RD & W 1994

iAhAu

HISTORY

OF THE

BERWICKSHIRE NATURALISTS' QLUB

INSTITUTED SEPTEMBER 22. 1831.

MARE ET TELLU8, ET, ttUOD TEOIT OMNIA, CCELUM.

EDINBURGH :

PRINTED FOR THE CLUB BY NEILL & COMPANY. MDCCCXXXIV.

MEMBERS'

Dat^ of

Admission.

1. George Johnston, M. D. Berwick-upon-Tweed - - - - Sept. 22. 1831.

2. Rev. A. Baird, of Cockburnspath

3. Rev. John Baird, of Yetholm

4. Mr William Baird, Surgeon, H. E. I. C. S. ....

5. R.D.Thomson, M.D., HE. I.e. S. - - - - -

6. Mr Robert Embleton, Surgeon, Embleton . - .

7. Mr G. Henderson, Surgeon, Chirnside . . - -

8. Mr John Manners, Surgeon, Berwick-upon-Tweed •

9. Mr Alexander A. Carr, Surgeon, Ayton . - - -

10. James Mitchell, Esq. Surgeon, R. N. Wooler

11. Mr Thomas Brown, Langton - - - -

12. P. J. Selby, Esq. of T^vizel-House .....

1 3. Mr W. Leithead, Solicitor, Alnwick _ - - .

14. Mr Joseph Barnes, Fel. Trin. Col. Cambridge

15. Rev. J. Campbell, Tweedmouth - - _ _ _

16. Mr T. S. Good, Berwick-upon-Tweed - - . -

17. Mr Robert Dunlop, Berwick-upon-Tweed

18. Sir William Jardine, Bart. Holmes ....

19. Captain Carpenter, Ford Cottage

20. Rev. Mr Knight, Vicar of Ford

21. Henry Clarke, M. D., Berwick-upon-Tweed

22. Mr John Whitelaw, Berwick-upon-Tweed - - _

23. Major Thomas Watson, H. E. I. C. S

24. Rev. Henry Armstrong, Curate, Wooler . . .

25. Rev. Mr Knight, of Mordington

26. Rev. Mr Cunyngham, of Dunse

27. W. F. Bow, M. D. Alnwick

EXTRAORDINARY MEMBERS.

1. Miss Bell, Coldstream Sept. 22. 1831.

2. Miss Elizabeth Bell, Coldstream

3. Miss Hunter, Antonshill ----- - ' .

4. Mrs Dr Johnston, Berwick . - . . Dec. 21. ...

Dec. 21.	...
April 20.	1832,
June 18.
July 18.
Sept. 19.	...
April 16.	1833.
May 19.	...
July 17.
Sept. 18.

PROCEEDINGS

OP THE

BERWICKSHIRE NATURALISTS' CLUB.

The Berwickshire Naturalists* Club was instituted for the pur- poses of examining the Natural History and Antiquities of the county and its adjacent districts, and of affording to such as were interested in these objects, the opportunity of benefiting by mutual aid and co-opera- tion. The first meeting was held on the 22d of September 1831, at Bank-House, in the parish of Coldingham, when the following resolu- tions were agreed upon : —

1. That the Gentlemen present form themselves into a Club, to be

named The Berwickshire Naturalists' Club.

2. That the object of the Club shall be to investigate the natural his-

tory and antiquities of Berwickshire and its vicinage.

3. That all Gentlemen interested in these objects shall be eligible as

members, provided three-fom-ths of the members present when their admission is proposed are agreeable.

4. That the Club shall hold no property, and exact no fees of admis-

sion.

5. That the Club meet five times within the year; viz. Ist, on the

third Wednesday of September ; 2d, the third Wednesday of December ; 3d, the third Wednesday of April ; 4th, the third Wednesday of June ; and, 5th, on the last Wednesday of July.

6. That the Secretary send a written notice of the place and hour of

meeting, eight days previously, to each member.

( 4 )

1. Address to the Members of tJie Berwickshire Naturalisls' Club. By George JoHssTONi M,D. (Read at its first Anniversary Meet- ing, held at Coldstream, September 19. 1832.)

Gentlemen,

Before I leave the distinguished station which, by your favour, I hold in this Club, you will permit me to take a cursory view of what has been done, during this the first year of its existence, towards forwarding the objects for which we principally associated ourselves ; a more accurate knowledge, to-wit, of the natural history and antiquities of Berwickshire and the adjacent parts of the neighbouring counties : and I am induced to do this, not because our labours have elicited much of interest or im- portance ; not because I can hope to give any additional impulse to your zeal, or direction to your future pursuits ; but that I may, as far as in me lies, set an example to my successors in this chair, to give yoii, at each succeeding anniversary, a gummary of the communications and researches of the members during the year ; so that the results of these may not be lost, and that their bearings and connections may be pointed out. The review, also, may serve to remind us of those departments of the natural history of the county which have received the least notice and illustra- tion, and where, of course, our inquiries may be most usefully directed in future.

Birds. — At our meeting in July, it was mentioned that a male bird of the rose-coloured ouzel {Pastor roseus) had been shot at West Ord, in the vicinity of Berwick, on the 1 3th of that month, by the Rev. Mr Campbell. No previous instance of the occurrence of this beautiftil bird in North Durham is known ; and very few instances of its occurrence in the north of England are on record ^. It is a summer visitant, com- ing to us at uncertain intervals ; compelled, perhaps, to make these parts by the force of some contrary storms : and, in this respect, it resembles another bird, the Egyptian goose (^Ancis (Bgyptiaca\ a small flock of which is recorded to have visited the Tweed, at Carham, in the begin- ning of February last ^. This flock, as is conjectured by Mr Selby, may probably have made its escape from Gosford, the seat of the Earl of Wemyss, upon the Firth of Forth, where numbers of these birds are kept in the artificial pieces of water ^.

^ Mr Selby has a specimen, shot near Bamborough ; and two others have been taken not far from Newcastle. ( