LIBRARY Connecticut Agricultural College Vol. 1^Q^4 v.%,^ Class No. Cost H . ^ . X)o iS:^ ? 4Z- IAX56 VvJSg3 Z^O^A. v/.^. c. 2 BOOK 574.942.W583 v. 2 c.2 WHITE # NATURAL HISTORY OF SELBORNE AND OBSERVATIONS ON 3 Tli53 00m03fiT 7-1 i'9¥ ■Ih 114 /^r THE NATURAL HISTORY OF SELBORNE VOL. II Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2009 with funding from Boston Library Consortium IVIember Libraries http://www.archive.org/details/naturalhistoryof02whit spring in a Selborne garden. Natural History pr Selbornc & Observations on byGILBERJRMIIITE r WITH THE TEXT 'AND NEW LETTERS OFTHEBUCKLAND ^EDITION V Introduction by^ JOHN Burroughs Illustrations BY Clifton Johnson NEW % D. YORK APPLETON & CO. 189^ ^H^l^ Copyright, 1895, By D. APPLETON AND COMPANY. 1^0 "ii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. VOL. II. PAGE Spring in a Selborne garden ..... Frontispiece A Selborne stile vi House-swallows . . 2 Selborne cottages 9 Sand martins ........... 14 A nightingale 21 A weasel . . . . . .•;.... . . . .22 Redbreasts . . -24 Swifts 31 A look across the Plestor. Facing 37 Magpies and their nest ......... 43 Gypsies in front of " The Wakes " . . . . . . .54 A rush-light 56 Catching bees . .61 A pond on Selborne hill Facing 68 A walk in the vicar's garden •. Facing 80 An old hop-kiln .......... 92 Old beehives . . ' Facing 95 A village lane ........... 102 A jackdaw ........... 107 Skylarks 108 Sparrow hawks . 114 Plowing under the Hanger . 127 A successor to White's tortoise in the garden at " The Wakes " . 137 Burning an old hedge under the Hanger. . . . Facing 141 A jay 142 A modern observer of nature Facing 154 V PAGE A peregrine falcon . 165 Selborne down Facing 171 The tower of Selborne church . . 174 The weather 183 The vicarage at Newton Valence 188 Selborne church seen from the fields 214 'v?; rt A Selborne stile. THE NATURAL HISTORY OF SELBORNE. LETTER LVII. To THE Honourable Daines Barrington. The house-swallow,"^ or chimney-swallow, is un- doubtedly the first comer of all the British Jiirun- dines ; and appears in general on or about the 13th of April, as I have remarked from many years' observa- tion. Not but now and then a straggler is seen much earlier : and, in particular, when I was a boy I ob- served 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 particular, that if these early visitors happen to find frost and snow, as was the case in the two dreadful springs of 1770 and 1771, they immediately with- draw for a time. A circumstance this much more in favour of hiding than migration ; since it is much * Chimney-Swallow, HiJ'undo ritstica, LiniiEeus. I more probable that a bird should retire to its hyber- naculum just at 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 u House-s7vallows. within barns and out-houses, against the rafters ; and so she did in Virgil's time: — '' Garrula quam tignis nidos suspendat hirundo." '' The twittering swallow hangs its nest from the beams." 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 a shaft of an old well, through which chalk had been formerly drawn up for the purpose of manure : but in general with us this hiriindo 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 mid- dle 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 3 shows all day long- in ascending and descending with security through so narrow a pass. When hov- ering over the mouth of the funnel, the vibration of her wings acting on the confined air occasions a rum- bling like thunder. It is not improbable that the dam submits to this inconvenient situation so low in the shaft, in order to secure her broods from rapa- cious birds, and particularly from owls, which fre- quently fall down chimneys, perhaps in attempting to get at these nestlings. 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 leafless 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 cer- tain 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 per- son 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 busi- ness 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 con- gregates, 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 the swallow is a most in- structive pattern of unwearied industry and affec- tion ; for from morning to night, while there is a family to be supported, 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, resem- bling the noise at the shutting of a watch-case ; 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, 5 darting" down from above on his back, and rising- in a perpendicular line in perfect security. This bird will also sound the alarm and strike at cats when they climb on the roofs of houses, or otherwise approach the nest. Each species of Jiirundo 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 also 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 : it is also a bold flyer, ranging to distant downs and com- mons even in windy weather, which the other spe- cies seem much to dislike ; nay, even frequenting exposed sea-port 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 skulk- ing insects that are roused by 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. ' Now suddenly he skims the glassy pool, Now quaintly dips, and with an arrow's speed V\^hisks by. I love to lie awake, and hear His morning song twittered to dawning day." 6 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 they for- sake houses and chimneys to a bird, and roost in trees ; and usually withdraw about the beginning of October; though some few stragglers may appear at times till the first week in November. [September 13, 1791. The congregating flocks of hirundines on the church and tower are very beau- tiful and amusing ! When they fly off 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 day, 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 400 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 * 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 which he has described at p. 6g, and again in the above extract ; and I once observed a large flock of house-martins myself 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 7 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 Newton vicarage-house hovering and settling on the roofs and out-buildings. None have been observed at Selborne since October 11. It is very remarkable, that after the Jiiriindines have disappeared for some weeks, a few are occasionally seen again : sometimes in the first week in Novem- ber, and that only for one day. Do they not with- draw and slumber in some hiding place during the interval ? for we cannot suppose they had migrated to warmer climes, and so returned again for one da}^ 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 thermometer is at 50°, because then pJialcBuce and moths are stirring. These swallows looked like young ones.] — Ob- servations ON Nature. Some few pairs haunt the new and open streets of London, next the fields, but do not enter, like the 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. 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 species ; 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. Selborne cottas:es. After this circumstantial detail of the life and discerning arop^rj of the swallow, I shall add, for your further amusement, an anecdote or two not much in favour of their sagacity. i8 9 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 out-house, 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 oddit}^ 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 year a pair, probably the same pair, built their nest in the conch, and laid their eggs. 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. Thus is instinct in animals, taken the least out of its way, an undistinguishing, limited faculty; and blind to every circumstance that does not immedi- ately respect self-preservation, or lead at once to the propagation or support of their species. Selborne, Sept. 9, 1767. 10 LETTER LVIII. To THE Honourable Daines Barrington. I RECEIVED your favour of the 8th, 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 pre- cisely which species of hirundo Virgil might in- tend in the lines in question, since the ancients did not attend to specific differences like modern natu- ralists ; yet somewhat 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 garriila suits the swallow well, which is a great songster ; and not the martin, which is rather a mute bird ; and when it sings is so inward as scarce to be heard. Besides, if tigmini in that place signifies a rafter rather than a beam, as it seems to me to do, then 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 (com- paratively clumsy) of the martin well represent the sudden and artful evolutions and quick turns which Juturna gave to her brother's chariot, so as to elude the eager pursuit of the enraged ^neas. The verb sonat also seems to imply a bird that is somewhat loquacious.* We have had a very wet autumn and winter, so as to raise the springs to a pitch beyond anything since 1764; which was a remarkable year for floods and high waters. The land-springs, which we call levants, break out much on the downs of Sussex, Hampshire, and Wiltshire. The country people say when the levants 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, the corn-vales must be drowned ; and so it has proved for these ten or eleven years past. For * " As when the black swallow flies through the great palace of some wealthy lord, sweeping with its wings through the lofty halls, picking up tiny scraps of food for its chirping nestlings, at one time twittering in the empty porches, and at another round the watery ponds." " 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 Stagnat sonat."— (ViRG. ^n. xii. 473-477-) 12 land-springs have never obtained more in the mem- ory of man than during that period ; nor has there been known a greater scarcity of all sorts of grain, considering the great improvements of modern hus- bandry. Such a run of wet seasons a century or two ago would, I am persuaded, have occasioned a fam- ine, 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 re- markably bad : and our wheat on the ground, by the continual late sudden vicissitudes from fierce frost to pouring rains, looks poorly ; and the turnips rot very fast. Selborne, Feb. 14, 1774. LETTER LIX. To THE Honourable Daines Barrington. The sand-martin, or bank-martin {^Hirundo riparia, Linnseus), is by much the least of any of the British hiriindines ; and, as far as we have ever seen, the smallest known Jiiriindo : though Brisson asserts that there is one much smaller, and that is the Hiriindo esculenta. 13 But it is much to be regretted that it is scarce possible for any observer to be so full and exact as he could wish in reciting the circumstances attend- ing the life and conversation of this little bird, since it is fera 7iaturd, at least in this part of the kingdom, disclaiminof all domestic attachments, and haunting Sand-martins. wild heaths and commons where there are large lakes ; while the other species, especially the swallow 14 and house-martin, are remarkably gentle and domes- ticated, and never seem to think themselves safe but under the protection of man. Here are in this parish, in the sand-pits and banks of the lakes of Wolmer Forest, several colonies of these birds ; and yet they are never seen in the vil- lage ; 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 stables: but then this wall stands in a very sequestered and retired inclosure, and faces upon a large and beautiful lake. Indeed this species seems so to delight in large waters, that no instance occurs of their abounding 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 de- grees of architectonic skill Providence has endowed birds of the same genus, and so nearly correspondent in their general mode of life ! ^ For while the swal- * " Each creature hath a wisdom of its own ; The pigeons feed their tender offspring, crying, When they are callow, but withdraw their food When they are fledged, that they may teach them flying." Herbert. 15 low and the house-martin discover the greatest ad- dress in raising 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. Perseverance will accomplish anything : 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 instruments have I seen a pair of them make great despatch : 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 imagine that these beginnings were intentionally made in order to be in the greater for- wardness for next spring is allowing perhaps too i6 much foresight and rerum priidentia 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 pur- pose, 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 mouldering, 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 ; per- haps 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 moreover is strangely annoyed with fleas : and we have seen fleas, bed-fleas {Pulex irritans), 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 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 crypto- game, carrying on the business of nidification, incu- bation, and the support of its young in the dark, it 17 would not be so easy to ascertain the time of breed- ing, were it not for the coming forth of the broods, which appear much about the time, or rather some- what earlier than those of the swallow. The nest- lings are supported in common like those of their congeners, with gnats and other small insects; and sometimes they are fed with libellulce (dragon-fiies) 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 swallows and house-martins do, we have never yet been able to determine : nor do we know whether they pursue and attack birds of prey. When they happen to breed near hedges and in- closures, they are frequently dispossessed of their breeding holes by 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 approaches 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. i8 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 a single cottage-chimney that has not its swallow ; while the bank-martins, scattered here and there, live a sequestered life among some abrupt sand-hills, and in the precipitous banks of some few rivers. These birds have a peculiar manner of fiying : flitting about with odd jerks, and vacillations, not unlike the motions of a butterfly. Doubtless the flight of all hiriindines is influenced by, and adapted to, the peculiar 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 Saint 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 scaffold 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 diminutiveness of their size, and in their colour, which is what is usually called a mouse-colour. Near Valencia in Spain, they are taken, says Wil- 19 lughby, and sold in the markets for the table; and are called by the country people, probably from their desultory jerking manner of flight, Papilion de Moiitagna, SelboRxXE, Feb. 26, 1774. LETTER LX. To Thomas Pennant, Esq. Before your letter arrived, and of my own ac- cord, I have been remarking and comparing the tails of the male and female swallow, and this ere any young birds appeared ; so that there is no danger of confounding the dams with their pidli : and be- sides, 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 differ- ent chimneys the one for the other. From all my observations, it constantly appeared that each sex has the long feathers in its tail 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 : 20 these last sounds seem intended for menace and defiance. The grass- hopper - lark chirps all night in the height of summer. Swans turn white the sec- ond year, and breed the third. Weasels prey on moles, as ap- pears by their being some- times caught in A nightingale. 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. The threads sometimes discovered in eels are perhaps their young : the generation of eels is very dark and mysterious. Hen-harriers breed on the ground, and seem never to settle on trees. [Of this bold bird White afterwards writes in his " Observations : " — ''A gentleman flushed a pheasant in a wheat stubble, and shot at it ; when, notwith- standing the report of the gun, it was immediately 21 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 hover- ing round him all the while that he was beating the field, con- scious no doubt of the game that lurked in the stubble. Hence we may conclude that this bird of prey was rendered very dar- ing and bold by hunger, and that hawks cannot always seize their game when they please. We may farther observe, that they cannot pounce on 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 propen- sity 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.] 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. A weasel. 22 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 Midsum- mer 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? Linnasus ranges plants geographically : palms in- habit the tropics, grasses the temperate zones, and mosses and lichens the polar circles ; no doubt ani- mals may be classed in the same manner with pro- priety. 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 au- 23 tumn songsters is, because in the first two seasons their voices are drowned and lost in the general chorus ; in the latter their song becomes distin- guishable. Many songsters of the autumn seem to be the young cock redbreasts of that year : notwithstanding the prejudices in their favour, they do much mischief in gar- dens to the sum- mer-fruits. They eat also the ber- ries of the ivy, the honeysuckle, and the Euonynms EuropcEus, or spindle-tree. 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. Wrens sing all the winter through, frost ex- cepted. House-martins came remarkably late this year 24 Redbreasts. both in Hampshire and Devonshire. Is this cir- cumstance for or against either hiding or migration ? Most birds drink sipping at intervals, but pigeons take a long continued draught, like quadrupeds. Notwithstanding what 1 have said in a former letter, no grey crows were ever known to breed on Dartmoor : it was my mistake. The appearance and flying of the ScarabcEus solsti- tialis, or fern chafer, commence with the month of July, and cease about the end of it. These scarabs are the constant food of caprinndgi, 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, because 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 repeated, and often attended with odd gesticulations on the wing, is harsh and displeasing. These birds seem of a pugnacious disposition ; for they sing with 19 25 an erected crest and attitudes of rivalry and defi- ance ; are shy and wild in breeding-time, avoiding neighbourhoods, and haunting lonely lanes and com- mons ; nay, even the very tops of the Sussex downs, where there are bushes and covert ; but in July and August they bring their broods into gardens and orchards, and make great havoc among the summer fruits. The blackcap has in common a full, sweet, deep, loud, and wild pipe ; yet that strain is of short con- tinuance, and his motions are desultory ; but when that bird sits calmly and engages in song in earnest, he pours forth very sweet, but inward melody, and expresses great variety of soft and gentle modula- tions, superior perhaps to those of any of our war- blers, the nightingale excepted. Blackcaps mostly haunt orchards and gardens ; while they warble, their throats are wonderfully distended. The song of the redstart is superior, though somewhat like that of the whitethroat : some birds have a few more notes than others. Sitting ver}^ placidly on the top of a tall tree in a village, the cock sings from morning till night : he affects neigh- bourhoods, and avoids solitude, and loves to build in orchards and about houses ; with us he perches on tlie vane of a tall maypole. The flycatcher is of all our summer birds the most mute and the most familiar ; it also appears the last of any. It builds in a vine, or a sweetbriar, 26 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. 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 hundred 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 ; Sweden having two hundred and twenty-one. Great Britain two hundred and fifty-two species. On a retrospect, I observe that my long letter carries with it a quaint and magisterial air, and is very sententious ; but when I recollect that you re- quested stricture and anecdote, I hope you will par- don the didactic manner for the sake of the informa- tion it may happen to contain. Selborne, Sept. 2, 1774. 27 LETTER LXI. To Thomas Pennant, Esq. 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 why they shun the rigour of our win- ters ; for the robust wryneck"^ (so much resembling the hardy race of woodpeckers) 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. I have no reason to doubt but that the soft-billed birds, which winter with us, subsist chiefly on in- sects in their aurelia state. All the species of wag- tails in severe weather haunt shallow streams near their spring heads, where they never freeze ; and, by * " Wrynecks appear on the grass-plots 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," says White in his " Obser- vations." 28 wading, pick out the aurelias of the genus of PJiry- ganecB, &c.^ Hedge-sparrows frequent sinks and gutters in hard weather, where they pick up crumbs and other sweepings : 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. Redbre.asts 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 win- ter is that infinite profusion of aurelice of the Lepidop- tera ordo, 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 Linnsean genera of Fringilla and Motacilla. One species alone spends its whole time in the woods and fields, never retreat- ing for succour, in the severest seasons, to houses and neighbourhoods ; 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 cceriileus), the cole-mouse {Par us ater), the great Derham's " Physico Theology." 29 black-headed titmouse {Pants fringillago, now major), and the marsh titmouse iParus palustris), all resort, at times, to buildings ; and in hard weather par- ticularly. 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 downwards (to my no small delight and admira- tion), draw straws lengthwise from out the eaves of thatched houses, in order to pull out the fiies that were concealed between them, and that in such num- bers 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 mouse-traps, baited with tallow or suet. It will also pick holes in apples left on the ground, and will 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 whinchat support them- selves in winter cannot be so easily ascertained, since they spend their time on wild heaths and warrens ; the former especially, where there are stone quar- ries : most probably it is that their maintenance 30 arises from the aurelice of the Lepidoptera ordo, which furnish them with a plentiful table in the wilderness. . LETTER LXII. To THE Honourable Daines Barrington. As the swift or black martin is the largest of the British hirundines, so is it undoubtedly the latest comer. For 1 remember but one instance of its ap- i i iiii jwiiiimwi' Swifts. pearing 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 ar- rives in pairs. 31 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-sparrows, and expel them, as sparrows do the house and sand-martin ; well re- membering that I have seen them squabbling to- gether at the entrance of their holes ; and the spar- rows up in arms, and much disconcerted at these intruders. And yet I am assured by a nice observer 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 can- not 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 edu- 32 cate their young under those thatched roofs. I re- member but one instance where they bred out of buildings ; and that was in the sides of a deep chalk- pit near the town of Odiham, in this county, where I have seen many pairs entering the crevices, and skimming 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 ; espe- cially as my assertion is the result of many years' exact observation. The fact that I would advance is, that swifts propagate on the wing : and I would wish any nice observer, that is startled at this sup- position, 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 differ- ent species of many genera in conjunction 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 amorous rites, was it not enabled to indulge them 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 now and then, one drop on the back of another, and both of them sink down together for many fathoms with a loud piercing shriek. This I take to be the juncture when the business of generation is carrying on. 33 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 Jiirundo 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 thundery weather, when it expresses great alacrity, and calls forth all its powers. In hot mornings, several, get- ting together in little parties, dash round the steeples and churches, squeaking as they go in a very clam- orous manner: these, by nice observers, are sup- posed 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 34 forth for a few minutes, just as it is almost dark, to stretch and relieve her weary limbs, and snatch a scanty meal, and then returns to her duty of incuba- tion. Swifts, when wantonly and cruelly shot while they have young, discover a lump of insects in their mouths, which they pouch and hold under their tongue. In general they feed in a much higher dis- trict 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 al- most 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 re- marked that swifts were hawking very low for hours together over pools and streams ; and could not help inquiring into the object of the pursuit that induced them to descend so much below their usual range. After some trouble I found that they were taking phryganece, ephemerce and libel hi Ice (caddis-flies, ma)^- flies, and dragon-flies) that were just emerged from 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 nourish- ment. 35 Thev 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 bv 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 onlv two squabs, naked //////; on the 8th of July I repeated the same inquiry, and found the}' had made verv little progress towards a fledged state, but were still naked and helpless. From whence we may conclude that birds whose way of life keeps them perpetually 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 con- tinuallv 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 thev pursue and strike at hawks that come in their wav ; but not with that vehemence and fury that swallows express on the same occa- sion. Thev are out all day long in wet days, feed- ing about, and disregarding still rain : from whence two things may be gathered : first, that many insects abide hisfh 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; 36 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 of our atten- tion. 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, and yet they re- turn glossy again in the spring. Now, if they pur- sue the sun into lower latitudes, 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, dissenting from all their congeners not only in the number of their young, but in breeding but once in a summer ; whereas all the other British hirundines breed invariably 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 congeners 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. 37 But in nothing are swifts more singular than in their early retreat. They retire, as to the main body of them, by the loth 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 November. This early retreat is mysterious and wonderful, 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 Andalusia, where they can be no ways influenced by any defect of heat ; or, as one might suppose, defect of food. Are they regu- lated 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 searches, but almost eludes our guesses ! These Jiinindines 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 by 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 Jiippoboscce {Anapcrce hirtindinis, Leach), and often wriggle and scratch themselves, in their flight, to get rid of that cling- ing annoyance. 38 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 accident ; and when down can hardly rise, on ac- count of the shortness of their legs and the length of their wings : neither can they walk, but only crawl ; but 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 when the}^ cannot pass on their bellies they will turn up edgewise. The particular formation of the foot discrimi- nates the swift from all the British hirundines ; and indeed from all other known birds, the Hiritndo ineiba, or great white-bellied swift of Gibraltar, ex- cepted ; for it is so disposed as to carry ''omncs quatuor digitos anticos " — " all its four toes for- ward ; " besides, the least toe, which should be the back one, consists of one bone only, and the other three of only 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 mandi- ble, have induced a discerning naturalist to suppose that this species might constitute a genus by itself. In London a party of swifts frequent the Tower, 20 39 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 perpetual 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 pro- cure gravel to grind their food, as swallows do, since they never settle on the ground. Young ones, overrun with hippoboscce, 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 haunts the same un- likely 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 a part of a roof over the nest of a swift. The dam sat in the nest; but so strongly was she affected by her natural crrop'yr} 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 40 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 abdomina, and their heads too heavy for their necks to support, we could not but wonder when we reflected that these shiftless beings in little more than a fortnight would be able to dash through the air almost with the inconceivable swiftness of a meteor ; and per- haps, in their emigration, must traverse vast conti- nents and oceans as distant as the equator. So soon does Nature advance small birds to their rjXiKLa, or state of perfection ; while the progressive growth of men and large quadrupeds is slow and tedious ! Selborne, Sept. 28, 1774. LETTER LXIII. To THE Honourable Daines Barrington. By means of the straight cottage-chimney I had an opportunity this summer of remarking at my leisure how swallows ascend and descend throug-h the shaft; but my pleasure in contemplating the address with which this feat is performed to a con- siderable depth in the chimney was somewhat inter- 41 rupted by apprehensions lest my eyes might undergo the same fate with those of Tobit. Perhaps it may be some amusement to you to hear at what times the different species of Jiirundines arrived this spring in three very distant counties of this kingdom. 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 ist, and house-martins not till the middle of May. At Blackburn, in Lancashire, swifts were seen on April the 28th, swallows April the 29th, house-martins May the ist. Do these dif- ferent dates in such distant districts prove anything 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 night, 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 *' make a truce with other birds as long as the cuckoo is heard : " '' pacis- cuntur inducias cum avibus, quamdiu cuculus cucu- lat: " but it appears to me that, during that period, many little birds are taken and destroyed by birds of prey, as may be seen by the feathers left in lanes and under hedges. 42 The missel-thrush is, while breeding, fierce and pugnacious, driving such birds as approach its nest with great fury to a distance. The Welsh call it " pen y llwynn," the head or master of the coppice. He suffers no magpie, jay, or blackbird to enter the Magpies and their nest. 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 43 I observed in my garden, that several magpies came determined to storm the nest of a missel-thrush : the dams defended their mansion with great vigour, and fought resolutely for " their faith and for their homes :" pro a?'ts et focis ; but numbers at last pre- vailed, they tore the nest to pieces, and swallowed the young alive. [Thrushes during long droughts are of great serv- ice in hunting out shell-snails,^ which they pull in pieces for their young, and are thereby very service- able in gardens. Missel-thrushes do not destroy the fruit in gardens like the other species of tiirdi, but feed on the berries and mistletoe, and in the spring on ivy-berries, which then begin to ripen. f In the summer, when their young become fledged, they leave neighbourhoods, and retire to sheep-walks and wild commons. This species of thrush, though wild at other times, delights to build near houses, and in frequented walks and gardens.] * Of the truth of this I have been an eye-witness, having seen the common thrush feeding on the shell-snail. — Markwick. f In the very early part of this spring (1797) a bird of this species used to sit every morning on the top of some very 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 supposed 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 disturbed their nest, with great violence and loud shrieks. — Markv^ick. 44 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 backward 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 dis- coloured and blighted our wheat. The crop of hops promises to be very large. Frequent returns of deafness incommode me sad- ly, and half disqualify me as 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, etc., as August. My eyesight is, thank God, quick and good ; but with respect to the other sense, 1 am, at times, disabled: "And wisdom at one entrance quite shut out." Selborne, Sept. 13, 1774. 45 LETTER LXIV. To Thomas Pennant, Esq. 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 natural- ist. He will not, it is to be wished, undertake that tour unaccompanied 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 dominions. A person of a think- ing turn of mind will draw many just remarks from the modern improvements of that country, both in arts and agriculture, where premiums 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 stu- pendous mountains, so little known, and so engaging to the imagination when described and exhibited in a lively manner : such a work would be well re- ceived. As I have seen no modern map of Scotland, I cannot pretend to say how accurate or particular 46 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 the 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 mountain- ous and romantic country want to be well distin- guished. The military roads formed by General Wade are so great and Roman-like an undertaking that they will 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 of 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 Drumlanrig, and such capital houses ; but the new survey, no doubt, should represent every seat and castle remarkable for any great event, or cele- brated for its paintings, &c. Lord Breadalbane's seat and beautiful policy are too curious and ex- traordinary to be omitted. The seat of the Earl of Eglintoun, near Glasgow, is worthy of notice. The pine-plantations of that nobleman are very grand and extensive indeed. Selborne, March 9, 1775. 47 LETTER LXV. To THE Honourable Daines Barrington. On September the 21st, 1741, being then on a visit, and intent on field-diversions, I rose before day- break : when I came into the inclosures, I found the stubbles and clover-grounds matted all over with a thick coat of cobweb, in the meshes of which a copi- ous 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 pro- ceed, 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 pro- duces, cloudless, 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 interruption, till the close of the day. These webs were not single filmy threads, floating in the 48 air in all directions, 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 into his sight, and twinkling like stai's as they turned their sides towards the sun. How far this wonderful shower extended it would be difficult to say ; but we know that it reached Bradley, Selborne, and Alresford, three places which lie in a sort of triangle, the shortest of whose sides is about eight miles in extent. At the second of those places there was a gen- tleman (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 morning rides, he should be higher than this meteor, which he imagined might have been blowm, like thistledown, from the common above ; but, to his great astonishment, when he rode to the most elevated part of the down, 300 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 ob- served ; but on this day the flakes hung in the trees 49 and hedges so thick, that a diligent person sent out might have gathered baskets full. The remark that I shall make on these cobweb- like appearances, called gossamer, is, that, strange and superstitious as the notions about them were for- merly, 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 shooting 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 ma- terial as to be considerably more weighty than air, and to descend with precipitation, is a matter be- yond my skill. If I might be allowed to hazard a 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 evaporation, 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, then, when they were become heavier than the air, they must fall.* * One day when the air was full of such gossamers, Dr. Listers relates that he mounted to the highest part of York Cathedral and found the gossamer webs still far above him. " Its sone some wonder at the cuuse of thunder, On ebbe and flode, on gossamer and mist, And on all things till that the cause is wist." — Chaucer. 5Q 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 par- lour ; and, running to the top of the page, and shoot- ing 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 w4th my breath. So that these little crawlers seem to have, while mounting, some locomotive power with- out the use of wings, and so move in the air faster than the air itself. Selborne, /z<;?