useful and interesting. I am merely urging that articles like the above are not even bordering upon rarities. The introduction of such a list into your Magazine, as that at p. 392., proposed as a dainty bill of fare to the naturalist, reminds me of an anecdote of Johnson, who, being invited to a dinner, afterwards grumbled at the fare, when some one (perhaps his friend Boswell) taking him up, said, "Now, Doctor, after all, was it not a very good dinner?" Why yes, Sir," replied Johnson; "but it was not a dinner to ask a man to.' - B. Coventry, Nov. 9. 1828. Jennings's Ornithology.-There are a few points to which I desire to reply in the notice of my Ornithològia, in the Magazine of Natural History. (Vol. I. p. 341.) First, I wish to observe, that " the chief of my knowledge of the natural history of birds has been obtained by a long residence in Somersetshire, at Huntspile, of which place I am a native;" that the observations which I have made on the song thrush (Túrdus mùsicus), are particularly applicable to facts with which I have there become acquainted. I have stated also, that "we must not be in haste to condemn what we have not ourselves witnessed:" throughout my work I have, I hope, been constantly impressed with this sentiment. Now, although I am not prepared to deny that, sometimes, and in some places, the nest of the song thrush might be plastered within with cow-dung, yet I do strongly suspect that no clay enters, even as a cement, into the composition of the plaster, and I am led to this conclusion chiefly by the lightness of the nest. The blackbird's nest (Túrdus Mérula) is, I am well aware, plastered with clay, over which is laid dry grass or some such material; and it is, in consequence of having clay in its composition, much heavier than the thrush's nest. That I have never seen a nest of the thrush in Somersetshire, lined with cowdung, I think, I may confidently assert. The lining of the thrush's nest, there at least, I have always found of a very light buff colour; and that it consists chiefly of rotten wood I am equally well assured, as pieces of this material, and those sometimes tolerably large, are frequently apparent in it. As to the singing of the thrush while sitting on the eggs, I admit that it might, possibly, be a solitary fact, although I think otherwise; but it is one of which, however, I can entertain no doubt, as it was heard not only by myself, but by other branches of my family, the sweetness of the song having excited our particular attention; and what makes the fact still more memorable is, that the nest was a short distance from my father's house, and we afterwards took the young, one of which we raised and kept for some years in a cage, where it sang delightfully. In regard to the cuckoo's not being a climbing bird, which your Reviewer in a note decidedly affirms (an affirmation without any evidence, to which one scarcely knows how to reply), I can only say that, as few, if any, persons have seen that singular bird climbing trees for its food, we can only reason from the few facts which we possess concerning it. It is, we know, furnished with scansorial feet, and I have never seen it collect its food on the ground; indeed, except in its flight, have rarely seen it any where else but on trees, not often, if ever on bushes or near the ground. The cuckoo kept in a cage, as mentioned in Ornithològia, page 142, did occasionally pick up its food, but this it always did while it was on the perch; if an earthworm happened to fall from its beak, it never descended to the bottom of the cage to pick it up. I think it therefore quite fair to conclude, that it does climb about the trees which it frequents, and possibly obtains its food from them. Mr. Yarrell, than whom, perhaps, a more accurate and intelligent observer never existed, has dissected many cuckoos, and he says, that the stomach is similar in its structure to the woodpecker's, and therefore fitted for the digestion of animal food only; that the contents of the stomach invariably indicate the presence of such food, namely, the larvæ of some insects. Surely these facts warrant us in placing this bird among the scansors. The public papers informed us last summer of some one near Worthing having been fortunate enough to preserve a cuckoo through the winter; if this notice should meet the eye of the possessor of the bird, a communication of any facts concerning it through this Magazine will be greatly esteemed.* The Reviewer mistakes in supposing that I might be led away by any authority whatever, independently of facts. I incline to think, that scientific naturalists, those I mean who think more of terms than of facts, will be rather disposed to find fault with me for an opposite line of conduct, for placing terms in the back, and facts in the foreground; of setting too little value upon systems of any kind: but while I frankly admit, that I think our system-builders have pushed, in many instances, their generalisation too far, it behoved me, nevertheless, as a faithful natural historian, to lay before the reader ORNITHOLOGY in science, and in fact as it is, rather than what I could wish it to be. As to the introduction of the terms cuculid, scansor, and a few others, every one will, I hope, perceive that this has been done to show how the scientific terms may be anglicised and used; and sure I am, that, if they cannot be anglicised, the introduction of them, and the multiplication of new terms in a learned language, how much soever they may please the pedant, must very materially obstruct the progress of science. Learned terms may, and perhaps, always