameter. But as these did not 
 consist of firm stone, but were formed of a kind of 
 terra lapidosa, or hardened clay, as soon as they were 
 exposed to the rains and frost they mouldered away. 
 These seemed as if they were a very recent produc- 
 tion 4 . 
 
 In the chalk-pit, at the north-west end of The Hanger, 
 large Nautili are sometimes observed. 
 
 In the very thickest strata of our freestone, and at 
 considerable depths, well-diggers often find large scal- 
 lops, or Pectines, having both shells deeply striated, 
 and ridged and furrowed alternately. They are highly 
 impregnated with, if not wholly composed of, the stone 
 of the quarry. 
 
 fossil. The fields below the chalk downs at Selborne, though white in 
 the appearance of their soil a soil which thence derives its local appel- 
 lation of white malm belong in truth to the formation known to geologists 
 by the confessedly and singularly inappropriate name of green sand. To 
 the green sand formation the keeled oyster is peculiar: it appears even 
 to be limited, as a fossil, to the upper green sand, the stratum 011 which 
 the village of Selborne is built, and of which the immediately adjacent 
 enclosures consist. E. T. B. 
 
 3 There is a village in the west of England remarkable for the quan- 
 tity it possesses of the " cornu ammonis." The name of it is Keynsham, 
 between Bath and Bristol. " This has given rise to a fabulous legend, 
 which says that St. Keyna, from whom the place takes its name, resided 
 here in a solitary wood, full of venomous serpents, and her prayers 
 converted them into stones, which still retain their shape." See Espri- 
 clla's Letters from England, vol. iii. p. 362. MITFORD. 
 
 4 They were probably casts of the ammonites rather than the shells 
 themselves. E. T. B. 
 
14 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER IV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 As in a former letter the freestone of this place has 
 been only mentioned incidentally, I shall here become 
 more particular. 
 
 This stone is in great request for hearth-stones, and 
 the beds of ovens ; and in lining of lime-kilns it turns 
 to good account : for the workmen use sandy loam 
 instead of mortar; the sand of which fluxes ! , and runs 
 by the intense heat, and so cases over the whole face 
 of the kiln with a strong vitrified coat like glass, that it 
 is well preserved from injuries of weather, and endures 
 thirty or forty years. When chiselled smooth, it makes 
 elegant fronts for houses, equal in colour and grain to 
 the Bath stone; and superior in one respect, that, 
 when seasoned, it does not scale. Decent chimney- 
 pieces are worked from it of much closer and finer 
 grain than Portland; and rooms are floored with it; 
 but it proves rather too soft for this purpose. It is a 
 freestone, cutting in all directions ; yet has something 
 of a grain parallel with the horizon, and therefore 
 should not be surbedded, but laid in the same position 
 that it grows in the quarry 2 . On the ground abroad 
 this firestone will not succeed for pavements, because, 
 probably, some degree of saltness prevailing within it, 
 the rain tears the slabs to pieces 3 . Though this stone 
 is too hard to be acted on by vinegar, yet both the 
 white part, and even the blue rag, ferment strongly in 
 mineral acids. Though the white stone will not bear 
 
 1 There may probably be also in the chalk itself, that is burnt for lime, 
 a proportion of sand ; for few chalks are so pure as to have none. 
 
 3 " To surbed stone is to set it edgewise, contrary to the posture it had 
 in the quarry," says Dr. Plot, Oxfordsh. p. 77. But surbedding does not 
 succeed in our dry walls; neither do we use it so in ovens, though he 
 says it is best for Teyuton stone. 
 
 3 Firestone is full of salts, and has no sulphur: must be close-grained, 
 and have no interstices. Nothing supports fire like salts; salt-stone 
 perishes exposed to wet and frost. I'lot's Xt'ijf. p. 152. 
 
OF SELBORNK. 15 
 
 wet, yet in every quarry, at intervals, there are thin 
 strata of blue rag, which resist rain and frost, and are 
 excellent for pitching of stables, paths, and courts ; and 
 for building of dry walls against banks, a valuable 
 species of fencing, much in use in this village ; and for 
 mending of roads. This rag is rugged and stubborn, 
 and will not hew to a smooth face ; but is very durable : 
 yet, as these strata are shallow and lie deep, large 
 quantities cannot be procured but at considerable ex- 
 pense. Among the blue rags turn up some blocks 
 tinged with a stain of yellow, or rust colour, which 
 seem to be nearly as lasting as the blue; and every 
 now and then balls of a friable substance, like rust of 
 iron, called rust balls. 
 
 In Wolmer Forest I see but one sort of stone, called 
 by the workmen sand, or forest, stone. This is gene- 
 rally of the colour of rusty iron, and might probably be 
 worked as iron ore ; is very hard and heavy, and of a 
 firm compact texture, and composed of a small roundish 
 crystalline grit, cemented together by a brown, terrene, 
 ferruginous matter ; will not cut without difficulty, nor 
 easily strike fire with steel. Being often found in 
 broad flat pieces, it makes good pavement for paths 
 about houses, never becoming slippery in frost or rain ; 
 is excellent for dry walls; and is sometimes used in 
 buildings. In many parts of that waste it lies scat- 
 tered on the surface of the ground ; but is dug on 
 Weaver's Down, a vast hill on the eastern verge of 
 that forest, where the pits are shallow, and the stratum 
 thin. This stone is imperishable. 
 
 From a notion of rendering their work the more 
 elegant, and giving it a finish, masons chip this stone 
 into small fragments about the size of the head of a 
 large nail ; and then stick the pieces into the wet 
 mortar along the joints of their freestone walls : this 
 embellishment carries an odd appearance, and has 
 occasioned strangers sometimes to ask us pleasantly,. 
 " whether we fastened our walls together with ten- 
 penny nails?" 
 
JO' 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER V. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 HIII.I.I-U I. INK AND HUDGE, NEAR NUB FUN. 
 
 AMONG the singularities of this place, the two rocky 
 hollow lanes, the one to Alton, and the other to the 
 forest, deserve our attention. These roads, running 
 through the malm lands, are, by the traffick of ages, 
 and the fretting of water, worn down through the first 
 stratum of our freestone, and partly through the second ; 
 so that they look more like water-courses than roads ; 
 and are bedded with naked rag for furlongs together. 
 In many places they are reduced sixteen or eighteen 
 feet beneath the level of the fields; and after floods, 
 and in frosts, exhibit very grotesque and wild appear- 
 ances, from the tangled roots that are twisted among 
 the strata, and from the torrents rushing down their 
 broken sides ; and especially when those cascades are 
 
OF SELBORNE. 17 
 
 frozen into icicles, hanging in all the fanciful shapes of 
 frost-work. These rugged- gloomy scenes affright the 
 ladies when they peep down into them from the paths 
 above, and make timid horsemen shudder while they 
 ride along them ; but delight the naturalist with their 
 various botany, and particularly with the curious 
 Filices with which they abound. 
 
 The manor of Selborne, was it strictly looked after, 
 with all its kindly aspects, and all its sloping coverts, 
 would swarm with game ; even now, hares, partridges, 
 and pheasants abound ; and in old days woodcocks 
 were as plentiful. There are few quails, because they 
 more affect open fields than enclosures: after harvest 
 some few land-rails are seen. 
 
 The parish of Selborne, by taking in so much of the 
 forest, is a vast district. Those who tread the bounds 
 are employed part of three days in the business, and 
 are of opinion that the outline, in all its curves and 
 indentings, does not comprise less than thirty miles. 
 
 The village stands in a sheltered spot, secured by 
 The Hanger from the strong westerly winds. The air 
 is soft, but rather moist from the effluvia of so many 
 trees 1 ; yet perfectly healthy, and free from agues. 
 
 The quantity of rain that falls on it is very consi- 
 derable, as may be supposed in so woody and moun- 
 tainous a district. As my experience in measuring 
 the water is but of short date, I am not qualified to 
 give the mean quantity 2 . I only know that 
 
 Inch. Hand. 
 
 From May 1, 1779, to the end of the year, there fell 28 37 ! 
 
 From Jan. 1, 1780, to Jan. 1, 1781 27 32 
 
 From Jan. 1, 1781, to Jan. 1, 1782 30 71 
 
 From Jan. 1, 1782, to Jan. 1, 1783 50 26! 
 
 1 This effect of trees is fully treated of in the Letter to Daines Barring- 
 ton, numbered XXIX. E. T. B. 
 
 2 A very intelligent gentleman* assures me (and he speaks from up- 
 wards of forty years experience) that the mean rain of any place cannot 
 
 * Thomas Barker, the gentleman referred to in the note, was the 
 descendant of an ancient and respectable family in the county of Rutland. 
 
 C 
 
18 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 From Jan. 
 From Jan. 
 From Jan. 
 From Jan. 
 [From Jan. 
 
 Inch. HIUI.I. 
 
 ,1783, to Jan. 1,1784 ...... 33 71 
 
 ,1784, to Jan. 1, 1785 33 80 
 
 ,1785, to Jan. 1,1786 .... . . 31 55 
 
 , 1786, to Jan. 1, 1787 ....-.,. 39 57 
 
 , 1787, to Jan. 1, 1788 36 24 
 
 be ascertained till a person has measured it for a very long period. " If 
 I had only measured the rain," says he, " for the four first years, from 
 1740 to 1743, 1 should have said the mean rain at Lyndon was 16$ inches 
 for the year; if from 1740 to 1750, 18$ inches. The mean rain before 
 1763 was 20$ ; from 1763 and since, 25$; from 1770 to 1780, 26. If only 
 1773, 1774, and 1775, had been measured, Lyndon mean rain would have 
 been called 32 inches." 
 
 [It is probable that the extension of his observations over thirteen 
 years might have induced Gilbert White to have drawn some deductions 
 
 His father, Samuel Barker, a profound Hebrew scholar and Greek 
 critic, known by his Poesis Vetus Hebraica Restituta, was married to a 
 daughter of the able and pious, but visionary and unorthodox, William 
 Whiston : and it was in the house of his child at Lyndon, at the advanced 
 age of eighty-five, that that energetic but wild spirit ceased to be active. 
 In such parentage we probably see the germs of many of Thomas Barker's 
 speculations : they were partly mathematical, partly critical, and partly 
 theological. His observations chiefly relate to natural history and meteor- 
 ology. Incited, perhaps, to the prosecution of the former by his connexion 
 with the family of Gilbert White, a connexion originally commercial 
 through the intervention of his maternal uncle, who was long in partner- 
 ship with Benjamin White, and subsequently cemented by his marriage 
 with a sister of our author, to the latter he must have been actuated 
 by a strong impulse, operating on him throughout the greater part of 
 a prolonged life. The tables of his Meteorological Observations made 
 at Lyndon, for a continuous series of fifty-eight years, (a duration 
 probably not exceeded by any single observer,) were published in succes- 
 sive volumes of the Philosophical Transactions. His earliest contribution 
 to that store of valuable information which the world owes to the Royal 
 Society, related to an extraordinary meteor, seen in his native county, 
 which resembled a water-spout: this was communicated in 1749, during 
 the life of his grandfather. Fifty years later he was still a correspondent 
 of that Society, but not a Fellow of it. In not seeking to become a 
 member of it, he may have been influenced by the recollection that his 
 grandfather was refused admission into it ; but Whiston does not appear 
 to have felt any resentment towards the Society in consequence. He 
 imputed the withdrawal of his name after proposal solely to Sir Isaac 
 Newton, whom he reports to have said, that if Whiston were elected a 
 member, he would no longer be president. The extreme notoriety of 
 Whiston's theological aberrations is fully sufficient to account for the 
 opposition to him: he himself, somewhat captiously attributes it to his 
 refusing to yield to Sir Isaac, then far advanced in years, that implicit 
 deference which was usually paid to him by others. 
 Mr. Barker died in 1803, in the eighty-eighth year of his age. E. T. B. 
 
OF SRLBORNK. 19 
 
 Inch. Hund. 
 
 From Jan. 1, 1788, to Jan. 1, 1789 22 50 
 
 From Jan. 1,1789, to Jan. 1, 1790 42 00 
 
 From Jan. 1, 1790, to Jan. 1, 1791 32 27 
 
 From Jan. 1, 1791, to Jan. 1, 1792 44 93 
 
 From Jan. 1, 1792, to Jan. 1, 1793 .'. .... 48 56!] 
 
 The village of Selborne, and large hamlet of Oak- 
 hanger, with the single farms, and many scattered 
 
 from his experience as to the mean rain at Selborne, and.as to its quantity 
 in comparison with other places. The table, as supplied in the text, fur- 
 nishes materials for such a purpose. Within the period embraced in it, 
 the average quantity of rain that fell at Selborne in each year was 36-41 
 inches : the largest quantity was in 1782, a year in which much rain fell 
 everywhere in England, and when, at Selborne, it amounted to 50-26 
 inches: the smallest was in 1788, in which the registers kept elsewhere 
 show equally a deficiency ; in this year the Selborne rain was only 22f 
 inches. 
 
 From the simultaneous observations which were made at Lyndon, in 
 Rutlandshire, it appears that the average quantity of rain that fell there 
 in each year from 1780 to 1793 was 24'171 inches ; the quantity that fell 
 in 1782 was 32-089 ; in 1788, 17-182. Mr. Barker's observations, however, 
 having been carried on for nearly sixty years, we learn from comparing 
 them, that the thirteen years through which the Selborne register was 
 kept, were years in which the quantity of rain exceeded the usual 
 average. In fifty-eight years the mean rain at Lyndon was 22*647 inches. 
 
 During eight of the years included in the Selborne register, observations 
 of the same kind were also made, at the suggestion of Gilbert White, at 
 Fyfield, in Hampshire, and at South Lambeth, adjoining to London. 
 Looking to these eight years alone, a period too short to allow of any but 
 comparative deductions being made from it, there will result the following 
 average quantity of rain fallen, from 1784 to 1791, at 
 
 Inches. 
 
 Selborne 35-35 
 
 Fyfield 25-63 
 
 Lyndon 23-628 
 
 South Lambeth 22-15 
 
 Averaging fifty per cent, more than Lyndon, and upwards of fifty 
 per cent, more than the neighbourhood of London, it may well be said 
 that the quantity of rain that falls at Selborne is very considerable. The 
 excess, as is stated in the text, is altogether attributable to local circum- 
 stances. In elevated countries the rain is always more frequent and 
 more abundant than in plains ; the clouds, which would pass over level 
 surfaces, being checked in their course by hills, and pouring down upon 
 them their contents. Trees also, as they rise into the air, affect the clouds 
 in a similar manner, though not to the same extent, as hills and moun- 
 tains : the greater their mass and elevation, the nearer do they approach 
 to the form and influence which belong to a hill. E. T. B.] 
 
20 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 houses along the verge of the forest, contain upwards 
 of six hundred and seventy inhabitants 3 . 
 
 We abound with poor ; many of whom are sober and 
 industrious, and live comfortably in good stone or brick 
 cottages, which are glazed, and have chambers above 
 stairs: mud buildings we have none. Besides the 
 employment from husbandry, the men work in hop 
 
 3 A State of the Parish of SELBORNE, taken Oct. 4, 1783. 
 
 The number of tenements or families, 136. 
 The number of inhabitants in the street is .... 313 
 in the rest of the parish . 363 
 Total 676 ; near five inhabitants to each tenement. 
 In the time of the Rev. Gilbert White, vicar, who died in 1727-8, the 
 number of inhabitants was computed at about 500. 
 
 Average of Baptisms for Sixty Years. 
 
 Males. Females. 
 From 1720 to 1729, both years inclusive . 6-9 6- 12-9 
 
 1730 to 1739 8-2 7-1 15-3 
 
 1740 to 1749 9-2 6'6 15'8 
 
 1750 to 1759 7-6 8-1 15-7 
 
 1760 to 1769 9-1 8-9 18- 
 
 1770 to 1779 10-5 9-8 20-3 
 
 Total of baptisms of males . . . 515 
 females . . . 465 
 Total of baptisms from 1720 to 1779, both inclusive, sixty years, 980. 
 
 Average of Burials for Sixty Years. 
 
 Males. Females. 
 From 1720 to 1729, both years inclusive . 4-8 5-1 9-9 
 
 1730 to 1739 4-8 5-8 10 6 
 
 1740 to 1749 . 4-6 3-8 8'4 
 
 1750 to 1759 4-9 5'1 10- 
 
 1760 to 1769 6-9 6-5 13-4 
 
 1770 to 1779 5-5 6'2 11-7 
 
 Total of burials of males . ... 315 
 females . . . 325 
 
 Total of burials from 1720 to 1779, both inclusive, sixty years, 640. 
 Baptisms exceed burials by more than one-third. 
 Baptisms of males exceed females by one-tenth, or one in ten. 
 Burials of females exceed males by one in thirty. 
 It appears that a child, born and bred in this parish, has an equal 
 chance to live above forty years. 
 
 Twins thirteen times, many of whom dying young have lessened the 
 chances for life. 
 
 Chances for life in men and women appear to be equal. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 21 
 
 gardens, of which we have many ; and fell and bark 
 timber. In the spring and summer the women weed 
 
 A Table of the Baptisms, Burials, and Marriages, from January 2, 1761, 
 to December 25, 1780, in the Parish of Selborne. 
 
 
 Males. 
 
 BAPTISMS. 
 Females. 
 
 Total. 
 
 Males. 
 
 BURIALS. 
 Females. 
 
 Total. 
 
 MARRI- 
 AGES. 
 
 1761 . . 
 
 8 
 
 10 
 
 18 
 
 2 
 
 4 
 
 6 
 
 3 
 
 1762 . . 
 
 7 
 
 8 
 
 15 
 
 10 
 
 14 
 
 24 
 
 6 
 
 1763 . . 
 
 8 
 
 10 
 
 18 
 
 3 
 
 4 % 
 
 7 
 
 5 
 
 1764 . . 
 
 11 
 
 9 
 
 20 
 
 10 
 
 8 
 
 18 
 
 6 
 
 1 765 . . 
 
 12 
 
 6 
 
 18 
 
 9 
 
 7 
 
 16 
 
 6 
 
 1766 . . 
 
 9 
 
 13 
 
 22 
 
 10 
 
 6 
 
 16 
 
 4 
 
 1767 . . 
 
 14 
 
 5 
 
 19 
 
 6 
 
 5 
 
 11 
 
 2 
 
 1768 . . 
 
 7 
 
 6 
 
 13 
 
 2 
 
 5 
 
 7 
 
 6 
 
 1769 . . 
 
 9 
 
 14 
 
 23 
 
 6 
 
 5 
 
 11 
 
 2 
 
 1770 . . 
 
 10 
 
 13 
 
 23 
 
 4 
 
 7 
 
 11 
 
 3 
 
 1771 x * 
 
 10 
 
 6 
 
 16 
 
 3 
 
 4 
 
 7 
 
 4 
 
 1772 . . 
 
 11 
 
 10 
 
 21 
 
 6 
 
 10 
 
 16 
 
 3 
 
 1773 . . 
 
 8 
 
 5 
 
 13 
 
 7 
 
 5 
 
 12 
 
 3 
 
 1774 . . 
 
 6 
 
 13 
 
 19 
 
 2 
 
 8 
 
 10 
 
 1 
 
 1775 . . 
 
 20 
 
 7 
 
 27 
 
 13 
 
 8 
 
 21 
 
 6 
 
 1776 . . 
 
 11 
 
 10 
 
 21 
 
 4 
 
 6 
 
 10 
 
 6 
 
 1777 . . 
 
 8 
 
 13 
 
 21 
 
 7 
 
 3 
 
 10 
 
 4 
 
 1778 . . 
 
 7 
 
 13 
 
 20 
 
 3 
 
 4 
 
 7 
 
 5 
 
 1779 . . 
 
 14 
 
 8 
 
 22 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 11 
 
 5 
 
 1780 . . 
 
 8 
 
 9 
 
 17 
 
 11 
 
 4 
 
 15 
 
 3 
 
 During this period of twenty years, the births of males exceeded those 
 of females 10. 
 
 The burials of each sex were equal. 
 And the births exceeded the deaths 140. 
 
 [Continuation of the Table of Baptisms, Burials, and Marriages, from 
 January 1, 1781, to December 31, 1834, in the Parish of Selborne. 
 
 1781 
 1782 
 1783 
 1784 
 
 1785 
 1786 
 1787 
 1788 
 1789 
 1790 
 1791 
 1792 
 1793 
 1794 
 1795 
 1796 
 
 Males. 
 
 BAPTISMS. 
 Females. Total. 
 
 Males. 
 
 BURIALS. 
 Females. 
 
 Total. 
 
 MARRI- 
 AGES. 
 
 8 
 
 15 
 
 23 
 
 9 
 
 3 
 
 12 
 
 4 
 
 9 
 
 15 
 
 24 
 
 1 
 
 3 
 
 4 
 
 11 
 
 7 
 
 11 
 
 18 
 
 3 
 
 4 
 
 7 
 
 6 
 
 6 
 
 10 
 
 16 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 11 
 
 3 
 
 8 
 
 9 
 
 17 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 11 
 
 2 
 
 13 
 
 14 
 
 27 
 
 7 
 
 9 
 
 16 
 
 6 
 
 8 
 
 8 
 
 16 
 
 3 
 
 8 
 
 11 
 
 2 
 
 10 
 
 8 
 
 18 
 
 6 
 
 5 
 
 11 
 
 7 
 
 14 
 
 14 
 
 28 
 
 3 
 
 12 
 
 15 
 
 4 
 
 12 
 
 9 
 
 21 
 
 6 
 
 3 
 
 9 
 
 5 
 
 17 
 
 12 
 
 29 
 
 6 
 
 2 
 
 8 
 
 12 
 
 19 
 
 8 
 
 27 
 
 4 
 
 4 
 
 8 
 
 6 
 
 20 
 
 14 
 
 34 
 
 11 
 
 8 
 
 19 
 
 4 
 
 17 
 
 11 
 
 28 
 
 11 
 
 5 
 
 16 
 
 3 
 
 8 
 
 14 
 
 22 
 
 9 
 
 4 
 
 13 
 
 4 
 
 16 
 
 16 
 
 32 
 
 8 
 
 4 
 
 12 
 
 5 
 
22 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 the corn; and enjoy a second harvest in September 
 by hop-picking. Formerly, in the dead months they 
 
 
 Male*. 
 
 BAPTISMS. 
 Females. 
 
 Total. 
 
 Males. 
 
 BURIALS. 
 
 Females. 
 
 Total. 
 
 MARRI- 
 
 AGS. 
 
 1797 
 
 14 
 
 6 
 
 20 
 
 9 
 
 9 
 
 18 
 
 8 
 
 1798 
 
 15 
 
 14 
 
 29 
 
 5 
 
 7 
 
 12 
 
 6 
 
 1799 
 
 5 
 
 16 
 
 21 
 
 6 
 
 5 
 
 11 
 
 3 
 
 1800 
 
 9 
 
 10 
 
 19 
 
 3 
 
 4 
 
 7 
 
 2 
 
 1801 
 
 8 
 
 10 
 
 18 
 
 11 
 
 12 
 
 23 
 
 6 
 
 1802 
 
 15 
 
 10 
 
 25 
 
 4 
 
 3 
 
 7 
 
 5 
 
 1803 
 
 11 
 
 4 
 
 15 
 
 8 
 
 5 
 
 13 
 
 10 
 
 1804 
 
 13 
 
 8 
 
 21 
 
 3 
 
 7 
 
 10 
 
 4 
 
 1805 
 
 9 
 
 12 
 
 21 
 
 2 
 
 4 
 
 6 
 
 5 
 
 1806 
 
 8 
 
 10 
 
 18 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 11 
 
 7 
 
 1807 
 
 13 
 
 9 
 
 22 
 
 8 
 
 1 
 
 9 
 
 11 
 
 1808 
 
 6 
 
 8 
 
 14 
 
 3 
 
 7 
 
 10 
 
 2 
 
 1809 
 
 6 
 
 11 
 
 18 
 
 7 
 
 4 
 
 11 
 
 5 
 
 1810 
 
 13 
 
 10 
 
 23 
 
 8 
 
 6 
 
 14 
 
 6 
 
 1811 
 
 13 
 
 11 
 
 24 
 
 10 
 
 6 
 
 16 
 
 5 
 
 1812 
 
 11 
 
 8 
 
 19 
 
 2 
 
 3 
 
 5 
 
 10 
 
 1813 
 
 12 
 
 9 
 
 21 
 
 8 
 
 8 
 
 16 
 
 11 
 
 1814 
 
 14 
 
 14 
 
 28 
 
 9 
 
 6 
 
 15 
 
 7 
 
 1815 
 
 14 
 
 22 
 
 36 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 11 
 
 4 
 
 1816 
 
 9 
 
 10 
 
 19 
 
 4 
 
 7 
 
 11 
 
 3 
 
 1817 
 
 22 
 
 7 
 
 29 
 
 6 
 
 3 
 
 9 
 
 7 
 
 1818 
 
 9 
 
 13 
 
 22 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 11 
 
 4 
 
 1819 
 
 12 
 
 14 
 
 26 
 
 4 
 
 9 
 
 13 
 
 4 
 
 1820 
 
 10 
 
 11 
 
 21 
 
 4 
 
 10 
 
 u 
 
 2 
 
 1821 
 
 11 
 
 11 
 
 22 
 
 11 
 
 11 
 
 22 
 
 5 
 
 1822 
 
 13 
 
 16 
 
 29 
 
 8 
 
 2 
 
 10 
 
 9 
 
 1823 
 
 12 
 
 12 
 
 24 
 
 12 
 
 4 
 
 16 
 
 3 
 
 1824 
 
 18 
 
 14 
 
 32 
 
 2 
 
 2 
 
 4 
 
 6 
 
 1825 
 
 11 
 
 11 
 
 22 
 
 3 
 
 2 
 
 5 
 
 3 
 
 1826 
 
 32 
 
 16 
 
 38 
 
 10 
 
 4 
 
 14 
 
 17 
 
 1827 
 
 19 
 
 16 
 
 35 
 
 7 
 
 5 
 
 12 
 
 9 
 
 1828 
 
 21 
 
 16 
 
 37 
 
 13 
 
 12 
 
 25 
 
 5 
 
 1829 
 
 13 
 
 15 
 
 28 
 
 14 
 
 15 
 
 29 
 
 6 
 
 1830 
 
 16 
 
 14 
 
 30 
 
 8 
 
 5 
 
 13 
 
 8 
 
 1831 
 
 14 
 
 15 
 
 29 
 
 5 
 
 9 
 
 14 
 
 7 
 
 1832 
 
 16 
 
 19 
 
 35 
 
 4 
 
 5 
 
 9 
 
 7 
 
 1833 
 
 15 
 
 14 
 
 29 
 
 7 
 
 8 
 
 15 
 
 3 
 
 1834 
 
 18 
 
 14 
 
 32 
 
 7 
 
 1 
 
 8 
 
 7 
 
 During the first fifty years of this period the baptisms of males exceeded 
 those of females 52. 
 
 The burials of males exceeded those of females 32 ; and the baptisms 
 exceeded the burials 590. 
 
 Average of Baptisms for Fifty Years. 
 
 Males. Females. 
 
 From 1780 to 1789, both years inclusive . 9-1 11-3 20-4 
 1790 to 1799 ....... .14-3 12- 26-3 
 
 1800 to 1809 . 9-8 9-3 19-1 
 
OP SELBORNE. 23 
 
 availed themselves greatly by spinning wool, for mak- 
 ing of barragons, a genteel corded stuff, much in vogue 
 
 Males. Females. 
 
 1810 to 1819 12-9 11-8 24'7 
 
 1820 to 1829 15- 13'8 28-8 
 
 Total of baptisms of males . . . 611 
 females . . . 582 
 Total of baptisms from 1780 to 1829, both inclusive, fifty years, 1193. 
 
 Average of Burials for Fifty Years.^ 
 
 Males. Females. 
 From 1780 to 1789, both years inclusive . 5'3 6- 11-3 
 
 1790 to 1799 7-5 5'1 12-6 
 
 1800 to 1809 5-4 5'3 10'7 
 
 1810 to 1819 6-1 6- 12-1 
 
 1820 to 1829 8-4 6-7 15'1 
 
 Total of burials of males .... 327 
 females ... 291 
 Total of burials from 1780 to 1829, both inclusive, fifty years, 618. 
 
 Without touching upon the many deductions that might be attempted to 
 be drawn from these data on the state of the population in an agricul- 
 tural and almost isolated parish, extending over upwards of a hundred 
 years, there is one observation which obtrudes itself on the attention. 
 In 110 years, at Selborne, the baptisms have exceeded the burials in the 
 proportion of 7 to 4, and the absolute excess has been 959. If, therefore, 
 the population were rightly assumed in the time of the elder Gilbert 
 White, the parish ought now to contain upwards of 1400 inhabitants. 
 This, however, is not the case. In 1831 the number of its inhabitants was 
 924. There must consequently have been considerable emigration from 
 it. 
 
 The population is thus stated in the returns printed by order of the 
 House of Commons : 
 
 Annual Value of 
 
 Real Property as Population, 
 
 assessed April, 1815. 
 
 Selborne, Parish . .4324 I 1801. I 1811 4 I 1821. I 1831. 
 
 I 762 I 770 | 893 | 924 
 
 The abstract of the answers and returns made at the census in the 
 latter year states the area of the parish at 4410 acres: the number of 
 houses, inhabited, 128; uninhabited, 4 : the number of families, 163; of 
 which were chiefly employed in Agriculture, 91 ; in Trade, 36 ; others, 
 36 : the number of Males, 468 ; Females, 456 ; of Males, 20 years of 
 age, 193 : Occupiers of land, employing labourers, 22 ; not employing 
 labourers, 8 : Labourers employed in Agriculture, 82 ; in Manufacture, 
 0; in Trade or Handicraft, 44; others, 19; Capitalists or Professional, 
 2; other Males, 20 years of age, 16: Male Servants, 0; Female, 14. 
 E. T. B.] 
 
24 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 at that time for summer wear ; and chiefly manufac- 
 tured at Alton, a neighbouring town, by some of the 
 people called Quakers : but from circumstances this 
 trade is at an end. 
 
 The inhabitants enjoy a good share of health and 
 longevity ; and the parish swarms with children. 
 
 
 
 AITKOACil TO THE VILI.AGK. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 25 
 
 LETTER VI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 SHOULD I omit to describe with some exactness the 
 forest of Wolmer, of which three-fifths perhaps lie in 
 this parish, my account of Selborne would be very 
 imperfect: as it is a district abounding with many 
 curious productions, both animal and vegetable; and 
 has often afforded me much entertainment both as a 
 sportsman and as a naturalist. 
 
 The royal forest of Wolmer is a tract of land of 
 about seven miles in length, by two and a half in 
 breadth, running nearly from north to south, and is 
 abutted on, to begin to the south, and so to proceed 
 eastward, by the parishes of Greatham, Lysse, Rogate, 
 and Trotton, in the county of Sussex ; by Bramshot, 
 Hedleigh, and Kingsley. This royalty consists entirely 
 of sand covered with heath and fern ; but is somewhat 
 diversified with hills and dales, without having one 
 standing tree in the whole extent. In the bottoms, 
 where the waters stagnate, are many bogs, which 
 formerly abounded with subterraneous trees ; though 
 Dr. Plot says positively 1 , that there never were any 
 fallen trees hidden in the mosses of the southern 
 counties. But he was mistaken ; for I myself have 
 seen cottages on the verge of this wild district, whose 
 timbers consisted of a black hard wood, looking like 
 oak, which the owners assured me they procured from 
 the bogs by probing the soil with spits, or some such 
 instruments ; but the peat is so much cut out, and the 
 moors have been so well examined, that none has 
 
 1 See his History of Staffordshire. 
 
26 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 been found of late 2 . Besides the oak, I have also 
 been shown pieces of fossil wood of a paler colour, 
 and softer nature, which the inhabitants called iir : 
 but upon a nice examination, and trial by fire, I could 
 discover nothing resinous in them ; and therefore rather 
 suppose that they were parts of a willow or alder, or 
 some such aquatic tree 3 . 
 
 a Old people have assured me that, on a winter's morning, they have 
 discovered these trees, in the bogs, by the hoar frost, which lay longer 
 over the space where they were concealed than on the surrounding 
 morass. Nor does this seem to be a fanciful notion, but consistent with 
 true philosophy. Dr. Hales saith, That the warmth of the earth, at 
 some depth under ground, has an influence in promoting a thaw, as well 
 as the change of the weather from a freezing to a thawing state, is 
 manifest from this observation, viz. Nov. 29, 1731, a little snow having 
 fallen in the night, it was, by eleven the next morning, mostly melted 
 away on the surface of the earth, except in several places in Bushy Park, 
 where there were drains dug and covered with earth, on which the snow 
 continued to lie, whether those drains were full of water or dry ; as also 
 where elm-pipes lay under ground ; a plain proof this, that those drains 
 intercepted the warmth of the earth from ascending from greater depths 
 below them : for the snow lay where the drain had more than four feet 
 depth of earth over it. It continued also to lie on thatch, tiles, and the 
 tops of walls." See Hales's H&mastatics, p. 360. Quere, Might not such 
 observations be reduced to domestic use, by promoting the discovery of 
 old obliterated drains and wells about houses ; and, in Roman stations 
 and camps, lead to the finding of pavements, baths, and graves, and other 
 hidden relics of curious antiquity ? 
 
 [Some additional instances evidencing the ascent of warmth from beneath 
 the surface, are given by the author in his letter to Daines Barrington, 
 numbered LXI ; in which he describes the effects of the short but intense 
 frost of 1768. E. T. B.] 
 
 3 A more recent instance of the occurrence of a log of the bog-oak is 
 recorded by Gilbert White in Letter LIX. to Daines Barrington : and the 
 stock is yet by no means exhausted, although fifty years have elapsed 
 since the time at which he wrote. The sides of the peat-moor to the 
 north-east of Wolmer pond show many heaps of chumps and stumps of 
 trees dug by the labourers, in the prosecution of their cuttings, from the 
 bog and the turf above it. Oak, and fir, and birch are certainly included 
 among them. They are in various stages of carbonization, dependent 
 on their position, or, in other words, on the length of time during which 
 they have been subjected to the action of moisture and pressure. Those 
 which occur among the peat are converted throughout their entire substance 
 into a charcoal, which is generally rather brown than black : of this 
 kind all the pieces that I observed were of small diameter, not exceeding 
 
OF SELBORNE. 27 
 
 This lonely domain is a very agreeable haunt for 
 many sorts of wild fowls, which riot only frequent it in 
 the winter, but breed there in the summer ; such as 
 lapwings, snipes, wild-ducks, and, as I have discovered 
 within these few years, teals. Partridges in vast plenty 
 are bred in good seasons on the verge of this forest, 
 into which they love to make excursions : and in parti- 
 cular, in the dry summers of 1740 and 1741, and some 
 years after, they swarmed to such a degree; that parties 
 of unreasonable sportsmen killed twenty and sometimes 
 thirty brace in a day. 
 
 But there was a nobler species of game in this 
 forest, now extinct, which I have heard old people say 
 abounded much before shooting flying became so com- 
 mon, and that was the heath-cock, or black game. 
 When I was a little boy I recollect one corning now 
 and then to my father's table. The last pack remem- 
 bered, was killed about thirty-five years ago ; and 
 within these ten years one solitary gray hen was 
 sprung by some beagles in beating for a hare. The 
 
 three or four inches. On some of them the character of the oak bark was 
 well preserved. Above the peat is a layer of sand of eighteen inches or 
 two feet in thickness. On the top of this rests a thick layer of turf; 
 consisting of the blended roots of many generations of heath and other 
 plants, and approaching, in its lower part, to the character of the genuine 
 bog. It is from this compact layer that the greater number of the larger 
 blocks are obtained. Most of them exhibit but little of the charred 
 appearance ; their character is rather that of washed and bleached timber. 
 They are of comparatively recent date ; and, although no trees, nor even 
 shrubs, are now growing by this peat-moor, stumps are occasionally 
 stumbled against, among the heath, which belong, most probably, to the 
 same era with the bleached and larger trunks. To the trunks the comr 
 mencement of the roots remain, in most instances, attached ; and the 
 almost horizontal mode in which the main roots spread away from the 
 base of the stem, is quite in accordance with their having grown in a 
 soil difficult to be penetrated, and retaining moisture near the surface 
 alone. Among this bleached kind of upper bog timber there were, 
 towards the end of 1835, many stumps of oak of six and seven feet in 
 length and of thirty to forty inches in circumference ; portions of fir of 
 thirty inches in circumference ; and the lower part of one well-grown 
 stem of a young fir, fifteen feet in length and about five inches in 
 diameter. E. T. B. 
 
28 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 sportsman cried out, " A hen pheasant ;" but a gentle- 
 man present, who had often seen black game in the 
 north of England, assured me that it was a gray hen 4 . 
 
 Nor does the loss of our black game prove the only 
 gap in the Fauna Selborniensis ; for another beautiful 
 link in the chain of beings is wanting, I mean the red 
 deer, which toward the beginning of this century 
 amounted to about five hundred head, and made a 
 stately appearance. There is an old keeper, now alive, 
 named Adams, whose great grandfather (mentioned in 
 a perambulation taken in 1635), grandfather, father, and 
 self, enjoyed the head keepership of Wolmer forest in 
 succession for more than a hundred years. This person 
 assures me, that his father has often told him that 
 Queen Anne, as she was journeying on the Portsmouth 
 road, did not think the forest of Wolmer beneath her 
 royal regard. For she came out of the great road at 
 Lippock, which is just by, and reposing herself on a 
 bank smoothed for that purpose, lying about half a mile 
 to the east of Wolmer-pond, and still called Queen's- 
 bank, saw with great complacency and satisfaction the 
 whole herd of red deer brought by the keepers along the 
 vale before her, consisting then of about five hundred 
 head. A sight this, worthy the attention of the greatest 
 sovereign ! But he farther adds that, by means of the 
 Waltham blacks, or, to use his own expression, as soon 
 as they began blacking, they were reduced to about fifty 
 head, and so continued decreasing till the time of the 
 late Duke of Cumberland. It is now more than thirty 
 years ago that his highness sent down a huntsman, and 
 six yeomen-prickers, in scarlet jackets laced with gold, 
 attended by the stag-hounds; ordering them to take 
 every deer in this forest alive, and to convey them in 
 carts to Windsor. In the course of the summer they 
 caught every stag, some of which showed extraordinary 
 
 4 Black game still occur on the forest; and a few of them are shot 
 there almost every winter. On Bagshot Heath they yet remain ; and 
 even the red game has occasionally been met with. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 29 
 
 diversion : but, in the following winter, when the hinds 
 were also carried off, such fine chases were exhibited 
 as served the country people for matter of talk and 
 wonder for years afterwards. I saw myself one of the 
 yeomen-prickers single out a stag from the herd, and 
 must confess that it was the most curious feat of acti- 
 vity I ever beheld, superior to any thing in Mr. Astley's 
 riding-school. The exertions made by the horse and 
 deer much exceeded all my expectations ; though the 
 former greatly excelled the latter in speed. When the 
 devoted deer was separated from his companions, they 
 gave him, by their watches, law, as they called it, for 
 twenty minutes ; when, sounding their horns, the stop- 
 dogs were permitted to pursue, and a most gallant 
 scene ensued. 
 
 LETTER VII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 THOUGH large herds of deer do much harm to the 
 neighbourhood, yet the injury to the morals of the 
 people is of more moment than the loss of their crops. 
 The temptation is irresistible ; for most men are sports- 
 men by constitution : and there is such an inherent 
 spirit for hunting in human nature, as scarce any 
 inhibitions can restrain. Hence, towards the beginning 
 of this century, all this country was wild about deer- 
 stealing. Unless he was a hunter, as they affected to 
 call themselves, no young person was allowed to be pos- 
 sessed of manhood or gallantry. The Waltham blacks 
 at length committed such enormities, that government 
 was forced to interfere with that severe and sanguinary 
 act called the black act 1 , which now comprehends 
 more felonies than any law that ever was framed 
 before. And, therefore, a late Bishop of Winchester, 
 
 1 Statute 9 Geo. I. c. 22. 
 
30 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 when urged to restock Waltham-chase *, refused, from 
 a motive worthy of a prelate, replying that " It had 
 done mischief enough already." 
 
 Our old race of deer stealers are hardly extinct yet : 
 it was but a little while ago that, over their ale, they 
 used to recount the exploits of their youth ; such as 
 watching the pregnant hind to her lair, and, when the 
 calf was dropped, paring its feet with a penknife to the 
 quick to prevent its escape, till it was large and fat 
 enough to be killed ; the shooting at one of their neigh- 
 bours with a bullet in a turnip-field by moonshine, 
 mistaking him for a deer ; and the losing a dog in the 
 following extraordinary manner: Some fellows sus- 
 pecting that a calf new-fallen was deposited in a 
 certain spot of thick fern, went, with a lurcher, to 
 surprise it ; when the parent-hind rushed out of the 
 brake, and, taking a vast spring with all her feet close 
 together, pitched upon the neck of the dog, and broke 
 it short in two. 
 
 Another temptation to idleness and sporting was a 
 number of rabbits, which possessed all the hillocks and 
 
 3 This chase remains unstocked to this day : the Bishop was Dr. 
 Hoadley. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 31 
 
 dry places ; but these being inconvenient to the hunts- 
 men, on account of their burrows, when they came to 
 take away the deer, they permitted the country people 
 to destroy them all. 
 
 Such forests and wastes, when the allurements to 
 irregularities are removed, are of considerable service 
 to neighbourhoods that verge upon them, by furnishing 
 them with peat and turf for their firing ; with fuel for 
 the burning their lime ; and with ashes for their grasses ; 
 and by maintaining their geese and their stock of young 
 cattle at little or no expense. 
 
 The manor farm of the parish of Greatham has an 
 admitted claim, I see (by an old record taken from the 
 Tower of London), of turning all live stock on the 
 forest, at proper seasons, bidentibus exceptis 3 . The 
 reason, I presume, why sheep 4 are excluded, is, be- 
 cause, being such close grazers, they would pick out all 
 the finest grasses, and hinder the deer from thriving 5 . 
 
 Though (by statute 4 and 5 W. and Mary, c. 23), 
 " to burn on any waste, between Candlemas and Mid- 
 summer, any grig, ling, heath and furze, goss or fern, 
 is punishable with whipping and confinement in the 
 house of correction 6 ;" yet, in this forest, about March 
 
 3 For this privilege the owner of that estate used to pay to the king 
 annually seven bushels of oats. 
 
 4 In the Holt, where a full stock of fallow-deer has been kept up till 
 lately, no sheep are admitted to this day. 
 
 5 Sheep obtain the first pair of central permanent incisors when about 
 fourteen months old, and are then occasionally referred to by the term 
 bidentes. 
 
 It is singular that sheep with a single row of incisor teeth pressing 
 against a cartilaginous pad, should be able to bite closer than a horse 
 with a well matched double row of teeth ; but it is a well known fact 
 that a horse would be starved on downs where sheep thrive. W. Y. 
 
 6 In Scotland where the extensive burnings of heath are common, the 
 prohibited months have reference to the preservation of the eggs and 
 young of grouse and other game, as little other inconvenience is apt to 
 ensue when no woods are in the vicinity. It is a very splendid spectacle 
 to see, during a dai'k night, the skirts of a mountain range as far as the 
 eye can reach, enveloped in one expanded sheet of fire and flarne. Even 
 in the daytime, the pale blue smoke of Muir-burn, as it is termed, is a very 
 
32 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 or April, according to the dryness of the season, such 
 vast heath-fires are lighted up, that they often get to a 
 masterless head, and, catching the hedges, have some- 
 times been communicated to the underwoods, woods, 
 and coppices, where great damage has ensued 7 . The 
 plea for these burnings is, that, when the old coat of 
 heath &c. is consumed, young will sprout up, and afford 
 much tender browze for cattle: but, where there is 
 large old furze, the fire, following the roots, consumes 
 the very ground ; so that for hundreds of acres nothing 
 is to be seen but smother and desolation, the whole 
 circuit round looking like the cinders of a volcano ; and, 
 the soil being quite exhausted, no traces of vegetation 
 are to be found for years. These conflagrations, as they 
 take place usually with a north-east or east wind, much 
 annoy this village with their smoke, and often alarm 
 the country ; and, once in particular, I remember that 
 a gentleman, who lives beyond Andover, coining to my 
 house, when he got on the downs between that town 
 and Winchester, at twenty-five miles distance, was sur- 
 prised much with smoke and a hot smell of fire ; and 
 concluded that Alresford was in flames ; but, when he 
 came to that town, he then had apprehensions for the 
 next village, and so on to the end of his journey. 
 
 On two of the most conspicuous eminences of this 
 forest stand two arbours or bowers, made of the boughs 
 of oaks; the one called Waldon-lodge, the other Brim- 
 stone-lodge : these the keepers renew annually on the 
 feast of St. Barnabas, taking the old materials for a 
 perquisite. The farm called Blackmoor, in this parish, 
 
 fine sight, and gives a peculiar and indescribable aspect to the landscape. 
 The process is productive in the succeeding summer, of an abundant crop 
 of young shoots of heath and grass, upon which the sheep feast luxuri- 
 ously. RENNIE. 
 
 7 The description of the conflagration arising from the heath-fires here 
 mentioned, reminds the scholar of the stubble-burning described in Vir- 
 gil's Georgics, i. 84, and the commentary on the passage, by the elegant 
 and learned Mr. Holdsworth, p. 52. Compare Virgilii ./En. ii. 304. Ovid. 
 Epist. xv. 9. Sil. Ital. vii. 3C5. MITFORD. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 33 
 
 is obliged to find the posts and brushwood for the 
 former ; while the farms at Greatham, in rotation, fur- 
 nish for the latter; and are all enjoined to cut and 
 deliver the materials at the spot. This custom I men- 
 tion, because I look upon it to be of very remote 
 antiquity. 
 
 LETTER VIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 ON the verge of the forest, as it is now circumscribed, 
 are three considerable lakes, two in Oakhanger, of 
 which I have nothing particular to say ; and one called 
 Bin's or Bean's Pond, which is worthy the attention of 
 a naturalist or a sportsman. For, being crowded at the 
 upper end with willows, and with the Carex cespitosa l , 
 it affords such a safe and pleasing shelter to wild ducks, 
 teals, snipes, &c. that they breed there. In the winter 
 this covert is also frequented by foxes, and sometimes 
 by pheasants; and the bogs produce many curious 
 plants 2 . [For which, consult Letter XLI. to Mr. Bar- 
 rington.] 
 
 By a perambulation of Wolmer Forest and The Holt, 
 made in 1635, and in the eleventh year of Charles the 
 First (which now lies before me), it appears that the 
 limits of the former are much circumscribed. For, to 
 say nothing of the farther side, with which I am not so 
 
 1 I mean that sort which, rising into tall hassocks, is called by the 
 foresters torrets ; a corruption, I suppose, of turrets. 
 
 2 Bin's Pond has been drained, and cattle graze in its bed. The 
 covert in which wild ducks and foxes formerly haunted, has almost 
 entirely disappeared. The place has lost much of its attraction for the 
 sportsman ; and the botanist, who might desire to search there for curious 
 plants would now run the risk of being disappointed, as in a thousand 
 other instances, of his expected harvest; deprived, by modern improve- 
 ments, of the soil in which alone his plants would thrive. E. T. B. 
 
 D 
 
34 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 well acquainted, the bounds on this side, in old times, 
 came into Binswood ; and extended to the ditch of 
 Ward le ham Park, in which stands the curious mount 
 called King John's Hill, and Lodge Hill; and to the 
 verge of Hartley Mauduit, called Mauduit-hatch ; com- 
 prehending also Short-heath, Oakhanger, and Oak- 
 woods; a large district, now private property, though 
 once belonging to the royal domain 3 . 
 
 It is remarkable that the term purlieu is never once 
 mentioned in this long roll of parchment. It contains, 
 besides the perambulation, a rough estimate of the value 
 of the timbers, which were considerable, growing at that 
 time in the district of The Holt 4 ; and enumerates the 
 officers, superior and inferior, of those joint forests, for 
 the time being, and their ostensible fees and perquisites. 
 In those days, as at present, there were hardly any trees 
 in Wolmer Forest. 
 
 Within the present limits of the forest are three con- 
 siderable lakes, Hogmer, Cranmer, and Wolmer ; all of 
 which are stocked with carp, tench, eels, and perch : 
 but the fish do not thrive well, because the water is 
 hungry, and the bottoms are a naked sand 5 . 
 
 A circumstance respecting these ponds, though by no 
 
 3 In the beginning of the summer, 1787, the royal forests of Wolmer 
 and Holt were measured by persons sent down by government. 
 
 [According to the Report of the Commissioners here referred to, the 
 forests contain about fifteen thousand four hundred and ninety-three 
 acres, statute measure: but of that quantity about six thousand seven 
 hundred and ninety-nine acres belong to private proprietors ; the rest, 
 being about eight thousand six hundred and ninety-four acres, are forest 
 lands belonging to the crown. The royal forest of The Holt, with its 
 enclosures, comprehends two thousand seven hundred and forty-four 
 acres. Wolmer, with but two enclosures within its precincts, extends 
 over five thousand nine hundred and forty-nine acres. E. T. B.] 
 
 4 The timber of The Holt, at the time of the survey referred to in the 
 preceding note, was valued at .61,100. E. T. B. 
 
 5 In the enumeration made to me by the intelligent keeper at Wolmer 
 Pond, the voracious pike was substituted for the perch, and the eel was 
 omitted. The harsh and unyielding nature of the bottom would be little 
 suited either to the eels themselves, or to the softer animals on which 
 they feed. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 35 
 
 means peculiar to them, I cannot pass over in silence ; 
 and that is, that instinct by which in summer all the 
 kine, whether oxen, cows, calves, or heifers, retire con- 
 stantly to the water during the hotter hours ; where, 
 being more exempt from flies, and inhaling the coolness 
 of that element, some belly deep, and some only to mid- 
 leg, they ruminate and solace themselves from about 
 ten in the morning till four in the afternoon, and then 
 return to their feeding. During this great proportion 
 of the day they drop much dung, in which insects 
 nestle ; and so supply food for the fish, which would be 
 poorly subsisted but from this contingency. Thus Na- 
 ture, who is a great economist, converts the recreation 
 of one animal to the support of another! Thomson, 
 who was a nice observer of natural occurrences, did 
 not let this pleasing circumstance escape him. He 
 says, in his Summer, 
 
 " A various group the herds and flocks compose : 
 
 on the grassy bank 
 
 Some ruminating lie ; while others stand 
 Half in the flood, and often bending, sip 
 The circling surface." 
 
 Wolmer-pond, so called, I suppose, for eminence sake, 
 is a vast lake for this part of the world, containing, in 
 its whole circumference, two thousand six hundred and 
 forty-six yards, or very near a mile and a half. The 
 length of the north-west and opposite side is about 
 seven hundred and four yards, and the breadth of the 
 south-west end about four hundred and fifty-six yards. 
 This measurement, which I caused to be made with 
 good exactness, gives an area of about sixty-six acres 
 exclusive of a large irregular arm at the north-east 
 corner, which we did not take into the reckoning. 
 
 On the face of this expanse of waters, and perfectly 
 secure from fowlers, lie all day long, in the winter sea- 
 son, vast flocks of ducks, teals, and widgeons, of various 
 denominations ; where they preen and solace and rest 
 
 D2 
 
3b NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 themselves, till towards sunset, when they issue forth 
 in little parties (for in their natural state they are all 
 birds of the night) to feed in the brooks and meadows ; 
 returning again with the dawn of the morning. Had 
 this lake an arm or two more, and were it planted 
 round with thick covert (for now it is perfectly naked), 
 it might make a valuable decoy. 
 
 Yet neither its extent, nor the clearness of its water, 
 nor the resort of various and curious fowls, nor its 
 picturesque groups of cattle, can render this mere so 
 remarkable as the great quantity of coins that were 
 found in its bed about forty years ago. But as such 
 discoveries more properly belong to the Antiquities of 
 this place, I shall suppress all particulars, for the pre- 
 sent, till I enter professedly on my series of Letters 
 respecting the more remote history of this village and 
 district. 
 
 LETTER IX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 BY way of supplement, I shall trouble you once more 
 on this subject, to inform you that Wolmer, with her 
 sister forest Ayles Holt, alias Alice Holt 1 , as it is 
 called in old records, is held by grant from the crown 
 for a term of years. 
 
 The grantees that the author remembers are Briga- 
 dier-general Emanuel Scroop Howe, and his lady, Ru- 
 
 1 In Rot. Inquisit. de statu forest, in Scaccar. 36 Ed. III. it is called 
 Aisholt. 
 
 In the same, " Tit. Woolmer & Aisholt Hantisc. Dominus Rex habet 
 uiiain capellam in haia sua de Kingesle." " llnin, sepes, sepimentum, 
 parcus: a Gall, haie and haye." Spelman's Glossary. 
 
 [Several additional documents relating to the earlier history of the 
 forests, both that of Wolmer and The Holt, are given in a note on 
 Letter X. of the Antiquities.] 
 
OF SELBORNE. 37 
 
 perta, who was a natural daughter of Prince Rupert by 
 Margaret Hughs; a Mr. Mordaunt, of the Peterbo- 
 rough family, who married a dowager Lady Pembroke ; 
 Henry Bilson Legge and lady ; and now Lord Stawel, 
 their son 2 . 
 
 The lady of General Howe lived to an advanced 
 age, long surviving her husband ; and, at her death, 
 left behind her many curious pieces of mechanism of 
 her father's constructing, who was a "distinguished 
 mechanic and artist 3 , as well as warrior; and among 
 the rest, a very complicated clock, lately in possession 
 of Mr. Elmer, the celebrated game-painter at Farnham, 
 in the county of Surrey. 
 
 Though these two forests are only parted by a nar- 
 row range of enclosures, yet no two soils can be more 
 different : for The Holt consists of a strong loam, of a 
 miry nature, carrying a good turf, and abounding with 
 oaks that grow to be large timber; while Wolmer is 
 nothing but a hungry, sandy, barren waste. 
 
 The former, being all in the parish of Binsted, is 
 about two miles in extent from north to south, and 
 near as much from east to west ; and contains within 
 it many woodlands and lawns, and the great lodge 
 where the grantees reside ; and a smaller lodge called 
 Goose Green; and is abutted on by the parishes of 
 Kingsley, Frinsham, Farnham, and Bentley; all of 
 which have right of common. 
 
 One thing is remarkable ; that, though The Holt has 
 been of old well stocked with fallow-deer, unrestrained 
 by any pales or fences more than a common hedge, yet 
 they were never seen within the limits of Wolmer ; nor 
 
 2 On the expiration of the grant to Lord Stawel, the Commissioners of 
 Woods and Forests resumed possession of The Holt. All the lands held 
 by him, and two-thirds of the formerly open Forest, have been subse- 
 quently enclosed and planted, and now contain as fine young oaks as any 
 plantations in the kingdom. E. T. B. 
 
 3 This prince was the inventor of mezzotinto. 
 
38 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 were the red deer of Wolmer ever known to haunt the 
 thickets or glades of The Holt 4 . 
 
 At present the deer of The Holt are much thinned 
 
 4 In the distinctness thus strongly stated to have existed between the 
 ranges of the fallow deer and the red deer there is, at first sight, some- 
 thing so remarkable as to induce a consideration of the subject as regards 
 the localities and the habits of the animals. 
 
 Than The Holt and Wolmer Forest it is almost impossible for two 
 situations to be more dissimilar. The Holt is on the gault, and has all 
 the richness of meadow and nobleness of oak wood that distinguish that 
 formation. It consequently offered to the fallow deer, while they 
 remained on it, plentiful grazing, abundance of browzing, and open and 
 sheltered glades; advantages suited to the habits of that half domesti- 
 cated race, introduced into this country by man, and still requiring at his 
 hands care and protection. Wolmer Forest, on the lean and hungry 
 sand, scarcely affords any grass, and has no high covert; and the red 
 deer attached to it would have been limited for their provender almost 
 exclusively to the lichens, the heath tops, and the twigs of the very few 
 stunted bushes that occur here and there on its surface : retirement could 
 only have been obtained for them by plunging into the unfrequented 
 hollows interposed between its ridges. The more tender and exotic deer 
 was placed, and it might have seemed almost naturally, in the richer and 
 more sheltered forest of The Holt; the hardier and native race subsisted 
 on the coarse fare of the dreary and cheerless waste of Wolmer. Of the 
 two kinds, the one might have been regarded as approaching in some 
 degree towards the sheep ; while the other would more nearly have 
 resembled, in its enduring habits, the rein-deer or the roe. 
 
 It is not, however, necessary to seek so far for the cause of the perti- 
 nacity with which the different deer adhered to their several ranges. 
 Deer generally, without reference to the habits of particular species, are 
 by no means given to wander from their accustomed haunts. A deer, 
 almost from the moment at which it is born, becomes one of the herd 
 to which its mother belongs, and remains with them, throughout the 
 whole of its life, in the walks which they frequent. In the New Forest 
 there are more than twelve distinct herds of fallow deer, each of which 
 has its own range, and is under the charge of its especial keeper ; and it 
 scarcely ever happens that an individual from any of these herds quits 
 its companions and mingles with those of another walk. Every one of 
 the deer of each particular herd is so well known to its keeper as to be 
 immediately missed by him, if it were to escape; and to be at once recog- 
 nisable in the midst of another herd, had it associated with them. But 
 even a solitary instance of wandering is almost unknown. 
 
 In this case the deer are all of one kind ; for it is of the fallow deer 
 only that I have been here speaking. The red deer now on the New 
 Forest, amounting to about a hundred head, are not recognised as having 
 distinct haunts from the fallow deer: the herds never mix together, it is 
 
OF SELBORNE. 39 
 
 and reduced by the night-hunters, who perpetually 
 harass them in spite of the efforts of numerous keepers, 
 and the severe penalties that have been put in force 
 against them as often as they have been detected, and 
 rendered liable to the lash of the law. Neither fines 
 nor imprisonments can deter them : so impossible is it 
 to extinguish the spirit of sporting, which seems to be 
 inherent in human nature. 
 
 General Howe turned out some German wild boars 
 and sows in his forests, to the great terror of the neigh- 
 bourhood ; and, at one time, a wild bull or buffalo : but 
 the country rose upon them, and destroyed them 5 . 
 
 A very large fall of timber, consisting of about one 
 thousand oaks, has been cut this spring (viz. 1784) in 
 The Holt forest ; one-fifth of which, it is said, belongs 
 to the grantee, Lord Stawel. He lays claim also to the 
 lop and top : but the poor of the parishes of Binsted 
 and Frinsham, Bentley and Kingsley, assert that it 
 belongs to them ; and, assembling in a riotous manner, 
 have actually taken it all away. One man, who keeps 
 a team, has carried home, for his share, forty stacks of 
 wood. Forty-five of these people his lordship has 
 served with actions 6 . These trees, which were very 
 
 said ; but the red deer do not avoid the places to which the others are 
 accustomed to resort. 
 
 A most marked case of the adherence of deer to their respective walks 
 obtains in the Forest of Dean. The Forest adjoins immediately to the 
 High Meadow Woods, the property of Lord Gage, and in both of them 
 fallow deer are kept. The deer of the Forest are all black: those of the 
 High Meadow Woods are pale or spotted. A stray individual from either 
 would be instantly recognised amid the herds of the other. But it never 
 happens that either wanders from its own companions or quits its bounds. 
 E. T. B. 
 
 5 German boars and sows were also turned out by Charles the First 
 in the New Forest, which bred and increased. Their stock is supposed 
 to exist now, remarkable for the smallness of their hind quarters. See 
 an Engraving of one in Gilpin's Forest Scenery, ii. 118. MITFORD. 
 
 6 It appears that the defendants in these actions, though they made a 
 show of resistance, suffered judgment to go by default. The question 
 of right had, in fact, been tried in 1741, and determined against the 
 claimants. Yet notwithstanding this, so soon after as 1788, on the occa- 
 
40 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 sound, and in high perfection, were winter-cut, viz. in 
 February and March, before the bark would run. 
 
 In old times The Holt was estimated to be eighteen 
 miles, computed measure, from water-carriage, viz. from 
 the town of Chertsey, on the Thames ; but now it is 
 not half that distance, since the Wey is made navigable 
 up to the town of Godalming, in the county of Surrey 7 - 
 
 LETTER X. 
 
 TO THE SAME 1 . 
 
 August 4, 1767. 
 
 IT has been my misfortune never to have had any 
 neighbours whose studies have led them towards the 
 pursuit of natural knowledge ; so that, for want of a 
 companion to quicken my industry and sharpen my 
 attention, I have made but slender progress in a kind 
 of information to which I have been attached from my 
 childhood. 
 
 sion of another fall of timber in The Holt, the people of Frinsham again 
 assembled aud carried off openly upwards of six thousand faggots. 
 So difficult is it to convince where interest opposes. E. T. B. 
 
 7 The formation of the Basingstoke Canal has again reduced the 
 distance of The Holt from water-carriage ; which is now accessible, 
 either at Odiham or at Bagman's Castle, within about seven miles. 
 E. T. B. 
 
 1 Pennant, the correspondent for many years of Gilbert White and the 
 esteemed friend to whom the first series of his Letters on the Natural 
 History of his native place were addressed, was among the most active 
 of the scientific and literary characters of his day. At the time when 
 the above Letter was written, the earliest in date of the published 
 correspondence of White, he was busily engaged in the preparation of 
 the octavo edition of his British Zoology : the first edition of that work 
 had preceded it but a few years ; and it was quickly followed by others; 
 and by other works on zoology, and on antiquities, and by tours, topo- 
 graphies, and other productions ; all of which were deservedly popular. 
 For more than forty years his pen was never idle. Industrious himself, 
 he was the cause also of industry in others ; and the enumeration which 
 he gives of the services he did to the professors of the art of engraving 
 
OF SELBORNE. 41 
 
 As to swallows (Hirundines rustica) being found in 
 a torpid state during* the winter in the Isle of Wight, 
 or any part of this country, I never heard any such 
 account worth attending to. But a clergyman, of an 
 inquisitive turn, assures me, that, when he was a great 
 
 by the multitude of plates executed by them for his several works, 
 while it furnishes a list of the principal of his productions, will also 
 afford some idea of the extent and variety of his labours. 
 
 British Zoology, folio ; 132 
 
 British Zoology, octavo or quarto 284 
 
 History of Quadrupeds 54 
 
 Tour in Scotland, the three volumes 134 
 
 Journey to London . . . 23 
 
 Tour in Wales, two volumes 53 
 
 Moses Griffith's Supplemental Plates 10 
 
 Some Account of London, second edition 15 
 
 Indian Zoology 17 
 
 Genera of Birds 16 
 
 Arctic Zoology, two volumes 26 
 
 Systematic Index to de Buffon 1 
 
 Lightfoot's Flora Scotica, two volumes 37 
 
 802 
 
 Of many of these works several editions were required, and the super- 
 intendence of them added to the demands on him for continual devotion 
 to literary pursuits. Many minor works were also published by him, 
 including numerous papers in the Philosophical Transactions. He 
 maintained too an active correspondence both at home and abroad 
 throughout the whole of his life; and numbered among his friends the 
 most distinguished men in the several branches of knowledge which he 
 cultivated. Linnaeus was among his earliest correspondents ; and with 
 Pallas he was in frequent communication. 
 
 " I am often astonished," he says, in his Literary Life of himself, " at 
 the multiplicity of my publications, especially when I reflect on the 
 various duties it has fallen to my lot to discharge, as father of a family, 
 landlord of a small but numerous tenantry, and a not inactive magistrate. 
 I had a great share of health during the literary part of my days. Much 
 of this was owing to the riding exercise of my extensive tours, to my 
 manner of living, and to my temperance. I go to rest at ten ; and rise 
 winter and summer at seven, and shave regularly at the same hour, being 
 a true misopogon. I avoid the meal of excess, a supper ; and my soul 
 rises with vigour to its employs, and (I trust) does not disappoint the 
 end of its Creator." 
 
 Pennant died in 1798, in the seventy-third year of his age ; having 
 survived for more than seven years the literary death which he had 
 anticipated for himself in 1791. -E. T. B. 
 
42 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 boy, some workmen, in pulling down the battlements of 
 a church tower early in the spring, found two or three 
 swifts (Hirundmes apodes*} among the rubbish, which 
 were, at first appearance, dead ; but, on being carried 
 toward the fire, revived. He told me that, out of his 
 great care to preserve them, he put them in a paper 
 bag, and hung them by the kitchen fire, where they 
 were suffocated. 
 
 Another intelligent person has informed me that, 
 while he was a schoolboy at Brighthelmstone, in Sus- 
 sex, a great fragment of the chalk-cliff fell down one 
 stormy winter on the beach ; and that many people 
 found swallows among the rubbish: but, on my ques- 
 tioning him whether he saw any of those birds himself, 
 to my no small disappointment, he answered me in the 
 negative ; but that others assured him they did. 
 
 Young broods of swallows began to appear this year 
 on July the eleventh, and young martins (Hirundines 
 urbica) were then fledged in their nests. Both species 
 will breed again once. For I see by my Fauna of last 
 year, that young broods came forth so late as September 
 the eighteenth. Are not these late hatchings more in 
 favour of hiding than migration? Nay, some young 
 martins remained in their nests last year so late as 
 September the twenty-ninth ; and yet they totally dis- 
 appeared with us by the fifth of October. 
 
 How strange is it, that the swift, which seems to live 
 exactly the same life with the swallow and house- 
 martin, should leave us before the middle of August 
 invariably 3 ! while the latter stay often till the middle 
 of October ; and once I saw numbers of house-martins 
 on the seventh of November 4 . The martins and red- 
 
 3 [Cypselus Apus, ILL.] 
 
 3 In making use of the above remark, under the head of Swift, in the 
 second volume of his British Zoology, 1768, p. 246, Pennant adds : " For 
 these, and several other observations, we owe our acknowledgements to 
 the Reverend Mr. White, of Selborne, Hampshire." E. T. B. 
 
 4 Upwards of a hundred of these birds collected and apparently going 
 off, were seen on the thirteenth of November, 1831, at Dover. W. Y. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 43 
 
 wing fieldfares were flying in sight together ; an uncom- 
 mon assemblage of summer and winter birds ! 
 
 A little yellow bird (it is either a species of the 
 Alauda trwialis, or rather perhaps of the Motacilla 
 Trochilus) still continues to make a sibilous shivering 
 noise in the tops of tall woods 5 . 
 
 The Stoparola of Ray (for which we have as yet no 
 name in these parts) is called, in your Zoology, the 
 flycatcher. There is one circumstance characteristic 
 of this bird, which seems to have escaped observation, 
 and that is, it takes its stand on the top of some stake 
 or post, from whence it springs forth on its prey, 
 catching a fly in the air, and hardly ever touching the 
 ground, but returning still to the same stand for many 
 times together 6 . 
 
 I perceive there are more than one species of the 
 
 3 The Motacilla or Sylvia Trochilus does not make a sibilous shivering 
 noise. The bird meant is the Sylvia sylvicola, called by Bechstein Sylv. 
 sibilatrix.W. H. 
 
 6 This little visitant, the Muscicapa Grisola, LINN., arrives about the 
 same time as the whitethroat and redstart, and during the period of 
 incubation seeks the shelter afforded by our dwellings ; trusting, like 
 the martin and swallow, to the forbearance, while it seems to court the 
 protection, of man. Building most commonly, as White subsequently 
 describes it (in Letter XL.), at the end of a plate (a term employed in 
 Hampshire and Surrey to signify a beam, or rafter, that projects a little 
 from a house or building,) the bird has thence derived two of its local 
 names : in some districts it is called rafter, in others it is known as the 
 beam bird. In open exposed situations it has also acquired the name of 
 bee bird, on account of its being very destructive to hive bees ; not only 
 taking them flying, but waiting for them at the tee hole, or mouth of the 
 hive. But in sheltered places, near houses, and in villages, where 
 insects abound, it appears to be principally known as an expert fly- 
 catcher. G. D. 
 
 Elsewhere the spotted flycatcher is known by other names. Mr. Ren- 
 nie informs us that in Kent it is called the post bird, from the habit 
 described in the text. In Northamptonshire, according to Morton, " This, 
 though called a bird without a name by Mr. Willughby, is well known, 
 and vulgarly called the copweb ; as usually building in the corners of 
 walls, and the like places, where spiders weave their webs." A MS. 
 note by Morton, in the copy of his work in the library of the British 
 Museum, adds, " and also building its nest in part of copwebs, inter- 
 woven with moss, straws, and the like." E. T. B. 
 
44 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 Motacilla Trochilus : Mr. Derham supposes, in Ray's 
 Philosophical Letters, that he has discovered three. 
 In these there is again an instance of some very com- 
 mon birds that have as yet no English name. 
 
 Mr. Stillingfleet makes a question whether the black- 
 cap (Motacilla Atricapilla 7 } be a bird of passage or 
 not ; I think there is no doubt of it : for, in April, in 
 the first fine weather, they come trooping, all at once, 
 into these parts, but are never seen in the winter 8 . 
 They are delicate songsters 9 . 
 
 Numbers of snipes breed every summer in some 
 moory ground on the verge of this parish. It is very 
 amusing to see the cock bird on wing at that time, and 
 to hear his piping and humming notes. 
 
 I have had no opportunity yet of procuring any of 
 those mice which I mentioned to you in town. The 
 person that brought me the last says they are plenty in 
 harvest, at which time I will take care to get more ; 
 
 7 [Cttrrucrt Atricapilla, BECHST.] 
 
 8 A tine cock blackcap, which I purchased in the bird market at Paris, 
 in September, exhibited the migrative agitation about the end of that 
 month, again before Christmas, again in February, and finally on the 
 first of April, beginning at sunset to leap and flutter about the cage for 
 several hours every night, and remaining quiet and frequently sleeping 
 during the day. The agitation continued some weeks each time. I 
 would infer from this that the species migrates more than once after 
 leaving our shores. Dr. Heineken informs us that it is stationary at 
 Madeira : consequently Sir W. Jardine is wrong in thinking our birds 
 retire thither ; but we have no statements respecting the countries they 
 do visit in winter. They certainly go farther south than Gibraltar, 
 where they are only summer visitants. Mr. Lewin, as we are informed 
 by Dr. Latham, once shot a blackcap in January near Dartford, in Kent, 
 which will qualify Mr. White's statement that they are never seen in the 
 winter. RENME. 
 
 An exception, such as the one quoted in the preceding note, can 
 scarcely be regarded as militating against a general rule : in the words 
 of the adage, the exception may rather be said to prove the rule. 
 E. T. B. 
 
 9 The delightful song of the blackcap is beautifully described by our 
 author in Letter XL. The description there given was copied by Pen- 
 nant, in the third edition of his British Zoology, vol. i. p. 375. The 
 blackcap, as Mr. Mitford has remarked, is classed very highly by Dailies 
 Barrington in his scale of singing birds. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 45 
 
 and will endeavour to put the matter out of doubt, 
 whether it be a nondescript species or not. 
 
 I suspect much there may be two species of water- 
 rats. Ray says, and Linnaeus after him, that the 
 water-rat is web'-footed behind. Now I have dis- 
 covered a rat on the banks of our little stream that is 
 not web-footed, and yet is an excellent swimmer and 
 diver: it answers exactly to the Mus amphibius of 
 Linnaeus (See Syst. Nat.), which he says, " natat in 
 fossis et urinatur.' 1 I should be glad to procure one 
 " plantis palmatis." Linnaeus seems to be in a puzzle 
 about his Mus amphibius, and to doubt whether it 
 differs from his Mus terrestris ; which, if it be, as he 
 allows, the " Mus agrestis capite grandi, brachyuros" of 
 Ray, is widely different from the water-rat, both in 
 size, make, and manner of life 10 . 
 
 10 Willughby was the originator of the confusion alluded to. He 
 described the water-rat as having its toes connected together by inter- 
 vening webs ; and his description was published by Ray in the Synopsis 
 Quadrupedum. Linnaeus, believing that such authorities were to be 
 relied on, admitted a rat-like animal, having its hinder feet webbed, into 
 the several editions of his Fauna Suecica ; placing it, in the first of them, 
 where its technical characters directed him, in the genus Castor. Sub- 
 sequently he associated it with the rats ; and referred to it as of doubtful 
 existence, as being perhaps inaccurately described, and as probably to 
 be referred to his Mus terrestris. There can now be no doubt that he was 
 correct in regarding the large rat with a hairy tail of moderate length, 
 which frequents ditches in the summer time, and swims and dives well, 
 and which has on these accounts acquired the name of amphibius, as 
 identical with the one described by him as the terrestris, as having the 
 same outward form and colours, and as being found in burrows : the 
 winter nest of the species is described by White in Letter XXVI. 
 Willughby's error must have been occasioned by his having assumed 
 from a certain habit that a certain structure which he regarded as indi- 
 cated by it must necessarily be coexistent with it: but he should not 
 have forgotten, even for an instant, that natural history is a science of 
 observation, and not of theoretical deductions. 
 
 The Mus agrestis capite grandi, brachyuros, of Ray, is indeed widely 
 different from the water rat : it is the short-tailed field mouse or vole, 
 Arvicola agrestis, FLEM. ; the water rat, or rather water vole, being the 
 Arv . amphibia, DESM. The genera Arvicola and Mus do not belong even 
 to the same primary section of the rodents. E. T. B. 
 
40 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 As to the Falco, which I mentioned in town, I shall 
 take the liberty to send it down to you into Wales ; 
 presuming on your candour, that you will excuse me if 
 it should appear as familiar to you as it is strange to 
 me. Though mutilated, " qualem dices . . . antehac fuisse, 
 tales cum sint reliquice ll !" 
 
 It haunted a marshy piece of ground in quest of wild 
 ducks and snipes; but, when it was shot, had just 
 knocked down a rook, which it was tearing in pieces. 
 I cannot make it answer to any of our English hawks ; 
 neither could I find any like it at the curious exhibition 
 of stuffed birds in Spring Gardens. I found it nailed 
 up at the end of a barn, which is the countryman's 
 museum 12 . 
 
 The parish I live in is a very abrupt, uneven country, 
 full of hills and woods, and therefore full of birds. 
 
 LETTER XI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 SELBORNE, September 9, 1767. 
 
 IT will not be without impatience that I shall wait for 
 your thoughts with regard to the Falco. As to its 
 weight, breadth, &c., I wish I had set them down at 
 the time : but to the best of my remembrance, it weighed 
 two pounds and eight ounces, and measured, from wing 
 to wing, thirty-eight inches. Its cere and feet were 
 yellow, and the circle of its eyelids a bright yellow. As 
 
 11 The species proved to be the Falco peregrlnus of authors; it is 
 common also in the United States, and was called by Wilson the duck 
 hawk. In this country it breeds principally among the rocks and cliffs 
 of the sea-shore, and preys upon water-fowl. W. Y. 
 
 12 The naturalist may occasionally meet with rarities in such places ; 
 and I recollect seeing in Wiltshire the remains of a specimen of the rare 
 sparrow owl ( Noctua passerina, SAV.) thus nailed up to a barn-door, though 
 not in a fit condition to be set up in a cabinet. RENNIE. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 47 
 
 it had been killed some days, and the eyes were sunk, 
 I could make no good observation on the colour of the 
 pupils and the irides '. 
 
 The most unusual birds I ever observed in these 
 parts were a pair of hoopoes (Upupa}, which came 
 
 THE HOOl'OE. 
 
 several years ago in the summer, and frequented an 
 ornamented piece of ground, which joins to my garden, 
 for some weeks. They used to march about in a stately 
 manner, feeding in the walks, many times in the day ; 
 and seemed disposed to breed in my outlet ; but were 
 frighted and persecuted by idle boys, who would never 
 let them be at rest 2 . 
 
 1 The irides of all the British species of true falcons are brown. 
 W. Y. 
 
 2 But few instances have been recorded of the breeding in England of 
 
48 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 Three gros-beaks (Loxia Coccothraustes 3 ^ appeared 
 some years ago in my fields, in the winter; one of 
 which I shot: since that, now and then, one is occa- 
 sionally seen in the same dead season. 
 
 A cross-bill (Loxia curvirostra) was killed last year 
 in this neighbourhood 4 . 
 
 that rare and occasional visitant, the hoopoe. The one mentioned in the 
 text is the earliest promise of an attempt at breeding here that I am 
 aware of. It is referred to by both Pennant and Montagu. E. T. B. 
 
 3 [Coccothraustes vulgaris, FLEM.] 
 
 4 The most curious account of the cross-bill was published by Dr. 
 Townson, who kept them tame. See his Tracts on Natural History, 
 
 p. 116. MlTFORI). 
 
 My friend Mr. Yarrell has published, in the fourth volume of the 
 Zoological Journal, an excellent and detailed anatomy of the muscles 
 by which the singular beak and tongue of the cross-bill are made to 
 serve the peculiar purposes for which they are designed. The most 
 powerful muscles are those which are devoted to the laterally separating 
 from each other of the points of the crossed jaws ; an apparent deformity 
 in the structure of the bird, but in reality a modification of the usual 
 adjustment of the organs essential to the special wants of the cross-bill. 
 " The great pine forests," says Mr. Townson, " such as the Hartz in 
 Germany, are the natural places of residence of the cross-beaks, and the 
 seed of the cones of those trees their food ; and it is to pull out the seeds 
 from between the squamae, or scales, of the cones, that this structure is 
 given them. Their mode of operation is thus : they first fix themselves 
 across the cone, then bring the points of the maxillae from their crossed 
 or lateral position to be immediately over each other. In this reduced 
 compass, they insinuate their beaks between the scales ; and then open- 
 ing them, not in the usual manner, but by drawing the inferior maxilla 
 sideways, force open the scales or squamae." 
 
 " At this stage of the proceeding," continues Mr. Yarrell, ' the aid of 
 the tongue becomes necessary, and this organ is no less admirably 
 adapted for the service required. The bone of the tongue has articulated 
 to its anterior extremity an additional portion, formed partly of bone 
 with a horny covering ; narrow in shape, about three-eighths of an inch 
 in length, extending downwards and forwards, with its sides curved 
 upwards, and its distant extremity shaped like a scoop, somewhat pointed, 
 and thin on the edges." Mr. Yarrell describes with greater detail this 
 superadded and distinct portion of the tongue, and the muscles by which 
 it is moved, and their action ; and then proceeds : " While, therefore, the 
 points of the beak press the shell from the body of the cone, the tongue^ 
 brought forward by its own muscle (the genio-hyoideus), is enabled by 
 the additional muscles described, to direct and insert its cutting scoop 
 underneath the seed, and the food thus dislodged is conveyed to the 
 mouth : and it will be seen by a reference to the first figure, that when 
 the mandibles are separated laterally in this operation, the bird has an 
 
OF SELBORNE. 49 
 
 Our streams, which are small, and rise only at the 
 end of the village, yield nothing but the bull's head or 
 miller's thumb (Gobius flumatilis capitatus 5 }, the trout 
 (Trutta flumatilis^), the eel ( Anguilla 1 ), the lampern 
 
 uninterrupted view of the seed in the cavity, with the eye on that side to 
 which the under mandible is curved." 
 
 The lateral power of the beak of the cross-bill has called forth expres- 
 sions of astonishment from all who have witnessed its effects. Mr. Town^ 
 son gives some curious instances of them ; and a marked 'evidence of the 
 muscular strength connected with that organ was afforded by a bird kept 
 by Mr. Morgan, which Mr. Yarrell states to have broken off the point 
 of its beak by repeated efforts to draw a flat-headed nail that confined 
 some strong network : it persevered nevertheless, and was eventually 
 successful. A principal occupation with Mr. Morgan's birds was the 
 twisting out of the ends of the wires of their prison, which they accom- 
 plished with equal ease and dexterity : but their repeated success in 
 this operation occasioned the destruction of so many cages that sentence 
 of banishment was at length necessarily passed on those mischievous little 
 beings, whose unceasing delight it seemed to be to disunite all joined 
 substances that were placed within the reach of their bills. E. T. B. 
 
 5 This and the succeeding names of fishes are derived from Ray's 
 Synopsis Avium et Piscium. The use of Ray's names in this department 
 of zoology, rather than of those of Linnaeus, would lead to the suspicion 
 that the author was acquainted with the works of the Swedish master of 
 natural history, through the medium only of the productions of Pennant. 
 At the date of this Letter, the first, or folio, edition of the British Zoology 
 had alone made its appearance ; the first two volumes of the second 
 edition, in quarto and octavo, were in preparation : but these extended 
 no farther than the mammals and birds of Britain. The third volume of 
 the second edition of the British Zoology, in which the fishes were for 
 the first time enumerated, was not published till 1T69. The information 
 in the text was no doubt communicated in answer to queries having for 
 their object the improvement of Pennant's forthcoming work. 
 
 The fish here alluded to is the Coitus Go/no, LINN. E. T. B. 
 
 6 [Salmo Fario, LINN.] 
 
 7 In the absence of some definite character the fish here alluded to 
 cannot be safely referred to any of those species of eels, which a more 
 correct acquaintance with them has rendered it necessary for modern 
 ichthyologists to distinguish in the British rivers. It is to the acuteness 
 of Mr. Yarrell that we are originally indebted for most of our information 
 on this subject, which has been partly communicated through the medium 
 of the Zoological Society, and partly in other detached notices j and more 
 recently, in a defined and systematic form, in the Rev. L. Jenyns's Manual 
 of British Vertebrated Animals. Before this volume is published figures 
 and descriptions of them, by Mr. Yarrell himself, will have appeared in 
 his excellent work on British Fishes. 
 
 E 
 
50 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 (Lampetra parva et fluviatilis B J, and the stickle-back 
 (Pisciculus aculeatus g ). 
 
 To enable the reader to distinguish between them, their specific dif- 
 ferences may be thus noted. 
 
 In the sharp-nosed eel, Anguilla acutirostris, YARR., the snout is acute, 
 and compressed at the sides ; the gape does not extend farther back 
 than the middle of the eye ; and about one-third of the entire length of 
 the fish is situated in front of the commencement of the dorsal fin, and 
 between one-eighth and one-ninth before the pectorals. This species is 
 common throughout the country, and attains a considerable size ; mea- 
 suring two, three, or four feet in length, and sometimes more. 
 
 In the broad-nosed eel, Ang. latirostris, YARR., the snout is broad and 
 rounded ; the gape extends as far backwards as the hinder edge of the 
 orbit; and more than one-third of the entire length of the fish is in front 
 of the dorsal, and one-seventh in front of the pectoral fins. It rarely 
 exceeds two feet in length ; and appears to be almost equally common 
 with the preceding. 
 
 In the snigeel, Ang. mediorostris, YARR., the snout is rather long and 
 moderately broad ; the gape does not extend quite so far back as the 
 posterior edge of the orbit; there is rather less than one-third of the 
 entire length of the fish before the dorsal, and between one-seventh and 
 one-eighth before the pectoral fins. 
 
 Mr. Yarrell's specimens of the last were obtained from the river Avon. 
 It appears not to acquire so large a size as either of the others ; seldom 
 exceeding half a pound in weight: while the broad-nosed eel has been 
 known to weigh five pounds, and the sharp-nosed has even acquired the 
 enormous weight of twenty-eight pounds. 
 
 The more extensively these characters are tested in different localities, 
 the more assured will be our knowledge of the species of eels, of their 
 distribution, and of their habits : all subjects of considerable interest. 
 E. T. B. 
 
 8 [Ammoccetes branchialis, DUM.] 
 
 8 On the stickle-back of the text a remark must be made, similar to 
 that which was elicited by the eel. Where, in the days of Gilbert White, 
 only one species was believed to exist, it is now known that there are 
 several. Cuvier clearly distinguished three, and indicated others, that 
 had previously been confounded under the common name of Gasterosteus 
 aculeatus ; and Mr. Yarrell subsequently made known the fact that these 
 several kinds were found in England also. In his History of British 
 Fishes he has given figures and descriptions of four different kinds of 
 three-spined stickle-back s, as well as of a four-spined species. The 
 latter was obtained from the neighbourhood of Edinburgh, and is 
 regarded as altogether new; it is the Gast. spinulosus of Messrs. Yarrell 
 and Jenyns. 
 
 It is easy to distinguish between the several kinds of three-spined 
 stickle-backs, if attention be paid to the manner in which their sides are 
 covered. If the bony plates which spread away from the lateral line 
 
OF SELBORNE. 51 
 
 We are twenty miles from the sea, and almost as 
 many from a great river, and therefore see but little of 
 seabirds. As to wild fowls, we have a few teams of 
 ducks bred in the moors where the snipes breed ; and 
 multitudes of widgeons and teals in hard weather fre- 
 quent our lakes in the forest. 
 
 Having some acquaintance with a tame brown owl, 
 I find that it casts up the fur of mice, and the feathers 
 of birds, in pellets, after the manner of fiawks : when 
 full, like a dog, it hides what it cannot eat. 
 
 The young of the barn-owl are not easily raised, as 
 they want a constant supply of fresh mice : whereas 
 the young of the brown owl will eat indiscriminately 
 all that is brought ; snails, rats, kittens, puppies, mag- 
 pies, and any kind of carrion or offal. 
 
 The house-martins have eggs still, and squab-young. 
 The last swift I observed was about the twenty-first of 
 August ; it was a straggler. 
 
 Red-starts, fly-catchers, white-throats, and Reguli 
 non cristati, still appear ; but I have seen no blackcaps 
 lately. 
 
 I forgot to mention that I once saw, in Christ Church 
 college quadrangle in Oxford, on a very sunny warm 
 morning, a house-martin flying about, and settling on 
 the parapets, so late as the twentieth of November. 
 
 both above and below it, for the protection of the otherwise naked sides 
 of the fish, are extended along the whole of the side as far as the caudal 
 fin, it is the rough-tailed stickle-back, Cast, trachurus, Cuv. and VAL. : 
 if these bony plates do not extend farther backwards than the line of the 
 vent, it is the half-armed stickle-back, Gast. semiarmatus, Cuv. and VAL.: 
 if the lateral plates reach no farther backwards than the end of the 
 pectoral fin, it is either the smooth-tailed stickle-back, Gast. leiurus, Cuv. 
 and VAL., with the dorsal spines or stickles about one-sixth of the height 
 of the body ; or the short-spined stickle-back, Gast. brachycentrus , Cuv. 
 and VAL., with the dorsal spines not more than one-twelfth of the height 
 of the body. The latter is the largest of the stickle-backs found in the 
 United Kingdom : it occurs in the north of Ireland. 
 
 Including the ten-spined species, six distinct kinds of stickle-backs 
 are now known to inhabit the fresh waters of these islands ; and there are 
 few situations in which four of them, or at the least three, may not be 
 caught in the ponds and rivers. E. T. B. 
 
 E2 
 
52 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 At present I know only two species of bats, the com- 
 mon Vespertilio murinus 10 and the Vespertilio auritus n . 
 
 I was much entertained last summer with a tame bat, 
 which would take flies out of a person's hand. If you 
 gave it any thing to eat, it brought its wings round 
 before the mouth, hovering and hiding its head in the 
 manner of birds of prey when they feed 12 . The adroit- 
 ness it showed in shearing off the wings of the flies, 
 which were always rejected, was worthy of observation, 
 and pleased me much 13 . Insects seemed to be most 
 acceptable, though it did not refuse raw flesh when 
 offered : so that the notion, that bats go down chimneys 
 and gnaw men's bacon, seems no improbable story. 
 While I amused myself with this wonderful quadruped, 
 I saw it several times confute the vulgar opinion, that 
 bats when down on a flat surface cannot get on the 
 wing again, by rising with great ease from the floor. It 
 ran, I observed, with more dispatch than I was aware 
 of; but in a most ridiculous and grotesque manner 14 . 
 
 10 Probably the pipistrelle bat, Vespertilio Pipistrellus, GMEL. E. T. B. 
 
 II [Plecotus auritus, GEOFF.] 
 
 12 These particulars were published by Pennant, as favoured to him 
 by White, in the Appendix to the second volume of his British Zoology, 
 1768, p. 500. E. T. B. 
 
 13 I have more than once kept bats in confinement, but none of them 
 exhibited any of the dexterity mentioned by Mr. White. On the contrary, 
 they seemed most remarkable for the awkwardness with which they 
 seized and treated the insects offered to them, and required to have 
 them almost put into their mouths before they perceived them. I attri- 
 buted this to its being unnatural for them to catch their prey except on 
 the wing, like the swallows (Hirundinidte) and the night jars. One of 
 them which I kept under an inverted bell-glass, slightly raised at the 
 edge to admit fresh air, contrived to insinuate the hook of its wing so as 
 to raise up the glass and effect its escape. I once saw one fly into a 
 cottage in Wiltshire, either by mistake, or -probably pursued by some 
 owl ; but notwithstanding the delicacy of tact ascribed to the species by 
 Spallanzani, it did not seem capable of discovering the door, and dashed 
 recklessly about till it was caught*. RENNIE. 
 
 14 I am indebted to Mr. Daniell for the following particulars of the 
 habits of two species of British bats, which were kept by him in confine- 
 
 * Might not this have been owing to the alarm or excitement under 
 which the animal was labouring at the time ? E. T. B. 
 
OF 8ELBORNE. 53 
 
 Bats drink on the wing, like swallows, by sipping the 
 surface, as they play over pools and streams. They 
 
 ment. They were originally given to me as a commentary on the state- 
 ment in the text ; but were subsequently communicated, at my request, 
 to the Zoological Society at its meeting on November 11, 1834. 
 
 " In July, 1833," Mr. Daniell says, " I received five specimens of the 
 pipistrelle bat from Elvetham, Hants ; all of which were pregnant 
 females. There were many more congregated with them in the ruins of 
 the barn in which they were taken; but the rest escaped. They were 
 brought to me in a tin powder canister, in which they had been kept for 
 several days ; and on turning them loose into a common packing-case 
 with a few strips of deal nailed over its front to form a cage, they 
 pleased me much by the great activity which they displayed in the 
 larger space into which they had been introduced; progressing rapidly 
 along the bottom of the box, ascending by the bars to the top, and then 
 throwing themselves off as if endeavouring to fly. I caught some flies 
 and offered one of them to one of the bats, which seized it with the 
 greatest eagerness, and devoured it greedily, and then thrust its nose 
 repeatedly through the bars, with its jaws extended, closing them from 
 time to time with a snap, and evincing the utmost anxiety to obtain an 
 additional supply of this agreeable food. The flies were then offered to 
 the whole of them, and the same ravenous disposition was displayed ; all 
 the bats crowding together at the end of the box at which they were fed, 
 and crawling over, snapping at, and biting each other, like so many 
 curs, uttering at the same time a disagreeable grating squeak. I soon 
 found that my pets were so hungry as to require more time to be 
 expended in fly-catching than I was disposed to devote to them ; and I 
 then tried to feed them with cooked meat : but this they rejected. Raw 
 beef was, however, eaten with avidity ; and an evident preference was 
 given to those pieces which had been moistened with water. The 
 feeding with beef answered exceedingly well, two objects being gained 
 by it : the bats were enabled to feed without assistance ; and my curiosity 
 was gratified by observing them catching flies for themselves. 
 
 " A slice of beef attached to the side of the box in which they were 
 kept not only spared me the trouble of feeding them, but also, by 
 attracting the flies, afforded good sport in observing the animals obtain 
 their own food by this new kind of bat-fowling. The weather being 
 warm, many blue-bottle flies were attracted by the meat ; and, on one of 
 these approaching within range of the bats' wings, it was sure to be 
 struck down by their action, the animal itself falling at the same instant 
 with all its membranes expanded, cowering over the devoted fly, with its 
 head thrust under them in order to secure its prey. When the head was 
 again drawn forth, the membranes were immediately closed, and the fly 
 was observed to be almost invariably taken by the head. The act of 
 deglutition was a laboured operation : the mastication consisting of a 
 succession of eager bites or snaps ; and the sucking process, if I may so 
 term it, by which the insect was drawn into the mouth, being greatly 
 assisted by the loose lips of the animal. Several minutes were usually 
 
54 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 love to frequent waters, not only for the sake of drink- 
 ing, but on account of insects, which are found over 
 
 occupied in swallowing a large fly. Those which I offered, in the first 
 instance, were eaten entire ; but I subsequently observed detached wings 
 in the bottom of the box in which the bats were kept : I never, however, 
 observed the rejection of the wings by the bats, and am inclined to think 
 that they are generally swallowed. The olfactory nerves of the pipis- 
 trelle are acutely sensible, readily distinguishing between an insect and 
 a bit of beef; for when one of them has been hanging at rest, attached 
 by its hinder extremities to one of the bars in the front of its cage, I have 
 frequently placed a small piece of beef within a short distance of its 
 nose, but the beef has always been disregarded ; when, on the other 
 hand, I have put a fly in the same situation, the bat instantly commenced 
 snapping after it. They would eat the beef when they were hungry ; 
 but they never refused a fly, 
 
 " In the day time they sometimes clustered together in a corner of the 
 cage. Towards evening they became very lively, and gave rapid utter- 
 ance to their harsh, creaking notes. The longest survivor of them died 
 after a captivity of nineteen days. 
 
 " My intimate acquaintance with the noctule bat, the species of which 
 Gilbert White appears to have been the first English observer, and for 
 which he indicated the specific name altivolans, commenced on tin Kith 
 of May, 1834. I obtained on that day from Hertfordshire five specimens, 
 four of which were pregnant females. The fifth individual, a male, was 
 exceedingly restless and savage from the first ; biting the females, and 
 breaking his teeth against the wires of the cage in his attempts to escape 
 from his place of confinement. He rejected all food, and died on the 
 18th. Up to this time the remaining four had continued sulky ; but 
 towards the evening they ate a few small pieces of raw beef, in prefer- 
 ence to flies, beetles, or gentles, all of which were offered to them : only 
 one, however, fed kindly. On the 20th one died ; and on the 22nd, two 
 others. The survivor was tried with a variety of food, for I was anxious 
 to preserve her as long as possible ; and as she evinced a decided pre- 
 ference for the hearts, livers, &c. of fowls, she was fed constantly upon 
 them. Occasionally I offered to her large flies, but they were always 
 rejected ; although one or two May chafers placed within her reach 
 were partially eaten. In taking the food the wings are not thrown for- 
 ward in the manner of the pipistrelle, as if to surround a victim and 
 prevent its escape ; the action of the noctule in seizing the meat was 
 similar to that of a dog. The appetite was sometimes voracious; the 
 quantity eaten exceeding half an ounce, although the weight of the 
 animal was no more than ten drachms. It was in the evening that it 
 came down to its food : throughout the day it remained suspended by its 
 hinder extremities at the top of the cage. It lapped the water that 
 drained from the food, and in this, no less than in its manner of feeding, 
 there was a marked distinction between the noctule and the pipistrelle : 
 the latter in drinking raises its head. The animal evidently became 
 quite reconciled to her new position. She took considerable pains in 
 
OF SELBORNE. 55 
 
 them in the greatest plenty. As I was going some 
 years ago, pretty late, in a boat from Richmond to 
 Sunbury, on a warm summer's evening, I think I saw 
 myriads of bats between the two places: the air swarmed 
 with them all along the Thames, so that hundreds were 
 in sight at a time. I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 SIR, November 4, 1767. 
 
 IT gave me no small satisfaction to hear that the Falco 1 
 turned out an uncommon one. I must confess I should 
 
 cleaning herself, using the claws of the posterior extremities as a comb, 
 parting with them the hair on either side from the head to the tail, and 
 forming a straight line down the middle of the back : the membrane of 
 the wings was cleaned by forcing the nose through the folds, and thereby 
 expanding them. 
 
 " On the 23rd of June a young one was born, exceeding in size a 
 newly born mouse ; and having, from its birth, considerable power in its 
 hind legs and claws, by the aid of which it clung strongly to its dam or 
 to the deal sides of the cage. It was nestled so closely within the folds of 
 the membranes as to prevent any observation of the process of suckling. 
 The dam was exceedingly careful of it on the next day also, and was 
 observed to shift it from side to side to suckle it, keeping it still folded 
 in the membranes of the wings : on these occasions her usual position 
 was reversed. In the evening she was found to be dead ; but the young 
 one was still alive. It took milk from a sponge, and was kept carefully 
 wrapped up in flannel ; and by these attentions was preserved for eight 
 days, at the end of which period it died. Its eyes were not then opened, 
 and it had acquired very little hair." G. D. 
 
 With the preceding notes Mr. Daniell also communicated to the Zoolo- 
 gical Society some other particulars respecting the female noctule, 
 which were published in the Proceedings of that body for 1834. These 
 are less adapted to the general, than to the scientific, reader. 
 
 It would seem probable, from the account given in the text of its 
 manner of feeding, that the tame bat observed by our author was the 
 pipistrelle : a bat which he and British zoologists generally, until very 
 recently, confounded with Vespertllio murinus; one of the most common, 
 with one of the rarest of the English species. E. T. B. 
 
 1 This hawk proved to be the Falco peregrinus ; a variety. 
 
 [" It was a variety that differed from our falcon in having the whole 
 
50* NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 have been better pleased to have heard that I had sent 
 you a bird that you had never seen before ; but that, I 
 find, would be a difficult task 2 . 
 
 I have procured some of the mice mentioned in my 
 former letter 3 , a young one and a female with young, 
 
 
 
 THK JMRVtST MOl'SE. 
 
 both of which I have preserved in brandy. From the 
 colour, shape, size, and manner of nesting, I make no 
 doubt but that the species is nondescript. They are 
 much smaller, and more slender, than the Mus domesticus 
 medius of Ray ; and have more of the squirrel or dor- 
 mouse colour : their belly is white ; a straight line along 
 
 under side of the body of a dirty deep yellow ; but the black bars were 
 the same in both." Pennant, Brit. Zoo!., 1768, p. 560.] 
 
 The Falco peregrinus, sent by Mr. White to Mr. Pennant, is a rare bird. 
 One of them was caught some years ago in Norfolk, in a trap baited with 
 a woodcock. Another was killed in January, 1812 (this present month), 
 in Sussex, while fighting with a raven. This falcon breeds in Glenmore, 
 and other rocks in the Highlands. See Pennant's Scotland, vol. i. p. 277. 
 
 MlTFORD. 
 
 2 The specimen of the peregrine falcon mentioned in the text was killed 
 in Faringdon, the parish adjoining on the north-west to Selborne. Another 
 individual, shot at a much later period, on Wolmer Forest, is described 
 in Letter LVII. to Daines Harrington. E. T. B. 
 
 3 [Letter X.] 
 
OF SELBORNE. 57 
 
 their sides divides the shades of their back and belly. 
 They never enter into houses ; are carried into ricks 
 and barns with the sheaves; abound in harvest; and 
 build their nests amidst the straws of the corn above 
 the ground, and sometimes in thistles. They breed as 
 many as eight at a litter, in a little round nest composed 
 of the blades of grass or wheat 4 . 
 
 One of these nests I procured this autumn, most arti- 
 ficially platted, and composed of the blad-es of wheat ; 
 perfectly round, and about the size of a cricket-ball ; 
 with the aperture so ingeniously closed, that there was 
 no discovering to what part it belonged. It was so 
 compact and well filled, that it would roll across the 
 table without being discomposed, though it contained 
 eight little mice that were naked and blind. As this 
 nest was perfectly full, how could the dam come at her 
 litter respectively so as to administer a teat to each? 
 Perhaps she opens different places for that purpose, 
 adjusting them again when the business is over: but 
 she could not possibly be contained herself in the ball 
 with her young, which moreover would be daily increas- 
 ing in bulk. This wonderful " procreant cradle," an 
 elegant instance of the efforts of instinct, was found in 
 a wheat field suspended in the head of a thistle 5 . 
 
 4 I took up one of these little mice in a stubble field in Hampshire, in 
 September, and put it into a cage. The next morning it had produced six 
 young ones, and a few hours after, it had eaten them all up. W. H. 
 
 5 Zoology is indebted to Gilbert White for the addition to its stores of 
 the curious little mouse above referred to, which both by its minute- 
 ness and by the singularity of its habits, is well adapted to attract atten- 
 tion. The notice in the text is the first account that was given of it, 
 and the particulars there recorded, with the additional information 
 contained in some of the subsequent Letters, constituted for many years 
 the whole stock of our knowledge respecting it. Pennant, to whom 
 the facts relating to it were communicated, inserted it immediately in 
 an Appendix to the earliest octavo edition of his British Zoology ; 
 describing it as the less long-tailed field mouse, and acknowledging 
 himself indebted for his acquaintance with it to Gilbert White, whose 
 account of it he published almost entire. Other zoologists were con- 
 tented with copying what Pennant had printed ; with the exception of 
 Pallas, who, ten years later, appears to have described it under the 
 
58 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 A gentleman curious in birds, wrote me word that 
 his servant had shot one last January, in that severe 
 
 name of Mm minutus, asserting at the same time (but erroneously) that the 
 Mus messorius of Pennant, the Hampshire harvest-mouse, is only a small 
 variety of his Mus sylvaticus. Pallas found his animal in birch woods, in 
 several parts of Russia ; but he had not observed it in Germany. It has 
 since occurred in the latter country ; and Dr. Gloger has well described 
 its nest in a paper published in the Transactions of the German Academy. 
 It was beautifully and elaborately constructed of the panicles and leaves 
 of three stems of the common reed interwoven together, and forming a 
 roundish ball suspended on the living plants at a height of about five 
 inches from the ground. On the side opposite to the stems, rather below 
 the middle, was a small aperture, which appeared to be closed during the 
 absence of the parent, and was scarcely observable even after one of the 
 young had made its escape through it. The inside, when examined with 
 the little finger, was found to be soft and warm, smooth, and neatly 
 rounded, but very confined. This nest contained but five young ; but one 
 less elaborately formed, previously examined by Dr. Gloger, was found to 
 afford shelter to no less than nine. The panicles and leaves of the grass 
 were very artificially woven together, the latter being first slit by the 
 action of the little animal's teeth into more or less minute bands or 
 strings. No other substance was used in the construction of the nest, 
 which was altogether without cement, or any means of cohesion save 
 the interweaving of its component parts : it consequently suffered consi- 
 derable disturbance even from the most careful handling, losing in neat- 
 ness of form as much as it gained in its increasing size. 
 
 The fullest account that has yet appeared of the habits of the harvest 
 mouse in captivity has been furnished by the Rev. W. Bingley : his ob- 
 servations are so full of interest as to authorise their introduction here. 
 
 About the middle of September, 1804," he says, I had a female 
 harvest mouse given to me. It was put into a dormouse cage immedi- 
 ately when caught, and a few days afterwards produced eight young 
 ones. I entertained some hopes that the little animal would have nursed 
 these and brought them up ; but having been disturbed in her removal 
 about four miles from the country, she began to destroy them, and I took 
 them from her. The young ones at the time I received them, (not more 
 than two or three days old), must have been at least equal in weight to 
 the mother. 
 
 " After they were removed she became reconciled to her situation ; 
 and when there was no noise, would venture to come out of her hiding- 
 place at the extremity of the cage, and climb about among the wires of 
 the open part before me. In doing this, I remarked that her tail was 
 prehensile, and that, to render her hold the more secure, she generally 
 coiled the extremity of it round one of the wires : the toes of all the feet 
 were particularly long and flexible, and she could grasp the wires very 
 firmly with any of them. She frequently rested on her hind feet, some- 
 what in the manner of the jerboa, for the purpose of looking about her; 
 and, in this attitude, could extend her body at such an angle as at first 
 
OF SELBORNE. 59 
 
 weather, which he believed would puzzle me. I called 
 to see it this summer, not knowing what to expect: 
 
 greatly surprised me. She was a beautiful little animal, and her various 
 attitudes, in cleaning her face, head, and body with her paws, were 
 peculiarly graceful and elegant. For a few days after I received this 
 mouse, I neglected to give it any water; but when I afterwards put 
 some into the cage, she lapped it with great eagerness. After lapping, 
 she always raised herself on her hind feet, and cleaned her head with 
 her paws. She continued even to the time of her death exceedingly shy 
 and timid ; and whenever I put into her cage any favourite food, such as 
 grains of wheat or maize, she would eat them before me. On the least 
 noise or motion, however, she immediately ran off, with the grains in her 
 mouth, to her hiding place. 
 
 " One evening, as I was sitting at my writing desk and the animal 
 was playing about in the open part of its cage, a large blue fly happened 
 to buzz against the wires : the little creature, although at twice or thrice 
 the distance of her own length from it, sprang along the wires with the 
 greatest agility, and would certainly have seized it had the space be- 
 tween the wires been sufficiently wide to have admitted her teeth or 
 paws to reach it. I was surprised at this occurrence, as I had been led 
 to believe that the harvest mouse was merely a granivorous animal. I 
 caught the fly, and made it buzz in my fingers against the wires. The 
 mouse, though usually shy and timid, immediately came out of her 
 hiding-place, and, running to the spot, seized and devoured it. From 
 this time I fed her with insects whenever I could get them ; and she 
 always preferred them to every other kind of food that I offei'ed her. 
 
 " When this mouse was first put into her cage, a piece of fine flannel 
 was folded up into the dark part of it as a bed, and I put some grass 
 and bran into the large open part. In the course of a few days all the 
 grass was removed; and, on examining the cage, I found it very neatly 
 arranged between the folds of the flannel and rendered more soft by 
 being mixed with the nap of the flannel, which the animal had torn off 
 in considerable quantity for the purpose. The chief part of this opera- 
 tion must have taken place in the night, for although the mouse was 
 generally awake and active during the day time, yet I never once 
 observed it employed in removing the grass. 
 
 " On opening its nest about the latter end of October, I remarked that 
 there were among the grass and wool at the bottom about forty grains of 
 maize. These appeared to have been arranged with some care and 
 regularity, and every grain had the corcule, or growing part, eaten out, 
 the lobes only being left. This seemed so much like an operation 
 induced by the instinctive propensity that some quadrupeds are endowed 
 with for storing up food for support during the winter months, that I 
 soon afterwards put into the cage about a hundred additional grains of 
 maize. These were all in a short time carried away ; and on a second 
 examination I found them stored up in the manner of the former. But 
 though the animal was well supplied with other food, and particularly 
 with bread, which it seemed very fond of; and although it continued 
 
(>0 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 but, the moment I took it in hand, I pronounced it the 
 male Garrulus Bohemicus, or German silk-tail, from the 
 five peculiar crimson tags or points which it carries at 
 the ends of live of the short remiges. It cannot, I sup- 
 pose, with any propriety, be called an English bird : 
 and yet I see, by Ray's Philosophical Letters, that great 
 flocks of them, feeding on haws, appeared in this king- 
 dom in the winter of 1685 6 . 
 
 The mention of haws puts me in mind that there is 
 a total failure of that wild fruit, so conducive to the 
 support of many of the winged nation. For the same 
 severe weather, late in the spring, which cut off all the 
 produce of the more tender and curious trees, destroyed 
 also that of the more hardy and common. 
 
 Some birds, haunting with the missel-thrushes, and 
 feeding on the berries of the yew-tree, which answered 
 to the description of the Merula torquata 1 , or rin^-ouzel, 
 were lately seen in this neighbourhood. I employed 
 some people to procure me a specimen, but without 
 success. See Letter XX. 
 
 Query Might not canary birds be naturalized to this 
 climate, provided their eggs were put, in the spring, into 
 the nest of some of their congeners, as goldfinches, 
 greenfinches, &c. ? Before winter perhaps they might 
 be hardened and able to shift for themselves. 
 
 About ten years ago I used to spend some wejeks 
 yearly at Sunbury, which is one of those pleasant vil- 
 
 perfectly active through the whole winter, on examining its nest a third 
 time, about the end of November, I observed that the food in its repo- 
 sitory was all consumed except about half a dozen grains." E. T. B. 
 
 6 This statement is contained in a Letter to Ray from one of his fre- 
 quent correspondents, Mr. Johnson of Brignal, in Yorkshire; who sus- 
 pects " that the wars in those parts have frightened them thence, and 
 brought them hither this winter, (which with us was above measure 
 plentiful in haws,) for certainly they are not natives." The one described 
 by Ray, was obtained in March, 1685-6. As more than one of these birds, 
 killed in Yorkshire, are said by Lister to have been seen by him in 1680, 
 it should seem that at that time, as of late years, the Bohemian chatterer 
 was an occasional, although uncertain, winter visitant. E. T. B. 
 
 7 [Turdus torquatus, LINN.] 
 
OF SELBORNE. 61 
 
 lages lying on the Thames, near Hampton Court. In 
 the autumn, I could not help being much amused with 
 those myriads of the swallow kind which assemble in 
 those parts. But what struck me most was, that, 
 from the time they began to congregate, forsaking the 
 chimneys and houses, they roosted every night in the 
 osier-beds of the aits of that river. Now this resorting 
 towards that element, at that season of the year, seems 
 to give some countenance to the northern opinion 
 (strange as it is) of their retiring under water. A 
 Swedish naturalist is so much persuaded of that fact 
 that he talks, in his Calendar of Flora, as familiarly of 
 the swallow's going under water in the beginning of 
 September, as he would of his poultry going to roost a 
 little before sunset 8 . 
 
 An observing gentleman in London writes me word, 
 that he saw a house-martin, on the twenty-third of last 
 October, flying in and out of its nest in the Borough 9 . 
 
 8 In the Calendar of Flora, Swedish and English, made in the year 
 1755, and published in 1761 by Stillingfleet, among the occurrences of the 
 sowing month (which is defined as extending from the first blow of the 
 meadow saffron to the departure of the swallow) the concluding entry by 
 Linnaeus is " Swallow goes under water :" an entry made with as little 
 hesitation as would occur in the enunciation of the most ordinary and 
 undoubted fact. On this statement, however, Stillingfleet notes thus : 
 " Adanson, in the account of his voyage to Senegal, p. 121, says that in 
 October, 1749, European swallows lodged in the vessel in which he went 
 from Goree to Senegal : and that they are never seen there but at this 
 time of the year, along with quails, wagtails, kites, and some other birds 
 of passage, and do not build nests there. This testimony seems to take 
 away all doubts about this long contested point." E. T. B. 
 
 9 On the 7th of October, 1835, a number of house martins congregated 
 on the roofs of the houses opposite to Cumberland Gate, Hyde Park. 
 They had been gathering for several days previous ; were numerous in 
 the streets; and flew so low, that the boys were trying to catch them in 
 their hats. On the 8th and 9th there were none to be seen. On the 15th 
 a pair were seen, hawking for flies, in Cumberland Crescent. The con- 
 gregating of the emigrants having been observed, and the departure of 
 the multitude being consequently regarded as certain, it became an object 
 of interest to watch this pair; and they were found to have a nest of 
 young at a house in Cumberland Place, fixed in the upper corner of a 
 blank window. On a subsequent visit, I found them feeding their young 
 at the opening of the nest, passing to and fro, in the most rapid manner. 
 
62 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 And I myself, on the twenty-ninth of last October (as 
 I was travelling through Oxford), saw four or five 
 swallows hovering round and settling on the roof of the 
 county hospital. 
 
 Now is it likely 10 that these poor little birds (which 
 
 It was wet, cold, and foggy, witlj only occasional gleams of sunshine : 
 but in spite of the weather these birds continued to fulfil their parental 
 functions with the most persevering assiduity and industry. Taking 
 advantage of every propitious hour to prepare their young for their 
 distant journey, and as if instinctively aware of the necessity of expe- 
 diting their departure, they subsequently appeared to have brought them 
 out earlier than usual, and seemed to be teaching them to fly. They 
 were observed to pass under the young bird when it appeared to be 
 sinking, and were seen to raise its head, assisting it thus in its progres- 
 sion through the air. I saw them on the 23rd of October ; and on the 
 24th they had departed. On the 28th martins were observed at Maida 
 Hill, Paddington : these had possibly been beaten back by the violent 
 storm from the south which occurred on the night of the 25th. G. D. 
 
 10 It is, however, quite certain that young swifts, the moment they leave 
 the nest, have often occasion to make the great migration. See Mr. 
 White's Observation, Letter LI I. to Daines Barrington. The various 
 species of Himndines remain in their nests till they are more completely 
 feathered than other birds, and when they come forth they are matured 
 for flight. I suspect that the troublesome insect, called Hippobosca Hintn- 
 ilinis, is a resource in the scheme of providence, to force them to venture 
 upon the wing from the perilous height at which their nest is placed, by 
 making the abode insupportable. 
 
 Few subjects are more interesting or more difficult to unravel, than the 
 instinct of birds. Instinct is explained by Dr. Johnson, to be desire or 
 aversion acting in the mind without the intervention of reason ; the power 
 of determining the will of brutes. He should have added in some parti- 
 cular cases, for it is not true generally. The will of brutes on many, and 
 indeed on most occasions, is influenced by memory of the past, and appre- 
 hension of the future, as much as that of a human being; and that which 
 is called reason in mankind is, perhaps, rather an improved state of 
 understanding, resulting from mutual communication of ideas through 
 the gift of speech, than a distinct and separate quality. Instinct is, in 
 fact, the immediate agency of the Almighty power on the mind of creatures 
 not endued with speech, which supplies the place of reason, and deter- 
 mines their most important actions : and perhaps in nothing is the uni- 
 versal superintendence of the Almighty more wonderfully displayed, 
 than in its immediate agency upon the minds of the most insignificant 
 creatures. 
 
 The difficulty attending this subject is, to distinguish imitation of the 
 parents, from instinctive propensities. It is well known to those who 
 teach young birds to pipe, or rear them to learn the notes of some better 
 songster, that, unless they are removed from hearing the parents, at the 
 
OF SELBORNE. 63 
 
 perhaps had not been hatched but a few weeks) should, 
 at that late season of the year, and from so midland a 
 
 age of a very few days, they will sing a portion, if not the whole, of their 
 natural melody. In this respect, the power of observation and imitation 
 in the newborn creature displays itself most marvellously, and gives us 
 reason to attribute many other things to similar causes, which we might 
 otherwise have been induced to refer to instinct. Each bird builds its 
 nest in the same form, and of the same materials as its parent, and for 
 the most part in a similar situation. If the callow nestling is studying 
 and learning the song and call of its parents, from the 'moment its eyes 
 are open, why should not the more advanced nestling study every parti- 
 cular of the structure in which it is dwelling, and thus learn to build 
 hereafter in the same fashion and position, and with similar materials ? 
 I can entertain no doubt that such is the case: and if the eggs were trans- 
 posed into the nest of some nearly related species, and the produce kept 
 separate from all others of their own kind, they would, doubtless, make 
 their nests like those of the birds which had reared them, and would 
 adopt their notes. I have observed young blackcaps raised from the 
 nest in a large cage, in which the perches were placed very low, as soon 
 as they fed themselves, show a sudden anxiety at roosting time to find a 
 higher perch, and flutter about so intent upon this as to notice nothing 
 else, and at last settle to roost clinging to the wires near the top of the 
 cage. This appeared like a marvellous instinctive impulse ; but I appre- 
 hend that, while in their native bush, they had noticed the parents every 
 evening, at roosting time, fly upwards to a loftier situation, in which to 
 pass the night. I therefore refer this also to observation. 
 
 I had some cock blackcaps and whitethroats, reared from the nest in 
 May and the beginning of June : they were fed upon bread and ground 
 hempseed scalded. The blackcap is naturally a great devourer of fruit, 
 the whitethroat indifferent about it; but, before they were taken, the 
 young blackcaps had been fed by the parents on caterpillars and maggots, 
 and had tasted no fruit, nor could they have had any, for none was ripe ; 
 not even strawberries, and those, on account of their acidity, they do not 
 touch. After they were grown up, having one day mixed with their food 
 some of the black currant raisins of the shop, I observed the blackcaps 
 immediately pounce upon them, but the whitethroats either neglected 
 them or took them up and let them drop. In this I think that I discern 
 the immediate agency of an Almighty power, suggesting the food most 
 congenial to this species ; for this propensity had not been derived from 
 the habits of the parents. It so happened that the hens of the brood had 
 been placed in a cage at a window of another room, to be fed by the old 
 ones, for some time before they were restored to liberty, for the purpose 
 of observing what food was brought to them; and no fruit was brought 
 to them, nor could any berries have been found in the neighbourhood at 
 that season. 
 
 The next propensity that manifests itself in young birds, is the ardent 
 desire of washing themselves, in some species, and of dusting themselves 
 in others ; as, for instance, in the common wren. This I conceive must 
 
64 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 county, attempt a voyage to Goree or Senegal, almost 
 as far as the equator 11 ? 
 
 be an instinctive incitement. It is barely possible that the little wrens 
 might see through the aperture of their covered nest, the parents dusting 
 themselves on the ground in some instances ; but their 'nests are often 
 placed where this could not be perceived, and the desire is equally pow- 
 erful in all individuals. On the other hand, the nestlings of the wood- 
 wren and many others, which wash themselves eagerly on the first 
 opportunity that presents itself, after they can feed themselves, could 
 never have seen the like, their nests having been situated under the roots 
 of a tree, upon a dry bank in a wood. This impulse is therefore inspired 
 by the Creator : and it is inspired with a force that, in captivity, is like 
 unto madness. It is very injurious to a nightingale to wash in the winter, 
 and it is fatal to it to do so often : yet the moment a pan of water is put 
 into its cage it rushes into the water and soaks itself, and then stands 
 shivering, the very image of chilliness and despair; yet, will it eagerly 
 repeat the operation, if allowed to do so, every day till it dies. Young 
 whin chats, sedge warblers, wood wrens, yellow wrens, &c. as soon as they 
 can feed themselves, if offered water in a cage, wash with similar avidity, 
 yet, if the temperature be much under seventy, and the sun not shining, 
 it is sure to kill them. In the younger birds it produces, some hours 
 after, or perhaps the next day, a sudden stroke of palsy, by which they 
 drop with a scream, having lost the use of one or both legs, and often with 
 the mouth distorted. In this state the general health does not seem to 
 be affected, but if both legs are paralyzed, they must soon perish. At a 
 little more advanced age, the consequence of a single washing in cool 
 weather is epileptic fits, which are repeated at shorter intervals, till they 
 occasion death. In a state of liberty, the bird would dry itself quickly 
 by rubbing against the leaves, and by very active motion, in the same 
 manner as the wrens, by perpetual activity, resist the severest frost, of 
 which the least attack would kill them in confinement; and, probably, 
 when birds have opportunities of washing always at hand, they choose 
 the most favourable moments. In a cage, it is necessary to give such 
 birds their water in a very narrow-mouthed fountain, to prevent their 
 killing themselves by washing. They will repeat it with equal eagerness, 
 if not prevented, till they die ; so strong is the inward impulse. I think 
 the desire of washing belongs most strongly to the birds which migrate 
 to hotter climates in winter ; that of dusting to those which remain with 
 us : a substitution wise as all the dispensations of the Creator, for if the 
 little wren in winter were to wash in cold water instead of dusting, it 
 must perish from the chill. 
 
 The next impulse that shows itself is the mutation of love into anti- 
 pathy, not only in the parents, but amongst the young of several species, 
 which impulse is denominated avri^opyij. As soon as the parents of 
 such species as are not gregarious, have completed the education of their 
 brood, they drive them away, while they perhaps give birth to a second 
 
 11 See Adanson's Voyage to Senegal. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 65 
 
 I acquiesce entirely in your opinion that, though 
 most of the swallow kind may migrate, yet that some 
 do stay behind and hide with us during the winter. 
 
 As to the short-winged soft-billed birds, which come 
 
 family. But this is not all: as soon as the young of many species feed 
 themselves, they begin to fight with each other, though perfectly friendly 
 to birds of any other species in the same cage ; and if they do quarrel with 
 others, they do so more with those of cognate species. ^This appears to 
 be a natural impulse given to them in order to effect th*e dispersion of 
 their kind ; it cannot be the effect of imitation. 
 
 The next impulse that shows itself in young birds is at the season of 
 passage, and I can say, positively, that the desire of migration at the 
 usual periods, is as strong in those which have never been out of their 
 native country, and have been brought up in a cage, as in the old birds 
 that have made the passage. This uneasiness lasts nearly a month, both 
 in the autumn and spring. I have observed, at these periods, that they 
 usually go to roost quietly, but, upon a light being brought into the room 
 after they have been asleep, the bustle commences, and it is very difficult 
 to get them to settle on the perch again. The anxiety is always accom- 
 panied with a looking upwards, and bending the neck quite back, with 
 an aspiring motion of the body, as if the bird wished to soar. At these 
 times, if their perches are near the top of the cage, they bruise their heads 
 against it. It appears from this, as if the rise of the moon were the 
 summons for departure ; and the upward flight is probably necessary at 
 starting, to get above all impediments. It has been often observed that 
 woodcocks come over to us on moonlight nights. From these circum- 
 stances it is evident that birds do not migrate because their food fails 
 them. If it be said that the diminution or increase of temperature is 
 the channel through which they are warned of the necessity to depart, it 
 does not appear that they are distressed by those changes, for they settle 
 very well again as soon as the days of migration are passed, although the 
 alteration of temperature is daily increasing. Indeed the vernal change, 
 instead of creating a wish to depart, in the chilly species, should rather 
 tend to reconcile them to confinement. It cannot therefore be truly 
 averred that their desire of migration is occasioned by the pressure of 
 any inconvenience. 
 
 The result of these observations is, that there are certain impulses 
 given to birds, independent of their early imitative propensities, which 
 seem to proceed directly from the Almighty power that governs the 
 universe. The craniologist may, perhaps, expect to find such impulses 
 modified by the various conformation of their sculls ; but if it were 
 admitted that a particular shape of the head might induce a disposition 
 to migrate, what, but the agency of a higher intelligence, could impel 
 the young bird, reared in a cage by the hand of man, with a pan full 
 of food beside a comfortable fire, to travel north or south. The more this 
 subject is investigated, the more clearly, I believe, the direct agency of 
 God will be discovered. VV. H. 
 
(>6 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 trooping in such numbers in the spring, I am at a loss 
 even what to suspect about them. I watched them 
 narrowly this year, and saw them abound till about 
 Michaelmas, when they appeared no longer. Subsist 
 they cannot openly among us, and yet elude the eyes of 
 the inquisitive : and, as to their hiding, no man pretends 
 to have found any of them in a torpid state in the 
 winter. But with regard to their migration, what diffi- 
 culties attend that supposition ! that such feeble bad 
 fliers (who the summer long never flit but from hedge 
 to hedge) should be able to traverse vast seas and con- 
 tinents, in order to enjoy milder seasons amidst the 
 regions of Africa 12 ! 
 
 LETTER XIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 SIR, SELBORNE, Jan. 22, 17G8. 
 
 As in one of your former letters you expressed the 
 more satisfaction from my correspondence on account 
 of my living in the most southerly county ; so now I 
 may return the compliment, and expect to have my 
 curiosity gratified by your living much more to the 
 north. 
 
 12 There certainly does exist a difficulty in conceiving how some of the 
 birds of passage, such feeble and bad fliers, should be able to migrate to 
 such a vast distance; but some of our wonder will perhaps diminish, 
 when we read an account of the manner in which the quail crosses the 
 Mediterranean, for the coast of Africa. " Towards the end of September, 
 the quails avail themselves of rf northerly wind to take their departure 
 from Europe, and flapping one wing, while they present the other to the 
 gale, half-sail, half-oar, they graze the billows of the Mediterranean with 
 their fattened rumps, and bury themselves in the sands of Africa, that 
 they may serve as food to the famished inhabitants of Zara." St. Pierre's 
 Studies of Nature, vol. i. p. 91. MITFORD. 
 
 Mr. White subsequently arrived at a solution of this difficulty. See his 
 Letter XXXIII. to Pennant; and that to Daines Harrington numbered 
 IX. W. Y. 
 
OP SELEORNE. G? 
 
 For many years past I have observed that towards 
 Christmas vast flocks of chaffinches have appeared in 
 the fields ; many more, I used to think, than could be 
 hatched in any one neighbourhood. But, when I came 
 to observe them more narrowly, I was amazed to find 
 that they seemed to me to be almost all hens. I com- 
 municated my suspicions to some intelligent neighbours, 
 who, after taking pains about the matter, jdeclared that 
 they also thought them all mostly females; at least 
 fifty to one. This extraordinary occurrence brought to 
 my mind the remark of Linnaeus ; that " before winter 
 all their hen chaffinches migrate through Holland into 
 Italy." Now I want to know, from some curious per- 
 son in the north, whether there are any large flocks of 
 these finches with them in the winter, and of which sex 
 they mostly consist? For, from such intelligence, one 
 might be able to judge whether our female flocks migrate 
 from the other end of the island, or whether they come 
 over to us from the continent 1 . 
 
 We have, in the winter, vast flocks of the common 
 linnets ; more, I think, than can be bred in any one 
 district. These, I observe, when the spring advances, 
 assemble on some tree in the sunshine, and join all in a 
 gentle sort of chirping, as if they were about to break 
 up their winter quarters, and betake themselves to their 
 proper summer homes 2 . It is well known, at least, that 
 
 1 Concerning the congregation of cock chaffinches in the winter season, 
 it may be observed that such is not an invariable habit. A pair of 
 chaffinches have frequented my window for food during three winters 
 without interruption, and have grown so tame as to take it while I stand 
 almost touching them. Having no difficulty in procuring sustenance, they 
 continue as paired birds during the whole winter, and in last June and 
 July they used to carry the food away for their young. A pair of robins 
 and hedgewarblers do the same, always making their nest at a very small 
 distance ; and the hedgewarbler even brings its young to the window to 
 feed them there. W. H. 
 
 2 Linnets flock in September, and continue to congregrate till March. 
 At this season they are termed branchers, and assemble in vast numbers : 
 but they are broken up towards winter into smaller (locks, in which the 
 sexes are separate. In March they again assemble, when they are 
 
68 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 the swallows and the fieldfares do congregate with a 
 gentle twittering before they make their respective 
 departure. 
 
 You may depend on it that the bunting, Emberiza 
 Miliaria, does not leave this county in the winter. In 
 January, 1767, I saw several dozen of them, in the 
 midst of a severe frost, among the bushes on the downs 
 near Andover : in our woodland enclosed district it is a 
 rare bird. 
 
 Wagtails, both white and yellow, are with us all the 
 winter 3 . Quails crowd to our southern coast, and are 
 often killed in numbers by people that go on purpose. 
 
 Mr. Stillingfleet, in his Tracts, says that, " if the 
 wheatear (CEnanthe*) does not quit England, it certainly 
 shifts places; for about harvest they are not to be 
 found, where there was before great plenty of them." 
 This well accounts for the vast quantities that are 
 caught about that time on the South Downs near Lewes 5 , 
 
 termed flight birds, and are captured males and females together. At the 
 beginning of April they are taken in pairs. The flocking as the spring 
 advances, when they assemble on some tree in the sunshine, and join all 
 in a gentle sort of chirping, is for the purpose of choosing their mates, 
 and their emigration is only to the nests which the season renders 
 necessary. 
 
 Last season I reared a nest of linnets ; these were very tame, having 
 been brought up by hand. At the latter end of September, having nearly 
 completed moulting their quill feathers, they suddenly became very wild, 
 dropping their wings below their tails, stooping as if preparing to make 
 a start, and fluttering towards the light. This continued upwards of a 
 fortnight The true cause did not at first strike me, and I changed their 
 position, thinking that some object frightened them; but the change of 
 place was without effect, as they still continued wild and shy. I then 
 concluded, and have no doubt correctly, that they were instinctively 
 aware of the annual flocking of the species, in the season of flight. 
 G. D. 
 
 3 The yellow wagtail cannot remain at Selborne all the winter. It is 
 a common summer visitant: but departs early. White most probably 
 was deceived by observing in the winter months the gray wagtail, the 
 under parts of which are yellow : this bird, as well as the pied wagtail, 
 is stationary throughout the year in the south of England. G. D. 
 
 4 [Saxicola (Enanthe, BECKST.] 
 
 5 The popular name wheat-ear appears to have been originally local, 
 its use having been confined to the South Downs. It is believed to have 
 
OF SELBORNE. 1)9 
 
 where they are esteemed a delicacy. There have been 
 shepherds, I have been credibly informed, that have 
 made many pounds in a season by catching them in 
 traps. And though such multitudes are taken, I never 
 saw (and I am well acquainted with those parts) above 
 two or three at a time : for they are never gregarious. 
 They may perhaps migrate in general; and, for that 
 purpose, draw towards the coast of Sussex in autumn : 
 but that they do not all withdraw 1 am sure ; because I 
 see a few stragglers in many counties, at all'times of the 
 year, especially about warrens and stone quarries 6 . 
 
 I have no acquaintance, at present, among the gen- 
 tlemen of the navy : but have written to a friend, who 
 was a sea-chaplain in the late war, desiring him to look 
 into his minutes, with respect to birds that settled on 
 their rigging during their voyage up or down the 
 
 been applied in that neighbourhood to the bird, as indicating the season 
 of its annual arrival. Elsewhere, Ray says, it is called white-tail. 
 Hwitaers may possibly have been its Saxon name. E. T. B. 
 
 6 There are some dispersed over the country throughout the year, 
 generally frequenting fallows, and called by the country people, clod- 
 hoppers ; they are also known by this name to the London birdcatchers. 
 I have a female taken at Hampstead on the 14th of February, 1834. 
 
 There is as much difference in the habits of this species, at various 
 periods of the year, as there is between the plumage of the male in April 
 as contrasted with that in September. When numerous on the South 
 Downs in the autumn, they are a very shy bird. The shepherds make a 
 little cavity, and place horse-hair nooses in it, putting turfs above them 
 edgeways ; and upon the least alarm, even the shadow of a passing cloud, 
 the bird runs beneath the clods for shelter, and is taken in the noose : it 
 is customary if a stranger takes a bird from the trap, to deposit a penny 
 in its place. But in winter those birds that remain will perch on a gate, 
 or fence rail, and suffer you to approach quite close to them ; being then 
 almost as familiar as a robin. In September the plumage of an old male 
 is reddish brown on the crown and back : the throat and breast are 
 ferruginous red, becoming lighter on the sides and belly. But on raising 
 the feathers of the back, the base of them will be found to be gray. In 
 the spring this ground tint forces off the brown of winter, and the upper 
 parts assume a beautiful blueish gray colour: the throat and belly also 
 become white. Both the change from the summer gray to the winter 
 brown, and from the brown to the gray in the spring, are changes of colour 
 in the same feathers ; and are not dependent on moulting. In the winter 
 these birds are very fat, some of them weighing an ounce and a half: in 
 the spring they rarely weigh an ounce. G. D. 
 
70 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 channel. What Hasselquist says on that subject is 
 remarkable : there were little short-winged birds fre- 
 quently coming on board his ship all the way from 
 our channel quite up to the Levant, especially before 
 squally weather. 
 
 What you suggest, with regard to Spain, is highly 
 probable. The winters of Andalusia are so mild, that, 
 in all likelihood, the soft-billed birds that leave us at 
 that season may find insects sufficient to support them 
 there. 
 
 Some young man, possessed of fortune, health, and 
 leisure, should make an autumnal voyage into that 
 kingdom ; and should spend a year there, investigating 
 the natural history of that vast country. Mr. Wil- 
 lughby 7 passed through that kingdom on such an 
 errand ; but he seems to have skirted along in a super- 
 ficial manner and an ill humour, being much disgusted 
 at the rude dissolute manners of the people. 
 
 I have no friend left now at Sunbury to apply to 
 about the swallows roosting on the aits of the Thames: 
 nor can I hear any more about those birds which I sus- 
 pected were Merulce torquatce. 
 
 As to the small mice, I have farther to remark, that 
 though they hang their nests for breeding up amidst 
 the straws of the standing corn, above the ground, yet 
 I find that, in the winter, they burrow deep in the earth, 
 and make warm beds of grass : but their grand rendez- 
 vous seems to be in corn-ricks, into which they are 
 carried at harvest. A neighbour housed an oat-rick 
 lately, under the thatch of which were assembled near 
 a hundred, most of which were taken ; and some I saw. 
 I measured them ; and found that, from nose to tail, 
 they were just two inches and a quarter, and their tails 
 just two inches long. Two of them, in a scale, weighed 
 down just one copper halfpenny, which is about the 
 third of an ounce avoirdupois : so that I suppose they 
 
 7 See Ray's Travels, p. 460. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 71 
 
 are the smallest quadrupeds in this island. A full- 
 grown Mus domesticus medius weighs, I find, one ounce 
 lumping weight, which is more than six times as much 
 as the mouse above ; and measures from nose to rump 
 four inches and a quarter, and the same in its tail. 
 
 We have had a very severe frost and deep snow this 
 month. My thermometer was one day fourteen degrees 
 and a half below the freezing point, within doors. The 
 tender evergreens were injured pretty much. It was 
 very providential that the air was still, arid the ground 
 well covered with snow, else vegetation in general must 
 have sufl'ered prodigiously. There is reason to believe 
 that some days were more severe than any since the 
 year 1739-40 8 . 
 
 I am, &c. &c. 
 
 LETTER XIV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, March 12, 1768. 
 
 IF some curious gentleman would procure the head of 
 a fallow-deer, and have it dissected, he would find it 
 furnished with two spiracula, or breathing places, be- 
 sides the nostrils; probably analogous to the puncta 
 lachrymalia in the human head. When deer are thirsty 
 they plunge their noses, like some horses, very deep 
 under water while in the act of drinking, and continue 
 them in that situation for a considerable time : but, to 
 obviate any inconveniency, they can open two vents, 
 one at the inner corner of each eye, having a communi- 
 cation with the nose. Here seems to be an extraor- 
 dinary provision of nature worthy our attention ; and 
 which has not, that I know of, been noticed by any 
 naturalist. For it looks as if these creatures would not 
 
 8 [A full account of the effects of this short but intense frost is given 
 in Letter LXI. to Daines Harrington.] 
 
72 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 be suffocated, though both their mouths and nostrils 
 were stopped. This curious formation of the head may 
 be of singular service to beasts of chase, by affording 
 them free respiration: and no doubt these additional 
 nostrils are thrown open when they are hard run 1 . 
 
 1 In answer to this account, Mr. Pennant sent me the following curious 
 and pertinent reply. " I was much surprised to find in the antelope 
 something analogous to what you mention as so remarkable in deer. 
 This animal also has a long slit beneath each eye, which can be opened 
 and shut at pleasure. On holding an orange to one, the creature made 
 as much use of those orifices as of his nostrils, applying them to the fruit, 
 and seeming to smell it through them." 
 
 [The structure of the glandular cavities, of which the orifices are here 
 alluded to, precludes the possibility of their ever being used as accessory 
 respiratory passages, or organs of scent. 
 
 The common integument is continued over the margins of the orifice, and 
 is reflected over the whole of the interior of the cavity, which is altogether 
 imperforate, except by the ducts of a large flattened mucous gland, which 
 occupies its base ; a few short hairs spring up in the interspaces of the 
 terminal orifices of the ducts. Mr. Hunter, whose attention was probably 
 called by his friend Pennant to this peculiarity of the deer and antelopes, 
 has left several preparations of the glands and sinus, taken from the 
 Indian and another species of antelope, and also from the deer: in which 
 their condition as tegumentary sacs, having no communication with the 
 nose, is clearly shown. 
 
 Conceiving that the secretion of these glands, when rubbed upon 
 projecting bodies, might serve to direct individuals of the same species to 
 each other, I prepared a tabular view of the relations between the habits 
 and habitats of the several species of antelopes, and their suborbital, 
 maxillary, post-auditory, and inguinal glands, in order to be able to com- 
 pare the presence and degrees of development of the glands, with the 
 gregarious and other habits of the antelope tribe. 
 
 From this table it was, however, evident, that there is no relation 
 between the gregarious habits of the antelopes which frequent the plains 
 and the presence of the suborbital and maxillary sinuses ; since these, 
 besides being altogether wanting in some of the gregarious species, 
 are present in many of the solitary frequenters of rocky mountainous 
 districts. The supposition, therefore, that the secretion might serve, 
 when left on shrubs or stones, to guide a straggler to the general herd, 
 falls to the ground. 
 
 The secretion of those cutaneous glands which are designed to attract 
 the sexes, is generally observed to acquire towards the reproductive 
 period a strong musky odour, as in the elephant and alligator, but the 
 secretion of the suborbital sinuses, even when these are most fully 
 developed, is devoid of any approach to a musky, or any other well defined 
 odour. 
 
 Nevertheless, the subjoined observations of Mr. Bennett tend to give 
 
OF SELBORNE. 73 
 
 Mr. Ray observed that, at Malta, the owners slit up 
 the nostrils of such asses as were hard worked: for 
 
 some probability to the theory which ascribes to the suborbital sinuses a 
 sexual relation. R. O.] 
 
 [It seems probable that these organs, on the use of which it is by no 
 means creditable to naturalists to have now to speculate, may be designed 
 for the promotion of that intimate acquaintance between animals of the 
 same species which a primary law of nature requires : but it would be 
 difficult to explain in what manner they may avail to such an end. That 
 they have some connexion with the full developement of the animal powers 
 will appear, I think, from the consideration of a series of individuals now 
 living at the Zoological Society's Gardens. 
 
 Among the whole of the deer and antelopes that are provided with 
 suborbital sinuses, none have them more strongly marked than the Indian 
 antelope ; and in none of those animals are they more frequently brought 
 into use. A fully grown male, the moment you approach him, throws 
 back his head and thrusts himself rapidly forwards, as though about to 
 make an attack ; but the backward direction of his long spirally twisted 
 horns, and the freedom with which he offers to you his exposed neck and 
 chest, are scarcely indicative of a hostile movement. He has at this time 
 fully expanded the large bag beneath his eye ; its thick lips, which pout 
 considerably in the quiet state of the animal, are widely separated and 
 thrown back ; and the intervening space is actually everted, the base of 
 the sac forming a projection instead of a hollow. We see the bare skin, 
 covered only by a coating of a dark ceruminous secretion. This, if the 
 hand be within his reach, the animal attempts to rub against the knuckles ; 
 and we then feel that though the lining skin of the sac has no general 
 covering of hair, it is not destitute of a few bristles, which grate against 
 the finger subjected to the friction. The friction is evidently agreeable 
 to the animal, for it is often repeated : at times, it is even continued for a 
 minute or two. After the finger has been subjected for some time to this 
 rubbing, it will be found to have acquired a heavy odour, of a salt and 
 peculiar character. 
 
 The Zoological Society has at present, in its gardens in the Regent's 
 Park, four individuals of the Indian antelope : an adult and aged male, 
 brought by Col. Sykes from Bombay, and presented to the Society nearly 
 five years ago; a younger, yet adult, male, that was presented, in an 
 immature condition, about two years since ; an immature male, lately 
 arrived, and in about the same state of developement as that in which the 
 last mentioned individual was when he was originally presented ; and 
 an emasculated specimen of full growth. The series is singularly com- 
 plete as regards one sex : the other sex has not yet been possessed by the 
 Society, and is, indeed, rarely seen in Europe. Destitute of horns, and 
 never acquiring the rich deep colour of the males, the female is probably 
 considered as less worthy of exportation from the native country of the 
 species. 
 
 During the time that the old male has remained in the Gardens he has 
 constantly behaved in the manner described above : the conduct of his 
 
74 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 they, being naturally straight or small, did not admit 
 air sufficient to serve them when they travelled, or 
 
 several predecessors has been precisely similar. He widely expands the 
 suborbital sinus, and brings it near to any substance offered to him ; he 
 might even be suspected of a disposition to test, by some special sense 
 lodged in it, the nature of the substance offered : but he usually drives 
 the naked and everted skin against the hand, either thrusting it repeat- 
 edly or rubbing it. The peculiar odour is freely imparted to the substance 
 rubbed, but seems to offer no special attraction to his senses: he neither 
 smells to it remarkably, nor licks it. The second male, whose horns 
 have about three-fourths of their full growth, and whose rich colours are 
 only less deep than those of his more aged neighbour, acts in a similar 
 manner. His suborbital sinus, though strongly developed, is not so 
 extensive as that of the older animal : in its quiet state it is scarcely 
 completely closed, so thick are its lips; in its condition of excitement it 
 is widely expanded. The animal then thrusts it at the offered hand ; 
 but does not exhibit an equal readiness to rub it. The youngest male is 
 evidently immature ; its horns have only commenced making their first 
 spiral turn, and its colour is the fawn of the female, with her pale stripe 
 along the side : for in the Indian antelope, as in most animals in which the 
 adult males differ in colour from the females, the young of both sexes are 
 similarly coloured, and resemble the dam. In this individual the sub- 
 orbital sinus is small; its lips are closely applied to each other; and 
 they are but slightly moved when the animal is interested : if he uses his 
 nose, the sac is called into moderate action. He cares little for the 
 odour of his older relatives. The remaining specimen was probably of 
 nearly the same age with this younger male when that occurred which, 
 while it allowed of the animal's increasing in bulk, checked the develope- 
 nn nt of the external characters that belong to the mature male. Its advance 
 towards perfection was arrested while the female livery of the young 
 animal was yet retained, and its colour is the fawn of the female with 
 the side marked lengthways by her paler line. Its horn too, normal in its 
 character as far as a point corresponding with the early part of the first 
 spiral turn, and about this point regularly ringed, afterwards loses the 
 form characteristic of the species, and instead of being completed by a 
 continuous series of spiral turns, surrounded by strongly marked rings, 
 becomes smooth, continues slender, and is directed backwards in one 
 single large sweep; forming a horn altogether monstrous, and one which 
 is sheep-like, though infinitely weak, rather than antilopine : only one 
 such horn remains. In this animal the suborbital sinus is not more 
 developed than in the youngest and immature male, and it is quite 
 unused: the sinus is little more than a mark existing in the ordinary 
 situation, and no motion whatever is observed in its lips; it is not 
 applied to any substance brought near to it, the nose being usually 
 employed. A finger loaded with the secretion from the sac of the mature 
 male is smelt to by this individual ; and is then freely licked : perhaps 
 on account of its saltness alone, but probably also on account of some 
 other and peculiar attraction. The same cause which induced the 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 75 
 
 laboured in that hot climate. And we know that 
 grooms, and gentlemen of the turf, think large nostrils 
 necessary, and a, perfection, in hunters and running 
 horses. 
 
 Oppian, the Greek poet, by the following line, seems 
 to have had some notion that stags have four spiracula : 
 
 retention by this individual of the immature colours, and which arrested 
 the perfect growth of the horns, has also, I do not hesitate in believing, 
 checked the developement of the suborbital sinuses and rendered them 
 useless. 
 
 I am not disposed, on this occasion, to enter farther into the specula- 
 tions which might be founded on the facts just recorded with respect to 
 the suborbital sinus in the Indian antelope ; and I quit the subject, for 
 the present, with the remark that they seem to me to justify the obser- 
 vation with which I commenced. More numerous facts, arid more full 
 consideration of them, will determine before long the degree of value 
 that should be attached to this view of the subject. 
 
 By a letter which I have just received from Mr. Hodgson, I find that 
 he has had his attention excited by the observation of the antelopes 
 which he has kept alive in Nepal ; and that he also has been led to the 
 conclusion that there exists a relation between these sinuses and their 
 secretions and the other functions referred to. His continued observa- 
 tion, favourably as he is circumstanced for the acquisition of information 
 on all subjects of Nepalese zoology, will doubtless tend to elucidate this 
 yet unsettled point, on which Dr. Jacob, at the meeting of the British 
 Association in Dublin, in 1835, laid before the members assembled some 
 valuable observations. E. T. B.] 
 
 HEADS OK THE INLilAN ANTELOPE. 
 
76 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 vfiot pivcg, TtiavpiQ Trvotrjoi 8iav\oi." 
 " Quadrifidae nares, quadrupliues ad respirationem canales." 
 
 OPP. CYH. lib. ii. 1. 181. 
 
 Writers, copying from one another, make Aristotle 
 say that goats breathe at their ears ; whereas he asserts 
 just the contrary : " AAx/xa/wv ya% oux #Av^ Atyf/, (^ay^evoQ 
 uvci-isvF.iv rug u.iyct.<; uctrrot. TO. WT&" " Alcmaeon does not 
 advance what is true, when he avers that goats breathe 
 through their ears." History of Animals, Book I. 
 chap, xi. 2 
 
 LETTER XV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, March 30, 1768. 
 
 SOME intelligent country people have a notion that we 
 have in these parts, a species of the genus mustelinum, 
 besides the weasel, stoat, ferret, and polecat ; a little 
 
 2 There is more reason in the supposition that the ears communicate 
 with the nose, than that the suborbital sinus has any such communication ; 
 since in all animals that have a tympanic cavity opening upon the surface 
 by an external passage, there is also another conduit leading inwards 
 from the tympanum to the nose : this latter passage is termed the Eusta- 
 chian tube, and its office appears to be two-fold. First, it prevents the 
 membrana tympani or ear-drum, which is stretched across the external 
 meatus, from having its state of tension disturbed by the variation of the 
 pressure of the atmosphere upon its outer surface, by conveying the same 
 atmosphere to the tympanic cavity where it must press with equal force 
 against the inner surface of the ear-drum. Secondly, it serves, like the 
 lachrymal passage of the eye, to convey superfluous moisture to the nose. 
 When the membrane of the tympanum is accidentally ruptured, air may be 
 forced or expired from the mouth through the ear, but the Eustachian 
 passage is too narrow in mammals to admit of inspiration or breathing 
 being performed through the ears alone, even supposing the ear-drum to 
 be destroyed. In the natural condition of the parts the Stagy rite is, a 
 fortiori, correct in stating that goats cannot breathe through their ears. 
 
 It is possible that the idea may have originated in the possession by 
 the chamois of post-auditory sinuses ; the openings of which behind the 
 base of the ears may have been regarded as orifices for breathing, in the 
 same manner as a similar function was erroneously ascribed to the 
 suborbital sinuses. R. O. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 77 
 
 reddish beast, not much bigger than a field mouse, but 
 much longer, which they call a cane. This piece of 
 intelligence can be little depended on ; but farther 
 inquiry may be made 1 . 
 
 A gentleman in this neighbourhood had two milk- 
 white rooks in one nest. A frooby of a carter, finding 
 them before they were able to fly, threw them down 
 and destroyed them, to the regret of the owner, who 
 would have been glad to have preserved such a curiosity 
 in his rookery. I saw the birds myself nailed against 
 the end of a barn, and was surprised to find that their 
 bills, legs, feet, and claws were milk-white 2 . 
 
 A shepherd saw, as he thought, some white larks on 
 a down above my house this winter: were not these 
 the snow-flake, the Emberiza nivalis of the British 
 Zoology? No doubt they were. 
 
 A few years ago I saw a cock bullfinch in a cage, 
 
 1 This I believe to be a pretty general error among the country people 
 in other counties also. This imaginary animal, in Suffolk, is called the 
 mouse-hunt, from its being supposed to live on mice. To discover the 
 truth of this report, I managed to have several of these animals brought 
 to me ; all of which I found to be the common weasel. The error I con- 
 ceive partly to have arisen from this animal, like most others, appearing 
 less than its real size, when running, and attempting to escape, a circum- 
 stance well known to the hunters in India, with respect to larger animals, 
 as the tiger, &c. MITFORD. 
 
 The cane is a provincial name for the female of the common weasel, 
 which is usually one-fourth smaller than the male. Young females of 
 the year, frequently seen during harvest, are not much larger than a full- 
 sized field-mouse. W. Y. 
 
 2 White, pied, and cream-coloured varieties of the rook occasionally 
 occur. A gentleman, in the year 1816, had a young rook of a light ash- 
 colour, most beautifully mottled all over with black, and with the quill and 
 tail-feathers elegantly barred. This curiosity he was naturally anxious 
 to keep : but, upon the bird moulting, all its mottled plumage vanished 
 entirely, it became a jet black rook, and in this state was suffered to join 
 his sable tribe as a fit companion in the fields. Hunt's British Birds 
 (Norwich). W. Y. 
 
 White individuals, both as varieties merely and as albinoes, occur in 
 many birds. Instances are familiar in the sparrow, the chaffinch, the 
 magpie, &c. and, a contradiction in terms, white blackbirds are occasion- 
 ally met with. One such, captured in Northamptonshire, is now living 
 in the Zoological Society's Gardens. E. T. B. 
 
78 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 which had been caught in the fields after it was come to 
 its full colours. In about a year it began to look dingy ; 
 and, blackening every succeeding year, it became coal- 
 black at the end of four. Its chief food was hempseed. 
 Such influence has food on the colour of animals ! The 
 pied and mottled colours of domesticated animals are 
 supposed to be owing to high, various, and unusual 
 food 3 . 
 
 I had remarked, for years, that the root of the cuckoo- 
 pint (Arum) was frequently scratched out of the dry 
 banks of hedges, and eaten in severe snowy weather. 
 After observing with some exactness, myself, and 
 getting others to do the same, we found it was the 
 thrush kind that searched it out. The root of the Arum 
 is remarkably warm and pungent. 
 
 Our flocks of female chaffinches have not yet forsaken 
 us. The blackbirds and thrushes are very much thinned 
 down by that fierce weather in January. 
 
 In the middle of February I discovered, in my tall 
 hedges, a little bird that raised my curiosity : it was of 
 that yellow-green colour that belongs to the Salicaria 
 kind, and, I think, was soft-billed. It was no Pant* ; 
 and was too long and too big for the golden-crowned 
 wren, appearing most like the largest willow-wren. Jt 
 hung sometimes with its back downwards, but never 
 continuing one moment in the same place. I shot at 
 it, but it was so desultory that I missed my aim. 
 
 I wonder that the stone curlew (Charadrius (Edicne- 
 , should be mentioned by the writers as a rare 
 
 3 Mr. White has justly remarked, that food has great influence on the 
 colour of animals. The dark colour in wild birds is a great safeguard 
 to them against their enemies; and this is the reason that, among birds 
 of bright plumage, the young do not assume their gay colours till the 
 second or third year, as the cygnet, the gold and silver pheasants, &c. 
 The remarkable change of plumage among the gull tribe, is a curious and 
 intricate subject. Is the circumstance mentioned by Mr. Pegge true, 
 " that butterflies partake of the colour of the flowers they feed on ?" 
 I think not. See Anonymiana, p 4C9. MITFORD. 
 
 4 [(Edicnemus crcpitans, TEMM.] 
 
OF SELBORNE. 79 
 
 bird : it abounds in all the campaign parts of Hamp- 
 shire and Sussex, and breeds, I think, all the summer, 
 having young ones, I know, very late in the autumn. 
 Already they begin clamouring in the evening. They 
 cannot, I think, with any propriety, be classed, as they 
 are by Mr. Ray, among birds, " circa aquas versantes;" 
 for with us, by day at least, they haunt only the most 
 dry, open, upland fields and sheep-walks, far removed 
 from water 5 ; what they may do in the night I cannot 
 say. Worms are their usual food, but tney also eat 
 toads and frogs. 
 
 I can show you some good specimens of my new 
 mice. Linnaeus perhaps would call the species Mus 
 minimus. 
 
 LETTER XVI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, April 18, 1T68. 
 
 THE history of the stone curlew (Charadrius CEdicne- 
 mus) is as follows. It lays its eggs, usually two, never 
 more than three, on the bare ground, without any nest, 
 in the field ; so that the countryman, in stirring his fal- 
 lows, often destroys them. The young run immediately 
 from the egg like partridges, &c. and are withdrawn to 
 some flinty field by the dam, where they sculk among 
 the stones, which are their best security ; for their fea- 
 thers are so exactly of the colour of our gray spotted 
 
 5 With the exception of Dr. Latham and Pennant, every ornithologist, 
 until the time of M. Temminck, appears to have adhered to the mode of 
 considering the stone curlew which is here objected to : they have univer- 
 sally classed it, with Linnaeus, among the plovers. Dr. Latham placed 
 it among the bustards, retaining for it the very appropriate name of 
 thick-kneed. M. Temminck regards it as occupying a station interme- 
 diate between the plovers and the bustards. The name of curlew refers 
 of course to a resemblance of colour merely, and by no means implies 
 any near approximation in form to the Numenii. E. T. B. 
 
80 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 flints, that the most exact observer, unless he catches 
 the eye of the young bird, may be eluded. The eggs 
 are short and round ; of a dirty white, spotted with 
 dark bloody blotches. Though I might not be able, 
 just when I pleased, to procure you a bird, yet I could 
 show you them almost any day ; and any evening you 
 may hear them round the village, for they make a cla- 
 mour which may be heard a mile. (Edicnemus is a 
 most apt and expressive name for them, since their 
 legs seem swollen like those of a gouty man. After 
 harvest I have shot them before the pointers in turnip- 
 fields. 
 
 I make no doubt but there are three species of the 
 willow wrens: two I know perfectly; but have not 
 been able yet to procure the third 1 . No two birds can 
 
 1 Mr. White clearly distinguishes three species of these little birds ; 
 and he seems to have had some idea of a fourth: but ou this point there 
 is a confusion in the entries in the Naturalist's Calendar, which has per- 
 haps arisen from his having used different names for the same bird in 
 noting down his observations in different years. The small uncrested 
 wren of the calendar, appearing on the 9th of March, is called in the 
 Natural History, p. 84, the chirper, and is said to have black legs: it 
 must be either Sylvia ri(/u or Sylv. loquax ; I believe the former, for I 
 doubt the fact of Sylv. loqutuc, the chiffchaff, which seems not to reach 
 the north of England, arriving so early. The third entry in the Calendar, 
 second willow or laughing wren, is certainly Sylv. Trochilus ; because he 
 says in the Natural History, p. 82, that the songster has a laughing note. 
 The fourth entry, large shivering wren, is unquestionably Sylv. Sylticola. 
 It appears to me that the second and fifth entries, middle yellow wren, 
 and middle willow wren, mean the same thing as second willow wren, and 
 refer alike to Sylv. Trochilus: but it is possible that, at a later period 
 than the date of Letter XIX. written in 1768, he may have suspected 
 the existence of a fourth species. 
 
 There has existed very great confusion in the works of British and 
 continental ornithologists concerning these nearly allied species, which 
 I am now enabled to clear up, by the examination of a considerable num- 
 ber killed in this country, compared with continental specimens of Sylr. 
 rufa, and the bird called Sylc. llippolais, or pouillot, by M. Temminck. 
 In the former edition of these notes I stated that I had never had in hand 
 the Sylv. Hippolais of M. Temminck, which I then understood to be the 
 monotonous wren or chingching, and acknowledged as an inhabitant of 
 this country in the summer time. It now appears that the Hippolais of 
 Temminck is not ascertained to have been ever seen in Great Britain : and 
 it becomes necessary to inquire, what is the bird to which the name 
 
OF SELBORNK. 81 
 
 differ more in their notes, and that constantly, than 
 those two that I am acquainted with ; for the one has 
 
 Hippolais belongs by priority of appellation, and whether it be or not a 
 British species. 
 
 The name Hippolais appears to have originated with Linnaeus in his 
 Fauna Suecica. In his description he states that the bird to which he 
 gave it is perhaps the female of his Motacilla Curruca, the lesser white 
 throat ; that its body is ash-coloured above, ashy white underneath, its 
 throat white, its wings, when closed, ferruginous above, and the outer 
 margins of its quills ferruginous. Without entering into a further detail 
 of his description (Fauna Suecica, p. 90), I may assume that what I have 
 quoted is sufficient to show that no one of the five birds above mentioned 
 is the Motacilla Hippolais of Linnaeus, because no one of them agrees with 
 these particulars. It is quite apparent that Motacilla (or Sylvia, which 
 is a generic name of later introduction) Hippolais belongs to the fruit- 
 eating group of birds, and is closely allied to Sylvia Curruca (more pro- 
 perly called Curruca Silviella}, if indeed it be not that identical species 
 in a particular state of plumage. The name was first applied to a Bri- 
 tish bird by Dr. Latham in 1783, with a note that he was indebted for the 
 account of it to the Rev. Mr. Lightfoot ; and it is not clear that he him- 
 self ever saw the bird described by him as Mot. Hippolais or lesser petty- 
 chaps. The particulars given by him do not agree with any one of the 
 five wrens above mentioned, and appear to be an amalgamation of Lin- 
 naeus's description with that which he had received from Mr. Lightfoot ; 
 but as it is clear that no one of the wrens found in England, nor the con- 
 tinental bird of M. Temminck, admitting the possibility of its coming here 
 occasionally, is entitled to Linnaeus's name Hippolais^ it is quite unne- 
 cessary to conjecture what Mr. Lightfoot's bird was. 
 
 In the former edition of these notes I pointed out the chiff chaff as 
 overlooked by continental, and confounded with the bird supposed to be 
 Hippolais by English, writers, and I described it minutely, and named it 
 Sylv. loquax. I am now, by means of specimens kindly communicated to 
 me by Mr. Bennett, enabled to clear up the confusion in which these birds 
 have been so long involved. It is quite clear that Sylv. rufa is an English 
 bird, and that Sylv. loquax has been confounded with it, both here and 
 abroad, though very different. In Shaw's Zoology, the name Hippolais has 
 been applied to the chiff chaff, as it has also been in the later works of 
 Mr. Selby and the Rev. L. Jenyns, the name rufa being given in the last 
 of these as synonymous with it; but all these applications are erroneous. 
 I have now before me four species killed in this country. The first is 
 Sylv. sylvicola of Montagu, the wood wren ; it is the Sylv. sibilatrix of 
 Bechstein, whose name must give place to that of Montagu, published 
 many years before with an accurate description of the species. The 
 second is Sylv. Trochilus. These two species are well known, and no 
 mistake can arise concerning them. In Sylv. sylvicola the first quill, 
 which is diminutive in all the species, is almost obsolete, the second 
 shorter than the third, and scarcely shorter than the fourth ; the prolong- 
 ation of the third being greater in some specimens than in others. In 
 
 G 
 
82 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 a joyous, easy laughing note; the other a harsh loud 
 chirp. The former is every way larger, and three 
 
 Sylv. Trochilus the second is equal to the sixth, and shorter than the 
 three intermediate. In the foreign specimen of Sylv. rufa, a male bird, 
 and in that killed in England, the second is equal to the eighth, and 
 shorter than all the intermediate. In Sylv. loquax, the chiff chaff, now 
 before me, the second is longer than the seventh, and shorter than the four 
 intermediate ; and this exactly agrees with Mr. Sweet's bird, from which 
 I made the description in the former edition, after its death. It was a 
 male bird ; whence it appears that the difference is not that of sex, but of 
 species. In my former description, it should be remarked, I did not 
 count the obsolete quill, and my first was properly the second. 
 
 The chiff chaff is not plentiful in this country, unless perhaps in some 
 particular situations, which I have not visited. I never have seen one 
 in Yorkshire, and, though particularly watchful for it in the south of 
 England, it is six or seven years since I have seen one alive. 
 
 The bird which I supposed (as it now appears, erroneously, never 
 having been willing to kill these harmless creatures) to be the pouillot 
 or Hippolais of M. Temminck, I have seen sitting on the summit of an oak 
 tree at the time of its leafing, and reiterating its monotonous note ching 
 ching; and it has been pointed out to me at such moments by Mr. Sweet, 
 as being one of the allied wrens. In the Faune Franchise of Vieillot, I 
 find a Sylv. Collybita ; to which he quotes as synonymous, Motacilla rufa, 
 LINN., and rufous warbler, LATH., having improperly substituted a new 
 name for one which must not be changed, although rufous is but ill 
 warranted by a little reddish tint on the flanks. He subjoins as vulgar 
 names, compteur d'argent and chofti ; and states that it often sits on the 
 summits of trees, where the male utters its note, which has obtained it in 
 Normandy the name of money-counter. He continues to say that the 
 note of this bird has appeared to himself to express tip tap repeated 
 several times. It is, I think, quite clear, that the bird which is called, 
 on account of its note uttered on the top of a high tree, money-counter or 
 money-changer, is that which I have heard in such a situation, uttering 
 its unvaried ching or chink chink. The chiff chaff doe* not sit on the 
 summit of a tree, but is in perpetual motion, distinctly articulating chiff 
 chaff, chivvy chaffy ; and it is equally clear that such notes could never have 
 suggested the idea of chinking money, but they are the sounds which 
 Mr. Vieillot has not very accurately represented by tip tap. It must be 
 recollected, that to convey to a Frenchman the sound we give to chiff or 
 chaff, the letter t must be prefixed. It thus appears that two different 
 birds have been confounded under the name Sylv. Collybita, newly intro- 
 duced by Vieillot, and that of Mot. ru,fa of Linnaeus, on the continent, as 
 they hare been here : that Sylvia rufa is the ching ching, and that the chiff 
 chaff had never had any scientific name appropriated to it, till I desig- 
 nated it as Sylv. loquax, except the improper application of the names 
 Hippolais and rufa to it. Sylv. rufa is rather larger than Sylc. loqu<t.r, its 
 wing measuring four inches and seven-eighths, while that of loquax is 
 only four inches and a half long: besides the rufous tinge on its flanks, 
 
OF SELBORNE. 83 
 
 quarters of an inch longer, and weighs two drams and 
 a half; while the latter weighs but two : so the songster 
 
 which does not occur in loquax, the under edge of the wing is bright 
 yellow, while in loquax the yellow, if any, is faint. In Mr. Sweet's bird 
 there was no yellow ; in the specimen before me there is a little, the 
 bird being probably a young one. From the figure by Werner, I con- 
 clude that young males of rufa have the under parts very yellow in the 
 autumn, like those of Trochilus. The absence of the ch iff chaff from the 
 north of England renders it improbable that it should ever stray into the 
 northern parts of the continent, and it is not likely to occur in Sweden. 
 The pouillot of Temminck is the largest of the five, its wing measuring 
 five inches and one-eighth; the second feather is shorter than the third 
 and fourth, longer than the fifth. I have made exact representations of 
 the first portions of the wings of the five species, by which they may be 
 recognised. 
 