^as an amazing and a portentous one, and full of horrible phenom- ena ; for, besides the alarming meteors and tremen- dous thunderstorms that affrighted and distressed the different counties 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 193 beyond its limits, was a most extraordinary appear- ance, unlike anything known within the memory of man. By my journal I find that I had noticed this strange occurrence from June 23 to July 20 inclu- sive, 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 par- ticularly lurid and blood-coloured at rising and set- ting. 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 peo- ple began to look with a superstitious awe at the red louring aspect of the sun ; and indeed there Avas reason for the most enlightened person to be apprehensive ; 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 particularly applica- ble, because, towards the end, it alludes to a super- stitious kind of dread, with which the minds of men are always impressed by such strange and un- usual phenomena. 194 — — — As when the sun, new risen, Looks through the horizontal, misty air, Shorn of his beams ; or from behind the moon, In dim eclipse, disastrous twilight sheds On half the nations, and with fear of change Perplexes monarchs — — — — " LETTER ex. To THE Honourable Daines Barrington. We are very seldom annoyed with thunder- storms ; 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 direction 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 the sunimer of 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.* The only way that I can at all account * Storms. — 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." 195 for this fact — for such it is — is that on that quarter between us and the sea there are continual moun- tains, hill behind hill, such as Nore-hill, the Barnet, Butser-hill, and Ports-down, which somehow divert the storms, and give them a different direction. High promontories and elevated grounds have al- ways been observed to attract clouds, and disarm them of their mischievous contents, which are dis- charged into the trees and summits as soon as they come in contact with those turbulent meteors ; while the humble vales escape, because they are so far be- neath them. But when I say I do not remember a thunder- storm from the south, I do not mean that we never have suffered 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 at hand. I was called in about two in the afternoon, and so missed seeing the gath- ering of the clouds in the north ; which they who were abroad assured me had something uncommon 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 196 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 Nor- ton, 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 prodigious torrents of rain on the farms above mentioned, which occasioned a fiood as violent as it was sud- den ; doing great damage to the meadows and fal- lows, 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 that saw the effect which the great hail had on ponds and pools, say that the dashing of the water made an extraordinar}^ appear- ance, 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 tremendous. 197 Though the clouds at South Lambeth, near Lon- don, 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 discharged. When I first took the present work in hand I proposed to have added an Annus Historico-7iatnralis ; or, The Natural History of the Twelve Months of the Year ; which would have comprised many incidents and occurrences that have not fallen in my way to be mentioned in my series of letters ; but as Mr. Aikin of Warrington has 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 respectful 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. 198 NEW LETTERS. THE INVITATION: TO SAMUEL BARKER. Ne percuncteris, fundus meus, optime Quiiicti, Arvo pascat herum, an baccis opulentet olivas, Pomisne et pratis, an amicta vitibus ulmo : Scribetur tibi forma loquaciter, et situs agri. See, Selborne spreads her boldest beauties found, The vary'd valley, and the mountain-ground Wildly majestic : what is all the pride Of flats, with loads of ornament supply 'd ? Unpleasing, tasteless, impotent expence, Compar'd with Nature's rude magnificence. Oft on some evening, sunny, soft, and still, The Muse shall hand thee to the beech-grown hill, To spend in tea the cool, refreshful hour. Where nods in air the pensile, nest-like bower : Or where the Hermit hangs his straw-clad cell. Emerging gently from the leafy dell : Romantic spot ! from whence in prospect lies Whate'er of landscape charms our feasting eyes ; 199 The pointed spire, the hall, the pasture-plain, The russet fallow, and the golden grain ; The breezy lake that sheds a gleaming light, 'Til all the fading picture fails the sight. Each to his task : all different ways retire ; Cull the dry stick ; call forth the seeds of fire ; Deep fix the nettle's props, a forky row ; Or give with fanning hat one breeze to blow. Whence is this taste, the furnish 'd hall forgot. To feast in gardens, or th' 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 sequester'd nook, Where skirting woods imbrown the dimpling brook, The ruin'd Abbey lies: here wont to dwell * The lazy monk within his cloister'd cell ; 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, t Whose mountain-brow commands the groves below? * The ruins of a Priory founded by Peter de Rupibus, Bishop ot Winton. f The remains of a supposed lodge belonging to the Knights Templars. 200 In Jewry first this order found a name, When madding Croisades set the world in flame ; When western climes, urg'd on by Pope and priest, Pour'd forth their millions o'er the delug'd east: Luxurious Knights, ill suited to defy To mortal fight Turcestan chivalry. Nor be the Parsonage by the Muse forgot : The partial bard admires his native spot; Smit with its beauties lov'd, as yet a child. Unconscious why, its 'scapes grotesque and wild : High on a mound th' exalted gardens stand ; Beneath, deep valleys scoop'd by Nature's hand ! Now climb the steep, drop now your eye below, Where round the verdurous village orchards blow ; There, like a picture, lies my lowly seat, A rural, shelter'd, unobserv'd retreat. Me, far above the rest, Selbornian scenes. The pendent forest, and the mountain-greens. Strike with delight : . . . there spreads the distant view That gradual fades, 'til sunk in misty blue : Here Nature hangs her slopy woods to sight. Rills purl between, and dart a wavy light. When deep'ning shades obscure the face of day, To yonder bench leaf-shelter'd let us stray. To hear the drowzy dor come brushing by With buzzing wing ; or the field-cricket cry ; To see the feeding bat glance thro' the wood ; Or catch the distant falling of the flood : 20I While high in air, and poised upon his wings Unseen, the soft enamour'd wood-lark 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 com- bine ; The tinkling sheep-bell, or the breath of kine ; The new-mown hay that scents the swelling breeze. Or cottage-chimney smoking thro' the trees. The chilling night-dews fall : . . . . away, retire. What time the glow-worm lights her amorous fire, f Selborne : Xov: 3: 1774. Dear Sam, When I sat down to write to you in verse, my whole design was to shew you at once how easy a thing it might be with a little care for a Nephew to excell his Uncle in the business of versification : but as you have fully answered that intent by your late excellent lines; you must for the future excuse my replying in the same way, and make some allowance for the difference of our ages. * In hot summer nights woodlarks soar to a prodigious height, and hang singing in the air. f The light of the glow-worm is a signal to her paramour, a slender dusky scarab. 202 However, when at any time you find y"" muse propitious, I shall always rejoice to see a copy of y'^ performance ; and shall be ready to commend ; and what is more rare, yet more sincere, even to object and criticize where there is occasion. A little turn for English poetry is no doubt a pretty accomplishment for a young Gent: and will not only enable him the better to read and relish our best poets ; but will, like dancing to the body, have an happy influence even on his prose compositions. Our best poets have been our best prose-writers : of this assertion Dryden and Pope are notorious in- stances. It would be in vain to think of saying much here on the art of versification: instead of the narrow limits of a letter such a subject would re- quire a large volume. However, I may say in few words, that the way to excell is to copy only from our best writers. The great grace of poetry con- sists in a perpetual variation of y"" cadences : if pos- sible no two lines following ought to have their pause at the same foot. Another beauty should not be passed over, and that is the use of throwing the sense and pause into the third line, which add a dignity and freedom to }'" expressions. Dryden in- troduced this practice, and carryed it to great per- fection : but his successor Pope, by his over exact- ness, corrected away that noble liberty, and almost reduced every sentence within the narrow bounds of a couplet. Alliteration, or the art of introducing 31 203 words beginning- with the same letter in the same or following line, has also a fine effect when managed with discretion. Dryden and Pope practised this art with wonderful success. As, for example, where you say "The polish'd beetle," . . the epithet " bur- nish'd " would be better for the reason above. But then you must avoid affectation in this case, and let the alliteration slide-in as it were without design : and this secret will make your lines appear bold and nervous. There are also in poetry allusions, similes, and a thousand nameless graces, the efficacy of which noth- ing can make you sensible of but the careful reading of our best poets, and a nice and judicious applica- tion of their beauties. I need not add that you should be careful to seem not to take any pains about y"" rhimes ; they should fall-in as it were of themselves. Our old poets laboured as much for- merly to lug-in two chiming words, as a butcher does to drag an ox to be slaughtered : but Mr. Pope has set such a pattern of ease in that way, that few com- posers now are faulty in the business of rhiming. When I have the pleasure of meeting you we will talk over these and many other matters too copious for an Epistle. I had like to have forgotten to add that Jack copied your verses and sent them to y"" Uncle John who commended them much : you will be pleased to be commended by one that is the best performer and the best critic in that way that I 204 know. With respects to your father and mother and all the family, I remain Y'^ affect : Uncle, Gil : White. Nanny White mends apace : she is still at New- ton. To Mrs. Barker. Selborne: Dec: 25: 78. Dear Sister, My Nep : Edm^ who is now at Newton, brings a most sad account of his mother, whose state of health is very deplorable, and her infirmities and sufferings very great. As to our poor brother in Lancashire, I have not heard from him for some time : the last account was but bad. Next week we expect at this place a great riavi- gator, or rather navigatress, who within these 20 months has sailed 20,000 miles. The person alluded to is Miss Shutter, Mrs. Etty's niece, who set out for Madras in March, 1777; and returning to Europe this autumn in the Carnatic India-man, was taken by her own countrymen near the coast of France and carried to the downs, and landed at Deal. This Lady appears in great splendor ; and is, it is sup- posed, to be married to a Gent : now on the seas in his way from Lidia. Bad fevers and sore throats obtain much in these parts, and many children die. A person at Harkley buryed three, his whole stock, 205 in one grave last Tuesday. When I was down at Ringmer I found that district was sickly. Mrs. Sn : wrote herself some time since, and did not complain of any particular infirmities. My great parlor turns out a fine warm winter-room, and affords a pleasant equal warmth. In blustering weather the chimney smokes a little 'til the shaft becomes hot. The chief fault that I find is the strong echo, which, when many people are talking, makes confusion to my poor dull ears. Your money is disposed of among poor neighbours. I have no doubt but that y"* son will turn out a valuable young man ; and will be far from being injured by a public education. " Omnes omnia bona dicere, et laudare fortunas tuas, qui filium haberes tali ingenio prasditum." With re- spects and the good wishes of the season I remain Your affect : brother, Gil: White. Dear Niece Anne, After I had experienced the advantage of two agreeable young house-keepers, I was much at a loss when they left me ; and have nobody to make whipp'd syllabubs, and grace the upper end of my table. Molly and her father came again, and stayed near a month, during which we made much use of my great room : but they also have left me some time. Whether they carryed-off any Ladies Traces I 206 cannot recollect : but it is easy to distinguish them at this season ; for soon after they are out of bloom they throw-out radical leaves, which abide all the winter. The plant is rare ; but happens to abound in the Long Lithe, and will be enumerated in the list of more rare plants about Selborne. 1 wish we could say we had y^ Parnasia: I have sowed seeds in our bogs several times, but to no purpose. Please to let me know how many inches of rain fell in the late wet fit, which lasted about 5 weeks. The springs from being very low mounted-up to a vast rate ; and our lavants at Faringdon began to appear last week. My Bar"- is this evening at 30 - 3 - 1O34, the air thick, and warm, and still. Hepaticas and winter-aconites blos- som ; and Helleboriis fa^tidus in the HigJi-wood, another rare plant. The clouds are all gone ; and we may expect frost. We have here this winter a weekly concert con- sisting of a first and second fiddle, two repianos, a bassoon, an haut-boy, a violincello, and a German- flute ; to the great annoyance of the neighbouring pigs, which complain that their slumbers are inter- rupted, and their teeth set on edge. 207 To Miss Anne Barker, Selborne : Feb: ^th : 1785. Dear Niece, I was just thinking to write to somebody in your family, when your agreeable letter came in. As the late frost was attended with some unusual circumstances, your father, I trust, will not be Apr displeased to hear the particulars. The first week in Dec'' was very wet, with the Barom^" very low. On the 7th with the Bar : at 28 - 5-10: there came on a vast snow, which continued 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 rendered impassable, and the ground cov- ered 12 or 14 inches where there was no 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 Therms We therefore hung out two, one made by Martin and one by Dolland, w^hich soon began to shew us what we w^ere to expect. For by 10 o'clock they fell to 21 : — and at 1 1^ : to 4, when we went to bed. On the 208 RAIN AT SELBORNE IN 1784. inc : :h Jan : 3 • : 18 Feb: — : : 77 Mar : 3 • : 82 Apr : — 3 : : 92 May — I : : 52 June 3 ■ :65 July — 2 : : 40 Aug: — 3 : : 88 Sept'- — 2 : : 51 Octr — : : 39 Nov — 4 : 70 Dec- — 3 : 6 Total -^i : : 80 loth in the morning DoUand's glass was down to half a degree below zero; and Martin's, which ab- surdly was graduated only to 4 above zero, was quite into the ball : so that when the w^eather be- came most interesting, it was quite useless. On the loth at eleven at night, tho' the air w^as perfectly still, DoUand's glass went down to i degree below zero I This strange severity had made my Bro : and me very desirous to know what degree of cold there might be in such an exalted situation as Newton: We had therefore on the morning of the loth written to Mrs. Yalden, and entreated her to hang-out her Therm"" made by Adams ; and to pay some attention to it morning, and evening, expecting wonderful doings in so elevated a region. But behold on the loth, at II at Night it was down only to 19 ! and the next morning at 22, when mine was at 10! We were so disturbed at this unexpected reverse of comparative local cold, that we sent one of my glasses up, think- ing Mr. Y :'s must, some how be constructed wrong. But when the instruments came to be confronted, they went exactly together. So that for one night at least, the cold at N : was 20 degrees less than at S : and the whole frost thro' ten or twelve. And indeed, when we came to observe consequences, we could readily suppose it. For all my laurustines, bays, Ilexis, and what is much worse my fine sloping laurel-hedge, are all scorched up, and dead ! while at Newton the same trees have not lost a leaf ! We 209 had steady frost on to the 25th when the therm'' 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 Jan : 3rd : 1785 the thaw was confirmed, and some rain fell. There was a circumstance that I must not omit, because it was new to my brother and me ; which was that on Friday, DeC loth, being bright sun- shine, the air was full of icy spiculse, floating in all directions, like atoms in a sun-beam let into a dark room. We thought at first that they might have been particles of the rime falling from my tall hedges : but were soon convinced to the contrary by making our observations in open places, where no rime could reach us. Were they the watry particles of the air frozen as they floated ; or were they the evaporations from the snow frozen as they mounted ? We were much obliged to the Therm"" for y^ early intimations that they gave us ; and hurryed our apples, pears, onions, potatoes, &c., into the cel- lar, and warm closets : while those, that had not these warnings, lost all their stores, and had their very bread and cheese frozen. For my own part, having a house full of relations, I enjoyed the rigor- ous season much ; and found full employ in shovel- ing a path round my outlet, and up to Newton ; and in observing the Therm''% &c : and was only sorry for the poor and aged, who suffered much. I must not omit to tell you, that during those two Siberian 210 days my parlor-cat was so electric, when stroked, that had the Stroker been properly insulated, he might have given the shock to a whole circle of people. Bro : Tho : and family left us Jan: 5th. The morning before he went away his house at S : Lambeth was assaulted by three villains, one of whom his Gardener shot thro' the body with slugs from the parapet just as they were entering the drawing-room. Mrs. and Miss Etty are well ; and Charles just gone to attend his ship in the river, which sails in March. Mr. Rich^ Chase is released from his 3 years and \ captivity in India, and is re- turned to Madras. Magd : Coll : has just purchased the little life-hold estate on the Plestor, in reversion after two lives, intending hereafter to make it glebe to the vicarage. Tell y Mother I thank her for her gift, which will be very acceptable to the poor : and y"" Father, that I should be glad to see Jiis account of rain, frost, &c. I advise y'^ Father and Bro"" to read S"" John Cullun's History of Hawsted, the parish where he is Rector. Mrs. J. White joins in respects. Y^ loving Uncle, Gil : White. Mr. Yalden, poor man, is in a bad state of health, and is gone to town for advice. Ch : Etty's new ship is named the Duke of Montrose, Cap : Elphinstone : all the officers are Scotch except Ch : I have met with Will: Bercarius, which name signifies shepherd : hence the modern name of Barker. Men are cuttino- the o 211 beeches at the top of the hill ; but not those on the hanger this year. We shall lose the beautiful fringe that graces the outline of our prospect that way : but shall gain 60 feet of Horizon. Jupiter wests so fast that at sun-set he is not much above these trees. Snow covers the ground. To Thomas Barker, Esq. Selborne, Jan: 1st: 1791. Dear Sir, As the year 1790 is just at an end, I send you the rain of that period, which, I trust, has been regu- larly measured. Nov. and Dec. as you see, were very wet, with many storms, that in various places had oc- casioned much damage. The fall of rain from Nov. 19 to the 22, inclusive, was prodigious ! The thunder storm on Dec. 23 in the morning before day was very aweful : but, I thank God, it did not do us any the least harm. Two millers, in a wind-mill on the Sussex downs near Good-wood, were struck dead by lisrhtninof that morn- . . 3227 ing ; and part of the gibbet on Hind- head, on which two murderers were suspended, was beaten down. I am not sure that I was awaked RAIN IN 1790. Jan : 199 Feb: 40 Mar 45 Ap: 364 May 438 June 13 July 324 Aug. 230 Sept. 66 Oct. 210 Nov. 695 Dec. 594 soon enough to hear the whole storm : between the flashes that I saw and the thunder, I counted from lo to 14 seconds. In consequence of my Nat. Hist. I continue to receive various letters from various parts ; and in particular from a Mr. Marsham of Stratton near Nor- wich, an aged Gent : who has published in the R. S. respecting the growth of trees. Do you know any thing about this person ? He is an agreeable corre- spondent. He is such an admirer of oaks, that he has been twice to see the great oak in the Holt. D"*. Chander, and family, who came at first only with an intent to stay with us a few months ; have now taken the vicarage house for some time. The Dr. is much busied in writing the life of his founder, William Wainflete : he lives a very studious and do- mestic life, keeps no horse, and visits few people. We have just received the agreeable news that Mrs. Clement was safely delivered, last Wednesday, of a boy, her 8th child, which are all living. Mr. Chur- ton, who is keeping his Xmas with us as usual, de- sires his best respects, and many thanks for the hospitable reception and intelHgent information which he met with last summer at Lyndon. He is a good antiquary, and much employed in writing the life of Doctor Will. Smith, the founder of Brazenose Coll. of which he is now the senior fellow. ¥>■ leg, we hope, is recovered from its accident. 213 Mrs. J. White joins in affectionate compliments, and the good wishes of the season. I conclude Y"" most humble servant, G. White. Selhome church seen from the fields. 2T4 A COMPARATIVE VIEW OF THE NATURALIST'S CALENDAR, AS KEPT AT SELBORNE, IN HAMPSHIRE, BY THE LATE REV. GILBERT WHITE, M. A., AND AT CATSFIELD, NEAR BATTLE, IN SUSSEX, BY WILLIAM MARKWICK, ESQ., F. L. S., FROM THE YEAR 1 768 TO THE YEAR 1 793. N. B. — The dates in the following- Calendars, when more than one, express the earliest and the latest times in which the circumstance noted was observed. A COMPARATIVE VIEW OF WHITE'S AND MARKVVICK'S CALENDAR. Of the abbreviations used, y?. iigni^es Jlozve ring ; I. leafing ; and ap. the first appearance. Redbreast {Sylvia riibecula) sings Larks {Alauda arveiisis) congregate Nuthatch {Sitta Europcea) heard Winter aconite {Helleborus hiemalis) fl. Shelless snail or slug {Limax) ap. Gray wagtail {Motacilla boaritla) ap. I White wagtail {Motaczlla alba) ap. ' Missel thrush {Turdus viscivorus) sings Bearsfoot {Helleborus fcetidus) fl. Polyanthus {Primula Polyantha) fl. Double daisy {Bellis perennis plena) fl. Mezereon {Daphne mezereuvi) fl. Pansie {Viola tricolor) fl. Red dead-nettle {Lajniuni purpjireum) fl. Groundsel {Senecio vulgaris) fl. Hazel {Corylus avelana) fl. Hepatica {Anejnone kepatica) fl. Hedge sparrow {Sylvia nwdularis) sings Common flies {Musca domesticd) seen in numbers Greater titmouse {Parus major) sings Thrush {Turdiis 7misic7is) sings Insects swarm under sunny hedges Piimrose {Primzila vulgaris) fl. Bees {Apis mellifica) ap. Gnats play about Chaffinches, male and female {Fringilla Calebs), seen in equal numbers j Furze or gorse {Ulex Europceus) fl. | 217 WHITE. MARKWICK. Jan. 1-12 Jan. 3-31, and again Oct. 6 Jan. 1-18 Oct. 16. Feb. 9 Jan. 1-14 Mar. 3. Apr. 10 Jan. I. Feb. 18 Feb. 28. Apr. 17 Jan. 2 Jan. 16. May 31 Jan. 2-1 I ( Jan. 24. Mar. 26 1 Dec. 12. Feb. 23 Jan. 2-14 Feb. 19. Apr. 14 Jan. 2. Feb. 14 Mar. I. May 5 Jan. 2. Apr 12 Jan. I. Apr. g Jan. 2. Feb. I Mar. 17. Apr. 29 Jan. 3. Feb. 16 Jan. 2. Apr. 4 Jan. 3 Jan. I. May 10 Jan. 3-21 Jan. I. Apr. 5 Jan. 3-15 Jan. I. Apr. 9 Jan. 3. Feb. 28 Jan. 21. Mar. n Jan. 4. Feb. 18 Jan. 17. Apr. 9 Jan. 5-12 Jan. 16. Mar, 13 Jan. 5. Feb. 3 May IS Jan. 6. Feb. 6 Feb. 17. Mar. 17 Jan. 6-22 Jan. 15. Apr. 4 Jan. 6 Jan. 6. Apr. 7 Jan. 3. Mar. 22 Jan. 6. Mar. 19 Jan. 31. Apr. 11 ; last seen Dec. 30 Jan. 6. Feb. 3 Jan. 6-1 I Dec. 2. Feb. 3 Jan. 8. Feb. I Jan. I. Mar. 27 Wallflower {Cheiranthus c/ietri ; seu fru- ticiilosiis o£ Smith) fl. Stock ^Cheiranthus incanus) fl. Ember iza alba (bunting) in great flocks Linnets {Fringiiia linota) congregate Lambs begin to fall Rooks ^Corviis frugilegiis) resort to their nest trees Black hellebore {Helleborus niger) fl. Snowdrop {Galanthus nivalis) fl. White dead nettle {Lamiutn albu7n) fl. Trumpet honeysuckle fl. Common creeping crow-foot {Ratttmcuhts repens) fl. House sparrow {Fringilla dotnestica) chirps Dandelion {Leontodon taraxacu7)i) fl. Bat {I'espertilio) ap. Spiders shoot their webs Butterfly ap. Brambling {Fritigilla 7nonti/ringilla) ap. Blackbird {Turdus tnerula) whistles Wren {Sylvia troglodytes) sings Earthworms lie out Crocus {Crocus vermis') fl. Skylark {Alauda arvensis) sings Ivy casts its leaves Hellebores hiemalis fl. Common dor or clock {Scarabceus sterco- rarius) Peziza acetabulum^ ap. Helleborus viridis fl. Hazel {Corylus avellana) fl. Woodlark {Alauda arborea) sings Chaffinch (Fringilla ccelebs) sings Jackdaws begin to come to churches Yellow wagtail {Motacilla Jlava) ap. Honeysuckle {Lonicera periclymenum) 1. Field or procumbent speedwell {Veronica agrestis) fl. Nettle butterfly {Papilio Urtic^) ap. White wagtail {Motacilia alba) chirps Shell snail {Helix nemoralis) ap. Earthworms engender Barren strawberry {Fragaria sterilis) fl. Blue titmouse {Partis coeruleus) chirps 2li WHITE. 1 MARKWICIv. Jan. 8. Apr . I Feb. 21. May 9 1 Jan., 8-1 2 Feb. I. June 3 Jan. 9 Jan. 9 Jan. II Jan. 9-1 I Jan. 6. Feb. 21 Jan. lo. Feb . II Jan. 23 Jan. ID Apr. 27 Jan. ID. Feb 5 Jan. 18. Mar. i Jan. 13 Mar. 23. May 10 Jan. 13 Jan. 13 Apr. ID. May 12 Jan. 14 Feb. 17. May g Jan. 16. Mar II 1 Feb. I. Apr. 17 Jan. 16. Mar 24 Feb. 6. June i, last seen Nov. 20 Jan. 16 Jan. 16 Feb. 21. May 8, last seen Dec. 22 Jan. 16 Jan. 10-31 Jan. 17 Feb. 15. May 13 Jan. 17 Feb. 7. June 12 Jan. 18. Feb. 8 Jan. 13. Mar. 18 Jan. 20. Mar. 19 Jan. 21 Jan. 12. Feb. 27, sings till Nov. 13 Jan. 22 Jan. 22-24 Feb. 28. Apr. 17 Jan. 23 Feb. 12. Apr. 19, last seen Nov. 24 Jan. 23 Jan. 23. Mar. 5 Jan. 23. Feb. I Jan. 27. Mar. 11 Jan. 24. Feb. 21 Jan. 28. June 5 Jan. 24. Feb. 15 Jan. 21. Feb. 26 Jan. 25. Mar. 4 Jan. 25. Apr. 14 Apr. 13. July 3, last seen Sept. 8 Jan. 25 Jan. I. Apr. 9 Jan. 27. Mar. 15 Feb. 12. Mar. 29 Jan. 27. Apr. 2 Mar. 5. Apr. 24, last seen June 6 Jan. 28 Mar. 16 Jan. 28. Feb. 24 Apr. 2. June 11 Jan. 30 Feb. I. Mar. 26 Jan. 13. Mar. 26 Feb. I Apr. 27 Brown wood owls hoot Hen {Phasianus galliis) sits Marsh titmouse begins his two harsh sharp notes Gossamer floats Muse a tenax ap. Larustine {l^ibiirniim timis) fl. Butcher's broom {Rtisczis aculeattis) fl. Fox {Canis'vulpes) smells rank Turkey-cocks strut and gobble Yellowhammer {Emberiza citrineUd) sings Brimstone butterfly (Papllio Rhanini) ap. Green woodpecker {Picus viridis) makes a loud cry Raven (^Corvits Corax) builds Yew tree {Taxzis baccatd) fl. Colesfoot {Tussilagofarfard) fl. Rooks {Corvus frugilegus) build Partridges {Perdix chtered) pair Peas {Pisum sativuvi) sown House pigeon {Coliiviba doniesticd) has young ones P'ield crickets open their holes Common flea {Pulex irritans) ap. Pilewort {Ficaria vernd) fl. Goldfinch {Fringilla carduelis) sings Viper {Coluber berus) ap. Woodlouse (Oniscus asellus) ap. Missel thrushes pair Daffodil {Narcissus pseudonarczssus) fl. Willow {Salix albd) fl. Frogs {Rana ternporarid) croak Sweet violet {Viola odorata) fl. Phalcena Tinea vestianella ap. Stone curlew {Otis cedicneimis) clamours Filbert {Corylus sativus) fl. Ring-dove coos Apricot tree {Prunus armeniaca) fl. Toad {Rana bic/o) ap. Frogs {Rana temporarid) spawn Ivy-leaved speedwell {Veronica hederifo- lid) fl. Peach {A inygdalus Persica) fl. Frog {Rana temporaria) ap. Shepherd's 'puvs&{Tklaspi bursapastoris) fl. 32 219 WHITE. MARKWICK. Feb. 2 Feb. 3 Mar. 8 hatches Feb. 3 Feb. 4. Apr. I Feb. 4. Apr. 8 Feb. 5 Jan. I. Apr. 5 Feb. 5 Jan. I. May 10 Feb. 7 May 19, young brought forth. Feb. ID Feb. 12 Feb. 18. Apr. 28 Feb. 13. Apr. 2 Feb. 13. Mar. last seen Dec. 24 Feb. 13. Mar. 23 Jan. I. Apr. 17 Feb. 14- 17 Apr. I, has youn ones June i Feb. 14. Mar. 27 Feb. 2. Apr. 11 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. 18 Feb. 8 Feb. 20. Mar. 30 Feb. 21- 26 Feb. 21. Apr. 13 Jan. 25. Mar. 26 Feb. 21. Apr. 5 Feb. 28. May 5 Feb. 22. Mar. 26 Feb. 23. May 6, las seen Oct. 28 Feb. 23. Apr. I 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. g. 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 i Feb. 28. Mar. 22 Feb. 9. Apr. 10, tad poles Mar. 19 Mar. I. Apr. 2 Feb. 16. Apr. lo Mar. 2. Apr. 17 Mar. 4. Apr. 29 Mar. 2. Apr. 6 Mar. 9 Mar. 3 Jan. 2. Apr. 16 Pheasant {Phasianus Colc/iiaes) crows [ Land tortoise comes forth i Lungwort (Pulmonoria officinalis) fl. Podura Jimetaria ap. Aranea scenica saliens ap. Scolopendra forficata ap. Wryneck {Jynx torquilla) ap. Goose {Anas anser-) sits on its eggs Duck {A nas boschas) lays Dog's violet {J'iola catiina) fl. Peacock butterfly {Papilio lo) ap. Trouts begin to rise Field beans {Vicia falui) planted Bloodworms appear in the water Crow {Corvus Corone) builds Oats {A vena sativd) sown Golden crowned wren {Sylvia regulus) sings Asp {^Populus treinula) fl. Common elder {Saittbiicus nigra) 1. Laurel {Pritnus laurocerasus) fl. Chrysomela Getting, ap. Black ants {^Formica nig)-a) ap. EphemercB bisetce ap. Gooseberry {Ribes grossitlar-ia) 1. Common stitchwort {Siellaria holosted) fl. Wood anemone (^A nemone nejnorosa) fl. Blackbird {Turdus Merula) lays Raven {Corvus Corax) sits Wheatear {Sylvia G^nantke) ap. Mush-wood crowfoot {Ado.ra vtoschattel- lina) fl. Willow wren * {Syh'ia trochilus) ap. WHITE. MARKWICK. Mar. 3-29 Mar. I. May 22 Mar. 4. May 8 Mar. 4. Apr. 16 Mar. 2. May 19 Mar. 4 Mar. 4 Mar. 5-16 Mar. 5. Apr. 25 Mar. 26. Apr. 23, last seen Sept. 14 Mar. 5 Mar. 21 Mar. 5 Mar. 28 Mar. 6. Apr. 18 Feb. 28. Apr. 22 Mar. 6 Feb. 13. Apr. 20, last seen Dec. 25 Mar. 7-14 Mar. 8 Apr. 29 emerge Mar. 8 Mar. 10 July I has young ones Mar. lo-i 3 Mar. 16. Apr. 13 Mar. 12. Apr. 30 Apr. 15. May 22, seen Dec. 23. Jan. 26 Mar. 12 Feb. 26. Mar. 28 Mar. 13-20 Jan. 24. Apr. 22 Mar. 15. May 21 Apr. 2. May 27 Mar. 15 Mar. 15. Apr. 22 Mar. 2. May 18 Mar. 16 Mar. 17. Apr. ir Feb. 26. Apr. 9 Mar. 17. May 19 INIar. 8. May 7 Mar. 17. Apr. 22 Feb. 27. Apr. 10 Mar. 17 Apr. 14, young ones May 19 Mar. 17 Apr. I builds Mar. 18-30 Mar. 13, May 23, last seen Oct. 26 Mar. 18. Apr. 13 Feb. 23. Apr. 28 Mar. 19. Apr. 13 Mar. 30. May 16, sits I May 27, last seen I Oct. 23 * Willow Wren. — Mr. White has made strange confusion in the entries respecting the wrens in his calendar. Three sorts were known to him, as he distinctly says m a former passage: the Sylvia trochilus^ a yellow wren ; the Sylvia sibilafrij:, or wood wren ; the Sylvia hippolais, or chiff-chaff ; but he enters the separate appearance of four such wrens in the Calendar, although there were not four species known in this country, nor did he ever fancy that there were four. By reference to what he has said in other places, it should seem that the chiff-chaff appears the first. Therefore, in the entry, March igth, we must read, instead of willow wren, Sylvia trochilus, chiff-chaff, 220 Fumaria bulbosa fl. Elm {Ulmus catitpestris) fl. Turkey {Meleagris gallopavo) lays House pigeons {Columba domesticd) sit Marsh marigold {Caltha pahistris) fl. Buzz-fly i^Bombylius medius) ap. Sand martin {Hirundo riparia) ap. Snake {Coluber jiatrix) ap. Horse ant {Forviica herculeand) ap. Greenfinch {Loxia chloris) sings Ivy {Hedera helix) berries ripe Periwinkle {Vz'nca minor) fl. Spurge laurel {Daphne laureold) fl. Swallow {Hirundo rusticci) ap. Blackcap {Sylvia atricapilla) heard Young ducks hatched Golden saxifrage {Chrysosplenium opposi- 11/01111711) fl. Martin {Hiruitdo iirbica) ap. Double hyacinth {Hyacinthiis orientalis) fl. Young geese {A nas anser) Wood sorrel {Oxalis acetoselld) fl. Ring ouzel {Turdus torquattis) seen Barley {Hordeum sativuni) sown Nightingale {Sylvia luscinia) sings Ash {Fraximis excelsior) fl. Spiders' webs on the surface of the ground Checquered daffodil {Fritillaria inelea- gris) fl. Julus terrestris ap. Cowslip {Pritnula veris) fl. Ground ivy {Glecoma hederacea) fl. Snipe pipes Box tree {Buxtis seinpervirens) fl. WHITE. 1 MARKWICK. Mar. 19 Mar. ig. Apr. 4 Feb. 17. Apr. 25 Mar. ig. Apr. 7 Mar. 18-25, sits Apr. 4, young ones Apr. 30 Mar. 20 Mar. 20, young hatched Mar. 20. Apr, 14 Mar. 22. May 8 Mar. 21. Apr. 28 Mar. 15. Apr. 30 Mar. 21. Apr. 12 Apr. 8. May 16, last seen Sept. 8 Mar. 22-30 Mar. 3. Apr. 29, last seen Oct. 2 Mar. 22. Apr. 18 Feb. 4. Mar. 26, last seen Nov. i 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. I Apr. 12-22 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. Mar. 27 19 Apr. 6. May 16 Mar. 27. Apr. 9 Feb. 7. Mar. 27 Mar. 28. May I Apr. 14. May 8, last seen Dec. 8 Mar. 29. Apr. 22 Mar. 13. Apr. 24 Mar. 29 Mar. 29. Apr. 19 Mar. 30. Apr. 22 Feb. 2b. Apr. 26 Mar. 30. Apr. 17 Oct. II Mar. 31. Apr. 30 Apr. 12. May 20 Apr. I. May I Apr. 5. July 4, last seen Aug. 29 Apr. I. May 4 Apr. I Mar. 16. May 8 Apr. 2-24 Apr. 15. May i Apr. 2 Apr. 3-24 Mar. 3. May 17 Apr. 3-15 Mar. 2. Apr. 16 Apr. 3 Apr. 3 Mar. 27. May 8 Sylvia hippolais. In page 208, Mr. White states this bird to be the chiff-chaff, and to be usually heard on the 25th of March. — W. H. 221 Elm {Uhmts cam/>estrzs) 1. Gooseberry i^Ribes grossula7'id) fl. Currant {Ribes hortensis) fl. Pear tree (Pyrus co7iimiinis) fl. Lacerta znilgaris (,newt or eft) ap. Dogs' mercury {Mercurialis perennis) fl. Wych elm {Ubnus glabra seu montana of Smith) fl. Ladysmock {Carda}nine p7-atensis) fl. Cuckoo {Ciicuius canorus) heard Blackthorn {Primus spinosa) fl. Deathwatch {Terines pulsatorius) beats Gudgeon spawns Redstart {Sylvia Phcenicurus) ap. Crown imperial {Fritallaria iinperialis) fl. Titlark {Alauda pratensis) sings Beech {Fagus sylvatica) 1. Shellsnail {Helix nemoralis) comes out in troops Middle yellow wren * ap. Swift {Hiriindo apus) ap. Stinging fly {Conops calcitrans) ap. Whitlow grass {Draba verna) fl. Larch tree {Pinus-larix rubral I. Whitethroat {Sylvia cinered) ap. Red ant {Forjnica rubra) ap. '• Mole cricket {Gryllus gryllotalpa) churs Second willow or laughing wren t ap. Red rattle {Pedicularis sylvatica) fl. Common flesh-fly {Musca carnaria) ap. Ladycow {Coccinella bipunctatd) ap. Grasshopper lark {Alauda locustce race) ap. Willow wren,t its shivering note heard Middle willow wren § {Regulus non crista- tus medius) ap. Wild cherry {Prunus cerasus) fl. Garden cherry {Prunus cerasus) fl. WHITE. MARKVVICK. Apr. 3 Apr. 2. May 19 Apr. 3-14 Mar. 21. May I Apr. 3-5 Mar. 24. Apr. 28 Apr. 3. May 21 Mar. 30. Apr. 30 Apr. 4 Feb. 17. Apr. 15, last seen Oct. 9 Apr. 5-19 Jan. 20. Apr. 16 Apr. 5 Apr. 19. May 10, x Apr. 6-20 Feb. 21. Apr. 26 Apr. 7-26 Apr. 15. May 3, last heard June 28 Apr. 7. May ID Mar. 16. May 8 Apr. 7 i\Iar. 28. May 28 Apr. 7 Apr. 8-28 Apr. 5, sings Apr. 25, last seen Sept. 30 Apr. 8-24 Apr. I. May 13 Apr. 9-19 Apr. 14-29, sits June 16-27 Apr. ID. May 8 Apr. 24. May 25 Apr. II. May 9 May 17. June 11 ap. Apr. II Apr. 13. May 7 Apr. 28. May 19 Apr. 14. May 17 Apr. 14 Jan 15. Mar. 24 Apr. 14 Apr. I, May 9 Apr. 14. May 14 Apr. 14. May 5, sings May 3-10, last seen Sept. 23 Apr. 14 Apr. 0. June 26 Apr. 14 Apr. 14-1C -23 Apr. 10. June 4 Apr. 15-ic Apr. 15 Apr. 16 Apr. 16-3C Apr. 17. May 7 Apr. 28. May i Apr. 17-2- 1 Apr. 18. May 12 Mar. 30.' May 10 Apr. 18. May II Mar. 25. May 6 * Yellow wren {Sylvia trochilus).—W. H. fiay bird {Trochilus asilus, Renxie). -J.R. t Wood wren {Sylvia sibilalrix).—W. H. {Trochilus sibillans RennieV— J. R. % Wood wren. W. H. § Yellow wren {Sylvia trochilus).— \\' . H. Hay bird {Trochilus asilus Rexnie). -j;r. 222 Plum {Prunus domesHcd) fl. Harebell {Hyacintkus non-scriptus seu Scilla nutans of Smith) fl. Turtle {Colutnba turtur) coos Hawthorn {Cratcegus seu Mespihis oxy- cantha of Smith) fl. Male fool's orchis (^Orchis mascula) fl. Blue flesh fly {Mtisca vojnitorid) ap. Black snail or slug {Limax ater) abounds Apple tree {Pyrzis-malus sativus) fl. Large bat ap. Strawberry wild wood {Fragarza vesca sylv.) fl. Sauce alone {Erysiimcm alliaria) fl. Wild or bird cherry {Prumcs aviuui) fl. Apis Hypnoru7n ap. Musca meridiana ap. Wolf fly {Asilus) ap. Cabbage butterfly {Papilio Brassicce) ap. Dragon fly {Libelhild) ap. Sycamore i^Acer pseiidoplatanus) fl. Bombylius jninor ap. Glowworm {Lavipyris noctilucd) shines Fern owl or goatsucker {Caprimulgus Eu- ropcpus) ap. Common bugle {Ajuga reptans) fl. Field crickets {Gryllus catnpestris) crink Chafer or maybug {Scarabceus melolonthd) ap. Honeysuckle {Lonicera periclymenum') fl. Toothwort {Latkreea squaviarid) fl. Shell snails copulate Sedge warbler {Sylvia salicaria) sings Mealy tree {Virburmim lantana') fl. Flycatcher {Stoparola or Mttscicapa gris- ola) ap. Apis longicornis ap. Sedge warbler (Sylvia salicaria) ap. Oak {Quercus robiir) fl. Admiral butterfly {Papilio Atalanta) ap. Orange tip {Papilio cardamines) ap. Beech {Fagus sylvatica) fl. Common maple {Acer campestre) fl. Barberry tree {Berberis znilgaris) fl. Wood argus butterfly {Papilio ^geria) ap. Orange lily {Lilium bulbiferum) fl. Burnet moth (Sphinx Filipendulce) ap. Walnut {Jziglans regid) 1. 223 WHI TE. MARKWICK. Apr. 18. May 5 Mar. 24. May 6 Apr. 19-25 Mar. 27. May 8 Apr. 20-27 May 14. Aug. 10 seen Apr. 20. June II Apr. 19. May 26 Apr. 21 Mar. 29. May 13 Apr. 21. May 23 Apr. 22 Feb. I. Oct. 24, ap. Apr. 22. May 25 Apr. II. May 26 Apr. 22. June II Apr. 23-29 Apr. 8-9 Apr. 23 Mar. 31. May 8 Apr. 24 Mar. 30. May 10 Apr. 24 Apr. 24. May 28 Apr. 25 Apr. 28. May 20 Apr. 29. June 15 Apr. 30. May 21 Apr. 18. May 13, last seen Nov. 10 Apr. 30. June 6 Apr. 20. June 4 May I May I. June II June 19. Sept. 28 May 1-26 May 16. Sept. 14 May I Mar. 27. May 10 May 2-24 May 2-26 May 2. July 7 May 3-30 Apr. 24. June 21 May 4-12 May 4. June 17 May 4 June 2-30 May 5-17 Apr. 25. May 22 May 10-30 Apr. 29. May 21 May 10. June 9 May 11-13 Aug. 2 May 13-15 Apr. 29. June 4 May 14 Mar. 30. May 19 May 15-26 Apr. 23. May 28 May 16 Apr. 24. May 27 May 17-26 May 17 Apr. 28. June 4 May 18. June II June 14. July 22 May 18. June 13 May 24. June 26 May 18 Apr. ID. June i Laburnum {Cytisus laburnum) fl. Forest fly {Hippobosca equina) ap. Saintfoin {Hedysarum onobrycJiis) fl. Peony {Fceonia officinalis) fl. Horse chestnut {AlscuIus hippocasta- nU77l) fl. Lilac {Syringa vulgaris) fl. Columbine {Aguilegia vulgaris) fl. Medlar {Mespilus gennanica^ fl. Tormentil {Tormentilla erect a seu offici- nalis of Smith) fl. Lily of the valley (Convallaria jnaja- lis) fl. Bees {Apis mellificd) swarm Woodroof {Asperula odorota) fl. Wasp, female {I'espa vulgaris) ap. Mountain Ash {Sorbus seu Pyrus aucu- paria of Smith) fl. Bird's-nest orchis (Ophrys nidus avis) fl. White-beam tree {Cratcegus seu Pyrus aria of Smith) fl. Milkwort {Polygala vulgaris) fl. Dwarf cistus {Cistus helianthemujn) fl, Gelder rose {Virburnum opulus) fl. Common elder {Sambuc^is nigra) fl. Cantharis noctiluca ap. Apis longicornis bores holes in walks Mulberry tree {Morus nigra) 1. Wild service tree {Cratcegus seu Pyrus tor- minalis of Smith) fl. "Sanicle {SaJiicula Europced) fl. Avens (Geu7n 7irbanu77t) fl. Female fool's orchis {Orchis 77torio) fl. Ragged Robin {Lych7iis Jlos cuculi) fl. Burnet {Poteriu77i sa7zguisorba) fl. Foxglove {Digitalis purpurea) fl. Corn flag {Gladiolus co77t77tunis) fl. Serapias longifol. fl. Raspberry {Rubus idceus) fl. Herb Robert (Geraniu7n Robertianu7n) fl. Figwort {Scrophularia nodosa) fl. Gromwell {Lithosper7nu7n officinale) fl. Wood spurge {Eiiphorbia a7nygdaloides) fl. Ramsons {Alliu7n ursinu77t) fl. Mouse-ear scorpion grass {Myosotis scor- pioides) fl. Grasshopper {Gryllus grossus) ap. WHITE. MARKWICK. May i8. June 5 May I. June 23 May 18. June 9 May 19. June 8 May 21. July 28 May 20. June 15 Apr. 18. May 26 May 21. June 9 Apr. 19. June 7 May 21 Apr. 15. May 30 May 21-27 May 6. June 13 May 21. June 20 Apr. 8. June 19 May 21 Apr. 17. June II May 22 Apr. 27. June 13 Rose {Rosa hortensis) fl. May 22. July 22 May 12. June 23 May 22-25 Apr. 14. June 4 May 23 Apr. 2. June 4, last seen Nov. 2 May 23. June 8 Apr. 20. June 8 May 24. June II May 18. Jun- 12 May 24. June 4 May 3 May 24. June 7 Apr. 13. June 2 May 25 May 4. Aug. 8 May 26 May 10. June 8 May 26. June 25 May 6. June 17 May 26 May 27. June 9 May 27. June 13 May 20. June 11 May 27 May 13. June 19 May 27. June 13 Apr. 23. June 4 May 28 May 9. June 11 May 28 Apr. 17. May 20 May 29. June I May 12. June 8 May 29 Apr. 30. Aug. 7 May 30. June 22 May 23. June 15 May 30. June 20 June 9. July 8 May 30. June 13 May 30. June 21 May 10. June 16 May 30 Mar. 7. May 16 May 31 May 12. June 20 May 31 May 10-24 June I Mar. 23. May 13 June I Apr. 21. June 4 June I Apr. 11. June i June 1-14 Mar. 25. July 6, last seen Nov. 3 June 1-2 c June 7. July 1 224 WHITE. Mouse-ear hawkweed {Hieracimn pilo- \ June i. July i6 sella) fl. Buckbean {Mettyanthes trifoliatd) fl. Rose chafer {Scarabceus auratus) ap. - Sheep {Ovis aries) shorn Water flag {Iris pseudo-acorus) fl, Cuhivated rye {Secale cereale) fl. Hounds tongue {Cynoglosstim officinale) fl Helleborine {Serapias latifolia) fl. June 2. Aug. 6 Green gold fly {Miisca Ccesar) ap. Argus butterfly {Papilio moera) ap. Spearwort {Ra^tunculus flammula) fl. BIrdsfoot trefoil {Lotus corniculatus) fl. Fraxinella or white dittany {Dictamnus albus) fl. Phrygafiea nigra ap. Angler's may -fly {Ephemera vulg.) ap. Ladies' finger (^ nthyllis vulnerarid) fl. Bee orchis {Ophrys apifera) fl. Pink {Dianthus deltoides) fl. Mock ora.x\g,& {Philadelphus coronarius) fl. Libellula Virgo ap. Vine {Vitis viniflera) fl. Portugal laurel {Prunus Liisitanicus') fl. Purple spotted martagon {Lilium inarta- gon) fl. Meadow cranes-bill {Geranium pratense) fl. Black bryony {Tamus communis) fl. Field pea {Pisuin sativum arvense) fl. Bladder campion {Cucubalus behen seu Silene inflata of Smith) fl. Bryony {Bryonia alba) fl. Hedge nettle {St achy s sylvatica) fl. Bittersweet {Solanum dulcamara) fl. Walnut {Juglans regia) fl. Phallus impudicus ap. June 12. July 23 Rosebay willow-herb {Epilobiui7i angusti^ foliuvi) fl. "Wheat {TriticuTn hybernum) ^. June 13. July 22 Comfrey {Symphytum officinale) fl. Yellow pimpernel {Lysimachia nemoruin) fl. Tremella nostac ap. June 15. Aug. 24 Buckthorn {Rhamnus catharticus) 1. Cuckow-spit insect {Cicada spumaria) ap Dog-rose (/i(?j-a canina) fl. Puff-ball {Lycoperdon bovista) ap. i June 17. Sept. 3 Mullein {Verbascum thapsus) fl. Viper's bugloss {Echium a7iglicum seu vulgare of Smith) fl. ' Meadow hay cut I June 19. July 20 225 June I June 2-8 June 2-23 June 2 June 2 June 2 June 2. June 2 June 2 Junes June 3 June 3-1 1 June 3 June 3-14 June 4 June 4. June 5-19 Junes June 5-20 June 7. June 8. June 8-25 June 8. June 8 June 9 June 9 June 9 June 10 June II June 12 June 12. June 12 June 13. June 13 June 13-3C June 15. June 16 June t6 June 17, lE June 17. June 18 June 19 July July 30 July I Aug. MARKWICK. Apr. 19. June 12 Apr. 20. June 8 Apr. 18. Aug. 4 May 23. June 17 May 8. June 9 May 27 May II. June 7 July 22. Sept. 6 Apr. 25. June 13 Apr. 10. June 3 June 9. July 24 June I. Aug. 16 May 26. July 6 May 16. June 23 June 18. July 29 June 3. July 16 June 18. July 19 May 15. June 21 May 15. June 21 May 4. July 13 May 13. Aug. 17 May 28. June 24 May 15. June 20 Apr. 18. June i June 4. July 28 June 4- 30 May4. June 23 Apr. ID June 12 May 25 June 2- 21 May 24. June 2T May 6. Aug. 19 June ID July 22 May 27. July 3 June 13. July 7 Stag beetle {Lucainis cerviis) ap. Borage {Borago officinalis) fl. Spindle tree {Ejionymics Eii7-opceus) fi. Musk thistle {Carduus nutans) fl. Dogwood {Cormis sangiiinea) fl. Field scabious {Scabiosa arvensis) fl. Marsh thistle {Carduus paliistris) fl. Dropwort {Spircea filipendula) fl. Great wild valerian {]'aleria7ia officina- lis) fl. Quail {Perdix Coturnix) calls WHITE, MARI CWICK. June ig June 14- 21 June 20 Apr. 22. July 26 June 20 May II. June 25 June 20. July 4 June 4. July 25 June 21 May 28. June 27 June 21 June 16. Aug. 14 June 21-27 May 15. June 19 June 22. July 9 May 8. Sept. 3 June 22. July 7 May 22. July 21 June 22. July 4 Mountain willow herb {Epilobium vionta- j June 22 nuni) fl. Thistle upon thistle {Carduus crispus) fl. June 23- Cow parsnip {Heracleu7n sphondylium) fl. June 23 Earth-nut {Bunium bulbocastanum seu June 23 Jlexuosum of Smith) fl. Young frogs migrate June 23. CEstrus curvicauda ap. June 24 Vervain {V^erbena officinalis) fl. June 24 Corn poppy {Papaver Rhoeas) fl. June 24 Self-heal {Prunella -vulgaris) fl. June 24 Agrimony {Agrimonia eupatoria) fl. June 24- Great horse-fly {Tabanus bovinus) ap. June 24. Greater knapweed {Centaurea scabiosa) fl. June 25 Mushroom {Agariczis campestris) ap. June 26. Common mallow {Malva sylvestris) fl. June 26 Dwarf mallow {Malva rotundi/olia) fl. June 26 St. John's wort {Hypericum pe^-foratum) fl. June 26 Broom rape {Orobaftche major) fl. , June 27. Henbane (Hyoscyam^is ?iiger) fl. j June 27 Goats-beard {Tragopogon prate nsc) fl. ; June 27 Deadly nightshade {Atropa belladonna) fl. | June 27 Truffles begin to be found June 28. Young partridges fly June 28. Lime tree {Tilia Europcea) fl. June 28. Spear thistle {Carduus lanceolatus) fl. June 28. Meadow sweet {Spircea ubnaria) fl. June 28 Greenweed {Genista tinctoria) fl. June 28 Wild thyme {Thymus serpyllum) fl. June 28 Stachys germatiic. fl. June 29, Day lily {Hemerocallis Jlava) fl. June 29 Jasmine {Jasmintint officinale) fl. June 29 Yio\yo2!vi{Alcea rosea) ^. June 29 Monotropa hypopithys fl. June 29 Ladies bedstraw {Galitnn verum) fl. June 29 Galium palustre ^. June 29 Nipplewort {Lapsana communis) fl. June 29 Welted thistle {Carduus acafztkoides) fl. June 29 226 Aug. 2 Aug. 2 Aug. 30 July 23, seen Sept. 1-18 June 5-21 May 22. July 22 May 27. July 12 May 4-31 June ID. Jul}^ ] Apr. 30. July I June 7-23 June 7. July 9 July June 7. Apr. 16. May 27. May 12. June 15, May 9. May 13. June 5-14 May 22. Aug Aug. 14 Aug. 16 July 13 July 30 July 12 July 25 June 19 14 July 29 July 31 July 31 July 12 July 20 July 4 July 30 Aug. 4 July 23 July 8-28 June 12. July 30 June 27. July 18 June 16. July 24 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 Sneezewort {Achillea ptarmicd) fl. Musk mallow {Malva moschatd) fl. Pimpernel {Anagallis arvensis) fl. Hoary beetle {Scarabcsus solstit.) ap. Corn saw-wort {Serratula arvensis seu Ca7'duiis a7-7iensis of Smith) fl. Pheasant's eye {Adonis annua seu autu7n- nalis of Smith) fl. Red eyebright {Euphrasia seu Bartsia odontites of Smith) fl. Thorough wax {Buplezirum rotundifol.) fl. Cockle {Agrostemma Githago) fl. Ivy-leaved wild lettuce {Prenanthes mu- ralis) fl. Feverfew {Matricaria seu Pyrethrurn parthenimn of Smith) fl. Wall pepper {Sedum acre) fl. Privet {Ligustrum vulgare) fl. Common toadflax (/i iitirrhinum linaria)^. Perennial wild flax {Linum perenne) fl. Whortle-berries ripe {Vacciniimi zilig.) Yellow base rocket {Reseda hitea) fl. Blue-bottle {Centattrea cyamis) fl. Dwarf carline thistle {Carduus acaulis) fl. Bull-rush or cats-tail {Typha lati/olia) fl. Spiked willow herb {Lythrum salicaria) fl. Black mullein {Verbascum niger) fl. Chrysanthemum coronariiun fl. Marigolds {Calendula officinalis) fl. Little field madder {Sherardia arvensis) fl. Calamint {Melissa seu Thymus calamin- tha of Smith) fl. Black horehound {Ballota nigra) fl. Wood betony {Betonica officifialis) fl. Round-leaved bell-flower {Campamda ro- tundi/olia) fi. All-good {ChenopodiuTn bonus Henricus) fl. Wild carrot {Daucus carota) fl. Indian cress {Epopceolum inaj'us) fl. Cat-mint {Nepeta cataria) fl. Cow-wheat {Melampyrum sylvaticum seu prate7ise of Smith) fl. Crosswort {Valantia cruciata seu Galiu77i cruciatu77i of Smith) fl. Cranberries ripe Tufted vetch {Vicia cracca) fl. Wood vetch {Vicia sylvat.) fl. Little throat-wort {Ca77ipa7tula glo77iera- ta) fl. Sheep's scabious {Jasio7ie 77iontana) fl. WHITE. June 30 June 30 June 30 June 30. July 17 July I July I July 2 June 2 July 2 July 2 July 2 MARKWICK. June 22. Aug. 3 June g. July 14 May 4. June 22 June 15. July 15 Apr, II. July 15 June 20. Aug. 10 May 14. July 25 June 2. July 25 June 19. July 24 Julys June 8. July 12 Julys June 3. July 13 Julys June 21. Aug. 3 July 4 Apr. 21. July 6 July 4-24 Julys July 19 Julys May 15. Oct. 14 July 5-12 June 30. Aug. 4 July 6 June 29. July 21 July 6 June 24, Aug. 17 July 6 July 6 May 28. July 28 July 6-9 Apr. 20. July 16 July 7 Jan. II. June 6 July? July 21 July 7 June 16, Sept. 12 July 8-19 June ID. July IS Julys June 12. July 29 Julys Apr. 21. June IS Julys June 7. July 14 July 8-20 June II. July 2S July 9 July 9 May 2. June 22 July 9 Apr. 10. May 28 July 9-27 July 10 May 31. Julys July 10 July II July 28. Aug. iS July II June 10. July 2S 111 Pastinaca syh>. fl. White lily {Liiizim candidinti) fl. Hemlock {Coniuni maciilatuvi^ fl. Caucalis anthriscus fl. Flying ants ap. Moneywort {Lysiviachia tiuvijuidarid) fl. Scarlet martagon {Liihnii Chalcedotii- cutu) fl. Lesser stitchwort {Steilaria graviinea) fl. Foors parsley {^^t/iusa cynapiuvi) fl. Dwarf elder {Savibiicus Ebuliis) fl. Swallows and martins congregate Potato {Soiafittvi tuberosum) fl. Angelica sylz'. ^. Digitalis fer7-ugin. fl. Rag^vort {Se nee io Jacob tra) fl. Golden rod {Solidago Z'ifgaurea) fl. Star thistle {Centaurea calcilrapa) fl. Tree primrose {Oenothera biennis) fl. Peas {Pisuni satiz'uiti) cut Galega ojfficiri. fl. Apricots (Prumts armeniaca) ripe Clown's allheal {Stachys palustris) fl. Branching AVillow-herb {Epilobiu)n ra- mos^ fl. Rye harvest begins Yellow centaur\- {Chlora per/oliatd) fl. Yellow vetchling (Lathyriis aphaca) fl. Enchanter's nightshade {Circepa luteti- atia) fl. Water hemp agrimony {Eupatoriuvi can- fzabimnn) fl. Giant throat-wort iCampanida tracheli- ittn) fl. Eyebright {Euphrasia officinalis^ fl. Hops {Humulus lupuius) fl. Poultry moult Dodder {Cusciita europaa seu epithymuvi of Smith) fl. Lesser centaury- {Gentiana seu Chiro?iia centaiiriiivi of Smith') fl. Creeping water parsnip {Sin in nodiflo- ritm) fl. Common spurrey {Spergiila arz'ensis) fl. Wild clover ( Trifolimn pratense) fl. Buckwheat {Polygonum ^agopyrutii) fl. Wheat harvest begins Great bur-reed {Sparganium erect utn) fl. Marsh St. John's wort {Hypericum Elo- des) fl. 228 WHITE. MARKWICK. July 12 July 12 June 21. July 22 July 13 June 4. July 20 July 13 July 13. Aug. II Aug. 20 Sept. 19 July 13 June 14 Aug. 16 July 14. Aug. 4 June 21. Aug. 6 July 14 -May 8. June 23 July 14 June 9. Aug. 9 July 14-29 July 14. Aug. 29 Aug. 12. Sept. 8 July 14 June 3. July 12 July 15 July 15-25 July 15 June 22. July 13 July 15 July 7. Aug. 29 July 16 July 16. Aug. 16 July 16 June 12. July 18 July 17. Aug. 14 July 13. 