will please a few; but to the generality of persons their introduction will be disapproved, and their acquisition will be felt and deemed a wearisome pursuit. Things and facts, not words, are now, and, in the acquisition of all knowledge and science, ought ever to have been, the order of the day. The Reviewer wonders, seeing I am acquainted with Wilson's American Ornithology, that I am disposed to echo the opinion that birds of song are scarce in the Western World. I am not aware that I have, in any part of my work, stated such an opinion. I have said, "It is, perhaps, true that the birds of warm climates do not equal those of the temperate ones in the sweetness and richness of their notes;" and I have also said, that "From the abundance of many of the Picæ tribe, such as Parrots, and some others of harsh note, it is probable that their sounds in the tropical woods often overpower and confound the more soft and sweet modulations of the warbler tribes; and hence the opinion has obtained credit, that the tropical regions are deficient in birds of song." But how this can be interpreted into the opinion given to me, I really cannot divine: when, moreover, I reflect that Wilson must have been most conversant with the birds of the temperate climates of the United States, how what I have said can be applied to the birds which he has described does, indeed, surprise me. To write a book that should please every body, would not only be hopeless, but impossible; that various opinions should be entertained concern *I have just been informed by a gentleman of my acquaintance, that some years since he knew of a cuckoo having been kept in a cage, after being hatched in this country, till the beginning of February in the next year; it was kept, of course, in a warm room, and fed chiefly on raw flesh; but, by omitting, one frosty night, to keep the room warm, it died. The following is the notice alluded to above: A person named Moore, residing at Goring near Worthing, has in his possession a cuckoo which was taken from the nest last year, and has been kept in a healthy state in a cage since that period. During the present season, "it has poured forth its well-known call, and is a rare, and perhaps solitary instance of a cuckoo surviving in this country after the usual period at which these birds migrate, which is seldom later than August." Sussex Advertiser. Morning Herald, June 12. 1828. ing Ornithològia is what I ought naturally to expect. The value of such a work cannot immediately be known; but I feel assured, that the more it is examined, the more will its statements be found to correspond with actual facts in natural history. I shall nevertheless feel grateful to every one who will take the trouble to look into it; and should he find any error in it, none will be more ready to acknowledge and to correct it than myself. Aware of the necessity of being careful in a selection of facts in natural history, I am persuaded that no one can accuse me justly of hastily rejecting or of heedlessly adopting whatever may be presented to my notice; but as the evidence of my own senses is to me the best of all evidence, I have, as it became me to do, laid no inconsiderable stress upon that in the composition of my work, and hence, sometimes, my observations are very different from those made by persons who have preceded me in the same path.-James Jennings. London, Nov. 13. 1828. Birds forsaking their Nests. - Sir, in the Magazine of Natural History, (Vol. I. p. 496), I see another criticism about birds forsaking their nests. I will now try to set your correspondents right, by my own frequent observations. The redbreast, wren, blackbird, song-thrush, missel-thrush, and, I believe, almost every other bird, will forsake their first nest for the season, if frightened out of it once or twice, and will immediately begin to build another; but they will not forsake their nest while laying, handle the eggs as much as you please, or change them one for the other; or even if you take one out every day, the same hen will still return and lay in the empty nest. I have often tried all those sorts of experiments. As for a bird forsaking a nest through touching the eggs, I do not believe any such thing; it is the fright in driving them out that makes them forsake, and they never return to it at all: whenever they do return at all, they do not forsake. A redbreast will sit on any egg substituted for its own, even a blackbird or thrush's, and will breed up the young ones; a hedge-sparrow will do the same, and most probably any soft-billed bird. Later in the season, after a bird has made one or two nests, it will not forsake its nest when sitting, drive it out as often as you please; some will even suffer themselves to be taken out and put back again without leaving the nest. As for Mr. Anderson's nightingales, I saw the redbreast sitting on the eggs, and also saw the young nightingales after they had left the nest, and saw the redbreasts feeding them. They continued about the garden till the autumn. I have no doubt but nightingales might be made to frequent any place, where there was a good cover of underwood for them, and plenty of insects, if hatched under any of the tribe to which they are most nearly related. I think a redstart would prove the best parent. I am, Sir, &c. R. Sweet. Pomona Place, King's Road, near Fulham, Nov. 28. 1828. Birds singing while sitting on their eggs.—In the review of Mr. Jennings's Ornithologia, your reviewer seems disposed to doubt the fact of birds singing while sitting on their nest. I certainly have never heard a thrush sing when sitting, perhaps, for want of attending to it, but have very frequently heard and seen the male blackcap sing while sitting on the eggs, and have found its nest by it more than once; the male of this species sits nearly as much as the female. · Id. Food of the Lapwing.—Your Magazine (Vol. I. p. 496.) contains an interesting communication from M. respecting the food of the Lapwing, in which, from an inspection of the gizzard, &c., when opened, he reasonably questioned the truth of the commonly received opinion of their feeding upon slugs. Should there still remain any doubt upon this point, perhaps the following observation, which I had an opportunity of making a year or two ago, may be the means of totally removing it. My garden being much VOL. II. No. 6. I infested with slugs, and having heard that lapwings were frequently employed for the purpose of destroying them, I obtained several young ones from the neighbouring meadows where they bred, and, considering them too young to provide for themselves, placed them in a chicken pen, in order to feed them myself. The only thing they appeared to relish was the common earthworm, which they took from the hand, and swallowed greedily but upon offering them slugs, they would not touch them. This surprised me much, and in order to satisfy myself on this point, I gave them one unexpectedly after a worm, which, directly they touched, they invariably dropped, and shook their heads violently several times, as if even the taste of it had greatly offended them. This I repeated frequently, but never could prevail upon them to eat one either of the black or small white slug. It never occurred to me to try beetles, but even the worms (or it might be the confinement) did not seem to agree with them, as they gradually sickened and died; and having but one left, I turned it out into the garden, as the only chance of saving its life, where it immediately provided for itself, and lived till the winter, when, as is usually the case with all pets, it met with an untimely death, by falling a victim to a cat. I am, Sir, yours, &c. J. B. Jan. 21. 1829. Engravings of Birds.—I think it would be as well if your engraver, whenever he has occasion to delineate any of Cond. 28 Pentacrinus europeus and the Star Fish.-Sir, Amongst the list of new publications in the Magazine of Natural History (Vol. I. p. 62.) is the title of a memoir, I lately published, on Pentacrìnus (pente five, from the pentangular stem of the genus, and krinon lily; lily-like) europæ`us (fig. 28.), and which requires to be emended, for from the words " star fish," which you have added to my title-page, it must appear to the generality of naturalists, as merely adding a new species of that familiar tribe to our stock of knowledge. By a reference to the memoir itself, you will perceive this error, which I do not complain of individually, but on account of the injury done to the advancement of science, by thus representing a discovery of the very first importance as the accession of a new species of Astèrias, star-fish. (fig. 29.) The animal, which forms the subject of my memoir, although related to the Astèrias by analogy, belongs to what must now be considered a very distinct tribe, distinguished, amongst other characters, by being provided with two openings to the alimentary canal, that which is central being analogous to the mouth (fig. 28. a.), and the lateral one to the anus (b), of the Spatángi and other Echìni (sea urchins): this tribe had been already designated by the term Crinöídea (lily-like), by Mr. Millar, in his valuable monograph on these curious and interesting animals, which, with the exception of Marsupites (marsupium, a purse) and Comátula (coma, a tuft), are all provided with a long stem, by means of which they have been permanently attached to the rocks at the bottom of the ocean. I say have been, because the greater part of those known to naturalists are fossils, mostly identified with the beds of limestone in which they are found. Until the fortunate discovery of the species described in my memoir, naturalists were absolutely ignorant of the real nature of these animals, and, consequently, extremely divided as to the situation they should occupy in their systems, so much so as even to be in doubt whether they really belonged to the animal kingdom. I flatter myself, therefore, that I have set at rest all disputes upon the subject, and have, at the same time, pointed out so much of their natural history as to prevent the otherwise unavoidable multiplication of species and even of genera. My memoir goes further, and confirms the statement of Mr. Adams (Lin. Trans. vol. v. p. 10.) on Astèria pectinàta, as to Comátula possessing a similar construction of the alimentary canal; a fact which lay dormant and unnoticed by naturalists until it again fell under my observation, which I find by my journal to be dated June 2. 1823. It appears to have been again noticed by Mr. Gray, and published in the Annals of Philosophy for November 1826., p. 392., in an article on the digestive organs of the Comátula; that gentleman was also the first to throw out a conjecture that the Crinöídea were probably constructed upon the same plan. -J. V. Thompson, F. L. S. Cork, Aug. 10. 1828. Derivation of the name John Dorée. I take the liberty of suggesting another derivation than that given in your First Number, p. 89. for the John Dory or Dorée. You there state that it is called Dorée, as a corruption" from adorée, worshipped; or probably from dorée, gilt, in allusion to its splendid colour," &c. &c. It is universally styled "Il janitore," or the gate-keeper, |