 The four allied species which frequent our island, besides the golden 
 wren, are as follows. 
 
 1. Sylvia sylvicola, MONT. ; sibilatrix, subsequently, of Bechstein ; wood 
 wren. This bird cannot easily be confounded with the others, being 
 readily distinguished by the shivering motion of its wings in the latter 
 part of its short and hurried song. It is much brighter coloured than 
 the Sylv. Trochilus. The upper parts are of a yellowish green, the tail, 
 quills, and wing coverts being edged with that colour, and brownish in 
 the middle. Above the eye a yellow line; a dark line passing from the 
 bill to the eye, and behind it; the throat and cheeks yellow; the under 
 
 W. Herbert, dtL WOOD WHEN. 
 
 parts pure white. In its habit it is much less erect than Sylv. Trochilm. 
 
 G 2 
 
84 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 is one-fifth heavier than the chirper. The chirper (being 
 the first summer-bird of passage that is heard, the wry- 
 Werner's figure, in the Oiseaux d'Europe, is very faulty ; it is at least 
 three-fourths of an inch too long; the upper mandible is improperly pro- 
 longed and curved at the point ; the yellow on the throat and cheeks, 
 and above the eyes, is too pale, and continued too far down the breast ; 
 the upper surface too brown; the bill not opening far enough back. 
 Sweet's figure in his British Warblers is much better, but the legs and 
 under mandible are improperly coloured dark ; an untrue inky hue is 
 given to the quills; there is too much yellow underneath; and the bird 
 is rather too large. It frequents timber trees where there is an open 
 glade in a thicket, and low covert; in which it builds on the ground a 
 covered nest, upon a bank, and often places it at the foot of a young tree, 
 of which the stem divides the current in heavy rains, and sends it to the 
 right and left of the nest. Sylv. Trochilus always lines its nest with 
 feathers, Sylv. sylvicola never. The male continues singing near the same 
 spot till about midsummer. The young quit their nest in Yorkshire about 
 the 20th of June. It is a much more timid and startlish species than 
 Sylv. Trochilus ; those which are reared even to perch on the hand before 
 they feed themselves, become fearful afterwards. 
 
 QUILL-FEATHER* OF THE WOOD WREN. 
 
 2. Still-in Trochilus, LATH.; yellow wren, often called unmeaningly 
 willow wren. It is a very plentiful species, found in gardens, woods, 
 hedges, by road sides, and on furzy and rough commons, whereas the 
 wood wren frequents timber trees only. It frequently builds in straw- 
 berry beds, amongst periwinkles, or in any other low thicket, and comes 
 close to the windows of dwelling houses to peck the Aphides from the 
 rose bushes. Its song is soft and plaintive, but wants variety. The hen 
 is smaller and browner than the cock. The name yellow wren is very 
 near as inapplicable as willow wren, for the adults have very little yellow 
 except the stripe over the eye ; and the wood wren has much more, and 
 brighter yellow. I should propose to call it the garden wren, on account 
 of its frequently building in small gardens, and approaching dwelling 
 houses, and often entering conservatories in search of Aphides. 
 
OF SKLBORNE. 
 
 85 
 
 neck sometimes excepted) begins his two notes in the 
 middle of March, and continues them through the spring 
 
 The summer before last having observed a nest of this species at the 
 foot of the stem of an American Azalea in the garden, when they were just 
 on the point of flying I took a male bird which was sitting half out of the 
 
 
 W . Herbert, del. 
 
 nest, and brought it into the house. Being frequently handled it became 
 immediately so tame that, when it came to feed itself, on the door of its 
 cage being opened it would fly to me and perch on my hand or head, or 
 on the edge of my plate at breakfast, and suffered its head to be kissed 
 or its back stroked without the least apprehension ; and after taking its 
 exercise and amusing itself for a time it would return into its cage to 
 feed, and afterwards sit quietly on its perch. When this had become a 
 confirmed habit, its cage door was left open night and day, and it was the 
 most amiable little creature I ever saw. During my absence from home 
 it was scared out of window and lost. 
 
 QUILL-FEATHERS OF THE WILLOW WREN. 
 
 I may take this opportunity of saying that I can aver that the Sylv.flavi- 
 vcntris of Vieillot is the young male of this species in its autumnal dress. 
 
8(> NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 and summer till the end of August, us appears by my 
 journals. The legs of the larger of these two are flesh- 
 coloured ; of the less, black. 
 
 He admits that some persons had told him it was so, but he cannot believe 
 that the young birds should have more brilliant plumage than adults. 
 The fact is however so, as above stated. I have had the young male in 
 September, with the under parts of a beautiful yellow, which disappears 
 before the breeding season. 
 
 3. Sylvia ri(/a, LATH. ; monotonous wren, ching ching, or lesser petty- 
 chaps. The name lesser pettychaps is absurd, because the pettychaps is 
 a bird of different affinities and habits, belonging to a different genus, 
 or division at least of the genus ; I therefore propose to call it mono- 
 tonous wren, being the only one of the four which expresses but a single 
 note or sound. I observed and listened to one for a long time a few 
 years ago, on the 28th of May, on some oak trees in Combe Wood, near 
 Kingston upon Thames, at which time the hen bird, of which I could see 
 nothing, was probably sitting in the thicket. I have frequently heard 
 the note in Yorkshire, and last spring directed my gamekeeper to try to 
 discover the nest of one that frequented the trees in a small coppice at 
 Spofforth ; but, under the erroneous impression that the bird was the pouil- 
 lot of M. Temminck, he was directed to seek above his head and it was not 
 discovered. The Sylv. rufa. is said to breed on the ground. This bird is 
 figured by Werner, but his specimen is of a very deep yellow on the under 
 parts, having been probably a young male. It is remarkable that all 
 this race of birds instead of putting on a brighter plumage in the season 
 of love, assume a plainer garb, and lose the bright yellow which adorns 
 the young males in autumn. This extends even to the pettychaps, Curruca 
 hortcnais. 
 
 QUILL-FEATHERS OF THE CHING CHING. 
 
 4. Sylvia loquax, HERBERT; loquacious wren or chiff chaff. This spe- 
 cies I proposed, in a Note on the edition of this work published in 1833. 
 to call loquaxj because it articulates its singular song chiff chaff, chivvy 
 chaffy, as distinctly as a man can pronounce it. It had never been 
 named, and had been entirely overlooked by ornithologists or con- 
 founded with either Sylv. Hippolais or rvfu. It is much scarcer than the 
 others, and like the golden wren it affects, I believe, the neighbourhood 
 of fir trees; and, unless it breeds, like the other three, on the ground, I 
 suspect that it may build in them, perhaps hanging its nest under the 
 
OF SliLBORNE. 87 
 
 The grasshopper-lark began his sibilous note in my 
 fields last Saturday. Nothing can be more amusing 
 
 boughs, as the golden wren does. I have never been able to meet with 
 it in Yorkshire. The last live specimen I saw, was on a large cedar 
 tree on the lawn in the garden of Highclere House in Hampshire at 
 Whitsuntide in 1828 or 1829. It did not seem disposed to quit the tree, 
 but repeated frequently its remarkable and articulate notes. I sought 
 in vain on the ground for its nest, and it did not then occur to me to 
 search the cedar tree, which indeed would not have been easily accom- 
 plished. Mr. Sweet in his article Sylv. Hippolais, gives an account of a 
 Sylv. loquax which he kept in confinement, confounding-ij with the former 
 of the two species; and it does not appear whether the figure he gives 
 was taken from an English or a foreign specimen : but it is incorrect at 
 all events, and does not truly represent any one of the allied species. I 
 examined carefully a dead specimen of Sylv. loquax, which Mr. Sweet 
 had kept in a cage the previous autumn and winter. It was a male bird, 
 and had been caught in a net, and frequently articulated its chiff chaff, 
 chivvy chaffy, while in confinement. It measured at full stretch but four 
 inches from the tip of the bill to the extremity of the tail, having much 
 resemblance to the female of the Sylv. Trochilvs, which is always smaller 
 and browner than the cock. Sylo. loquax has no yellow about it; there 
 is no line over the eye ; the colour is a uniform greenish brown, paler on 
 the breast and belly. The tail-feathers and quill-feathers of the wings 
 are dusky, edged with greenish brown ; the legs are dusky, by which it 
 may at all times be distinguished from the small hen Sylv. Trochilus. 
 The bill, measuring from the forehead, is only five-sixteenths of an inch 
 long, the under mandible and edges yellow, the upper part of the upper 
 mandible brown. Its shape is slender. The second (considering the 
 small abortive feather to be the first) quill-feather is a quarter of an inch 
 shorter than the third, but is longer than the seventh, the third, fourth, 
 and fifth almost of equal length. Another specimen since communicated 
 to me by Mr. Bennett, agrees in every respect with Mr. Sweet's bird, 
 except that it has a little tinge of yellow, being probably a young bird. 
 
 QUILL-FEATHERS OF THE CHIFF CHAFF. 
 
 | 
 
 The outlines which I have made with minute exactness of the outer 
 part of the wing of each of these species, as well as of the pouillot of 
 M. Temminck (which not being Hippolais, I propose to call Sylv. Tem- 
 mincki), will render it easy to distinguish them. The quill-feathers of 
 Sylv. rufa are more pointed than those of loquax, and the whole bird 
 longer. Sylv. Nattereri, a species observed in Spain and Italy, is closely 
 
&* NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 than the \vhisper of this little bird, which seems to be 
 close by, though at a hundred yards distance; and, 
 when close at your ear, is scarce any louder than when 
 a great way off. Had I not been a little acquainted 
 with insects, and known that the grasshopper kind is 
 not yet hatched, I should have hardly believed but that 
 it had been a Locusta whispering in the bushes. The 
 country people laugh when you tell them that it is the 
 note of a bird. It is a most artful creature, sculking in 
 the thickest part of a bush ; and will sing at a yard 
 distance, provided it be concealed. I was obliged to 
 get a person to go on the other side of the hedge where 
 it haunted ; and then it would run, creeping like a 
 mouse, before us for a hundred yards together, through 
 
 allied to those which visit our island, but has never been found further 
 north. 
 
 
 QfILL- LEATHERS OF TKHMINCK'l WREN. 
 
 Nest of an unknown Warbler. Two years ago I perceived in the foik 
 of a young willow, by the side of the brook Crimple, very near my house 
 at Spofforth, a nest with one egg in it. I did not touch it, expecting that 
 the bird to which the nest belonged would continue laying, but it was 
 deserted, and I could never discover the birds which constructed it. A 
 nest of the sedge warbler, Sylvia Phragmitis, was placed in a situation 
 exactly similar about twenty yards from it ; but the deserted nest differed 
 in being much deeper, and constructed with many feathers of the barn- 
 door cock, and the egg was longer and more acute than those of the 
 sedge warbler, and entirely free from spots, being of the same colour as 
 the ground of the sedge birds without the markings. The purselike 
 depth of the nest would agree with the form of the nest of Sylv. arundi- 
 nacea, the reed warbler, which I have not been able to discover in 
 Yorkshire, but all the accounts of that bird represent its eggs to be 
 spotted. It was certainly the nest of some aquatic warbler, but of all the 
 species whose propagation has been ascertained the eggs appear to be 
 spotted. I find no account of the eggs of Sylv. Cetti, the bouscarle of 
 the French, of which Temminck states, without quoting his authority, 
 that some individuals have been killed in England, and that it is apt to 
 be confounded with the reed warbler. The bouscarle is however said to 
 
OF SELBORNR. 
 
 89 
 
 the bottom of the thorns ; yet it would not come into 
 fair sight: but in a morning early, and when undis- 
 turbed, it sings on the top of a twig, gaping and shivering 
 with its wings. Mr. Ray himself had no knowledge of 
 this bird, but received his account from Mr. Johnson, 
 who apparently confounds it with the Reguli non cristati, 
 from which it it is very distinct. See Ray's Philoso- 
 phical Letters, p. 108 2 . 
 
 The flycatcher (Stoparola) has not yet appeared : it 
 usually breeds in my vine. 
 
 frequent thorn bushes by the side of rivers, and Sylv. Turdoi'des, common 
 in Holland, and Sylv. aquatica which is closely allied to Sylv. Phragmitis, 
 have both spotted eggs. I know not therefore to what species I can 
 refer the nest and egg which is in my possession. W. H. 
 
 W. H. Herbert, del. 
 
 8 This bird is not uncommon in Scotland, where its singular note is 
 popularly supposed to be caused by a species of rattlesnake, the con- 
 cealed habits of the bird rendering it seldom seen. Although I have 
 times innumerable listened to it, I have rarely seen it ; and only once 
 actually got within a very short distance of one which was perched on 
 the top of a furze bush in Musselburgh Haugh, near Edinburgh, trilling 
 its notes and shivering its wings, as White describes. In Ayrshire I 
 have heard it long after sunset ; though I should scarcely be disposed to 
 apply to it the term whisper, for it may be heard at the distance of a 
 quarter of a mile. REMME. 
 
DO NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 The redstart begins to sing : its note is short and im- 
 perfect, but is continued till about the middle of June. 
 
 The willow wrens (the smaller sort) are horrid pests 
 in a garden, destroying the pease, cherries, currants, 
 &c. 3 ; and are so tame that a gun will not scare them. 
 
 3 This sentence has probably been the cause of the murder of numbers 
 of these most innocent little birds, which are in truth peculiarly the 
 gardener's friends. My garden men were in the habit of catching the 
 hens on their nests in the strawberry beds, and killing them, under 
 the impression that they made great ravage among the cherries ; yet 
 I can assert that they never taste the fruit, nor can those which are 
 reared from the nest in confinement be induced to touch it. They peck 
 the Aphides which are injurious to the fruit trees, and being very pugna- 
 cious little birds, I have sometimes seen them take post in a cherry tree 
 and drive away every bird that attempted to enter it, though of greater 
 size and strength. 
 
 The birds which are mistaken for them are the young of the garden 
 warbler, Curruca hortensis, BECHST. with which Mr. White was not 
 acquainted, as it is not mentioned by him, and does not appear in his list 
 of summer birds: yet I am confident that they will be found plentifully 
 at Selborne, when the Kentish cherries are ripe. They attacked my 
 cherries in great numbers when I lived in the south of Berkshire, not 
 much more than twenty miles from Selborne. These young birds have a 
 strong tinge of yellow on the sides, which disappears after the moult, and 
 gives them very much the appearance of the yellow wren when seen upon 
 the tree, though they are larger and stouter, and in habits very much 
 resemble the blackcaps, with whom they are associated in the plunder of 
 cherry trees. I have never seen the pettychaps in Yorkshire until the 
 cherries are ripe, when they immediately make their appearance and 
 attack the Kentish cherry particularly, being so greedy that I have often 
 taken them with a fishing rod tipped with birdlime while they were 
 pulling at the fruit. The moment they have finished the last Kentish 
 cherry they disappear for the season. If they finish the cherries in the 
 morning, they are gone before noon. I am persuaded that they appear 
 and disappear in the same manner at Selborne, and are probably to 
 be found there only while the cherries are ripe, which accounts for 
 Mr- White's having mistaken them for yellow wrens when he saw them 
 in the fruit trees. They breed in the market gardens about London, 
 and I imagine that as the cherries ripen they migrate from garden to 
 garden in pursuit of them. I am told that near London they remain late 
 enough to attack the elder berries, of which the fruit-eating warblers are 
 very fond, but in Yorkshire they do not even wait for the later cherries. 
 The number of these visitants depends upon the crop of early cherries. 
 This year the crop having nearly failed, I saw but two of them, which 
 appeared on the 15th of July and were not seen after the 17th. The 
 blackcap remains eating the currants and honeysuckle berries; they are 
 
OF SELBORNE. 1)1 
 
 A List of the Summer Birds of Passage discovered in this Neighbourhood, 
 ranged somewhat in the Order in which they appear: 
 
 Nomina. 
 
 Smallest willow wren, Motacilla Trochilus* [Sylvia loquax, HERB.] : 
 Wryneck, Yunx Torquilla: 
 
 House swallow, Hirundo rustica: 
 
 Martin, Hirundo urbica : 
 
 Sand martin, Hirundo riparia: 
 
 Cuckoo, Cuculus canorus : 
 
 Nightingale, Motacilla Luscinia [Philomela Luscinia,S WAINS.] : 
 
 Blackcap, Motacilla Atricapilla [Curruca Atricapilla, 
 
 BECHST.] : 
 
 Whitethroat, Motacilla Sylvia [Curruca cinerea, BECHST.] : 
 
 Middle willow wren, Motacilla Trochilus 4 [Sylvia Trochilus, LATH.] : 
 Swift, Hirundo Apus [Cypselus Apus, ILL.] : 
 
 Stone curlew ? Charadrius (Edicnemus [(Edicnemus crepilans, 
 
 TEMM.] ? 
 
 Turtle-dove? Columba Turtur? 
 
 Grasshopper lark, Alauda trivialis [Salicaria Locustella, SELB.] : 
 
 Landra?!, Rallus Crex [Crex pratensis, BECHST.]: 
 
 Largest willow wren, Motacilla Trochilus* [Sylvia sibilatrix, BECHST.] : 
 Redstart, Motacilla Phcenicurus [Phccnicura Ruticilla, 
 
 SWAINS.] : 
 
 Goatsucker, or fern owl, Caprimulgus Europceus: 
 Flycatcher, Musicapa Grisola. 
 
 both very fond in confinement of ripe pears, and I believe, in the south 
 of England, they peck some of them before their departure. 
 
 Vieillot states that the garden warbler is not found in the neighbour- 
 hood of Paris, though it occurs in Piedmont and Provence, where it fre- 
 quents the vicinity of pine forests. I am persuaded that this is entirely 
 erroneous. That bird is abundant in the gardens round London, where 
 it breeds and where I have seen the nest and young birds. I have never 
 known it breed in the northern counties of England, where its visits are 
 of short duration while the supply of ripe cherries lasts. In confine- 
 ment it appears much more tender of cold than the blackcap and white- 
 throat, and there is some difficulty in saving it through a severe winter. 
 It is therefore evident that it prefers the more southern latitudes, and as 
 it is a frequenter of fruit gardens and not of uncultivated wastes, and 
 
 4 Mr. White does not seem to have had any reason for putting the 
 Latin name Motacilla Trochilus to three distinct birds. There is no cause 
 for believing that Linnaeus confounded them, though he only named one 
 of them and overlooked the others. Indeed the wood wren could not be 
 confounded with the yellow wren by any person of the least discrimina- 
 tion. W. H. 
 
J)^ NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 My countrymen talk much of a bird that makes a 
 clatter with his bill against a dead bough, or some old 
 
 especially as it performs a series of migrations in search of cherries, 
 advancing northward when the supply fails in the south, and returning 
 to eat the early pears and elder berries when the northern cherries are 
 consumed, it is quite certain that the bird must be found in similar 
 situations in France ; and wherever the gardens are by which Paris is 
 supplied, its nest will be discovered. If it visits the forests at all, it is 
 probably to attack the cherry trees of the cottagers. 
 
 I could not persuade my gardener that the yellow wrens did not eat 
 the cherries, till he had shot some of the pettychaps in the act of eating 
 them, and compared them with the wrens, when he became satisfied of 
 the error. In order to ascertain, beyond doubt, whether the yellow wrens 
 ever eat fruit, I left some which had been reared tame from the nest, 
 and of course were more likely to feed upon any new thing than the wild 
 birds, without victuals, till they were very hungry, and I then offered 
 them little bits of ripe cherry. They seized them with avidity, but imme- 
 diately threw them down again, and it was evident that they would rather 
 have starved than eat the fruit. I had no doubt of the fact, but I wished 
 to set the question completely at rest, for I have seen them pulling the 
 leaves of the cherry trees so near the fruit that any person might be 
 deceived, and think they were eating it, and the young of the pettychaps 
 look so like them, that I am not in the least surprised at their having got 
 into bad repute with the gardeners. I had an opportunity of watching 
 lately a little family of them, which sat many days in a low standard 
 cherry tree in my garden, not more than a few feet above my head. The 
 old ones took no notice of me at all, but were perpetually feeding them 
 close to me. They flitted about the cherry tree, picking the little Aphides 
 off the leaves and bringing them one by one to the young, and sometimes 
 tugging very hard at a leaf to get out a little caterpillar that was twisted 
 up in it, the cherries being ripe at the time. The young sat still for hours 
 together, close to each other, occasionally stretching their legs or wings, 
 or hunching up their hind quarters. This very singular movement is, I 
 think, peculiar to, or at least it is more usual amongst, soft-billed birds. 
 It is a sign of health, and is frequent with the growing young birds. I 
 do not observe those which feed upon seed use it, though they frequently 
 stretch the leg or wing. The young sedge warblers hunch up their hind 
 quarters to a degree that is singularly ridiculous, and when they do so 
 they are always thriving. 
 
 The yellow wrens appear in confinement to have stronger powers of 
 digestion than the wood wrens, though, I believe, they feed naturally 
 upon similar insects. The hens are singularly tame. I had one taken 
 when able to feed itself, what the bird-catchers call a brancher, which 
 soon became so familiar that it would fly upon my finger to feed. The 
 cocks are larger and rather more shy. 
 
 Last year I had reared three cocks from the nest, and in July I wished 
 to set one of them at liberty. Having let it out of the cage which stood 
 near a window which was opened, it continued for a long time hopping 
 
OF SELBORNE. 03 
 
 pales, calling it a jar-bird. I procured one to be shot 
 in the very fact ; it proved to be the Sitta Europcea (the 
 nuthatch). Mr. Ray says that the less spotted wood- 
 
 and flying about the top of the cage, and sitting upon the pots upon the 
 ledge, and on a bar to which the roses were tied across the window. 
 At last it began to travel up the creepers against the house, and getting 
 upon the roof it flew over the buildings, and I did not expect to see it 
 again ; but two hours after it returned exceedingly hungry, and lit upon 
 the upper bar of the middle pane of the lower sash of the same window, 
 and pecked hard for admittance. It was let in, and fed-heartily from my 
 hand, after which it took its leave. I saw no more of it for two days, 
 when it returned again for a short visit in very good case, and not appear- 
 ing at all pressed for food. About a week after, it returned to the same 
 pane of glass, pecking as before, but I was occupied with a stranger, on 
 business, and could not attend to it, and it departed for the season. On 
 the 23rd of July, in the following summer, I was standing at the same 
 window, when a fine stout cock of this species lit upon the bar of the 
 same pane close to my face, and began to peck as before for admission. 
 Neither alarmed by my voice, nor my little boy's jumping up from his 
 seat to look at it, it flew down upon some of the cage pans which hap- 
 pened to be on the ledge of the window, and began pecking them as if to 
 get food from them. It quickly departed again. But this is so contrary to 
 the habits of the wild bird, that I consider it quite certain that the bird 
 was my own nursling which had returned after its trip to Africa, to look 
 at the window where it had been reared in its nest. The visit was a 
 very pleasant little incident. How many things, which Europeans in 
 vain desire to see, had my little wanderer witnessed since he last pecked 
 at my window. Perhaps he had sung his plaintive notes near the grave of 
 Clapperton, or peeped into the seraglio of the King of Timbuctoo, since 
 we had parted. 
 
 These little birds are exceedingly gentle till they feed themselves per- 
 fectly ; after which, they become exceedingly quarrelsome. I had some 
 in the same cage with young wood wrens, brown wrens, and sedge 
 warblers. One of them, more than a week before it could feed itself, 
 took to feeding two wood wrens which were ten days older than it, and 
 able to feed themselves, though still very willing to be fed by another. 
 It showed exactly the same discrimination that an old bird does in lean- 
 ing over the one it had last fed, notwithstanding its clamorous entreaties, 
 in order to give the food to the other. No importunities of the brown 
 wrens could obtain a morsel from it. There was sagacity even in this, 
 for the brown wren is a much less nearly allied species, and is now 
 referred to a separate genus. Its own fellow nestlings did not importune 
 it for food. It was a cock bird, and three weeks after it beat the cock 
 wood wren so, that it was necessary to separate them. The wood wrens 
 and sedge warblers are not quarrelsome, but squall very loud when 
 attacked or alarmed. The little brown wrens, as far as I have seen, are 
 not quarrelsome, but perfectly fearless, and very much on the alert to 
 
J)4 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 pecker does the same. This noise may be heard u 
 furlong or more. 
 
 Now is the only time to ascertain the short-winged 
 summer birds ; for, when the leaf is out, there is no 
 making any remarks on such a restless tribe; and, 
 when once the young begin to appear, it is all confusion : 
 there is no distinction of genus, species, or sex. 
 
 In breeding time snipes play over the moors, piping 
 and humming : they always hum as they are descending. 
 Is not their hum ventriloquous like that of the turkey? 
 Some suspect it is made by their wings 5 . 
 
 This morning I saw the golden-crowned wren, whose 
 crown glitters like burnished gold. It often hangs, like 
 a titmouse, with its back downwards. 
 
 Yours, &c. &c. 
 
 snatch any thing they like out of the mouth of a larger bird, and run 
 under a pan with it to avoid being pursued. 
 
 It is remarkable that many birds, which are quite kindly disposed to 
 other birds, will not tolerate the presence of another of their own species. 
 The redstart fights with his brother nestling in the same cage as soon as 
 he is full grown ; he will not tolerate the presence of a stone chat or 
 whin chat, whose habits are very similar to his own, but he does not 
 attack a nightingale, and behaves decently in a cage full of seed birds. 
 I have seen two yellow wrens, not two months old, fight like bulldogs, 
 holding tight, and pulling the skin, but they very rarely attack any but 
 of their own kind. A nightingale which had lived two years in a cage 
 full of birds in perfect amity with them, and even suffered the brown 
 wrens to jump and rub themselves on its back, instantly attacked, in the 
 most violent manner, another nightingale which was put into the cage. 
 Two robins will never frequent a hothouse or conservatory in peace, but 
 fight till the weakest is killed, or yields full possession to his antagonist, 
 and they often break the tender young plants in their conflicts*. W. H. 
 
 3 The drumming of snipes in the breeding season is again adverted to 
 in Letter XXXIX. ; where a Note by Mr. Herbert is subjoined, expla- 
 natory of the mode in which the sound is produced. E. T. B. 
 
 * In reference to the pugnacious character of the robin there is some- 
 where an old Latin proverb, indicating that one bush does not hold t\vo 
 robins : ttnum arbustum non alit duos erithncos. W. Y. 
 
OF SELBORNH. 95 
 
 LETTER XVII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORJSE, June 18, 1768. 
 
 ON Wednesday last arrived your agreeable letter of 
 June the LOth. It gives me great satisfaction to find 
 that you pursue these studies still with" -such vigour, 
 and are in such forwardness with regard to reptiles 
 and fishes. 
 
 The reptiles, few as they are, I am not acquainted 
 with, so well as I could wish, with regard to their 
 natural history. There is a degree of dubiousness and 
 obscurity attending the propagation of this class of ani- 
 mals, something analogous to that of the Cryptogamia in 
 the sexual system of plants : and the case is the same 
 with regard to some of the fishes ; as the eel, &c, 
 
 The method in which toads procreate and bring forth 
 seems to be very much in the dark. Some authors say 
 that they are viviparous : and yet Ray classes them 
 among his oviparous animals ; and is silent with regard 
 to the manner of their bringing forth. Perhaps they 
 may be ecu p^ev wVroxw, l^w tie ^WOTOXO/, as is known to be 
 the case with the viper. 
 
 *H TCOV $arpa%wt GVVU.($V\ (vf on crvvatyq eotxe, o Swammer- 
 dam yap &?%& or/, ru appsvi x IV* wsiptv $ IIQ ryv 
 eqt xEpiQavys' ypi yap aAA aAAwv fV 
 
 Jvtje opdo^ev &$6TOre $6 v\ hdov 
 TSC; (pucraAH^ TUVTU Tpet7TOpL6We supxffQcu 1 . 
 
 It is strange that the matter with regard to the 
 venom of toads has not been yet settled 2 . That they 
 
 1 In this respect the toad does not differ from the frog. E. T. B. 
 
 2 The question of the venom of toads is now set at rest. The old pre- 
 judice that they possess the power of communicating poison by their bite 
 is wholly unfounded ; and the fluid which they eject from the cloaca 
 when frightened or handled is, in their case as in frogs, pure limpid 
 
96 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 are not noxious to some animals is plain: for ducks, 
 buzzards, owls, stone curlews, and snakes, eat them, to 
 my knowledge, with impunity. And I well remember 
 the time, but was not eyewitness to the fact (though 
 numbers of persons were), when a quack, at this vil- 
 lage, ate a toad to make the country people stare; 
 afterwards he drank oil. 
 
 I have been informed also, from undoubted authority, 
 that some ladies (ladies you will say of peculiar taste) 
 took a fancy to a toad, which they nourished, summer 
 after summer, for many years, till he grew to a mon- 
 strous size, with the maggots which turn to flesh ilirs. 
 The reptile used to come forth every evening from a 
 hole under the garden steps ; and was taken up, after 
 supper, on the table to be fed. But at last a tame 
 raven, kenning him as he put forth his head, gave him 
 such a severe stroke with his horny beak as put out one 
 eye. After this accident the creature languished for 
 some time and died 3 . 
 
 water. The skin, however, has been ascertained by Dr. Davy to secrete 
 an acid liquid, not perhaps poisonous, but capable of producing an 
 uncomfortable sensation on the tongue; a secretion of somewhat similar 
 qualities is poured out on the surface of the common land salamander of 
 Europe. 
 
 The aqueous fluid above mentioned, which is thrown out in consider- 
 able quantities by a frog or toad on being taken in the hand, is held in a 
 double bladder which opens into the cloaca : and this fact is connected 
 with the absorbing power of the skin. The cutaneous surface of these 
 animals is now known to serve the purposes of respiration ; but in order 
 to perform this function, it is necessary that it should be kept constant l\ 
 in a moist condition. When placed in water or in a sufficiently damp 
 situation, the surface of the body absorbs a considerable quantity of 
 water, which is conveyed to the receptacle above mentioned, there to 
 remain as in a reservoir for future use; and if the animal be exposed to 
 a dry atmosphere, the fluid is re-absorbed, and again secreted on the sur- 
 face of the skin, in order to keep up its respiratory function. This is the 
 true history of the poisonous liquid of toads, as it is considered, which 
 renders them the objects of dread and hatred to the ignorant of all parts 
 of the country. T. B. 
 
 3 I have had a toad so tame, that when it was held in one hand, it would 
 take its food from the other held near it. The manner in which this 
 animal takes its prey is very interesting. The tongue, when at rest, is 
 
OF SELBORNE. 97 
 
 I need not remind a gentleman of your extensive 
 reading: of the excellent account there is from Mr. Der- 
 
 doubled back upon itself in the mouth, and the apex, which is broad, is 
 imbued with a most tenacious mucus. On seeing an insect, the animal 
 fixes its beautiful eyes upon it, leans or creeps forward, and when within 
 reach, the tongue is projected upon the insect, and again returned into the 
 mouth with the captive prey, by a motion so rapid, that without the most 
 careful observation the action cannot be followed. An insect is never taken 
 unless when in motion ; and I have often seen a toad remain motionless 
 for some minutes, with its eyes fixed upon an insect, and the instant it 
 moved, it disappeared with the quickness of lightningl- The insect is 
 swallowed whole, and alive; and I have often seen the reptile much 
 incommoded by the struggles of its imprisoned prey, particularly if it 
 consist of large and hard insects, as full grown cockroaches for instance, 
 when the twitching of its sides, from the irritation produced by the 
 movements of the insects in the stomach, is sufficiently ludicrous. T. B. 
 
 My ingenious friend, the late George Newenham, Esq., of Summer Hjll, 
 Cork, carried a live toad with him from Edinburgh, which he kept at his 
 country seat of Summer Hill for several years, where it became quite 
 tame, in the same way as that mentioned by White. The most amusing 
 feat which it performed was the swallowing of a worm, which it seemed 
 to relish highly, and was eager to master in proportion to the difficulty 
 presented by the writhings of the creature. The spring before I was at 
 Summer Hill, this singular pet had not made its appearance from its 
 unknown winter retreat, and consequently was supposed to have died, as 
 it was not likely to wander from a spot with which it had become so 
 familiar. 
 
 Mr. Husenbeth has given a very interesting account of a tame toad 
 which he placed " in a large glass jar, with moss at the bottom and some- 
 times water enough to saturate the moss, but oftener with only a piece of 
 green sod, which I changed," he says, " when the grass began to 
 wither. Sometimes I contrived to let him have a little well of water in 
 the sod ; but I never saw him go into water freely ; only when he was 
 frightened, he would plunge in and bury his head at the bottom under 
 the sod. Whether he ever knew me, I much doubt; but certainly he 
 was always perfectly tame, and would sit on my hand, let me stroke 
 him, and walk about my table or carpet with apparent familiarity and 
 contentment. I usually let him out on the table every day; and he 
 would jump down upon the carpet, and hop and crawl about, always 
 making for the skirting-board, which he climbed very ludicrously, and 
 seemed fond of sitting in a corner on the top of it. He ate freely, 
 from the first day I had him ; but would never take any thing unless he 
 saw it move. In the whole time, I gave him all the following varieties : 
 flies of all kinds ; wasps, and bees, first removing their stings ; gnats, 
 which he would snap up at the window, while I held him on my hand 
 up to the pane of glass, with an eagerness that appeared insatiable, and 
 was very amusing ; clap-baits, lady-birds, caddices, ants : of these last I 
 used occasionally to give him a treat, by bringing home part of a hillock, 
 
 H 
 
98 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 ham, in Ray's Wisdom of God in the Creation (p. 365), 
 concerning the migration of frogs from their breeding 
 ponds 4 . In this account he at once subverts that 
 foolish opinion of their dropping from the clouds in 
 rain ; showing that it is from the grateful coolness and 
 moisture of those showers that they are tempted to set 
 out on their travels, which they defer till those fall. 
 Frogs are as yet in their tadpole state ; but, in a few 
 weeks, our lanes, paths, fields will swarm for a few 
 days with myriads of those emigrants, no larger than 
 my little finger nail. Swammerdam gives a most ac- 
 
 and putting him down in the midst of it. He would raise himself on all 
 fours, and with his eyes glistening with something like civic ecstasy, 
 would dart out his tongue, right and left, as rapidly as lightning, and 
 lap up the ants in quick succession, with the most laughable gulosity. I 
 also gave him earwigs, glowworms, woodlice, grasshoppers, spiders, 
 dragon-flies, ticks, horse-leeches, grubs, moths, and any insect I could 
 meet with. All seemed equally welcome, either by night or by day; 
 but it was most diverting to see him contend with a worm. He would 
 dart upon it, secure one end, and swallow with all his might; but the 
 worm would annoy him by creeping out of his mouth before he could 
 swallow it entirely; and I have known him persevere for nearly half an 
 hour, attempting to secure his prize, while the worm kept constantly 
 escaping. He would take a snail, when he once saw it extended and in 
 motion ; though he always dashed at the shell, and took all down toge- 
 ther in a moment, but could not manage one of large size. It was to me 
 a great source of amusement to feed him and watch his singular move- 
 ments. He was often frightened, but seldom provoked. I once or twice, 
 however, provoked him, I think, to as much wrath as his cold nature 
 was susceptible of; but I feel quite assured that the toad is at all times 
 perfectly harmless and inoffensive : the idea of its spitting, or otherwise 
 discharging venom is, I am convinced, wholly unfounded. In the winter 
 months my toad always refused food, though he did not become torpid, 
 but grew thin, and moved much less than at other times. He did not eat 
 from the end of November till March, gradually losing his appetite and 
 gradually recovering it: he never seemed affected by cold, except in the 
 way of losing his inclination for food." RENNIE. 
 
 4 Concerning the reason of frogs coming out in rainy weather, the 
 reader will be amply gratified, by referring to the experiments made by 
 Dr. Townson on his two frogs, Damon and Musidora. See his Tracts, p. 
 50. The general result of which has proved the following curious fact: 
 " that frogs take in their supply of liquid through the skin alone, all 
 the aqueous fluid which they take in being absorbed by the skin, and all 
 they reject being transpired through it. One frog in an hour and a half 
 absorbed nearly its own weight of water." MITFORD. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 99 
 
 curate account of the method and situation in which 
 the male impregnates the spawn of the female. How 
 wonderful is the economy of Providence with regard to 
 the limbs of so vile a reptile ! While it is an aquatic it 
 has a fish-like tail, and no legs : as soon as the legs 
 sprout, the tail drops off as useless, and the animal 
 betakes itself to the land 5 ! 
 
 Merret, I trust, is widely mistaken when he advances 
 that the Rana arborea 6 is an English reptile j it abounds 
 in Germany and Switzerland 7 . 
 
 It is to be remembered that the Salamandra aquatica 
 of Ray (the water-newt or eft) will frequently bite at 
 
 5 The whole of the typical Batrachia, the frogs, toads, newts, salaman- 
 ders, &c. undergo a complete metamorphosis. In the land species, as 
 from their habits they have not constant access to water, the aquatic 
 portion of their existence, during which the gills remain attached, cannot 
 be passed in that medium in the same manner as the frogs, &c. They 
 undergo the metamorphosis therefore in the oviduct, before they are 
 excluded from the mother, and come forth in the perfect condition. But 
 in the other forms, the change takes place in the water, and the young 
 live there for a time in a fish-like state, as regards not only their respira- 
 tion, but most of the other functions of life. There is, however, another 
 deviation from this rule, still more remarkable than that of the salaman- 
 der, in the pipa or Surinam toad ; in which the male places the eggs on the 
 back of the female, impregnates them, and leaves them attached by a very 
 glutinous mucus. The skin of the mother grows up around the eggs, 
 foi-ming a cell for each, in which the young leave the egg, and undergo 
 their metamorphosis. 
 
 The common water newt or eft exhibits a beautiful example of this 
 interesting change, retaining its pretty reddish leaf-like gills till the 
 animals are an inch or more in length. T. B. 
 
 6 [Hyla viridis, LAUR.] 
 
 7 From the way in which Mr. White speaks of the tree frog, it might 
 be inferred that he thought it was possessed of injurious qualities, 
 whereas a more innocent creature does not exist ; and it is besides so 
 little, and of so beautiful a green, that it is a very common pet in Ger- 
 many. My friend, J. C. Loudon, Esq. the well known author of the 
 Encyclopaedia of Gardening, kept one for several years; and in the 
 autumn of 1830, I caught one sitting on a bramble at Cape La He"ve, on 
 the coast of Normandy, which I kept for many weeks; but it finally 
 escaped from me between Bayswater and Hyde Park Corner, by the 
 gauze covering of its glass accidentally slipping off before I was aware. 
 RENNIE. 
 
 H 2 
 
100 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 the angler's bait, and is often caught on his hook. I 
 used to take it for granted that the Salamandra aquatica 
 was hatched, lived, and died, in the water. But 
 John Ellis, Esq., F. R. S., (the coralline Ellis), asserts, 
 in a letter to the Royal Society, dated June the 5th, 
 1766, in his account of the mud inguana, an amphibious 
 bipes from South Carolina, that the water-eft, or newt, 
 is only the larva of the land-eft, as tadpoles are of 
 frogs. Lest I should be suspected to misunderstand 
 his meaning, I shall give it in his own words. Speak- 
 ing of the opercula, or coverings to the gills, of the mud 
 inguana, he proceeds to say that " The form of these 
 pennated coverings approaches very near to what I 
 have some time ago observed in the larva, or aquatic 
 state, of our English Lacerta, known by the name of eft, 
 or newt ; which serve them for coverings to their gills, 
 and for fins to swim with while in this state; and 
 which they lose, as well as the fins of their tails, when 
 they change their state and become land animals, as 
 I have observed, by keeping them alive for some time 
 myself." 
 
 Linnaeus, in his Systema Naturae, hints at what 
 Mr. Ellis advances, more than once. 
 
 Providence has been so indulgent to us as to allow of 
 but one venomous reptile of the serpent kind in these 
 kingdoms, and that is the viper. As you propose the 
 good of mankind to be an object of your publications, 
 you will not omit to mention common salad-oil as a 
 sovereign remedy against the bite of the viper 8 . 
 
 8 The efficacy of oil as a remedy against the bite of the viper has pro- 
 bably been overrated. It is generally believed in those parts of the 
 country where vipers abound to be very efficacious as an external appli- 
 cation, as is also the fat of the reptile itself. The exhibition of ammonia 
 both as an external and internal remedy, is recommended probably on 
 surer grounds. I never heard of a well authenticated instance of the 
 bite of the English viper proving fatal, though I have known and seen 
 several cases in which the symptoms appeared to be extremely dangerous. 
 T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 As to the blind worm (Anguis fragilis, so called 
 because it snaps in sunder with a small blow), I have 
 found, on examination, that it is perfectly innocuous 9 . 
 
 A neighbouring yeoman (to whom I am indebted for 
 some good hints) killed and opened a female viper 
 about the 27th of May : he found her filled with a chain 
 of eleven eggs, about the size of those of a blackbird ; 
 but none of them were advanced so far towards a state 
 of maturity as to contain any rudiments of young. 
 Though they are oviparous, yet they are viviparous 
 also, hatching their young within their bellies, and then 
 bringing them forth. Whereas snakes lay chains of 
 eggs every summer in my melon beds, in spite of all 
 that my people can do to prevent them ; which eggs do 
 not hatch till the spring following, as I have often 
 experienced. Several intelligent folks assure me that 
 they have seen the viper open her mouth and admit her 
 
 9 A blind-worm, that I kept alive for nine weeks, would, when touched, 
 turn and bite, although not very sharply: its bite was not sufficient to 
 draw blood, but it always retained its hold until released. It drank 
 sparingly of milk, raising the head when drinking. It fed upon the little 
 white slug (Umax agrestis, LINN.) so common in fields and gardens, 
 eating six or seven of them one after the other ; but it did not eat every 
 day. It invariably took them in one position. Elevating its head slowly 
 above its victim, it would suddenly seize the slug by the middle, in the 
 same manner that a ferret or dog will generally take a rat by the loins ; it 
 would then hold it thus sometimes for more than a minute, when it would 
 pass its prey through its jaws, and swallow the slug head foremost. It 
 refused the larger slugs, and would not touch either young frogs or mice. 
 Snakes kept in the same cage took both frogs and mice. The blind-worm 
 avoided the water : the snakes, on the contrary, coiled themselves in 
 the pan containing water, which was put into the cage, and appeared to 
 delight in it. The blind-worm was a remarkably fine one, measuring 
 fifteen inches in length. It cast its slough while in my keeping. The 
 skin came off in separate pieces, the largest of which was two inches in 
 length ; splitting first on the belly, and the peeling from the head being 
 completed the last. After the skin was cast the colour of the reptile was 
 much lighter than it had before been. 
 
 I had for the first time, while this blind-worm was in my custody, an 
 opportunity of witnessing the power which slugs have of suspending 
 themselves by a thread. They availed themselves of it in escaping from 
 the cage of the reptile. The cage was on a shelf four feet six inches 
 from the floor, and, with the aid of the glutinous filament which they 
 exuded, the slugs lowered themselves from it to the ground. G. D. 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 helpless young down her throat on sudden surprises, 
 just as the female opossum does her brood into the 
 pouch under her belly, upon the like emergencies ; and 
 yet the London viper-catchers insist on it, to Mr. Bar- 
 rington, that no such thing ever happens 10 . The serpent 
 kind eat, I believe, but once in a year ; or, rather, but 
 only just at one season of the year 11 . Country people 
 talk much of a water-snake, but, I am pretty sure, 
 without any reason ; for the common snake (Coluber 
 Natrix) delights much to sport in the water, perhaps 
 with a view to procure frogs and other food. 
 
 I cannot well guess how you are to make out your 
 twelve species of reptiles, unless it be by the various 
 species, or rather varieties, of our Lacertce, of which 
 Ray enumerates five. I have not had opportunity of 
 ascertaining these ; but remember well to have seen, 
 formerly, several beautiful green Lacertce on the sunny 
 sandbanks near Farnham, in Surrey 12 ; and Ray admits 
 there are such in Ireland. 
 
 10 I have been assured by a very honest and worthy gardener in Dor- 
 setshire, that he had seen the young vipers enter the mouth of the mother 
 when alarmed. I have never been able to obtain further evidence of the 
 fact, though I have made the most extensive inquiries in my power. If 
 it be untrue, the popular error may have arisen from the circumstance of 
 fully formed young having been found in the abdomen of the mother, 
 ready to be excluded. The actions of the young which were emancipated 
 from the oviduct by White on a subsequent occasion (see Letter XXXI. 
 to Daines Harrington) do not appear necessarily to bear upon the question, 
 as there are many instances of the young of animals manifesting the 
 habits and instincts of their species immediately on coming into the world 
 as in the case of young ducks seeking the water, &c. T. B. 
 
 II The slow power of digestion possessed by serpents renders them 
 capable of remaining long without food. If a snake swallows a frog, 
 or a viper a mouse, it is several weeks before it is digested. It is 
 probable, accordingly, that they do not eat above three or four times in 
 the course of a summer, and in winter not at all. During the summer of 
 1830, I kept both a slow worm ( Anguis fragilis) and a snake (Coluber 
 Natrix) for several months, during which time they refused every sort of 
 food I could offer them. When taken in the autumn, M. Bory St. Vincent 
 says they will endure abstinence for an incredible period ; but this will 
 not be the case if they are taken in spring. RENNIE. 
 
 12 [See Letter XXII.] 
 
OF SELBORNE. 103 
 
 LETTER XVIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, July 27, 17C8. 
 
 I RECEIVED your obliging and communicative letter of 
 June the 28th, while I was on a visit at a 'gentleman's 
 house, where I had neither books to turn to, nor leisure 
 to sit down, to return you an answer to many queries, 
 which I wanted to resolve in the best manner that I am 
 able. 
 
 A person, by my order, has searched our brooks, but 
 could find no such fish as the Gasterosteus Pungitius : 
 he found the Gasterosteus aculeatus in plenty. This 
 morning, in a basket, I packed a little earthen pot full 
 of wet moss, and in it some sticklebacks, male and 
 female ; the females big with spawn : some lamperns ; 
 some bulls-heads; but I could procure no minnows. 
 This basket will be in Fleet Street by eight this even- 
 ing; so I hope Mazel 1 will have them fresh and fair 
 to-morrow morning. I gave some directions, in a letter, 
 to what particulars the engraver should be attentive. 
 
 Finding, while I was on a visit, that I was within a 
 reasonable distance of Ambresbury, I sent a servant 
 over to that town, and procured several living speci- 
 mens of loaches, which he brought safe and brisk in a 
 glass decanter. They were taken in the gullies that 
 were cut for watering the meadows. From these fishes 
 (which measured from two to four inches in length) I 
 
 1 Mr. Peter Mazel [Mazell] was the engraver of the plates of the 
 British Zoology. He was living at the time of the (anticipated) literary 
 death of Pennant, March 1, 1791 ; " and of whose skill and integrity I 
 had always occasion to speak well," remarks his employer in his Literary 
 Life. He also engraved some of the plates for the original edition of this 
 work. E. T. B. 
 
104 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 took the following description : " The loach, in its 
 general aspect, has a pellucid appearance : its back is 
 mottled with irregular collections of small black dots, 
 not reaching much below the linea lateralis, as are the 
 back and tail fins: a black line runs from each eye 
 down to the nose ; its belly is of a silvery white ; the 
 upper jaw projects beyond the lower, and is surrounded 
 with six feelers, three on each side: its pectoral fins 
 are large, its ventral much smaller ; the fin behind its 
 anus small ; its dorsal fin large, containing eight spines ; 
 its tail, where it joins to the tail fin, remarkably broad, 
 without any taperness, so as to be characteristic of 
 this genus : the tail fin is broad, and square at the end. 
 From the breadth and muscular strength of the tail it 
 appears to be an active nimble fish 2 ." 
 
 In my visit I was not very far from Hungerford, and 
 did not forget to make some inquiries concerning the 
 wonderful method of curing cancers by means of toads. 
 Several intelligent persons, both gentry and clergy, do, 
 I find, give a great deal of credit to what was asserted 
 in the papers: and I myself dined with a clergyman 
 who seemed to be persuaded that what is related is 
 matter of fact : but, when I came to attend to his 
 account, I thought I discerned circumstances which 
 did not a little invalidate the woman's story of the 
 manner in which she came by her skill. She says of 
 herself, " that labouring under a virulent cancer, she 
 went to some church where there was a vast crowd : 
 on going into a pew, she was accosted by a strange 
 clergyman; who, after expressing compassion for her 
 situation, told her that if she would make such an 
 
 8 Ambresbury had become notorious for its loaches, on account of 
 sportsmen frequently, in frolic, swallowing one of them alive in a glass 
 of white wine : but the fish is by no means a local one. It occurs 
 generally throughout the country in brooks and rivulets, lurking under 
 stones. 
 
 The use of the word spine in the above description is, it may be 
 remarked, not altogether correct ; the rays of the dorsal fin being soft and 
 branched, as is usual in malacopterygian fishes. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 105 
 
 application of living toads as is mentioned she would 
 be well." Now is it likely that this unknown gentle- 
 man should express so much tenderness for this single 
 sufferer, and not feel any for the many thousands that 
 daily languish under this terrible disorder? Would he 
 not have made use of this invaluable nostrum for his 
 own emolument ; or, at least, by some means of publi- 
 cation or other, have found a method of making it 
 public for the good of mankind ? In short, this woman 
 (as it appears to me) having set up for a" cancer-doc- 
 tress, finds it expedient to amuse the country with this 
 dark and mysterious relation. 
 
 The water-eft has not, that I can discern, the least 
 appearance of any gills ; for want of which it is conti- 
 nually rising to the surface of the water to take in fresh 
 air 3 . I opened a big-bellied one indeed, and found it 
 full of spawn. Not that this circumstance at all in- 
 validates the assertion that they are larvce: for the 
 larva of insects are full of eggs, which they exclude 
 the instant they enter their last state. The water-eft 
 is continually climbing over the brims of the vessel, 
 within which we keep it in water, and wandering away : 
 and people every summer see numbers crawling out of 
 the pools where they are hatched, up the dry banks. 
 There are varieties of them, differing in colour ; and 
 some have fins up their tail and back, and some have 
 not 4 . 
 
 3 I have kept several of these creatures in a jar of water ; but it is 
 painful to observe their constant efforts to take breath by rising every two 
 or three minutes to the surface, so that breathing seems to be the only 
 business of their lives, requiring infinitely more labour than most other 
 animals undergo to procure food. It is clearly impossible for them ever 
 to sleep except upon land. Those which I kept cast off the whole of the 
 scarf skin (epidermis) every two or three weeks, but never the true skin 
 as serpents do. They also laid eggs enveloped in a gelatinous substance, 
 somewhat like frog spawn. RENNIE. 
 
 4 The appearance of fin-like expansions on the back and tail of the 
 several species of Triton is confined to the male, and to the season of 
 breeding ; when their presence is obviously advantageous to animals of 
 habits altogether different from those of frogs and toads. T. B. 
 
106 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER XIX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Aug. 17, 17G8. 
 
 I HAVE now, past dispute, made out three distinct 
 species of the willow wrens (Motacillce Trochili) which 
 constantly and invariably use distinct notes. But, at 
 the same time, I am obliged to confess that I know 
 nothing of your willow lark 1 . In my letter of April 
 the 18th, I had told you peremptorily that I knew your 
 willow lark, but had not seen it then : but, when I came 
 to procure it, it proved, in all respects, a very Motacilla 
 Trochilus ; only that it is a size larger than the two 
 other, and the yellow green of the whole upper part of 
 the body is more vivid, and the belly of a clearer white. 
 I have specimens of the three sorts now lying before 
 me ; and can discern that there are three gradations of 
 sizes, and that the least has black legs, and the other 
 two flesh-coloured ones. The yellowest bird is con- 
 siderably the largest, and has its quill feathers and 
 secondary feathers tipped with white, which the others 
 have not. This last haunts only the tops of trees in 
 high beechen woods, and makes a sibilous grasshopper- 
 like noise, now and then, at short intervals, shivering a 
 little with its wings when it sings ; and is, I make no 
 doubt now, the Regulus non cristatus of Ray ; which 
 he says " cantat voce stridula locustce." Yet this great 
 ornithologist never suspected that there were three 
 species 2 . 
 
 1 Brit. Zool. edit 1776, octavo, p. 381. 
 
 [White subsequently determined, see Letter XXV. that the bird in 
 question was the hedge warbler; and Pennant acquiesced in, and adopted, 
 his decision. E. T. B.] 
 
 a It is curious that the clearness with which Gilbert White distin- 
 guished in this Letter the three kinds of true Sylvia that were known to 
 him, should not have led immediately to a perfect acquaintance with the 
 
OF SELBORNE. 107 
 
 LETTER XX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR sm, SELBORNE, Oct. 8, 1768. 
 
 IT is, I find, in zoology as it is in botany : all nature is 
 so full, that that district produces the greatest variety 
 which is the most examined. Several birds, which are 
 said to belong to the north only, are, it seems, often in 
 the south. I have discovered this summer three spe- 
 cies of birds with us, which writers mention as only to 
 be seen in the northern counties l . 
 
 The first that was brought me (on the 14th of May) 
 
 characteristic marks of these little birds. Yet it is only within these few 
 years that they have been well understood ; and it is even now occasion- 
 ally necessary to insist upon the really distinctive characters between 
 them. Nothing, however, can be more defined than the statement in the 
 text. There are three sorts of willow wrens, the smallest of which has 
 black legs ; this is the chiff-chaff, the earliest in its arrival, the chirper of 
 but two notes, referred to in Letter XVI., and described in a note on that 
 letter by the Hon. and Rev. W. Herbert under the name of Sylv. loquax: 
 the others have flesh-coloured legs. One of them, the largest bird of the 
 three, has the yellow green of its upper surface more vivid than the 
 others, and its belly of a clearer white ; it haunts the tops of trees, and 
 makes a sibilous noise, shivering with its wings, this is the Sylv . sibilatrix, 
 BECHST. The remaining bird, of intermediate size, and having a joyous, 
 easy, laughing note, is the Sylv. Trochilus, LATH. The distinctions are 
 thoroughly intelligible. Arranged in a tabular form they would stand 
 thus, Sylvia. 
 
 Legs black Sylv. loquax. 
 
 flesh-coloured, 
 
 Belly yellowish . . Sylv. Trochilus. 
 
 white .... Sylv. sibilatrix. 
 
 E. T. B. 
 
 1 There is nothing highly remarkable in the occurrence of these birds 
 in southern counties. The sandpiper is disposed to breed in any part of 
 England, where it can be free from disturbance. The red-backed butcher 
 bird belongs rather to the south, and is scarcely ever met with in the 
 north. And the ring-ousel is in Hampshire a bird of passage, crossing 
 that county in the spring and autumn, in its way to and from its breeding 
 places in the rocky districts of the north and west. E. T. B. 
 
108 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 was the sandpiper ( Tringa Hypoleucos *) : it was a cock 
 bird, and haunted the banks of some ponds near the 
 village ; and, as it had a companion, doubtless intended 
 to have bred near that water. Besides, the owner has 
 told me since, that, on recollection, he has seen some of 
 the same birds round his ponds in former summers. 
 
 The next bird that I procured (on the 21st of May) 
 was a male red-backed butcher-bird (Lanius Collurio). 
 My neighbour, who shot it, says that it might easily 
 have escaped his notice, had not the outcries and chat- 
 terings of the whitethroats and other small birds drawn 
 his attention to the bush where it was: its craw was 
 filled with the legs and wings of beetles 3 . 
 
 The next rare birds (which were procured for me last 
 week) were some ring-ousels ( Turdi torquati). 
 
 This week twelve months a gentleman from London, 
 being with us, was amusing himself with a gun, and 
 found, he told us, on an old yew hedge where there were 
 berries, some birds like blackbirds, with rings of white 
 round their necks : a neighbouring farmer also at the 
 same time observed the same; but, as no specimens 
 were procured, little notice was taken. I mentioned 
 this circumstance to you in my letter of November the 
 4th, 1767 : (you however paid but small regard to what 
 I said, as I had not seen these birds myself) : but last 
 week the aforesaid farmer, seeing a large flock, twenty 
 or thirty, of these birds, shot two cocks and two hens : 
 and says, on recollection, that he remembers to have 
 
 3 [Totanus Hypoleucos, TEMM.] 
 
 3 The circumstance mentioned in the text of the clamour of small birds 
 against the flusher (Laniits Collurio), by no means accords with my obser- 
 vation ; for though the bird is very common in my neighbourhood, where 
 it is called Jack Baker, I never remarked any small birds manifesting 
 any hostility towards it Captain Mitford also, an excellent observer, 
 assured Mr. Selby that he never witnessed " any particular hostility 
 displayed by them towards the neighbouring smaller birds; and that he 
 has found the nest of different species (Sylvia, &c.) within a very short 
 distance of that of one of these shrikes, which allowed them to bring up 
 their young without molestation." RENME. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 109 
 
 observed these birds again last spring, about Lady-day, 
 as it were, on their return to the north. Now perhaps 
 these ousels are not the ousels of the north of England, 
 but belong to the more northern parts of Europe ; and 
 may retire before the excessive rigour of the frosts in 
 those parts ; and return to breed in the spring, when 
 the cold abates. If this be the case, here is discovered 
 a new bird of winter passage, concerning whose migra- 
 tions the writers are silent: but if these birds should 
 prove the ousels of the north of England, 'then here is 
 a migration disclosed within our own kingdom never 
 before remarked. It does not yet appear whether they 
 retire beyond the bounds of our island to the south ; 
 but it is most probable that they usually do, or else one 
 cannot suppose that they would have continued so long 
 unnoticed in the southern counties. The ousel is larger 
 than a blackbird, and feeds on haws ; but last autumn 
 (when there were no haws) it fed on yew-berries : in the 
 spring it feeds on ivy-berries, which ripen only at that 
 season, in March and April. 
 
 I must not omit to tell you (as you have been so 
 lately on the study of reptiles) that my people, every 
 now and then, of late, draw up with a bucket of water 
 from my well, which is sixty-three feet deep, a large 
 black warty lizard with a fin-tail and yellow belly 4 . 
 How they first came down at that depth, and how they 
 were ever to have got out thence without help, is more 
 than I am able to say. 
 
 My thanks are due to you for your trouble and care 
 in the examination of a buck's head. As far as your 
 discoveries reach at present, they seem much to corro- 
 borate my suspicions ; and I hope Mr. may find 
 
 reason to give his decision in my favour ; and then, I 
 think, we may advance this extraordinary provision of 
 nature as a new instance of the wisdom of God in the 
 creation. 
 
 4 The black warty lizard is Triton palustris ; and the dorsal expansion 
 proves that the individuals in question were males. T. B. 
 
110 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 As yet I have not quite done with my history of the 
 (Edicnemus, or stone-curlew ; for I shall desire a gentle- 
 man in Sussex (near whose house these birds congre- 
 gate in vast flocks in the autumn) to observe nicely 
 when they leave him (if they do leave him), and when 
 they return again in the spring : I was with this gentle- 
 man lately, and saw several single birds 5 . 
 
 LETTER XXI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Nov. 28, 1768. 
 
 WITH regard to the (Edicnemus , or stone-curlew, I 
 intend to write very soon to my friend near Chichester, 
 in whose neighbourhood these birds seem most to 
 abound ; and shall urge him to take particular notice 
 when they begin to congregate, and afterward to watch 
 them most narrowly whether they do not withdraw 
 themselves during the dead of the winter. When I 
 have obtained information with respect to this circum- 
 stance, I shall have finished my history of the stone- 
 curlew ; which I hope will prove to your satisfaction, 
 as it will be, I trust, very near the truth. This gentle- 
 man, as he occupies a large farm of his own, and is 
 abroad early and late, will be a very proper spy upon 
 the motions of these birds : and besides, as I have 
 prevailed on him to buy the Naturalist's Journal (with 
 which he is much delighted), I shall expect that he will 
 be very exact in his dates 1 . It is very extraordinary, 
 
 4 [See Letter XXXIII.] 
 
 1 The Naturalist's Journal. Printed for W. Sandby, Fleet Street, Lon- 
 don; 1767. Price one shilling and sixpence. Such is the title of the 
 work commended in the text ; and recommended publicly and strongly by 
 Pennant, nearly at the same time, to general use. The reader of the 
 Natural History of Selborne owes much to it. The habit of recording 
 daily not only fixes correctly the time of each occurrence, but creates the 
 desire to have somewhat to record : there is consequently a stimulus to 
 
 
OF SELBORNE. Ill 
 
 as you observe, that a bird so common with us should 
 never straggle to you 2 . 
 
 And here will be the properest place to mention, 
 while I think of it, an anecdote which the above men- 
 tioned gentleman told me when I was last at his house ; 
 which was that, in a wan-enjoining to his outlet, many 
 daws (Corvi Monedulce) build every year in the rabbit 
 burrows under ground. The way he and his brothers 
 used to take their nests, while they were boys, was by 
 listening at the mouths of the holes ; and, if they heard 
 the young ones cry, they twisted the nest out with a 
 forked stick. Some waterfowls (viz. the puffins) breed, 
 I know, in that manner ; but I should never have sus- 
 pected the daws of building in holes on the flat ground. 
 
 the acquisition of facts, and an extrinsic value superadded to those facts 
 by the regularity with which they are noted. The Naturalist's Calendar, 
 which forms part of the contents of this volume, is a digest of the daily 
 entries made by Gilbert White, during a quarter of a century, in the form 
 of natural history book keeping, as it may be called, which was published 
 by Sandby. He entered in it also many casual observations of various 
 interest : for it was always at hand, and formed really his day-book. It 
 is chiefly from these entries that his Observations on various branches of 
 Natural History, which succeed the Natural History of Selborne, were 
 derived. E. T. B. 
 
 2 Mr. White considers it very extraordinary that a bird so common in 
 his 1 vicinity, as the Charadrius CEdicnemus (CEdicnemus crepitans, TEMM.) 
 should never straggle into the neighbourhood of his friend. My obser- 
 vation is, that it is found only on chalk. I used to find it and its two 
 eggs on the bare ground in September, at Highclere, in Hampshire, but 
 only where there was a chalk subsoil. It never strayed to the sand 
 or gravel, and consequently was not upon the heaths; but in the chalky 
 turnip fields. Temminck says it is found on high sandy uncultivated 
 tracts and heaths far from water. I have found it only on chalk and 
 ploughed land. I have seen it on the chalk district in Kent. I have 
 never seen it in Yorkshire, nor in the vicinity of the moors, where it 
 should be found if Temminck's account were true. I do not believe that 
 it ever lays an egg upon sand as he states. The dotterell (Charadrius 
 Morinellas) also is peculiar to dry chalk districts, and feeds chiefly on 
 small green beetles ; but Temminck most erroneously states that it lives 
 in desert miry places, lieux deserts etfangeux. He should have said dry 
 sheep walks. It is probable that the insects to which this species is 
 partial reside only in the chalk districts, but they may possibly thrive on 
 a different subsoil in the South of Europe, though I am very little 
 disposed to believe it. W. H. 
 
112 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 Another very unlikely spot is made use of by daws 
 as a place to breed in, and that is Stonehenge. These 
 birds deposit their nests in the interstices between the 
 upright and the impost stones of that amazing work of 
 antiquity: which circumstance alone speaks the pro- 
 digious height of the upright stones, that they should 
 be tall enough to secure those nests from the annoy- 
 ance of shepherd boys, who are always idling round 
 that place. 
 
 One of my neighbours last Saturday, November the 
 26th, saw a martin in a sheltered -bottom : the sun 
 shone warm, and the bird was hawking briskly after 
 flies. I am now perfectly satisfied that they do not all 
 leave this island in the winter. 
 
 You judge very right, I think, in speaking with 
 reserve and caution concerning the cures done by 
 toads : for, let people advance what they will on such 
 subjects, yet there is such a propensity in mankind 
 towards deceiving and being deceived, that one cannot 
 safely relate any thing from common report, especially 
 in print, without expressing some degree of doubt and 
 suspicion. 
 
 Your approbation, with regard to my new discovery 
 of the migration of the ring-ousel, gives me satisfaction ; 
 and I find you concur with me in suspecting that they 
 are foreign birds which visit us. You will be sure, I 
 hope, not to omit to make inquiry whether your ring- 
 ousels leave your rocks in the autumn. What puzzles 
 me most, is the very short stay they make with us ; for 
 in about three weeks they are all gone. I shall be very 
 curious to remark whether they will call on us at their 
 return in the spring, as they did last year. 
 
 I want to be better informed with regard to ichthyo- 
 logy 3 . If fortune had settled me near the seaside, or 
 
 9 At the time when White's remark was made, Pennant had in prepa- 
 ration the third volume of his British Zoology, which was intended to 
 supply the want that he, in common with others, felt ; it was published in 
 the following year, and was well adapted to fulfil the object had in view. In 
 
OF SELBORNE. 113 
 
 near some great river, my natural propensity would 
 soon have urged me to have made myself acquainted 
 with their productions : but as I have lived mostly in 
 inland parts, and in an upland district, my knowledge 
 of fishes extends little farther than to those common 
 sorts which our brooks and lakes produce. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 the subsequent editions improvements were introduced, and especially in 
 that of 1812; the editor of which, Mr. Hanmer it is believed, revised it 
 with so much care as to render it almost a new work. Until very recently 
 the third volume of the British Zoology has been the most generally 
 available authority on our native fishes ; for the work of Donovan, con- 
 sisting of highly finished coloured figures, is by far too expensive for 
 general use. 
 
 But the system adopted by Pennant (and by Donovan also) was that of 
 Linnaeus, the groups of which are too comprehensive to be suitable to the 
 prevailing taste among zoologists for minute analysis of animal forms ; 
 and his work, although still valuable as regards species, had become alto- 
 gether unsatisfactory with respect to genera and to arrangement. Many 
 and important additions had also been made, by observers on various parts 
 of the coast, to this department of our Fauna ; and more defined views had 
 been obtained as to those fishes which inhabit the fresh waters of Britain. 
 It had consequently become as desirable in 1835 as it was in 1768, that 
 the student should be better informed with regard to ichthyology ; and 
 my friend Mr. Yarrell, of whose extensive knowledge in this as in many 
 other branches of zoology it is unnecessary to speak, has taken up the 
 subject with that steady clearness which belongs to him, and will, before 
 this sheet appears, have completed a History of British Fishes. Adopt- 
 ing the classification of Cuvier he has characterised in that work upwards 
 of two hundred species, that have been taken on our coasts or in our 
 rivers and lakes ; has described them fully ; and has entered into some 
 account of their natural history, so far as so difficult a subject is at 
 present understood. His work is illustrated by numerous beautifully 
 executed wood cuts ; including representations (with only three or four 
 exceptions) of every fish that is yet known to belong to the British 
 Fauna. 
 
 The deserved success of Mr. Yarrell's Fishes, it may be remarked, has 
 caused it to be regarded, in some measure, as the commencement of a 
 series of works on the British Fauna, to be executed in the same style 
 with it. Mr. Bell has undertaken the second of these works, the British 
 Quadrupeds, liberally illustrated, like the Fishes, with wood cuts, and 
 promising to be a fit companion to that useful as well as handsome book, 
 E. T. B. 
 
114 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER XXII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Jan. 2, 17G9. 
 
 As to the peculiarity of jackdaws building with us under 
 the ground in rabbit-burrows, you have, in part, hit 
 upon the reason; for, in reality, there are hardly any 
 towers or steeples in all this country. And perhaps, 
 Norfolk excepted, Hampshire and Sussex are as meanly 
 furnished with churches as almost any counties in the 
 kingdom. We have many livings of two or three hun- 
 dred pounds a year whose houses of worship make 
 little better appearance than dove-cots. When I first 
 saw Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire, and Hunting- 
 donshire, and the fens of Lincolnshire, I was amazed 
 at the number of spires which presented themselves in 
 every point of view. As an admirer of prospects, I 
 have reason to lament this want in my own country ; 
 for such objects are very necessary ingredients in an 
 elegant landscape. 
 
 What you mention with respect to reclaimed toads 
 raises my curiosity. An ancient author, though no 
 naturalist, has well remarked that " Every kind of 
 beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and things in the 
 sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed, of mankind 1 ." 
 
 It is a satisfaction to me to find that a green lizard 
 has actually been procured for you in Devonshire ; 
 because it corroborates my discovery, which I made 
 many years ago, of the same sort, on a sunny sandbank 
 near Farnham, in Surrey. I am well acquainted with 
 the south hams of Devonshire ; and can suppose that 
 district, from its southerly situation, to be a proper 
 habitation for such animals in their best colours 2 . 
 
 1 James, iii. 7. 
 
 2 These were probably unusually bright and large individuals of 
 Lacerta stirpium, now ascertained to be indigenous to this country. See 
 Jenyns, Brit. Vert. p. 291. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 115 
 
 Since the ring-ousels of your vast mountains do cer- 
 tainly not forsake them against winter, our suspicions 
 that those which visit this neighbourhood about Michael- 
 mas are not English birds, but driven from the more 
 northern parts of Europe by the frosts, are still more 
 reasonable ; and it will be worth your pains to endea- 
 vour to trace from whence they come, and to inquire 
 why they make so very short a stay. 
 
 In your account of your error with regard to the two 
 species of herons, you incidentally gave me "great enter- 
 tainment in your description of the heronry at Cressi 
 Hall ; which is a curiosity I never could manage to see. 
 Fourscore nests of such a bird on one tree is a rarity 
 which I would ride half as many miles to have a sight 
 of. Pray be sure to tell me in your next whose seat 
 Cressi Hall is, and near what town it lies 3 . I have 
 often thought that those vast extents of fens have 
 never been sufficiently explored. If half a dozen gen- 
 tlemen, furnished with a good strength of water-spaniels, 
 were to beat them over for a week, they would certainly 
 find more species. 
 
 3 Cressi Hall is near Spalding, in Lincolnshire. 
 
 [Cressi Hall was the seat of a branch of the very ancient family of 
 Heron. Its position in the fens was less suited to the human race than 
 to the birds who were probably encouraged there for namesake, with a 
 feeling similar to that which actuated the town of Berne, during the 
 time that it deemed it important to be always possessed of bears. The 
 owner, at the period when Pennant visited it, left it away from the Lin- 
 colnshire branch of the family to a branch which had long been settled 
 in Scotland ; and about forty years ago the property was sold. The 
 house was soon afterwards burnt down by accident. It was a large 
 modern house, with a small chapel attached to it ; but was not of sufficient 
 consequence to attract much notice : the arms of the family were carved 
 in stone upon the front of the chapel. The motto probably was also 
 there, connecting, like the heronry, the bird with the family that bears its 
 name, and punningly declaring, in the words ardua petit ardea, the soar- 
 ing propensities of both. 
 
 Sir Robert Heron informs me that about sixty years ago, which must 
 have been almost immediately after Pennant's visit, the trees of the 
 heronry were cut down. When Sir Robert visited the place forty -eight 
 years ago there were still many disconsolate herons about, mourning the 
 desolation of their city. In the year 1819, when he was again in the 
 neighbourhood, he saw none of the race remaining. E. T. B.] 
 
116 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 There is no bird, I believe, whose manners I have 
 studied more than those of the Caprimulgus (the goat- 
 sucker), as it is a wonderful and curious creature : but 
 I have always found that though sometimes it may 
 chatter as it flies, as I know it does, yet in general it 
 utters its jarring note sitting on a bough : and I have 
 for many a half hour watched it as it sat with its under 
 mandible quivering, and particularly this summer. It 
 perches usually on a bare twig, with its head lower 
 than its tail, in an attitude well expressed by your 
 draughtsman in the folio British Zoology. This bird 
 is most punctual in beginning its song exactly at the 
 close of day ; so exactly that I have known it strike 
 up more than once or twice just at the report of the 
 Portsmouth evening gun, which we can hear when the 
 weather is still. It appears to me past all doubt that 
 its notes are formed by organic impulse, by the powers 
 of the parts of its windpipe, formed for sound, just as 
 cats purr. You will credit me, I hope, when I assure 
 you that, as my neighbours were assembled in an her- 
 mitage on the side of a steep hill where we drink tea 4 , 
 one of these churn-owls came and settled on the cross 
 of that little straw edifice and began to chatter, and 
 continued his note for many minutes ; and we were all 
 struck with wonder to find that the organs of that little 
 animal, when put in motion, gave a sensible vibration 
 to the whole building ! This bird also sometimes makes 
 a small squeak, repeated four or five times ; and I have 
 observed that to happen when the cock has been pur- 
 suing the hen in a toying way through the boughs of a 
 tree. 
 
 It would not be at all strange if your bat, which you 
 have procured, should prove a new one, since five 
 species have been found in the neighbouring kingdom. 
 The great sort that I mentioned is certainly a nonde- 
 script : I saw but one this summer, and that I had no 
 opportunity of taking. 
 
 4 See the Vignette to this book. 
 
OF SELBORNK. 117 
 
 Your account of the Indian grass was entertaining. 
 I am no angler myself; but inquiring of those that are, 
 what they supposed that part of their tackle to be 
 made of? they replied, " Of the intestines of a silk- 
 worm/' 
 
 Though I must not pretend to great skill in entomo- 
 logy, yet I cannot say that I am ignorant of that kind 
 of knowledge : I may now and then perhaps be able to 
 furnish you with a little information. 
 
 The vast rains ceased with us much about the same 
 time as with you, and since we have had delicate wea- 
 ther. Mr. Barker, who has measured the rain for more 
 than thirty years, says, in a late letter, that more has 
 fallen this year than in any he ever attended to ; though, 
 from July, 1763, to January, 1764, more fell than in any 
 seven months of this year. 
 
 LETTER XXIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Feb. 28, 1769. 
 
 IT is not improbable that the Guernsey lizard and our 
 green lizards may be specifically the same ; all that I 
 know is, that, when some years ago many Guernsey 
 lizards were turned loose in Pembroke College garden, 
 in the University of Oxford, they lived a great while, 
 and seemed to enjoy themselves very well, but never 
 bred. Whether this circumstance will prove any thing 
 either way I shall not pretend to say. 
 
 I return you thanks for your account of Cressi Hall ; 
 but recollect, not without regret, that in June, 1746, 1 
 was visiting for a week together at Spalding, without 
 ever being told that such a curiosity was just at hand. 
 Pray send me word in your next what sort of tree it is 
 that contains such a quantity of herons' nests; and 
 
118 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 whether the heronry consist of a whole grove or wood, 
 or only of a few trees. 
 
 It gave me satisfaction to find we accorded so well 
 about the Caprimulgus: all I contended for was to 
 prove that it often chatters sitting as well as flying; 
 and therefore the noise was voluntary, and from organic 
 impulse, and not from the resistance of the air against 
 the hollow of its mouth and throat. 
 
 If ever I saw any thing like actual migration, it was 
 last Michaelmas-day. I was travelling, and out early 
 in the morning: at first there was a vast fog; but by 
 the time that I was got seven or eight miles from home 
 towards the coast, the sun broke out into a delicate 
 warm day. We were then on a large heath or common, 
 and I could discern, as the mist began to break away, 
 great numbers of swallows (Hirundines rusticce) clus- 
 tering on the stunted shrubs and bushes, as if they had 
 roosted there all night. As soon as the air became 
 clear and pleasant they all were on the wing at once ; 
 and, by a placid and easy flight, proceeded on south- 
 ward towards the sea: after this I did not see any 
 more flocks, only now and then a straggler. 
 
 I cannot agree with those persons that assert that 
 the swallow kind disappear some and some gradually, 
 as they come, for the bulk of them seem to withdraw at 
 once: only some stragglers stay behind a long while, 
 and do never, there is the greatest reason to believe, 
 leave this island. Swallows seem to lay themselves 
 up, and to come forth in a warm day, as bats do conti- 
 nually of a warm evening, after they have disappeared 
 for weeks. For a very respectable gentleman assured 
 me that, as he was walking with some friends under 
 Merton Hall on a remarkably hot noon, either in the 
 last week in December or the first week in January, he 
 espied three or four swallows huddled together on the 
 moulding of one of the windows of that college. I have 
 frequently remarked that swallows are seen later at 
 
OF SELBORNE. 119 
 
 Oxford than elsewhere : is it owing to the vast massy 
 buildings of that place, to the many waters round it, or 
 to what else ? 
 
 When I used to rise in a morning last autumn, and 
 see the swallows and martins clustering on the chim- 
 neys and thatch of the neighbouring cottages, I could 
 not help being touched with a secret delight, mixed 
 with some degree of mortification: with delight to 
 observe with how much ardour and punctuality those 
 poor little birds obeyed the strong impulse towards 
 migration, or hiding, imprinted on their minds by their 
 great Creator ; and with some degree of mortification, 
 when I reflected that, after all our pains and inquiries, 
 we are yet not quite certain to what regions they do 
 migrate ; and are still farther embarrassed to find that 
 some do not actually migrate at all. 
 
 These reflections made so strong an impression on 
 my imagination, that they became productive of a com- 
 position that may perhaps amuse you for a quarter of 
 an hour when next T have the honour of writing to 
 you. 
 
 LETTER XXIV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 WEAR SIR, SELBORNE, May 29, 1769. 
 
 THE Scarabceus Fullo 1 1 know very well, having seen it 
 in collections ; but have never been able to discover 
 
 MELOLONTHA MJLLO. 
 
 [MelolontJia Fullo, FABR.] 
 
120 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 one wild in its natural state. Mr. Banks told me he 
 thought it might be found on the seacoast 2 . 
 
 On the 13th of April, I went to the sheep-down, 
 where the ring-ousels have been observed to make 
 their appearance at spring and fall, in their way per- 
 haps to the north or south ; and was much pleased to 
 see three birds about the usual spot. We shot a cock 
 and a hen ; they were plump and in high condition. 
 The hen had but very small rudiments of eggs within 
 her, which proves they are late breeders ; whereas those 
 species of the thrush kind that remain with us the 
 whole year have fledged young before that time. In 
 their crops was nothing very distinguishable, but some- 
 what that seemed like blades of vegetables nearly 
 digested. In autumn they feed on haws and yew-ber- 
 ries, and in the spring on ivy-berries. I dressed one 
 of these birds, and found it juicy and well flavoured. 
 It is remarkable, that they make but a few days stay in 
 their spring visit, but rest near a fortnight at Michael- 
 mas. These birds, from the observations of three springs 
 and two autumns, are most punctual in their return; 
 and exhibit a new migration unnoticed by the writers 
 who supposed they never were to be seen in any of 
 the southern counties. 
 
 One of my neighbours lately brought me a new Sali- 
 caria, which, at first, I suspected might have proved 
 your willow lark 3 , but on a nicer examination, it 
 answered much better to the description of that species 
 which you shot at Revesby, in Lincolnshire 4 . My bird 
 
 a All the specimens of this noble chafer that have yet been captured 
 in England, and they are very far from numerous, have occurred on the 
 coast of Kent. Dover seems to be the middle point of their range, from 
 which they extend westward as far as Hythe, and northward to Sand- 
 wich. Mr. Stephens has recorded the capture, by a lady, of no less than 
 eight specimens in one year, in the neighbourhood of Sandwich; a num- 
 ber probably nearly equal to all the others that are known to have been 
 at any time taken in this country. E. T. B. 
 
 3 For this Salicaria see Letter, August 30, 1769. [XXV.] 
 
 4 The seat of Sir Joseph Banks, at which Pennant remained on a visit 
 in May, 1767. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 121 
 
 I describe thus : " It is a size less than the grasshop- 
 per lark ; the head, back, and coverts of the wings, of a 
 dusky brown, without those dark spots of the grasshop- 
 per lark ; over each eye is a milkwhite stroke ; the chin 
 and throat are white, and the under parts of a yellowish 
 white ; the rump is tawny, and the feathers of the tail 
 sharp pointed; the bill is dusky and sharp, and the 
 legs are dusky; the hinder claw long and crooked." 
 The person that shot it says that it sung so like a reed 
 sparrow 5 that he took it for one; and that "it sings all 
 night: but this account merits farther inquiry. For 
 my part, I suspect it is a second sort of Locustella, 
 hinted at by Dr.-Derham in Ray's Letters : see p. 108. 
 He also procured me a grasshopper lark. 
 
 5 This is an error which runs through most of our books of ornithology. 
 The reed bunting, commonly called the reed sparrow, has no song. Like 
 its congeners, in this country, it has only a monotonous cry. The bird 
 above mentioned, Snlicaria Phragmitis, or sedge warbler, is perpetually 
 singing by night, if disturbed, as well as by day, and the reed bunting 
 has often got the credit of its song. The sedge warbler is very abundant 
 at Spofforth, but I have never discovered the reed warbler, its near con- 
 gener, here. Bewick has confounded these two species, and has given a 
 plate and description of the sedge warbler, under the name of the reed 
 warbler, which last has not been observed north of the Trent. The reed 
 warbler is of a uniform reddish brown with a little olive cast on the 
 upper parts, and whitish on the belly ; the sedge warbler has a light 
 stripe over the eye, and the middle of each feather, on the upper parts, 
 dashed with very dark brown. I have found its nest on the ground in a 
 tuft of rushes, in long grasses and herbs, being made fast to their stalks, 
 in a dead hedge, but most frequently in thorn fences, and low bushes, 
 and willows, often in the currant bushes in gardens near a wet ditch or 
 stream. The reed wren builds in general higher, sometimes in a poplar 
 tree, often in the tall lilacs in the Regent's Park : our books mostly state 
 willows, and that it builds in the reeds, but it often prefers a tall bush 
 or a small tree if there be one in the neighbourhood. Its bill is stronger 
 than that of the sedge warbler, and it seems to be less patient of cold. 
 Its nest is deeper. The song of individuals of the two species is very 
 similar, and cannot easily be distinguished. Mr. White calls the sedge 
 warbler a delicate polyglott; and speaks of its song as very superior to 
 that of the whitethroat, in which I can by no means agree with him. Its 
 notes are very hurried, some parts of its song are good, but others singu- 
 larly harsh and disagreeable. They are greedy birds, and in confinement 
 are apt to die from excessive fat; becoming so unwieldy as to hurt and 
 bruise themselves by tumbling down. W. H. 
 
122 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 The question that you put with regard to those 
 genera of animals that are peculiar to America, viz. 
 how they came there, and whence? is too puzzling for 
 me to answer; and yet so obvious as often to have 
 struck me with wonder. If one looks into the writers 
 on that subject, little satisfaction is to be found. Inge- 
 nious men will readily advance plausible arguments to 
 support whatever theory they shall choose to maintain ; 
 but then the misfortune is, every one's hypothesis is 
 each as good as another's, since they are all founded 
 on conjecture. The late writers of this sort, in whom 
 may be seen all the arguments of those that have gone 
 before, as I remember, stock America from the western 
 coast of Africa, and the south of Europe ; and then 
 break down the isthmus that bridged over the Atlantic. 
 But this is making use of a violent piece of machinery : 
 it is a difficulty worthy of the interposition of a god ! 
 " Incredulus odi." 
 
 TO THOMAS PENNANT, ESQUIRE. 
 THE 
 
 NATURALISTS' SUMMER EVENING WALK. 
 
 equidem credo, quia sit divinities illis 
 
 Ingenium. VIRG. GEORG. 
 
 WHEN day declining sheds a milder gleam, 
 What time the May -fly 6 haunts the pool or stream ; 
 When the still owl skims round the grassy mead, 
 What time the timorous hare limps forth to feed; 
 
 6 The angler's May-fly, the Ephetncra vulgata, LINN, comes forth from 
 its aurelia state, and emerges out of the water, about six in the evening, 
 and dies about eleven at night, determining the date of its fly state in 
 about five or six hours. They usually begin to appear about the 4th of 
 June, and continue in succession for near a fortnight. See Swammerdam, 
 Derham, Scopoli, &c. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 123 
 
 Then be the time to steal adown the vale, 
 And listen to the vagrant cuckoo's 7 tale; 
 To hear the clamorous curlew 8 call his mate, 
 Or the soft quail his tender pain relate ; 
 To see the swallow sweep the darkening plain 
 Belated, to support her infant train ; 
 To mark the swift in rapid giddy ring 
 Dash round the steeple, unsubdued of wing : 
 Amusive birds! say where your hid retreat 
 When the frost rages and the tempests beat ; 
 Whence your return, by such nice instinct led, 
 When spring, soft season, lifts her bloomy head ? 
 Such baffled searches mock man's prying pride, 
 The GOD of NATURE is your secret guide ! 
 
 While deepening shades obscure the face of day 
 To yonder bench leaf-shelter'd let us stray, 
 Till blended objects fail the swimming sight, 
 And all the fading landscape sinks in night ; 
 To hear the drowsy dorr come brushing by 
 With buzzing wing, or the shrill cricket 9 cry ; 
 To see the feeding bat glance through the wood ; 
 To catch the distant falling of the flood ; 
 While o'er the cliff the' awaken'd churn-owl hung 
 Through the still gloom protracts his chattering song ; 
 While high in air, and poised upon his wings, 
 Unseen, the soft enamour'd woodlark 10 sings : 
 These, NATURE'S works, the curious mind employ, 
 Inspire a soothing melancholy joy : 
 As fancy warms, a pleasing kind of pain 
 Steals o'er the cheek, and thrills the creeping vein ! 
 
 Each rural sight, each sound, each smell, combine ; 
 The tinkling sheep-bell, or the breath of kine ; 
 The new-mown hay that scents the swelling breeze, 
 Or cottage chimney smoking through the trees. 
 
 7 Vagrant cuckoo ; so called because, being tied down by no incuba- 
 tion or attendance about the nutrition of its young, it wanders without 
 control. 
 
 8 Charadrius CEdicnemus. 
 
 9 Gryllus campestris . 
 
 10 In hot summer nights woodlarks soar to a prodigious height, and 
 hang singing in the air. 
 
124 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 The chilling night dews fall : away, retire ; 
 For see, the glow-worm lights her amorous fire u ! 
 Thus, ere night's veil had half obscured the sky, 
 The* impatient damsel hung her lamp on high : 
 True to the signal, by love's meteor led, 
 Leander hastened to his Hero's bed ". 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XXV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, Si i HUH M , Aug. 30, 1769. 
 
 IT gives me satisfaction to find that my account of the 
 ousel migration pleases you. You put a very shrewd 
 question when you ask me how I know that their 
 autumnal migration is southward ? Were not candour 
 and openness the very life of natural history, I should 
 pass over this query just as a sly commentator does 
 over a crabbed passage in a classic; but common 
 ingenuousness obliges me to confess, not without some 
 degree of shame, that I only reasoned in that case from 
 analogy. For as all other autumnal birds migrate from 
 the northward to us, to partake of our milder winters, 
 and return to the northward again when the rigorous 
 cold abates, so I concluded that the ring-ousels did the 
 same, as well as their congeners the fieldfares; and 
 especially as ring-ousels are known to haunt cold 
 mountainous countries: but I have good reason to 
 suspect since, that they may come to us from the west- 
 ward ; because I hear, from very good authority, that 
 
 11 The light of the female glow-worm (as she often crawls up the stalk 
 of a grass to make herself more conspicuous) is a signal to the male, 
 which is a slender dusky Scarahccus. 
 
 [I have proved by experiment, that this opinion is incorrect, or at least 
 extremely doubtful. See Insect Miscelkmies, pp. 222 6. RENNIE.] 
 
 12 See the story of Hero and Leander. 
 
OP SELBORNE. 125 
 
 they breed on Dartmoor; and that they forsake that 
 wild district about the time that our visitors appear, 
 and do not return till late in the spring. 
 
 I have taken a great deal of pains about your Sali- 
 caria and mine, with a white stroke over its eye and a 
 tawny rump. I have surveyed it alive and dead, and 
 have procured several specimens; and am perfectly 
 persuaded myself (and trust you will soon be convinced 
 of the same) that it is no more nor less than the Passer 
 arundinaceus minor of Ray. This bird, by some means 
 or other, seems to be entirely omitted in the British 
 Zoology; and one reason probably was because it is 
 so strangely classed in Ray, who ranges it among his 
 Picis affines. It ought no doubt to have gone among 
 his Aviculce cauda unicolore, and among your slender- 
 billed small birds of the same division. Linnaeus 
 might with great propriety have put it into his genus 
 of Motacilla ; and the Motacilla Salicaria of his Fauna 
 Suecica seems to come the nearest to it. It is no un- 
 common bird, haunting the sides of ponds and rivers 
 where there is covert, and the reeds and sedges of 
 moors. The country people in some places call it the 
 sedge bird. It sings incessantly night and day during 
 the breeding time, imitating the note of a sparrow, a 
 swallow, a skylark ; and has a strange hurrying manner 
 in its song. My specimens correspond most minutely 
 to the description of your fen Salicaria shot near 
 Revesby. Mr. Ray has given an excellent charac- 
 teristic of it when he says, " Rostrum et pedes in hac 
 avicula multo major es sunt quam pro corporis rationed 
 (See Letter, May 29, 1769 [XXIV.]) 
 
 I have got you the egg of an (Edicnemus, or stone- 
 curlew, which was picked up in a fallow on the naked 
 ground : there were two ; but the finder inadvertently 
 crushed one with his foot before he saw them. 
 
 When I wrote to you last year on reptiles, I wish I 
 had not forgot to mention the faculty that snakes have 
 of stinking se defendendo. I knew a gentleman who 
 
12G NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 kept a tame snake, which was in its person as sweet as 
 any animal while in good humour and unalarmed ; but 
 as soon as a stranger, or a dog or cat, came in, it fell 
 to hissing, and tilled the room with such nauseous 
 effluvia as rendered it hardly supportable *. Thus the 
 squnck, or stonck, of Ray's Synopsis Quadrupedum is 
 an innocuous and sweet animal; but, when pressed 
 hard by dogs and men, it can eject such a most pesti- 
 lent and fetid smell and excrement that nothing can be 
 more horrible. 
 
 A gentleman sent me lately a fine specimen of the 
 Lanius minor cinerascens cum macula in scapulis alba, 
 RAH 2 ; which is a bird that, at the time of your pub- 
 lishing your two first volumes of British Zoology, I 
 find you had not seen. You have described it well 
 from Edwards's drawing. 
 
 LETTER XXVI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Dec. 8, 17G9. 
 
 I WAS much gratified by your communicative letter on 
 your return from Scotland, where you spent, I find, 
 some considerable time, and gave yourself good room 
 to examine the natural curiosities of that extensive 
 kingdom, both those of the islands, as well as those of 
 the highlands. The usual bane of such expeditions is 
 hurry; because men seldom allot themselves half the 
 time they should do ; but, fixing on a day for their re- 
 turn, post from place to place, rather as if they were on 
 a journey that required dispatch, than as philosophers 
 investigating the works of nature. You must have 
 
 1 I have had tame snakes which were almost inodorous under ordinary 
 circumstances, but which became exceedingly offensive when alarmed or 
 irritated. T. B. 
 
 * [Lanius rvftis, BRISS.] 
 
OF SELBORNE. 127 
 
 made, no doubt, many discoveries, and laid up a good 
 fund of materials for a future edition of the British 
 Zoology; and will have no reason to repent that you 
 have bestowed so much pains on a part of Great Britain 
 that perhaps was never so well examined before. 
 
 It has always been matter of wonder to me that 
 fieldfares, which are so congenerous to thrushes and 
 blackbirds, should never choose to breed in England : 
 but that they should not think even the highlands cold 
 and northerly, and sequestered enough, is ""a circum- 
 stance still more strange and wonderful. The ring- 
 ousel, you find, stays in Scotland the whole year round ; 
 so that we have reason to conclude that those migrators 
 that visit us for a short space every autumn do not 
 come from thence. 
 
 And here, I think, will be the proper place to mention 
 that those birds were most punctual again in their 
 migration this autumn, appearing, as before, about the 
 30th of September: but their flocks were larger than 
 common, and their stay protracted somewhat beyond 
 the usual time. If they came to spend the whole 
 winter with us, as some of their congeners do, and 
 then left us, as they do, in spring, I should not be so 
 much struck with the occurrence, since it would be 
 similar to that of the other winter birds of passage ; 
 but when I see them for a fortnight at Michaelmas, 
 and again for about a week in the middle of April, I 
 am seized with wonder, and long to be informed whence 
 these travellers come, and whither they go, since they 
 seem to use our hills merely as an inn or baiting place. 
 
 Your account of the greater brambling, or snow-fleck, 
 is very amusing; and strange it is, that such a short- 
 winged bird should delight in such perilous voyages 
 over the northern ocean ! Some country people in the 
 winter time have every now and then told me that 
 they have seen two or three white larks on our downs ; 
 but, on considering the matter, I begin to suspect that 
 these are some stragglers of the birds we are talking of, 
 
128 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 which sometimes perhaps may rove so far to the south- 
 ward. 
 
 It pleases me to find that white hares are so frequent 
 on the Scottish mountains, and especially as you inform 
 me that it is a distinct species ; for the quadrupeds of 
 Britain are so few, that every new species is a great 
 acquisition l . 
 
 The eagle-owl, could it be proved to belong to us, is 
 
 THE EAGLE OWL. 
 
 1 It has lately been ascertained that Ireland has also its peculiar hare, 
 which is apt to become white in winter when kept in parks or other 
 enclosures. Specimens of this animal have been repeatedly exhibited in 
 the Zoological Society's Gardens ; where its different appearance from 
 that of the English hare has often induced visitors to remark on it as a 
 " curious rabbit." Its head, as pointed out by Mr. Yarrell at a Meeting 
 of the Society in 1833, is shorter and more rounded than that of the 
 common hare; its ears are proportionally, as well as absolutely, shorter, 
 not equalling the head in length ; and its limbs are less lengthened. Its 
 
OF SEL BORNE. 129 
 
 so majestic a bird, that it would grace our Fauna 
 much 2 . 
 
 I never was informed before where wild geese are 
 known to breed. 
 
 You admit, I find, that I have proved your fen Sali- 
 caria to be the lesser reed sparrow of Ray : and I think 
 you may be secure that I am right; for I took very- 
 particular pains to clear up that matter, and had some 
 fair specimens ; but, as they were not well preserved, 
 they are decayed already. You will, no doubt, insert 
 it in its proper place in your next edition. Your 
 additional plates will much improve your work. 
 
 De Buffon, 1 know, has described the water shrew- 
 mouse: but still I am pleased to find you have dis- 
 covered it in Lincolnshire, for the reason I have given 
 in the article of the white hare. 
 
 As a neighbour was lately ploughing in a dry chalky 
 field, far removed from any water, he turned out a 
 water rat, that was curiously laid up in an hybernacu- 
 lum artificially formed of grass and leaves. At one 
 end of the burrow lay above a gallon of potatoes regu- 
 larly stowed, on which it was to have supported itself 
 for the winter. But the difficulty with me is how this 
 amphibius mus came to fix its winter station at such a 
 distance from the water. Was it determined in its 
 choice of that place by the mere accident of finding the 
 potatoes which were planted there ; or is it the constant 
 practice of the aquatic rat to forsake the neighbourhood 
 of the water in the colder months ? 
 
 Though I delight very little in analogous reasoning, 
 knowing how fallacious it is with respect to natural 
 history ; yet, in the following instance, I cannot help 
 being inclined to think it may conduce towards the 
 
 fur consists of only one kind of hair, and is useless as an article of com- 
 merce : a test which affords strong evidence of the distinction of the Irish 
 from the English hare.- E. T. B. 
 
 2 The eagle owl (Bubo maximus, GER.) has been shot in Yorkshire 
 and Suffolk, as well as in Scotland. Montagu, Orn. Diet. 
 
 K 
 
130 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 explanation of a difficulty that I have mentioned before, 
 with respect to the invariable early retreat of the Hi- 
 rundo Apus, or swift, so many weeks before its con- 
 geners ; and that not only with us, but also in Andalusia, 
 where they also begin to retire about the beginning of 
 August. 
 
 The great large bat s (which by the by is at present 
 a nondescript in England, and what I have never been 
 able yet to procure) retires or migrates very early in 
 the summer: it also ranges very high for its food, 
 feeding in a different region of the air ; and that is the 
 reason I never could procure one 4 . Now this is exactly 
 the case with the swifts ; for they take their food in a 
 more exalted region than the other species, and are 
 very seldom seen hawking for flies near the ground, or 
 over the surface of the water. From hence I would 
 conclude that these Hirundines, and the larger bats, are 
 supported by some sorts of highflying gnats, scarabs, 
 or Phalcence, that are of short continuance ; and that the 
 short stay of these strangers is regulated by the defect 
 of their food. 
 
 By my journal it appears that curlews clamoured on 
 to October the thirty-first : since which I have not seen 
 , or heard any. Swallows were observed on to Novem- 
 ber the third. 
 
 3 The little bat appears almost every month in the year ; but I have 
 never seen the large ones till the end of April, nor after July. They 
 are most common in June, but never in any plenty: are a rare species 
 with us. 
 
 4 Vespertilio Noctvla certainly winters in England. I once procured 
 some in a torpid state in February. It flies high in the early part of the 
 evening; but descends, as the night closes in, towards the surface of 
 waters to procure its food. G. D. 
 
OF 8KLUORNF. 13L 
 
 LETTER XXVII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Feb. 22, 1770. 
 
 HEDGEHOGS abound in my gardens and fields. The 
 manner in which they eat the roots of the. plantain in 
 my grass walks is very curious : with their upper man- 
 dible, which is much longer than their lower, they bore 
 under the plant, and so eat the root on" upwards, leaving 
 the tuft of leaves untouched. In this respect they are 
 serviceable, as they destroy a very troublesome weed ; 
 but they deface the walks in some measure by digging 
 little round holes. It appears, by the dung that they 
 drop upon the turf, that beetles are no inconsiderable 
 part of their food 1 . In June last I procured a litter of 
 four or five young hedgehogs, which appeared to be 
 
 1 Hedgehogs have now become so well known in the metropolis on 
 account of their insectivorous propensities, that they are offered for sale 
 at those markets which are supplied by the country people with vege- 
 tables. The lower parts of many of the houses in London are overrun 
 by black beetles to such an extent as to render it necessary to apply 
 some means of diminishing the numbers of these disagreeable intruders ; 
 and among the modes that have been resorted to for the purpose of 
 destroying them, the introduction of a hedgehog into the kitchen is one 
 of the most effectual. For the support of the animal, in addition to the 
 beetles which it devours, a little bread and milk is requisite ; and it is very 
 fond of picking bones. In such circumstances a hedgehog has occasionally 
 become in some degree domesticated; and its familiarity has been carried 
 to the extent of allowing itself to be handled, especially by children, and 
 to be lifted from the ground by its spines, without attempting to coil 
 itself up into its usual ball-like posture of defence : a form which it 
 would immediately assume when touched by a stranger. It would run 
 too after its little playmates ; and when excluded from the room in 
 which they were, would scratch at the door as if to ask admittance 
 among them. In the instance especially referred to the little creature 
 was on one occasion missing for six weeks ; and, on recovering from its 
 long nap, resumed at once its accustomed habits, the usual scratching at 
 the door being the first notice given of the return of the long lost pet. 
 Eventually it was excluded altogether from society, and was closely 
 confined ; when it refused its food and died. E. T. B. 
 
132 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 about five or six days old : they, I find, like puppies, 
 are born blind, and could not see when they came to 
 my hands. No doubt their spines are soft and flexible 
 at the time of their birth, or else the poor dam would 
 have but a bad time of it in the critical moment of par- 
 turition : but it is plain that they soon harden ; for 
 these little pigs had such stiff prickles on their backs 
 and sides as would easily have fetched blood, had they 
 not been handled with caution. Their spines are quite 
 white at this age; and they have little hanging ears, 
 which I do not remember to be discernible in the old 
 ones. They can, in part, at this age draw their skin 
 down over their faces; but are not able to contract 
 themselves into a ball, as they do, for the sake of 
 defence, when full grown. The reason, I suppose, is, 
 because the curious muscle that enables the creature 
 to roll itself up in a ball was not then arrived at its full 
 tone and firmness 2 . Hedgehogs make a deep and warm 
 
 a The reason given in the text is probably the physical cause of the 
 fact observed by White. I have witnessed the same fact in the course 
 of this summer, in the young of a nest discovered in the Zoological 
 Society's Gardens in the Regent's Park. There were in it five young 
 ones, not two inches in length, and probably, at the time it was taken, 
 not more than two or three days old. The absence of the power of con- 
 tracting their skins gave to the little creatures a form very different from 
 that of the mother, who was taken at the same time with them. If the 
 similitude of the animal's form to that of the sea-hedgehog, indicated by 
 the name of the latter, be borne in mind, the shape of the parent would 
 have resembled, in its height as well as in its spiny covering, the edible 
 sea-egg, Echinus esculentus, LINN.; that of the younger ones would have 
 approached more nearly to the depressed sea-eggs of the genus Spatun- 
 gus, KLEIN, and the white short spines borne out on their otherwise 
 naked blue skin, were adapted to give greater force to the resemblance. 
 The body of the parent, elevated in the back and dropping rapidly down 
 on either side, presented a marked contrast with that of the young, 
 flattened above and spread out on the sides: the adult might be com- 
 pared to an egg; the young to the yolk of the same egg, deprived of the 
 support of the shell, but rather more extended lengthwise than across : 
 the shortness of the legs, in both cases, being such as scarcely to detract 
 from the similitude. The backward direction of the spines, in the young 
 animal, is well adapted to obviate an inconvenience hinted at by White 
 in a preceding passage. 
 
 It is not perhaps altogether unworthy of remark that the whole of the 
 
OF SELBORNE. 133 
 
 hybernaculum with leaves and moss, in which they 
 conceal themselves for the winter: but I never could 
 find that they stored in any winter provision, as some 
 quadrupeds certainly do. 
 
 I have discovered an anecdote with respect to the 
 fieldfare (Turdus pilaris), which I think is particular 
 enough : this bird, though it sits on trees in the day- 
 time, and procures the greatest part of its food from 
 whitethorn hedges; yea, moreover, builds.on very high 
 trees, as may be seen by the Fauna Suecica ; yet always 
 appears with us to roost on the grouud. They are seen 
 to come in flocks just before it is dark, and to settle 
 and nestle among the heath on our forest. And 
 besides, the larkers, in dragging their nets by night, 
 frequently catch them in the wheat-stubbles ; while the 
 bat fowlers, who take many redwings in the hedges, 
 never entangle any of this species. Why these birds, 
 in the matter of roosting, should differ from all their 
 congeners, and from themselves also with respect to 
 their proceedings by day, is a fact for which I am by 
 no means able to account. 
 
 I have somewhat to inform you of concerning the 
 moose deer ; but in general foreign animals fall seldom 
 in my way: my little intelligence is confined to the 
 narrow sphere of my Own observations at home. 
 
 young ones of this nest, notwithstanding that they were immediately 
 removed with their dam and placed in one of the ordinary cages in which 
 the smaller mammals are kept, notwithstanding also the occasional dis- 
 turbance of the family for the inspection of curious visitors, were taken 
 care of by the mother, and three of them were living three months after 
 their capture. 
 
 The helpless condition of the young in this instance is quite in accord- 
 ance with that law of nature, by which the young of many animals, 
 including all the mammals, are thrown for nourishment and protection 
 on their parents. It is in accordance with this law that the hedgehog 
 should, in the earlier period of its existence, be destitute of the means of 
 defence with which nature has provided the adult animal, that of so 
 contracting its body into a ball as to secure from injury all the parts 
 which have only the ordinary covering of other quadrupeds, and of thus 
 presenting to the attacks of its enemies nothing but an uncertain mass 
 bristling with horrid spines. E. T. B. 
 
NA 1 URAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER XXVIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SKI.BORNE, March, 1770. 
 
 ON Michaelmas-day, 1768, I managed to get a sight of 
 the female moose belonging to the duke of Richmond, 
 at Goodwood; but was greatly disappointed, when I 
 arrived at the spot, to find that it died, after having 
 appeared in a languishing way for some time, on the 
 morning before. However, understanding that it was 
 not stripped, I proceeded to examine this rare quadru- 
 ped. I found it in an old greenhouse, slung under the 
 belly and chin by ropes, and in a standing posture; 
 but, though it had been dead for so short a time, it was 
 in so putrid a state that the stench was hardly sup- 
 portable. The grand distinction between this deer, 
 and any other species that I have ever met with, con- 
 sisted in the strange length of its legs; on which it 
 was tilted up much in the manner of the birds of the 
 Grallce order. I measured it, as they do a horse, and 
 found that, from the ground to the wither, it was just 
 five feet four inches; which height answers exactly to 
 sixteen hands, a growth that few horses arrive at: but 
 then, with this length of legs, its neck was remarkably 
 short, no more than twelve inches; so that, by strad- 
 dling with one foot forward, and the other backward, it 
 grazed on the plain ground, with the greatest difficulty, 
 between its legs : the ears were vast and lopping, and 
 as long as the neck ; the head was about twenty inches 
 long, and ass-like; and had such a redundancy of 
 upper lip as I never saw before, with huge nostrils. 
 This lip, travellers say, is esteemed a dainty dish in 
 North America. It is very reasonable to suppose that 
 
OF SELBORNE. 135 
 
 this creature supports itself chiefly by browsing of 
 trees, and by wading after water plants; towards 
 which way of livelihood the length of legs and great 
 lip must contribute much. I have read somewhere that 
 it delights in eating the Nymphcea, or water lily. From 
 the fore feet to the belly behind the shoulder it mea- 
 sured three feet and eight inches : the length of the 
 legs before and behind consisted a great deal in the 
 tibia, which was strangely long; but, in my haste to 
 get out of the stench, I forgot to measure that joint 
 exactly. Its scut seemed to be about an inch long; 
 the colour was a grizzly black ; the mane about four 
 inches long ; the fore hoois were upright and shapely, 
 the hind flat and splayed. The spring before it was 
 only two years old, so that most probably it was not 
 then come to its growth. What a vast tall beast must 
 a full grown stag be ! I have been told some arrive at 
 ten feet and a half! This poor creature had at first a 
 female companion of the same species, which died the 
 spring before. In the same garden was a young stag, 
 or red deer, between whom and this moose it was hoped 
 that there might have been a breed ; but their inequality 
 of height must have always been a bar to this *. I 
 should have been glad to have examined the teeth, 
 tongue, lips, hoofs, &c. minutely ; but the putrefaction 
 precluded all farther curiosity. This animal, the keeper 
 told me, seemed to enjoy itself best in the extreme 
 frost of the former winter. In the house they showed 
 me the horn of a male moose, which had no front- 
 antlers, but only a broad palm with some snags on the 
 edge. The noble owner of the dead moose proposed 
 to make a skeleton of her bones. 
 
 1 They belong, moreover, to very distinct sections of the great and yet 
 undivided genus Cervus. Independently of the peculiarities of form in 
 the moose, described by Gilbert White, this is also indicated by its 
 broadly palmated horns as opposed to the rounded stem and antlers of 
 the red deer. E. T. B. 
 
13(J NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 Please to let me hear if my female moose corre- 
 sponds with that you saw ; and whether you think still 
 that the American moose and European elk are the 
 same creature. 
 
 I am, 
 With the greatest esteem, &c. 
 
 LETTER XXIX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBOKNE, May 12, 1770. 
 
 LAST month we had such a series of cold turbulent 
 weather, such a constant succession of frost, and snow, 
 and hail, and tempest, that the regular migration or 
 appearance of the summer birds was much interrupted. 
 Some did not show themselves (at least were not heard) 
 till weeks after their usual time, as the blackcap and 
 whitethroat ; and some have not been heard yet, as the 
 grasshopper lark and largest willow wren. As to the 
 flycatcher, I have not seen it: it is indeed one of the 
 latest, but should appear about this time: and yet, 
 amidst all this meteorous strife and war of the elements, 
 two swallows discovered themselves as long ago as the 
 llth of April, in frost and snow; but they withdrew 
 quickly, and were not visible again for many days. 
 House martins, which are always more backward than 
 swallows, were not observed till May came in. 
 
 Among the monogamous birds several are to be 
 found, after pairing- time, single, and of each sex : but 
 whether this state of celibacy is matter of choice or 
 necessity, is not so easily discoverable. When the 
 house sparrows deprive my martins of their nests, as 
 soon as I cause one to be shot, the other, be it cock or 
 hen, presently procures a mate, and so for several 
 times following. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 137 
 
 I have known a dove-house infested by a pair of 
 white owls, which made great havock among the young 
 pigeons : one of the owls was shot as soon -as possible ; 
 but the survivor readily found a mate, and the mischief 
 went on. After some time the new pair were both 
 destroyed, and the annoyance ceased. 
 
 Another instance I remember of a sportsman, whose 
 zeal for the increase of his game being greater than his 
 humanity, after pairing-time l he always shot the cock 
 bird of every couple of partridges upon his grounds ; 
 supposing that the rivalry of many males 2 interrupted 
 the breed : he used to say, that, though he had widowed 
 
 1 The very beautiful, one may almost say poetical way, in which the 
 male bird procures a mate by the power of his song, may be seen in the 
 preface to Mr. Montagu's Ornithological Dictionary, p. xxx. ; from which 
 this corollary may be inferred, that if a confined bird had learned the 
 song of another, without retaining any part of its natural notes, and was 
 set at liberty, it is probable, that it would never find a mate of its own. 
 MITVORD. 
 
 2 Mr. Montagu has observed that some birds exert themselves in 
 rivalry of singing, as a mode of wooing the female. I think I have some 
 reason to believe that the cocks very much predominate in number over 
 the females, amongst the birds which are the most ardent songsters ; and 
 the females are most numerous amongst those which have vocal powers, 
 but are sluggish in using them. Two of the most ardent songsters we 
 have are the nightingale and the whitethroat : the whitethroat, whose 
 song Mr. White strangely undervalues, appears to exert itself to the 
 utmost, and perpetually. I have found the cocks very prevalent amongst 
 the young of these two species. Indeed of seven whitethroats reared 
 from the nest within the last few years, the whole number proved to be 
 cocks. A nest of nightingales which I reared contained only cocks. 
 On the other hand, of seventeen young whin chats only three were cocks, 
 and I think the general average is quite as much in favour of the females. 
 The whin chat reared under other birds will learn to sing from all, but 
 in its wild state it seldom sings continuously or with variety. The 
 males and females seem pretty equally divided in the nests of blackcaps; 
 and they, though perpetually singing, are lazy, and rarely exert them- 
 selves to vary their strain as much as they are able to do. The bird- 
 catchers reckon, when they take a cock nightingale which has a mate, 
 that if they leave the hen she will have another mate in a few days, and 
 sometimes they take five or six successive husbands from one female. 
 Having taken a young stone chat, and caught the old cock which 
 belonged to the brood, I found, three days after, that the hen had pro- 
 vided herself with another mate, and he was just as solicitous about the 
 young as their own father had been. W. H. 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 the same hen several times, yet he found she was still 
 provided with a fresh paramour, that did not take her 
 away from her usual haunt. 
 
 Again : I knew a lover of setting, an old sportsman, 
 who has often told me that soon after harvest he has 
 frequently taken small coveys of partridges, consisting 
 of cock birds alone ; these he pleasantly used to call 
 old bachelors. 
 
 There is a propensity belonging to common house 
 cats that is very remarkable; I mean their violent 
 fondness for fish, which appears to be their most 
 favourite food : and yet nature in this instance seems 
 to have planted in them an appetite that, unassisted, 
 they know not how to gratify: for of all quadrupeds 
 cats are the least disposed towards water; and will 
 not, when they can avoid it, deign to wet a foot, much 
 less to plunge into that element. 
 
 Quadrupeds that prey on fish are amphibious : such 
 is the otter, which by nature is so well formed for 
 
 diving, that it makes great havock among the inhabi- 
 tants of the waters. Not supposing that we had any 
 of those beasts in our shallow brooks, I was much 
 
OF SELBORNE. 139 
 
 pleased to see a male otter brought to me, weighing 
 twenty-one pounds, that had been shot on the bank of 
 our stream below the Priory, where the rivulet divides 
 the parish of Selborne from Harteley Wood. 
 
 LETTER XXX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Aug. 1, 1770. 
 
 THE French, I think, in general are strangely prolix 
 in their natural history. What Linnaeus says with 
 respect to insects, holds good in every other branch : 
 " Verbositas prcesentis sceculi, calamitas artis." 
 
 Pray how do you approve of Scopoli's new work? as 
 I admire his Entomologia, I long to see it. 
 
 I forgot to mention in my last letter (and had not 
 room to insert in the former) that the male moose, in 
 rutting time, swims from island to island, in the lakes 
 and rivers of North America, in pursuit of the females. 
 My friend, the chaplain, saw one killed in the water as 
 it was on that errand in the river St. Lawrence : it was 
 a monstrous beast, he told me ; but he did not take the 
 dimensions. 
 
 When I was last in town, our friend Mr. Barrington 
 most obligingly carried me to see many curious sights. 
 As you were then writing to him about horns, he car- 
 ried me to see many strange and wonderful specimens. 
 There is, I remember, at Lord Pembroke's, at Wilton, 
 a horn room furnished with more than thirty different 
 pairs : but I have not seen that house lately. 
 
 Mr. Barrington showed me many astonishing collec- 
 tions of stuffed and living birds from all quarters of the 
 world. After I had studied over the latter for a time, 
 I remarked that every species almost that came from 
 
140 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 distant regions, such as South America, the coast of 
 Guinea, &c. were thick-billed birds of the Loxia and 
 Fringilla genera ; and no Motacillce or Muscicapce, were 
 to be met with. When I came to consider, the reason 
 was obvious enough ; for the hard-billed birds subsist 
 on seeds which are easily carried on board ; while the 
 soft-billed birds, which are supported by worms and 
 insects, or, what is a succedaneum for them, fresh raw 
 meat, can meet with neither in long and tedious voy- 
 ages. It is from this defect of food that our collections 
 (curious as they are) are defective, and we are deprived 
 of some of the most delicate and lively genera. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XXXI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Sept. 14, 1770. 
 
 You saw, I find, the ring-ousels again among their 
 native crags ; and are farther assured that they continue 
 resident in those cold regions the whole year. From 
 whence then do our ring-ousels migrate so regularly 
 every September, and make their appearance again, as 
 if in their return, every April? They are more early 
 this year than common, for some were seen at the usual 
 hill on the fourth of this month. 
 
 An observing Devonshire gentleman tells me that 
 they frequent some parts of Dartmoor, and breed there ; 
 but leave those haunts about the end of September or 
 beginning of October, and return again about the end 
 of March. 
 
 Another intelligent person assures me that they breed 
 in great abundance all over the Peak of Derby, and 
 are called there Tor-ousels ; withdraw in October and 
 
OF SELBORNE. 141 
 
 November, and return in spring. This information 
 seems to throw some light on my new migration. 
 
 Scopoli's new work 1 (which I have just procured) 
 has its merit in ascertaining many of the birds of the 
 Tyrol and Carniola. Monographers, come from whence 
 they may, have, I think, fair pretence to challenge some 
 regard and approbation from the lovers of natural 
 history ; for, as no man can alone investigate all the 
 works of nature, these partial writers may, each in their 
 department, be more accurate in their discoveries, and 
 freer from errors, than more general writers ; and so 
 by degrees may pave the way to a universal correct 
 natural history. Not that Scopoli is so circumstantial 
 and attentive to the life and conversation of his birds 
 as I could wish : he advances some false facts ; as 
 when he says of the Hirundo urbica that " pullos extra 
 nidum non nutrit." This assertion I know to be wrong 
 from repeated observation this summer; for house 
 martins do feed their young flying, though it must be 
 acknowledged not so commonly as the house swallow ; 
 and the feat is done in so quick a manner as not to be 
 perceptible to indifferent observers. He also advances 
 some (I was going to say) improbable facts ; as when 
 he says of the woodcock that "pullos rostra portat 
 fugiens ab hoste" But candour forbids me to say abso- 
 lutely that any fact is false, because I have never been 
 witness to such a fact. I have only to remark that 
 the long unwieldy bill of the woodcock is perhaps the 
 worst adapted of any among the winged creation for 
 such a feat of natural affection. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 1 Annus Primus Historico-Naturalis. 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER XXXII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SEIJJORNE, Oct. 29, 1770. 
 
 AFTER an ineffectual search in Linnaeus, Brisson, &c. 
 I begin to suspect that I discern my brother's Hirundo 
 hyberna in Scopoli's new discovered Hirundo rupestris, 
 p. 167. His description of" Supra murina, subtus albida ; 
 rectrices macula ovali alba in latere interno ; pedes nudi, 
 nigri ; rostrum nigrum ; remiges obscuriores quam plumcc 
 dor sales ; rectrices remigibus concolores ; cauda emarginata 
 nee forcipata ;" agrees very well with the bird in ques- 
 tion ; but when he comes to advance that it is " statura 
 Hirundinis urbicce" and that " definitio Hirundinis riparice 
 Linncei huic quoque convenit" he in some measure invali- 
 dates all he has said ; at least he shows at once that 
 he compares them to these species merely from memory : 
 for I have compared the birds themselves, and lind they 
 differ widely in every circumstance of shape, size, and 
 colour. However, as you will have a specimen, I 
 shall be glad to hear what your judgment is in the 
 matter 1 . 
 
 Whether my brother is forestalled in his nondescript 
 or not, he will have the credit of first discovering that 
 
 1 It seems highly probable that Gilbert White's suspicion of the iden- 
 tity of his brother's Gibraltar swallow with the Hirundo rupestris was 
 correct : indeed, if the Gibraltar bird exhibited a white spot on the inner 
 barb of each of the tail feathers (except the two intermediate ones), it 
 could have been no other than the bird first characterized by Scopoli, in 
 his Annus Primus, under the name quoted. According to M. Temminck 
 the rock swallow is abundant along the shores of the Mediterranean ; 
 common in Savoy and in Piedmont ; less numerous in Switzerland ; rare 
 in Germany ; and a bird of passage in some of the southern departments 
 of France. He states that individuals from Africa and from South 
 America [!] scarcely differ from each other. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 143 
 
 they spend their winters under the warm and sheltery 
 shores of Gibraltar and Barbary 2 . 
 
 Scopoli's characters of his ordines and genera are 
 clear, just, and expressive, and much in the spirit of 
 Linnaeus. These few remarks are the result of my first 
 perusal of Scopoli's Annus Primus. 
 
 The bane of our science is the comparing one animal 
 to the other by memory: for want of caution in this 
 particular Scopoli falls into errors: he is .not so full 
 with regard to the manners of his indigenous birds as 
 might be wished, as you justly observe: his Latin is 
 easy, elegant, and expressive, and very superior to 
 Kramer's 3 . 
 
 I am pleased to see that my description of the moose 
 corresponds so well with yours. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XXXIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Nov. 26, 1770. 
 
 I WAS much pleased to see, among the collection of 
 birds from Gibraltar, some of those short-winged Eng- 
 lish summer birds of passage, concerning whose depar- 
 
 2 This remark is not to be understood as limiting the residence of the 
 rock swallow at Gibraltar to the winter only ; but merely as indicating 
 that it does not quit the neighbourhood of that place, like the other 
 swallows, during the colder months. It is, in fact, stationary throughout 
 the year. M. Risso states it to be stationary also in the more northern 
 locality of Nice ; where all the other swallows are, as in England, birds 
 of passage. They arrive, he remarks, about the fifth of March, and 
 depart about the tenth of October : a general observation which, as it is 
 applied equally to all the species that in England differ so considerably 
 in the length of their summer residence, would seem to indicate that 
 M. Risso is less given to make precise entries in the Naturalist's Journal 
 than was Gilbert White. E. T. B. 
 
 3 See his Elenchus vegetabilium et animalium per Austrian) inferio- 
 rcm, &c. 
 
144 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 tare we have made so much inquiry. Now, if these 
 birds are found in Andalusia to migrate to and from 
 Barbary, it may easily be supposed that those that 
 come to us may migrate back to the continent, and 
 spend their winters in some of the warmer parts of 
 Europe. This is certain, that many soft-billed birds 
 that come to Gibraltar appear there only in spring and 
 autumn, seeming to advance in pairs towards the north- 
 ward, for the sake of breeding during the summer 
 months ; and retiring in parties and broods towards 
 the south at the decline of the year : so that the rock of 
 Gibraltar is the great rendezvous, and place of obser- 
 vation, from whence they take their departure each 
 way towards Europe or Africa. It is therefore no 
 mean discovery, I think, to find that our small short- 
 winged summer birds of passage are to be seen spring 
 and autumn on the very skirts of Europe ; it is a pre- 
 sumptive proof of their emigrations. 
 
 Scopoli seems to me to have found the Hirundo 
 Melba 1 , the great Gibraltar swift, in Tyrol, without 
 knowing it. For what is his Hirundo alpina but 
 the afore-mentioned bird in other words? Says he, 
 " Omnia prioris " (meaning the swift) ; " sed pectus 
 album; paulo major priore" I do not suppose this to 
 be a new species. It is true also of the Melba, that 
 " nidificat in excelsis Alpium rupibus" Vid. Annum 
 Primum. 
 
 My Sussex friend, a man of observation and good 
 sense, but no naturalist, to \vhom I applied on account 
 of the stone curlew (CEdicnemusJ, sends me the follow- 
 ing account : " In looking over my Naturalist's Journal 
 for the month of April, I find the stone curlews are first 
 mentioned on the 17th and 18th, which date seems to 
 me rather late. They live with us all the spring and 
 summer, and at the beginning of autumn prepare to 
 
 1 Cypselus Melba, ILL. (Cyps. alpinus, TEMM.) Stragglers of this spe- 
 cies, the large white-bellied swift, have lately occurred, in three several 
 instances, within the range of the British Fauna. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 145 
 
 take leave by getting together in flocks. They seem to 
 me a bird of passage that may travel into some dry 
 hilly country south of us, probably Spain, because of 
 the abundance of sheep-walks in that country ; for they 
 spend their summers with us in such districts. This 
 conjecture I hazard, as I have never met with any one 
 that has seen them in England in the winter. I believe 
 they are not fond of going near the water, but feed on 
 earth-worms, that are common on sheep-walks and 
 downs. They breed on fallows and lay-fields abound- 
 ing with gray mossy flints, which much resemble their 
 young in colour ; among which they skulk and conceal 
 themselves. They make no nest, but lay their eggs on 
 the bare ground, producing in common but two at a time. 
 There is reason to think their young run soon after 
 they are hatched ; and that the old ones do not feed 
 them, but only lead them about at the time of feeding, 
 which, for the most part, is in the night." Thus far my 
 friend. 
 
 
 
 TONR Cl RI,K.\V. 
 
 In the manners of this bird you see there is some- 
 
 L 
 
14() NA riJKAL HIS Toll V 
 
 thing very analogous to the bustard, whom it also 
 somewhat resembles in aspect and make, and in the 
 structure of its feet. 
 
 For a long time I have desired my relation to look 
 out for these birds in Andalusia; and now he v. rites 
 me word that, for the first time, he saw one dead in the 
 market on the 3rd of September. 
 
 When the (Edicnemus flies it stretches out its 
 straight behind, like a heron. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XXXIV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAM SIR, SELBORNE, March 30, 1771. 
 
 THERE is an insect with us, especially on chalky dis- 
 tricts, which is very troublesome and teasing all the 
 latter end of the summer, getting into people's skins, 
 especially those of women and children, and raising 
 tumours which itch intolerably. This animal (which 
 we call a harvest bug) is very minute, scarce discerni- 
 ble to the naked eye, of a bright scarlet colour, and of 
 the genus of Acarus. They are to be met \vith in gar- 
 dens on kidney beans, or any legumens; but prevail 
 only in the hot months of summer. Warreners, as 
 some have assured me, are much infested by them on 
 chalky downs; where these insects swarm sometimes 
 to so infinite a degree as to discolour their nets, and to 
 give them a reddish cast, while the men are so bitten 
 as to be thrown into fevers 1 . 
 
 1 The harvest bug, as it is termed, is a very minute mite : it has been 
 figured by Shaw in his Naturalist's Miscellany, and also by Professor 
 Dume'ril in the Atlas of the Dictionnaire des Sciences Naturelles. On 
 account of its possessing only six legs Latreille removed it, (as well as 
 other mites which are similarly circumstanced,) from among the great 
 genus Acarus of Linnaeus : in his classification it is the Leptus autumnu- 
 lis. It seems, from the account given of it by M. Dumeril, to be as 
 
OF SRLBORNE. 147 
 
 There is a small long- shining fly in these parts very 
 troublesome to the housewife, by getting into the chim- 
 neys, and laying its eggs in the bacon while it is drying : 
 these eggs produce maggots called jumpers, which, 
 harbouring in the gammons and best parts of the hogs, 
 eat down to the bone, and make great waste. This fly 
 I suspect to be a variety of the Musca putris of Lin- 
 naeus : it is to be seen in the summer in farm-kitchens 
 on the. bacon racks, and about the mantel-pieces, and 
 on the ceilings 2 . 
 
 common in France as it is in England. In the former country it is 
 known by the names of rouget, derived from its colour, and of bdte d' 
 Aout, and pique-Aofit, indicating the season of its appearance and the 
 annoyance produced by it. It occurs there from the middle of July to 
 the middle of September, and is most abundant in years of great drought 
 and heat. The root of the hairs is its favourite place of attack, and the 
 legs are naturally most apt to suffer from a creature that makes its first 
 approach either from the ground or from low vegetables. They travel 
 quickly on the skin, but are often stopped in their progress upwards by 
 garters or other ligatures. The itching occasioned by their punctures is 
 intolerable, and the large pimples produced by them are very apt to 
 suppurate, if irritated by the scratching which they seem designed to 
 provoke. Concentrated spirit or strong vinegar will destroy them ; but 
 such applications ought not, of course, to be resorted to if the skin has 
 been broken. Similar annoyances, from similar causes, and even to a 
 much greater extent than are here produced by the harvest mite, are 
 recorded by Messrs. Kirby and Spence as occurring in South America 
 and the West India Islands. 
 
 It has been suggested that as many of the mites are known to have, in 
 the early stage of their existence, six legs only, and to acquire subsequently 
 an additional pair, the harvest mite may perhaps be merely the young 
 condition of a true Acarus : but of this no evidence has yet been adduced 
 beyond the general analogy. The danger of reasoning from analogy in 
 natural history has been hinted at by White in Letter XXVI. ; but the 
 consideration of analogous cases may sometimes be encouraged with the 
 view of attracting attention to points in the history of animals which 
 might otherwise be overlooked. E. T. B. 
 
 2 Are not these jumpers, and the fly that is produced from them, 
 identical with the hoppers of the cheese, the maggots which become in 
 their final state the Tyrophaga Casei, HERB.? Their leaping powers are 
 thus described by Messrs. Kirby and Spence. " These maggots have long 
 been celebrated for their saltatorious powers. They effect their tremen- 
 dous leaps laugh not at the term, for they are truly so when compared 
 with what human force and agility can accomplish in nearly the same 
 manner as salmon are stated to do when they wish to pass over a cataract, 
 
148 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 The insect that infests turnips and many crops in 
 the garden (destroying often whole fields while in their 
 seedling leaves) is an animal that wants to be better 
 known. The country people here call it the turnip-fly 
 and black dolphin ; but I know it to be one of the 
 Coleoptera ; the " Chrysornela oleracea, saltatoria, femo- 
 ribus posticis crassissimis." In very hot summers they 
 abound to an amazing degree, and as you walk in a field 
 or in a garden, make a pattering like rain, by jumping 
 on the leaves of the turnips or cabbages \ 
 
 by taking their tail in their mouth and letting it go suddenly. When it 
 prepares to leap, our larva first erects itself upon its anus, and then 
 bending itself into a circle by bringing its head to its tail, it pushes forth 
 its unguiform mandibles, and fixes them in two cavities in its anal 
 tubercles. All being thus prepared, it next contracts its body into an 
 oblong, so that the two halves are parallel to each other. This done, it 
 lets go its hold with so violent a jerk that the sound produced by its 
 mandibles may be readily heard, and the leap takes place. Swainmerdam 
 saw one, whose length did not exceed the fourth part of an inch, jump in 
 this manner out of a box six inches deep; which is as if a man six feet 
 high should raise himself in the air by jumping one hundred and forty- 
 four feet ! He had seen others leap a great deal higher." E. T. B. 
 
 3 In this work of destruction, although a share is taken by the Hnlticn 
 oleracea, GEOFFR. (Chrysomela olei'acea, LINN.) the most powerful agent is 
 the Halt, nemorum, a still smaller beetle, about the twelfth part of an inch 
 in length, black above, and having a yellowish stripe along the middle of 
 each of its wing-cases. The injury inflicted on the turnip crops by these 
 pigmy depredators is in some years immense: it has been calculated tlutt 
 in Devonshire alone, in 1786, the damage inflicted by them on the a^ri< nl- 
 turist amounted to not less than one hundred thousand pounds. The 
 turnip-fly, or turnip-flea (as Messrs. Kirby and Spence propose to rail it, 
 not from its entomological affinities, but from its diminutive size and 
 leaping powers J is the earliest enemy of the turnip crops. The instant 
 that the plant appears above the ground, it is attacked by the little 
 insect which destroys the seedling or smooth leaves, and the plant 
 perishes in consequence. After the rough leaf has made its appearance, 
 the crop may generally be regarded as safe from severe injury from this 
 cause. This is the more fortunate, as the turnip-fly is always active 
 during the summer, and is ever at hand prepared by regaling itself on its 
 favourite food to ruin the hopes of the farmer. Rapid growth of the 
 crop (and to secure rapid growth good cultivation and suitable manure 
 are the effectual means,) is the most natural way of preserving it : while 
 it is in the smooth leaf it is in jeopardy ; when in the rough leaf its 
 danger from this enemy may be looked upon as escaped. 
 
 But although the turnip may have assumed the rough leaf, and have 
 
OF SKLBORNK. 149 
 
 There is an (Estrus, known in these parts to every 
 ploughboy ; which, because it is omitted by Linnaeus, 
 
 thus attained a stage of its existence when the attacks of the black fly are 
 no longer to be dreaded, it is not even then to be regarded as absolutely safe. 
 In some seasons, particularly in those when the summer is marked by a 
 long continuance of drought, another pest is inflicted on the crop, which 
 is to the full as destructive as the ordinary fly. In the summer of 1835> 
 this enemy was active at Selborne, and many of the fields on the malm 
 lands were laid waste by its ravages : the only goodturnigs to be seen in 
 the district, in the autumn of that year, were in the neighbourhood of 
 Oakwoods, on the sandy lands near the Forest. Here, as elsewhere, 
 the crops on the chalky soils appear to have been most obnoxious to 
 injury ; although the damage was by no means limited to them. 
 
 Mr. Yarrell has given to the Zoological Society some account of the 
 visitation of the black worm, as it was generally called, in 1835. Early 
 in July, he says, the " yellow fly" was seen upon the young turnips. It 
 was remembered by some that this was the fly which prevailed in 1818, 
 and which was followed by the caterpillars known by the name of the 
 ' blacks." The appearance of the perfect insect was quickly succeeded 
 by that of the black caterpillar, or turnip pest, feeding in myriads on the 
 leaves of the turnips, but leaving their fibres untouched. So complete 
 and so rapid was the destruction in some instances, that a whole field has 
 been found, in two or three days, to present only an assemblage of 
 skeletonized leaves ; and this too when the plants had attained a consider- 
 able size. The destruction of the leaves caused, in most cases, the loss of 
 the root also : and where the root did not altogether perish, it became pithy, 
 and of little comparative value. A second and even a third sowing were 
 necessary, in consequence of the destruction of the earlier crops ; and, so 
 extensive was the failure, that large importations from the continent were 
 required to supply the deficiency. The caterpillar, finally casting its 
 black skin and assuming a slaty appearance, buried itself in the ground, 
 forming a cocoon from which the perfect fly quickly emerged, filled with 
 eggs and prepared to renew the swarms of fresh depredators. By these 
 repeated broods the devastation was successively continued, till it was at 
 length put an end to on the occurrence of those heavy rains in September 
 by which the unusually dry and lengthened summer was terminated. 
 
 The insect produced from the black caterpillar is a kind of saw-fly, or 
 Tenthredo, little more than a quarter of an inch in length, of a pale 
 yellow colour, with a black head and a black patch on each side of the 
 thorax: it is believed to be the Athalia Cent'tfolice, LEACH; but the 
 species of this genus resemble each other so nearly as to render the 
 discrimination of them difficult. 
 
 A visitation of these pests in Norfolk, in 1782, was described by 
 Mr. Marshall in the following year, in a paper contributed by him to the 
 Philosophical Transactions. They are there spoken of under the name 
 of the black canker caterpillar. Many thousands of acres, on which a 
 
150 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 is also passed over by late writers; and that is the 
 Curvicauda of old Mouffet, mentioned by Derham in his 
 Physico-Theology, p. 250 : an insect worthy of remark 
 for depositing its eggs as it flies in so dexterous a 
 manner on the single hairs of the legs and flanks of 
 grass horses 4 . But then Derham is mistaken when he 
 
 fairer prospect for a crop of turnips had not been seen for many years, 
 were ploughed up in consequence of their attacks. Their ravages were 
 preceded by the appearance of the yellow fly in immense numbers ; and 
 it was believed, as they occurred most freely on the coast, that they 
 arrived from across the ocean : some fishermen even declared that they 
 saw them come in cloud-like flights. But there is no sufficient reason 
 for attributing to them other than a home origin. They are seen here every 
 summer; although it is only occasionally, when circumstances combine to 
 favour an extraordinarily rapid growth and frequent broods among them, 
 that they are so numerous as to become extensively destructive. 
 
 Against the attacks of the black caterpillar no preventive has yet been 
 suggested. When it prevails the most effectual means of keeping it 
 under is by freely sprinkling the infested fields with lime, and renewing 
 the sprinkling as often as the fine powder may happen to be carried away 
 by the wind. The same process appears also to have been the most 
 successful that has yet been resorted to against the attacks of the little 
 enemy of every season. It is strongly recommended in a report on the 
 ordinary turnip-fly, published in 1834 by the Doncaster Agricultural 
 Society, as the result of a very extensive correspondence, instituted with 
 the especial view of collecting, from all parts of England, information on 
 a subject of so much importance to the agriculturist. . T. B. 
 
 4 It is by no means surprising that Gilbert White should have believed 
 that the horse bot-fly had been omitted from his works by Linnaeus; for 
 it could scarcely have occurred to him to look for it, either in the Systema 
 Naturae or in the Fauna Suecica, under the very inappropriate name 
 of CEstrus Bocis: yet by that name he would have found it described 
 in both those works. The habitats assigned to it by Linnaeus, the 
 stomach of the horse and the back of kine, show that he confounded 
 together two distinct insects, the maggots of which infest the several 
 situations referred toby him. The maggots of the one, known by the names 
 of wormals or warbles and sometimes by that of bots, are found beneath 
 the skin of cattle: these are the larvae of the true (Estrus Boris, the 
 perfect fly of which was probably unknown to the great Swedish natu- 
 ralist. The maggots of the other, known, in common with those of some 
 other species, by the name of bots, are found with the larvae of those 
 other bot-flies in the stomachs of horses. The one whose habits are 
 described by White, may be called the spotted-winged bot-fly : it is 
 described by Linnaeus under the erroneous name of CEstrus Boris ; by 
 Mr. Bracy Clark under the name of Oestrus Eqiti ; and is, in modern 
 
OP SEL BORNE. 151 
 
 advances that this (Estrus is the parent of that wonder- 
 ful star-tailed maggot which he mentions afterwards ; 
 
 systems, the Gasterophilus Equi, LEACH ; the generic appellation being 
 founded on the aptitude of the maggots for residence in the stomachs of 
 living animals. 
 
 Mr. Bracy Clark, who has well described the habits of these insects 
 in his Observations on the Genus GEstrus, published in the third volume 
 of the Linnean Transactions, and subsequently in an Essay on the Bots 
 of Horses, dwells with more detail on the fact recorded in the text. 
 Speaking of the spotted-winged bot-fly, he says, " The mde pursued by 
 the parent fly to obtain for its young a situation in the stomach of the 
 horse is truly singular, and is effected in the following manner: When 
 the female has been impregnated, and the eggs are sufficiently matured, 
 she seeks among the horses a subject for her purpose, and approaching 
 it on the wing, she holds her body nearly upright in the air, and her tail, 
 which is lengthened for the purpose, curved inwards and upwards : in 
 this way she approaches the part where she designs to deposit the egg; 
 and suspending herself for a few seconds before it, suddenly darts upon 
 it, and leaves the egg adhering to the hair: she hardly appears to settle, 
 but merely touches the hair with the egg held out on the projected point 
 of the abdomen. The egg is made to adhere by means of a glutinous 
 liquor secreted with it. She then leaves the horse at a small distance, 
 and prepares a second egg, and, poising herself before the part, deposits 
 it in the same way. The liquor dries, and the egg becomes firmly glued 
 to the hair: this is repeated by various flies, till four or five hundred 
 eggs are sometimes placed on one horse. 
 
 " The inside of the knee is the part on which these flies are most fond 
 of depositing their eggs, and next to this on the side and back part of 
 the shoulder, and less frequently on the extreme ends of the hairs of the 
 mane. But it is a fact worthy of attention, that the fly does not place 
 them promiscuously about the body, but constantly on those parts which 
 are most liable to be licked with the tongue ; and the ova therefore are 
 always scrupulously placed within its reach. Whether this be an act of 
 reason or of instinct, it is certainly a very remarkable one. I should 
 suspect, with Dr. Darwin, it cannot be the latter, as that ought to direct 
 the performance of any act in one way only." 
 
 The eggs thus deposited are not, in Mr. Bracy Clark's opinion, removed 
 from the hairs by the moisture of the horse's tongue, aided by its rough- 
 ness, in the act of licking, and thus conveyed to the stomach : but remain, 
 he conceives, attached to the hairs for four or five days until they have 
 become " ripe, after which time the slightest application of warmth and 
 moisture is sufficient to bring forth in an instant the latent larva. At this 
 time, if the tongue of the horse touches the egg, its operculum is thrown 
 open, and a small active worm is produced, which readily adheres to the 
 moist surface of the tongue, and is from thence conveyed into the 
 stomach." For the manner in which the larva affixes itself in the 
 stomach by means of the two hooks with which it is furnished at its 
 smaller extremity ; its mode of growth ; its detachment, when fully 
 
15:2 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 for more modern entomologists have discovered that 
 singular production to be derived from the egg of the 
 Musca Chamceleon 5 : see Geoffroy, t. 17. f. 4. 
 
 A full history of noxious insects hurtful in the field, 
 garden, and house, suggesting all the known and likely 
 means of destroying them, would be allowed by the 
 
 grown, from the stomach; its passage through the intestines to remain, 
 during its pupa state, in some convenient spot of dung or earth ; some 
 anatomical particulars respecting it; and many other facts relating to 
 the fly in its various stages, as well as to other species ; the reader is 
 referred to the paper in the Linnean Transactions, from which the above 
 extracts are taken. Interesting as they are, the explanation of them 
 would extend this note to too great a length, and would carry it alto- 
 gether away from the point to which it is chiefly directed, the admira- 
 ble provision adverted to in the text for securing for the bots the only 
 habitation in which they could exist. 
 
 One other observation may, however, be permitted. Mr. Bracy Clark 
 does not appear to regard these larvae of the bot-fly as being productive 
 of injurious effects to horses; but, on the contrary, he suggests that the 
 local irritation produced by them may be useful in preventing the access 
 of disease. The opinion expressed by him on this point in 1796 would 
 seem to have been confirmed by his subsequent experience ; for, nearly 
 twenty years afterwards, in 1815, he gave the name of salutiferus to a 
 species then discovered by him in a somewhat curious manner. Having 
 observed in the stomachs of dead horses which he had examined several 
 larvae which appeared to him to be different from any that he had previously 
 seen, he removed some of them and forced them down the throat of his 
 own horse: two or three months afterwards the pupae were received from 
 the latter, and were placed on some light mould in a jar, in which they 
 quickly buried themselves. This curious attempt at breeding a bot-fly, 
 the first experiment of the kind on record, proved thoroughly successful ; 
 and Mr. Bracy Clark was rewarded for his sagacious discrimination, by 
 obtaining, on the developement of the fly, specimens of a nondescript 
 species of a genus which he had made especially his own. E. T. B. 
 
 3 The singular and highly interesting larva of the Stratiomys Chama- 
 leon, DE GEEK, has been repeatedly figured and described , and the use 
 of the star-like circle of feathered hairs appended to its tail, as a means 
 of suspending that part and the orifice of the respiratory tube in their 
 centre, has been often explained: it is among the most beautiful as well 
 as the most curious contrivances resorted to for such a purpose by ever 
 varying nature. The eggs from which these lar\a? are produced are 
 affixed by the parent fly to plants living in the water in which the deve- 
 lopement of the maggot is to take place : those seen by Messrs. Kirby 
 and Spence were " arranged like tiles on a roof one laid partly over 
 another, on the under side of the leaves of the water-plantain." 
 E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 153 
 
 public to be a most useful and important work. What 
 knowledge there is of this sort lies scattered, and wants 
 to be collected ; great improvements would soon follow 
 of course. A knowledge of the properties, economy, 
 propagation, and, in short, of the life and conversation 
 of these animals, is a necessary step to lead us to some 
 method of preventing their depredations. 
 
 As far as I am a judge, nothing would recommend 
 entomology more than some neat plates, that should 
 well express the generic distinctions of insects accord- 
 ing to Linnaeus ; for I am well assured that many 
 people would study insects, could they set out with a 
 more adequate notion of those distinctions than can be 
 conveyed at first by words alone 6 . 
 
 LETTER XXXV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, 1771. 
 
 HAPPENING to make a visit to my neighbour's pea- 
 cocks, I could not help observing that the trains of 
 
 6 It is possible that the suggestion in the text may have had some 
 share, through the intervention of Pennant, in encouraging the publica- 
 tion, which took place about ten years afterwards, of Barbut's Genera 
 Insectorum of Linnaeus, exemplified by figures taken exclusively from 
 English specimens. But the genera adopted by Linnaeus were so few 
 in number that most of them included, of necessity, many variations of 
 form ; and as a single figure could give the representation but of one of 
 those variations, no sufficient idea of the others could be thus obtained. 
 Barbut's work remained, however,until of late years, the only English book 
 usually had recourse to for illustrations of the genera of insects : but the 
 English student has now, for such a purpose, in the British Entomology 
 of Mr. Curtis, a work which will always be of standard excellence. It 
 comprises already admirable representations of about six hundred insects, 
 typical of so many forms, inhabiting the British islands ; and furnishes, 
 in the most accurate manner, those detailed dissections of the cibarian 
 organs which are essential to a perfect knowledge of the economy of the 
 several genera, and to their proper disposition in a natural series. 
 K. T. B. 
 
154 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 those magnificent birds appear by no means to be their 
 tails ; those long feathers growing not from their uropy- 
 yium, but all up their backs. A range of short brown 
 stiff feathers, about six inches long, fixed in the vropy- 
 gium, is the real tail, and serves as the fulcrum to prop 
 the train, which is long and top-heavy, when set an 
 end. When the train is up, nothing appears of the 
 bird before but its head and neck ; but this would not 
 be the case were those long feathers fixed only in the 
 rump, as may be seen by the turkey-cock when in a 
 strutting attitude. By a strong muscular vibration 
 these birds can make the shafts of their long feathers 
 clatter like the swords of a sword dancer; they then 
 trample very quick with their feet, and run backwards 
 towards the females 1 . 
 
 I should tell you that I have got an uncommon calcu- 
 lus cegagropila, taken out of the stomach of a fat ox ; it 
 is perfectly round, and about the size of a large Seville 
 orange ; such are, I think, usually flat. 
 
 LETTER XXXVI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DKAR SIR, Sept. 1771. 
 
 THE summer through I have seen but two of that large 
 species of bat which I call Vespertilio altivolans, from 
 
 1 In other birds, as well as in the pea-fowl, the feathers of different 
 parts sometimes assume the appearance of a tail. In the elegant Trngon 
 resplendens, which has been adopted by the United States of Central 
 America us their national emblem, the beautiful flowing feathers that 
 hang gracefully behind the bird and measure more than three times its 
 total length, although they would popularly be termed the tail, belong 
 in reality to the back. Again, in those cranes which belong to the genus 
 Anthropoiilcs, the lengthened feathers which, in the chastely elegant spe- 
 cies dedicated by Mr. Vigors to Lord Stanley, sweep like a graceful 
 train along the ground, are quite unconnected with the tail of the bird, 
 and form actually a part of the wing. E. T. B. 
 
OF S EL BORNE. 155 
 
 its manner of feeding high in the air : I procured one of 
 them, and found it to be a male ; and made no doubt, 
 as they accompanied together, that the other was a 
 female: but, happening in an evening or two to pro- 
 cure the other likewise, I was somewhat disappointed, 
 when it appeared to be also of the same sex. This 
 circumstance, and the great scarcity of this sort, at 
 least in these parts, occasions some suspicions in my 
 mind whether it is really a species, or whether it may 
 not be the male part of the more known species, one of 
 which may supply many females; as is known to be 
 the case in sheep, and some other quadrupeds. But 
 this doubt can only be cleared by a farther examina- 
 tion, and some attention to the sex, of more specimens : 
 Nuv Je T8TO fjiovov ffatyus ivt$epMt 9 a/xCfo/v etqctvixot, T& dtioTa 
 Qavepug TfTu%eW/' TO, $s vog dtioioiQ /x#A/^r# eoMcuri. 
 
 In the extent of their wings they measured fourteen 
 inches and a half; and four inches and a half from the 
 nose to the tip of the tail : their heads were large, their 
 nostrils bilobated, their shoulders broad and muscular ; 
 and their whole bodies fleshy and plump. Nothing 
 could be more sleek and soft than their fur, which was 
 of a bright chestnut colour ; their maws were full of 
 food, but so macerated that the quality could not be 
 distinguished ; their livers, kidneys, and hearts were 
 large, and their bowels covered with fat. They weighed 
 each, when entire, full one ounce and one drachm. 
 Within the ear there was somewhat of a peculiar 
 structure that I did not understand perfectly ; but refer 
 it to the observation of the curious anatomist 1 . These 
 creatures sent forth a very rancid and offensive smell. 
 
 1 In the great tendency of the bats to produce foliaceous expansions of 
 the skin resides the principal characteristic of the family. The spreading 
 out of membranes between the lengthened bones of the fingers, and the 
 extension of them from the fore to the hinder limbs, are common to all the 
 species ; and many of them have, in addition, another membrane inter- 
 posed between the hinder limbs and enveloping the tail, either in whole 
 or in part, when that organ exists. These expansions belong principally 
 to the peculiar mode of locomotion for which the animals are con- 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER XXXVII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, 1771. 
 
 ON the twelfth of July I had a fair opportunity of con- 
 templating the motions of the Caprimulgus, or fern-owl, 
 as it was playing round a large oak that swarmed with 
 
 structed. The lateral membranes perform the functions of wings, and 
 serve to propel the body through the air ; while the interfemoral mem- 
 brane acts, by its expansion, as a parachute, and prevents the bat from 
 rapidly falling to the ground. 
 
 But although the larger membranes belong chiefly to locomotion, they 
 contribute also to extend the means by which the animal is enabled to 
 acquire a knowledge of the circumstances in which it is moving. The 
 actions of the bat are confined to the darkness of the night, or at best to 
 the uncertain glimmering of the dusky twilight ; and the sense of vision 
 is consequently comparatively inadequate to guide it in its flights and in 
 the pursuit of its prey. To compensate for the imperfection of its vision, 
 other senses should be rendered more acute ; and this is effected by the 
 exposure of a large extent of naked skin, and by the developement of 
 processes adapted to direct the impulses of the air on the several organs 
 which are destined to appreciate them. 
 
 Destitute almost entirely of hair, the flying membranes of the bats 
 become organs of touch ; and the great surface which they expose to 
 atmospheric impulses must necessarily render them highly susceptible of 
 the finest impressions to which that sense is liable. The perfection of 
 the sense of smell also is, in many cases, aided by a peculiar arrange- 
 ment ; a membrane being frequently developed on the nose, which, by 
 directing the air towards the nostrils, renders more assured the affecting 
 of the olfactory organs by the scents with which the atmosphere may be 
 impregnated. A somewhat similar arrangement adds to the efficiency of 
 the sense of hearing : for the great expansion of the external ear which 
 often occurs in bats, is equally adapted for directing towards the auditory 
 passages the air charged with sounds ; and even in those cases in which 
 the external ears are not disproportionally large, the nakedness of these 
 organs, qualifying them to act also as organs of touch, renders them so 
 susceptible to the finer impulses of the atmosphere as to cause them 
 quickly to assume the state of tension most fitted for directing sound. It 
 would seem, indeed, that the quantity of sound forced occasionally into 
 the ears of bats was so great as to render it necessary to provide the 
 power of closing the auditory passage, by the folding down over it of a 
 kind of internal or second ear; itself, like the outer or ordinary ear, a 
 naked and membranous expansion of the skin, and of course equally 
 
OF S EL BORNE. 157 
 
 Scarabcei solstitiales 1 , or fern-chafers. The powers of its 
 wing were wonderful, exceeding, if possible, the various 
 
 susceptible of delicate impressions, and acted upon by them to the 
 performance of its special functions with equal acuteness and rapidity. 
 The tragus, which exists in man only as a small lobe projecting in front 
 over the auditory opening, becomes in many of the bats a lengthened 
 process, variously shaped, and evidently of considerable importance in 
 the physiology of the organ with which it is connected. It is the tragus 
 to which Gilbert White refers in the text as offering within the ear 
 somewhat of a peculiar structure : and as its form, as welLthe form of the 
 other cutaneous appendages of the bats, is of considerable importance in 
 the distinguishing of these animals from each other ; and as, moreover, 
 the distinction of the several kinds of bats is highly desirable, in order 
 to guide us to a more definite knowledge of these imperfectly understood 
 animals, and especially of the habits peculiar to each, it may be well to 
 refer to them as indicating, in most instances, specific characters for the 
 British bats. 
 
 It is worthy of remark, however, before commencing this enumeration, 
 that at the time when White first wrote to Pennant on this subject, he 
 knew but two indigenous kinds: the long-eared and that which he 
 regarded as the short-eared : these, in fact, being all that were even 
 known to Linnaeus as European. White subsequently became acquainted 
 with another ; the great bat of the text. Pennant knew and described a 
 fourth, the horse- shoe bat. Many years subsequently elapsed without 
 the addition of another. The four indigenous species known in 1771 
 have now been increased to at the least fourteen distinct kinds ; so great 
 have been the advances that have of late years been made in England in 
 the search after animals and in the discrimination between them. 
 
 The presence or absence of a nose-leaf is generally regarded as of 
 primary importance in the subdivision of the insectivorous bats. Of 
 those that possess such an appendage we have in England only two 
 kinds. These are the horse-shoe bats, forming part of the genus Rhino- 
 lophus, and readily distinguishable by their size into the greater (the 
 head and body of which are two and a half inches long,) and the less 
 (which does not measure in total length one inch and a half). Neither 
 of these is very generally distributed throughout the country, although 
 in some situations they are not uncommon : they chiefly frequent old 
 houses and caves. 
 
 The remaining British bats are destitute of the nose-leaf, and may be 
 distinguished into genera by characters derived from the expansion of the 
 outer ear. In some of them the two ears meet in the middle of the fore- 
 head, and are united at their inner margins. Such is the case with the 
 barbastelle, constituting the genus Barhastellus of Mr. Gray, in which the 
 ears are shorter than the head; and the ears are also united on their 
 inner edge in the long-eared bats, Plecotvs, GEOFF, in which the external 
 ear is so largely and disproportionately developed as almost to equal in 
 
 [AmjthimnUd solstttialis, LATR.] 
 
'"> s NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 evolutions and quick turns of the swallow genus. But 
 the circumstance that pleased me most was, that 1 saw 
 
 length the entire body and head. The common long-eared bat, Plecotus 
 auritus, GEOFF, is frequent in the vicinity of houses : the expansion of its 
 wings is fully ten inches. A second long-eared bat, which has been 
 suspected to be the young of the former, has been described by the 
 Rev. L. Jenyns as differing from it in many particulars, and especially in 
 the comparative shortness of its fingers, whence he has called it brevima- 
 nus: the expansion of its wings is less than seven inches. Of this latter 
 the only individual that has yet occurred was taken from a tree. 
 
 All the other bats that have yet been captured in England have their 
 ears distinct from each other, and belong to the genus Vcspertilio, which 
 is still an extensive one, notwithstanding the numerous dismemberments 
 to which it has been subjected. Of these some have the ears as long as, 
 or slightly longer than, the head: such are the Vesp. Murinus, DKSM. and 
 Vesp. Bechsteinii, LI.I-I... in which the tragus is about half the length of 
 the auricle, is somewhat expanded on its outer side just above its base, 
 and terminates in a point, the latter species being^most readily distin- 
 guishable by its exceedingly slender thumb; and the Vesp. Natter, ri. 
 KUHL, in which the tragus is linear, and full two-thirds of the length of 
 the auricle. Others, and these the more numerous, have the auricle not 
 so long as the head. In Vesp. niystacinus, LEISL., the tragus is half as 
 long as the auricle, and is lanceolate: in Vesp. enwrginatus, GEOFF., the 
 tragus is also half the length of the somewhat lengthened ear, but is 
 subulate: in Vesp. pygnueus, LEACH, the tragus is of the same comparative 
 length as in the two preceding, and is subulate ; the species being distin- 
 guished (if, indeed, it be a species and not the young of some other, 
 perhaps of the Vesp. Serotinus) by its very diminutive size, the expansion 
 of its wings being scarcely more than five inches: in Vesp. .SV/W/MMX, 
 GM EI,., the tragus is also subulate, but is not half the length of the ear : 
 in Vesp. discolor, N.vrr, the tragus is scarcely one-third the length of the 
 ear, and of almost equal breadth throughout: in the pipistrelle, Vesp. 
 Pipistrdlus, GMEL., which is the bat of most frequent occurrence in 
 England, (where, on account of its diminutive size as compared with the 
 noctule, it is often called the mouse-bat,) the tragus is half the length of 
 the ear, and is terminated by a rounded head ; the expansion of its wings 
 is rather more than eight inches : in the remaining two species, which are 
 nearly of a uniform chestnut colour both above and below, the tragus has 
 almost the same form as in the last, and in the Vesp. Leisleri, KLHL., 14 
 scarcely smaller than in the pipistrelle; while in the noctule, Vesp. 
 Noctvla, GMEL , it is much reduced in size, bein# little more than one 
 quarter of the length of the ear, and consists of a rather broad base, 
 becoming expanded towards the tip, especially on the outer side, so 
 widely as to form a head about twice the breadth of the stem that 
 supports it. The noctule is the largest of the English bats, except the 
 rare Vesp. Murinus, its wings extending, when expanded, to the width of 
 fourteen inches: it occurs more frequently than any of the others, with 
 the exception of the pipistrelle (erroneously named JY.s-/). Mi'rinus by all 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 159 
 
 it distinctly, more than once, put out its short leg while 
 on the wing, and, by a bend of the head, deliver some- 
 what into its mouth. If it takes any part of its prey 
 with its foot, as I have now the greatest reason to 
 suppose it does these chafers, I no longer wonder at 
 the use of its middle toe, which is curiously furnished 
 with a serrated claw. 
 
 
 THE GOATSUCKER. 
 
 Swallows and martins, the bulk of them I mean, have 
 forsaken us sooner this year than usual ; for, on Sep- 
 
 British writers until very recently) and of the long-eared bat. A not 
 unfrequent name for it, indicative of its superiority of size over the pipis- 
 trelle, is the rat-bat. 
 
 By this enumeration of the indigenous species some idea will have been 
 obtained of the variations in form and developement of the curious struc- 
 ture within the ear referred to by the author, as they occur in the genus 
 Vespertilio, to an extent so great as almost to afford characters for the 
 distinction of every species. In Plecotus the tragus is also developed to 
 an extent proportioned to the exceeding amplitude of the ears themselves. 
 In Barbastellus it also exists in a marked degree. In the horse-shoe bats 
 no such appendage is present; although in many exotic genera the 
 additional leaflet of the ear coexists with that which is superadded to the 
 nose. E.T. B. 
 
160 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 tember the twenty-second, they rendezvoused in a neigh- 
 bour's walnut tree, where it seemed probable they had 
 taken up their lodging for the night. At the dawn of 
 the day, which was foggy, they rose all together in 
 infinite numbers, occasioning such a rushing from the 
 strokes of their wings against the hazy air, as might be 
 heard to a considerable distance : since that no flock 
 has appeared, only a few r stragglers. 
 
 Some swifts stayed late, till the twenty-second of 
 August a rare instance! for they usually withdraw 
 within the first week 2 . 
 
 On September the twenty-fourth three or four ring- 
 ousels appeared in my fields for the first time this 
 season : how punctual are these visitors in their 
 autumnal and spring migrations ! 
 
 LETTER XXXVIIL 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DFAK sin, SELBORNE, March 15, 1773. 
 
 BY my journal for last autumn it appears that the 
 house martins bred very late, and stayed very late in 
 these parts; for, on the first of October, I saw young 
 martins in their nest nearly fledged ; and again, on the 
 twenty-first of October, we had, at the next house, a 
 nest full of young martins just ready to fly ; and the 
 old ones were hawking for insects with great alertness. 
 The next morning the brood forsook their nest, and 
 were flying round the village. From this day I never 
 saw one of the swallow kind till November the third ; 
 when twenty, or perhaps thirty, house martins were 
 playing all day long by the side of the hanging wood, 
 and over my fields. Did these small weak birds, some 
 of which were nestlings twelve days ago, shift their 
 
 a See Letter LI I. to Mr. Harrington. 
 
OP SELBORNE. 161 
 
 quarters at this late season of the year to the other 
 side of the northern tropic ? Or rather, is it not more 
 probable that the next church, ruin, chalk cliff, steep 
 covert, or perhaps sandbank, lake or pool (as a more 
 northern naturalist would say), may become their 
 hybernaculum, and afford them a ready and obvious 
 retreat? 
 
 We now begin to expect our vernal migration of 
 ring-ousels every week. Persons worthy of credit 
 assure me that ring-ousels were seen at "Christmas, 
 1770, in the forest of Bere, on the southern verge 
 of this county. Hence we may conclude that their 
 migrations are only internal, and not extended to the 
 continent southward, if they do at first come at all 
 from the northern parts of this island only, and not 
 from the north of Europe. Come from whence they 
 will, it is plain, from the fearless disregard that they 
 show for men or guns, that they have been little accus- 
 tomed to places of much resort. Navigators mention, 
 that, in the Isle of Ascension, and other such desolate 
 districts, birds are so little acquainted with the human 
 form that they settle on men's shoulders ; and have no 
 more dread of a sailor than they would have of a goat 
 that was grazing. A young man at Lewes, in Sussex, 
 assured me that about seven years ago ring-ousels 
 abounded so about that town in the autumn, that he 
 killed sixteen himself in one afternoon : he added fur- 
 ther, that some had appeared since in every autumn ; 
 but he could not find that any had been observed 
 before the season in which he shot so many. I myself 
 have found these birds in little parties in the autumn 
 cantoned all along the Sussex downs, wherever there 
 were shrubs and bushes, from Chichester to Lewes; 
 particularly in the autumn of 1770. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 M 
 
> NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER XXXIX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Nov. 9, 1773. 
 
 As you desire me to send you such observations as 
 may occur, I take the liberty of making the following 
 remarks, that you may, according as you think me 
 right or wrong, admit or reject what I here advance, in 
 your intended new edition of the British Zoology 1 . 
 
 The osprey 2 was shot about a year ago at Frinsham- 
 pond, a great lake, at about six miles from hence, 
 while it was sitting on the handle of a plough and 
 devouring a fish : it used to precipitate itself into the 
 water, and so take its prey by surprise. 
 
 A great ash-coloured 3 butcher-bird was shot last 
 winter in Tisted Park, and a red-backed butcher-bird 
 at Selborne : they are rarce aves in this county. 
 
 Crows 4 go in pairs the whole year round. 
 
 Cornish choughs 5 abound, and breed on Beechy 
 Head and on all the cliffs of the Sussex coast. 
 
 The common wild pigeon 6 , or stock dove, is a bird 
 of passage in the south of England, seldom appearing 
 till towards the end of November ; is usually the latest 
 winter bird of passage. Before our beechen woods were 
 so much destroyed, we had myriads of them, reaching 
 in strings for a mile together as they went out in a 
 
 1 In the date of this Letter we have the fullest evidence of the earnest 
 zeal with which Pennant prosecuted his design of giving to his coun- 
 try a complete British Zoology. It was in 1770 that the last volume 
 of the second edition of his work was published; and in 1773 we find 
 him already preparing for a new edition of it. This appeared in 1776, 
 and among other additions and corrections had the advantage of possess- 
 ing those forwarded by our author in this and the succeeding letter, most 
 of which are embodied in its pages. E. T. B. 
 
 2 British Zoology, vol. i. p. 128. 3 p. 161. 4 p. 167. 
 5 p. 197. 6 p. 216. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 163 
 
 morning to feed. They leave us early in spring; where 
 do they breed ? 
 
 The people of Hampshire and Sussex call the missel- 
 bird 7 the storm-cock, because it sings early in the 
 spring in blowing showery weather; its song often 
 commences with the year: with us it builds much in 
 orchards. 
 
 A gentleman assures me he has taken the nests of 
 ring-ousels 8 on Dartmoor: they build in banks on the 
 sides of streams. 
 
 Titlarks 9 not only sing sweetly as they sit on trees, 
 but also as they play and toy about on the wing; and 
 particularly while they are descending, and sometimes 
 as they stand on the ground 10 . 
 
 Adanson's 11 testimony seems to me to be a very poor 
 evidence that European swallows migrate during our 
 winter to Senegal; he does not talk at all like an 
 ornithologist ; and probably saw only the swallows of 
 that country, which I know build within Governor 
 O'Hara's hall against the roof. Had he known Eu- 
 ropean swallows, would he not have mentioned the 
 species 12 ? 
 
 7 British Zoology, vol. i. p. 223. 8 p. 229. 9 Vol. ii. p. 236. 
 
 10 It is a frequent habit with this sweet songster to mount high into the 
 air from one tree, and to sing as it descends to another. It also frequently 
 sings in descending from the top of a tree to a stake in a hedge or even 
 to the ground. G. D. 
 
 11 British Zoology, vol. ii. p. 242. 
 
 12 Concerning swallows, the reader will see, that Mr. White appears 
 to incline more and more in favour of their torpidity, and against their 
 migration. Mr. D. Barrington is still more positive on the same side of 
 the question. See his Miscellanies, p. 225. The ancients generally 
 mention this bird, as wintering in Africa. See Anacreon, Xy. ed. Brunck. 
 p. 38. The Rhodians had a festival called %\i^6vta, when the boys 
 brought about young swallows ; the song which they sang may be seen 
 in the works of Meursius, vol. iii. p. 974, fol. 
 
 "Gpa ayovaa, Kal KaXovQ 'Eviavrovg 
 Em ydcrrepa \evica K a-m v&ra /weXaiva. 
 
 " He comes ! he comes ! who loves to bear 
 Soft sunny hours, and seasons fair ; 
 
 M2 
 
164 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 The house swallow washes by dropping into the 
 water as it flies: this species appears commonly about 
 a week before the house martin, and about ten or twelve 
 days before the swift. 
 
 In 1772 there were young house martins 13 in their 
 nest till October the 23d. 
 
 The swift 14 appears about ten or twelve days later 
 than the house swallow : viz. about the 24th or 26th of 
 April. 
 
 Whin chats and stone chats 15 stay with us the whole 
 year 16 . 
 
 The swallow hither comes to rest 
 His sable wing, and snowy breast." 
 
 And alluding to this custom, Avienus (who may be considered only as 
 a very bad translator of an excellent poem, the Periegesis of Dionysius), 
 thus says, v. 705. 
 
 " Nam cum vere novo, tellus se dura relaxat 
 Culminibusque cavis, blandum strepit ales hirundo 
 Gens devota choros agitat!" 
 
 From a passage in the " Birds" of Aristophanes, we learn that among 
 the Greeks, the crane pointed out the time of sowing ; the arrival of the 
 kite, the time of sheep-shearing ; and of the swallow, the time to put on 
 summer clothes. According to the Greek calendar of Flora, kept by 
 Theophrastus at Athens, the Ornithian winds blow, and the swallow 
 comes, between the 28th of February and the 12th of March : the kite 
 and nightingale appear between the llth and 26th of March : the cuckoo 
 appears at the same time the young figs come out, thence his name. See 
 Stillingfleet's Tracts on Natural History, p. 324. MITFORD. 
 
 13 British Zoology, vol. ii. p. 244. ' p. 245. " p. 271, 272. 
 
 18 A few whin chats and stone chats may remain the whole year in warm 
 situations, but the greater number certainly leave the country, nor does 
 the whin chat return to us early. It is very much more tender of cold than 
 the nightingale, and requires a much higher temperature to keep it alive. 
 It is very abundant in the neighbourhood of Spofforth, where it is called 
 the grass chat, and breeds in almost every meadow and rough pasture. 
 I saw one last year at the beginning of November, the weather having 
 been unusually warm; but excepting an accidental straggler, they quit 
 us entirely at the very beginning of September. The stone chats return 
 to this neighbourhood about the middle of March. I have observed a 
 stone chat two successive years on the 14th and 16th, the weather being 
 frosty, in the hedge on the road side in the cultivated country, their usual 
 
OF SELBORNE. 165 
 
 Some wheatears 17 continue with us the winter through. 
 Wagtails, all sorts, remain with us all the winter, 
 Bullfinches 18 when fed on hempseed, often become 
 wholly black J 9. 
 
 haunts being at that time too cold for them. They breed very early. In 
 the neighbourhood of London the young are out of the nest in the second 
 week of May, after which they continue for near three weeks skulking 
 under furze bushes, though able when disturbed to fly a hundred yards 
 at once, and they do not show themselves openly till they are able to do 
 without the old ones. Most of our books of ornithology state erroneously 
 that the whin chat is a more rare bird than the stone chat : the latter is 
 found only on heath and furze ; the whin chat is abundant in enclosures 
 as well as on wastes. Its young are produced much later than those of 
 the stone chat. The whin chat reared from the nest by hand will learn 
 the song of every bird it hears, and becomes a fine songster. It may be 
 fed on ground hempseed and egg scalded, with some hard yolk of egg, 
 and occasionally a very little meat. The stone chat is equally imitative 
 in confinement, but not so easily preserved in health. Le Vaillant men- 
 tions an African chat allied to the wheatear (Traquet imitateurj which 
 imitates the notes of every bird in its vicinity in its wild state, and this 
 faculty appears to belong to the whole genus Saxicola. I have heard a 
 whin chat, breeding in a meadow adjoining to my garden, sing very like 
 the blackcap. There seems to be an enormous predominancy of females 
 amongst the young whin chats. (See the note on page 137.) 
 
 I have observed a fresh caught whin chat void with its dung a small 
 but entire snail shell of the long spiral kind. They will swallow gree- 
 dily a wasp maggot, but are very indifferent about eating a fly. The 
 support therefore of those which remain late with us is, amongst other 
 things, small shell snails and cockchafer grubs, and they are less af- 
 fected than many other warblers by the failure of winged insects. The 
 stone chat eats a few whortle berries in its wild state, and both species 
 will occasionally eat a currant in confinement. W. H. 
 
 17 British Zoology, vol. ii. p. 269. 18 p. 300. 
 
 19 In using this observation of our author Pennant gives to it the ex- 
 tension with which we have already seen it stated in Letter XX. He 
 adds, " Mr. Morton, in his History of Northamptonshire, gives another 
 instance of such a change, with this addition, that the year following, 
 after moulting, the bird recovered its native colours." E. T. B. 
 
 This is not peculiar to the bullfinch. I have seen a woodlark nearly 
 black from living on dry bread and hemp. The oil of the hemp has pro- 
 bably this effect on the plumage. I have never found bread and hemp 
 scalded affect the colours of birds ; probably the oil so diluted loses its 
 power. 
 
 I believe that no attention has been paid to the effects of different 
 kinds of food on the colours of birds. The beautiful nonpareil or painted 
 finch, of the Southern States of North America, in its glory, has the head 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 We have vast flocks of female chaffinches 20 all the 
 winter, with hardly any males among them. 
 
 of a rich blue, all the under parts of a brilliant red, the wings, tail, and 
 upper part of the back, green, and the lower part of the back and the 
 rump of a changeable coppery red. When fed upon seed in confinement 
 it loses its brilliancy after the first moult ; the red of the under parts 
 degenerates to a dull pale yellow, the blue of the head becomes less 
 intense, and all the upper parts are of a dull green. Under the same 
 treatment these birds often moult with difficulty, and die. If, in addition 
 to their usual supply of seed, they have melting pears and elder berries 
 given to them, they will moult freely and their natural colours will 
 reappear, on the new feathers, in full brilliancy. Flies and other insects 
 are also essential to them occasionally. 
 
 The linnet and redpole in confinement lose after the first moult their 
 red colour, and it does not return. Is this owing to the want of the pe- 
 culiar food they would take in the spring, if at liberty, or to their being 
 less exposed to the sunshine ? I once saw the English white water lily 
 blow of a pale rose colour after a week of unusual heat in July. 
 
 Birds that change their colours at different seasons, usually put on their 
 bright garb in the warm season. I have repeatedly observed, in a splen- 
 did bird (Loxia Madagascar iensis, LINN.) which I possess, that, although 
 it moults partially twice in the year, the colour of the larger feathers on 
 the wings and back changes gradually from yellowish brown to scarlet, 
 and fades again at the approach of winter. In this bird, the change to 
 red is very clearly occasioned by the increase of temperature. I have 
 observed in the spring that the supervention of cold weather stops its 
 progress In the Whidah bird, the mutation of dress is rapid, accom- 
 panying the moult in June and July. The American blue bird pushes 
 brown feathers in its summer moult, which are very suddenly turned to 
 blue. There is a mystery in these mutations which we do not understand, 
 but they certainly depend in some degree upon temperature. The 
 Whidah bird acquires usually its long tail and fine colours at the vernal 
 moult and loses them in the autumn. It happened one year that the 
 months of August and September had been very cold, and the tem- 
 perature was unusually high in October and the beginning of November, 
 so that with the addition of a fire my room was much warmer at the 
 moment of the autumnal moult than it had been for some time before, and 
 the consequence was that the Whidah bird produced a long tail and 
 coloured plumage again at that season, and continued in beauty for the 
 space of a year and a half. Food has also appeared to me to affect the 
 brilliancy of the plumage, for the nonpareils which had had elder berries 
 or soft pears to peck acquired a deeper red on the breast. 
 
 The Loxia Madagascariensis has been ten years in my room and is still 
 in perfect health. It belongs to a genus quite distinct from Loxia, to 
 which Lox. Oiyx (the Cape grenadier bird), Lox. Phillippina, and Lox. 
 pensilis belong also, as well as two splendid species which have been 
 
 20 British Zoology, vol. ii. p. 306. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 167 
 
 When you say that in breeding time the cock snipes 21 
 make a bleating noise, and I a drumming (perhaps I 
 should have rather said a humming), I suspect we 
 mean the same thing. However, while they are playing 
 about on the wing they certainly make a loud piping 
 with their mouths : but whether that bleating or hum- 
 ming is ventriloquous, or proceeds from the motion of 
 their wings, I cannot say ; but this I know, that when 
 this noise happens the bird is always descending, and 
 his wings are violently agitated 22 . 
 
 Soon after the lapwings 23 have done breeding, they 
 congregate, and, leaving the moors and marshes, betake 
 themselves to downs and sheep-walks. 
 
 Two years ago last spring the little auk 24 was found 
 
 several years living in my room, known in the London shops by the name 
 of bishop birds. Numbers of one of these two species have been im- 
 ported of late years, and in the summer time they become orange and 
 black, but the imported skins have invariably the plumage scarlet and 
 black. If they are kept in a very cool and airy room in this country, 
 they do not acquire their perfect plumage, which they retain five or six 
 months in a warmer situation. The different colour of the foreign spe- 
 cimens I attribute chiefly to a higher temperature. The second sort, 
 which is rarely imported, is of a bright yellow and black, but quite a 
 different species. W. H. 
 
 21 British Zoology, vol. ii. p. 358. 
 
 22 I have observed the drumming of snipes in bright days at the begin- 
 ning of April, and I could very clearly discern the manner in which the 
 sound is produced. After rising high and crying peet, peet, peet, which 
 is the snipe's vernal note, it lets itself drop obliquely through the air, 
 keeping the wings motionless, but turning by some muscular contraction 
 each individual quill sideways in the same manner that the bars of a 
 Venetian blind are turned to admit more light, and having descended to 
 the customary point, it readjusts its feathers and rises again obliquely 
 without sound. They will continue for hours together amusing them- 
 selves in this manner upon a mild day, and when they are in this mood 
 the sportsman has very little chance of getting near them. The cushat 
 has a sportive movement a little similar, in the summer time, in the 
 narrow wooded valleys amongst the hills : it is less observed in flat 
 countries. It descends obliquely without any motion of the wings, and 
 when it has dived to the usual point of descent, flaps its wings with a 
 loud noise and towers again obliquely to the other side of the valley. 
 W. H. 
 
 23 British Zoology, vol. ii. p. 360. 24 p. 409. 
 
J68 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 alive and unhurt, but fluttering and unable to rise, in a 
 lane a few miles from Alresford, where there is a great 
 lake : it was kept awhile, but died. 
 
 I saw young teals 25 taken alive in the ponds of 
 Wolmer Forest in the beginning of July last, along 
 with flappers, or young wild ducks. 
 
 Speaking of the swift 86 that page says "its drink the 
 dew ;" whereas it should be " it drinks on the wing ;" 
 for all the swallow kind sip their water as they sweep 
 over the face of pools or rivers : like Virgil's bees, they 
 drink flying ; "flumina summa libant" In this method 
 of drinking perhaps this genus may be peculiar. 
 
 Of the sedge-bird 27 be pleased to say it sings most 
 part of the night ; its notes are hurrying, but not un- 
 pleasing, and imitative of several birds ; as the sparrow, 
 swallow, skylark. When it happens to be silent in the 
 night, by throwing a stone or clod into the bushes where 
 it sits, you immediately set it a singing; or, in other 
 words, though it slumbers sometimes, yet as soon as it 
 is awakened it reassumes its song. 
 
 LETTER XL. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SKLBORNE, Sept. 2, 1774. 
 
 BEFORE your letter arrived, and of my own accord, I 
 had been remarking and comparing the tails of the male 
 and female swallow, and this ere any young broods 
 appeared ; so that there was no danger of confounding 
 the dams with their pulli : and besides, as they were 
 then always in pairs, and busied in the employ of 
 nidification, there could be no room for mistaking the 
 sexes, nor the individuals of different chimneys the one 
 for the other. From all my observations, it constantly 
 appeared that each sex has the long feathers in its tail 
 
 29 British Zoology, vol. ii. p. 475. * Vol. iv. p. 15. w p. 16. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 169 
 
 that give it that forked shape ; with this difference, that 
 they are longer in the tail of the male than in that of 
 the female. 
 
 Nightingales, when their young first come abroad, 
 and are helpless, make a plaintive and a jarring noise ; 
 and also a snapping or cracking, pursuing people along 
 the hedges as they walk : these last sounds seem in- 
 tended for menace and defiance. 
 
 The grasshopper-lark chirps all night in the height of 
 summer. 
 
 Swans turn white the second year, and breed the 
 third. 
 
 Weasels prey on moles, as appears by their being 
 sometimes caught in mole-traps. 
 
 Sparrow-hawks sometimes breed in old crows' nests, 
 and the kestril in churches and ruins. 
 
 There are supposed to be two sorts of eels in the 
 island of Ely 1 . The threads sometimes discovered in 
 eels are perhaps their young : the generation of eels is 
 very dark and mysterious 2 . 
 
 Hen-harriers breed on the ground, and seem never to 
 settle on trees. 
 
 1 Three species of eels are now pretty clearly made out. Descriptions 
 and figures of them, with other particulars, have been given in the History 
 of British Fishes. W. Y. 
 
 [See the note on page 50.] 
 
 - Eels are infested by several kinds of intestinal worms, which are 
 doubtless the thread-like bodies referred to. But the situation in which 
 the parasites are found will generally be sufficient to indicate their true 
 nature : filiform bodies within the intestines of an eel can be nothing but 
 worms. Bodies of that form occurring externally to the intestines and 
 within the abdomen may still be regarded as worms that have escaped 
 from the intestinal cavity. And other worms, internal parasites, occur 
 naturally within the serous cavity of the abdomen. 
 
 The reproduction of eels has been sedulously attended to for several 
 years by Mr. Yarrell, whose observations, recorded in the Zoological 
 Society's Proceedings, in Jesse's Gleanings in Natural History, and in 
 his own History of British Fishes, leave little doubt that these fishes 
 spawn in a manner similar to most of their class, the roe of the female 
 being filled with countless myriads of ova which are deposited in the 
 winter months.~E. T. B. 
 
170 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 When redstarts shake their tails they move them 
 horizontally, as dogs do when they fawn : the tail of a 
 wagtail, when in motion, bobs up and down like that of 
 a jaded horse. 
 
 Hedge-sparrows have a remarkable flirt with their 
 wings in breeding time : as soon as frosty mornings 
 come they make a very piping plaintive noise. 
 
 Many birds which become silent about Midsummer 
 reassume their notes again in September ; as the thrush, 
 blackbird, woodlark, willow wren, &c. ; hence August 
 is by much the most mute month, the spring, summer, 
 and autumn through. Are birds induced to sing again 
 because the temperament of autumn resembles that of 
 spring 8 ? 
 
 Linnaeus ranges plants geographically ; palms inhabit 
 the tropics, grasses the temperate zones, and mosses 
 and lichens the polar circles : no doubt animals may be 
 classed in the same manner with propriety. 
 
 House sparrows build under eaves in the spring; as 
 the weather becomes hotter they get out for coolness, 
 and nest in plum-trees and apple-trees. These birds 
 have been known sometimes to build in rooks' nests, 
 and sometimes in the forks of boughs under rooks' 
 nests. 
 
 As my neighbour was housing a rick he observed that 
 his dogs devoured all the little red mice that they could 
 catch, but rejected the common mice; and that his 
 cats ate the common mice, refusing the red. 
 
 Redbreasts sing all through the spring, summer, and 
 autumn. The reason that they are called autumn 
 songsters is, because in the two first seasons their 
 voices are drowned and lost in the general chorus ; in 
 the latter their song becomes distinguishable. Many 
 songsters of the autumn seem to be the young cock 
 redbreasts of that year: notwithstanding the prejudices 
 
 3 There can be little doubt that the autumnal song is that of the young 
 males of the year. G. D. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 171 
 
 in their favour, they do much mischief in gardens to 
 the summer fruits 4 . 
 
 The titmouse, which early in February begins to 
 make two quaint notes, like the whetting of a saw, 
 is the marsh titmouse: the great titmouse sings with 
 three cheerful joyous notes, and begins about the same 
 time 5 . 
 
 Wrens sing all the winter through, frost excepted. 
 
 House martins came remarkably late this year both 
 
 4 They eat also the berries of the ivy, the honeysuckle, and the 
 Euonymus Europceus, or spindle-tree. 
 
 [I have seen a robin feed its young, which were reared in a conserva- 
 tory, entirely upon red currants. It used to alight on the ledge of the 
 window, and always brought one red currant in its bill. I do not think 
 they eat any other fruit, but they are troublesome in the hothouse. They 
 devoured last year every seed of Hcemanthus multiflorus and Grijfinia hya- 
 cinthinajust as they were ripening; and it is very difficult to save the ber- 
 ries of any Daphne from them. W. H.] 
 
 [A redbreast which I had in a cage greedily devoured the berries of 
 Solatium Dulcamara, but would not touch those of privet. RENNIE.] 
 
 5 Several species of the genus Parus congregate in clusters when at 
 roost. I have observed Par. ater and Par. caudatus in this state. On a 
 cold wintry night, if the moon is bright, they may be seen in the hedges 
 clinging together, having the appearance of a bundle of dried leaves. Par. 
 ater is said by Dr. Fleming to be a rare bird in England, but it appears 
 to be common in Hampshire. I have received a great number of speci- 
 mens from that county at various times ; and once had nine sent to me, 
 that were taken from a cluster by bird-batting, many having escaped 
 from the nets. 
 
 The bottle tit sometimes builds near houses, though rarely. A pair 
 built in a large willow tree in a garden at Bayswater, close to the house, 
 and brought out a numerous brood of young that swarmed in at the bed- 
 room windows on the first day of their coming out from the nest : they 
 were very diminutive pretty creatures. It is to be remarked, that this 
 garden was sacred to birds : there were many nests in it, no one being 
 permitted to disturb them, and no cat being kept. 
 
 Par. coeruleus is a very bold bird, and very destructive, particularly to 
 bees ; sitting on the stool, and tapping with its bill against the hive, as 
 soon as the bee comes forth to ascertain the cause of the disturbance, the 
 bird swallows it. 
 
 I kept the Par. biarmicus in a cage last year. There were several 
 males and females together, which were exceedingly gentle and affec- 
 tionate ; caressing and feeding each other in the same manner as doves. 
 This was the more remarkable, as the period of incubation was past. 
 
 Both Par. coeruleus and Par. major occasionally visit London. G. D 
 
172 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 in Hampshire and Devonshire : is this circumstance 
 for or against either hiding or migration ? 
 
 Most birds drink sipping at intervals; but pigeons 
 take a long continued draught, like quadrupeds. 
 
 Notwithstanding what I have said in a former letter, 
 no gray crows were ever known to breed on Dartmoor ; 
 it was my mistake. 
 
 The appearance and flying of the Scaralceus solstitialis, 
 or fern-chafer, commence with the month of July, and 
 cease about the end of it. These scarabs are the con- 
 stant food of Caprimulgi, or fern-owls, through that 
 period. They abound on the chalky downs and in 
 some sandy districts, but not in the clays. 
 
 In the garden of the Black Bear Inn in the town of 
 Reading is a stream or canal running under the stables 
 and out into the fields on the other side of the road : in 
 this water are many carps, which lie rolling about in 
 sight, being fed by travellers, who amuse themselves 
 by tossing them bread : but as soon as the weather 
 grows at all severe these fishes are no longer seen, be- 
 cause they retire under the stables, where they remain 
 till the return of spring. Do they lie in a torpid state ? 
 if they do not, how are they supported ? 
 
 The note of the whitethroat, which is continually re- 
 peated, and often attended with odd gesticulations on 
 the wing, is harsh and displeasing. These birds seem 
 of a pugnacious disposition ; for they sing with an 
 erected crest and attitudes of rivalry and defiance ; are 
 shy and wild in breeding time 6 , avoiding neighbour- 
 hoods, and haunting lonely lanes and commons ; nay, 
 even the very tops of the Sussex Downs, where there 
 are bushes and covert; but in July and August they 
 
 6 So far from being wild and shy in the breeding season, the white- 
 throat frequents at that period the vicinity of London, and forms part 
 even of the Fauna of St. Marylebone, covered as that parish now is with 
 buildings. I have a nest taken by myself from a bramble-bush, by the 
 side of a foot-path, just beyond the houses in the Avenue Road, Regent's 
 Park G. D. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 173 
 
 bring their broods into gardens and orchards, and 
 make great havock among the summer fruits 7 . 
 
 7 The whole of this passage is founded in error. There are no birds 
 less shy and less pugnacious than whitethroats. They are amicable in 
 the highest degree, and having kept four or five cocks together in the 
 same cage I never saw an instance of the least dispute among them. 
 They were extremely fond of each other ; and one of them having been 
 taken from the nest to try if it would breed with a hen blackcap, died 
 the next day, having, from vexation at finding itself separated from them, 
 neglected to feed itself. I have seen the eldest of a nest.give victuals to 
 the youngest, when they were just beginning to feed themselves. Those 
 which are caught become tame very quickly, but such as are raised from 
 the nest are the very perfection of amiability, and will come out gently 
 the moment their cage door is opened, and not have the least fear of being 
 handled. The blackcap, however tame while it requires to be fed, be- 
 comes very mistrustful as soon as it can shift for itself, especially the 
 cocks, which are very wary, and in the wild state cannot in general be 
 taken with a trap. I have taken many hen blackcaps in the cherry-trees 
 with a limed rod, but never a cock. It is very difficult to get a sight of 
 the cock blackcap while it is singing : it is always on the watch and 
 shifting its place so as to avoid being seen : but the whitethroat sings 
 boldly close to a person looking at it, and although Mr. White depreci- 
 ates its song, I think it is only surpassed by the blackbird and thrush, 
 excepting of course the matchless nightingale, with whose song all com- 
 parison of melody in this world is idle. In a room the song of the white- 
 throat is very pleasing, and the young ones will sometimes learn some of 
 the nightingale's notes; and their excessive familiarity and gentleness, 
 and their healthy constitution, make them to my mind the most pleasing 
 bird that can be kept in a cage. Their general food should be ground 
 hempseed and bread scalded together, and a little German paste given 
 dry. Insects, and almost any thing which is not salt that a man eats, 
 may be given to them in small quantities as a treat, but much variety only 
 makes them grow too fat. 
 
 This pleasing little bird appears to have been very much out of favour 
 with Mr. White, who accuses it of making great ravages in gardens. I 
 never have seen a single instance of the whitethroat attacking the cher- 
 ries, and it comes very little into walled gardens, unless there be a thick 
 whitethorn fence in them, or very thick bushes which attract it, and in 
 such vicinities they will sometimes attack the green peas. They are 
 very fond of ripe pears in confinement, but our pears are scarcely ripe 
 enough for them before they leave us, and they always abide about low 
 thick covert. 
 
 Mr. White's mistake about the fruit has probably arisen from his con- 
 founding two different birds. Sylvia silviella of English writers, the lesser 
 whitethroat or blue-gray, breeds in our pleasure gardens and haunts the 
 little garths and gardens of villages, and in company with the blackcaps 
 and pettychaps it sometimes attacks cherries, though its attacks are not 
 so determined, and it is very fond of small caterpillars and flies. It is 
 
174 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 The blackcap has, in common, a full, sweet, deep, 
 loud, and wild pipe ; yet that strain is of short continu- 
 
 very singular that so common a bird as this should have been so much 
 overlooked. I make no doubt of its being a regular inmate of Selborne 
 parish. It is abundant near London. AtSpofforth I often see them about 
 the skirts of the village; sometimes a solitary individual sitting almost 
 asleep upon an exposed branch of a thorn bush, when its pure white breast 
 is very conspicuous. There never fails to be a nest of them in my garden 
 in Yorkshire: at the moment that I write this, they have a nest within 
 five yards of my chair in a double white rose bush close to my window : 
 yet Mr. Selby has omitted this species in the first edition of his British 
 Ornithology, published in 1825, saying that he is aware such a bird has 
 been found in the southern counties, but he could never meet with one. 
 
 W, H. Herbert, dtL , 
 
 NEST AND EGO* OP THE LESSER WJIITETHROAT. 
 
 Its song is pleasing, but not so strong and varied as that of the white- 
 throat. It is quite distinct in form, colour, and habits. It builds in gar- 
 dens like the blackcaps, and with them attacks the fruit, though less per- 
 tinaciously, as it is very fond of flies and small caterpillars, and probably 
 on the whole does more good than harm in a garden. Gardeners indeed 
 are too apt to destroy little birds that pick a few of their cherries or cur- 
 rants, without considering the great good they do in destroying the insects 
 which would perhaps have made the fruit abortive. Its nest is very 
 small and slender, so that it may actually be seen through, and it is 
 placed in the fork of a rose bush or thorn, sometimes eight or nine feet 
 from the ground, sometimes in a low brier. It does not lay, as far as I 
 
OF SELBORNE. 175 
 
 ance, and his motions are desultory ; but when that bird 
 sits calmly and engages in song in earnest, he pours 
 
 have seen, above four eggs. The colour of its upper parts is a bluish 
 gray, and it has none of the mahogany tint of the common whitethroat. 
 The throat and under parts are of a much purer white, and its legs dark 
 lead colour, whereas those of the whitethroat are yellowish. It is a 
 smaller bird and looks rather less slender and fuller of feathers about 
 the neck. It has a little the manners of the titmice, often running along 
 the wires at the top of its cage suspended by the feet, which is not usual 
 with birds of the genus Sylvia. It is of a remarkably, tame nature ; I 
 have taken a cock bird with its young, and the day after it was taken it 
 fed them with bread and hemp, and reared them ; and some months after 
 it would even perch upon my hand to feed itself. If fed too richly, with 
 much meat or milk, they will be subject to fits which are sure to be soon 
 fatal. They are fond of the seeds of the broad-leaved plantain. 
 
 It is remarkable that the British name of the bird is noticed by no con- 
 tinental writer, and that it is entirely overlooked in Temminck's ornitho- 
 logy of Europe as if he had never heard of it; though there is a plate of 
 the bird, riest, and eggs (certainly a very bad one) in Latham's supple- 
 mental volume, which he might be expected to have seen. It cannot, 
 however, be doubted that the species must be as common on the continent 
 as it is here ; it is a more delicate bird than the whitethroat, and it can- 
 not easily escape notice, because it lives in the gardens and close to the 
 abodes of men. On comparing the various contradictory descriptions of 
 different authors of Sylvia Curruca, la fauvette babillarde of the French, 
 I am quite satisfied of its identity with the Sylv. silviella of English 
 writers. In the first place Sylv. Curruca is said to extend from Italy into 
 Sweden, yet has never been noticed in Great Britain ; secondly, Sylv. sil- 
 viella has been noticed in England only. I cannot doubt Scopoli's bian- 
 chetto, abundant in the gardens of Italy, being our silviella; the pure 
 white of its under parts deserves the name bianchetto ; their habits cor- 
 respond exactly, and bianchetto is quoted as a synonym to Sylv. Curruca. 
 Temminck says that Sylv. Curruca has greenish white eggs with bluish 
 and brownish spots. Latham says greenish spotted with brown, but in a 
 note he quotes from Linnaeus' Fauna Suecica ash colour spotted with fer- 
 ruginous, which accords with the eggs of Sylv. silviella. Bewick says 
 that the eggs of our lesser whitethroat (Sylv. silviella of Turton, Sweet, 
 Stephens in Shaw's Zoology, &c.) are " white spotted with brown, inter- 
 mixed with other spots of a pale bluish ash colour." This description 
 agrees very closely with Temminck's account of the eggs of Sylv. Curruca. 
 On close inspection of the eggs of the blue-gray or lesser whitethroat, 
 which are of a dirty white spotted with ferruginous, it appears that sorite 
 of the spots are strong, others deep-seated and dim, as if covered over by 
 a film, and seen through the ash colour or dirty white of the general sur- 
 face. This dimness of the spots is what Temminck and Bewick call 
 bluish without much reason, but no name of a colour is so frequently 
 misapplied as blue. The colour of the legs of Sylv. Curruca is not men- 
 tioned by Temminck; Latham says brown; in Werner's engraving they 
 
17() NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 forth very sweet, but inward melody, and expresses 
 great variety of soft and gentle modulations, superior 
 
 are made of a dirty flesh colour, being probably very incorrect, as having 
 been evidently drawn from a stuffed specimen, in which the natural co- 
 lour of the leg would not remain. Those of the lesser whitethroat are 
 of a dark and blackish lead colour, by which the bird may be at once dis- 
 tinguished from the whitethroat, of which the legs are yellowish. In 
 other respects Werner's specimen of Sylv. Curruca accords sufficiently with 
 our Sylv. silviella, though the shape and attitude are very ill given, but this 
 is the fault (and the usual fault) of the stuffer, not of the artist. On the 
 whole I am confident that Sylv. silviella is to be struck out of the ranks in 
 books of ornithology, and set down as a synonym to Sylv. Curruca ; and 
 that Sylv. Curruca, the blue-gray or lesser whitethroat, must take its place 
 as a British bird common in the neighbourhood of gardens ; or rather, as 
 Curruca will probably be adopted as the generic name for the fruit-eating 
 Sylviadte, it must be called Curruca silviella. 
 
 The division of the genus Sylvia to which this bird belongs, and which 
 eat fruit and vegetables, are not in general pugnacious like those that live 
 upon insects ; but the blue-gray, although the smallest species, is more 
 quarrelsome than the rest. It likes to have undisputed possession of the 
 pan of victuals, when disposed to feed. I have seen the little tyrant 
 seize a large pettychaps by the neck and actually throw it behind him by 
 a jerk of the head : but, as bullies generally are, it was very cowardly 
 when resisted or attacked by another; when persecuted a little by a red- 
 start which it had offended, it would make its escape, screaming as if in 
 the last agonies. 
 
 I may take this opportunity of mentioning that birds have their resent- 
 ments, and treasure up the memory of an offence, and that some of them 
 are as fond of practical jokes as monkeys are. The redstart above men- 
 tioned, preserved its antipathy to the little blue-gray, which arose from its 
 having once presumed to be saucy, as long as they lived together. I have 
 noticed the commencement of a feud between two birds which has lasted 
 for months, and rendered it necessary to separate them, originating in the 
 one having a feather in its bill which the other wished to take from it, 
 before which offence they had lived in perfect amity. Pulling tails is 
 the most usual practical joke amongst them. I have a nonpareil, or 
 painted finch, which often sits demurely upon a perch behind the other 
 birds, and from thence makes excursions to pull their tails, poising itself 
 upon the wing like the kestril or windhover hawk, underneath another 
 bird, while it pulls its tail, and almost drags it from the perch, regain- 
 ing its own post before the other can steady itself or look round. It is 
 very fond of molesting, in this manner, a beautiful red bird, which had 
 lost a foot before it reached this country, and to whom the joke is on that 
 account particularly inconvenient ; and I have been amused at observing, 
 when the nonpareil went down soon after to feed, the red bird look down 
 upon it with an aspect that spoke as plain as words could express it, You 
 rascal, you are the fellow that pulled my tail. It is very singular that 
 birds of the genus Sylvia reared from the nest, in confinement, are very 
 
OF SKLBORNE. 177 
 
 perhaps to those of any of our warblers, the nightingale 
 excepted. 
 
 troublesome to each other in plucking out feathers from their compa- 
 nions, and swallowing the small ones. Those which are grown up before 
 they are caught have not the same mischievous propensity. 
 
 I cannot close this note without protesting against the injudicious 
 manner in which the genus Sylvia has been subdivided in the supplement 
 to Shaw's Zoology. What can be said in favour of a system that confines 
 the name Sylvia to the redbreast, bluebreast, and two European redstarts, 
 which have no sylvan habits, and lumps the nightingale and all the 
 aquatic warblers with the fruit-eating birds, under the" name Curruca? 
 There is a broad line of distinction which no ornithologist has noticed, 
 separating the fruit-eating Sylviae (Curruca, BECHST.) from the aquatic 
 warblers and the nightingale. In all the true Curruca, which live 
 mainly on vegetable food, the inside of the mouth and throat is of a fine 
 red : in the others of a yellow orange. Show me a nest of Sylviadtz, just 
 hatched, and by that feature I shall instantly determine to which family 
 they belong. I have seen no engravings or descriptions of birds, in 
 which due attention has been paid to the aperture of the bill. In the 
 true Curruca, or fruit-eating birds, it descends with a curvature below 
 the eye : in the wrens (I do not mean the troglodyte or common wren) 
 and in the aquatic warblers or sedge birds, it is straight and anterior to 
 the eye, the bill being in the wrens, or Reguli, slender and weak ; in the 
 sedge birds, of which I should make a genus Schcenia, strong and dilated 
 at the base. The incomparable nightingale has a very peculiar bill, and 
 I suspect that its two species, the larger and lesser, form a genus by them- 
 selves, unless the little known Sylv. sericea belong to them. But I should 
 think it belonged to the true Currncce as well as Sylv. Nissoria, Orphea, 
 melanocephala, Sarda, conspicillata, and subalpina. If Sylv. Provincialis 
 does not belong to them, but forms a separate genus as in Shaw's supple- 
 ment, Sylv. passerina will probably be found to belong to it. It is quite 
 an error of Bewick to give the passerine warbler as an English bird; that 
 which he represents is not the passerine warbler, but a repetition of the 
 Sylv. hortensis, with which he appears to have been imperfectly ac- 
 quainted, and calls erroneously Motacilla Hippolais. It varies much in 
 colour according to the age of the bird. 
 
 Three years ago I saw, beside a wide green lane in the parish of East 
 Woodhay, in Hampshire, a pair of Sylvia of the fruit-eating division, or 
 Currucce, being individuals of a species which has never been described. 
 Mr. Sweet mentions, in his British Warblers, that he saw several one 
 summer attacking the fruit in the garden of Mr. Bright, near Bristol, 
 exactly answering to the description of my birds, and he adds that he 
 never saw any of them but in that one season. Those which I saw were 
 formed much like a whitethroat, but as large as a nightingale, the upper 
 parts rufous, with a dark line over the eye, the under parts of a glossy 
 silver colour, which shone very conspicuously in the sun. My attention 
 was first attracted at a considerable distance by one of these birds sitting 
 on a low branch of the hedge with its breast towards me. It did not stir 
 
 N 
 
178 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 Blackcaps mostly haunt orchards and gardens: while 
 they warble, their throats are wonderfully distended. 
 
 The son^ of the redstart is superior, though some- 
 what like that of the whitethroat : some birds have a 
 few more notes than others. Sitting very placidly on 
 the top of a tall tree in a village, the cock sings from 
 morning to night: he affects neighbourhoods, and avoids 
 solitude, and loves to build in orchards and about 
 houses ; with us he perches on the vane of a tall may- 
 pole. 
 
 The flycatcher is of all our summer birds the most 
 mute and the most familiar; it also appears the last of 
 
 till I came close to it, when I perceived that there were a pair exactly 
 alike in colour and size. They were not in the least shy, but sat very 
 still either on a low branch of an oak tree, or on some part of the fence, 
 and were quite mute. I remained examining them above a quarter of an 
 hour, being at times very close to them. It was in the month of May, at 
 which time the foliage was thin in the hedges, and very little on the oaks. 
 They were undoubtedly breeding in the neighbourhood, but I left the 
 country the next morning and could not investigate their habits any fur- 
 ther. There were gardens at a very short distance from the spot where 
 I saw them. I propose to call the species Sylvia (or rather Cwruca) 
 Bidehensis.W. H. 
 
 KAST WOOPHAY WARBLER. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 179 
 
 any. It builds in a vine, or a svveetbriar, against the 
 wall of a house, or in the hole of a wall, or on the end 
 of a beam or plate, and often close to the post of a door 
 where people are going in and out all day long. This 
 bird does not make the least pretension to song, but 
 uses a little inward wailing note when it thinks its 
 young in danger from cats or other annoyances: it 
 breeds but once, and retires early 8 . 
 
 Selborne parish alone can and has exhibited at times 
 more than half the birds that are ever seen in all 
 Sweden ; the former has produced more than one hun- 
 dred and twenty species, the latter only two hundred 
 and twenty-one. Let me add also that it has shown 
 near half the species that were ever known in Great 
 Britain 9. 
 
 On a retrospect, I observe that my long letter carries 
 with it a quaint and magisterial air, and is very sen- 
 tentious ; but, when I recollect that you requested 
 stricture and anecdote, I hope you will pardon the 
 didactic manner for the sake of the information it may 
 happen to contain. 
 
 LETTER XLI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 IT is matter of curious inquiry to trace out how those 
 species of soft-billed birds, that continue with us the 
 winter through, subsist during the dead months. The 
 imbecility of birds seems not to be the only reason 
 
 8 I have known the spotted flycatcher build and breed twice. W. Y. 
 
 9 Sweden two hundred and twenty-one, Great Britain two hundred 
 and fifty-two species. 
 
 [Ray enumerated, in 1678, one hundred and ninety species of British 
 birds. The number at present known is about three hundred ; exclu- 
 sive of upwards of twenty presumed stragglers of doubtful authority. 
 E. T. B.] 
 
 N2 
 
180 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 why they shun the rigour of our winters ; for the robust 
 wryneck (so much resembling the hardy race of 
 wood-peckers) migrates, while the feeble little golden- 
 crowned wren, that shadow of a bird, braves our 
 severest frosts without availing himself of houses or 
 villages, to which most of our winter birds crowd in 
 distressful seasons, while this keeps aloof in fields and 
 woods ; but perhaps this may be the reason why they 
 may often perish, and why they are almost as rare as 
 any bird we know 1 . 
 
 I have no reason to doubt but that the soft-billed 
 birds, which winter with us, subsist chiefly on insects 
 in their aurelia state. All the species of wagtails in 
 severe weather haunt shallow streams near their spring- 
 
 1 I think it worthy of remark that this bird abounds in Scotland. I 
 saw many hundreds there last autumn. In Kent I have observed only a 
 few pairs. RENNIE. 
 
 The golden-crested wren and the common brown wren are both 
 very impatient of cold. In confinement, the least frost is immediately 
 fatal to them. In a wild state, they keep themselves warm by constant 
 active motion in the day, and at night they secrete themselves in places 
 where the frost cannot reach them ; but I apprehend that numbers do 
 perish in severe winters. I once caught half a dozen golden wrens at 
 the beginning of winter, and they lived extremely well upon egg and 
 meat, being exceedingly tame. At roosting time there was always a 
 whimsical conflict amongst them for the inside places as being the warm- 
 est, which ended of course by the weakest going to the wall. The scene 
 began with a low whistling call amongst them to roost, and the two birds 
 on the extreme right and left flew on the backs of those in the centre, and 
 squeezed themselves into the middle. A fresh couple from the flanks 
 immediately renewed the attack upon the centre, and the conflict conti- 
 nued till the light began to fail them. A severe frost in February killed 
 all but one of them in one night, though in a furnished drawing-room. 
 The survivor was preserved in a little cage by burying it every night 
 under the sofa cushions ; but having been, one sharp morning, taken from 
 under them before the room was sufficiently warmed by the fire, though 
 perfectly well when removed, it was dead in ten minutes. The nightin- 
 gale is not much more tender of cold than a canary-bird. The golden- 
 crowned wren very much frequents spruce fir trees and cedars, and hangs 
 its nest under their branches: it is also fond of the neighbourhood of 
 furze bushes, under which it probably finds warm refuge from the cold. 
 The brown wren is very apt, in frosty weather, to roost in cowhouses, 
 where the cattle keep it warm. W. H. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 181 
 
 heads, where they never freeze; and, by wading, pick 
 out the aurelias of the genus of Phryganece, &c. 2 
 
 Hedge sparrows frequent sinks and gutters in hard 
 weather, where they pick up crumbs and other sweep- 
 ings : and in mild weather they procure worms, which 
 are stirring every month in the year, as any one may 
 see that will only be at the trouble of taking a candle 
 to a grass-plot on any mild winter's night. Redbreasts 
 and wrens in the winter haunt out-houses, stables, 
 and barns, where they find spiders and flies that have 
 laid themselves up during the cold season. But the 
 grand support of the soft-billed birds in winter is that 
 infinite profusion of aureliae of the Ordo Lepidoptera, 
 which is fastened to the twigs of trees and their trunks; 
 to the pales and walls of gardens and buildings ; and is 
 found in every cranny and cleft of rock or rubbish, and 
 even in the ground itself. 
 
 Every species of titmouse winters with us; they have 
 what I call a kind of intermediate bill between the hard 
 and the soft, between the Linnaean genera of Fringilla 
 and Motacilla. One species alone spends its whole 
 time in the woods and fields, never retreating for suc- 
 cour in the severest seasons to houses and neighbour- 
 hoods ; and that is the delicate long-tailed titmouse, 
 which is almost as minute as the golden-crowned wren : 
 but the blue titmouse, or nun (Parus cceruleus), the cole- 
 mouse (Parus ater), the great black-headed titmouse 
 (Fringillago*), and the marsh titmouse, (Paruspalustris), 
 all resort, at times, to buildings ; and in hard weather 
 particularly. The great titmouse, driven by stress of 
 weather, much frequents houses, and, in deep snows, I 
 have seen this bird, while it hung with its back down- 
 wards (to my no small delight and admiration), draw 
 straws lengthwise from out the eaves of thatched houses, 
 in order to pull out the flies that were concealed be- 
 
 2 See Derham's Physico-Theology, p. 235. 
 
 3 [Parus mqjor, LINN.] 
 
182 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 tween them, and that in such numbers that they quite 
 defaced the thatch, and gave it a ragged appearance. 
 
 The blue titmouse, or nun, is a great frequenter of 
 houses, and a general devourer. Besides insects, it is 
 very fond of flesh ; for it frequently picks bones on 
 dunghills: it is a vast admirer of suet, and haunts 
 butchers' shops. When a boy, I have known twenty 
 in. a morning caught with snap mousetraps, baited with 
 tallow or suet. It will also pick holes in apples left on 
 the ground, and be well entertained with the seeds on 
 the head of a sunflower. The blue, marsh, and great 
 titmice will, in very severe weather, carry away barley 
 and oat straws from the sides of ricks. 
 
 How the wheatear and whin chat support themselves 
 in winter cannot be so easily ascertained, since they 
 spend their time on wild heaths and warrens ; the 
 former especially, where there are stone quarries : 
 most probable it is, that their maintenance arises from 
 the aureliae of the Ordo Lepidoptera, which furnish them 
 with a plentiful table in the wilderness. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XLII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, March 9, 1775. 
 
 SOME future Faunist, a man of fortune, will, I hope, 
 extend his visits to the kingdom of Ireland ; a new 
 field, and a country little known to the naturalist. He 
 will not, it is to be wished, undertake that tour unac- 
 companied by a botanist, because the mountains have 
 scarcely been sufficiently examined ; and the southerly 
 counties of so mild an island may possibly afford some 
 plants little to be expected within the British domi- 
 nions. A person of a thinking turn of mind will draw 
 
OF SELBORNE. 183 
 
 many just remarks from the modern improvements of 
 that country, both in arts and agriculture, where pre- 
 miums obtained long before they were heard of with us. 
 The manners of the wild natives, their superstitions, 
 their prejudices, their sordid way of life, will extort 
 from him many useful reflections. He should also take 
 with him an able draughtsman; for he must by no 
 means pass over the noble castles and seats, the 
 extensive and picturesque lakes and waterfalls, and 
 the lofty stupendous mountains, so little known, and so 
 engaging to the imagination when described and ex- 
 hibited in a lively manner : such a work would be well 
 received. 
 
 As I have seen no modern map of Scotland, I cannot 
 pretend to say how accurate or particular any such 
 may be ; but this I know, that the best old maps of that 
 kingdom are very defective. 
 
 The great obvious defect that I have remarked in all 
 maps of Scotland that have fallen in my way is, a want 
 of a coloured line, or stroke, that shall exactly define 
 the just limits of that district called the Highlands. 
 Moreover, all the great avenues to that mountainous 
 and romantic country want to be well distinguished. 
 The military roads formed by General Wade are so 
 great and Roman-like an undertaking that they well 
 merit attention. My old map, Moll's Map, takes notice 
 of Fort William ; but could not mention the other forts 
 that have been erected long since : therefore a good 
 representation pf the chain of forts should not be 
 omitted. 
 
 The celebrated zigzag up the Coryarich must not be 
 passed over : Moll takes notice of Hamilton and Drum- 
 lanrig, and such capital houses ; but a new survey, no 
 doubt, should represent every seat and castle remarkable 
 for any great event, or celebrated for its paintings, &c. 
 Lord Bread albane's seat and beautiful policy are too 
 curious and extraordinary to be omitted. 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 The seat of the Earl of Eglintoun, near Glasgow, is 
 worthy of notice. The pine plantations of that noble- 
 man are very grand and extensive indeed. 
 
 I am. &c. 
 
 LETTER XLIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 A PAIR of honey buzzards (Buteo apivorus sive vespivo- 
 rus, RAII), built them a large shallow nest, composed 
 of twigs and lined with dead beechen leaves, upon a tall 
 slender beech near the middle of Selborne Hanger, in 
 the summer of 1780. In the middle of the month of 
 June a bold boy climbed this tree, though standing on 
 so steep and dizzy a situation, and brought down an 
 egg, the only one in the nest, which had been sat on 
 for some time, and contained the embryo of a young 
 bird. The egg was smaller, and not so round as those 
 of the common buzzard ; was dotted at each end with 
 small red spots, and surrounded in the middle with a 
 broad bloody zone. 
 
 The hen bird was shot, and answered exactly to 
 Mr. Ray's description of that species ; had a black 
 cere, short thick legs, and a long tail. When on the 
 wing this species may be easily distinguished from the 
 common buzzard by its hawk-like appearance, small 
 head, wings not so blunt, and longer tail. This speci- 
 men contained in its craw some limbs of frogs and 
 many gray snails without shells. The irides of the eyes 
 of this bird were of a beautiful bright yellow colour. 
 
 About the 10th of July in the same summer a pair 
 of sparrow hawks bred in an old crow's nest on a low 
 beech in the same Hanger ; and as their brood, which 
 was numerous, began to grow up, became so daring 
 and ravenous, that they were a terror to all the dames 
 
OF SELBORNE. 185 
 
 in the village that had chickens or ducklings under 
 their care. A boy climbed the tree, and found the 
 young so fledged that they all escaped from him ; but 
 discovered that a good house had been kept : the larder 
 was well stored with provisions ; for he brought down 
 a young blackbird, jay, and house-martin, all clean 
 picked, and some half devoured. The old birds had 
 been observed to make sad havock for some days among 
 the new-flown swallows and martins, which, being but 
 lately out of their nests, had not acquired those powers 
 and command of wing that enable them, when more 
 mature, to set such enemies at defiance. 
 
 LETTER XLIV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Nov. 30, 1780. 
 
 EVERY incident that occasions a renewal of our corres- 
 pondence will ever be pleasing and agreeable to me. 
 
 As to the wild wood-pigeon, the (Enas or Vinago of 
 Ray 1 , 1 am much of your mind ; and see no reason for 
 making it the origin of the common house-dove: but 
 suppose those that have advanced that opinion may 
 have been misled by another appellation, often given to 
 the (Enasy which is that of stock-dove 2 . 
 
 1 [Columba (Enas, LINN.] 
 
 2 It is curious to observe Gilbert White declaring himself much of the 
 same mind as Pennant in the matter of the stock-dove and the house- 
 dove, and stating subsequently that he readily concurs with his corres- 
 pondent in supposing that house-doves are derived from the small blue 
 rock pigeon. There is no reason to imagine that White ever thought 
 otherwise : but Pennant, whom he seems willing to allow to lead him 
 where, in truth, he had never gone astray, was so far from this view of 
 the subject in 1776 that he then stated expressly that the " small sort that 
 is frequent on most of our cliffs is only a variety of the wild pigeon ;" 
 and that " the tame pigeon, and all its beautiful varieties, derive their 
 origin from one species, the stock dove : the English name implying its 
 being the stock or stem from which the other domestic kinds sprung." 
 
186 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 Unless the stock-dove in the winter varies greatly in 
 manners from itself in summer, no species seems more 
 unlikely to be domesticated, and to make a house-dove. 
 We very rarely see the latter settle on trees at all, nor 
 does it ever haunt the woods ; but the former, as long 
 as it stays with us, from November perhaps to Febru- 
 ary, lives the same wild life with the ring-dove (Palum- 
 bus torquatus) ; frequents coppices and groves, supports 
 itself chiefly by mast, and delights to roost in the tallest 
 beeches. Could it be known in what manner stock- 
 doves build, the doubt would be settled with me at 
 once, provided they construct their nests on trees, like 
 the ring-dove, as I much suspect they do 3 . 
 
 You received, you say, last spring a stock-dove from 
 Sussex ; and are informed that they sometimes breed 
 in that county. But why did not your correspondent 
 determine the place of its nidification, whether on rocks, 
 cliffs, or trees ? If he was not an adroit ornithologist, I 
 should doubt the fact, because people with us perpetu- 
 ally confound the stock-dove with the ring-dove. 
 
 For my own part, I readily concur with you in sup- 
 posing that house-doves are derived from the small 
 blue rock -pigeon, for many reasons. In the first place, 
 
 Pennant thus evidently confounded the stock-dove with the small blue 
 rock-pigeon, and blended into one presumed species the Columba CEnns 
 and Col. Livia. 
 
 The view taken by White is the correct one : that these two races are 
 distinct species ; and that the blue rock-pigeon is the parent of all the 
 domesticated varieties. But it is only very recently that ornithologists 
 have fully concurred in so regarding it : and it is possible that from time 
 to time the stock-dove will accidentally be referred to as the origin of 
 the domesticated pigeon by Englishmen, for to them will the error from 
 this source be confined. The two meanings of the word stock will still 
 occasionally mislead, and it will sometimes be forgotten that in this in. 
 stance it refers only to the trees which the bird haunts. E. T. B. 
 
 3 The stock-dove, Columba CEnas, LINN., builds in trees : they are 
 called stock-doves because they make their nests in the stocks or rough 
 tops of trees that have been headed down. In default of trees to build 
 in, they take to rabbit burrows or other holes in the ground. The rock, 
 dove, Columba Liria, TEMM. is the origin of the domestic breeds and is 
 never seen to settle in a tree, unless wounded. W. Y. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 187 
 
 the wild stock-dove is manifestly larger than the com 
 rnon house-dove, against the usual rule of domestica- 
 tion, which generally enlarges the breed. Again, those 
 two remarkable black spots on the remiges of each 
 wing of the stock-dove, which are so characteristic of 
 the species, would not, one should think, be totally lost 
 by its being reclaimed ; but would often break out among 
 its descendants. But what is worth a hundred argu- 
 ments is, the instance you give in Sir Roger Mostyn's 
 house-doves in Caernarvonshire; which, though tempted 
 by plenty of food and gentle treatment, can never be 
 prevailed on to inhabit their cote for any time ; but, as 
 soon as they begin to breed, betake themselves to the 
 fastnesses of Ormshead, and deposit their young in 
 safety amidst the inaccessible caverns and precipices 
 of that stupendous promontory. 
 
 " Naturam expellas furca, tamen usque recurret." 
 
 I have consulted a sportsman, now in his seventy- 
 eighth year, who tells me that fifty or sixty years back, 
 when the beechen woods were much more extensive 
 than at present, the number of wood-pigeons was asto- 
 nishing ; that he has often killed near twenty in a day ; 
 and that, with a long wildfowl piece, he has shot seven 
 or eight at a time on the wing, as they came wheeling 
 over his head : he moreover adds, which I was not 
 aware of, that often there were among them little par- 
 ties of small blue doves, which he calls rockiers. The 
 food of these numberless emigrants was beech mast and 
 some acorns ; and particularly barley, which they col- 
 lected in the stubbles. But, of late years, since the 
 vast increase of turnips, that vegetable has furnished a 
 great part of their support in hard weather ; and the 
 holes they pick in these roots greatly damage the crop. 
 From this food their flesh has contracted a rancidness 
 which occasions them to be rejected by nicer judges of 
 eating, who thought them before a delicate dish. They 
 were shot not only as they were feeding in the fields, 
 
188 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 and especially in snowy weather, but also at the close 
 of the evening, by men who lay in ambush among the 
 woods and groves to kill them as they came in to 
 roost 4 . These are the principal circumstances relating 
 to this wonderful internal migration, which with us 
 takes place towards the end of November, and ceases 
 early in the spring. Last winter we had, in Selborne 
 high wood, about a hundred of these doves ; but in 
 former times the flocks were so vast, not only with 
 us but all the district round, that on mornings and 
 evenings they traversed the air, like rooks, in strings, 
 reaching for a mile together. When they thus rendez- 
 voused here by thousands, if they happened to be sud- 
 denly roused from their roost trees on an evening, 
 
 " Their rising all at once was like the sound 
 Of thunder heard remote." 
 
 It will by no means be foreign to the present purpose 
 to add, that I had a relation in this neighbourhood 
 who made it a practice, for a time, whenever he could 
 procure the eggs of a ring-dove, to place them under a 
 pair of doves that were sitting in his own pigeon-house ; 
 hoping thereby, if he could bring about a coalition, to 
 enlarge his breed, and teach his own doves to beat out 
 into the woods and to support themselves by mast : the 
 plan was plausible, but something always interrupted 
 the success ; for though the birds were usually hatched, 
 and sometimes grew to half their size, yet none ever 
 arrived at maturity. I myself have seen these found- 
 lings in their nest displaying a strange ferocity of 
 nature, so as scarcely to bear to be looked at, and 
 snapping with their bills by way of menace. In short, 
 they always died, perhaps for want of proper suste- 
 nance : but the owner thought that by their fierce and 
 wild demeanor they frighted their foster-mothers, and 
 so were starved. 
 
 4 Some old sportsmen say that the main part of these flocks used to 
 withdraw as soon as the heavy Christmas frosts were over. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 189 
 
 Virgil, as a familiar occurrence, by way of simile, 
 describes a dove haunting the cavern of a rock, in such 
 engaging numbers, that I cannot refrain from quoting 
 the passage : and John Dryden has rendered it so 
 happily in our language, that without further excuse 
 I shall add his translation also. 
 
 " Quails spelunca subitd commota Columba, 
 Cui domus et dulces latebroso in pumice nidi, 
 Fertur in arva volans, plausumque exterrita pejinis 
 Dat tecto ingentem mox aere lapsa quieto, 
 Radit iter liquidum, celeres neque commovet alas." 
 
 " As when a dove her rocky hold forsakes, 
 Roused, in a fright her sounding wings she shakes ; 
 The cavern rings with clattering : out she flies, 
 And leaves her callow care, and cleaves the skies : 
 At first she flutters : but at length she springs 
 To smoother flight, and shoots upon her wings." 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
li)0 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER I. 
 
 TO THE HONOURABLE DA1NES HARRINGTON 1 . 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, June 30, 17G9. 
 
 WHEN I was in town last month I partly engaged that 
 I would some time do myself the honour to write to you 
 on the subject of natural history : and I am the more 
 ready to fulfil my promise, because I see you are a 
 gentleman of great candour, and one that will make 
 allowances ; especially where the writer professes to 
 be an outdoor naturalist, one that takes his observa- 
 tions from the subject itself, and not from the writings 
 of others. 
 
 The following is a list of summer birds of passage 
 which I have discovered in this neighbourhood, ranged 
 somewhat in the order in which they appear : 
 
 RAII NOMINA. USUALLY APPEARS ABOUT 
 
 1. Wry neck, JJynx sine torquil-) The middle of March: harsh 
 
 (la: S ""''' 
 
 2. Smallest willow > Regulus non ci'ista- ) March 23: chirps till Septem- 
 
 wren, tus: > her. 
 
 3. Swallow, Hirundodomestica: April 13. 
 
 4. Martin, Hirundo agrestis : Ditto. 
 
 5. Sand martin, Hirundo riparia : Ditto. 
 
 6. Blackcap, Atricapilla : Ditto : a sweet wild note. 
 
 1 Daines Barrington, honourable by birth and respected for his talents, 
 was well suited by the pursuits to which from choice he had devoted 
 himself, to become the favourite correspondent of an observer like Gilbert 
 White. The legal studies which he had originally cultivated as a pro- 
 fessional duty, and in which he had been so successful as to have merited 
 the office of recorder of Bristol, and to have become subsequently a Welsh 
 
OF SELBORNE. 191 
 
 7. Nightingale, Luscinia : Beginning of April. 
 
 8. Cuckoo, Cuculus : Middle of April. 
 
 9. Middle willow ( Regulns non ci'ista- > TV.,. 
 
 wren ) tus- \ Ditto : a sweet plaintive note. 
 
 10. Whitethroat, Ficedulce affinis : \ Di " : . me , an note ' sin S s on til1 
 
 1 1. Redstart, Ruticilla - \ Middle of April : more agreeable 
 
 ( song. 
 
 12. Stone curlew ? GEdicnemus : j ^thfstte ^ ' 1O " d n CtUrnal 
 
 13. Turtle-dove ? Turtur : 
 
 judge, were eventually laid aside by him : although not until after they 
 had fostered in him an attachment to antiquarian pursuits which he re- 
 tained through life so strongly as to entitle him to be distinguished among 
 his fellow students in that department of knowledge as a vice president 
 of the Antiquarian Society. To the transactions of that body he was a 
 frequent contributor. He also made numerous communications to the 
 Royal Society, which were printed in the Philosophical Transactions. 
 Many of them were afterwards republished by himself in a separate 
 form, under the title of Miscellanies ; a work alluded to with satisfaction 
 by our historian in his Letter LI. In his essays Barrington availed 
 himself freely of the information imparted to him by White, whose au- 
 thority he repeatedly quotes, and whose merits as a " well read, inge- 
 nious, and observant" naturalist he is ever ready to acknowledge. 
 
 A large proportion of the essays in the Miscellanies are on subjects of 
 natural history ; and in many of them Daines Barrington was the advo- 
 cate of views directly opposed to those of our author's other corres- 
 pondent, Pennant. Thus, for instance, while Pennant felt a full con- 
 viction as to the migration of many birds, Barrington was most sceptical 
 on the subject ; and it is scarcely to be doubted that his letters to Gilbert 
 White tended to keep alive and to increase the suspicions which the 
 historian of Selboi-ne always entertained that the little creatures whose 
 presence delighted him during the summer, were still at hand, though 
 hidden from him, in the winter. Another point on which his two corres- 
 pondents disagreed was as to the authority which they attributed to Ray 
 and to Linnaeus ; and White was evidently quite aware of the difference 
 of their feelings on this subject, and humoured them so far as to accom- 
 modate himself to the wishes of each when addressing him in particular. 
 When sending to Pennant, in his Letter XVI, a list of the summer birds 
 of passage, the Latin names which he uses are " Linnaei nomina:" in his 
 correspondence with Barrington, in this Letter I. and elsewhere, he 
 designates his birds, scientifically, by " Raii Nomina." Barrington argued 
 so warmly against the deficiencies of the Linnaean characters, and ad- 
 vocated so strongly the excellencies of our countryman John Ray, that 
 he is carried on by the discussion in which he was engaged to inquire, no 
 doubt in his estimation triumphantly, " After this comparison can there 
 be a doubt whether the English botanist should consult Ray or Linnaeus 
 for an English plant?" E. T. B. 
 
192 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 14. Grasshopper {Alauda. minima lo-) Middleof April: a small sibilous 
 
 lark, ( custcevoce: \ note, till the end of July. 
 
 15. Swift, Hirundo apus: About April 27. 
 
 16. Less reed spar- ( Passer arundina- ) A sweet polyglot, but hurrying: 
 
 row, ? ceus minor : ) it has the notes of many birds. 
 
 17. Land-rail, Ortygometra: A loud harsh note, crex, crex. 
 
 18. Largest wil- I Regains non cris- $ " Ca " iat ce * tridul * ,'<"" 
 
 low wren, \ tatus: j ? nd . K A P nl on the to P s of 
 
 ( high beeches. 
 
 19. Goatsucker, or> r . ; \ Beginning of May : chatters by 
 
 fern owl, { ^ apri } night with a singular noise. 
 
 f May 12. A very mute bird : this 
 
 20. Flycatcher, Stopnrola: j is the latest summer bird of 
 
 ( passage. 
 
 This assemblage of curious and amusing birds be- 
 longs to ten several genera of the Liniuvan system : 
 and are all of the Ordo of Passeres, save the Jynx and 
 Cttculvt, which are Piece, and the Charadrius (CEdicne- 
 rnus) and Rallus (Ortygometra), which are Grallcc. 
 
 These birds, as they stand numerically, belong to the 
 following Linnaean genera : 
 
 1, Jynx: 13. Columba : 
 
 2, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 16, 18. Motacilla : 17. Rallux: 
 
 3, 4, 5, 15. Hirundo : 19. Caprimulgus : 
 8. Cvculus: 14. Alauda: 
 
 12. Charadriua: 20. Muscicapa: 
 
 Most soft-billed birds live on insects, and not on 
 grain and seeds; and therefore at the end of summer 
 they retire : but the following soft-billed birds, thouuli 
 insect-eaters, stay with us the year round : 
 
 RAH NO.M1NA. 
 
 Redbreast, RubeaOa: $ Th ? se ^quent houses ; and 
 
 P*sserTr M es:\ ^ ^^ th, 
 
 Hedge sparrow, Curruca : 
 
 /'These frequent shallow rivulets 
 
 White wagtail, Motacilla alba: \ near the spring heads, where 
 
 Yellow wagtail, Motacilla fiat a : -/ they never freeze : eat the an- 
 
 Gray wagtail, Motacilla cinerea : i reliaeof Phryganeae. The siual 1- 
 
 V. est birds that walk. 
 
 Wheatear <Ena: 
 
 Whin chat (Enanthf secunda : 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 193 
 
 RAII NOMINA. 
 
 Stone chat, 
 
 Golden - crowned 
 wren, 
 
 GEnanthe tertia : 
 
 ( This is the smallest British bird : 
 [ Regulus cristatus : 1 haunts the tops of tall trees ; 
 ( stays the winter through. 
 
 A list of the winter birds of passage round this 
 neighbourhood, ranged somewhat in the order in which 
 they appear: 
 
 ("This is a new migration, which 
 ) I have lately discovered, about 
 "S Michaelmas week, and again 
 ( about the 14th of March. 
 
 About old Michaelmas. 
 (Though a percher by day, roosts 
 { on the ground. 
 
 Most frequent on downs. 
 
 Appears about old Michaelmas. 
 
 1. Ring-ousel, Merula torquata 
 
 2. Redwing, 
 
 3. Fieldfare, 
 
 Turd us iliacus 
 Turdus pilaris 
 
 4. Royston crow, Comix cinerea 
 
 5. Woodcock, 
 
 6. Snipe, 
 
 7. Jack snipe, 
 
 8. Wood-pigeon, 
 
 9. Wild swan, 
 
 10. Wild goose, 
 
 11. Wild duck, 
 
 12. Pochard, 
 
 Scolopax : 
 Gallinago minor: 
 Gallinago minima. 
 (Unas : 
 
 13. Wigeon, 
 
 14. Teal, breeds 
 with us in Wol-] 
 mer Forest, 
 
 15. Grosbeak, 
 
 16. Crossbill, 
 
 17. Silktail, 
 
 Cygnus ferns : 
 Anserferus: 
 Anas torquata mi- 
 nor: 
 
 Anas f era fusca : 
 Penelope : 
 
 Querquedula: 
 
 Coccothraustes : 
 Loxia : 
 
 Garndus Bohemi- 
 cus: 
 
 Some snipes constantly breed 
 with us. 
 
 Seldom appears till late : not in 
 
 such plenty as formerly. 
 On some large waters. 
 
 On our lakes and streams. 
 
 'These are only wanderers that 
 ) appear occasionally, and are 
 \ not observant of any regular 
 migration. 
 
 These birds, as they stand numerically, belong to 
 the following Linnaean genera : 
 
 1,2,3. Turdus: 
 
 4. Core/us : 
 
 5, 6, 7. Scolopax: 
 8. Columba : 
 
 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14. 
 
 15, 16. 
 
 17. 
 
 Anas: 
 Loxia : 
 Ampelis. 
 
 Birds that sing in the night are but few. 
 
 vr. , 4 . , T . . 
 
 Nightingale, Luscima: 
 
 Woodlark, Alauda arborea: 
 spar- 
 
 " In shadiest covert hid. 
 
 Suspended in mid air. 
 Among reeds and willow* 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 I should now proceed to such birds as continue to 
 sing after Midsummer, but as they are rather numerous, 
 they would exceed the bounds of this paper : besides, 
 as this is now the season for remarking on that subject, 
 I am willing to repeat my observations on some birds 
 concerning the continuation of whose song I seem at 
 present to have some doubt. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER II. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Nov. 2, 1769. 
 
 WHEN I did myself the honour to write to you about 
 the end of last June on the subject of natural history, I 
 sent you a list of the summer birds of passage which I 
 have observed in this neighbourhood ; and also a list of 
 the winter birds of passage : I mentioned besides those 
 soft-billed birds that stay with us the winter through 
 in the south of England, and those that are remarkable 
 for singing in the night. 
 
 According to my proposal, I shall now proceed to 
 such birds (singing birds strictly so called) as continue 
 in full song till after Midsummer; and shall range them 
 somewhat in the order in which they first begin to open 
 as the spring advances. 
 
 RAII NOMINA. 
 
 C In January, and continues to sing 
 1. Woodlark, Alauda arborea : j through all the summer and 
 
 ( autumn. 
 
 2 Song-thrush 5 Turdus slmplicitcr < In February, and on to August ; 
 ' { dictus: I reassume their song in autumn. 
 
 S.Wren, Passer troglodytes : All the year, hard frost excepted. 
 
 4. Redbreast, Rvbccula: Ditto. 
 
 6. Vellowham- 
 
 5. Hedge spar- c nrruca . \ Early in February, to July the 
 
 row, j ^ 10th. 
 
 J r , . Wfr February and or. 
 
 ^hnibenzafluva: j through July to August the 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 195 
 
 7. Skylark, 
 8. Swallow, 
 9. Blackcap, 
 
 10. Titlark, 
 
 RA1I NOMINA. 
 
 Alauda vulgaris: 
 Hirundo domestica: 
 Atricapilla : 
 
 Alauda pratorum: 
 
 In February, and on to October. 
 From April to September. 
 Beginning of April to July 13th. 
 
 f 
 
 11. Blackbird, 
 
 12. Whitethroat, 
 
 13. Goldfinch, 
 
 14. Greenfinch, 
 ,5. 
 
 ("Sometimes in February and 
 < March, and so on to July the 
 ( 23d ; reassumes in autumn. 
 In April, and on to July 23. 
 
 16. Common 
 
 lin- 
 
 Merula vulgaris: 
 
 Ficedulce qffinis : 
 
 Carduelis: 
 
 Chloris : On to July and August 2. 
 
 ^-f^ May , on to thebeginningof July . 
 
 f Breeds and whistles on till Au- 
 
 ) r . . , . J gst; reassumes its note when 
 
 Linarw vulgaris: < they begin to congregate in 
 
 October, and again early be- 
 
 ^ fore the flocks separate. 
 
 Birds that cease to be in full song, and are usually 
 silent at or before Midsummer : 
 
 Middle of June: begins in Apri,. 
 
 18. Redstart, 
 
 Ruticilla: 
 
 Ditto: beg 
 
 19. Chaffinch, 
 
 Fringilla : 
 
 (Beginning 
 ( February 
 
 20. Nightingale, 
 
 Luscinia : 
 
 (Middle of 
 ( April . 
 
 Birds that sing for a short time, and very early in 
 the spring : 
 
 f January the 2nd, 1770, in Fe- 
 
 21. Missel-bird, Turdusviscivorus: 
 
 22 
 
 22. 
 
 Fringittago: 
 
 bruary. Is called in Hamp- 
 shire and Sussex the storm- 
 cock, because its song is sup- 
 posed to forebode windy wet 
 weather: is the largest singing 
 bird we have. 
 
 In Februar y> March, April: re- 
 assumes for a short time in 
 September. 
 
 Birds that have somewhat of a note or song, and yet 
 are hardly to be called singing birds : 
 
 23. Golden-crown- 
 ed wren, 
 
 _,.,. --.** . 
 Kegulus cnstatus . 
 
 s note as minute as its person ; 
 frequents the tops of high oaks 
 and firs : the smallest British 
 bird. 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 RAII NO.MINA. 
 
 24. Marsh tit-> 
 mouse, $ 
 25. Small willow- j 
 wren, j 
 
 26. Largest ditto, 
 
 27. Grasshopper- ) 
 lark, $ 
 
 28. Martin, 
 
 29. Bullfinch, 
 30. Bunting, 
 
 Pariis pal us tr is : 
 
 1 Regulus now cris- 
 ; tatus : 
 
 Ditto: 
 
 Alauda minima voce 
 locustcc : 
 
 Hirundo agrestis : 
 
 Pyrrhula : 
 Emberiza alba : 
 
 < Haunts great woods : two harsh 
 t sharp notes. 
 < Sings in March, and on to Sep- 
 f tember. 
 < Cantat voce stridulA locustce; from 
 ( end of April to August. 
 J Chirps all night, from the middle 
 ( of April to the end of July. 
 
 From the end of January to July. 
 
 All singing birds, and those that have any preten- 
 sions to song, not only in Britain, but perhaps the 
 world through, come under the Linnaean Ordo of Pas- 
 seres. 
 
 The abovementioned birds, as they stand numerically, 
 belong to the following Linnaean genera: 
 
 1, 7, 10, 27. Alauda: 8, 28. Hirundo : 
 
 2, 11,21. Turdiu: 13, 16, 19. Fringilla: 
 
 3, 4, 5, 9, 12, 15. > mtacUa . 22, 24. Paru*: 
 17, 18, 20, 23, 25, 26, $ - 14, 29. Loxia. 
 6, 30. Emberiza : 
 
 Birds that sing as they fly are but few : 
 
 Skylark, Alauda vulgaris : Rising, suspended, and falling. 
 
 Tin its descent; also sitting on 
 Titlark, Alauda pratoi-wti : % trees, and walking on the 
 
 ( ground. 
 
 Woodlark, 
 
 Blackbird, Merula vulgaris : Sometimes from bush to bush. 
 
 White,h,oa t , Fice^ affi ni, : 
 
 Swallow, Hirundo domestica : In soft sunny weather. 
 
 Wren, Passei' troglodytes : Sometimes from bush to bush. 
 
 Birds that breed most early in these parts : 
 
 Raven, Corcus: Hatches in February and March. 
 
 Song-thrush, Turdus: In March. 
 
 Blackbird, Merula vulgaris : In March. 
 
 Rook, Comix J rug ilega: Builds the beginning of March. 
 
 Woodlark, Alauda arborea : Hatches in April. 
 
 Ring dove, | ^f "* ''' 9M<1 ' | Lays the beginning of April. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 197 
 
 All birds that continue in full song till after Mid- 
 summer appear to me to breed more than once. 
 
 Most kinds of birds seem to me to be wild and shy 
 somewhat in proportion to their bulk ; I mean in this 
 island, where they are much pursued and annoyed : but 
 in Ascension Island, and many other desolate places, 
 mariners have found fowls so unacquainted with a 
 human figure, that they would stand still to be taken ; 
 as is the case with boobies, &c. As an example of 
 what is advanced, T remark that the golden crested 
 wren (the smallest British bird) will stand unconcerned 
 till you come within three or four yards of it, while the 
 bustard (Otis), the largest British land fowl, does not 
 care to admit a person within so many furlongs 1 . 
 
 1 The bustard is extinct in Scotland ; and as it is now so scarce in 
 England, owing to population and enclosures, it becomes interesting to 
 
198 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER III. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Jan. 15, 1770. 
 
 IT was no small matter of satisfaction to me to find 
 that you were not displeased with my little Methodus of 
 birds. If there was any merit in the sketch, it must be 
 owing to its punctuality. For many months I carried 
 a list in my pocket of the birds that were to be re- 
 marked, and, as I rode or walked about my business, I 
 noted each day the continuance or omission of each 
 bird's song; so that I am as sure of the certainty of my 
 facts as a man can be of any transaction whatsoever. 
 
 I shall now proceed to answer the several queries 
 which you put in your two obliging letters, in the best 
 manner that I am able. Perhaps Eastwick, and its 
 environs, where you heard so very few birds, is not a 
 woodland country, and therefore not stocked with such 
 songsters. If you will cast your eye on my last letter, 
 you will find that many species continued to warble 
 after the beginning of July. 
 
 The titlark and yellowhammer breed late, the latter 
 very late ; and therefore it is no wonder that they pro- 
 tract their song : for I lay it down as a maxim in orni- 
 thology, that as long as there is any incubation going 
 on there is music. As to the redbreast and wren, it is 
 well known to the most incurious observer that they 
 
 remark, that two birds of this kind (male and female) have been kept in 
 the garden ground belonging to the Norwich Infirmary, and have but 
 lately been sold by the owner of them. The male bird was very beau- 
 tiful and courageous, apparently afraid of nothing, seizing any one that 
 came near him by the coat; yet on the appearance of any small hawk, 
 high in the air, he would squat close to the ground expressing strong 
 marks of fear. The female was very shy. A tolerably good resemblance 
 of the male is in Pennant's British Zoology, vol i. p. 281. MITFORD. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 199 
 
 whistle the year round, hard frost excepted ; especially 
 the latter. 
 
 It was not in my power to procure you a blackcap, 
 or a less reed-sparrow, or sedge bird, alive. As the 
 first is undoubtedly, and the last, as far as I can yet 
 see, a summer bird of passage, they would require more 
 nice and curious management in a cage than I should 
 be able to give them 1 : they are both distinguished song- 
 sters. The note of the former has such a- .wild sweet- 
 ness that it always brings to my mind those/ lines in 
 a song in " As You Like It." 
 
 " And tune his merry note 
 Unto the wild bird's throat." 
 
 SHAKSPEARE. 
 
 The latter has a surprising variety of notes resem- 
 bling the song of several other birds ; but then it has 
 
 1 [In the preceding edition several Notes by the late Mr. Sweet, intro- 
 duced in various parts of the volume, were principally directed to the 
 supplying of information on the habits in confinement of many of the more 
 delicate birds, and on the care and treatment necessary for them in cap- 
 tivity : the success of that well-known horticulturist in preserving these 
 interesting creatures has never been exceeded. His observations bring 
 many of them before us under circumstances in which they were not stu- 
 died by Gilbert White, and convey to us, in consequence, additional know- 
 ledge respecting them : while to those who may be desirous of retaining 
 in captivity any of these sweetest of songsters, it will be advantageous to 
 be made acquainted with the plan which he pursued with respect to those 
 that were from time to time under his care. His Notes are here subjoined 
 in a single series ; preceded by his general observations on the] 
 
 FOOD OF SOFT-BILLED BIRDS (Sylviado?). The birds of this sort, though 
 the finest songsters and most interesting of all the feathered tribe, have 
 been less known or noticed than others, probably owing to the greater 
 number only visiting us in summer, when the trees are so densely clothed 
 with foliage, that birds are not easily seen, and when heard sing, are 
 generally considered by those who hear them, to be either blackbirds or 
 thrushes, or some of the more common singing birds. When they are 
 seen the greater number of them receive the general appellation of white- 
 throats without distinction, though this is rather singular, since they are 
 all very distinct when examined, and their songs are all very different. 
 If you speak to a bird-fancier or bird-catcher about any of them, you 
 might as well talk of a bird in the wilds of America, for they know no- 
 thing of them. Many of them are therefore difficult to be procured in the 
 neighbourhood of London, though most of them are plentiful there. 
 
 With care, the whole of them may be preserved in good health through 
 the year, and many of them will sing through the greater part of the 
 
200 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 also a hurrying manner, not at all to its advantage : it 
 is notwithstanding a delicate polyglot. 
 
 winter, if properly managed. They require to be kept warm : the room 
 in which they are should never be allowed to be below temperate, or they 
 will suffer from it, particularly the tender sorts; at first, the cold will 
 make them lose their sight, after which they seldom recover. The red- 
 start and nightingale are most subject to this ; it sometimes also happens 
 to the greater pettychaps or garden warbler, and also to the whin chat. 
 
 When in a wild state, the birds of this sort feed principally on insects, 
 or fruit and berries of various kinds. None of them are seed birds, so 
 that they must be managed accordingly. The general food which I give 
 them is hempseed bruised up in boiling water, as small as it can be made. 
 I then put to this about the same quantity, or rather more, of bread, on 
 which is also poured boiling water; and then the whole is bruised up 
 together into a moist paste, particular care being required that there be 
 little or no salt in the bread, for should there be rather much, it will kill 
 the whole of the birds. The food should also be mixed up fresh every 
 morning, as it soon spoils and turns sour, in which case the birds will not 
 touch it, and sometimes it will make them go off their food altogether. 
 When given to the birds, some fresh, raw, lean meat ought to be cut up 
 small enough for them to swallow, and mixed with it. I generally put 
 about the same quantity of meat as paste, and sometimes they will peck 
 out the meat and leave the paste ; at other times they will eat the paste 
 and leave the meat ; but in general they eat it all up together, particu- 
 larly where several different species are kept together in the same large 
 cage ; a plan which I consider by far the best, as they amuse each other, 
 and keep one another warm in cold weather. Besides the above food, an 
 egg should be boiled very hard, the yolk taken out and crumbled or cut 
 in small pieces for them : the white they will not eat. One egg I consi- 
 der enough for twenty birds for one day, with their other food, it being 
 only intended as a change of diet, without which they will not continue 
 well in health. 
 
 Some of the sorts which feed on insects when wild should have some 
 of these preserved for them through the winter, except where they can 
 be procured at all seasons. At a baker's shop, for instance, there are 
 always plenty of mealworms, crickets, and cockroaches, of which most of 
 these birds are very fond. When those are not to be procured, a good 
 substitute is the large white caterpillar that produces the cockchafer, 
 which in some years is very plentiful, and may be kept in pots of turfy 
 earth through the winter ; as may also the maggots of the blue bottle fly, 
 if procured late in autumn ; and they may be generally had as late as 
 December. A quantity of these kept in a pot of turfy earth in a cellar or 
 any other cool place, where they may not turn into flies too soon, is I 
 think one of the best sorts of insects, and easiest kept and procured, for 
 such birds through the winter. They will not touch them until they are 
 well cleaned in the mould, but are then very fond of them, and a few 
 every day keeps them in excellent health, and provokes them to sing. 
 
 The Nightingale, (Philomela. Luscinia, SWAINS.) One of the finest song- 
 sters of the feathered race, generally visiting us, about London, the be- 
 
OF SELBORNE. 201 
 
 It is new to me that titlarks in cages sing in the 
 night ; perhaps only caged birds do so. I once knew a 
 
 ginning of April ; in Somersetshire it seldom arrives till the middle or 
 latter end of that month, and sometimes not till the beginning of May : 
 Devonshire, and Cornwall, and some other counties, it does not visit at 
 all : it generally leaves us again the beginning of September. Its song, 
 when wild, is very fine, but lasts but a few weeks : to have it in the 
 greatest perfection is, to have a good bird in a cage, where, if it be a very 
 kindly one, it will begin singing the beginning of December, and continue 
 till June. I had a very fine one that only left off singing the latter end 
 of June last ; it began again a little in September, and on" the 1st of De- 
 cember it was in full song, and continued to sing through the whole of 
 the month, and nearly all day long, as fine as if at Midsummer, and would 
 have continued on had not the frost set in so severe : when singing in a 
 cage none of the soft notes are lost ; they are all heard quite clear, which 
 is not the case when heard in the woods or hedges. 
 
 The best way to be certain of a good nightingale is to get one that is 
 just caught in spring; for there is no dependance on a young one bred 
 up from the nest, or a young brancher, except it be kept with a good old 
 bird, to learn its proper notes from ; a young one being apt to catch all it 
 hears, good or bad, and to be deficient of many of its natural ones. I 
 had one three years, and it never sang worth any thing : the year before 
 last I turned it out, and it continued in the gardens round the house 
 until it left the country in autumn ; it returned back to the same place 
 last spring, where I recognised it by its bad song, and it continued about 
 the same place all the summer, and bred up a nest of young ones. A 
 female that I had also been keeping for six years, to see if she would 
 breed, I also turned out with him, but whether she came back and was 
 partner in the nest, I cannot say, as I had no mark to know her by: this 
 female I kept four years, and it never attempted to sing; the fifth year it 
 sang frequently, a pretty soft nightingale's note. I have found that the 
 case with several female birds, they do not sing till they become aged ; 
 but it is not a rule universally applicable, as I have had a female willow 
 wren that sang when quite young. 
 
 I treat my nightingales in exactly the same manner as is before 
 mentioned, which is at variance with the bird-fanciers' method, who 
 feed them on grated beef and egg, and German paste ; but I have never 
 heard of any being kept many years on that food : the German paste I do 
 not approve at all, as the maw-seeds, honey, sugar, and such out of the 
 way ingredients, I am convinced must be very injurious to their health. 
 The best thing to keep them in good health and spirits is, to give them as 
 much insect food as possible, and there are scarcely any insects they will 
 refuse except hairy caterpillars : they are particularly fond of ants and 
 their eggs, for which they will leave any other food ; they are also very 
 partial to all sorts of smooth caterpillars, earwigs, crickets, grasshoppers, 
 cockroaches, common maggots, and meal-worms : but there is nothing that 
 all the birds of this tribe are so fond of, as the young larvae in the combs 
 of wasps and hornets ; they will even eat them after they become winged. 
 I have, when a boy, kept nightingales, blackcaps, the greater pettychaps, 
 and whitethroats, for two months at a time on nothing else. 
 
202 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 tame redbreast in a cage that always sang as long as 
 candles were in the room; but in their wild state no 
 one supposes they sing in the night. 
 
 The Blackcap, (Curruca Atricapilla, BECHST.) Of all the birds that 
 reside in or visit the British islands, there is none that can come up to 
 the present for song, except the nightingale ; and by some persons it is 
 more admired than even that bird. Its earliest arrival in Ihis country is 
 generally about the first week in April, and the earliest that ever I saw 
 was on the 25th of March : they leave us again about the end of Septem- 
 ber ; sometimes a straggling one may be seen the beginning of October ; 
 the latest I ever saw in a wild state was on the 15th of that month. When 
 it first arrives in this country, its chief food is the early ripened berries 
 of the ivy; and where those are, there the blackcaps are first to be heard, 
 singing their melodious and varied song. By the time the ivy berries are 
 over, the little green larvae of the small moths will be getting plentiful, 
 rolled up in the young shoots and leaves ; these then become their chief 
 food, until the strawberries and cherries are ripe : after that, there is no 
 want of fruit or berries till their return, and there is no sort of fruit or 
 berry that is eatable, or wholesome, that they will refuse. After they 
 have cleared the elder-berries in autumn, they immediately leave us. 
 
 This is certainly by far the most desirable of all birds for the cage, and 
 there is none that can be more easily kept ; their general food is the same 
 as that for the other birds already mentioned, bruised hempseed and bread, 
 with some fresh, lean, raw meat mixed up in it ; they do not even refuse 
 a bit of fat, and a little yolk of egg: occasionally a few insects may be 
 given, particularly if the birds appear not well ; now and then a fly, a 
 green or brown caterpillar from a cabbage, or a spider : they care very 
 little for insects if they have plenty of fruit, and other changes of food ; 
 although, like other birds of this tribe, they are particularly fond of the 
 larva in the wasp and hornet combs*. 
 
 * The blackcaps are very vivacious in a cage, if well taken care of. 
 Milk, which Mr. Sweet recommends, I have found very fatal to many of 
 the soft billed birds, and I never give it ; but the blackcaps do not seem 
 to suffer from itf. They are very fond of a boiled carrot mashed and 
 moistened, or beet root boiled and mashed. A boiled carrot will keep 
 fresh many days in a basin of cold water, and is an excellent substitute 
 for fruit in feeding them. Boiled cabbage, cauliflower, and green peas, 
 are good for them : as well as all sorts of puddings. A very little roast 
 meat minced, I give them every day ; and a little yolk of egg when it 
 suits, but it is not necessary. The standard food is hempseed ground in a 
 coffee mill, and bread crumbs scalded and mashed up together, and fresh 
 every day. They are very fond of ripe pears and elder-berries (but elder- 
 berries stain the cage very much), currants, cherries, honeysuckle, and 
 privet berries. W. H. 
 
 t I have more than once given the blackcap and other birds a little 
 milk by way of medicine, when they appeared drooping or sickly, and 
 with manifest advantage. RENNIE. 
 
OF SEL BORNE. 203 
 
 I should be almost ready to doubt the fact, that there 
 are to be seen much fewer birds in July than in any 
 
 What makes the blackcap more desirable is, that it is more hardy than 
 any of the other species, except the whitethroat, which is also a delight- 
 ful bird. The blackcap sings almost the whole of the year, if kept in 
 good health, only stopping a few weeks while moulting, and even then 
 I have known it break out into song. If bred up from the nest, they may 
 be taught any tune, or the song of one or more sorts of birds ; the nightin- 
 gale's song they learn readily, also that of the blackbird, thrush, greater 
 pettychaps, redstart, and most probably any other; but without learning 
 those, their own song is delightful : but it is impossible to keep some of 
 them from mocking other birds, as they even do so when flying wild, and 
 they have generally a favourite note which they repeat more frequently 
 than any other. 
 
 The Whitethroat^ (Curruca cinerea, BECHST.) One of the most delight- 
 ful and pleasing birds that can be imagined if kept in a large cage with 
 other birds : it is so full of anticks in flying and frisking about, and erect- 
 ing its crest, generally singing all the time, that certainly nothing can be 
 more amusing. It is also quite as hardy as the blackcap, and if a good 
 one be procured it is little inferior in song; but in this they all vary con- 
 siderably, the wild ones as well as those in a cage. I have had one in 
 my possession about eleven years, which is in as good health, and sings 
 as well as ever, being now in full song while writing this account, and 
 certainly no song need be louder, sweeter, or more varied : it is of the same 
 temper as a nightingale, never suffering itself to be outdone. The fol- 
 lowing is an account of the same bird, published in the first number of 
 my British Warblers in 1823. " One that I at present possess will sing 
 for hours together against a nightingale, now in the beginning of Janu- 
 ary, and it will not suffer itself to be outdone ; when the nightingale 
 raises its voice it also does the same, and tries its utmost to get above it; 
 sometimes in the midst of its song it will run up to the nightingale and 
 stretch out its neck as if in defiance, and whistle as loud as it can, staring 
 it in the face : if the nightingale attempts to peck it, away it is in an 
 instant, flying round the aviary and singing all the time." 
 
 In a wild state, the present species is generally to be found in hedges 
 and gardens, and is the most common of our British warblers, visiting 
 us the beginning or middle of April, and leaving us towards the end of 
 September : sometimes a solitary one may be seen in October, but not 
 frequently. The same sort of food as recommended for the two last species 
 is perfectly suitable to the present, with occasionally the addition of a 
 few flies, of which it is particularly fond, or a rose branch covered 
 with Aphides will please very much. 
 
 The lesser Whitethroat, (Curruca Sylviella, BECHST.) A handsome little 
 lively species, nearly related to the whitethroat, but more elegant, smaller, 
 and of a purer colour, its throat being as white as snow : it generally 
 visits us the beginning or middle of April, and leaves us again the end of 
 August or beginning of September. Its song is not so agreeable as most 
 of the other species ; it is however soft and pretty, and very different from 
 any other : it is also more valuable by being much more rare ; in some 
 
204 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 former month, notwithstanding so many young are 
 hatched daily. Sure I am, that it is far otherwise with 
 
 seasons very few visit us, in others they are sufficiently plentiful. Its 
 habits are somewhat similar to the whitethroat, but it is much more quar- 
 relsome ; sometimes so much so that it must be taken from the other birds, 
 or it will worry them to death, even if they are double its size. 
 
 In confinement, it will soon become tame and familiar, and will 
 readily take to feed on bread and milk, and also on bruised hemp-seed 
 and bread. One that I bred up from the nest became so attached to its 
 cage, that it could not be prevailed upon to quit it for any length of time ; 
 when the door of it was set open, it would generally come out quickly 
 and first perch on the door, then mount to the top of the cage, from 
 which it would fly to any other cages that were in the room, and catch 
 such flies as came within its reach ; sometimes it would descend to the 
 floor, or perch on a table or chair, and would fly up and take a fly out of 
 the hand, or drink milk out of a spoon if invited : of this it was very fond. 
 As soon as it was the least frightened it would fly immediately to its cage, 
 first on the top, thence to the door, and would enter in exactly as it came 
 out. I have often hung it out at the window perched on the top of its 
 cage, with the door open, and it would never attempt to fly away ; some- 
 times if a fly should happen to pass near it, it would fly off and catch it. 
 and return with it to the top of the cage ; after remaining there a consi- 
 derable time it would either return into it, or fly in at the window and 
 perch on the cages of the other birds. 
 
 It requires precisely the same treatment as the whitethroat, in food 
 and management, but is rather more tender. 
 
 The Garden Warblei; (Curruca hortensis, BECHST.) This interesting 
 species is scarcely inferior to the blackcap in song, and by some persons 
 is even preferred ; its song is certainly very loud and musical, its notes 
 very deep and harmonious, but it wants the blackcap's lively, shrill, and 
 cheerful song. It is, however, a great favourite with me, as its song is 
 so different from any other bird, and has a sort of foreign sound with it ; 
 the song is of great length and very variable in the notes, which it raises 
 and lowers in a curious manner. Although so fine a songster, and in 
 some years very plentiful, it is quite unknown amongst the bird-catchers 
 and bird fanciers ; but it is, since my publication on the British Warblers 
 with figures, becoming to be known a little about London, where it is now 
 known by the name of garden warbler. It is more tender than the black- 
 cap, and will not succeed well, if the room in which it is kept be allowed 
 to get below temperate in winter. Its food is entirely the same as the 
 blackcap, fruit and berries being its favourite food ; but it is also very 
 partial to some sorts of insects, particularly caterpillars, moths, and but- 
 terflies, of which it will swallow enormously large ones : grasshoppers 
 and crickets it is also fond of, and it is very curious to see what very 
 large ivy-berries it will swallow whole. There is no occasion to make 
 the least difference between the food of the present and the blackcap ; 
 and when in a cage they will agree very well together, and succeed much 
 better than when kept separate. 
 
 It is one of the latest visitants to this country, seldom arriving till 
 
OF SELBORNE. 205 
 
 respect to the swallow tribe, which increases prodi- 
 giously as the summer advances: and I saw, at the 
 
 towards the middle of May, when it is readily detected by its loud song, 
 which I believe is often mistaken for that of the blackbird ; this it con- 
 tinues the greater part of the time it stops with us, which is seldom later 
 than the beginning of September, sometimes not later than the end of 
 August. While in this country its food is chiefly fruit and berries : when 
 none can be procured, caterpillars, moths, and butterflies are substituted 
 instead, and with those it chiefly brings up its young. I have had a bird 
 of this species in perfect health in a cage for seven years:. 
 
 The Grasshopper Warbler, (Salicaria Locustella, SELB.) The present 
 species is known amongst bird-catchers by the name of the grasshopper 
 lark, as it was originally placed amongst the larks by ornithologists : 
 but it has been very properly removed from them by later authors, as it 
 wants the most characteristic mark of that family, namely, its long claw. 
 It is a very rare bird in the neighbourhood of London*, and I have never 
 been able to procure but one of them, which I lost the first winter by let- 
 ting it wash too much : in confinement it requires the same sort of ma- 
 nagement as recommended for the last species, and it will succeed very 
 well. I am not acquainted with their song, never having lived in any 
 neighbourhood where they visit, but I have been credibly informed that 
 they have none, but a note like the chirping of the grasshopper : this may 
 probably be the case ; but I have often heard the same report of some of 
 our finest songsters, which people had confused with very common birds, 
 there being very few who do not confuse under the general name of white- 
 throats the common flycatcher, both whitethroats, the greater pettychaps, 
 the blackcaps when young, and many even confuse with these the wil- 
 low wren, the wood wren, and lesser pettychaps. This tribe of birds, 
 being only summer visitants, are less known than any others. 
 
 These birds are not uncommon in several parts of England, they are 
 said to be plentiful on Malmesbury Common, Wiltshire, in summer, 
 where they breed ; they are also frequently seen in Norfolk and Suffolk, 
 and in various other parts, where they build their nest among some high 
 
 * I have seen a great number of these birds on a furzy piece of ground 
 in Acton near London, by the side of the Paddington Canal. The furze 
 was thick and tall at the lower end of the common near the water, and 
 the male birds continued uttering their singular song on all sides of me, 
 sitting on the tallest branches of the furze ; but, the moment I tried to 
 approach any one of them, it secreted itself in the thicket underneath. 
 They frequented no other part of the common, and the furze in that quar- 
 ter having been since cut down, not one was to be seen there the following 
 year. When it shall have grown to a sufficient height, the birds will pro- 
 bably resort there again in the breeding season. They must be sought 
 where the ground is rather spongy and covered with thick furze in the 
 neighbourhood of water. I have seen a nest of the young brought into 
 London. Those who wish to discover the nest, must attack the furze 
 thicket, where it is carefully secreted. W. H. 
 
20(5 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 time mentioned, many hundreds of young wagtails on 
 the banks of the Cherwell, which almost covered the 
 
 grass or sedge, in which it is so concealed that it is with difficulty found, 
 except by watching the old birds carrying food to their young ones ; or 
 when building, they may be seen carrying materials to construct their 
 nest. 
 
 In a wild state these birds feed entirely on insects, such as flies, moths, 
 butterflies, spiders, ants, and their eggs, small beetles, and numerous 
 other sorts, so that in confinement they will frequently require insect 
 food. 
 
 The Reed Warbler, (Salicaria arundinacea, SELB,) This is a very vari- 
 able bird in its colours, some being of a very pale colour, and others alto- 
 gether as dark, and those that are pale one season, frequently become 
 dark the ensuing one. It is a curious little lively bird, often known by 
 the name of reed wren. It generally makes its appearance with us in 
 the beginning of April, and leaves us in September, its early or late de- 
 parture seeming to depend a good deal on the warmth or coolness of the 
 season. It is a very merry bird, almost continually singing, and will 
 sing by night as well as day, sitting amongst the reeds, or in some bush 
 or tree near the water, where it feeds on the gnats and other insects that 
 frequent moist situations. It is very fond of flies, spiders, small cater- 
 pillars, moths, grasshoppers, crickets, and many other insects, and will 
 swallow a larger one than could be imagined for so small a bird. 
 
 In confinement, it will feed readily on the general food, but is also very 
 fond of the yolk of an egg boiled hard, so that it may be crumbled on the 
 top of the other food, or put in the cage in an empty egg-shell ; it should 
 also be occasionally supplied with a few insects, such as flies, spiders, 
 small caterpillars, moths, or butterflies. Being an inhabitant of the sides 
 of ditches and rivers, it is very partial to washing, which it must not be 
 allowed to do in winter, or it will wash itself until it is so weak that it 
 may never recover. 
 
 The Sedge IFarbler, (Salicaria Phragmitis, SELB.) In habit and manner, 
 the present species approaches to the former, but is a much handsomer 
 bird, though not so rare. It frequents the sides of ditches, ponds, and 
 rivers, like the last species, where it pours forth its variable diurnal and 
 nocturnal song almost incessantly, on its first arrival to this country, 
 which is generally the beginning of April. It leaves us again about the 
 middle of September. It builds its nest in a thicket of reeds, or other 
 tall water-grass, on which it is fastened with the webs of caterpillars, 
 similar to that of the former, which is bound to the branches of trees so 
 that no wind or storm can move it. 
 
 The song of the present species is somewhat similar to that of the last, 
 but is more shrill and chattering. Some people prefer it to that of 
 the reed bird, but I do not, as it wants several tine deep notes that the 
 other possesses. It is also an imitative bird, its song being intermixed 
 with the call of the sparrow, and parts of the songs of other birds. Its 
 food is precisely the same as that of the last species, and in confinement 
 the treatment for both must be exactly alike. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 207 
 
 meadows. If the matter appears as you say in the 
 other species, may it not be owing to the dams being 
 
 The Yellnv Wren, (Sylvia Trochilus, LATH.) This is another little 
 favourite songster, and a most deserving one it is. It visits us the latter 
 end of March, or beginning of April, and leaves us again the end of Sep- 
 tember or beginning of October. On its first arrival it enlivens our woods 
 and groves with its lively piercing song, and gay frolics, flying about from 
 tree to tree, catching the small gnats and flies that come in its way. It 
 builds its nest on the ground in a thicket amongst dead leaves and moss, 
 with a dome-formed covering, of the same materials as those lying all 
 around, so that it is impossible to find it without watching one of the old 
 ones to the nest, which in general consists of six or seven young ones. 
 They may either be brought up from the nest, or caught wild, being easily 
 tamed. When first put in the cage with a tame bird, the general food, 
 bread and milk, and eggs, should be stuck full of small flies, Aphides, 
 small caterpillars, or other small insects, in picking out which it will 
 taste the other food, and take to eat it readily. It soon becomes very 
 tame in confinement. One that I caught in September was, in three 
 days afterwards, let out of the aviary into the room to catch the flies, 
 which were numerous at that season : after amusing itself for some time 
 in catching flies, it began singing ; it did the same several other times 
 when it was let out, and in a few days began to sing in the aviary. It 
 soon became so familiar that it would take flies out of the hand, and when 
 out in the room, if a fly was held towards it, it would fly up and take it 
 immediately. 
 
 Although the present species is so small a bird, it is very courageous, 
 being generally the master of the cage ; and as it is so fine a songster, 
 and almost continually in song, no little bird can be more desirable in a 
 cage with other birds, its note when in full song being so loud and shrill, 
 that its voice is plainly heard above the nightingale when both are in 
 full song. 
 
 The Wood Wren, (Sylvia sibilatrix, BECHST.) This elegant and beautiful 
 little species ranks itself among my list of favourites. It visits this coun- 
 try in the beginning of April, and leaves it in August or the beginning of 
 September. It is generally found in summer amongst tall trees in woods 
 and plantations, where it is readily detected on its arrival by a shrill 
 shaking sort of note, that may be heard at a great distance, and cannot 
 be confounded with that of any other bird. On its first arrival it sings 
 the greater part of the day, and continues its song more or less through 
 the summer, except at the time it is engaged in feeding its young. Its 
 nest is built on the ground in a thicket among moss and dead leaves, so 
 that it is impossible to find it without watching one of the old ones to the 
 nest, whicli is easily done when they have young. They may either be 
 tamed or reared from the nest, and are not difficult to be caught when 
 young with a little birdlime at the end of a fishing rod, as may several 
 other species of this interesting tribe. 
 
 As the present species feeds entirely upon insects when wild, the 
 greater part of which it catches on the wing, it will be useless to give it 
 
208 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 engaged in incubation, while the young are concealed 
 by the leaves ? 
 
 any sort of fruit or berry; but bread and milk, bruised herapseed and 
 bread, with bits of fresh lean meat cut very small and mixed up in it, 
 should be its general food. It is also very fond of the yolk of an egg 
 boiled hard, and crumbled small, or stirred up with the point of a knife 
 that it may peck it out of the shell as it likes. Sometimes they are apt to 
 go off their other food, and will live on egg several days. At such times, 
 if a few flies could be procured for them it would be the most likely 
 means to restore them to their appetite. 
 
 In the cages of all the birds already mentioned, I generally keep a pan 
 of water, that they may wash when they please, which they are very 
 fond of doing: but the present, like the reed and sedge warblers and the 
 whitethroat, should not be allowed to wash much in winter, or they will 
 kill themselves with it. A little cup just large enough for them to get 
 their head in filled with water is sufficient in the winter season, but they 
 may be allowed to wash frequently in summer. 
 
 The Wheatear, (Saxicola (Enanthe, BECHST.) The present interesting 
 species generally arrives in this country about the middle of March, and 
 mostly leaves it again the latter end of September or the beginning of 
 October; I, one year, saw a pair in Hyde Park as late as the 17th of 
 November. In a wild state they are generally to be found on downs and 
 commons, and in Sussex some hundred dozens are caught annually by 
 the shepherds, who sell them for the sake of their flesh, which is very 
 delicious, particularly in autumn, when they become very fat. 
 
 This is a very interesting bird in confinement, and is almost continually 
 singing; it will also sing by night, as well as by day, if there is a light 
 in the room where it is kept : it has a very pleasant, variable, agreeable 
 song, different from all other birds, which, in confinement, it continues 
 all the winter. When a pair of them are kept together in a large cage 
 or aviary it is very amusing to see them at play with each other, flying 
 up and down, and spreading open their long wings in a curious manner, 
 dancing and singing at the same time. I have very little doubt but a 
 young bird, brought up from the nest, might be taught to talk, as they are 
 very imitative. 
 
 When wild, the present species feeds entirely on insects, so that the 
 more it has given it when in confinement the better : there are very few 
 sorts that it will refuse ; small beetles, cockroaches, crickets, grasshop- 
 pers, most sorts of caterpillars, butterflies, moths, earwigs, woodlice, the 
 common maggots, and almost all other sorts of insects, it is very fond of, 
 and the more that is given it, the finer will be its song. Its common food 
 is bruised hempseed and bread, intermixed with fresh, raw, lean meat, as 
 mentioned in the general observations, to be the general food of the \\ hole 
 tribe ; also a little of the yolk of an egg boiled hard occasionally for a 
 change. 
 
 The Whin Chat, (Saxicola Rubetra, BECHST.) This pretty species is 
 known by the name of furze chat and whin chat, and is also often con- 
 founded with the stone chat, which is a very different species. It gene- 
 
OF SELBORNE. 209 
 
 Many times have I had the curiosity to open the 
 stomachs of woodcocks and snipes ; but nothing ever 
 
 rally visits this country in the beginning of April, and leaves us towards 
 the end of September : all the fore part of the season visiting commons, 
 where it may be seen on the furze bushes, flying backwards and forwards 
 after the insects that pass. It builds its nest on the ground in a thicket, 
 which it covers up with dry grass, so that it is impossible to find it with- 
 out watching the old ones, either in carrying materials to build, or food 
 to their young. I have generally found them with six or seven young 
 ones, which with care are easily bred up from the nest> keeping them 
 warm, dry, and clean, and feeding them with the same sort of food as 
 recommended for the old ones : they should not be taken till quite 
 fledged, and should at first be placed in a little basket with a cover, as 
 they will then readily open their mouths for food. I consider those 
 reared from the nest much the best, or at least such as are caught very 
 young, as they may then be taught any tune, or will learn the song of any 
 bird they hear, their own song not being a very good one. 
 
 This bird may be considered as one of the tenderest of the tribe, being 
 very susceptible of cold. It is one of my greatest favourites. One that I 
 bred from the nest by hand learned the song of the whitethroat, the red- 
 start, willow wren, nightingale, and also that of a missel thrush, which 
 it frequently heard singing in a garden near; of this latter song it was 
 so fond, that we were frequently obliged to put our favourite out of the 
 room, not being able to bear its loud tune. It was certainly the best bird 
 I ever kept of any kind, singing nearly the whole year through, and vary- 
 ing its song continually ; the only fault was its strong voice. At last our 
 favourite was turned out of its cage by a mischievous servant on a cold 
 winter day, when we were from home for about an hour, and we could 
 not entice it back : it most probably died from the cold, or took its flight 
 to a warmer region. I scarcely entertain any hopes of ever getting such 
 another. 
 
 The food of the present species is precisely the same as the last. 
 
 The Stone Chat, (Saxicola rubicola, BECHST.) This, like the preceding, 
 is generally to be found on hills and commons, harbouring chiefly amongst 
 the furze bushes. It feeds, as far as I have observed, entirely on insects. 
 It is not so tender as the whin chat ; for some few of them occasionally 
 stay in this country all the winter. Its food is precisely the same as the 
 last, feeding, when wild, on small beetles, flies, ants, and their eggs, as 
 also all sorts of butterflies, moths, caterpillars, woodlice, and various 
 other insects. In confinement the food must be the same as that of the 
 last species. 
 
 They soon become very tame, and if bred up from the nest will learn 
 the notes of other birds, which are in general better than their own : their 
 own song, though loud, is very short, but they have a strong voice to re- 
 peat the notes of another bird. 
 
 The Redstart, (Phoenicura Ruticilla, SWAINS.) This is one of the hand- 
 somest of the British species of Sylviada, visiting us the latter end of 
 March or beginning of April : the earliest arrival I ever noticed was the 
 
 P 
 
210 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 occurred that helped to explain to me what their sub- 
 sistence might be : all that I could ever find was a soft 
 mucus, among which lay many pellucid small gravels. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 25th of March. They generally leave us the beginning of September. 
 When they first arrive, they mostly frequent old buildings or outhouses, 
 for the sake of flies and small insects that often abound there. They 
 build their nest in a hole or crevice of a wall, or in a hollow tree. They 
 frequently ascend to the top of the highest tree within their haunt, and 
 there sit, sometimes for a considerable time, pouring out their quick and 
 sort of fretful song. When kept in confinement, I consider it the most 
 sensible, and if brought up from the nest, the most attached, of all small 
 birds ; but it may be considered the most tender of the whole tribe. It is 
 a real mocker, and if bred up from the nest, will learn the note or call of 
 almost any other bird. It will also learn a tune that is whistled or sung 
 to it, and will sing by night as well as by day, if a light be kept in the 
 room where it is. 
 
 I was in possession of a handsome male bird of this species, which 
 I kept more than six years. It became very tame : though an old wild 
 bird when first caught, it was so attached to its cage, that one day having 
 got its liberty, it flew away into the gardens, where it staid six or seven 
 hours, after which it returned to its cage again. In the year 1825, I saw 
 a female bird of this species so late as the 21st of November, flying about 
 as lively as at Midsummer : it had probably escaped or been turned out 
 of a cage. The same sort of food as is recommended for the yellow wren 
 is equally applicable to the present: when in confinement it is particularly 
 partial to ants and their eggs, and to the common maggots. SWEET. 
 
 [Birds kept in confinement are doubtless more subject to ailments than 
 those that have the free range of their natural haunts : and a knowledge 
 of the afflictions to which they are liable is important to those who charge 
 themselves with the care of such pets. Mr. Herbert has entered largely 
 into this subject in the subjoined note on the] 
 
 DISEASES OF BIRDS. In a note concerning the instinct of birds (p. 64,) 
 I have had occasion to mention that some kinds are subject to a paralytic 
 stroke depriving them instantaneously of the use of their legs at a tender 
 age, and when a little older to a succession of epileptic fits which usually 
 prove fatal at last, in consequence of washing in cold water in confine- 
 ment under a low temperature. Such epileptic fits are also frequently 
 brought on by fear; blackcaps, and blue-grays or lesser whitethroats, 
 and pettychaps, which have been fed in a cage through the wires by the 
 old birds, are very subject to be attacked, when they grow up, with epi- 
 lepsy ; which appears to arise from the agitation of nerve which has 
 existed while the old birds were with them, and timidity after they are 
 withdrawn ; and, when the system is so affected, a bird flying across the 
 room, or close to the window, will occasion a fit by the sudden alarm it 
 creates. The titmouse tribe, which are in constant activity when at 
 liberty, are particularly subject to apoplexy and epilepsy when confined 
 
OF SELBORNE. 211 
 
 LETTER IV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR sm,. SELBORNE, Feb. 19, 1770. 
 
 YOUR observation, that "the cuckoo 1 doe not deposit 
 its egg indiscriminately in the nest of the first bird that 
 
 in cages, and can only be kept in health by a very meagre diet. The 
 beautiful bearded titmice, which are brought to us from Holland, where 
 they abound in the beds of reed, are fond of meat and egg, but they die 
 of apoplexy, if they have any better diet than crumbs of bread and hemp 
 or mawseed. The same is the case with the little blue titmouse; and the 
 larger black-headed titmouse or oxbird, being of a stronger constitution, 
 will be attacked by epilepsy, if well fed while in a cage. 
 
 I had one of these, which was taken out of a nest the gardener was 
 about to destroy, and reared by hand. It continued quite healthy while 
 growing, but soon after it came to its size it was affected with epilepsy, 
 the fits gradually becoming more frequent till at last it had above a dozen 
 in a day, each of which was expected to prove fatal. In consequence of 
 its illness I had frequently shut it out of window, being desirous of 
 giving it the chance of recovering health and liberty together, but it never 
 would go away, but continued pecking at the glass for admittance, or, if 
 
 1 Since this letter of Mr. White's, much has been added to our know- 
 ledge of the cuckoo, by the patient attention of Dr. Jenner. 
 
 Concerning the singing of the cuckoo, mentioned by Mr. White at 
 p. 235, I will add the following curious memoranda from the seventh vo- 
 lume of the Transactions of the Linnean Society. " The cuckoo begins 
 early in the season with the interval of a minor third, the bird then pro- 
 ceeds to a major third, next to a. fourth, then a. fifth, after which the voice 
 breaks without attaining a minor sixth." This curious circumstance 
 was, however, observed very long ago ; and it forms the subject of an 
 epigram, in that scarce black-letter volume, the " Epigrams of John 
 Heywood, 1587." 
 
 OF USE, 95. 
 
 " Use maketh maistry, this hath been said alway, 
 
 But all is not alway, as all men do say, 
 
 In April, the koocoo can sing her song by rote, 
 
 In June, of tune, she cannot sing a note ; 
 
 At first, koo coo, koo coo sing still can she do ; 
 
 At last, kooke, kooke, kooke ; six kookes to one koo !" 
 
 MlTFORD. 
 
212 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 comes in its way, but probably looks out a nurse in 
 some degree congenerous, with whom to intrust its 
 young," is perfectly new to me; and struck me so 
 forcibly, that I naturally fell into a train of thought that 
 led me to consider whether the fact was so, and what 
 reason there was for it. When I came to recollect and 
 
 it went a little off", speedily returning, so that it had been several times 
 taken in again; for when admission was positively refused, it found its 
 way into a bedchamber by some open window, and was found there half 
 starved. It was at last turned loose in my room, where it established 
 itself on the top of one of two large cages which were in different parts 
 of the room, and some food was placed there for it. It continued more 
 than a twelvemonth there, frequently flying round the room, but never 
 perching on any thing but the top of one of the two cages, which, much 
 to my convenience, it seemed to think the only fit position for a bird 
 to occupy. While at liberty to exercise itself by flight round the room 
 it was perfectly free from fits, but if replaced in a cage, the fits returned 
 if it had any thing richer than bread to eat, even the difference of a roll 
 instead of the household loaf brought on symptoms of illness. After it 
 had continued for above a year to be a very agreeable inmate of my room 
 occasioning no inconvenience, it acquired a habit of ensconcing itself at 
 roosting time in a small pan of glazed white earthenware, or in an open 
 tin box which happened to be on the top of the cage; and after some time 
 it was discovered that this was an artifice to escape the molestation of a 
 swarm of little bird-bugs, which had been introduced into the cage un- 
 observed with some foreign birds from London, and had bred rapidly in 
 the hot weather in the crevices of the cage. Before they could be effec- 
 tually destroyed, these bloodsuckers had made his quarters so uncom- 
 fortable, that one evening he fled to roost where he espied the place of a 
 book vacant in the bookcase, and from that moment, having acquired the 
 knowledge, that birds could securely live elsewhere than either in or on 
 a bird-cage, he became the greatest possible nuisance, hammering at the 
 unbound books with his bill and picking them to pieces. I had long 
 hoped in vain that he wo.uld avail himself of the open window to depart, 
 till one day having flown rapidly round the room three or four times in 
 the swing of his flight, he dashed out at the window, and having gone 
 forward into the high trees he was seen no more. 
 
 Having once indulged a nightingale with milk to drink instead of 
 water, it drank it with such avidity for a week, that it brought on an at- 
 tack of plethora, in consequence of which it sat immoveable and as if 
 stupefied on its perch for three days without tasting food, and died. 
 
 Salad oil I have found to be the best physic that can be given to a bird 
 in illness. 
 
 I had some years ago a bird which I am quite confident was a maniac, 
 and that such intellect as those little creatures enjoy, was in it deranged. 
 The bird was a whitethroat, which had been reared from the nest, and 
 had been extremely tame and familiar, living in company with several 
 
OF SELBORNE. 213 
 
 inquire, I could not find that any cuckoo had ever been 
 seen in these parts, except in the nest of the wagtail, 
 the hedge-sparrow, the titlark, the whitethroat, and the 
 redbreast, all soft-billed insectivorous birds. The excel- 
 lent Mr. Willughby mentions the nest of the ring-dove 
 (Palumbus), and of the chaffinch (Fringilla), birds that 
 subsist on acorns and grains, and such hard food : but 
 
 other birds, two of which were of its own species. The first ailment was 
 exhibited by sudden unaccountable fits of fear without any apparent 
 cause, greater than the motion of some other bird, when it would dash 
 itself about in the greatest trepidation, and hide itself under the pans, 
 where it continued in the greatest alarm. This increased so much upon 
 it that it was necessary to put it in a small cage by itself. There also it 
 showed frequent attacks of terror, and soon after it became so fierce, that, 
 quite contrary to the habit of the species, it would attack any person that 
 touched its cage, and even myself who had reared it. In this state of 
 strange nervous excitement it continued, till at the end of about six months 
 it died, its bodily health having gradually declined. 
 
 The power of disgorging what would be noxious is not confined to the 
 birds that prey on flesh and insects, though seed birds have not the same 
 occasion to exercise it. I had brought by the mail-coach with me from 
 London a foreign bird, which appeared soon after the journey's end to be 
 very ill, till it was relieved by disgorging near a teaspoonful of entire 
 millet seed which it had swallowed without cracking the husk, in conse- 
 quence of the jolting of the carriage. 
 
 One of the most singular derangements of the system in birds, is the 
 loathing of their artificial food and the impossibility of subsisting on it, 
 which some species, especially the stone chat and redstart show, soon 
 after they become full grown, though they had thriven well upon it and 
 with appetite while younger and advancing in growth. It may possibly 
 arise from the same want of exercise which causes plethora in the tit- 
 mice ; it has not been found practicable to keep the stone chat many 
 months in a cage, though it thrives well for a time. I do not know that 
 it has been tried in a spacious aviary. 
 
 I have not been in the habit of rearing thrushes, but I have been told 
 by a person who reared them for sale, that they frequently dropped in a 
 fit from the perch through fear, on seeing a stranger approach their cage, 
 and died in consequence. Young canaries, if disturbed before they are 
 ready to leave the nest, fly suddenly out in terror, and lose the use of 
 their legs by a paralytic stroke similar to that which is occasioned in the 
 SylviadcB by washing unseasonably, and the affection is absolutely in- 
 curable. The general health does not seem in either case to be injured ; 
 the appetite continues with a cheerful look of the eye, but the bird 
 being utterly helpless and unable to keep itself clean, cannot survive 
 long. I have kept them a fortnight in that state, trying whether a cure 
 was practicable. Superficial observers fancy that the young canaries 
 break their legs in living too soon from the nest; but it is simply para- 
 lysis induced by fear. W. H. 
 
214 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 then he does not mention them as of his own know- 
 ledge; but says afterwards that he saw himself a wag- 
 tail feeding a cuckoo. It appears hardly possible that 
 a soft-billed bird should subsist on the same food with 
 the hard-billed : for the former have thin membrana- 
 ceous stomachs suited to their soft food ; while the 
 latter, the granivorous tribe, have strong muscular 
 gizzards, which, like mills, grind, by the help of small 
 gravels and pebbles, what is swallowed. This proceed- 
 ing of the cuckoo, of dropping its eggs as it were by 
 chance, is such a monstrous outrage on maternal affec- 
 tion, one of the first great dictates of nature ; and such 
 a violence on instinct ; that, had it only been related of 
 a bird in the Brazils, or Peru, it would never have 
 merited our belief. But yet, should it farther appear 
 that this simple bird, when divested of that natural 
 GTo^yvf that seems to raise the kind in general above 
 themselves, and inspire them with extraordinary degrees 
 of cunning and address, may be still endued with a 
 more enlarged faculty of discerning what species are 
 suitable and congenerous nursing-mothers for its dis- 
 regarded eggs and young, and may deposit them only 
 under their care, this would be adding wonder to won- 
 der, and instancing, in a fresh manner, that the methods 
 of Providence are not subjected to any mode or rule, 
 but astonish us in new lights, and in various and 
 changeable appearances. 
 
 What was said by a very ancient and sublime writer 
 concerning the defect of natural affection in the ostrich, 
 may be well applied to the bird w^e are talking of: 
 
 " She is hardened against her young ones, as though 
 they were not her's: 
 
 " Because God hath deprived her of wisdom, neither 
 hath he imparted to her understanding 2 ." 
 
 Query. Does each female cuckoo lay but one egg in 
 a season, or does she drop several in different nests 
 according as opportunity offers ? 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 2 Job, xxxix, 16, 17. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 215 
 
 LETTER V. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, April 12, 1770. 
 
 I HEARD many birds of several species sing last year 
 after midsummer; enough to prove that -the summer 
 solstice is not the period that puts a stop to the music 
 of the woods. The yellowhammer, no doubt, persists 
 with more steadiness than any other ; but the woodlark, 
 the wren, the redbreast, the swallow, the whitethroat, 
 the goldfinch, the common linnet, are all undoubted 
 instances of the truth of what I advanced. 
 
 If this severe season does not interrupt the regularity 
 of the summer migrations, the blackcap will be here in 
 two or three days. I wish it was in my power to pro- 
 cure you one of those songsters; but I am no bird- 
 catcher ; and so little used to birds in a cage, that I 
 fear if I had one it would soon die for want of skill in 
 feeding. 
 
 Was your reed sparrow, which you kept in a cage, 
 the thick-billed reed sparrow of the Zoology, p. 320; or 
 was it the less reed sparrow of Ray, the sedge-bird of 
 Mr. Pennant's last publication, p. 16? 
 
 As to the matter of long-billed birds growing fatter 
 in moderate frosts, I have no doubt within myself what 
 should be the reason. The thriving at those times 
 appears to me to arise altogether from the gentle check 
 which the cold throws upon insensible perspiration. 
 The case is just the same with blackbirds, &c.; and 
 farmers and warreners observe, the first, that their hogs 
 fat more kindly at such times, and the latter that their 
 rabbits are never in such good case as in a gentle frost. 
 But when frosts are severe, and of long continuance, the 
 case is soon altered ; for then a want of food soon over- 
 balances the repletion occasioned by a checked per- 
 
216 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 spiration. I have observed, moreover, that some human 
 constitutions are more inclined to plumpness in winter 
 than in summer. 
 
 When birds come to suffer by severe frost, I find that 
 the first that fail and die are the redwing fieldfares, and 
 then the song-thrushes. 
 
 You wonder, with good reason, that the hedge spar- 
 rows, &c. can be induced at all to sit on the egg of the 
 cuckoo without being scandalized at the vast dispropor- 
 tioned size of the supposititious egg: but the brute 
 creation, I suppose, have very little idea of size, colour, 
 or number. For the common hen, I know, when the 
 fury of incubation is on her, will sit on a single shape- 
 less stone instead of a nest full of eggs that have been 
 withdrawn ; and, moreover, a hen-turkey, in the same 
 circumstances, would sit on in the empty nest till she 
 perished with hunger. 
 
 I think the matter might easily be determined whether 
 a cuckoo lays one or two eggs, or more, in a season, by 
 opening a female during the laying-time. If more than 
 one was come down out of the ovary, and advanced to 
 a good size, doubtless then she would that spring lay 
 more than one. 
 
 I will endeavour to get a hen, and to examine 1 . 
 
 1 In a female cuckoo, dissected at the breeding season, I found only 
 one ovum in the oviduct, situated in the calcifying segment, or uterus as 
 it is termed, and with the shell partially formed : the rest of the oviduct 
 was disposed in close transverse folds, and not exceeding two lines in 
 diameter. The ovary, besides a cluster of small ova, contained one ovum 
 about half an inch in diameter, and no doubt ready to pass into the ovi- 
 duct, when disburthened of the egg which it was then perfecting. The 
 ovum or yelk, next in size, was about three lines in diameter, but whe- 
 ther its further development would have been progressive or retrograde 
 can only be conjectured. As only one empty and collapsed calyx existed 
 in the ovary, the egg in the oviduct must have been the first which the 
 cuckoo would have laid this year. The appearances generally bespoke 
 a bird that produced more than one egg in the season ; but whether one, 
 two, or more additional ova would have passed into the oviduct I am 
 unable to determine. 
 
 I am not aware that more than one ovum is ever contained in the ovi- 
 duct at one time in any bird. R. O. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 217 
 
 Your supposition that there may be some natural 
 obstruction in singing birds while they are mute, and 
 that when this is removed the song recommences, is 
 new and bold; I wish you could discover some good 
 grounds for this suspicion. 
 
 I was glad you were pleased with my specimen of the 
 Caprimulgus, or fern owl ; you were, I find, acquainted 
 with the bird before. 
 
 When we meet, I shall be glad to have 9o.me conver- 
 sation with you concerning the proposal you make of 
 my drawing up an account of the animals in this neigh- 
 bourhood. Your partiality towards my small abilities 
 persuades you, I fear, that I am able to do more than is 
 in my power: for it is no small undertaking for a man 
 unsupported and alone to begin a natural history from 
 his own autopsia ! Though there is endless room for 
 observation in the field of nature, which is boundless, 
 yet investigation (where a man endeavours to be sure 
 of his facts) can make but slow progress ; and all that 
 one could collect in many years would go into a very 
 narrow compass. 
 
 Some extracts from your ingenious " Investigations 
 of the Difference between the present Temperature of 
 the Air in Italy," &c. have fallen in my way ; and gave 
 me great satisfaction: they have removed the objections 
 that always arose in my mind whenever I came to the 
 passages which you quote. Surely the judicious Virgil, 
 when writing a didactic poem for the region of Italy, 
 could never think of describing freezing rivers, unless 
 such severity of weather pretty frequently occurred ! 
 
 P. S. Swallows appear amidst snows and frost. 
 
218 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER VI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, May 21, 1770. 
 
 THE severity and turbulence of last month so inter- 
 rupted the regular process of summer migration, that 
 some of the birds do but just begin to show themselves, 
 and others are apparently thinner than usual ; as the 
 whitethroat, the blackcap, the redstart, the flycatcher. 
 I well remember that after the very severe spring in 
 the year 1739-40, summer birds of passage were very 
 scarce. They come probably hither with a south-east 
 wind, or when it blows between those points; but in 
 that unfavourable year the winds blowed the whole 
 spring and summer through from the opposite quarters. 
 And yet amidst all these disadvantages two swallows, 
 as I mentioned in my last, appeared this year as early 
 as the llth of April, amidst frost and snow ; but they 
 withdrew again for a time. 
 
 I am not pleased to find that some people seem so 
 little satisfied with Scopoli's new publication 1 ; there 
 is room to expect great things from the hands of that 
 man, who is a good naturalist : and one would think 
 that a history of the birds of so distant and southern a 
 region as Carniola would be new and interesting. I 
 could wish to see that work, and hope to get it sent 
 down 2 . Dr. Scopoli is physician to the wretches that 
 work in the quicksilver mines of that district. 
 
 When you talked of keeping a reed sparrow, and 
 giving it seeds, I could not help wondering: because 
 
 1 This work he calls his Annus Primus Historico Naturalis. 
 
 2 Later in the same year the author procured the work here spoken of. 
 His observations on it will be found in his Letters to Pennant, numbered 
 XXXI. and XXXII., as well as incidentally in others. See also the 
 following Letter. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 219 
 
 the reed sparrow which I mentioned to you (Passer 
 arundinaceus minor, RAH 3 ) is a soft-billed bird, and 
 most probably migrates hence before winter ; whereas 
 the bird you kept (Passer torquatus, RAII*) abides all 
 the year, and is a thick-billed bird. I question whe- 
 ther the latter be much of a songster; but in this 
 matter I want to be better informed 5 . The former has 
 a variety of hurrying notes, and sings all night. Some 
 part of the song of the former, I suspect, * attributed 
 to the latter. We have plenty of the soft-billed sort ; 
 which Mr. Pennant had entirely left out of his British 
 Zoology, till I reminded him of his omission. See 
 British Zoology last published, p. 16 6 . 
 
 I have somewhat to advance on the different manners 
 in which different birds fly and walk ; but as this is a 
 subject that I have not enough considered, and is of 
 such a nature as not to be contained in a small space, 
 I shall say nothing farther about it at present 7 . 
 
 No doubt the reason why the sex of birds in their 
 first plumage is so difficult to be distinguished is, as 
 you say, " because they are not to pair and discharge 
 their parental functions till the ensuing spring." As 
 colours seem to be the chief external sexual distinction 
 in many birds, these colours do not take place till 
 sexual attachments begin to obtain. And the case is 
 the same in quadrupeds ; among whom, in their younger 
 days, the sexes differ but little : but, as they advance 
 to maturity, horns and shaggy manes, beards and 
 brawny necks, &c. &c. strongly discriminate the male 
 from the female. We may instance still farther in our 
 own species, where a beard and stronger features are 
 
 3 [The sedge warbler, Salicaria Phragmitis, SELB.] 
 
 4 [The reed bunting, Emberiza Schccniclus, LINN.] 
 
 5 See on this subject Mr. Herbert's note on Letter XXIV. to Pennant. 
 E. T. B. 
 
 6 See Letter XXV. to Mr. Pennant. [See also Letters XXIV. and 
 XXVI.] 
 
 i See Letter XLII. to Mr. Bafrington. 
 
220 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 usually characteristic of the male sex : but this sexual 
 diversity does not take place in earlier life; for a 
 beautiful youth shall be so like a beautiful girl that 
 the difference shall not be discernible ; 
 
 " Quern si puellarum insereres choro, 
 Mire sagaces falleret hospites 
 Discrimen obscurum, solutis 
 Crinibus, ambiguoque vultu." Hon. 
 
 LETTER VII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, RINGMER, near LEWES, Oct. 8, 1770. 
 
 I AM glad to hear that Kuckahn l is to furnish you with 
 the birds of Jamaica; a sight of the Hirundines of that 
 hot and distant island would be a great entertainment 
 to me. 
 
 The Anni of Scopoli are now in my possession ; and 
 I have read the Annus Primus with satisfaction : for 
 though some parts of this work are exceptionable, and 
 he may advance some mistaken observations ; yet the 
 ornithology of so distant a country as Carniola is very 
 curious. Men that undertake only one district are 
 much more likely to advance natural knowledge than 
 those that grasp at more than they can possibly be 
 
 1 Kuckahn is only known to me by a paper, published in the Philoso- 
 phical Transactions for 1770, on the preservation of dead birds. It 
 discusses with judgment the various modes that had been adopted by 
 others, most of which the writer states that he has himself tried ; and 
 then describes minutely the proceeding which he regards as the most 
 advantageous. He also speaks of the care to be bestowed on the keep- 
 ing of a collection, after it is formed. His allusions to the attention that 
 should be paid to attitude are almost poetical; and the fervour with 
 which he insists on the necessity of making each part of the action cor- 
 respond with all the other evidences of it in the position of the bird, even 
 to the ruffling of its feathers when excited, is quite in accordance with 
 thorough devotion to the Horatian maxim " Qualis ab incepto proces- 
 Berit servetur ad iiuum. ' E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 221 
 
 acquainted with : every kingdom, every province, 
 should have its own monographer. 
 
 The reason, perhaps, why he mentions nothing of 
 Ray's Ornithology may be the extreme poverty and 
 distance of his country, into which the works of our 
 great naturalist may have never yet found their way. 
 You have doubts, I know, whether this Ornithology is 
 genuine, and really the work of Scopoli : as to myself, 
 I think I discover strong tokens of authenticity; the 
 style corresponds with that of his Entomology ; and 
 his characters of his ordines and genera are many of 
 them new, expressive, and masterly. He has ventured 
 to alter some of the Linnaean genera with sufficient 
 show of reason. 
 
 It might, perhaps, be mere accident that you saw so 
 many swifts, and no swallows, at Staines ; because, in 
 my long observation of those birds, I never could dis- 
 cover the least degree of rivalry or hostility between 
 the species. 
 
 Ray remarks that birds of the Gallince order, as 
 cocks and hens, partridges, and pheasants, &c. are pul- 
 veratrices, such as dust themselves, using that method 
 of cleansing their feathers, and ridding themselves of 
 their vermin. As far as I can observe, many birds that 
 dust themselves never wash : and I once thought that 
 those birds that wash themselves would never dust; 
 but here I find myself mistaken; for common house 
 sparrows are great pulveratrices, being frequently seen 
 grovelling and wallowing in dusty roads ; and yet they 
 are great washers. Does not the skylark dust? 
 
 Query. Might not Mahomet and his followers take 
 one method of purification from these pulveratrices? 
 because I find, from travellers of credit, that if a strict 
 Mussulman is journeying in a sandy desert where no 
 water is to be found, at stated hours he strips off his 
 clothes, and most scrupulously rubs his body over with 
 sand or dust. 
 
 A countryman told me he had found a young fern 
 
222 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 owl in the nest of a small bird on the ground ; and 
 that it was fed by the little bird. I went to see this 
 extraordinary phenomenon, and found that it was a 
 young cuckoo hatched in the nest of a titlark : it was 
 become vastly too big for its nest, appearing 
 
 in tenui re 
 
 Majores pennas nido extendisse 
 
 and was very fierce and pugnacious, pursuing my 
 finger, as I teased it, for many feet from the nest, and 
 sparring and buffeting with its wings like a game-cock. 
 The dupe of a dam appeared at a distance, hovering 
 about with meat in its mouth, and expressing the 
 greatest solicitude. 
 
 In July I saw several cuckoos skimming over a large 
 pond ; and found, after some observation, that they 
 were feeding on the Libellulce, or dragon-flies ; some of 
 which they caught as they settled on the weeds, and 
 some as they were on the wing. Notwithstanding 
 what Linnaeus says, I cannot be induced to believe 
 that they are birds of prey. 
 
 This district affords some birds that are hardly ever 
 heard of at Selborne. In the first place considerable 
 flocks of crossbeaks (Loxice curvirostrce ) have appeared 
 this summer in the pine-groves belonging to this house ; 
 the water-ousel is said to haunt the mouth of the 
 Lewes river, near Newhaven ; and the Cornish chough 
 builds, I know, all along the chalky cliffs of the Sussex 
 shore. 
 
 I was greatly pleased to see little parties of ring- 
 ousels (my newly discovered migraters) scattered, at 
 intervals, all along the Sussex downs from Chichester 
 to Lewes. Let them come from whence they will, it 
 looks very suspicious that they are cantoned along the 
 coast in order to pass the channel when severe weather 
 advances. They visit us again in April, as it should 
 seem, in their return ; and are not to be found in the 
 dead of winter. It is remarkable that they are very 
 
OF SELBORNE. 223 
 
 tame, and seem to have no manner of apprehensions of 
 danger from a person with a gun. There are bustards 
 on the wide downs near Brighthelmstone. No doubt 
 you are acquainted with the Sussex downs : the pros- 
 pects and rides round Lewes are most lovely ! 
 
 As I rode along near the coast I kept a very sharp 
 look-out in the lanes and woods, hoping I might, at 
 this time of the year, have discovered some of the sum- 
 mer short-winged birds of passage crowdipg towards 
 the coast in order for their departure: but it was 
 very extraordinary that I never saw a redstart, white- 
 throat, blackcap, uncrested wren, flycatcher, &c. And 
 I remember to have made the same remark in former 
 years, as I usually come to this place annually about 
 this time. The birds most common along the coast at 
 present are the stonechatters, whinchats, buntings, 
 linnets, some few wheatears, titlarks, &c. Swallows 
 and house martins abound yet, induced to prolong their 
 stay by this soft, still, dry season. 
 
 A land tortoise, which has been kept for thirty years 
 in a little walled court belonging to the house where I 
 now am visiting, retires under ground about the middle 
 of November, and comes forth again about the middle 
 of April. When it first appears in the spring it dis- 
 covers very little inclination towards food ; but in the 
 height of summer grows voracious: and then as the 
 summer declines, its appetite declines ; so that for the 
 last six weeks in autumn it hardly eats at all. Milky 
 plants, such as lettuces, dandelions, sow thistles, are its 
 favourite dish. In a neighbouring village one was 
 kept till by tradition it was supposed to be a hundred 
 years old. An instance of vast longevity in such a 
 poor reptile ! 
 
224 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER VIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Dec. 20, 1770. 
 
 THE birds that I took for Aberdavines were reed spar- 
 rows (Passeres torquati). 
 
 There are, doubtless, many home internal migrations 
 within this kingdom that want to be better understood ; 
 witness those vast flocks of hen chaffinches that appear 
 with us in the winter without hardly any cocks among 
 them. Now, was there a due proportion of each sex, 
 it should seein very improbable that any one district 
 should produce such numbers of these little birds ; and 
 much more when only one half of the species appears : 
 therefore we may conclude that the chaffinches (Frin- 
 gillce ccelebes), for some good purposes, have a peculiar 
 migration of their own in which the sexes part. Nor 
 should it seem so wonderful that the intercourse of 
 sexes in this species of birds should be interrupted in 
 winter; since in many animals, and particularly in 
 bucks and does, the sexes herd separately, except at 
 the season when commerce is necessary for the conti- 
 nuance of the breed. For this matter of the chaffinches 
 see Fauna Suecica, p. 85, and Systema Naturae, p. 318. 
 I see every winter vast flights of hen chaffinches, but 
 none of cocks 1 . 
 
 1 Amongst our vernal birds of passage, the cock birds generally arrive 
 about a fortnight before the hens, a circumstance well known to the bird- 
 catchers, who are certain that all which are caught out of the first flight 
 will prove males. The cock nightingales generally appear in the neigh- 
 bourhood of London on the 12th of April. They are sometimes taken a 
 few days earlier, but that is the day upon which those who make a trade 
 of catching them depend upon their arrival. 
 
 It is very difficult to understand the reason of this precession of the 
 males. It has been supposed by some writers, that the females were 
 delayed by the care of a young brood; but it seems to me nearly certain 
 
OF SELBORNE. 225 
 
 Yoiir method of accounting for the periodical mo- 
 tions of the British singing birds, or birds of flight, is 
 a very probable one ; since the matter of food is a 
 great regulator of the actions and proceedings of the 
 brute creation: there is but one that can be set in 
 competition with it, and that is love. But I cannot 
 quite acquiesce with you in one circumstance, when 
 you advance that, " when they have thus feasted, they 
 again separate into small parties of five- .or six, and 
 
 that our summer birds do not breed again when they visit Africa during 
 our winter months. Those who have been accustomed to keep nightin- 
 gales in confinement, know that one which has been taken from the nest 
 before it could fly, and reared in a cage, will never sing the true song of 
 its species, unless it have the advantage of hearing an old nightingale 
 sing throughout the autumn and winter; that a young nightingale caught 
 in the summer after the old birds have begun to moult and have ceased 
 singing, will sing rather more correctly than that which was taken from 
 the nest, because it has had the advantage of hearing the notes of its 
 parent longer; but that, without further education under an old male in 
 autumn and winter, it will only be able to execute parts of the nightin- 
 gale's beautiful melody, and will repeat too often some of the loud notes, 
 and harp upon them in a manner that is quite disagreeable. These two 
 classes of young birds seldom become true songsters in confinement; 
 because, unless a considerable number of old nightingales are kept in the 
 same room with them, they have not the same opportunity of hearing and 
 learning that they would have had in the woods; and if any other birds 
 are kept within hearing, they will imitate their notes and retain the habit 
 of singing them. The old nightingales cease to sing in England for the 
 most part towards the end of June, and after that time the young ones 
 can have no farther opportunity of learning their song while they remain 
 in Europe ; they merely record, or practise in the throat, what they can 
 recollect. It is therefore certain, that on their arrival in Africa, they 
 must consist of two classes old experienced songsters, and half-taught 
 young ones. Including the time consumed in the passage, the nightin- 
 gales spend pretty exactly an equal portion of the year in the north and 
 in the south. Therefore if they were to breed again in Africa, there 
 would be a flight of young half-educated birds on their return to us 
 in April, as there is on their return to the south in September; but 
 that is not the case. The birds which return to England are all 
 fully educated (though, as in other species, some individuals will be 
 more skilful songsters than others), and none of them are liable to take 
 the notes of other birds in confinement. These observations appear 
 to me to afford conclusive proof that they do not breed while they are 
 in the south. The same result will be drawn from the examination 
 of the plumage of other species, such as the redstart, &c. of which the 
 young have not acquired the colours of the adult when they leave us in 
 
 Q 
 
226 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 get the best fare they can within a certain district, 
 having no inducement to go in quest of fresh turned 
 earth." Now, if you mean that the business of con- 
 gregating is quite at an end from the conclusion of 
 wheat sowing to the season of barley and oats, it is 
 not the case with us; for larks and chaffinches, and 
 particularly linnets, flock and congregate as much in 
 the very dead of winter as when the husbandman is 
 busy with his ploughs and harrows. 
 
 autumn, but of which all return in their perfect plumage. It seems, 
 therefore, that the periodical dispersion of migratory birds towards the 
 north is not occasioned merely by a failure of food, but by some inapti- 
 tude of the climate in which they spend our winter months, to the pro- 
 pagation of their kind. If they were induced to migrate only on account 
 of the inconvenience of the heavy tropical rains, and the failure of winged 
 insects, which are probably beaten down and destroyed by their violence, 
 I conceive no reason why they should not breed in the half of the year 
 which is favourable to their existence in the southern latitudes. I suspect 
 the solution of the point in question to be this : their residence in our 
 winter months is near the equator, where the days are comparatively 
 short and the nights long ; even in our longest days, the redstart, who 
 rears six or seven young, and commences feeding them at three o'clock 
 in the morning, and continues her toil till sunset, has difficulty to main- 
 tain itself well and furnish its young with food ; and if the feeding hours 
 were reduced from seventeen to twelve, the little family would not be so 
 easily reared. If I have disposed of the reason usually assigned for the 
 earlier arrival of the males, it remains to suggest another. It is evident 
 that the migratory impulse is instinctive, and not merely the result of 
 example and education, because young birds which have been brought 
 up in confinement show strong symptoms of uneasiness when the time of 
 departure arrives. Upon dissection of the males when they arrive in the 
 spring, an organic excitement and enlargement is perceptible ; and if the 
 effect of that excitement, in its commencement, creates a restless uneasi- 
 ness and an instinctive desire to seek the proper breeding quarters, the 
 same general law of nature which makes the male solicit what the female 
 hesitates to permit, would make the cocks precede in the act of migra- 
 tion, while the hens with more tardy excitement do not immediately 
 follow them. 
 
 I may take this opportunity of making some further remarks on the 
 acquisition of song or peculiar notes by young birds. The nightingale, 
 which far surpasses all other birds in ]the natural modulation and variety 
 of its notes, and cannot be equalled by any in execution, even if they 
 have learned its song, is peculiarly apt in its first year, when confined, to 
 learn the song of any other bird that it hears. Its beautiful song is the 
 result of long attention to the melody of the older birds of its species. 
 The young whin chat, wheatear, and others of the genus Saxicola, which 
 
OF SELBORNE. 227 
 
 Sure there can be no doubt but that woodcocks and 
 fieldfares leave us in the spring, in order to cross the 
 seas, and to retire to some districts more suitable to the 
 purpose of breeding. That the former pair before they 
 retire, and that the hens are forward with egg, I myself, 
 when I was a sportsman, have often experienced. It 
 cannot indeed be denied but that now and then we hear 
 of a woodcock's nest, or young birds, discovered in 
 some part or other of this island : but then they are 
 
 have little natural variety of song, are no less ready in confinement to 
 learn from other species, and become as much better songsters as the 
 nightingale degenerates, by borrowing from others. The bullfinch, whose 
 natural notes are weak, harsh, and insignificant, has a greater facility 
 than any other bird of learning human music. It is pretty evident that 
 the Germans, who bring vast numbers of them to London which they 
 have taught to pipe, must have instructed them more by whistling to 
 them, than by an organ ; and that their instructions have been accom- 
 panied by a motion of the head and body in accordance with the time ; 
 which habit the birds also acquire, and is no doubt of great use to them 
 in regulating their song. In the same manner, that wonderful bird, 
 Colonel O'Kelly's green parrot, which I had the satisfaction of seeing 
 and hearing (about the year 1799, if I recollect rightly), beat the time 
 always with its foot ; turning round upon the perch while singing, and 
 marking the time as it turned. This extraordinary creature sang per- 
 fectly about fifty different tunes of every kind God save the King, 
 solemn psalms, and humorous or low ballads, of which it articulated 
 every word as distinctly as a man could do, without ever making a mis- 
 take. If a bystander sang any part of the song, it would pause and take 
 up the song where the person had left off, without repeating what he had 
 said. When moulting and unwilling to sing, it would answer all solici- 
 tations by turning its back and repeatedly saying, " Poll's sick." I am 
 persuaded that its instructor had taught it to beat time. The canary- 
 bird, whose song, in its artificial state in Europe, is a compound of notes 
 acquired from other birds, is able to learn the song of the nightingale, 
 but not to execute it with the same power as the nightingale itself. I 
 have never heard one that sung it quite correctly, but I have heard it 
 approach near enough to prove that with more careful education it might 
 learn it right. Those who have taken the most pains about it have been 
 contented with placing, under nightingales, young canaries, as soon as 
 they could feed themselves ; but such will necessarily have learned part 
 at least of their parents' song. The linnet and linnet mule is said to be 
 able to come nearer the execution of the nightingale, when properly 
 instructed. The best way would be to use an experienced hen canary- 
 bird who will rear her young without the cock, and to take the cock 
 away before the young are hatched : or to set the canary-eggs under a 
 hen paired with a goldfinch, which, kept in a darkish situation, will pro- 
 
 Q2 
 
228 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 always mentioned as rarities, and somewhat out of the 
 common course of things : but as to redwings and field- 
 fares, no sportsman or naturalist has ever yet, that I 
 could hear, pretended to have found the nest or young 
 of those species in any part of these kingdoms. And I 
 the more admire at this instance as extraordinary, since, 
 to all appearance, the same food in summer as well as 
 in winter might support them here which maintains 
 their congeners, the blackbirds and thrushes, did they 
 choose to stay the summer through. From hence it 
 appears that it is not food alone which determines 
 some species of birds with regard to their stay or 
 departure. Fieldfares and redwings disappear sooner 
 or later according as the warm weather comes on earlier 
 or later. For I well remember, after that dreadful 
 winter, 1739-40, that cold north-east winds continued 
 
 bably not sing ; to remove the cock, at all events, if it sings, as soon as 
 possible ; to place the young birds very close to the singing nightingale, 
 and as soon as practicable to remove the hen canary also. The rearing 
 of a canary-bird by hand, even from the egg, has been accomplished by 
 artificial heat and unremitting care. Birds learn the song of others most 
 readily when they are not in song themselves, and when they are dark- 
 ened and covered, so that their attention is not distracted : for birds are 
 amused by what they see as much as we are, when not alarmed by it. I 
 had once a tame whitethroat which, when let out of its cage, appeared to 
 take the greatest pleasure in minutely examining the figured patterns of 
 the chair-covers, perhaps expecting to find something eatable amongst 
 the leaves and branches of the pattern. I reared a blackcap and some 
 whitethroats, taken when a fortnight old, under a singing nightingale, 
 and removed all other singing birds : they did not, however, learn a 
 single note from the nightingale, but sang their wild note pretty truly; 
 on the other hand, a blackcap two years old, from hearing a nightingale 
 sing a great deal, acquired two passages from its song and executed them 
 correctly, though not very powerfully. I understand that the robin reared 
 in a cage is not observed to learn from other birds, but sings the wild 
 note pretty accurately. I can at present suggest no key to these diversi- 
 ties ; nor do I understand why the young nightingale, taken when the 
 old birds cease to sing, will in confinement learn the note of other birds 
 and retain them, although it may hear its own species sing again as soon 
 as they recommence in the autumn ; and yet, at liberty, with the same 
 cessation of the parental song, it would have learned nothing else ; unless 
 it be that from want of other amusement it listens more when it is 
 confined. W. H. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 to blow on through April and May, and that these 
 kinds of birds (what few remained of them) did not 
 depart as usual, but were seen lingering about till the 
 beginning of June. 
 
 The best authority that we can have for the nidifica- 
 tion of the birds above-mentioned in any district, is the 
 testimony of faunists that have written professedly the 
 natural history of particular countries. Now, as to the 
 fieldfare, Linnaeus, in his Fauna Suecica 5 says of it, 
 that " maximis in arboribus nidificat :" and of the red- 
 wing he says, in the same place, that " nidificat in mediis 
 arbusculis, sive sepibus : ova sex ccsruleo-viridia maculis 
 nigris variis." Hence we may be assured that fieldfares 
 and redwings breed in Sweden. Scopoli says, in his 
 Ann us Primus, of the woodcock, that " nupta ad nos 
 venit circa cequinoctium vernale :" meaning in Tyrol, of 
 which he is a native. And afterwards he adds, " nidi- 
 ficat in paludibus alpinis : ova ponit 3 5." It does not 
 appear from Kramer that woodcocks breed at all in 
 Austria : but he says, " Avis hac septentrionalium provin- 
 ciarum cestivo tempore incola est ; ubi plerumque nidificat. 
 Appropinquante hyeme, australiores provincias petit : hinc 
 circa plenilunium mensis O ctobr is plerumque Austriam trans- 
 migrat. Tune rursus circa plenilunium potissimum mensis 
 Martii per Austriam matrimonio juncta ad septentrionales 
 provincias redit" For the whole passage (which I have 
 abridged) see Elenchus, &c. p. 351. This seems to be a 
 full proof of the migration of woodcocks ; though little 
 is proved concerning the place of breeding. 
 
 P. S. There fell in the county of Rutland, in three 
 weeks of this present very wet weather, seven inches 
 and a half of rain, which is more than has fallen in any 
 three weeks for these thirty years past in that part of 
 the world. A mean quantity in that county for one 
 year is twenty inches and a half. 
 
230 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER IX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, FYFIELD, near ANDOVER, Feb. 12, 1771. 
 
 You are, I know, no great friend to migration ; and the 
 well attested accounts from various parts of the king- 
 dom seem to justify you in your suspicions, that at 
 least many of the swallow kind do not leave us in the 
 winter, but lay themselves up like insects and bats, in 
 a torpid state, and slumber away the more uncomfort- 
 able months till the return of the sun and fine weather 
 awakens them. 
 
 But then we must not, I think, deny migration in 
 general; because migration certainly does subsist in 
 some places, as my brother in Andalusia has fully 
 informed me. Of the motions of these birds he has 
 ocular demonstration, for many weeks together, both 
 spring and fall : during which periods myriads of the 
 swallow kind traverse the Straits from north to south, 
 and from south to north, according to the season. And 
 these vast migrations consist not only of Hirundines, 
 but of bee-birds, hoopoes, Oro pendolos, or golden 
 thrushes, &c. &c. and also of many of our soft-billed 
 summer birds of passage ; and, moreover, of birds which 
 never leave us, such as all the various sorts of hawks 
 and kites. Old Belon, two hundred years ago, gives 
 a curious account of the incredible armies of hawks and 
 kites which he saw in the spring time traversing the 
 Thracian Bosphorus from Asia to Europe. Besides 
 the above-mentioned, he remarks that the procession is 
 swelled by whole troops of eagles and vultures. 
 
 Now, it is no wonder that birds residing in Africa 
 should retreat before the sun as it advances, and retire 
 to milder regions, and especially birds of prey, whose 
 blood being heated with hot animal food, are more 
 
OF SELBORNE. 231 
 
 impatient of a sultry climate : but then I cannot help 
 wondering why kites and hawks, and such hardy birds 
 as are known to defy all the severity of England, and 
 even of Sweden and all north Europe, should want to 
 migrate from the south of Europe, and be dissatisfied 
 with the winters of Andalusia 1 . 
 
 It does not appear to me that much stress may be 
 laid on the difficulty and hazard that birds must run in 
 their migrations, by reason of vast oceans, 'cross winds, 
 &c. ; because, if we reflect, a bird may travel from Eng- 
 land to the equator without launching out and exposing 
 itself to boundless seas, and that by crossing the water 
 at Dover, and again at Gibraltar. And I with the more 
 confidence advance this obvious remark, because my 
 brother has always found that some of his birds, and 
 particularly the swallow kind, are very sparing of their 
 pains in crossing the Mediterranean : for when arrived 
 at Gibraltar, they do not 
 
 " Ranged in figure wedge their way, 
 
 and set forth 
 
 Their airy caravan high over seas 
 
 Flying, and over lands with mutual wing 
 
 Easing their flight." MILTON. 
 
 but scout and hurry along in little detached parties of 
 six or seven in a company; and sweeping low, just 
 over the surface of the land and water, direct their 
 course to the opposite continent at the narrowest pas- 
 sage they can find. They usually slope across the bay 
 
 1 May not the migration of the kites and hawks, and other birds of 
 prey, at these seasons, be determined by that of the smaller birds in whose 
 company they are found ? The swallows and other ordinary birds of 
 migration pass northwards, impelled by the stimulus that urges them to 
 seek their usual breeding places : their enemies travel with them, proba- 
 bly because they are assured of full banquets from among the armies of 
 small and defenceless creatures which are on such occasions congregated. 
 The stragglers in such a multitude, and those that weary in their flight 
 and drop off from the main body, must alone be almost innumerable. 
 E. T. B. 
 
232 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 to the south-west, and so pass over opposite to Tangier, 
 which, it seems, is the narrowest space. 
 
 In former letters we have considered whether it was 
 probable that woodcocks in moonshiny nights cross the 
 German ocean from Scandinavia. As a proof that birds 
 of less speed may pass that sea, considerable as it is, 
 I shall relate the following incident, which, though 
 mentioned to have happened so many years ago, was 
 strictly matter of fact: As some people were shooting 
 in the parish of Trotton, in the county of Sussex, they 
 killed a duck in that dreadful winter, 1708-9, with a 
 silver collar about its neck 2 , on which were engraven 
 the arms of the king of Denmark. This anecdote the 
 rector of Trotton at that time has often told to a near 
 relation of mine ; and, to the best of my remembrance, 
 the collar was in the possession of the rector. 
 
 At present I do not know any body near the seaside 
 that will take the trouble to remark at what time of the 
 moon woodcocks first come: if I lived near the sea 
 myself, I would soon tell you more of the matter. One 
 thing I used to observe when I was a sportsman, that 
 there were times in which woodcocks were so sluggish 
 and sleepy that they would drop again when flushed 
 just before the spaniels, nay, just at the muzzle of a 
 gun that had been fired at them : whether this strange 
 laziness was the effect of a recent fatiguing journey, I 
 shall not presume to say. 
 
 Nightingales not only never reach Northumberland 
 and Scotland, but also, as I have been always told, 
 Devonshire and Cornwall. In those two last counties 
 we cannot attribute the failure of them to the want of 
 warmth : the defect in the west is rather a presumpth o 
 argument that these birds come over to us from the 
 continent at the narrowest passage, and do not stroll 
 so far westward 3 . 
 
 2 I have read a like anecdote of a swan. 
 
 3 In a western direction the nightingale visits Dorsetshire and the 
 eastern part only of Devonshire; is never heard in Cornwall; visits 
 
OF SELBORNE. 233 
 
 Let me hear from your own observation whether sky- 
 larks do not dust. I think they do : and if they do, 
 whether they wash also. 
 
 The titlark, or Alauda pratensis of Ray, was the poor 
 dupe that was educating the booby of a cuckoo men- 
 tioned in my letter of October last. 
 
 Your letter came too late for me to procure a ring- 
 ousel for Mr. Tunstal during their autumnal visit ; but 
 I will endeavour to get him one when they call on us 
 again in April. I am glad that you and that gentle- 
 man saw my Andalusian birds ; I hope they answered 
 your expectation. Royston, or gray crows, are winter 
 birds, that come much about the same time with the 
 woodcock: they, like the fieldfare and redwing, have 
 no apparent reason for migration: for as they fare in 
 the winter like their congeners, so might they, in all 
 appearance, in the summer. Was not Tenant, when a 
 boy, mistaken ? did he not find a missel-thrush's nest, 
 and take it for the nest of a fieldfare ? 
 
 The stock-dove, or wood-pigeon 4 , ((Enas, RAII), is 
 
 Somersetshire ; and goes northwards on the western side of England as 
 high as Carlisle. On the eastern side it is never heard beyond the city 
 of York, yet visits much higher latitudes on the European continent. 
 Linnasus includes it in his Fauna Suecica. Great pains were taken by 
 (I think) Sir John Sinclair to establish the nightingale in Scotland, but 
 without success. An old notion, referred to by Montagu, that the night- 
 ingale possibly might not be found in any part but where cowslips grow 
 plentifully, seems incorrect: cowslips grow in great luxuriance in Gla- 
 morganshire, and also north of Carlisle. A gentleman of Gower, which 
 is the peninsula beyond Swansea, procured from Norfolk and Surrey, a 
 few years back, some scores of young nightingales, hoping that an 
 acquaintance with his beautiful woods and their mild climate would 
 induce a second visit ; but the law of Nature was too strong for him, and 
 not a single bird returned. Dyer, in his Grongar Hill, makes the night- 
 ingale a companion of his muse in the vale of Towey or Carmarthen, but 
 this is a poetical license, as this bird is not heard there. W. Y. 
 
 4 Here, as in a previous passage, the author has spoken of the wood- 
 pigeon as synonymous with the stock-dove. It is more usual to apply 
 that name to the ring-dove. Perhaps, indeed, with the view of avoiding 
 confusion, it would be better that the use of the name wood-pigeon should 
 be altogether abandoned. E. T. B. 
 
234 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 the last winter bird of passage which appears with us ; 
 and is not seen till towards the end of November: 
 about twenty years ago they abounded in the district 
 of Selborne ; and strings of them were seen morning 
 and evening that reached a mile or more : but since the 
 beechen woods have been greatly thinned, they are 
 much decreased in number 5 . The ring-dove, (Palumbm, 
 RAII), stays with us the whole year, and breeds several 
 times through the summer. 
 
 Before I received your letter of October last I had 
 just remarked in my journal that the trees were un- 
 usually green. This uncommon verdure lasted on late 
 into November ; and may be accounted for from a late 
 spring, a cool and moist summer ; but more particularly 
 from vast armies of chafers, or tree-beetles, which, in 
 many places, reduced whole w r oods to a leafless naked 
 state. These trees shot again at Midsummer, and then 
 retained their foliage till very late in the year. 
 
 My musical friend, at whose house I am now visiting, 
 has tried all the owls that are his near neighbours with 
 a pitch-pipe set at concert-pitch, and finds they all 
 hoot in B flat. He will examine the nightingales next 
 spring. 
 
 I am, &c. &c. 
 
 LETTER X. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Aug. 1, 1771. 
 
 FROM what follows, it will appear that neither owls 
 nor cuckoos keep to one note. A friend remarks that 
 many (most) of his owls hoot in B flat; but that one 
 
 5 This subject is treated of, in more detail, in Letter XLIV. to Pen- 
 nant. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 235 
 
 went almost half a note below A. The pipe he tried 
 their notes by was a common half-crown pitch-pipe, 
 such as masters use for tuning of harpsichords ; it was 
 the common London pitch. 
 
 A neighbour of mine, who is said to have a nice ear, 
 remarks that the owls about this village hoot in three 
 different keys, in G flat, or F sharp, in B flat and A flat. 
 He heard two hooting to each other, the one in A flat, 
 and the other in B flat. Query : Do these different 
 notes proceed from different species, or only from 
 various individuals ? The same person finds upon trial 
 that the note of the cuckoo (of which we have but one 
 species) varies in different individuals ; for, about Sel- 
 borne wood, he found they were mostly in D : he heard 
 two sing together, the one in D, the other in D sharp, 
 who made a disagreeable concert : he afterwards heard 
 one in D sharp, and about Wolmer Forest some in C. 
 As to nightingales, he says that their notes are so 
 short, and their transitions so rapid, that he cannot 
 well ascertain their key. Perhaps in a cage and in a 
 room, their notes may be more distinguishable. This 
 person has tried to settle the notes of a swift, and of 
 several other small birds, but cannot bring them to any 
 criterion. 
 
 As I have often remarked that redwings are some of 
 the first birds that suffer with us in severe weather, it is 
 no wonder at all that they retreat from Scandinavian 
 winters : and much more the Ordo of Grallce, who all, 
 to a bird, forsake the northern parts of Europe at the 
 approach of winter. " Grallce tanquam conjuratce una- 
 nimiter in fugam se conjiciunt ; ne earum unicam quidem 
 inter nos habitantem invenire possimus ; ut enim cestate in 
 australibus degere nequeunt ob defection lumbricorum, ter- 
 ramque siccam ; ita nee in frigidis ob eandem causam" 
 says Ekmarck, the Swede, in his ingenious little 
 treatise called Migrationes Avium, which by all means 
 you ought to read while your thoughts run on the 
 
236 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 subject of migration. See Amccnitates Academicce, vol. iv. 
 p. 565 *. 
 
 Birds may be so circumstanced as to be obliged to 
 migrate in one country and not in another: but the 
 Grallce (which procure their food from marshes and 
 boggy grounds) must in winter forsake the more nor- 
 therly parts of Europe, or perish for want of food. 
 
 I am glad you are making inquiries from Linnaeus 
 concerning the woodcock : it is expected of him that he 
 should be able to account for the motions and manner 
 of life of the animals of his own Fauna. 
 
 Faunists, as you observe, are too apt to acquiesce in 
 bare descriptions, and a few synonyms: the reason is 
 plain : because all that may be done at home in a man's 
 study; but the investigation of the life and conversation 
 of animals is a concern of much more trouble and diffi- 
 culty, and is not to be attained but by the active and 
 inquisitive, and by those that reside much in the 
 country. 
 
 Foreign systematics are, I observe, much too vague 
 in their specific differences ; which are almost univer- 
 sally constituted by one or two particular marks, the 
 rest of the description running in general terms. But 
 our countryman, the excellent Mr. Ray, is the only de- 
 scriber that conveys some precise idea in every term or 
 word, maintaining his superiority over his followers and 
 imitators in spite of the advantages of fresh discoveries 
 and modern information. 
 
 At this distance of years it is not in my power to re- 
 collect at what periods woodcocks used to be sluggish 
 or alert when I was a sportsman : but, upon my men- 
 tioning this circumstance to a friend, he thinks he has 
 observed them to be remarkably listless against snowy 
 
 1 Turnstones leave our eastern coast the last week in May, and are 
 back again with their young by the first week in August. Mr. Hewitson 
 found them breeding in Norway. Dr. Fleming says that they are sta- 
 tionary in Zetland. W. Y. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 237 
 
 foul weather : if this should be the case, then the inap- 
 titude for flying arises only from an eagerness for food ; 
 as sheep are observed to be very intent on grazing 
 against stormy wet evenings. 
 
 I am, &c. &c. 
 
 LETTER XL 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Feb. 8, 1772. 
 
 WHEN I ride about in the winter, and see such pro- 
 digious flocks of various kinds of birds, I cannot help 
 admiring at these congregations, and wishing that it 
 was in my power to account for those appearances 
 almost peculiar to the season. The two great motives 
 which regulate the proceedings of the brute creation are 
 love and hunger; the former incites animals to per- 
 petuate their kind, the latter induces them to preserve 
 individuals : whether either of these should seem to be 
 the ruling passion in the matter of congregating is to be 
 considered. As to love, that is out of the question at 
 a time of the year when that soft passion is not in- 
 dulged ; besides, during the amorous season, such a 
 jealousy prevails between the male birds, that they can 
 hardly bear to be together in the same hedge or field. 
 Most of the singing and elation of spirits of that time 
 seems to me to be the effect of rivalry and emulation : 
 and it is to this spirit of jealousy that I chiefly attribute 
 the equal dispersion of birds in the spring over the face 
 of the country. 
 
 Now as to the business of food : as these animals are 
 actuated by instinct to hunt for necessary food, they 
 should not, one would suppose, crowd together in pur- 
 suit of sustenance at a time when it is most likely to 
 fail; yet such associations do take place in hard weather 
 
238 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 chiefly, and thicken as the severity increases. As some 
 kind of self-interest and self-defence is no doubt the 
 motive for the proceeding, may it not arise from the 
 helplessness of their state in such rigorous seasons ; as 
 men crowd together, when under great calamities, though 
 they know not why ? Perhaps approximation may dispel 
 some degree of cold ; and a crowd may make each in- 
 dividual appear safer from the ravages of birds of prey 
 and other dangers 1 . 
 
 If I admire when I see how much congenerous birds 
 love to congregate, I am the more struck when I see 
 incongruous ones in such strict amity. If we do not 
 much wonder to see a flock of rooks usually attended 
 by a train of daws, yet it is strange that the former 
 should so frequently have a flight of starlings for their 
 satellites 2 . Is it because rooks have a more discerning 
 scent than their attendants, and can lead them to spots 
 more productive of food ? Anatomists say that rooks, 
 by reason of two large nerves which run down between 
 the eyes into the upper mandible, have a more delicate 
 feeling in their beaks than other round-billed birds, and 
 can grope for their meat when out of sight. Perhaps, 
 
 1 Is not the flocking together of birds in seasons of scarcity occasioned 
 chiefly by hunger? For though it is true that a multitude of feeders will 
 speedily exhaust a limited spot, and that a hungry bird consequently 
 ought not, if aware of this indisputable fact, to resort to a place where 
 numbers of its race are already engaged in search of food: yet the bird, 
 urged on like its brethren by the cravings of appetite, has an object in 
 common with them ; it knows, by their actions, of what they are in pur- 
 suit; it perceives, among so many, some at least that are successful; it is 
 thus assured that food exists in the spot resorted to ; and it joins in the 
 search in the hope that where the wished-for morsel is, it may not be an 
 unsuccessful competitor in the scramble for it. 
 
 The congregation of rooks, and the following in their train of daws and 
 starlings, noticed in the succeeding paragraph of the text, seem to be re- 
 ferred to a similar cause, and, indeed, to be altogether dependent on it. 
 E. T. B. 
 
 2 Mr. White says it is strange, that rooks and starlings accompany 
 each other: but this is the case with other birds: the short-eared owl 
 often accompanies flights of woodcocks in this country. See Pennant's 
 Scotland, vol. i. p. 11. In Greece, the cuckoo migrates with the turtle- 
 flocks, thence they call him trigouokracti, or turtle leader. MITFORD. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 239 
 
 then, their associates attend them on the motive of 
 interest, as greyhounds wait on the motions of their 
 finders ; and as lions are said to do on the yelpings of 
 jackals. Lapwings and starlings sometimes associate. 
 
 LETTER XII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, March 9, 1772. 
 
 Asa gentleman and myself were walking on the 4th of 
 last November round the sea-banks at Newhaven, near 
 the mouth of the Lewes river, in pursuit of natural 
 knowledge, we were surprised to see three house swal- 
 lows gliding very swiftly by us. That morning was 
 rather chilly, with the wind at north-west; but the 
 tenor of the weather for some time before had been 
 delicate, and the noons remarkably warm. From this 
 incident, and from repeated accounts which I meet 
 with, I am more and more induced to believe that many 
 of the swallow kind do not depart from this island ; 
 but lay themselves up in holes and caverns ; and do, 
 insectlike and batlike, come forth at mild times, and 
 then retire again to their latebra. Nor make I the 
 least doubt but that, if I lived at Newhaven, Seaford, 
 Brighthelmstone, or any of those towns near the chalk- 
 cliffs of the Sussex coast, by proper observations, I 
 should see swallows stirring at periods of the winter, 
 when the noons were soft and inviting, and the sun 
 warm and invigorating. And I am the more of this 
 opinion from what I have remarked during some of 
 our late springs, that though some swallows did make 
 their appearance about the usual time, viz. the 13th or 
 14th of April, yet, meeting with a harsh reception, and 
 blustering cold north-east winds, they immediately 
 withdrew, absconding for several days, till the weather 
 gave them better encouragement. 
 
240 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER XIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, April 12, 1772. 
 
 WHILE I was in Sussex last autumn, my residence 
 was at the village near Lewes, from whence I had for- 
 merly the pleasure of writing to you. On the 1st of 
 November, I remarked that the old tortoise, formerly 
 mentioned, began first to dig the ground in order to the 
 forming its hybernaculum, which it had fixed on just 
 beside a great tuft of hepaticas. It scrapes out the 
 ground with its fore feet, and throws it up over its back 
 with its hind ; but the motion of its legs is ridiculously 
 slow, little exceeding the hour-hand of a clock 1 ; and 
 suitable to the composure of an animal said to be a 
 whole month in performing one feat of copulation. 
 Nothing can be more assiduous than this creature 
 night and day in scooping the earth, and forcing its 
 great body into the cavity; but, as the noons of that 
 season proved unusually warm and sunny, it was 
 continually interrupted, and called forth, by the heat 
 in the middle of the day; and though I continued 
 there till the 13th of November, yet the work remained 
 unfinished. Harsher weather, and frosty mornings, 
 would have quickened its operations. No part of its 
 behaviour ever struck me more than the extreme timi- 
 dity it always expresses with regard to rain ; for though 
 it has a shell that would secure it against the wheel of 
 
 1 The motion of the tortoise's legs being, as Mr. White remarks, ridi- 
 culously slow, is taken notice of in Homer's Hymn to Hermes, v. 28. 
 
 BoffKOfiivt) 7rp07rdpot0 Sopotr, Ipi9rj\ia TTOIT/V 
 SavXd iroffiv fiaivovaa. 
 
 " Feeding far off from man, the flowery herb 
 Slow moving with his feet." MITFORD. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 241 
 
 a loaded cart, yet does it discover as much solicitude 
 about rain as a lady dressed in all her best attire, shuffling 
 away on the first sprinklings, and running its head up 
 in a corner. If attended to, it becomes an excellent 
 weather-glass ; for as sure as it walks elate, and as it 
 were on tiptoe, feeding with great earnestness in a 
 morning, so sure will it rain before night. It is totally 
 a diurnal animal, and never pretends to stir after it 
 becomes dark. The tortoise, like other reptiles, has an 
 arbitrary stomach as well as lungs ; and can refrain 
 from eating as well as breathing for a great part of the 
 year. When first awakened it eats nothing ; nor again 
 in the autumn before it retires; through the height of 
 the summer it feeds voraciously, devouring all the food 
 that comes in its way. I was much taken with its 
 sagacity in discerning those that do it kind offices : for, 
 as soon as the good old lady comes in sight who has 
 waited on it for more than thirty years, it hobbles 
 towards its benefactress with awkward alacrity; but 
 remains inattentive to strangers. Thus not only " the 
 ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib 2 ," 
 but the most abject reptile and torpid of beings distin- 
 guishes the hand that feeds it, and is touched with the 
 feelings of gratitude ! 
 
 I am, &c. &c. 
 
 P. S. In about three days after I left Sussex the 
 tortoise retired into the ground under the hepaticas. 
 
 2 Isaiah, i. 3. 
 
 R 
 
242 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER XIV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, March 26, 1773. 
 
 THE more I reflect on the oropyvf of animals, the more I 
 am astonished at its effects. Nor is the violence of 
 this affection more wonderful than the shortness of its 
 duration. Thus every hen is in her turn the virago of 
 the yard, in proportion to the helplessness of her brood; 
 and will fly in the face of a dog or a sow in defence of 
 those chickens, which in a few weeks she will drive 
 before her with relentless cruelty. 
 
 This affection sublimes the passions, quickens the 
 invention, and sharpens the sagacity of the brute crea- 
 tion. Thus a hen, just become a mother, is no longer 
 that placid bird she used to be, but with feathers stand- 
 ing on end, wings hovering, and clocking note, she runs 
 about like one possessed. Dams will throw themselves 
 in the way of the greatest danger in order to avert it 
 from their progeny. Thus a partridge will tumble along 
 before a sportsman in order to draw away the dogs 
 from her helpless covey. In the time of nidincation 
 the most feeble birds will assault the most rapacious. 
 All the Hirundines of a village are up in arms at the 
 sight of a hawk, whom they will persecute till he leaves 
 that district. A very exact observer has often remarked 
 that a pair of ravens nesting in the rock of Gibraltar 
 would suffer no vulture or eagle to rest near their 
 station, but would drive them from the hill with an 
 amazing fury: even the blue thrush at the season of 
 breeding would dart out from the clefts of the rocks to 
 chase away the kestril, or the sparrow hawk. If you 
 stand near the nest of a bird that has young, she will 
 not be induced to betray them by an inadvertent fond- 
 
OF SELBORNE. 243 
 
 ness, but will wait about at a distance with meat in 
 her mouth for an hour together. 
 
 Should I farther corroborate what I have advanced 
 above by some anecdotes which I probably may have 
 mentioned before in conversation, yet you will, I trust, 
 pardon the repetition for the sake of the illustration. 
 
 The flycatcher of the Zoology (the Stoparola of Ray) 
 builds every year in the vines that grow on the walls 
 of my house. A pair of these little birds had one year 
 inadvertently placed their nest on a naked bough, per- 
 haps in a shady time, not being aware of the inconve- 
 nience that followed. But a hot sunny season coming 
 on before the brood was half fledged, the reflection of 
 the wall became insupportable, and must inevitably 
 have destroyed the tender young, had not affection 
 suggested an expedient, and prompted the parent birds 
 to hover over the nest all the hotter hours, while with 
 wings expanded, and mouths gaping for breath, they 
 screened off the heat from their suffering offspring. 
 
 A farther instance I once saw of notable sagacity in 
 a willow wren, which had built in a bank in my fields. 
 This bird a friend and myself had observed as she sat 
 in her nest ; but were particularly careful not to dis- 
 turb her, though we saw she eyed us with some degree 
 of jealousy. Some days after, as we passed that way, 
 we were desirous of remarking how this brood went on ; 
 but no nest could be found, till I happened to take up 
 a large bundle of long green moss, as it were, carelessly 
 thrown over the nest, in order to doclge the eye of any 
 impertinent intruder. 
 
 A still more remarkable mixture of sagacity and 
 instinct occurred to me one day as my people were 
 pulling off the lining of a hotbed, in order to add some 
 fresh dung. From out of the side of this bed leaped an 
 animal with great agility that made a most grotesque 
 figure; nor was it without great difficulty that it could 
 be taken ; when it proved to be a large white-bellied field 
 mouse with three or four young clinging to her teats by 
 
 R2 
 
244 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 their mouths and feet. It was amazing that the desul- 
 tory and rapid motions of this dam should not oblige 
 her litter to quit their hold, especially when it appeared 
 that they were so young as to be both naked and 
 blind ! 
 
 To these instances of tender attachment, many more 
 of which might be daily discovered by those that are 
 studious of nature, may be opposed that rage of affec- 
 tion, that monstrous perversion of the oropyvf, which 
 induces some females of the brute creation to devour 
 their young because their owners have handled them 
 too freely, or removed them from place to place ! Swine, 
 and sometimes the more gentle race of dogs and cats, 
 are guilty of this horrid and preposterous murder 1 . 
 When I hear now and then of an abandoned mother that 
 destroys her offspring, I am not so much amazed ; since 
 reason perverted, and the bad passions let loose, are 
 capable of any enormity : but why the parental feelings 
 of brutes, that usually flow in one most uniform tenor, 
 should sometimes be so extravagantly diverted, I leave 
 to abler philosophers than myself to determine. 
 
 I am, ,\ < . 
 
 LETTER XV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, July 8, 1773. 
 
 SOME young men went down lately to a pond on the 
 verge of Wolmer Forest to hunt flappers, or young 
 wild-ducks, many of which they caught, and, among 
 the rest, some very minute yet well fledged wild-fowls 
 
 1 Professor Coleman's opinion that want of milk causes mothers to 
 destroy their offspring, is not sufficient to account for the female killing 
 and eating those young which have been handled or moved, and which 
 she had previously suckled. W. Y. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 245 
 
 alive, which upon examination I found to be teals. I 
 did not know till then that teals ever bred in the south 
 of England, and was much pleased with the discovery : 
 this I look upon as a great stroke in natural history. 
 
 We have had, ever since I can remember, a pair of 
 white owls that constantly breed under the eaves of 
 this church. As I have paid good attention to the 
 manner of life of these birds during their season of 
 breeding, which lasts the summer through, the follow- 
 ing remarks may not perhaps be unacceptable : About 
 an hour before sunset (for then the mice begin to run) 
 they sally forth in quest of prey, and hunt all round the 
 hedges of meadows and small enclosures for them, 
 which seem to be their only food. In this irregular 
 country we can stand on an eminence and see them 
 beat the fields over like a setting-dog, and often drop 
 down in the grass or corn. I have minuted these birds 
 with my watch for an hour together, and have found 
 that they return to their nest, the one or the other of 
 them, about once in five minutes 1 ; reflecting at the 
 same time on the adroitness that every animal is pos- 
 sessed of as far as regards the well-being of itself and 
 offspring. But a piece of address, which they show 
 when they return loaded, should not, I think, be passed 
 over in silence. As they take their prey with their 
 claws, so they carry it in their claws to their nest : but, 
 as the feet are necessary in their ascent under the tiles, 
 they constantly perch first on the roof of the chancel, 
 arid shift the mouse from their claws to their bill, that 
 the feet may be at liberty to take hold of the plate on 
 the wall as they are rising under the eaves. 
 
 J Colonel Montagu has observed, that the wren returns once in two 
 minutes, or upon an average thirty-six times in an hour: and this conti- 
 nued full sixteen hours in a day, which, if equally divided between eight 
 young ones, each would receive seventy-two feeds in the day, the whole 
 amounting to five hundred and seventy-six. See Ornithological Diet, 
 p. 35. To this I will add, that the swallow never fails to return to its 
 nest at the expiration of every second or third minute. MITFORD. 
 
246 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 White owls seem not (but in this I am not positive) 
 to hoot at all; all that clamorous hooting appears to 
 me to come from the wood kinds. The white owl does 
 indeed snore and hiss in a tremendous manner; and 
 these menaces well answer the intention of intimi- 
 dating : for I have known a whole village up in arms 
 on such an occasion, imagining the churchyard to be 
 full of goblins and spectres. White owls also often 
 scream horribly as they fly along ; from this screaming 
 probably arose the common people's imaginary species 
 of screech-owl, which they superstitiously think attends 
 the windows of dying persons. The plumage of the 
 remiges of the wings of every species of owl that I have 
 yet examined is remarkably soft and pliant. Perhaps 
 it may be necessary that the wings of these birds should 
 not make much resistance or rushing, that they may be 
 enabled to steal through the air unheard upon a nimble 
 and watchful quarry. 
 
 While I am talking of owls, it may not be improper 
 to mention what I was told by a gentleman of the 
 county of Wilts. As they were grubbing a vast hollow 
 pollard-ash that had been the mansion of owls for cen- 
 turies, he discovered at the bottom a mass of matter 
 that at first he could not account for. After some exa- 
 mination, he found that it was a congeries of the bones 
 of mice (and perhaps of birds and bats) that had been 
 heaping together for ages, being cast up in pellets out 
 of the crops of many generations of inhabitants. For 
 owls cast up the bones, fur, and feathers of what they 
 devour, after the manner of hawks. He believes, he 
 told me, that there were bushels of this kind of sub- 
 stance. 
 
 When brown owls hoot, their throats swell as big as 
 a hen's egg. I have known an owl of this species live 
 a full year without any water. Perhaps the case may 
 be the same with all birds of prey. When owls fly they 
 stretch out their legs behind them as a balance to their 
 large heavy heads : for as most nocturnal birds have 
 
OF SELBORNE. 247 
 
 large eyes and ears they must have large heads to 
 contain them. Large eyes I presume are necessary to 
 collect every ray of light, and large concave ears to 
 command the smallest degree of sound or noise. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 It will be proper to premise here that the sixteenth, eighteenth, twen- 
 tieth, and twenty-first letters have been published already in the Philo- 
 sophical Transactions : but as nicer observation has furnished several 
 corrections and additions, it is hoped that the republication of them will 
 not give offence; especially as these sheets would be very imperfect 
 without them, and as they will be new to many readers who had no 
 opportunity of seeing them when they made their first appearance. 
 
 The Hirundines are a most inoffensive, harmless, 
 entertaining, social, and useful tribe of birds: they 
 touch no fruit in our gardens ; delight, all except one 
 species, in attaching themselves to our houses ; amuse 
 us with their migrations, songs, and marvellous agility : 
 and clear our outlets from the annoyances of gnats and 
 other troublesome insects. Some districts in the South 
 Seas, near Guayaquil 2 , are desolated, it seems, by the 
 infinite swarms of venomous mosquitoes, which fill the 
 air, and render those coasts insupportable. It would 
 be worth inquiring whether any species of Hirundines 
 is found in those regions. Whoever contemplates the 
 myriads of insects that sport in the sunbeams of a 
 summer evening in this country, will soon be convinced 
 to what a degree our atmosphere would be choked 
 with them was it not for the friendly interposition of 
 the swallow tribe. 
 
 Many species of birds have their peculiar lice; but 
 the Hirundines alone seem to be annoyed with Dipte- 
 rous insects, which infest every species, and are so 
 large, in proportion to themselves, that they must be 
 
 2 See Ulloa's Travels. 
 
248 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 extremely irksome and injurious to them. These are 
 the Hippobosca Hirundinis 3 t with narrow subulated 
 wings, abounding in every nest; and are hatched by 
 the warmth of the bird's own body during incubation, 
 and crawl about under its feathers 4 . 
 
 A species of them is familiar to horsemen in the 
 south of England under the name of forest-fly ; and to 
 some of side-fly, from its running sideways like a crab. 
 It creeps under the tails, and about the groins, of horses, 
 which, at their first coming out of the north, are ren- 
 dered half frantic by the tickling sensation ; while our 
 own breed little regards them 5 . 
 
 [Craterina Hirundinis, OLF.] 
 
 4 The Hippobosca Hirundinis of the text is now referred by entomologists 
 to a genus established by Olfers for its reception ; it stands in the syste- 
 matic lists under the name of Craterina Hirundinis, OLF. The house- 
 swallow is principally and seriously infested by its annoyance: 
 
 The swift, differing in genus from the swallows, appears to have its 
 peculiar genus of insects appropriated to it ; that which has been named 
 by the Rev. W. Kirby, Oxypterum: 
 
 The forest-fly again, attached to a different race of animals, belongs 
 also to its own genus in the insect class ; and for this has been retained 
 the name of Hippobosca, originally applied to the whole of these pests : 
 
 The sheep, and perhaps the deer, are obnoxious to the attacks of ano- 
 ther genus of the same family of insects ; the Melophagvs of Latreille : 
 
 The black grouse, the crow, and other birds are infested by yet another 
 genus of the same group ; Ornithomyia, LATR. : 
 
 And an allied genus, Nycteribia, LATR., is appropriated to the Bats. 
 
 The genera enumerated, with the addition of that named by Mr. Cur- 
 tis H<etnobora, the precise habitat of which has not yet been ascertained, 
 constitute the class Omaloptera of Dr. Leach, so far as it has yet been 
 observed in this country. This class has been removed from among the 
 Diptera, chiefly on account of the nature of its metamorphosis : the larva 1 , 
 instead of being free, as in the Diptera, and seeking their own nourish- 
 ment, being in the Omaloptera nourished within the abdomen of the mo- 
 ther : when fully grown they are passed in the form of a pupa covered 
 with the indurated skin of the maggot. 
 
 Besides the several species of swallows and the swift, it will thus be 
 seen that other birds are annoyed with insects which have been, until 
 recently, considered as Dipterous; such have been found on the crow, the 
 black grous, the tit-pippit, the yellow hammer, &c. &c. E. T. B. 
 
 * In the New Forest in Hampshire, whence its name of forest fly, 
 the Hippobosca equina, LINN., abounds in such profusion that Mr. Sa- 
 luouelle states, in his Entomologist's Useful Compendium, that he has 
 

 OF SELBORNE. 249 
 
 The curious Reaumur discovered the large eggs, or 
 rather pupce, of these flies, as big as the flies themselves, 
 which he hatched in his own bosom. Any person that 
 will take the trouble to examine the old nests of either 
 species of swallows may find in them the black shining 
 cases or skins of the pupce of these insects : but for 
 other particulars, too long for this place, we refer the 
 reader to L'Histoire des Insectes of that admirable 
 entomologist, torn. iv. pi. 31. 
 
 LETTER XVI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Nov. 20, 1773. 
 
 IN obedience to your injunctions I sit down to give you 
 some account of the house martin or martlet; and, if 
 my monography of this little domestic and familiar bird 
 should happen to meet with your approbation, I may 
 probably soon extend my inquiries to the rest of the 
 British Hirundines the swallow, the swift, and the 
 bank martin. 
 
 A few house martins begin to appear about the 16th 
 of April ; usually some few days later than the swal- 
 low. For some time after they appear, the Hirundines 
 in general pay no attention to the business of nidifica- 
 tion, but play and sport about either to recruit from the 
 fatigue of their journey, if they do migrate at all, or else 
 that their blood may recover its true tone and texture 
 after it has been so long benumbed by the severities of 
 
 obtained from the flanks of one horse six handfuls, which consisted of 
 upwards of a hundred specimens. He adds, " Mr. Bentley informs me, 
 from observations he made in the summer of 1818, while in Hampshire, 
 that the Hippoboscce are found in a considerably greater abundance on 
 white and light-coloured horses than on those of a black and dark colour ; 
 and this observation was confirmed by the stable-keepers in the vicinity 
 of the Forest." E. T. B. 
 
250 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 winter. About the middle of May, if the weather be 
 fine, the martin begins to think in earnest of providing 
 a mansion for its family. The crust or shell of this 
 nest seems to be formed of such dirt or loam as comes 
 most readily to hand, and is tempered and wrought 
 together with little bits of broken straws to render it 
 tough and tenacious. As this bird often builds against 
 a perpendicular wall without any projecting ledge under, 
 it requires its utmost efforts to get the first foundation 
 firmly fixed, so that it may safely carry the superstruc- 
 ture. On this occasion the bird not only clings with 
 its claws, but partly supports itself by strongly inclin- 
 ing its tail against the wall, making that a fulcrum ; and 
 thus steadied, it works and plasters the materials into 
 the face of the brick or stone. But then, that this work 
 may not, while it is soft and green, pull itself down by 
 its own weight, the provident architect has prudence 
 and forbearance enoifgh not to advance her work too 
 fast ; but by building only in the morning, and by dedi- 
 cating the rest of the day to food and amusement, gives 
 it sufficient time to dry and harden. About half an inch 
 seems to be a sufficient layer for a day. Thus careful 
 workmen when they build mud walls (informed at first 
 perhaps by this little bird) raise but a moderate layer at 
 a time, and then desist; lest the work should become 
 top-heavy, and so be ruined by its own weight. By this 
 method in about ten or twelve days is formed an hemis- 
 pheric nest with a small aperture towards the top, strong, 
 compact, and warm; and perfectly fitted for all the pur- 
 poses for which it was intended. But then nothing is 
 more common than for the house sparrow, as soon as 
 the shell is finished, to seize on it as its own, to eject 
 the owner, and to line it after its own manner. 
 
 After so much labour is bestowed in erecting a man- 
 sion, as Nature seldom works in vain, martins will 
 breed on for several years together in the same nest, 
 where it happens to be well sheltered and secure from 
 the injuries of weather. The shell or crust of the nest 
 
OFSELBORNE. 251 
 
 is a sort of rustic-work full of knobs and protuberances 
 on the outside : nor is the inside of those that I have 
 examined smoothed with any exactness at all; but is 
 rendered soft and warm, and fit for incubation, by a 
 lining of small straws, grasses, and feathers ; and some- 
 times by a bed of moss interwoven with wool. In this 
 nest they tread, or engender, frequently during the time 
 of building ; and the hen lays from three to five white 
 eggs. **< . 
 
 At first when the young are hatched, and are in a 
 naked and helpless condition, the parent birds, with 
 tender assiduity, carry out what comes away from their 
 young. Was it not for this affectionate cleanliness 
 the nestlings would soon be burnt up, and destroyed 
 in so deep and hollow a nest, by their own caustic 
 excrement. In the quadruped creation, the same neat 
 precaution is made use of; particularly among dogs 
 and cats, where the dams lick away what proceeds from 
 their young. But in birds there seems to be a particu- 
 lar provision, that the dung of nestlings is enveloped in 
 a tough kind of jelly, and therefore is the easier con- 
 veyed off without soiling or daubing 1 . Yet, as Nature 
 is cleanly in all her ways, the young perform this office 
 for themselves, in a little time, by thrusting their tails 
 out at the aperture of their nest. As the young of small 
 birds presently arrive at their qA/x/a, or full growth, they 
 
 1 It is a very curious provision made by nature, that the dung of 
 all nestlings is enclosed in a thin membrane, which enables the old birds 
 to carry it away in their bills, which they do regularly each time they 
 bring food to the nest. The young instinctively, even before they can 
 see, protrude their hind quarters to eject the dung from the nest ; but if 
 the parent did not carry it away, there would be a congeries of dirt under 
 the nest, which would not only be uncleanly, but would attract attention 
 and discover their retreat. As long as young birds are kept to their 
 nest in a basket or box, the membranous covering continues ; if they are 
 let out to perch, it ceases ; if they are shut down again in the nest or 
 basket, it reappears. The warmth and quiescence of the nest certainly 
 occasion it, and principally the quiescence ; but how it should have that 
 effect I cannot pretend to understand. It is a marvellous provision of 
 Almighty wisdom. W. H. 
 
252 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 soon become impatient of confinement, and sit all day 
 with their heads out at the orifice, where the dams, by 
 clinging to the nest, supply them with food from morn- 
 ing to night. For a time, the young are fed on the wing 
 by their parents; but the feat is done by so quick and 
 almost imperceptible a slight, that a person must have 
 attended very exactly to their motions before he would 
 be able to perceive it. As soon as the young are able 
 to shift for themselves, the dams immediately turn their 
 thoughts to the business of a second brood : while the 
 first flight, shaken off and rejected by their nurses, con- 
 gregate in great flocks, and are the birds that are seen 
 clustering and hovering on sunny mornings and even- 
 ings round towers and steeples, and on the roofs of 
 churches and houses. These congregatings usually be- 
 gin to take place about the first week in August ; and 
 therefore we may conclude that by that time the first 
 flight is pretty well over. The young of this species do 
 not quit their abodes all together ; but the more forward 
 birds get abroad some days before the rest. These, 
 approaching the eaves of buildings, and playing about 
 before them, make people think that several old ones 
 attend one nest. They are often capricious in fixing on 
 a nesting-place, beginning many edifices, and leaving 
 them unfinished ; but when once a nest is completed in 
 a sheltered place, it serves for several seasons. Those 
 which breed in a ready-finished house get the start, in 
 hatching, of those that build new, by ten days or a fort- 
 night. These industrious artificers are at their labours 
 in the long days before four in the morning: when they 
 fix their materials, they plaster them on with their 
 chins, moving their heads with a quick vibratory mo- 
 tion. They dip and wash as they fly sometimes in very 
 hot weather, but not so frequently as swallows. It has 
 been observed that martins usually build to a north- 
 east or north-west aspect, that the heat of the sun may 
 not crack and destroy their nests : but instances are 
 also remembered where they bred for many years in 
 
OF SELBORNE. 253 
 
 vast abundance in a hot stifled inn-yard, against a wall 
 facing to the south. 
 
 Birds in general are wise in their choice of situation : 
 but in this neighbourhood, every summer, is seen a 
 strong instance to the contrary at a house without eaves 
 in an exposed district, where some martins build year 
 by year in the corners of the windows. But, as the 
 corners of these windows (which face to the south-east 
 and south-west) are too shallow, the nests, are washed 
 down every hard rain ; and yet these birds drudge on 
 to no purpose from summer to summer, without chang- 
 ing their aspect or house. It is a piteous sight to see 
 them labouring when half their nest is washed away, 
 and bringing dirt "generis lapsi sarcire ruinas." Thus 
 is instinct a most wonderfully unequal faculty : in some 
 instances so much above reason, in other respects so 
 far below it! Martins love to frequent towns, especially 
 if there are great lakes and rivers at hand ; nay, they 
 even affect the close air of London. And I have not 
 only seen them nesting in the Borough, but even in the 
 Strand and Fleet Street; but then it was obvious from 
 the dinginess of their aspect that their feathers partook 
 of the filth of that sooty atmosphere. Martins are by 
 far the least agile of the four species ; their wings and 
 tails are short, and therefore they are not capable of 
 such surprising turns and quick and glancing evolutions 
 as the swallow. Accordingly, they make use of a placid 
 easy motion in a middle region of the air, seldom mount- 
 ing to any great height, and never sweeping long toge- 
 ther over the surface of the ground or water. They do 
 not wander far for food, but affect sheltered districts, 
 over some lake, or under some hanging wood, or in 
 some hollow vale, especially in windy weather. They 
 breed the latest of all the swallow kind : in 1772 they 
 had nestlings on to October the 21st, and are never 
 without unfledged young as late as Michaelmas. 
 
 As the summer declines, the congregating flocks 
 increase in numbers daily, by the constant accession of 
 
254 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 the second broods ; till at last they swarm in myriads 
 upon myriads round the villages on the Thames, dark- 
 ening the face of the sky as they frequent the aits of 
 that river, where they roost. They retire, the bulk of 
 them I mean, in vast flocks together, about the begin- 
 ning of October : but have appeared of late years in a 
 considerable flight in this neighbourhood, for one day 
 or two, as late as November the 3d and 6th, after they 
 were supposed to have been gone for more than a fort- 
 night. They therefore withdraw with us the latest of 
 any species. Unless these birds are very short-lived 
 indeed, or unless they do not return to the district 
 where they are bred, they must undergo vast devasta- 
 tions somehow, and somewhere ; for the birds that 
 return yearly bear no manner of proportion to the birds 
 that retire. 
 
 House martins are distinguished from their congeners 
 by having their legs covered with soft downy feathers 
 down to their toes. They are no songsters ; but twitter 
 in a pretty inward soft manner in their nests. During 
 the time of breeding, they are often greatly molested 
 with fleas. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XVII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, RINGMER, near LEWES, Dec. 9, 1773. 
 
 I RECEIVED your last favour just as I was setting out 
 for this place; and am pleased to find that my mono- 
 graphy met with your approbation. My remarks are 
 the result of many years' observation ; and are, I trust, 
 true in the whole : though I do not pretend to say that 
 they are perfectly void of mistake, or that a more nice 
 observer might not make many additions, since subjects 
 of this kind are inexhaustible. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 255 
 
 If you think my letter worthy the notice of your 
 respectable society, you are at liberty to lay it before 
 them ; and they will consider it, I hope, as it was in- 
 tended, as an humble attempt to promote a more minute 
 inquiry into natural history ; into the life and conversa- 
 tion of animals. Perhaps hereafter I may be induced 
 to take the house swallow under consideration ; and 
 from that proceed to the rest of the British Hirundines. 
 
 Though I have now travelled the Sussex downs up- 
 wards of thirty years, yet I still investigate that chain 
 of majestic mountains with fresh admiration year by 
 year ; and think I see new beauties every time I tra- 
 verse it. This range, which runs from Chichester east- 
 ward as far as East-Bourn, is about sixty miles in 
 length, and is called the South Downs, properly speak- 
 ing, only round Lewes. As you pass along you com- 
 mand a noble view of the wild, or weald, on one hand, 
 and the broad downs and sea on the other. Mr. Ray 
 used to visit a family l just at the foot of these hills, 
 and was so ravished with the prospect from Plumpton 
 Plain, near Lewes, that he mentions j;hose scapes in his 
 " Wisdom of God in the Works of the Creation" with 
 the utmost satisfaction, and thinks them equal to any 
 thing he had seen in the finest parts of Europe. 
 
 For my own part, I think there is somewhat pecu- 
 liarly sweet and amusing in the shapely figured aspect 
 of chalk hills, in preference to those of stone, which are 
 rugged, broken, abrupt, and shapeless. 
 
 Perhaps I may be singular in my opinion, and not so 
 happy as to convey to you the same idea ; but I never 
 contemplate these mountains without thinking I per- 
 ceive somewhat analogous to growth in their gentle 
 swellings and smooth fungus-like protuberances, their 
 fluted sides, and regular hollows and slopes, that carry 
 at once the air of vegetative dilatation and expansion. 
 Or was there ever a time when these immense 
 
 1 Mr. Courthope, of Danny. 
 
256 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 masses of calcareous matter were thrown into fermenta- 
 tion by some adventitious moisture; were raised and 
 leavened into such shapes by some plastic power ; and 
 so made to swell and heave their broad backs into the 
 sky so much above the less animated clay of the wild 
 below? 
 
 By what I can guess from the admeasurements of the 
 hills that have been taken round my house, I should 
 suppose that these hills surmount the wild at an average 
 at about the rate of five hundred feet. 
 
 One thing is very remarkable as to the sheep : from 
 the westward till you get to the river Adur all the flocks 
 have horns, and smooth white faces, and white legs; 
 and a hornless sheep is rarely to be seen : but as soon 
 as you pass that river eastward, and mount Beeding 
 Hill, all the flocks at once become hornless, or, as they 
 call them, poll sheep ; and have moreover black faces, 
 with a white tuft of wool on their foreheads, and 
 speckled and spotted legs: so that you would think 
 that the flocks of Laban were pasturing on one side of 
 the stream, and the variegated breed of his son-in-law 
 Jacob were cantoned along on the other. And this 
 diversity holds good respectively on each side from the 
 valley of Bramber and Beeding to the eastward, and 
 westward all the whole length of the downs. If you 
 talk with the shepherds on this subject, they tell you 
 that the case has been so from time immemorial ; and 
 smile at your simplicity if you ask them whether the 
 situation of these two different breeds might not be 
 reversed. However, an intelligent friend of mine near 
 Chichester is determined to try the experiment; and 
 has this autumn, at the hazard of being laughed at, 
 introduced a parcel of black -faced hornless rams among 
 his horned western ewes. The black-faced poll sheep 
 have the shortest legs and the finest wool 2 . 
 
 2 To assert that the black-faced, hornless race of sheep, known as 
 South Downs, can exist westward of the river Adur, would be super- 
 fluous : they are not only to be seen on the downs to the west of Bramber, 
 
OF SELBORNE. 257 
 
 As I had hardly ever before travelled these downs at 
 so late a season of the year, I was determined to keep 
 as sharp a look out as possible so near the southern 
 coast, with respect to the summer short-winged birds 
 of passage. We make great inquiries concerning the 
 withdrawing of the swallow kind, without examining 
 enough into the causes why this tribe is never to be 
 seen in winter ; for, entre nous, the disappearing of the 
 latter is more marvellous than that of the* -former, and 
 much more unaccountable. The Hirundines, if they 
 please, are certainly capable of migration ; and yet, no 
 doubt, are often found in a torpid state : but redstarts, 
 nightingales, whitethroats, blackcaps, &c. &c. are very 
 ill provided for long flights; have never been once 
 found, as I ever heard of, in a torpid state ; and yet can 
 never be supposed, in such troops, from year to year to 
 dodge and elude the eyes of the curious and inquisitive, 
 which from day to day discern the other small birds 
 that are known to abide our winters. But, notwith- 
 standing all my care, I saw nothing like a summer 
 bird of passage: and, what is more strange, not one 
 wheatear, though they abound so in the autumn as to 
 be a considerable perquisite to the shepherds that take 
 them; and though many are to be seen to my know- 
 ledge all the winter through in many parts of the south 
 of England. The most intelligent shepherds tell me 
 that some few of these birds appear on the downs in 
 March, and then withdraw to breed, probably, in war- 
 rens and stone-quarries : now and then a nest is 
 ploughed up in a fallow on the downs under a furrow, 
 but it is thought a rarity. At the time of wheat harvest, 
 they begin to be taken in great numbers ; are sent for 
 
 but every where throughout England ; so strongly have they been recom- 
 mended to general favour by their short legs and their fine wool. The 
 Dorsets, as they are called, the horned sheep with smooth white faces and 
 white legs, now occur much more rarely than the rival breed. Yet the 
 observation in the text is curious, as indicating .the rapid advance that 
 has taken place, in little more than half a century, in the knowledge and 
 power of the agriculturist. E. T. B. 
 
 8 
 
258 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 sale in vast quantities to Brighthelmstone and Tun- 
 bridge ; and appear at the tables of all the gentry that 
 entertain with any degree of elegance. About Michael- 
 mas they retire, and are seen no more till March. 
 Though these birds are, when in season, in great plenty 
 on the South downs round Lewes, yet at East-Bourn, 
 which is the eastern extremity of those downs, they 
 abound much more. One thing is very remarkable 
 that though in the height of the season so many hun- 
 dreds of dozens are taken, yet they never are seen to 
 flock ; and it is a rare thing to see more than three or 
 four at a time : so that there must be a perpetual flitting 
 and constant progressive succession. It does not ap- 
 pear that any wheatears are taken to the westward of 
 Hough ton Bridge, which stands on the river Arun 3 . 
 
 I did not fail to look particularly after my new mi- 
 gration of ring-ousels ; and to take notice whether they 
 continued on the downs to this season of the year ; as 
 I had formerly remarked them in the month of October 
 all the way from Chichester to Lewes wherever there 
 were any shrubs and covert: but not one bird of this 
 sort came within my observation. I only saw a few 
 larks and whinchats, some rooks, and several kites and 
 buzzards. 
 
 About Midsummer a flight of crossbills comes to the 
 pine-groves about this house, but never makes any long 
 stay. 
 
 The old tortoise, that I have mentioned in a former 
 letter, still continues in this garden ; and retired under 
 ground about the 20th of November, and came out 
 again for one day on the 30th : it lies now buried in a 
 wet swampy border under a wall facing to the south, 
 and is enveloped at present in mud and mire ! 
 
 Here is a large rookery round this house, the inha- 
 
 3 Mr. White says, that no wheatears are taken to the westward of 
 Houghton Bridge, on the river Arun ; it appears, however, this is not the 
 case. See the note to Mrs. Charlotte Smith's Poems, 1807, p. 168. 
 
 MlTFORD. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 259 
 
 bitants of which seem to get their livelihood very easily ; 
 for they spend the greatest part of the day on their nest- 
 trees when the weather is mild. These rooks retire 
 every evening all the winter from this rookery, where 
 they only call by the way, as they are going to roost in 
 deep woods: at the dawn of day they always revisit 
 their nest-trees, and are preceded a few minutes by a 
 flight of daws, that act, as it were, as their harbingers. 
 
 Pam, &c. 
 
 LETTER XVIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Jan. 29, 1774. 
 
 THE house swallow, or chimney swallow, is, undoubt- 
 edly, the first comer of all the British Hirundines; and 
 appears in general on or about the 13th of April, as I 
 have remarked from many years observation. Not but 
 now and then a straggler is seen much earlier : and, in 
 particular, when I was a boy, I observed a swallow for 
 a whole day together on a sunny warm Shrove Tuesday; 
 which day could not fall out later than the middle of 
 March, and often happened early in February. 
 
 It is worth remarking that these birds are seen first 
 about lakes and mill-ponds ; and it is also very parti- 
 cular, that if these early visiters happen to find frost 
 and snow, as was the case of the two dreadful springs 
 of 1770 and 1771, they immediately withdraw 1 for a 
 time. A circumstance this, much more in favour of 
 hiding than migration ; since it is much more probable 
 that a bird should retire to its hybernaculum just at 
 
 1 It appears to me very doubtful whether the swallows which appear 
 unseasonably for a few days do not perish when they are said to with- 
 draw. I do not see how they are identified when they are supposed to 
 reappear in due time. W. H. 
 
 s2 
 
26'0 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 hand, than return for a week or two only to warmer 
 latitudes. 
 
 The swallow, though called the chimney-swallow, by 
 no means builds altogether in chimneys, but often within 
 barns and outhouses against the rafters; and so she did 
 in Virgil's time. 
 
 " Ante 
 
 Garrula quaro tignis nidos suspendat hirundo." 
 
 In Sweden she builds in barns, and is called ladu 
 swala, the barn-swallow. Besides, in the warmer parts 
 of Europe there are no chimneys to houses except they 
 are English-built : in these countries she constructs her 
 nest in porches, and gateways, and galleries, and open 
 halls. 
 
 Here and there a bird may affect some odd, peculiar 
 place; as we have known a swallow build down the 
 shaft of an old well, through which chalk had been 
 formerly drawn up for the purpose of manure : but in 
 general with us this Hirundo breeds in chimneys ; and 
 loves to haunt those stacks where there is a constant 
 fire, no doubt for the sake of warmth. Not that it can 
 subsist in the immediate shaft where there is a fire; 
 but prefers one adjoining to that of the kitchen, and 
 disregards the perpetual smoke of that funnel, as I 
 have often observed with some degree of wonder. 
 
 Five or six or more feet down the chimney, does this 
 little bird begin to form her nest about the middle of 
 May, which consists, like that of the house martin, of 
 a crust or shell composed of dirt or mud, mixed with 
 short pieces of straw, to render it tough and permanent ; 
 with this difference, that whereas the shell of the martin 
 is nearly hemispheric, that of the swallow is open at 
 the top, and like half a deep dish : this nest is lined 
 with fine grasses, and feathers which are often collected 
 as they float in the air. 
 
 Wonderful is the address which this adroit bird 
 shows all day long in ascending and descending -with 
 
OP SELBORNE. 261 
 
 security through so narrow a pass. When hovering 
 over the mouth of the funnel, the vibrations of her 
 wings acting on the confined air occasion a rumbling 
 like thunder. It is not improbable that the dam sub- 
 mits to this inconvenient situation so low in the shaft, 
 in order to secure her broods from rapacious birds, and 
 particularly from owls, which frequently fall down 
 chimneys, perhaps in attempting to get at these nest- 
 lings. 
 
 The swallow lays from four to six white eggs, dotted 
 with red specks; and brings out her first brood about 
 the last week in June, or the first week in July. The 
 progressive method by which the young are introduced 
 into life is very amusing: first, they emerge from the 
 shaft with difficulty enough, and often fall down into 
 the rooms below: for a day or so they are fed on the 
 chimney-top, and then are conducted to the dead leaf- 
 less bough of some tree, where, sitting in a row, they 
 are attended with great assiduity, and may then be 
 called perchers. In a day or two more they become 
 flyers, but are still unable to take their own food; 
 therefore they play about near the place where the 
 dams are hawking for flies; and, when a mouthful is 
 collected, at a certain signal given, the dam and the 
 nestling advance, rising towards each other, and meeting 
 at an angle ; the young one all the while uttering such 
 a little quick note of gratitude and complacency, that a 
 person must have paid very little regard to the wonders 
 of Nature that has not often remarked this feat. 
 
 The dam betakes herself immediately to the business 
 of a second brood as soon as she is disengaged from her 
 first; which at once associates with the first broods of 
 house martins; and with them congregates, clustering 
 on sunny roofs, towers, and trees. This Hirundo brings 
 out her second brood towards the middle and end of 
 August. 
 
 All the summer long is the swallow a most instructive 
 pattern of unwearied industry and affection ; for, from 
 
262 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 morning to night, while there is a family to be sup- 
 ported, she spends the whole day in skimming close to 
 the ground, and exerting the most sudden turns and 
 quick evolutions. Avenues, and long walks under 
 hedges, and pasture fields, and mown meadows where 
 cattle graze, are her delight, especially if there are trees 
 interspersed; because in such spots insects most abound. 
 When a fly is taken a smart snap from her bill is heard, 
 resembling the noise at the shutting of a watchcase; 
 but the motion of the mandibles is too quick for the 
 eye. 
 
 The swallow, probably the male bird, is the excubitor 
 to house martins, and other little birds, announcing the 
 approach of birds of prey. For as soon as a hawk 
 appears, with a shrill alarming note he calls all the 
 swallows and martins about him; who pursue in a 
 body, and buffet and strike their enemy till they have 
 driven him from the village, darting down from above 
 on his back, and rising in a perpendicular line in perfect 
 security. This bird also will sound the alarm, and 
 strike at cats when they climb on the roofs of houses, 
 or otherwise approach the nests. Each species of Hi- 
 rundo drinks as it flies along, sipping the surface of 
 the water; but the swallow alone, in general, washes 
 on the wing, by dropping into a pool for many times 
 together: in very hot weather house martins and bank 
 martins dip and wash a little. 
 
 The swallow is a delicate songster, and in soft sunny 
 weather sings both perching and flying; on trees in a 
 kind of concert, and on chimney tops : is also a bold 
 flyer, ranging to distant downs and commons even in 
 windy weather, which the other species seem much to 
 dislike ; nay, even frequenting exposed seaport towns, 
 and making little excursions over the salt water. 
 Horsemen on wide downs are often closely attended 
 by a little party of swallows for miles together, which 
 plays before and behind them, sweeping around, and 
 collecting all the skulking insects that are roused by 
 
OF SELBORNE. 263 
 
 the trampling of the horses' feet : when the wind blows 
 hard, without this expedient, they are often forced to 
 settle to pick up their lurking prey. 
 
 This species feeds much on little Coleoptera, as well 
 as on gnats and flies; and often settles on dug ground, 
 or paths, for gravels to grind and digest its food. Before 
 they depart, for some weeks, to a bird, they forsake 
 houses and chimneys, and roost in trees ; and usually 
 withdraw about the beginning of October ; .though some 
 few stragglers may appear on at times till the first week 
 in November. 
 
 Some few pairs haunt the new and open streets of 
 London next the fields, but do not enter, like the house 
 martin, the close and crowded parts of the city. 
 
 Both male and female are distinguished from their 
 congeners by the length and forkedness of their tails. 
 They are undoubtedly the most nimble of all the spe- 
 cies; and when the male pursues the female in amorous 
 chase, they then go beyond their usual speed, and exert 
 a rapidity almost too quick for the eye to follow. 
 
 After this circumstantial detail of the life and dis- 
 cerning oropyjf of the swallow, I shall add, for your 
 farther amusement, an anecdote or two not much in 
 favour of her sagacity : 
 
 A certain swallow built for two years together on the 
 handles of a. pair of garden shears, that were stuck up 
 against the boards in an outhouse, and therefore must 
 have her nest spoiled whenever that implement was 
 wanted : and, what is stranger still, another bird of the 
 same species built its nest on the wings and body of 
 an owl that happened by accident to hang dead and 
 dry from the rafter of a barn. This owl, with the nest 
 on its wings, and with eggs in the nest, was brought as 
 a curiosity worthy the most elegant private museum in 
 Great Britain. The owner, struck with the oddity of 
 the sight, furnished the bringer with a large shell, or 
 conch, desiring him to fix it just where the owl hung: 
 the person did as he was ordered, and the following 
 
264 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 year a pair, probably the same pair, built their nest in 
 the conch, and laid their eggs 2 . 
 
 The owl and the conch make a strange grotesque 
 appearance, and are not the least curious specimens in 
 that wonderful collection of art and nature 3 . 
 
 Thus is instinct in animals, taken the least out of its 
 way, an undistinguishing, limited faculty ; and blind to 
 every circumstance that does not immediately respect 
 self-preservation, or lead at once to the propagation or 
 support of their species 4 . 
 I am, 
 
 With all respect, &c. &c. 
 
 * This anecdote is related, almost in the same words, and evidently 
 originally from the same pen, in Barrington's Miscellanies, p. 240. 
 E. T. B. 
 
 The identical specimen is still preserved in the collection of one of my 
 friends. W. Y. 
 
 3 Sir Aston Lever's Museum : [since entirely sold off, and variously 
 distributed.] 
 
 4 Two or three days after the flight of swallows had departed from this 
 country in September, I found a swallow sitting on the gravel walk before 
 the house door. When I had taken it up it sat on my finger, and ap- 
 peared to have been shot in the body near the base of the wing ; it was 
 quite emaciated, and looked most piteously at me, so that in compassion 
 I brought it on my finger into the house, and held it to a pane of the win- 
 dow where there were some flies, which it snapped at and devoured 
 greedily. I then offered it some nightingale's food on the point of a pen, 
 which it ate with equal satisfaction. In pity I found myself compelled 
 to take care of it, and I preserved it through the winter upon moist meat 
 and egg with a mixture of bread crumbs and fig dust, the nightingale's 
 food being too laxative for it. I had hoped that, if it survived, it would 
 recover the power of flight by the spring, when I had intended to give it 
 its liberty, but the injury had been too severe, and it was never able to 
 rise above a foot from the ground. I did not find it suffer from the sus- 
 ceptibility of cold in its feet, which has been mentioned by a gentleman, 
 who stated himself to have been unable to preserve swallows without 
 covering the perches with flannel. It was kept in the same situation as 
 some foreign birds, in a warmly furnished and inhabited room, and seemed 
 quite healthful, though weak from its wound. I observed some peculi- 
 arities in its habits ; that it had no notion of turning its back to the light 
 to spring up on a higher perch ; the consequence of which was, that in a 
 cage with a wooden back or hung against a wall, it would continue 
 always sitting on the lowest perch, which was nearer the light than the 
 upper one. It usually sat at the end of the perch furthest from the light, 
 
OF SELBORNE. 265 
 
 LETTER XIX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR sin, SELBORNE, Feb. 14, 1774. 
 
 I RECEIVED your favour of the eighth, and am pleased 
 to find that you read my little history of the swallow 
 with your usual candour : nor was I the less pleased to 
 find that you made objections where you saw reason. 
 
 As to the quotations, it is difficult to say precisely 
 which species of Hirundo Virgil might intend in the 
 lines in question, since the ancients did not attend to 
 specific differences like modern naturalists; yet some- 
 what may be gathered, enough to incline me to suppose 
 that in the two passages quoted, the poet had his eye 
 on the swallow. 
 
 In the first place the epithet garrula suits the swal- 
 low well, who is a great songster ; and not the martin, 
 which is rather a mute bird ; and when it sings is so 
 
 and, when hungry, slided itself along the perch towards its food, which it 
 seized with a sudden snap, and then returned to its place. On removing 
 it into a larger cage which was light on all sides, the only way to make 
 it sit on a high perch was to turn the ends of the perches to the light ; 
 and it appeared to want the common sense of other little birds in another 
 respect, that unless its pan of food was placed within convenient reach 
 of a perch on which it was disposed to sit, it would starve, and not move 
 from its perch to seek it. In a wild state it has the habit of taking its 
 food on the wing, and when it settles on a tree or rail, it remains there 
 for rest till it takes wing again, and has no habit of moving from twig to 
 twig, either in search of food or for recreation. Imprisonment, where it 
 has not space to take exercise on the wing, must therefore be very grievous 
 to it. The bird, which I had preserved through the winter, died in the 
 month of June, while I was absent from home. Its crippled state must 
 have added much to the unhealthiness of confinement without due exer- 
 cise. In a room large enough to admit of their flight, I make no doubt 
 that swallows might be very easily preserved through the winter, placing 
 their food conveniently by some perch on which they would willingly 
 alight. W. H. 
 
266 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 inward as scarce to be heard. Besides, if tignum in 
 that place signifies a rafter rather than a beam, as it 
 seems to me to do, then I think it must be the swallow 
 that is alluded to, and not the martin ; since the former 
 does frequently build within the roof against the rafters ; 
 while the latter always, as far as I have been able to 
 observe, builds without the roof against eaves and 
 cornices. 
 
 As to the simile, too much stress must not be laid on 
 it ; yet the epithet nigra speaks plainly in favour of the 
 swallow, whose back and wings are very black ; while 
 the rump of the martin is milk-white, its back and wings 
 blue, and all its under part white as snow. Nor can the 
 clumsy motions (comparatively clumsy) of the martin 
 well represent the sudden and artful evolutions and 
 quick turns which Juturna gave to her brother's cha- 
 riot, so as to elude the eSger pursuit of the enraged 
 ^Eneas. The verb sonat also seems to imply a bird 
 that is somewhat loquacious 1 . 
 
 "We have had a very wet autumn and winter, so as 
 to raise the springs to a pitch beyond any thing since 
 1764 ; which was a remarkable year for floods and high 
 waters. The land springs, which we call lavants, break 
 out much on the downs of Sussex, Hampshire, and 
 Wiltshire. The country people say when the lavants 
 rise, corn will always be dear; meaning that when the 
 earth is so glutted with water as to send forth springs 
 on the downs and uplands, that the corn vales must be 
 drowned ; and so it has proved for these ten or eleven 
 years past. For land springs have never obtained more 
 since the memory of man than during that period ; nor 
 has there been known a greater scarcity of all sorts of 
 
 i Nigra velut magnas domini cum divitis aedes 
 Pervolat, et pennis alta atria lustrat hirundo, 
 Pabula parva legens, nidisque loquacibus escas: 
 Et nunc porticibus vacuis, nunc humida circum 
 Stagna sonat." 
 
OF SELBORNE. 267 
 
 grain, considering the great improvements of modern 
 husbandry. Such a run of wet seasons a century or 
 two ago, would, I am persuaded, have occasioned a 
 famine. Therefore pamphlets and newspaper letters, 
 that talk of combinations, tend to inflame and mislead ; 
 since we must not expect plenty till Providence sends 
 us more favourable seasons. 
 
 The wheat of last year, all round this district, and in 
 the county of Rutland, and elsewhere, yields remark- 
 ably bad : and our wheat on the ground, by the conti- 
 nual late sudden vicissitudes from fierce frost to pouring 
 rains, looks poorly ; and the turnips rot very fast. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Feb. 26, 1774. 
 
 THE sand martin, or bank martin, is by much the least 
 of any of the British Hirundines; and, as far as we have 
 ever seen, the smallest known Hirundo: though Bris- 
 son asserts that there is one much smaller, and that is 
 the Hirundo esculenta. 
 
 But it is much to be regretted that it is scarce pos- 
 sible for any observer to be so full and exact as he 
 could wish in reciting the circumstances attending the 
 life and conversation of this little bird, since it is f era 
 naturd, at least in this part of the kingdom, disclaiming 
 all domestic attachments, and haunting wild heaths 
 and commons where there are large lakes ; while the 
 other species, especially the swallow and house martin, 
 are remarkably gentle and domesticated, and never 
 seem to think themselves safe but under the protection 
 of man. 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 Here arc in this parish, in the sand pits and banks of 
 the lakes of Wolmer Forest, several colonies of these 
 
 SAND MARTINS' OOLO.VY AT OAKHANOBR. 
 
 birds ; and yet they are never seen in the village ; nor 
 do they at all frequent the cottages that are scattered 
 about in that wild district. The only instance I ever 
 remember where this species haunts any building is at 
 the town of Bishop's Waltham, in this county, where 
 many sand martins nestle and breed in the scaffold 
 holes of the back wall of William of Wykeham's sta- 
 bles : but then this wall stands in a very sequestered 
 and retired enclosure, and faces upon a large and beau- 
 tiful lake. And indeed this species seems so to delight 
 in large waters, that no instance occurs of their abound- 
 ing, but near vast pools or rivers : and in particular it 
 has been remarked that they swarm in the banks of the 
 Thames in some places below London Bridge. 
 
 It is curious to observe with what different degrees 
 of architectonic skill Providence has endowed birds of 
 the same genus, and so nearly correspondent in their 
 general mode of life ! for while the swallow and the 
 house martin discover the greatest address in raising 
 
OF SELBORNE. 269 
 
 and securely fixing crusts or shells of loam as cunabula 
 for their young, the bank martin terebrates a round and 
 regular hole in the sand or earth, which is serpentine, 
 horizontal, and about two feet deep. At the inner end 
 of this burrow does this bird deposit, in a good degree 
 of safety, her rude nest, consisting of fine grasses and 
 feathers, usually goose feathers, very inartificially laid 
 together. 
 
 SAND MARTIN'S NEST. 
 
 Perseverance will accomplish any thing: though at 
 first one would be disinclined to believe that this weak 
 bird, with her soft and tender bill and claws, should 
 ever be able to bore the stubborn sand bank without 
 entirely disabling herself; yet with these feeble instru- 
 ments have I seen a pair of them make great dispatch : 
 and could remark how much they had scooped that day 
 by the fresh sand which ran down the bank, and was of 
 a different colour from that which lay loose and bleached 
 in the sun. 
 
 In what space of time these little artists are able to 
 mine and finish these cavities I have never been able to 
 discover, for reasons given above; but it would be a 
 matter worthy of observation, where it falls in the way 
 of any naturalist to make his remarks. This I have 
 often taken notice of, that several holes of different 
 depths are left unfinished at the end of summer. To 
 
270 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 imagine that these beginnings were intentionally made 
 in order to be in the greater forwardness for next spring, 
 is allowing perhaps too much foresight and rerumpru- 
 dentia to a simple bird. May not the cause of these 
 latebrce being left unfinished arise from their meeting in 
 those places with strata too harsh, hard, and solid, for 
 their purpose, which they relinquish, and go to a fresh 
 spot that works more freely ? Or may they not in other 
 places fall in with a soil as much too loose and mould- 
 ering, liable to founder, and threatening to overwhelm 
 them and their labours ? 
 
 One thing is remarkable that, after some years, the 
 old holes are forsaken and new ones bored; perhaps 
 because the old habitations grow foul and fetid from 
 long use, or because they may so abound with fleas as 
 to become untenantable. This species of swallow more- 
 over is strangely annoyed with fleas : and we have seen 
 fleas, bed fleas (Pulex irritans 1 ), swarming at the mouths 
 of these holes, like bees on the stools of their hives. 
 
 The following circumstance should by no means be 
 omitted that these birds do not make use of their 
 
 1 The flea of the sand martin, although to the unassisted eye so exceed- 
 ingly similar to the bed flea as to be scarcely distinguishable from it, is 
 altogether distinct. It appears even to be distinct from the flea of the 
 swallow, named by Mr. Stephens Pulex hinmdinis ; and has been indi- 
 cated by Mr. Curtis under the appellation of btfasciatus. By the latter 
 the sand martin's flea is referred to a genus separated by him from the 
 ordinary flea, Pulex, LINN., and distinguished by the name of Cerate- 
 phyllus : he having discovered that the antennae of the numerous insects 
 referrible to this last-named group have four or more joints; while in 
 Pulex irritans and its congeners those organs are only two-jointed. 
 
 Although it was stated by Latreille, so long since as the date of the 
 publication of his Genera Crustaceorum et Insectorum, that fleas possess 
 antennae, which he described as being situated on each side in a cavity 
 behind the eye, the minuteness of these little creatures rendering their 
 examination difficult, obstructed until about three years since the verifi- 
 cation of the fact by others : Latreille himself appearing, in 1829, to have 
 hesitated in averring it with the same certainty that he had expressed 
 upwards of twenty years before. In 1832, however, Mr. Haliday and 
 Mr. Curtis in England, and later in the year, M. Duges in France, redis- 
 covered these organs : and figures of them, as they were observed in se- 
 veral species, were given in the British Entomology and in the Annalcs 
 
OF SELBORNE. 271 
 
 caverns by way of hybernacula, as might be expected ; 
 since banks so perforated have been dug out with care 
 in the winter, when nothing was found but empty nests. 
 
 The sand martin arrives much about the same time 
 with the swallow, and lays, as she does, from four to 
 six white eggs. But as this species is cryptogame, car- 
 rying on the business of nidification, incubation, and 
 the support of its young in the dark, it would not be 
 so easy to ascertain the time of breeding, were it not 
 for the coming forth of the broods, which appear much 
 about the time, or rather somewhat earlier than those 
 of the swallow. The nestlings are supported, in com- 
 mon like those of their congeners, with gnats and other 
 small insects ; and sometimes they are fed with Libel- 
 lulce (dragon-flies) almost as long as themselves. In 
 the last week in June we have seen a row of these 
 sitting on a rail near a great pool as perchers ; and so 
 young and helpless, as easily to be taken by hand : but 
 whether the dams ever feed them on the wing, as swal- 
 lows and house martins do, we have never yet been 
 able to determine : nor do we know whether they pur- 
 sue and attack birds of prey. 
 
 When they happen to breed near hedges and enclo- 
 sures, they are dispossessed of their breeding holes by 
 
 des Sciences Naturelles. It may aid those who may be disposed to search 
 for so minute an organ on so small a creature to be informed that, accord- 
 ing to M. Duges, there is behind each eye a shallow but broad cavity, 
 ending below in a cleft and covered by a kind of operculum which is tri- 
 angular and immoveable : an arrangement which he compares to the orbit, 
 the temporal fossa, and the zygoma of the human skull. Under the oper- 
 culum and within the cleft is hidden a small flat body, which is raised, at 
 times, briskly into the uncovered portion of the depression. This is the 
 antenna, of larger size than is well adapted to the small space in which 
 it is lodged, and rendered capable of being contained in so limited a ca- 
 vity only by the flexures of its joints. The number or the form of these 
 joints appears to differ in almost every one of the indigenous fleas, nearly 
 twenty of which have now been discovered infesting various quadrupeds 
 and birds ; each of them being generally appropriated to its peculiar 
 species. 
 
 The sand martin's flea remains in considerable numbers in the deserted 
 nests after the departure of the bird. E. T. B. 
 
272 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 the house sparrow, which is on the same account a fell 
 adversary to house martins. 
 
 These Hirundines are no songsters, but rather mute, 
 making only a little harsh noise when a person ap- 
 proaches their nests. They seem not to be of a sociable 
 turn, never with us congregating with their congeners 
 in the autumn. Undoubtedly they breed a second time, 
 like the house martin and swallow ; and withdraw 
 about Michaelmas. 
 
 Though in some particular districts they may happen 
 to abound, yet in the whole, in the south of England at 
 least, is this much the rarest species. For there are 
 few towns or large villages but what abound with house 
 martins; few churches, towers, or steeples, but what 
 are haunted by some swifts ; scarce a hamlet or single 
 cottage chimney that has not its swallow; while the 
 bank martins, scattered here and there, live a seques- 
 tered life among some abrupt sand hills, and in the 
 banks of some few rivers. 
 
 These birds have a peculiar manner of flying; flitting 
 about with odd jerks and vacillations, not unlike the 
 motions of a butterfly. Doubtless the flight of all 
 Hirundines is influenced by, and adapted to, the pecu- 
 liar sort of insects which furnish their food. Hence it 
 would be worth inquiry to examine what particular 
 genus of insects affords the principal food of each 
 respective species of swallow. 
 
 Notwithstanding what has been advanced above, 
 some few sand martins, I see, haunt the skirts of Lon- 
 don, frequenting the dirty pools in St. George's Fields, 
 and about Whitechapel. The question is where these 
 build, since there are no banks or bold shores in that 
 neighbourhood : perhaps they nestle in the scaflbld 
 holes of some old or new deserted building. They dip 
 and wash as they fly sometimes, like the house martin 
 and swallow. 
 
 Sand martins differ from their congeners in the dimi- 
 nutiveness of their size and in their colour, which is 
 
OF SELBORNE. 273 
 
 what is usually called a mouse colour. Near Valencia, 
 in Spain, they are taken, says Willughby, and sold in 
 the markets for the table ; and are called by the country 
 people, probably from their desultory jerking manner of 
 flight, Papilion di Montagna*. 
 
 LETTER XXI, 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Sept. 28, 1774. 
 
 As the swift or black martin is the largest of the British 
 Hirundines, so is it undoubtedly the latest comer. For 
 I remember but one instance of its appearing before the 
 last week in April: and in some of our late frosty, 
 harsh springs, it has not been seen till the beginning of 
 May. This species usually arrives in pairs. 
 
 The swift, like the sand martin, is very defective in 
 architecture, making no crust, or shell, for its nest: but 
 forming it of dry grasses and feathers, very rudely and 
 inartificially put together. With all my attention to 
 these birds, I have never been able once to discover one 
 in the act of collecting or carrying in materials: so 
 that I have suspected (since their nests are exactly the 
 same) that they sometimes usurp upon the house-spar- 
 rows, and expel them, as sparrows do the house and 
 sand martin ; well remembering that I have seen them 
 squabbling together at the entrance of their holes ; and 
 the sparrows up in arms, and much disconcerted at 
 these intruders. And yet I am assured by a nice ob- 
 
 2 As connected with the question of migration it should be remembered 
 that Willughby was at Valencia about the end of September, or rather, 
 according to the new style, after the beginning of October. At the same 
 time there were also great numbers of swallows in the markets for sale. 
 E. T. B. 
 
 T 
 
274 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 server in such matters, that they do collect feathers for 
 their nests in Andalusia; and that he has shot them 
 with such materials in their mouths. 
 
 Swifts, like sand martins, carry on the business of 
 nidification quite in the dark, in crannies of castles, 
 and towers, and steeples, and upon the tops of the walls 
 of churches under the roof; and therefore cannot be so 
 narrowly watched as those species that build more 
 openly : but, from what I could ever observe, they begin 
 nesting about the middle of May; and I have remarked, 
 from eggs taken, that they have sat hard by the 9th of 
 June. In general they haunt tall buildings, churches, 
 and steeples, and breed only in such : yet in this village 
 some pairs frequent the lowest and meanest cottages, 
 and educate their young under those thatched roofs. 
 We remember but one instance where they breed out of 
 buildings ; and that is in the sides of a deep chalk-pit 
 near the town of Odiham, in this county, where we 
 have seen many pairs entering the crevices, and skim- 
 ming and squeaking round the precipices. 
 
 As I have regarded these amusive birds with no 
 small attention, if I should advance something new 
 and peculiar with respect to them, and different from 
 all other birds, I might perhaps be credited ; especially 
 as my assertion is the result of many years exact obser- 
 vation. The fact that I would advance is, that swifts 
 pair on the wing: and I would wish any nice observer, 
 that is startled at this supposition, to use his own eyes, 
 and I think he will soon be convinced. In another 
 class of animals, viz. the insect, nothing is so common 
 as to see the different species of many genera pairing 
 as they fly. The swift is almost continually on the 
 wing ; and as it never settles on the ground, on trees, 
 or roofs, would seldom find opportunity for pairing ex- 
 cept in the air. If any person would watch these birds 
 of a fine morning in May, as they are sailing round 
 at a great height from the ground, he would see, every 
 
OFSELBORNE. 275 
 
 now and then, two meet, and both of them sink down 
 together for many fathoms with a loud piercing shriek. 
 
 As the swift eats, drinks, collects materials for its 
 nest, and, as it seems, propagates on the wing ; it ap- 
 pears to live more in the air than any other bird, and to 
 perform all functions there save those of sleeping and 
 incubation. 
 
 This Hirundo differs widely from its congeners in 
 laying invariably but two eggs at a time/ which are 
 milk-white, long, and peaked at the small end ; whereas 
 the other species lay at each brood from four to six. It 
 is a most alert bird, rising very early, and retiring to 
 roost very late; and is on the wing in the height of 
 summer at least sixteen hours. In the longest days it 
 does not withdraw to rest till a quarter before nine in 
 the evening, being the latest of all day birds. Just 
 before they retire, whole groups of them assemble high 
 in the air, and squeak, and shoot about with wonderful 
 rapidity. But this bird is never so much alive as in 
 sultry thundry weather, when it expresses great ala- 
 crity, and calls forth all its powers. In hot mornings, 
 several, getting together in little parties, dash round 
 the steeples and churches, squeaking as they go in a 
 very clamorous manner : these, by nice observers, are 
 supposed to be males serenading their sitting hens ; 
 and not without reason, since they seldom squeak till 
 they come close to the walls or eaves, and since those 
 within utter at the same time a little inward note of 
 complacency. 
 
 When the hen has sat hard all day, she rushes forth 
 just as it is almost dark, and stretches and relieves her 
 weary limbs, and snatches a scanty meal for a few 
 minutes, and then returns to her duty of incubation. 
 Swifts, when wantonly and cruelly shot while they have 
 young, discover a little lump of insects in their mouths, 
 which they pouch and hold under their tongue 1 . In 
 
 1 An example of the bird, shot under these circumstances, was exhi- 
 bited by Dr. Heming to the Zoological Society in 1834. The collection 
 
 T 2 
 
276 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 general they feed in a much higher district than the 
 other species : a proof that gnats and other insects do 
 also abound to a considerable height in the air: they 
 also range to vast distances; since locomotion is no 
 labour to them, who are endowed with such wonderful 
 powers of wing. Their powers seem to be in proportion 
 to their levers; and their wings are longer in proportion 
 than those of almost any other bird. When they mute, 
 or ease themselves in flight, they raise their wings, and 
 make them meet over their backs. 
 
 At some certain times in the summer I had remarked 
 that swifts were hawking very low for hours together 
 over pools and streams; and could not help inquiring 
 into the object of their pursuit that induced them to 
 descend so much below their usual range. After some 
 trouble, I found that they were taking Phryganece, 
 Ephemera, and Libellulce (cadew-flies, may-flies, and 
 dragon-flies), that were just emerged out of their aurelia 
 state. I then no longer wondered that they should be 
 so willing to stoop for a prey that afforded them such 
 plentiful and succulent nourishment. 
 
 They bring out their young about the middle or latter 
 end of July : but as these never become perchers, nor, 
 that ever I could discern, are fed on the wing by their 
 dams, the coming forth of the young is not so notorious 
 as in the other species. 
 
 On the 30th of last June I untiled the eaves of a 
 house where many pairs build, and found in each nest 
 only two squab, naked pulli: on the 8th of July I 
 repeated the same inquiry, and found they had made 
 very little progress towards a fledged state, but were 
 
 of insects, in this instance, was much larger than would have been antici- 
 pated from the notice in the text, and formed a considerable lump at the 
 base of the lower jaw and upper part of the throat, of a rounded form, 
 and measuring in length eleven lines and in depth half an inch : the skin 
 was so distended over it as to show distinctly and widely separated the 
 insertion of each of the small feathers. It was ascertained, by opening it, 
 to be merely a dilatation of the throat, and not a distinct pouch or cavity. 
 E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 277 
 
 still naked and helpless. From whence we may con- 
 clude that birds whose way of life keeps them perpetu- 
 ally on the wing would not be able to quit their nest till 
 the end of the month. Swallows and martins, that have 
 numerous families, are continually feeding them every 
 two or three minutes ; while swifts, that have but two 
 young to maintain, are much at their leisure, and do 
 not attend on their nests for hours together. 
 
 Sometimes they pursue and strike at hawks that 
 come in their way ; but not with that vehemence and 
 fury that swallows express on the same occasion. They 
 are out all day long in wet days, feeding about, and 
 disregarding still rain : from whence two things may be 
 gathered ; first, that many insects abide high in the air, 
 even in rain ; and next, that the feathers of these birds 
 must be well preened to resist so much wet. Windy, 
 and particularly windy weather with heavy showers, 
 they dislike ; and on such days withdraw, and are scarce 
 ever seen. 
 
 There is a circumstance respecting the colour of 
 swifts, which seems not to be unworthy our attention. 
 When they arrive in the spring they are all over of a 
 glossy, dark soot colour, except their chins, which are 
 white ; but by being all day long in the sun and air, 
 they become quite weather-beaten and bleached before 
 they depart 2 , and yet they return glossy again in the 
 spring. Now, if they pursue the sun into lower lati- 
 tudes, as some suppose, in order to enjoy a perpetual 
 summer, why do they not return bleached? Do they 
 not rather, perhaps, retire to rest for a season, and at 
 that juncture moult and change their feathers, since all 
 other birds are known to moult soon after the season of 
 breeding. 
 
 Swifts are very anomalous in many particulars, dis- 
 senting from all their congeners not only in the number 
 
 2 Our swift departs before its moult, and when its plumage is at the 
 worst from wear and tear. Our summer visiters generally complete 
 their moult before they leave us, but not the Hirundinidte. W. Y. 
 
278 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 of their young, but in breeding but once in a summer; 
 whereas all the other British Hirundines breed invari- 
 ably twice. It is past all doubt that swifts can breed 
 but once, since they withdraw in a short time after the 
 flight of their young, and some time before their con- 
 geners bring out their second broods. We may here 
 remark, that, as swifts breed but once in a summer, and 
 only two at a time, and the other Hirundines twice, the 
 latter, who lay from four to six eggs, increase at an 
 average five times as fast as the former. 
 
 But in nothing are swifts more singular than in their 
 early retreat. They retire, as to the main body of them, 
 by the 10th of August, and sometimes a few days 
 sooner: and every straggler invariably withdraws by 
 the 20th, while their congeners, all of them, stay till the 
 beginning of October ; many of them all through that 
 month, and some occasionally to the beginning of No- 
 vember. This early retreat is mysterious and wonder- 
 ful, since that time is often the sweetest season in the 
 year. But, what is more extraordinary, they begin to 
 retire still earlier in the most southerly parts of Anda- 
 lusia, where they can be no ways influenced by any 
 defect of heat ; or, as one might suppose, defect of 
 food. Are they regulated in their motions with us by 
 a failure of food, or by a propensity to moulting, or 
 by a disposition to rest after so rapid a life, or by 
 what? This is one of those incidents in natural history 
 that not only baffles our researches, but almost eludes 
 our guesses ! 
 
 These Hirundines never perch on trees or roofs, and 
 so never congregate with their congeners. They are 
 fearless while haunting their nesting places, and are 
 not to be scared with a gun ; and are often beaten down 
 with poles and cudgels as they stoop to go under the 
 eaves. Swifts are much infested with those pests to 
 the genus called Hippoboscce Hirundinis ; and often 
 wriggle and scratch themselves, in their flight, to get 
 rid of that clinging annoyance. 
 
OF SELHORNE. 279 
 
 Swifts are no songsters, and have only one harsh 
 screaming note : yet there are ears to which it is not 
 displeasing, from an agreeable association of ideas, 
 since that note never occurs but in the most lovely 
 summer weather. 
 
 They never settle on the ground but through acci- 
 dent; and when down can hardly rise, on account of 
 the shortness of their legs and the length of their wings : 
 neither can they walk, but only crawl; buf-they have a 
 strong grasp with their feet, by which they cling to 
 walls. Their bodies being flat they can enter a very 
 narrow crevice ; and where they cannot pass on their 
 bellies they will turn up edgewise. 
 
 The particular formation of the foot discriminates the 
 swift from all the British Hirundines ; and indeed from 
 all other known birds, the Hirundo Melba, or great white- 
 bellied swift of Gibraltar, excepted ; for it is so dis- 
 posed as to carry " omnes quatuor digitos anticos," all its 
 four toes forward ; besides, the least toe, which should 
 be the back toe, consists of one bone alone, and the 
 other three only of two apiece: a construction most 
 rare and peculiar, but nicely adapted to the purposes 
 in which their feet are employed. This, and some 
 peculiarities attending the nostrils and under mandible, 
 have induced a discerning naturalist 8 to suppose that 
 this species might constitute a genus per se*. 
 
 3 John Antony Scopoli, of Carniola, M. D. 
 
 4 The genus suggested by Scopoli has been adopted by modern zoolo- 
 gists, and has been made to include all the species of swifts: but the 
 name which he gave to it has been superseded by that of Cypselus, ap- 
 plied to it by Illiger and adopted from Aristotle, which is considered as 
 indicating the habit of hiding their nests in holes. And not only has the 
 generic name been altered, but an attempt, and apparently a successful 
 one, in one instance at least, has been made to change the trivial appel- 
 lations also of the two European species ; the Hirundo Apns of Linnaeus 
 being the Cypselus murarius of M. Temminck, and the Hirundo Melba the 
 Cups. Alpinus of the author last quoted. Both these birds are now in- 
 cluded in the British list. E. T. B. 
 
 Three examples of the great white-bellied swift of Gibraltar have 
 been killed in the British islands since the days of Gilbert White : one 
 
280 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 In London a party of swifts frequents the Tower, 
 playing and feeding over the river just below the bridge : 
 others haunt some of the churches of the Borough next 
 the fields ; but do not venture, like the house martin, 
 into the close crowded part of the town. 
 
 The Swedes have bestowed a very pertinent name 
 on this swallow, calling it ring-swala, from the per- 
 petual rings or circles that it takes round the scene of 
 its nidification. 
 
 Swifts feed on Coleoptera, or small beetles with hard 
 cases over their wings, as well as on the softer insects ; 
 but it does not appear how they can procure gravel 5 
 to grind their food, as swallows do, since they never 
 settle on the ground. Young ones, overrun with Hip- 
 pobosca, are sometimes found, under their nests, fallen 
 to the ground ; the number of vermin rendering their 
 abode insupportable any longer. They frequent in this 
 village several abject cottages; yet a succession still 
 
 on the south coast of Ireland, recorded by Mr. Selby, to whom the bird 
 was sent; one in Norfolk ; and one by the gardener of R. Holford, Esq. 
 at Kingsgate on the coast of Kent. W. Y. 
 
 6 Very few of the soft billed birds eat gravel ; the nightingale never, 
 nor does the redstart. The whin chat in confinement will sometimes 
 swallow stones as large as swan shot, which pass through very soon ; 
 but he seems to eat them like a fool, taking them for victuals, in the same 
 manner as I have seen tame redstarts, which do not naturally choose ve- 
 getable food, swallow green peas, after passing several minutes in trying 
 to kill them. But these birds have the power of regurgitating the shells 
 and hard parts of insects which they cannot digest, throwing them off in 
 little oval balls. Young birds before they feed themselves appear to be 
 endowed with powers of digestion which they do not afterwards retain. 
 There is no difficulty in rearing any young Sylvia; till they are full grown ; 
 but after this period the difficulty of preserving them by artificial food 
 commences. The redstart gives to its young such beetles as the aged bird 
 is afraid of swallowing. It feeds its young entirely with flies, and cole- 
 opterous insects. The brown wren does the same, often giving them the 
 large lambda moth. The yellow wren gives aphides and small green 
 caterpillars. Full grown whitethroats, which have been reared in a cage, 
 at the sight of a green caterpillar, immediately perk i.p their heads, and 
 cry etchat, etchat. Tame Sylvia are such fools, that if the floor of their 
 cage is cleaned by a flannel rubber or woollen mop, they eat the woollen 
 hairs, which form an indigestible ball in their stomach, which they cannot 
 regurgitate, and which is sure to kill them. W. H. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 281 
 
 haunts the same unlikely roofs: a good proof this that 
 the same birds return to the same spots. As they must 
 stoop very low to get up under these humble eaves, cats 
 lie in wait, and sometimes catch them on the wing. 
 
 On the 5th of July, 1775, I again untiled part of a 
 roof over the nest of a swift. The dam sat in the nest; 
 but so strongly was she affected by natural cro^y^ for 
 her brood, which she supposed to be in danger, that, 
 regardless of her own safety, she would not 'stir, but lay 
 sullenly by them, permitting herself to be taken in hand. 
 The squab young we brought down and placed on the 
 grass-plot, where they tumbled about, and were as 
 helpless as a new-born child. While we contemplated 
 their naked bodies, their unwieldy disproportioned ab- 
 domina, and their heads, too heavy for their necks to 
 support, we could not but wonder when we reflected 
 that these shiftless beings in a little more than a fort- 
 night would be able to dash through the air almost with 
 the inconceivable swiftness of a meteor ; and, perhaps, 
 in their emigration, must traverse vast continents and 
 oceans as distant as the equator. So soon does Nature 
 advance small birds to their yXiyJu, or state of perfec- 
 tion ; while the progressive growth of men and large 
 quadrupeds is slow and tedious 6 ! 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 6 On the 15th of July I observed some children tossing up a full grown 
 young swift which could not fly, and had fallen down from its nest in the 
 lofty tower of the church. It was full feathered. I took it from them 
 and brought it into my room, and fed it, thinking it might possibly be able 
 to fly away after taking some food, and so rejoin its parents. I crammed 
 it with some nightingale's food, and before long it tools victuals willingly, 
 snapping it sharply off the end of a pen ; but though completely feathered 
 it was quite inert, unable to fly, and not desirous of moving. Having 
 taken it in from chanty, I could not now get rid of it. The food of the 
 nightingale was too laxative for it, but a little meat and hard egg mixed 
 with bread, and a good deal of finely sifted fig dust (which is, I believe, 
 oatmeal, from oats which have not been kiln-dried), and given, not very 
 moist, in little pellets, agreed with it perfectly. It never cried like other 
 little birds for food, but when left too long without, it would get under 
 way and crawl round the room. 
 
 I was much surprised at finding that, although quite mute in the day- 
 
282 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER XXII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Sept. 13, 1774. 
 
 BY means of a straight cottage chimney I had an op- 
 portunity this summer of remarking, at my leisure, how 
 swallows ascend and descend through the shaft: but 
 my pleasure in contemplating the address with which 
 this feat was performed to a considerable depth in the 
 
 time, it made a singular singing noise at night when the candles were lit, 
 though covered over with a sheet of paper. The noise was like the chirp- 
 ing of a cricket, or rather like the singing of a teakettle. I cannot doubt 
 that the old ones do likewise by night. 
 
 Finding its scrambling about the room inconvenient, I made it an en- 
 closure in the embrasure of one of the windows, where some sheets of 
 paper had been spread to prevent its dirtying the room, and which I 
 fenced in by a row of quarto books. It lived in general in a small square 
 box which had something soft at the bottom for it to lie upon, and two op- 
 posite apertures near the top which accommodated its head and tail. The 
 bottom of the apertures was two inches and a half from the ground, and 
 it showed some skill in climbing into the box, which it did by means of 
 its bill, using it like a parrot 
 
 After I had had it a week I tried to practise it in flying; it could not, 
 unless lifted, rise many inches above the carpet, but it improved gra- 
 dually. During the first week it appeared to take very little notice of 
 me, seizing the victuals offered to it at the point of a quill as if mechani- 
 cally with a sudden snap of the bill ; but after that time it began to look 
 up to me for food, when I approached : when hungry it descended from 
 the box in which it was usually placed, and began scrambling about its 
 enclosure, giving no notice of its wants but by the rustling of the paper 
 as it moved. I judged from this that its parents had probably been shot, 
 and that hunger made it quit the nest : when I had had it ten days, if 
 tossed up gently it could fly once round the room and then dropped, but 
 it could not surmount the quarto volumes by which it was penned in. It 
 could however climb well up the wires of a cage, and would cling fast to 
 them. On the last day of July it flew three times round the room before 
 it fell, but the next day it did not succeed so well. 
 
 It seemed now to listen when the swifts out of doors were screaming, 
 and tried much to get out of its bounds by climbing up on the plinth, and 
 trying from thence to get over the books, which it effected once. On the 
 4th of August in the evening I thought of taking it down into a large 
 level pasture and practising it in flying there, for the swifts had not many 
 
OF SELBORNE. 283 
 
 chimney, was somewhat interrupted by apprehensions 
 lest my eyes might undergo the same fate with those of 
 Tobit 1 . 
 
 Perhaps it may be some amusement to you to hear 
 at what times the different species of Hirundines arrived 
 this spring in three very distant counties of this king- 
 dom. With us the swallow was seen first on April the 
 4th, the swift on April the 24th, the bank martin on 
 April the 12th, and the house martin not till April the 
 30th. At South Zele, Devonshire, swallows did not 
 arrive till April the 25th ; swifts in plenty, on May the 
 1st; and house martins not till the middle of May. At 
 Blackburne, in Lancashire, swifts were seen April the 
 28th ; swallows, April the 29th ; house martins, May the 
 1st. Do these different dates in such distant districts, 
 prove any thing for or against migration ? 
 
 A farmer, near Weyhill, fallows his land with two 
 teams of asses ; one of which works till noon, and the 
 other in the afternoon. When these animals have done 
 their work, they are penned all niglit, like sheep, on the 
 fallow. In the winter they are confined and foddered in 
 a yard, and make plenty of dung. 
 
 Linnaeus says, that hawks " paciscuntur inducias cum 
 j quamdiu cuculus cuculat :" but it appears to me 
 
 more days to remain in England, and I feared they would depart without 
 my nursling. I had carried it through two or three rooms lying on the 
 palm of my hand, and had just passed the threshold of the house door, 
 and was in the act of stroking its head with my fingers, when, upon the 
 swifts screaming in the air, it suddenly sprang out of my hand and flew 
 low round the carriage drive, as it had been accustomed to fly round the 
 room ; and, passing over my head as it came round, it rose high in the air 
 to join the wild swifts, and was never seen by us again. Three days after, 
 the swifts had all departed ; and I make little doubt that in less than a 
 week after its vain attempts to surmount Johnson's Dictionary, my young 
 friend was flying sky high in the heart of Africa. I know nothing more 
 marvellous, than such an abrupt transition from a state of the most imbe- 
 cile helplessness and sloth, to such etherial activity. 
 
 A solitary swift was seen by me flying high near the church tower on 
 the 21st of August, being near a fortnight after the general migration. 
 This might have been the bird which I had brought up. W. H. 
 
 > Tobit, ii. 10. 
 
284 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 that, during that period, many little birds are taken and 
 destroyed by birds of prey, as may be seen by their 
 feathers left in lanes and under hedges. 
 
 The missel-thrush is, while breeding, fierce and pug- 
 nacious, driving such birds as approach its nest, with 
 great fury, to a distance. The Welsh call it pen y llwyn, 
 the head or master of the coppice. He suffers no mag- 
 pie, jay, or blackbird, to enter the garden where he 
 haunts ; and is, for the time, a good guard to the new 
 sown legumens. In general he is very successful in the 
 defence of his family : but once I observed in my gar- 
 den, that several magpies came determined to storm the 
 nest of a missel-thrush : the dams defended their man- 
 sion with great vigour, and fought resolutely pro aris et 
 focis; but numbers at last prevailed, they tore the nest 
 to pieces, and swallowed the young alive. 
 
 In the season of nidification the wildest birds are 
 comparatively tame. Thus the ring-dove breeds in my 
 fields, though they are continually frequented ; and the 
 missel-thrush, though most shy and wild in the autumn 
 and winter, builds in my garden close to a walk where 
 people are passing all day long. 
 
 Wall fruit abounds with me this year ; but my grapes, 
 that used to be forward and good, are at present back- 
 ward beyond all precedent: and this is not the worst 
 of the story ; for the same ungenial weather, the same 
 black cold solstice, has injured the more necessary 
 fruits of the earth, and discoloured and blighted our 
 wheat. The crop of hops promises to be very large. 
 
 Frequent returns of deafness incommode me sadly, 
 and half disqualify me for a naturalist ; for, when those 
 fits are upon me I lose all the pleasing notices and little 
 intimations arising from rural sounds; and May is to 
 me as silent and mute with respect to the notes of 
 birds, &c. as August. My eyesight is, thank God, 
 quick and good ; but with respect to the other sense, I 
 am, at times, disabled : 
 
 " Aud Wisdom at one entrance quite shut out." 
 
OF SELBORNE. 285 
 
 LETTER XXIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, June 8, 1775. 
 
 ON September the 21st, 1741, being then" on a visit, 
 and intent on field diversions, I rose before daybreak : 
 when I came into the enclosures, I found the stubbles 
 and clover-grounds matted all over with a thick coat 
 of cobweb, in the meshes of which a copious and heavy 
 dew hung so plentifully that the whole face of the 
 country seemed, as it were, covered with two or three 
 setting-nets drawn one over another. When the dogs 
 attempted to hunt, their eyes were so blinded and 
 hoodwinked that they could not proceed, but were 
 obliged to lie down and scrape the incumbrances from 
 their faces with their fore feet, so that, finding my sport 
 interrupted, I returned home musing in my mind on 
 the oddness of the occurrence. 
 
 As the morning advanced the sun became bright and 
 warm, and the day turned out one of those most lovely 
 ones which no season but the autumn produces; cloud- 
 less, calm, serene, and worthy of the south of France 
 itself. 
 
 About nine an appearance very unusual began to 
 demand our attention, a shower of cobwebs falling from 
 very elevated regions, and continuing, without any in- 
 terruption till the close of the day. These webs were 
 not single filmy threads, floating in the air in all direc- 
 tions, but perfect flakes or rags; some near an inch 
 broad, and five or six long, which fell with a degree of 
 velocity, that showed they were considerably heavier 
 than the atmosphere. 
 
 On every side as the observer turned his eyes might 
 he behold a continual succession of fresh flakes falling- 
 
286 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 into his sight, and twinkling like stars as they turned 
 their sides towards the sun. 
 
 How far this wonderful shower extended would be 
 difficult to say; but we know that it reached Bradley, 
 Selborne, and Alresford, three places which lie in a sort 
 of a triangle, the shortest of whose sides is about eight 
 miles in extent. 
 
 At the second of those places there was a gentleman 
 (for whose veracity and intelligent turn we have the 
 greatest veneration) who observed it the moment he 
 got abroad; but concluded that, as soon as he came 
 upon the hill above his house, where he took his morn- 
 ing rides, he should be higher than this meteor, which 
 he imagined might have been blown, like thistle-down, 
 from the common above: but, to his great astonishment, 
 when he rode to the most elevated part of the down, 
 three hundred feet above his fields, he found the webs 
 in appearance still as much above him as before ; still 
 descending into sight in a constant succession, and 
 twinkling in the sun, so as to draw the attention of the 
 most incurious. 
 
 Neither before nor after was any such fall observed ; 
 but on this day the flakes hung in the trees and hedges 
 so thick, that a diligent person sent out might have 
 gathered baskets full. 
 
 The remark that I shall make on these cobwebliko 
 appearances, called gossamer, is, that, strange and 
 superstitious as the notions about them were formerly, 
 nobody in these days doubts but that they are the real 
 production of small spiders, which swarm in the fields 
 in fine weather in autumn, and have a power of shoot- 
 ing out webs from their tails so as to render themselves 
 buoyant and lighter than air. But why these apterous 
 insects should that day take such a wonderful aerial 
 excursion, and why their webs should at once become 
 so gross and material as to be considerably more weighty 
 than air, and to descend with precipitation, is a matter 
 beyond my skill. If I might be allowed to hazard a 
 
OP SELBORNE. 287 
 
 supposition, I should imagine that those filmy threads, 
 when first shot, might be entangled in the rising dew, 
 and so drawn up, spiders and all, by a brisk evapora- 
 tion into the regions where clouds are formed : and if 
 the spiders have a power of coiling and thickening their 
 webs in the air, as Dr. Lister says they have [see his 
 Letters to Mr. Ray], then, when they were become 
 heavier than the air, they must fall. 
 
 Every day in fine weather, in autumn chiefly, do I 
 see those spiders shooting out their webs and mounting 
 aloft : they will go off from your finger if you will take 
 them into your hand. Last summer one alighted on 
 my book as I was reading in the parlour ; and, running 
 to the top of the page, and shooting out a web, took its 
 departure from thence. But what I most wondered at 
 was, that it went off with considerable velocity in a 
 place where no air was stirring ; and I am sure that I 
 did not assist it with my breath : so that these little 
 crawlers seem to have, while mounting, some locomo- 
 tive power without the use of wings, and to move in the 
 air faster than the air itself. 
 
 LETTER XXIV 1 . 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Aug. 15, 1775. 
 
 THERE is a wonderful spirit of sociality in the brute 
 creation, independent of sexual attachment : the con- 
 gregating of gregarious birds in the winter is a remark- 
 able instance. 
 
 Many horses, though quiet with company, will not 
 stay one minute in a field by themselves : the strongest 
 
 1 Barrington has inserted this Letter in his Miscellanies, p. 251 ; pre- 
 facing it thus : " I shall here, on this head, subjoin part of a letter which 
 I have received from my often-mentioned correspondent, the Rev. Mr. 
 White, of Selborne, in Hampshire." E. T. B. 
 
288 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 fences cannot restrain them. My neighbour's horse 
 will not only not stay by himself abroad, but he will 
 not bear to be left alone in a strange stable without 
 discovering the utmost impatience, and endeavouring 
 to break the rack and manger with his fore feet : he 
 has been known to leap out at a stable window, 
 through which dung was thrown, after company ; an1 
 yet in other respects is remarkably quiet. Oxen and 
 cows will not fatten by themselves; but will neglect 
 the finest pasture that is not recommended by society. 
 It would be needless to instance in sheep, which con- 
 stantly flock together. 
 
 But this propensity seems not to be confined to ani- 
 mals of the same species ; for we know a doe, still alive, 
 that was brought up from a little fawn with a dairy of 
 cows ; with them it goes afield, and with them it returns 
 to the yard. The dogs of the house take no notice of 
 this deer, being used to her ; but, if strange dogs come 
 by, a chase ensues ; while the master smiles to see his 
 favourite securely leading her pursuers over hedge, or 
 gate, or stile, till she returns to the cows, who, with 
 fierce lowings and menacing horns, drive the assailants 
 quite out of the pasture. 
 
 Even great disparity of kind and size does not always 
 prevent social advances and mutual fellowship. For a 
 very intelligent and observant person has assured me 
 that, in the former part of his life, keeping but one horse, 
 he happened also on a time to have but one solitary 
 hen. These two incongruous animals spent much of 
 their time together in a lonely orchard, where they saw 
 no creature but each other. By degrees an apparent 
 regard began to take place between these two seques- 
 tered individuals. The fowl would approach the qua- 
 druped with notes of complacency, rubbing herself gently 
 against his legs ; while the horse would look down with 
 satisfaction, and move with the greatest caution and 
 circumspection, lest he should trample on his diminu- 
 tive companion. Thus, by mutual good offices, each 
 
OF SELBORNE. 289 
 
 seemed to console the vacant hours of the other : so 
 that Milton, when he puts the following sentiment in 
 the mouth of Adam, seems to be somewhat mistaken : 
 
 " Much less can bird with beast, or fish with fowl, 
 So well converse; nor with the ox the ape." 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XXV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Oct. 2, 1775. 
 
 WE have two gangs or hordes of gipsies which infest 
 the south and west of England, and come round in their 
 circuit two or three times in the year. One of these 
 tribes calls itself by the noble name of Stanley, of which 
 I have nothing particular to say ; but the other is dis- 
 tinguished by an appellative somewhat remarkable. 
 As far as their harsh gibberish can be understood, they 
 seem to say that the name of their clan is Curleople : 
 now the termination of this word is apparently Grecian : 
 and as Mezeray and the gravest historians all agree 
 that these vagrants did certainly migrate from Egypt 
 and the East, two or three centuries ago, and so spread 
 by degrees over Europe, may not this family-name, a 
 little corrupted, be the very name they brought with 
 them from the Levant? It would be matter of some 
 curiosity, could one meet with an intelligent person 
 among them, to inquire whether, in their jargon, they 
 still retain any Greek words: the Greek radicals will 
 appear in hand, foot, head, water, earth, &c. It is pos- 
 sible that amidst their cant and corrupted dialect many 
 mutilated remains of their native language might still 
 be discovered. 
 
 With regard to those peculiar people, the gipsies, 
 one thing is very remarkable, and especially as they 
 
 u 
 
290 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 came from warmer climates ; and that is, that while 
 other beggars lodge in barns, stables, and cow-houses, 
 these sturdy savages seem to pride themselves in braving 
 the severities of winter, and in living sub dio the whole 
 year round. Last September was as wet a month as ever 
 was known ; and yet during those deluges did a young 
 gipsy girl lie-in in the midst of one of our hop gardens, 
 on the cold ground, with nothing over her but a piece 
 of a blanket extended on a few hazel rods bent hoop 
 fashion, and stuck into the earth at each end, in cir- 
 cumstances too trying for a cow in the same condition : 
 yet within this garden there was a large hop-kiln, into 
 the chambers of which she might have retired, had she 
 thought shelter an object worthy her attention. 
 
 Europe itself, it seems, cannot set bounds to the 
 rovings of these vagabonds : for Mr. Bell, in his return 
 from Pekin, met a gang of these people on the confines 
 of Tartary, who were endeavouring to penetrate those 
 deserts and try their fortune in China 1 . 
 
 Gipsies are called in French, Bohemiens, in Italian 
 and modern Greek, Zingari. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XXVI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Nov. 1, 1775. 
 
 " Hie taedae pingues, hie plurimus ignis 
 
 Semper, et assidua postes fuligine nigri." 
 
 1 SHALL make no apology for troubling you with the 
 detail of a very simple piece of domestic economy, 
 being satisfied that you think nothing beneath your 
 attention that tends to utility : the matter alluded to is 
 the use of rushes instead of candles, which I am well 
 
 1 See Bell's Travels in China. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 291 
 
 aware prevails in many districts besides this ; but as I 
 know there are countries also where it does not obtain, 
 and as I have considered the subject with some degree 
 of exactness, I shall proceed in my humble story, and 
 leave you to judge of the expediency. 
 
 The proper species of rush for this purpose seems to 
 be the Juncus conglomerates, or common soft rush, which 
 is to be found in most moist pastures, by. the sides of 
 streams, and under hedges. These rushes are in best 
 condition in the height of summer; but may be gathered 
 so as to serve the purpose well, quite on to autumn- 
 It would be needless to add that the largest and longest 
 are best. Decayed labourers, women, and children, 
 make it their business to procure and prepare them. 
 As soon as they are cut they must be flung into water, 
 and kept there; for otherwise they will dry and shrink, 
 and the peel will not run. At first a person would find 
 it no easy matter to divest a rush of its peel or rind, so 
 as to leave one regular, narrow, even rib from top to 
 bottom that may support the pith : but this, like other 
 feats, soon becomes familiar even to children ; and we 
 have seen an old woman, stone-blind, performing this 
 business with great dispatch, and seldom failing to 
 strip them with the nicest regularity. When these Junci 
 are thus far prepared, they must lie out on the grass to 
 be bleached, and take the dew for some nights, and 
 afterwards be dried in the sun. 
 
 Some address is required in dipping these rushes in 
 the scalding fat or grease ; but this knack also is to be 
 attained by practice *. The careful wife of an industri- 
 ous Hampshire labourer obtains all her fat for nothing; 
 for she saves the scummings of her bacon pot for this 
 use ; and if the grease abounds with salt, she causes 
 the salt to precipitate to the bottom, by setting the 
 scummings in a warm oven. Where hogs are not much 
 in use, and especially by the seaside, the coarser animal 
 
 1 The fat is usually melted in a dripping-pan, and in this the dipping 
 is performed. E. T. B. 
 
292 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 oils will come very cheap. A pound of common grease 
 may be procured for four pence ; and about six pounds 
 of grease will dip a pound of rushes; and one pound of 
 rushes may be bought for one shilling : so that a pound 
 of rushes, medicated and ready for use, will cost three 
 shillings. If men that keep bees will mix a little wax 
 with the grease, it will give it a consistency, and render 
 it more cleanly, and make the rushes burn longer: mut- 
 ton suet would have the same effect. 
 
 A good rush, which measured in length two feet four 
 inches and a half, being minuted, burned only three 
 minutes short of an hour: and a rush still of greater 
 length has been known to burn one hour and a quarter. 
 
 These rushes give a good clear light. Watch-lights 
 (coated with tallow), it is true, shed a dismal one, 
 " darkness visible;" but then the wick of those has two 
 ribs of the rind, or peel, to support the pith, while the 
 wick of the dipped rush has but one. The two ribs are 
 intended to impede the progress of the flame and make 
 the candle last. 
 
 In a pound of dry rushes, avoirdupois, which I caused 
 to be weighed and numbered, we found upwards of one 
 thousand six hundred individuals. Now, suppose each 
 of these burns, one with another, only half an hour, 
 then a poor man will purchase eight hundred hours of 
 light, a time exceeding thirty-three entire days, for three 
 shillings. According to this account each rush, before 
 dipping, costs one-thirty-third of a farthing, and one- 
 eleventh afterwards. Thus a poor family will enjoy 
 five hours and a half of comfortable light for a farthing. 
 An experienced old housekeeper assures me that one 
 pound and a half of rushes completely supplies his 
 family the year round ; since working people burn no 
 candle in the long days, because they rise and go to bed 
 by daylight. 
 
 Little farmers use rushes much in the short days, 
 both morning and evening, in the dairy and kitchen ; 
 but the very poor, who are always the worst economists, 
 
OF SELBORNE. 29-3 
 
 and therefore must continue very poor, buy a halfpenny 
 candle every evening, which, in their blowing, open 
 rooms, does not burn much more than two hours. Thus 
 have they only two hours light for their money instead 
 of eleven. 
 
 While on the subject of rural economy, it may not be 
 improper to mention a pretty implement of housewifery 
 that we have seen no where else; that is, little neat 
 besoms which our foresters make from the "stalks of the 
 Polytrichum commune, or great golden maiden-hair, which 
 they call silk- wood, and find plenty in the bogs. When 
 this moss is well combed and dressed, and divested of 
 its outer skin, it becomes of a beautiful bright chestnut 
 colour; and, being soft and pliant, is very proper for 
 the dusting of beds, curtains, carpets, hangings, &c. If 
 these besoms were known to the brush-makers in town, 
 it is probable they might come much in use for the 
 purpose above mentioned 2 . 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XXVII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Dec. 12, 1775. 
 
 WE had in this village, more than twenty years ago, an 
 idiot boy, whom I well remember, who, from a child, 
 showed a strong propensity to bees; they were his 
 food, his amusement, his sole object : and as people of 
 this cast have seldom more than one point in view, so 
 this lad exerted all his few faculties on this one pur- 
 suit. In the winter he dozed away his time, within his 
 father's house, by the fireside, in a kind of torpid state, 
 seldom departing from the chimney-corner ; but in the 
 summer he was all alert, and in quest of his game in the 
 
 2 A besom of this sort [was] to be seen in Sir Ashton Lever's Museum. 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 fields, and on sunny banks. Honey bees, humble bees, 
 and wasps, were his prey wherever he found them : he 
 had no apprehensions from their stings, but would seize 
 them nudis manibus, and at once disarm them of their 
 weapons, and suck their bodies for the sake of their 
 honey-bags. Sometimes he w r ould fill his bosom be- 
 tween his shirt and his skin with a number of these 
 captives: and sometimes would confine them in bottles. 
 He was a very Merops Apiaster, or bee-bird ; and very 
 injurious to men that kept bees; for he would slide into 
 their bee-gardens, and, sitting down before the stools, 
 would rap with his finger on the hives, and so take the 
 bees as they came out. He has been known to over- 
 turn hives for the sake of honey, of which he was pas- 
 sionately fond. Where metheglin was making he would 
 linger round the tubs and vessels, begging a draught of 
 what he called bee-wine. As he ran about he used to 
 make a humming noise with his lips, resembling the 
 buzzing of bees. This lad was lean and sallow, and of 
 a cadaverous complexion ; and, except in his favourite 
 pursuit, in which he was wonderfully adroit, discovered 
 no manner of understanding. Had his capacity been 
 better, and directed to the same object, he had perhaps 
 abated much of our wonder at the feats of a more 
 modern exhibiter of bees ; and we may justly say of 
 him now, 
 
 - Thou, 
 
 Had thy presiding star propitious shone, 
 Shouldst ll il.lHian be." 
 
 When a tall youth, he was removed from hence to a 
 distant village, where he died, as I understand, before 
 he arrived at manhood. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 295 
 
 LETTER XXVIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Jan. 8, 1776. 
 
 IT is the hardest thing in the world to shake off super- 
 stitious prejudices: they are sucked in, as ft were, with 
 our mother's milk ; and, growing up with us at a time 
 when they take the fastest hold and make the most 
 lasting impressions, become so interwoven into our very 
 constitutions, that the strongest good sense is required 
 to disengage ourselves from them. No wonder, there- 
 fore, that the lower people retain them their whole lives 
 through, since their minds are not invigorated by a 
 liberal education, and therefore not enabled to make 
 any efforts adequate to the occasion. 
 
 Such a preamble seems to be necessary before we 
 enter on the superstitions of this district, lest we should 
 be suspected of exaggeration in a recital of practices 
 too gross for this enlightened age. 
 
 But the people of Tring, in Hertfordshire, would do 
 well to remember, that no longer ago than the year 
 1751, and within twenty miles of the capital, they 
 seized on two superannuated wretches, crazed with age, 
 and overwhelmed with infirmities, on a suspicion of 
 witchcraft ; and, by trying experiments, drowned them 
 in a horse-pond. 
 
 In a farm-yard, near the middle of this village, stands 
 at this day, a row of pollard- ashes, which, by the seams 
 and long cicatrices down their sides, manifestly show 
 that, in former times, they have been cleft asunder. 
 These trees, when young and flexible, were severed and 
 held open by wedges, while ruptured children, stripped 
 naked, were pushed through the apertures, under a per- 
 suasion that, by such a process, the poor babes would 
 be cured of their infirmity. As soon as the operation 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 was over, the tree, in the suffering part, was plastered 
 with loam, and carefully swathed up. If the parts 
 coalesced and soldered together, as usually fell out, 
 where the feat was performed with any adroitness at 
 all, the party was cured ; but where the cleft continued 
 to gape, the operation, it was supposed, would prove 
 ineffectual. Having occasion to enlarge my garden not 
 long since, I cut down two or three such trees, one of 
 which did not grow together. 
 
 We have several persons now living in the village, 
 who, in their childhood, were supposed to be healed by 
 this superstitious ceremony, derived down, perhaps, 
 from our Saxon ancestors, who practised it before their 
 conversion to Christianity 1 . 
 
 At the south corner of the Plestor, or area near the 
 church, there stood, about twenty years ago, a very old 
 grotesque hollow pollard-ash, which, for ages, had been 
 looked on with no small veneration as a shrew-ash. 
 Now a shrew-ash is an ash whose twigs or branches, 
 when gently applied to the limbs of cattle, will immedi- 
 ately relieve the pains which a beast suffers from the 
 running of a shrew-mouse over the part affected : for it 
 is supposed that a shrew-mouse is of so baneful and 
 deleterious a nature, that wherever it creeps over a 
 beast, be it horse, cow, or sheep, the suffering animal is 
 
 1 Much nearer to the metropolis than Selborne, and in days later than 
 those alluded to by White, the ceremony described by him has been prac- 
 tised. The ash resorted to for the charm, in the instance referred to, is 
 in the hedge of an orchard belonging to a house near Enfield, in which 
 some of my earlier years were spent : a man living in the neighbourhood, 
 and at the time when I was best acquainted with it (1810) about sixty 
 years of age, was indicated as the individual on whose behalf recourse 
 had been had to the observance. The tree had healed, and the cure had, 
 of course, been performed. 
 
 Is it worth the remark that as ashes seem seldom to fail to grow toge- 
 gether after having been split, so also does it rarely happen that infants 
 affected with umbilical hernia fail to be relieved from it at a very early 
 age; and that, consequently, the charm-tree would, almost beyond the 
 probability of an exception, accord in its healing with that of the infant 
 whose fate was thus supposed to have been mysteriously connected with 
 it?-E.T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 297 
 
 afflicted with cruel anguish, and threatened with the 
 loss of the use of the limb. Against this accident, to 
 which they were continually liable, our provident fore- 
 fathers always kept a shrew-ash at hand, which, when 
 once medicated, would maintain its virtue for ever. A 
 shrew-ash was made thus 2 : Into the body of the tree 
 a deep hole was bored with an auger, and a poor de- 
 voted shrew-mouse was thrust in alive, and plugged 
 in, no doubt with several quaint incantations long since 
 forgotten. As the ceremonies necessary for such a con- 
 secration are no longer understood, all succession is at 
 an end, and no such tree is known to subsist in the 
 manor or hundred. 
 
 As to that on the Plestor, 
 
 " The late vicar stubb'd and burn'd it," 
 
 when he was way-warden, regardless of the remon- 
 strances of the bystanders, who interceded in vain for 
 its preservation, urging its power and efficacy, and 
 alleging that it had been 
 
 " Religione patrum multos servata per annos." 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 3 For a similar practice, see Plot's Staffordshire. 
 
 [Dr. Plot relates that two workmen, on sawing the trunk of a solid 
 oak, cut through the body of " a Hardishrew or Nursrow (as they here 
 call them,) i. e. a field-mouse" and that " the case remains an inexplicable 
 riddle to all those about to this very day. Butme-thinks, to any one that 
 considers the superstitious custom they have in this country of making 
 Nursrow-trees for the cure of unaccountable swellings in their cattle, the 
 thing should not seem strange. For to make any tree, whether oak, ash, 
 or elm, it being indifferent which, a Nursrow-tree, they catch one or more 
 of these mice (which they fancy bite their cattle, and make them swell), 
 and having bored a hole to the centre in the body of the tree, they put 
 the mice in, and then drive a peg in after them of the same wood, where 
 they starving at last, communicate forsooth such a virtue to the tree, that 
 cattle thus swoln being whipped with the boughs of it, presently recover: 
 of which trees they have not so many (though so easily made) but that at 
 some places they go eight or ten miles to procure this remedy." E.T. B.] 
 
298 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER XXIX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Feb. 7, 1776. 
 
 IN heavy fogs, on elevated situations especially, trees 
 are perfect alembics : and no one, that has not attended 
 to such matters, can imagine how much water one tree 
 will distil in a night's time, by condensing the vapour, 
 which trickles down the twigs and boughs, so as to 
 make the ground below quite in a float. In Newton 
 Lane, in October, 1775, on a misty day, a particular 
 oak in leaf dropped so fast that the cartway stood in 
 puddles and the ruts ran with water, though the ground 
 in general was dusty. 
 
 In some of our smaller islands in the West Indies, if 
 I mistake not, there are no springs or rivers : but the 
 people are supplied with that necessary element, water, 
 merely by the dripping of some large tall trees, which, 
 standing in the bosom of a mountain, keep their heads 
 constantly enveloped with fogs and clouds, from which 
 they dispense their kindly never-ceasing moisture ; and 
 so render those districts habitable by condensation 
 alone. 
 
 Trees in leaf have such a vast proportion more of 
 surface than those that are naked, that, in theory, their 
 condensations should greatly exceed those that are 
 stripped of their leaves; but, as the former imbibe also 
 a great quantity of moisture, it is difficult to say which 
 drip most: but this I know, that deciduous trees that 
 are entwined with much ivy seem to distil the greatest 
 quantity. Ivy leaves are smooth, and thick, and cold, 
 and therefore condense very fast ; and besides, ever- 
 greens imbibe very little. These facts may furnish the 
 intelligent with hints concerning what sorts of trees 
 they should plant round small ponds that they would 
 
OF SELBORNE. 299 
 
 wish to be perennial: and show them how advantageous 
 some trees are in preference to others. 
 
 Trees perspire profusely, condense largely, and check 
 evaporation so much, that woods are always moist : no 
 wonder therefore that they contribute much to pools 
 and streams. 
 
 That trees are great promoters of lakes and rivers, 
 appears from a well known fact in North America ; for, 
 since the woods and forests have been grubbed and 
 cleared, all bodies of water are much diminished ; so 
 that some streams, that were very considerable a cen- 
 tury ago, will not now drive a common mill 1 . Besides, 
 most woodlands, forests, and chases, with us, abound 
 with pools and morasses ; no doubt, for the reason given 
 above. 
 
 To a thinking mind, few phenomena are more strange 
 than the state of little ponds on the summits of chalk- 
 hills, many of which are never dry in the most trying 
 droughts of summer. On chalk-hills I say, because in 
 many rocky and gravelly soils, springs usually break 
 out pretty high on the sides of elevated grounds and 
 mountains ; but no person acquainted with chalky dis- 
 tricts will allow that they ever saw springs in such a 
 soil, but in valleys and bottoms, since the waters of so 
 pervious a stratum as chalk all lie on one dead level, 
 as well-diggers have assured me again and again. 
 
 Now, we have many such little round ponds in this 
 district; and one in particular on our sheep-down, 
 three hundred feet above my house; which, though 
 never above three feet deep in the middle, and not more 
 than thirty feet in diameter, and containing perhaps not 
 more than two or three hundred hogsheads of water, 
 yet never is known to fail, though it affords drink for 
 three hundred or four hundred sheep, and for at least 
 twenty head of large cattle beside. This pond, it is true, 
 is overhung with two moderate beeches, that, doubtless, 
 
 1 Vide Kalm's Travels to North America. 
 
300 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 at times, afford it much supply: but then we have others 
 as small, that, without the aid of trees, and in spite of 
 evaporation from sun and wind, and perpetual con- 
 sumption by cattle, yet constantly maintain a moderate 
 share of water, without overflowing in the wettest sea- 
 sons, as they would do if supplied by springs. By my 
 journal of May, 1775, it appears that " the small and 
 even considerable ponds in the vales are now dried up, 
 while the small ponds on the very tops of hills are but 
 little affected." Can this difference be accounted for 
 from evaporation alone, which certainly is more preva- 
 lent in bottoms? or rather, have not those elevated 
 pools some unnoticed recruits, which in the night-time 
 counterbalance the waste of the day; without which, 
 the cattle alone must soon exhaust them? And here it 
 will be necessary to enter more minutely into the cause. 
 Dr. Hales, in his Vegetable Statics, advances, from ex- 
 periment, that " the moister the earth is, the more dew 
 falls on it in a night : and more than a double quantity 
 of dew falls on a surface of water than there does on an 
 equal surface of moist earth." Hence we see that water, 
 by its coolness, is enabled to assimilate to itself a large 
 quantity of moisture nightly, by condensation ; and that 
 the air, when loaded with fogs and vapours, and even 
 with copious dews, can alone advance a considerable 
 and never-failing resource. Persons that are much 
 abroad, and travel early and late, such as shepherds, 
 fishermen, &c. can tell what prodigious fogs prevail in 
 the night on elevated downs, even in the hottest parts 
 of summer; and how much the surfaces of things are 
 drenched by those swimming vapours, though, to the 
 senses, all the while, little moisture seems to fall. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 30L 
 
 LETTER XXX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, April 3, 1776. 
 
 MONSIEUR HERISSANT, a French anatomist, seems 
 persuaded that he has discovered the reason why 
 cuckoos do not hatch their own eggs : the impediment, 
 he supposes, arises from the internal structure of their 
 parts, which incapacitates them for incubation. Ac- 
 cording to this gentleman, the crop, or craw, of a cuckoo 
 does not lie before the sternum at the bottom of the 
 neck, as in poultry (GaUince), pigeons (Columbce), &c. 
 but immediately behind it, on and over the bowels, so 
 as to make a large protuberance in the belly 1 . 
 
 Induced by this assertion, we procured a cuckoo; 
 and, cutting open the breast-bone, and exposing the 
 intestines to sight, found the crop lying as mentioned 
 above. This stomach was large and round, and stuffed 
 hard, like a pincushion, with food, which, upon nice 
 examination, we found to consist of various insects ; 
 such as small scarabs, spiders, and dragon-flies ; the 
 last of which, as they were just emerging out of the 
 aurelia state, we have seen cuckoos catching on the 
 wing. Among this farrago also were to be seen mag- 
 gots, and many seeds, which belonged either to goose- 
 berries, currants, cranberries, or some such fruit ; so 
 that these birds apparently subsist on insects and fruits: 
 nor was there the least appearance of bones, feathers, 
 or fur, to support the idle notion of their being birds of 
 prey. 
 
 The sternum in this bird seemed to us to be remark- 
 ably short, between which and the anus lay the crop, 
 
 1 Histoire de l'Acadmie Royale, 1752. 
 
302 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 or craw, and immediately behind that, the bowels 
 against the backbone. 
 
 It must be allowed, as this anatomist observes, that 
 the crop placed just upon the bowels must, especially 
 when full, be in a very uneasy situation during the 
 business of incubation ; yet the test will be, to examine 
 whether birds that are actually known to sit for certain 
 are not formed in a similar manner. This inquiry I 
 proposed to myself to make with a fern-owl, or goat- 
 sucker, as soon as opportunity offered: because if their 
 formation proves the same, the reason for incapacity in 
 the cuckoo will be allowed to have been taken up some- 
 what hastily. 
 
 Not long after a fern-owl was procured, which, from 
 its habit and shape, we suspected might resemble the 
 cuckoo in its internal construction. Nor were our sus- 
 picions ill grounded ; for, upon the dissection, the crop, 
 or craw, also lay behind the sternum, immediately on 
 the viscera, between them and the skin of the belly. 
 It was bulky, and stuffed hard with large Phalcence of 
 several sorts, and their eggs, which, no doubt, had been 
 forced out of those insects by the action of swallowing. 
 
 Now, as it appears that this bird, which is so well 
 known to practise incubation, is formed in a similar 
 manner with cuckoos, Monsieur Herissant's conjecture, 
 that cuckoos are incapable of incubation from the dis- 
 position of their intestines, seems to fall to the ground ; 
 and we are still at a loss for the cause of that strange 
 and singular peculiarity in the instance of the Cuculus 
 canorus*. 
 
 a The cuckoo has no true crop, and the position of its proventriculus 
 does not differ from that of other scansorial birds; the oesophagus de- 
 scends along the posterior or dorsal part of the thorax, inclining to the 
 left side, and, when opposite to the lower margin of the left lung, it begins 
 to expand into the glandular cavity or proventriculus. The gizzard, 
 which is neither large nor strong, is in immediate contact with the abdo- 
 minal parietes, not separated from them by an intervening stratum of 
 intestines; but this position cannot be supposed to interfere with the 
 power of incubation, since it occurs also in other birds that do incubate, 
 as the owl and Caryocatactes. R. O. 
 
OP SELBORNE. 303 
 
 We found the case to be the same with the ring-tail 
 hawk, in respect to formation ; and, as far as I can re- 
 collect, with the swift ; and probably it is so with many 
 more sorts of birds that are not granivorous. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XXXI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, April 29, 1776. 
 
 ON August the 4th, 1775, we surprised a large viper, 
 which seemed very heavy and bloated, as it lay in the 
 grass basking in the sun. When we came to cut it up, 
 we found that the abdomen was crowded with young, 
 fifteen in number ; the shortest of which measured full 
 seven inches, and were about the size of full grown 
 earthworms. This little fry issued into the world with 
 the true viper spirit about them, showing great alertness 
 as soon as disengaged from the belly of the dam : they 
 twisted and wriggled about, and set themselves up, and 
 gaped very wide when touched with a stick, showing 
 manifest tokens of menace and defiance, though as yet 
 they had no manner of fangs that we could find, even 
 with the help of our glasses. 
 
 To a thinking mind nothing is more wonderful than 
 that early instinct which impresses young animals with 
 the notion of the situation of their natural weapons, 
 and of using them properly in their own defence, even 
 before those weapons subsist or are formed. Thus a 
 young cock will spar at his adversary before his spurs 
 are grown ; and a calf or lamb will push with its head 
 before its horns are sprouted. In the same manner did 
 these young adders attempt to bite before their fangs 
 were in being. The dam, however, was furnished with 
 very formidable ones, which we lifted up (for they fold 
 
304 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 down when not used) and cut them off with the point 
 of our scissars. 
 
 There was little room to suppose that this brood had 
 ever been in the open air before; and that they were 
 taken in for refuge, at the mouth of the dam, when she 
 perceived that danger was approaching : because then 
 probably we should have found them somewhere in the 
 neck, and not in the abdomen. 
 
 LETTER XXXII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 CASTRATION has a strange effect: it emasculates both 
 man, beast, and bird, and brings them to a near resem- 
 blance of the other sex. Thus eunuchs have smooth 
 unmuscular arms, thighs, and legs; and broad hips, 
 and beardless chins, and squeaking voices. Gelt stags 
 and bucks have hornless heads, like hinds and does. 
 Thus wethers have small horns, like ewes; and oxen 
 large bent horns, and hoarse voices when they low, like 
 cows : for bulls have short straight horns ; and though 
 they mutter and grumble in a deep tremendous tone, 
 yet they low in a shrill high key. Capons have small 
 combs and gills, and look pallid about the head like 
 pullets; they also walk without any parade, and hover 
 chickens like hens 1 . Barrow-hogs have also small 
 tusks like sows. 
 
 Thus far it is plain that it puts a stop to the growth 
 of those appendages that are looked upon as its in- 
 signia. But the ingenious Mr. Lisle, in his book on 
 husbandry, carries it much farther ; for he says that the 
 loss of those insignia alone has sometimes a strange 
 effect : he had a boar so fierce and amorous, that, to 
 
 1 Reaumur trained capons to nurse the chickens which he hatched by 
 artificial heat. They clucked exactly like a hen, and proved as good 
 nurses as a real mother could have been. RENNIE. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 305 
 
 prevent mischief, orders were given for his tusks to be 
 broken off. No sooner had the beast suffered this 
 injury than his powers forsook him, and he neglected 
 those females to whom before he was passionately 
 attached, and from whom no fences could restrain 
 him. 
 
 LETTER XXXIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 THE natural term of a hog's life is little known, and 
 the reason is plain because it is neither profitable nor 
 convenient to keep that turbulent animal to the full 
 extent of its time : however, my neighbour, a man of 
 substance, who had no occasion to study every little 
 advantage to a nicety, kept a half-bred Bantam sow, 
 who was as thick as she was long, and whose belly 
 swept on the ground, till she was advanced to her 
 seventeenth year; at which period she showed some 
 tokens of age by the decay of her teeth and the decline 
 of her fertility. 
 
 For about ten years this prolific mother produced 
 two litters in the year, of about ten at a time, and 
 once above twenty at a litter ; but, as there were near 
 double the number of pigs to that of teats, many died. 
 From long experience in the world this female was 
 grown very sagacious and artful : when she found occa- 
 sion to converse with a boar she used to open all the 
 intervening gates, and march, by herself, up to a dis- 
 tant farm where one was kept ; and when her purpose 
 was served would return by the same means. At the 
 age of about fifteen her litters began to be reduced to 
 four or five ; and such a litter she exhibited when in her 
 fatting pen. She proved when fat, good bacon, juicy, 
 and tender; the rind, or sward, was remarkably thin. 
 
 x 
 
306 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 At a moderate computation she was allowed to have 
 been the fruitful parent of three hundred pigs: a prodi- 
 gious instance of fecundity in so large a quadruped! 
 She was killed in spring, 1775. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XXXIV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, May 9, 1770. 
 
 " admdrunt ubera tigres." 
 
 WE have remarked in a former letter how much incon- 
 gruous animals, in a lonely state, may be attached to 
 each other from a spirit of sociality ; in this it may not 
 be amiss to recount a different motive which has been 
 known to create as strange a fondness. 
 
 My friend had a little helpless leveret brought to him, 
 which the servants fed with milk in a spoon, and about 
 the same time his cat kittened, and the young were 
 dispatched and buried. The hare was soon lost, and 
 supposed to be gone the way of most fondlings, to be 
 killed by some dog or cat. However, in about a fort- 
 night, as the master was sitting in his garden in the 
 dusk of the evening, he observed his cat, with tail erect, 
 trotting towards him, and calling with little short in- 
 ward notes of complacency, such as they use towards 
 their kittens, and something gambolling after, which 
 proved to be the leveret that the cat had supported 
 with her milk, and continued to support with great 
 affection. 
 
 Thus was a graminivorous animal nurtured by a car- 
 nivorous and predaceous one 1 ! 
 
 1 An additional instance, which fell under the author's notice, is given 
 in the Observations on various Parts of Nature, printed in a subsequent 
 part of this volume : it is there headed Cat and Squirrels. E. T. B. 
 
OP SELBORNE. 307 
 
 Why so cruel and sanguinary a beast as a cat, of the 
 ferocious genus of Feles, the murium leo, as Linnaeus 
 calls it, should be affected with any tenderness towards 
 an animal which is its natural prey, is not so easy to 
 determine. 
 
 This strange affection probably was occasioned by 
 that desiderium, those tender maternal feelings, which 
 the loss of her kittens had awakened higher breast; 
 and by the complacency and ease she derived to herself 
 from the procuring her teats to be drawn, which were 
 too much distended with milk, till, from habit, she 
 became as much delighted with this foundling as if it 
 had been her real offspring 2 . 
 
 This incident is no bad solution of that strange cir- 
 cumstance which grave historians as well as the poets 
 assert, of exposed children being sometimes nurtured 
 
 2 It is an almost every day occurrence in young dogs to take upon them- 
 selves the office of relieving the domestic cat, with whom they have con- 
 tracted an intimacy by residing at the same hearth, from the inconvenience 
 which the presence of milk occasions them on the destruction of their 
 kittens. It is equally common to witness the cat of a former litter acting 
 under similar circumstances the part of a sucking kitten ; an overgrown 
 but an indulged and happy bantling. In these instances, however, there 
 is not that marked distinction in the habits of the animal performing the 
 office of mother from those of her nursling which belongs to the one no- 
 ticed by Gilbert White, and which has not unfrequently been paralleled. 
 
 All these cases, it may be remarked, bear with no small degree offeree 
 on the nutrition of the young cuckoo by its foster parent. In the higher 
 classes of animals the parental stimulus to nourish after the young have 
 been produced strongly prevails : her own offspring are those towards 
 whom the care of the mother is first extended, as it is for their advantage 
 that the desire is implanted in her: but, failing these, the desire still 
 remains powerful, and will be gratified in favour of any object that will 
 accommodate itself to her views. The gaping mouths and craving cries 
 of her nestlings add to the stimulus which impels the dam to provide for 
 their wants ; and the young cuckoo in the hedge sparrow's nest will not, 
 it is presumed, be less craving than its natural inmates. Its greater bulk 
 and more rapid growth soon enable it to acquire strength enough to 
 remove all rival claimants for any portion of the food provided by the 
 industrious dam, and the destroyer of her progeny thus becomes the sole 
 inheritor of the cares which would have been equally shared among the 
 entire brood. It is not in the hedge sparrow's nest alone that importu- 
 nity and selfishness are thus successful, to the extinction of stronger and 
 more natural ties. E. T. B. 
 
 x 2 
 
308 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 by female wild beasts that probably had lost their 
 young. For it is not one whit more marvellous that 
 Romulus and Remus, in their infant state, should be 
 nursed by a she- wolf, than that a poor little sucking 
 leveret should be fostered and cherished by a bloody 
 grimalkin. 
 
 u viridi fcetam Mavortis in antro 
 
 Procubuisse lupam : geminos huic ubera circum 
 Ludere pendentes pueros, et lambere matrem 
 Impavidos : illam tereti cervice reflexam 
 Mulcere alternos, et corpora fingere lingua." 
 
 LETTER XXXV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, May 20, 1777. 
 
 LANDS that are subject to frequent inundations are 
 always poor ; and probably, the reason may be because 
 the worms are drowned. The most insignificant insects 
 and reptiles are of much more consequence, and have 
 much more influence in the economy of Nature, than 
 the incurious are aware of; and are mighty in their 
 effect, from their minuteness, which renders them less 
 an object of attention; and from their numbers and 
 fecundity. Earthworms, though in appearance a small 
 and despicable link in the chain of Nature, yet, if lost, 
 would make a lamentable chasm. For to say nothing 
 of half the birds, and some quadrupeds which are 
 almost entirely supported by them, worms seem to be 
 great promoters of vegetation, which would proceed 
 but lamely without them, by boring, perforating, and 
 loosening the soil, and rendering it pervious to rains 
 and the fibres of plants; by drawing straws and stalks 
 of leaves and twigs into it; and, most of all, by throwing 
 up such infinite numbers of lumps of earth called worm 
 
OP SELBORNE. 309 
 
 casts, which, being their excrement, is a fine manure 
 for grain and grass 1 . Worms probably provide new 
 soil for hills and slopes where the rain washes the earth 
 away ; and they affect slopes, probably, to avoid being 
 flooded. Gardeners and farmers express their detesta- 
 tion of worms ; the former because they render their 
 walks unsightly, and make them much work : and the 
 latter because, as they think, worms eat^ their green 
 corn. But these men would find that the earth without 
 worms would soon become cold, hard-bound, and void 
 of fermentation ; and consequently sterile : and besides, 
 in favour of worms, it should be hinted that green corn, 
 plants, and flowers, are not so much injured by them 
 as by many species of Coleoptera (scarabs) and Tipulce 
 (long-legs), in their larva, or grub state ; and by unno- 
 ticed myriads of small shell-less snails, called slugs, 
 which silently and imperceptibly make amazing havock 
 in the field and garden. Farmer Young, of Norton 
 Farm, says that this spring (1777) about four acres of 
 his wheat in one field was entirely destroyed by slugs, 
 which swarmed on the blades of corn, and devoured it 
 as fast as it sprang. 
 
 These hints we think proper to throw out in order to 
 set the inquisitive and discerning to work. 
 
 A good monography of worms would afford much 
 entertainment and information at the same time, and 
 would open a large and new field in natural history. 
 Worms work most in the spring ; but by no means lie 
 
 1 If the earth of worm-casts be really useful as manure, it would be 
 difficult to account for its fertilizing effects unless by supposing them to 
 result from the friable condition and fine state of subdivision into which 
 the soil has been brought by the process it has undergone within the in- 
 testines of the animal. In its passage through the digestive canal it has 
 been deprived of those animal and vegetable substances, which, as derived 
 from organized nature, are adapted to support organic life ; and the worm, 
 having secured for itself all the nutritious particles mixed up with the 
 soil swallowed by it while making its perforations, rejects the inert mass 
 at the hole by which it commenced its boring, forming with it a kind of 
 outwork for the protection of its citadel of retreat. E. T. B. 
 
310 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 torpid in the dead months ; are out every mild night in 
 the winter, as any person may be convinced that will 
 take the pains to examine his grassplots with a candle ; 
 are hermaphrodites, and very prolific. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XXXVI 1 . 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 DEAR SIR, Si I. ll<> II M , NOV. 22, 1777. 
 
 You cannot but remember, that the 26th and 27th of 
 last March were very hot days ; so sultry that every- 
 body complained and were restless under those sensa- 
 tions to which they had not been reconciled by gradual 
 approaches. 
 
 This sudden summer-like heat was attended by many 
 summer coincidences : for on those two days the ther- 
 mometer rose to 66 in the shade; many species of 
 insects revived and came forth ; some bees swarmed in 
 this neighbourhood ; the old tortoise, near Lewes, in 
 Sussex, awakened and came forth out of its dormitory ; 
 and, what is most to my present purpose, many house 
 swallows appeared and were very alert in many places, 
 and particularly at Cobham, in Surrey. 
 
 But as that short warm period was succeeded, as well 
 as preceded, by harsh severe weather, with frequent 
 frosts and ice, and cutting winds, the insects withdrew, 
 the tortoise retired again into the ground, and the swal- 
 lows were seen no more until the 10th of April, when, 
 the rigour of the spring abating, a softer season began 
 to prevail. 
 
 1 This Letter was first printed in Barrington's Miscellanies, (1781), 
 p. 225. " I shall here," he says, " subjoin a letter which I have received 
 from that ingenious and observant naturalist, the Rev. Mr. White, of Sel- 
 borne, Hampshire." E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 311 
 
 Again : it appears by my journals for many years 
 past, that house martins retire, to a bird, about the 
 beginning of October; so that a person not very ob- 
 servant of such matters would 'conclude that they had 
 taken their last farewell : but then it may be seen in 
 my diaries also, that considerable flocks have disco- 
 vered themselves again in the first week of November, 
 and often on the fourth day of that month only for one 
 day ; and that not as if they were in actual migration, 
 but playing about at their leisure and feeding calmly, 
 as if no enterprise of moment at all agitated their spirits. 
 And this was the case in the beginning of this very 
 month ; for, on the 4th of November, more than twenty 
 house martins, which, in appearance, had all departed 
 about the 7th of October, were seen again, for that one 
 morning only, sporting between my fields and the 
 Hanger, and feasting on insects which swarmed in 
 that sheltered district. The preceding day was wet 
 and blustering, but the 4th was dark and mild, and 
 soft, the wind at south-west, and the thermometer 
 at 58|; a pitch not common at that season of the 
 year. Moreover, it may not be amiss to add in this 
 place, that whenever the thermometer is above 50, 
 the bat comes flitting out in every autumnal and winter 
 month. 
 
 From all these circumstances laid together, it is 
 obvious that torpid insects, reptiles, and quadrupeds, 
 are awakened from their profoundest slumbers by a 
 little untimely warmth ; and therefore that nothing so 
 much promotes this death-like stupor as a defect of 
 heat. And farther, it is reasonable to suppose that 
 two whole species, or at least many individuals of 
 those two species, of British Hirundines, do never 
 leave this island at all, but partake of the same be- 
 numbed state : for we cannot suppose that, after a 
 month's absence, house martins can return from south- 
 ern regions to appear for one morning in November, or 
 
312 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 that house swallows should leave the districts of Africa 
 to enjoy, in March, the transient summer of a couple 
 of days 2 . 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XXXVII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Jan. 8, 1778. 
 
 THERE was in this village, several years ago, a miser- 
 able pauper, who, from his birth, was afflicted with a 
 leprosy, as far as we are aware, of a singular kind, 
 since it affected only the palms of his hands and the 
 soles of his feet. This scaly eruption usually broke out 
 twice in the year, at the spring and fall ; and, by peel- 
 ing away, left the skin so thin and tender, that neither 
 his hands nor feet were able to perform their functions; 
 so that the poor object was half his time on crutches, 
 incapable of employ, and languishing in a tiresome 
 state of indolence and inactivity. His habit was lean, 
 lank, and cadaverous. In this sad plight he dragged 
 on a miserable existence, a burthen to himself and his 
 parish, which was obliged to support him till he was 
 relieved by death, at more than thirty years of age. 
 
 The good women, who love to account for every 
 defect in children by the doctrine of longing, said that 
 his mother felt a violent propensity for oysters, which 
 she was unable to gratify ; and that the black rough 
 scurf on his hands and feet were the shells of that fish. 
 We knew his parents, neither of which were lepers ; 
 
 a It appears a more obvious explanation of the appearance of the 
 swallows in November, that they are late broods from the north ; and 
 that those seen in March, are early arrived birds on their way to the 
 north. When on their migratory journeys, they always hawk for flies, as 
 Mr. White describes. RENNIE. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 313 
 
 his father, in particular, lived to be far advanced in 
 years. 
 
 In all ages the leprosy has made dreadful havock 
 among mankind. The Israelites seem to have been 
 greatly afflicted with it, from the most remote times; 
 as appears from the peculiar and repeated injunctions 
 given them in the Levitical law 1 . Nor was the rancour 
 of this foul disorder much abated in the last period of 
 their commonwealth, as may be seen in many passages 
 of the New Testament. 
 
 Some centuries ago, this horrible distemper prevailed 
 all Europe over ; and our forefathers were by no means 
 exempt, as appears by the large provision made for 
 objects labouring under this calamity. There was an 
 hospital for female lepers in the diocese of Lincoln, a 
 noble one near Durham, three in London and South- 
 wark, and perhaps many more in or near our great 
 towns and cities. Moreover, some crowned heads, and 
 other wealthy and charitable personages, bequeathed 
 large legacies to such poor people as languished under 
 this hopeless infirmity. 
 
 It must, therefore, in these days, be, to a humane and 
 thinking person, a matter of equal wonder and satisfac- 
 tion, when he contemplates how nearly this pest is 
 eradicated, and observes that a leper now is a rare 
 sight. He will, moreover, when engaged in such a train 
 of thought, naturally inquire for the reason. This 
 happy change perhaps may have originated and been 
 continued from the much smaller quantity of salted 
 meat and fish now eaten in these kingdoms ; from the 
 use of linen next the skin; from the plenty of better 
 bread ; and from the profusion of fruits, roots, legumes, 
 and greens, so common in every family. Three or four 
 centuries ago, before there were any enclosures, sown- 
 grasses, field-turnips, or field-carrots, or hay, all the 
 cattle which had grown fat in summer, and were not 
 
 1 See Leviticus, chap. xiii. and xiv. 
 
314 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 killed for winter use, were turned out soon after Michael- 
 mas to shift as they could through the dead months; so 
 that no fresh meat could be had in winter or spring. 
 Hence the marvellous account of the vast stores of 
 salted flesh found in the larder of the eldest Spencer 2 
 in the days of Edward the Second, even so late in the 
 spring as the 3d of May. It was from magazines like 
 these that the turbulent barons supported in idleness 
 their riotous swarms of retainers, ready for any disorder 
 or mischief. But agriculture is now arrived at such a 
 pitch of perfection, that our best and fattest meats are 
 killed in the winter ; and no man needs eat salted flesh, 
 unless he prefers it, that has money to buy fresh. 
 
 One cause of this distemper might be, no doubt, the 
 quantity of wretched fresh and salt fish consumed by 
 the commonalty at all seasons as well as in Lent; 
 which our poor now would hardly be persuaded to 
 touch. 
 
 The use of linen changes, shirts or shifts, in the room 
 of sordid and filthy woollen, long worn next the skin, is 
 a matter of neatness comparatively modern ; but must 
 prove a great means of preventing cutaneous ails. At 
 this very time, woollen instead of linen prevails among 
 the poorer Welsh, who are subject to foul eruptions 3 . 
 
 The plenty of good wheaten bread that now is found 
 among all ranks of people in the south, instead of that 
 miserable sort which used in old days to be made of 
 
 a Viz. six hundred bacons, eighty carcasses of beef, and six hundred 
 muttons. 
 
 3 Mr. Rennie has remarked that the prevalent practice of wearing flan- 
 nel next the skin, is, in a medical point of view, liable to all the judicious 
 objections made by Mr. White : but the objections seem rather to sordid 
 and filthy woollen, long worn. If the skin be not unusually irritable, the 
 increased activity of the cutaneous circulation occasioned by the wearing 
 of frequent changes of flannel will rarely be productive of the minor evil 
 of eruptions; while, against the heavier inflictions of visceral inflamma- 
 tions and rheumatism, and the other serious consequences of checked 
 perspiration, it furnishes the most approved preventive that our variable 
 climate admits of. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 315 
 
 barley or beans, may contribute not a little to the 
 sweetening their blood and correcting their juices; for 
 the inhabitants of mountainous districts, to this day, 
 are still liable to the itch and other cutaneous disorders, 
 from a wretchedness and poverty of diet. 
 
 As to the produce of a garden, every middle-aged 
 person of observation may perceive, within his own 
 memory, both in town and country, how vastly the con- 
 sumption of vegetables is increased. Green-stalls in 
 cities now support multitudes in a comfortable state, 
 while gardeners get fortunes. Every decent labourer 
 also has his garden, which is half his support, as well 
 as his delight ; and common farmers provide plenty of 
 beans, peas, and greens, for their hinds to eat with their 
 bacon ; and those few that do not, are despised for their 
 sordid parsimony, and looked upon as regardless of the 
 welfare of their dependants. Potatoes have prevailed 
 in this little district, by means of premiums, within 
 these twenty years only ; and are much esteemed here 
 nbw by the poor, who would scarce have ventured to 
 taste them in the last reign. 
 
 Our Saxon ancestors certainly had some sort of cab- 
 bage, because they call the month of February sprout- 
 cale*; but long after their days, the cultivation of 
 gardens was little attended to. The religious, being 
 men of leisure, and keeping up a constant correspond- 
 ence with Italy, were the first people among us that 
 had gardens and fruit-trees in any perfection, within 
 the walls of their abbeys 5 and priories. The barons 
 
 4 As our Saxon ancestors called the month of February ' Sprout- 
 cale,' so the names of many other months were equally significant; viz. 
 March, stormy month ; May, Thrimilchi, the cows then being milked 
 three times a day ; June, dig and weed month ; September, barley month, 
 
 &C. MlTFORD. 
 
 5 " In monasteries, the lamp of knowledge continued to burn, however 
 dimly. In them, men of business were formed for the state : the art of 
 writing was cultivated by the monks ; they were the only proficients in 
 mechanics, gardening, and architecture." See Dalrymple's Annals of 
 Scotland. 
 
316 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 neglected every pursuit that did not lead to war or tend 
 to the pleasure of the chase. 
 
 It was not till gentlemen took up the study of horti- 
 culture themselves, that the knowledge of gardening 
 made such hasty advances. Lord Cobham, Lord Ila, 
 and Mr. Waller of Beaconsfield, were some of the first 
 people of rank that promoted the elegant science of 
 ornamenting without despising the superintendence of 
 the kitchen quarters and fruit walls. 
 
 A remark made by the excellent Mr. Ray, in his Tour 
 of Europe, at once surprises us, and corroborates what 
 has been advanced above ; for we find him observing, 
 so late as his days, that " the Italians use several herbs 
 for sallets, which are not yet or have not been but 
 lately used in England, viz. selleri (celery) which is 
 nothing else but the sweet smallage ; the young shoots 
 whereof, with a little of the head of the root cut off, they 
 eat raw with oil and pepper." And farther, he adds, 
 "curled endive blanched is much used beyond seas; 
 and, for a raw sallet, seemed to excel lettuce itself." 
 Now, this journey was undertaken no longer ago than 
 in the year 1G63. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER XXXVIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 " Forte puer, comitum seductus ab agmine fido, 
 Dixerat, ecquis adest? et, adest, responderat echo. 
 Hie stupet; utque acieni partes divisit in omnes, 
 Voce, veni, clamat magna. Vocat ilia vocantem." 
 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Feb. 12, 1778. 
 
 IN a district so diversified as this, so full of hollow 
 vales and hanging woods, it is no wonder that echoes 
 should abound. Many we have discovered that return 
 the cry of a pack of dogs, the notes of a hunting horn, 
 
OF SELBORNE. 317 
 
 a tunable ring of bells, or the melody of birds, very 
 agreeably : but we were still at a loss for a polysyllabi- 
 cal, articulate echo, till a young gentleman, who had 
 parted from his company in a summer evening walk, 
 and was calling after them, stumbled upon a very curi- 
 ous one in a spot where it might least be expected, At 
 first he was much surprised, and could not be per- 
 suaded but that he was mocked by some boy; but, 
 repeating his trials in several languages, and finding 
 his respondent to be a very adroit polyglot, he then 
 discerned the deception. 
 
 This echo, in an evening, before rural noises cease, 
 would repeat ten syllables most articulately and dis- 
 tinctly, especially if quick dactyls were chosen. The 
 last syllables of 
 
 " Tityre, tu patulae recubans " 
 
 were as audibly and intelligibly returned as the first: 
 and there is no doubt, could trial have been made, but 
 that at midnight, when the air is very elastic, and a 
 dead stillness prevails, one or two syllables more might 
 have been obtained ; but the distance rendered so late 
 an experiment very inconvenient. 
 
 Quick dactyls, we observed, succeeded best; for 
 when we came to try its powers in slow, heavy, embar- 
 rassed spondees of the same number of syllables, 
 
 " Monstrum horrendum, informe, ingens " 
 
 we could perceive a return but of four or five. 
 
 All echoes have some one place to which they are 
 returned stronger and more distinct than to any other ; 
 and that is always the place that lies at right angles 
 with the object of repercussion, and is not too near, nor 
 too far off. Buildings, or naked rocks, re-echo much 
 more articulately than hanging woods or vales; be- 
 cause in the latter the voice is, at it were, entangled 
 and embarrassed in the covert, and weakened in the 
 rebound. 
 
 The true object of this echo, as we found by various 
 
318 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 experiments, is the stone-built, tiled hop-kiln in Gaily 
 Lane, which measures in front forty feet, and from the 
 ground to the eaves twelve feet. The true centrum pho- 
 nicum, or just distance, is one particular spot in the 
 King's Field, in the path to Nore Hill, on the very 
 brink of the steep balk above the hollow cart-way. In 
 this case there is no choice of distance ; but the path, 
 by mere contingency, happens to be the lucky, the iden- 
 tical spot, because the ground rises or falls so immedi- 
 ately, if the speaker either retires or advances, that his 
 mouth would at once be above or below the object. 
 
 We measured this polysyllabical echo with great 
 exactness, and found the distance to fall very short of 
 Dr. Plot's rule for distinct articulation : for the Doctor, 
 in his History of Oxfordshire, allows one hundred and 
 twenty feet for the return of each syllable distinctly: 
 hence this echo, which gives ten distinct syllables, 
 ought to measure four hundred yards, or one hundred 
 and twenty feet to each syllable ; whereas our distance 
 is only two hundred and fifty-eight yards, or near 
 seventy-five feet, to each syllable. Thus our measure 
 falls short of the Doctor's, as five to eight : but then it 
 must be acknowledged that this candid philosopher was 
 convinced afterwards, that some latitude must be ad- 
 mitted of in the distance of echoes according to time 
 and place 1 . 
 
 When experiments of this sort are making it should 
 always be remembered that weather and the time of 
 day have a vast influence on an echo ; for a dull, heavy, 
 moist air deadens and clogs the sound ; and hot sun- 
 shine renders the air thin and weak, and deprives it of 
 all its springiness ; and a ruffling wind quite defeats the 
 whole. In a still, clear, dewy evening, the air is most 
 elastic ; and perhaps the later the hour the more so. 
 
 1 It is evident too, from the previous statement of the different number 
 of syllables returned by the echo, according to whether they were quick 
 dactyls or heavy spondees, that some allowance must be made on this 
 account also. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 319 
 
 Echo has always been so amusing to the imagination, 
 that the poets have personified her ; and in their hands 
 she has been the occasion of many a beautiful fiction. 
 Nor need the gravest man be ashamed to appear taken 
 with such a phenomenon, since it may become the 
 subject of philosophical or mathematical inquiries. 
 
 One should have imagined that echoes, if not enter- 
 taining, must at least have been harmless and inoffen- 
 sive ; yet Virgil advances a strange notion, that they 
 are injurious to bees. After enumerating some pro- 
 bable and reasonable annoyances, such as prudent 
 owners would wish far removed from their bee-gardens, 
 he adds, 
 
 " aut ubi concava pulsu 
 
 Saxa sonant, vocisque offensa resultat imago." 
 
 This wild and fanciful assertion will hardly be admit- 
 ted by the philosophers of these days; especially as 
 they all now seem agreed that insects are not furnished 
 with any organs of hearing at all 2 . But, if it should 
 
 2 The opinion advanced in the text as one in which the philosophers of 
 the author's day seemed all agreed, was shared by Linnaeus and Bonnet, 
 naturalists of the highest authority. But repeated observations and expe- 
 riments have since shown that many insects, and among these it is highly 
 probable that bees are to be included, possess the sense of hearing. With- 
 out the aid of experiment it might, indeed, almost be regarded as esta- 
 blished, that in those cases in which the faculty of producing sound is 
 possessed by one sex of an animal, that of hearing it should belong to the 
 other sex ; and it would seem rather preposterous to grant the existence 
 of a sense in one sex of an insect and deny it to the other. Gilbert White, 
 in his Letter respecting the field cricket (XL VI.), although in the earlier 
 part of it he seems to guard himself from admitting that these insects 
 hear by assuming that they feel " a person's footsteps as he advances," 
 must be regarded as insinuating the possession of that sense when he 
 subsequently remarks that " the males only make that shrilling noise, 
 perhaps out of rivalry and emulation" a rivalry and emulation which 
 could not be excited in others by a sound unheard by them. 
 
 But reasoning and conjecture are both equally unnecessary in a case 
 in which direct observation may be adduced in proof. Brunelli's experi- 
 ments seem on this point altogether satisfactory, and to prove that both 
 the males and the females possess the sense of hearing. He kept several 
 males of the large green grasshopper in a closet, where they were very 
 merry and continued singing all the day : but a tap at the door would 
 
320 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 be urged, that though they cannot hear, yet perhaps 
 they may feel the repercussion of sounds, I grant it is 
 possible they may. Yet that these impressions are 
 distasteful or hurtful, I deny ; because bees, in good 
 summers, thrive well in my outlet, where the echoes are 
 very strong: for this village is another Anathoth, a 
 place of responses or echoes. Besides, it does not 
 appear from experiment that bees are in any way capa- 
 ble of being affected by sounds : for I have often tried 
 my own with a large speaking-trumpet held close to 
 their hives, and with such an exertion of voice as would 
 have hailed a ship at the distance of a mile, and still 
 these insects pursued their various employments undis- 
 turbed, and without showing the least sensibility or 
 resentment. 
 
 Some time since its discovery, this echo is become 
 totally silent, though the object or hop-kiln remains : 
 nor is there any mystery in this defect; for the field 
 between is planted as a hop-garden, and the voice of 
 the speaker is totally absorbed and lost among the 
 poles and entangled foliage of the hops. And when 
 the poles are removed in autumn, the disappointment is 
 the same; because a tall quickset hedge, nurtured up 
 for the purpose of shelter to the hop-ground, entirely 
 interrupts the impulse and repercussion of the voice : 
 so that, till those obstructions are removed, no more of 
 its garrulity can be expected. 
 
 immediately silence them. In this instance they might, perhaps, have 
 been affected by the concussion of the air ; and the result might rather 
 have been owing to acuteness of touch than to hearing. But his subse- 
 quent experiments were not open to such an objection. He learned to 
 imitate the chirping of these grasshoppers : and when he did this at the 
 door of the closet in which they were kept, they soon began to answer 
 him ; at first by the gentle chirpings of a few, and then by a full chorus of 
 the whole of them. He afterwards enclosed a male grasshopper in a 
 box, and placed it in one part of his garden, leaving a female at liberty 
 in a distant part of it : as soon as the male began to sing, the female 
 immediately hopped away towards him. This latter experiment was 
 frequently repeated, and in every case the female, as soon as the male 
 began to chirp, hastened to join him. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 321 
 
 Should any gentleman of fortune think an echo in his 
 park, or outlet, a pleasing incident, he might build one 
 at little or no expense. For whenever he had occasion 
 for a new barn, stable, dog-kennel, or the like structure, 
 it would be only needful to erect this building on the 
 gentle declivity of a hill, with a like rising opposite to 
 it, at a few hundred yards' distance ; and perhaps suc- 
 cess might be the easier ensured, could .some canal, 
 lake, or stream intervene. From a seat at the centrum 
 phonicum, he and his friends might amuse themselves 
 sometimes of an evening with the prattle of this loqua- 
 cious nymph ; of whose complacency and decent reserve 
 more may be said than can with truth of every indivi- 
 dual of her sex ; since she is 
 
 " quae nee reticere loquenti, 
 
 Nee prior ipsa loqui didicit resonabilis echo." 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 P. S. The classic reader will, I trust, pardon the 
 following lovely quotation, so finely describing echoes, 
 and so poetically accounting for their causes from 
 popular superstition : 
 
 " Qua? bene quom videas, rationem reddere possis 
 Tute tibi atque aliis, quo pacto per loca sola 
 Saxa pareis formas verborum ex ordine reddant, 
 Palanteis comites quom monteis inter opacos 
 Quaerimus, et magna disperses voce ciemus. 
 Sex etiam, aut septem loca vidi reddere voces 
 Unam quom jaceres : ita colles collibus ipsis 
 Verba repulsantes iterabant dicta referre. 
 Haec loca capripedes Satyros, Nymphasque tenere 
 Finitiini fingunt, et Faunos esse loquuntur ; 
 Quorum noctivago strepitu, ludoque jocanti 
 Adfirmant volgo taciturna silentia rumpi, 
 Chordarumque sonos fieri, dulceisque querelas, 
 Tibia quas fundit digitis pulsata canentum : 
 Et genus agricolum late sentiscere, quom Pan 
 Pinea semiferi capitis velamina quassans, 
 Unco saepe labro calamos percurrit hianteis, 
 Fistula silvestrem ne cesset fundere musam." 
 
 Lucretius, lib. iv. 1. 576. 
 Y 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER XXXIX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, May 13, 1778. 
 
 AMONG the many singularities attending those amusing 
 birds the swifts, I am now confirmed in the opinion 
 that we have every year the same number of pairs inva- 
 riably; at least, the result of my inquiry has been 
 exactly the same for a long time past. The swallows 
 and martins are so numerous, and so widely distributed 
 over the village, that it is hardly possible to recount 
 them ; while the swifts, though they do not all build in 
 the church, yet so frequently haunt it, and play and 
 rendezvous round it, that they are easily enumerated. 
 The number that I constantly find are eight pairs ; 
 about half of which reside in the church, and the rest 
 build in some of the lowest and meanest thatched cot- 
 tages. Now, as these eight pairs, allowance being made 
 for accidents, breed yearly eight pairs more, what be- 
 comes annually of this increase; and, what determines 
 every spring which pairs shall visit us, and reoccupy 
 their ancient haunts 1 ? 
 
 1 Mr. White observes also, in a former letter, that there must be a great 
 destruction of swallows somewhere ; because they do not return in the 
 same numbers that departed from hence. But this is the case with all 
 birds in a wild state, unless under particular circumstances; the numbers 
 are not greater each successive spring, however prolific the parents may 
 be, but the supply is fitted to the consumption. It may be readily con- 
 ceived, that large numbers of our birds of passage may be destroyed by 
 birds of prey in the interior of Africa, and it is more difficult to account 
 for the annual consumption of the small birds that remain the whole year 
 with us, where the hawks are much destroyed and few in number. Night- 
 ingales live nine or ten years in confinement, and there is no reason to 
 believe swallows to be more short-lived. Chaffinches and yellowhammers 
 have few enemies but the sparrow hawk ; and yet, supposing each pair to 
 raise but six young, which if they breed twice must be a low average, 
 
OF SELBORNE. 323 
 
 Ever since I have attended to the subject of ornitho- 
 logy, I have always supposed that that sudden reverse 
 of affection, that strange avnoTopyjj which immediately 
 succeeds in the feathered kind to the most passionate 
 fondness, is the occasion of an equal dispersion of birds 
 over the face of the earth. Without this provision, one 
 favourite district would be crowded with inhabitants, 
 while others would be destitute and forsaken. But the 
 parent birds seem to maintain a jealous "superiority, 
 and to oblige the young to seek for new abodes : and 
 the rivalry of the males in many kinds prevents their 
 crowding the one on the other. 
 
 Whether the swallows and house martins return in 
 the same exact number annually is not easy to say, for 
 reasons given above : but it is apparent, as I have re- 
 marked before in my Monographies, that the numbers 
 returning bear no manner of proportion to the numbers 
 retiring. 
 
 three out of every four birds must perish before the next summer, or the 
 numbers would increase annually. 
 
 I have been even more puzzled to understand the enormous consump- 
 tion of toads, for I scarcely know what will eat them. If a hungry pike 
 seizes one, he disgorges it again in disgust, though he eats a frog greedily. 
 I have observed the flat margin of a small pond very near to me, in York- 
 shire, on the 22d of June, swarming with innumerable millions of young 
 toads, which make a black belt for a yard or two round it, so crowded 
 in some places that a pin could not be pushed in between any of them. 
 After a while, these climb the higher ground and disperse in the woods 
 and fields. On the 10th of July not one remained near the pond ; they 
 were scattered about the upland grounds. But what becomes of them 
 ultimately ? for the longevity of toads is known to be very great: they are 
 liable to few accidents : if a man tread upon an old toad with his whole 
 weight, it is not injured by it; and even when stunned at the first, it soon 
 recovers ; nor can I find how they are consumed. Do the rooks, jays, 
 and magpies eat them? Mr. White says that ducks, buzzards, owls, 
 stone curlews, and snakes, eat toads : but there are no ducks, buzzards, 
 or stone curlews in the quarter where these myriads are produced, and 
 snakes and owls are very rare in the neighbourhood ; yet, through some 
 unascertained channel of consumption, the whole of this enormous 
 increase of toads disappears before the next summer. W. H. 
 
324 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER XL. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, June 2, 1778. 
 
 THE standing objection to botany has always been, 
 that it is a pursuit that amuses the fancy and exercises 
 the memory, without improving the mind or advancing 
 any real knowledge : and, where the science is carried 
 no farther than a mere systematic classification, the 
 charge is but too true. But the botanist that is desirous 
 of wiping off this aspersion, should be by no means 
 content with a list of names ; he should study plants 
 philosophically, should investigate the laws of vegeta- 
 tion, should examine the powers and virtues of effica- 
 cious herbs, should promote their cultivation ; and graft 
 the gardener, the planter, and the husbandman, on the 
 phytologist. Not that system is by any means to be 
 thrown aside ; without system the field of Nature would 
 be a pathless wilderness ; but system should be subser- 
 vient to, not the main object of, pursuit. 
 
 Vegetation is highly worthy of our attention ; and in 
 itself is of the utmost consequence to mankind, and 
 productive of many of the greatest comforts and elegan- 
 cies of life. To plants we owe timber, bread, beer, 
 honey, wine, oil, linen, cotton, &c. what not only 
 strengthens our hearts, and exhilarates our spirits, but 
 what secures us from inclemencies of weather and 
 adorns our persons. Man, in his true state of nature, 
 seems to be subsisted by spontaneous vegetation: in 
 middle climes, where grasses prevail, he mixes some 
 animal food with the produce of the field and garden : 
 and it is towards the polar extremes only that, like his 
 kindred bears and wolves, he gorges himself with flesh 
 alone, and is driven, to what hunger has never been 
 
OF SELBORNE. 325 
 
 known to compel the very beasts, to prey on his own 
 species 1 . 
 
 The productions of vegetation have had a vast influ- 
 ence on the commerce of nations, and have been the 
 great promoters of navigation, as may be seen in the 
 articles of sugar, tea, tobacco, opium, ginseng, betel, 
 paper, &c. As every climate has its peculiar produce, 
 our natural wants bring on a mutual intercourse ; so that 
 by means of trade each distant part is supplied with the 
 growth of every latitude. But, without the knowledge 
 of plants and their culture, we must have been content 
 with our hips and haws, without enjoying the delicate 
 fruits of India and the salutiferous drugs of Peru. 
 
 Instead of examining the minute distinctions of every 
 various species of each obscure genus, the botanist 
 should endeavour to make himself acquainted with 
 those that are useful. You shall see a man readily 
 ascertain every herb of the field, yet hardly know wheat 
 from barley, or at least one sort of wheat or barley 
 from another. 
 
 But of all sorts of vegetation the grasses seem to be 
 most neglected ; neither the farmer nor the grazier seem 
 to distinguish the annual from the perennial, the hardy 
 from the tender, nor the succulent and nutritive from 
 the dry and juiceless. 
 
 The study of grasses would be of great consequence 
 to a northerly and grazing kingdom. The botanist that 
 could improve the sward of the district where he lived, 
 would be a useful member of society : to raise a thick 
 turf on a naked soil would be worth volumes of syste- 
 matic knowledge ; and he would be the best common- 
 wealth's man that could occasion the growth of " two 
 blades of grass where one alone was seen before 2 ." 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 1 See the late voyages to the South Seas. 
 
 2 A contribution worthy of a nobleman of the highest rank and most 
 extensive possessions, has been made to the knowledge of the agricul- 
 turist and to the wants of civilized man, by the Duke of Bedford, whose 
 
326 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER XLI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, July 3, 1778. 
 
 IN a district so diversified with such a variety of hill 
 and dale, aspects and soils, it is no wonder that great 
 choice of plants should be found. Chalks, clays, sands, 
 sheep-walks and downs, bogs, heaths, woodlands, and 
 
 experiments, instituted at Woburn Abbey and conducted under the super- 
 intendence of the late George Sinclair, have furnished data for judging 
 how most probably two blades of grass may be made to grow where one 
 only was before found. The object of the experiments was to ascertain 
 what kinds of grass yielded the largest crops and the greatest quantity 
 of nutriment; and to determine the soils which were best adapted to each 
 of them. Their consequence was the publication, in 1816, of the Hortus 
 Gramineus Woburnensis, or an Account of the Results of the Experi- 
 ments on the Produce and nutritive Qualities of different Grasses and 
 other Plants, used as the Food of the more valuable domestic Animals. 
 " Spots of ground, each containing four square feet, were enclosed by 
 boards in such a manner that there was no lateral communication between 
 the earth enclosed by the boards and that of the garden : the soil was 
 removed in these enclosures, and new soils supplied, or mixtures of soils 
 were made in them, to furnish, as far as possible, to the different grasses 
 those soils which seem most favourable to their growth, a few varieties 
 being adopted for the purpose of ascertaining the effects of different soils 
 on the same plant." Most of the species were grown on sandy, clayey, 
 loamy, and peaty soils, of various proportions, the chemical composition 
 of each being ascertained by Sir Humphry Davy ; and the quantity of 
 nutritive matter afforded by the crop was also determined by a simple 
 process indicated by the same eminent chemist. " The grass, in its green 
 or dry state, was submitted to the action of hot water till all its soluble 
 parts were taken up: the liquor was then separated from the woody fibre 
 of the grass by means of blotting paper : it was then evaporated to dry- 
 ness. The product, or solid matter, is the nutritive matter of the grass," 
 consisting, " for the most part, of five distinct vegetable substances, viz. 
 mucilaginous, saccharine, albuminous, bitter extractive, and saline 
 matters." 
 
 Under this treatment, as an instance, it may be mentioned that it was 
 found that the cock's foot grass, when cultivated on a peat soil, produced 
 one-sixth more in weight than on a sandy loam ; but that the grass was 
 of an inferior quality as to nutriment; so that the crop, although heavier, 
 was of less value in the proportion of nine to eight : that the first leaves 
 
OF SELBORNE. 327 
 
 champaign fields, cannot but furnish an ample Flora. 
 The deep rocky lanes abound with Filices, and the pas- 
 tures and moist woods with Fungi. If in any branch of 
 botany we may seem to be wanting, it must be in the 
 large aquatic plants, which are not to be expected on a 
 spot far removed from rivers, and lying up amidst the 
 hill country at the spring heads. To enumerate all the 
 plants that have been di severed within our limits 
 would be a needless work ; but a short list of the more 
 rare, and the spots where they are to be found, may be 
 neither unacceptable nor unentertaining : 
 
 of the spring are more nutritive than those of the end of the year, sixty- 
 four drachms at the beginning of April affording sixty-nine grains of nu- 
 tritive matter, while the same quantity in the month of November yielded 
 only thirty-nine grains : that the herbage, when suffered to grow rank or 
 old from want of sufficient stocking, contains nearly one half less nourish- 
 ment than that which is of recent growth, the quantity in sixty-four 
 drachms being in the one case only twenty grains, and in the other thirty- 
 six: and that the leaves and stalks are equally nutritious. The de- 
 duction is, that the cock's foot grass is more valuable for pasture than for 
 hay ; and that it is necessary to pasture or cut it closely in order to de- 
 rive the greatest advantage from it. As a farther and general deduction, 
 it is stated that the cock's foot grass appears to have a greater variety of 
 merits for alternate husbandry than almost any other kind : and it is re- 
 commended that it should constitute three parts at least of a mixture of 
 grasses for such cultivation, the remainder of the combination consisting 
 of such kinds as possess in a greater degree the qualities in which it is 
 deficient, such as Poa trivialis, Phleum pratense, Lolium perenne, &c. 
 
 From this instance a slight idea may be obtained of the valuable re- 
 sults brought under the observation of those who may be disposed to 
 profit by them for the improvement of their fields. Every ordinary grass, 
 even those that offered but little promise of advantage, was submitted to 
 experiment; and a record of each was equally kept. To aid in the deter- 
 mination of the several kinds of grasses, dried specimens of each accom- 
 panied, in the original edition, the account given of it; and thus supplied 
 the most tangible means of ascertaining the object meant : and specimens 
 of the seeds being also included in the work, those errors which might 
 have occurred, had descriptions only been given, were guarded against 
 by obvious and simple means, and in the most effectual manner. 
 
 A second edition of the Hortus Gramineus Woburnensis, published in 
 1825, has coloured representations of the several grasses experimented 
 on, as well as some additional facts of interest to the agriculturist : to 
 whose advantage it is a contribution of the highest value, offered by one 
 of the most enlightened of the proprietors and cultivators of the soil of 
 England. E. T. B. 
 
328 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 Helleborus fcetidus, stinking hellebore, bear's foot, or 
 setterwort, all over the High Wood and Coney Croft 
 Hanger: this continues a great branching plant the 
 winter through, blossoming about January, and is very 
 ornamental in shady walks and shrubberies. The good 
 women give the leaves powdered to children troubled 
 with worms ; but it is a violent remedy, and ought to 
 be administered with caution. 
 
 Helleborus viridis, green hellebore in the deep stony 
 lane on the left hand just before the turning to Norton 
 Farm, and at the top of Middle Dorton under the 
 hedge : this plant dies down to the ground early in 
 autumn, and springs again about February, flowering 
 almost as soon as it appears above ground. 
 
 Vaccinium Oxycoccus, creeping bilberries, or cranber- 
 ries, in the bogs of Bin's pond ; 
 
 Vaccinium myrtillus t whortle, or bilberries, on the dry 
 hillocks of Wolmer Forest ; 
 
 Drosera rotundifolia, round-leaved sundew, in the 
 bogs of Bin's Pond ; 
 
 Drosera longifolia, long-leaved sundew, in the bogs 
 of Bin's Pond ; 
 
 Comarum palustre, purple comarum, or marsh cinque- 
 foil, in the bogs of Bin's Pond ; 
 
 Hypericum Androscemum, Tutsan St. John's Wort, in 
 the stony, hollow lanes ; 
 
 Vinca minor, less periwinkle, in Selborne Hanger and 
 Shrub Wood ; 
 
 Monotropa Hypopitys, yellow monotropa, or bird's 
 nest, in Selborne Hanger under the shady beeches, to 
 whose roots it seems to be parasitical at the north 
 west end of the Hanger ; 
 
 Chloraperfoliata,13lackstoniaperfoliata,HuDSO*ii,per- 
 foliated yellow wort, on the banks in the King's Field ; 
 
 Paris quadrifolia, herb Paris, true love, or one berry, 
 in the Church Litten Coppice; 
 
 Chrysosplenium oppositifolium, opposite golden saxi- 
 frage, in the dark and rocky hollow lanes ; 
 
OF SELBORNE. 329 
 
 Gentiana Amarella, autumnal gentian, or fellvvort, 
 on the Zigzag and Hanger ; 
 
 Lathrcca Squamaria, tooth wort, in the Church Litten 
 Coppice under some hazels near the foot bridge, in 
 Trimming's garden hedge, and on the dry wall opposite 
 Grange Yard ; 
 
 Dipsacus pilosus, small teasel, in the Short and Long 
 Lith; 
 
 Lathyrus sylvestris, narrow-leaved, or wild lathyrus, 
 in the bushes at the foot of the Short Lith, near the 
 path; 
 
 Ophrys spiralis, ladies' traces, in the Long Lith, and 
 towards the south corner of the common ; 
 
 Ophrys Nidus Avis, bird's nest ophrys, in the Long 
 Lith under the shady beeches among the dead leaves, 
 in Great Dorton among the bushes, and on the Hanger 
 plentifully l ; 
 
 1 Until I had discovered the extraordinary manner in which this plant 
 propagates itself, I was much puzzled how a plant of such rapid and vi- 
 gorous growth, bearing seed like the finest particles of dust, could spring 
 up in a few weeks in the spring, where there had been no intimation of 
 its existence the preceding season, and without ever being seen in a 
 young state ; and I had observed that after disappearing for a few years, 
 it would rise again in vigour and abundance in the same place. 
 
 Many years ago, being amongst beech woods in the winter where the 
 plant abounded and where the dead flower-stalks were still standing, I 
 determined to investigate its secret history. The plant sometimes grows 
 in the earth, but oftener in masses of dead beech leaves. On removing 
 the leaves or mould to the bottom of the dead stalks, it appeared to have 
 grown out of a bundle of fleshy fibres, about as thick as a crow-quill, di- 
 verging every way. The heart of the bundle, where they were connected, 
 adjoining to the flower stem, was decaying; the fibres were falling apart, 
 and the plant appeared to have died as an annual after flowering. On 
 stirring the leaves further, at a small distance, I discovered a live bundle 
 of similar fibres, with a very strong white shoot or eye, like the dormant 
 shoot of a perennial herbaceous plant, which was evidently to produce a 
 flowering stem in the next summer. Pursuing my researches, I soon 
 discovered other similar bundles of different sizes, which were clearly 
 immature and not ready to sprout in the following spring. On examina- 
 tion of the smallest, I found that it grew from the end of a half dead fibre ; 
 and recurring to the dead plant which I had first taken up, I perceived 
 that its several fibres, or at least many of them, though dead at the base 
 or end, which had been attached to the old plant, were alive at the other 
 
330 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 Serapias latifolia, helleborine, in the High Wood 
 under the shady beeches ; 
 
 Daphne Laureola, spurge laurel, in Selborne Hanger 
 and the High Wood ; 
 
 Daphne Mezereum, the mezereon, in Selborne Hanger 
 among the shrubs at the south-east end above the cot- 
 tages ; 
 
 Lycoperdon tuber, truffles, in the Hanger and High 
 Wood; 
 
 Sambucus Ebulus, dwarf elder, wall wort, or Banewort, 
 among the rubbish and ruined foundations of the 
 Priory. 
 
 Of all the propensities of plants none seem more 
 strange than their different periods of blossoming. Some 
 produce their flowers in the winter, or very first dawn- 
 ings of spring ; many when the spring is established ; 
 some at midsummer ; and some not till autumn. When 
 we see the Helleborus fcetidus and Helleborus niger blow- 
 ing at Christmas, the Helleborus hyemalis in January, 
 
 end, antl beginning to bristle or protrude young fibres near the extremity. 
 By further research, I clearly ascertained that the plant dies after flower- 
 ing, but is capable of reproducing a new plant from the point of each of 
 its fibres, after they have fallen apart, the extreme point becoming the eye 
 or shoot, which increases in size till its maturity, and the lateral bristles 
 becoming the fibres by which the plant is to be nourished, and afterwards 
 propagated. The young roots continue thus to increase in bulk under 
 ground till they come to the flowering age, when they push up vigorously, 
 die, and spawn again in the same extraordinary manner. The disap- 
 pearance and reappearance of the plant is thus completely accounted for. 
 I did not make a memorandum of the number of different sizes, but if I 
 recollect right they are five years old when they flower. I potted several 
 of them, which flowered in the green-house, but all that were left in pots 
 out of doors were killed by frost. Though ophrys and orchis roots abide 
 the severest winter in their native situation, if planted in pots and left 
 out, they will certainly be destroyed by frost. The dead leaves or turf 
 protect them where they grow. 
 
 It is not generally known that the Orchis b\folia, or white butterfly 
 orchis, is the most fragrant of flowers, and that two or three of them in a 
 pot will perfume a whole house at night. They are scentless by day. 
 They will flourish in any part of London, if the pots are kept in the room 
 with little water in the winter, and the plants allowed a little air at the 
 window when growing. W. H. 
 
OF SELttORNE. 331 
 
 and the Helleborus viridis as soon as ever it emerges 
 out of the ground, we do not wonder, because they 
 are kindred plants that we expect should keep pace 
 the one with the other. But other congenerous vege- 
 tables differ so widely in their time of flowering, that 
 we cannot but admire. I shall only instance at present 
 in the Crocus sativus, the vernal, and the autumnal cro- 
 cus, which have such an affinity, that the best botanists 
 only make them varieties of the same genus, of which 
 there is only one species ; not being able to discern any 
 difference in the corolla, or in the internal structure 2 . 
 Yet the vernal crocus expands its flowers by the begin- 
 ning of March at farthest, and often in very rigorous 
 weather; and cannot be retarded but by some violence 
 offered : while the autumnal (the Saffron) defies the 
 influence of the spring and summer, and will not blow 
 till most plants begin to fade and run to seed. This cir- 
 cumstance is one of the wonders of the creation, little 
 noticed, because a common occurrence ; yet ought not 
 to be overlooked on account of its being familiar, since 
 it would be as difficult to be explained as the most 
 stupendous phenomenon in nature. 
 
 Say, what impels, amidst surrounding snow 
 Congeal'd, the crocus' flamy bud to glow ? 
 
 2 The more minute analysis that has obtained since the time of Gilbert 
 White has produced an immense change in the views of botanists with re- 
 spect to this genus. Crocus now consists not of one species, but of thirty 
 at the least ; and no fewer than four distinct kinds are included among 
 the plants of Britain. Yet this more strict definition of the crocuses 
 scarcely tends to diminish the wonder expressed above, why, among 
 plants so extremely similar in appearance, differences so striking should 
 exist in their seasons of developement. Another singularity in the genus 
 would doubtless have excited the admiration of our author, had he been 
 acquainted with it: he would have viewed with the interest that attaches 
 to a problem requiring solution the peculiarity of the naked -flowering saf- 
 fron, and would probably have spoken of it also as of one of the wonders 
 of the creation, on account of its producing its flowers, like the meadow- 
 saffron, unaccompanied by the protection or the presence of leaves, which 
 in these instances instead of preceding the bloom do not appear until after 
 the flower has faded. E. T. B. 
 
332 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 Say, what retards, amidst the summer's blaze, 
 The' autumnal bulb, till pale, declining days? 
 The GOD of SEASONS ; whose pervading power 
 Controls the sun, or sheds the fleecy shower: 
 He bids each flower his quickening word obey ; 
 Or to each lingering bloom enjoins delay. 
 
 LETTER XLII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 " Omnibus animalibus reliquis certus et uniusmodi et in suo cuique 
 genere incessus est : aves solae vario meatu feruntur et in terra et in 
 acre/' PUN. Hist. Nat. lib. x. cap. 38. 
 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Aug. 7, 1778. 
 
 A GOOD ornithologist should be able to distinguish 
 birds by their air as well as by their colours and shape ; 
 on the ground as well as on the wing, and in the bush 
 as well as in the hand. For, though it must not be 
 said that every species of birds has a manner peculiar 
 to itself, yet there is somewhat in most genera at least, 
 that at first sight discriminates them, and enables a 
 judicious observer to pronounce upon them with some 
 certainty. Put a bird in motion 
 
 " et vera incessu patuit ." 
 
 Thus kites and buzzards sail round in circles with 
 wings expanded and motionless ; and it is from their 
 gliding manner that the former are still called in the 
 north of England gleads, from the Saxon verb glidan, to 
 glide. The kestril or wind-hover, has a peculiar mode 
 of hanging in the air in one place, his wings all the 
 while being briskly agitated. Hen harriers fly low over 
 heaths or fields of corn, and beat the ground regularly 
 like a pointer or setting-dog. Owls move in a buoyant 
 manner, as if lighter than the air; they seem to want 
 ballast. There is a peculiarity belonging to ravens that 
 must draw the attention even of the most incurious 
 
OF SKLBORNE. 333 
 
 they spend all their leisure time in striking and cuffing 
 each other on the wing in a kind of playful skirmish ; 
 and when they move from one place to another, fre- 
 quently turn on their backs with a loud croak, and 
 seem to be falling to the ground. When this odd 
 gesture betides them, they are scratching themselves 
 with one foot, and thus lose the centre of gravity. 
 Rooks sometimes dive and tumble in a. frolicsome 
 manner ; crows and daws swagger in their walk ; wood- 
 peckers fly volatu undoso, opening and closing their 
 wings at every stroke, and so are always rising or fall- 
 ing in curves. All of this genus use their tails, which 
 incline downward, as a support while they run up trees. 
 Parrots, like all other hooked-clawed birds, walk awk- 
 wardly, and make use of their bill as a third foot, 
 climbing and descending with ridiculous caution. All 
 the Gallince parade and walk gracefully, and run nimbly ; 
 but fly with difficulty, with an impetuous whirring, and 
 in a straight line. Magpies and jays flutter with power- 
 less wings, and make no dispatch ; herons seem encum- 
 bered with too much sail for their light bodies; but 
 these vast hollow wings are necessary in carrying bur- 
 thens, such as large fishes, and the like ; pigeons, and 
 particularly the sort called smiters, have a way of 
 clashing their wings the one against the other over their 
 backs with a loud snap; another variety called tum- 
 blers turn themselves over in the air. Some birds have 
 movements peculiar to the season of pairing: thus ring- 
 doves, though strong and rapid at other times, yet in 
 the spring hang about on the wing in a toying and play- 
 ful manner ; thus the cock-snipe, while breeding, for- 
 getting his former flight, fans the air like the wind-hover; 
 and the greenfinch in particular exhibits such languish- 
 ing and faltering gestures as to appear like a wounded 
 and dying bird; the kingfisher darts along like an 
 arrow ; fern-owls, or goat-suckers, glance in the dusk 
 over the tops of trees like a meteor; starlings, as it 
 were, swim along, while missel- thrushes use a wild and 
 
334 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 desultory flight; swallows sweep over the surface of 
 the ground and water, and distinguish themselves by 
 rapid turns and quick evolutions ; swifts dash round in 
 circles; and the bank martin moves with frequent vacil- 
 lations like a butterfly. Most of the small birds fly by 
 jerks, rising and falling as they advance. Most small 
 birds hop; but wagtails and larks walk, moving their 
 legs alternately. Skylarks rise and fall perpendicularly 
 as they sing; woodlarks hang poised in the air; and 
 titlarks rise and fall in large curves, singing in their 
 descent. The whitethroat uses odd jerks and gesticu- 
 lations over the tops of hedges and bushes. All the 
 duck kind waddle ; divers and auks walk as if fettered, 
 and stand erect on their tails : these are the compedes of 
 Linnaeus. Geese and cranes, and most wild fowls, 
 move in figured flights, often changing their position. 
 The secondary remiges of Tringce, wild ducks, and some 
 others, are very long, and give their wings, when in 
 motion, a hooked appearance 1 . Dabchicks, moorhens, 
 and coots, fly erect, with their legs hanging down, and 
 hardly make any dispatch; the reason is plain, their 
 wings are placed too forward out of the true centre of 
 gravity ; as the legs of auks and divers are situated too 
 backward. 
 
 LETTER XLIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, Sept. 9, 1778. 
 
 FROM the motion of birds, the transition is natural 
 enough to their notes and language, of which I shall 
 say something. Not that I would pretend to under- 
 stand their language like the vizier, who, by the re- 
 
 1 The elongated feathers are the tertials : the secondaries are short. 
 W.Y. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 335 
 
 cital of a conversation which passed between two owls, 
 reclaimed a sultan, before delighting in conquest and 
 devastation l ; but I would be thought only to mean that 
 many of the winged tribes have various sounds and 
 voices adapted to express their various passions, wants, 
 and feelings ; such as anger, fear, love, hatred, hunger, 
 and the like. All species are not equally eloquent ; 
 some are copious and fluent, as it were, in. their utter- 
 ance, while others are confined to a few important 
 sounds : no bird, like the fish kind, is quite mute, though 
 some are rather silent. The language of birds is very 
 ancient, and, like other ancient modes of speech, very 
 elliptical ; little is said, but much is meant and under- 
 stood. 
 
 The notes of the eagle kind are shrill and piercing ; 
 and about the season of nidification much diversified, 
 as I have been often assured by a curious observer of 
 Nature who long resided at Gibraltar, where eagles 
 abound. The notes of our hawks much resemble those 
 of the king of birds. Owls have very expressive notes ; 
 they hoot in a fine vocal sound, much resembling the 
 vox humana, and reducible by a pitch-pipe to a musical 
 key 2 . This note seems to express complacency and 
 rivalry among the males: they use also a quick call 
 and a horrible scream; and can snore and hiss when 
 they mean to menace. Ravens, beside their loud croak, 
 
 1 See Spectator, vol. vii. No. 512. 
 
 2 The brown owl hoots ; the white owl screams. 
 
 It appears that amongst the various caprices of St. Patrick, he admitted 
 the screech-owl into Ireland, but excluded the hooters. To counteract 
 his machinations, some years ago a gentleman took over to Ireland some 
 brown owls to turn out by the lake of Killarney, where he was not 
 satisfied with the screeching generation. I never heard whether he was 
 successful in establishing a colony of hooters. W. H. 
 
 Sir William Jardine says the white or barn owl hoots, and he has shot 
 it in the act of hooting. Mr. Waterton is disposed to deny this, and says 
 the tawny owl is the only owl which hoots : " About an hour before day- 
 break," he adds, " I hear with extreme delight its loud, clear, and sono- 
 rous notes, resounding far and near through hill and dale. Very different 
 from these is the screech of the barn owl." RENNIE. 
 
336 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 can exert a deep and solemn note that makes the woods 
 to echo ; the amorous sound of a crow is strange and 
 ridiculous ; rooks, in the breeding season, attempt some- 
 times, in the gaiety of their hearts, to sing, but with no 
 great success ; the parrot kind have many modulations 
 of voice, as appears by their aptitude to learn human 
 sounds ; doves coo in an amorous and mournful manner, 
 and are emblems of despairing lovers; the woodpecker 
 sets up a sort of loud and hearty laugh ; the fern-owl or 
 goat-sucker, from the dusk till daybreak, serenades his 
 mate with the clattering of castanets. All the tuneful 
 Passeres express their complacency by sweet modula- 
 tions, and a variety of melody. The swallow, as has 
 been observed in a former letter, by a shrill alarm, 
 bespeaks the attention of the other Hirundines, and bids 
 them be aware that the hawk is at hand. Aquatic and 
 gregarious birds, especially the nocturnal, that shift 
 their quarters in the dark, are very noisy and loqua- 
 cious ; as cranes, wild geese, wild ducks, and the like : 
 their perpetual clamour prevents them from dispersing 
 and losing their companions. 
 
 In so extensive a subject, sketches and outlines are 
 as much as can be expected: for it would be endless 
 to instance in all the infinite variety of the feathered 
 nation. We shall therefore confine the remainder of 
 this letter to the few domestic fowls of our yards, which 
 are most known and therefore best understood. And 
 first the peacock, with his gorgeous train, demands our 
 attention ; but, like most of the gaudy birds, his notes 
 are grating and shocking to the ear : the yelling of cats, 
 and the braying of an ass, are not more disgustful. The 
 voice of the goose is trumpetlike, and clanking; and 
 once saved the Capitol at Rome, as grave historians 
 assert: the hiss also of the gander is formidable and 
 full of menace, and " protective of his young." Among 
 ducks the sexual distinction of voice is remarkable ; 
 for while the quack of the female is loud and sonorous, 
 the voice of the drake is inward and harsh, and feeble, 
 

 OF SELBORNE. 337 
 
 and scarce discernible. The cock turkey struts and 
 gobbles to his mistress in a most uncouth manner ; he 
 hath also a pert and petulant note when he attacks his 
 adversary. When a hen turkey leads forth her young 
 brood she keeps a watchful eye ; and if a bird of prey 
 appear, though ever so high in the air, the careful 
 mother announces the enemy with a little inward moan, 
 and watches him with a steady and attentive look; but, 
 if he approach, her note becomes earnest and alarming, 
 and her outcries are redoubled. 
 
 No inhabitants of a yard seem possessed of such 
 a variety of expression and so copious a language as 
 common poultry. Take a chicken of four or five days 
 old, and hold it up to a window where there are flies, 
 and it will immediately seize its prey, with little twit- 
 terings of complacency ; but if you tender it a wasp or 
 a bee, at once its note becomes harsh and expressive of 
 disapprobation and a sense of danger. When a pullet 
 is ready to lay, she intimates the event by a joyous and 
 easy soft note. Of all the occurrences of their life that 
 of laying seems to be the most important; for no sooner 
 has a hen disburthened herself, than she rushes forth 
 with a clamorous kind of joy, which the cock and the 
 rest of his mistresses immediately adopt. The tumult 
 is not confined to the family concerned, but catches 
 from yard to yard, and spreads to every homestead 
 within hearing, till at last the whole village is in an 
 uproar. As soon as a hen becomes a mother, her new 
 relation demands a new language ; she then runs clock- 
 ing and screaming about, and seems agitated as if pos- 
 sessed. The father of the flock has also a considerable 
 vocabulary : if he finds food, he calls a favourite con- 
 cubine to partake ; and if a bird of prey passes over, 
 with a warning voice he bids his family beware. The 
 gallant chanticleer has, at command, his amorous 
 phrases and his terms of defiance. But the sound by 
 which he is best known is his crowing : by this he has 
 been distinguished in all ages as the countryman's 
 
 z 
 
338 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 clock or larum, as the watchman that proclaims the 
 divisions of the night. Thus the poet elegantly styles 
 him 
 
 " the crested cock, whose clarion sounds 
 
 The silent hours." 
 
 A neighbouring gentleman one summer had lost most 
 of his chickens by a sparrow hawk, that came gliding 
 down between a faggot pile and the end of his house 
 to the place where the coops stood. The owner, in- 
 wardly vexed to see his flock thus diminishing, hung a 
 setting net adroitly between the pile and the house, into 
 which the caitiff dashed, and was entangled. Resent- 
 ment suggested the law of retaliation: he therefore 
 clipped the hawk's wings, cut off his talons, and fixing 
 a cork on his bill, threw him down among the brood- 
 hens. Imagination cannot paint the scene that ensued ; 
 the expressions that fear, rage, and revenge inspired 
 were new, or at least such as had been unnoticed before : 
 the exasperated matrons upbraided, they execrated, 
 they insulted, they triumphed. In a word, they never 
 desisted from buffeting their adversary till they had 
 torn him in a hundred pieces. 
 
 LETTER XLIV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 SELBORNE. 
 
 monstrent 
 
 Quid tan turn Oceano properent se tingere soles 
 Hyberni ; vel quae tardis mora noctibus obstet." 
 
 GENTLEMEN who have outlets might contrive to make 
 ornament subservient to utility: a pleasing eyetrap 
 might also contribute to promote science: an obelisk 
 in a garden or park might be both an embellishment and 
 a heliotrope. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 339 
 
 Any person that is curious, and enjoys the advantage 
 of a good horizon, might, with little trouble, make two 
 heliotropes; the one for the winter, the other for the 
 summer solstice: and these two erections might be 
 constructed with very little expense ; for two pieces of 
 timber framework, about ten or twelve feet high, and 
 four feet broad at the base, and close lined with plank, 
 would answer the purpose. 
 
 The erection for the former should, if possible, be 
 placed within sight of some window in the common 
 sitting parlour; because men, at that dead season of 
 the year, are usually within doors at the close of the 
 day; while that for the latter might be fixed for any 
 given spot in the garden or outlet: whence the owner 
 might contemplate, in a fine summer's evening, the 
 utmost extent that the sun makes to the northward at 
 the season of the longest days. Now nothing would be 
 necessary but to place these two objects with so much 
 exactness, that the westerly limb of the sun, at setting, 
 might but just clear the winter heliotrope to the west of 
 it on the shortest day ; and that the whole disc of the 
 sun, at the longest day, might exactly at setting also 
 clear the summer heliotrope to the north of it. 
 
 By this simple expedient it would soon appear that 
 there is no such thing, strictly speaking, as a solstice : 
 for, from the shortest day, the owner would, every clear 
 evening, see the disc advancing, at its setting, to the 
 westward, of the object; and, from the longest day, 
 observe the sun retiring backwards every evening at its 
 setting towards the object westward, till, in a few nights, 
 it would set quite behind it, and so by degrees to the 
 west of it : for when the sun comes near the summer 
 solstice, the whole disc of it would at first set behind 
 the object; after a time the northern limb would first 
 appear, and so every night gradually more, till at length 
 the whole diameter would set northward of it for about 
 three nights ; but on the middle night of the three, sen- 
 sibly more remote than the former or following. When 
 
340 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 beginning its recess from the summer tropic, it would 
 continue more and more to be hidden every night, till at 
 length it would descend quite behind the object again ; 
 and so nightly more and more to the westward. 
 
 LETTER XLV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 SELBORNE. 
 
 " Mugire videbis 
 
 Sub pedibus terrain, et descendere montibus ornos." 
 
 WHEN I was a boy I used to read, with astonishment 
 and implicit assent, accounts in Baker's Chronicle of 
 walking hills and travelling mountains. John Philips, 
 in his Cider, alludes to the credit that was given to 
 such stories with a delicate but quaint vein of humour 
 peculiar to the author of the Splendid Shilling. 
 
 " I nor advise, nor reprehend, the choice 
 Of Marcley Hill ; the apple no where finds 
 A kinder mould : yet 'tis unsafe to trust 
 Deceitful ground : who knows but that, once more, 
 This mount may journey, and, his present site 
 Forsaking, to thy neighbour's bounds transfer 
 The goodly plants, affording matter strange 
 For law debates !" 
 
 But, when I came to consider better, I began to 
 suspect that though our hills may never have journeyed 
 far, yet that the ends of many of them have slipped and 
 fallen away at distant periods, leaving the cliffs bare 
 and abrupt. This seems to have been the case with 
 Nore and Whetham Hills ; and especially with the 
 ridge between Harteley Park and Wardleham, where 
 the ground has slid into vast swellings and furrows ; 
 and lies still in such romantic confusion as cannot be 
 accounted for from any other cause. A strange event, 
 that happened not long since, justifies our suspicions ; 
 which, though it befell not within the limits of this parish, 
 
OF SELBORNE. 341 
 
 yet, as it was within the hundred of Selborne, and as 
 the circumstances were singular, may fairly claim a 
 place in a work of this nature. 
 
 The months of January and February, in the year 
 1774, were remarkable for great melting snows and 
 vast gluts of rain; so that by the end of the latter 
 month the land-springs, or lavants, began to prevail, 
 and to be near as high as in the memorable winter of 
 1764. The beginning of March also went on in the 
 same tenor; when, in the night between the 8th and 
 9th of that month, a considerable part of the great 
 woody hairger at Hawkley was torn from its place, and 
 fell down, leaving a high free-stone cliff naked and bare, 
 and resembling the steep side of a chalk-pit. It ap- 
 pears that this huge fragment, being perhaps sapped 
 and undermined by waters, foundered, and was ingulfed, 
 going down in a perpendicular direction; for a gate 
 which stood in the field, on the top of the hill, after 
 sinking with its posts for thirty or forty feet, remained 
 in so true and upright a position as to open and shut 
 with great exactness, just as in its first situation. 
 Several oaks also are still standing, and in a state of 
 vegetation, after taking the same desperate leap. That 
 great part of this prodigious mass was absorbed in 
 some gulf below is plain also from the inclining ground 
 at the bottom of the hill, which is free and unincum- 
 bered ; but would have been buried in heaps of rubbish, 
 had the fragment parted and fallen forward 1 . 
 
 1 That neither the rock which had parted from the cliff, nor any frag- 
 ments of it, remained upon the surface below the naked face of the es- 
 carpment, is indeed sufficient evidence of its having passed beneath the 
 soil. But to account for its subsidence, it is by no means necessary to 
 assume, as appears to be conjectured in the text, the existence of a gulf 
 below it, into which it had been absorbed. The geological relations of the 
 strata point to a much easier, as well as a more correct, explanation of the 
 occurrence. Here, as elsewhere throughout the district, the malm rock 
 or freestone of the upper green sand formation rests upon the gault or 
 blue clay : a rock upon a yielding base. An adequate weight, placed 
 upon so unfirm a soil as the lower of these formations, must of necessity 
 
342 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 About a hundred yards from the foot of this hanging 
 coppice stood a cottage by the side of a lane ; and two 
 hundred yards lower, on the other side of the lane, was 
 
 sink into it. So prodigious a mass as that, which, on the occasion de- 
 scribed in the text, was separated from its adhesion to its native rock, 
 and left to be supported by the soft clay alone, was more than its pulpy 
 nature could support, and it gave way accordingly ; receiving into its 
 yielding substance, and burying almost entirely beneath its surface, the 
 detached face of the dill', which subsided into it so easily and so perpen- 
 dicularly as not to disturb the adjustment of a gate upon the sunken 
 mass, once on the top, and now at the foot of the escarpment. 
 
 But the reception into the clay of so immense a bulk necessarily dis- 
 placed a portion of it equal in quantity to that of the mass which had been 
 received into it. Reduced by a long continued series of rains to a mor- 
 tar-like consistence, it gave way with the utmost freedom to the pressure. 
 That which was in the first instance displaced, drove forwards the por- 
 tion immediately in advance of it, and, the force being applied from below 
 as well as from behind, the subjacent pastures were torn into wavy clefts 
 and ridges. 
 
 The hillocks in the first pasture below the Hanger, rounded in their 
 outline like the knolls occasionally met with in the London Clay (such 
 for instance, as that at Child's Hill, near Hampstead), may possibly indi- 
 cate that a similar slip to that of 1774, but probably in greater mass, had 
 previously occurred in the same situation. Eminences so marked as 
 these are not usual in the gault immediately beneath the malm rock 
 escarpments : generally its surface either at once assumes the level cha- 
 racter which belongs to it generally, or slopes gradually into the flat bot- 
 tom formed entirely by it, and from which its junction with the freestone 
 is never far distant. But here there are two well pronounced knolls, 
 and in the pasture beyond them there is still a tendency in the surface to 
 the same form, though the hillocks are there less marked. I cannot but 
 suspect that beneath these hillocks are buried masses of the freestone 
 derived from a former slip, which has forced the clay into so unusual a 
 form : and this is the more probable, as the rounded mass near Worldham, 
 known by the name of King John's Hill, is actually so constituted. 
 
 An additional inducement to the belief that they owe their existence to 
 such a cause, is the occurrence behind the first of them, between the hil- 
 lock and the foot of the Hanger, of a pond, antecedent, like the knolls 
 themselves, to the slip of 1774. I do not recollect an instance in which 
 a pond is met with in the gault ; and certainly not in so comparatively 
 high a situation, yet almost immediately adjoining to much lower grounds. 
 It is scarcely to be conceived that a substance of so slight cohesion should 
 allow of the formation in it of a cup-like cavity, in which water could be 
 retained ; unless on a dead level, in a spot where the drainage was re- 
 ceived in greater quantity than could be readily discharged, and where 
 the water might consequently rest. But here the water would soak stea- 
 dily through some portion of the base of the adjoining hillock, were that 
 hillock composed of the gault alone, and, sapping the soft material, would 
 
OF SELBORNK. 343 
 
 a farm-house, in which lived a labourer and his family ; 
 and just by, a stout new barn. The cottage was inha- 
 bited by an old woman and her son, and his wife. These 
 
 rapidly procure for itself an outlet ; and the drainage, instead of remain- 
 ing in a pond, would pass along a gutter or a streamlet to the lower lands. 
 
 At the base of Hawkley Slip, however, there is a pond, small though 
 it be : and the existence of so uncommon a basin in that situation may, I 
 think, be accounted for on the supposition that the hillock interposed 
 between it and the green slope into the flat bottom, consists, in its mass, 
 of portions of the freestone, escaped from the front of the terrace above ; 
 and that the freestone buried in the hillocks rises so high beneath the cover- 
 ing earth as to be elevated above the ordinary level of the water drained 
 into the pond from above ; thus forming, with the base of the slip, a cup 
 composed of a substance which does not yield, like the blue clay, to the 
 sapping influence of the liquid. A slight drainage exists, probably sinking 
 through small interstices of the masses of rock which I have assumed to 
 be buried in this situation, and indicates its course not merely by an im- 
 pressed line on the soil, but also by occasional oaks of moderate age 
 crossing the pasture at a right angle with the Hanger. 
 
 With so very slight a drainage as that indicated, and it is all the dis- 
 charge that I have observed for the waters that are poured upon this side 
 of the Hanger, it is not surprising that they should accumulate to so 
 great an extent as to cause occasional slips. On the opposite verge, the 
 range of the terrace of malm-rock is intersected by a deeply penetrating 
 ravine, along the gault bottom of which an ample drainage exists for the 
 whole of the side towards Empshot, by a streamlet running into the 
 Hawkley stream between Hawkley and Greatham mills, and consequently 
 forming one of the higher feeders of the Arun. The dip of the freestone 
 being slightly towards the north, the terrace, of whose southern escarp- 
 ment the slip forms only a small part, inclines also in that direction, and 
 hence the streamlet, its natural drainage, is, as natural drainages in all 
 but the flattest countries must necessarily be, a very efficient one. But 
 the history of the Hawkley slip shows that it may happen that all the 
 water poured from the clouds shall not escape from the surface in that 
 direction : so much as is showered on the face of the Hanger cannot be 
 carried off by it, but must find a vent elsewhere. 
 
 In other situations, and particularly on the southern coast of the Isle 
 of Wight, slips similar to that of Hawkley have taken place, and from 
 the same cause : either the separation of a portion of the freestone rock 
 of the upper green sand formation and its subsidence into the gault ; or 
 the loosening of the gault and the subsequent separation and subsidence 
 of a portion of the free stone, which could no longer be supported when 
 its natural foundation had thus given way. The delicious scenery of the 
 celebrated and enchanting district of the Isle of Wight, known as the 
 Undercliff, is owing to a similar accident; but of gigantic extent as com- 
 pared with that of Hawkley : its history, however, belongs to other days. 
 But within days of recent record an immense fall of the same kind has 
 taken place at the well-known land-slip on the same coast, under St. Ca- 
 therine's Down, near Niton ; in the midst of which is seated the powerful 
 
344 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 people, in the evening, which was very dark and tem- 
 pestuous, observed that the brick floors of their kitchens 
 began to heave and part ; and that the walls seemed to 
 open, and the roofs to crack : but they all agree that no 
 tremor of the ground, indicating an earthquake, was 
 ever felt ; only that the wind continued to make a most 
 tremendous roaring in the woods and hangers. The 
 miserable inhabitants, not daring to go to bed, remained 
 in the utmost solicitude and confusion, expecting every 
 moment to be buried under the ruins of their shattered 
 
 mineral water of the Sand-rock spring. And yet more recently, and still 
 on the same coast, another slip, and of similar character, has occurred 
 between Luccomb and Bonchurch. Of the two latter events the parti- 
 culars have been well described : but the length of the present note 
 admonishes me to refrain from entering upon them. 
 
 Yet one remark respecting them must be made ; the reference to them, 
 as to analogous cases, might otherwise induce the belief that they were, 
 in all particulars, similar to the Hawkley Slip. They are analogous, for 
 the strata concerned in them are the same ; and the parting from the face 
 of the rock of a portion of its escarpment, and the displacement of the 
 soft inferior clay, belong equally to both. But in one respect, and it is 
 an important one as connected with the present appearance of the several 
 slips, they differ materially : in the Hawkley Slip at no time were there 
 any debris visible on the surface ; that which was pasture is still pas- 
 ture, covered with a smooth and beautiful sward : in the slips of the Isle 
 of Wight, the surface is irregular in the extreme, covered with masses of 
 stones of all imaginable sizes and forms, scattered and heaped together 
 in the greatest confusion, and forming an intricate and highly broken 
 surface ; in the remote slip of the Undercliff especially there occur single 
 blocks of stone of immense size, each bulky enough to shelter cottages, 
 and in one instance, at St. Lawrence, an isolated block is seen of suffi- 
 cient size to support the parish church, diminutive indeed, but still the 
 parish church, which is erected on it. But if we reflect that, in the one 
 case, there is an expanse of gault of sufficient extent to admit of its being 
 moved, not for half a mile only, but to almost any conceivable distance, 
 (for the subsidence of the entire mass of the terrace would probably merely 
 cause the sliding of the gault upon the adjoining sandy strata of Woliner 
 Forest,) we shall not be surprised at its swallowing so much of the rock 
 as was, in the Hawkley Slip, immersed in it. Whereas, on the southern 
 coast of the Isle of Wight, the greater part of the small portion of gault 
 intercepted in the cliff would, on such an occurrence, be at once squeezed 
 out into the sea and be washed away, and the freestone of the slip would 
 be received on the under sand of that iron-bound shore ; retaining, how- 
 ever, among its gigantic fragments, some portions of the blue clay, dis- 
 persed in patches which, by their fertility, in the midst of the rocky 
 masses, give so lovely and peculiar a character to the Undercliff. 
 E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 345 
 
 edifices. When daylight came they were at leisure to 
 contemplate the devastations of the night: they then 
 found that a deep rift or chasm, had opened under their 
 houses, and torn them, as it were, in two; and that one 
 end of the barn had suffered in a similar manner ; that 
 a pond near the cottage had undergone a strange re- 
 verse, becoming deep at the shallow end, and so vice 
 versa ; that many large oaks were removed out of their 
 perpendicular, some thrown down, and some fallen into 
 the heads of neighbouring trees ; and that a gate was 
 thrust forward, with its hedge, full six feet, so as to re- 
 quire a new track to be made to it. From the foot of the 
 cliff, the general course of the ground, which is pasture, 
 inclines in a moderate descent for half a mile, and is 
 interspersed with some hillocks, which were rifted, in 
 every direction, as well towards the great woody hanger, 
 as from it. In the first pasture the deep clefts began ; 
 and running across the lane, and under the buildings, 
 made such vast shelves that the road was impassable 
 for some time; and so over to an arable field on the 
 other side, which was strangely torn and disordered. 
 The second pasture field, being more soft and springy, 
 was protruded forward without many fissures in the 
 turf, which was raised in long ridges resembling graves, 
 lying at right angles to the motion. At the bottom of 
 this enclosure the soil and turf rose many feet against 
 the bodies of some oaks that obstructed their farther 
 course and terminated this awful commotion. 
 
 The perpendicular height of the precipice, in general, 
 is twenty-three yards ; the length of the lapse, or slip, 
 as seen from the fields below, one hundred and eighty- 
 one ; and a partial fall, concealed in the coppice, ex- 
 tends seventy yards more : so that the total length of 
 this fragment that fell was two hundred and fifty-one 
 yards. About fifty acres of land suffered from this vio- 
 lent convulsion: two houses were entirely destroyed; 
 one end of a new barn was left in ruins, the walls being 
 cracked through the very stones that composed them ; 
 a hanging coppice was changed to a naked rock ; and 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 some grass grounds and an arable field so broken and 
 rifted by the chasms as to be rendered, for a time, 
 neither fit for the plough nor safe for pasturage, till 
 considerable labour and expense had been bestowed in 
 levelling the surface and filling in the gaping fissures. 
 
 HAWKLRY HJP. 
 
 LETTER XLVI. 
 
 TO THE SAME, 
 
 SKI, BORNE. 
 
 resonant arbusta 
 
 THERE is a steep abrupt pasture field interspersed with 
 furze close to the back of this village, well known by 
 the name of the Short Lithe, consisting of a rocky dry 
 soil, and inclining to the afternoon sun. This spot 
 abounds with the Gryllus campestris, or field cricket, 
 which, though frequent in these parts, is by no means 
 a common insect in many other counties. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 347 
 
 As their cheerful summer cry cannot but draw the 
 attention of a naturalist, I have often gone down to 
 examine the economy of these Grylli, and study their 
 mode of life : but they are so shy and cautious that it 
 is no easy matter to get a sight of them ; for, feeling a 
 person's footsteeps as he advances, they stop short in 
 the midst of their . song, and retire backward nimbly 
 into their burrows, where they lurk till all suspicion of 
 danger is over. 
 
 At first we attempted to dig them out with a spade, 
 but without any great success : for either we could not 
 get to the bottom of the hole, which often terminated 
 under a great stone ; or else, in breaking up the ground, 
 we inadvertently squeezed the poor insect to death. 
 Out of one so bruised we took a multitude of eggs, 
 which were long and narrow, of a yellow colour, and 
 covered with a very tough skin. By this accident 
 we learned to distinguish the male from the female : 
 the former of which is shining black, with a golden 
 
 HELD CIIICKET. 
 
 stripe across his shoulders; the latter is more dusky, 
 more capacious about the abdomen, and carries a long 
 sword-shaped weapon at her tail, which probably is the 
 instrument with which she deposits her eggs in crannies 
 and safe receptacles. 
 
 Where violent methods will not avail, more gentle 
 means will often succeed ; and so it proved in the pre- 
 sent case : for though a spade be too boisterous and 
 rough an implement, a pliant stalk of grass, gently insi- 
 nuated into the caverns, will probe their windings to 
 
348 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 the bottom, and quickly bring out the inhabitant ; and 
 thus the humane inquirer may gratify his curiosity 
 without injuring the object of it. It is remarkable that, 
 though these insects are furnished with long legs be- 
 hind, and brawny thighs for leaping, like grasshoppers ; 
 yet when driven from their holes they show no activity, 
 but crawl along in a shiftless manner, so as easily to be 
 taken: and again, though provided with a curious ap- 
 paratus of wings, yet they never exert them when there 
 seems to be the greatest occasion. The males only 
 make that shrilling noise, perhaps out of rivalry and 
 emulation, as is the case with many animals which 
 exert some sprightly note during their breeding time : 
 it is raised by a brisk friction of one wing against the 
 other. They are solitary beings, living singly, male or 
 female, each as it may happen ; but there must be a 
 time when they pair, and then the wings may be useful, 
 perhaps during the hours of night. When the males 
 meet they will fight fiercely, as I found by some which 
 I put into the crevices of a dry stone wall, where I 
 should have been glad to have made them settle. For 
 though they seemed distressed by being taken out of 
 their knowledge, yet the first that got possession of the 
 chinks would seize on any that were obtruded upon 
 them with a vast row of serrated fangs. With their 
 strong jaws, toothed like the shears of a lobster's claws, 
 they perforate and round their curious regular cells, 
 having no fore claws to dig like the mole cricket. 
 When taken in hand, I could not but wonder that they 
 never offered to defend themselves, though armed with 
 such formidable weapons. Of such herbs as grow be- 
 fore the mouths of their burrows they eat indiscrimi- 
 nately ; and on a little platform, which they make just 
 by, they drop their dung; and never, in the daytime, 
 seem to stir more than two or three inches iroin 
 home. Sitting in the entrance of their caverns, they 
 chirp all night as well as day from the middle of 
 (he month of May to the middle of July ; and in hot 
 weather, when they are most vigorous, they make the 
 
OF SELBORNE. 349 
 
 hills echo ; and, in the stiller hours of darkness, may be 
 heard to a considerable distance. In the beginning of 
 the season their notes are more faint and inward ; but 
 become louder as the summer advances, and so die 
 away again by degrees. 
 
 Sounds do not always give us pleasure according 
 to their sweetness and melody ; nor do harsh sounds 
 always displease. We are more apt to be captivated 
 or disgusted with the associations which tfiey promote, 
 than with the notes themselves. Thus the shrilling of 
 the field cricket, though sharp and stridulous, yet mar- 
 vellously delights some hearers, filling their minds with 
 a train of summer ideas of every thing that is rural, 
 verdurous, and joyous. 
 
 About the 10th of March the crickets appear at the 
 mouths of their cells, which they then open and bore, 
 and shape very elegantly. All that I ever have seen at 
 that season were in their pupa state, and had only the 
 rudiments of wings lying under a skin or coat, which 
 must be cast before the insect can arrive at its perfect 
 state l ; from whence I should suppose that the old 
 ones of last year do not always survive the winter. In 
 August their holes begin to be obliterated, and the 
 insects are seen no more till spring. 
 
 Not many summers ago I endeavoured to transplant 
 a colony to the terrace in my garden, by boring deep 
 holes in the sloping turf. The new inhabitants stayed 
 some time, and fed and sung ; but wandered away by 
 degrees, and were heard at a farther distance every 
 morning ; so that it appears that on this emergency 
 they made use of their wings in attempting to return to 
 the spot from which they were taken 2 . 
 
 1 We have observed that they cast these skins in April, which are then 
 seen lying at the mouths of their holes. 
 
 2 I have been as unsuccessful in transplanting the hearth cricket, as 
 Mr. White was with the field cricket. In two. different houseSj I have 
 repeatedly introduced crickets, but could not prevail upon them to stay. 
 One of my trials, indeed, was made in summer, with insects brought from 
 a garden wall, and it is probable, they deemed the kitchen fireside too 
 hot, at that season. RENNIE. 
 
350 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 One of these crickets, when confined in a paper cage 
 and set in the sun, and supplied with plants moistened 
 with water, will feed and thrive, and become so merry 
 and loud as to be irksome in the same room where a 
 person is sitting: if the plants are not wetted, it will 
 die. 
 
 LETTER XLVII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE. 
 
 " Far from all resort of mirth 
 Save the cricket on the hearth." 
 
 MILTON'S II Penseroso. 
 
 WHILE many other insects must be sought after in 
 fields, and woods, and waters, the Gryllus domesticus, or 
 house cricket, resides altogether within our dwellings, 
 intruding itself upon our notice, whether we will or no. 
 This species delights in new-built houses, being, like 
 the spider, pleased with the moisture of the walls ; and 
 besides, the softness of the mortar enables them to bur- 
 row and mine between the joints of the bricks or stones, 
 and to open communications from one room to another. 
 They are particularly fond of kitchens and bakers' ovens, 
 on account of their perpetual warmth. 
 
 JlorsKCKh-KK.l. 
 
 Tender insects that live abroad either enjoy only the 
 short period of one summer, or else doze away the cold 
 uncomfortable months in profound slumbers ; but these, 
 residing as it were in a torrid zone, are always alert, 
 and merry : a good Christmas fire is to them like the 
 heats of the dog-days. Though they are frequently 
 
OF SELBORNE. 351 
 
 heard by day, yet is their natural time of motion only 
 in the night. As soon as it grows dusk, the chirping 
 increases, and they come running forth, and are from 
 the size of a flea to that of their full stature. As one 
 should suppose, from the burning atmosphere which 
 they inhabit, they are a thirsty race, and show a great 
 propensity for liquids, being found frequently drowned 
 in pans of water, milk, broth, or the like. .Whatever is 
 moist they affect; and, therefore, often gnaw holes in 
 wet woollen stockings and aprons that are hung to the 
 fire : they are the housewife's barometer, foretelling her 
 when it will rain ; and are prognostic sometimes, she 
 thinks, of ill or good luck ; of the death of a near rela- 
 tion, or the aproach of an absent lover. By being the 
 constant companions of her solitary hours they natu- 
 rally become the objects of her superstition. These 
 crickets are not only very thirsty, but very voracious ; 
 for they will eat the scummings of pots, and yeast, salt, 
 and crumbs of bread ; and any kitchen offal or sweep- 
 ings. In the summer we have observed them to fly, 
 when it became dusk, out of the windows, and over 
 the neighbouring roofs. This feat of activity accounts 
 for the sudden manner in which they often leave 
 their haunts, as it does for the method by which 
 they come to houses where they were not known be- 
 fore. It is remarkable, that many sorts of insects 
 seem never to use their wings but when they have 
 a mind to shift their quarters and settle new colo- 
 nies. When in the air they move volatu undoso,. in 
 waves or curves, like woodpeckers, opening and shut- 
 ting their wings at every stroke, and so are always 
 rising or sinking. 
 
 When they increase to a great degree, as they did 
 once in the house where I am now writing, they become 
 noisome pests, flying into the candles, and dashing into 
 people's faces; but may be blasted and destroyed by 
 gunpowder discharged into their crevices and crannies. 
 In families, at such times, they are, like Pharaoh's 
 plague of frogs, " in their bed-chambers and upon their 
 
352 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 beds, and in their ovens, and in their knead ing-troughs V 
 Their shrilling noise is occasioned by a brisk attrition 
 of their wings. Cats catch hearth crickets, and, play- 
 ing with them as they do with mice, devour them. 
 Crickets may be destroyed, like wasps, by phials half 
 filled with beer, or any liquid, and set in their haunts ; 
 for, being always eager to drink, they will crowd in till 
 the bottles are full 2 . 
 
 LETTER XLVIIL 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 SELBORNE. 
 
 How diversified are the modes of life not only of incon- 
 gruous but even of congenerous animals ; and yet their 
 specific distinctions are not more various than their 
 propensities. Thus, while the field cricket delights in 
 sunny dry banks, and the house cricket rejoices amidst 
 the glowing heat of the kitchen hearth or oven, the 
 Gryllus Gryllotalpa 1 , or mole cricket, haunts moist mea- 
 dows, and frequents the sides of ponds and banks of 
 streams, performing all its functions in a swampy wet 
 soil. With a pair of fore feet, curiously adapted to the 
 purpose, it burrows and works under ground like the 
 mole, raising a ridge as it proceeds, but seldom throw- 
 ing up hillocks. 
 
 As mole crickets often infest gardens by the sides of 
 canals, they are unwelcome guests to the gardener, 
 raising up ridges in their subterraneous progress and 
 rendering the walks unsightly. If they take to the kit- 
 chen quarters, they occasion great damage among the 
 plants and roots, by destroying whole beds of cabbages, 
 young legumes, and flowers. When dug out they seem 
 
 1 Exod. viii. 3. 
 
 2 Some additional particulars respecting the house cricket will be 
 found in the Observations on various parts of Nature, printed in a sub- 
 sequent part of this volume. E. T. B. 
 
 1 [Grytlotalpa rulgaris, LATR.] 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 353 
 
 very slow and helpless, and make no use of their wings 
 by day; but at night they come abroad, and make long 
 excursions, as I have been convinced by finding strag- 
 glers in a morning, in improbable places. In fine wea- 
 ther, about the middle of April, and just at the close of 
 day, they begin to solace themselves with a low, dull, 
 jarring note, continued for a long time without interrup- 
 tion, and not unlike the chattering of the fern-owl, or 
 goat-sucker, but more inward. 
 
 MOLE CRICKET AND NEST. 
 
 About the beginning of May they lay their eggs, as I 
 was once an eye-witness; for a gardener, at a house 
 where I was on a visit, happening to be mowing, on the 
 (3th of that month, by the side of a canal, his scythe 
 struck too deep, pared off a large piece of turf, and laid 
 open to view a curious scene of domestic economy : 
 
 irigentem lato dedit ore fenestram : 
 
 Apparet domus intfts, et atria longa patescunt : 
 Apparent penetralia." 
 
 A A 
 
354 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 There were many caverns and winding passages 
 leading to a kind of chamber, neatly smoothed and 
 rounded, and about the size of a moderate snuff-box. 
 Within this secret nursery were deposited near a hun- 
 dred eggs of a dirty yellow colour, and enveloped in a 
 tough skin, but too lately excluded to contain any rudi- 
 ments of young, being full of a viscous substance. The 
 eggs lay but shallow, and within the influence of the 
 sun, just under a little heap of fresh moved mould, like 
 that which is raised by ants. 
 
 When mole crickets fly, they move cursu undoso, rising 
 and falling in curves, like the other species mentioned 
 before. In different parts of this kingdom people call 
 them fen crickets, churr worms, and eve churrs, all very 
 apposite names. 
 
 Anatomists, who have examined the intestines of 
 these insects, astonish me with their accounts ; for they 
 say that, from the structure, position, and number of 
 their stomachs, or maws, there seems to be good reason 
 to suppose that this and the two former species rumi- 
 nate or chew the cud like many quadrupeds 2 ! 
 
 2 In the Hunterian Collection are preparations of the singularly com- 
 plex stomach here alluded to as it exists in the mole cricket (No. 611) 
 and in the locust (Nos. 474,610.) The structure is similar in both, as to 
 the number of cavities, but differs in their relative positions. The Grst 
 cavity, or crop, is formed in the locust by a gradual dilatation of the 
 gullet; but in the mole cricket it is appended, like the crop of a grani- 
 M irons bird, to one side of the gullet, communicating with it by a lateral 
 opening. The canal which intervenes between the crop and gizzard is 
 relatively longer in the mole cricket than in the locust. Its gizzard is 
 small, but armed internally with longitudinal rows of complex teeth. 
 Two large lateral pouches open into the lower part, or termination, of the 
 gizzard. The analogy between this digestive apparatus and that of the 
 ruminants is vague, and does not extend beyond the number of cavities. 
 It is more like that of the bird ; and since the comminuting or masti- 
 cating organs are situated, as in the feathered class, in the stomach, it 
 cannot be supposed that the food is again returned to the mouth, where 
 it has already received all the division which the oral instruments can 
 effect. R. O. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 355 
 
 LETTER XLIX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 SELBORNE,- May 7, 1779. 
 
 IT is now more than forty years that I have paid some 
 attention to the ornithology of this district, without 
 being able to exhaust the subject : new occurrences 
 still arise as long as any inquiries are kept alive. 
 
 In the last week of last month five of those most 
 rare birds, too uncommon to have obtained an English 
 name, but known to naturalists by the terms of Himan- 
 topus, or Loripes, and Charadrius Himantopus 1 , were shot 
 upon the verge of Frinsham Pond, a large lake belong- 
 ing to the Bishop of Winchester, and lying between 
 Wolmer Forest, and the town of Farnham, in the county 
 of Surrey. The pond-keeper says there were three 
 brace in the flock; but that, after he had satisfied his 
 curiosity, he suffered the sixth to remain unmolested. 
 One of these specimens I procured, and found the length 
 of the legs to be so extraordinary, that, at first sight, 
 one might have supposed the shanks had been fastened 
 on to impose on the credulity of the beholder : they 
 were legs in caricatura; and had we seen such propor- 
 tions on a Chinese or Japan screen we should have 
 made large allowances for the fancy of the draughtsman. 
 These birds are of the plover family, and might with 
 propriety be called the stilt plovers. Brisson, under 
 that idea, gives them the apposite name of L'Echasse. 
 My specimen, when drawn and stuffed with pepper, 
 weighed only four ounces and a quarter; though the 
 naked part of the thigh measured three inches and a 
 half, and the legs four inches and a half. Hence we 
 
 1 [Himantopus melanopterus, TEM.M.] 
 A A 2 
 
356 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 may safely assert that these birds exhibit, weight for 
 inches, incomparably the greatest length of legs of any 
 known bird. The flamingo, for instance, is one of the 
 most long-legged birds, and yet it bears no manner of 
 
 
 
 proportion to the Himantopus ; for a cock flamingo 
 weighs, at an average, about four pounds avoirdupois ; 
 and his legs and thighs measure usually about twenty 
 inches. But four pounds are fifteen times and a frac- 
 tion more than four ounces and one quarter ; and if 
 four ounces and a quarter have eight inches of legs, 
 four pounds must have one hundred and twenty inches 
 and a fraction of legs ; viz. somewhat more than ten 
 feet ; such a monstrous proportion as the world never 
 saw ! If you should try the experiment in still larger 
 birds, the disparity would still increase. It must be 
 matter of great curiosity to see the stilt plover move ; 
 to observe how it can wield such a length of lever with 
 such feeble muscles as the thighs seem to be furnished 
 with. At best one should expect it to be but a bad 
 
OF SELJBORNE. 357 
 
 walker : but what adds to the w r onder is, that it has no 
 back toe. Now without that steady prop to support 
 its steps it must be liable, in speculation, to perpetual 
 vacillations, and seldom able to preserve the true centre 
 of gravity. 
 
 The old name of Himantopus is taken from Pliny ; 
 and, by an awkward metaphor, implies that the legs 
 are as slender and pliant as if cut out of. a thong of 
 leather. Neither Willughby nor Ray, in all their curi- 
 ous researches, either at home or abroad, ever saw this 
 bird. Mr. Pennant never met with it in all Great Bri- 
 tain, but observed it often in the cabinets of the curious 
 at Paris. Hasselquist says that it migrates to Egypt 
 in the autumn: and a most accurate observer of nature 
 has assured me that he has found it on the banks of the 
 streams in Andalusia. 
 
 Our writers record it to have been found only twice 
 in Great Britain. From all these relations it plainly 
 appears that these long-legged plovers are birds of 
 South Europe, and rarely visit our island ; and when 
 they do, are wanderers and stragglers, and impelled to 
 make so distant and northern an excursion from mo- 
 tives or accidents for which we are not able to account. 
 One thing may fairly be deduced, that these birds come 
 over to us from the continent, since nobody can suppose 
 that a species not noticed once in an age, and of such 
 a remarkable make, can constantly breed unobserved 
 in this kingdom. 
 
 LETTER L. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, SELBORNE, April 21, 1780. 
 
 THE old Sussex tortoise, that I have mentioned to you 
 so often, is become my property. I dug it out of its 
 winter dormitory in March last, when it was enough 
 
358 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 awakened to express its resentments by hissing ; and, 
 packing it in a box with earth, carried it eighty miles 
 in post chaises. The rattle and hurry of the journey 
 so perfectly roused it, that, when I turned it out on a 
 border, it walked twice down to the bottom of my gar- 
 den: however, in the evening, the weather being cold, 
 it buried itself in the loose mould, and continues still 
 concealed. 
 
 As it will be under my eye, I shall now have an 
 opportunity of enlarging my observations on its mode 
 of life, and propensities ; and perceive already that, 
 towards the time of coming forth, it opens a breathing 
 place in the ground near its head, requiring, I conclude, 
 a freer respiration as it becomes more alive. This 
 creature not only goes under the earth from the middle 
 of November to the middle of April, but sleeps great 
 part of the summer; for it goes to bed in the longest 
 days at four in the afternoon, and often does not stir in 
 the morning till late. Besides, it retires to rest for 
 every shower ; and does not move at all in wet days. 
 
 When one reflects on the state of this strange being, 
 it is a matter of wonder to find that Providence should 
 bestow such a profusion of days, such a seeming waste 
 of longevity on a reptile that appears to relish it so 
 little as to squander more than two thirds of its exist- 
 ence in a joyless stupor, and be lost to all sensation for 
 months together in the profoimdest of slumbers. 
 
 While I was writing this letter, a moist and warm 
 afternoon, with the thermometer at 50, brought forth 
 troops of shell-snails; and, at the same juncture, the 
 tortoise heaved up the mould and put out its head ; and 
 the next morning came forth, as it were raised from the 
 dead ; and walked about till four in the afternoon. This 
 was a curious coincidence ! a very amusing occurrence! 
 to see such a similarity of feelings between the two 
 Qfqtomoi ! for so the Greeks call both the shell-snail and 
 the tortoise. 
 
 Summer birds are, this cold and backward spring, 
 
OF SELBORNE. 359 
 
 unusually late : I have seen but one swallow yet. This 
 conformity with the weather convinces me more and 
 more that they sleep in the winter. 
 
 More particulars respecting the old family tortoise. 
 
 Because we call this creature an abject reptile, we 
 are too apt to undervalue his abilites, and depreciate 
 his powers of instinct. Yet he is, as Mr. Pope says of 
 his lord, 
 
 " Much too wise to walk into a well :" 
 
 and has so much discernment as not to fall down a 
 haha; but to stop and withdraw from the brink with 
 the readiest precaution. 
 
 Though he loves warm weather, he avoids the hot 
 sun ; because his thick shell, when once heated, would, 
 as the poet says of solid armour " scald with safety." 
 He therefore spends the more sultry hours under the 
 umbrella of a large cabbage leaf, or amidst the waving 
 forests of an asparagus bed. 
 
 But as he avoids heat in the summer, so, in the decline 
 of the year, he improves the faint autumnal beams, by 
 getting within the reflection of a fruit-wall : and, though 
 he never has read that planes inclining to the horizon 
 receive a greater share of warmth 1 , he inclines his 
 shell, by tilting it against the wall, to collect and admit 
 every feeble ray. 
 
 Pitiable seems the condition of this poor embarrassed 
 reptile: to be cased in a suit of ponderous armour, 
 which he cannot lay aside ; to be imprisoned, as it 
 were, within his own shell, must preclude, we should 
 suppose, all activity and disposition for enterprise. Yet 
 there is a season of the year (usually the beginning of 
 June) when his exertions are remarkable. He then 
 
 1 Several years ago a book was written entitled " Fruit- walls improved 
 by inclining them to the Horizon:" in which the author has shown, by 
 calculation, that a much greater number of the rays of the sun will fall on 
 such walls than on those which are perpendicular. 
 
360 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 walks on tiptoe, and is stirring by five in the morning ; 
 and, traversing the garden, examines every wicket and 
 interstice in the fences, through which he will escape if 
 possible; and often has eluded the care of the gardener, 
 and wandered to some distant field. The motives that 
 impel him to undertake these rambles seem to be of the 
 amorous kind : his fancy then becomes intent on sexual 
 attachments, which transport him beyond his usual gra- 
 vity, and induce him to forget for a time his ordinary 
 solemn deportment 2 . 
 
 3 Interesting as the old family tortoise has been rendered by the anec- 
 dotes related of him by Gilbert White, his history may be closed by the 
 statement that his life was not prolonged much beyond that of his pro- 
 tector. He died, it is believed, in the spring of 1794 ; after an existence 
 extended in England to about fifty-four years, the last fourteen of which 
 were spent at Selborne. The thick shell, in which he was coffined while 
 alive, is preserved in the residence of the master who secured for him an 
 enduring existence in the memories of many. 
 
 My friend Mr. Bell regards the specimen, which he has had an oppor- 
 tunity of inspecting, as an old and worn shell of the bordered tortoise, 
 Test, marginata, SCHCEPFF: and all who are acquainted with the extent 
 and accuracy of his knowledge of the Te8tudinata,must be aware that any 
 one who differs from him on such a subject, is probably in the wrong. Yet 
 at this risk I have ventured to regard the Selborne tortoise as a distinct 
 species. Its shell is less elevated than is usual in the bordered tortoise, 
 once named on that account the bell-shaped : its wrinkles are less strongly 
 marked and less sharp: itssubcaudal plates form with each other a much 
 more open angle : and its anterior supra-femoral plate, instead of running 
 to a point towards the back, has an inner margin nearly of equal length 
 with its anterior and its posterior edges. But the general form of the 
 shell of a tortoise, the sculpture of its surface, and the shape of particular 
 plates, are all too variable in many species to warrant the adoption of 
 any or all of these characters as absolutely distinctive; and on them no 
 assured reliance can consequently be placed. More stress may be laid on 
 the animal, and on particular organs or plates attached to its body ; and 
 in the case of Gilbert White's tortoise there is a fragment remaining of 
 the skin of one of the thighs which principally induces me to regard it as 
 distinct from the bordered species : for on this fragment of skin there is 
 a large white conical process or spur. No such process was noted by 
 Mr. Bell on the specimen of the bordered tortoise which he had alive, 
 and which is beautifully figured in his splendid work on the Testudinata : 
 evidence, it is true, of a negative character only, but becoming positive 
 when taken in conjunction with the distinct statement of M. Bibron, (in 
 the Erpe"tologie Generate, which he is now publishing in conjunction with 
 M. Dumeril,) that there are no large horny tubercles in that species on 
 the hinder face of the thighs. Although the bordered tortoise is far from 
 
OF SELBORNE. 361 
 
 LETTER LI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 SELBORNE, Sept. 3, 1781. 
 
 I HAVE now read your Miscellanies through with much 
 care and satisfaction ; and am to return you my best 
 thanks for the honourable mention made in them of me 
 as a naturalist, which I wish I may deserve. 
 
 In some former letters I expressed my suspicions that 
 many of the house martins do not depart in the winter 
 far from this village. I therefore determined to make 
 some search about the south-east end of the hill, where 
 I imagined they might slumber out the uncomfortable 
 months of winter. But supposing that the examination 
 would be made to the best advantage in the spring, and 
 observing that no martins had appeared by the llth of 
 April last ; on that day I employed some men to explore 
 
 uncommon in Greece, and in other countries on the shores of the Medi- 
 terranean basin, I am compelled to refer to authorities for its structure, 
 as I am not aware of the existence in London of a living or preserved 
 specimen of the animal : Mr. Bell has the only two shells of it that are 
 known to me. Mrs. White's, for the loan of which I am indebted to her 
 kindness, may be a third : but it seems to me, with our present know- 
 ledge on the subject, that it must be regarded as distinct. 
 I propose for it the name of Testudo Whitei: in English 
 
 GILBERT WHITE'S TORTOISE. 
 
 E. T. . 
 
362 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 the shrubs and cavities of the suspected spot. The 
 persons took pains, but without any success ; however, 
 a remarkable incident occurred in the midst of our pur- 
 suit while the labourers were at work, a house martin, 
 the first that had been seen this year, came down the 
 village in the sight of several people, and went at once 
 into a nest, where it stayed a short time, and then flew 
 over the houses ; for some days after, no martins were 
 observed, not till the 16th of April, and then only a 
 pair. Martins in general were remarkably late this 
 year. 
 
 LETTER LII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 SELBORNE, Sept. 9, 1781. 
 
 I HAVE just met with a circumstance respecting swifts, 
 which furnishes an exception to the whole tenor of my 
 observations ever since I have bestowed any attention 
 on that species of Hirundines. Our swifts, in general, 
 withdrew this year about the first day of August, all 
 save one pair, which in two or three days was reduced 
 to a single bird. The perseverance of this individual 
 made me suspect that the strongest of motives, that of 
 an attachment to her young, could alone occasion so 
 late a stay. I watched therefore till the 24th of August, 
 and then discovered that, under the eaves of the church, 
 she attended upon two young, which were fledged, and 
 now put out their white chins from a crevice. These 
 remained till the 27th, looking more alert every day, 
 and seeming to long to be on the wing. After this day 
 they were missing at once; nor could I ever observe 
 them with their dam coursing round the church in the 
 act of learning to fly, as the first broods evidently do. 
 On the 31st I caused the eaves to be searched, but we 
 found in the nest only two callow, dead, stinking swifts, 
 
OF SELBORNE. 303 
 
 on which a second nest had been formed. This double 
 nest was full of the black shining cases of the Hippo- 
 bosca Hirundinis. 
 
 The following remarks on this unusual incident are 
 obvious. The first is, that though it may be disagree- 
 able to swifts to remain beyond the beginning of August, 
 yet that they can subsist longer is undeniable. The 
 second is, that this uncommon event, as it. was owing 
 to the loss of the first brood, so it corroborates my former 
 remark, that swifts breed regularly but once; since, was 
 the contrary the case, the occurrence above could neither 
 be new nor rare. 
 
 P. S. One swift was seen at Lyndon, in the county of 
 Rutland, in 1782, so late as the 3rd of September. 
 
 LETTER LIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 As I have sometimes known you make inquiries about 
 several kinds of insects, I shall here send you an 
 account of one sort which I little expected to have 
 found in this kingdom. I had often observed that one 
 particular part of a vine growing on the walls of my 
 house was covered in the autumn with a black, dustlike 
 appearance, on w r hich the flies fed eagerly; and that 
 the shoots and leaves thus affected did not thrive ; nor 
 did the fruit ripen. To this substance I applied my 
 glasses ; but could not discover that it had any thing to 
 do with animal life, as I at first expected : but, upon a 
 closer examination behind the larger boughs, we were 
 surprised to find that they were coated over with husky 
 shells, from whose sides proceeded a cottonlike sub- 
 stance, surrounding a multitude of eggs. This curious 
 and uncommon production put me upon recollecting 
 what I have heard and read concerning the Coccus Vitis 
 
3C4 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 vinifera of Linnaeus, which, in the south of Europe, 
 infests many vines, and is a horrid and loathsome pest. 
 As soon as I had turned to the accounts given of this 
 insect, I saw at once that it swarmed on my vine ; and 
 did not appear to have been at all checked by the pre- 
 ceding winter, which had been uncommonly severe. 
 
 Not being then at all aware that it had any thing to 
 do with England, I was much inclined to think that it 
 came from Gibraltar among the many boxes and pack- 
 ages of plants and birds which I had formerly received 
 from thence ; and especially as the vine infested grew 
 immediately under my study-window, where I usually 
 kept my specimens. True it is that I had received 
 nothing from thence for some years : but as insects, we 
 know, are conveyed from one country to another in a 
 very unexpected manner, and have a wonderful power 
 of maintaining their existence till they fall into a nidus 
 proper for their support and increase, I cannot but 
 suspect still that these Cocci came to me originally 
 from Andalusia. Yet, all the while, candour obliges 
 me to confess that Mr. Lightfoot has written me word, 
 that he once, and but once, saw these insects on a vine 
 at Weymouth in Dorsetshire ; which, it is here to be 
 observed, is a seaport town to which the Coccus might 
 be conveyed by shipping. 
 
 As many of my readers may possibly never have 
 heard of this strange and unusual insect, I shall here 
 transcribe a passage from a natural history of Gibraltar, 
 written by the Reverend John White, late vicar of 
 Blackburn in Lancashire, but not yet published : 
 
 " In the year 1770 a vine which grew on the east side 
 of my house, and which had produced the finest crops 
 of grapes for years past, was suddenly overspread on 
 all the woody branches with large lumps of a white 
 fibrous substance resembling spiders' webs, or rather 
 raw cotton. It was of a very clammy quality, sticking 
 fast to every thing that touched it, and capable of being 
 spun into long threads. At first I suspected it to be 
 
OF SELBORNE. 365 
 
 the product of spiders, but could find none. Nothing 
 was to be seen connected with it but many brown oval 
 husky shells, which by no means looked like insects, 
 but rather resembled bits of the dry bark of the vine. 
 The tree had a plentiful crop of grapes set, when this 
 pest appeared upon it; but the fruit was manifestly 
 injured by this foul incumbrance. It remained all the 
 summer, still increasing, and loaded the. woody and 
 bearing branches to a vast degree. I often pulled off 
 great quantities by handfuls ; but it was so slimy and 
 tenacious that it could by no means be cleared. The 
 grapes never filled to their natural perfection, but turned 
 watery and vapid. Upon perusing the works after- 
 wards of M. de Reaumur, I found this matter perfectly 
 described and accounted for. Those husky shells, 
 which I had observed, were no other than the female 
 Coccus, from whose sides this cottonlike substance 
 exudes, and serves as a covering and security for their 
 eggs.'* 
 
 To this account I think proper to add, that, though 
 the female Cocci are stationary, and seldom remove 
 from the place to which they stick, yet the male is a 
 winged insect; and that the black dust which I saw 
 was undoubtedly the excrement of the females, which 
 is eaten by ants as well as flies. Though the utmost 
 severity of our winter did not destroy these insects, yet 
 the attention of the gardener in a summer or two, has 
 entirely relieved my vine from this filthy annoyance 1 . 
 
 As we have remarked above that insects are often 
 conveyed from one country to another in a very unac- 
 countable manner, I shall here mention an emigration 
 
 1 It is not usual for the Coccus of the vine to continue for several years 
 in succession attached to a tree in the open air in England, the severity 
 of the winter commonly destroying it at an early period. But to plants 
 kept in greenhouses it often proves a serious evil. It can scarcely be 
 regarded as an indigenous insect, and has probably been introduced into 
 this country, from time to time, with the exotic plants to which it is at- 
 tached, and perhaps with others also of the numerous kinds that orna- 
 ment our gardens. E. T. B. 
 
NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 of small Aphides, which was observed in the village of 
 Selborne no longer ago than August the 1st, 1785. 
 
 At about three o'clock in the afternoon of that day, 
 which was very hot, the people of this village were sur- 
 prised by a shower of Aphides, or smother-flies, which 
 fell in these parts. Those that were walking in the 
 street at that juncture found themselves covered with 
 these insects, which settled also on the hedges and 
 gardens, blackening all the vegetables where they 
 alighted. My annuals were discoloured with them, 
 and the stalks of a bed of onions were quite coated 
 over for six days after. These armies were then, no 
 doubt, in a state of emigration, and shifting their 
 quarters; and might have come, as far as we know, 
 from the great hop-plantations of Kent or Sussex, the 
 wind being all that day in the easterly quarter. They 
 were observed at the same time in great clouds about 
 Farnham, and all along the vale from Farnham to 
 Alton 2 . 
 
 LETTER LIV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 DEAR SIR, 
 
 WHEN I happen to visit a family where gold and silver 
 fishes are kept in a glass bowl, I am always pleased 
 with the occurrence, because it offers me an opportu- 
 nity of observing the actions and propensities of those 
 beings with whom we can be little acquainted in their 
 natural state. Not long since I spent a fortnight at 
 the house of a friend where there was such a vivary, to 
 which I paid no small attention, taking every occasion 
 
 2 For various methods by which several insects shift their quarters, 
 see Derhara's Physico-Theology. 
 
 1 First published in the Gentleman's Magazine for 1786, (vol. Ivi. 
 p. 488,) with the date of June 12, and under the signature of V. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 367 
 
 to remark what passed within its narrow limits. It 
 was here that I first observed the manner in which 
 fishes die. As soon as the creature sickens, the head 
 sinks lower and lower, and it stands as it were on its 
 head ; till, getting weaker, and losing all poise, the tail 
 turns over, and at last it floats on the surface of the 
 water with its belly uppermost. The reason why fishes, 
 when dead, swim in that manner is very x>bvious ; be- 
 cause, when the body is no longer balanced by the fins 
 of the belly, the broad muscular back preponderates by 
 its own gravity, and turns the belly uppermost, as lighter 
 from its being a cavity, and because it contains the 
 swimming-bladders, which contribute to render it 
 buoyant. Some that delight in gold and silver fishes 
 have adopted a notion that they need no aliment. True 
 it is that they will subsist for a long time without any 
 apparent food but what they can collect from pure 
 water frequently changed ; yet they must draw some 
 support from animalcula, and other nourishment sup- 
 plied by the water ; because, though they seem to eat 
 nothing, yet the consequences of eating often drop from 
 them. That they are best pleased with such jejune diet 
 may easily be confuted, since if you toss them crumbs 
 they will seize them with great readiness, not to say 
 greediness : however, bread should be given sparingly, 
 lest, turning sour, it corrupt the water. They will also 
 feed on the water-plant called Lemna, (duck's meat), 
 and also on small fry. 
 
 When they want to move a little they gently protrude 
 themselves with their pinnce pectorales ; but it is with 
 their strong muscular tails only that they and all fishes 
 shoot along with such inconceivable rapidity. It has 
 been said that the eyes of fishes are immoveable : but 
 these apparently turn them forward or backward in 
 their sockets as their occasions require. They take 
 little notice of a lighted candle, though applied close to 
 their heads, but flounce and seem much frightened by a 
 sudden stroke of the hand against the support whereon 
 
368 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 the bowl is hung ; especially when they have been mo- 
 tionless, and are perhaps asleep. As fishes have no 
 eyelids, it is not easy to discern when they are sleeping 
 or not, because their eyes are always open. 
 
 Nothing can be more amusing than a glass bowl con- 
 taining such fishes : the double refractions of the glass 
 and water represent them, when moving, in a shifting 
 and changeable variety of dimensions, shades, and 
 colours; while the two mediums, assisted by the con- 
 cavo-convex shape of the vessel, magnify and distort 
 them vastly; not to mention that the introduction of 
 another element and its inhabitants into our parlours 
 engages the fancy in a very agreeable manner. 
 
 Gold and silver fishes, though originally natives of 
 China and Japan, yet are become so well reconciled to 
 our climate as to thrive and multiply very fast in our 
 ponds and stews 2 . Linnaeus ranks this species of fish 
 under the genus of Cyprinus, or carp, and calls it Cypri- 
 nus auratus. 
 
 Some people exhibit this sort of fish in a very fanciful 
 
 a What Mr. White has remarked of the fishes of Japan thriving in our 
 climate, is true also of the plants ; the trees and shrubs brought from the 
 Japanese islands bearing our winters, and growing freely ; as for instance, 
 that beautiful tree, the gingko, now called by Dr. Smith the Salisburia ; 
 and the no less beautiful and scarce Sophora Japonica ; the finest speci- 
 mens of which trees now in England are probably in the curious garden 
 of John Orde, Esq. at Fulham. As I am on this subject, I will mention 
 that the garden belonging to the Palace of the Bishop of London at Ful- 
 ham, the earliest receptacle of scarce and foreign trees in this country, 
 is now almost worn out. Not above twelve of the original trees could be 
 found in the survey made in 1793. I remarked in 1811, that some of these 
 were gone, but the pinaster and the ilex remain. MITFOKD. 
 
 To those who cultivate aquatic plants in the stove, it may be useful to 
 know that the little fishes called thornbacks or sticklebacks, Gasterostei, 
 will live in a high temperature in which minnows would perish immedi- 
 ately, and that they are very serviceable in destroying the small insects 
 that feed on the fibres of plants under the water. They are singularly 
 pugnacious, and in a pretty large vessel or small cistern the strongest 
 fish will persecute his kind, and not tolerate the presence of another indi- 
 vidual of his own species. When hungry they are so bold that they will 
 bite at a pencil, or even at the finger if held in the water. I have kept 
 one for two or three years in the stove with Nymphcca cttrulea. W. H. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 369 
 
 way ; for they cause a glass bowl to be blown with a 
 large hollow space within, that does not communicate 
 with it. In this cavity they put a bird occasionally; 
 so that you may see a goldfinch or a linnet hopping as 
 it were in the midst of the water, and the fishes swim- 
 ming in a circle round it. The simple exhibition of the 
 fishes is agreeable and pleasant ; but in so complicated 
 a way becomes whimsical and unnatural, and liable to 
 the objection due to him, 
 
 " Qui variare cupit rem prodigialit^r imam." 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER LV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 DEAR SIR, October 10, 1781. 
 
 I THINK I have observed before, that much the most 
 considerable part of the house martins withdraw from 
 hence about the first week in October ; but that some, 
 the latter broods, I am now convinced, linger on till 
 towards the middle of that month ; and that at times, 
 once perhaps in two or three years, a flight, for one day 
 only, has shown itself in the first week in November. 
 
 Having taken notice, in October, 1780, that the last 
 flight was numerous, amounting perhaps to one hundred 
 and fifty; and that the season was soft and still; I was 
 resolved to pay uncommon attention to these late birds; 
 to find, if possible, where they roosted, and to deter- 
 mine the precise time of their retreat. The mode of 
 life of these latter Hirundines is very favourable to such 
 a design ; for they spend the whole day in the sheltered 
 district, between me and the Hanger, sailing about in a 
 placid, easy manner, and feasting on those insects 
 which love to haunt a spot so secure from ruffling 
 winds. As my principal object was to discover the 
 
 B B 
 
370 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 place of their roosting, I took care to wait on them 
 before they retired to rest, and was much pleased to 
 find that, for several evenings together, just at a quarter 
 past five in the afternoon, they all scudded away in 
 great haste towards the south-east, and darted down 
 among the low shrubs above the cottages at the end of 
 the hill. This spot in many respects seems to be well 
 calculated for their winter residence : for in many parts 
 it is as steep as the roof of any house, and therefore 
 secure from the annoyances of water ; and it is moreover 
 clothed with beechen shrubs, which, being stunted and 
 bitten by sheep, make the thickest covert imaginable; 
 and are so entangled as to be impervious to the smallest 
 spaniel : besides, it is the nature of underwood beech 
 never to cast its leaf all the winter ; so that, with the 
 leaves on the ground, and those on the twigs, no shelter 
 can be more complete. I watched them on to the 13th 
 and 14th of October, and found their evening retreat 
 was exact and uniform : but after this they made no 
 regular appearance. Now and then a straggler was 
 seen ; and, on the 22nd of October, I observed two, in 
 the morning, over the village, and with them my re- 
 marks for the season ended. 
 
 From all these circumstances put together, it is more 
 than probable that this lingering flight, at so late a 
 season of the year, never departed from the island 1 . 
 
 1 Mr. White appears to have; a strong bias to believe that martins, &c. 
 remain dormant in this country, having taken up a very erroneous notion 
 of the difficulty of the passage. Mr. Cartwright, during many winters' 
 residence on the coast of Labrador, had repeated opportunities of minut- 
 ing and measuring the flight of birds from point to point in their migration 
 to and from the north, and he asserts from the results of repeated obser- 
 vations that the eider duck at the time of migration flies at the rate of 
 ninety miles an hour, and there is no reason to suppose that the flight of 
 that bird is particularly rapid. A large bird is easily distinguished in 
 the air at the distance of a mile ; and if we consider that in less than a 
 minute when flying from one hill to another it passes out of sight ; we 
 shall easily satisfy ourselves that the calculation does not at all exceed 
 the bounds of probability. The passage of birds across the Mediterranean, 
 the British channel, and the Sound, is by no means long, and, if it be per- 
 formed at a rate at all approaching that at which the wild fowl are ascer- 
 
OF SELBORNE. 371 
 
 Had they indulged me that autumn with a November 
 visit, as I much desired, I presume that, with proper 
 assistants, I should have settled the matter past all 
 doubt ; but though the 3d of November was a sweet 
 day, and in appearance exactly suited to my wishes, 
 yet not a martin was to be seen ; and so I was forced, 
 reluctantly, to give up the pursuit. 
 
 I have only to add, that were the bushes, which cover 
 some acres, and are not my own property, to be grubbed 
 and carefully examined, probably those late broods, 
 and perhaps the whole aggregate body of the house 
 
 tained to fly, it is by no means an arduous undertaking, and must be 
 quickly accomplished, especially if a moment be chosen when the wind 
 is favourable. The only danger arises from violent squalls of cross or 
 contrary winds, and we know that in such cases birds are driven out of 
 their accustomed course and seek for refuge in ships, and sometimes are 
 drowned. 
 
 Mr. White draws from circumstances probabilities which are not jus- 
 tified by his statements. Why should it be imagined, because a flight of 
 martins roosted in a thick warm covert some nights before their last 
 appearance at the cold season of the year, that, instead of following the 
 rest of their kind to more genial regions, they should have ensconced 
 themselves there in a state of torpidness. Coppices are felled in winter, 
 and there are few which are not thoroughly ransacked by sportsmen, and 
 it is impossible that lurkers should not be often brought to light, if such 
 habits of concealment prevailed amongst them. 
 
 But there is nothing in the whole course of Mr. White's observation 
 tending in the slightest manner to justify the belief of their somnolency ; 
 on the contrary all his evidence weighs the other way, and if it be true 
 that they ever do secrete themselves in obscure winter quarters, the fact 
 must rest upon the testimony of other persons: but, if true at all, such 
 concealment appears to be only a resource of nature for stragglers which 
 have not departed in due season. Those which were observed by 
 Mr. White in November seemed to be young birds, bred too late to mi- 
 grate in company with the rest of their species. Granting that Hirundines 
 may have in a few instances been found torpid, they are said to have been 
 aroused from their sleep only to die presently : it is nowhere demon- 
 strated that when a straggling martin or two have been seen for a few 
 days, the same birds ever reappeared ; and it is much more probable, 
 that, having missed their time of passage and lost their conductors, or 
 come over too soon, they ramble about attempting to improve their situa- 
 tion, and either succeed in so doing, or perish ultimately, than that they 
 should pass from a state of torpor at an uncongenial season, and return to 
 it again. W. H. 
 
 BB 2 
 
372 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 martins of this district, might be found there, in dif- 
 ferent secret dormitories ; and that, so far from with- 
 drawing into warmer climes, it would appear that they 
 never depart three hundred yards from the village. 
 
 LETTER LVI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 THEY who write on natural history cannot too fre- 
 quently advert to instinct, that wonderful limited 
 faculty, which, in some instances, raises the brute 
 creation as it were above reason, and in others leaves 
 them so far below it. Philosophers have defined in- 
 stinct to be that secret influence by which every species 
 is impelled naturally to pursue, at all times, the same 
 way or track, without any teaching or example ; 
 whereas reason, without instruction, would often vary 
 and do that by many methods which instinct effects by 
 one alone. Now this maxim must be taken in a qua- 
 lified sense; for there are instances in which instinct 
 does vary and conform to the circumstances of place 
 and convenience. 
 
 It has been remarked that every species of bird has 
 a mode of nidification peculiar to itself; so that a 
 schoolboy would at once pronounce on the sort of nest 
 before him. This is the case among fields and woods 
 and wilds ; but in the villages round London, where 
 mosses and gossamer, and cotton from vegetables, are 
 hardly to be found, the nest of the chaffinch has not 
 that elegant, finished appearance, nor is it so beautifully 
 studded with lichens, as in a more rural district ; and 
 the wren is obliged to construct its house with straws 
 and dry grasses, which do not give it that rotundity 
 and compactness so remarkable in the edifices of that 
 
OF SELBORNE. 373 
 
 little architect 1 . Again, the regular nest of the house 
 martin is hemispheric; but where a rafter, or a joist, or 
 a cornice, may happen to stand in the way, the nest 
 is so contrived as to conform to the obstruction, and 
 becomes flat or oval or compressed. 
 
 In the following instances instinct is perfectly uniform 
 and consistent. There are three creatures, the squirrel, 
 the field-mouse, and the bird called the nuthatch (Sitta 
 Europaa), which live much on hazel-nuts ; and yet they 
 open them each in a different way. The first, after 
 rasping off the small end, splits the shell in two with 
 his long fore teeth, as a man does with his knife ; the 
 second nibbles a hole with his teeth, so regular as if 
 drilled with a wimble, and yet so small that one would 
 wonder how the kernel can be extracted through it ; 
 while the last picks an irregular ragged hole with its 
 bill: but as this artist has no paws to hold the nut 
 firm while he pierces it, like an adroit workman, he 
 fixes it, as it were, in a vice, in some cleft of a tree, or 
 in some crevice ; when, standing over it, he perforates 
 the stubborn shell. We have often placed nuts in the 
 chink of a gate-post where nuthatches have been known 
 to haunt, and have always found that those birds have 
 readily penetrated them. While at work they make a 
 
 1 It would appear that there is in this case a kind of free agency, if the 
 term may be allowed, on the part of the bird ; or at least an instinctive 
 adaptation to circumstances and locality. I have a wren's nest, which I 
 took in the farm yard at Malthouse, near Hartley, Hants. A corner of 
 the thatch of the pigsty was broken off, and the little architect constructed 
 its nest so perfectly to resemble, and make good the corner of the thatch, 
 that it was really difficult to distinguish the one from the other. The 
 opening was in the inside under the thatch. It was not obliged, in that 
 district, to construct its nest of straws for want of moss. 
 
 It seems to me that the use of bright and fresh materials in the rural 
 districts, and of those of a different or more sombre description in the 
 metropolitan, is to answer the same purpose to elude observation. The 
 nests brought to me by boys from the Hampstead fields, possess every 
 character of those sent from Hampshire, with the exception that the 
 Hampshire specimens are brighter. The whitethroat's nest from Hamp- 
 shire, and that taken in the Marylebone fields, were both alike con- 
 structed of the dried stalks of Galium Aparine. G. D. 
 
374 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 rapping noise that may be heard at a considerable 
 distance. 
 
 You that understand both the theory and practical 
 part of music may best inform us why harmony or 
 melody should so strangely affect some men, as it were 
 by recollection, for days after a concert is over. What 
 I mean the following passage will most readily explain : 
 
 " Praehabebat porr6 vocibus humanis instrumentisque 
 harmonicis musicam illam avium: non quod alia quoque 
 non delectaretur ; sed quod ex musica humana re- 
 linqueretur in animo continens quaedam, attentionem- 
 que et somnum conturbans, agitatio; dum ascensus, 
 exscensus, tenores, ac mutationes illae sonorum et con- 
 sonantiarum euntque redeuntque per phantasiam : 
 cum nihil tale relinqui possit ex modulationibus avium, 
 quae, quod non sunt perinde a nobis imitabiles, non 
 possunt perinde internam facultatem commovere." 
 Gassendus in Vita Peireskii. 
 
 This curious quotation strikes me much by so well 
 representing my own case, and by describing what I 
 have so often felt, but never could so well express. 
 When I hear fine music I am haunted with passages 
 therefrom night and day ; and especially at first waking, 
 which, by their importunity, give me more uneasiness 
 than pleasure : elegant lessons still tease my imagina- 
 tion, and recur irresistibly to my recollection at seasons, 
 and even when I am desirous of thinking of more 
 serious matters. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 375 
 
 LETTER LVIT. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 A RARE, and I think a new, little bird frequents my 
 garden, which I have great reason to think'is the petty- 
 chaps l : it is common in some parts of the kingdom ; 
 and I have received formerly several dead specimens 
 from Gibraltar. This bird much resembles the white- 
 throat, but has a more white or rather silvery breast 
 and belly; is restless and active, like the willow-wrens, 
 and hops from bough to bough, examining every part 
 for food ; it also runs up the stems of the crown-im- 
 perials, and, putting its head into the bells of those 
 flowers, sips the liquor which stands in the nectarium 
 of each petal. Sometimes it feeds on the ground like 
 the hedge sparrow, by hopping about on the grass-plots 
 and mown walks. 
 
 One of my neighbours, an intelligent and observing 
 man, informs me that, in the beginning of May, and 
 
 1 This bird certainly was not the pettychaps, which has not the manners 
 here described. The detail exactly answers to the blue-gray or lesser 
 whitethroat (Sylvia silviella) of some English authors, which I have de- 
 monstrated to be the Sylvia Curruca by priority of name, la fauvette 
 babillarde of French writers, and bianchetto of Scopoli. I suspect that 
 the name linty-white in North Britain belongs to this bird, though attri- 
 buted by Bewick to the chiffchaff, which I have never been able to meet 
 with in the north of England, though it may be found in some parts 
 thereof; but its colour can in no ways deserve that name : whereas the 
 white breast of the blue-gray cannot fail to attract notice. I have given 
 a full description and account of it in a note on page 173. In Yorkshire 
 the yellowhammer is called goldfinch ; the goldfinch, redcap ; the chaf- 
 finch, bull's-pink or bullfinch ; the ox bird or large titmouse, blackcap; 
 the hedge warbler, cuddy ; the brown wren, tomtit ; the yellow wren, 
 small-straw ; and the whin chat, grass chat : synonyms which I have not 
 seen recorded. I cannot find that the true blackcap or the blue-gray have 
 any name in Yorkshire, where they seem to escape observation amongst 
 the lower orders, which is singular, considering how loud the blackcap 
 sings all summer, and how much it attacks the fruit. W. H. 
 
376 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 about ten minutes before eight o'clock in the evening, 
 he discovered a great cluster of house swallows, thirty 
 at least, he supposes, perching on a willow that hung 
 over the verge of James Knight's upper pond. His 
 attention was first drawn by the twittering of these 
 birds, which sat motionless in a row on the bough, 
 with their heads all one way, and, by their weight, 
 pressing down the twig so that it nearly touched the 
 water. In this situation he watched them till he could 
 see no longer. Repeated accounts of this sort, spring 
 and fall, induce us greatly to suspect that house swal- 
 lows have some strong attachment to water, indepen- 
 dent of the matter of food ; and, though they may not 
 retire into that element, yet they may conceal them- 
 selves in the banks of pools and rivers during the 
 uncomfortable months of winter. 
 
 One of the keepers of Wolmer Forest sent me a pere- 
 grine falcon, which he shot on the verge of that district 
 as it was devouring a wood-pigeon. The Falco pere- 
 grinus, or haggard falcon, is a noble species of hawk 
 seldom seen in the southern counties. In winter, 17G7, 
 one was killed in the neighbouring parish of Faringdon, 
 and sent by me to Mr. Pennant into North Wales 2 . 
 Since that time I have met with none till now. The 
 specimen mentioned above was in fine preservation, 
 and not injured by the shot; it measured forty-two 
 inches from wing to wing, and twenty-one from beak 
 to tail, and weighed two pounds and a half standing 
 weight. This species is very robust, and wonderfully 
 formed for rapine : its breast was plump and muscular; 
 its thighs long, thick, and brawny ; and its legs remark- 
 ably short and well set : the feet were armed with most 
 formidable, sharp, long talons : the eyelids and cere of 
 the bill were yellow ; but the irides of the eyes dusky ; 
 the beak was thick and hooked, and of a dark colour, 
 and had a jagged process near the end of the upper 
 
 8 See my tenth and eleventh [and twelfth] Letters to that gentleman. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 377 
 
 mandible on each side : its tail, or train, was short in 
 proportion to the bulk of its body : yet the wings, when 
 closed, did not extend to the end of the train. From 
 its large and fair proportions it might be supposed to 
 have been a female ; but I was not permitted to cut 
 open the specimen. For one of the birds of prey, which 
 are usually lean, this was in high case: in its craw 
 were many barleycorns, which probably came from the 
 crop of the wood pigeon, on which it was feeding when 
 shot : for voracious birds do not eat grain ; but, when 
 devouring their quarry, with undistinguishing vehe- 
 mence swallow bones and feathers, and all matters, 
 indiscriminately. This falcon was probably driven 
 from the mountains of North Wales or Scotland, where 
 they are known to breed, by rigorous weather and 
 deep snows that had lately fallen. 
 
 PEREtilUNR FALCON. 
 
378 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER LVIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 MY near neighbour, a young gentleman in the service 
 of the East India Company, has brought home a clog 
 and a bitch of the Chinese breed from Canton ; such as 
 are fattened in that country for the purpose of being 
 eaten : they are about the size of a moderate spaniel ; 
 of a pale yellow colour, with coarse bristling hairs on 
 their backs; sharp upright ears, and peaked heads, 
 which give them a very fox-like appearance. Their hind 
 legs are unusually straight, without any bend at the 
 hock or ham, to such a degree as to give them an auk- 
 ward gait when they trot. When they are in motion 
 their tails are curved high over their backs like those 
 of some hounds, and have a bare place each on the 
 outside, from the tip midway, that does not seem to be 
 matter of accident, but somewhat singular. Their eyes 
 are jet black, small, and piercing ; the insides of their 
 lips and mouths of the same colour, and their tongues 
 blue. The bitch has a dew-claw on each hind-leg; the 
 dog has none. When taken out into a field the bitch 
 showed some disposition for hunting, and dwelt on the 
 scent of a covey of partridges till she sprung them, 
 giving her tongue all the time. The dogs in South 
 America are dumb; but these bark much in a short 
 thick manner, like foxes; and have a surly, savage 
 demeanour like their ancestors, which are not domesti- 
 cated, but bred up in sties, where they are fed for the 
 table with rice-meal and other farinaceous food. These 
 dogs, having been taken on board as soon as weaned, 
 could not learn much from their dam; yet they did not 
 relish flesh when they came to England. In the islands 
 of the Pacific Ocean the dogs are bred up on vegeta- 
 
OF SELBORNE. 379 
 
 bles, and would not eat flesh when offered them by our 
 circumnavigators . 
 
 We believe that all dogs, in a state of nature, have 
 sharp, upright, fox-like ears; and that hanging ears, 
 which are esteemed so graceful, are the effect of choice 
 breeding and cultivation. Thus, in the Travels of 
 Ysbrandt Ides from Muscovy to China, the dogs which 
 draw the Tartars on snow sledges near the river Oby 
 are engraved with prick-ears, like those from Canton. 
 The Kamtschatdales also train the same sort of sharp- 
 eared, peaked-nosed dogs to draw their sledges; as 
 may be seen in an elegant print engraved for Captain 
 Cook's last voyage round the world. 
 
 Now we are upon the subject of dogs, it may not be 
 impertinent to add, that spaniels, as all sportsmen 
 know, though they hunt partridges and pheasants as it 
 were by instinct, and with much delight and alacrity, 
 yet will hardly touch their bones when offered as food ; 
 nor will a mongrel dog of my own, though he is remark- 
 able for finding that sort of game. But, when we came 
 to offer the bones of partridges to the two Chinese dogs, 
 they devoured them with much greediness, and licked 
 the platter clean. 
 
 No sporting dogs will flush woodcocks till inured to 
 the scent and trained to the sport, which they then pur- 
 sue with vehemence and transport ; but then they will 
 not touch their bones, but turn from them with abhor- 
 rence, even when they are hungry. 
 
 Now that dogs should not be fond of the bones of 
 such birds as they are not disposed to hunt is no won- 
 der ; but why they reject and do not care to eat their 
 natural game is not so easily accounted for, since the 
 end of hunting seems to be, that the chase pursued 
 should be eaten. Dogs again will not devour the more 
 rancid water-fowls, nor indeed the bones of any wild- 
 fowls ; nor will they touch the foetid bodies of birds that 
 feed on offal and garbage: and indeed there may be 
 
380 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 somewhat of providential instinct in this circumstance 
 of dislike; for vultures 1 , and kites, and ravens, and 
 crows, &c. were intended to be messmates with dogs 2 
 over their carrion; and seem to be appointed by Nature 
 as fellow-scavengers to remove all cadaverous nui- 
 sances from the face of the earth. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER LIX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 THE fossil wood buried in the bogs of Wolmer Forest 
 is not yet all exhausted ; for the peat cutters now and 
 then stumble upon a log. I have just seen a piece which 
 was sent by a labourer of Oakhanger to a carpenter of 
 this village ; this was the but-end of a small oak, about 
 five feet long, and about five inches in diameter. It 
 had apparently been severed from the ground by an 
 axe, was very ponderous, and as black as ebony. Upon 
 asking the carpenter for what purpose he had procured 
 it, he told me that it was to be sent to his brother, a 
 joiner at Farnham, who was to make use of it in cabi- 
 net work, by inlaying it along with whiter woods. 
 
 Those that are much abroad on evenings after it is 
 dark, in spring and summer, frequently hear a nocturnal 
 bird passing by on the wing, and repeating often a short 
 quick note. This bird I have remarked myself, but 
 never could make out till lately. I am assured now 
 that it is the stone-curlew (Charadrius (Edicnemus). 
 Some of them pass over or near my house almost every 
 
 1 Hasselquist, in his Travels to the Levant, observes that the dogs and 
 vultures at Grand Cairo maintain such a friendly intercourse as to bring 
 up their young together in the same place. 
 
 2 The Chinese word for a dog to a European ear sounds like quihloh. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 381 
 
 evening after it is dark, from the uplands of the hill 
 and North Field, away down towards Dorton; where, 
 among the streams and meadows, they find a greater 
 plenty of food. Birds that fly by night are obliged to 
 be noisy ; their notes often repeated become signals or 
 watch-words to keep them together, that they may not 
 stray or lose each the other in the dark. 
 
 The evening proceedings and manceuvres*of the rooks 
 are curious and amusing in the autumn. Just before 
 dusk they return in long strings from the foraging of the 
 day, and rendezvous by thousands over Selborne Down, 
 where they wheel round in the air, and sport and dive 
 in a playful manner, all the while exerting their voices, 
 and making a loud cawing, which, being blended and 
 softened by the distance that we at the village are 
 below them, becomes a confused noise or chiding; or 
 rather a pleasing murmur, very engaging to the imagi- 
 nation, and not unlike the cry of a pack of hounds in 
 hollow, echoing woods, or the rushing of the wind in 
 tall trees, or the tumbling of the tide upon a pebbly 
 shore. When this ceremony is over, with the last 
 gleam of day, they retire for the night to the deep 
 beechen woods of Tisted and Ropley. We remember 
 a little girl who, as she was going to bed, used to remark 
 on such an occurrence, in the true spirit of physico-the- 
 ology, that the rooks were saying their prayers; and 
 yet this child was much too young to be aware that the 
 scriptures have said of the Deity that " he feedeth the 
 ravens who call upon him." 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
382 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER LX. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 IN reading Dr. Huxham's Observations de Aere, &c. 
 written at Plymouth, I find by those curious and accu- 
 rate remarks, which contain an account of the weather 
 from the year 1727 to the year 1748, inclusive, that 
 though there is frequent rain in that district of Devon- 
 shire, yet the quantity falling is not great; and that 
 some years it has been very small : for in 1731 the rain 
 measured only 17-2(>6 inches ; and in 1741, 20-354; and 
 again in 1743, only 20-908. Places near the sea have 
 frequent scuds, that keep the atmosphere moist, yet do 
 not reach far up into the country ; making thus the 
 maritime situations appear wet, when the rain is not 
 considerable. In the wettest years at Plymouth the 
 doctor measured only once 36; and again once, viz. 
 1734, 37-114 : a quantity of rain that has twice been 
 exceeded at Selborne in the short period of my obser- 
 vations. Dr. Huxham remarks, that frequent small 
 rains keep the air moist; while heavy ones render it 
 more dry, by beating down the vapours. He is also of 
 opinion that the dingy, smoky appearance in the sky, 
 in very dry seasons, arises from the want of moisture 
 sufficient to let the light through, and render the atmo- 
 sphere transparent; because he had observed several 
 bodies more diaphanous when wet than dry; and did 
 never recollect that the air had that look in rainy sea- 
 sons. 
 
 My friend, who lives just beyond the top of the down, 
 brought his three swivel guns to try them in my outlet, 
 with their muzzles towards the Hanger, supposing that 
 the report would have had a great effect; but the expe- 
 riment did not answer his expectation. He then re- 
 moved them to the Alcove on the Hanger; when the 
 
OF SELBORNE. 383 
 
 sound, rushing along the Lythe and Comb Wood, was 
 very grand : but it was at the Hermitage that the echoes 
 and repercussions delighted the hearers ; not only filling 
 the Lythe with the roar, as if all the beeches were tear- 
 ing up by the roots ; but turning to the left, they per- 
 vaded the vale above Comb Wood Ponds ; and after a 
 pause seemed to take up the crash again, and to extend 
 round Harteley Hangers, and to die away at last among 
 the coppices and coverts of Ward le ham. It has been 
 remarked before that this district is an Anathoth, a place 
 of responses or echoes, and therefore proper for such 
 experiments : we may farther add, that the pauses in 
 echoes, when they cease and yet are taken up again, 
 like the pauses in music, surprise the hearers, and have 
 a fine effect on the imagination. 
 
 The gentleman above mentioned has just fixed a 
 barometer in his parlour at Newton Valence. The tube 
 was first filled here (at Selborne) twice with care, when 
 the mercury agreed and stood exactly with my own; 
 but being filled again twice at Newton, the mercury 
 stood, on account of the great elevation of that house, 
 three- tenths of an inch lower than the barometers at 
 this village,, and so continues to do, be the weight of 
 the atmosphere what it may. The plate of the baro- 
 meter at Newton is figured as low as 27 ; because in 
 stormy weather the mercury there will sometimes de- 
 scend below 28. We have supposed Newton House to 
 stand two hundred feet higher than this house : but if 
 the rule holds good, which says that mercury in a baro- 
 meter sinks one-tenth of an inch for every hundred feet 
 elevation, then the Newton barometer, by standing 
 three-tenths lower than that of Selborne, proves that 
 Newton House must be three hundred feet higher than 
 that in which I am writing, instead of two hundred. 
 
 It may not be impertinent to add, that the barometers 
 at Selborne stand three-tenths of an inch lower than 
 the barometers at South Lambeth : whence we may 
 conclude that the former place is about three hundred 
 
384 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 feet higher than the latter ; and with good reason, be- 
 cause the streams that rise with us run into the Thames 
 at Weybridge, and so to London. Of course therefore 
 there must be lower ground all the way from Selborne 
 to South Lambeth ; the distance between which, all 
 the windings and indentings of the streams considered, 
 cannot be less than a hundred miles. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 LETTER LXI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 SINCE the weather of a district is undoubtedly part of 
 its natural history, I shall make no further apology for 
 the four following letters, which will contain many par- 
 ticulars concerning some of the great frosts and a few 
 respecting some very hot summers, that have distin- 
 guished themselves from the rest during the course of 
 my observations. 
 
 As the frost in January, 1768, was, for the small time 
 it lasted, the most severe that we had then known for 
 many years, and was remarkably injurious to ever- 
 greens, some account of its rigour, and reason of its 
 ravages, may be useful, and not unacceptable to persons 
 that delight in planting and ornamenting ; and may 
 particularly become a work that professes never to 
 lose sight of utility. 
 
 For the last two or three days of the former year 
 there were considerable falls of snow, which lay deep 
 and uniform on the ground, without any drifting, wrap- 
 ping up the more humble vegetation in perfect security. 
 From the first day to the fifth of the new year more 
 snow succeeded ; but from that day the air became 
 entirely clear ; and the heat of the sun about noon had 
 a considerable influence in sheltered situations. 
 
 It was in such an aspect that the snow on the author's 
 
OF SELBORNE. 385 
 
 ever-greens was melted every-day, and frozen intensely 
 every night ; so that the laurustines, bays, laurels, and 
 arbutuses looked, in three or four days, as if they had 
 been burned in the fire ; while a neighbour's plantation 
 of the same kind, in a high cold situation, where the 
 snow was never melted at all, remained uninjured. 
 
 From hence I would infer, that it is the repeated melt- 
 ing and freezing of the snow that is so fatal to vegeta- 
 tion, rather than the severity of the cold. Therefore it 
 highly behoves every planter, who wishes to escape the 
 cruel mortification of losing in a few days the labour and 
 hopes of years, to bestir himself on such emergencies ; 
 and, if his plantations are small, to avail himself of 
 mats, cloths, pease-haum, straw, reeds, or any such 
 covering for a short time; or if his shrubberies are 
 extensive, to see that his people go about with prongs 
 and forks, and carefully dislodge the snow from the 
 boughs : since the naked foliage will shift much better 
 for itself, than where the snow is partly melted and 
 frozen again. 
 
 It may perhaps appear at first like a paradox ; but 
 doubtless the more tender trees and shrubs should never 
 be planted in hot aspects; not only for the reason 
 assigned above, but also because, thus circumstanced, 
 they are disposed to shoot earlier in the spring, and to 
 grow on later in the autumn than they would otherwise 
 do, and so are sufferers by lagging or early frosts. For 
 this reason also plants from Siberia will hardly endure 
 our climate: because, on the very first advances of 
 spring, they shoot away, and so are cut off by the 
 severe nights of March or April. 
 
 Dr. Fothergill and others have experienced the same 
 inconvenience with respect to the more tender shrubs 
 from North America ; which they therefore plant under 
 north walls. There should also perhaps be a wall to 
 the east to defend them from the piercing blasts from 
 that quarter. 
 
 This observation might without any impropriety be 
 
 c c 
 
38(3 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 carried into animal life; for discerning bee-masters 
 now find that their hives should not in the winter be 
 exposed to the hot sun, because such unseasonable 
 warmth awakens the inhabitants too early from their 
 slumbers; and, by putting their juices into motion too 
 soon, subjects them afterwards to inconveniences when 
 rigorous weather returns. 
 
 The coincidents attending this short but intense frost 
 were, that the horses fell sick with an epidemic distem- 
 per, which injured the winds of many, and kilted some; 
 that colds and coughs were general among the human 
 species ; that it froze under people's beds for several 
 nights ; that meat was so hard frozen that it could not be 
 spitted, and could not be secured but in cellars ; that 
 several redwings and thrushes were killed by the frost ; 
 and that the large titmouse continued to pull straws 
 lengthwise from the eaves of thatched houses and barns 
 in a most adroit manner, for a purpose that has been 
 explained already l . 
 
 On the 3rd of January, Benjamin Martin's thermo- 
 meter within doors, in a close parlour where there was 
 no fire, fell in the night to 20, and on the 4th to 18, and 
 on the 7th to 17|, a degree of cold which the owner 
 never since saw in the same situation ; and he regrets 
 much that he was not able at that juncture to attend 
 his instrument abroad. All this time the wind conti- 
 nued north and north-east; and yet on the 8th roost- 
 cocks, which had been silent, began to sound their 
 clarions, and crows to clamour, as prognostic of milder 
 weather; and, moreover, moles began to heave and 
 work, and a manifest thaw took place. From the latter 
 circumstance we may conclude that thaws often origi- 
 nate under ground from warm vapours which arise, else 
 how should subterraneous animals receive such early 
 intimations of their approach. Moreover, we have often 
 observed that cold seems to descend from above; for, 
 
 1 See Letter XLI. to Mr. Pennant. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 387 
 
 when a thermometer hangs abroad in a frosty night, the 
 intervention of a cloud shall immediately raise the mer- 
 cury ten degrees ; and a clear sky shall again compel it 
 to descend to its former gage. 
 
 And here it may be proper to observe, on what has 
 been said above, that though frosts advance to their 
 utmost severity by somewhat of a regular gradation, 
 yet thaws do not usually come on by as. regular a 
 declension of cold ; but often take place immediately 
 from intense freezing; as men in sickness often mend 
 at once from a paroxysm. 
 
 To the great credit of Portugal laurels and American 
 junipers, be it remembered that they remained untouched 
 amidst the general havock : hence men should learn to 
 ornament chiefly with such trees as are able to with- 
 stand accidental severities, and not subject themselves 
 to the vexation of a loss which may befall them once 
 perhaps in ten years, yet may hardly be recovered 
 through the whole course of their lives. 
 
 As it appeared afterwards the ilexes were much 
 injured, the cypresses were half destroyed, the arbu- 
 tuses lingered on, but never recovered ; and the bays, 
 laurustines, and laurels, were killed to the ground ; and 
 the very wild hollies, in hot aspects, were so much 
 affected that they cast all their leaves. 
 
 By the 14th of January the snow was entirely gone ; 
 the turnips emerged not damaged at all, save in sunny 
 places; the wheat looked delicately; and the garden 
 plants were well preserved ; for snow is the most kindly 
 mantle that infant vegetation can be wrapped in : were 
 it not for that friendly meteor no vegetable life could 
 exist at all in northerly regions. Yet in Sweden the 
 earth in April is not divested of snow for more than 
 a fortnight before the face of the country is covered 
 with flowers. 
 
 c c 2 
 
388 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER LXII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 THERE were some circumstances attending the remark- 
 able frost in January, 1776, so singular and striking, that 
 a short detail of them may not be unacceptable. 
 
 The most certain way to be exact will be to copy the 
 passages from my journal, which were taken from time 
 to time as things occurred. But it may be proper pre- 
 viously to remark, that the first week in January was 
 uncommonly wet, and drowned with vast rains from 
 every quarter: from whence may be inferred, as there 
 is great reason to believe is the case, that intense frosts 
 seldom take place till the earth is perfectly glutted and 
 chilled with water 1 ; and hence dry autumns are seldom 
 followed by rigorous winters. 
 
 January 7th. Snow driving all the day, which was 
 followed by frost, sleet, and some snow, till the 32th, 
 when a prodigious mass overwhelmed all the works of 
 men, drifting over the tops of the gates and filling the 
 hollow lanes. 
 
 On the 14th the writer was obliged to be much 
 abroad ; and thinks he never before or since has en- 
 countered such rugged Siberian weather. Many of the 
 narrow roads were now filled above the tops of the 
 hedges ; through which the snow was driven into most 
 romantic and grotesque shapes, so striking to the ima- 
 gination as not to be seen without wonder and pleasure. 
 The poultry dared not to stir out of their roosting 
 places ; for cocks and hens are so dazzled and con- 
 
 1 The autumn preceding January, 1768, was very wet, and particu- 
 larly the month of September, during which there fell at Lyndon, in the 
 county of Rutland, six inches and a half of rain. And the terrible long 
 frost in 1739-40 set in after a rainy season, and when the springs were 
 very high. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 founded by the glare of snow, that they would soon 
 perish, without assistance. The hares also lay sullenly 
 in their seats, and would not move till compelled by 
 hunger; being conscious, poor animals, that the drifts 
 and heaps treacherously betray their footsteps, and 
 prove fatal to numbers of them. 
 
 From the 14th the snow continued to increase, and 
 began to stop the road waggons and coaches, which 
 could no longer keep on their regular stages ; and espe- 
 cially on the western roads, where the fall appears to 
 have been deeper than in the south. The company at 
 Bath, that wanted to attend the Queen's birth-day, were 
 strangely incommoded : many carriages of persons who 
 got in their way to town, from Bath, as far as Marlbo- 
 rough, after strange embarrassments, here met with a 
 ne plus ultra. The ladies fretted, and offered large re- 
 wards to labourers if they would shovel them a track to 
 London: but the relentless heaps of snow were too 
 bulky to be removed ; and so the 18th passed over, 
 leaving the company in very uncomfortable circum- 
 stances at the Castle and other inns. 
 
 On the 20th the sun shone out for the first time since 
 the frost began ; a circumstance that has been remarked 
 before much in favour of vegetation. All this time the 
 cold was not very intense, for the thermometer stood at 
 29, 28, 25, and thereabout ; but on the 21st it descended 
 to 20. The birds now began to be in a very pitiable 
 and starving condition. Tamed by the season, sky- 
 larks settled in the streets of towns, because they saw 
 the ground was bare ; rooks frequented dunghills close 
 to houses ; and crows watched horses as they passed, 
 and greedily devoured what dropped from them ; hares 
 now came into men's gardens, and, scraping away the 
 snow, devoured such plants as they could find. 
 
 On the 22nd the author had occasion to go to London 
 through a sort of Laplandian scene, very wild and 
 grotesque indeed. But the metropolis itself exhibited 
 a still more singular appearance than the country ; for 
 
390 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 being bedded deep in snow, the pavement of the streets 
 could not be touched by the wheels or the horses' feet, 
 so that the carriages ran about without the least noise. 
 Such an exemption from din and clatter was strange, 
 but not pleasant ; it seemed to convey an uncomfort- 
 able idea of desolation : 
 
 ipsa silentia terrent.' 
 
 On the 27th much snow fell all day, and in the even- 
 ing the frost became very intense. At South Lambeth, 
 for the four following nights, the thermometer fell to 11, 
 7, 6, 6 ; and at Selborne to 7, 6, 10; and on the 31st 
 of January, just before sunrise, with rime on the trees 
 and on the tube of the glass, the quicksilver sunk exactly 
 to zero, being 32 degrees below the freezing point ; but 
 by eleven in the morning, though in the shade, it sprung 
 up to 16| 2 a most unusual degree of cold this for the 
 south of England ! During these four nights the cold 
 was so penetrating that it occasioned ice in warm 
 chambers and under beds; and in the day the wind 
 was so keen that persons of robust constitutions could 
 scarcely endure to face it. The Thames was at once so 
 frozen over both above and below bridge that crowds 
 ran about on the ice. The streets were now strangely 
 incumbered with snow, which crumbled and trod dusty ; 
 and, turning gray, resembled bay-salt: what had fallen 
 on the roofs was so perfectly dry, that, from first to 
 last, it lay twenty-six days on the houses in the city ; a 
 longer time than had been remembered by the oldest 
 housekeepers living. According to all appearances we 
 might now have expected the continuance of this rigor- 
 ous weather for weeks to come, since every night in- 
 creased in severity ; but behold, without any apparent 
 
 3 At Selborne the cold was greater than at any other place that the 
 author could hear of with certainty: though some reported at the time 
 that at a village in Kent the thermometer fell 2 degrees below zero, viz. 
 34 degrees below the freezing point. 
 
 The thermometer used at Selborne was graduated by Benjamin 
 Martin. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 391 
 
 cause, on the 1st of February a thaw took place, and 
 some rain followed before night ; making good the ob- 
 servation above, that frosts often go off as it were at 
 once, without any gradual declension of cold. On the 
 2nd of February the thaw persisted ; and on the 3rd 
 swarms of little insects were frisking and sporting in a 
 court-yard at South Lambeth, as if they had felt no 
 frost. Why the juices in the small bodies and smaller 
 limbs of such minute beings are not frozen is a matter 
 of curious inquiry. 
 
 Severe frosts seem to be partial, or to run in currents ; 
 for at the same juncture, as the author was informed by 
 accurate correspondents, at Lyndon in the county of 
 Rutland, the thermometer stood at 19 : at Blackburn, 
 in Lancashire, at 19: and at Manchester at 21, 20, and 
 18. Thus does some unknown circumstance strangely 
 overbalance latitude, and render the cold sometimes 
 much greater in the southern than in the northern parts 
 of this kingdom . 
 
 The consequences of this severity were, that in Hamp- 
 shire, at the melting of the snow, the wheat looked well, 
 and the turnips came forth little injured. The laurels 
 and laurustines were somewhat damaged, but only in 
 hot aspects. No evergreens were quite destroyed ; and 
 not half the damage sustained that befell in January, 
 1768. Those laurels that were a little scorched on the 
 south sides were perfectly untouched on their north 
 sides. The care taken to shake the snow day by day 
 from the branches seemed greatly to avail the author's 
 evergreens. A neighbour's laurel-hedge, in a high 
 situation, and facing to the north, was perfectly green 
 and vigorous; and the Portugal laurels remained un- 
 hurt. 
 
 As to the birds, the thrushes and blackbirds were 
 mostly destroyed ; and the partridges, by the weather 
 and poachers, were so thinned that few remained to 
 breed the following year. 
 
392 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 LETTER LXIII. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 As the frost in December, 3784, was very extraordi- 
 nary, you, I trust, will not be displeased to hear the 
 particulars ; and especially when I promise to say no 
 more about the severities of winter after I have finished 
 this letter. 
 
 The first week in December was very wet, with the 
 barometer very low. On the 7th, with the barometer 
 at 28 five tenths, came on a vast snow, which con- 
 tinued all that day and the next, and most part of the 
 following night ; so that by the morning of the 9th the 
 works of men were quite overwhelmed, the lanes filled 
 so as to be impassable, and the ground covered twelve 
 or fifteen inches without any drifting. In the evening 
 of the 9th the air began to be so very sharp that we 
 thought it would be curious to attend to the motions of 
 a thermometer : we therefore hung out two ; one made 
 by Martin and one by Dollond, which soon began to 
 show us what we were to expect; for, by ten o'clock, 
 they fell to 21, and at eleven to 4, when we went to 
 bed. On the 10th, in the morning, the quicksilver 
 of Dollond's glass was down to half a degree below 
 zero; and that of Martin's, which was absurdly gra- 
 duated only to four degrees above zero, sunk quite 
 into the brass guard of the ball; so that when the 
 weather became most interesting, this was useless. On 
 the 10th, at eleven at night, though the air was perfectly 
 still, Dolloud's glass went down to one degree below 
 zero ! This strange severity of the weather made me 
 very desirous to know what degree of cold there might 
 be in such an exalted and near situation as Newton. 
 We had, therefore, on the morning of the 10th, written to 
 Mr. , and entreated him to hang out his therino- 
 
OF SELBORNE. 393 
 
 meter, made by Adams ; and to pay some attention to 
 it morning and evening; expecting wonderful pheno- 
 mena, in so elevated a region, at two hundred feet 
 or more above my house. But, behold ! on the 10th, 
 at eleven at night, it was down only to 17, and the 
 next morning at 22, when mine was at 10! We 
 were so disturbed at this unexpected reverse of com- 
 parative local cold, that we sent one of my .glasses up, 
 
 thinking that of Mr. must, somehow, be wrongly 
 
 constructed. But, when the instruments came to be 
 confronted, they went exactly together : so that, for 
 one night at least, the cold at Newton was 18 degrees 
 less than at Selborne ; and, through the whole frost, 10 
 or 12 degrees; and, indeed, when we came to observe 
 consequences, we could readily credit this ; for all my 
 laurustines, bays, ilexes, arbutuses, cypresses, and 
 even my Portugal laurels 1 , and (which occasions more 
 regret) my fine sloping laurel hedge, were scorched 
 up ; while, at Newton, the same trees have not lost a 
 leaf! 
 
 We had steady frost on to the 25th, when the ther- 
 mometer in the morning was down to 10 with us, and 
 at Newton only to 21. Strong frost continued till the 
 31st, when some tendency to thaw was observed ; and, 
 by January the 3d, 1785, the thaw was confirmed, and 
 some rain fell. 
 
 A circumstance that I must not omit, because it was 
 new to us, is, that on Friday, December the 10th, being 
 bright sunshine, the air was full of icy spiculcs, floating 
 in all directions, like atoms in a sunbeam let into a 
 dark room. We thought them at first particles of the 
 rime falling from my tall hedges ; but were soon con- 
 vinced to the contrary, by making our observations in 
 
 1 Mr. Miller, in his Gardener's Dictionary, says positively that the 
 Portugal laurels remained untouched in the remarkable frost of 1739-40. 
 So that either that accurate observer was much mistaken, or else the 
 frost of December, 1784, was much more severe and destructive than that 
 in the year abovementioned. 
 
394 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 open places where no rime could reach us. Were they 
 watery particles of the air frozen as they floated ; or 
 were they evaporations from the snow frozen as they 
 mounted ? 
 
 We were much obliged to the thermometers for the 
 early information they gave us ; and hurried our apples, 
 pears, onions, potatoes, &c. into the cellar, and warm 
 closets; while those who had not, or neglected, such 
 warnings, lost all their stores of roots and fruits, and 
 had their very bread and cheese frozen. 
 
 I must not omit to tell you that, during those two 
 Siberian days, my parlour cat was so electric, that had 
 a person stroked her, and been properly insulated, the 
 shock might have been given to a whole circle of 
 people. 
 
 I forgot to mention before, that, during the two severe 
 days, two men, who were tracing hares in the snow, had 
 their feet frozen ; and two men, who were much better 
 employed, had their fingers so affected by the frost, 
 while they were thrashing in a barn, that a mortifica- 
 tion followed, from which they did not recover for many 
 weeks. 
 
 This frost killed all the furze and most of the ivy, 
 and in many places stripped the hollies of all their 
 leaves. It came at a very early time of the year, before 
 old November ended ; and yet may be allowed from its 
 effects to have exceeded any since 1739-40. 
 
 LETTER LXIV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 As the effects of heat are seldom very remarkable in 
 the northerly climate of England, where the summers 
 are often so defective in warmth and sunshine as not 
 to ripen the fruits of the earth so well as might be 
 wished, I shall be more concise in my account of the 
 
OF SELBORNE. 395 
 
 severity of a summer season, and so make a little 
 amends for the prolix account of the degrees of cold, 
 and the inconveniences that we suffered from some late 
 rigorous winters. 
 
 The summers of 1781 and 1783 were unusually hot 
 and dry; to them therefore I shall turn back in my 
 journals, without recurring to any more distant period. 
 In the former of these years my peach and nectarine 
 trees suffered so much from the heat that the rind on 
 the bodies was scalded and came off; since which the 
 trees have been in a decaying state. This may prove 
 a hint to assiduous gardeners to fence and shelter their 
 wall-trees with mats or boards, as they may easily do, 
 because such annoyance is seldom of long continuance. 
 During that summer also, I observed that my apples 
 were coddled, as it were, on the trees ; so that they had 
 no quickness of flavour, and would not keep in the 
 winter. This circumstance put me in mind of what I 
 have heard travellers assert, that they never ate a good 
 apple or apricot in the south of Europe, where the heats 
 were so great as to render the juices vapid and insipid. 
 
 The great pests of a garden are wasps, which destroy 
 all the finer fruits just as they are coming into per- 
 fection. In 1781 we had none ; in 1783 there were 
 myriads ; which would have devoured all the produce 
 of my garden, had we not set the boys to take the nests, 
 and caught thousands with hazel twigs tipped with 
 birdlime : we have since employed the boys to take 
 and destroy the large breeding wasps in the spring. 
 Such expedients have a great effect on these marauders, 
 and will keep them under. Though wasps do not 
 abound but in hot summers, yet they do not prevail in 
 every hot summer, as I have instanced in the two years 
 abovementioned. 
 
 In the sultry season of 1783 honeydews were so fre- 
 quent as to deface and destroy the beauties of my 
 garden. My honeysuckles, which were one week the 
 most sweet and lovely objects that the eye could behold, 
 
396 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 became the next the most loathsome ; being enveloped 
 in a viscous substance, and loaded with black aphides, 
 or smother-flies. The occasion of this clammy appear- 
 ance seems to be this, that in hot weather the effluvia 
 of flowers in fields and meadows and gardens are drawn 
 up in the day by a brisk evaporation, and then in the 
 night fall down again with the dews, in which they are 
 entangled ; that the air is strongly scented, and there- 
 fore impregnated with the particles of flowers in summer 
 weather, our senses will inform us; and that this clammy 
 sweet substance is of the vegetable kind we may learn 
 from bees, to whom it is very grateful : and we may be 
 assured that it falls in the night, because it is always 
 first seen in warm still mornings 1 . 
 
 On chalky and sandy soils, and in the hot villages 
 about London, the thermometer has been often observed 
 to mount as high as 83 or 84 ; but with us, in this hilly 
 and woody district, I have hardly ever seen it exceed 
 80; nor does it often arrive at that pitch. The reason, 
 I conclude, is, that our dense clayey soil, so much 
 shaded by trees, is not so easily heated through as those 
 abovementioned : and, besides, our mountains cause 
 currents of air and breezes ; and the vast effluvia from 
 our woodlands temper and moderate our heats. 
 
 1 It will hardly be deemed a discredit to an observer so patient, so 
 accurate, and so faithful as Mr. White, to mention that his conjecture 
 concerning the origin of honeydew is erroneous. The subject has been 
 elucidated by the observation of Mr. William Curtis, who has discovered 
 that this substance is the excrement of the Aphides. See Transactions 
 of the Linnean Society, Vol.vi. No. 4. MITFORD. 
 
 Had Mr. White carefully looked into the proceedings of the black 
 Aphides which he mentions, he would have found that the honeydew 
 was nothing more than their ejecta. In order to convince a friend who 
 was sceptical as to this undoubted fact, I placed a sheet of writing paper 
 under a branch where some Aphides were feeding, and over the leaves 
 below them, which I previously cleaned from honeydew. The result, as 
 I certainly anticipated, was, that the paper was soon covered with honey- 
 dew, while the leaves below it were free. RENNIE. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 397 
 
 LETTER LXV. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 THE summer of the year 1783 was an amazing and 
 portentous one, and full of horrible phenomena ; for, 
 besides the alarming meteors and tremendous thunder- 
 storms that affrighted and distressed the different coun- 
 ties of this kingdom, the peculiar haze or smoky fog 
 that prevailed for many weeks in this island, and in 
 every part of Europe, and even beyond its limits, was a 
 most extraordinary appearance, unlike any thing known 
 within the memory of man. By my journal I find that 
 I had noticed this strange occurrence from June 23 to 
 July 20 inclusive, during which period the wind varied 
 to every quarter without making any alteration in the 
 air. The sun, at noon, looked as blank as a clouded 
 moon, and shed a rust-coloured ferruginous light on the 
 ground, and floors of rooms ; but was particularly lurid 
 and blood-coloured at rising and setting. All the time 
 the heat was so intense that butchers' meat could hardly 
 be eaten on the day after it was killed ; and the flies 
 swarmed so in the lanes and hedges that they rendered 
 the horses half frantic, and riding irksome. The country 
 people began to look with a superstitious awe, at the 
 red, louring aspect of the sun; and indeed there was 
 reason for the most enlightened person to be apprehen- 
 sive ; for, all the while, Calabria and part of the isle of 
 Sicily were torn and convulsed with earthquakes ; and 
 about that juncture a volcano sprung out of the sea on 
 the coast of Norway. On this occasion Milton's noble 
 simile of the sun, in his first book of Paradise Lost, 
 frequently occurred to my mind; and it is indeed parti- 
 cularly applicable, because, towards the end, it alludes 
 to a superstitious kind of dread, with which the minds 
 of men are always impressed by such strange and un- 
 usual phenomena. 
 
398 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 As when the sun, new riseii, 
 
 Looks through the horizontal misty air 
 Shorn of his beams; or from behind the moon, 
 In dim eclipse disasterous twilight sheds 
 On half the nations, and with fear of change 
 Perplexes monarchs." 
 
 LETTER LXVI. 
 
 TO THE SAME. 
 
 WE are very seldom annoyed with thunderstorms; and 
 it is no less remarkable than true, that those which 
 arise in the south have hardly been known to reach this 
 village ; for before they get over us, they take a direc- 
 tion to the east or to the west, or sometimes divide into 
 two, and go in part to one of those quarters, and in 
 part to the other, as was truly the case in summer 
 1783, when though the country round was continually 
 harassed with tempests, and often from the south, yet 
 we escaped them all ; as appears by my journal of that 
 summer 1 . The only way that I can at all account for 
 this fact for such it is is that, on that quarter, be- 
 tween us and the sea, there are continual mountains, 
 hill behind hill, such as Nore Hill, the Barnet, Butser 
 Hill, and Portsdown, which somehow divert the storms, 
 and give them a different direction. High promontories, 
 and elevated grounds, have always been observed to 
 attract clouds, and disarm them of their mischievous 
 contents, which are discharged into the trees and sum- 
 mits as soon as they come in contact with those turbu- 
 lent meteors; while the humble vales escape, because 
 they are so far beneath them. 
 
 1 To this awful summer of 1783, Cowper also alludes, in his Task, 
 book ii. p. 41. 
 
 -A world that seems 
 
 To toll the death-bell of its own decease ; 
 And by the voice of all the elements 
 To preach the general doom." 
 
OF SELBORNE. 399 
 
 But, when I say I do not remember a thunderstorm 
 from the south, I do not mean that we never have suf- 
 fered from thunderstorms at all ; for on June 5th, 1784, 
 the thermometer in the morning being at 64, and at 
 noon at 70, the barometer at 29 six tenths one-half, 
 and the wind north, I observed a blue mist, smelling 
 strongly of sulphur, hanging along our sloping woods, 
 and seeming to indicate that thunder was art hand. I 
 was called in about two in the afternoon, and so missed 
 seeing the gathering of the clouds in the north, which 
 they w r ho were abroad assured me had something un- 
 common in its appearance. At about a quarter after two 
 the storm began in the parish of Hartley, moving slowly 
 from north to south; and from thence it came over 
 Norton Farm, and so to Grange Farm, both in this 
 parish. It began with vast drops of rain, which were 
 soon succeeded by round hail, and then by convex 
 pieces of ice, which measured three inches in girth. 
 Had it been as extensive as it was violent, and of any 
 continuance (for it was very short); it must have ravaged 
 all the neighbourhood. In the parish of Hartley it did 
 some damage to one farm ; but Norton, which lay in 
 the centre of the storm, was greatly injured ; as was 
 Grange, which lay next to it. It did but just reach to 
 the middle of the village, where the hail broke my north 
 windows, and all my garden-lights and hand-glasses, 
 and many of my neighbours' windows. The extent of the 
 storm was about two miles in length and one in breadth. 
 We were just sitting down to dinner; but were soon 
 diverted from our repast by the clattering of tiles and 
 the jingling of glass. There fell at the same time pro- 
 digious torrents of rain on the farms abovementioned, 
 which occasioned a flood as violent as it was sudden ; 
 doing great damage to the meadows and fallows, by 
 deluging the one and washing away the soil of the 
 other. The hollow lane towards Alton was so torn 
 and disordered as not to be passable till mended, rocks 
 being removed that weighed two hundred weight. Those 
 
400 NATURAL HISTORY OF SELBORNE. 
 
 that saw the effect which the great hail had on ponds 
 and pools say that the dashing of the water made an 
 extraordinary appearance, the froth and spray standing 
 up in the air three feet above the surface. The rushing 
 and roaring of the hail, as it approached, was truly tre- 
 mendous. 
 
 Though the clouds at South Lambeth, near London, 
 were at that juncture thin and light, and no storm was 
 in sight, nor within hearing, yet the air was strongly 
 electric ; for the bells of an electric machine at that 
 place rang repeatedly, and fierce sparks were dis- 
 charged. 
 
 When I first took the present work in hand, I pro- 
 posed to have added an Antius Historico-Naturalis, or 
 the Natural History of the Twelve Months of the Year ; 
 which would have comprised many incidents and oc- 
 currences that have not fallen into my way to be men- 
 tioned in my series of letters; but, as Mr. Aikin of 
 Warrington has lately published somewhat of this sort, 
 and as the length of my correspondence has sufficiently 
 put your patience to the test, I shall here take a re- 
 spectful leave of you and natural history together; 
 and am, 
 
 With all due deference and regard, 
 Your most obliged, 
 
 And most humble servant, 
 
 GIL. WHITE. 
 
 SELBORNE, 
 June 25, 1787. 
 
NATURALIST'S CALENDAR: 
 
 WITH 
 
 OBSERVATIONS 
 
 IN 
 
 VARIOUS BRANCHES OF NATURAL HISTORY. 
 
 EXTRACTED FROM THE PAPERS 
 
 OF 
 
 THE REV. GILBERT WHITE; 
 
 BY 
 
 JOHN AIKIN, M. D. 
 
 WITH REMARKS BY MR. MARKWICK AND OTHERS. 
 
 D D 
 
DR. AIKIN'S ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 THE Rev. Mr. White, so agreeably known "to the public 
 by his Natural History of Selborne, left behind him a 
 series of yearly books, containing his diurnal observa- 
 tions on the occurrences in the various walks of rural 
 nature, from the year 1768 to the time of his death in 
 1793. From these annals he had already extracted all 
 the matter comprised in the work abovementioned, down 
 to the middle of 1787 ; but several curious facts in the 
 preceding numbers had not been thus employed; and 
 all the subsequent ones remained untouched. It was 
 thought a mark of respect due to his memory, and to 
 the reputation he had acquired as a faithful and elegant 
 observer, not to consign these relics to neglect. The 
 manuscripts were accordingly put into my hands for 
 the purpose of selecting from them what might seem 
 worthy of laying before the public. The present small 
 publication is the fruit of my research. With no small 
 pains I collected the materials of it, dispersed through 
 the records of so many years, and gave them such an 
 arrangement as I thought would present them in the 
 most agreeable and useful manner to the lovers of natu- 
 ral knowledge. 
 
 J. AIKIN 1 . 
 
 LONDON, Jan. 1, 1795. 
 
 1 How singularly are the Natural History of Selborne and the Natu- 
 ralist's Calendar connected together ! In the last paragraph of the former 
 work, Gilbert White announces that he had proposed to have added a 
 Natural History of the Twelve Months of the Year, and that a main 
 inducement to him to forego his intention had been the publication by 
 Mr. Aikin of somewhat of the same kind: the commencement of the 
 Naturalist's Calendar is a Preface by Mr. Aikin himself, explanatory of 
 
 D D2 
 
404 NATURALIST'S CALENDAR. 
 
 his proceeding in the construction of such a work from the materials left 
 by Gilbert White. The Naturalist's Calendar is a fulfilling of the original 
 intentions of the historian by the individual who had previously contri- 
 buted in some degree to render them nugatory. 
 
 The original editor of the present work is known both as the author of 
 numerous and popular productions and as one of an eminently literary 
 and scientific family. He dedicates to his sister, Mrs. Barbauld, his 
 Calendar of Nature, referring to her children's books as having raised 
 the character of such publications. " Had it been designed," he says, 
 speaking of his own work, " for a different class of readers, a larger com- 
 pass might have been taken, and a more learned and elevated character of 
 writing have been aimed at, yet it must still have remained essentially the 
 same ; and its merit must still have been that of compilation. The plan 
 itself is a borrowed one ; and you must certainly recollect its model in 
 one of your own little books, where, in a very entertaining manner, you 
 give a brief description of the several months, formed of some of the most 
 striking circumstances attending each. What you have done for a child 
 three or four years old, I have attempted for young people from ten to 
 fourteen." In editing from the MSS. of White, he carried yet higher his 
 desires of extending acquaintance with natural history ; the work com- 
 piled by him from that source being adapted to students of adult powers, 
 and embodying many facts which were altogether new, at the time of their 
 publication, to naturalists generally. Founded on the observation of 
 nature their interest is calculated to endure. E.T. B. 
 
THE 
 
 NATURALIST'S CALENDAR, 
 
 AS KEPT AT 
 
 SELBORNE, IN HAMPSHIRE, 
 
 FROM THE YEAR 1768, TO THE YEAR 1793: 
 
 BY THE 
 
 REV. GILBERT WHITE, M. A. 
 
 TO WHICH ARE APPENDED, 
 
 PARALLEL OBSERVATIONS MADE AT CATSFIELD, NEAR 
 BATTLE, IN SUSSEX. 
 
 BY WILLIAM MARKWICK, ESQ. F. L. S. 
 
PREFACE 
 
 THE NATURALIST'S CALENDAR. 
 
 THE mode in which the following rural Calendar of the 
 year has been composed, was to copy out from the 
 journals all the circumstances thought worthy of noting, 
 with the several dates of their recurrence, and to pre- 
 serve the earliest and latest of those dates ; so that the 
 Calendar exhibits the extreme range of variation in the 
 first occurrence of all the phenomena mentioned. To 
 many of them only one date is annexed, only one obser- 
 vation having been entered. This is particularly the 
 case with respect to the flowering of plants, with which 
 the book of 1768 alone was copiously filled ; and it is 
 to be noted that this was rather a backward year, 
 [J. A.] 
 
 [In the preface to the edition of the Natural History, 
 published in 1802 it is stated that 
 
 A very valuable addition to the Calendar and Obser- 
 vations has been obtained from the kindness of William 
 Markwick, Esq. F. L. S., well known as an accurate 
 observer of nature; whose parallel calendar, kept in 
 the county of Sussex, is given upon the opposite 
 columns 1 .] 
 
 1 William Markwick, afterwards Eversfield, derived from his residence 
 in the country opportunities of observing nature, which he embraced with 
 a readiness worthy of a pupil of Gilbert White. His Naturalist's Calen- 
 dar affords ample evidence of his perseverance in attending to and noting 
 occurrences in both the organized kingdoms of the creation; and the 
 
408 NATURALIST'S CALENDAR. 
 
 remarks subjoined by him, in numerous instances, to our author's Obser- 
 vations on various Parts of Nature, shew him to have been a sensible as 
 well as a diligent observer. He communicated to the Linnean Society 
 various essays on subjects of interest to the British zoologist, which were 
 published in the earlier volumes of the Transactions of that body : the 
 first of them, On the Migration of certain Birds, and on other Matters 
 relating to the Feathered Tribes, included a Table of the annual appear- 
 ance and disappearance of certain birds, which was continued to the end 
 of 1794 in a subsequent communication, entitled Aves Sussexienses ; or, 
 a Catalogue of Birds found in the County of Sussex, with Remarks. 
 His last paper consisted of Observations on the Clover Weevil, and was 
 published in 1801. His death took place ill 1813. E. T. B. 
 
A COMPARATIVE VIEW 
 
 WHITE'S AND MARKWICK'S CALI^NDARS. 
 
 Of the abbreviations used, fl. signifies flowering ; I. leajing ; and ap. the first 
 appearance. 
 
 REDBREAST (Sylvia Rubecula) whis- 
 tles 
 
 Larks (Alauda arvensis) congregate 
 Nuthatch ( Sitta Europcea) chatters 
 Winter aconite (Helleborus hiemalis) 
 
 fl. 
 
 Shelless snail or slug (Limax) ap. 
 Gray wagtail (Motacilla Boarula)} 
 
 ap. 
 
 White wagtail (Motacilla alba) ap.) 
 Missel thrush (Turdus viscivorus) 
 
 sings 
 
 Bearsfoot ( Helleborus fcetidus ) fl. 
 Polyanthus (Primula polyantha) fl. 
 Double daisy (Bellisperennis plena )i\. 
 Mezereon (Daphne Mezereum) fl. 
 Pansie (Viola tricolor) fl. 
 Red dead-nettle ( Lamium purpureum) 
 
 fl. 
 
 Groundsel (Senecio vulgaris) fl. 
 Hazel (Corylus Avellana) catkins 
 
 open 
 
 Hepatica (Anemone hepatica) fl. 
 Hedge sparrow (Sylvia modularis) 
 
 whistles 
 Common flies (Musca domestica) seen 
 
 in windows 
 Greater titmouse (Parus major) makes 
 
 its spring note 
 
 Thrush (Tvrdus musicus) sings 
 Insects swarm under sunny hedges 
 Primrose (Primula vulgaris) fl. 
 Bees (Apis mellifica) corne out of their 
 
 hives 
 
 Gnats play about 
 Hen chaffinches (Fringilla Calebs) 
 
 flock 
 
 Jan. 214 Feb. 19. Apr. 14 
 
 Jan. 2. Feb. 14 Mar. 1. May 5 
 Jan. 2. Apr. 12 Jan. 1. Apr. 9 
 Jan. 2. Feb. 1 I Mar. 17. Apr. 29 
 Jan. 3. Feb. 16 Jan. 2. Apr. 4 
 Jan. 3. I Jan. 1. May 10 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 Jan. 112 
 Jan. 118 
 Jan. 114 
 
 Jan. 1. 
 Jan. 2 
 
 Feb. 18 
 
 Jan. 211 
 
 MARKWICK. 
 
 [Oct. 6 
 
 Jan. 331 : and again 
 Oct. 16. Feb. 9 
 Mar. 3. Apr. 10 
 
 Feb. 28. Apr. 17 
 Jan. 16. May 31 
 
 Jan. 24. Mar. 26 
 Dec. 12. Feb. 23 
 
 Jan, 321 
 Jan. 315 
 
 Jan. 1. Apr. 5 
 Jan. 1. Apr. 9 
 
 Jan. 3. Feb. 28 Jan. 21. Mar. 11, fl. 
 Jan. 4. Feb. 18 Jan. 17. Apr. 9 
 
 Jan. 512 
 
 Jan. 16. Mar. 13 
 
 Jan. 5. Feb. 3 
 
 May 15 
 
 Jan. 6. Feb. 6 
 
 Feb. 17. Mar. 17 
 
 Jan. 622 
 
 Jan. 15. Apr. 4 
 
 Jan. 6 
 
 
 Jan. 6. Apr. 7 
 
 Jan. 3. Mar. 22 
 
 
 [seen Dec. 30 
 
 Jan. 6. Mar. 19 
 
 Jan. 31. Apr. 11: last 
 
 Jan. 6. Feb. 3 
 
 
 Jan. 611 
 
 Dec. 2. Feb. 3, male 
 
 
 and female seen iu 
 
 
 equal numbers 
 
410 
 
 NATURALIST'S CALENDAR. 
 
 Furze or gorse ( Ulex Europccus) fl. 
 Wallflower (Chcinmthus Clieiri; seu 
 
 frnticulosus of Smith) fl. 
 Stock (Cheiranthus incanus) fl. 
 Bunting (Emberiza alba) in great 
 
 flocks 
 Linnets (Fringilla Linota) congregate 
 
 in vast flocks 
 Lambs begin to fall 
 Hooks ( ( 'orvus frug'degus) resort to 
 
 their nest trees 
 
 Black hellebore (Helleborus niger) fl. 
 Snowdrop (Galanthus nitalls) fl. 
 White dead-nettle ( Lamium album} 
 
 fl. 
 
 Trumpet honeysuckle fl. 
 Common creeping crow-foot (Ranun- 
 culus re-pens) fl. 
 House sparrow (Fringilla domestica} 
 
 chirps 
 
 Dandelion (Leontodon Taraxacum} fl. 
 Bat ( VespertilioJ ap. 
 Spiders shoot their webs 
 Butterfly ap. 
 Brambling (Fringilla Montifringilla) 
 
 ap. 
 
 Blackbird (Turdus Merula) whistles 
 Wren (Sylvia Troglodytes} sings 
 Earthworms (Lumbncus terrestris} 
 
 lie out 
 
 Crocus (Crocus vemus) fl. 
 Skylark (Alauda areensis} sings 
 Ivy (Hedera Helix) casts its leaves 
 Helleborus hiemalis fl. 
 Common dor or clock (Scarabteus 
 
 stercorarius) ap. 
 Peziza acetabulum ap. 
 Helleborus viridis fl. 
 Hazel (Corylus Avellana} shows its 
 
 female blossoms 
 
 Woodlark (Alauda arborea) sings 
 Chaffinch (Fringilla Calebs) sings 
 Jackdaw (Corvus Monedula) begins 
 
 to come to churches 
 Yellow wagtail ( Motacilla fiara ) ap. 
 Honeysuckle (Lonicera Periclyme- 
 
 num) 1. 
 
 Field or procumbent speedwell ( Ve- 
 ronica agrestis) fl. 
 Small tortoise-shell butterfly (Papi- 
 
 lio Urtica) ap. 
 
 White wagtail (Motacilla alba) sings 
 Shell snail (Helix nemoralis) ap. 
 Earthworms (Lumbricus terrestris) 
 
 engender 
 Barren strawberry (Fragaria sterilis} 
 
 fl. 
 Tomtit (Pants cccruleus) makes its 
 
 spring note 
 
 WlllTR. 
 
 Jan. 8. Feb. 1 
 
 Jan. 8. Apr. 1 
 Jan. 812 
 
 Jan. 9 
 
 Jan. 9 
 Jan. 911 
 
 Jan. 10. Feb. 11 
 
 Jan. 10 
 
 Jan. 10. Feb. 5 
 
 Jan. 13 
 Jan. 13 
 
 Jan. 13 
 
 Jan. 14 
 Jan. 10. Mar. 
 Jan. 16. Mar. 
 Jan. 1G 
 Jan. 16 
 
 Jan. 16 
 Jan. 17 
 Jan. 17 
 
 Jan. 18. Feb. 8 
 Jan. 18. Mar. 18 
 Jan. 21 
 Jan. 22 
 Jan. 2224 
 
 Jan. 23 
 Jan. 23 
 Jan. 23. Mar. 6 
 
 Jan. 23. Feb. 1 
 Jan. 24. Feb. 21 
 Jan. 24. Feb. 15 
 
 Jan. 25. Mar. 4 
 Jan. 25. Apr. 14 
 
 Jan. 25 
 
 Jan. 27. Mar. 15 
 
 Jan. 27. Apr. 2 
 
 Jan. 28 
 
 Jan. 28. Feb. 24 
 
 Jan. 30 
 
 Feb. 1. Mar. 26 
 
 Feb. 1 
 
 MARK.WICK. 
 
 Jan. 1. Mar. 27 
 
 Feb. 21. May 9 
 Feb. 1. June 3 
 
 Jan. 11 
 Jan. 6. 
 
 Feb. 21 
 
 last 
 
 Jan. 23 
 Apr. 27 
 Jan. 18. Mar. 1 
 
 Mar. 23. May 10 
 
 Apr. 10. May 12 
 
 Feb. 17. May 9 
 Feb. 1. Apr. 17 
 Feb. 6. June 1 : 
 
 [seen Nov. 20 
 Feb. 21. May 8: last 
 
 [seen Dec. 22 
 Jan. 1031 
 Feb. 15. May 13 
 Feb. 7. June 12 
 
 Jan. 20. Mar. 19 
 Jan. 12. Feb. 27: sings 
 [till Nov. 13 
 Feb. 28. Apr. 17 
 
 Feb. 12. Apr. 19: last 
 [seen Nov. 24 
 
 Jan. 27. Mar. 11, 
 Jan. 28. June 5 
 Jan. 21. Feb. 26 
 
 Apr. 13. July 3: last 
 [seen Sept. 6 
 Jan. 1. Apr. 9 
 
 Feb. 12. Mar. 29 
 
 [seen June 
 Mar. 5. Apr. 24 : last 
 Mar. 16. 
 Apr. 2. June 11 
 
 Jan. 13. Mar. 26 
 Apr. 27 
 
NATURALIST S CALENDAR. 
 
 411 
 
 Brown wood owl (Strix stridula) 
 
 hoots 
 
 Hen (Phasianus Gallus) sits 
 Marsh titmouse ( Parus palustris) be- 
 gins his two harsh sharp notes 
 Gossamer floats 
 Musca tenax ap. 
 
 Laurustine ( Viburnum Tinus) fl. 
 Butcher's broom ( Ruscus aculeatus) 
 
 fl. 
 
 Fox (Canis Vulpes) smells rank 
 Turkey cock struts and gobbles 
 Yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella) 
 
 sings 
 Brimstone butterfly (Papilio Rhamni) 
 
 ap. 
 Green woodpecker (Picus viridis) 
 
 laughs 
 
 Raven (Corrus C&rax) builds 
 Male yew tree (Taxus baccata) sheds 
 
 its farina 
 
 Coltsfoot (Tussilago Farfara) fl. 
 Rooks ( Corvus frugilegus ) build 
 Partridges (Pcrdix cinerea) pair 
 Peas (Pisum sativum ) sown 
 House pigeon (Columba domestica) 
 
 builds 
 Field crickets (Gryllus campestris) 
 
 open their holes 
 
 Common flea (Pulex irritans) ap. 
 Pilewort (Ficaria verna) fl. 
 Goldfinch (Fringilla Carduelis) sings 
 Viper (Coluber Berus) ap. 
 
 Woodlouse (Oniscus Asellus) ap. 
 Missel thrushes (Turdus viscivorus) 
 
 pair 
 Daftbdil (Narcissus Pseudonarcissus) 
 
 fl. 
 
 Willow (Salix alba) fl. 
 Frogs (Rana temporaria) croak 
 Sweet violet ( Viola odorata) fl. 
 Phalana Tinea vestianella ap. 
 Stone curlew (CEdicnemus crepitans) 
 
 clamours 
 
 Filberd (Corylus sativus) fl. 
 Ring-dove (Columba Palumbus) coos 
 Apricot tree (Prunus Armeniaca) fl. 
 Toad (Rana Bufo) ap. 
 Frogs (Rana temporaria) spawn 
 Ivy-leaved speedwell ( Veronica hcde- 
 
 rtfolia) fl. 
 
 Peach (Amygdalus Persica) fl. 
 Frog (Rana temporaria) ap. 
 Shepherd's purse (Thlaspi Bursa pas- 
 
 toris) fl. 
 
 Pheasant ( Phasianus Colchicus)cvows 
 Land tortoise comes forth 
 Lungwort (Pulmonaria officinalis) fl 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 MARKW1CK. 
 
 Feb. 2 
 
 
 Feb. 3 
 
 Mar. 8, hatches 
 
 Feb. 3 
 
 
 Feb. 4. Apr. 1 
 
 
 Feb. 4. Apr. 8 
 
 
 Feb. 5 
 
 Jan. 1. Apr. 5 
 
 Feb. 5 
 
 Jan. 1. May 10 
 
 Feb. 7 
 
 May 19 : young brought 
 
 Feb. 10 
 
 [forth 
 
 Feb. 12 
 
 Feb. 18. Apr. 28 
 
 Feb. 13. Apr. 2 
 
 Feb. 13. Mar. 8: last 
 
 
 [seen Dec. 24 
 
 Feb.'IS. Mar. 23 
 
 Jan. 1. Apr. 17 
 
 Feb. 14 17 
 
 Apr. 1. has young ones 
 
 
 [June 1 
 
 Feb. 14. Mar. 27 
 
 Feb. 2. Apr. 11, fl. 
 
 Feb. 15. Mar. 23 
 
 Feb. 18. Apr. 13 
 
 Feb. 16. Mar. 6 
 
 Feb. 28. Mar. 5 
 
 Feb. 17 
 
 Feb. 16. Mar. 20 
 
 Feb. 17. Mar. 8 
 
 Feb. 8. Mar. 31 
 
 Feb. IS 
 
 Feb. 8. has young ones 
 
 Feb. 20. Mar. 30 
 
 
 Feb. 2126 
 
 
 Feb. 21. Apr. 13 
 
 Jan. 25. Mar. 26 
 
 Feb. 21. Apr. 5 
 
 Feb. 28. May 5 
 
 Feb. 22. Mar. 26 
 
 Feb. 23. May 6: last 
 
 
 [seen Oct. 28 
 
 Feb. 23. Apr.l 
 
 Apr. 27. June 17 
 
 Feb. 24 
 
 - 
 
 Feb. 24. Apr. 7 
 
 Feb. 26. Apr. 18 
 
 Feb. 24. Apr. 2 
 
 Feb. 27. Apr. 11 
 
 Feb. 25 
 
 Mar. 9. Apr. 20 
 
 Feb. 26. Mar. 31 
 
 Feb. 7. Apr. 5 
 
 Feb. 26 
 
 
 Feb. 27. Apr. 24 
 
 June 17 
 
 Feb. 27 
 
 Jan. 25. Mar. 26 
 
 Feb. 27. Apr. 5 
 
 Mar. 2. Aug. 10 
 
 Feb. 
 
 Feb. 28. Apr. 5 
 
 Feb. 28. Mar. 24 
 
 Mar. 15. July 1 
 
 Feb. 28. Mar. 22 
 
 Feb. 9. Apr. 10 : tad- 
 
 
 poles Mar. 1 9 
 
 Mar. 1. Apr. 2 
 
 Feb. 16. Apr. 10 
 
 Mar. 2. Apr. 17 
 
 Mar. 4. Apr. 29 
 
 Mar. 2. Apr. 6 
 
 Mar. 9 
 
 Mar. 3 
 
 Jan. 2. Apr. 16 
 
 Mar. 329 
 
 Mar. 1. May 22 
 
 Mar. 4. May 8 
 
 
 Mar. 1. Apr. 16 
 
 Mar. 2. May 19 
 
412 
 
 NATURALIST'S CALENDAR. 
 
 Podura fimetaria ap. 
 
 Aranea scenica saliens ap. 
 
 Scolopendraforficata ap. 
 
 Wryneck ( Yvnx Torquilla) returns 
 
 Goose (Anas Anser) lays 
 
 Duck (Anas Boschas) lays 
 
 Dog violet (Viola canina) fl. 
 
 Peacock butterfly (Papilio Jo) ap. 
 
 Trouts (Salmo Fario) begin to rise 
 
 Beans ( Vicia Faba) planted 
 
 Bloodworms appear in the water 
 
 Crow (Corvus Curone) builds 
 
 Oats ( Apena sativa) sown 
 
 Golden crested wren (Sylvia Regu- 
 
 lus) sings 
 
 Aspen (Populus tremnla) fl. 
 Common elder (Sambucus nigra) 1. 
 Laurel (Prunus Laurocerasus ) fl. 
 Chrysomela Gottingensis ap. 
 Black ant (Formica nigra) ap. 
 Ephemera biseta ap. 
 Gooseberry ( Ribes Grossularia) 1. 
 Common stitch wort (Stellaria holos- 
 
 tea) fl. 
 Wood anemone (Anemone nemorosa) 
 
 fl. 
 Blackbird (Tnrdus Mcrula) sits 
 
 Raven (Corrus Corax) sits 
 Wheatear (Sylvia (Enanthe) returns' 
 Musk wood crowfoot (Adoxa Moscha- 
 
 tellina) fl. 
 Small uncrested willow wren 3 ap. 
 
 Fumaria bulbosa fl. 
 Elm ( Ulmus campestris) fl. 
 Turkey ( Meleagris Gallopato) lays 
 House pigeon (Columba domestica) 
 
 sits 
 Marsh marigold (Calthtt palustris) 
 
 fl. 
 
 Buzz-fly ( Bombylius mcdius) ap. 
 Sand martin (Hit-undo riparia) ap. 
 
 Snake (Coluber Natrix) ap. 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 Mar. 4 
 
 Mar. 4 
 
 Mar. 516 
 
 Mar. 5. Apr. 25 
 
 Mar. 5 
 
 Mar. 5 
 
 Mar. 6. Apr. 18 
 
 Mar. 6 
 
 Mar. 714 
 
 Mar. 8 
 
 Mar. 8 
 
 Mar. 10 
 
 Mar. 1018 
 
 Mar. 12. Apr. 30 
 Mar. 12 
 Mar. 1320 
 Mar. 15. May 21 
 Mar. 15 
 
 Mar. 15. Apr. 22 
 Mar. 10 
 Mar. 17. Apr. 11 
 
 Mar. 17. May 19 
 
 Mar. 17. 
 Mar. 17 
 
 Mar. 17 
 Mar. 18 
 
 Mar. 18. 
 Mar. 19. 
 
 Apr. 22 
 
 30 
 
 Apr. 13 
 Apr. 13 
 
 Mar. 19 
 Mar. 19. 
 Mar. 19. 
 
 Mar. 20 
 
 Apr. 4 
 Apr. 7 
 
 Mar. 20. Apr. 14 
 Mar. 21. Apr. 28 
 Mar. 21. Apr. 12 
 
 Mar. 22 -30 
 
 [seen Sept. 1 1 
 Mar. 20. Apr. 23 : last 
 Mar. 21 
 Mar. 28 
 
 Feb. 28. Apr. 22 
 Feb. 13. Apr. 2J: last 
 
 [seen Dec. 25 
 Apr. 29 emerge. 
 
 July 1, has young ones 
 Mar. 16. Apr. 13 
 
 [Dec. 23. Jan. 26 
 Apr. 15. May 22. seen 
 Feb. 26. Mar. 28 
 Jan. 24. Apr. 22 
 Apr. 2. May 27 
 
 Mar. 2. May 18 
 Feb. 26. Apr. 9 
 Mar. 8. May 7 
 
 Feb. 27. Apr. 10 
 
 Apr. 14, lays: y>m< 
 [ones May 19 
 
 Apr. 1, builds 
 
 Mar. 13. May 23 : ln*l 
 [seen Oct. 2ii 
 
 Feb. 23. Apr. 28 
 
 Willow wren (Sylri.i 
 Trochilus) Mar. 30. 
 May 16: sits May 27 : 
 last seen Oct. 23 
 
 Feb. 17. Apr. 25 
 
 Mar. 18 25 : sits Apr. 
 [4 : young ones Apr. 30 
 
 Mar. 20: young hatched 
 
 Mar. 22. May 8 
 Mar. 15. Apr. 30 
 Apr. 8. May 16: last 
 
 [seen Sept. 8 
 Mar. 3. Apr. 29: last 
 
 [seen Oct. 2 
 
 * Seen at Spofforlh, Apr. 5, 1833. W. H. 
 
 1 There is strange confusion in the entries respecting the willow wrens in the Calendar pub- 
 lished from Mr. White's papers after his death. Three sorts were known to him, as he distinctly 
 says in a former passage : the Syh-ia Troc/tilus, or yellow wren; the Syfc. tykicola, or wood wren; 
 and the Sylv. loytuue, or chifichaff : but there are five entries of such wrens in the Calendar. By 
 reference to what he has said in other places, it should seem that the chiffchaff appears the first. 
 Therefore, in the entry, March 19th, we must read, instead ol Small uncreated willow wren, Chiftcbaff, 
 Sylv. loqtuu. In a subsequent page, Mr. White states this bird to be the chitfchaff, and to be usually 
 heard about the 20lh of March W. H. 
 
NATURALIST S CALENDAR. 
 
 413 
 
 Horse ant (Formica herculanea) ap. 
 
 Greenfinch (Loxia Chloris) sings 
 Ivy (Hedera Helix) berries ripe 
 Periwinkle (Vinca minor) fl. 
 Spurge laurel (Daphne Laureola) fl. 
 Swallow (Hirundo rustica) ap. 
 
 Blackcap (Sylvia Atricapilla) whis- 
 tles 3 
 
 Ducks ( Anas Boschas) hatched 
 
 Golden saxifrage ( Chrysosplenium op- 
 posit if olium) fl. 
 
 House martin (Hirundo urbica) ap. 
 
 Chimney swallow (Hirundo rustica) 
 ap. 4 
 
 Dou ble hyacinth (Hyacinthus Orienta- 
 lis) fl. 
 
 Young geese (Anas Anser) 
 
 Wood sorrel ( Oxalis Acetosella) fl. 
 
 Ring ouzel (Turdus torquatus) ap. 
 
 Barley (Hordeum sativum) sown 
 
 Nightingale (Sylvia Luscinia) sings 
 
 Ash (Fraxinus excelsior) fl. 
 Spiders' webs on the surface of the 
 
 ground 
 Chequered daffodil ( Fritillaria Me- 
 
 leagris) fl. 
 Julus terrestris ap. 
 Cowslip (Primula veris) fl. 
 Ground ivy (Glechoma hcderacea) fl. 
 Snipe (Scolopax Gallinago) pipes 
 Box tree (Buxus sempcrvirens} fl. 
 Elm ( Ulmus campestris) 1. 
 Gooseberry (Ribes Grossularia) fl. 
 Currant (Ribes hortensis) fl. 
 Pear tree (Pyrus communis) fl. 
 Newt or eft (Lacerta vulgaris) ap. 
 Dogs' mercury (Mercurialis perennis) 
 
 fl. 
 Wych elm ( Ulmus glabra seu montana 
 
 of Smith) fl. 
 Ladies smock (Cardamine pratensisj 
 
 fl. 
 Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) heard 5 
 
 Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) fl. 
 Deathwatch (Termes pulsatorius) 
 beats 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 MARKWICK. 
 
 Mar. 22. Apr. 18 
 
 Feb. 4. Mar. 26: last 
 
 
 [seen Nov. 12 
 
 Mar. 22. Apr. 22 
 
 Mar. 6. Apr. 26 
 
 Mar. 23. Apr. 14 
 
 Feb. 16. May 19 
 
 Mar. 25 
 
 Feb. 6. May 7 
 
 Mar. 25. Apr. 1 
 
 Apr. 1222 
 
 Mar. 26. Apr. 20 
 
 Apr. 7 27 : last seen 
 
 
 [Nov. 16 
 
 Mar. 26. May 4 
 
 Apr. 14. May 18: seen 
 
 
 Apr. 14. May 20: last 
 
 
 seen Sept. 19 
 
 Mar. 27 
 
 Apr. 6. May 16 
 
 Mar. 27. Apr. 9 
 
 Feb. 7. Mar. 27 
 
 Mar. 28. May 1 
 
 Apr. 14. May 8 : last 
 
 
 [seen Dec. 8 
 
 Mar. 28. Apr. 13 
 
 
 Mar. 29. Apr. 22 
 
 Mar. 13. Apr. 24 
 
 Mar. 29 
 
 Mar. 29. Apr. 19 
 
 Mar. 30. Apr. 22 
 
 Feb. 26. Apr. 26 
 
 Mar. 30. Apr. 17 
 
 Oct. 11 
 
 Mar. 31. Apr. 30 
 
 Apr. 12. May 20 
 
 Apr. 1. May 1 
 
 Apr.5. July 4 : last seen 
 
 
 [Aug. 29 
 
 Apr. 1. May 4 
 
 Mar. 16. May 8 
 
 Apr. 1 
 
 
 Apr. 224 
 
 Apr. 15. May 1 
 
 Apr. 2 
 
 
 Apr. 324 
 
 Mar. 3. May 17 
 
 Apr. 3 15 
 
 Mar. 2. Apr. 16 
 
 Apr. 3 
 
 
 Apr. 3 
 
 Mar. 27. May 8 
 
 Apr. 3 
 Apr. 314 
 
 Apr. 2. May 19 
 Mar. 21. May 1 
 
 Apr. 35 
 
 Mar. 24. Apr. 28 
 
 Apr. 3. May 21 
 
 Mar. 30. Apr. 30 
 
 Apr. 4 
 
 Feb. 17. Apr. 15: last 
 
 
 [seen Oct. 9 
 
 Apr. 519 
 
 Jan. 20. Apr. 16 
 
 Apr. 5 
 
 Apr. 19. May 10, 1. 
 
 Apr. 620 
 
 Feb. 21. Apr. 26 
 
 Apr. 726 
 
 Apr. 15. May 3 : last 
 
 
 [heard June 28 
 
 Apr. 7. May 10 
 
 Mar. 16. May 8 
 
 Apr. 7 
 
 Mar. 28. May 28 
 
 3 At Spofforth, May 10, 1817. May 1, 1818. Apr. 19, 1829. Apr. 9, 1831. Apr. 6, 1832. Apr. 
 19, 1833. Apr. 7, 1834. May 4, 1835. Sang for a few moments, Sept. 11, 1831. W. H. 
 
 * At Spofforth, Apr. 11, 1830. Apr. 23, 1831. Two had been seen a week before and went 
 away. Apr. 26, 1834. Apr. 27, 1835. W. H. 
 
 * Heard at Spofforth, May 8, 1817. Apr. 27, 1818. Apr. 27, 1831. May 1, 1834. W. H. 
 
414 
 
 NATURALIST S CALENDAR. 
 
 Gudgeon ( Gobio fluviatills ) spawns 
 Redstart (Sylvia Phcenicurus) ap. 6 
 Crown imperial (Fritillaria imperia- 
 
 lis) fl. 
 Titlark (Alauda pratensis) sings 
 
 Beech (Fagus sylvatica) 1. 
 
 S lie 11 snail (Helix nemoralis) comes 
 
 out in troops 
 Middle yellow wren 7 ap. 
 Swift (Hirundo apus) ap. 8 
 Stinging fly (Conops calcitrans) ap. 
 Whitlow grass ( Draba verna) fl. 
 Larch tree (Pinus larix rubra) 1. 
 Whitethroat (Sylvia cinerea) ap. 9 
 
 Red ant (Formica rubra) ap. 
 
 Mole cricket (Gryllus Gryllotalpa) 
 
 churs 
 Second willow or laughing wren I0 
 
 ap. 
 
 Red rattle (Pedicularis sylvatica) fl. 
 Common flesh-fly ( Musca carnaria} 
 
 ap. 
 
 Ladycow (Coccinella bipunctata) &p. 
 Grasshopper lark (Alauda locustcc 
 
 voce) ap. ' ' 
 Large shivering willow wren Ia 
 
 Middle willow wren 13 (Regulus non 
 
 crlstatus medius) ap. 
 Wild cherry (Prunus Cerasua) fl. 
 Garden cherry (Prunus Cerasua) fl. 
 Plum (Prunus domestica) fl. 
 Harebell (Uyacinthus non-scriptus seu 
 
 Scilla n n tn us of Smith) fl. 
 Turtle (Columba Turtur) coos 
 Hawthorn (Cratagus seu Mespilus 
 
 Oxyacantha of Smith) fl. 
 Male fool's orchis (Orchis mascula) fl. 
 Blue flesh fly (Musca vomitoria) ap. 
 Black snail or slug (Limax atcr) 
 
 abounds 
 Apple tree (Pyrus Malus sativus) fl. 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 Apr. 7 
 
 MARKWICK. 
 
 Apr. 828 
 
 Apr. 5 : sings Apr. 25 
 
 
 [last seen Sept. 3- 
 
 Apr. 824 
 
 Apr. I. May 13 
 
 Apr. 919 
 
 Apr. 14 29: sits Jum 
 
 
 [16-2? 
 
 Apr. 10. May 8 
 
 Apr. 24. May 25 
 
 Apr. 11. May 9 
 
 May 17. June 11 ap. 
 
 Apr. 11 
 
 
 Apr. 13. May 7 
 
 Apr. 28. May 19 
 
 Apr. 14. May 17 
 
 
 Apr. 14 
 
 Jan. 15. Mar. 2 1 
 
 Apr. 14 
 
 Apr. 1. May 9 
 
 Apr. 14. May 14 
 
 Apr. 14. May 5 : sin- 
 
 
 May 3 10: lastseci 
 
 
 Sept. 23 
 
 Apr. 14 
 
 Apr. 9. June 26 
 
 Apr. 14. May 27 
 
 
 Apr. 141923 
 
 
 Apr. 1519 
 
 Apr. 10. June 4 
 
 Apr. 15 
 
 
 Apr. 16 
 
 
 Apr. 1630 
 
 
 Apr. 17. May 7 
 
 Willow wren,its shivor 
 
 
 ing note heard Apr 
 
 
 28. May 14 
 
 Apr. 1727 
 
 
 Apr. 18. May 12 
 
 Mar. 30. May 10 
 
 Apr. 18. May 11 
 
 Mar. 25. May 6 
 
 Apr. 18. May 5 
 
 Mar. 24. May 6 
 
 Apr. 1925 
 
 Mar. 27. May 8 
 
 Apr. 2027 
 
 May 14. Aug. 10: seei 
 
 Apr. 20. June 11 
 
 Apr. 19. May 26 
 
 Apr. 21 
 
 Mar. 29. May 13 
 
 Apr. 21. May 23 
 
 
 Apr. 22 
 
 Feb. 1. Oct. 24, ap. 
 
 Apr. 22. May 25 
 
 Apr. 11. May 26 
 
 6 Seen at Spofforth, May 11, 1317. Apr. 0, 1820. Apr. 12, 1830. Apr. 2C, 1831 W. IF. 
 
 7 Yellow wren (Sylvia Troc/iiiiuj. W. H. 
 
 8 Seen at Spofforth, May 3, 1834. W. H. 
 
 9 Sang at Spofforth, May 8, 1817. Apr. 27, 1831, with a south wind, several sang: none befor. 
 that day. Apr. 25, 1834. May 8, 1835. W. H. 
 
 10 Yellow wren (Sylvia Trochiliu).Vf. H. 
 
 " At Spofforth, Apr. 26, 1834 W. H. 
 
 * Wood wren (Sylvia sylvicola}. Seen at Spofforth, May 8, 1835. W. II. 
 
 i3 Yellow wren (Sylwt TrocMlus}.W. H. 
 
NATURALIST S CALENDAR. 
 
 415 
 
 Large bat ap. 
 
 Strawberry, wild wood (Fragaria 
 
 vesca) fl. 
 
 Sauce alone (Erysimum AlUaria) fl. 
 Wild or bird cherry (Prunus Avium) 
 
 fl. 
 
 Apis Hypnorum ap. 
 Mnsca meridiana ap. 
 Wolf fly (Asilus) ap. 
 Cabbage butterfly (Papilio Brassica) 
 
 ap. 
 Dragon fly ( Libcllula) ap. 
 
 Sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus) fl. 
 
 Bombylius minor ap. 
 
 Glowworm (Lampyris noctiluca) 
 
 shines 
 Fern owl or goatsucker (Caprimulgus 
 
 Europceus) returns 
 Common bugle ( Ajuga reptans) fl. 
 Field crickets (Gryllus campestris) 
 
 crink 
 Chafer or maybug (Scarabceus Melo- 
 
 lontha) ap. 
 Honeysuckle (Lonicera Periclyme- 
 
 num) fl. 
 
 Toothwort (Lathraa squamaria) fl. 
 Shell snails (Helix nemoralis) pair 
 Sedge warbler (Sylvia salicaria) 
 
 sings 
 
 Mealy tree (Viburnum Lantana) fl. 
 Flycatcher (Stoparola or Muscicapa 
 
 Grisoln) ap. 
 Apis longicornis ap. 
 Reed warbler (Sylvia arundinacea) 
 
 ap. 
 
 Oak (Quercus Robur) in male bloom 
 Admiral butterfly (Papilio Atalanta) 
 
 ap. 
 Orange tip butterfly (Papilio Carda- 
 
 mines) ap. 
 
 Beech (Fagus sylvatica) fl. 
 Common maple ( Acer campestris) fl. 
 Barberry tree (Berberis vulgaris) fl. 
 Wood Argus butterfly (Papilio JEge- 
 
 ria) ap. 
 
 Orange lily (Lilium bulbiferum) fl. 
 Burnetmoth (Sphinx Filipendulte) ap. 
 Walnut (Juglans regia) 1. 
 Laburnum (Cytisus Laburnum) fl. 
 Forest fly (Hippobosca equina) ap. 
 Saintfoin (Hedysarum Onobrychis) fl. 
 Peony (Pceonia officinalis) fl. 
 Horse chestnut (JEsculus Hippocasta- 
 
 num) fl. 
 
 Lilac (Syringa vulgaris) fl. 
 Columbine (Aquilegia vulgaris) fl. 
 Medlar (Mespilus Germanica) fl. 
 Tormentil (Tormentilla reptans) fl. 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 Apr. 22. June 11 
 
 MARKWICK. 
 
 Apr. 2329 
 Apr. 23 
 
 Apr. 89 
 Mar. 31. May 8 
 
 Apr. 24 
 Apr. 24 
 Apr. 24. May 28 
 Apr. 25 
 
 Mar. 30. May 10 
 
 Apr. 28. May 20 
 Apr. 30. May 21 
 
 Apr. 30. June 6 
 May 1 
 
 Apr. 29. June 15 
 Apr.rs. May 13: last 
 [seen Nov. 10 
 Apr. 20. June 4 
 
 May 1. June 11 
 
 June 19. Sept. 28 
 
 May 126 
 May 1 
 
 May 16. Sept. 14 
 Mar. 27. May 10 
 
 May 224 
 
 
 May 226 
 
 May 2. July 7 
 
 May 330 
 May 412 
 May 4 June 17 
 
 Apr. 24. June 21 
 
 May 4 
 May 517 
 
 June 2 30 
 Apr. 25. May 22 
 
 May 1030 
 May 10. June 9 
 
 Apr. 29. May 21 
 
 May 1113 
 May 1315 
 
 Aug. 2 
 fl. Apr. 29. June 4 
 
 May 13 
 
 
 May 14 
 May 1526 
 May 16 
 May 1726 
 
 Mar. 30. May 19 
 Apr. 23. May 28 
 Apr. 24. May 27 
 Apr. 28. June 4 
 
 May 17 
 May 18. June 11 
 May 18. June 13 
 May 18 
 May 18. June 5 
 May 18. June 9 
 May 19. June 8 
 May20. June 15 
 
 June 14. July 22 
 May 24. June 26 
 Apr. 10. June 1 
 May 1. June 23 
 
 May 21. July 28 
 Apr. 18. May 26 
 
 May 21. June 9 
 May 21 
 May 2127 
 May 21. June 20 
 May 21 
 
 Apr. 19. June 7 
 Apr. 15. May 30 
 May 6. June 13 
 Apr. 8. June 19 
 Apr. 17. June 11 
 
416 
 
 NATURALIST'S CALENDAR. 
 
 Lily of the valley ( Convallaria Maja 
 lis) fl. 
 
 Bees (Apis mellifica) swarm 
 
 Woodroof (Asperula odorata) fl. 
 
 Wasps, female ( Vespa vulgaris) ap. 
 
 Mountain ash (Sorbus seu Pyrus au- 
 cuparia of Smith) fl. 
 
 Birds-nest orchis (Ophrys Nidi 
 fl. 
 
 White-beam tree (Cratcegus seu Pyrus 
 Aria of Smith) 1. 
 
 Milkwort (Polygala vulgaris) fl. 
 
 Dwarf cistus ( Cistus Helianthemum 
 fl. 
 
 Gelder rose ( Viburnum Opulus) fl. 
 
 Common elder (Sambucus nigra) fl. 
 
 ('nut Inn-is noctiluca ap. 
 
 Apis longicornis bores holes in walks 
 
 Mulberry tree (Morns nigra) 
 
 Wild service tree (Cratcegus seu Py- 
 rus torminalis of Smith) fl. 
 
 Sanicle (Sanicula Europtea) fl. 
 
 Avens (Geum urbanum) fl. 
 
 Female fool's orchis (Orchis Mono) 
 
 Ragged Robin (Lychnis Flos Cuculi) 
 
 fl. 
 
 Burnet ( Poterium Sanguisorba) fl. 
 Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) fl. 
 Corn flag (Gladiolus communis) fl. 
 Serapias longifolia fl. 
 Raspberry (Rubus Idceus) fl. 
 Herb Robert (Geranium Robertia- 
 
 n it in > fl. 
 
 Figwort (Scrophularia nodosa) fl. 
 Gromwell ( Lithospermum officinale) fl. 
 Wood spurge (Euphorbia amygdaloi- 
 
 des) fl. 
 
 Ramsons ( Allium ursinum) fl. 
 Mouse-ear scorpion grass (Myosotis 
 
 scorpioides) fl. 
 Grasshopper (Gryllus grossus) ap. 
 
 Rose (Rosa hortensis) fl. 
 
 Mouse-ear hawkweed (Hieracium 
 Pilosella) fl. 
 
 Buckbean (Menyanthes trtfoliata) fl. 
 
 Rose chafer (Scarabteus auratus) ap. 
 
 Sheep (Oris Aries) shorn 
 
 Water flag (Iris Pseudacorus) fl. 
 
 Cultivated rye (Secale cereale) fl. 
 
 Hound's tongue (Cynoglossum offici- 
 nale) fl. 
 
 Helleborine (Serapias lat\folia) fl. 
 
 Green gold fly (Musca Ccesar) ap. 
 
 Argus butterfly (Papilio Moera) ap. 
 
 Spearwortf Ranunculus Flammula) fl. 
 
 Birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus comiculatus) 
 fl. 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 MARKWICK. 
 
 May 22 
 May 22. July 22 
 May 2225 
 May 23 
 
 May 23. June 8 
 
 Apr. 27. June 13 
 May 12. June 23 
 Apr. 14. June 4 
 Apr. 2. June 4: las 
 [seen Nov. : 
 Apr. 20. June 8 
 
 May 24. June 11 
 
 May 18. June 12 
 
 May 24. June 4 
 May 24. June 7 
 
 May 3 
 Apr. 13. June 2 
 
 May 25 
 May 26 
 May 26. June 25 
 May 26 
 May 27. June 9 
 May 27. June 13 
 
 May 4. Aug. 8 
 May 10. June 8 
 May 6. June 17 
 
 May 20. June 11 
 
 May 27 
 May 27. June 13 
 May 28 
 
 May 13. June 19 
 Apr. 23. June 4 
 May 9. June 11 
 
 May 28 
 
 Apr. 17. May 20 
 
 May 29. June 1 
 May 29 
 May 30. June 22 
 May 30. June 20 
 May 30. June 13 
 May 30. June 21 
 
 May 12. June 8 
 Apr. 30. Aug. 7 
 May 23. June 15 
 June 9. July 8 
 
 May 10. June 16 
 
 May 30 
 May 31 
 May 31 
 
 Mar. 7. May 16 
 May 12. June 20 
 May 1024 
 
 June 1 
 June 1 
 
 Mar. 23. May 13 
 Apr. 21. June 4 
 
 June I 
 June 114 
 
 June_l 21 
 
 Apr. 11. June I 
 Mar. 25. July 6: last 
 [seen Nov. 11 
 June 7. July 1 
 
 June 1. July 16 
 June 1 
 June 28 
 June 223 
 June 2 
 June 2 
 
 Apr. 19. June 12 
 Apr. 20. June 8 
 Apr. 18. Aug. 4 
 May 23. June 17 
 May 8. June 9 
 May 27 
 
 Fune 2 
 Fune 2. Aug. 6 
 Fune 2 
 Fune 2 
 
 1 inn- 3 
 
 Way 11. June 7 
 July 22. Sept. 6 
 
 Apr. 25. June 13 
 
 1 inn- 3 
 
 Apr. 10. June 3 
 
NATURALIST S CALENDAR. 
 
 417 
 
 Fraxinella or white dittany (Dictam- 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 MARKWICK. 
 
 nus albus) fl. 
 
 June 311 
 
 June 9. July 24 
 
 Phryganea nigra ap. 
 
 June 3 
 
 
 Angler's may-fly (Ephemera vulgata) 
 
 
 
 ap. 
 
 June 3 14 
 
 
 Ladies fingers (Anthyllis vulneraria) 
 
 
 
 fl. 
 
 June 4 
 
 June 1. Aug. 16 
 
 Bee orchis (Ophrys apifera) fl. 
 
 June 4. July 4 
 
 
 Pink (Dianthm deltoides) fl. 
 
 June 5 19 
 
 May 26. July 6 
 
 Syringa ( Philadelphus coronarius) fl. 
 
 June 5 
 
 May 16. June 23 
 
 Libellula Virgo ap. 
 
 June 520 
 
 
 Vine C Vitis vinifera) fl. 
 
 June 7. July 30 
 
 June -18. July 29 
 
 Portugal laurel (Prunus Lusitanicus) 
 
 
 
 fl. 
 
 June 8. July 1 
 
 June 3. July 16 
 
 Purple spotted martagon (Lilium 
 
 
 
 Martagon) fl. 
 
 June 8 25 
 
 June 18. July 19 
 
 Meadow cranes-bill (Geranium pra- 
 
 
 
 tense) fl. 
 
 June 8. Aug. 1 
 
 
 Black bryony (Tamus communis) fl. 
 
 June 8 
 
 May 15. June 21 
 
 Field pea (Pisum sativum arvense) fl. 
 
 June 9 
 
 May 15. June 21 
 
 Bladder campion (Cucubalus Behen 
 
 
 
 seu Silene inflata of Smith) fl. 
 
 June 9 
 
 May 4. July 13 
 
 Bryony (Bryonia alba) fl. 
 
 June 9 
 
 May 13. Aug. 17 
 
 Hedge nettle (Stachys sylvatica) fl. 
 
 June 10 
 
 May 28. June 24 
 
 Bittersweet (Solanum Dulcamara} fl. 
 
 June 11 
 
 May 15. June 20 
 
 Walnut (Juglans regia) fl. 
 
 June 12 
 
 Apr. 18. June 1 
 
 Phallus impudicus ap. 
 
 June 12. July 23 
 
 
 Rosebay willow-herb (Epilobium an- 
 
 
 
 gustifolium) fl. 
 
 June 12 
 
 June 4. July 28 
 
 Wheat (Triticum hybernum) fl. 
 
 June 13. July 22 
 
 June 4 30 
 
 Comfrey (Symphytum officinale) fl. 
 
 June 13 
 
 May 4. June 23 
 
 Yellow pimpernel ( Lysimachia nemo- 
 
 
 
 rum) fl. 
 
 June 13 30 
 
 Apr. 10. June 12 
 
 Tremella Nostoc ap. 
 
 June 15. Au#.24 
 
 
 Buckthorn (Rhamnus catharticus) fl. 
 
 June 16 
 
 May 25 
 
 Cuckow-spit insect ( Cicada spumaria) 
 
 
 
 ap. 
 
 June 16 
 
 June 221 
 
 Dog-rose (Rosa canina) fl. 
 
 June 17, 18 
 
 May 24. June 21 
 
 Large puff-ball (Lycoperdon Bovista) 
 
 
 
 ap. 
 
 June 17. Sept. 3 
 
 May 6. Aug. 19 
 
 Mullein ( Verbascum Thapsus) fl. 
 
 June 18 
 
 June 10. July 22 
 
 Viper's bugloss ( Echium vulgare) fl. 
 
 June 19 
 
 May 27. July 3 
 
 Meadow hay cut 
 
 June 19. July 20 
 
 June 13. July 7 
 
 Stag beetle (Lucanus C'ervus) ap. 
 
 June 19 
 
 June 1421 
 
 Borage (Borago officinalis) fl. 
 
 June 20 
 
 Apr. 22. July 26 
 
 Spindle tree (Evonymus Europceus} 
 
 
 
 fl. 
 
 June 20 
 
 May 11. June 25 
 
 Musk thistle (Carduus nutans) fl. 
 
 June 20. July 4 
 
 June 4. July 25 
 
 Dogwood (Cornus sanguinea) fl. 
 
 June 21 
 
 May 28. June 27 
 
 Field scabious (Scabiosa arvensis) fl. 
 
 June 21 
 
 June 16. Aug. 14 
 
 Marsh thistle ( Carduus palustris ) fl. 
 
 June 2127 
 
 May 15. June 19 
 
 Dropwort (Spircea Filipendula) fl. 
 Great wild valerian ( Valeriana offici- 
 
 June 22. July 9 
 
 May 8. Sept. 3 
 
 nalis) fl. 
 
 June 22. July 7 
 
 May 22. July 21 
 
 Quail (Perdix Coturnix) calls 
 
 June 22. July 4 
 
 July 23 : seen Sept. 1 
 
 Mountain willow herb (Epilobium 
 
 
 [18 
 
 montanunn) fl. 
 
 June 22 
 
 June 521 
 
 Thistle upon thistle (Carduuscrispus) 
 
 
 
 fl. 
 
 June 2329 
 
 May 22. July 22 
 
 E E 
 
418 
 
 NATURALIST'S CALENDAR. 
 
 Cow parsnep (Heracleum Sphondyli- 
 um) fl. 
 
 Earth-nut (Bunium Bulbocastanum 
 aeuftexuosum of Smith) fl. 
 
 Young frogs ( Rana temporaria) mi- 
 grate 
 
 CEstrus curvicauda ap. 
 
 Vervain ( Verbena qfficinali*) fl. 
 
 Corn poppy (Papaver Rhceas) fl. 
 
 Self-heal (Prunella vulgaris) fl. 
 
 Agrimony (Agrimonia Eupatoria) fl. 
 
 Great horse-fly (Tabanus borinus) ap. 
 
 Greater knapweed (Centaurea Scabi- 
 osa) fl. 
 
 Mushroom (Agaricus campestris) ap. 
 
 Common mallow ( Malta sylvestris ) fl. 
 
 Dwarf mallow (Malta rotundtfolia) 
 fl. 
 
 St. John's wort (Hypericum perfora- 
 tum) fl. 
 
 Broom rape (Orobanche major) fl. 
 
 Henbane (Hyoscyamus niger) fl. 
 
 Goats-beard (Tragopogon pratensis) 
 fl. 
 
 Deadly nightshade (Atropa Belladon- 
 na) fl. 
 
 Truffles (Lycoperdon Tuber} begin to 
 be found 
 
 Young partridges (Perdix cinerea} 
 fly 
 
 Lime tree (Tilia Europaa) fl. 
 
 Spear thistle (Carduus lanceolatus ) f\. 
 
 Meadow sweet (Spirtea Ulmaria) fl. 
 
 Greenweed (Genista tinct<n*ia) fl. 
 
 Wild thyme (Thymus Serpyllum) fl. 
 
 Stachys Germanica fl. 
 
 Day lily ( Hemerocallis flara ) fl. 
 
 Jasmine (Jasminum officinale) fl. 
 
 Holyoak ( Alcea rosea) fl. 
 
 Monotropa Hypopitys fl. 
 
 Ladies bedstraw (Galium verum) fl. 
 
 Galium palustre fl. 
 
 Nipplewort (Lapsana communis) fl. 
 
 Welted thistle (Carduus acanthoides} 
 
 Sneezewort (Achillea Ptarmica) fl. 
 Musk mallow (Malta moschata) fl. 
 Pimpernel (Anagallis arcensis) fl. 
 Hoary beetle (Scarabaws solstitialis) 
 
 ap. 
 Common thistle (Serratula arrensis 
 
 seu Carduus arvensis of Smith) fl. 
 Pheasant's eye (Adonis annua seu 
 
 autumnalis of Smith) fl. 
 Red eyebrightf Euphrasia seu Bartsia 
 
 Odontites of Smith) fl. 
 Thorough wax (Bupleurum rotundi- 
 
 folium) fl. 
 Cockle (Agrostemma Githago) fl. 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 MARK WICK. 
 
 June 23 
 
 May 27. July 12 
 
 June 23 
 
 May 431 
 
 June 23. Aug. 2 
 June 24 
 June 24 
 June 24 
 June 24 
 June 2429 
 June 24. Aug. 2 
 
 June 10. July 17 
 Apr. 30. July 15 
 June 723 
 June 7. July 9 
 
 June 25 
 June 26. Aug. 30 
 June 26 
 
 June 7. Aug. 14 
 Apr. 16. Aug. 16 
 May 27. July 13 
 
 June 26 
 
 May 12. July 30 
 
 June 26 
 June 27. July 4 
 June 27 
 
 June 15. July 12 
 May 9. July 25 
 May 13. June 19 
 
 June 27 
 
 June 5 14 
 
 June 27 
 
 May 22. Aug. 11 
 
 June28. July 29 
 
 
 June28. July 31 
 June 28. July 31 
 June28. July 12 
 June 28 
 June 28 
 June 28 
 June 29. July20 
 June 29. July 4 
 June 29. July 30 
 June 29. Aug. 4 
 June 29. July 23 
 June 29 
 June 29 
 June 29 
 
 July g28 
 June 12. July 30 
 June 27. July 18 
 June 16. July 21 
 June 4. July 24 
 June 6. July 19 
 
 May 29. June 9 
 June 27. July 21 
 July 4. Sept. 7 
 
 June 22. Aug. 3 
 May 30. July 24 
 
 June 29 
 June 30 
 June 30 
 June 30 
 
 June 22. Aug. 3 
 June 9. July 14 
 May 4. June 22 
 
 June 30. July 17 
 
 
 July 1 
 
 June 15. July 15 
 
 July 1 
 
 April 11. July 15 
 
 July 2 
 
 June 20. Aug. 10 
 
 July 2 
 July 2 
 
 May 14. July 25 
 
NATURALIST'S CALENDAR. 
 
 419 
 
 Ivy-leaved wild lettuce (Prenanthes 
 
 muralis) fl. 
 Feverfew (Matricaria seu Pyrethrum 
 
 Parthenium of Smith) fl. 
 Stonecrop (Sedum acre) fl. 
 Privet (Ligustrum vulgare) fl. 
 Common toadflax ( Antirrhinum Lina- 
 
 ria) fl. 
 Perennial wild flax (Linum perenne) 
 
 fl. 
 Whortle-berries (Vaccinlum Myrtil- 
 
 lus) ripe 
 
 Yellow base rocket (Reseda lutea) fl. 
 Blue-bottle (Centaurea Cyanus) fl. 
 Dwarf carline thistle (Carduus acau- 
 
 lis) fl. 
 Bull-rush or cats-tail CTypha lati- 
 
 folia) fl. 
 Spiked willow-herb (Lythrum Sali- 
 
 caria) fl. 
 
 Black mullein ( Verbascum nigrum) fl. 
 Chrysanthemum coronarium fi. 
 Marigolds (Calendula officinalis) fl. 
 Little field madder (Sherardia arven- 
 
 sis)ft. 
 Field calamint (Melissa seu Thymus 
 
 Nepeta of Smith) fl. 
 Black horehound (Ballota nigra) fl. 
 Wood betony (Betonica officinalis) fl. 
 Round leaved bell-flower (Campanula 
 
 rotundifolia) fl. 
 All-good (Chenopodium bonus Ilenri- 
 
 cus) fl. 
 
 "Wild carrot (Daucus Carota) fl. 
 Indian cress (Troptcolum majus) fl. 
 Cat-mint (Nepeta cataria) fl. 
 Cow- wheat (Melampyrum sylvaticum 
 
 seu pratense of Smith) fl. 
 Crosswort ( Valantia cruciata seu Ga- 
 
 lium cruciatum of Smith) fl. 
 Cranberries (Vaccinium Oxycoccus) 
 
 ripe 
 
 Tufted vetch ( Vida Cracca) fl. 
 Wood vetch (Vida sylvatica) fl. 
 Little throat- wort (Campanula glome- 
 
 rata) fl. 
 
 Sheep's scabious (Jasionemontana) fl. 
 Wild parsnep ( Pastinaca sylvestris)ft. 
 White lily (Lilium candidum) fl. 
 Hemlock (Conium maculatum) fl. 
 Hedge parsley (Caucalis Anthriscus) 
 
 fl. 
 
 Flying ants ap. 
 Moneywort (Lysimachia Nummula- 
 
 ria) fl. 
 Scarlet martagon (Lilium Chalcedoni- 
 
 cum) fl. 
 Lesser stitchwort ( Stellar iagraminea) 
 
 fl. 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 MARKWICK. 
 
 July 2 
 
 June 2. July 25 
 
 July 2 
 JulyS 
 JulyS 
 
 June 19. July 24 
 June 8. July 12 
 June 3. July 13 
 
 JulyS 
 
 June 21. Aug. 3 
 
 July 4 
 
 Apr. 21. July 6 
 
 July 424 
 July 5 
 July 5 
 
 July 19 
 May 15. Oct. 14 
 
 July 5_12 
 
 June 30. Aug. 4 
 
 July 6 
 
 June 29. July 21 
 
 July 6 
 July 6 
 July 6 
 July 69 
 
 June 24. Aug. 17 
 
 May 28. July 28 
 Apr. 20. July 16 
 
 July 7 
 
 July 7 
 July 7 
 July 819 
 
 Jan. 11. June 6 
 Thymus Culamintha Ju- 
 [Iy21 
 June 16. Sept. 12 
 June 10. July 15 
 
 July 8 
 
 June 12. July 29 
 
 JulyS 
 July 8 
 July 820 
 July 9 
 
 Apr. 21. June 15 
 June 7. July 14 
 June 11. July 25 
 
 July 9 
 
 May 2. June 22 
 
 July 9 
 
 Apr. 10. May 28 
 
 July 927 
 July 10 
 July 10 
 
 May 31. July 8 
 
 July 11 
 July 11 
 July 12 
 July 12 
 July 13 
 
 3uly 28. Aug. 18 
 June 10. July 25 
 
 June 21. July 22 
 June 4. July 20 
 
 July 13 
 Julyl3-Aug.il 
 
 Aug. 20. Sept. 19 
 
 July 13 
 
 June 14. Aug. 16 
 
 July 14. Aug. 4 
 
 June 21. Aug. 6 
 
 July 14 
 
 May 8. June 23 
 
420 
 
 NATURALIST'S CALENDAR. 
 
 Fool's parsley (JEthvsa Cynapium) fl. 
 Dwarf elder (Sambucus Ebulus) fl. 
 Young martins and swallows begin 
 
 to congregate 
 
 Potatoe (Solanum tubcrosum) fl. 
 Wood angelica (Angelica sylcestris) 
 
 fl. 
 
 Digitalis f err uginea fl. 
 Ragwort (Senecio Jacobaa) fl. 
 Golden rod (Soltdago Virgaurea) fl. 
 Star thistle (Centaurea Calcitrapa) fl. 
 Tree primrose (Oenothera biennis) fl. 
 Peas ( Pisum sativum) cut 
 Galega officinalls fl. 
 Apricots (Prunus Armeniaca) ripe 
 Clown's allheal ( Stocky spalustris) ft. 
 Branching willow-herb (Epilobium 
 
 ramosum) fl. 
 Rye harvest begins 
 Yellow centaury (Chlora perfoliata) 
 
 fl. 
 Yellow yetchling (Lathyrus Aphaca) 
 
 fl. 
 Enchanter's nightshade (Circaa Ltite- 
 
 tiana) fl. 
 Water hemp agrimony (Eupatorium 
 
 cannabinum) fl. 
 Giant throatwort (Campanula lattfo- 
 
 lia) fl. 
 
 Eyebright (Euphrasia officinalls) fl. 
 Hops f Hum H I us Lupulus) fl. 
 Poultry moult 
 Dodder (Cuscuta Europaa seu Epi- 
 
 thymum of Smith) fl. 
 Lesser centaury ( Gentiana seu Chiro- 
 
 nia Centaurittm of Smith) fl. 
 Creeping water parsnep ( Sium nodi- 
 
 flornm) fl. 
 Common spurrey ( Spergula artensis) 
 
 fl. 
 
 Wild clover (Trifoliumpratense) fl. 
 Buckwheat (Polygonum Fagopyrum) 
 
 fl. 
 
 Wheat harvest begins 
 Great bur-reed (Sparganium erectum) 
 
 fl. 
 Marsh St. John's-wort (Hypericum 
 
 Elodes) fl. 
 
 Sun-dew ( Drosera rotundifolia) fl. 
 Purple marsh cinquefoil (Comarum 
 
 palustre) fl. 
 
 Wild cherries (Prunns Cerasus) ripe 
 Lancashire asphodel (Antluricum os- 
 
 sifragum) fl. 
 Hooded willow-herb (Scutellaria ga- 
 
 lericulata) fl. 
 Water dropwort (CEnanthe fistulosa) 
 
 fl. 
 Horehound (Marrubium rulgare) fl. 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 July 14 
 
 MARKWICK. 
 
 June 9. Aug. 9 
 
 July 1429 
 
 
 July 14. Aug.29 
 
 Aug. 12. Sept. 8 
 
 July 14 
 
 JuneS. July 12 
 
 July 15 
 
 
 July 1525 
 
 
 July 15 
 
 June 22. July 13 
 
 July 15 
 
 July 7. Aug. 29 
 
 July 16 
 
 July 10. Aug. 16 
 
 July 16 
 
 June 12. July IH 
 
 July 17. Aug. 14 
 
 July IS. Aug. 15 
 
 July 17 
 
 
 July 17. Aug. 21 
 
 July 5. Aug. 16 
 
 July 17 
 
 June 12. July 14 
 
 July 17 
 
 
 July 17. Aug. 7 
 
 
 July 18. Aug. 15 
 
 June 15. Aug. 13 
 
 July 18 
 
 
 July 18 
 
 June 20. July 27 
 
 July 18 
 
 July 4. Aug. 6 
 
 
 [13. Aug. 14 
 
 July 19 
 
 Camp.Tracheliuw. July 
 
 July 19 
 
 May 29. July 19 
 
 July 19. Aug. 10 
 
 July 20. Aug. 17 
 
 July 19 
 
 
 July 20 
 
 July 9. Aug. 7 
 
 July 20 
 
 June 3. July 19 
 
 July 20 
 
 July 10. Sept. 11 
 
 July 21 
 
 Apr. 10. July 10 
 
 July 21 
 
 May 2. June 7 
 
 July 21 
 
 June 27. July 10 
 
 July 21. Aug. 23 
 
 July 11. Aug. 26 
 
 July 22 
 
 June 10. July 23 
 
 July 2231 
 
 June 16. Aug. 10 
 
 July 22 
 
 Aug. 1 
 
 July 22 
 
 May 27. July 12 
 
 July 22 
 
 
 July 22 
 
 June 21. July 29 
 
 July 23 
 
 June 2. July 31 
 
 July 23 
 
 
 July 23 
 
 
NATURALISTS CALENDAR. 
 
 Seseli caruifolium fl. 
 
 Water plantain (Alisma Plantago) fl. 
 
 Alopecurus myosuroides fl. 
 
 Virgin's bower (Clematis Vitalba) fl. 
 
 Bees kill the drones 
 
 Teasel (Dipsacus sylcestris) fl. 
 
 Wild marjoram ( Origanum vulgare)ft. 
 
 Swifts (Hir undo A pus )begin to depart 
 
 Small wild teasel (Dipsacus pilosus) 
 
 fl. 
 
 Wood sage (Teucrium Scorodonia) fl. 
 Everlasting pea (Lathyrus latifolius) 
 
 fl. 
 Trailing St. John's wort (Hypericum 
 
 humifusum) fl. 
 
 White hellebore ( Veratrum album) fl. 
 Camomile (Anthemis nobilis) fl. 
 Lesser field scabious (Scabiosa Colum- 
 baria) fl. 
 
 Sunflower (Helianthus multiflorus) fl. 
 Yellow loosestrife ( Lys imachia vul- 
 
 garis) fl. 
 
 Swift ( Hirundo Apus) last seen 
 Oats (Avena sativa) cut 
 Barley (Hordeum satirum) cut 
 Lesser hooded willow-herb (Scutel- 
 
 laria minor) fl. 
 
 Middle fiea.ba.ne(Inuladysenterica)i\. 
 Afris manicata ap. 
 Swallow-tailed butterfly (Papilio Ma- 
 
 chaon) ap. 
 Whame or burrel fly (CEstrus Equi) 
 
 lays eggs on horses 
 Sow thistle (Sonchus arvensis) fl. 
 Plantain fritillary (Papilio Cinxia) 
 
 ap. 
 
 Yellow succory ( Picrishieracioides)ft. 
 Musca mystacea ap. 
 Canterbury bells (Campanula Trache- 
 
 lium) fl. 
 
 Mentha longifolia fl. 
 Carline thistle (Carlina vulgnris) fl. 
 Venetian sumach (Rims Cotinus) fl. 
 Ptinus pectinicornis ap. 
 Burdock (Arctium Lappa) fl. 
 Fell-wort (Gentiana Amarella) fl. 
 Wormwood (Artemisia Absinthium) 
 
 fl. 
 
 Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris) fl. 
 St. Barnaby's thistle (Centaurea sol- 
 
 stitialis) fl. 
 Meadow saffron (Colchicum autum- 
 
 nale) fl. 
 Michaelmas daisy (Aster Tradescan- 
 
 ti)fi. 
 
 Meadow rue (Thalictrumflavum) fl. 
 Sea holly (Eryngiummaritimum) fl. 
 China aster (Aster Chinensis) fl. 
 Boletus albus ap. 
 
 WH1TK. 
 
 July 24 
 
 MAKK.WICK. 
 
 July 24 
 
 May 31. July 21 
 
 July 25 
 
 
 July 25. Aug. 9 
 
 July 13. Aug. 14 
 
 July 25 
 
 
 July 26 
 
 July 16. Aug. 3 
 
 July 26 
 
 July 17. Aug. 29 
 
 July 2T 29 
 
 Aug. 5 
 
 July 28, 29 
 
 
 July 28 
 
 Jun*J7. July 24 
 
 July 28 
 
 June 20. July 30 
 
 July 29 
 
 May 20. June 22 
 
 July 30 
 
 July 1822 
 
 July 30 
 
 June 21. Aug. 20 
 
 July 30 
 
 July 13. Aug. 9 
 
 July 31. Aug. 6 
 
 July 4. Aug. 22 
 
 July 31 
 
 July 2. Aug. 7 
 
 July 31. Aug. 27 
 
 Aug. 11 
 
 Aug. 116 
 
 July 26. Aug. 19 
 
 Aug. 126 
 
 July 27. Sept. 4 
 
 Aug. 1 
 
 Aug. 8. Sept. 7 
 
 Aug. 2 
 
 July 7. Aug. 3 
 
 Aug. 2 
 
 
 Aug. 2 
 
 Apr. 20. June 7: last 
 
 
 [seen Aug. 28 
 
 Aug. 319 
 
 
 Aug. 3 
 
 June 17. July 21 
 
 Aug. 3 
 
 
 Aug. 4 
 
 June 625 
 
 
 [Aug. 11 
 
 Aug. 5 
 
 Camp, media. June 5. 
 
 Aug. 5 
 
 
 Aug. 7 
 
 July 21. Aug. 18 
 
 Aug. 7 
 
 JuneS. July 20 
 
 Aug. 7 
 
 
 Aug. 8 
 
 June 17. Aug. 4 
 
 Aug. 8. Sept. 3 
 
 
 Aug. 8 
 
 July 22. Aug. 21 
 
 Aug. 8 
 
 July 9. Aug. 10 
 
 Aug. 10 
 
 
 Aug. 10. Sept. 13 
 
 Aug. 15. Sept. 29 
 
 Aug. 12. Sept. 27 
 
 Aug. 11. Oct. 8 
 
 Aug. 14 
 
 
 Aug. 14 
 
 
 Aug. 14. Sept 28 
 
 Aug. 6. Oct. 2 
 
 Aug. 14 
 
 May 10 
 
422 
 
 NATURALIST'S CALENDAR. 
 
 Less Venus looking-glass (Campa- 
 nula hybrida) fl. 
 
 Carthamus tinctorius fl. 
 
 Goldfinch (Fringilla Carduelis) young 
 broods ap. 
 
 Lapwings (Tringa Vanellus) congre- 
 gate 
 
 Black-eyed marble butterfly (Papilio 
 Semele) ap. 
 
 Birds reassume their spring notes 
 
 Devil's bit (Scabiosa succisa) fl. 
 
 Thistle down floats 
 
 Ploughman's spikenard (Conyza 
 squarrosa) fl. 
 
 Autumnal dandelion (Leontodon au- 
 tumnale) fl. 
 
 Flies abound in windows 
 
 Linnets (Fringilla Linota) congre- 
 gate 
 
 Bulls make their shrill autumnal 
 noise 
 
 Aster Amellus fl. 
 
 Balsam ( Impatiens Balsamina) fl. 
 
 Milk thistle (Carduus Marianus) fl. 
 
 Hop-picking begins 
 
 Beeches (Fagus sylvatica} begin to 
 be tinged with yellow 
 
 Soapwort (Saponaria officinalis) fl. 
 
 Ladies traces ( Ophrys spiralis) fl. 
 
 Small golden black-spotted butterfly 
 (Papilio Phleeas) ap. 
 
 Swallow (Hirundo rustica) sings 
 
 Althaafrutex (Hibiscus Syriacus) fl. 
 
 Great fritillary (Papilio Paphia) ap. 
 
 Willow red under-wing moth (Plia- 
 Uena pacta) ap. 
 
 Stone curlew (Otis (Edicnemus) 
 clamours 
 
 rhnltiiiti russula ap. 
 
 Grapes ripen 
 
 Wood owls (Strix Aluco) hoot 
 
 Saffron butterfly (Papilio Hyale) ap. 
 
 Ring ouzel (Turdus torquatus) ap- 
 pears on its autumnal visit 
 
 Flycatcher (Muscicapa Grisola) with- 
 draws 
 
 Beans ( Vicia Faba) cut 
 
 Ivy (Hedera Helix) fl. 
 
 Stares (Sturnus vulgaris) congregate 
 
 Wild honeysuckles (Lonicera Peri- 
 clymenum) fl. a second time 
 
 Woodlark (Alauda arborea) sings 
 
 Woodcock (ScolapaxRusticolaJ) comes 
 
 Strawberry tree (Arbutus Unedo) fl. 
 Wheat sown 
 
 Swallows last seen. (N. B. The 
 house martin the latest.) 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 MAKKWICk. 
 
 Aug. 15 
 
 May 14 
 
 Aug. 15 
 
 
 Aug. 15 
 
 June 15 
 
 Aug. 15. Sept. 12 
 
 Sept. 25. Feb. 4 
 
 Aug. 15 
 
 
 Aug. 10 
 
 
 Aug. 17 
 
 June 22. Aug. 23 
 
 Aug. 17. Sept. 10 
 
 
 Aug. 18 
 
 
 Aug. 18 
 
 July 25 
 
 Aug. 18 
 
 
 Aug. 18. Nov. 1 
 
 Aug. 22. Nov. 8 
 
 Aug. 20 
 
 
 Aug. 22 
 
 
 Aug. 23 
 
 May 22. July 26 
 
 Aug. 24 
 
 Apr. 21. July 18 
 
 Aug.24. Sept. 17 
 
 Sept 115 
 
 Aug.24. Sept.22 
 
 Sept. 529 
 
 Aug. 25 
 
 July 19. Aug. 23 
 
 Aug. 27. Sept. 12 
 
 Aug. 18. Sept. 18 
 
 Aug. 29 
 
 
 Aug. 29 
 
 Apr. 11. Aug. 20 
 
 Aug. 30. Sept 2 
 
 July 20. Sept. 28 
 
 Aug. 30 
 
 
 Aug. 31 
 
 
 Sept. 1. Nov. 7 
 
 June 17 
 
 Sept. 1 
 
 
 Sept. 4. Oct. 24 
 
 Aug. 31. Nov. 4 
 
 Sept. 4. Nov. 9 
 
 
 Sept. 4 
 
 Aug. 5. Sept. 26 
 
 Sept. 430 
 
 
 Sept. C 29 
 
 Sept. 430 
 
 Sept. 11 
 
 Aug. 9. Oct. 14 
 
 Sept. 12. Oct. 2 
 
 Sept. 18. Oct. 28 
 
 Sept. 12. Nov. 1 
 
 June 4. Mar. 21 
 
 Sept. 25 
 
 L 
 
 Sept. 28. Oct. 24 
 
 
 Sept. 29. Nov. 11 
 
 Oct. 1. Nov. 1 : young 
 
 
 onesApr.28: lastseen 
 
 
 Apr. 11 
 
 Oct. 1 
 
 May 21. Dec. 10 
 
 Oct. 3. Nov. 9 
 
 Sept. 23. Oct. 19 
 
 Oct. 4. Nov. 5 
 
 Nov. 1C 
 
NATURALIST'S CALENDAR. 
 
 423 
 
 Redwing (Turdus iliacus) conies 
 
 Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris) comes 
 Gossamer fills the air 
 Chinese holyoak (Alcea rosea) fl. 
 Hen chaffinches (Fringilla Calebs) 
 
 congregate 
 Wood pigeons (Columba Palumbus) 
 
 come 
 Royston crow (Corvus Comix) comes 
 
 Snipes (Scolopax Gallinago) come up 
 
 into the meadows 
 Tortoise begins to bury himself 
 Rooks (Corvus frugilegus) visit their 
 
 nest trees 
 Bucks grunt 
 
 Primrose (Primula vulgaris) fl. 
 Green whistling plover (Charadrius 
 
 Pluvialis) ap. 
 Helvella mitra ap. 
 
 Greenfinches (Fringilla Chloris)ftock 
 Hepatica fl. 
 
 Furze ( Ulex Europaus) fl. 
 Polyanthus (Primula potyantha) fl. 
 Young lambs dropped 
 Moles work in throwing up hillocks 
 Helleborus fcetidus fl. 
 Daisy (Bellis perennis) fl. 
 Wallflower (Cheiranthus Cheiri seu 
 
 fruticulosus of Smith) fl. 
 Mezereon (Daphne Mezereum) fl. 
 Snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis) fl. 
 
 WHITE. 
 
 Oct. 10. Nov. 10 
 
 UtRKWICK.. 
 
 Oct. 1. Dec. 18 : sings 
 
 
 Feb. 10. Mar. 21: last 
 
 
 seen Apr. 13 
 
 Oct. 12. Nov. 23 
 
 Oct. 13. Nov. 18 : last 
 
 Oct. 1527 
 
 [seen May 1 
 
 Oct. 19 
 
 July 7. Aug. 21 
 
 Oct. 20. Dec. 31 
 
 
 Oct. 23. Dec. 27 
 
 
 Oct. 23. Nov. 29 
 
 Oct. J3. Nov. 17 : last 
 
 
 [seen Apr. 15 
 
 Oct. 25. Nov. 20 
 
 Sept. 29. Nov. 11: last 
 
 Oct. 27. Nov. 26 
 
 [seen Apr. 14 
 
 Oct. 31. Dec. 25 
 
 June 29. Oct. 20 
 
 Nov. 1 
 
 
 Nov. 10 
 
 Oct. 7. Dec. 30 
 
 Nov. 13, 14 
 
 
 Nov. 16 
 
 
 Nov. 27 
 
 
 Nov. 30. Dec. 29 
 
 Feb. 19 
 
 Dec. 421 
 
 Dec. 1631 
 
 Dec. 716 
 
 Dec. 31 
 
 Dec. 1127 
 
 Dec. 12. Feb. 21 
 
 Dec. 1223 
 
 
 Dec. 1430 
 
 
 Dec. 15 
 
 Dec. 2631 
 
 Dec. 15 
 
 Nov. 5 
 
 Dec. 15 
 
 
 Dec. 29 
 
 
 IN SESE VERT1TUR ANNUS. 
 
OBSERVATIONS 
 
 ON 
 
 VARIOUS PARTS OF NATURE, 
 
 FROM MR. WHITE'S MSS. 
 
 WITH REMARKS, BY MR. MARKWICK AND OTHERS. 
 
OBSERVATIONS ON BIRDS. 
 
 BIRDS IN GENERAL. 
 
 IN severe weather, fieldfares, redwings, skylarks, and 
 titlarks, resort to watered meadows for food : the latter 
 wades up to its belly in pursuit of the pupae of insects, 
 and runs along upon the floating grass and weeds. 
 Many gnats are on the snow near the water; these sup- 
 port the birds in part. 
 
 Birds are much influenced in their choice of food by 
 colour, for though white currants are a much sweeter 
 fruit than red, yet they seldom touch the former till they 
 have devoured every bunch of the latter. 
 
 Redstarts, flycatchers, and blackcaps, arrive early in 
 April. If these little delicate beings are birds of pas- 
 sage (as we have reason to suppose they are, because 
 they are never seen in winter) how could they, feeble 
 as they seem, bear up against such storms of snow and 
 rain, and make their way through such meteorous tur- 
 bulences, as one should suppose would embarrass and 
 retard the most hardy and resolute of the winged nation? 
 Yet they keep their appointed times and seasons ; and 
 in spite of frost and winds return to their stations pe- 
 riodically, as if they had met with nothing to obstruct 
 them. The withdrawing and appearance of the short- 
 winged summer birds is a very puzzling circumstance 
 in natural history ! 
 
 When the boys bring me wasps' nests, my bantam 
 fowls fare deliciously, and when the combs are pulled 
 to pieces, devour the young wasps in their maggot 
 state with the highest glee and delight. Any insect- 
 eating bird would do the same ; and therefore I have 
 often wondered that the accurate Mr. Ray should call 
 
428 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 one species of buzzard Buteo apivorus sive vespivorus, 
 the honey buzzard, because some combs of wasps hap- 
 pened to be found in one of their nests. The combs 
 were conveyed thither doubtless for the sake of the 
 maggots or nymphs, and not for their honey : since 
 none is to be found in the combs of wasps. Birds of 
 prey occasionally feed on insects : thus have I seen a 
 tame kite picking up the female ants full of eggs with 
 much satisfaction *. 
 
 1 That redstarts, flycatchers, blackcaps, and other slender-billed in- 
 sectivorous small birds, particularly the swallow tribe, make their first 
 appearance very early in the spring, is a well known fact; though the 
 flycatcher is the latest of them all in its visit (as this accurate naturalist 
 observes in another place), for it is never seen before the month of May. 
 If these delicate creatures come to us from a distant country, they will 
 probably be exposed in their passage, as Mr. White justly remarks, to 
 much greater difficulties from storms and tempests than their feeble 
 powers appear to be able to surmount : on the other hand, if we suppose 
 them to pass the winter in a dormant state in this country, concealed in 
 caverns or other hiding places sufficiently guarded from the extreme cold 
 of our winter to preserve their life, and that at the approach of spring 
 they revive from their torpid state and reassume their usual powers of 
 action, it will entirely remove the first difficulty, arising from the storms 
 and tempests they are liable to meet with in their passage ; but how are 
 we to get over the still greater difficulty of their revivification from their 
 torpid state ? What degree of warmth in the temperature of the air is 
 necessary to produce that effect, and how it operates on the functions of 
 animal life, are questions not easily answered *. 
 
 How could Mr. White suppose that Ray named this species the honey 
 buzzard because it fed on honey, when he not only named it in Latin 
 Buteo apivorus sive vespivorus, but expressly says, that " it feeds on in- 
 sects, and brings up its young with the maggots or nymphs of wasps ?" 
 
 That birds of prey, when in want of their proper food, flesh, sometimes 
 feed on insects I have little doubt, and think I have observed the com- 
 mon buzzard (Falco Buteo^) to settle on the ground and pick up insects 
 of some kind or other J. MARKWICK. 
 
 * Little weight can be attached to this argument, the difficulty assumed 
 being so far from insurmountable, that it occurs equally in every case of 
 hybernation. E. T. B. 
 
 t [Buteo vulgar is, BECHST.] 
 
 t Mr. White observes, that birds of prey, as hawks, feed on insects. 
 There is reason to believe, that insects form also part of the food even of 
 the larger beasts of prey. " Beetles, flies, worms, form part of the lion and 
 tiger's food, as they do that of the fox." See Jarrold's Dissert, on Man. 
 MITFORD. 
 
BIRDS. 429 
 
 ROOKS. 
 
 ROOKS are continually fighting and pulling each other's 
 nests to pieces : these proceedings are inconsistent with 
 living in such close community. And yet if a pair offer 
 to build on a single tree, the nest is plundered and de- 
 molished at once. Some rooks roost on their nest trees. 
 The twigs which the rooks drop in building" 'supply the 
 poor with brushwood to light their fires. Some un- 
 happy pairs are not permitted to finish any nests till the 
 rest have completed their building. As soon as they 
 get a few sticks together, a party comes and demolishes 
 the whole. As soon as rooks have finished their nests, 
 and before they lay, the cocks begin to feed the hens, 
 who receive their bounty with a fondling tremulous 
 voice, and fluttering wings, and all the little blandish- 
 ments that are expressed by the young, while in a 
 helpless state. This gallant deportment of the male 
 is continued through the whole season of incubation. 
 These birds do not pair on trees, nor in their nests, but 
 on the ground in the open fields 2 . 
 
 THRUSHES. 
 
 THRUSHES during long droughts are of great service 
 in hunting out shell snails, which they pull in pieces 
 for their young, and are thereby very serviceable in 
 gardens. Missel thrushes do not 'destroy the fruit in 
 gardens like the other species of Turdi, but feed on the 
 berries of misseltoe, and in the spring on ivy berries, 
 which then begin to ripen. In the summer, when their 
 
 2 After the first brood of rooks are sufficiently fledged, they all leave 
 their nest trees in the daytime, and resort to some distant place in search 
 of food, but return regularly every evening, in vast flights, to their nest 
 trees, where, after flying round several times with much noise and cla- 
 mour, till they are all assembled together, they take up their abode for 
 the night. MARKWICK. 
 
 [This proceeding of the rooks is beautifully described by White in 
 Letter LIX. to Daines Barrington, p. 381.] 
 
430 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 young become fledged, they leave neighbourhoods, and 
 retire to sheep-walks and wild commons. 
 
 The magpies, when they have young, destroy the 
 broods of missel thrushes ; though the dams are tierce 
 birds, and fight boldly in defence of their nests. It is 
 probably to avoid such insults, that this species of 
 thrush, though wild at other times, delights to build 
 near houses, and in frequented walks and gardens 3 . 
 
 POULTRY. 
 
 MANY creatures are endowed with a ready discernment 
 to see what will turn to their own advantage and emo- 
 lument; and often discover more sagacity than could 
 be expected. Thus my neighbour's poultry watch for 
 waggons loaded with wheat, and running after them 
 
 3 Of the truth of the first of these observations I have been an eye- 
 witness, having seen the common thrush feeding on the shell snail*. 
 
 In the very early part of this spring (1797) a bird of this species used 
 to sit every morning on the top of some high elms close by my windows, 
 and delight me with its charming song, attracted thither, probably, by 
 some ripe ivy berries that grew near the place. 
 
 I have remarked something like the latter fact, for I remember, many 
 years ago, seeing a pair of these birds fly up repeatedly and attack some 
 larger bird, which I suppose disturbed their nest in my orchard, uttering 
 at the same time violent shrieks. Since writing the above, I have seen 
 more than once a pair of these birds attack some magpies, that had dis- 
 turbed their nest, with great violence and loud shrieks. MARRWICK. 
 
 Opposite my study windows at Lee, I observed, last summer, a missel 
 thrush fly boldly at a carrion crow and persecute him with bill and wing, 
 till he seemed glad to leave the field. This, however, is far outdone by 
 the account M. Le Vaillant gives of a party of missel thrushes attacking 
 and actually vanquishing an eagle. RENNIE. 
 
 * It is common with the French ornithologists, in enumerating the food 
 of insectivorous Sylvia, to mention limafons, by which they mean the very 
 small shell snails. I have found none but the whin chat that would eat 
 the slug or shelless snail (Limax), and that only after it was killed and 
 dry. 
 
 I have observed that if a very large brown slug be trod upon and killed 
 on a moist gravel walk, frequented by others of its size and kind, one or 
 more will be found the next day upon its body apparently eating it ; and 
 by leaving the dead ones on the spot the large slugs may thus be succes- 
 sively destroyed. W. H. 
 
BIRDS. 431 
 
 pick up a number of grains which are shaken from 
 the sheaves by the agitation of the carriages. Thus, 
 when my brother used to take down his gun to shoot 
 sparrows, his cats would run out before him, to be ready 
 to catch up the birds as they fell 4 . 
 
 4 The insolence of some birds, when they are quite tame, is astonishing; 
 and in none more than the silver pheasant, and the peacock. The male 
 of the former is armed with such a formidable spur, that he is a dan- 
 gerous antagonist. There was one which lived some years at liberty in 
 company with some bantams and gold pheasants at the lodge by the gate 
 at the entrance into the garden at Highclere, which was so ferocious that 
 he was the terror of the nursery maids, and indeed of every person wha 
 was not provided with a stick to keep him off. He was so persevering, 
 that having provided myself with a large bough of a tree in my left hand 
 wherewith to push him off, and a long switch to chastise him, I have 
 whipped him till he screamed with rage r but without his showing the 
 least disposition to give up the conflict and retreat. He was disabled first 
 in one leg, and afterwards in a wing, and finally killed by some person 
 unobserved, whom he had probably attacked. I recollect also seeing an 
 old man employed in weeding a compartment in my brother's menagerie 
 at Pixton, who said, " he had an unked time with the pheasant cock ;" 
 and in truth a silver pheasant, that was alone in it r had passed the whole 
 day spurring at him, which was particularly inconvenient to a person 
 whose occupation caused him to use a stooping posture,by which his face 
 was exposed to the enemy. 
 
 I remember also that my mother had a pet flock of sheep, which she 
 occasionally introduced to eat some of the grass in the extensive garden 
 at Highclere, and a little boy on those occasions attended to prevent their 
 nibbling the shrubs or invading the borders, bringing his dinner in a small 
 bag suspended from his shoulder. One day about noon we found him 
 crying and sobbing piteously, and, being questioned as to the cause of his 
 trouble, he only vociferated in broken accents amidst his sobs, " the pea- 
 cock, the peacock," and at last added, on being pressed for some further 
 explanation, " he will have my dinner;" and in truth we had some diffi- 
 culty in delivering him from the invader, who was careering round him 
 in all the pride of his gorgeous plumage, with a determined purpose of 
 sharing in the repast. It appeared on further inquiry r that the bird knew 
 the time of day when the boy usually opened his store, and regularly 
 drew nigh at the opportune moment, and had on the previous day abso- 
 lutely beat him off, and remained undisputed master of the bread and 
 cheese. 
 
 I have now an American blue-bird, which on its arrival was so wild, 
 that it fluttered against the wires if even looked at^but after it had been 
 with me about a year and a half, it became so tame and impudent, that 
 now, on the door of the large cage,, in which it is confined with other 
 small birds, being opened to change the food, it immediately presents 
 itself, and it is necessary to push it back with the hand ; and it has 
 several times forced its way out under my hand, not with any desire of 
 escaping, but through insolent familiarity. W. H. 
 
432 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 The earnest and early propensity of the Gallince to 
 roost on high is very observable ; and discovers a strong 
 dread impressed on their spirits respecting vermin that 
 may annoy them on the ground during the hours of 
 darkness. Hence poultry, if left to themselves and not 
 housed, will perch the winter through on yew trees and 
 fir trees ; and turkeys and guinea fowls, heavy as they 
 are, get up into apple trees : pheasants also in woods 
 sleep on trees to avoid foxes ; while pea-fowls climb to 
 the tops of the highest trees round their owner's house 
 for security, let the weather be ever so cold or blowing. 
 Partridges, it is true, roost on the ground, not having 
 the faculty of perching; but then the same fear prevails 
 in their minds ; for, through apprehensions from pole- 
 cats and stoats, they never trust themselves to coverts, 
 but nestle together in the midst of large fields, far re- 
 moved from hedges and coppices, which they love to 
 haunt in the day, and where at that season they can 
 skulk more secure from the ravages of rapacious birds. 
 
 As to ducks and geese, their awkward splay web- 
 feet forbid them to settle on trees; they therefore, in 
 the hours of darkness and danger, betake themselves to 
 their own element, the water, where amidst large lakes 
 and pools, like ships riding at anchor, they float the 
 whole night long in peace and security 5 . 
 
 5 Guinea fowls not only roost on high, but in hard weather resort, even 
 in the daytime, to the very tops of the highest trees. 
 
 Last winter, when the ground was covered with snow, I discovered all 
 my guinea fowls, in the middle of the day, sitting on the highest boughs 
 of some very tall elms, chattering and making a great clamour : I ordered 
 them to be driven down, lest they should be frozen to death in so ele- 
 vated a situation, but this was not effected without much difficulty, they 
 being very unwilling to quit their lofty abode, notwithstanding one of 
 them had its feet so much frozen that we were obliged to kill it. I know 
 not how to account for this, unless it was occasioned by their aversion to 
 the snow on the ground, they being birds that come originally from a hot 
 climate*. 
 
 Notwithstanding the awkward splay web-feet (as Mr. White calls 
 
 * In one of his Letters to Daines Barrington, LXII, Gilbert White has 
 remarked of poultry generally, that they are so dazzled and confounded 
 by the glare of snow, that they dared not, in the severe winter of 1776, to 
 stir from their roosting places. E. T. B. 
 
BIRDS. 433 
 
 HEN PARTRIDGE. 
 
 A HEN partridge came out of a ditch, and ran along 
 shivering with her wings, and crying out as if wounded 
 and unable to get from us. While the dam acted this 
 distress, the boy who attended me saw her brood, that 
 was small and unable to fly, run for shelter into an old 
 fox-earth under the bank. So wonderful a power is 
 instinct 6 . 
 
 them) of the duck genus, some of the foreign species have the power of 
 settling on the boughs of trees apparently with great ease ; an instance 
 of which I have seen in the Earl of Ashburnham's menagerie, where the 
 summer duck ( Anas sponsa) flew up and settled on the branch of an oak 
 tree in my presence; but whether any of them roost on trees in the night, 
 we are not informed by any author that I am acquainted with. I suppose 
 not, but that, like the rest of the genus, they sleep on the water, where 
 the birds of this genus are not always perfectly secure, as will appear 
 from the following circumstance which happened in this neighbourhood 
 a few years since, as I was credibly informed. A female fox was found 
 in the morning drowned in the same pond in which were several geese, 
 and it was supposed that in the night the fox swam into the pond to de- 
 vour the geese, but was attacked by the gander, which, being the most 
 powerful in its own element, buffeted the fox with its wings about the 
 head till it was drowned. MARKWICK. 
 
 6 It is not uncommon to see an old partridge feign itself wounded and 
 run along on the ground fluttering and crying before either dog or man, 
 
 F F 
 
OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 HYBRID PHEASANT. 
 
 LORD STAWELL sent me from the great lodge in the 
 Holt a curious bird for my inspection. It was found 
 by the spaniels of one of his keepers in a coppice, and 
 shot on the wing. The shape, and air, and habit of the 
 bird, and the scarlet ring round the eyes, agreed well 
 with the appearance of a cock pheasant : but then the 
 head and neck, and breast and belly, were of a glossy 
 black : and though it weighed three pounds three ounces 
 and a half 7 , the weight of a large full-grown cock phea- 
 sant, yet there were no signs of any spurs on the legs, as 
 is usual with all grown cock pheasants, who have long 
 ones. The legs and feet \vere naked of feathers ; and 
 therefore it could be nothing of the grous kind. In the 
 tail were no long bending feathers, such as cock phea- 
 sants usually have, and are characteristic of the sex. 
 The tail was much shorter than the tail of a hen 
 pheasant, and blunt and square at the end. The back, 
 wing-feathers, and tail, were all of a pale russet curi- 
 ously streaked, somewhat like the upper parts of a hen 
 partridge. I returned it with my verdict, that it was 
 probably a spurious or hybrid hen bird, bred between a 
 cock pheasant and some domestic fowl. When I came 
 to talk with the keeper who brought it, he told me that 
 
 to draw them away from its helpless unfledged young ones. I have seen 
 it often, and once in particular I saw a remarkable instance of the old 
 bird's solicitude to save its brood. As I was hunting a young pointer, 
 the dog ran on a brood of very small partridges; the old bird cried, flut- 
 tered, and ran tumbling along just before the dog's nose till she had 
 drawn him to a considerable distance, when she took wing and flew still 
 farther off, but not out of the field : on this the dog returned to me, near 
 which place the young ones lay concealed in the grass, which the old 
 bird no sooner perceived than she flew back again to us, settled just 
 before the dog's nose again, and by rolling and tumbling about drew off 
 his attention from her young, and thus preserved her brood a second 
 time. I have also seen, when a kite has been hovering over a covey of 
 young partridges, the old birds fly up at the bird of prey, screaming and 
 fighting with all their might to preserve their brood. MARKWICK. 
 
 7 Hen pheasants usually weigh only two pounds ten ounces. 
 
BIRDS. 435 
 
 some pea-hens had been known last summer to haunt 
 the coppices and coverts where this mule was found. 
 
 Mr. Elmer, of Farnham, the famous game painter, was 
 employed to take an exact copy of this curious bird. 
 
 [It ought to be mentioned that some good judges 
 have imagined this bird to have been a stray grous or 
 black cock ; it is, however, to be observed, that Mr. \V. 
 remarks, that its legs and feet were nak^d, whereas 
 those of the grous are feathered to the toes. J. A.] 8 
 
 8 Dr. Latham observes, that " pea-hens, after they have done laying, 
 sometimes assume the plumage of the male bird," and has given a figure 
 of the male-feathered pea-hen now to be seen in the Leverian Museum ; 
 and M. Salerne remarks, that " the hen pheasant, when she has done lay- 
 ing and sitting, will get the plumage of the male." May not this hybrid 
 pheasant (as Mr. White calls it) be a bird of this kind? that is, an old 
 hen pheasant which had just begun to assume the plumage of the cock. 
 MARKWICK. 
 
 Concerning the hybrid pheasant, see the account by John Hunter, in the 
 Philosophical Transactions, Art. xxx. 1760. " The subject of the account 
 is a hen pheasant with the feathers of the cock. The author concludes, 
 that it is most probable that all those hen pheasants, which are found 
 wild, and have the feathers of the cock, were formerly perfect hens, but 
 that now they are changed with age, and perhaps by certain constitu- 
 tional circumstances/' It appears, also, that the hen taking the plumage 
 of the cock is not confined to the pheasant alone, it takes place equally 
 with the pea-hen, as was seen in the specimen belonging to Lady Tynte, 
 when in the Leverian Museum. After many broods, this hen took much 
 of the plumage of the cock, and also the fine train belonging to that bird. 
 See also Montagu's Ornithological Dictionary, Art. Pheasant. MITFORD. 
 
 I saw this curious bird stuffed, in the collection of the Earl of Egre- 
 mont at Petworth, in the year 1804, and I have not the slightest hesita- 
 tion in pronouncing that it was a mule between the black cock and the 
 common pheasant. I was informed at the time by Lord Egremont that it 
 was Mr. White's bird, and I examined it with the most minute attention, 
 compared it with the description in the Naturalist's Calendar, and wrote 
 at the moment marginal memoranda on my copy of that book. In 
 Mr. White's description of the bird, where he says that the back, wing- 
 feathers, and tail, were somewhat like the upper parts of a hen part- 
 ridge, I scratched out, at the time, the words, "somewhat like" and 
 wrote in the margin "much browner than," and with that alteration I 
 believe Mr. White's description to be quite correct; but I noted down 
 that the plate was exceedingly ill coloured, which indeed may be per- 
 ceived by comparing it with the description. I did not then, nor do I 
 now, entertain the slightest doubt of its being a mule between the black 
 game and the pheasant. I understand that some doubt exists at present 
 
 FF2 
 
436* OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 LAND-RAIL. 
 
 A MAN brought me a land-rail or daker-hen, a bird so 
 rare in this district that we seldom see more than one 
 or two in a season, and those only in autumn. This is 
 
 whether it was Mr. White's identical specimen, though I am quite positive 
 from my notes that it was at the time (now above thirty years ago) stated 
 to me to have been so; and I am persuaded that it was his: but if there 
 was any misunderstanding on that point, and it could have been a second 
 specimen killed in the same line of country, there is not the slightest 
 doubt that it was of like origin and appearance, for I had no exceptions 
 to take to White's description, except that the back was much browner 
 than that of a partridge instead of somewhat like, which is not in fact con- 
 tradictory. The whole of Lord Egremont's collection was afterwards 
 destroyed by maggots, and the specimen has long ceased to exist. 
 
 As I understand it has been surmised that the hybrid bird described by 
 White might have been a young black cock in moult, I wish to state, in 
 the most positive manner, that I am certain it was not. I had, at the 
 period when I examined it, been in the annual habit of shooting young 
 black game, and was perfectly well acquainted with all their variations 
 of plumage ; and had also been accustomed to see them reared in confine- 
 ment. It is a point on which I could not be deceived. The bird had 
 neither the legs and feet, nor the plumage, of a black cock in any stage 
 of its growth. W. H. 
 
 Evidence more direct than that given in the preceding note by the 
 Hon. and Rev. W. Herbert can now, it should seem, scarcely be adduced 
 towards the decision of the somewhat vexata quaestio as to the hybrid 
 pheasant of White. In the destruction of Lord Egremont's collection at 
 Petworth by the moths, the bird described by Mr. Herbert perished with 
 the rest ; and the notes made by him, with the specimen before him, are 
 all that is now accessible regarding it. But these notes furnish an au- 
 thentic record of its existence and appearance at the time of his visit. If 
 there were not a possibility that some misconception might have existed 
 as to the identity of the specimen with the bird seen by White, there could 
 no longer remain the slightest ground for doubt upon the subject. 
 
 But the absolute determination of the nature of the bird in question is 
 of less importance in itself than by the discussions to which it has given 
 rise, and which have led to the ascertaining of various collateral facts of 
 interest, and to rendering them popularly known. Three opinions have 
 been advanced with respect to it, and each has had its advocates. It may 
 be advantageous to refer to them in succession, and to offer a few remarks 
 upon them. 
 
 The first theory propounded on the subject regards the bird as a hybrid 
 between the pheasant and some other species ; a view which is entitled 
 to great respect, independent of all other considerations, on account of 
 its having been entertained by White, whose opportunities for judging 
 
BIRDS. 437 
 
 deemed a bird of passage by all the writers : yet from 
 its formation seems to be poorly qualified for migration ; 
 
 respecting it surpassed those of later observers, he having seen the bird 
 when it was first shot. He, however, looked upon it as a mule with some 
 domestic fowl, such as the pea-hen: a parentage which no subsequent 
 naturalist has attributed to it ; those who have considered it as a hybrid 
 bird from the pheasant having joined with that bird, like Mr. Herbert, 
 the black game. And the glossy black of the fore and-under parts, and 
 the white spot on the shoulder, are marks so characteristic of the black 
 game as scarcely to leave a doubt that that bird had some share at least 
 in the production. We know well that hybrids between the pheasant 
 and the black game are at times produced, and two such have been exhi- 
 bited to the Zoological Society on different occasions, and from different 
 parts of the country; one of them having been killed in Cornwall, and 
 the other in Leicestershire. The latter was described by Mr. Eyton, in 
 whose collection the specimen is preserved ; and as his description enters 
 into more particulars of this curious mule than any that has yet been 
 published, I extract it from the Proceedings of the Society. 
 
 " For some years past a single gray hen has been observed in the neigh- 
 bourhood of the Merrington covers, belonging to Robert A. Slaney, Esq. 
 but she was never observed to be accompanied by a black cock, or any 
 other of her species. In November last a bird was shot on the manor ad- 
 joining Merrington, belonging to J. A. Lloyd, Esq. resembling the black 
 game in some particulars, and the pheasant in others. In December ano- 
 ther bird was shot in the Merrington covers, resembling the former, but 
 smaller : it is now in my collection, beautifully preserved by Mr. Shaw of 
 Shrewsbury. It is a female, and may be thus shortly described : 
 
 " Tarsi half-feathered, without spurs, of the same colour as in the phea- 
 sant. Bill resembling that of the pheasant, both in colour and shape. 
 Irides hazel. Crown and throat mottled black and brown. Neck glossy 
 black, with a tinge of brown. Breast of nearly the same colour as that 
 of the cock pheasant, but more mottled with black. Tail of the same 
 colour as in the gray hen ; middle tail feathers longest ; under tail coverts 
 light brown. 
 
 " The plumage of this bird is very curious ; as some parts of it resemble 
 either sex of both black game and pheasant. 
 
 " I had an opportunity of examining the body after it was taken from 
 the skin, and of comparing it with the black game and the pheasant, and 
 the following are some remarks which I made on its anatomy: 
 
 " Left oviduct very imperfect; the ovaries very small ; the eggs scarcely 
 perceptible, and very few in number. 
 
 " The sternum approaches nearer to that of the black grous than of the 
 pheasant; but the bone is not so massive, the anterior edge of the keel is 
 more scolloped, and the bone between the posterior scollops is not so 
 broad as in the black game. The os furcatorium is that of the pheasant, 
 being more arched than in the black game, and having the flat process at 
 the extremity next the sternum broader. The pelvis is exactly inter- 
 mediate between the two, having more solidity, and being both* broader 
 
438 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 for its wings are short, and placed so forward, and out 
 of the centre of gravity, that it flies in a very heavy and 
 
 and longer than in the pheasant ; but resembling that of the pheasant in 
 having the two processes on each side of the caudal vertebrae, which serve 
 for the attachments of the levator muscles of the tail. 
 
 " The subjoined Table shows some comparative measurements between 
 the hybrid bird in question, the cock pheasant, and the gray hen. 
 
 
 Gray Hen. 
 
 Hybrid Bird. 
 Female. 
 
 Male 
 Pheasant. 
 
 
 Ft. In. 
 2vi 
 
 Ft. In. 
 2i 
 
 Ft. In. 
 3A 
 
 
 2J* 
 
 2$ 
 
 2 - 
 
 Expansion of the wings 
 
 2 
 
 2 2 
 
 2 44 
 
 Length of the middle tail feathers 
 
 4 
 
 74 
 
 1 74 
 
 Length of the intestinal canal from vent t 
 
 4 2 
 
 3 54. 
 
 4 
 
 
 6 
 
 5* 
 
 44 
 
 Length of the caeca 
 
 2 
 
 2 
 
 8i" 
 
 
 
 
 
 It is worthy of especial remark that this mule, although a female, was 
 so much influenced by its pheasant parentage as to have the middle tail 
 feathers longer than the others, and produced to nearly twice the length 
 of those of the gray hen, its dam. In White's bird the tail was mucli 
 shorter than that of a hen pheasant, and was blunt and square at the end. 
 
 The second opinion is that adverted to by Dr. Aikin as having been 
 advanced by some good judges, that the assumed hybrid pheasant is 
 merely a black cock: and Mr. Yarrell has more recently stated his be- 
 lief that it is a young black cock in which the first moult has been par- 
 tially completed. It is a very general law, although not free from many 
 exceptions, that in birds in which the adults of the two sexes differ mate- 
 rially in plumage, the young previously to the first moult exhibit no dif- 
 ference of outward character, but resemble, in their colours, the mother. 
 In the case of the black cock this rule obtains. The young male has at 
 first the plumage nearly agreeing with that of the gray hen ; it is chiefly 
 of a reddish brown mottled and barred with black. In the autumn of his 
 first year he moults, and then assumes the glossy violet black feathers 
 which afterwards entirely invest him. In parting with his mottled brown 
 feathers, and assuming those of the bright and uniform black, some weeks 
 are occupied; and a portion of the moult being completed before the re- 
 mainder is commenced, the bird is for a time in external appearance 
 partly a black cock and partly a gray hen or hen pheasant. Mr. Yarrell 
 believed that White's bird was a black cock, shot at this intermediate 
 period of its growth. 
 
 Another friend has fully adopted the same view. He obtained, " near 
 the end of November, 1835, a young black cock undergoing its first moult. 
 Its length was twenty inches and a half; its breadth, thirty inches ; and 
 its weight, two pounds three ounces and three quarters. The head and 
 neck were iridescent black. A naked red spot above the eye. The 
 
BIRDS. 439 
 
 embarrassed manner, with its legs hanging down ; and 
 can hardly be sprung a second time, as it runs very fast, 
 
 middle of the back, lower sides of the neck, sides and middle of the belly, 
 breast, cheeks, chin, and tail, black. A stripe on each side of the middle 
 of the belly, uniting on the breast, and passing up the neck on its under 
 side to the throat; the borders of the breast feathers under the wings ; and 
 the upper sides of the neck, extending from above the eyes to the back ; 
 brown, with black and dusky bars and tips. The crown^and a stripe ex- 
 tending all down the back of the neck, the rump, and tail coverts, dusky 
 black, freckled with dark chocolate brown. Primaries, dusky with pale 
 freckled tips and edges ; their shafts white. Secondaries, dusky freckled 
 with brown, the basal half (forming the wing spot) and the tips white ; 
 their shafts black. Primary wing coverts dusky black, white at the base. 
 Spurious quills black, the second and third with a white spot at the base 
 of the outer web. Scapularies and upper wing coverts dusky black 
 freckled and mottled with chocolate brown, margined towards the body 
 with a few lighter brown feathers which are spotted and barred with 
 black. Under wing, and under tail coverts white. Vent and legs dirty 
 grayish white with dusky bars, becoming darker on the tarsus. Toes 
 and back of the tarsi naked. Beak and claws black." 
 
 The writer of this description so warmly advocates his view of the case 
 that he remarks, " There can be no doubt that this bird, a little earlier 
 in the season, is the hybrid of White : I say a little earlier, on account 
 of the tail, which has moulted off black. But even in its present state, 
 as regards shape, the tail proves much. White distinctly says it had * no 
 long bending feathers such as cock pheasants usually have:' now all the 
 hybrids from the pheasant that I have seen have those produced feathers. 
 When closed, the tail in my bird is shorter than the tail of a hen phea- 
 sant, and blunt and square at the end : and this description of the tail, 
 especially when closed, is that of White's bird ; for the lateral feathers 
 being but slightly produced or recurved at this age, have a blunt ap- 
 pearance and the middle feathers are square. White says, i the head 
 and neck and breast and belly were of a glossy black/ This certainly is 
 not the case with the representation of the bird. Yet this very circum- 
 stance proves the identity of the hybrid with the young black cock. For, 
 placing the bird on its back, the throat, and the lower sides of the neck, 
 breast, and belly are visible, < black and glossy.' This is precisely what 
 White describes. But the painter laid the bird on its side, and repre- 
 sented the upper side of the neck, which is mouse brown with dusky bars 
 at the tips ; and he showed the partridge-like wing falling over the breast. 
 Thus this seeming incongruity between the description and the repre- 
 sentation is satisfactorily accounted for, and is indeed a proof of the 
 identity of the bird. The wings are exact to the description : and it is 
 remarkable that they agree particularly as regards the wing spot, and 
 also in the white spot on the spurious quills. From White's description 
 of the bird I should conclude that he looked at it in a hurry, which may 
 possibly account for the description of the feet and legs. The back of 
 the tarsi and the toes are naked in my bird, and the front of the tarsus is 
 
440 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 and seems to depend more on the swiftness of its feet 
 than on its flying. 
 
 comparatively but thinly clothed : this is the only point of importance in 
 which the supposed hybrid differs from the black cock in its present state 
 of plumage. At an earlier period the feathering on the tarsi is still less, 
 as I have ascertained by the examination of a specimen killed in Selkirk- 
 shire in October, which is almost destitute of any covering: and I am in- 
 formed by the friend who shot this bird that the younger the black cock 
 is the less are the legs feathered, and that he has killed pouts without 
 any feathering whatever. At that earlier period of the moult, before the 
 tail-feathers had been changed, it is consequently to be concluded that 
 the tarsi would have been nearly or wholly naked. The shape of the 
 beak is that of the grouse : and the situation of the spot over the eye is 
 decidedly grouse-like, the pheasant's spot being situated at the back of 
 and below the eye. These, with the black colour of so large a portion of 
 the plumage, and the absence of those lengthened feathers which I have 
 hitherto invariably observed in pheasant hybrids, are in my estimation, 
 decisive marks of the identity of the hybrid of White with the young 
 black cock. 
 
 " I am bound to admit that the weight mentioned by White differs from 
 that of my bird by a pound : but in his weight some error may be sus- 
 pected. I have never yet met with a cock pheasant that weighed so 
 much as he states. The weight would argue also, although not to the 
 same extent, against the bird being a hybrid between the pheasant and 
 the black cock ; for the produce of a heavier and a lighter bird ought not 
 to weigh so much as the heaviest sex of the heavier parent, even if itself 
 of the heavier sex, which White did not believe his bird to be." 
 
 From this description it will be seen how very nearly the black game, 
 in a certain condition, approaches to White's bird : an approach so near 
 as to induce the describer to regard them as identical. Mr. Herbert was, 
 however, at the time when he saw the bird at Petworth, thoroughly ac- 
 quainted with the black cock in all its states, and could not have been 
 mistaken when he declared that the bird which he saw there was cer- 
 tainly not a moulting bird of the year. 
 
 The third theory with respect to Gilbert White's bird has had fewer 
 supporters than either of the others. It was advanced by Markwick, and 
 has rather the air of a guess than of an opinion; and as his question was 
 evidently to be answered in the negative as to the species to which he 
 referred, it has scarcely received any consideration whatever. Adverting 
 to the fact, known in his time in consequence of the inquiries of Hunter 
 (inquiries which have since been carried further by the industry of 
 Mr. Yarrell), that hen birds, when incapacitated by age or other causes 
 from producing young, lose the characters of their sex and assume the 
 plumage of the male, wearing even the spurs and other masculine in- 
 signia ; Markwick asks whether White's hybrid may not be an old hen 
 pheasant that had begun to assume the plumage of the cock? There is 
 so little in common with the cock pheasant in the deviations from the 
 ordinary pheasant colouring described by White, that this question must 
 
BIRDS. 441 
 
 When we came to draw it, we found the entrails so 
 soft and tender, that in appearance they might have 
 been dressed like the ropes of a woodcock. The craw 
 or crop was small and lank, containing a mucus; the 
 gizzard thick and strong, and filled with small shell 
 snails, some whole, and many ground to pieces through 
 the attrition which is occasioned by the muscular force 
 and motion of that intestine. We saw no gravel among 
 the food: perhaps the shell snails might perform the 
 functions of gravels or pebbles, and might grind one 
 another. 
 
 Land-rails used to abound formerly, I remember, 
 in the low wet bean fields of Christian Malford in 
 North Wilts, and in the meadows near Paradise Gar- 
 dens at Oxford, where I have often heard them cry 
 crex, crex. 
 
 The bird mentioned above weighed seven ounces 
 and a half, was fat and tender, and in flavour like the 
 flesh of a woodcock. The liver was very large and 
 delicate 9 . 
 
 have been answered in the negative even when such birds were less 
 familiar than they now are. They are now generally known to sports- 
 men, and no sportsman would recognise in the description given by White 
 the slightest approach to the female pheasant in that peculiar condition 
 in which she is known to him as a mule bird. 
 
 But although the idea that White's bird was a hen changing into male 
 plumage is unquestionably to be rejected so far as the pheasant is assumed 
 to be concerned in it, I would by no means reject it altogether. The gray 
 hen is no doubt equally capable with other female birds of assuming the 
 male plumage ; and although, pursued as they are by the sportsman, few 
 probably live to attain advanced age, it may have happened in one in- 
 stance that a blotched and freckled female has been shot when she had 
 partially put on the black feathers of the cock. The supposition may not 
 deserve to have much weight attached to it : yet, as the change of feathers 
 would be analogous to that which takes place in the young male in the 
 first moult, all the arguments deduced from the colours of the plumage in 
 that case would be equally applicable to this : but certainly, the naked- 
 ness of the tarsus in the young bird would incline the balance in its di- 
 rection, and leave it more probable that it, rather than an old female, was 
 the individual undergoing the change. E. T. B. 
 
 9 Land-rails are more plentiful with us than in the neighbourhood of 
 Selborne. I have found four brace in an afternoon, and a friend of mine 
 
442 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 FOOD FOR THE RING-DOVE. 
 
 ONE of ray neighbours shot a ring-dove on an evening 
 as it was returning from feed and going to roost. When 
 his wife had picked and drawn it, she found its craw 
 
 lately shot nine in two adjoining fields; but I never saw them in any 
 other season than the autumn. 
 
 That it is a bird of passage there can be little doubt, though Mr. White 
 thinks it poorly qualified for migration, on account of the wings being 
 short, and not placed in the exact centre of gravity : how that may be I 
 cannot say, but I know that its heavy sluggish flight is not owing to its 
 inability of flying faster, for I have seen it fly very swiftly, although in 
 general its actions are sluggish. Its unwillingness to rise proceeds, I 
 imagine, from its sluggish disposition, and its great timidity, for it will 
 sometimes squat so close to the ground as to suffer itself to be taken up 
 by the hand, rather than rise ; and yet it will at times run very fast *. 
 
 What Mr. White remarks respecting the small shell snails found in its 
 
 * It occurred to me many years ago to be shooting in September with 
 Mr. Webb, tenant of Church Farm in East Woodhay, who had the depu- 
 tation of the manor from my father. I had just asked him whether he 
 ever found quails in that quarter ; to which he replied, that he had not 
 seen one in the parish in his whole life. We were then in a large wheat 
 stubble which sloped towards us from the down-hill, of which it and the 
 adjoining fields formed the base, and I was walking with my body stooped 
 forwards, and my gun held with my two hands behind my back, the day 
 being hot and the ascent of the ground gradual. Another word had not 
 been spoken between us, when he called out " What is the matter?" on 
 seeing me throw myself suddenly forward on the ground ; to which I 
 answered, " Nothing, but I have caught a quail :" and the fact was so, 
 my inclined posture having enabled me to descry a solitary quail sitting 
 close in the stubble before my feet. The bird was taken home and pini- 
 oned ; and it lived for many years at Highclere in a walled garden with 
 some gold pheasants that were kept by my mother. I had the greatest 
 difficulty, and perhaps did not quite succeed, in persuading my companion 
 that the bird had not been previously concealed in my pocket, and brought 
 forth to astonish him. When we consider how many millions of chances 
 there must have been against our finding a quail in a parish where one 
 had not been observed for half a century, and that, almost instantaneously, 
 after the inquiry had been made and negatived ; against the bird's being 
 at that very moment within a few yards in the precise line in which I was 
 advancing ; against its lying still without attempting to escape, and my 
 being enabled, as both my hands were at the moment occupied, to secure 
 it : it is impossible not to reflect, that, had such an occurrence taken place 
 with relation to any circumstance of importance to the affairs of mankind, 
 instead of one so absolutely insignificant, it must have assumed the 
 
BIRDS. 443 
 
 stuffed with the most nice and tender tops of turnips. 
 These she washed and boiled, and so sat down to a 
 
 gizzard, confirms my opinion, that it frequents corn fields, seed clover, 
 and brakes or fern, more for the sake of snails, slugs*, and other insects 
 
 appearance of a prodigy with a degree of force that would have staggered 
 the strongest understanding, if the possibility of fraud could have been 
 clearly disproved ; and that many grave occurrences which have been 
 rejected as fictions on account of their improbability, may rest upon the 
 same foundation of truth with this singular but unimportant accident in 
 the concatenation of events, which I am well aware that nothing but its 
 entire want of importance will induce the reader to believe. W. H. 
 
 * I have not been able to discover the bird that will eat slugs, and I 
 do not believe that a land-rail would touch one. The ruffs and reeves 
 which I have kept in confinement eat earth worms, as the lapwings also 
 do, but they will not touch a slug. I have in vain flattered myself that 
 ducks would deliver the garden from this nuisance, and have never found 
 that they would touch them. The godwit in confinement also refuses 
 them, and it is curious to observe that this very long-billed bird, which, 
 as well as the snipe and woodcock, has been said by naturalists to live 
 by suction, cannot suck at all, and will die of thirst unless it has a vessel 
 of water deep enough to enable it to immerse its bill quite to the base, or 
 broad enough to enable it to shovel up the water by placing its bill in a 
 horizontal position. It feeds freely upon barley, which it seizes with 
 the tip of the bill and by a sudden jerk it throws the grain into its throat. 
 It will fatten on barley, and bits of bread or of boiled potatoes, and will 
 scarcely eat a worm. The long bill is probably provided to enable it to 
 pick up rice and other grains or seeds of aquatic plants in flooded tracts 
 of land. Ruffs will live well in confinement on dry bread, crust and 
 crumb, cut into square bits of such size as they can swallow, and boiled 
 potatoes crumbled, and they will become marvellously fat on that food. 
 I have kept a stint for two years on bread and milk, when it died from 
 excessive fatness. The redshank in confinement is more carnivorous, and 
 eats raw beef voraciously ; and is so greedy after worms, that an old bird 
 which I winged in March, and turned loose in the room, after a very few 
 hours came across the room to take a worm from my hand. They will 
 eat bread and potatoes, but cannot be preserved without meat or worms, 
 and they consume a great quantity of food. Ruffs will eat barley when 
 hungry, but not when they can get bread or potatoes. They are however 
 so foolish, that, turned into a garden, I have known them poison them- 
 selves by eating currants, which occasioned convulsions. Copious doses 
 of sweet oil is the remedy for birds in all such cases. W. H. 
 
 Having, since the publication of the first edition of these notes, kept 
 some ruffs, redshanks, and godwits in confinement, some observations 
 concerning them may be thought interesting. 
 
 The birds, having been imported from Holland, were kept about two 
 months in London on a large leaded platform which was fortunately not 
 
444 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 choice and delicate plate of greens, culled and provided 
 in this extraordinary manner. 
 
 which abound in such places, than for the grain or seeds ; and that it is 
 entirely an insectivorous bird*. MARKWICK. 
 
 visited by cats, and they throve there exceedingly well on bread, boiled 
 potatoes, barley, and raw beef, each bird having one wing clipped. The 
 ruffs fought a little, but not seriously. It was observable that the red- 
 shanks ate little but the raw beef, of which they were marvellously vora- 
 cious, but they grew very lean, and it became ultimately evident that they 
 were not thriving, though active and lively. The ruffs and reeves ate 
 very little of the meat, which they appeared to disregard, occasionally 
 swallowed a grain of barley, but fared mainly on the potatoes and bread, 
 preferring the latter, which was cut into little squares, and they would 
 swallow it when quite hard, crust as well as crumb. The godwits ate 
 scarcely any thing but barley, which to my surprise appeared to be their 
 natural food : a single grain of barley was taken up with the point of 
 the extremely long bill, and by a sudden rapid jerk it was thrown into 
 the throat and swallowed. The godwits were incapable of drinking, 
 unless the vessel of water was either deep enough for the whole bill to 
 be immersed, or wide enough to allow the horizontal admission of the 
 entire bill, and their usual mode of drinking was to stoop the head to the 
 ground, and shovel up the water into the mouth. 
 
 On their removal into the country they were turned into a large walled 
 garden, where after a few hours a godwit and ruff were found drowned 
 in a small pond where gold fish were kept, having jumped in. They were 
 both plump, and very good to eat when roasted. Soon after, a ruil' and 
 reeve were found in convulsions, the cause of which appeared to be their 
 having ate some ripe currants which were lying under the bushes. Large 
 doses of sweet oil were given to them ; the reeve died the next day, but 
 the ruff having continued two days in the most extraordinary convulsions, 
 and unable to run many paces without falling, recovered, and lived for a 
 year after, though with convulsive movements and contraction of the 
 neck. The redshanks soon died. The other ruffs throve exceedingly, 
 till successively killed by cats. One, of which half the body was res- 
 cued, was singularly fat. The last survivor lived through two winters 
 in perfect health in a small netted enclosure upon bread and potatoes, 
 with a few worms thrown to it occasionally, of which it was fond. When 
 there were only two ruffs, they fought perpetually. 
 
 I apprehend that the natural use of the marvellously long bill of the 
 godwit must be to enable it to pick grains of rice and other aquatic 
 plants from the bottom of the water. This is remarkable concerning a 
 bird which naturalists have said to live by suction, and which yet is 
 unable to suck the water out of a pan, and would die of drought with 
 a narrow and shallow vessel of water at its side. W. H. 
 
 * The numerous interesting facts connected with the migration of 
 birds, in the splendid works of Wilson and Audubon, lead us to conclude 
 
BIRDS. 445 
 
 Hence we may see that granivorous birds, when grain 
 fails, can subsist on the leaves of vegetables. There is 
 reason to suppose that they would not long be healthy 
 without ; for turkeys, though corn-fed, delight in a va- 
 riety of plants, such as cabbage, lettuce, endive, &c. and 
 poultry pick much grass ; while geese live for months 
 together on commons by grazing alone. 
 
 
 
 " Nought is useless made : 
 
 On the barren heath 
 
 The shepherd tends his flock that daily crop 
 Their verdant dinner from the mossy turf 
 Sufficient: after them the cackling goose, 
 Close grazer, finds wherewith to ease her want." 
 
 PHILIPS 's CIDER 10 . 
 
 10 That many granivorous birds feed also on the herbage or leaves of 
 plants, there can be no doubt : partridges and larks frequently feed on 
 the green leaves of turnips, which gives a peculiar flavour to their flesh, 
 that is, to me, very palatable : the flavour also of wild ducks and geese 
 greatly depends on the nature of their food ; and their flesh frequently 
 contracts a rank unpleasant taste, from their having lately fed on strong 
 marshy aquatic plants, as I suppose. 
 
 That the leaves of vegetables are wholesome and conducive to the 
 health of birds, seems probable, for many people fat their ducks and tur- 
 keys with the leaves of lettuce chopped small. MARKWICK. 
 
 that the annual migration is much more general in North America than 
 in Europe, owing, no doubt, to the greater severity of the winters there, 
 which would render it impossible for the soft-billed birds to find food. 
 Even in our own country, some of those which do not migrate, are, in 
 severe winters, exposed to great privations. At first view it appears 
 not a little singular, that, among birds differing very little in habit, some 
 should remain with us, and others should migrate ; but a slight know- 
 ledge of natural history will lead to a solution of the singularity. Soft- 
 billed birds, like the robin, depend upon caterpillars and worms for their 
 principal food ; and, as many species of caterpillars live through the 
 winter, such birds are enabled to procure food. In open weather, also, 
 earthworms occasionally make their appearance as well as small slugs. 
 The redbreast, accordingly, and more particularly the wren, may be seen 
 prying with a keen eye into the roots of trees and shrubs for the cater- 
 pillars, which lurk there, and hopping over the grass-plots in gardens 
 to pounce upon an earthworm, that may have strayed from its hole; 
 while the wagtail endeavours to pick up a scanty meal of the small win- 
 ter gnats, which occasionally play about running water in fine weather. 
 The winter supply, however, of live insects would be far from sufficient 
 for the numerous soft-billed birds which haunt our woods and- hedges 
 
44(5 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 HEN HARRIER. 
 
 MR. WHITE, of Newton, sprung a pheasant in a 
 wheat stubble, and shot at it; when, notwithstanding 
 the report of the gun, it was immediately pursued by 
 the blue hawk, known by the name of the hen harrier, 
 but escaped into some covert. He then sprung a 
 second, and a third, in the same field, that got away in 
 the same manner; the hawk hovering round him all 
 the while that he was beating the field, conscious no 
 doubt of the game that lurked in the stubble. Hence 
 we may conclude that this bird of prey was rendered 
 very daring and bold by hunger, and that hawks can- 
 not always seize their game when they please. We 
 may farther observe, that they cannot pounce their 
 quarry on the ground, where it might be able to make 
 a stout resistance, since so large a fowl as a pheasant 
 could not but be visible to the piercing eye of a hawk, 
 when hovering over the field. Hence that propensity 
 of cowering and squatting till they are almost trod on, 
 which no doubt was intended as a mode of security: 
 though long rendered destructive to the whole race of 
 Gallince by the invention of nets and guns 11 . 
 
 11 Of the great boldness and rapacity of birds of prey, when urged on 
 by hunger, I have seen several instances ; particularly, when shooting in 
 the winter in company with two friends, a woodcock flew across us closely 
 pursued by a small hawk ; we all three fired at the woodcock instead of 
 the hawk, which, notwithstanding the report of three guns close by it, 
 continued its pursuit of the woodcock, struck it down, and carried it oil, 
 as we afterwards discovered. 
 
 At another time, when partridge shooting with a friend, we saw a ring- 
 tail hawk rise out of a pit with some large bird in its claws; though at a 
 great distance, we both fired and obliged it to drop its prey, which proved 
 to be one of the partridges which we were in pursuit of. And lastly, in an 
 
 in summer; and therefore, it has been so ordained, that the nightingale, 
 the whitethroat, and many others should migrate during the winter to a 
 warmer climate, where they can be in little danger of perishing by famine. 
 The swallows, flycatchers, and other birds, which capture insects on the 
 wing, would obviously be starved to death at the very commencement of 
 the cold weather. RENME. 
 
BIRDS. 447 
 
 GREAT SPECKLED DIVER, OR LOON. 
 
 As one of my neighbours was traversing Wolmer 
 Forest from Bramshot across the moors, he found a 
 large uncommon bird fluttering in the heath, but not 
 wounded, which he brought home alive. On examina- 
 tion it proved to be Colymbus glacialis, LINN., the great 
 speckled diver or loon, which is most excellently de- 
 scribed in Willughby's Ornithology. 
 
 Every part and proportion of this bird is so incom- 
 parably adapted to its mode of life, that in no instance 
 do we see the wisdom of God in the creation to more 
 advantage. The head is sharp and smaller than the 
 part of the neck adjoining, in order that it may pierce 
 the water ; the wings are placed forward and out of the 
 centre of gravity, for a purpose which shall be noticed 
 hereafter; the thighs quite at the podex, in order to 
 facilitate diving; and the legs are flat, and as sharp 
 
 evening, I shot at and plainly saw that I had wounded a partridge, but 
 it being late was obliged to go home without finding it again. The next 
 morning I walked round my land without any gun, but a favourite old 
 spaniel followed my heels. When I came near the field where I wounded 
 the bird the evening before, I heard the partridges call, and seeming to 
 be much disturbed. On my approaching the bar-way they all rose, some 
 on my right, and some on my left hand ; and just before and over my head, 
 I perceived (though indistinctly, from the extreme velocity of their mo- 
 tion) two birds fly directly against each other, when instantly, to my great 
 astonishment, down dropped a partridge at my feet: the dog immediately 
 seized it, and on examination I found the blood flow very fast from a 
 fresh wound in the head, but there was some dry clotted blood on its 
 wings and side ; whence I concluded that a hawk had singled out my 
 wounded bird as the object of his prey, and had struck it down the instant 
 that my approach had obliged the birds to rise on the wing : but the space 
 berween the hedges was so small, and the motion of the birds so instan- 
 taneous and quick, that I could not distinctly observe the operation. 
 MARKWICK. 
 
 The merlin of my collection afforded a forcible example of the ruling 
 passion strong in death. It was shot while pursuing a yellowhammer, 
 and fell behind a hedge. On my friend advancing to the spot, he was 
 surprised to see the Citrinella flying towai-ds him, as if for protection. At 
 the same instant the falcon followed in pursuit, struck its quarry, and 
 both fell dead together. It was found on examination to have received 
 a full charge of shot. G. D. 
 
OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 backwards almost as the edge of a knife, that in striking 
 they may easily cut the water ; while the feet are pal- 
 mated, and broad for swimming, yet so folded up when 
 advanced forward to take a fresh stroke, as to be full 
 as narrow as the shank. The two exterior toes of the 
 feet are longest ; the nails flat and broad, resembling 
 the human, which give strength and increase the power 
 of swimming. The foot, when expanded, is not at right 
 angles to the leg or body of the bird : but the exte- 
 rior part inclining towards the head forms an acute 
 angle with the body; the intention being not to give 
 motion in the line of the legs themselves, but, by the 
 combined impulse of both, in an intermediate line, the 
 line of the body. 
 
 Most people know, that have observed at all, that 
 the swimming of birds is nothing more than a walking 
 in the water, where one foot succeeds the other as on 
 the land; yet no one, as far as I am aware, has re- 
 marked that diving fowls, while under water, impel and 
 row themselves forward by a motion of their wings, as 
 well as by the impulse of their feet : but such is really 
 the case, as any person may easily be convinced, \\Iio 
 will observe ducks when hunted by dogs in a clear 
 pond. Nor do I know that any one has given a reason 
 why the wings of diving fowls are placed so forward : 
 doubtless, not for the purpose of promoting their speed 
 in flying, since that position certainly impedes it; but 
 probably for the increase of their motion under water, 
 by the use of four oars instead of two ; yet were the 
 wings and feet nearer together, as in land birds, they 
 would, when in action, rather hinder than assist one 
 another. 
 
 This Colymbus was of considerable bulk, weighing 
 only three drachms short of three pounds avoirdupois. 
 It measured in length from the bill to the tail (which 
 was very short) two feet ; and to the extremities of the 
 toes four inches more; and the breadth of the wings 
 expanded was forty-two inches. A person attempted 
 
KIRDS. 44f) 
 
 to eat the body, but found it very strong and rancid, as 
 is the flesh of all birds living on fish. Divers or loons, 
 though bred in the most northerly parts of Europe, yet 
 are seen with us in very severe winters ; and on the 
 Thames are called sprat loons, because they prey much 
 on that sort of fish. 
 
 The legs of the Colymbi and Mergi are placed so 
 very backward, and so out of all centre of-gravity, that 
 these birds cannot walk at all. They are called by 
 Linnaeus compedes, because they move on the ground 
 as if shackled or fettered 12 . 
 
 STONE CURLEW. 
 
 ON the 27th of February, 1788, stone curlews were 
 heard to pipe; and on March 1st, after it was dark, 
 some were passing over the village, as might be per- 
 ceived by their quick short note, which they use in their 
 nocturnal excursions by way of watch- word, that they 
 may not stray and lose their companions. 
 
 12 These accurate and ingenious observations, tending to set forth in a 
 proper light the wonderful works of God in the creation, and to point out 
 his wisdom in adapting the singular form and position of the limbs of this 
 bird to the particular mode in which it is destined to pass the greatest 
 part of its life in an element much denser than the air, do Mr. White 
 credit, not only as a naturalist, but as a man and as a philosopher, in the 
 truest sense of the word, in my opinion ; for were we enabled to trace the 
 works of nature minutely and accurately, we should find, not only that 
 every bird, but every creature, was equally well adapted to the purpose for 
 which it was intended ; though this fitness and propriety of form is more 
 striking in such animals as are destined to any uncommon mode of life. 
 
 I have had in my possession two birds, which,though of a different genus, 
 bear a great resemblance to Mr. White's Colymbus, in their manner of life, 
 which is spent chiefly in the water, where they swim and dive with asto- 
 nishing rapidity, for which purpose their fin toed feet, placed far behind, 
 and very short wings, are particularly well adapted, and show the wis- 
 dom of God in the creation as conspicuously as the bird before mentioned. 
 These birds were the greater and lesser crested grebe, Podiceps cristatus 
 et auritus. What surprised me most was, that the first of these birds was 
 found alive on dry ground, about seven miles from the sea, to which place 
 there was no communication by water. How did it get so far from the 
 sea? its wings and legs being so ill adapted either to flying or walking. 
 The lesser crested grebe was also found in a fresh water pond which had 
 no communication with other water, at some miles distance from the sea. 
 MARKWICK. 
 
 G G 
 
450 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 Thus, we see, that retire whithersoever they may in 
 the winter, they return again early in the spring, and 
 are, as it now appears, the first summer birds that come 
 back. Perhaps the mildness of the season may have 
 quickened the emigration of the curlews this year. 
 
 They spend the day in high elevated fields and sheep- 
 walks ; but seem to descend in the night to streams and 
 meadows, perhaps for water, which their upland haunts 
 do not afford them". 
 
 THE SMALLEST UNCRESTED WILLOW WREN. 
 
 THE smallest uncrested willow wren, or chiffchaff, is 
 the next early summer bird which we have remarked; 
 it utters two sharp piercing notes, so loud in hollow 
 woods, as to occasion an echo, and is usually first 
 heard about the 20th of March 14 . 
 
 FERN-OWL, OR GOAT-SUCKER. 
 
 TH E country people have a notion that the fern-owl, or 
 churn-owl, or eve-jarr, which they also call a puckeridge, 
 is very injurious to weanling calves, by inflicting, as 
 
 13 On the 31st of January, 1792, 1 received a bird of this species, which 
 had been recently killed by a neighbouring farmer, who said that he had 
 frequently seen it in his fields during the former part of the winter : this 
 perhaps was an occasional straggler, which, by some accident, was pre- 
 vented from accompanying its companions in their migration. MARK- 
 WICK. 
 
 14 The spring birds having made their appearance I looked for the 
 Sylviu ntfa, and find it by no means scarce here. I saw two of them yes- 
 terday in one little wood, where they were reiterating their incessant 
 chink chink. One of them sat in the full sun within six or seven yards 
 of me, on the same branch of a young leafless tree, for a quarter of an 
 hour, moving very little, but occasionally from one twig to another. I 
 was perfectly satisfied from seeing it so near that it was the Sylv. rufa, 
 but to-day I desired my gamekeeper to shoot one in the act of chinking, 
 to remove all doubt on the subject. The bird now before me is decidedly 
 the Sylv. rufa, with the second feather a little shorter than the eighth. 
 Its legs are very dark, and so is its bill except at the base of the lower 
 mandible. The under wing coverts are dull yellow; a very pale ferruginous 
 tint on the sides ; the thighs and under tail coverts pale yellowish. 
 Spofforth, May 14, 1830. W. H. 
 
BIRDS. 451 
 
 it strikes at them, the fatal distemper known to cow- 
 leeches by the name of puckeridge. Thus does this 
 harmless ill-fated bird fall under a double imputation 
 which it by no means deserves in Italy, of sucking the 
 teats of goats, whence it is called Caprimulgus 15 ; and 
 with us, of communicating a deadly disorder to cattle. 
 But the truth of the matter is, the malady above-men- 
 tioned is occasioned by the CEstrus Bovis','& dipterous 
 insect, which lays its eggs along the chines of kine, 
 where the maggots, when hatched, eat their way through 
 the hide of the beast into the flesh, and grow to a very 
 large size. I have just talked with a man, who says he 
 has more than once stripped calves who have died of 
 the puckeridge ; that the ail or complaint lay along the 
 chine, where the flesh was much swelled, and filled with 
 purulent matter. Once I myself saw a large rough 
 maggot of this sort squeezed out of the back of a cow. 
 
 15 This poor bird appears to be the butt of innumerable mistakes in all 
 quarters; for, though it feeds, like the bats, upon nocturnal moths and 
 other night-flying insects, the small birds show by the attacks they make 
 upon it, that they believe it to prey upon them. The attacks made by 
 swallows and other small birds upon hawks, shrikes, polecats, and in- 
 deed on all animals of prey, must have met the observation of almost 
 every person, all the weakest and most helpless birds in a neighbour- 
 hood uniting in a body to drive the invaders away. I have somewhere 
 met with an account of a similar attack upon a hunting spider by flies, 
 though I must look upon this as quite anomalous, for amongst thousands 
 of these spiders whose proceedings I have watched, I never observed 
 such an occurrence. But connected with such singular attacks of the 
 weak upon the strong, a much more remarkable circumstance is fre- 
 quently witnessed ; for passing over the cuckoo, who is persecuted by 
 small birds, evidently because they mistake him for a hawk, most night- 
 birds are attacked in the same way whenever they make their appearance 
 by day. We might perhaps refer this in the case of owls to the general 
 principle, though owls never prey upon birds, if they can procure mice 
 and other small quadrupeds. 
 
 The name which this bird has received in all languages of goat-sucker 
 (most absurdly continued by most recent naturalists in the term Capri- 
 mulgus), shows the opinion entertained of it by the vulgar. It is however 
 as impossible for the night-jar to suck the teats of cattle (though most 
 birds are fond of milk) as it is for cats to suck the breath from sleeping 
 infants, of which they are absurdly accused, inasmuch as the structure of 
 their organs would baffle any such attempts. RENNIE. 
 
 GG 2 
 
452 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 These maggots in Essex are called wormils. 
 
 The least observation and attention would convince 
 men, that these birds neither injure the goatherd nor 
 the grazier, but are perfectly harmless, and subsist 
 alone, being night birds, on night insects, such as 
 Scarabcei, and Phalcence ; and through the month of 
 July mostly on the Scarabceus solstitialis, which in many 
 districts abounds at that season. Those that we have 
 opened have always had their craws stuffed with large 
 night moths and their eggs, and pieces of chafers : nor 
 does it anywise appear how they can, weak and un- 
 armed as they seem, inflict any harm upon kine, unless 
 they possess the powers of animal magnetism, and can 
 affect them by fluttering over them. 
 
 A fern-owl, this evening (August 27), showed off in 
 a very unusual and entertaining manner, by hawking 
 round and round the circumference of my great spread- 
 ing oak for twenty times following, keeping mostly close 
 to the grass, but occasionally glancing up amidst the 
 boughs of the tree. This amusing bird was then in 
 pursuit of a brood of some particular Phalcena belonging 
 to the oak, of which there are several sorts ; and exhi- 
 bited on the occasion a command of wing superior, I 
 think, to that of the swallow itself. 
 
 When a person approaches the haunt of fern-owls in 
 an evening, they continue flying round the head of the 
 obtruder; and by striking their wings together above 
 their backs, in the manner that the pigeons called 
 smiters are known to do, make a smart snap : perhaps 
 at that time they are jealous for their young ; and this 
 noise and gesture are intended by way of menace. 
 
 Fern-owls have attachment to oaks, no doubt on ac- 
 count of food ; for the next evening we saw one again 
 several times among the boughs of the same tree; but 
 it did not skim round its stem over the grass, as on the 
 evening before. In May these birds find the Scarabceus 
 Melolontha on the oak ; and the Scarabceus solstitialis at 
 midsummer. These peculiar birds can only be watched 
 
BIRDS. 453 
 
 and observed for two hours in the twenty-four; and 
 then in a dubious twilight an hour after sunset and an 
 hour before sunrise. 
 
 On this day (July 14, 1789) a woman brought me two 
 eggs of a fern-owl, or eve-jarr, which she found on the 
 verge of the Hanger, to the left of the hermitage, under 
 a beechen shrub. This person, who lives just at the 
 foot of the Hanger, seems well acquainted with these 
 nocturnal swallows, and says she has often found their 
 eggs near that place, and that they lay only two at a 
 time on the bare ground. The eggs were oblong, dusky, 
 and streaked somewhat in the manner of the plumage 
 of the parent bird, and were equal in size at each end. 
 The dam was sitting on the eggs when found, which 
 contained the rudiments of young, and would have 
 been hatched perhaps in a week. From hence we may 
 see the time of their breeding, which corresponds pretty 
 well with that of the swift, as does also the period of 
 their arrival. Each species is usually seen about the 
 beginning of May. Each breeds but once in a summer; 
 each lays only two eggs. 
 
 July 4, 1790. The woman who brought me two fern- 
 owl's eggs last year on July 14, on this day produced 
 me two more, one of which had been laid this morning, 
 as appears plainly, because there was only one in the 
 nest the evening before. They were found, as last July, 
 on the verge of the down above the hermitage under a 
 beechen shrub, on the naked ground. Last year those 
 eggs were full of young, and just ready to be hatched. 
 
 These circumstances point out the exact time when 
 these curious nocturnal migratory birds lay their eggs 
 and hatch their young. Fern-owls, like snipes, stone 
 curlews, and some other birds, make no nest. Birds 
 that build on the ground, do not make much of nests 16 . 
 
 16 No author that I am acquainted with has given so accurate and 
 pleasing an account of the manners and habits of the goat-sucker as 
 Mr. White, taken entirely from his own observations. Its being a noc- 
 turnal bird, has prevented my having many opportunities of observing it. 
 
454 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 SAND MARTINS. 
 
 MARCH 23, 1788. A gentleman, who was this week on 
 a visit at Waverley, took the opportunity of examining 
 some of the holes in the sand banks with which that 
 district abounds. As these are undoubtedly bored by 
 bank martins, and are the places where they avowedly 
 breed, he was in hopes they might have slept there also, 
 and that he might have surprised them just as they 
 were awaking from their winter slumbers. When he 
 had dug for some time, he found the holes were hori- 
 zontal and serpentine, as I had observed before; and 
 that the nests were deposited at the inner end, and had 
 been occupied by broods in former summers ; but no 
 torpid birds were to be found. He opened and examined 
 about a dozen holes. Another gentleman made the 
 same search many years ago, with as little success. 
 
 These holes were in depth about two feet. 
 
 March 21, 1790. A single bank or sand martin was 
 seen hovering and playing round the sand pit at Short 
 Heath, where in the summer they abound. 
 
 April 9, 1793. A sober hind assures us, that this day, 
 on Wish-hanger common, between Hedleigh and Frins- 
 ham, he saw several bank martins playing in and out, 
 and hanging before some nest holes in a sand hill, where 
 these birds usually nestle. 
 
 This incident confirms my suspicions that this species 
 of Hirundo is to be seen first of any ; and gives great 
 reason to suppose that they do not leave their wild 
 haunts at all, but are secreted amidst the clefts and 
 caverns of those abrupt cliffs where they usually spend 
 their summers. 
 
 I suspect that it passes the day in concealment amidst the dark and shady 
 gloom of deep-wooded dells, or as they are called here gills ; having 
 more than once seen it roused from such solitary places by my dogs, 
 when shooting in the daytime. I have also sometimes seen it in an even- 
 ing, but not long enough to take notice of its habits and manners. I have 
 never seen it but in the summer, between the months of May and Sep- 
 tember. MARKWICK. 
 
BIRDS. 455 
 
 The late severe weather considered, it is not very 
 probable that these birds should have migrated so early 
 from a tropical region, through all these cutting winds 
 and pinching frosts: but it is easy to suppose that they 
 may, like bats and flies, have been awakened by the 
 influence of the sun, amidst their secret latebrce, where 
 they have spent the uncomfortable foodless months in 
 a torpid state, and the profoundest of slumbers. 
 
 There is a large pond at Wish-hanger, which induces 
 these sand martins to frequent that district. For I 
 have ever remarked that they haunt near great waters, 
 either rivers or lakes 17 . 
 
 SWALLOWS, CONGREGATING AND DISAPPEAR- 
 ANCE OF. 
 
 DURING the severe winds that often prevail late in 
 the spring, it is not easy to say how the Hirundines 
 
 17 Here, and in many other passages of his writings, this very inge- 
 nious naturalist favours the opinion that part at least of the swallow tribe 
 pass their winter in a torpid state in the same manner as bats and flies, 
 and revive again on the approach of spring. 
 
 I have frequently taken notice of all those circumstances which in- 
 duced Mr. White to suppose that some of the Hirundines lie torpid during 
 winter. I have seen, so late as November, on a finer day than usual at 
 that season of the year, two or three swallows flying backwards and for- 
 wards under a warm hedge, or on the sunny side of some old building; 
 nay, I once saw on the 8th of December two martins flying about very 
 briskly, the weather being mild. I had not seen any considerable number 
 either of swallows or martins for a considerable time before ; from whence 
 then could these few birds come, if not from some hole or cavern where 
 they had laid themselves up for the winter ? Surely it will not be as- 
 serted that these birds migrate back again from some distant tropical 
 region, merely on the appearance of a fine day or two at this late season 
 of the year. Again, very early in the spring, and sometimes immediately 
 after very cold severe weather, on its growing a little warmer, a few of 
 these birds suddenly make their appearance, long before the generality 
 of them are seen. These appearances certainly favour the opinion of 
 their passing the winter in a torpid state, but do not absolutely prove the 
 fact; for who ever saw them reviving of their own accord from their 
 torpid state, without being first brought to the fire, and as it were forced 
 into life again ; soon after which revivification they constantly die. 
 MARKWICK. 
 
456 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 subsist: for they withdraw themselves, and are hardly 
 ever seen, nor do any insects appear for their support. 
 That they can retire to rest, and sleep away these un- 
 comfortable periods as the bats do, is a matter rather to 
 be suspected than proved : or do they not rather spend 
 their time in deep and sheltered vales near waters, 
 where insects are more likely to be found ? Certain it 
 is, that hardly any individuals of this genus have at 
 such times been seen for several days together. 
 
 September 13, 1791. The congregating flocks of 
 Hirundines on the church and tower are very beautiful 
 and amusing ! When they fly off all together from the 
 roof, on any alarm, they quite swarm in the air. But 
 they soon settle -in heaps, and preening their feathers, 
 and lifting up their wings to admit the sun, seem highly 
 to enjoy the warm situation. Thus they spend the heat 
 of the dfty, preparing for their emigration, and, as it 
 were, consulting when and where they are to go. The 
 flight about the church seems to consist chiefly of house 
 martins, about four hundred in number : but there are 
 other places of rendezvous about the village frequented 
 at the same time. 
 
 It is remarkable, that though most of them sit on the 
 battlements and roof, yet many hang or cling for some 
 time by their claws against the surface of the walls, 
 in a manner not practised by them at any other time of 
 their remaining with us. 
 
 The swallows seem to delight more in holding their 
 assemblies on trees. 
 
 November 3, 1789. Two swallows were seen this 
 morning at New ton vicarage-house, hovering and settling 
 on the roofs and out-buildings. None have been ob- 
 served at Selborne since October 1 1. It is very remark- 
 able, that after the Hirundines have disappeared for 
 some weeks, a few are occasionally seen again ; some- 
 times, in the first week in November, and that only for 
 one day. Do they not withdraw and slumber in some 
 hiding place during the interval? for we cannot suppose 
 
BIRDS. 457 
 
 they had migrated to warmer climes, and so returned 
 again for one day. Is it not more probable that they 
 are awakened from sleep, and like the bats are come 
 forth to collect a little food? Bats appear at all seasons 
 through the autumn and spring months, when the ther- 
 mometer is at 50, because then moths, Phalcence, are 
 stirring. 
 
 These swallows looked like young ones fs . 
 
 WAGTAILS. 
 
 WHILE the cows are feeding in moist low pastures, 
 broods of wagtails, white and gray, run round them 
 close up to their noses, and under their very bellies, 
 availing themselves of the flies that settle on their legs, 
 and probably finding worms and larvce that are roused 
 by the trampling of their feet. Nature is such an ceco- 
 nomist, that the most incongruous animals can avail 
 themselves of each other! Interest makes strange 
 friendships 19 . 
 
 18 Of their migration the proofs are such as will scarcely admit of a 
 doubt. Sir Charles Wager and Captain Wright saw vast flocks of them 
 at sea, when on their passage from one country to another. Our author, 
 Mr. White, saw what he deemed the actual migration of these birds, and 
 which he has described in his History of Selborne*: and of their con- 
 gregating together on the roofs of churches and other buildings, and on 
 trees, previous to their departure, many instances occur; particularly I 
 once observed a large flock of house martins on the roof of the church 
 here at Catsfield, which acted exactly in the manner here described by 
 Mr. White, sometimes preening their feathers and spreading their wings 
 to the sun, and then flying off all together, but soon returning to their 
 former situation. The greatest part of these birds seemed to be young 
 ones. MARKWICK. 
 
 The best proof of actual migration is drawn from the American swal- 
 lows which Audubon actually traced from the north to Florida, and saw 
 them the whole winter through at New Orleans, whence they departed 
 for the north again in spring. REN ME. 
 
 19 Birds continually avail themselves of particular and unusual cir- 
 cumstances to procure their food ; thus wagtails keep playing about the 
 noses and legs of cattle as they feed, in quest of flies and other insects 
 which abound near those animals ; and great numbers of them will follow 
 
 * Letter XXIII. to Pennant, p. 118. 
 
458 OBSERVATIONS ON BIRDS. 
 
 WRYNECK. 
 
 THESE birds appear on the grassplots and walks; they 
 walk a little as well as hop, and thrust their bills into 
 the turf, in quest, I conclude, of ants, which are their 
 food. While they hold their bills in the grass, they 
 draw out their prey with their tongues, which are so 
 long as to be coiled round their heads. 
 
 GROSBEAK. 
 
 MR. B. shot a cock grosbeak, which he had observed 
 to haunt his garden for more than a fortnight. I began 
 to accuse this bird of making sad havock among the 
 buds of the cherries, gooseberries, and wall-fruit of all 
 the neighbouring orchards. Upon opening its crop or 
 craw, no buds were to be seen ; but a mass of kernels 
 of the stones of fruits. Mr. B. observed that this bird 
 frequented the spot where plum trees grow; and that 
 he had seen it with somewhat hard in its mouth, which 
 it broke with difficulty ; these were the stones of dam- 
 sons. The Latin ornithologists call this bird Cocco- 
 thraustes, i. e. berry-breaker, because with its large 
 horny beak it cracks and breaks the shells of stone 
 fruits for the sake of the seed or kernel. Birds of this 
 sort are rarely seen in England, and only in winter 20 . 
 
 close to the plough to devour the worms, &c. that are turned up by that 
 instrument. The redbreast attends the gardener when digging his bor- 
 ders ; and will, with great familiarity and tameness, pick out the worms 
 almost close to his spade, as I have frequently seen. Starlings and mag- 
 pies very often sit on the backs of sheep and deer to pick out their ticks. 
 MARKWICK. 
 
 50 I have never seen this rare bird but during the severest cold of the 
 hardest winters; at which season of the year I have had in my possession 
 two or three that were killed in this neighbourhood in different years. 
 MARKWICK. 
 
459 
 
 OBSERVATIONS ON QUADRUPEDS. 
 
 SHEEP. 
 
 THE sheep on the downs this winter (1769) are very 
 ragged, and their coats much torn ; the shepherds say 
 they tear their fleeces with their own mouths and horns, 
 and that they are always in that way in mild wet win- 
 ters, being teased and tickled with a kind of lice. 
 
 After ewes and lambs are shorn, there is great con- 
 fusion and bleating, neither the dams nor the young 
 being able to distinguish one another as before. This 
 embarrassment seems not so much to arise from the 
 loss of the fleece, which may occasion an alteration in 
 their appearance, as from the defect of that notus odor, 
 discriminating each individual personally; which also 
 is confounded by the strong scent of the pitch and tar 
 wherewith they are newly marked ; for the brute crea- 
 tion recognise each other more from the smell than the 
 sight ; and in matters of identity and diversity appeal 
 much more to their noses than to their eyes. After 
 sheep have been washed there is the same confusion, 
 from the reason given above. 
 
 RABBITS 1 . 
 
 RABBITS make incomparably the finest turf; for they 
 not only bite closer than larger quadrupeds, but they 
 
 1 Having found in a stubble field a rabbit's nest, with young about four 
 days old, which could not see, I had them brought home and given to be 
 suckled to a tame doe which was kept by one of my children, and had 
 young ones which were just old enough to be taken from her. She readily 
 undertook the care of her new charge and reared them. When they came 
 to see, it was observable that they were much more startlish and shy than 
 the young rabbits of tame descent, and as they grew bigger they continued 
 
460 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 allow no bents to rise : hence warrens produce much 
 the most delicate turf for gardens. Sheep never touch 
 the stalks of grasses. 
 
 CAT AND SQUIRRELS 2 . 
 
 A BOY has taken three little young squirrels in their 
 nest, or drey as it is called in these parts. These small 
 creatures he put under the care of a cat who had lately 
 lost her kittens, and finds that she nurses and suckles 
 them with the same assiduity and affection as if they 
 were her own offspring. This circumstance corrobo- 
 rates my suspicion, that the mention of exposed and 
 deserted children being nurtured by female beasts of 
 prey who had lost their young, may not be so improbable 
 
 so, and did not begin near so soon to eat what was offered to them. It is 
 not customary with children to disturb the young rabbits till they are a 
 few days old, so that these wild rabbits had exactly the same education 
 as the tame ones, and yet the result was different. It is evident then that 
 there was a natural difference of character between them from their birth, 
 and a consideration of this point may be important in understanding even 
 the differences between the several races of mankind. It is probable that 
 the state of constant apprehension in which the wild rabbit lives, occa- 
 sions an irritability of nerve which does not exist in the domestic race, 
 and that such irritability occasions an actual difference in the quality of 
 its fibres which is descendible in its generations. In the same manner it 
 appears to me likely that savages do not acquire acuteness of hearing 
 and some other peculiarities merely from the greater exercise of certain 
 faculties from infancy, but because the extraordinary exercise of those 
 faculties during several generations has rendered the organs which ap- 
 pertain to them different in their texture and tone from those of other 
 races of men in whom those faculties have been quiescent, and more 
 rarely or less intensely called into use. 
 
 These rabbits from wild parents, being now above half grown, continue 
 to start away and crouch upon any quick movement of the boy that feeds 
 them, while those of the domestic stock crowd round him ; their timidity 
 and want of confidence being unquestionably an inherited and not an 
 acquired peculiarity. W. H. 
 
 2 The squirrel's nest is not only called a drey in Hampshire, but, also, 
 in other counties ; in Suffolk it is called a bay. The word drey, though 
 now provincial, I have met with in some of our old writers. MITFORD. 
 
 The drey is not only the breeding-place, but the storehouse for the 
 animal's provisions. G. D. 
 
 In the north of Hampshire a great portion of the squirrels have white 
 tails. None of this variety, as far as I can learn, reach the London market. 
 
QUADRUPEDS. 461 
 
 an incident as many have supposed ; and therefore may 
 be a justification of those authors who have gravely 
 mentioned, what some have deemed to be a wild and 
 improbable story. 
 
 So many people went to see the little squirrels suckled 
 by a cat, that the foster mother became jealous of her 
 charge, and in pain for their safety ; and therefore hid 
 them over the ceiling, where one died. This circum- 
 stance shows her affection for these foundlings, and that 
 she supposes the squirrels to be her own young. Thus 
 hens, when they have hatched ducklings, are equally 
 attached to them as if they were their own chickens. 
 
 HORSE. 
 
 AN old hunting mare, which ran on the common, being 
 taken very ill, ran down into the village, as it were 
 to implore the help of men, and died the night following 
 in the street. 
 
 HOUNDS. 
 
 THE king's stag hounds came down to Alton, attended 
 by a huntsman and six yeomen prickers, with horns, to 
 try for the stag that has haunted Harteley Wood and 
 its environs for so long a time. Many hundreds of 
 people, horse and foot, attended the dogs to see the 
 deer unharboured ; but though the huntsman drew 
 
 I was much surprised at hearing from a man who kept a bird and cage 
 shop in London, that not less than twenty thousand squirrels are annually 
 sold there for the menus plaisirs of cockneys, part of which come from 
 France, but the greater number are brought in by labourers to Newgate 
 and Leadenhall markets, where any morning during the season four or 
 five hundred might be bought. He said that he himself sold annually 
 about seven hundred : and, he added, that about once in seven years the 
 breed of squirrels entirely fails, but that in other seasons they are equally 
 prolific The subject was introduced by his answering to a woman who 
 came in to buy a squirrel, that he had not had one that season, but 
 before that time in the last season he had sold five hundred. It appears 
 that the mere manufacture of squirrel cages for Londoners is no small 
 concern. W. H. 
 
462 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 Harteley Wood, and Long Coppice, and Shrubwood, 
 and Temple Hangers ; and in their way back Harteley 
 and Ward le ham Hangers, yet no stag could be found. 
 
 The royal pack, accustomed to have the deer turned 
 out before them, never drew the coverts with any ad- 
 dress and spirit, as many people that were present 
 observed : and this remark the event has proved to be 
 a true one. For as a person was lately pursuing a 
 pheasant that was wing-broken, in Harteley Wood, he 
 stumbled upon the stag by accident, and ran in upon 
 him as he lay concealed amidst a thick brake of bram- 
 bles and bushes. 
 
 OBSERVATIONS ON INSECTS AND VERMES. 
 
 INSECTS IN GENERAL. 
 
 THE day and night insects occupy the annuals alter- 
 nately : the Papilios, Muscce, and Apes, are succeeded at 
 the close of the day by Phalcence, earwigs, woodlice, &c. 
 In the dusk of the evening, when beetles begin to buz, 
 partridges begin to call; these two circumstances are 
 exactly coincident. 
 
 Ivy is the last flower that supports the hymenopte- 
 rous and dipterous insects. On sunny days, quite on 
 to November, they swarm on trees covered with this 
 plant ; and when they disappear, probably retire under 
 the shelter of its leaves, concealing themselves between 
 its fibres and the trees which it entwines 1 . 
 
 Spiders, woodlice, Lepismce in cupboards and among 
 sugar, some Empides, gnats, flies of several species, 
 some Phalcence in hedges, earthworms, &c. are stirring 
 
 1 This I have often observed, having seen bees and other winged 
 insects swarming about the flowers of the ivy very late in the autumn. 
 MARK WICK. 
 
INSECTS AND VERMES. 463 
 
 at all times, when winters are mild ; and are of great 
 service to those soft-billed birds that never leave us. 
 
 On every sunny day the winter through, clouds of 
 insects, usually called gnats (I suppose Tipulce and 
 Empides) appear sporting and dancing over the tops 
 of the evergreen trees in the shrubbery, and frisking 
 about as if the business of generation was still going 
 on. Hence it appears that these Diptera'( which by 
 their sizes appear to be of different species) are not 
 subject to a torpid state in the winter as most winged 
 insects are. At night, and in frosty weather, and when 
 it rains and blows, they seem to retire into those trees. 
 They often are out in a fog 2 . 
 
 HUMMING IN THE AIR. 
 
 THERE is a natural occurrence to be met with upon the 
 highest part of our down in hot summer days, which 
 always amuses me much, without giving me any satis- 
 faction with respect to the cause of it ; and that is a 
 loud audible humming of bees in the air, though not 
 one insect is to be seen. This sound is to be heard 
 distinctly the whole common through, from the Money- 
 dells, to Mr. White's avenue gate. Any person would 
 suppose that a large swarm of bees was in motion, and 
 playing about over his head 3 . This noise was heard 
 last week, on June 28th. 
 
 2 This I have also seen, and have frequently observed swarms of little 
 winged insects playing up and down in the air in the middle of winter, 
 even when the ground has been covered with snow. MARKWICK. 
 
 3 I have frequently observed this humming in the neighbourhood of 
 London, in Copenhagen Fields, on Hampstead Heath, and at Shooter's 
 Hill, and for some time was as much puzzled to explain it as White : till 
 I, on several occasions, remarked a troop of swallows busily hawking 
 high overhead, where the humming was heard. There could be no 
 doubt, therefore, that it was occasioned by insects, invisible to me in 
 consequence of their distance. In another instance, I could plainly see 
 numbers of bees passing in their way to and from some blossomed lime 
 trees, as I supposed, which were at a good distance from the spot where 
 I stood the primary cause, perhaps, of their flying high. RENME. 
 
464 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 " Resounds the living surface of the ground, 
 Nor undelightful is the ceaseless hum 
 
 To him who muses at noon." 
 
 " Thick in yon stream of light a thousand ways, 
 
 Upward and downward, thwarting and convolved, 
 
 The quivering nations sport." THOMSON'S SEASONS. 
 
 CHAFERS. 
 
 COCKCHAFERS seldom abound oftener than once in 
 three or four years ; when they swarm they deface the 
 trees and hedges. Whole woods of oaks are stripped 
 bare by them. 
 
 Chafers are eaten by the turkey, the rook, and the 
 house sparrow. 
 
 The Scarabceus sohtitialis first appears about June 
 26: they are very punctual in their coming out every 
 year. They are a small species, about half the size of 
 the May chafer, and are known in some parts by the 
 name of the fern chafer 4 . 
 
 PTINUS PECTINICORNIS. 
 
 THOSE maggots that make worm holes in tables, chairs, 
 bedposts, &c., and destroy wooden furniture, especially 
 where there is any sap, are the larvae of the Ptinus pec- 
 tinicornis. This insect, it is probable, deposits its eggs 
 on the surface, and the worms eat their way in. 
 
 In their holes they turn into their pupa state, and so 
 come forth winged in July; eating their way through 
 the valances or curtains of a bed, or any other furniture 
 that happens to obstruct their passage. 
 
 4 A singular circumstance relative to the cockchafer, or, as it is called 
 here, the May-bug, Scarabteus Melolontka, happened this year (1800): 
 My gardener in digging some ground found, about six inches under the 
 surface, two of these insects alive and perfectly formed so early as the 
 24th of March. When he brought them to me, they appeared to be as 
 perfect and as much alive as in the midst of summer, crawling about as 
 briskly as ever : yet I saw no more of this insect till the 22nd of May, 
 when it began to make its appearance. How comes it, that though it 
 was perfectly formed so early as the 24th of March, it did not show itself 
 above ground till nearly two months afterwards ? MARKWICK. 
 
INSECTS AND VERMES. 465 
 
 They seem to be most inclined to breed in beech ; 
 hence beech will not make lasting utensils, or furni- 
 ture. If their eggs are deposited on the surface, frequent 
 rubbings will preserve wooden furniture 5 . 
 
 BLATTA OR1ENTALIS COCKROACH. 
 
 A NEIGHBOUR complained to me that her house was 
 overrun with a kind of black beetle, or, as she expressed 
 herself, with a kind of black bob, which swarmed in her 
 kitchen when they get up in a morning before daybreak. 
 
 Soon after this account, I observed an unusual insect 
 in one of my dark chimney closets, and find since, that 
 in the night they swarm also in my kitchen. On exa- 
 mination, I soon ascertained the species to be the 
 Blatta Orientalis of Linnaeus, and the Blatta molendina- 
 ria of Mouffet. The male is winged ; the female is not, 
 but shows somewhat like the rudiments of wings, as if 
 in the pupa state. 
 
 These insects belonged originally to the warmer parts 
 of America, and were conveyed from thence by ship- 
 ping to the East Indies ; and by means of commerce 
 begin to prevail in the more northern parts of Europe, 
 as Russia, Sweden, &c. How long they have abounded 
 in England I cannot say ; but have never observed them 
 in my house till lately. 
 
 They love warmth, and haunt chimney closets, and 
 the backs of ovens. Poda says that these and house 
 crickets will not associate together ; but he is mistaken 
 in that assertion, as Linnaeus suspected he was. They 
 are altogether night insects (lucifugcej, never coming 
 forth till the rooms are dark and still, and escaping 
 
 5 The Ptilinus pectinicornis, FABR., is by no means the only insect that 
 is destructive to furniture. Various species of Anobium also perforate it 
 in all directions. Linnaeus's chairs were bored through and destroyed 
 by An. pertinax; and the Rev. Mr. Kirby has had his chairs, his picture- 
 frames, and the floor of his chamber eaten in every direction by the An. 
 striatum: the last named beetle attacks any furniture, not even abstain- 
 ing altogether from mahogany. E. T. B. 
 
 II M 
 
466 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 away nimbly at the approach of a candle. Their an- 
 tenna are remarkably long-, slender, and flexile. 
 
 October, 1790. After the servants are gone to bed, 
 the kitchen hearth swarms with young crickets, and 
 young Blattce molendinarice of all sizes, from the most 
 minute growth to their full proportions. They seem to 
 live in a friendly manner together, and not to prey the 
 one on the other. 
 
 August, 1792. After the destruction of many thou- 
 sands of Blattce molendinarice, we find that at intervals 
 a fresh detachment of old ones arrives; and particularly 
 during this hot season : for the windows being left open 
 in the evenings, the males come flying in at the case- 
 ments from the neighbouring houses, which swarm with 
 them. How the females, that seem to have no perfect 
 wings that they can use, can contrive to get from house 
 to house, does not so readily appear. These, like many 
 insects, when they find their present abodes overstocked, 
 have powers of migrating to fresh quarters. Since the 
 Blattce have been so much kept under, the crickets have 
 greatly increased in number. 
 
 GRYLLUS DOMESTICUS HOUSE CRICKET. 
 
 NOVEMBER. After the servants are gone to bed, the 
 kitchen hearth swarms with minute crickets not so large 
 as fleas, which must have been lately hatched. So that 
 these domestic insects, cherished by the influence of a 
 constant large fire, regard not the season of the year, 
 but produce their young at a time when their congeners 
 are either dead, or laid up for the winter, to pass away 
 the uncomfortable months in the profoundest slumbers, 
 and a state of torpidity. 
 
 When house crickets are out, and running about in a 
 room in the night, if surprised by a candle, they give 
 two or three shrill notes, as it were for a signal to their 
 fellows, that they may escape to their crannies and 
 lurking holes, to avoid danger. 
 
INSECTS AND VERMES. 467 
 
 CIMEX LINEARIS. 
 
 AUGUST 12, 1775. Cimices linear es 6 are now eagerly 
 pairing on ponds and pools. The females, who vastly 
 exceed the males in bulk, dart and shoot along on the 
 surface of the water with the males on their backs. 
 When a female chooses to be disengaged, she rears, 
 and jumps, and plunges, like an unruly colt the lover 
 thus dismounted, soon finds a new mate. The females 
 afterwards retire to another part of the lake, perhaps to 
 deposit their foetus in quiet ; hence the sexes are found 
 separate, except in the pairing season. From the mul- 
 titude of minute young of all gradations of sizes, these 
 insects seem without doubt to be viviparous 7 . 
 
 RANATRA LINEARfS. 
 
 6 [Ranatra linearis, FABR.] 
 
 7 The egg of the long water-bug has been sufficiently known for many 
 years. It is armed at one end by two bristles, arid is inserted into the 
 stem of an aquatic plant, generally of a club rush, in which it is so deeply 
 immersed by the aid of the lengthened ovipositor of the insect, as to be 
 entirely hidden from view ; the bristles alone projecting from the place 
 of concealment. The object of this curious arrangement is among the 
 most beautiful and beneficent of the provisions of nature. While a recep- 
 
 H H 2 
 
468 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 PHAL^NA QUERCUS. 
 
 MOST of our oaks are naked of leaves, and even the 
 Holt in general, having been ravaged by the caterpillars 
 of a small Phalcena which is of a pale yellow colour. 
 These insects, though a feeble race, yet, from their infi- 
 nite numbers, are of wonderful effect, being able to 
 destroy the foliage of whole forests and districts. At 
 this season they leave their aurelia, and issue forth in 
 their fly state, swarming and covering the trees and 
 hedges. 
 
 In a field at Greatham, I saw a flight of swifts busied 
 in catching their prey near the ground ; and found they 
 were hawking after these Phal&na. The aurelia of this 
 moth is shining and as black as jet ; and lies wrapped 
 up in a leaf of the tree, which is rolled round it, and 
 secured at the ends by a web, to prevent the maggot 
 from falling out 8 . 
 
 tacle is allotted to the egg in a soft and moist nidus, sheltered from the 
 attacks of its enemies, an exit is at the same time secured for the little 
 larva about to be hatched from it, which will only have to advance itself 
 to separate the projecting bristles, and consequently to spread, sufficiently 
 wide to allow of its passage between them, the ridges of the culm which 
 have been, by their intervention, prevented from uniting after the wound 
 inflicted on them : a union which would have effectually enclosed and 
 buried the included egg with its larva, unfurnished as the latter appa- 
 rently is with any means of forcing for itself a passage. The egg of the 
 much more common flat water-bug, Nepa cinerea, LINN., is still more 
 extensively furnished with the curious appendages adverted to: it has 
 no less than seven bristles, forming a crown, as it were, round one of its 
 extremities. E. T. B. 
 
 8 I suspect that the insect here meant is not the Phalcena Quei-cus, but 
 the Phalcena viridata, concerning which, I find the following note in my 
 Naturalist's Calendar for the year 1785: 
 
 About this time, and for a few days last past, I observed the leaves of 
 almost all the oak trees in Denn Copse to be eaten and destroyed, and, 
 on examining more narrowly, saw an infinite number of small beautiful 
 pale green moths flying about the trees ; the leaves of which that were 
 not quite destroyed were curled up, and withinside were the exuvice or 
 remains of the chrysalis, from whence I suppose the moths had issued, 
 and whose caterpillar had eaten the leaves. MARKWICK. 
 
 It is by no means improbable, notwithstanding the differences in their 
 
INSECTS AND VERMES. 469 
 
 EPHEMERA CAUDA TRISETA MAY FLY. 
 
 JUNE 10, 1771. Myriads of May flies appear for the 
 first time on the Alresford stream. The air was crowded 
 with them, and the surface of the water covered. Large 
 trouts sucked them in as they lay struggling on the 
 
 descriptions, that Markwick may have correctly indicated the insect ob- 
 served by White : for I am not aware that the caterpillar of any small moth, 
 except the Tortrix viridana, denudes the oak of its foliage to so great an 
 extent as that noticed in the text. White's insect evidently belonged to 
 the family of TortricidcE, or leaf-rollers, as they may be called ; as is shown 
 by its pupa being wrapped up in a leaf, which was rolled round it, and 
 secured at the ends by a web to prevent it from falling out It conse- 
 quently could not have been the Phalama Querc&s, LINN., a large moth 
 belonging to the Bombycida, the pupa of which is enveloped in a cocoon 
 of considerable size, as is seen in that of the silk-worm, perhaps the most 
 familiar instance of the family. The Phalcena quercana is a leaf-roller : 
 but this could scarcely have been White's moth, as its deep rufous-yellow 
 wings would not have appeared to him of a pale yellow colour ; and I 
 have besides no reason for believing that it ever abounds on the oak so 
 excessively as to strip the trees of their leaves. The latter remark would 
 also apply to the Tortrices of the genus Dictyopteryx of Mr. Stephens ; 
 some one of which may, however, possibly have been the insect meant. 
 But great ravages are unquestionably committed by the moth described 
 by Markwick, known to aurelians by the name of the pea-green. Ha- 
 worth's remarks on it, in his Lepidoptera Britannica, are confirmatory of 
 Markwick's observations, and are worthy of perusal, not merely on that 
 account, but as they include also an exposition of one of those admirable 
 provisions of nature by which excess in any single department is coun- 
 teracted. 
 
 " In most seasons," Mr. Haworth says, " this insect occurs in greater 
 abundance than any other of the genus ; but a few summers since they 
 were produced in such amazing quantities about London, and also in 
 Norfolk, as threatened annihilation to our oaks; and must eventually 
 have really destroyed them, had not nature, by one of her admirable 
 efforts, cured the calamity in her own way : by simply starving the Tor- 
 trices. The oaks were defoliated by their voracious larvae ; not a perfect 
 leaf, nay hardly the rib of one, was left; in consequence of which myriads 
 of the caterpillars perished through want and hunger, or failed, through 
 weakness, to surmount the difficulties of pupation. So that very few 
 eggs were deposited for the following season ; which, as I predicted, 
 was not overburthened with an increase of the Tortrix, as many expected, 
 and which would have ruined the oaks : but, with such an astonishing 
 diminution, that hardly a single specimen was to be found where, but the 
 year before, thousands swarmed on every oak." E. T. B. 
 
470 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 surface of the stream, unable to rise till their wings 
 were dried. 
 
 This appearance reconciled me in some measure to 
 the wonderful account that Scopoli gives of the quan- 
 tities emerging from the rivers of Carniola. Their 
 motions are very peculiar, up and down for many yards 
 almost in a perpendicular line 9 . 
 
 SPHINX OCELLATA. 
 
 A VAST insect appears after it is dusk, flying with a 
 humming noise, and inserting its tongue into the bloom 
 of the honeysuckle ; it scarcely settles upon the plants, 
 but feeds on the wing in the manner of humming birds 10 . 
 
 WILD BEE. 
 
 THERE is a sort of wild bee frequenting the garden- 
 campion for the sake of its tomentum, which probably it 
 
 9 I once saw a swarm of these insects playing up and down over the 
 surface of a pond in Denn Park, exactly in the manner described by this 
 accurate naturalist. It was late in the evening of a warm summer's day, 
 when I observed them. M ARKWICK. 
 
 10 I have frequently seen the large bee moth (Sphinx Stellatarum) 
 inserting its long tongue or proboscis into the centre of flowers, and feed- 
 ing on their nectar, without settling on them, but keeping constantly on the 
 
 MACROT,|.OSS* STKLI.ATAH'. M. 
 
INSECTS AND VERMES. 471 
 
 turns to some purpose in the business of nidification. 
 It is very pleasant to see with what address it strips 
 off the pubes, running from the top to the bottom of a 
 branch, and shaving it bare with all the dexterity of a 
 hoop shaver 11 . When it has got a vast bundle, almost 
 as large as itself, it flies away, holding it secure between 
 its chin and its fore legs. 
 
 There is a remarkable hill on the downs" near Lewes 
 in Sussex, known by the name of Mount Carburn, which 
 overlooks that town, and affords a most engaging pros- 
 pect of all the country round, besides several views of 
 the sea. On the very summit of this exalted promon- 
 tory, and amidst the trenches of its Danish camp, there 
 haunts a species of wild bee, making its nest in the 
 chalky soil 12 . When people approach the place, these 
 insects begin to be alarmed, and, with a sharp and hos- 
 tile sound, dash and strike round the heads and faces of 
 intruders. I have been often interrupted myself while 
 contemplating the grandeur of the scenery around me, 
 and have thought myself in danger of being stung, 
 
 WASPS, 
 
 WASPS abound in woody wild districts far from neigh- 
 bourhoods ; they feed on flowers, and catch flies and 
 caterpillars to carry to their young. Wasps make their 
 nests with the raspings of sound timber ; hornets, with 
 what they gnaw from decayed: these particles of wood 
 are kneaded up with a mixture of saliva from their 
 bodies and moulded into combs. 
 
 When there is no fruit in the gardens, wasps eat 
 flies, and suck the honey from flowers, from ivy blos- 
 soms, and umbellated plants : they carry off also flesh 
 from butchers' shambles 13 . 
 
 11 I possess a specimen of the stem of the garden or rose campion, upon 
 which a bee was thus employed; but being scared away by my approach 
 left the cotton it had shaved off in a neatly rolled up parcel. RENNIE. 
 
 13 Probably Bombus lapidarius. RENNIE. 
 
 la In the year 1775 wasps abounded so prodigiously in this neighbour- 
 
472 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 (ESTRUS CURVICAUDA. 
 
 THIS insect lays its nits or eggs on horses' legs, flanks, 
 &c. each on a single hair. The maggots when hatched 
 do not enter the horses' skins, but fall to the ground. 
 It seems to abound most in moist moorish places, though 
 sometimes seen in the uplands 14 . 
 
 NOSE FLY. 
 
 ABOUT the beginning of July, a species of fly (Musca) 
 obtains, which proves very tormenting to horses, trying 
 still to enter their nostrils and ears, and actually laying 
 their eggs in the latter of those organs, or perhaps in 
 both. When these abound, horses in woodland districts 
 become very impatient at their work, continually toss- 
 ing their heads, and rubbing their noses on each other, 
 regardless of the driver, so that accidents often ensue. 
 In the heat of the day, men are often obliged to desist 
 from ploughing. Saddle horses are also very trouble- 
 some at such seasons. Country people call this insect 
 the nose fly 15 . 
 
 ICHNEUMON FLY. 
 
 I SAW lately a small ichneumon fly attack a spider 
 much larger than itself on a grass walk. When the 
 
 hood, that, in the month of August, no less than seven or eight nests were 
 ploughed up in one field : of which there were several instances, as I 
 was informed. 
 
 In the spring, about the beginning of April, a single wasp is sometimes 
 seen, which is of a larger size than usual ; this I imagine is the queen or 
 female wasp, the mother of the future swarm. MARKWICK. 
 
 14 A full account of the proceedings of the Gasterophilus Equi, LEACH, 
 will be found in Letter XXXIV. to Pennant, and in the note subjoined 
 to it, at p. 150. E. T. B. 
 
 15 Is not this insect the CEstrus nasalis of Linnaeus, so well described by 
 Mr. Clark in the third volume of the Linnean Transactions, under the 
 name of CEstrus veterinus*? MARKWICK. 
 
 * [Gayterofthilus nasalis, CURT.] 
 
INSECTS AND VERMES. 473 
 
 spider made any resistance, the ichneumon applied 
 her tail to him, and stung him with great vehemence, 
 so that he soon became dead and motionless. The 
 ichneumon then running backward, drew her prey very 
 nimbly over the walk into the standing grass. This 
 spider would be deposited in some hole where the ich- 
 neumon would lay some eggs; and as soon as the 
 eggs were hatched, the carcass would afford ready food 
 for the maggots. 
 
 Perhaps some eggs might be injected into the body 
 of the spider, in the act of stinging. Some ichneumons 
 deposit their eggs in the aurelia of moths and butter- 
 flies 16 . 
 
 16 The caterpillar of the small eggar moth (Phalana Lanestris*) is 
 peculiarly subject to the attacks of a very small ichneumon fly. Indeed, 
 I believe that not one in a thousand escapes, luckily for the thorn hedges, 
 which would otherwise be entirely devoured by them, for no bird will 
 touch them on account of their hairs, and the sole eating of them seems 
 to be given to the ichneumons. The creature continues feeding and 
 thriving with a whole colony of maggots within it, till full grown ; and 
 the maggots come to maturity at the same time precisely. At the moment 
 when the caterpillar is preparing to spin its web, they gnaw a hole through 
 its side, and issuing through it, immediately begin to spin their own webs, 
 and turn to chrysalides all huddled together ; and so completely have 
 they devoured its inside, that nothing remains but a dead skin of a cater- 
 pillar attached to their webs ; yet, strange to say, I have seen the cater- 
 pillar walking just before they burst out W. H. 
 
 In my Naturalist's Calendar for 1795, July 21st, I find the following 
 note: 
 
 It is not uncommon for some of the species of ichneumon flies to deposit 
 their eggs in the chrysalis of a butterfly : some time ago I put two of the 
 chrysalis of a butterfly into a box, and covered it with gauze, to discover 
 what species of butterfly they would produce ; but instead of a butterfly, 
 one of them produced a number of small ichneumon flies. 
 
 There are many instances of the great service these little insects are to 
 mankind in reducing the number of noxious insects, by depositing their 
 eggs in the soft bodies of their larva; ; but none more remarkable than 
 that of the Ichneumon Tipulte^ which pierces the tender body and deposits 
 its eggs in the larva of the Tipula Tritici\, an insect which, when it 
 abounds greatly, is very prejudicial to the grains of wheat. This opera- 
 tion I have frequently seen it perform with wonder and delight. MARK- 
 WICK. 
 
 * [Eriogaster Lanestris, GERM.] t [Ceddomyia Tritici, KIRB.] 
 
474 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 BOMBYLIU8 MEDIUS. 
 
 THE Bombyliw medius is much about in March and the 
 beginning of April, and soon seems to retire. It is a 
 hairy insect, like an bumblebee, but with only two 
 wings, and a long straight beak, with which it sucks 
 the early flowers. The female seems to lay its eggs as 
 it poises on its wings, by striking its tail on the ground, 
 and against the grass that stands in its way, in a quick 
 manner, for several times together 17 . 
 
 MUSCLE FLIES. 
 
 IN the decline of the year, when the mornings and even- 
 ings become chilly, many species of flies (Musca) retire 
 into houses, and swarm in the windows. 
 
 At first they are very brisk and alert; but as they 
 grow more torpid, one cannot help observing that they 
 move with difficulty, and are scarce able to lift their 
 legs, which seem as if glued to the glass; and by 
 degrees many do actually stick on till they die in the 
 place. 
 
 It has been observed that divers flies, besides their 
 sharp hooked nails, have also skinny palms, or flaps to 
 their feet, whereby they are enabled to stick on glass 
 and other smooth bodies, and to walk on ceilings with 
 their backs downward, by means of the pressure of the 
 atmosphere on those flaps : the weight of which they 
 easily overcome in warm weather when they are brisk 
 and alert. But in the decline of the year, this resist- 
 ance becomes too mighty for their diminished strength ; 
 and we see flies labouring along, and lugging their feet 
 in windows, as if they stuck fast to the glass, and it is 
 with the utmost difficulty they can draw one foot after 
 
 17 I have often seen this insect fly with great velocity, stop on a sudden, 
 hang in the air in a stationary position for some time, and then fly off 
 again; but do not recollect having ever seen it strike its tail against the 
 ground, or any other substance. MARKWICK. 
 
INSECTS AND VKRMES. 475 
 
 another, and disengage their hollow caps from the 
 slippery surface. 
 
 Upon the same principle that flies stick and support 
 themselves, do boys, by way of play, carry heavy 
 weights by only a piece of wet leather at the end of a 
 string clapped close on the surface of a stone. 
 
 
 
 TIPUL^E, OR EMPIDES. 
 
 MAY. Millions of Empides, or Tipula, come forth at 
 the close of day, and swarm to such a degree as to fill 
 the air. At this juncture they sport and copulate ; as 
 it grows more dark they retire. All day they hide in 
 the hedges. As they rise in a cloud they appear like 
 smoke. 
 
 I do not ever remember to have seen such swarms, 
 except in the fens of the Isle of Ely. They appear 
 most over grass grounds. 
 
 ANTS. 
 
 AUGUST 23. Every ant hill about this time is in a 
 strange hurry and confusion ; and all the winged ants, 
 agitated by some violent impulse, are leaving their 
 homes, and, bent on emigration, swarm by myriads in 
 the air, to the great emolument of the Hirundines, which 
 fare luxuriously. Those that escape the swallows re- 
 turn no more to their nests, but, looking out for fresh 
 settlements, lay a foundation for future colonies. All 
 the females at this time are pregnant : the males that 
 escape being eaten wander away and die. 
 
 October 2. Flying ants, male and female, usually 
 swarm and migrate on hot sunny days in August and 
 September ; but this day a vast emigration took place 
 in my garden, and myriads came forth, in appearance, 
 from the drain which goes under the fruit wall ; filling 
 the air and the adjoining trees and shrubs with their 
 numbers. The females were full of eggs. This late 
 swarming is probably owing to the backward, wet 
 
476 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 season. The day following, not one flying ant was to 
 be seen. 
 
 Horse ants travel home to their nests laden with flies, 
 which they have caught, and the aurelige of smaller 
 ants, which they seize by violence 18 . 
 
 GLOW-WORMS. 
 
 BY observing two glow-worms which were brought from 
 the field to the bank in the garden, it appeared to us, 
 that these little creatures put out their lamps between 
 eleven and twelve, and shine no more for the rest of the 
 night. 
 
 Male glow-worms, attracted by the light of the 
 candles, come into the parlour. 
 
 EARTHWORMS. 
 
 EARTHWORMS make their casts most in mild weather 
 about March and April ; they do not lie torpid in winter, 
 but come forth when there is no frost ; they travel about 
 in rainy nights, as appears from their sinuous tracks on 
 the soft muddy soil, perhaps in search of food. 
 
 When earthworms lie out a nights on the turf, though 
 they extend their bodies a great way, they do not quite 
 leave their holes, but keep the ends of their tails fixed 
 therein, so that on the least alarm they can retire with 
 
 18 In my Naturalist's Calendar for the year 1777, on September 6th, I 
 find the following note to the article Flying Ants : 
 
 I saw a prodigious swarm of these ants flying about the top of some 
 tall elm trees close by my house ; some were continually dropping to the 
 ground as if from the trees, and others rising up from the ground : many 
 of them were pairing; and I imagine their life is but short, for as soon 
 as produced from the egg by the heat of the sun, they propagate their 
 species, and soon after perish. They were black, somewhat like the 
 small black ant, and had four wings. I saw also, at another place, a 
 large sort which were yellowish. On the 8th of September, 1785, 1 again 
 observed the same circumstance of a vast number of these insects flying 
 near the tops of the elms and dropping to the ground. 
 
 On the 2nd of March, 1777, I saw great numbers of ants come out of 
 the ground. MARKVVICK. 
 
INSECTS AND VERMES. 477 
 
 precipitation under the earth. Whatever food falls 
 within their reach when thus extended, they seem to be 
 content with, such as blades of grass, straws, fallen 
 leaves, the ends of which they often draw into their 
 holes ; even when pairing their hinder parts never quit 
 their holes : so that no two, except they lie within 
 reach of each other's bodies, can pair ; but as every 
 individual is an hermaphrodite, there is no'difficulty in 
 meeting with a mate, as would be the case were they of 
 different sexes. 
 
 SNAILS AND SLUGS. 
 
 THE shell-less snails called slugs are in motion all the 
 winter in mild weather, and commit great depredations 
 on garden plants, and much injure the green wheat, 
 the loss of which is imputed to earthworms ; while the 
 shelled snail, the Qepeomog, does not come forth at all till 
 about April 10th, and not only lays itself up pretty 
 early in autumn, in places secure from frost, but also 
 throws out round the mouth of its shell a thick opercu- 
 lum formed from its own saliva ; so that it is perfectly 
 secured, and corked up as it were, from all inclemencies. 
 The cause why the slugs are able to endure the cold so 
 much better than shell snails is, that their bodies are 
 covered with slime as whales are with blubber. 
 
 Snails pair about Midsummer; and soon after deposit 
 their eggs in the mould by running their heads and 
 bodies underground. Hence the way to be rid of them 
 is to kill as many as possible before they begin to 
 breed. 
 
 Large, gray, shell-less, cellar snails lay themselves 
 up about the same time with those that live abroad ; 
 hence it is plain that a defect of warmth is not the only 
 cause that influences their retreat. 
 
478 OBSERVATIONS ON INSECTS, ETC. 
 
 SNAKES' SLOUGH. 
 
 " There the snake throws her enamell'd skin." 
 
 SHAKSPEARE, Mids. Night's Dream. 
 
 ABOUT the middle of this month (September) we found 
 in a field near a hedge the slough of a large snake, 
 which seemed to have been newly cast. From circum- 
 stances it appeared as if turned wrong side outward, 
 and as drawn off backward, like a stocking or woman's 
 glove. Not only the whole skin, but scales from the 
 very eyes, are peeled off, and appear in the head of the 
 slough like a pair of spectacles. The reptile, at the 
 time of changing his coat, had entangled himself intri- 
 cately in the grass and weeds, so that the friction of the 
 stalks and blades might promote this curious shifting 
 of his exuviae. 
 
 Lubrica serpens 
 
 IX u it in spinis vestem." LUCRET. 
 
 It would be a most entertaining sight could a person 
 be an eye-witness to such a feat, and see the snake in 
 the act of changing his garment. As the convexity of 
 the scales of the eyes in the slough is now inward, that 
 circumstance alone is a proof that the skin has been 
 turned : not to mention that now the present inside is 
 much darker than the outer. If you look through the 
 scales of the snake's eyes from the concave side, viz. as 
 the reptile used them, they lessen objects much. Thus 
 it appears from what has been said, that snakes crawl 
 out of the mouth of their own sloughs, and quit the tail 
 part last, just as eels are skinned by a cook maid. 
 While the scales of the eyes are growing loose, and a 
 new skin is forming, the creature, in appearance, must 
 be blind, and feel itself in an awkward uneasy situa- 
 tion 1 ^ 
 
 19 I have seen many sloughs or skins of snakes entire, after they have 
 cast them off; and once in particular I remember to have found one of 
 
479 
 
 OBSERVATIONS ON VEGETABLES. 
 
 TREES, ORDER OP LOSING THEIR LEAVES. 
 
 ONE of the first trees that becomes naked is the walnut: 
 the mulberry, the ash, especially if it bears many keys, 
 and the horse-chestnut, come next. All lopped trees, 
 while their heads are young, carry their leaves a long 
 while. Apple-trees and peaches remain green till very 
 late, often till the end of November: young beeches 
 never cast their leaves till spring, till the new leaves 
 sprout and push them off: in the autumn the beechen 
 leaves turn of a deep chestnut colour. Tall beeches 
 cast their leaves about the end of October. 
 
 these sloughs so intricately interwoven amongst some brakes that it was 
 with difficulty removed without being broken: this undoubtedly was done 
 by the creature to assist in getting rid of its incumbrance. 
 
 I have great reason to suppose that the eft or common lizard also casts 
 its skin or slough, but not entire like the snake ; for on the 30th of March, 
 1777, I saw one with something ragged hanging to it, which appeared to 
 be part of its old skin*. MARKWICK. 
 
 * I have often seen caterpillars in the act of changing their skins, and 
 of throwing off the skin and becoming chrysalides; and also the fly in the 
 act of coming forth. The skin is thrown offby a wriggling motion of the 
 body, beginning from the head : the fly breaks through by quick and 
 sharp exertion of the legs ; the wings of the moth and butterfly are in 
 miniature when they come forth ; they immediately climb to a situation 
 where by position the wings hang down, and the wings quickly grow to 
 their full size and become rigid. If they are prevented from reaching 
 such a situation, or dislodged before the wings are full grown and 
 stiffened, they will remain rumpled and unserviceable. W. H. 
 
480 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 SIZE AND GROWTH. 
 
 MR. MARSH AM of Stratton, near Norwich, informs me 
 by letter thus : " I became a planter early ; so that an 
 oak which I planted in 1720 is become now, at one foot 
 from the earth, twelve feet six inches in circumference, 
 and at fourteen feet (the half of the timber length) is 
 eight feet two inches. So if the bark was to be mea- 
 sured as timber, the tree gives one hundred and sixteen 
 and a half feet, buyer's measure. Perhaps you never 
 heard of a larger oak while the planter was living. I 
 flatter myself that I increased the growth by washing 
 the stem, and digging a circle as far as I supposed the 
 roots to extend, and by spreading sawdust, &c. as re- 
 lated in the Philosophical Transactions. I wish I had 
 begun with beeches, (my favourite trees as well as 
 yours), I might then have seen very large trees of iny 
 own raising. But I did not begin with beech till 1741, 
 and then by seed ; so that my largest is now, at five 
 feet from the ground, six feet three inches in girth, and 
 with its head spreads a circle of twenty yards diameter. 
 This tree was also dug round, washed, &c." Stratton, 
 24 July, 1790 *. 
 
 1 Robert Marsham, of Stratton Strawless, a country gentleman of similar 
 tastes in many respects with Gilbert White, commenced his observations 
 on some of the proceedings of nature at an earlier period than our his- 
 torian, and continued them to a later date. A register of the indications 
 of spring, published by him in the Philosophical Transactions, begins in 
 1736, and is continued for more than half a century. His latest paper in 
 that valuable collection, is devoted to an account of the measurements of 
 trees, being supplemental to a communication made by him nearly forty 
 years before. It contains, among others, the girth of the oak planted by 
 himself in 1720: a singular instance of longevity combined with perse- 
 verance in the same pursuit. Few are the men who live to measure trees 
 planted by themselves seventy-seven years previously ! 
 
 It was at the hospitable seat of his "very worthy and ingenious friend, 
 Robert Marsham," that Stillingfleet prepared his Calendar of Flora for 
 1755, which has been already referred to. He thus speaks of its situa- 
 tion : " All the country about is a dead flat ; on one side is a barren black 
 heath ; on the other a light sandy loam ; partly tilled, partly pasture land 
 sheltered with fine groves." E. T. B. 
 
VEGETABLES. 481 
 
 The circumference of trees planted by myself, at one 
 foot from the groimd (1790). 
 
 Oak in 1730 . 
 
 Ash 1730 . 
 
 Great fir 1751 . 
 
 Greatest beech 1751 . 
 
 Elm 1750 . 
 
 Lime 1756 . 
 
 The great oak in the Holt, which is deemed by 
 Mr. Marsham to be the biggest in this island, at seven 
 
 feet. 
 
 4 
 4 
 5 
 4 
 5 
 5 
 
 inches. 
 
 5 
 
 61 
 
 
 8 
 
 5 2 
 
 THE GRINDSTONE OAK, IN THE HOLT FOREST. 
 
 2 It is now impossible so to identify the trees whose measurements are 
 given in the text, as to warrant a statement of their actual circumference, 
 and thus to afford data for determining their rate of growth in their 
 
 I I 
 
482 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 feet from the ground, measures in circumference thirty- 
 four feet. It has in old times lost several of its boughs, 
 and is tending to decay. Mr. Marsham computes, that 
 at fourteen feet length this oak contains one thousand 
 feet of timber 3 . 
 
 It has been the received opinion that trees grow in 
 height only by their annual upper shoot. But my neigh- 
 bour over the way, whose occupation confines him to 
 one spot, assures me that trees are expanded and raised 
 in the lower parts also. The reason that he gives is 
 this: the point of one of my. firs began for the first time 
 to peer over an opposite roof at the beginning of sum- 
 mer ; but before the growing season was over, the whole 
 shoot of the year, and three or four joints of the body 
 beside, became visible to him as he sits on his form in 
 his shop 4 . According to this supposition, a tree may 
 
 earlier, and in their more mature years. The greatest beech which I 
 observed in 1835, in the park-like enclosure at the back of Gilbert White's 
 house at Selborne, measured ten feet in circumference at about one foot 
 from the ground: the largest ash in the same enclosure, nine feet: and a 
 fine fir, which the author was wont to speak of as his eldest son, and 
 which is perhaps the great fir alluded to above, measured eight feet 
 in circumference. If, however, the great fir be the same with Gilbert 
 White's eldest son, its growth during the last forty-five years has been 
 slow as compared with that which took place in the forty earlier years 
 of its existence. E. T. B. 
 
 3 There are in the Holt two great oaks ; one known as the Grindstone, 
 and the other as the Buck's Horn. The former, I apprehend, is the one 
 measured by Mr. Marsham. At about five feet from the ground its cir- 
 cumference is fully thirty-six feet. It is now a ruin merely, and desti- 
 tute altogether of life : a massive ruin, however, which will resist, through 
 generations yet to come, the utmost force of the elements. Its singularly 
 formed and gigantic vertical branch will probably be severed, before 
 many years are past, from the stupendous trunk : but the trunk itself 
 will endure. The care which has been judiciously taken to preserve it 
 from wanton or thoughtless, injury, is highly praiseworthy : both it and 
 the Buck's Horn are surrounded by a fence and hedge. 
 
 The Buck's Horn oak is of a very different form from the Grindstone. 
 It is not yet entirely dead. A figure of it, from a sketch taken at the 
 same time with that from which the above drawing was made, will be 
 given in the work entitled Selborne and its Vicinity, to which I have 
 already had occasion to refer for the further illustration of much of the 
 local scenery. E. T. B. 
 
 4 Mr. White is innocent of this observation, and merely relates the 
 
VEGETABLES. 483 
 
 advance in height considerably, though the summer 
 shoot should be destroyed every year. 
 
 FLOWING OF SAP. 
 
 IF the bough of a vine is cut late in the spring, just 
 before the shoots push out, it will bleed considerably ; 
 but after the leaf is out, any part may He taken off 
 without the least inconvenience. So oaks may be 
 barked while the leaf is budding ; but as soon as they 
 are expanded, the bark will no longer part from the 
 wood, because the sap that lubricates the bark and 
 makes it part, is evaporated off through the leaves. 
 
 RENOVATION OF LEAVES. 
 
 WHEN oaks are quite stripped of their leaves by chafers, 
 they are clothed again soon after Midsummer with a 
 beautiful foliage; but beeches, horse-chestnuts, and 
 maples, once defaced by those insects, never recover 
 their beauty again for the whole season. 
 
 ASH-TREES. 
 
 MANY ash-trees bear loads of keys every year, others 
 never seem to bear any at all. The prolific ones are 
 naked of leaves and unsightly ; those that are sterile 
 abound in foliage, and carry their verdure a long while, 
 and are pleasing objects. 
 
 BEECH. 
 
 BEECHES love to grow in crowded situations, and will 
 insinuate themselves through the thickest covert, so as 
 to surmount it all : are therefore proper to mend thin 
 places in tall hedges. 
 
 assertion of a shopkeeper, which I apprehend was erroneous. It seems 
 quite impossible that an expansion of such magnitude should have taken 
 place. W. H. 
 
484 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 SYCAMORE. 
 
 MAY 12. The sycamore, or great maple, is in bloom, 
 and at this season makes a beautiful appearance, and 
 affords much pabulum for bees, smelling strongly like 
 honey. The foliage of this tree is very fine, and very 
 ornamental to outlets. All the maples have saccharine 
 juices. 
 
 GALLS OP LOMBARDY POPLAR. 
 
 THE stalks and ribs of the leaves of the Lombardy 
 poplar are embossed with large tumours of an oblong 
 shape, which, by incurious observers, have been taken 
 for the fruit of the tree. These galls are full of small 
 insects, some of which are winged, and some not. The 
 parent insect is of the genus of Cynips. Some poplars in 
 the garden are quite loaded with these excrescences. 
 
 CHESTNUT TIMBER. 
 
 JOHN CARPENTER brings home some old chestnut- 
 trees which are very long ; in several places the wood- 
 peckers had begun to bore them. The timber and bark 
 of these trees are so very like oak, as might easily 
 deceive an indifferent observer, but the wood is very 
 shakey, and towards the heart cup-shakey (that is to 
 say, apt to separate in round pieces like cups), so that 
 the inward parts are of no use. They were bought for 
 the purpose of cooperage, but must make but ordinary 
 barrels, buckets, &c. Chestnut sells for half the price 
 of oak; but has sometimes been sent into the king's 
 docks, and passed off instead of oak. 
 
 LIME BLOSSOMS. 
 
 DR. CHANDLER tells, that in the south of France, an 
 infusion of the blossoms of the lime-tree ( Tilia) is in 
 much esteem as a remedy for coughs, hoarsenesses, 
 
VEGETABLES. 485 
 
 fevers, &c. and that at Nismes, he saw an avenue of 
 limes that was quite ravaged and torn in pieces by 
 people greedily gathering the bloom, which they dried 
 and kept for these purposes. 
 
 Upon the strength of this information we made some 
 tea of lime blossoms, and found it a very soft, well 
 flavoured, pleasant, saccharine julep, in-jtaste much 
 resembling the juice of liquorice. 
 
 BLACKTHORN. 
 
 THIS tree usually blossoms while cold north-east winds 
 blow; so that the harsh rugged weather obtaining at 
 this season is called by the country people, blackthorn 
 winter. 
 
 IVY BERRIES. 
 
 IVY berries afford a noble and providential supply for 
 birds in winter and spring; for the first severe frost 
 freezes and spoils all the haws, sometimes by the middle 
 of November ; ivy berries do not seem to freeze. 
 
 HOPS. 
 
 THE culture of Virgil's vines corresponded very exactly 
 wi th the modern management of hops. I might instance 
 in the perpetual diggings and hoeings, in the tying to 
 the stakes and poles, in pruning the superfluous shoots, 
 &c.; but lately I have observed a new circumstance, 
 which was, a neighbouring farmer's harrowing between 
 the rows of hops with a small triangular harrow, drawn 
 by one horse, and guided by two handles. This occur- 
 rence brought to my mind the following passage : 
 
 ipsa 
 
 Flectere luctantes inter vineta juvencos." 
 
 GEORGIC. II. 
 
 Hops are dioecious plants ; hence perhaps it might be 
 proper, though not practised, to leave purposely some 
 
486 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 male plants in every garden, that their farina iiiiirht 
 impregnate the blossoms. The female plants without 
 their male attendants are not in their natural state: 
 hence we may suppose the frequent failure of crop so 
 incident to hop-grounds; no other growth, cultivated 
 by man, has such frequent and general failures as hops. 
 Two hop-gardens much injured by a hailstorm, 
 June 5, show now (September 2) a prodigious crop, 
 and larger and fairer hops than any in the parish. The 
 owners seem now to be convinced that the hail, by 
 beating off the tops of the binds, has increased the 
 side shoots, and improved the crop. Query therefore, 
 should not the tops of hops be pinched off when the 
 binds are very gross and strong ? 
 
 SEED LYING DORMANT. 
 
 THE naked part of the Hanger is now covered with 
 thistles of various kinds. The seeds of these thistles 
 may have lain probably under the thick shade of the 
 beeches for many years, but could not vegetate till the 
 sun and air were admitted. When old beech-trees are 
 cleared away, the naked ground in a year or two be- 
 comes covered with strawberry plants, the seeds of 
 which must have lain in the ground for an age at least. 
 One of the slidders or trenches down the middle of the 
 Hanger, close covered over with lofty beeches near a 
 century old, is still called Strawberry Slidder, though no 
 strawberries have grown there in the memory of man. 
 That sort of fruit, did once, no doubt, abound there, and 
 will again when the obstruction is removed 5 . 
 
 5 Many years ago I observed the whole line of the fresh-made bank of 
 a new cut then in progress near Spalding in Lincolnshire completely 
 covered with wild mustard, though not a plant of it was to be seen else- 
 where in the neighbourhood. This seed must have been thrown up from 
 the bottom of the cut, which to the best of my recollection was twelve or 
 fourteen feet deep: and I conclude that it must have been antedilu- 
 vial. W. H. 
 
VEGETABLES. 487 
 
 BEANS SOWN BY BIRDS. 
 
 MANY horsebeans sprang up in my field-walks in the 
 autumn, and are now grown to a considerable height. 
 As the Ewel was in beans last summer, it is most likely 
 that these seeds came from thence; but then the dis- 
 tance is too considerable for them to have"- been con- 
 veyed by mice. It is most probable therefore that they 
 were brought by birds, and in particular by jays and 
 pies, who seem to have hid them among the grass and 
 moss, and then to have forgotten where they had stowed 
 them. Some pease are also growing in the same situa- 
 tion, and probably under the same circumstances. 
 
 CUCUMBERS SET BY BEES. 
 
 IF bees, who are much the best setters of cucumbers, 
 do not happen to take kindly to the frames, the best 
 way is to tempt them by a little honey put on the male 
 and female bloom. When they are once induced to 
 haunt the frames, they set all the fruit, and will hover 
 with impatience round the lights in a morning, till the 
 glasses are opened. Probatum est. 
 
 WHEAT. 
 
 A NOTION has always obtained, that in England hot 
 summers are productive of fine crops of wheat ; yet in 
 the years 1780 and 1781, though the heat was intense, 
 the wheat was much mildewed, and the crop light. 
 Does not severe heat, while the straw is milky, occasion 
 its juices to exude, which being extravasated, occasion 
 spots, discolour the stems and blades, and injure the 
 health of the plants ? 
 
 TRUFFLES. 
 
 AUGUST. A truffle-hunter called on us, having in his 
 pocket several large truffles found in this neighbour- 
 
488 OBSERVATIONS ON 
 
 ood. He says these roots are not to be found in deep 
 woods, but in narrow hedge-rows and the skirts of 
 coppices. Some truffles, he informed us, lie two feet 
 within the earth, and some quite on the surface; the 
 latter, he added, have little or no smell, and are not so 
 easily discovered by the dogs as those that lie deeper. 
 Half-a-crown a pound was the price which he asked 
 for this commodity. 
 
 Truffles never abound in wet winters and springs. 
 They are in season, in different situations, at least nine 
 months in the year 6 . 
 
 TREMELLA NOSTOC. 
 
 THOUGH the weather may have been ever so dry and 
 burning, yet after two or three wet days, this jellylike 
 substance abounds on the walks. 
 
 FAIRY RINGS 7 . 
 
 THE cause, occasion, call it what you will, of fairy 
 rings, subsists in the turf, and is conveyable with it; 
 
 6 We discovered, many years ago, an immense stock of very small 
 truffles crowded together under a young cedar-tree upon the lawn, near 
 the house at Highclere. Mr. Gowen tried successfully the experiment 
 of transplanting several of these and setting them under beech-trees, 
 marking the spots where they were planted. They increased in size, 
 and became much finer than those which were left. W. H. 
 
 7 Mr. Dovaston of Shrewsbury has lately published a very ingenious 
 paper on this subject, in which he adopts the electric theory of their 
 formation. His doctrine is, that when a column of electric matter affects 
 the earth, either ascending or descending, it scorches the ground all 
 around its edge, and leaves the centre untouched Consequently the 
 grass is withered, which contributes to fertilize the spot where the 
 herbage springs luxuriantly the following season, and at the same time 
 brings into vegetation the dormant seeds of fungi, which grow and disap- 
 pear rapidly, and with them the fairy ring rarely existing two successive 
 seasons. The common fungi of fairy rings are Agaricus, Boletus, or Lyco- 
 perdon, and, sometimes, Clavaria. RENNIE. 
 
 Mr. Jessopp, in the Philosophical Transactions for 1675, propounded 
 the electrical theory, and adduced in support of it the testimony of a friend 
 who, walking out one day among some mowing grass, in which he had 
 
VEGETABLES. 489 
 
 for the turf of my garden-walks, brought from the down 
 above, abounds with those appearances, which vary 
 their shape, and shift situation continually, discovering 
 themselves now in circles, now in segments, and some- 
 times in irregular patches and spots. Wherever they 
 obtain, puffballs abound ; the seeds of which were 
 doubtless brought in the turf. 
 
 METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
 
 BAROMETER. 
 
 NOVEMBER 22, 1768. A remarkable fall of the ba- 
 rometer all over the kingdom. At Selborne we had no 
 wind, and not much rain ; only vast, swagging, rocklike 
 clouds appeared at a distance. 
 
 PARTIAL FROST. 
 
 THE country people, who are abroad in winter mornings 
 long before sunrise, talk much of hard frost in some 
 spots, and none in others. The reason of these partial 
 frosts is obvious, for there are at such times partial 
 fogs about ; where the fog obtains, little or no frost 
 appears : but where the air is clear, there it freezes 
 hard. So the frost takes place either on hill or in dale, 
 wherever the air happens to be clearest and freest from 
 vapour. 
 
 been but a little while before, after a great storm of thunder and light- 
 ning which seemed by the noise and flashes to have been very near him, 
 observed a circle of about four or five yards diameter, the border of it 
 about a foot broad, newly burnt bare, as the colour and bitterness of the 
 grass roots plainly testified. He knew not what to ascribe it to but the 
 lightning. After the grass was mowed, the next year it came up more 
 fresh and green in the place burnt than in the middle, and at mowing 
 time was much taller and ranker. E, T. B. 
 
490 METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
 
 THAW. 
 
 THAWS are sometimes surprisingly quick, considering 
 the small quantity of rain. Does not the warmth at 
 such times come from below ? The cold in still, severe 
 seasons seems to come down from above : for the 
 coming over of a cloud in severe nights raises the ther- 
 mometer abroad at once full ten degrees. The first 
 notices of thaws often seem to appear in vaults, cel- 
 lars, &c. 
 
 If a frost happens, even when the ground is con- 
 siderably dry, as soon as a thaw takes place, the paths 
 and fields are all in a batter. Country people say that 
 the frost draws moisture. But the true philosophy is, 
 that the steam and vapours continually ascending from 
 the earth, are bound in by the frost, and not suffered to 
 escape till released by the thaw. No wonder then that 
 the surface is all in a float ; since the quantity of 
 moisture by evaporation that arises daily from every 
 acre of ground is astonishing 8 . 
 
 8 In the neighbourhood of Spofforlh, when a very sudden and mild 
 thaw takes place with perfect calm after a severe frost of some duration, 
 I am able to prognosticate that a most violent gale of wind will come on 
 in about twenty-four hours. Numbers of times have I prophesied this, 
 and I do not remember having been once wrong. So invariably have I 
 found this to occur that I have acted upon it; and I remember, particu- 
 larly, surprising my groom on a very still and mild day after a frost, by 
 telling him that I would not ride the horse he proposed to have ready for 
 me the next morning on account of its being very skittish in a gale of 
 wind, and the next day it blew a hurricane as I had expected. I appre- 
 hend that it is occasioned by the volume of cold air from Craven and the 
 moors which rushes down upon our lower regions, when the temperature 
 is suddenly raised, and becomes unusually warm. W. H. 
 
 The disappearance of frost and the melting of the snows, accompanied 
 with copious rains, are intended by nature to loosen the soil for the 
 expansion of the roots of plants, and at the same time to supply the fluids 
 which are to form the sap. Where chalk, limestone, or marble abounds 
 either in rock masses, or diffused through the soil in the form of sand or 
 gravel, the thaws of the season tend to disintegrate the more compact 
 portions and set free their carbonic acid, which, being washed down to 
 the roots of plants by rain, constitutes an important portion of their nutri- 
 ment, or at least serves as a stimulant to excite the absorbent orifices of 
 the fibrillae to imbibe nutritive juices. RENNIE. 
 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 491 
 FROZEN SLEET. 
 
 JANUARY 20. Mr. H.'s man says, that he caught this 
 day, in a lane near Hackwood Park, many rooks, which, 
 attempting to fly, fell from the trees with their wings 
 frozen together by the sleet, that froze as it fell. There 
 were, he affirms, many dozen so disabled. * 
 
 MIST, CALLED LONDON SMOKE. 
 
 THIS is a blue mist which has somewhat the smell of 
 coal-smoke, and as it always comes to us with a north- 
 east wind, is supposed to come from London. It has a 
 strong smell, and is supposed to occasion blights. When 
 such mists appear they are usually followed by dry 
 weather. 
 
 REFLECTION OF FOG. 
 
 WHEN people walk in a deep white fog by night with a 
 Ian thorn, if they will turn their backs to the light, they 
 will see their shades impressed on the fog in rude gigan- 
 tic proportions. This phenomenon seems not to have 
 been attended to, but implies the great density of the 
 meteor at that juncture 9 . 
 
 9 It appeared to me very singular that the phenomenon called mirage by 
 the French, and for which we have no other name in our language, should 
 have created so much surprise when the French and British armies were 
 in Egypt, and that it should have been looked upon as a marvel belonging 
 to that country. I was well acquainted with the phenomenon, and had 
 repeatedly seen it in the flats of Lincolnshire and the adjoining counties. 
 I have seen it day after day in hot weather upon Peterborough Common, 
 of which the remoter parts, though quite dry, looked like a great lake of 
 water in which every willow and cow was beautifully and distinctly 
 reflected downwards. I have seen the whole country between Spalding 
 and Fossdike-wash in dry weather appear like part of the sea, in the 
 middle of which rose the tower of Boston church, looking like the masts 
 and sails of a large ship standing in towards the person looking at it ; 
 and a gentleman unacquainted with the country who was with me wished 
 very much to make a wager with me that it actually was a ship, and the 
 whole extent of dry land a portion of the sea. I believe that the mirage 
 may always be seen in the flat grass districts upon a bright day in sum- 
 mer. W. H. 
 
492 METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
 
 HONEYDEW 10 . 
 
 JUNE 4, 1783. Vast honeydews this week. The 
 reason of these seems to be, that in hot days the effluvia 
 of flowers are drawn up by a brisk evaporation, and 
 then in the night fall down with the dews with which 
 they are entangled. 
 
 This clammy substance is very grateful to bees, who 
 gather it with great assiduity, but it is injurious to the 
 trees on which it happens to fall, by stopping the pores 
 of the leaves. The greatest quantity falls in still close 
 weather ; because winds disperse it, and copious dews 
 dilute it, and prevent its ill effects. It falls mostly in 
 hazy warm weather. 
 
 MORNING CLOUDS. 
 
 AFTER a bright night and vast dew, the sky usually 
 becomes cloudy by eleven or twelve o'clock in the fore- 
 noon, and clear again towards the decline of the day. 
 The reason seems to be, that the dew, drawn up by 
 evaporation, occasions the clouds ; which, towards 
 evening, being no longer rendered buoyant by the 
 warmth of the sun, melt away, and fall down again in 
 dews. If clouds are watched in a still warm evening, 
 they will be seen to melt away, and disappear 11 . 
 
 10 Honeydews are owing to a cause very different from that to which 
 they are here attributed : the remarks on them, but that Gilbert White 
 regarded them as derived from the atmosphere, ought rather to be placed 
 under the head of entomological than of meteorological observations. In 
 the notes on page 396 their true nature is explained. E. T. B. 
 
 11 During the last summer, as well as in former seasons, I have very 
 frequently remarked that when the sky was beautifully streaked with the 
 wane clouds, variously denominated mare's-tail and wind reels (Cirro- 
 stratus, HOWARD), rain almost to a certainty followed within twelve 
 hours ; and hence when the firmament is most pleasing to the eye and 
 gives token to the inexperienced of continued fine weather, storms are in 
 the meanwhile gradually brewing to belie the appearance. It reminds 
 me of .flSsop's shepherd, who was tempted to become a sailor by the tem- 
 porary but treacherous tranquillity of the sea. In the same way I have 
 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 493 
 
 DRIPPING WEATHER AFTER DROUGHT. 
 
 No one that has not attended to such matters, and 
 taken down remarks, can be aware how much ten days 
 dripping weather will influence the growth of grass or 
 corn after a severe dry season. This present summer, 
 1776, yielded a remarkable instance; for till the 30th 
 of May the fields were burnt up and naked, and the 
 barley not half out of the ground ; but now, June 10, 
 there is an agreeable prospect of plenty. 
 
 AURORA BOREALIS. 
 
 NOVEMBER 1, 1787. The Northern Aurora made a 
 particular appearance, forming itself into a broad, red, 
 fiery belt, which extended from E. to W. across the 
 welkin : but the moon rising at about ten o'clock, in 
 unclouded majesty in the E., put an end to this grand, 
 but awful meteorous phenomenon. 
 
 been frequently tempted into a rather distant excursion by these beautiful 
 wane-clouds, till repeated experience taught me, as it did Solomon, that 
 " beauty is vain," and that they only 
 
 " Lured to betray and dazzled to blind." 
 
 PARNELL. 
 
 During autumn, more particularly than at other seasons, I have 
 observed the whole sky covered with what may with propriety be 
 called a network of clouds (Cirro-cumulus, HOWARD), as if little tufts of 
 accumulated vapour had been carded through each other by opposite 
 winds, crossing and recrossing them over one another, like the osiers 
 interwoven into a transparent basket. The clouds, again, which frequently 
 bound this field of chequered vapour, are not spread out in tufts, but 
 rolled up in enormous volumes, as white as snow on the edges, but dark- 
 ening into ravines, and caverns, and overhanging precipices of endless 
 forms, which are varied every instant by the influence of electricity or of 
 the predominant winds. When the clouds assume these picturesque 
 forms about sunset, the aspect of the sky becomes very grand. The 
 magnificent netting in the area of the firmament transmits through its 
 interstices a multitude of luminous rays which tinge two sides of each 
 tuft of vapour with ruddy orange, and the other two sides with shining 
 gold in tints which no pencil can imitate, and no language describe. 
 RENNIE. 
 
494 METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
 
 BLACK SPRING, 1771. 
 
 DR. JOHNSON says, that "in 1771 the season was so 
 severe in the island of Sky, that it is remembered by 
 the name of the Black Spring. The snow, which seldom 
 lies at all, covered the ground for eight weeks, many 
 cattle died, and those that survived were so emaciated 
 that they did not require the male at the usual season." 
 The case was just the same with us here in the south ; 
 never were so many barren cows known as in the spring 
 following that dreadful period. Whole dairies missed 
 being in calf together. 
 
 At the end of March the face of the earth was naked 
 to a surprising degree. Wheat hardly to be seen, and 
 no signs of any grass; turnips all gone, and sheep in a 
 starving way. All provisions rising in price. Farmers 
 cannot sow for want of rain. 
 
SUMMARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE WEATHER. 
 
490 
 
 72 
 
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 OCOCO^ 
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 odc^coco^dcodoi-^^t 
 
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SUMMARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE WEATHER. 
 
 1 768. BEGINS with a fortnight's frost and snow. .Rainy during 
 February. Cold and wet spring. Wet season from the begin- 
 ning of June to the end of harvest. Latter end of September 
 foggy, without rain. All October and the first part of Novem- 
 ber rainy ; and thence to the end of the year alternate rains 
 and frosts. 
 
 1769. January and February, frosty and rainy, with gleams 
 of fine weather in the intervals. To the middle of March, wind 
 and rain : to the end of March, dry and windy. To the middle 
 of April, stormy, with rain. To the end of June, fine weather, 
 with rain. To the beginning of August, warm, dry weather. 
 To the end of September, rainy, with short intervals of fine 
 weather. To the latter end of October, frosty mornings, with 
 fine days. The next fortnight rainy ; thence to the end of 
 November dry and frosty. December, windy, with rain and 
 intervals of frost, and the first fortnight very foggy. 
 
 1770. Frost for the first fortnight : during the 14th and 15th 
 all the snow melted. To the end of February, mild, hazy wea- 
 ther. The whole of March frosty, with bright weather. April 
 cloudy, with rain and snow. May began with summer showers, 
 and ended with dark cold rains. June, rainy, chequered with 
 gleams of sunshine. The first fortnight in July, dark and sul- 
 try ; the latter part of the month, heavy rain. August, Septem- 
 ber, and the first fortnight in October, in general fine weather, 
 though with frequent interruptions of rain : from the middle of 
 October to the end of the year, almost incessant rains. 
 
 1771. Severe frost till the last week in January. To the 
 first week in February, rain and snow: to the end of February, 
 spring weather. To the end of the third week in April, frosty 
 weather. To the end of the first fortnight in May, spring wea- 
 ther, with copious showers. To the end of June, dry, warm 
 weather. The first fortnight in July, warm, rainy weather. To 
 the end of September, warm weather, but in general cloudy, 
 with showers. October, rainy. November, frost, with intervals 
 of fog and rain. December, in general bright, mild weather, 
 with hoar frosts. 
 
 K Is 
 
498 SUMMARY OF 
 
 1772. To the end of the first week in February, frost ami 
 snow. To the end of the first fortnight in March, frost, sleet, 
 rain, and snow. To the middle of April, cold rains. To the 
 middle of May, dry weather, with cold piercing winds. To the 
 end of the first week in June, cool showers. To the middle of 
 August, hot, dry summer weather. To the end of September, 
 rain, with storms and thunder. To December 22, rain, with 
 mild weather. December 23, the first ice. To the end of the 
 month, cold, foggy weather. 
 
 1773. The first week in January, frost; thence to the end of 
 the month, dark, rainy weather. The first fortnight in February, 
 hard frost. To the end of the first week in March, misty, 
 showery weather: bright spring days to the close of the month. 
 Frequent showers to the latter end of April. To the end of 
 June, warm showers, with intervals of sunshine. To the end 
 of August, dry weather, with a few days of rain. To the end 
 of the first fortnight in November, rainy. The next four weeks, 
 frost; and thence to the end of the year, rainy. 
 
 1774. Frost and rain to the end of the first fortnight in 
 March : thence to the end of the month, dry weather. To the 
 15th of April, showers: thence to the end of April, fine spring 
 days. During May, showers and sunshine in about an equal 
 proportion. Dark, rainy weather to the end of the third week 
 in July: thence to the 24th of August, sultry, with thunder and 
 occasional showers. To the end of the third week in Novem- 
 ber, rain, with frequent intervals of sunny weather. To the end 
 of December, dark, dripping fogs. 
 
 1^75. To the end of the first fortnight in March, rain almost 
 every day. To the first week in April, cold winds with showers 
 of rain and snow. To the end of June, warm, bright weather, 
 with frequent showers. The first fortnight in July, almost 
 incessant rains. To the 26th of August, sultry weather, with 
 frequent showers. To the end of the third week in September, 
 rain, with a few intervals of fine weather. To the end of the 
 year, rain, with intervals of hoar-frost and sunshine. 
 
 1776. To January 24, dark, frosty weather, with much 
 snow. March 24, to the end of the month, foggy, with hoar- 
 frost. To the 30th of May, dry, dark, harsh weather, with cold 
 winds. To the end of the first fortnight in July, warm, witli 
 much rain. To the end of the first week in August, hot and 
 dry, with intervals of thunder showers. To the end of October, 
 in general fine seasonable weather, with a considerable propor- 
 
THE WEATHER. 499 
 
 tion of rain. To the end of the year, dry, frosty weather, with 
 some days of hard rain. 
 
 1777. To the 10th of January, hard frost: to the 20th of 
 January, foggy, with frequent showers. To the 18th of February, 
 hard, dry frost, with snow. To the end of May, heavy showers, 
 with intervals of warm, dry, spring days. To the 8th of July, 
 dark, with heavy rain : to the 18th of July, dry, warm weather: 
 to the end of July, very heavy rains. To the 12th of October, 
 remarkably fine, warm weather. To the end of the year, gray, 
 mild weather, with but little rain, and still less frost. 
 
 1778. To the 13th of January, frost, with a little snow: to 
 the 24th of January, rain: to the 30th, hard frost. To the 23rd 
 of February, dark, harsh, foggy weather, with rain : to the end 
 of the month, hard frost with snow. To the end of the first 
 fortnight in March, dark, harsh weather. From the 1st, to the 
 end of the first fortnight in April, spring weather : to the end 
 of the month, snow and ice. To the llth of June, cool, with 
 heavy showers. To the 19th of July, hot, sultry, parching 
 weather : to the end of the month, heavy showers. To the 
 end of September, dry warm weather. To the end of the 
 year, wet, with considerable intervals of sunshine. 
 
 1779. Frost and showers to the end of January. To the 
 2 1st of April, warm, dry weather. To the 8th of May, rainy. 
 To the 7th of June, dry and warm. To the 6th of July, hot 
 weather, with frequent rain : to the 18th of July, dry, hot 
 weather. To August 8, hot weather, with frequent rains : to 
 the end of August, fine dry harvest weather. To the end of 
 November, fine autumnal weather, with intervals of rain. To 
 the end of the year, rain, with frost and snow. 
 
 1780. To the end of January, frost. To the end of February, 
 dark, harsh weather, with frequent intervals of frost. To the 
 end of March, warm, showery, spring weather. To the end of 
 April, dark, harsh weather, with rain and frost. To the end 
 of the first fortnight in May, mild, with rain. To the end of 
 August, rain, and fair weather in pretty equal proportions. To 
 the end of October, fine autumnal weather, with intervals of 
 rain. To the 24th of November, frost. To December 16, mild, 
 dry, foggy weather. To the end of the year, frost and snow. 
 
 1781. To January 25, frost and snow. To the end of 
 February, harsh and windy, with rain and snow. To April 5, 
 cold, drying winds. To the end of May, mild, spring weather, 
 with a few light showers. June began with heavy rain, but 
 
 KK 2 
 
500 SUMMARY OF 
 
 thence to the end of October, dry weather, with a few flying 
 showers. To the end of the year, open weather, with frequent 
 rains. 
 
 1782. To February 4, open, mild weather : to February 
 22, hard frost. To the end of March, cold, blowing weather, 
 with frost and snow and rain. To May 7, cold, dark rains ; to 
 the end of May, mild, with incessant rains. To the end of 
 June, warm and dry. To the end of August, warm, with 
 almost perpetual rains. The first fortnight in September, mild 
 and dry ; thence to the end of the month, rain. To the end of 
 October, mild, with frequent showers. November began with 
 hard frost, and continued throughout with alternate frost and 
 thaw. The first part of December frosty : the latter part mild. 
 
 1783. To January 16, rainy, with heavy winds : to the 24th, 
 hard frost. To the end of the first fortnight in February, blow- 
 ing, with much rain. To the end of February, stormy, dripping 
 weather. To the 9th of May, cold, harsh winds (thick ice on the 
 5th of May). To the end of August, hot weather with frequent 
 showers. To the 23rd of September, mild, with heavy driving 
 rains. To November 12, dry, mild weather. To the 18th of 
 December, gray, soft weather, with a few showers. To the end 
 of the year, hard frost. 
 
 1784. To February 19, hard frost, with two thaws; one, the 
 14th of January, the other, the 5th of February : to February 
 28, mild, wet fogs. To the 3rd of March, frost, with ice : to 
 March 10, sleet and snow. To April 2, snow and hard frost: 
 to April 27, mild weather, with much rain. To May 12, cold, 
 drying winds : to May 20, hot, cloudless weather. To June 27, 
 warm, with frequent showers. To July 18, hot and dry. To 
 the end of August, warm, with heavy rains. To November 6, 
 clear, mild, autumnal weather, except a few days of rain at the 
 latter end of September. To the end of the year, fog, rain, and 
 hard frost (on December 10, the therm. 1 deg. below 0.) 
 
 1785. A thaw began on the 2nd of January, and rainy wea- 
 ther with wind continued to January 28. To the 15th of March, 
 very hard frost: to the 21st of March, mild, with sprinkling 
 showers. To April 7, hard frost. To May 17, mild, windy 
 weather, without a drop of rain : to the end of May, cold, with 
 a few showers. To June 9, mild weather, with frequent soft 
 showers. To July 13, hot, dry weather, with a few showery 
 intervals : to July 22, heavy rain. To the end of September, 
 warm, with frequent showers. To the end of October, frequent 
 
THE WEATHER. 501 
 
 rain. To the 18th of November, dry, mild weather. (Hay- 
 making finished November 9, and the wheat harvest Novem- 
 ber 14.) To December 23, rain. To the end of the year hard 
 frost. 
 
 1786. To the 7th of January, frost and snow: to January 13, 
 mild, with much rain : to the 21st of January, deep snow. To 
 February 1 1, mild, with frequent rains : to the 2 1 st^of February, 
 dry, with high winds. To the 10th of March, hard frost. To 
 the 13th of April, wet with intervals of frost: to the end of 
 April, dry, mild weather. On the 1st and 2d of May, thick 
 ice: to the 10th of May, heavy rain. To June 14, fine, warm, 
 dry weather. From the 8th to the llth of July heavy showers. 
 To October 13, warm, with frequent showers : to October 19, 
 ice : to October 24, mild, pleasant weather. To November 3, 
 frost. To December 16, rain, with a few detached days of 
 frost. To the end of the year, frost and snow. 
 
 1787. To January 24, dark, moist, mild weather: to Ja- 
 nuary 28, frost and snow. To February 16, mild, showery 
 weather : to February 28, dry, cool weather. To March 10, 
 stormy, with driving rain : to March 24, bright, frosty weather. 
 To the end of April, mild, with frequent rain. To May 22, 
 fine bright weather. To the end of June, mostly warm, with 
 frequent showers (on June 7, ice as thick as a crown piece). 
 To the end of July, hot and sultry, with copious rain. To the 
 end of September, hot, dry weather, with occasional showers. 
 To November 23, mild, with light frosts and rain : to the end 
 of November, hard frost. To December 21, still and mild, with 
 rain. To the end of the year, frost. 
 
 1788. To January 13, mild and wet: to January 18, frost: 
 to the end of the month, dry, windy weather. To the end of 
 February, frosty, with frequent showers. To March 14, hard 
 frost : to the end of March, dark, harsh weather, with frequent 
 showers. To April 4, windy, with showers. To the end of 
 May, bright, dry, warm weather, with a few occasional showers. 
 From June 28 to July 17, heavy rains. To August 12, hot, 
 dry weather. To the end of September, alternate showers and 
 sunshine. To November 22, dry, cool weather. To the end 
 of the year, hard frost. 
 
 1789. To January 13, hard frost : to the end of the month, 
 mild, with showers. To the end of February, frequent rain, 
 with snow showers and heavy gales of wind. To the 13th of 
 March, hard frost, with snow. To April 18, heavy rain, with 
 
502 SUMMARY OF THE WEATHER. 
 
 frost and snow and sleet : to the end of April, dark, cold wea- 
 ther, with frequent rains. To June 9, warm, spring weather, 
 with brisk winds and frequent showers: from June 4 to the 
 end of July, warm, with much rain. To August 29, hot, dry, 
 sultry weather. To September 11, mild, with frequent showers : 
 to the end of September, fine autumnal weather, with occasional 
 showers. To November 17, heavy rain, with violent gales of 
 wind. To December 18, mild, dry weather, with a few showers. 
 To the end of the year, rain and wind. 
 
 1790. To January 16, mild, foggy weather, with occasional 
 rains: to January 21, frost : to January 28, dark, with driving 
 rains. To February 14, mild, dry weather : to February 22, 
 hard frost. To April 5, bright, cold weather, with a few 
 showers: to April 15, dark and harsh, with a deep snow: to 
 April 21, cold, cloudy weather, with ice. To June 6, mild 
 spring weather, with much rain. From July 3 to July 14, 
 cool, with heavy rain : to the end of July, warm, dry weather. 
 To August 6, cold, with wind and rain: to August 24, fine 
 harvest weather. To September 5, strong gales, with driving 
 showers. To November 26, mild autumnal weather, with fre- 
 quent showers. To December 1, hard frost and snow. To the 
 end of the year, rain and snow, and a few days of frost. 
 
 1791. To the end of January, mild, with heavy rains. To 
 the end of February, windy, with much rain and snow. From 
 March to the end of June, mostly dry, especially June : (March 
 and April, rather cold and frosty ; May and June, hot). July, 
 rainy. Fine harvest weather, and pretty dry, to the end of 
 September. Wet October, and cold towards the end. Very 
 wet and stormy in November. Much frost in December. 
 
 1792. Some hard frost in January, but mostly wet and mild. 
 February, some hard frost and a little snow. March, wet and 
 cold. April, great storms on the 13th, then some very warm 
 weather. May and June, cold and dry. July, wet and cool ; 
 indifferent harvest, rather late and wet. September, windy 
 and wet. October, showery and mild. November, dry and 
 fine. December, mild. 
 
POEMS, 
 
 SELECTED FROM THE MSS. OF THE 
 REV. GILBERT WHITE. 
 
POEMS. 
 
 THE INVITATION TO SELBORNE. 
 
 SEE SELBORNE spreads her boldest beauties round, 
 The varied valley, and the mountain ground, 
 Wildly majestic ! what is all the pride 
 Of flats, with loads of ornament supplied ? 
 Unpleasing, tasteless, impotent expense, 
 Compared with Nature's rude magnificence. 
 
 Arise, my stranger, to these wild scenes haste ; 
 The unfinish'd farm awaits your forming taste : 
 Plan the pavilion, airy, light, and true ; 
 Through the high arch call in the length'ning view ; 
 Expand the forest sloping up the hill ; 
 Swell to a lake the scant, penurious rill ; 
 Extend the vista, raise the castle mound 
 In antique taste with turrets ivy-crown'd ; 
 O'er the gay lawn the flowery shrub dispread, 
 Or with the blending garden mix the mead ; 
 Bid China's pale, fantastic fence, delight ; 
 Or with the mimic statue trap the sight. 
 
 Oft on some evening, sunny, soft, and still, 
 The Muse shall lead thee to the beech-grown hill, 
 To spend in tea the cool, refreshing hour, 
 Where nods in air the pensile, nest-like bower ] ; 
 Or where the Hermit hangs the straw-clad cell 2 , 
 Emerging gently from the leafy dell ; 
 By Fancy plann'd ; as once the' inventive maid 
 Met the hoar sage amid the secret shade ; 
 
 1 A kind of an arbour on the side of a hill. 
 
 2 A grotesque building, contrived by a young gentleman, who used on 
 occasion to appear in the character of a hermit. 
 
506 POEMS. 
 
 Romantic spot ! from whence in prospect lies 
 Whate'er of landscape charms our feasting eyes ; 
 The pointed spire, the hall, the pasture-plain, 
 The russet fallow, or the golden grain, 
 The breezy lake that sheds a gleaming light, 
 Till all the fading picture fail the sight. 
 
 Each to his task ; all different ways retire ; 
 Cull the dry stick; call forth the seeds of fire ; 
 Deep fix the kettle's props, a forky row, 
 Or give with fanning hat the breeze to blow. 
 
 Whence is this taste, the furnish'd hall forgot, 
 To feast in gardens, or the unhandy grot? 
 Or novelty with some new charms surprises, 
 Or from our very shifts some joy arises. 
 Hark, while below the village-bells ring round, 
 Echo, sweet nymph, returns the soften'd sound ; 
 But if gusts rise, the rushing forests roar, 
 Like the tide tumbling on the pebbly shore. 
 
 Adown the vale, in lone, sequestered nook, 
 Where skirting woods imbrown the dimpling brook, 
 The ruin'd Convent lies; here wont to dwell 
 The lazy canon midst his cloister'd cell 3 ; 
 While papal darkness brooded o'er the land, 
 Ere Reformation made her glorious stand : 
 Still oft at eve belated shepherd-swains 
 See the cowl'd spectre skim the folded plains. 
 
 To the high Temple would my stranger go 4 , 
 The mountain-brow commands the woods below ; 
 In Jewry first this order found a name, 
 When madding Croisades set the world in flame ; 
 When western climes, urged on by Pope and priest, 
 Poured forth their millions o'er the deluged east : 
 Luxurious knights, ill suited to defy 
 To mortal fight Turcestan chivalry. 
 
 3 The ruins of a priory, founded by Peter de Rupibus, Bishop of 
 Winchester. 
 
 4 The remains of a preceptory of the Knights Templars; at least it 
 was a farm dependant upon some preceptory of that order. I find it was 
 a preceptory, called the Preceptory of Sudington ; now called South- 
 ington. 
 
POEMS. 507 
 
 Nor be the Parsonage by the muse forgot ; 
 The partial bard admires his native spot; 
 Smit with its beauties, loved, as yet a child, 
 (Unconscious why) its scapes grotesque, and wild. 
 High on a mound the' exalted gardens stand, 
 Beneath, deep valleys scoop'd by Nature's hand. 
 A Cobham here, exulting in his art, 
 Might blend the General's with the Gardener's part ; 
 Might fortify with all the martial trade 
 Of rampart, bastion, fosse, and palisade; 
 Might plant the mortar with wide threatening bore, 
 Or bid the mimic cannon seem to roar. 
 
 Now climb the steep, drop now your eye below, 
 Where round the blooming village orchards grow ; 
 There, like a picture, lies my lowly seat, 
 A rural, sheltered, unobserved retreat. 
 
 Me far above the rest Selbornian scenes, 
 The pendent forests, and the mountain greens 
 Strike with delight; there spreads the distant view, 
 That gradual fades till sunk in misty blue : 
 Here Nature hangs her slopy woods to sight, 
 Rills purl between, and dart a quivering light. 
 
 SELBORNE HANGER. 
 
 A WINTER PIECE. 
 
 TO THE MISS BATTIES. 
 
 THE Bard, who sang so late in blithest strain 
 Selbornian prospects, and the rural reign, 
 Now suits his plaintive pipe to sadden'd tone, 
 While the blank swains the changeful year bemoan. 
 
 How fallen the glories of these fading scenes ! 
 The dusky beech resigns his vernal greens, 
 The yellow maple mourns in sickly hue, 
 And russet woodlands crowd the darkening view. 
 
508 POEMS. 
 
 Dim, clustering fogs involve the country round, 
 The valley and the blended mountain-ground 
 Sink in confusion ; but with tempest-wing 
 Should Boreas from his northern barrier spring, 
 The rushing woods with deafening clamour roar, 
 Like the sea tumbling on the pebbly shore. 
 When spouting rains descend in torrent tides, 
 See the torn Zigzag weep its channePd sides : 
 Winter exerts its rage ; heavy and slow, 
 From the keen east rolls on the treasured snow ; 
 Sunk with its weight the bending boughs are seen, 
 And one bright deluge whelms the works of men. 
 Amidst this savage landscape, bleak and bare, 
 Hangs the chill hermitage in middle air ; 
 Its haunts forsaken, and its feasts forgot, 
 A leaf-strown, lonely, desolated cot ! 
 
 Is this the scene that late with rapture rang, 
 Where Delphy danced, and gentle Anna sang ; 
 With fairy-step where Harriet tripp'd so late, 
 And on her stump reclined the musing Kitty sate ? 
 
 Return, dear Nymphs; prevent the purple spring, 
 Ere the soft nightingale essays to sing ; 
 Ere the first swallow sweeps the freshening plain, 
 Ere love-sick turtles breathe their amorous pain ; 
 Let festive glee the* enlivened village raise, 
 Pan's blameless reign, and patriarchal days ; 
 With pastoral dance the smitten swain surprise, 
 And bring all Arcady before our eyes. 
 
 Return, blithe maidens ; with you bring along 
 Free, native humour, all the charms of song, 
 The feeling heart, and unaffected ease, 
 Each nameless grace, and every power to please. 
 
 Nov. 1, 17C3. 
 
POEMS. 509 
 
 ON THE RAINBOW. . 
 
 " Look upon the Rainbow, and praise him that made it : very beautiful 
 is it in the brightness thereof." Eccles. xliii. 11. 
 
 ON morning or on evening cloud impress'd, 
 Bent in vast curve, the watery meteor shines 
 Delightfully, to the levelPd sun opposed : 
 Lovely refraction ! while the vivid brede 
 In listed colours glows, the* unconscious swain 
 With vacant eye gazes on the divine 
 Phenomenon, gleaming o'er the illumined fields, 
 Or runs to catch the treasures which it sheds. 
 
 Not so the sage, inspired with pious awe ; 
 He hails the federal arch 1 ; and looking up 
 Adores that God, whose fingers form'd this bow 
 Magnificent, compassing heaven about 
 With a resplendent verge, " Thou madest the cloud, 
 Maker Omnipotent, and thou the bow ; 
 And by that covenant graciously hast sworn 
 Never to drown the world again 2 : henceforth, 
 Till time shall be no more, in ceaseless round, 
 Season shall follow season : day to night, 
 Summer to winter, harvest to seed time, 
 Heat shall to cold in regular array 
 Succeed." Heaven-taught, so sang the Hebrew bard 3 . 
 
 1 Gen. ix. 1217. 2 Gen. viii. 22. J Moses. 
 
510 POEMS. 
 
 A HARVEST SCENE. 
 
 WAKED by the gentle gleamings of the morn, 
 Soon clad, the reaper, provident of want, 
 Hies cheerful-hearted to the ripen'd field ; 
 Nor hastes alone ; attendant by his side 
 His faithful wife, sole partner of his cares, 
 Bears on her breast the sleeping babe ; behind, 
 With steps unequal, trips her infant train : 
 Thrice happy pair, in love and labour joined ! 
 
 All day they ply their task; with mutual chat, 
 Beguiling each the sultry, tedious hours. 
 Around them falls in rows the severed corn, 
 Or the shocks rise in regular array. 
 
 But when high noon invites to short repast, 
 Beneath the shade of sheltering thorn they sit, 
 Divide the simple meal, and drain the cask : 
 The swinging cradle lulls the whimpering babe 
 Meantime; while growling round, if at the tread 
 Of hasty passenger alarm'd, as of their store 
 Protective, stalks the cur witli bristling back, 
 To guard the scanty scrip and russet frock. 
 
POEMS. 511 
 
 ON THE 
 
 DARK, STILL, DRY, WARM WEATHER, 
 
 OCCASIONALLY HAPPENING IN THE WINTER MONTHS. 
 
 THE* imprison'd winds slumber within their caves 
 Fast bound : the fickle vane, emblem of change, 
 Wavers no more, long settling to a point. 
 
 All Nature nodding seems composed : thick steams 
 From land, from flood updrawn, dimming the day, 
 " Like a dark ceiling stand :" slow through the air 
 Gossamer floats, or stretch'd from blade to blade 
 The wavy network whitens all the field. 
 
 Push'd by the weightier atmosphere, up springs 
 The ponderous mercury, from scale to scale 
 Mounting, amidst the Torricellian tube l . 
 
 While high in air, and poised upon his wings, 
 Unseen, the soft, enamour'd woodlark runs 
 Through all his maze of melody ; the brake 
 Loud with the blackbird's bolder note resounds. 
 Sooth' d by the genial warmth, the cawing rook 
 Anticipates the spring, selects her mate, 
 Haunts her tall nest-trees, and with sedulous care 
 Repairs her wicker eyrie, tempest torn. 
 
 The ploughman inly smiles to see upturn 
 His mellow glebe, best pledge of future crop. 
 With glee the gardener eyes his smoking beds : 
 E'en pining sickness feels a short relief. 
 
 The happy schoolboy brings transported forth 
 His long forgotten scourge, and giddy gig : 
 O'er the white paths he whirls the rolling hoop, 
 Or triumphs in the dusty fields of taw. 
 
 1 The barometer. 
 
512 POEMS. 
 
 Not so the museful sage : abroad he walks 
 Contemplative, if haply he may find 
 What cause controls the tempest's rage, or whence 
 Amidst the savage season winter smiles. 
 
 For days, for weeks, prevails the placid calm. 
 At length some drops prelude a change : the sun 
 With ray refracted bursts the parting gloom ; 
 When all the chequer'd sky is one bright glare. 
 Mutters the wind at eve : the horizon round 
 With angry aspect scowls : down rush the showers, 
 And float the deluged paths, and miry fields. 
 
THE 
 
 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 OF 
 
 SELBORNE, 
 
 IN 
 
 THE COUNTY OF SOUTHAMPTON. 
 
 Juvat ire .... 
 
 Desertosque videre locos VIRGIL. 
 
 L L 
 
THE 
 
 M 
 
 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 OF 
 
 SELBORNE. 
 
 LETTER I. 
 
 IT is reasonable to suppose that in remote ages this 
 woody and mountainous district was inhabited only by 
 bears and wolves. Whether the Britons ever thought 
 it worthy their attention, is not in our power to deter- 
 mine 1 : but we may safely conclude, from circumstances, 
 
 1 It is curious that Gilbert White should not have felt himself assured 
 as to the residence of Britons within the parish of Selborne. Setting 
 aside the historical fact that the favourite resorts of the ancient Britons 
 were the natural fastnesses of the forests and the morasses, whence it 
 might have been inferred that this wooded and rugged district would 
 have been regarded as peculiarly adapted to the known habits of that 
 people ; setting aside also various minor evidences that might be adduced : 
 setting these aside, as probabilities merely, (although on smaller proba- 
 bilities greater theories have sometimes been raised), Wolmer Forest 
 affords evidence the most visible and most tangible of its having been of 
 importance in the days of the earliest known inhabitants of England. The 
 observer has but to place himself on the northern side of Wolmer Pond, 
 looking towards the south; and on his right hand, and on his left, and in 
 front of him; barrows will be visible. Two of these works rise above the 
 level of Wall Down : one is on the top of the down immediately across the 
 pond : several others are on the elevations in the direction of Greatham. 
 These are remarkable objects in the circuit of the horizon : and on the 
 expanse of the Forest there are many others. Several of them have, from 
 lime to time, been opened, and have been found to contain, as usual, in 
 
 L L 2 
 
516 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 that it was not unknown to the Romans. Old people 
 remember to have heard their fathers and grandfathers 
 say that, in dry summers and in windy weather, pieces 
 of money were sometimes found round the verge of 
 Wolmer Pond ; and tradition had inspired the foresters 
 with a notion that the bottom of that lake contained 
 great stores of treasure. During the spring and sum- 
 mer of 1740 there was little rain; and the following 
 summer also, 1741, was so uncommonly dry, that many 
 springs and ponds failed, and this lake in particular, 
 whose bed became as dusty as the surrounding heaths 
 and wastes. This favourable juncture induced some 
 of the forest cottagers to begin a search, which was 
 attended with such success, that all the labourers in 
 the neighbourhood flocked to the spot, and with spades 
 and hoes turned up great part of that large area. 
 Instead of pots of coins, as they expected, they found 
 great heaps, the one lying on the other, as if shot out 
 of a bag; many of which were in good preservation. 
 Silver and gold these inquirers expected to find ; but 
 their discoveries consisted solely of many hundreds of 
 Roman copper coins, and some medallions, all of the 
 lower empire. There was not much virtti stirring at 
 that time in this neighbourhood ; however, some of 
 the gentry and clergy around bought what pleased them 
 best, and some dozens fell to the share of the author 2 . 
 
 The owners at first held their commodity at a high 
 price; but finding that they were not likely to meet 
 with dealers at such a rate, they soon lowered their 
 terms, and sold the fairest as they could. The coins 
 
 the middle of the mound, fragments of human bones and of pottery. In 
 one instance, but a few years since, an entire urn was obtained, of a sub- 
 stance not unlike unburned clay, capable of containing about a gallon, 
 and having within it fragments of bones. All these indications concur to 
 prove that these barrows were of British origin in Roman times. E. T. B. 
 2 Such coins are still occasionally found by labourers and others who 
 work upon the Forest ; but their occurrence is now uncommon. They 
 have not been found in numbers since the time mentioned by Gilbert 
 White, and it is only casually that one is met with. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 517 
 
 that were rejected became current, and passed for 
 farthings at the petty shops. Of those that we saw, 
 the greater part were of Marcus Aurelius, and the 
 Empress Faustina, his wife, the father and mother of 
 Commodus. Some of Faustina were in high relief, and 
 exhibited a very agreeable set of features,, which pro- 
 bably resembled that lady, who was more" celebrated 
 for her beauty than for her virtues. The medallions in 
 general were of a paler colour than the coins. To 
 pretend to account for the means of their coming to 
 this place would be spending time in conjecture. The 
 spot, I think, could not be a Roman camp, because it 
 it commanded by hills on two sides ; nor does it show 
 the least traces of intrenchments ; nor can I suppose 
 that it was a Roman town, because I have too good an 
 opinion of the taste and judgment of those polished 
 conquerors to imagine that they would settle on so 
 barren and dreary a waste 3 . 
 
 LETTER II. 
 
 THAT Selborne was a place of some distinction and 
 note in the time of the Saxons we can give most 
 undoubted proofs. But, as there are few, if any, 
 accounts of villages before Domesday, it will be best 
 to begin with that venerable record. " Ipse rex tenet 
 Selesburne. Eddid regina tenuit, et nunquam geldavit. 
 De isto manerio dono dedit rex Radfredo presbytero 
 dimidiam hidam cum ecclesia. Tempore regis Edwardi 
 et post, valuit duodecim solidos et sex denarios ; modo 
 
 3 It is far from improbable that the heaps of coins were the spoils of 
 some successful attack on the invaders, in which the military chest (as it 
 might now be called) fell into the hands of the native conquerors, and 
 was carried away by them into their fastness : and that there, in their 
 haste, it was lost. It may even have been rejected as unworthy of notice, 
 when it was ascertained that its contents were coins of the baser metal 
 only. E. T. B. 
 
518 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 octo solidos ct quatuor denarios." Here we see that 
 Selborne was a royal manor; and that Editha, the 
 queen of Edward the Confessor, had been lady of that 
 manor; and was succeeded in it by the Conqueror; 
 and that it had a church. Beside these, many circum- 
 stances concur to prove it to have been a Saxon 
 village ; such as the name of the place itself 1 , the 
 names of many fields, and some families 2 , with a 
 variety of words in husbandry and common life, still 
 subsisting among the country people. 
 
 What probably first drew the attention of the Saxons 
 to this spot was the beautiful spring or fountain called 
 
 1 Selesburne, Selebnrne, Selburn, Selbourn, Selborne, and Selborn, as 
 it has been variously spelt at different periods, is of Saxon derivation ; 
 for AW signiOes great, and burn torrens, a brook or rivulet : so that the 
 name seems to be derived from the great perennial stream that breaks 
 out at the upper end of the village. Sel also signifies " bonus. item,/<rcun- 
 dus, fertilis. Sel-^aejir-ton : fcecunda graminis clausura ; fertile pascuum. 
 Abiit tamen apud nonnullos in nomen proprium. Inde pratum quoddam 
 apud Godelming in agro Surriensi hodie vocatur Sal-gars-ion." Lye's 
 Saxon Dictionary, in the Supplement, by Mr. Manning. 
 
 2 Thus the name of Aldred signifies all-reverend, and that of Knnp 
 means a soldier. Thus we have a church-litton, or enclosure for dead 
 bodies, and not a church-yard: there is also a Culver-croft near the 
 Grange-farm, being the enclosure where the priory pigeon-house stood, 
 from culver, a pigeon. Again there are three steep pastures in this parish 
 called the Lithe, from Hlithe, clitus. The wicker-work that binds and 
 fastens down a hedge on the top is called ether, from ether a hedge. 
 When the good women call their hogs they cry sic, sic *, not knowing that 
 sic is Saxon, or rather Celtic, for a hog. Coppice or brushwood our 
 countrymen call rise, from hris, frondes ; and talk of a load of rise. 
 Within the author's memory the Saxon plurals, housen and peason, were 
 in common use. But it would be endless to instance in every circum- 
 stance : he that wishes for more specimens must frequent a farmer's 
 kitchen. I have therefore selected some words to show how familiar the 
 Saxon dialect was to this district, since in more than seven hundred years 
 it is far from being obliterated. 
 
 * Siiccr, porcus, apud Lacones ; un Porceau chez les Lacedemoniens : 
 ce mot a sans doute este" pris des Celtes, qui disoent sic, pour marquer un 
 porceau. Encore aujour'huy quand les Bretons chassent ces animaux, 
 ils ne disent point autrement, que sic, sic. Antiquite" de la Nation et de 
 la Langue des Celtes, par Pezron. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 519 
 
 Well-head 1 , which induced them to build by the banks 
 of that perennial current ; for ancient settlers loved to 
 reside by brooks and rivulets, where they could dip for 
 their water without the trouble and expense of digging 
 wells and of drawing. 
 
 It remains still unsettled among the antiquaries at 
 what time tracts of land were first appropriated to the 
 chase alone for the amusement of the sovereign. Whe- 
 ther our Saxon monarchs had any royal forests does 
 not, I believe, appear on record ; but the Constitutiones 
 de Foresta of Canute, the Dane, are come down to us. 
 We shall not therefore pretend to say whether Wolmer 
 Forest existed as a royal domain before the conquest. 
 If it did not, we may suppose it was laid out by some 
 of our earliest Norman kings, who were exceedingly 
 attached to the pleasures of the chase, and resided 
 much at Winchester, which lies at a moderate distance 
 from this district. The Plantagenet princes seem to 
 have been pleased with Wolmer ; for tradition says that 
 King John resided just upon the verge, at Ward le ham, 
 on a regular and remarkable mount, still called King 
 John's Hill, and Lodge Hill ; and Edward III. had a 
 chapel in his park, or enclosure, at Kingsley 4 . Hum- 
 phrey, Duke of Gloucester, and Richard, Duke of York, 
 say my evidences, were both, in their turns, wardens of 
 Wolmer Forest; which seems to have served for an 
 appointment for the younger princes of the royal family, 
 as it may again. 
 
 I have intentionally mentioned Edward III. and the 
 Dukes Humphrey and Richard, before King Edward II. 
 because I have reserved, for the entertainment of my 
 readers, a pleasant anecdote respecting that prince, 
 with which I shall close this letter. 
 
 As Edward II. was hunting on Wolmer Forest, 
 
 3 Well-head signifies spring-head, and not a deep pit from whence we 
 draw water. For particulars about which see Letter I. to Mr. Pennant. 
 
 4 The parish of Kingsley lies between, and divides Wolmer Forest 
 from Ayles Holt Forest. See Letter IX. to Mr. Pennant. 
 
520 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 Morris Ken, of the kitchen, fell from his horse several 
 times; at \vhich accidents the king laughed immode- 
 rately : and, when the chase was over, ordered him 
 twenty shillings 5 ; an enormous sura for those days! 
 Proper allowances ought to be made for the youth of 
 this monarch, whose spirits also, we may suppose, were 
 much exhilarated by the sport of the day : but, at the 
 same time, it is reasonable to remark that, whatever 
 might be the occasion of Ken's first fall, the subsequent 
 ones seem to have been designed. The scullion appears 
 to have been an artful fellow, and to have seen the 
 king's foible; which furnishes an early specimen of 
 that his easy softness and facility of temper, of which 
 the infamous Gaveston took such advantages, as brought 
 innumerable calamities on the nation, and involved the 
 prince at last in misfortunes and sufferings too deplora- 
 ble to be mentioned without horror and amazement. 
 
 LETTER III. 
 
 FROM the silence of Domesday respecting churches, it 
 has been supposed that few villages had any at the 
 time when that record was taken ; but Selborne, we see, 
 enjoyed the benefit of one: hence we may conclude, 
 that this place was in no abject state even at that very 
 distant period. How many fabrics have succeeded each 
 other since the days of Radfredrus the presbyter, we 
 cannot pretend to say ; our business leads us to a 
 description of the present edifice, in which we shall be 
 circumstantial. 
 
 Our church, which was dedicated to the Virgin Mary, 
 consists of three aisles, and measures fifty-four feet in 
 
 5 "Item, paid at the lodge at Wolmer, when the king was stag-hunt- 
 ing there, to Morris Ken, of the kitchen, because he rode before the king 
 and often fell from his horse, at which the king laughed exceedingly a 
 gift, by command, of twenty shillings." A MS. in possession of Thomas 
 Astle, Esq. containing the private expenses of Edward II. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 521 
 
 length by forty-seven in breadth, being almost as broad 
 as it is long. The present building has no pretensions 
 to antiquity; and is, as I suppose, of no earlier date 
 
 SOUTH VIEW OF SELBORNE CHURCH. 
 
 than the beginning of the reign of Henry VII. It is 
 perfectly plain and unadorned, without painted glass, 
 carved work, sculpture, or tracery. But when I say it 
 has no claim to antiquity, I would mean to be under- 
 stood of the fabric in general; for the pillars which 
 support the roof are undoubtedly old, being of that 
 low, squat, thick order, usually called Saxon. These, 
 I should imagine, upheld the roof of a former church, 
 which, falling into decay, was rebuilt on those massy 
 props, because their strength had preserved them from 
 the injuries of time 1 . Upon these rest blunt Gothic 
 arches, such as prevailed in the reign above-mentioned, 
 and by which, as a criterion, we would prove the date 
 of the building. 
 
 1 In the same manner, to compare great things with small, did Wyke- 
 ham, when he new built the cathedral at Winchester, from the tower 
 westward, apply to his purpose the old piers or pillars of Bishop Walke- 
 lin's church, by blending Saxon and Gothic architecture together. See 
 Lowth's Life of Wykeham. 
 
522 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 At the bottom of the south aisle, between the west 
 and south doors, stands the font, which is deep and 
 capacious, and consists of three massy round stones, 
 piled one on another, without the least ornament or 
 sculpture: the cavity at the top is lined with lead, and 
 has a pipe at bottom to convey oft* the water after the 
 sacred ceremony is performed. 
 
 The east end of the south aisle is called the South 
 Chancel, and, till within these thirty years, was divided 
 off by an old carved Gothic frame work of timber, [the 
 line of which may still be traced in a beam of partition 
 between the pews,] having been a private chantry. In 
 this opinion we are more confirmed by observing two 
 Gothic niches within the space, the one in the east 
 wall and the other in the south, near which there pro- 
 bably stood images and altars: [but these niches are 
 in a different style of arch, and were probably not 
 formed at the same time.] 
 
 In the middle aisle there is nothing remarkable : but 
 I remember when its beams were hung with garlands in 
 honour of young women of the parish, reputed to have 
 died virgins , and recollect to have seen the clerk's wife 
 cutting, in white paper, the resemblances of gloves, and 
 ribbons to be twisted into knots and roses, to decorate 
 these memorials of chastity. In the church of Faring- 
 don, which is the next parish, many garlands of this 
 sort still remain. [The pulpit is placed at the eastern 
 end of the middle aisle. At the western end is an 
 organ loft and organ : the latter being a gift of the 
 Rev. William Cobbold, the present vicar, to his pa- 
 rishioners.] 
 
 The north aisle is narrow and low, with a sloping 
 ceiling, reaching within nine or ten feet of the floor. 
 It had originally a flat roof covered with lead, till, 
 within a century past, a churchwarden stripping off the 
 lead, in order, as he said, to have it mended, sold it to 
 a plumber, and ran away with the money. This aisle 
 has no door, for an obvious reason ; because the north 
 
OF SELBORNK. 523 
 
 side of the churchyard, being surrounded by the vicar- 
 age garden, affords no path to that side of the church. 
 Nothing can be more irregular than the pews of this 
 church, which are of all dimensions and heights, being 
 patched up according to the fancy of the owners : but 
 whoever nicely examines them will find that the middle 
 aisle had, on each side, a regular row of benches of 
 solid oak, all alike, with a low back-board to each. 
 These we should not hesitate to say are coeval with 
 the present church : and especially as it is to be 
 observed that, at their ends, they are ornamented with 
 carved blunt Gothic niches, exactly correspondent to 
 the arches of the church, and to a niche in the south 
 wall. The south aisle also has a row of these benches; 
 but some are decayed through age, and the rest much 
 disguised by modern alterations 2 . 
 
 At the upper end of this aisle, and running out to the 
 north stands a transept, known by the name of the 
 North Chancel, measuring twenty-one feet from south 
 to north, and nineteen feet from east to west : this was 
 intended, no doubt, as a private chantry; and was 
 also, till of late, divided off by a Gothic frame work of 
 timber. In its north wall, under a very blunt Gothic 
 arch, lies perhaps the founder of this edifice, which, 
 
 2 Considerable alteration has taken place in the fittings of the interior. 
 The pews, although still of various dimensions, are now of uniform height 
 throughout. The oaken benches have been removed from the situations 
 which they formerly occupied ; and most of them have altogether disap- 
 peared. But there yet remain portions of them in various parts of the 
 church. One, of a very solid and substantial make, has been fixed under 
 the more modern bench along the wall of the north aisle : and the upright 
 at its west end, coeval with the bench supported by it, exhibits the deeply 
 carved Gothic niche referred to in the text. Others will be found in the 
 lower part of the south aisle, one of which has the Gothic niche ; and a 
 similar niche is observable on three of the moveable benches near the 
 south door. These relics of the accommodation provided in remote times 
 for those who frequented the church of this retired district, have attached 
 to them a degree of interest as connected with the simplicity of the days 
 in which they were originally placed. E. T. B. 
 
524 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 from the shape of its arch, may be deemed no older 
 than the latter end of the reign of Henry VII. The 
 tomb was examined some years ago, but contained 
 nothing except the scull and thigh bones of a large tall 
 man, and the bones of a youth or woman, lying in a 
 very irregular manner, without any escutcheon or other 
 token to ascertain the names or rank of the deceased. 
 The grave was very shallow, and lined with stone at 
 the bottom and on the sides 3 . 
 
 From the east wall project four stone brackets, which 
 I conclude supported images and crucifixes. In the 
 great thick pilaster, jutting out between this transept 
 and the chancel, there is a very sharp Gothic niche, of 
 older date than the present chantry or church. But the 
 chief pieces of antiquity are two narrow stone coftin 
 lids, which compose part of the floor, and lie from west 
 to east, with the very narrow ends eastward : these 
 belong to remote times ; and, if originally placed here, 
 which I doubt, must have been part of the pavement 
 of an older transept. At present there are no coffins 
 under them, whence I conclude they have been removed 
 to this place from some part of a former church. One 
 of these lids is so eaten by time, that no sculpture can 
 be discovered upon it ; or, perhaps, it may be the wrong 
 side uppermost: but on the other, which seems to be 
 of stone of a closer and harder texture, is to be discerned 
 a discus, with a cross on it, at the end of a staff or rod, 
 the well known symbol of a Knight Templar 4 . 
 
 This order was distinguished by a red cross on the 
 left shoulder of their cloak, and by this attribute in their 
 hand. Now, if these stones belonged to Knights Tem- 
 plars, they must have lain here many centuries; for 
 
 a Tu the north wall of the North Chancel there is now no vestige of a 
 tomb. Several stone steps rising in succession occupy its lower part : 
 above these are the windows described in a succeeding page. E. T. B. 
 
 4 See Dugdale, Monasticon Anglicanum, vol. ii. where there is a fine 
 engraving of a Knight-Templar, by Hollar. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 525 
 
 this order came into England early in the reign of 
 King Stephen, in 1113 ; and was dissolved in the time 
 of Edward II. in 1312, having subsisted only one hun- 
 dred and ninety-nine years. Why I should suppose 
 that Knights Templars were occasionally buried at this 
 church, will appear in some future letter, when we come 
 to treat more particularly concerning the property they 
 possessed here, and the intercourse that subsisted 
 between them and the priors of Selborne. 
 
 We must now proceed to the chancel, properly so 
 called, which seems to be coeval with the church, and 
 is in the same plain unadorned style, though neatly 
 kept. This room measures thirty-one feet in length, 
 and sixteen feet and a half in breadth, and is wains- 
 coted all round, as high as to the bottom of the windows. 
 [It is raised one step above the body of the church.] 
 The space for the communion table is raised two steps 
 above the rest of the floor, and railed in with oaken 
 balusters. [Over the communion table is a painting in 
 three compartments of the Offering of the Wise Men, 
 presented by Benjamin White, Esq. It is attributed to 
 John de Maubeuge.] 
 
 Here I shall say somewhat of the windows of the 
 chancel in particular, and of the whole fabric in general. 
 They are mostly of that simple and unadorned sort 
 called Lancet, some single, some double, and some in 
 triplets. At the east end of the chancel are two of a 
 moderate size, near each other; and in the north wall 
 two very distant small ones, unequal in length and 
 height : and in the south wall are two, one on each side 
 of the chancel door, that are broad and squat, and of a 
 different order. At the east end of the south aisle of 
 the church there is a large lancet-window in a triplet; 
 and a very small, narrow, single one in the south wall, 
 and two broad squat windows beside, and a double 
 lancet one in the west end ; so that the appearance is 
 very irregular. In the north aisle are two windows, 
 
526 ANTIQU1TIKS 
 
 made shorter when the roof was sloped ; and in the 
 north transept a large triple window, shortened at the 
 time of a repair in 1721 ; when over it was opened a 
 round one of considerable size, which affords an agree- 
 able light, and renders that chantry the most cheerful 
 part of the edifice. 
 
 The church and chancels have all coved roofs, ceiled 
 about the year 1683 ; before which they were open to 
 the tiles and shingles, showing the naked rafters, and 
 threatening the congregation with the fall of a spar, or 
 a blow from a piece of loose mortar. 
 
 On the north wall of the chancel is fixed a large oval 
 white marble monument, with the following inscription ; 
 and at the foot of the wall, over the deceased, and 
 inscribed with his name, age, arms, and time of death, 
 lies a large slab of black marble : 
 
 Prope hunc Parietem Sepelitur 
 GILBERTUS WHITE, SAMSONIS WHITE, de 
 
 Oxon. Militis Filius tertius, Collegii Magdale- 
 
 -nensis ibidem Alumnus, & Socius. Tandem faven- 
 
 1 1 Cullegio ad hanc Ecclesiam promotus ; ubi prinuc- 
 
 -va Morum Simplicitate, et diffusS. crga Omnes Bene- 
 
 -volnit ia feliciter Consenuit. 
 
 Pastor Fidelis, Comis, Affabilis, 
 
 Maritus, et Pater Amantissimus, 
 
 A Conjuge invicem, et Liberis, atque 
 
 A Parochianis, impens6 dilectus. 
 
 Pauperibus ita Beneficus 
 ut Decimam partem Census 
 
 Moribundus 
 
 Piis usibus Consecravit. 
 
 Mentis demum juxta et Anuis plenus 
 
 ex hac Vita migravit Feb. 13. 
 
 Anno Salutis 172 
 
 jEtatis Suae 77. 
 
 Hoc Posuit Rebecca 
 
 Conjux illius inaestissima, 
 
 mox Secutura. 
 
 On the same wall is newly fixed a small square table 
 monument of white marble, inscribed in the following 
 manner : 
 
OF SELBORNE. 527 
 
 Sacred to the Memory 
 
 of the Rev<>. ANDREW ETTY, B. D. 
 
 23 Years Vicar of this Parish : 
 
 In whose Character 
 The Conjugal, The Parental, and The Sacerdotal Virtues 
 
 were so happily combined 
 
 as To deserve the Imitation of Mankind. "- 
 
 And if in any particular he followed more invariably 
 
 The steps of his blessed Master, 
 
 It was in his Humility. 
 
 His Parishioners, 
 
 Especially the Sick and Necessitous, 
 as long as any Traces of his Memory shall remain, 
 
 Must lament his Death. 
 
 To perpetuate such an example, this Stone is erected ; 
 As while Living he was a Preacher of Righteousness, 
 
 So, by it, he being Dead yet Speaketh. 
 He died April 8 th . 1784. Aged 66 years. 
 
 [But the most interesting monument to the visitant of 
 Selborne, that its church can ever contain, is one affixed 
 to the south wall. A square tablet of white marble, 
 surrounded by black and having a lightly ornamented 
 margin and a label below bearing the arms of the family, 
 is thus inscribed : 
 
 In the fifth Grave from this Wall are interred the Remains of 
 
 The Rev d . GILBERT WHITE, M. A. 
 Fifty Years Fellow of Oriel College in Oxford, 
 
 and Historian of this, his native Parish. 
 He was the eldest Son of John White, Esquire, Barrister at Law, 
 
 and Anne, his Wife, only Child of 
 
 Thomas Holt, Rector of Streatham, in Surrey, 
 
 which said John White was the only Son of Gilbert White, 
 
 formerly Vicar of this Parish. 
 He was Kind and Beneficent To His Relations, 
 
 Benevolent to the Poor, 
 
 and deservedly respected by all his Friends and Neighbours. 
 He was born July 18, 1720, O. S. 
 
 and died June 20, 1793. 
 
 Nee bono quicquam mali evenire potest, 
 
 nee vivo, nee mortuo.] 
 
528 ANTIQUITIKS 
 
 LETTER IV. 
 
 WE have now taken leave of the inside of the church, 
 and shall pass by a door at the west end of the middle 
 aisle into the belfry. This room is part of a handsome 
 square embattled tower of forty-five feet in height, and 
 of much more modern date than the church ; but old 
 enough to have needed a thorough repair in 178 L, when 
 it was neatly stuccoed at a considerable expense, by a 
 set of workmen who were employed on it for the greatest 
 part of the summer. The old bells, three in number, 
 loud and out of tune, were taken down in 1735, and cast 
 into four ; to which Sir Simeon Stuart, the grandfather 
 of the present baronet, added a fifth at his own expense: 
 and, bestowing it in the name of his favourite daughter 
 Mrs. Mary Stuart, caused it to be cast with the follow- 
 ing motto round it : 
 
 " Clara puella dedit, dixitque mihi esto Maria : 
 1 1 1 ins et laudes nomen ad astra SODO." 
 
 The day of the arrival of this tuneable peal was 
 observed as a high festival by the village, and rendered 
 more joyous, by an order from the donor, that the treble 
 bell should be fixed bottom upward in the ground, and 
 filled with punch, of which all present were permitted 
 to partake. 
 
 The porch of the church, to the south, is modern, and 
 would not be worthy attention did it not shelter a fine 
 sharp Gothic door-way. This is undoubtedly much 
 older than the present fabric ; and, being found in good 
 preservation, was worked into the wall, and is the grand 
 entrance into the church : nor are the folding doors to 
 be passed over in silence; since, from their thick and 
 clumsy structure, and the rude flourished work of their 
 hinges, they may possibly be as ancient as the door- 
 way itself. 
 
OF SKLBORN R. 521) 
 
 The whole roof of the south aisle, and the south side 
 of the roof of the middle aisle, is covered with oaken 
 shingles instead of tiles, on account of their lightness, 
 which favours the ancient and crazy timber frame. 
 And indeed, the consideration of accidents by fire ex- 
 cepted, this sort of roofing is much more eligible than 
 tiles. For shingles well seasoned, and cleft from quar- 
 tered timber, never warp, nor let in drifting snow ; nor 
 do they shiver with frost; nor are they liable to be 
 blown off, like tiles ; but, when well nailed down, last 
 for a long period, as experience has shown us in this 
 place, where those that face to the north are known to 
 have endured, untouched, by undoubted tradition for 
 more than a century. 
 
 Considering the size of the church, and the extent of 
 the parish, the churchyard is very scanty; and especially 
 as all wish to be buried on the south side, which is become 
 such a mass of mortality that no person can be there 
 interred without disturbing or displacing the bones of 
 his ancestors. There is reason to suppose that it once 
 was larger, and extended to what is now the vicarage 
 court and garden ; because many human bones have 
 been dug up in those parts several yards without the 
 present limits. At the east end are a few graves ; yet 
 none till very lately on the north side ; but, as two or 
 three families of best repute have begun to bury in that 
 quarter, prejudice may wear out by degrees, and their 
 example be followed by the rest of the neighbourhood 1 . 
 
 In speaking of the church, I have all along talked of 
 the east and west end, as if the chancel stood exactly 
 true to those points of the compass ; but this is by no 
 means the case, for the fabric bears so much to the north 
 of the east that the four corners of the tower, and not 
 
 1 To precept our excellent author added the weight of example. He 
 lies buried in the open ground on the northern side of the chancel ; a low 
 head stone and foot stone, bearing his initials and the date of his death, 
 mark the fifth grave from the church wall, in which were deposited his 
 perishable remains. E. T. B. 
 
 M M 
 
530 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 the four sides, stand to the four cardinal points. The 
 best method of accounting for this deviation seems to 
 be, that the workmen, who probably were employed in 
 the longest days, endeavoured to set the chancels to 
 the rising of the sun. 
 
 
 THE VICARAOB MOOOU 
 
 Close by the church, at the west end, stands the 
 vicarage house ; an old, but roomy and convenient 
 edifice. It faces very agreably to the morning sun, 
 and is divided from the village by a neat and cheerful 
 court. According to the manner of old times, the hall 
 was open to the roof; and so continued, probably, till 
 the vicars became family-men, and began to want more 
 conveniences ; when they flung a floor across, and, by 
 partitions, divided the space into chambers. In this 
 hall we remember a date, some time in the reign of 
 Elizabeth; it was over the door that leads to the stairs. 
 
 Behind the house is a garden of an irregular shape, 
 but well laid out ; whose terrace commands so romantic 
 and picturesque a prospect, that the first master in 
 landscape might contemplate it with pleasure, and deem 
 it an object well worthy of his pencil. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 531 
 
 LETTER V. 
 
 IN the churchyard of this village is a yew-tree, whose 
 aspect bespeaks it to be of a great age : it-.seems to 
 have seen several centuries, and is probably coeval 
 with the church, and therefore may be deemed an anti- 
 quity : the body is squat, short, and thick, and measures 
 [upwards of] twenty-three feet in the girth, supporting 
 a head of suitable extent to its bulk. This is a male 
 tree, which in the spring sheds clouds of dust, and fills 
 the atmosphere around with its farina. 
 
 As far as we have been able to observe, the males of 
 this species become much larger than the females ; and 
 it has so fallen out that most of the yew-trees in the 
 churchyards of this neighbourhood are males : but this 
 must have been matter of mere accident, since men, 
 when they first planted yews, little dreamed that there 
 were sexes in trees. 
 
 In a yard, in the midst of the street, till very lately, 
 grew a middle sized female tree of the same species, 
 which commonly bore great crops of berries. By the 
 high winds usually prevailing about the autumnal 
 equinox, these berries, then ripe, were blown down into 
 the road, where the hogs ate them. And it was very 
 remarkable, that, though barrow-hogs and young sows 
 found no inconvenience from this food, yet milch-sows 
 often died after such a repast: a circumstance that can 
 be accounted for only by supposing that the latter, 
 being much exhausted and hungry, devoured a larger 
 quantity. 
 
 While mention is making of the bad effects of yew- 
 berries, it may be proper to remind the unwary, that 
 the twigs and leaves of yew, though eaten in a very 
 small quantity, are certain death to horses and cows, 
 and that in a few minutes. A horse tied to a yew 
 hedge, or to a faggot stack of dead yew, shall be found 
 
 M M 2 
 
532 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 dead before the owner can be aware that any danger is 
 at hand : and the writer has been several times a sor- 
 rowful witness to losses of this kind among his friends ; 
 and in the island of Ely had once the mortification to 
 see nine young steers or bullocks of his own all lying 
 dead in a heap from browzing a little on a hedge of 
 yew in an old garden into which they had broken in 
 snowy weather. Even the clippings of a yew hedge 
 have destroyed a whole dairy of cows when thrown 
 inadvertently into a yard. And yet sheep and turkeys, 
 and, as park-keepers say, deer, will crop these trees 
 with impunity. 
 
 Some intelligent persons assert that the branches of 
 yew, while green, are not noxious ; and that they will 
 kill only when dead and withered, by lacerating the 
 stomach : but to this assertion we cannot by any means 
 assent, because, among the number of cattle that we 
 have known fall victims to this deadly food, not one 
 has been found, when it was opened, but had a lump ol 
 green yew in its paunch. True it is, that yew trees 
 stand for twenty years or more in a field, and no bad 
 consequences ensue : but at some time or other cattle, 
 either from wantonness when full, or from hunger when 
 empty (from both which circumstances we have seen 
 them perish), will be meddling, to their certain destruc- 
 tion ; the yew seems to be a very improper tree for a 
 pasture field. 
 
 Antiquaries seem much at a loss to determine at 
 what period this tree first obtained a place in church- 
 yards. A statute passed A. D. 1307 and 35 Edward I. 
 the title of which is " Ne rector arbores in cemeterio 
 prosternat." Now if it is recollected that we seldom 
 see any other very large or ancient tree in a churchyard 
 but yews, this statute must have principally related to 
 this species of tree ; and consequently their being planted 
 in churchyards is of much more ancient date than the 
 year 1307. 
 
 As to the use of these trees, possibly the more re- 
 
OF SELBORNE. 533 
 
 spectable parishioners were buried under their shade 
 before the improper custom was introduced of burying 
 within the body of the church, where the living are to 
 assemble. Deborah, Rebekah's nurse 1 , was buried 
 under an oak ; the most honourable place of interment 
 probably next to the cave of Machpelah 2 , which seems 
 to have been appropriated to the remains of the patri- 
 archal family alone. 
 
 The farther use of yew trees might be as a screen to 
 churches, by their thick foliage, from the violence of 
 winds; perhaps also for the purpose of archery, the 
 best long bows being made of that material: and we 
 do not hear that they are planted in the churchyards of 
 other parts of Europe, where long bows were not so 
 much in use. They might also be placed as a shelter 
 to the congregation assembling before the church doors 
 were opened, and as an emblem of mortality by their 
 funereal appearance 3 . In the south of England every 
 churchyard almost has its tree, and some two ; but in 
 the north, we understand, few are to be found. 
 
 The idea of R. C. that the yew tree afforded its 
 branches instead of palms for the processions on Palm 
 Sunday, is a good one, and deserves attention. See 
 Gent. Mag. vol. i. p. 128. 
 
 LETTER VI. 
 
 THE living of Selborne was a very small vicarage ; but, 
 being in the patronage of Magdalen College, in the 
 university of Oxford, that society endowed it with the 
 great tithes of Selborne, more than a century ago : and 
 since the year 1758 again with the great tithes of Oak- 
 hanger, called Bene's Parsonage : so that, together, it is 
 
 1 Gen. xxxv. 8. a Gen. xxiii. 9. 
 
 3 Or rather, perhaps, as an emblem of immortality by their evergreen 
 foliage : whence, also, most probably, the derivation of their name ; yew, 
 q. d. ewigj everlasting. E. T. B. 
 
ANTIQUITIES 
 
 become a respectable piece of preferment, to which one 
 of the fellows is always presented. The vicar holds 
 the great tithes, by lease, under the college. The great 
 disadvantage of this living is, that it has not one foot 
 of glebe near home 1 . 
 
 ITS PAYMENTS ARE, 
 
 t'. *. tl. 
 
 King's books 821 
 
 Yearly tenths 16 2| 
 
 Yearly procurations for Blackmore and Oak- 
 hanger Chap: with acquit: 017 
 
 Selborne procurations and acquit : ... 9 
 
 I am unable to give a complete list of the vicars of 
 this parish till towards the end of the reign of Queen 
 Elizabeth ; from which period the registers furnish a 
 regular series. 
 
 In Domesday we find thus " De isto manerio dono 
 dedit Rex Radfredo presbytero dimidiam hidam cum 
 ecclesia." So that before Domesday, which was com- 
 piled between the years 1081 and 1086, here was an 
 officiating minister at this place. 
 
 After this, among my documents, I find occasional 
 mention of a vicar here and there : the first is 
 Roger, instituted in 1254. 
 In 1410 John Lynne was vicar of Selborne. 
 In 1411 Hugo Tybbe was vicar. 
 
 The presentations to the vicarage of Selborne gene- 
 rally ran in the name of the prior and the convent ; but 
 Tybbe was presented by prior John Wynechestre only. 
 
 June 29, 1528, William Fisher, vicar of Selborne, 
 resigned to Miles Peyrson. 
 
 1594, William White appears to have been vicar to 
 this time. Of this person there is nothing remarkable, 
 but that he hath made a regular entry twice in the 
 
 1 At Bene's, or Bin's, parsonage there is a house and stout barn, and 
 seven acres of glebe. Bene's parsonage is three miles from the church. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 535 
 
 register of Selborne of the funeral of Thomas Cowper, 
 Bishop of Winchester, as if he had been buried at 
 Selborne ; yet this learned prelate, who died 1594, was 
 buried at Winchester, in the cathedral, near the episco- 
 pal throne 2 . 
 
 1595, Richard Boughton, vicar. 
 
 [Sept, 6] 1596, William Inkforbye, vicar. [Buried 
 Jan. 6, 1606.] 
 
 May [16] 1606, Thomas Phippes, vicar. [Buried 
 May 27, 1631, at Harteley Mauduit] 
 
 June 1631, Ralph Austine, vicar. [Buried at Oxford, 
 March 24, 1631.] 
 
 July 1632, John Long worth. This unfortunate gen- 
 tleman, living in the time of Cromwell's usurpation, 
 was deprived of his preferment for many years, probably 
 because he would not take the league and covenant : for 
 I observe that his father-in-law, the Reverend Jethro 
 Beal, rector of Faringdon, which is the next parish, 
 enjoyed his benefice during the whole of that unhappy 
 period. Longworth, after he was dispossessed, retired 
 to a little tenement about one hundred and fifty yards 
 from the church, where he earned a small pittance by 
 the practice of physic. During those dismal times it 
 was not uncommon for the deposed clergy to take up 
 a medical character; as was the case in particular, I 
 know, with the Reverend Mr. Yalden, rector of Comp- 
 ton, near Guildford, in the county of Surrey. Vicar 
 Longworth used frequently to mention to his sons, who 
 told it to my relations, that, the Sunday after his depri- 
 vation, his puritanical successor stepped into the pulpit 
 with no small petulance and exultation ; and began his 
 
 2 See Godwin de Praesulibus Angliae, folio, Cant. 1743, page 239. 
 
 [It is possible that William White may have been the officiating priest; 
 a duty which would have so far exceeded the ordinary calls on him as to 
 have become, in his estimation, an event of magnitude sufficient to be 
 twice recorded in his register. One of the entries favours this idea. It 
 is prominently conspicuous by being written in a bold German text hand, 
 and concludes thus : " per me, W. White, Mr." E. T. B.] 
 
5: Jo ANTIQMTiCS 
 
 sermon from Psalm xx. 8: "They are brought down 
 mid fallen ; but we are risen and stand upright." This 
 person lived to be restored in 1660, and continued vicar 
 for eighteen years ; but was so impoverished by his 
 misfortunes, that he left the vicarage house and pre- 
 mises in a very abject and dilapidated state. 
 
 July 1678. Richard By field, [B. D.] who left eighty 
 pounds by will, the interest to be applied to apprentice 
 out poor children : but this money, lent on private 
 security, was in danger of being lost, and the bequest 
 remained in an unsettled state for near twenty years, 
 till 1700; so that little or no advantage was derived 
 from it. About the year 1759 it was again in the utmost 
 danger by the failure of a borrower; but, by prudent 
 management, has since been raised to one hundred 
 pounds stock in the three per cents reduced. The 
 trustees are the vicar and the renters or owners of 
 Temple, Priory, Grange, Blackmore, and Oakhanger 
 House, for the time being. This gentleman seemed 
 inclined to have put the vicarial premises in a comfort- 
 able state ; and began, by building a solid stone wall 
 round the front court, and another in the lower yard, 
 between that and the neighbouring garden ; but was 
 interrupted by death from fulfilling his laudable inten- 
 tions. [He lies buried in the chancel of his church ; 
 and a black slab, within the rails of the communion 
 table and near the north wall, commemorates him.] 
 
 April [7], 1680, Barnabas Long became vicar. [Dr. 
 Long appears to have resigned the vicarage in conse- 
 quence of obtaining other preferment. We learn from 
 Wood that on the 6th of February, Ki81, he was installed 
 prebend of Botesant in the church of York ; and, on the 
 24th of May, 1682, of Stillington also. From the same 
 authority it may be added that he died in 1685.] 
 
 June [23], 1681. This living was now in such low 
 estimation in Magdalen College, that it descended to a 
 junior fellow, Gilbert White, M. A. who was instituted 
 
OF SKLBORNE. 537 
 
 to it in the thirty-first year of his age. At his first 
 coming 1 he ceiled the chancel, and also floored and 
 wainscoted the parlour and hall, which before, were 
 paved with stone, and had naked walls ; he enlarged 
 the kitchen and brewhouse, and dug a cellar and well: 
 he also built a large new barn in the lovvej* yard, re- 
 moved the hovels in the front court, which he laid out 
 in walks and borders ; and entirely planned the back 
 garden, before a rude field with a stone-pit in the midst 
 of it. By his will he gave and bequeathed " the sum 
 of forty pounds to be laid out in the most necessary 
 repairs of the church: that is, in strengthening and 
 securing such parts as seem decaying and dangerous." 
 With this sum two large buttresses were erected to 
 support the east end of the south wall of the church ; 
 and the gable end wall of the west end of the south aisle 
 was new built from the ground. 
 
 By his will also he gave " One hundred pounds to be 
 laid out on lands ; the yearly rents whereof shall be 
 employed in teaching the poor children of Selbourne 
 parish to read and write, and say their prayers and 
 catechism, and to sew and knit : and be under the 
 direction of his executrix as long as she lives ; and, 
 after her, under the direction of such of his children 
 and their issue, as shall live in or within five miles of 
 the said parish : and on failure of any such, then under 
 the direction of the vicar of Selbourn for the time being; 
 but still to the uses above-named." With this sum were 
 purchased, of Thomas Turville, of Hawkely, in the 
 county of Southampton, yeoman, and Hannah his wife, 
 two closes of freehold land, commonly called Collier's, 
 containing, by estimation, eleven acres, lying in Hawke- 
 ley aforesaid. These closes are let at this time, 1785, 
 on lease, at the rate of three pounds by the year 3 . 
 
 This vicar also gave by will two hundred pounds 
 
 3 The fac-simile of the historian's autograph, subjoined to the adver- 
 tisement prefixed to the present volume, is taken from his signature to the 
 lease here referred to, which is now in the editor's possession. E. T. B. 
 
538 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 towards the repairs of the highways 4 in the parish of 
 Selborne. That sum was carefully and judiciously 
 laid out in the summer of the year 1730, by his son 
 John White, who made a solid and firm causey from 
 Rood Green, all down Honey Lane, to a farm called 
 Oak Woods, where the sandy soil begins. This miry 
 and gulfy lane was chosen as worthy of repair, because 
 it leads to the forest, and thence through the Holt to 
 the town of Farnham in Surrey, the only market in 
 those days for men who had wheat to sell in this neigh- 
 bourhood. This causey was so deeply bedded with 
 stone, so properly raised above the level of the soil, and 
 so well drained, that it has, in some degree, withstood 
 fifty-four years of neglect and abuse ; and might, with 
 moderate attention, be rendered a solid and comfortable 
 road. The space from Rood Green to Oak Woods 
 measures about three quarters of a mile. 
 
 In 1727, William Henry Cane, B. D. became vicar ; 
 and, among several alterations and repairs, new built 
 the back front of the vicarage house. 
 
 On February 1, 1740, Buncombe Bristowe, D. D. was 
 instituted to this living. What benefactions this vicar 
 bestowed on the parish will be best explained by the 
 following passages from his will: "Item, I hereby 
 give and bequeath to the minister and churchwardens 
 of the parish of Selbourn, in the county of Southampton, 
 a mahogany table, which I have ordered to be made 
 for the celebration of the Holy Communion ; and also 
 the sum of thirty pounds, in trust, to be applied in 
 manner following ; that is, ten pounds towards the 
 charge of erecting a gallery at the west end of the 
 church ; and ten pounds to be laid out for clothing, and 
 such like necessaries, among the poor (and especially 
 among the ancient and infirm) of the said parish : and 
 the remaining ten pounds to be distributed in bread, 
 
 4 " Such legacies were very common in former times, before any effec- 
 tual laws were made for the repairs of highways." Sir John Cullum's 
 Hawsted, p. 15. 
 
OF SELBORNK. 530 
 
 at twenty shillings a week, at the discretion of John 
 White, Esq. or any of his family, who shall be resident 
 in the said parish. " 
 
 On November 12, 1758, Andrew Etty, B. D. became 
 vicar. Among many useful repairs he new roofed the 
 body of the vicarage house ; and wainscoted, up to the 
 bottom of the windows, the whole of the chancel ; to 
 the neatness and decency of which he always paid the 
 most exact attention. 
 
 On September 25, 1784, Christopher Taylor, B. D. 
 was inducted into the vicarage of Selborne. 
 
 [August 10, 1800. John Covey, B. D., by cession of 
 Dr. Taylor. He made several alterations and improve- 
 ments in the vicarage house and court; and removed 
 the stone wall from the front court, which he separated 
 from the Plestor by an open palisade. 
 
 1809. William Alcock, D. D. This vicar, in a fit of 
 melancholy, destroyed himself. He lies buried in the 
 churchyard, on the northern side, without any mark to 
 distinguish his grave. 
 
 1813. William Rust Cobbold. The present vicar 
 has added considerably to the comfort of the vicarage 
 house by alterations which have increased the number 
 of rooms, and have rendered them more light and 
 cheerful. He has also much improved the original 
 gardens of the vicarage, having converted them into 
 ornamental grounds enriched with luxuriant exotics, 
 including the finest of the American shrubs ; and he 
 has formed, south of his rick yard, an entirely new fruit 
 and kitchen garden, which, being on the black malm, 
 is of surprising fertility. His donation of an organ 
 to the church has been already mentioned : and it is 
 in a great measure under his superintendence that the 
 interior of the church has assumed the decent and 
 orderly appearance that now belongs to it. He has 
 also built and fitted up two rooms near the Plestor, 
 the use of which he has offered for the schooling of 
 the children of the poorer parishioners.] 
 
ANTIQUITIES 
 
 LETTER VII. 
 
 I SHALL now proceed to the Priory, which is undoubt- 
 edly the most interesting part of our history. 
 
 The Priory of Selborne was founded by Peter de la 
 Roche, or de Rupibus *, one of those accomplished 
 foreigners that resorted to the court of King John, 
 where they were usually caressed, and met with a more 
 favourable reception than ought, in prudence, to have 
 been shown by any monarch to strangers. This adven- 
 turer was a Poictevin by birth, had been bred to arms 
 in his youth, and distinguished by knighthood. Histo- 
 rians all agree not to speak very favourably of this 
 remarkable man ; they allow that he was possessed of 
 courage and fine abilities, but then they charge him 
 with arbitrary principles, and violent conduct. By his 
 insinuating manners he soon rose high in the favour of 
 John ; and in 1205, early in the reign of that prince, 
 was appointed Bishop of Winchester. In 1214 he 
 became Lord Chief Justiciary of England, the first 
 magistrate in the state, and a kind of viceroy, on whom 
 depended all the civil affairs in the kingdom. After the 
 death of John, and during the minority of his son 
 Henry, this prelate took upon him the entire manage- 
 ment of the realm, and was soon appointed protector 
 of the king and kingdom. 
 
 The barons saw with indignation a stranger pos- 
 sessed of all the power and influence, to part of which 
 they thought they had a claim ; they therefore entered 
 into an association against him, and determined to 
 wrest some of that authority from him which he had so 
 unreasonably usurped. The bishop discerned the storm 
 at a distance ; and, prudently resolving to give way to 
 that torrent of envy which he knew not how to with- 
 
 1 See Godwin de Praesulibus Angliae, folio, Cant. 1743, p. 217. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 541 
 
 stand, withdrew quietly to the Holy Land, where he 
 resided some time. 
 
 At this juncture a very small part of Palestine re- 
 mained in the hands of the Christians : they had been 
 by Saladine dispossessed of Jerusalem, and all the 
 internal parts, near forty years before ; arwj with diffi- 
 culty maintained some maritime towns and garrisons : 
 yet the busy and enterprising spirit of de Rupibus 
 could not be at rest; he distinguished himself by the 
 splendour and magnificence of his expenses, and amused 
 his mind by strengthening fortresses and castles, and by 
 removing and endowing of churches. Before his expe- 
 dition to the east he had signalized himself as a founder 
 of convents, and as a benefactor to hospitals and 
 monasteries. 
 
 In the year 1231 he returned again to England ; and 
 the very next year, in 1232, began to build and endow 
 the PRIORY of SELBORNE. As this great work fol- 
 lowed so close upon his return, it is not improbable 
 that it was the result of a vow made during his voyage; 
 and especially as it was dedicated to the Virgin Mary. 
 Why the bishop made choice of Selborne for the scene 
 of his munificence can never be determined now : it can 
 only be said that the parish was in his diocese, and lay 
 almost midway between Winchester and Farnham, or 
 South Waltham and Farnham; from either of which 
 places he could without much trouble overlook his 
 workmen, and observe what progress they made ; and 
 that the situation was retired, with a stream running by 
 it, and sequestered from the world, amidst woods and 
 meadows, and so far proper for the site of a religious 
 house 2 . 
 
 2 The institution at Selborne was a priory of Black Canons of the order 
 of St. Augustine, called also Canons Regular. Regular Canons were 
 such as lived in a conventual manner, under one roof, had a common 
 refectory and dormitory, and were bound by vows to observe the rules 
 and statutes of their order: in fine, they were a kind of religious, whose 
 discipline was less rigid than the monks'. The chief rule of these canons 
 was that of St. Augustine, who was constituted Bishop of Hippo, A.D. 
 
542 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 The first person with whom the founder treated about 
 the purchase of land was Jacobus de Achangre, or 
 Ochangre, a gentleman of property who resided at that 
 hamlet ; and, as appears, at the house now called Oak- 
 hanger House. With him he agreed for a croft, or little 
 close of land, known by the name of La Liega, or La 
 Lyge, which was to be the immediate site of the Priory. 
 
 De Achangre also accommodated the bishop at the 
 same instant with three more adjoining crofts, which 
 for a time was all the footing that this institution ob- 
 tained in the parish. The seller in the conveyance 
 says, " Warantizabimus, defendemus, et acquietabimus 
 contra omnes gentes;" viz. "We will warrant the thing 
 sold against all claims from any quarter." In modern 
 conveyancing this would be termed a covenant for fur- 
 ther assurance. Afterwards is added " Pro hac autem 
 donacione, &c. dedit mihi pred. Episcopus sexdeceni 
 marcas argenti in Gersumam :" i. e. " the bishop gave 
 me sixteen silver marks as a consideration for the tiling- 
 purchased." 
 
 As the grant from Jac. de Achangre was without 
 date 3 , and the next is circumstanced in the same man- 
 ner, we cannot say exactly what interval there was 
 between the two purchases ; but we find that Jacobus 
 de Nortun, a neighbouring gentleman, also soon sold 
 to the Bishop of Winchester some adjoining grounds, 
 through which our stream passes, that the priory might 
 be accommodated with a mill, which was a common 
 necessary appendage to every manor : he also allowed 
 access to these lands by a road for carts and waggons. 
 
 395 : but they were not brought into -England till after the conquest ; 
 and seem not to have obtained the appellation of Augustine Canons till 
 some years after. Their habit was a long black cassock, with a white 
 rocket over it; and over that a black cloak and hood. The monks were 
 always shaved : but these canons wore their hair and beards, and caps on 
 their heads. There were of these canons, and women of the same order 
 called Canonesses, about one hundred and seventy-five houses. 
 
 3 The custom of affixing dates to deeds was not become general in the 
 reign of Henry III. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 543 
 
 " Jacobus de Nortun concedit Petro Winton episcopo 
 totum cursum aque que descend!! de Molendino de 
 Durton, usq ; ad boscum Will. Mauduit, et croftam 
 terre vocat : Edriche croft, cum extensione ejusdem et 
 abuttamentis ; ad fundandam domum religiosam de 
 ordine Sti. Augustini. Concedit etiam viam ad carros, 
 et caretas," &c. This vale, down which runs the brook, 
 is now called the Long Lithe, or Lythe. Bating the fol- 
 lowing particular expression, this grant runs much in 
 the style of the former ; " Dedit mihi episcopus predic- 
 tus triginta quinque marcas argenti ad me acquietandum 
 versus Judceos" That is, " the bishop advanced me 
 thirty-five marks of silver to pay my debts to the Jews," 
 who were then the only lenders of money. 
 
 Finding himself still straitened for room, the founder 
 
 applied to his royal master, Henry, who was graciously 
 
 pleased to bestow certain lands in the manor at Selborne 
 
 on the new priory of his favourite minister. These 
 
 grounds had been the property of Stephen de Lucy; 
 
 and, abutting upon the narrow limits of the convent, 
 
 became a very commodious and agreable acquisition. 
 
 This grant, I find, was made on March the 9th, in the 
 
 eighteenth year of Henry, viz. 1234, being two years 
 
 after the foundation of the monastery. The royal donor 
 
 bestowed his favour with a good grace, by adding to it 
 
 almost every immunity and privilege that could have 
 
 been specified in the law language of the times. 
 
 " Quare volumus prior, &c. habeant totam terram, &c. 
 
 cum omnibus libertatibus in bosco et piano, in viis et 
 
 semitis, pratis et pascuis; aquis et piscariis; intra 
 
 burgum, et extra burgum, cum soka et saca, Thol et 
 
 Them, Infangenethef et Utfangenethef, et hamsocne et 
 
 blodwite, et pecunia que dari solet pro murdro et forstal, 
 
 et flemenestrick, et cum quietancia de omni scotto et 
 
 geldo, et de omnibus auxiliis regum, vicecomitum, et 
 
 omn: ministralium suorum; et hidagio et exercitibus, 
 
 et scutagiis, et tallagiis, et shiris et hundredis, et placitis 
 
 et querelis, et warda et wardpeny, et opibus castellorum 
 
544 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 et pontium, et clausuris parcorum, et omni carcio et 
 sumagio, et domor: regal: edificatione, et omnimoda 
 reparatione, et cum omnibus aliis libertatibus." This 
 grant was made out by Richard, Bishop of Chichester, 
 then chancellor, at the town of Northampton, before the 
 lord chief justiciary, who was the founder himself. 
 
 The charter of foundation of the Priory, dated 1233, 
 comes next in order to be considered ; but being of 
 some length, I shall not interrupt my narrative, by 
 placing it here 4 . My copy, taken from the original, 
 
 4 Carta Petri et conventus ecclesie Winton. profundatione prioratus de Sele- 
 burne, ifc. dat. 1233. 
 
 Omnibus Christi fidelibus ad quos prescns scriptum pervencrit. P. 
 divitia miseracione IVinton ecclesie minister huinilis saiutem in Domino : 
 Ex otlicio pastorali tenemur viros religiosos, qui pauperes spiritu <^sr pro 
 Christo neglectis lucris temporalibus elegerunt; spirituali affectu dili- 
 gere, fovere pariter et creare, eorumq ; quieti sollicite providere; ut tanto 
 uberiores fructus de continua in lege Dei raeditatione percipiant, quanto 
 a conturbationibus malignorum amplius fuerint ex patroni provisione et 
 ecclesiastica defensione securi. Hinc est quod universitati vestre notili- 
 camus, nos divine caritatis instinctu, de assensu conventus ecclesie nostre 
 II int n, fundasse domum religiosam, ordinis roagni patris Augustini, in 
 honore Dei et gloriose semper virginis ejusdem Dei genetricis Marie, 
 apud Seleburne ; ibidemque canonicos regulares instituissc : ad quorum 
 sustentationem et hospitum et pauperum susreptionem, dedimus, conces- 
 siniiis, et presenti carta nostra conOrmavimus eisdem canoniris, totam 
 terram quam habuimus de dono Jacobi de Acangre: et totam terrain, cur- 
 sum aque, boscum et pratum que habuimus de dono Jacobi de Nortone; et 
 totam terram boscum et redditum que habuimus de dono domini Henrici 
 regis Anglic; cum omnibus predictarum possessionum pertinentiis. Di'di- 
 mus etiam et concessimus in proprios usus eisdem canonicis ecclesiam 
 predicte ville de Seleburne, et ecclesias de Basing, et de Basingestok, cum 
 omnibus earundem ecclesiarum capellis, libertatibus, et aliis pertinenciis ; 
 salva honesta et sufficient! sustentatione vicariorum in predictis ecclesiis 
 ministrantium ; quorum presentatio ad priorem predicte domus religiose 
 de Seleburne et canonicos ejusdem loci in perpetuum pertinebit. Preterea 
 possessiones et redditus, ecclesias sive drcimas, quas in episcopatu nostro 
 adempti sunt, vel in posterum, Deo dante, justis modis poterunt adipisci, 
 sub nostra et Winton ecclesie protectione suscepimus, et episcopalis auc- 
 toritate officii confirmavimus ; eadem auctoritate firmiter inhibentes, ne 
 quis locum, in quo divino sunt officio mancipati, seu alias eorum posses- 
 siones, invadere vi vel fraude vel ingenio malo occupare audeat, vel etiam 
 retinere, aut fratres converses, servientes, vel homines eorum aliqua vio- 
 lentia perturbare, sive fugientes ad eos causa salutis sue conservande a 
 septis domus sue violenter presumat extraere. Precipimus autem ut in 
 
OF SELBORNE. 545 
 
 I have compared with Dugd ale's copy, and find that 
 they perfectly agree ; except that in the latter the 
 preamble and the names of the witnesses are omitted. 
 Yet I think it proper to quote a passage from this 
 charter " Et ipsa domus religiosa a cujusllbet alterius 
 domus religiosce subjectione libera permaneat, etin omnibus 
 absolute? to show how much Dugdale was mistaken 
 when he inserted Selborne among the alien priories ; for- 
 getting that this disposition of the convent contradicted 
 the grant that he had published. In the Monasticon 
 Anglicanum, in English, p. 119, is part of his catalogue 
 of alien priories, suppressed 2 Henry V. viz. 1414, where 
 may be seen as follows : 
 
 S. 
 Sele, Sussex. 
 
 SELEBURN. 
 
 Shir burn. 
 
 This appeared to me from the first to have been an 
 oversight, before I had seen my authentic evidences. 
 For priories alien, a few conventual ones excepted, 
 were little better than granges to foreign abbeys ; and 
 
 cadem donio religiosa de Seleburne ordo canonicus, et regularis conver- 
 satio, secundum regulam magni patris Augustini, quam primi inhabita- 
 tores professi sunt, in perpetuum observetur ; et ipsa domus religiosa a 
 cujuslibet alterius domus religiose subjectione libera permaneat, et in 
 omnibus absoluta ; salva in omnibus episcopali auctoritate, et WintMi 
 ecclesie dignitate. Quod ut in posterum ratum permaneat et inconcus- 
 sum, present! scripto et sigilli nostri patrocinis duximus confirmandum. 
 His testibus domino Waltero abbate de Hyda. Domino Walters Priore de 
 sancto Swithuno, domino Stephano priore de Motesfonte, magistro J /anode 
 Stoke; magistro Willo de saucte Marie ecclesia, tune official! nostro ; 
 Luca archidiacon' de surr'. magistro Huntfrido de Millers, Henrico & 
 Hugone capellanis, Roberto de Clinchamp, et Petro Rossinol clericis, et 
 multis aliis. Datum apud Wines* per manum P. de cancellis. Indie 
 sanctorum martirum Fabiani et Sebastiani. Anno Domi milesimo ducen- 
 tesimo tricesimo tercio. 
 
 Seal, two saints and a bishop praying: 
 Legend: SVI. M. SIT6. BONI. P6TR' PAVL' 6 PATRONI. 
 
 * Probably Wolvesey-house near Winchester. 
 
 N N 
 
546 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 their priors little more than bailiffs, removeable at will: 
 whereas the priory of Selborne possessed the valuable 
 estates and manors of Selborne, Achangre, Norton, 
 Brompden, Bassinges, Basingstoke, and Natele; and 
 the prior challenged the right of Pillory, Thurcet, and 
 Furcas, and every manerial privilege. 
 
 I find next a grant from Jo. de Venur, or Venuz, to 
 the prior of Selborne " de tota mora [a moor or bog] 
 ubi Bene oritur, usque ad campum vivarii, et de prato 
 voc. Sydenrneade cum abutt: et de cursu aque molen- 
 dini." And also a grant in reversion " unius virgate 
 terre," [a yard land] in Achangre at the death of Richard 
 Actedene his sister's husband, who had no child. He 
 was to present a pair of gloves of one penny value to 
 the prior and canons, to be given annually by the said 
 Richard: and to quit all claim to the said lands in 
 reversion, provided the prior and canons would engage 
 anually to pay to the king, through the hands of his 
 bailiffs of Aulton, ten shillings at four quarterly pay- 
 ments, " pro omnibus serviciis, consuetudinibus, exac- 
 tionibus, et demandis." 
 
 This Jo. de Venur was a man of property at Oak- 
 hanger, and lived probably at the spot now called 
 Chapel Farm. The grant bears date the seventeenth 
 year of the reign of Henry III. [viz. 1233.] 
 
 It would be tedious to enumerate every little grant 
 for lands or tenements that might be produced from my 
 vouchers. I shall therefore pass over all such for the 
 present, and conclude this letter with a remark that 
 must strike every thinking person with some degree of 
 wonder. No sooner had a monastic institution got a 
 footing, but the neighbourhood began to be touched 
 with a secret and religious awe. Every person round 
 was desirous to promote so good a work; and either by 
 sale, by grant, or by gift in reversion, was ambitious of 
 appearing a benefactor. They who had not lands to 
 spare gave roads to accommodate the infant founda- 
 tion. The religious were not backward in keeping up 
 
OF SELBORNE. 547 
 
 this pious propensity, which they observed so readily 
 influenced the breasts of men. Thus did the more 
 opulent monasteries add house to house, and field to 
 field ; and by degrees manor to manor : till at last 
 "there was no place left;" but every district around 
 became appropriated to the purposes of their founders, 
 and every precinct was drawn into the vortex. 
 
 LETTER VIII. 
 
 OUR forefathers in this village were no doubt as busy 
 and bustling, and as important, as ourselves : yet have 
 their names and transactions been forgotten from cen- 
 tury to century, and have sunk into oblivion ; nor has 
 this happened only to the vulgar, but even to men 
 remarkable and famous in their generation. I was led 
 into this train of thinking by finding in my vouchers 
 that Sir Adam Gurdon was an inhabitant of Selborne, 
 and a man of the first rank and property in the parish. 
 By Sir Adam Gurdon I would be understood to mean 
 that leading and accomplished malecontent in the 
 Mountfort faction, who distinguished himself by his 
 daring conduct in the reign of Henry III. The first 
 that we hear of this person in my papers is, that with 
 two others he was bailiff of Alton before the sixteenth 
 of Henry III. viz. about 1231, and then not knighted. 
 Who Gurdon was, and whence he came, does not ap- 
 pear : yet there is reason to suspect that he was origi- 
 nally a mere soldier of fortune, who had raised himself 
 by marrying women of property. The name of Gurdon 
 does not seem to be known in the south ; but there is a 
 name so like it in an adjoining kingdom, and which 
 belongs to two or three noble families, that it is pro- 
 bable this remarkable person was a North Briton ; and 
 the more so, since the Christian name of Adam is a 
 distinguished one to this day among the family of the 
 Gordons. But, be this as it may, Sir Adam Gurdon 
 
 NN 2 
 
548 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 has been noticed by all the writers of English history 
 for his bold disposition and disaffected spirit, in that 
 he not only figured during the successful rebellion of 
 Leicester, but kept up the war after the defeat and 
 death of that baron, intrenching himself in the woods of 
 Hampshire, towards the town of Farnham. After the 
 battle of Evesham, in which Mountfort fell, in the year 
 1265, Gurdon might not think it safe to return to his 
 house for fear of a surprise; but cautiously fortified 
 himself amidst the forests and woodlands with which 
 he was so well acquainted. Prince Edward, desirous 
 of putting an end to the troubles which had so long 
 harassed the kingdom, pursued the arch-rebel into his 
 fastnesses; attacked his camp; leaped over the in- 
 trenchments ; and, singling out Gurdon, ran him down, 
 wounded him, and took him prisoner 1 . 
 
 There is not perhaps in all history a more remarkable 
 instance of command of temper, and magnanimity, than 
 this before us: that a young prince, in the moment of 
 victory, when he had the fell adversary of the crown 
 and royal family at his mercy, should be able to with- 
 hold his hand from that vengeance which the vanquished 
 so well deserved. A cowardly disposition would have 
 been blinded by resentment: but this gallant heir- 
 apparent saw at once a method of converting a most 
 desperate foe into a lasting friend. He raised the fallen 
 veteran from the ground, he pardoned him, he admitted 
 him into his confidence, and introduced him to the queen, 
 then lying at Guildford, that very evening 1 . This un- 
 merited and unexpected lenity melted the heart of the 
 rugged Gurdon at once ; he became in an instant a loyal 
 and useful subject, trusted and employed in matters of 
 moment by Edward when king, and confided in till the 
 day of his death. 
 
 1 M. Paris, p. 075, and Triveti Annales. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 549 
 
 LETTER IX. 
 
 IT has been hinted in a former letter that Sir Adam 
 Gurdon had availed himself by marrying "women of 
 property. By my evidences it appears that he had 
 three wives, and probably in the following order : Con- 
 stantia, Ameria, and Agnes. The first of these ladies, 
 who was the companion of his middle life, seems to 
 have been a person of considerable fortune, which she 
 inherited from Thomas Makerel, a gentleman of Sel- 
 borne, who was either her father or uncle. The second, 
 Ameria, calls herself the quondam wife of Sir Adam, 
 " qua? fui uxor," &c. and talks of her sons under age. 
 Now Gurdon had no son : and beside Agnes in another 
 document says, "Ego Agnes quondam uxor Domini 
 Adae Gurdon in pura et ligea viduitate mea :" but Gur- 
 don could not leave two widows; and therefore it seems 
 probable that he had been divorced from Ameria, who 
 afterwards married, and had sons. By Agnes Sir Adam 
 had a daughter Johanna, who was his heiress, to whom 
 Agnes in her lifetime surrendered part of her jointure : 
 he had also a bastard son. 
 
 Sir Adam seems to have inhabited the house now 
 called Temple, lying about two miles east of the church, 
 which had been the property of Thomas Makerel. 
 
 In the year 1262 he petitioned the prior of Sel borne 
 in his own name, and that of his wife Constantia only, 
 for leave to build him an oratory in his manor house, 
 " in curia sua." Licenses of this sort were frequently 
 obtained by men of fortune and rank from the bishop of 
 the diocese, the archbishop, and sometimes, as I have 
 seen instances, from the pope; not only for conveni- 
 ence sake, and on account of distance, and the badness 
 of the roads, but as a matter of state and distinction. 
 Why the owner should apply to the prior, in preference 
 to the bishop of the diocese, and how the former became 
 
550 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 competent to such a grant, I cannot say ; but that the 
 priors of Selborne did take that privilege is plain, be- 
 cause some years afterward, in 1280, Prior Richard 
 granted to Henry Waterford and his wife Nicholaa a 
 license to build an oratory in their court house, " curia 
 sua de Waterford,'* in which they might celebrate divine 
 service, saving the rights of the mother church of 
 Basynges. Yet all the while the prior of Selborne 
 grants with such reserve and caution, as if in doubt of 
 his power, and leaves Gurdon and his lady answerable 
 in future to the bishop, or his ordinary, or to the vicar 
 for the time being, in case they should infringe the rights 
 of the mother church of Selborne. 
 
 TEMPLE, IN THE PARISH OF 
 
 The manor house called Temple is at present a single 
 building, running in length from south to north, and has 
 been occupied as a common farm house from time im- 
 memorial. The south end is modern, and consists of 
 a brewhouse, and then a kitchen, The middle part is 
 a hall twenty-seven feet in length, and nineteen feet in 
 breadth ; and has been formerly open to the top ; but 
 there is now a floor above it, and also a chimney in the 
 
OF SELBORNE. 551 
 
 western wall. The roofing consists of strong massive 
 rafter-work ornamented with carved roses. I have often 
 looked for the lamb and flag, the arms of the Knights 
 Templars, without success ; but in one corner found a 
 fox with a goose on his back, so coarsely executed, that 
 it required some attention to make out the device. 
 
 Beyond the hall to the north is a small parlour with a 
 vast heavy stone chimney-piece ; and, at the end of all, 
 the chapel or oratory, whose massive thick walls and 
 narrow windows at once bespeak great antiquity. This 
 room is only sixteen feet by sixteen feet eight inches ; 
 and full seventeen feet nine inches in height. The 
 ceiling is formed of vast joists, placed only five or six 
 inches apart. Modern delicacy would not much ap- 
 prove of such a place of worship : for it has at present 
 much more the appearance of a dungeon than of a room 
 fit for the reception of people of condition. The field 
 on which this oratory abuts is still called Chapel Field. 
 The situation of this house is very particular, for it 
 stands upon the immediate verge of a steep abrupt hill. 
 
 Not many years since, this place was used for a hop- 
 kiln, and was divided into two stories by a loft, part of 
 which remains at present, and makes it convenient for 
 peat and turf, with which it is stowed 1 . 
 
 1 There is now not a vestige remaining of the house described by 
 Gilbert White. But the modern residence, in its whitened walls and 
 slated roof and squared form the very reverse of the irregular and pictu- 
 resque building represented on the opposite page, occupies nearly the 
 same position with its predecessor, and commands that extensive view 
 over the forest, which was so advantageous in other times to its warder, 
 and which now delights the spectator by its variety and extent. The 
 grander features of nature have not changed here since Adam Gurdon 
 looked on them, and in the details, as seen from this position, there has 
 probably occurred but little alteration. Another view, equally lovely 
 but less extensive, is obtained from the orchard of Temple, formerly the 
 Chapel Field. In this prospect, and in that from the terrace by the side 
 of the house, a range of view is comprised extending over more than half 
 the compass, and stretching away uninterruptedly for miles over the 
 richest foreground imaginable to the dreary wastes of the Forest, enli- 
 vened by its little lakes, and bounded by the high downs that rise in the 
 distance into the clouds. E. T. B. 
 
552 
 
 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 LETTER X. 
 
 THE Priory at times was much obliged to Gurclon and 
 his family. As Sir Adam began to advance in years 
 he found his mind influenced by the prevailing opinion 
 of the reasonableness and efficacy of prayers for the 
 dead ; and, therefore, in conjunction with his wife 
 Constantia, in the year 1271, granted to the prior and 
 convent of Selborne all his right and claim to a certain 
 place, placea, called La Pleystow, in the village afore- 
 
 THK PLKSTOR. 
 
 said, "in liberam, puram, et perpetuam elemosinam." This 
 Pleystow 1 t locus ludorum, or play-place, is a level area 
 near the church of about forty-four yards by thirty-six, 
 and is known now by the name of the Plestor 2 . 
 
 1 In Saxon Plejepcop, or Plesprop; v j z . Plegestow, or Plegstow. 
 
 8 At this juncture probably the vast oak, mentioned p. 8, was planted 
 by the prior, as an ornament to his new acquired market-place. Accord- 
 ing to this supposition the oak was aged four hundred and Unity-two 
 years when blown down. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 553 
 
 It continues still, as it was in old times, to be the 
 scene of recreation for the youths and children of the 
 neighbourhood ; and impresses an idea on the mind that 
 this village, even in Saxon times, could not be the most 
 abject of places, when the inhabitants thought proper 
 to assign so spacious a spot for the sports ad amuse- 
 ments of its young people 3 . 
 
 As soon as the prior became possessed of this piece 
 of ground, he procured a charter for a market 4 from 
 King Henry III. and began to erect houses and stalls, 
 " seldas," around it. From this period Selborne became 
 a market town : but how long it enjoyed that privilege 
 does not appear. At the same time Gurdon reserved 
 to himself, and his heirs, a way through the said Plestor 
 to a tenement and some crofts at the upper end, abut- 
 ting on the south corner of the churchyard. This was, 
 in old days, the manerial house of the street manor, 
 though now a poor cottage ; and is known at present 
 by the modern name of Elliot's. Sir Adam also did, 
 for the health of his own soul, and that of his wife Con- 
 stantia, their predecessors and successors, grant to the 
 prior and canons quiet possession of all the tenements 
 and gardens, " cMrtillagia" which they had built and 
 laid out on the lands in Selborne, on which he and his 
 vassals, " homines" had undoubted right of common : 
 and moreover did grant to the convent the full privi- 
 lege of that right of common; and empowered the 
 religious to build tenements and make gardens along 
 the king's highway in the village of Selborne. 
 
 3 For more circumstances respecting the Plestor, see Letter II. to 
 Mr. Pennant. 
 
 4 Bishop Tanner, in his Notitia Monastica, has made a mistake respect- 
 ing the market and fair at Selborne: for, in his references to Dodsworth, 
 cart. 54 Hen. III. m. 3. he says, " De mcrcatu, etferia de Seleburn" But 
 this reference is wrong; for, instead of Seleburn, it proves that the place 
 there meant was Lekeborne, or Legeborn, in the county of Lincoln. This 
 error was copied from the index of the Cat. MSS. Angl. It does not 
 appear that there ever was a chartered fair at Selborne. For several 
 particulars respecting the present fair at Selborne see Letter XXVI. 
 of these Antiquities. 
 
554 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 From circumstances put together it appears that the 
 above were the first grants obtained by the Priory in 
 the village of Selborne, after it had subsisted about 
 thirty-nine years : moreover they explain the nature of 
 the mixed manor still remaining in and about the village, 
 where one field or tenement shall belong to Magdalen 
 College in the university of Oxford, and the next to 
 Norton Powlet, Esq. of Rotherfield House ; and so 
 down the whole street. The case was, that the whole 
 was once the property of Gurdon, till he made his 
 grants to the convent ; since which some belongs to the 
 successors of Gurdon in the manor, and some to the 
 college; and this is the occasion of the strange jumble 
 of property. It is remarkable that the tenement and 
 crofts which Sir Adam reserved at the time of granting 
 the Plestor should still remain a part of the Gurdon 
 manor, though so desirable an addition to the vicarage 
 that is not as yet possessed of one inch of glebe at 
 home: but of late, viz. in January, 1785, Magdalen 
 College purchased that little estate, which is life-hold- 
 ing, in reversion, for the generous purpose of besto \\in<r 
 it, and its lands, being twelve acres (three of which 
 abut on the churchyard and vicarage garden) as an 
 improvement hereafter to the living, and an eligible 
 advantage to future incumbents. 
 
 The year after Gurdon had bestowed the Plestor on 
 the Priory, viz. in 1272, Henry III. King of England 
 died, and was succeeded by his son Edward. This 
 magnanimous prince continued his regard for Sir Adam, 
 whom he esteemed as a brave man, and made him war- 
 den, " custos" of the forest of Wolmer 5 . Though little 
 
 5 Since the letters respecting Wolmer Forest and Ayles Holt, from p. 
 25 to 40, were printed, the author has been favoured with the following 
 extracts : 
 
 In the " Act of Resumption, 1 Hen. VII." it was provided, that it be 
 not prejudicial to " Harry at Lode, ranger of our forest of Wolmere, to 
 him by oure letters patents before tyme gevyn." Rolls of Parl. vol. vi. 
 p. 370. 
 
 In the 11 Hen. VII. 1495." Warlham [Ward le ham] and the office of 
 
OF SELBORNE. 555 
 
 emolument might hang to this appointment, yet are 
 there reasons why it might be highly acceptable ; and, 
 in a few reigns after, it was given to princes of the 
 blood 6 . In old days gentry resided more at home on 
 their estates, and, having fewer resources of elegant 
 in-door amusement, spent most of their leisure hours 
 in the field and the pleasures of the chase. A large 
 domain, therefore, at little more than a mile distance, 
 and well stocked with game, must have been a very 
 eligible acquisition, affording him influence as well as 
 
 forest [forester] of Wolmere " were held by Edmund, Duke of Suffolk. 
 Rolls, ib. 474. 
 
 Act of general pardon, 14 Hen. VIII. 1523, not to extend to "Rich. 
 Bp. of Wynton [Bishop Fox] for any seizure or forfeiture of liberties, &c. 
 within the forest of Wolmer, Alysholt, and Newe Forest ; nor to any 
 person for waste, &c. within the manor of Wardlam, or parish of Ward- 
 lam [Ward le ham ;] nor to abusing, &c. of any office or fee, within the said 
 forests of Wolmer or Alysholt, or the said park of Wardlam." County 
 Suth't. Rolls prefixed to first Vol. of Journals of the Lords, p. xciii. b. 
 
 To these may be added some other particulars, taken from a book 
 lately published, entitled "An Account of all the Manors, Messuages, 
 Lands, &c. in the different Counties of England and Wales, held by 
 Lease from the Crown ; as contained in the Report of the Commissioners 
 appointed to inquire into the State and Condition of the Royal Forests," 
 &c. London, 1787. 
 
 " Southampton." 
 
 P. 64. " A fee-farm rent of 3H. 2s. lid. out of the manors of East and 
 West Wardleham; and also the office of lieutenant or keeper of the 
 forest or chase of Aliceholt and Wolmer, with all offices, fees, commodi- 
 ties, and privileges thereto belonging. 
 
 " Names of lessees, William, Earl of Dartmouth and others (in trust). 
 
 " Date of the last lease, March 23, 1780 ; granted for such term as 
 would fill up the subsisting term to thirty-one years. 
 
 " Expiration March 23, 1811." 
 
 " Appendix, No. III." 
 " Southampton." 
 
 " Hundreds Selborne and Finchdeane." 
 " Honours and manors," &c. 
 
 " Aliceholt Forest, three parks there. 
 
 " Bensted and Kingsley ; a petition of the parishioners concerning the 
 three parks in Aliceholt Forest." 
 
 William, first Earl of Dartmouth, and paternal grandfather to the pre- 
 sent Lord Stawel, was a lessee of the forests of Aliceholt and Wolmer 
 before brigadier-general Emanuel Scroope Howe. 
 
 6 See Letter II. of these Antiquities. 
 
556 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 entertainment; and especially as the manerial house 
 of Temple, by its exalted situation, could command a 
 view of near two-thirds of the forest. 
 
 That Gurdon, who had lived some years the life of an 
 outlaw, and, at the head of an army of insurgents, was, 
 for a considerable time in high rebellion against his 
 sovereign, should have been guilty of some outrages, 
 and should have committed some depredations, is by 
 no means matter of wonder. Accordingly we find a 
 distrmgas against him, ordering him to restore to the 
 Bishop of Winchester some of the temporalities of that 
 see, which he had taken by violence and detained ; viz. 
 some lands in Hocheleye, and a mill 7 . By a breve, or 
 writ, from the king he is also enjoined to readmit the 
 Bishop of Winchester, and his tenants of the parish 
 and town of Farnham, to pasture their horses, and 
 other larger cattle, " averia," in the Forest of Wolmer, 
 as had been the usage from time immemorial. This 
 writ is dated in the tenth year of the reign of Edward, 
 viz. 1282. 
 
 All the king's writs directed to Gurdon are addressed 
 in the following manner: "Edwardus, Dei gratia, &c. 
 dilecto et fideli suo Ade Gurdon salutem ;" and again, 
 " Custodi foreste sue de Wolvemere." 
 
 In the year 1293 a quarrel between the crews of an 
 English and a Norman ship, about some trifle, brought 
 on by degrees such serious consequences, that in 1295 
 a war broke out between the two nations. The French 
 king, Philip the Hardy, gained some advantages in 
 Gascony ; and, not content, with those, threatened 
 England with an invasion, and, by a sudden attempt, 
 took and burnt Dover. 
 
 Upon this emergency Edward sent a writ to Gurdon, 
 ordering him and four others to enlist three thousand 
 soldiers in the counties of Surrey, Dorset, and Wilt- 
 
 7 Hocheleye, now spelt Hawkley, is in the hundred of Sel borne, and 
 has a mill at this day. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 557 
 
 shire, able-bodied men, " tarn sagittare quam balistare 
 potentes:" and to see that they were marched, by the 
 feast of All Saints, to Winchelsea, there to be embarked 
 aboard the king's transports. 
 
 The occasion of this armament appears- also from a 
 summons to the Bishop of Winchester to parliament, 
 part of which I shall transcribe on account of the 
 insolent menace which is said therein to have been 
 denounced against the English language: " qualiter 
 rex Franciae de terra nostra Gascon nos fraud ulenter 
 et cautelose decepit, earn nobis nequiter detinendo . . . 
 vero predictis fraude et nequitia non contentus, ad 
 expugnationem regni nostri classe maxima et bella- 
 torum copiosa multitudine congregatis, cum quibus 
 regnum nostrum et regni ejusdem incolas hostiliter jam 
 invasurus, linguam Anglicam, si concepte iniquitatis 
 proposito detestabili potestas correspondeat, quod Deus 
 avertat, omnino de terra delere proponit." Dated 30th 
 September, in the year of King Edward's reign xxiii 8 . 
 
 The above are the last traces that I can discover of 
 Gurdon's appearing and acting in public. The first 
 notice that my evidences give of him is, that, in 1232, 
 being the sixteenth of Henry III. he was the king's 
 bailiff, with others, for the town of Alton. Now, from 
 1232 to 1295 is a space of sixty-three years ; a long 
 period for one man to be employed in active life ! 
 Should any one doubt whether all these particulars can 
 relate to one and the same person, I should wish him 
 to attend to the following reasons why they might. In 
 the first place, the documents from the Priory mention 
 but one Sir Adam Gurdon, who had no son lawfully 
 begotten : and in the next, we are to recollect that he 
 must have probably been a man of uncommon vigour 
 both of mind and body ; since no one, unsupported by 
 such accomplishments, could have engaged in such 
 
 8 Reg. Wynton, Stratford, but query Stratford ; for Stratford was not 
 Bishop of Winton till 1323, near thirty years afterwards. 
 
558 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 adventures, or could have borne up against the diffi- 
 culties which he sometimes must have encountered: and, 
 moreover, we have modern instances of persons that 
 have maintained their abilities for near that period. 
 
 Were we to suppose Gurdon to be only twenty years 
 of age in 1232, in 1295 he would be eighty-three ; after 
 which advanced period it could not be expected that he 
 should live long. From the silence, therefore, of my 
 evidences it seems probable that this extraordinary 
 person finished his life in peace, not long after, at his 
 mansion of Temple. Gurdon's seal had for its device 
 a man with a helmet on his head, drawing a cross- 
 bow ; the legend, " Sigillum Ade de Gurdon ;" his arms 
 were, " Goulis et iii floures argent issant de testes de 
 leopards 9 ." 
 
 If the stout and unsubmitting spirit of Gurdon could 
 be so much influenced by the belief and superstition of 
 the times, much more might the hearts of his ladies and 
 daughter. And accordingly we find that Ameria, by 
 the consent and advice of her sons, though said to be 
 all under age, makes a grant for ever of some lands 
 down by the stream at Durton ; and also of her right of 
 the common of Durton itself 10 . Johanna, the daughter 
 and heiress of Sir Adam, was married, I find, to Richard 
 Achard ; she also grants to the prior and convent lands 
 and tenements in the village of Selborne, which her 
 father obtained from Thomas Makerel ; and all also her 
 goods and chattels in Selborne for the consideration of 
 two hundred pounds sterling. This last business was 
 transacted in the first year of Edward II. viz. 1307. It 
 has been observed before that Gurdon had a natural 
 son : this person was called by the name of John Das- 
 tard, alias Wastard, but more probably Bastard ; since 
 
 9 From the collection of Thomas Martin, Esq. in the Antiquarian Re- 
 pertory, vol. iii. p. 109, No. XXXI. 
 
 10 Durton, now called Dorton, is still a common for the copyholders of 
 Selborne manor. 
 
OP SELBORNE. 559 
 
 bastardy in those days was not deemed any disgrace, 
 though dastard y was esteemed the greatest. He was 
 married to Gimnorie Duncun ; and had a tenement 
 and some land granted him in Selborne by his sister 
 Johanna. 
 
 LETTER XL 
 
 THE Knights Templars 1 , who have been mentioned in 
 a former letter, had considerable property in Selborne ; 
 and also a preceptory at Sudington, now called South- 
 ington, a hamlet lying one mile to the east of the village. 
 
 1 The Military Orders of the Religious. 
 
 The Knights Hospitalars of St. John of Jerusalem, afterwards called 
 Knights of Rhodes, now of Malta, came into England about the year 
 1100, 1 Hen. I. 
 
 The Knights Templars came into England pretty early in Stephen's 
 reign, which commenced 1135. The order was dissolved in 1312, and 
 their estates given by act of Parliament to the Hospitalars in 1323, (all 
 in Edw. II.) though many of their estates were never actually enjoyed 
 by the said Hospitalars. Vid. Tanner, p. xxiv. x. 
 
 The commandries of the Hospitalars, and preceptories of Templars, 
 were each subordinate to the principal house of their respective religion 
 in London. Although these are the different denominations, which Tan- 
 ner at p. xxviii. assigns to the cells of these different orders, yet through- 
 out the work very frequent instances occur of preceptories attributed to 
 the Hospitalars ; and if in some passages of Notitia Monast. commandries 
 are attributed to the Templars, it is only where the place afterwards 
 became the property of the Hospitalars, and so is there indifferently 
 styled preceptory or commandry ; see p. 243, 263, 276, 577, 678. But, to 
 account for the first observed inaccuracy, it is probable the preceptories 
 of the Templars, when given to the Hospitalars, were still vulgarly, 
 however, called by their old name of preceptories ; whereas in propriety 
 the societies of the Hospitalars were indeed (as has been said) comman- 
 dries. And such deviation from the strictness of expression in this case 
 might occasion those societies of Hospitalars also to be indifferently 
 called preceptories, which had originally been vested in them, having 
 never belonged to the Templars at all. See in Archer, p. 609. Tanner, 
 p. 300. col. 1. 720. note e. 
 
 It is observable that the very statute for the dissolution of the Hospi- 
 talars holds the same language ; for there, in the enumeration of particu- 
 lars, occur "commandries, preceptories." Codex, p. 1190. Now this 
 intercommunity of names, and that in an act of parliament too, made 
 
530 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 Bishop Tanner mentions only two such houses of the 
 Templars in all the county of Southampton, viz. Godes- 
 field, founded by Henry de Blois, Bishop of Winchester, 
 and South Badeisley, a preceptory of the Knights Tem- 
 plars, and afterwards of St. John of Jerusalem, valued 
 at one hundred and eighteen pounds sixteen shillings 
 and seven pence per annum. Here then was a precep- 
 tory unnoticed by antiquaries, between the village and 
 Temple. Whatever the edifice of the preceptory might 
 have been, it has long since been dilapidated ; and tin- 
 whole hamlet contains now only one mean farm-house, 
 though there were two in the memory of man. 
 
 It has been usual for the religious of different orders 
 to fall into great dissensions, and especially when they 
 were near neighbours. Instances of this sort we have 
 heard of between the monks of Canterbury; and again 
 between the old abbey of St. Swythun, and the compa- 
 ratively new minster of Hyde in the city of Winchester 2 . 
 
 some of our ablest antiquaries look upon a preceptory and command ry 
 as strictly synonymous; accordingly we find Camden, in his Britannia, 
 explaining prteceptoria in the text by a commandry in the margin, p. 350, 
 510. J. L. 
 
 Commandry, a manor or chief messuage with lands, &c. belonging to 
 the priory of St. John of Jerusalem ; and he who had the government of 
 such house was called the commander, who could not dispose of it but 
 to the use of the priory, only taking thence his own sustenance, accord- 
 ing to his degree, who was usually a brother of the same priory. Cowell. 
 He adds (confounding these with preceptories) they are in many places 
 termed Temples, as Temple Bruere in Lincolnshire, &c. Preceptories 
 were possessed by the more eminent ort of Templars, whom the chief 
 master created and called Prteceptores Templi. Cowell, who refers to 
 Stephens de Jurisd. lib. 4. c. 10. num. 27. 
 
 Placita de juratis et assis coram Salom. de Roff et sociis suis justic. 
 Itiner. apud Wynton, &c. anno regni R. Edwardi fil. Reg. Hen. octavo. 
 " et Magr. Milicie Templi in Angl. ht emendasst* panis, & suis [cerevisia-] 
 in Sodington, & nescint q. war. et et magist. Milicie Templi non ven iu 
 distr. Chapter House, Westminster. 
 
 2 Notitia Monastica, p. 155. 
 
 " Winchester, Newminster. King Alfred founded here first only a 
 house and chapel for the learned monk Grimbald, whom he had brought 
 out of Flanders: but afterwards projected, and by his will ordered, a 
 noble church or religious house to be built in the cemetery on the north 
 
OF SELBORNE. 561 
 
 These feuds arose probably from different orders being 
 crowded within the narrow limits of a city, or garrison- 
 town, where every inch of ground was precious, and an 
 object of contention. But with us, as far as my evi- 
 dences extend, and while Robert Saunford was master 3 , 
 and Richard Carpenter was preceptor, the Templars 
 and the Priors lived in an intercourse of mutual good 
 offices. 
 
 My papers mention three transactions, the exact 
 time of which cannot be ascertained, because they fell 
 out before dates were usually inserted ; though proba- 
 bly they happened about the middle of the thirteenth 
 century ; not long after Saunford became master. The 
 first of these is that the Templars shall pay to the 
 priory of Selborne, annually, the sum of ten shillings at 
 two half yearly payments from their chamber, " camera" 
 at Sudington, " per manum preceptoris, vel ballivi nostri, 
 qui pro tempore fuerit ibidem," till they can provide 
 the prior and canons with an equivalent in lands or 
 rents within four or five miles of the said convent. It 
 is also further agreed that, if the Templars shall be in 
 
 side of the old minster or cathedral ; and designed that Grimbald should 
 preside over it. This was begun A. D. 901, and finished to the honour of 
 the Holy Trinity, Virgin Mary, and St. Peter, by his son King Edward, 
 who placed therein secular canons: but A. D. 963, they were expelled, 
 and an abbot and monks put in possession by Bishop Ethelwold. 
 
 " Now the churches and habitations of these two societies being so 
 very near together, the differences which were occasioned by their sing- 
 ing, bells, and other matters, arose to so great a height, that the religious 
 of the new monastery thought fit, about A. D. 1119, to remove to a better 
 and more quiet situation without the walls, on the north part of the city 
 called HYDE, where King Henry I. at the instance of Will. Gifford, 
 Bishop of Winton, founded a stately abbey for them. St. Peter was 
 generally accounted patron ; though it is sometimes called the monastery 
 of St. Grimbald, and sometimes of St. Barnabas," &c. 
 
 Note. A few years since a county bridewell, or house of correction, 
 has been built on the immediate site of Hyde Abbey. In digging up the 
 old foundations the workmen found the head of a crosier in good preser- 
 vation. 
 
 3 Robert Saunforde was master of the Temple in 1241 ; Guido de 
 Foresta was the next in 1292. The former is fifth in a list of the masters 
 in a MS. Bib. Cotton. Nero. E. VI. 
 
 O O 
 
562 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 arrears for one year, that then the prior shall be em- 
 powered to distrain upon their live stock in Bradeseth. 
 The next matter was a grant from Robert de Saunford 
 to the priory for ever, of a good and sufficient road, 
 " cheminum" capable of admitting carriages, and proper 
 for the drift of their larger cattle, from the way which 
 extends from Sudington towards Blakemere, on to the 
 lands which the convent possesses in Bradeseth. 
 
 The third transaction (though for want of dates \\r 
 cannot say which happened first and which last) was a 
 grant from Robert Saunford to the priory of a tenement 
 and its appurtenances in the village of Selborne, given 
 to the Templars by Americus de Vasci 4 . This pro- 
 perty, by the manner of describing it," totum tene- 
 mentum cum omnibus pertinentiis suis, scilicet in terris, 
 & hominibus, in pratis & pascuis, & nemoribus," &c. 
 seems to have been no inconsiderable purchase, and 
 was sold for two hundred marks sterling, to be applied 
 for the buying of more land for the support of the holy 
 war. 
 
 Prior John is mentioned as the person to whom 
 Vasci's land is conveyed. But in Willis's list there is 
 no prior John till 1339, several years after the dissolu- 
 tion of the order of the Templars in 1312 ; so that unless 
 Willis is wrong, and has omitted a prior John since 
 1262 (that being the date of his first prior), these trans- 
 actions must have fallen out before that date. 
 
 I find not the least traces of any concerns between 
 Gurdon and the Knights Templars ; but probably after 
 his death his daughter Johanna might have, and might 
 bestow, Temple on that order in support of the holy 
 land ; and, moreover, she seems to have been moving 
 from Selborne when she sold her goods and chattels to 
 the priory, as mentioned above. 
 
 4 Americus Vasci, by his name, must have been an Italian, and had 
 been probably a soldier of fortune, and one of Gurdon's captains. Ame- 
 ricus Vespucio, the person who gave name to the new world, was a 
 Florentine. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 503 
 
 Temple no doubt did belong to the knights, as may 
 be asserted, not only from its name, but also from ano- 
 ther corroborating circumstance of its being still a 
 manor tithe-free ; " for, by virtue of their order," says 
 Dr. Blackstone, "the lands of the Knights. Templars 
 were privileged by the pope with a discharge from 
 tithes." 
 
 Antiquaries have been much puzzled about the terms 
 preceptores and preceptorium, not being able to determine 
 what officer or edifice was meant. But perhaps all the 
 while the passage quoted above from one of my papers 
 " per manum preceptoris vel ballivi nostri, qui pro tern- 
 pore fuerit ibidem," may help to explain the difficulty. 
 For if it be allowed here that preceptor and ballivus are 
 synonymous words, then the brother who took on him 
 that office resided in the house of the Templars at 
 Sudington, a preceptory ; where he was their preceptor, 
 superintended their affairs, received their money ; and, 
 as in the instance there mentioned, paid from their 
 chamber, " camera" as directed : so that, according to 
 this explanation, a preceptor was no other than a 
 steward, and a preceptorium was his residence. I am 
 well aware that, according to strict Latin, the vel should 
 have been sen or sive, and the order of the words "pre- 
 ceptoris nostri, vel ballivi, qui" et " ibidem" should have 
 been ibi ; ibidem necessarily having reference to two or 
 more persons: but it will hardly be thought fair to 
 apply the niceties of classic rules to the Latinity of the 
 thirteenth century, the writers of which seem to have 
 aimed at nothing farther than to render themselves 
 intelligible. 
 
 There is another remark that we have made, which, 
 I think, corroborates what has been advanced; and 
 that is, that Richard Carpenter, preceptor of Suding- 
 ton, at the time of the transactions between the Tem- 
 plars and Selborne Priory, did always sign last as a 
 witness in the three deeds : he calls himself frater, it is 
 
 oo 2 
 
564 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 true, among many other brothers, but subscribes with 
 a kind of deference, as if, for the time being, his office 
 rendered him an inferior in the community 5 . 
 
 LETTER XII. 
 
 THE ladies and daughter of Sir Adam Gurdon were 
 not the only benefactresses to the Priory of Selborne ; 
 for, in the year 1281, Ela Longspee obtained masses 
 to be performed for her soul's health; and the prior 
 entered into an engagement that one of the convent 
 should every day say a special mass for ever for the 
 said benefactress, whether living or dead. She also 
 engaged within five years to pay to the said convent 
 one hundred marks of silver for the support of a 
 chantry and chantry-chaplain, who should perform his 
 masses daily in the parish church of Selborne 1 . In 
 the east end of the south aisle there are two sharp- 
 pointed Gothic niches ; one of these probably was the 
 place under which these masses were performed ; and 
 
 * In two or three ancient records relating to St. Oswald's hospital in 
 the city of Worcester, printed by Dr. Nash, p. 227 and 228, of his Collec- 
 tions for the History of Worcestershire, the words preceptorium and prc- 
 ceptoria signify the mastership of the said hospital : " ad preceptorium sive 
 magisterium presentavit preceptorii sive magistcrii patronus. Vacavit 
 dicta preceptoria seu magisterium ad preceptoriam et regimen dicti hospi- 
 talis Te preceptorem sive magistrum prefecimus." 
 
 Where preceptorium denotes a building or apartment it may probably 
 mean the master's lodgings, or at least the preceptor's apartment, what- 
 soever may have been the office or employment of the said preceptor. 
 
 A preceptor is mentioned in Thoresby's Ducatus Leodiensis, or His- 
 tory of Leeds, p. 225, and a deed witnessed by the preceptor and chaplain 
 before dates were inserted. Du Fresne's Supplement: " Preceptoria, 
 praedia preceptoribus assignata." Cowell, in his Law Dictionary, enume- 
 rates sixteen preceptorice, or preceptories, in England ; but Sudington is not 
 among them. It is remarkable that Gurtlerus, in his Historia Templario- 
 rum, Amstel. 1691, never once mentions the words preceptor or preceptorium. 
 
 1 A chantry was a chapel joined to some cathedral or parish church, 
 and endowed with annual revenues for the maintenance of one or more 
 priests to sing mass daily for the soul of the founder, and others. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 565 
 
 there is the more reason to suppose as much, because, 
 till within these thirty years, this space was fenced off 
 with Gothic wooden railing, and was known by the 
 name of the south chancel 2 . 
 
 The solicitude expressed by the donor plainly shows 
 her piety and firm persuasion of the efficacy of prayers 
 for the dead ; for she seems to have made every provi- 
 sion for the payment of the sum stipulated within the 
 appointed time ; and to have felt much anxiety lest her 
 death, or the neglect of her executors or assigns, might 
 frustrate her intentions. " Et si contingat me in solu- 
 cione predicte pecunie annis predictis in parte aut in 
 toto deficere, quod absit ; concedo et obligo pro me et 
 
 assignatis meis, quod Vice-Comes... Oxon et qui 
 
 pro tempore fuerint, per omnes terras et tenementa, et 
 omnia bona mea mobilia et immobilia ubicunque in 
 balliva sua fuerint inventa ad solucionem predictam 
 faciendam possent nos compellere." And again " Et 
 si contingat dictos religiosos labores seu expensas 
 facere circa predictam pecuniam, seu circa partem dicte 
 pecunie; volo quod dictorum religiosorum impense et 
 labores levantur ita quod predicto priori vel uni cano- 
 nicorum suorum super hiis simplici verbo credatur sine 
 alterius honere probacionis ; et quod utrique predic- 
 torum virorum in unam marcam argenti pro cujuslibet 
 distrincione super me facienda tenear. Dat. apud 
 Wareborn die sabati proxima ante festum St. Marci 
 evangeliste, anno regni regis Edwardi tertio decimo 3 ." 
 
 But the reader perhaps would wish to be better 
 informed respecting this benefactress, of whom as yet 
 he has heard no particulars. 
 
 2 For what is said more respecting this chantry see Letter III. of 
 these Antiquities. Mention is made of a Nicholas Langrish, capellanus 
 de Selborne, in the time of Henry VIII. Was he chantry-chaplain to 
 Ela Longspee, whose masses were probably continued to the time of the 
 reformation? More will be said of this person hereafter. 
 
 3 Ancient deeds are often dated on a Sunday, having been executed 
 in churches and churchyards for the sake of notoriety, and for the conve- 
 nieucy of procuring several witnesses to attest. 
 
56G ANTIQUITIES 
 
 The Ela Longspcc therefore above-mentioned was a 
 lady of high birth and rank, and became countess to 
 Thomas de Nevvburgh, the sixth Earl of Warwick : 
 she was the second daughter of the famous Ela Long- 
 spec, Countess of Salisbury, by William Longspee, 
 natural son of King Henry II. by Rosamond. 
 
 Our lady, following the steps of her illustrious 
 mother 4 , " was a great benefactress to the university 
 of Oxford, to the canons of Oseney, the nuns of God- 
 stow, and other religious houses in Oxfordshire. She 
 died very aged in the year 1300 5 , and was buried 
 before the high altar in the abbey church of Oseney, at 
 the head of the tomb of Henry D'Oily, under a flat 
 marble, on which was inlaid her portraiture, in the 
 habit of a vowess, engraved on a copper-plate." 
 Edmondson's History and Genealogical Account of the 
 Grevilles, p. 23. 
 
 LETTER XIII. 
 
 THE reader is here presented with five forms respect- 
 ing the choosing of a prior 1 . Such evidences are rare 
 and curious, and throw great light upon the general 
 
 4 Ela Longspee, Countess of Salisbury, in 1232, founded a monastery 
 at Lacock, in the county of Wilts, and also another at Hendon, in the 
 county of Somerset, in her widowhood, to the honour of the Blessed 
 Virgin and St. Bernard. CAM MIA. 
 
 5 Thus she survived the foundation of her chantry at Selborne fifteen 
 years. About this lady and her mother consult Dugdale's Baronage, I. 
 72, 175, 177. Dugdale's Warwickshire, I. 383. Leland's Itin. II. 45. 
 
 1 (No. 108.) 
 Carta petens licentiam eligendi prelatum a Domino Episcopo Wintoniensi. 
 
 Defuncto prelato forma petendi licentiam eligendi. 
 
 Domino et patri in Christo reverendo domino & P. Dei gratia Win- 
 toniensi episcopo, devoti sui filii supprior monasterii de S. Wintoniensis 
 dioceseos salutem cum subjectione humili, reverentiam, et honorem. 
 Monasterio nostro de S. in quo sub protectione vestra vivimus, sub habitu 
 regular!, Prioris solacio destitute per mortem bone memorie,&c. quondam 
 Prioris nostri, qui tali hora in aurora diem clausit cxtrcmuin, vestrc pater- 
 
OF SELBORNE. 567 
 
 monastico-ccclesiastical history of this kingdom, not 
 yet sufficiently understood. 
 
 nitati reverende et domination! precipue istum nostrum et nostri monas- 
 terii casum flebilem cum nierore nunciamus ; ad vestre paternitatis 
 refugium fratres nostros A. et C. canonicos destinantesj. rogando et 
 petendo devote quatenus nobis dignemini licenciam tribuere, ut monas- 
 terio predicto, Prioris regimine destitute, providere possimus, invocata 
 Spiritus sancti gratia, per electionem canonicam de Priore. Actum in 
 monasterio predicto 5 kalend. &c. anno Domini, &c, Valeat reverenda 
 paternitas vestra semper in Domino. 
 
 Forma licencie concesse. 
 
 P. Dei gratia Wintoniensis episcopus dilectis in Christo filiis suppriori 
 et conventui talis loci salutem, gratiam, et benedictionem. Viduitatem 
 monasterii vestri vacantis per mortem quondam R. Prioris vestri, cujus 
 anime propicietur altissimus, paterno compacientes aflectu, petitam a 
 nobis eligendi licenciam vobis concedimus, ut patronus. Datum apud, 
 &c. 3 kalend. Jul. anno consecrationis nostre tertio. 
 
 Forma decreti post electionem conficiendi. 
 