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 July 19 July 13. Aug. 14 July 19 May 28. July 19 July 19- Aug. 10 Julj' 20. Aug. 17 July 19 July 20 July 9- Aug. 7 July 20 June 3. July 19 July 20 July 10. Sept. II July 21 Apr. 10. July 16 July 21 :May 2. June 7 July 21 Tune 27. July 10 July 21. Aug. 23 July II. Aug. 26 July 22 June 10. July 23 July 22- 31 June 16 Aug. 10 Sun-dew {Drosera rottindifoUd) fl. 1 July 22 March cinquefoil {Comartatt pahistre) fl. 1 July 22 Wild cherries ripe July 22 Lancashire asphodel {AnthericttJti ossifra- July 22 gum) fl. Hooded willow-herb {Scrutellaria galeri- July 23 cnlata) fl. Water dropwort {CEnanthe fistulos) fl. Horehound {Marrubium vulg.) fl. Seseli caruifol. fl. Water plantain {Alisma plantago) fl. Alopeciirus myosuroides fl. Virgin's bower {Clejnatis vitalbd) fl. Bees kill the drones Teasel i^Dipsaciis sylvestris) fl. Wild marjoram {Origamim viilgare) fl. Swifts {^Hiriindo apus) begin to depart Small wild teasel {Dipsactts piiosus) fl. Wood sage {Teucrium scorodonid) fl. Everlasting pea {Lathyrus latifolius) fl. Trailing St. John's wort {Hypericum hii- ■mi/tcsuni) fl. White hellebore {V'eratrum albu7ii) fl. Camomile {A ntkemis nobilis) fl. Lesser field Scabious {Scabiosa columba- ria) fl. Sunflower {Helianthus viultijlorus) fl. Yellow loosestrife {Lysimachia vulgaris) fl. Swift {Hirundo apus) last seen Oats (A vena saliva) cut Barley {Hordeuvt saliv7im) cut Lesser hooded willow-herb {Sczilellaria minor) fl. Middle fleabane {Inula dysetzlerica) fl. Apis manicata ap. Swallow-tailed butterfly {Papilio machaon) ap. Whame or burrel fly {CEstrus bovis) lays eggs on horses Sow thistle {Sonchus arvensis) fl. Plantain fritillary {Papilio cinxia) ap. Yellow succory {Picris hieracioides) fl. Musca mystacea ap. Canterbury bells {Campanula mediuiii) fl. Mentha longifol. fl. Carline thistle {Carlina vulgaris) fl. Venetian sumach {Rhus cotinus) fl. Ptinus pectinicornus ap. Burdock {Arctium lappa) fl. Fell-wort {Gentiana amarella) fl. Aug. 3-19 Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. 8 Aug, 8. Sept. 3 MARKWICK. Aug. I May 27. July 12 June 21. July 29 June 2. July 31 July 23 July 23 July 24 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 27-29 Aug. 5 July 28, 29 July 28 June 17. July 24 July 28 June 20, July 30 July 29 May 20, June 22 July 30 July 18- 22 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. II Aug. 1-16 July 26. Aug. 19 Aug. 1-26 July 27. Sept. 4 Aug. I Aug. 8. Sept. 7 Aug. 2 July 7- Aug. 3 Aug. 2 Aug. 2 Apr. 20. June 7, 1 seen Aug. 28 June 17. July 21 June 6-25 June 5. Aug. 11 July 21. Aug. 18 June 5. July 20 June 17. Aug, 4 229 Wormwood (A rtemisia absinthium) fl. Mugwort {Artejuisia vulgaris) fl. St. Barnaby's thistle {Centaurea solstit.) fl. Meadow saffron {Colchicum autumnale)^. Michaelmas daisy {Aster Tradescanti) fl. Meadow rue i^Thalictrum Jiavum) fl. Sea holly {Eryngiutn marit^ fl. China aster {Aster chine nsis) fl. Boletus albus ap. Less Venus looking-glass {Campanula hy- brida) fl. Carthamus tinctor. fl. Goldfinch {Fringilla carduelis) young broods ap. Lapwings {Tringa vanellus') congregate Black-eyed marble butterfly {Papilio semele) WHITE Aug. 8 Aug. 8 Aug. ID Aug. ID. Aug. 12. Aug. 14 Aug. 14 Aug. 14. Aug. 14 Aug. 15 Aug. 15 Aug. 15 Aug. 15. Aug. 15 Birds reassume their spring notes Devil's bit {Scabiosa succisa) fl. Thistle down floats Ploughman's spikenard {Co7iyza sq rosa) fl. Autumnal dandelion {Leontodon autum- \ Aug. 7iale) fl. Flies abound in windows Linnets {Fringilla linotd) congregate Bulls make their shrill autumnal noise Aster ainellw; fl. Balsam {Impatiens balsajnina) fl. Milk thistle {Carduus mariauus) fl. Hop-picking begins Beech {Fagus sylvatica) turns yellow Soapwort {Saponaria officitialis) fl. Ladies' traces {Ophrys spiralis) fl. Small golden black-spotted butterfly (Pa- pilio phlceas) ap. Swallow {Hirundo rustica) sings Althcea frutex {Hibiscus syriacus) fl. Great fritillary {Papilio paphia) ap. Willow red under-wing moth {PhalcFua pacta) ap. Stone curlew {Otis a>dicnemus) clamours Sept Phcelana russula ap. Sept. Grapes ripen Sept. Wood owls hoot Sept. Saffron butterfly {Papilio hyale) ap. Sept. Ring ousel appears on its autumnal visit Sept. Flycatcher {Muscicapa grisola) last seen Sept. Beans, {Vic ia /aba) cnt Sept. Ivy {Hedera helix) fl. Sept. 230 Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Aug. Sept. 13 Sept. 27 Sept. 28 Sept. Sept. 18. Nov. Sept. 17 Sept. 22 Sept. 12 29 30. Sept. 2 30 Nov. 7 4- 4 4-30 6-29 Oct. 24 Nov. 9 Oct. MARKWICK. July 22. Aug. 21 July 9. Aug. ID Aug. 15. Sept. 29 Aug. II. Oct. 8 Aug. 6. Oct. May ID May 14 June 15 Sept. 25. Feb. 4 June 22. Aug. 23 July 25 Aug. 22. Nov. May 22. July 26 Apr. 21. July 18 Sept. 1-15 Sept. 5-29 July 19. Aug. 23 Aug. 18. Sept. 18 Apr. II. Aug. 20 July 20. Sept. 28 June 17 Aug. 31. Nov. 4 Aug. 5. Sept. 26 Sept. 4-30 Aug. 9. Oct. 14 Sept. 18. Oct. 28 Stares congregate Wild honeysuckles fl. a second time Woodlark sings Woodcock {Scolopax rusticold) returns Strawberry tree {Arbutus tinedo) fl. Wheat sown Swallows last seen. (N. B. The house martin the latest) Redwing {Turdus iliacus) comes Fieldfare {Turdus pilaris) returns Gossamer fills the air Chinese holyoak {A Icea rosea) fl. Hen chaffinches congregate Wood pigeons come Royston crow {Corvus comix) returns Snipe {Scolopax galli)iago) returns Tortoise begins to bury himself Rooks {Corvus frugilegus) return to their nest trees Bucks grunt Primrose {Primula vulgaris) fl. Green whistling plover ap. Helve II a 7nitra ap. Greenfinches flock Hepatica fl. Furze {Ulex europcetis) fl. Polyanthus {Prijiiula polyanthd) fl. Young lambs dropped Moles work in throwing up hillocks Helleborus fostidus fl. Daisy {Bellis perennis) fl. Wallflower {Cheiranthus cheiri seu fruti- culosus of Smith) fl. Mezereon fl. Oct. 25. Nov. 20 Oct. 27. Nov. 20 Oct. 31. Dec. 25 Snowdrop fl. Nov. I Nov. 10 Oct. 7. D Nov. 13, 14 Nov. 16 Nov. 27 Nov. 30. Dec. 29 Feb. 19 Dec. 4-21 Dec. 16-31 Dec. 7-16 Dec. 31 Dec. 11-27 Dec. 12. 1 Dec. 12-23 Dec. 14-30 Dec. 15 Dec. 26-31 Dec. 15 Nov. 5 Dec. 15 Dec. 29 W^HITE. MARKWICK. Sept. 12. Nov. I June 4. Mar. 21 Sept. 25 Sept. 28. Oct. 24 Sept. 29. Nov. II Oct. I. Nov. I, young ones Apr. 28, last seen Apr. 11 Oct. I May 21. Dec. 10 Oct. 3. Nov. 9 Sept. 23. Oct. 19 Oct. 4. Nov. 5 Nov. 16 Oct. 10. Nov. 10 Oct. I. Dec. 18, sings Feb. ID, Mar. 21, last seen Apr. 13 Oct. 12. Nov. 23 Oct. 13. Nov. 18 last seen May i Oct. 15-27 Oct. 19 July 7. Aug. 21 Oct. 20. Dec 31 Oct. 23. Dec 27 Oct. 23. Nov 29 Oct. 13. Nov. 17, last seen Apr. 15 Sept. 29. Nov. I last seen Apr. 14 June 29. Oct. 20 Dec. 30 Feb. 21 IN SESE VERTITUR ANNUS 231 D. APPLETON & CO.'S PUBLICATIONS. /N THE TRACK OF THE SUN : Readings Jrom the Diary of a Globe Trotter. By Frederick Diodati Thompson, Profusely illustrated with Engravings from Pho- tographs and from Drawings by Harry Fenn. Large 8vo. Cloth, gilt top, |6.oo. " In very gorgeous holiday attire comes this large octavo volume, wiih its sumptu- ous full page illustrations and its profusion of head and tail pieces. ... The aiithor's style is pleasant and easy, occasionally almost conversational, and it is impossible to follow him through the intricacies of his tour without acquiring a deal of information by the way." — Pkiladelpnia Bulletin. "One of the handsomest of this year's Christmas books. . . . The author has practically abandoned the grand tour in favor of regions less known. I here is not much of Europe in the volume., but a great deal about China, Japan, and the East. In this good judgment is shown. ... A truly elegant piece of bookmaking." — Phila- delphia Telegraph. " Mr. Thompson is an intelligent observer, who describes what he has .seen with humor and point. . . . We know of no equally convenient and handsome publication illustrating a journey round the world." — The Outlook. " Few 'globe trotters ' have given their impressions of travel so comely a form as Mr. Thompson in this handsome illustrated volume."- — Lottdoti Saturday Review. "As a piece of fine printing, binding, and illu'-.tration, Mr. Thompson's volume de- serves very high piaise. The Appleton press has never done finer work. ... 1 he portrait of the Mohammedan sheik is one of the finest illustrations in recent books of travel. But the whole volume is a picture gallery which will especially commend itself to the large family of globe trotters, among whom Mr. Thompson deserves good standing for his sensible comments and his excellent taste." — Literary World. pOEMS OF NATURE. By William Cullen -^ Bryant. Profusely illustrated by Paul de Longpre. 8vo. Cloth, gilt, $4.00. " A very rich volume embellished with exquisite designs. . . . The publishers have been at great pains to make this volume what it is — one of the handsomest of the year. " — Philadelphia Press. "The poems included in the collection are some of the choicest of Bryant's inspi- rations, the illustrations are lovely and sympathetic, and the entire make-up of the vol- ume is eminently artistic.'' — Philadelphia Telegraph. " There has probably been no more benutiful, and certainly no more fitting, presenta- tion of Hryant's selected work than is offered in this volume. . . . Each poem is ac- companieH by special designs arranged with picturesque irregularity, and the volume is admirably printed. An excrllent effect is secured by the use of a little lighter ink for the text." — The Outlook. "The artist is primarily a painter of flowers, and under his faithful and very pretty reuroductions of these the poems are delicately wreathed. "^A^^w York Times. "The poetry of William Cullen Bryant is distinguished beyond that of any other American poet by the fidelity with which Xature is depicted therein. . . . No one has ca-.ight the picturesque spirit of his text so successfully as Paul de Longpre in these poems of Nature." — Richard Henry Stoddard, in the Book Buyer. '•In beauty of print and binding and in its artistic illustrations the book is among the best specimens of the printer's art. The illustrations by Paul de Longpre tell the story of green fields and woods and mountains and singing birds without the aid of words. The book is artistically beautiful upon every page." — Chicago hitei-Ocean. New York : D. APPLETON & CO., 72 Fifth Avenue. D. APPLETON & CO.'S PUBLICATIONS. ^HE FARMER'S BOY. By Clifton Johnson, ■^ author of " The Country School in New England," etc. With 64 Illustrations by the Author. 8vo. Cloth, $2.50. *■ One of the handsomest and most elaborate juvenile works lately published." — Philadelphia Iteju. " Mr. Johnson's style is almost rhythmical, and one lays down the book with the sensation of having read a poem and that saddest of all longings, the longing for vanished youth." — Boston Coinmefxial B7illetiii. " As a triumph of the realistic photographer's art it deserves warm praise quite aside from its worth as a sterling book on the subjects its title indicates. . . . It is a most praiseworthy book, and the more such that are published the better." — Aevj York Mail and Express. "The book is beautiful and amusing, well studied, well written, redolent of the wood, the field, and the stream, and full of those delightful reminders of a boy's country home which touch the heart." — New York Independent. "One of the finest books of the kind that have ever been put out." — Cleveland World. " A book on whose pages many a gray-haired man would dwell with retrospective eni'oyment." — St. Paul Pioneer Press. " The illustrations are admirable, and the book will appeal to every one who has had a taste of life on a New England farm." — Boston Transcript. T HE COUNTRY SCHOOL IJV NEW ENG- LAND. By Clifton Johnson. With 60 Illustrations from Photographs and Drawings made by the Author. Square 8vo. Cloth, gilt edges, $2.50. " An admirable undertaking, carried out in an admirable way. . . . Mr. Johnson's descriptions are vivid and lifelike and are full of humor, and the illustrations, mostly after photographs, give a solid effect of realism to the whole work, and are superbly reproduced. . . . The definitions at the close of this volume are very, very funny, and yet they are not stupid ; they are usually the result of deficient logic." — Boston Beacon. " A charmingly written account of the rural schools in this section of the country. It speaks of the old-fashioned school days of the early quarter of this century, of the mid-century schools, of the coiuitry school of to-day, and of how scholars think and write. The style is animated and picturesque. . . . It is handsomely printed, and is interesting from its pretty cover to its very last page." — Boston Saturday Evening Gazette. "A unique piece of book-making that deserves to be popular. . . . Prettily and serviceably bound, and well illustrated." — The Churchman. "The readers who turn the leases of this handsome book will unite in saying the ftuthor has 'been there." It is no fancy sketch, but text and illustrations are both a reality. " — Chicago Inter-Ocean. " No one who is familiar with the little red schoolhouse can look at the^e pictures and read these chapters without having the mind recall the boyhood experiences, and the memory is pretty sure to be a pleasant one." — Chicago Times. " A superbly prepared volume, which by its reading matter and its beautiful illustra- tions, so natural and finished, pleasantly and profitably recalls memories and associations connected with the very foundations of our national greatness." — N. Y. Observer. New York : D. APPLETON & CO., 72 Fifth Avenue. =-st.