 In nomine Domini nostri Jhesu Christi, Amen. Monasterio beate 
 Marie talis loci Winton. dioc. solacio destitute per mortem R. quondam 
 Prioris ipsius ; ac corpore ejus, prout moris est, ecclesiastice sepulture 
 commendato ; petita cum devocione licentia per fratres K. et . canonicos 
 a ven : in Christo patre et domino domino P. Dei gratia Wintoniensi 
 episcopo ejusdem monasterii patrouo, eligendi priorem, et optenta ; die 
 dato, a toto capitulo ad eligendum vocati fuere evocandi, qui debuerunt, 
 voluerunt, et potuerunt comode electioni prioris in monasterio predicto 
 intcresse: omnes canonici in capitulo ejusdem ecclesie convenerunt tali 
 die, anno Dora. &c. ad tractandum de electione sui prioris facienda; qui, 
 invocata Spiritus Sancti gratia, ad procedendum per formam scrutinii 
 concencientes. 
 
 (N. 108.) Modus procedendi ad electionem per formam scrutinii. 
 Omnibus in capitulo congregatis qui debent volunt et possunt comode 
 interesse electioni eligendi sunt tres de capitulo* non nostro obediencias 
 orest, qui erunt scrutatores, et sedebunt in angulo capituli; et primo 
 requii-ent vota sua propria, videlicet, duo requirent tertium et duo alterum, 
 &c. dicendo sic, " Frater P. in quern concentis ad eligendum in prelatum 
 nostrum?" quibus examinatis, et dictis eorum per vicem ex ipsis in scrip- 
 tura redactis, vocabunt ad se omnes fratres singillatim, primo suppriorem, 
 &c. Et unus de tribus examinatoribus scribet dictum cujuslibet. Cele- 
 brato scrutinio, publicare db coram omnibus. Facta ptmodu concensum col- 
 lectione apparebit in quern pars major capituli et sanior concentit ; quo 
 viso, major pars dicet minori, " Cum major pars et sanior capituli nostri 
 
 * Fratres canonicos. See Forma decreti, Sfc. 
 
 t Obedientiores sc. more regular. In virtute obedientia? occurs in 
 Vw/. Visit. 
 
569 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 In the year 1324 there was an election for a prior at 
 Selborne ; when some difficulties occurring, and a devo- 
 
 concenciat in fratrem R. ipse est eligendus, unde, si placet, ipsum com- 
 muniter eligamus;" si vero omnes acquieverint, tune ille qui majorem 
 vocem habet in capitulo surgens dicet, " Ego frater R. pro toto capitulo 
 eligo fratrem R. nobis in pastorem;" et omnes dicent; " Placet nobis." 
 Et incipient, " TE DEUM LAUDAMUS." Si vero in unum concordare nequi- 
 verint, tune hiis, qui majorem vocem habet inter illos qui majorem et 
 saniorem partem capituli constituerint, dicet, " Ego pro me et illis qui 
 mecum concenciunt in fratrem R. eligo ipsum in," &c. Et illi dicent, 
 " Placet nobis," &c. 
 
 Forma ricte presentandi elect urn. 
 
 Reverendo in Christo patri et domino domino P. Dei gratia Winton. 
 episcopo devoti sui filii frater R. Supprior conventualis beate Marie de 
 tali loco, et ejusdem loci Conventus, cum subjectione humili, omnem obe- 
 dienciam, reverenciam, et honorem. Cum conventualis ecclesia beate 
 Marie talis loci, in qua sub protectione vestra vivimus sub habitu regulari, 
 per mortem felicis recordationis R. quondam prioris nostri destituta 
 ecclesia priore, qui 6 to kalend. Jul. in aurora anno Dom. &c. diem clausit 
 extremum ; de corpore ejus, prout moris est, ecclesiastice tradito sepul- 
 ture ; petita a vobis, tanquam a Domino, et vero ejusdem ecclesie patrono 
 et pastore, licencia eligendi priorem et optenta ; eonvenientibus omnibus 
 canonicis predicte ecclesie in capitulo nostro, qui voluerunt debuerunt et 
 potuerunt comode elcctioni nostre interesse, tali die anno Dom. supradicto, 
 invocata Spiritus Sancti gratia, fratrem R. de C. ejusdem ecclesie canoni- 
 cum unanimi assensu et voluntate in priorem nostrum, ex puris votis sin- 
 gulorum, unanimiter eligimus. Quern reverende paternitati vestre et 
 dominacioni precipue Priorem vero patrono nostro et pastore confirman- 
 dum, si placet, tenore presentium presentamus ; dignitatem vestram hunii- 
 liter et devote rogantes, quatenus, dicte electioui felicem prebere volentes 
 assensum, eidem R. electo nostro nunc contirmabitis, et quod vestrum est 
 pastorali solicitudine impendere dignemini. In cujus rei testimonium 
 presentes litteras sigillo capituli nostri signatas paternitati vestre l/vo/.s- 
 mittimus. Valeat reverenda paternitas vestra semper in Domino. Datum 
 tali loco die et anno supradictis. Omnes et singuli, per fratres A. B. ct 
 C. ejusdem ecclesie canonicos de voluntate tocius conventus ad inquircnda 
 vota singulorum constitutes, secreto et singillatim requisiti ; tandem pub- 
 licato scrutinio et facta votorum colectione inventum est, majorem et 
 saniorem partem tocius capituli dicte ecclesie in fratrem S. de B. dicte 
 ecclesie canonicum unanimiter et concorditer concencisse ; vel sic, quando 
 inventum omnes canonicos dicte ecclesie preter duos in fratrem, A. D. 
 quibus statim majori parti eligendum adquiescenter : frater k. supprior 
 ecclesie memorate, juxta potestatem sibi a toto conventu traditam, vice 
 consociorum suorum et sua ac tocius conventus, dictum fratrem S. de B. 
 in priorem ejusdem ecclesie elegit, sub hac forma ; " Ego frater supprior 
 conventualis ecclesie beate Marie talis loci, potestate et auctoritate mihi 
 a toto conventu dicte ecclesie tradita et commissa, quando, puplicato 
 
OF SELBORNE. 569 
 
 lution taking place, application was made to Stratford, 
 who was Bishop of Winchester at that time, and of 
 course the visiter and patron of the convent at the spot 
 above-mentioned 2 . 
 
 AN EXTRACT FROM REG. STRATFORD. WINTON. 
 
 P. 4. " Commissio facta sub-priori de Selebourne" 
 by the bishop, enjoining him to preserve the discipline 
 of the order in the convent during the vacancy made 
 by the late death of the prior, (" nuper pastoris solatio 
 destituta,") dated 4 to . kal. Maii ann. 2 do sc. of his con- 
 secration, [sc. 1324.] 
 
 P. 6. " Custodia Prioratus de Seleburne vacantis," 
 committed by the bishop to Nicholas de la . . . , a lay- 
 man, it belonging to the bishop " ratione vacationis 
 ejusdem," in July, 1324. Ibid. " Negotium electionis 
 de Selebourne. Acta coram Johanne Episcopo, &c. 
 1324 in negotio electionis de fratre Waltero de Insula 
 concanonico prioratus de Selebourne," lately elected by 
 the sub-prior and convent, by way of scrutiny ; that it 
 appeared to the bishop, by certificate from the Dean of 
 Alton, that solemn citation and proclamation had been 
 made in the church of the convent where the election 
 was held, that any who opposed the said election or 
 elected should appear. Some difficulties were started, 
 which the bishop overruled, and confirmed the election, 
 and admitted the new prior sub hac forma: 
 
 " In Dei nomine Amen. Ego Johannes permissione 
 divina, &c. te Walterum de Insula ecclesie de Selebourne 
 
 scrutinio et omnibus circa hoc rite peractis, inveni majorem et partem 
 saniorem tocius capituli nostri in fratrem S. de B. virum providum unani- 
 niiter concencisse, ipsum nobis et ecclesie nostre, vice tocius conventus, 
 in priorem eligendum ; et eidem election! subscribe ; cui election! omnes 
 canonici nostri concencerunt, et subscripserunt." " Ego frater de C. pre- 
 senti electioni concencio, et subscribe." Et sic de singulis electoribus; 
 in cvjus rei testimonium sigillum capituli nostri apponi fecimus ad pre- 
 sentes. 
 
 2 Stratford was Bishop of Winchester from 1323 to 1333, wheu he was 
 translated to Canterbury. 
 
570 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 nostro diocescos nostrique patronatus vacantis, canoni- 
 cum et cantorem, virum utique providum, ct discretum, 
 literarum scientia preditum, vita moribus et conversa- 
 tione merito commendatum, in ordine sacerdotali et 
 etate legitima constitutum, de legitimo matrimonio 
 procreatum, in ordine et religione Sancti Augustini dc 
 Selebourne expresse professum, in spiritualibus et tem- 
 poralibus circumspectum, jure nobis hac vice devoluto in 
 hac parte, in dicte ecclcsie de Selebourne perfcctum 
 priorem ; curam et administrationem ejusdem tibi in 
 spiritualibus et temporalibus committentes. Dat. apud 
 Selebourne XIII kalend. Augusti anno supradicto." 
 
 There follows an order to the sub-prior and convent 
 pro obedientia : 
 
 A mandate to Nicholas above-named to release the 
 Priory to the new prior : 
 
 A mandate for the induction of the new prior. 
 
 LETTER XIV. 
 
 " IN the year 1373 Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester, 
 held a visitation of his whole diocese; not only of the 
 secular clergy through the several deaneries, but ;ilso 
 of the monasteries, and religious houses of all sorts, 
 which he visited in person. The next year he sent his 
 commissioners with power to correct and reform the 
 several irregularities and abuses which he had disco- 
 vered in the course of his visitation. 
 
 " Some years afterward, the bishop having visited 
 three several times all the religious houses throughout 
 his diocese, and being well informed of the state and 
 condition of each, and of the particular abuses which 
 required correction and reformation, besides the orders 
 which he had already given, and the remedies which 
 he had occasionally applied by his commissioners, now 
 issued his injunctions to each of them. They wi-re 
 accommodated to their several exigencies, and intended 
 
OF SELBORNK. 571 
 
 to correct the abuses introduced, and to recall them all 
 to a strict observation of the rules of their respective 
 orders. Many of these injunctions are still extant, 
 and are evident monuments of the care and attention 
 with which he discharged this part of his episcopal 
 duty 1 ." 
 
 Some of these injunctions I shall here produce; and 
 they are such as will not fail, I think, to give satis- 
 faction to the antiquary, both as never having been 
 published before, and as they are a curious picture of 
 monastic irregularities at that time. 
 
 The documents that I allude to are contained in the 
 Notabilis Visitatio de Seleburne, held at the Priory of 
 that place, by Wykeham in person, in the year 1387. 
 
 This evidence, in the original, is written on two skins 
 of parchment ; the one large, and the other smaller, and 
 consists of a preamble, thirty-six items, and a conclu- 
 sion, which altogether evince the patient investigation 
 of the visiter, for which he had always been so remark- 
 able in all matters of moment, and how much he had 
 at heart the regularity of those institutions, of whose 
 efficacy in their prayers for the dead he was so firmly 
 persuaded. As the bishop was so much in earnest, we 
 may be assured that he had nothing in view but to cor- 
 rect and reform what he found amiss ; and was under 
 no bias to blacken or misrepresent, as the commis- 
 sioners of Thomas Lord Cromwell seem in part to have 
 done at the time of the reformation 2 . We may there- 
 fore with reason suppose that the bishop gives us an 
 exact delineation of the morals and manners of the 
 canons of Selborne at that juncture ; and that what he 
 found they had omitted he enjoins them ; and for what 
 they have done amiss, and contrary to their rules and 
 statutes, he reproves them ; and threatens them with 
 punishment suitable to their irregularities. 
 
 1 See Lowth's Life of Wykeham. 
 
 2 Letters of this sort from Dr. Layton to Thomas Lord Cromwell, are 
 still extant. 
 
572 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 This visitatio is of considerable length, and cannot be 
 introduced into the body of this work 3 ; we shall there- 
 fore take some notice, and make some remarks, on the 
 most singular items as they occur. 
 
 In the preamble the visiter says " Considering the 
 charge lying upon us, that your blood may not be 
 required at our hands, we came down to visit your 
 Priory, as our office required : and every time we re- 
 peated our visitation we found something still not only 
 contrary to regular rules but also repugnant to religion 
 and good reputation." 
 
 In the first article after the preamble " he commands 
 them on their obedience, and on pain of the greater 
 excommunication, to see that the canonical hours by 
 night and by day be sung in their choir, and the masses 
 of the Blessed Mary, and other accustomed masses, be 
 celebrated at the proper hours with devotion, and at 
 moderate pauses ; and that it be not allowed to any 
 to absent themselves from the hours and masses, or to 
 withdraw before they are finished." 
 
 Item 2d. He enjoins them to observe that silence to 
 which they are so strictly bound by the rule of St. Au- 
 gustine at stated times, and wholly to abstain from 
 frivolous conversation. 
 
 [Item 3rd. That whereas, although in health, they 
 have many times neglected the celebration of masses, 
 and have thereby defrauded the souls of the founders 
 and other benefactors ; he enjoins them to confess fre- 
 quently, and devoutly to celebrate mass, as well for the 
 living as the dead, as often as may be. If any impedi- 
 ment occur to prevent the celebration they are to report 
 it within three days to the prior ; who is also required 
 to search diligently every month into breaches of this 
 rule, and to punish the delinquents.] 
 
 3 It was printed entire in an Appendix to the first edition : but as the 
 principal items have been abstracted in the text by Gilbert White, and as 
 the heads of the remaining items are now given [between brackets] by the 
 editor, it has been judged unnecessary to reprint on this occasion, verba- 
 tim, an article of such considerable length. E. T. B. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 573 
 
 Item 4th. " Not to permit such frequent passing of 
 secular people of both sexes through their convent, as 
 if a thoroughfare, from whence many disorders may 
 and have arisen." 
 
 Item 5th. " To take care that the doors, of their 
 church and Priory be so attended to that no suspected 
 and disorderly females, ' suspectae et aliae inhonestae,' 
 pass through their choir and cloister in the dark ;" and 
 to see that the doors of their church between the nave 
 and the choir, and the gates of their cloister opening 
 into the fields, be constantly kept shut until their first 
 choir-service is over in the morning, at dinner time, 
 and when they meet at their evening collation 4 . 
 
 Item 6th mentions that several of the canons are 
 found to be very ignorant and illiterate, and enjoins 
 the prior to see that they be better instructed by a 
 proper master. 
 
 [Item 7th. The decretals concerning their order are 
 not read, on which account they, in consequence of 
 their ignorance of them, to the peril of their souls act in 
 a manner therein expressly forbidden. Wherefore they 
 are required to have these decretals written in a volume, 
 and read twice a year in the chapter for the information 
 of the seniors ; and to have them explained, in the vul- 
 gar, to the novices, so that they may know them as it 
 were by heart. This charge is laid upon the prior, under 
 pain of suspension.] 
 
 Item 8th. The canons are here accused of refusing to 
 accept of their statutable clothing year by year, and of 
 demanding a certain specified sum of money, as if it 
 were their annual rent and due. This the bishop forbids, 
 and orders that the canons shall be clothed out of the 
 revenue of the Priory, and the old garments be laid by 
 in a chamber and given to the poor, according to the 
 rule of St. Augustine. 
 
 In Item 9th is a complaint that some of the canons 
 
 4 A collation was a meal or repast on a fast day in lieu of a supper. 
 
574 ANTIQUITI 
 
 arc given to wander out of the precincts of the convent 
 without leave; and that others ride to their manors and 
 farms, under pretence of inspecting the concerns of the 
 society, when they please, and stay as long as they 
 please. But they are enjoined never to stir either 
 about their own private concerns or the business of the 
 convent without leave from the prior : and no canon is 
 to go alone, but to have a grave brother to accompany 
 him. 
 
 The injunction in Item 10th, at this distance of time, 
 appears rather ludicrous; but the visiter seems to be 
 very serious on the occasion, and says that it has been 
 evidently proved to him that some of the canons, living 
 dissolutely after the flesh, and not after the spirit, sleep 
 naked in their beds without their breeches and shirts, 
 "absque femoralibus et camisiis 5 ." He enjoins that 
 these culprits shall be punished by severe fasting, espe- 
 cially if they shall be found to be faulty a third time ; 
 and threatens the prior and sub-prior with suspension 
 if they do not correct this enormity. 
 
 In Item llth the good bishop is very wroth with some 
 of the canons, whom he finds to be professed hunters 
 and sportsmen, keeping hounds, and publicly attending 
 hunting-matches. These pursuits, he says, occasion 
 much dissipation, danger to the soul and body, and 
 frequent expense; he, therefore, wishing to extirpate 
 this vice wholly from the convent " radicibus extirpare" 
 does absolutely enjoin the canons never intentionally 
 to be present at any public noisy tumultuous huntings ; 
 or to keep any hounds, by themselves or by others, 
 openly or by stealth, within the convent, or without . 
 
 5 The rule alluded to in Item 10th, of not sleeping naked, was enjoined 
 the Knights Templars, who also were subject to the rules of St. Augus- 
 tine. See Gurtleri Hist. Templariorum. 
 
 6 Considering the strong propensity in human nature towards the 
 pleasures of the chase, it is not to be wondered that the canons of Sel- 
 borne should languish after hunting, when, from their situation so near 
 the precincts of Wolmer Forest, the king's hounds must have been often 
 
OF SELBORNE. 575 
 
 Iii Item 12th he forbids the canons in office to make 
 their business a plea for not attending- the service of 
 the choir; since by these means either divine worship 
 is neglected or their brother canons are overburdened. 
 
 [Item 13th directs that two of the canons Shall twice 
 in every year personally visit the manors, and report in 
 writing their condition and the live and dead stock at 
 each ; that in case of the death of any officer, the con- 
 vent may not be left in ignorance as to the state of his 
 charge: neglect to be severely punished, according to 
 the bishop's discretion.] 
 
 By Item 14th we are informed that the original num- 
 ber of canons at the Priory of Selborne was fourteen ; 
 but that at this visitation they were found to be let down 
 to eleven. The visiter therefore strongly and earnestly 
 enjoins them that, with all due speed and diligence, they 
 should proceed to the election of proper persons to fill 
 up the vacancies, under pain of the greater excommu- 
 nication. 
 
 [Item 15th is especially addressed to the prior, who 
 has neglected to make inquisition as to proprietary 
 canons, " whence it has resulted that the old enemy, 
 taking advantage of the continued sloth of the shepherd, 
 has seduced the wretched and erring sheep by means of 
 the snare of property into the thirst of avarice," to the 
 serious peril of their souls. He is required, twice a year 
 at least, to make inquisition and to punish offenders. 
 In neglect of this duty he is ipso facto suspended.] 
 
 [Item 16th refers to the constitutions as requir- 
 ing that abbots and priors, and other officers, should 
 twice at least in each year, in the presence of the whole 
 convent, or of a certain number deputed by the chapter, 
 render a full account of their administration ; and avers 
 that this has not been attended to in the Priory of Sel- 
 
 in hearing, and sometimes in sight from their windows. If the bishop 
 was so offended at these sporting canons, what would he have said to 
 our modern fox-hunting divines? 
 
576 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 borne. Requires that it be observed in future, under 
 pain of suspension.] 
 
 In Item 17th, the prior and canons are accused of 
 suffering, through neglect, notorious dilapidations to 
 take place among their manorial houses and tenements, 
 and in the walls and enclosures of the convent itself, 
 [sumptuously erected by the industry of their prede- 
 cessors,] to the shame and scandal of the institution : 
 they are therefore enjoined, under pain of suspension, 
 to repair all defects within the space of six months. 
 
 Item 18th. Charges them with grievously burdening 
 the said Priory by means of sales, and grants of liveries 7 
 and corrodies 8 . 
 
 The bishop, in item 19th, accuses the canons of 
 neglect and omission with respect to their perpetual 
 chantry-services. 
 
 Item 20th. The visiter here conjures the prior and 
 canons not to withhold their original alms, " eleemosy- 
 nas ;" nor those that they were enjoined to distribute 
 for the good of the souls ef founders and benefactors : 
 he also strictly orders that the fragments and broken 
 victuals, both from the hall of their prior and their 
 common refectory, should be carefully collected toge- 
 ther by their eleemosynarius, and given to the poor 
 without any diminution; the officer to be suspended 
 for neglect or omission. 
 
 [Item 21st. It could scarcely be anticipated that it 
 should have been necessary to enjoin that the brethren 
 should be supplied, when sick, with suitable food and 
 drink, and with fitting medicines, out of the common 
 
 7 " Liber ationes, or liberaturce, allowances of corn, &c. to servants, deli- 
 vered at certain times, and in certain quantities, as clothes were, among the 
 allowances from religious houses to their dependants." See the corrodies 
 granted by Croyland abbey. Hist, of Croyland, Appendix, No. XXXIV. 
 
 " It is not improbable that the word in after-ages came to be confined 
 to the uniform of the retainers or servants of the great, who were hence 
 called livery servants." Sir John Cullum's Hist, of Hawsted. 
 
 8 A corrody is an allowance to a servant living in an abbey or priory. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 577 
 
 stock " sicut antiquitus fieri consueverat ; " and have 
 also the use of the rooms of the infirmary : yet such is 
 the tenor of this item. It appears as though some one 
 had claimed for himself a property in the infirmary, to 
 the exclusion of the others.] 
 
 [Item 22nd. Since negligence or remissness towards 
 offenders is in itself detestable, and since facility of 
 pardon operates as an incentive to delinquency ; orders 
 that, without exception of persons, correction shall be 
 used according to the amount of the delinquency ; and 
 that the regular observances shall be duly kept.] 
 
 Item 23d. He bids them distribute their pittances, 
 "pitancias 9 ," regularly on obits, anniversaries, festi- 
 vals, &c. 
 
 [Item 24th. Prohibits the sale of wood, the farming 
 out of manors or of churches, or the transaction of 
 any other important business, without consultation and 
 consent of the whole convent, or of the larger and dis- 
 creeter portion of it : otherwise there is no validity in 
 the proceeding. " Ilia quoque que omnes tangunt ab 
 omnibus merito debeant approbari."] 
 
 Item 25th. All and every one of the canons are 
 hereby inhibited from standing godfather to any boy 
 for the future, " ne compatres alicujus pueri de cetero 
 fieri presumatis," unless by express license from the 
 bishop obtained ; because from such relationship favour 
 and affection, nepotism, and undue influence, arise, to 
 the injury and detriment of religious institutions 10 . 
 
 9 " Pitancia, an allowance of bread and beer, or other provision to any 
 pious use, especially to the religious in a monastery, &c. for augmenta- 
 tion of their commons." Gloss, to Rennet's Par. Antiq. 
 
 10 The relationship between sponsors and their god-children, who 
 were called spiritual sons and daughters, was formerly esteemed much 
 more sacred than at present. The presents at christenings were some- 
 times very considerable: the connexion lasted through life, and was 
 closed with a legacy. This last mark of attention seems to have been 
 thought almost indispensable : for, in a will, from whence no extracts 
 have been given, the testator left every one of his god-children a bushel 
 of barley." Sir John Cu Hum's Hist, of Hawsted. 
 
 " D. Margarets filiae Regis primogenitae, quam filiolam, quia ejus in 
 
 P P 
 
578 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 Item 26th. The visiter herein severely reprimands 
 the canons for appearing publicly in what would be 
 called in the universities an unstatutable manner, and for 
 wearing of boots, " caligae de Burneto, et sotularium 
 in ocrearum loco, ad modum sotularium 11 . 
 
 It is remarkable that the bishop expresses more 
 warmth against this than any other irregularity ; and 
 strictly enjoins them, under pain of ecclesiastical cen- 
 sures, and even imprisonment if necessary (a threat 
 not made use of before) for the future to wear boots, 
 "ocreis sen botis," according to the regular usage of 
 their ancient order. 
 
 [Item 27th. Requires that, according to the consti- 
 tutions, three or at the least two parts of the convent 
 should daily eat together in the refectory ; and forbids 
 all dining in private places, with certain exceptions. 
 One of the privileged places is the " aula prioris:" but 
 the prior is desired to use due diligence that, without 
 exception of persons, he invite sometimes one and 
 sometimes another of those whom he knows to be most 
 in need.] 
 
 [Item 28th. That as the lives of the younger mem- 
 bers of the community are watched over by the seniors, 
 so also the seniors are required by the constitutions to 
 have witnesses of their proceedings. Enjoins that the 
 prior should annually change his chaplain; both with 
 
 baptismo compater fuit, appellat, cyphum aureum et quadraginta libras, 
 legavit." Archbishop Parker de Antiquitate Eccles. Brit, speaking of 
 Archbishop Morton. 
 
 11 Du Fresne is copious on caligee of several sorts. < Hoc item de 
 Clericis, presertim beneficiatis : callgis scacatis (chequered) rubeis, et 
 viridibus publice utentibus dicimus esse censendum." Statut. Eccles. 
 Tutel. The chequered boots seem to be the Highland plaid stockings. 
 " Burnetum, i. e. Brunetum, pannus non ex lana nativi coloris confec- 
 tus." " Sotularium, i. e. subtalaris, quia sub talo est. Peculium genus, 
 quibus nmxime Monachi nocte utebantur in aestate ; in hyeme vero 
 Soccis." 
 
 This writer gives many quotations concerning Sotularia, which were 
 not to be made too shapely ; nor were the calig<s to be laced on too 
 nicely. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 579 
 
 the view of securing greater efficiency in the discharge 
 of the duties, and in order that he might have ready an 
 unsuspected witness respecting him, in the event of any 
 scandal or imputation being cast upon him by malice.] 
 
 Item 29th. He here again, but with less earnestness, 
 forbids them foppish ornaments, and the affectation of 
 appearing like beaux with garments edged with costly 
 furs, with fringed gloves, and silken girdles trimmed 
 with gold and silver. It is remarkable that no punish- 
 ment is annexed to this injunction. 
 
 [Item 30th. The bishop appears to have believed 
 in the vulgar adage that what is every body's business 
 is nobody's business; and probably attributed to this 
 cause much of the disorder that prevailed. He here 
 remarks, that as each office ought to be committed to a 
 special officer, he requires that to be done for the future: 
 such officers to be elected according to the custom of 
 the Priory. The penalty for disobedience in this case 
 is no less than excommunication.] 
 
 Item 31st. He here singly and severally forbids each 
 canon not admitted to a cure of souls to administer 
 extreme unction, or the sacrament, to clergy or laity; 
 or to perform the service of matrimony, till he has taken 
 out the license of the parish priest. 
 
 Item 32nd. The bishop says in this item that he 
 had observed and found, in his several visitations, that 
 the sacramental plate and cloths of the altar, surplices, 
 &c. were sometimes left in such an uncleanly and dis- 
 gusting condition as to make the beholders shudder with 
 horror; "quod aliquibus sunt horrori 12 ;" he therefore 
 
 12 "Men abhorred the offering of the Lord." 1 Sam. chap. ii. v. 17. 
 Strange as this account may appear to modern delicacy, the author, when 
 first in orders, twice met with similar circumstances attending the sacra- 
 ment at two churches belonging to two obscure villages. In the first he 
 found the inside of the chalice covered with birds' dung ; and in the 
 other the communion-cloth soiled with cabbage and the greasy drippings 
 of a gammon of bacon. The good dame at the great farm-house, who 
 was to furnish the cloth, being a notable woman, thought it best to save 
 her clean linen, and so sent a foul cloth that had covered her own table 
 for two or three Sundays before. 
 
580 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 enjoins them lor the future to see that the plate, cloths, 
 and vestments, be kept bright, clean, and in decent 
 order: and, what must surprise the reader, adds that 
 he expects for the future that the sacrist should provide 
 for the sacrament good wine, pure and unadulterated ; 
 and not, as had often been the practice, that which was 
 sour, and tending to decay: he says farther, that it 
 seems quite preposterous to omit in sacred matters that 
 attention to decent cleanliness, the neglect of which 
 would disgrace a common convivial meeting 13 . 
 
 Item 33d says that, though the relics of saints, the 
 plate, holy vestments, and books of religious houses, 
 are forbidden by canonical institutes to be pledged or 
 lent out upon pawn ; yet, as the visiter finds this to be 
 the case in his several visitations, he therefore strictly 
 enjoins the prior forthwith to recall those pledges, and 
 to restore them to the convent ; and orders that all the 
 papers and title deeds thereto belonging should be safely 
 deposited, and kept under three locks and keys. 
 
 [Item 34th. That as religious men ought continually 
 to be advancing in holiness, he enjoins them, when they 
 have performed the observances of their order and 
 regular discipline, to frequent the cloisters for the 
 reading of the holy scriptures and for devout contrm- 
 plation.] 
 
 [Item 35th. A special injunction to the prior, exem- 
 plifying the hospitality that prevailed in monastic 
 establishments. That when any relation of any of the 
 canons should come on a visit to him, his reception 
 should be liberal according to his condition : suggesting, 
 however, that the brethren should avoid being over- 
 burthensome to the Priory in such matters.] 
 
 [Item 36th. It avails but little to make laws unless 
 attention is paid to their execution. In order that they 
 may by frequent hearing be impressed on the most 
 
 13 ' . ne turpe toral, ne sordida mappa 
 
 Corruget nares ; ne non et cantharus, et lanx 
 Ostendat tibi te . ." 
 
OF SELBORNE. .581 
 
 treacherous memories, and that no one may pretend 
 ignorance of them; enjoins and orders that these injunc- 
 tions and the before-mentioned decrees shall be written 
 in a volume, and all and singular of them "be read fully 
 in the presence of the whole convent twice in every 
 year. Requires observance of all of them under penal- 
 ties. Finally, reserves to himself the power of altering 
 in any way either the injunctions or the penalties.] 
 
 In the course of the Visitatio Notabilis the constitu- 
 tions of Legate Ottobonus are frequently referred to. 
 Ottobonus was afterwards Pope Adrian V. and died in 
 1276. His constitutions are in Lyndewood's Provin- 
 ciale, and were drawn up in the 52nd of Henry III. 
 
 In the Visitatio Notabilis the usual punishment is 
 fasting on bread and beer; and in cases of repeated 
 delinquency on bread and water. On these occasions 
 quarto, feria, et sexta feria, are mentioned often, and are 
 to be understood of the days of the week numerically 
 on which such punishment is to be inflicted. 
 
 LETTER XV. 
 
 THOUGH Bishop Wykeham appears somewhat stern 
 and rigid in his visitatorial character towards the 
 Priory of Selborne, yet he was on the whole a liberal 
 friend and benefactor to that convent, which, like every 
 society or individual that fell in his way, partook of the 
 generosity and benevolence of that munificent prelate. 
 
 " In the year 1377 William of Wykeham, out of his 
 mere good will and liberality, discharged the whole 
 debts of the prior and convent of Selborne, to the 
 amount of one hundred and ten marks eleven shillings 
 and sixpence 1 ; and, a few years before he died, he 
 made a free gift of one hundred marks to the same 
 Priory : on which account the prior and convent volun- 
 
 1 Yet in ten years time we find, by the Notabilis Visitatio, that all 
 their relics, plate, vestments, title deeds, &c. were in pawn. 
 
582 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 tarily engaged for the celebration of two masses a day 
 by two canons of the convent for ten years, for the 
 bishop's welfare, if he should live so long ; and for his 
 soul if he should die before the expiration of this 
 term 2 . 
 
 At this distance of time it seems matter of great 
 wonder to us how these societies, so nobly endowed, 
 and whose members were exempt by their very institu- 
 tion from every means of personal and family expense, 
 could possibly run in debt without squandering their 
 revenues in a manner incompatible with their function. 
 
 Religious houses might sometimes be distressed in 
 their revenues by fires among their buildings, or large 
 dilapidations from storms, &c. ; but no such accident 
 appears to have befallen the Priory of Selborne. Those 
 situate on public roads, or in great towns, where there 
 were shiines of saints, were liable to be intruded on by 
 travellers, devotees, and pilgrims ; and were subject to 
 the importunity of the poor, who swarmed at their 
 gates to partake of doles and broken victuals. Of 
 these disadvantages some convents used to complain, 
 and especially those at Canterbury; but this Priory, 
 from its sequestered situation, could seldom be subject 
 to either of these inconveniences, and therefore we 
 must attribute its frequent debts and embarrassments, 
 well endowed as it was, to the bad conduct of its 
 members, and a general inattention to the interests of 
 the institution. 
 
 LETTER XVI. 
 
 BEAUFORT was Bishop of Winchester from 1405 to 
 1447; and yet, notwithstanding this long episcopate, 
 only torn. i. of Beaufort's Register is to be found. This 
 loss is much to be regretted, as it must unavoidably 
 
 3 Lowth's Life of Wykeham. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 583 
 
 make a gap in the History df Selborne Priory, and per- 
 haps in the list of its priors. 
 
 In 1410 there was an election for a prior, and again 
 in 1411. 
 
 In vol. i. p. 24, of Beaufort's Register, is the instru- 
 ment of the election of John Wynchestre to be prior 
 the substance as follows : 
 
 Richard Elstede, senior canon, signifies to the bishop 
 that brother Thomas Weston, the late prior, died Octo- 
 ber 18th, 1410, and was buried November llth. That 
 the bishop's license to elect having been obtained, he 
 and the whole convent met in the chapter-house, on the 
 same day, about the hour of vespers, to consider of the 
 election: that brother John Wynchestre, then sub- 
 prior, with the general consent, appointed the 12th of 
 November, ad horam ejusdem diei capitularem, for the 
 business: when they met in the chapter-house, post 
 missam de sancto Spiritu f solemnly celebrated in the 
 church ; to wit, Richard Elstede; Thomas Halyborne; 
 John Lemyngton, sacrista ; John Stepe, cantor ; Wal- 
 ter Ffarnham ; Richard Put worth, celerarius ; Hugh 
 London ; Henry Brampton, alias Brompton ; John 
 Wynchestre, senior; John Wynchestre, junior ; then 
 " proposito primitus verbo Dei," and then " ympno 
 Veni Creator Spiritus" being solemnly sung, cum " ver- 
 siculo et oratione," as usual, and his letter of license, 
 with the appointment of the hour and place of election, 
 being read, alta voce, in valvis of the chapter-house ; 
 John Wynchestre, senior, the sub-prior, in his own 
 behalf and that of all the canons, and by their mandate, 
 " quasdam monicionem et protestacionem in scriptis 
 redactas fecit, legit, et interposuit" that all persons 
 disqualified, or not having right to be present, should 
 immediately withdraw ; and protesting against their 
 voting, &c. that then having read the constitution of 
 the general council " Quia propter," and explained the 
 modes of proceeding to election, they agreed unani- 
 mously to proceed " per viam seu formam simplicis 
 
584 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 compromissi;" when John Wynchestre, sub-prior, and 
 all the others (the commissaries under-named excepted) 
 named and chose brothers Richard Elstede, Thomas 
 Halyborne, John Lemyngton the sacrist, John Stepe, 
 chantor, and Richard Putworth, canons, to be commis- 
 saries, who were sworn each to nominate and elect a 
 fit person to be prior : and empowered by letters patent 
 under the common seal, to be in force only until the 
 darkness of the night of the same day; that they, or 
 the greater part of them, should elect for the whole 
 convent, within the limited time, from their own num- 
 ber, or from the rest of the convent; that one of them 
 should publish their consent in common before the 
 clergy and people: they then all promised to receive 
 as prior the person these five canons should fix on. 
 These commissaries seceded from the chapter-house to 
 the refectory of the Priory, and were shut in with mas- 
 ter John Penkester, bachelor of laws ; and John Couke 
 and John Lynne, perpetual vicars of the parish churches 
 of Newton and Selborne; and with Sampson Maycock, 
 a public notary ; where they treated of the election ; 
 when they unanimously agreed on John Wynchestre, 
 and appointed Thomas Halyborne, to choose him in 
 common for all, and to publish the election, as cus- 
 tomary; and returned long before it was dark to the 
 chapter-house, where Thomas Halyborne read pub- 
 licly the instrument of election ; when all the brothers, 
 the new prior excepted, singing solemnly the hymn " Te 
 Deum laudamus," fecerunt deportari novum electum, by 
 some of the brothers, from the chapter-house to the 
 high altar of the church 1 ; and the hymn being sung, 
 dictisque versiculo et oratione consuetis in hacparte, Thomas 
 Halyborne, mox tune ibidem, before the clergy and peo- 
 ple of both sexes solemnly published the election in 
 
 1 It seems here as if the canons used to chair their new elected prior 
 from the chapter-house to the high altar of their convent-church. In 
 Letter XXI. on the same occasion, it is said " et sic canentes dictum 
 electum ad inajus altare ecclesie deiluximus, ut apud uos inoris est." 
 
OF SELBORNE. 585 
 
 vulyari. Then Richard Elstede, and the whole convent 
 by their proctors and nuncios appointed for the pur- 
 pose, Thomas Halyborne and John Stepe, required 
 several times the assent of the elected ; "" et tandem 
 post diutinas interpellations, et deliberationem provi- 
 dam penes se habitam, in hac parte divine nolens, ut 
 asseruit, resistere voluntati," within the limited time he 
 signified his acceptance in the usual written form of 
 words. The bishop is then supplicated to confirm their 
 election, and do the needful, under common seal, in the 
 chapter-house. November 14, 1410. 
 
 The bishop, January 6, 1410, apud Esher in camera 
 inferiori, declared the election duly made, and ordered 
 the new prior to be inducted for this the Archdeacon 
 of Winchester was written to ; " stallumque in choro, 
 et locum in capitulo juxta morem preteriti temporis," 
 to be assigned him ; and every thing beside necessary 
 to be done. 
 
 BEAUFORT'S REGISTER, Vol. I. 
 
 P. 2. Taxatio spirituals Decanatus de Aulton, 
 Ecclesia de Selebourn, cum Capella, xxx marc, 
 decima x lib. iii sol. Vicaria de Selebourn non taxatur 
 propter exilitatem. 
 
 P. 9. Taxatio bonorum temporalium religiosorum in 
 Archidiac. Wynton. 
 
 Prior de Selebourn habet maneria de 
 
 Bromdene taxat. ad ..... xxx s. ii d. 
 
 Apud Schete ad xvii s. 
 
 P. Selebourne ad vi lib. 
 
 In civitate Wynton de reddit . . vi lib. viii ob. 
 
 Tannaria sua taxat. ad .... x lib. s. 
 Summa tax. xxxviii lib. xiiii d. ob. Inde decima vi 
 lib. s. q. ob. 
 
580 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 LETTER XVII. 
 
 INFORMATION being sent to Rome respecting the 
 havock and spoil that was carrying on among the reve- 
 nues and lands of the Priory of Selborne, as we may 
 suppose by the Bishop of Winchester, its visiter, Pope 
 Martin 1 , as soon as the news of these proceedings came 
 before him, issued forth a bull, in which he enjoins his 
 commissary immediately to revoke all the property that 
 had been alienated. 
 
 In this instrument his holiness accuses the prior and 
 canons of having granted away (they themselves and 
 their predecessors) to certain clerks and laymen their 
 tithes, lands, rents, tenements, and possessions, to some 
 of them for their lives, to others for an undue term of 
 years, and to some again for a perpetuity, to the great 
 and heavy detriment of the monastery : and these leases 
 were granted, he continues to add, under their own 
 hands, with the sanction of an oath and the renuncia- 
 tion of all right and claims, and under penalties, if the 
 right was not made good. But it will be best to give 
 an abstract from the bull. 
 
 N. 298. Pope Martin's bull, touching the revoking 
 of certaine things alienated from the Priory of Sele- 
 burne. Pontif. sui ann. 1. 
 
 " Martinus Eps. servus servorum Dei. Dilecto filio 
 Priori de Suthvale 2 Wyntonien. dioc. Salutem & apos- 
 tolicam ben. Ad audientiam nostram pervenit quam 
 tain dilecti filii prior et conventus monasterii de Sele- 
 burn per Priorem solid gubernari ordinis S u . Augustini 
 Wintoii. dioc. quam de predecessores eorum decimas, 
 
 1 Pope Martin V. chosen about 14 17. He attempted to reform the church, 
 but died in 1431,just as he had summoned the council of Basle. 
 
 2 Should have been no doubt Southwick, a priory under Portsdown. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 587 
 
 terras, redditus, domos, possessiones, vineas 3 , et quedam 
 alia bona ad monasterium ipsum spectantia, datis super 
 hoc litteris, interpositis juramentis, factis remmtiation- 
 ibus, et penis adjectis, in gravem ipsius* monasterii 
 leskmem, nonnullis clericis et laicis, aliquibus eorum 
 ad vitam, quibusdam vero ad non modicum tempus, & 
 aliis perpetuo ad firm am, vel sub censu annuo conces- 
 serunt; quorum aliqui dicunt super hiis a sede apfica~ 
 in communi forma confirmationis litteras impetrasse. 
 Quia vero nostri interest lesis monasteriis subvenire 
 [He the Pope here commands] ea ad jus et proprie- 
 tatem monasterii studeas legitime revocare," &c. 
 
 The conduct of the religious had now for some time 
 been generally bad. Many of the monastic societies, 
 being very opulent, were become voluptuous and licen- 
 tious, and had deviated entirely from their original 
 institutions. The laity saw with indignation the wealth 
 and possessions of their pious ancestors perverted to 
 the service of sensuality and indulgence, and spent in 
 gratifications highly unbecoming the purposes for which 
 they were given. A total disregard to their respective 
 rules and discipline drew on the monks and canons a 
 heavy load of popular odium. Some good men there 
 were who endeavoured to oppose the general delin- 
 quency; but their efforts were too feeble to stem the 
 torrent of monastic luxury. As far back as the year 
 1381 Wicklifie's principles and doctrines had made 
 some progress, were well received by men who wished 
 for a reformation, and were defended and maintained 
 by them as long as they dared ; till the bishops and 
 clergy began to be so greatly alarmed, that they pro- 
 
 3 Mr. Harrington is of opinion that anciently the English vinea was in 
 almost every instance an orchard ; not perhaps always of apples merely, 
 but of other fruits ; as cherries, plums, and currants. We still say a 
 plum or cherry-orchard. See Vol. III. of Archaeologia. 
 
 In the instance above the pope's secretary might insert tineas merely 
 because they were a species of cultivation familiar to him in Italy. 
 
 [Orchard, properly speaking, is merely a garden : q. d. wort-yard. 
 E. T. B.] 
 
588 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 cured an act to be passed by which the secular arm 
 was empowered to support the corrupt doctrines of the 
 church; but the first lollard was not burnt until the 
 year 1401. 
 
 The wits also of those times did not spare the gross 
 morals of the clergy, but boldly ridiculed their igno- 
 rance and profligacy. The most remarkable of these 
 were Chaucer, and his contemporary, Robert Lange- 
 lande, better known by the name of Piers Plowman. 
 The laughable tales of the former are familiar to almost 
 every reader ; while the visions of the latter are but in 
 few hands. With a quotation from the Passus Decimus 
 of this writer 1 shall conclude my letter; not only on 
 account of the remarkable prediction therein contained, 
 which carries with it somewhat of the air of a prophecy ; 
 but also as it seems to have been a striking picture of 
 monastic insolence and dissipation ; and a specimen of 
 one of the keenest pieces of satire now perhaps subsist- 
 ing in any language, ancient or modern. 
 
 " Now is religion a rider, a romer by streate ; 
 A leader of leve-days, and a loud begger; 
 A pricker on a palfry from maner to maner, 
 A heape of hounds at his arse, as he a lord were. 
 And but if his knave kneel, that shall his cope bring, 
 He loureth at him, and asketh him who taught him curtesie. 
 Little had lords to done, to give lands from her heirs, 
 To religious that have no ruth if it rain on her altars. 
 In many places ther they persons be, by hemself at ease : 
 Of the poor have they no pity, and that is her charitie ; 
 And they letten hem as lords, her lands lie so broad. 
 And there shal come a king 4 , and confess you religious; 
 And beate you, as the bible telleth, for breaking your rule, 
 And amend monials, and monks, and chauons, 
 And put hem to her penaunce ad pristinum statum ire" 
 
 4 F. 1. a. " This prediction, although a probable conclusion concerning a 
 king who after a time would suppress the religious houses, is remarkable. 
 I imagined it was foisted into the copies in the reign of king Henry VIII. 
 but it is in MSS. of this poem, older than the year 1400." 
 
 " Again, foL Ixxxv. a. where he, Piers Plowman, alludes to the Knights 
 Templars, lately suppressed, he says, 
 
OF SELBORNE. 589 
 
 LETTER XVIII. 
 
 WILLIAM OF WAYNFLETE became Bishop of Win- 
 chester in the year 1447, and seems to have pursued 
 the generous plan of Wykeham, in endeavouring to 
 reform the priory of Selborne. 
 
 When Waynflete came to the see he found prior 
 Stype, alias Stepe, still living, who had been elected as 
 long ago as the year 1411. 
 
 Among my documents I find a curious paper of the 
 things put into the custody of Peter Bernes the sacrist, 
 and especially some relics : the title of this evidence is 
 " No. 50. Indentura prioris de Selborne quorundam 
 tradit. Petro Bernes sacristae, ibidem, ann. Hen. VI. . . . 
 una cum confiss. ejusdem Petri script." The occasion 
 of this catalogue, or list of effects, being drawn between 
 the prior and sacrist does not appear, nor the date when ; 
 only that it happened in the reign of Hen. VI. This 
 transaction probably took place when Bernes entered 
 on his office ; and there is the more reason to suppose 
 that to be the case, because the list consists of vest 
 inents and implements, and relics, such as belonged to 
 the church of the Priory, and fell under the care of the 
 sacrist. I shall just mention the relics, although they 
 are not all specified ; and the state of the live stock of 
 the monastery at that juncture. 
 
 " Item 2 osculator. argent. 
 
 "Item 1 osculatorium cum osse digiti auricular. 
 S u . Johannis Baptistae 1 . 
 
 " Men of holie kirk 
 
 Shall turne as Templars did ; the tyme approacheth nere". 
 
 " This, I suppose, was a favourite doctrine in Wickliffe's discourses." 
 Warton's Hist, of English Poetry, vol. i. p. 282. 
 
 1 How the convent came by the bone of the little finger of St. John 
 the Baptist does not appear ; probably the founder, while in Palestine, 
 purchased it among the Asiatics, who were at that time great traders in 
 
590 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 " Item 1 parvam cruccm cum V. rellquiis. 
 
 " Item 1 anulum argent, et deauratum St. Edmundi 2 . 
 
 " Item 2 osculat. de coper. 
 
 " Item Ijunctorium St. Ricardi 3 . 
 
 " Item 1 pecten St. Ricardi 4 ." 
 
 The staurum, or live stock, is quite ridiculous, con- 
 sisting only of " 2 vacce, 1 sus, 4 hoggett. et 4 porcell." 
 viz. two cows, one sow, four porkers, and four pigs 5 . 
 
 relics. We know from the best authority that as soon as Herod had 
 cruelly beheaded that holy man, " his disciples came and took up the 
 body and buried it, and went and told Jesus." Matt. xiv. 12. Farther 
 would be difficult to say. 
 
 3 November 20, in the calendar, Edmund king and martyr, in the ninth 
 century. See also a Sanctus Edmundus in Godwin, among the arch- 
 bishops of Canterbury, in the thirteenth century ; his surname Rich, in 
 1234. 
 
 3 April 3, ibid. Richard, Bishop of Chichester, in the thirteenth cen- 
 tury ; his surname De la Wich, in 1245. 
 
 ' Junctorium, perhaps a joint or limb of St. Richard ; but what parti- 
 cular joint the religious were not such osteologists as to specify. This 
 barbarous word was not to be found in any dictionary consulted by the 
 author. 
 
 4 " Pecten inter ministeria sacra recensetur, quo scil. sacerdotes ac 
 clerici, antequam in ecclesiam procederent, crines pecterent. E quibus 
 colligitur monachos, tune temporis, non omnino tonsos fuissi." Du 
 Fresne. 
 
 The author remembers to have seen in great farm houses a family 
 comb chained to a post for the use of the hinds when they came in to their 
 meals. 
 
 5 (No. 50.) 
 INDENTURA PRIORIS de SELBORNE quorundam tradit. Petro Barnes sacristte 
 
 ibidem ann. Hen. 6. una cum confiss. ejusdem Petri script. 
 
 HEC indentura facta die lune proxime post ffestum natalium DnTanno 
 
 regis Henrici sexti post conquestum anglie v. inter ffratrem Jo- 
 
 hannem Stepe priorem ecclesie beate Marie de Selborne & Petrum Bernes 
 sacrist, ibidem videlicet quod predictus prior deliveravit prefato Petro 
 omnia subscripta In primis XXH ainit xxxi aubes vid. v. sine parura pro 
 quadragesima xxu manicul. Item xxu stole Item viu casule vid. in albe 
 pro quadragesima Item xi dalmatic, vid. i debit. Item xvi cape vid. mi 
 veteres Item unam amittam i albam cum paruris unum manipulum i sto- 
 lam i casulam et duas dalmaticas de dono Johannis Combe capellani de 
 Cicestria pro diebus principalibus Item i amittam i aubam cum paruris 
 i manipulum i stolam i casulam de dono ffratris Thome Halybone cano- 
 nicis Item i amittam i aubam cum paruris i manipulum i stolam i casulam 
 pertinentem ad altare sancte Catherine virginis pro priore Item i amittam 
 
OF SELBORNE. 591 
 
 LETTER XIX. 
 
 STEPE died towards the end of the year 1453, as we 
 may suppose pretty far advanced in life, having been 
 prior forty-four years. 
 
 On the very day that the vacancy happened, viz. 
 January 26, 1453-4, the sub-prior and convent peti- 
 
 n aubas cum paruris n manipul 11 stolas et n casulas pertinentes ad altare 
 sancti Petri de dono patris Ricardi holte. Item de douo ejusdem n tuella 
 vid. i cum fruictello et i canvas pro eodem altare Item i tuellum penden- 
 tem ad terram pro quadragesima Item vi tuelt cum ffruictibus xv tueff 
 sine ffruictell. Item niiTueTl pro lavatore Item v corporas Item n ffruic- 
 tell pro summo altare sine tuellis Item n coopertor pro le ceste Item n 
 pallias de serico debili Item i velum pro quadragesima Item i tapetum 
 viridis coloris pro summo altare n ridell cum mi ridellis parvis pertinent, 
 ad diet, altare Item vn offretor vid. v debit. Item mi vexilla Item mi 
 pelves m quessones vid. i de serico Item n super altaria Item quinq ; 
 calices vid. mi de auro Item n cruettes de argento de dono dni Johannis 
 Combe capellani de Cicestre Item vm cruettes de peuter Item i coupam 
 argent, et deaur. Item n osculator argent. Item i osculatorium cum osse 
 digiti auricular &'" Johannis Baptiste Item i crux argent, et deaur. non 
 radicat. Item turribulum argent et deaur. Item i anulum cum saphiro 
 Item i aliud anulum i politum aureum Item i anulum argent, et deau- 
 ratum S li - Edmundi. Item i concha cum pereo infixo Item i cistam argent, 
 et deaur. Item i imaginem beate Marie argent, et deaurat. Item i parvam 
 crucem cum v reliquiis Item ijunctorium S l{ - Ricardi Item i tecam pro reli- 
 quiis imponencl Item i calef actor S li - Ricardi Item mi candelabra vid. n 
 de stagno et n de ferro Item i pecten S li - Ricardi Item n vieUde cristali 
 In parte fract Item i pelvim de coper ad lavator Item n osculat. de coper 
 Item i parvum turribulum de latyn Item i vas de coper pro frank et sence 
 consecrand Item i pixidem de juery pro corpore Christi Item n vasa de 
 plumbo pro oleo conservando Item i patellam eneam ferro ligat. Item 
 i tripodem ferr. Item i costrell contum n lagen et i potfeTI. Item n ba- 
 byngyres Item n botelles de corio vid. i de quarte et i de pynte Item HI 
 anul. arg. et i pixidem S te Marie de Waddon Item ( ) Instru- 
 
 menta pro Sandyng Item i ledbnyff Item i shasshobe Item i securim 
 Item H scabell. de ferro pro cancell Item i plane Item i cistam sine 
 cerura Item xim sonas Item xix taperes ponder xm ft et dimid. Item 
 n torches ponder xx ft Item xn ft cere et dimid. Item de candelis de 
 cera ponder vi ft Item 1 ft de frank et sence Item i lagenam olei Item 
 ix poudera de plumbo 
 
 (Vide^de stauro in tergo) et in tergo scribuntur hsec, " n 
 vacce i sus mi hoggett et mi porcell" 
 
592 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 tioned the visiter " vos unicum levamen nostrum et 
 spem unanimiter rogamus, quatinus eligendum ex nobis 
 unum confratrem de gremio nostro, in nostra religione 
 probatum et expertum, licenciam vestram paternalem 
 cum plena libertate nobis concedere dignemini gra- 
 ciose." Reg. Waynflete, torn. i. 
 
 Instead of the license requested we find next a com- 
 mission "custodie prioratus de Selebourne durante 
 vacatione," addressed to brother Peter Berne, canon- 
 regular of the Priory of Selebourne, and of the order 
 of St. Augustine, appointing him keeper of the said 
 Priory, and empowering him to collect and receive the 
 profits and revenues, and "alia bona" of the said 
 Priory ; and to exercise in every respect the full power 
 and authority of a prior; but to be responsible to the 
 visiter finally, and to maintain this superiority during 
 the bishop's pleasure only. This instrument is dated 
 from the bishop's manor-house in Southwark, March 1, 
 1453-4, and the seventh of his consecration. 
 
 After this transaction it does not appear that the 
 chapter of the Priory proceeded to any election: on 
 the contrary, we find that at six months end from the 
 vacancy the visiter declared that a lapse had taken 
 place ; and that therefore he did confer the priorship on 
 canon Peter Berne. " Prioratum vacantem et ad nos- 
 tram collationem seu provisionem, jure ad nos in hac 
 p&rteper lapsum temporis legitime devoluto spectantem, 
 tibi (sc. P. Berne) de legitimo matrimonio procreato, 
 &c. conferimus," &c. This deed bears date, July 28, 
 1454. Reg. Waynflete, torn. i. p. 69. 
 
 On February 8, 1462, the visiter issued out a power 
 of sequestration against the Priory of Selborne on 
 account of notorious dilapidations which threatened 
 manifest ruin to the roofs, walls, and edifices of the 
 said convent; and appointing John Hammond, B. D. 
 rector of the parish church of Hetlegh, John Hylling, 
 vicar of the parish church of Newton Valence, and 
 Walter Gorfin, inhabitant of the parish of Selborne, his 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 593 
 
 sequestra tors, to exact, collect, levy, and receive, all 
 the profits and revenues of the said convent: he adds 
 " ac ea sub arcto et tuto custodiatis, custodirive facia- 
 tis;" as they would answer it to the bishop at their 
 peril. 
 
 In consequence of these proceedings prior Berne, on 
 the last day of February, and the next year, produced 
 a state of the revenues of the Priory, No. 381, called 
 " A paper conteyning the value of the manors and lands 
 pertayning to the Priorie of Selborne. 4 Edward III. 
 with a note of charges yssuing out of it V 
 
 1 (N. 381.) 
 
 A Paper conteyning the value of the Manors and Lands pertayning to the 
 Priorie ofSelborne. iv. Edw. 3. With a note of charges yssuing out of it. 
 
 SELEBORNE PRIORATUS. 
 
 SUMMA totalis valoris maneriorum terrarum tenementorum et premissorum 
 ejusdern Prioratus in ffesto S ci . Michaelis Archang. anno secundo Regis 
 Edvardi 4^. ut patet Rotul. de valoribus libeTaT. 
 
 XX 
 
 mi vi li. (i. e. LXXXVI li.) x s. vi d. 
 
 Inde in redditibus resolutis domino pape domino Archiepiscopo et in 
 diversis ffeodis certis personis concessis ac aliis annualibus reprisis in 
 eisdem Rotul. de valoribus annotatis per annum xmi li. xix s. v d. 
 
 Et remanet de claro valore LXXI li. x s. vm d. 
 
 Quatuor canonicis et quatuor ffamulis deo et ecclesie ibid, ser- 
 vientibus pro eorum vadiis vestur. et diet, ut patet per bill inde 
 fact, per annum xxx li. 
 
 Diversis creditoribus pro eorum debitis persolvendis ut patet 
 per parcell inde fact, xv li. xv s. mi d. 
 
 Reparacionibus Ecclesiarum domorum murorum et clausu- 
 rarum ejusdem Prioratus per annum xv li. xv s. mi d. 
 
 Annua pencione Domini Prioris ei assignata per annum quous- 
 que remanet x li. 
 
 SELEBORNE PRIORATUS. 
 
 Modo sequitur de Reformatione premissorum. 
 
 f Summa total, valorum. ibid, misis et 
 j desperatis inde deductis prout patet per 
 I declaracionem Dni. Petri Prioris de Sele- 
 
 borne ad man. Dni nostri Wynton apud 
 
 Palacium suum de Wolsley presentat. 
 j per ipsum ultimo die ffebr. Ann. Domini 
 I MCCCCLXII. et penes ipsum remanet. J 
 
 !!< 
 
 if 
 
 LXXI li. x s. vm d. 
 unde per ipsum Dnum 
 nostrum Wynton as- 
 signantur in fforma 
 sequente videlicet. 
 
 Q Q 
 
594 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 This is a curious document. From circumstances in 
 this paper it is plain that the sequestration produced 
 
 Pro quatuor canonicis et quatuor ffa- *\ 
 inulis deo et ecclesie ibid, servientibus f ,. 
 
 pro corn in Diet, vadiis et vestur. ut patet C 
 per bill inde fac ' 
 
 Pro annua pencione Prioris quousque ^ 
 remanet. S 
 
 f x 
 
 _eorum | p 
 
 xv li. xv s. mi d. 
 
 Pro diversis creditoribus pro_eprum ( per 11 annos ad xx\i 
 debitis persolvendis ut patet per bill inde <( li. x s. viti d. ultra 
 f^ t I LV li. xnii d. de ven- 
 
 1^ d it. stauri. 
 
 XV li. xv s. mi d. 
 
 per 11 annos ad x\\i 
 li. x s. vin d. Sum- 
 
 Pro diversis reparacionibus ecclesi- 
 
 ma total, valoris pro 
 
 arum domorum murorum et clausurarum ^ debitis et reparacioni- 
 ut patet per bill. b" 9 assignat. curnj^v 
 
 li. MIII d. de vendit. 
 
 &: I Stauri ut supra CXVHI 
 
 I. I li. ii s. vi d. 
 
 Debita que debentur ibid, per diversos tenentes et ffirmarios ad festum 
 S 11 . Michaelis anno tertio Regis Edvardi 4^. videlicet. 
 
 Abbas de Derford de ffeod ffirme sua ad ix li. vi s. ? xx ^ VIJ g M d 
 viu d. per annum a retro > 
 
 Thomas Perkyns armig. flRrmarius Rectorie de Est- ^ 
 worlam pro uno anno finiente ad fiestum S ci . Mich. > JJf. s. 
 anno n. Regis Edvardi 4 d . ) 
 
 Johannes Shalmere balh de Selborne debet LXXV s. 
 
 Ricardus Cawry debet de eodem anno vi s. 
 
 Summa xxvnli. vins. xid. 
 
 Thomas Perkyns armig. debet de ffirme sua pre-T 
 dicta ad festum S". Mich. ann. vn et ultra feod. suum > vn li. vi s. vmd. 
 ad xx s. per annum 3 
 
 Thomas lussher debet pro ffirme sua ad XLS. per? c 
 annum cum feod. suis ad xx s. per annum ) 
 
 Hugo Pakenham debet de reddit. suo ad xx s. per > 
 ann. S 
 
 Abbas de Derford debet de ffeod ffirme sua ultra ^ 
 xx li. vn s. xi d. ut supra pro annis in. mi. et v. Sxxvm li. 
 Regis Edvardi 3 
 
 Walterus Berlond ffirmarius de Shene debet ix li. v s. 11 d. 
 
 Henr. Shafter ffirmarius ffeod de Basynstoke xn li. nn d. 
 
 Henr. lode nuper ffirmarius manerii de Chede debet xx li. 
 
 Summa LXVI li. xns. vid. 
 Total LXXXXIV li. xii d. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 595 
 
 good effects ; for in it are to be found bills of repairs to 
 a considerable amount. 
 
 By this evidence also it appears that there were at 
 that juncture only four canons at the Priory 2 ; and that 
 these, and their four household servants, during this 
 sequestration, for their clothing, wages, and diet, were 
 allowed per ann. xxx lib.; and that the annual pension 
 of the lord prior, reside where he would, was to be x 
 lib. 
 
 In the year 1468, prior Berne, probably wearied out 
 by the dissensions and want of order that prevailed in 
 the convent, resigned his priorship into the hands of the 
 bishop. 
 
 REG. WAYNFLETE, torn. i. pars i ma , fol. 157. 
 
 March 28, A. D. 1468. 
 
 " In quadam alta camera juxta magnam portam ma- 
 nerii" of the Bishop of Wynton " de Waltham coram 
 eodem rev. patre ibidem tune sedente," Peter Berne, 
 prior of Selborne, " ipsum prioratum in sacras et vene- 
 rabiles manus," of the bishop, " viva voce libere resig- 
 navit:" and his resignation was admitted before two 
 witnesses and a notary public. In consequence, March 
 29th, before the bishop, in "capella manerii sui ante 
 dicti pro tribunal! sedente, comparuerunt fratres " Peter 
 Berne, Thomas London, William Wyndesor, and Wil- 
 liam Paynell, alias Stretford, canons regular of the Priory, 
 " capitulum, et conventum ejusdem ecclesie facientes ; 
 ac jus et voces in electione futura prioris dicti prioratus 
 solum et in solidum, ut asseruerunt, habentes ; " and 
 after the bishop had notified to them the vacancy of a 
 prior, with his free license to elect, deliberated awhile, 
 and then, by way of compromise, as they affirmed, una- 
 nimously transferred their right of election to the bishop 
 
 2 If Bishop Wykeham was so disturbed (see Notab. Visitatio) to find 
 the number of canons reduced from fourteen to eleven, what would he 
 have said to have seen it diminished below one third of that number? 
 
 QQ2 
 
596 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 before witnesses. In consequence of this the bishop, 
 after full deliberation, proceeded, April 7th, " in capella 
 manerii sui de Waltham," to the election of a prior; 
 " et fratrem Johannein Morton, priorem ecclesie conven- 
 tualis de Reygate dicti ordinis S 11 Augustini Wynton. 
 dioc. in priorem vice et nomine omnium et singulorum 
 canonicorum predictorum elegit, in ordine sacerdotal i, 
 et etate licita constitutum, &c." And on the same day, 
 in the same place, and before the same witnesses, Jolm 
 Morton resigned to the bishop the priorship of Reygate 
 viva voce. The bishop then required his consent to his 
 own election ; " qui licet in parte renitens tauti reve- 
 rendi patris se confirmans," obeyed, and signified his 
 consent oraculo vive vocis. Then was there a mandate 
 citing any one who would gainsay the said election to 
 appear before the bishop or his commissary in his chapd 
 at Farnham on the 2nd day of May next. The dean 
 of the deanery of Aulton then appeared before the chan- 
 cellor, his commissary, and returned the citation or 
 mandate dated April 22nd, 1468, with signification, in 
 writing, of his having published it as required, dated 
 Newton Valence, May 1st, 1468. This certificate 
 being read, the four canons of Selborne appeared and 
 required the election to be confirmed ; et ex super abun- 
 danti appointed William Long their proctor to solicit 
 in their name that he might be canonically confirmed. 
 John Morton also appeared, and proclamation \\as 
 made; and no one appearing against him, the commis- 
 sary pronounced all absentees contumacious, and pre- 
 cluded them from objecting at any other time ; and, at 
 the instance of John Morton and the proctor, confirmed 
 the election by his decree, and directed his mandate to 
 the rector of Hedley and the vicar of Newton Valence 
 to install him in the usual form. 
 
 Thus, for the first time, was a person, a stranger to 
 the convent of Selborne, and never canon of that monas- 
 tery, elected prior : though the style of the petitions in 
 
OF SELRORNE. 597 
 
 former elections used to run thus," Vos .... rogamus 
 quatinus eligendum ex nobis unum confratrem de gremio 
 nostrOy licentiam vestram nobis concedere digne- 
 mini." 
 
 LETTER XX. 
 
 PRIOR MORTON dying in 1471, two canons, by them- 
 selves, proceeded to election, and chose a prior; but 
 two more (one of them Berne) complaining of not being 
 summoned, objected to the proceedings as informal ; 
 till at last the matter was compromised that the bishop 
 should again, for that turn, nominate as he had before. 
 But the circumstances of this election will be best 
 explained by the following extract : 
 
 REG. WAYNFLETE, torn. ii. pars i ma , fol. 7. 
 
 Memorandum. A. D. 1471. August 22. 
 
 William Wyndesor, a canon-regular of the Priory of 
 Selborne, having been elected prior on the death of 
 brother John, appeared in person before the bishop in 
 his chapel at South Waltham. He was attended on 
 this occasion by Thomas London and John Bromes- 
 grove, canons, who had elected him. Peter Berne and 
 William Stratfeld, canons, also presented themselves at 
 the same time, complaining that in this business they 
 had been overlooked, and not summoned ; and that 
 therefore the validity of the election might with reason 
 be called in question, and quarrels and dissensions 
 might probably arise between the newly chosen prior 
 and the parties thus neglected. 
 
 After some altercation and dispute they all came to 
 an agreement with the new prior, that what had been 
 done should be rejected and annulled; and that they 
 would again, for this turn, transfer to the bishop their 
 power to elect, order, and provide them another prior, 
 whom they promised unanimously to admit. 
 
51)8 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 The bishop accepted of this offer before witnesses ; 
 and on September 27, in an inner chamber near the 
 chapel above-mentioned, after full deliberation, chose 
 brother Thomas Fairwise, vicar of Somborne, a canon- 
 regular of St. Augustine in the Priory of Bruscough, in 
 the diocese of Coventry and Litchfield, to be prior of 
 Selborne. The form is nearly as above in the last elec- 
 tion. The canons are again enumerated ; W. Wynde- 
 sor, sub-prior, P. Berne, T. London, W. Stratfeld, 
 J. Bromesgrove, who had formed the chapter, and 
 had requested and obtained license to elect, but had 
 unanimously conferred their power on the bishop. In 
 consequence of this proceeding, the bishop taking the 
 business upon himself, that the Priory might not suffer 
 detriment for want of a governor, appoints the aforesaid 
 T. Fairwise to be prior. A citation was ordered as 
 above for gainsayers to appear October 4th, before the 
 bishop or his commissaries at South Waltham ; but 
 none appearing, the commissaries admitted the said 
 Thomas, ordered him to be installed, and sent the usual 
 letter to the convent to render him due obedience. 
 
 Thus did the Bishop of Winchester a second time 
 appoint a stranger to be prior of Selborne, instead of 
 one chosen out of the chapter. For this seeming irre- 
 gularity the visiter had no doubt good and sufficient 
 reasons, as probably may appear hereafter. 
 
 LETTER XXI. 
 
 WHATEVER might have been the abilities and dispo- 
 sition of prior Fairwise, it could not have been in his 
 power to have brought about any material reformation 
 in the Priory of Selborne, because he departed this life 
 in the month of August, 1472, before he had presided 
 one twelvemonth. 
 
 As soon as their governor was buried, the chapter 
 applied to their visiter for leave to choose a new prior, 
 
OF SELBORNE. 599 
 
 which being granted, after deliberating for a time, they 
 proceeded to an election by a scrutiny. But as this 
 mode of voting has not been described but by the mere 
 form given in a note, an extract from the bishop's 
 register, representing the manner more fully, may not 
 be disagreeable to several readers. 
 
 REG. WAYNFLETE, torn. ii. pars i ma , fol. 15. 
 
 " Reverendo, &c. ac nostro patrono graciocissimo 
 vestri humiles, et devote obedientie filii," &c. 
 
 To the right reverend Father in God, and our most 
 gracious patron, we, your obedient and devoted sons, 
 William Wyndesor, president of the chapter of the 
 Priory of Selborne, and the convent of that place, do 
 make known to your lordship, that our priorship being 
 lately vacant by the death of Thomas Fairwise, our 
 late prior, who died August llth, 1473, having com- 
 mitted his body to decent sepulture, and having re- 
 quested, according to custom, leave to elect another, 
 and having obtained it under your seal, we William 
 Wyndesor, president of the convent, on the 29th of 
 August, in our chapter-house assembled, and making 
 a chapter, taking to us in this business Richard ap 
 Jenkyn, and Galfrid Bryan, chaplains, that our said 
 Priory might not by means of this vacancy incur harm 
 or loss, unanimously agreed on August the last for the 
 day of election ; on which day, having first celebrated 
 mass, " De sancto spiritu," at the high altar, and having 
 called a chapter by tolling a bell about ten o' the clock, 
 we, William Wyndesor, president, Peter Berne, Thomas 
 London, and William Stratfeld, canons, who alone 
 had voices, being the only canons, about ten o' the 
 clock, first sung " Veni Creator," the letters and license 
 being read in the presence of many persons there. 
 Then William Wyndesor, in his own name, and that 
 of all the canons, made solemn proclamation, enjoining 
 all who had no right to vote to depart out of the chap- 
 ter-house. When all were withdrawn except Guyllery 
 
GOO ANTIQUITIES 
 
 de Lacuna, in decretis Baccalarius, and Robert Peve- 
 rell, notary-public, and also the two chaplains, the first 
 was requested to stay, that he might direct and inform 
 us in the mode of election; the other, that he might 
 record and attest the transactions ; and the two last 
 that they might be witnesses to them. 
 
 Then, having read the constitution of the general 
 council, " Quia propter," and the forms of elections con- 
 tained in it being sufficiently explained to them by 
 De Lacuna, as well in Latin as the vulgar tongue, and 
 having deliberated in what mode to proceed in this 
 election, they resolved on that of scrutiny. Three of 
 the canons, Wyndesor, Berne, and London, were made 
 scrutators: Berne, London, and Stratfeld, choosing 
 Wyndesor; Wyndesor, London, and Stratfeld, choos- 
 ing Berne; Wyndesor, Berne, and Stratfeld, choosing 
 London. 
 
 They were empowered to take each other's vote, and 
 then that of Stratfeld ; " et ad inferiorem partem angu- 
 larem" of the chapter-house, "juxta ostium ejusdem 
 declinentes," with the other persons (except Stratfeld, 
 who stayed behind), proceeded to voting, two swearing, 
 and taking the voice of the third, in succession, privately. 
 Wyndesor voted tirst : " Ego credo Petrum Berne me- 
 liorem et utiliorem ad regimen istius ecclesie, et in 
 ipsum consentio, ac eum nornino," &c. Berne was 
 next sworn, and in like manner nominated Wyndesor ; 
 London nominated Berne: Stratfeld was then called 
 and sworn, and nominated Berne. 
 
 " Quibus in scriptis redactis," by the notary-public, 
 they returned to the upper part of the chapter-house, 
 where by Wyndesor "sic peracta fecerunt in com- 
 muni," and then solemnly, in form written, declared the 
 election of Berne : when all, " antedicto nostro electo 
 excepto, approbantes et ratificantes, cepimus decantare 
 solemuiter ' Te Deum Laudamus,' et sic canentes dictum 
 electum ad majus altare ecclesie deduximus, ut apud 
 nos est moris. Then Wyndesor electionem clero et 
 
OF SELBORNE. 601 
 
 populo infra chorum dicte ecclesie congregatis publi- 
 cavit, et personam elect! publice et personaliter osten- 
 dit." We then returned to the chapter-house, except 
 our prior ; and Wyndesor was appointed by the other 
 two their proctor, to desire the assent of the elected, and 
 to notify what had been done to the bishop ; and to 
 desire him to confirm the election, and do whatever else 
 was necessary. Then their proctor, before the witnesses, 
 required Berne's assent in the chapter-house : " qui 
 quidem instanciis et precibus multiplicatis devictus," 
 consented, "licet indignus electus," in writing. They 
 therefore requested the bishop's confirmation of their 
 election " sic canonice et solemniter celebrata," &c. &c. 
 Sealed with their common seal, and subscribed and 
 attested by the notary. Dat. in the chapter-house, 
 September 5th, 1472. 
 
 In consequence, September llth, 1472, in the bishop's 
 chapel at Esher, and before the bishop's commissary, 
 appeared W. Wyndesor, and exhibited the above instru- 
 ment, and a mandate from the bishop for the appear- 
 ance of gainsayers of the election there on that day : 
 and no one appearing, the absentees were declared 
 contumacious ; and the election confirmed ; and the 
 vicar of Aulton was directed to induct and install the 
 prior in the usual manner. 
 
 Thus did canon Berne, though advanced in years, 
 reassume his abdicated priorship for the second time, to 
 the no small satisfaction, as it may seem, of the Bishop 
 of Winchester, who professed, as will be shown not long 
 hence, a high opinion of his abilities and integrity. 
 
 LETTER XXII. 
 
 As prior Berne, when chosen in 1454, held his priorship 
 only to 1468, and then made a voluntary resignation, 
 wearied and disgusted, as we may conclude, by the 
 disorder that prevailed in his convent ; it is no matter 
 
602 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 of wonder that, when rechosen in 1472, he should not 
 long maintain his station ; as old age was then coming 
 fast upon him, and the increasing anarchy and misrule 
 of that declining institution required unusual vigour 
 and resolution to stem that torrent of profligacy which 
 was hurrying it on to its dissolution. We find, accord- 
 ingly, that in 1478 he resigned his dignity again into the 
 hands of the bishop. 
 
 REG. WAYNFLETE. Fol. 55. 
 
 Resignatio Prioris de Seleborne. 
 
 May 14, 1478. Peter Berne resigned the priorship. 
 May 16, the bishop admitted his resignation " in mane- 
 rio suo de Waltham," and declared the priorship void ; 
 " et priorat. solacio destitutum esse ;" and granted his 
 letters for proceeding to a new election : when all the 
 religious, assembled in the chapter-house, did transfer 
 their power under their seal to the bishop by the follow- 
 ing public instrument. 
 
 " In Dei nomine Amen," &c. A. D. 1478, Maii 19. In 
 the chapter-house for the election of a prior for that 
 day, on the free resignation of Peter Berne, having 
 celebrated in the first place mass at the high altar " De 
 spiritu sancto," and having called a chapter by tolling 
 a bell, ut moris est; in the presence of a notary and wit- 
 nesses appeared personally Peter Berne, Thomas Ash- 
 ford, Stephen Clydgrove and John Ashton, presbyters, 
 and Henry Canwood l , in chapter assembled ; and after 
 singing the hymn " Veni Creator Spiritus," " cum versi- 
 culo et oratione 'Deus qui cor da;' declarataque licentia 
 Fundatoris et patroni futurum priorem eligendi con- 
 cessa, et constitutione consilii generalis que incipit 
 
 1 Here we see that all the canons were changed in six years; and that 
 there was quite a new chapter, Berne excepted, between 1472 and 1478; 
 for, instead of Wyndesor, London, and Stratfeld, we find Ashford, Clyd- 
 grove, Ashton, and Canwood, all new men, who were soon gone in their 
 turn off the stage, and are heard of no more. For, in six years after, 
 there seem to have been no canons at all. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 603 
 
 c Quia propter' declaratis ; viisque per quas possent ad 
 hanc electionem procedere," by the decretorum doctorem, 
 whom the canons had taken to direct them they all 
 and every one " dixerunt et affirmarunt se nolle ad 
 aliquam viam procedere:" but, for this turn only, 
 renounced their right, and unanimously transferred their 
 power to the bishop, the ordinary of the place, pro- 
 mising to receive whom he should provide; and ap- 
 pointed a proctor to present the instrument to the 
 bishop under their seal; and required their notary to 
 draw it up in due form, &c. subscribed by the notary. 
 
 After the visitor had fully deliberated on the matter, 
 he proceeded to the choice of a prior, and elected, by 
 the following instrument, John Sharp, alias Glasten- 
 bury. 
 
 Fol. 56. Provisio Prioris per Epm. 
 
 Willmus, &c. to our beloved brother in CHRIST, 
 John Sharp, alias Glastenbury, Ecclesie conventualis 
 de Bruton, of the order of St. Austin, in the diocese of 
 Bath and Wells, canon-regular, salutem, &c. " De tue 
 circumspectionis industria plurimum confidentes, te 
 virum providum et discretum, literarum scientia, et 
 moribus merito commendandum, &c. do appoint you 
 prior under our seal. " Dat. in manerio nostro de 
 Suthwaltham, May 20, 1478, et nostre Consec. 31." 
 
 Thus did the bishop, three times out of the four that 
 he was at liberty to nominate, appoint a prior from a 
 distance, a stranger to the place, to govern the convent 
 of Selborne, hoping by this method to have broken the 
 cabal, and to have interrupted that habit of mismanage- 
 ment that had pervaded the society: but he acknow- 
 ledges, in an evidence lying before us, that he never 
 did succeed to his wishes with respect to those late 
 governors, " quos tamen male se habuisse, et inutiliter 
 administrare, et administrasse usque ad presentia tem- 
 pora post debitam investigationem, &c. invenit." The 
 only time that he appointed from among the canons, he 
 
604 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 made choice of Peter Berne, for whom he had conceived 
 the greatest esteem and regard. 
 
 When prior Berne first relinquished his priorship, he 
 returned again to his former condition of canon, in 
 which he continued for some years : but when he was 
 rechosen, and had abdicated a second time, we find him 
 in a forlorn state, and in danger of being reduced to 
 beggary, had not the Bishop of Winchester interposed 
 in his favour, and with great humanity insisted on a 
 provision for him for life. The reason for this differ- 
 ence seems to have been, that, in the first case, though 
 in years, he might have been hale and capable of taking 
 his share in the duty of the convent; in the second, he 
 was broken with age, and no longer equal to the func- 
 tions of a canon. 
 
 Impressed with this idea the bishop very benevo- 
 lently interceded in his favour, and laid his injunctions 
 on the new elected prior in the following manner. 
 
 Fol. 56. " In Dei nomine Amen. Nos Willmus, &c. 
 considerantes Petruni Berne," late prior " in adminis- 
 tratione spiritualium et temporalium prioratus lauda- 
 biliter vixisse et rexisse; ipsumque senio et corporis 
 debilitate confractum ; ne in opprobrium religionis men- 
 dicari cogatur ; eidem annuam pensionem a Domino 
 Johanne Sharp, alias Glastonbury, priore moderno," 
 and his successors, and, from the Priory or church, to 
 be paid every year during his life, " de voluntate et ex 
 consensu expressis " of the said John Sharp, " sub ea 
 que sequitur forma verborum assignamus :" 
 
 1st. That the said prior and his successors, for the 
 time being, honeste exhibebunt of the fruits and profits of 
 the priorship, " eidem esculenta et potulenta," while he 
 remained in the Priory, " sub consimili portione eorun- 
 dem prout convenienter priori," for the time being, 
 ministrari contigerit ; and in like manner uni famulo, 
 whom he should choose to wait on him, as to the servi- 
 entibus of the prior. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 605 
 
 Item. " Invenient seu exhibebunt eidem unam hones- 
 tarn cameram " in the Priory, " cum focalibus necessa- 
 riis seu opportunis ad eundem." 
 
 Item. We will, ordain, &c. to the said P. Berne an 
 annual pension of ten marks, from the revenue of the 
 Priory, to be paid by the hands of the prior quarterly. 
 
 The bishop decrees farther, that John Sharp, and his 
 successors, shall take an oath to observe this injunction, 
 and that before their installation. 
 
 " Lecta et facta stint haec in quodam alto oratorio/' 
 belonging to the bishop at Suthwaltham, May 25, 1478, 
 in the presence of John Sharp, who gave his assent, 
 and then took the oath before witnesses, with the other 
 oaths before the chancellor, who decreed he should be 
 inducted and installed ; as was done that same day. 
 
 How John Sharp, alias Glastonbury, acquitted him- 
 self in his priorship, and in what manner he made a 
 vacancy, whether by resignation, or death, or whether 
 he was removed by the visiter, does not appear : we 
 only find that some time in the year 1484, there was no 
 prior, and that the bishop nominated canon Ashford to 
 fill the vacancy. 
 
 LETTER XXIII. 
 
 THIS Thomas Ashford was most undoubtedly the last 
 prior of Selborne; and therefore here will be the proper 
 place to say something concerning a list of the priors, 
 and to endeavour to improve that already given by 
 others. 
 
 At the end of Bishop Tanner's Notitia Monastica, 
 the folio edition, among Brown Willis's Principals of 
 Religious Houses, occur the names of eleven of the 
 priors of Selborne, with dates. But this list is imper- 
 fect, and particularly at the beginning ; for though the 
 Priory was founded in 1232, yet it commences with 
 Nich. de Cantia, elected in 1262 ; so that for the first 
 
600 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 thirty years no prior is mentioned ; yet there must have 
 been one or more. We were in hopes that the register 
 of Peter de Rupibus would have rectified this omission; 
 but, when it was examined, no information of the sort 
 was to be found. From the year 1410 the list is much 
 corrected and improved ; and the reader may depend 
 on its being thenceforward very exact. 
 
 A List of the Priors of Selborne Priory, from Brown 
 Willis's Principals of Religious Houses, with addi- 
 tions within [ ] by the Author. 
 
 [John was prior, sine dat l .~\ 
 
 Nich. de Cantia. el 1262. 
 
 [Peter was prior in . . . . . * . . 1271. J 
 
 [Richard was prior in ;.. . . 1280.] 
 
 Will. Basing was prior in . .-*.' . * ,--. . . 1299. 
 Walter de Insula el. in ; , I .* $f*%^ -* 1324. 
 [Some difficulties, and a devolution ; but the 
 election confirmed by Bishop Stratford.] 
 
 John de Winton 1339. 
 
 Thomas Weston 1377. 
 
 John Winchester [Wynchestre] 1410. 
 
 [Elected by Bishop Beaufort " per viam vel 
 
 formam simplicis compromissi."] 
 
 [John S type, alias Stepe, in . . . . . , . 1411.] 
 Peter Bene [alias Berne or Bernes, appointed 
 keeper, and, by lapse to Bishop Wayneflete, 
 
 prior] in 1454. 
 
 [He resigns in 1468.] 
 
 John Morton [Prior of Reygate] in .... 1468. 
 [The canons by compromise transfer the 
 
 power of election to the bishop.] 
 Will. Winsor [Wyndesor, prior for a few days] 1471. 
 [but removed on account of an irregular elec- 
 tion.] 
 
 1 See, in Letter XT. of these Antiquities, the reason why prior John 
 
 , who had transactions with the Knights Templars, is placed in the 
 
 list before the year 1262. 
 
OF SELBORNE. G07 
 
 Thomas Farwill [Fairwise, vicar of Somborne] 1471. 
 
 [by compromise again elected by the bishop.] 
 [Peter Berne, reelected by scrutiny in ... . 1472.] 
 
 [resigns again in 1478.] 
 John Sharper [Sharp] alias Glastonbury . . 1478. 
 
 [Canon-reg. of Bruton, elected by the bishop 
 
 by compromise.] 
 [Thomas Ashford, canon of Selborne, last prior 
 
 elected by the Bishop of Winchester, some 
 
 time in the year 1484. 
 
 and deposed at the dissolution.] 
 
 LETTER XXIV. 
 
 BISHOP WAYNFLETE'S efforts to continue the Priory 
 still proved unsuccessful ; and the convent, without 
 any canons, and for some time without a prior, was 
 tending swiftly to its dissolution. 
 
 When Sharp's, alias Glastonbury 's, priorship ended 
 does not appear. The bishop says that he had been 
 obliged to remove some priors for mal-administration : 
 but it is not well explained how that could be the case 
 with any, unless with Sharp; because all the others, 
 chosen during his episcopate, died in their office, viz. 
 Morton and Fairwise ; Berne only excepted, who relin- 
 quished twice voluntarily, and was moreover approved 
 of by Waynflete as a person of integrity. But the way 
 to show what ineffectual pains the bishop took, and 
 what difficulties he met with, will be to quote the words 
 of the libel of his proctor Radulphus Langley, who 
 appeared for the bishop in the process of the impropria- 
 tion of the Priory of Selborne. The extract is taken 
 from an attested copy. 
 
 " Item that the said bishop dicto prioratui et per- 
 sonis ejusdem pie compatiens, sollicitudines pastorales, 
 labores, et diligentias gravissimas quain plurimas, tarn 
 
008 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 per se quam per suos, pro reformatione preraissorum 
 impendebat: et aliquando illius loci prioribus, propter 
 malam et inutilem administrationem, et dispensationem 
 bonorum predict! prioratus, suis demeritis exigentilms, 
 amotis; alios priores in quorum circumspectione et 
 diligentia confidebat, prefecit : quos tainen male se 
 habuisse ac inutiliter administrare, et administrasse, 
 usque ad presentia tempora post debitam investigatio- 
 nem, &c. invenit." So that he despaired, with all his 
 care, "statum ejusdem reparare vel restaurare: et 
 considerata temporis malicia, et preteritis tiinendo, et 
 conjecturando futura, de aliqua bona et sancta reli- 
 gione ejusdem ordinis, &c. juxta piam intentioncm 
 primevi fundatoris ibidem habend. desperatur." 
 
 William Wainfleet, Bishop of Winchester, founded 
 his college of St. Mary Magdalen, in the university of 
 Oxford, in or about the year 1459; but the revenues 
 proving insufficient for so large and noble an establish- 
 ment, the college supplicated the founder to augment 
 its income by putting it in possession of the estates 
 belonging to the Priory of Selborne, now become a de- 
 serted convent, without canons or prior. The president 
 and fellows state the circumstances of their numerous 
 institution and scanty provision, and the ruinous and 
 perverted condition of the Priory. The bishop appoints 
 commissaries to inquire into the state of the said 
 monastery; and, if found expedient, to confirm the 
 appropriation of it to the college, which soon after 
 appoints attorneys to take possession, September 24, 
 1484. But the way to give the reader a thorough 
 insight respecting this transaction, will be to transcribe 
 a farther proportion of the process of the impropriation 
 from the beginning, which will lay open the manner of 
 proceeding, and show the consent of the parties. 
 
OF SELBORNE. C09 
 
 IMPROPRIATIO SELBORNE, 1485. 
 
 " Universis sancte matris ecclesie filiis, &c. Ricar- 
 dus Dei gratia prior ecclesie conventualis de Novo 
 Loco, &C. 1 ad universitatem vestre notitie deducimus, 
 &c. quod coram nobis commissario predicto in ecclesia 
 parochiali S li . Georgii de Essher, diet. Winton. dioc. 3. 
 die Augusti, A. D. 1485, indictione tertia pontificat. 
 Innocentii 8 vi . ann. l mo . judicialiter comparuit venera- 
 bilis vir Jacobus Preston, S. T. P. infrascriptus, et 
 exhibuit literas commissionis quas quid em per niagis- 
 trum Thomara Somercotes notarium publicum, &c. legi 
 fecimus, tenorem sequentem in se continentes." The 
 same as No. 103, but dated " In manerio nostro de 
 Essher, Augusti l mo A. D. 1485, et nostre consec. anno 
 39." [No. 103 is repeated in a book containing the like 
 process in the preceding year by the same commissary, 
 in the parish church of St. Andrew the apostle, at Farn- 
 ham, Sept. 6th, anno 1484.] " Post quarum literarum 
 lecturam dictus magister Jacobus Preston, quasdarn 
 procuratorias literas mag. Richardi Mayewe presidents, 
 ut asseruit, collegii beate Marie Magdalene, &c. sigillo 
 rotundo communi, &c. in cera rubea impresso sigillatas 
 realiter exhibuit, &c. et pro eisdem dnis suis, &c. fecit 
 se partem, ac nobis supplicavit ut juxta formam in 
 eisdem traditam procedere dignaremur, &c." After these 
 proclamations no contradictor or objector appearing 
 "ad instantem petitionem ipsius mag. Jac. Preston, 
 procuratoris, &c. procedendum fore decrevimus vocatis 
 
 1 Ecclesia Conventualis de Novo Loco was the monastery afterwards 
 called the New Minster, or Abbey of Hyde, in the city of Winchester. 
 Should any intelligent reader wonder to see that the prior of Hyde 
 Abbey was commissary to the Bishop of Winton, and should conclude that 
 there was a mistake in titles, and that the abbot must have been here 
 meant; he will be pleased to recollect that this person was the second in 
 rank ; for, " next under the abbot, in every abbey, was the prior." Pref. 
 to Notit. Monast. p. xxix. Besides, abbots were great personages, and 
 too high in station to submit to any office under the bishop. 
 
 R R 
 
010 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 jure vocandis ; nee non mag. Tho. Somercotes, &c. in 
 actorum nostrorura scribam nominavimus. Conse- 
 quenter et ibidem tune comparuit magister Michael 
 ClyfF, &c. et exhibuit in ea parte procuratorium suum," 
 for the prior and convent of the cathedral of Winton, 
 " et fecit se partem pro eisdem. Deinde comparuit 
 coram nobis, &c. honestus vir Willmus Cowper," proc- 
 tor for the bishop as patron of the Priory of Selborne, 
 and exhibited his " procuratorium, &c." After these 
 were read in the presence of Clyff and Cowper, " Pres- 
 ton, viva voce," petitioned the commissary to annex 
 and appropriate the Priory of Selborne to the college 
 " propter quod fructus, redditus, et proventus ejusdem 
 coll. adeo tenues sunt et exiles, quod ad sustentatio- 
 nem ejus, &c. non sufficiunt. -The commissary, "ad 
 libellandum et articulandum in scriptis" adjourned 
 the court to the 5th of August, then to be held again in 
 the parish church of Essher. 
 
 W. Cowper being then absent, Radulphus Langley 
 appeared for the bishop, and was admitted his proctor. 
 Preston produced his libel or article " in scriptis " for 
 the union, &c. " et admitti petiit eundem cum eflfectu ; 
 cujus libelli tenor sequitur. In Dei nomine, Amen. 
 Coram nobis venerabili in Christo patre Richardo, priore, 
 &c. de Novo Loco, &c. commissario, &c." On the part 
 of the college of Magd. dicit, allegat, and in his "scriptis 
 proponit, &c." 
 
 " Imprimis that said college consists of a president 
 and eighty scholars, besides sixteen choristers, thirteen 
 servientes inibi altissimo famulantibus, et in scientiis 
 plerisque liberalibus, presertim in sacra theologia stu- 
 dentibus, nedum ad ipsorum presidentis et scholarium 
 pro presenti et impostemm, annuente deo, incorporan- 
 dorum in eodem relevamen; verum etiam ad omnium 
 et singulorum tarn scholarium quam religiosorum cujus- 
 cunque ordinis undequaque illuc confluere pro salubri 
 doctrina volentium utilitatem multiplicem, ad incre- 
 menta virtutis fideique catholice stabilimentum. Ita 
 
OF SELBORNE. 611 
 
 videlicet quod omnes et singuli absque personarum seu 
 nationum delectu illuc accedere volentes, lecturas pub- 
 licas et doctrinas tarn in grammatica, loco ad collegium 
 contiguo, ac philosophiis morali et naturali, quam in 
 sacra theologia in eodem collegio perpetuis temporibus 
 continuandas libere atque gratis audire valeant et 
 possint, ad laudem gloriam et honorem Dei, &c. extitit 
 fundatum et stabilitum." 
 
 For the first item in this process see the beginning of 
 this letter. Then follows item the second " that the 
 revenues of the college non sufficiunt his diebus." " Item 
 that the premisses are true, &c. ut super eisdem labo- 
 rarunt, et laborant publica vox et fama. Unde facta 
 fide petit pars eorundem that the Priory be annexed to 
 the college : ita quod dicto prioratu vacante liceat iis 
 ex tune to take possession, &c." This libel, with the 
 express consent of the other proctors, we, the commis- 
 sary, admitted, and appointed the 6th of August for 
 proctor Preston to prove the premisses. 
 
 Preston produced witnesses, "W. Gyfford, S. T. P. 
 John Nele, A. M. John Chapman, chaplain, and Robert 
 Baron, literatus, who were admitted and sworn, when 
 the court was prorogued to the 6th of August ; and the 
 witnesses, on the same 6th of August, were examined 
 by the commissary, "in capella infra manerium de 
 Essher situata, secrete et singillatim." Then follow 
 the " literse procuratoriae : " first that of the college, 
 appointing Preston and Langport their proctors, dated 
 August 30th, 1484 ; then that of the prior and convent 
 of the cathedral of Winton, appointing David Husband 
 and Michael Cleve, dated September 4th, 1484: then 
 that of the bishop, appointing \V. Gyfford, Radulphus 
 Langley, and Will. Cowper, dated September 3rd, 1484. 
 Consec. 38. " Quo die adveniente, in dicta ecclesia 
 parochiali, appeared " coram nobis" James Preston to 
 prove the contents of his libel, and exhibited some 
 letters testimonial with the seal of the bishop, and 
 these were admitted ; and consequenter Preston pro- 
 
 R R 2 
 
612 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 duced two witnesses, viz. Dominum Thomam Ashforde 
 nuper priorem dicti prioratus, et Willm. Rabbys litera- 
 tum, who were admitted and sworn, and examined as 
 the others, by the commissary ; " tune & ibidem assis- 
 tente scriba secrete & singillatim ;" and their deposi- 
 tions were read and made public, as follows : 
 
 Mr. W. Gyfford, S. T. P. aged 57, of the state of 
 Magd. Coll. &c. &c. as before : 
 
 Mr. John Nele, aged 57, proves the articles also : 
 Robert Baron, aged 56 : 
 
 Johannes Chapman, aged 35, also affirmed all the 
 five articles : 
 
 Dompnus Thomas Ashforde, aged 72 years " dicit 
 2 dum 3 um 4 nm articulos in eodem libello contentos, con- 
 cernentes statum dicti prioratus de Selebourne, fuisse 
 et esse veros." 
 
 W. Rabbys, setat 40 ann. agrees with Gyfford, &c. 
 Then follows the letter from the bishop, " in subsi- 
 (1 iu in probationis," abovementioned "Willmus, &c. 
 salutem, &c. noverint universitas vestra, quod licet nos 
 prioratui de Selebourne, &c. pie compacientes sollicitu- 
 dines pastorales, labores, diligentias quamplurimas per 
 nos & commissarios nostros pro reformatione status 
 ejus impenderimus, justicia id poscente ; nihilominus 
 tamen," &c. as in the article to " desperatur," dated 
 " in manerio nostro de Essher, Aug. 3d, 1485, & consec. 
 39." Then, on the 6th of August, Preston, in the pre- 
 sence of the other proctors, required that they should 
 be compelled to answer ; when they all allowed the 
 articles " fuisse & esse vera ;" and the commissary, at 
 the request of Preston, concluded the business, and 
 appointed Monday, August 8th, for giving his decree 
 in the same church of Essher; and it was that day read, 
 and contains a recapitulation, with the sentence of 
 union, &c. witnessed and attested. 
 
 As soon as the president and fellows of Magdalen 
 College had obtained the decision of the commissary in 
 their favour, they proceeded to supplicate the pope, and 
 
OF SELfcORNE. 613 
 
 to entreat his holiness that he would give his sanction 
 to the sentence of union. Some difficulties were started 
 at Rome ; but they were surmounted Ky the college 
 agent, as appears by his letters from that city. At 
 length Pope Innocent VIII. by a bull 2 bearing date 
 the 8th day of June, in the year of our Lord 1486, and 
 in the second year of his pontificate, confirmed what 
 had been done, and suppressed the convent. 
 
 Thus fell the considerable and well endowed Priory 
 of Selborne, after it had subsisted about two hundred 
 and fifty-four years ; about seventy-four years after the 
 suppression of Priories alien by Henry V. and about 
 fifty years before the general dissolution of monasteries 
 by Henry VIII. The founder, it is probable, had fondly 
 imagined that the sacredness of the institution, and the 
 pious motives on which it was established, might have 
 preserved it inviolate to the end of time yet it fell, 
 
 " To teach us that God attributes to place 
 
 No sanctity, if none be thither brought 
 
 By men, who there frequent, or therein dwell." 
 
 MILTON'S Paradise Lost. 
 
 LETTER XXV. 
 
 WAIN FLEET did not long enjoy the satisfaction arising 
 from this new acquisition ; but departed this life in a 
 few months after he had effected the union of the Priory 
 with his late founded college ; and was succeeded in 
 the see of Winchester by Peter Courtney, some time 
 towards the end of the year 1486. 
 
 In the beginning of the following year the new bishop 
 released the president and fellows of Magdalen College 
 
 2 There is nothing remarkable in this bull of Pope Innocent except 
 the statement of the annual revenue of the Priory of Selborne, which is 
 therein estimated at 160 flor. auri; whereas Bishop Godwin sets it at 
 337Z. 15s. 6%d. Now a floren, so named, says Camden, because made by 
 Florentines, was a gold coin of King Edward III. in value 6s. whereof 
 160 is not one seventh part of 337Z. 15s. 6d. 
 
 
 
614 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 from all actions respecting the Priory of Selborne ; and 
 the prior and convent of St. Swithun, as the chapter of 
 Winchester cathedral, confirmed^ the release 1 . 
 
 N. 293. " Relaxatio Petri epi Winton Ricardo Ma- 
 yew President!, omnium actionum occasione indempni- 
 tatis sibi debite pro unione Prioratus de Selborne dicto 
 collegio. Jan. 2. 1487. et translat. anno IV 
 
 N. 374. " Relaxatio prioris et conventusjs* Swithini 
 Winton confirmans relaxationem Petri ep. Winton." 
 1487. Jan. 13. 
 
 Ashforde, the deposed prior, who had appeared as an 
 evidence for the impropriation of the Priory at the age 
 of seventy-two years, that he might not be destitute of 
 a maintenance, was pensioned by the college to the day 
 of his death ; and was living on till 1490, as appears by 
 his acquittances. 
 
 REG. A. ff. 46. 
 
 " Omnibus Christi fidelibus ad quos presens scriptum 
 pervenerit, Richardus Mayew, presidens, &c. et scolares,, 
 salutem in Domino." 
 
 " Noveritis nos prefatos presidentem et scolares de- 
 disse, concessisse, et hoc present! scripto conflrmasse 
 Thome Ashforde, capellano y quendam annualem reddi- 
 tum sex librarum tresdecim solidorum et quatuor dena- 
 riorum bone et legalis monete Anglie ad terminum 
 vite prefati Thome" to be paid from the possessions 
 of the college in Basingstoke. " In cujus rei testimo- 
 nium sigillum nostrum commune presentibus apponimus. 
 Dat. Oxon. in coll. nostro supradicto primo die mensis 
 Junii anno regis Ricardi tertii secundo," viz. 1484. The 
 college, in their grant to Ashforde, style him only capel- 
 lanus ; but the annuitant very naturally, and with a 
 becoming dignity, asserts his late title in his acquit- 
 tances, and identifies himself by the addition of nuper 
 priorem, or late prior. 
 
 1 The bishops of Winchester were patrons of the Priory. 
 
OP SELBORNE. 615 
 
 As, according to the persuasion of the times, the 
 depriving the founder and benefactors of the Priory of 
 their masses and services would have beep deemed the 
 most impious of frauds, Bishop Wainfleet, having by 
 statute ordained four obits for himself to be celebrated 
 in the chapel of Magdalen College, enjoined in one of 
 them a special collect for the anniversary of Peter de 
 Rupibus, with a particular prayer " Deus Indulgentia- 
 rum." 
 
 The college also sent Nicholas Langrish, who had 
 been a chantry priest at Selborne, to celebrate mass 
 for the souls of all that had been benefactors to the said 
 Priory and college, and for all the faithful who had 
 departed this life. 
 
 N. 356. Thomas Knowles, presidens, &c. " damus 
 et concedimus Nicholao Langrish quandam capella- 
 niam, vel salarium, sive alio quocunque nomine censea- 
 tur, in prioratu quondam de Selborne pro termino 40 
 annorum, si tarn diu vixerit. Ubi dictus mag r . Nicho- 
 laus celebrabit pro animabus omnium benefactorum 
 dicti prioratus et coll.nostri, et omnium fidelium defunc- 
 torum, &c. Insuper nos, &c. concedimus eidem ibidem 
 celebranti in sustentationem suam quandam annualem 
 pensionem sive annuitatem octo librarum, &c. in dicta 
 capella dicti prioratus concedimus duas cameras con- 
 tiguas ex parte boreali dicte capelle, cum una coquina, 
 et cum uno stabulo conveniente pro tribus equis, cum 
 pomerio eidem adjacente voc. le Orcheyard Preterea 
 26s. Sd. per ann. ad inveniendum unum clericum ad 
 serviendum sibi ad altare, et aliis negotiis necessariis 
 ejus." His wood to be granted him by the president 
 on the progress. He was not to absent himself beyond 
 a certain time ; and was to superintend the coppices, 
 wood, and hedges." Dat. 5 to . die Julii. an . Hen. VHP 1 . 
 36." [viz. 1546.] 
 
 Here we see the Priory in a new light, reduced as it 
 were to the state of a chantry, without prior and with- 
 
AN TIQUITI H,S 
 
 out canons, and attended only by a priest, who \s;i- 
 also a sort of bailiff or woodman, his assistant clerk, 
 and his female cook 2 . Owen Oglethorpe, president, and 
 Magdalen College, in the fourth year of Edward VI. 
 viz. 1551, granted an annuity of ten pounds a year for 
 life to Nich. Langrish, who, from the preamble, appears 
 then to have been fellow of that society : but, being now 
 superannuated for business, this pension is granted him 
 for thirty years, if he should live so long. It is said of 
 him " cum jam sit provectioris etatis quam ut," &c. 
 
 Laurence Stubb, president of MagJ. Coll. leased out 
 the Priory lands to John Sharp, husbandman, for the 
 term of twenty years, as early as the seventeenth year 
 of Henry VIII. viz. 1526: and it appears that Henry 
 Newlyn had been in possession of a lease before, pro- 
 bably towards the end of the reign of Henry VII. 
 Sharp's rent was vi 11 . per ann. Regist. B. p. 43. 
 
 By an abstract from a lease lying before me, it appears 
 that Sharp found a house, two barns, a stable, and a 
 duf-house [dove-house], built, and standing on the south 
 side of the old Priory, and late in the occupation of 
 Newlyn. In this abstract also are to be seen the names 
 of all the iields, many of which continue the same to 
 this day 3 . Of some of them I shall take notice, where 
 any thing singular occurs. 
 
 And here first we meet with Paradyss [Paradise] 
 Mede. Every convent had its Paradise ; which proba- 
 bly was an enclosed orchard, pleasantly laid out, and 
 planted with fruit trees. Tylehouse Grove, so distin- 
 
 8 Una coquina would rather signify a kitchen than a female cook. 
 E.T.B. 
 
 3 It may not be amiss to mention here that various names of tithings, 
 farms, fields, woods, &c. which appear in the ancient deeds and evidences 
 of several centuries standing, are still preserved in common use with 
 little or no variation : as Norton, Southington, Durton, Achangre, Black- 
 more, Bradshot, Rood, Plestor, &c. &c. At the same time it should be 
 acknowledged that other places have entirely lost their original titles, as 
 Le Buri and Trucstede in this village ; and La Liega, or La Lyge, which 
 was the name of the original site of the Priory, &e. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 617 
 
 guished from having a tiled bouse near it 4 . Butt-wood 
 Close ; here the servants of the Priory and the village 
 swains exercised themselves with their long bows, and 
 shot at a mark against a butt, or banK 5 . Cundyth 
 [conduit] Wood : the engrosser of the lease not under- 
 standing this name has made a strange barbarous word 
 of it. Conduit Wood was and is a steep rough cow- 
 pasture, lying above the Priory, at about a quarter of 
 a mile to the south-west. In the side of this field there 
 is a spring of water that never fails ; at the head of 
 which a cistern was built which communicated with 
 leaden pipes that conveyed water to the monastery. 
 When this reservoir was first constructed does not 
 appear; we only know that it underwent a repair in the 
 episcopate of Bishop Wainfleet, about the year 1462 6 . 
 Whether these pipes only conveyed the water to the 
 Priory for common and culinary purposes, or contri- 
 buted to any matters of ornament and elegance, we 
 shall not pretend to say ; nor when artists and mecha- 
 nics first understood any thing of hydraulics, and that 
 water confined in tubes would rise to its original level. 
 
 4 Men at first heaped sods, or fern, or heath, on their roofs to keep 
 off the inclemencies of weather : and then by degrees laid straw or 
 haum. The first refinements in roofing were shingles, which are very 
 ancient. Tiles are a very late and imperfect covering, and were not 
 much in use till the beginning of the sixteenth century. The first tiled 
 house at Nottingham was in 1503. 
 
 [It is, perhaps, more probable that the tile house was the establishment 
 at which the tiles used in the convent flooring were made. The number 
 of plain tiles which were used there appears to have been considerable : 
 in the preparation of the ornamented ones much time must have been 
 occupied. The manufacture of them on the spot would have been quite 
 in accordance with the arrangements made by such establishments gene- 
 rally, and certainly by the Priory of Selborne, for carrying on trades 
 within themselves, and thus rendering themselves self-dependent only. 
 E. T. B.] 
 
 5 There is also a Butt-close just at the back of the village. 
 
 6 N. 381. " Clausure terre abbatie ecclesie parochiali de Seleburne, 
 ixs. iiiid. Reparacionibus domorum predicti prioratus iiii. lib. xis. Aque 
 conduct, ibidem, xxiiid. 
 
G18 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 There is a person now living who had been employed 
 formerly in digging for these pipes, and once discovered 
 several yards, which they sold for old lead. 
 
 There was also a plot of ground called Tan House 
 Garden : and " Tannaria sua" a tan-yard of their own, 
 has been mentioned in Letter XVI. This circumstance 
 I just take notice of, as an instance that monasteries 
 had trades and occupations carried on within them- 
 selves 7 . 
 
 Registr. B. pag. 112. Here we find a lease of the 
 parsonage of Selborne to Thomas Sylvester and Miles 
 Arnold, husbandmen of the tythes of all manner of 
 corne pertaining to the parsonage with the offerings at 
 the chapel of Whaddon belonging to the said parsonage. 
 Dat. June 1. 27 th . Hen. 8 th . [viz. 1536.] 
 
 As the chapel of Whaddon has never been mentioned 
 till now, and as it is not noticed by Bishop Tanner in 
 his Notitia Monastica, some more particular account 
 of it will be proper in this place. Whaddon was a 
 chapel of ease to the mother church of Selborne, and 
 was situated in the tithing of Oakhanger, at about two 
 miles distance from the village. The farm and field 
 whereon it stood are still called Chapel Farm and 
 Field 8 : but there are no remains or traces of the build- 
 ing itself, the very foundations having been destroyed 
 before the memory of man. In a farm yard at Oak- 
 hanger we remember a large hollow stone of a close 
 substance, which had been used as a hog-trough, but 
 was then broken. This stone, tradition said, had been 
 the baptismal font of Whaddon chapel. The chapel 
 had been in a very ruinous state in old days ; but was 
 new-built at the instance of Bishop Wainfleet, about 
 the year 1463, during the first priorship of Berne, in 
 
 7 There is still a wood near the Priory, called Tanner's Wood. 
 
 8 This is a manor-farm, at present the property of Lord Stawell ; and 
 belonged probably in ancient times to Jo. de Venur, or Venuz, one of the 
 first benefactors to the Priory. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 619 
 
 consequence of a sequestration issued forth by that 
 visiter against the Priory on account of notorious and 
 shameful dilapidations 9 . 
 
 The Selborne rivulet becomes of some breadth at 
 Oakhanger, and, in very wet seasons, swells to a large 
 flood. There is a bridge over the stream at this hamlet 
 of considerable antiquity and peculiar shape, known by 
 the name of Tunbridge: it consists of one single blunt 
 Gothic arch, so high and sharp as to render the passage 
 not very convenient or safe 10 . Here was also, we find, 
 a bridge in very early times; for Jacobus de Hochangre, 
 the first benefactor to the Priory of Selborne, held his 
 estate at Hochangre by the service of providing the 
 king one foot soldier for forty days, and by building 
 this bridge. " Jacobus de Hochangre tenet Hochangre 
 in com, Southampton, per Serjantiam 11 inveniendi unum 
 valectum in exercitu Domini regis [scil. Henrici III tu .] 
 per 40 dies ; et ad faciendum pontem de Hochangre : 
 et valet per annn. C. s." Blount's Ancient Tenures, 
 p. 84. 
 
 A dove-house was a constant appendant to a mane- 
 rial dwelling : of this convenience more will be said 
 hereafter. 
 
 A corn-mill was also esteemed a necessary appendage 
 of every manor; and therefore was to be expected of 
 course at the Priory of Selborne. 
 
 The prior had secta molendini, or ad molendinum: a 
 
 9 See Letter XIX. of these Antiquities." Summa total, solut. de 
 novis edificationibus, et reparacionibus per idem tempus, ut patet per 
 comput." 
 
 " Videlicet de nova edificat. Capelle Marie de Wadden. xiiii lib. vs. 
 viiid. Reparacionibus ecclesie Prioratus, canceller, et capellar. eccle- 
 siarum et capellarum de Selborne, et Estworhlam." &c. &c. 
 
 10 Inconvenient antiquity has, in this instance, recently given way to 
 modern use. The little bridge over the rivulet at Oakhanger is now low 
 and easy of passage : it consists of three small arches. E. T. B. 
 
 11 Sargentia, a sort of tenure of doing something for the king. 
 
 12 " Servitium, quo feudatorii grana sua ad Domini molendinum, ibi 
 molenda perferre, ex consuetudine, astring^untur." 
 
620 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 power of compelling his vassals to bring their corn to 
 be ground at his mill, according to old custom. He 
 had also, according to Bishop Tanner, secta molendini 
 de Strete : but the purport of Strete, we must confess, 
 we do not understand 13 . Strete, in old English, signifies 
 a road or highway, as Watling Strete, &c. therefore the 
 prior might have some mill on a high road. The Priory 
 had only one mill originally at Selborne ; but, by grants 
 of lands, it came possessed of one at Durton, and one 
 at Oakhanger, and probably some on its other several 
 manors 14 . The mill at the Priory was in use \\ithin 
 the memory of man, and the ruins of the mill-house 
 were standing within these thirty years : the pond and 
 dam, and miller's dwelling, still remain 15 . As the stream 
 was apt to fail in very dry summers, the tenants found 
 their situation very distressing, for want of water, and 
 so were forced to abandon the spot. This inconveni- 
 ence was probably never felt in old times, when the 
 whole district was nothing but woodlands : and yet 
 several centuries ago there seem to have been two or 
 three mills between Well-head and the Priory 16 . 
 
 Occasional mention has been made of the many pri- 
 vileges and immunities enjoyed by the convent and its 
 priors; but a more particular statement seems to be 
 
 13 If, however, it be borne in mind that in the Strete of Selborne there 
 existed another manor (Gurdon's), besides that of the Priory, it will ap- 
 pear probable that the privilege secta molendini de Strete extended the 
 power of the prior so far as to enable him to compel the vassals of that 
 manor, equally with his own vassals, to bring their corn also to be ground 
 at his mill. E. T. B. 
 
 14 Thomas Knowles, president, &c. ann. Hen. 8vi xxiii. [viz. 1532.] 
 devised to J. Whitelie their mills, &c. for twenty years. Rent \\iii\. 
 iiiid. Accepted Frewen, president, &c. anil. Caroli xv. [viz. 1640.] 
 demised to Jo. Hook and Elizabeth, his wife, the said mills. Rent as 
 above. 
 
 14 The miller's dwelling has since disappeared ; and the Mill-field, 
 now cultivated as a hop-ground, in name only commemorates the former 
 use of the spot. E. T. B. 
 
 16 For the reason of this assertion, see Letter XXIX. to Mr. Bar- 
 rington. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 621 
 
 necessary. The author therefore thinks this the proper 
 place, before he concludes these antiquities, to intro- 
 duce all that has been collected by the judicious Bishop 
 Tanner, respecting the Priory and its advantages, in his 
 Notitia Monastica, a book now seldom seen, on account 
 of the extravagance of its price ; and being but in few 
 hands cannot be easily consulted 17 . He also adds a 
 few of its many privileges from other authorities : the 
 account is as follows. Tanner, page 166. 
 
 SELEBURNE. 
 
 A Priory of black canons, founded by the often-men- 
 tioned Peter de Rupibus, Bishop of Winchester, A. D. 
 1233, and dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary : but 
 was suppressed and granted to William Wainfleet, 
 Bishop of Winchester, who made it part of the endow- 
 ment of St. Mary Magdalene College in Oxford. The 
 Bishops of Winchester were patrons of it. [Pat. 17. 
 Ed. II.] Vide in Mon. Angl. torn. ii. p. 343. "Car- 
 tarn fundationis ex ipso autographo in archivis Coll. 
 Magd. Oxon. ubi etiam conservata sunt registra, cartae, 
 rentalia et alia munimenta ad hunc prioratum spec- 
 tantia. 
 
 " Extracta quaedam e registro MS. in Bibl. Bodl. 
 Dodsworth, vol. 89. f. 140." 
 
 " Cart, antiq. N. N. n. 33. P. P. n. 48. et 71. Q. Q. n. 
 40. plac. coram justit. itin. [Southampton] 20 Hen. rot. 
 25. De eccl. de Basing, & Basingstoke. Plac. de juratis 
 apud Winton. 40 Hen. III. rot. Pro secta molendini de 
 Strete. Cart. 54. Hen. III. m. 3. [De mercatu, Sfferia apud 
 Seleborne, a mistake.] Pat. 9. Edw. I. m. Pat. 30. 
 Edw. I. m. Pat. 33. Edw. I. p. 1. m. Pat. 35. Edw. I. 
 m. Pat. 1. Edw. II. p. 1. m. 9. Pat. 5. Edw. II. p. 1. 
 m. 21. De terris in Achanger. Pat. 6. Edw. II. p. 1. 
 
 17 A few days after this was written a new edition of this valuable 
 work was announced in the month of April of the year 1787, as pub- 
 lished by Mr. Nasmith. 
 
G22 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 m. 7. De eisdem. Brev. in Scacc. G Edw. II. Pascb. 
 ro t. 8. Pat. 17. Edw. II. p. 1. ra. Cart. 10. Edw. III. 
 n. 24. Quod terras suae in Seleburn, Achangre, Norton, 
 Basings, Basingstoke, and Nately, sint de afforestatae, 
 and pro aliis libertatibus. Pat. 12. Edw. III. p. 3. in. 3. 
 Pat. 13. Edw. III. p. 1. m. Cart. 18. Edw. III. n. 24." 
 
 " N. N. 33. Rex concessit quod prior et canonici 
 de Seleburn habeant per terras suas de Seleburne, 
 Achangre, Norton, Brompden, Basinges, Basingstoke, 
 & Nately, diversas libertates. 
 
 " P. P. 48. Quod prior de Seleburne habeat terras 
 suas quietas de vasto et regardo." Extracts from 
 Ayloffe's Calendars of Ancient Charters. 
 
 "Placita de juratis & assis coram Salom de Roff, 8c 
 sociis suis justic. itiner. apud Wynton in comitatu 
 Sutht. anno regni R. Edvardi filii reg. Henr. octavo. 
 Et Por de Seleborn ht. in Selebr. furc. thurset. pillory, 
 emendasse panis, fr suis." [cerevisiae.] Chapter House, 
 Westminster. 
 
 " Placita Foreste apud Wynton in com. Sutham. 
 Anno reg. Edwardi octavo coram Rog. de Clifford. 
 &c. Justic. ad eadem placita atidienda et tminand. 
 assigtis. 
 
 " Carta Pror de Seleburn, H. Dei gra. rex. angl. &c. 
 Concessim. prior, see. Marie de Seleburn. et^anonicis 
 
 ibidem Deo servient q ipi et oes hoies sui in 
 
 pdcis terris suis et tenementis manentes sint in ppetum 
 quieti de sectis Swanemotor. et omnium alior. placitor. 
 for. et de espeltamentis canum. et de omnibus submo- 
 nitoibz. placitis querelis et exaccoibus et occoibz. ad 
 for. et for. et viridar. et eor. ministros ptinentibz." 
 Chapter House, Westminster. 
 
 "Plita Forestarum in com. Sutht. apud Suthamton 
 
 anno regni regis Edwardi tcii post conquestum 
 
 quarto coram JoKe Mantvers. &c. justic. itinand &c. 
 
 De hiis qui clamant libtates intra Forestas in com. 
 Sutht. 
 
 " Prior de Selebourne clamat esse quietus erga dmn 
 
OF SELBORNE. 623 
 
 regem de omnibus finibus et amerciamentis p tnsgr. et 
 omnibus exaccoibz ad Dom. regem vel hered. suos 
 ptinent. pret. plita corone reg. 
 
 " Item clamat q d si aliquis hominum sudrum de terris 
 et tenT. p. delicto suo vitam aut membrum debeat aniit- 
 tere, vel fugiat & judico~ stare noluerit, vel aliud delictum 
 fecit pro quo debeat catella sua amittere, ubicunq; 
 justitia fieri debeat omnia catella ilia sint ptci Prioris et 
 successor, suor. Et liceat eidem priori et ballis suis 
 ppnere se in seisinam in hujusmodi catall. in casibus 
 pdcis sine disturbacone ballivor. dni reg. quorum- 
 cunque. 
 
 " Item clam, quod licet aliqua libtatum p dnm regem 
 concessar. pcessu temporis quocunq ; casu contingente 
 usi non fuerint, nlommus postea eadm libtate uti possit. 
 Et pdcus prior quesitus p justic. quo warranto clamat 
 omn. terr. et ten. sua in Seleburne, Norton,_Basynges, 
 Basyngestoke, & Nattele, que prior_domus pdte huit & 
 tenuit X mo . die April anno regni dni Hen. reg. pavi dni 
 reg. nue XVIII. imppm esse quieta de vasto et regardo, 
 et visu forestarior. et viridarior. regard ator. et omnium 
 ministrorum foreste." &c. &c. Chapter House, West- 
 minster. 
 
 LETTER XXVI. 
 
 THOUGH the evidences and documents of the Priory 
 and parish of Selborne are now at an end, yet, as the 
 author has still several things to say respecting the 
 present state of that convent and its Grange, and other 
 matters, he does not see how he can acquit himself of 
 the subject without trespassing again on the patience 
 of the reader by adding one supplementary letter. 
 
 No sooner did the Priory (perhaps much out of repair 
 at the time) become an appendage to the college, but it 
 must at once have tended to swift decay. Magdalen 
 College wanted now only two chambers for the chantry 
 priest and his assistant; and therefore had no occasion 
 for the hall, dormitory, and other spacious apartments 
 
024 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 belonging to so large a foundation. The roofs neglected, 
 would soon become the possession of daws and owls ; 
 and, being rotted and decayed by the weather, would 
 fall in upon the floors; so that all parts must have 
 hastened to speedy dilapidation and a scene of broken 
 ruins. Three full centuries have now passed since the 
 dissolution; a series of years that would craze the 
 stoutest edifices. But, besides the slow hand of time, 
 many circumstances have contributed to level this vene- 
 rable structure with the ground ; of which nothing now 
 remains but one piece of a wall of about ten feet long, 
 and as many feet high, which probably was part of an 
 out-house. As early as the latter end of the reign of 
 Hen. VII. we find that a farm-house and two barns 
 were built to the south of the Priory, and undoubtedly 
 out of its materials. Avarice, again, has much contri- 
 buted to the overthrow of this stately pile, as long as 
 the tenants could make money of its stones or timbers. 
 Wantonness, no doubt, has had a share in the demoli- 
 tion ; for boys love to destroy what men venerate and 
 admire. A remarkable instance of this propensity the 
 writer can give from his own knowledge. When a 
 schoolboy, more than fifty years ago, he was eyewit- 
 ness, perhaps a party concerned, in the undermining a 
 portion of that fine old ruin at the north end of Basing- 
 stoke town, well known by the name of Holy Ghost 
 Chapel. Very providentially the vast fragment, which 
 these thoughtless little engineers endeavoured to sap, 
 did not give way so soon as might have been expected; 
 but it fell the night following, and with such violence 
 that it shook the very ground, and, awakening the inha- 
 bitants of the neighbouring cottages, made them start 
 up in their beds as if they had felt an earthquake. The 
 motive for this dangerous attempt does not so readily 
 appear: perhaps the more danger the more honour, 
 thought the boys ; and the notion of doing some mis- 
 chief gave a zest to the enterprise. As Dryden says 
 upon another occasion, 
 
 " It look'd so like a sin it pleased the more-." 
 
OF SELBORNE. 6*25 
 
 Had the Priory been only levelled to the surface of 
 the ground, the discerning eye of an antiquary might 
 have ascertained its ichnography, and some judicious 
 hand might have developed its dimensions. But, be- 
 sides other ravages, the very foundations have been 
 torn up for the repair of the highways : so that the site 
 of this convent is now become a rough, rugged pasture- 
 field, full of hillocks and pits, choked with nettles and 
 dwarf-elder, and trampled by the feet of the ox and the 
 heifer 1 . 
 
 As the tenant at the Priory was lately digging among 
 the foundations, for materials to mend the highways, 
 his labourers discovered two large stones, with which 
 the farmer was so pleased that he ordered them to be 
 taken out whole. One of these proved to be a large 
 Doric capital, worked in good taste ; and the other a 
 base of a pillar ; both formed out of the soft freestone 
 of this district. These ornaments, from their dimen- 
 sions, seem to have belonged to massive columns ; and 
 show that the church of this convent was a large and 
 costly edifice. They were found in the space which 
 has always been supposed to have contained the south 
 
 1 It has now been so effectually cleared as almost to have become a 
 smooth homestead. A few heaps of stones derived, it is believed, from 
 the last remnants of the foundations, and piled ready for use as materials, 
 are all that remains in the Priory field to evidence the former site of that 
 important building. Among the heaps are some fashioned stones, which 
 will not be broken to pieces. Some fragments of columns and of a pedi- 
 ment, perhaps of a monument of superior pretensions, have been pre- 
 served. These are placed, together with a stone coffin that has been dug 
 up on the spot, in the garden of the adjoining farm. A considerable 
 number of ornamented tiles have also been found ; some of which exhibit 
 merely fancy devices, some bear eagles displayed and other apparently 
 armorial emblems, and one bears a shield of three fleurs de luces, sup- 
 ported by two hawks. These tiles have been used to form the pavement 
 of a summer house in the garden of the Priory Farm. Some fragments 
 of stained glass have also been found, together with portions of the 
 ornamented leaden casement including them; affording additional proofs 
 of an important building. 
 
 Complete as the clearance has been, there is now but little probability 
 of the occurrence of any future discovery of interest on the spot from 
 which the very ruins of Selborne Priory have been swept away. E. T. B. 
 
 S S 
 
C26 ANTIQUITIES 
 
 transept of the Priory church. Some fragments of large 
 pilasters were also found at the same time. The dia- 
 meter of the capital was two feet three inches and a 
 half; and of the column, where it had stood on the 
 base, eighteen inches and three quarters. 
 
 Two years ago some labourers digging again among 
 the ruins found a sort of rude thick vase or urn of soft 
 stone, containing about two gallons in measure, on the 
 verge of the brook, in the very spot which tradition has 
 always pointed out as having been the site of the con- 
 vent kitchen. This clumsy utensil 2 , whether intended 
 for holy water, or whatever purpose, we were going to 
 procure, but found that the labourers had just broken it 
 in pieces, and carried it out on the highways. 
 
 The Priory of Selborne had possessed in this village 
 a Grange, an usual appendage to manerial estates, 
 where the fruits of their lands were stowed and laid up 
 for use, at a time when men took the natural produce 
 of their estates in kind. The mansion of this spot is 
 still called the Grange, and is the manor-house of the 
 convent possessions in this place. The author has 
 conversed with very ancient people who remembered 
 the old original Grange; but it has long given place to 
 a modern farm-house. Magdalen College holds a court- 
 lee t and court-baron 3 in the great wheat-barn of the 
 said Grange, annually, where the president usually 
 superintends, attended by the bursar and steward of 
 the college 4 . 
 
 The following uncommon presentment at the court is 
 
 2 A judicious antiquary, \vho saw this vase, observed, that it possibly 
 might have been a standard measure between the monastery and its 
 tenants. The Priory we have mentioned claimed the assize of bread and 
 beer in Selborne manor : and probably the adjustment of dry measures 
 for grain, &c. 
 
 3 The time when this court is held is the mid-week between Easter 
 and Whitsuntide. 
 
 4 Owen Oglethorp, president, &c. an. Edw. Sexti primo [viz. 1547 ] 
 demised to Robert Arden, Selborne Grange, for twenty years. Rent vi'>. 
 Index of Leases. 
 
OF SELBORNE. 
 
 6*27 
 
 not unworthy of notice. There is on the south side of 
 the king's field (a large common field so called) a con- 
 siderable tumulus, or hillock, now covered with thorns 
 and bushes, and known by the name of Kite's Hill, 
 which is presented, year by year, in court as not 
 ploughed. Why this injunction is still kept up respect- 
 ing this spot, which is surrounded on all sides by arable 
 land, may be a question not easily solved, since the 
 usage has long survived the knowledge of the intention 
 thereof. We can only suppose that as the prior, be- 
 sides thurset and pillory, had also/ureas, a power of life 
 and death, that he might have reserved this little emi- 
 nence as the place of execution for delinquents. And 
 there is the more reason to suppose so, since a spot 
 just by is called Gaily [Gallows] Hill. 
 
 The lower part of the village next the Grange, in 
 which is a pond and a stream, is well known by the 
 
 WAY LEADING TO GKACIOUS SfRliET. 
 
 name of Gracious Street, an appellation not at all 
 understood. There is a lake in Surrey, near Chobham, 
 called also Gracious Pond : and another, if we mistake 
 
 s s 2 
 
628 ANTIQUITIKS 
 
 not, near Hedleigh, in the county of Hants. This 
 strange denomination we do not at all comprehend, 
 and conclude that it may be a corruption from some 
 Saxon word, itself perhaps forgotten. 
 
 It has been observed already, that Bishop Tanner 
 was mistaken when he refers to an evidence of Dods- 
 worth, " De mercatu et FERIA de Seleburne." Selborne 
 never had a chartered fair ; the present fair was set up 
 since the year 1681, by a set of jovial fellows, who had 
 found in an old almanack that there had been a fair here 
 in former days on the 1st of August ; and were desirous 
 to revive so joyous a festival. Against this innovation 
 the vicar set his face, and persisted in crying it doun, 
 as the probable occasion of much intemperance. How- 
 ever the fair prevailed ; but was altered to the 29th of 
 May, because the former day often interfered with 
 wheat harvest. On that day it still continues to be 
 held, and is become a useful mart for cows and calves. 
 Most of the lower housekeepers brew beer against this 
 holiday, which is dutied by the exciseman ; and their 
 becoming victuallers for the day without a license is 
 overlooked. 
 
 Monasteries enjoyed all sorts of conveniences within 
 themselves. Thus at the Priory, a low and moist situa- 
 tion, there were ponds and stews for their fish : at the 
 same place also, and at the Grange in Culver Croft 5 , 
 there were dove-houses; and on the hill opposite to 
 the Grange the prior had a wanvn, us the names of 
 The Coney Crofts and Coney Croft Hanger plainly 
 testify 6 . 
 
 Nothing has been said as yet respecting the tenure 
 or holding of the Selborne estates. Temple and Norton 
 are manor farms and freehold ; as is the manor of Cha- 
 pel near Oakhanger, and also the estate at Oakhanger 
 House and Blackmoor. The Priory and Grange are 
 
 5 Culver, as has been observed before, is Saxon for a pigeon. 
 A warren was an usual appendage to a manor. 
 
OF S EL BORNE. 6*29 
 
 leasehold under Magdalen College, for twenty-one years, 
 renewable every seven : all the smaller estates in and 
 round the village are copyhold of inheritajice under the 
 college, except the little remains of the Gurdon manor, 
 which had been of old leased out upon lives, but have 
 been freed of late by their present lord, as fast as those 
 lives have dropped. 
 
 Selborne seems to have derived much of its prosperity 
 from the near neighbourhood of the Priory. For monas- 
 teries were of considerable advantage to places where 
 they had their sites and estates, by causing great resort, 
 by procuring markets and fairs, by freeing them from 
 the cruel oppression of forest laws, and by letting their 
 lands at easy rates. But, as soon as the convent was 
 suppressed, the town which it had occasioned began to 
 decline, and the market was less frequented ; the rough 
 and sequestered situation gave a check to resort, and the 
 neglected roads rendered it less and less accessible. 
 
 That it had been a considerable place for size formerly 
 appears from the largeness of the church, which much 
 exceeds those of the neighbouring villages ; by the an- 
 cient extent of the burying ground, which, from human 
 bones occasionally dug up, is found to have been much 
 encroached upon; by giving a name to the hundred; 
 by the old foundations and ornamented stones, and 
 tracery of windows that have been discovered on the 
 north-east side of the village ; and by the many vestiges 
 of disused fish-ponds still to be seen around it. For 
 ponds and stews were multiplied in the times of popery, 
 that the affluent might enjoy some variety at their 
 tables on fast days ; therefore the more they abounded 
 the better probably was the condition of the inha- 
 bitants. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 AMERIA, one of the wives of 
 AdamGurdon, makes agrant 
 of lands to the Priory, 558. 
 
 Anne, Queen, came to Wolmer 
 Forest to see the red deer, 28. 
 
 Ants, observations on, 475. 
 
 Aphides, shower of, 366. 
 
 , honey-dew their excre- 
 ment, 396, note. 
 
 April, 1770, remarkable incle- 
 mency of, 218. 
 
 Arum eaten in hard weather by 
 the thrush, 78. 
 
 Ash ford, Thomas, last prior of 
 Selbome, 605. 
 
 , pensioned 
 
 by Magdalen College, 614. 
 
 Ash-tree, a rupture one, what, 
 295. 
 
 , a shrew one, what, 
 
 296. 
 
 Ash-trees, difference between 
 fertile and sterile, 483. 
 
 August, the most mute month 
 respecting the singing of 
 birds, 170. 
 
 Auk, Little, found near Aires- 
 ford, 167. 
 
 Aurora Borealis, observation 
 on, 493. 
 
 Ayles Holt, alias Alice Holt, 
 the forest of, 36. 
 
 Barker, Thomas, some account 
 of, 17, note. 
 
 Barometer, remarkable fall of, 
 489. 
 
 Barometers, Selborne and New- 
 ton, compared, 383. 
 
 , South Lambeth, 
 
 383. 
 
 Barragon, a genteel corded 
 stuff, 23. 
 
 Barrington, Daines, some ac- 
 count of, 190, note. 
 
 Bats, lame, some particulars 
 about, 52 and note. 
 
 drink on the wing, like 
 
 swallows, 53. 
 
 , the large sort, some par- 
 ticulars about, 116, 130, 154. 
 
 , characters of the British 
 
 species, 155, note. 
 
 Beans sown by birds, 487. 
 
 Beaufort, Bp. of Winchester, 
 his register imperfect, 582. 
 
 Beeches, observations on, 483. 
 
 Bees, wild, observations on, 
 470. 
 
 Berne, alias Bernes, Peter, sa- 
 crist of the Priory, 589. 
 
 appointed prior by lapse 
 
 to the visitor, 592. 
 
 resigned his priorship, 
 
 595. 
 
 is re-elected, 600. 
 
 relinquishes again, 602. 
 
 is pensioned, 604. 
 
 Bin's, or Bean's-pond, for what 
 remarkable, 33. 
 
 Birds, instinct of, 62 note, 372. 
 
 , white varieties of, 77 
 
 and notes. 
 
 , summer, of passage, a 
 
 list of, 91, 190. 
 
 , living, shown here, when 
 
 from distant regions, why 
 usually of the thick-billed 
 genera, 140. 
 
 , of summer passage, seen 
 
 spring and autumn at Gib- 
 raltar, 143. 
 
032 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Birds, resentments of, \76,no(e. 
 
 , soft-hilled, that winter 
 
 with us, how supported, 179. 
 --, of winter passage, a list 
 
 of, 193. 
 
 that continue in full song 
 
 till after Midsummer, 194. 
 
 , soft-billed, their treat- 
 ment in captivity, 199 210, 
 note. 
 
 , diseases of, 210, note. 
 
 , why fatter in moderate 
 
 frosts, 215. 
 
 , what sorts are pulvera- 
 
 t rices, 221. 
 
 -, what occasions their con- 
 
 gregating, 237. 
 
 , in the season of nidifica- 
 
 tion, tame, 284. 
 
 , various manner of mo- 
 tion of, 332. 
 
 , notes and language of, 
 
 334. 
 
 , Observations on, 427. 
 
 Bird's-nest ophrys, its propa- 
 gation, 329, note. 
 
 Blackcap, an elegant songster, 
 44, 174, 199. 
 
 Black cock, supposed hybrid 
 conjectured to be a, 438, 
 note. 
 
 Black game, now extinct in the 
 Forest, 27. 
 
 Black spring of 1771, 494. 
 
 Blackthorn winter, what, 485. 
 
 Blind-worm, some account of, 
 101 and note. 
 
 Boinbylius medius, observations 
 on, 474. 
 
 Bot-fly, horse, some account 
 of, 149, and note. 
 
 Boy, an idiot, his strange pro- 
 pensity, 293. 
 
 Brimstone-lodge, some account 
 of, 32. 
 
 Brooks at Selborne, what fishes 
 they produce, 49, 103. 
 
 Buck's Horn Oak, in the Holt 
 Forest, 481, note. 
 
 Bug, harvest, some account of, 
 146. 
 
 Bullfinch turns black, 78, 165. 
 
 Bunting, a very rare bird at 
 Selborne, 68. 
 
 Bustard, some particulars re- 
 specting, 197 and mili: 
 
 Butcher-bird, red backed, 108, 
 162. 
 
 Buzzards, honey, some account 
 of, 184. 
 
 Calculus from the stomach of 
 
 an ox, 154. 
 Canary birds, suggestion for 
 
 their naturalization, 60. 
 Cancer said to be cured by 
 
 toads, 104, 112. 
 Cane, error regarding the ani- 
 mal so called, 76 and ///<..-. 
 Carp, their retirement in severe 
 
 weather, 172. 
 Carta pro fnnilntion" I*tiora(us 
 
 de Seleburne, 544, note. 
 Curt (i petens liceni'uiiH cli'/nidi 
 
 prelatum d Jom. eplscop. ll'iii- 
 
 ton, 566, note. 
 Castration, its strange effects, 
 
 304. 
 
 Caterpillars of the oak, 468. 
 Cats, house, fond offish, 138. 
 Chafers, observations on, 464. 
 Chaffinches, vast flocks of hen, 
 
 67, 78, 166, 244. 
 Chalk hills, why peculiarly 
 
 beautiful, 255. 
 Chestnut timber, observations 
 
 on, 484. 
 Church, Selborne, particulars 
 
 about, 520, 528. 
 Clouds, morning, cause of, 492. 
 Coccus vitis viniferte, rare in 
 
 England, 363.' 
 Cock-roach, observations on, 
 
 465. 
 Coins, Roman, found in great 
 
 abundance, 36, 516. 
 Connta.rlnimonis, where found, 
 
 13. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 033 
 
 Cricket, field, a monography 
 
 of, 346. 
 , hearth, a monography 
 
 of, 350. 
 , observations on 
 
 466. 
 , mole, a monography 
 
 of, 352. 
 Crocus, different seasons of 
 
 blossoming of, 331. 
 Crossbill, particulars about, 48 
 
 and note, 222, 258. 
 Crows go in pairs the whole 
 
 year, 162. 
 Cuckoo, various particulars 
 
 about, 211, 216, 222, 234, 
 
 235, 301. 
 
 Cucumbers set by bees, 487. 
 Cumberland, William Duke of, 
 
 takes away the red deer from 
 
 Wolmer Forest, 28. 
 Curlew, stone, various particu- 
 lars about, 78, 79, 144, 449. 
 
 Dastard, a/t'as Wastard, natural 
 
 son to Sir Adam Gurdon, 
 
 558. 
 Daws breed in unlikely places, 
 
 111, 112, 114. 
 Deer, red, in Wolmer Forest, 
 
 some account of, 28, 29. 
 
 , fallow, in Holt Forest, 37. 
 
 , their spiracula 
 
 (so called), 71. 
 Deer, their distinctness of range, 
 
 38 and note. 
 Dispersion of birds pretty 
 
 equal, why, 323. 
 Diver, great speckled, some ac- 
 count of, 447. 
 Dogs, Chinese, from Canton, 
 
 378. 
 Domesday-book, account of 
 
 Selborne from, 517. 
 Dove, ring, food of the, 442. 
 , stock, many particulars 
 
 of, 162, 185, 233. 
 Downs, Sussex, a lovely range, 
 
 255. 
 
 Dripping weather after drought, 
 
 its effects, 493. 
 Dung of nestling-birds, 251 
 
 and -note. -. 
 
 Echo, remarks on, 316321. 
 
 Echoes occasioned by the dis- 
 charge of swivel guns, 382. 
 
 Eels, characters of the different 
 species, 49 and note, 169. 
 
 Etty, Rev. Andrew, vicar of Sel- 
 borne, his monument, 527. 
 
 Fair at Selborne, 628. 
 
 Fairy rings, cause of, 488 and 
 
 notes. 
 Falcon, peregrine, particulars 
 
 about, 45, 46, 376. 
 Female birds assuming male 
 
 plumage, 435 and note. 
 Fern-owl ; see Goat-sucker. 
 Fieldfares, various particulars 
 
 concerning, 127, 133. 
 , their disappearance 
 
 and nesting places, 228. 
 Fishes of the ponds on the 
 
 Forest, 34 and note. 
 
 of Selborne streams, 49. 
 
 , gold and silver, why 
 
 very amusing in a glass 
 
 bowl, 368. 
 Flies, house, observations on, 
 
 474. 
 Fly, bacon, injurious to the 
 
 housewife, 147. 
 , whame, or burrel, CEslrus 
 
 curvicauda, 149. 
 Flycatcher, some particulars 
 
 of, 43, 178, 243. 
 Fog, reflection of, 491 and note. 
 Forest-fly, some account of, 
 
 248 and note. 
 Forms, five, respecting the 
 
 choosing of a prior, 566. 
 Fossils of the Selborne district, 
 
 11. 
 
 Frogs migrate from pools, 98. 
 Frost, that in January, 1768, 
 
 described, 71,384. 
 
G34 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Frost, that in January, 1776, Gurdon, Sir Adam, his seal 
 
 388. and arms, 558. 
 
 , that in December, 1784, , seems to 
 
 392. have had no concern with 
 
 , partial, reason of, 489. the Knights Templars, 562. 
 
 Geological character of Sel- 
 
 borne and its neighbour- 
 hood, 5, note. 
 German silk-tail, Garrulus Bo- 
 
 hemiciis, shot, 60. 
 Gipsies,some particulars about, 
 
 289. 
 Glow-worms, observations on, 
 
 476. 
 Goatsucker, some account of, 
 
 116, 118, 156,302,450. 
 Gossamer, a wonderful shower 
 
 of, 285. 
 Gracious Street, lower part of 
 
 the village so called, 627. 
 Grange, the, belonging to the 
 
 Priory, 626. 
 Grasses, importance of the 
 
 study of, 325 and note. 
 Greatham, the manor farm of, 
 
 its privilege in Wolmer Fo- 
 rest, 31. 
 Grindstone Oak, in the Holt 
 
 Forest, 481, note. 
 Grosbeak, some account of, 458. 
 Gurdon, Sir Adam, who and 
 
 what, 547. 
 , his wives, 
 
 549. 
 , builds an 
 
 oratory in his manor house, 
 
 549. 
 
 -, grants the 
 
 Plestor to the Priory, 552. 
 , becomes 
 
 warden of Wolmer Forest, 
 554. 
 
 , a distrin- 
 
 gas against him, 556. 
 
 , enlists 
 
 troops for the king, 556. 
 
 , his ad- 
 
 vanced age, 557. 
 
 Hail-storm at Selbome in sum- 
 mer, 1784, 398. 
 
 Hanger, the, 2. 
 
 Hares, Scottish and Irish, 128 
 and note. 
 
 Harvest scene, 510. 
 
 Hawk, sparrow, the dread of 
 housewives, 184. 
 
 Hawkley Hanger, the amazing 
 fall thereof, 341. 
 
 Haze, or smoky fog, the pecu- 
 liar one which prevailed in 
 the summer of 1783, 397. 
 
 Hazel, wych, 6, 7. 
 
 Heath-fires, why lighted up, 32. 
 
 Hedge-hog, some account of, 
 131. 
 
 Hedge-sparrows, some particu- 
 lars concerning, 170, 181. 
 
 Heliotropes, summer and win- 
 ter, how to make them, 338. 
 
 Hen harrier, instance of bold- 
 ness in, 446. 
 
 Herissant, Mons., mistaken in 
 his reason why cuckoos do 
 not use incubation, 301. 
 
 Herons and heronries, 1 15 and 
 note, 117. 
 
 Ulppobosca Hirundinis, some 
 account of, 247 and note. 
 
 Hirundines, British, when they 
 arrived in three very distant 
 counties, 283. 
 
 Hinindo rupestrls found at Gib- 
 raltar, 142. 
 
 Hogs would live, if suffered, to 
 a considerable age, 305. 
 
 Holt, Ayles, a royal forest, 
 
 some account of, 36. 
 Honey-dew, observations on, 
 
 492. 
 
 Hoopoes, a pair observed at 
 Selborne, 47. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 635 
 
 Hops, the best soil for, 1. 
 
 , culture of, 485. 
 
 House, vicarage, at Selborne, 
 530. 
 
 House-sparrows, their places 
 of building, 170. 
 
 Howe, General, turns out wild 
 boars in Holt Forest, 39. 
 
 Humming- in the air, how pro- 
 duced, 463 and note. 
 
 Huxham, Dr. his account of 
 rain at Plymouth, 382. 
 
 Hybrid pheasant, supposed, 
 434. 
 
 Ichneumon fly, observations 
 on, 472. 
 
 Indentura Prtoris de Selborne 
 tradit. Petro Bernes, sacrista, 
 590, note. 
 
 Insects, noxious, some account 
 of, 146. 
 
 , their sense of hearing, 
 
 319 and note. 
 
 , Observations on, 462. 
 
 Instinct, sometimes varies and 
 conforms to circumstances, 
 372. 
 
 , often perfectly uni- 
 form, 372. 
 
 Invitation to Selborne, 505. 
 
 Ireland, why worthy the atten- 
 tion of a naturalist, 182. 
 
 Ivy berries, their great use, 
 485. 
 
 Jar-bird, what, 93. 
 
 Johanna, daughter and heiress 
 of Sir Adam Gurdon, grants 
 lands and tenements to the 
 Priory, 558. 
 
 Knights Templars had property 
 
 at Selborne, 559. 
 lived in a 
 
 mutual intercourse of good 
 
 offices with the Priory, 561. 
 Kuckahn, some account of, 
 
 220. 
 
 Land-rail, some account of, 
 436. 
 
 Lanes, hollow, rocky, their pe- 
 culiarities, -16, 17. 
 
 Langeland, Robert, severe on 
 the religious, 588. 
 
 Langrish, Nicholas, sent to ce- 
 lebrate mass at the dissolved 
 Priory, 615. 
 
 Lapwings, some particulars 
 about, 167. 
 
 Larks, white, probably snow- 
 flakes, 77. 
 
 , grasshopper, some cir- 
 cumstances about, 87, 169. 
 
 Leaves, renovation of, 483. 
 
 Leper, a miserable one in the 
 village, 312. 
 
 Leprosy, why probably less 
 common than of old, 313. 
 
 Leveret suckled .by a cat, 306. 
 
 Leverian Museum, account of, 
 11, note. 
 
 Lime blossoms, observations 
 on, 484. 
 
 Linnets congregate and chirp, 
 67. 
 
 Lizard, green, some account 
 of, 102, 114, 117. 
 
 Loaches from Ambresbury, 103. 
 
 Longspee, Ela, founds a chan- 
 try at Selborne, 564. 
 
 , who and what, 
 
 566. 
 
 Macroglossa Stellatarum, obser- 
 vations on, 470. 
 
 Male birds arrive earlier than 
 females, 224, note. 
 
 Malm, black, what sort of soil, 3. 
 
 , white, 4. 
 
 Manors and lands of the Priory, 
 593, note. 
 
 March, 1777, two wonderfully 
 hot days in, 310. 
 
 Markwick, William, some ac- 
 count of, 407, note. 
 
 Marsham, Robert, some ac- 
 count of, 480, note. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 Martin, house, seen very late, 
 51,61, 112, 160, 164. 
 
 , a monograph y 
 
 of, 249. 
 
 , more particu- 
 lars concerning, 361, 369. 
 
 , sand or bank, a mono- 
 
 graphy of, 267. 
 
 , more 
 
 particulars about, 454. 
 
 Martin, Pope, his bull touch- 
 ing the Priory, 586. 
 
 Mates readily procured by 
 widowed birds, 136. 
 
 May-fly, observations on, 469. 
 
 Mazell, Peter, some account of, 
 103, note. 
 
 Melolonlha Fullo, 120. 
 
 Mercatu, de, et ferid de Sele- 
 burne, a mistake, 628. 
 
 Mice, harvest, nondescript, 44, 
 56. 
 
 , one of their nests 
 
 described, 57. 
 
 , further account 
 
 of, 70. 
 
 Migration of birds, 41, 61, &c. 
 67, 118, 143, 160, 163, 171, 
 179,222,224,230,239,257, 
 283, 370, 427, 455, 457. 
 
 , actual, somewhat 
 
 like it, 1 18. 
 
 at Gibraltar, ocular 
 
 demonstration of, 230. 
 
 Mills, water, the Priory in pos- 
 session of several, 620. 
 
 Mirage, observations on, 491 
 and note. 
 
 Mist called London smoke, 49 1 . 
 
 Moose-deer, a female, some ac- 
 count of, 134. 
 
 , a male, where kil- 
 led, 139. 
 
 Morton, John, appointed prior 
 of Selborne, 596. 
 
 Museum, countryman's, where, 
 46. 
 
 Music, its powerful effects on 
 some men's minds, 374. 
 
 Afytilni Cri^fa Gal/i, a curious 
 fossil shell, (so called by mis- 
 take), 12. 
 
 Naturalist's Calendar, 406. 
 
 Summer Evening 
 
 Walk, 122. 
 
 Newt, or eft, water, some ac- 
 count of, 99, 105. 
 
 Nightingales, some particulars 
 concerning, 169. 
 
 , their northern 
 
 and western limits, 232 and 
 note. 
 
 Nore Hill, 3. 
 
 Nose fly, observations on, 472. 
 
 Oak, a vast one planted on the 
 
 Plestor, 8. 
 
 Oaks of Temple and Black- 
 moor, 5. 
 
 of Losel's Wood, 9. 
 
 , the two great, in the 
 
 Holt, 481 and note. 
 Oakhanger ponds, 33. 
 Osprey, or sea eagle, shot at 
 
 Frinsham, 162. 
 Ostrea car mat a, a fossil of the 
 
 green sand formation, 12 
 
 and note. 
 
 Otter, where killed, 138, 139. 
 Owl, brown, a tame one, 51. 
 , white or barn, various 
 
 particulars respecting, 51, 
 
 137, 245. 
 Owls hoot in different keys, 
 
 234, 235. 
 
 Paradise of Selborne Priory, 
 616. 
 
 Partridge, hen, anecdote of, 
 433. 
 
 Partridges very plentiful on 
 the verge of Wolmer Fo- 
 rest, 27. 
 
 Peacocks, their train not a tail, 
 153, 154. 
 
 Pennant, short account of, 40 
 and -note. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 G37 
 
 Pettychaps attacks the Kentish 
 cherries, 90, note. 
 
 , a very rare bird at 
 
 Selborne, 375. 
 
 Pheasant,supposed hybrid,434. 
 
 Pigeons, their peculiar mode 
 of drinking, 172. 
 
 Plants, the more rare in Sel- 
 borne, 326. 
 
 Pleslor, the, in the midst of 
 the village, what, 8, 552. 
 
 Plover, the stilt, a rare and cu- 
 rious bird, 355. 
 
 Poems, 503, &c. 
 
 Pofytrichum commune, used for 
 besoms, 293. 
 
 Pond, Wolmer, its measure- 
 ment, fowls, &c. 35. 
 
 Ponds on elevations, why sel- 
 dom dry, 299. 
 
 Poplar, galls of Lombardy, 
 484. 
 
 Porch, church, its gothic arch 
 and folding doors, 528. 
 
 Poultry, observations on, 430. 
 
 Preceptory, an unnoticed one 
 at Selborne, 560. 
 
 , attempt to explain 
 
 the meaning of the term, 563. 
 
 Priors of Selborne, a list of the, 
 606. 
 
 Priory of Selborne, when and 
 by whom founded, 540. 
 
 , how endowed at first, 
 
 541. 
 
 , paper containing the 
 
 value of its lands and ma- 
 nors, 593, note. 
 
 , its impropriation, 609. 
 
 , privileges and immuni- 
 ties of, 620. 
 
 , its present state, 625. 
 
 , fragments discovered in 
 
 its foundations, 625 and note. 
 
 Ptinus pectinicornis, observa- 
 tions on, 464. 
 
 Queen's bank, why so called, 28. 
 Rabbits, why destroyed, 30, 31. 
 
 Rabbits, some particulars con- 
 cerning, 459 and note. 
 
 Rain, mean of, not to be ascer- 
 tained till after many years, 
 17. 
 
 , what has fallen at Sel- 
 borne of late years, 17, 496. 
 
 of Selborne compared with 
 
 that of Plymouth, 382. 
 
 Rainbow, on the, 509. 
 
 Ranatra linearis, observations 
 on, 467 and note. 
 
 Rat, water, two species sus- 
 pected, 45. 
 
 , a curious anecdote 
 
 concerning, 129. 
 
 Redbreasts, why supposed to 
 sing in autumn only, 170. 
 
 Redstart, its singularities, 170, 
 178. 
 
 Redwings, their disappearance 
 and nesting places, 228. 
 
 , the first birds that 
 
 suffer by frost, 235. 
 
 Relics belonging to the Priory, 
 589. 
 
 Reptiles of the Selborne dis- 
 trict, 95. 
 
 Ring-ousel, various particulars 
 concerning, 108, 112, 115, 
 120, 124, 127, 140, 160, 163, 
 222, 258. 
 
 Rooks, some particulars con- 
 cerning, 258, 381, 429. 
 
 , perfectly white, 77. 
 
 Ruperta, whose daughter and 
 wife, 36, 37. 
 
 Rupibus, or Roche de la, Peter 
 de, who and what, 540. 
 
 Rushes instead of candles, of 
 much utility in humble life, 
 290. 
 
 Rutland, county of, what rain 
 fell there, 229. 
 
 Sand-martin's flea,270 and nofe. 
 
 Sandpiper found near Selborne, 
 108. 
 
 Sap, observations on the flow- 
 ing of, 483. 
 
(>:38 
 
 Scallops, or pectines, where 
 found, 13. 
 
 Scenery of Selborne and its 
 neighbourhood, 5, note. 
 
 Scotland, in what its maps are 
 defective, 183. 
 
 Secta molendini, claimed by the 
 prior, 619. 
 
 Sedge-bird, some particulars 
 about, 120, 125, 129, 168, 
 199, 200. 
 
 Seeds lying- dormant, 486. 
 
 Selborne Hanger, a winter 
 piece, 507. 
 
 parish, its situation 
 
 and abuttals, 1. 
 
 village, how circum- 
 stanced, 3. 
 
 , the manor of, abounds 
 
 with game, 17. 
 
 , parish of, of vast ex- 
 tent, why, 17. 
 
 , population, births, 
 
 and burials of, 20 and note. 
 
 , rain, quantity of, con- 
 siderable, why, 17. 
 
 produces nearly half 
 
 the birds of Great Britain, 
 179. 
 
 , why a Saxon village, 
 
 517,518. 
 
 becomes a market- 
 
 town, 553. 
 derived much of its 
 
 prosperity from the Priory, 
 
 629. 
 Sharp, John, appointed prior, 
 
 603. 
 
 Sheep, close grazers, 31 and nt. 
 , Sussex, horned and 
 
 hornless, 256 and note. 
 , some particulars con- 
 cerning, 459. 
 Shells, fossil, of the Selborne 
 
 district, 11. 
 Shingles, Selborne church 
 
 mostly covered with, 529. 
 Sleet, frozen, 49 L 
 Slugs suspending themselves 
 
 by a thread, 101, note. 
 
 Slugs very injurious to wheat, 
 309. 
 
 Snails and slugs, observations 
 on, 477. 
 
 Snake, delights in the water, 
 102. 
 
 , stinks se dcfemhndo, 1 25. 
 
 Snake's slough, some account 
 of, 478. 
 
 Snipes, their piping and hum- 
 ming, 44, 94, 167. 
 
 Snow-fleck sometimes seen at 
 Selborne, 124, 127. 
 
 Sociality in the brute creation, 
 instances of, 287. 
 
 Song of birds, how acquired, 
 226, note. 
 
 Sow, prodigious fecundity of 
 one, 305. 
 
 Sphinx ocellata, observations 
 on, 470. 
 
 Squirrels, some particulars con- 
 cerning, 460 and note. 
 
 suckled by a cat, 460. 
 
 Sticklebacks endure a high tem- 
 perature, 368 and note. 
 
 Stone, free, its uses and ad- 
 vantages, 14. 
 
 , rag, its qualities and 
 
 uses, 14. 
 
 , sand or forest, 15. 
 
 , yellow or rust-colour, 15. 
 
 Stonechat, its migration and 
 habits, 164 and note. 
 
 Stone curlew, some account of, 
 78, 79,80, 110, 144. 
 
 Sroyoy?; of animals, several in- 
 stances of, 242. 
 
 Storm-cock, what, and why so 
 called, 163. 
 
 Suborbital sinuses in deer and 
 antelopes, 72, notes. 
 
 Sudington, a preceptory, 559. 
 
 Summers, 1781 and 17*83, un- 
 usually sultry, 395. 
 
 Swallows, their supposed tor- 
 pidity, 41, 42. 
 
 . , their congregating 
 
 and disappearing, 61, 118, 
 156, 455. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 639 
 
 Swallows, comparative length 
 of the feathers in the tail of 
 the two sexes, 168. 
 
 , house, seen very late, 
 
 239. 
 
 Swallow, house or chimney, a 
 monography of, 259. 
 
 , more particulars 
 
 about, 376. 
 
 Swift, its mode of drinking, 
 168. 
 
 , or black martin, a mono- 
 graphy of, 273. 
 
 , the same number usually 
 
 seems to return to the same 
 place, 322. 
 
 , more circumstances 
 
 about, 362. 
 
 Swifts, their supposed tor- 
 pidity, 42. 
 
 Sycamore, observations on,484. 
 
 Sylvia, remarks on the subdivi- 
 sion of the genus, 177, note. 
 
 Teals, where bred, 168, 245. 
 
 Templars, Knights, their pro- 
 perty in Selborne, 559. 
 
 Temple, manor-house so called 
 described, 550. 
 
 Tenure of the Selborne estates, 
 628. 
 
 Thaws sometimes surprisingly 
 quick, 490. 
 
 Thrushes, why serviceable to 
 gardens, 429. 
 
 Thrush, missel, particulars con- 
 cerning, 284, 429. 
 
 Tiles, ornamented, used in the 
 Priory, 617, 625, notes. 
 
 Timber, a large fall of, in the 
 Holt Forest, 39. 
 
 of the Holt, its value, 
 
 34 and note. 
 
 Tipulce, observations on, 475. 
 
 Titlark, some account of, 163, 
 201. 
 
 Titmice, various particulars re- 
 specting, 171 und note, 181. 
 
 Toads, particulars about, 95 
 and note. 
 
 Toads, cancer said to be cured 
 
 by, 104, 112. 
 , enormous consumption 
 
 tion of, 328, note. 
 Tortoise, a family one, many 
 
 particulars concerning, 223, 
 
 240, 258, 357. 
 Tower, the church, 528. 
 f its bells 
 
 tuneable, 528. 
 1 motto on 
 
 the treble bell, just as it is 
 
 printed, 528. 
 Tree-frog, an innocent creature, 
 
 99, note. 
 Trees, why perfect alembics, 
 
 how, 171, 298. 
 -, order of their losing 
 
 their leaves, 479. 
 
 , size and growth of, 480. 
 
 Tremella nostoc, 488. 
 Truffles, some particulars con- 
 cerning, 487. 
 Tun-bridge, by whom built, 
 
 619. 
 , its present state, 
 
 619, note. 
 Turnip-flies, their ravages, 148 
 
 and note. 
 Turnstones, their migrations, 
 
 236, note. 
 
 Vegetables, great increase in 
 the use of, 315. 
 
 Vicarage of Selborne, some ac- 
 count of, 533. 
 
 Vicars of Selborne, alist of, 534. 
 
 Viper, some account of, 100, 
 101, 303. 
 
 Visitatio notabilis de Seleburne, 
 abridged, 571, &c. 
 
 Wagtail, some account of, 457. 
 
 Waldon-lodge, what, and by 
 whom kept up, 32. 
 
 Waltham blacks much infested 
 Wolmer Forest, 28. 
 
 , by their enor- 
 mities occasioned the Black 
 Act, 29. 
 
G40 
 
 INDKX. 
 
 Warblers, their treatment in 
 captivity, 199 210, note. 
 
 Warbler, East Woodhay, de- 
 scribed, 177, note. 
 
 Wasps, observations on, 471. 
 
 Water, characteristics of hard 
 and soft, 4, note. 
 
 Waynflete, William of, endea- 
 vours to reform the Priory, 
 589. 
 
 , dis- 
 solves it, 612. 
 
 Weather, summary of the, 495, 
 497. 
 
 Well-head, a fine perennial 
 spring, 3. 
 
 Wells, their usual depth in 
 the village, 4. 
 
 Whaddon chapel, where, 618. 
 
 Wheat, hot summers produce 
 fine crops of, 487. 
 
 Wheatear, some account of, 68, 
 165, 257. 
 
 Whinchat, its migration and 
 habits, 164 and note. 
 
 White, Gilbert, his monument, 
 527. 
 
 White, Gilbert, grandfather of 
 the historian, his monument, 
 526. 
 
 Whitethroat, some particulars 
 about, 172. 
 
 , lesser, particulars 
 
 concerning, 173, note. 
 
 Willow-wrens, the different 
 species of, characterised, 80 
 and note, 106 and note. 
 
 Winchester, Hoadley Bishop 
 of, his humane objection to 
 restocking Waltham chase 
 with deer, 29. 
 
 Wolmer Forest, some account 
 of, 25, 33, 36. 
 
 , how abutted 
 
 Wolmer Forest has abounded 
 with fossil trees, 25, 26, 3so. 
 
 haunted by 
 
 many sorts of wild fowl, 27. 
 once abounded 
 
 with black game, 27. 
 once abounded 
 
 upon, 25. 
 
 with red deer, 28. 
 Wood, fossil, where found, 26, 
 
 380. 
 
 Wood, Losel's, its taper oaks,!). 
 , its raven tree, 
 
 10. 
 Woodcocks, some account of, 
 
 227, 232, 236. 
 Worms, earth, some account 
 
 of, 308, 476. 
 Wren, golden-crowned, gome 
 
 particulars about, 180 and 
 
 note. 
 Wrens, willow, three species, 
 
 106. 
 Wryneck, some account of, 
 
 458. 
 
 Wykeham, William of, his li- 
 beral behaviour towards the 
 
 Priory, 581. 
 , his Vi- 
 
 sitatio notabilis, 571. 
 Wynchestre, John, chosen 
 
 prior, 583, 584. 
 Wyndesor, William, elected 
 
 prior irregularly, and set 
 
 aside by the visitor, 597, ">!>*. 
 
 Yard, church, of Selborne, a 
 scanty one, 529. 
 
 Yeoman-prickers, their agility 
 as horsemen, 28, 29. 
 
 Yew-tree, a vast one, in Sel- 
 borne churchyard, 531. 
 
 Yew-trees, their poisonous qua- 
 lities, 531. 
 
 , why planted in 
 
 churchwards, 533. 
 
 FINIS. 
 
 (IIISUKK: rniMKO HV c. \\nrnixoii A.M. 
 
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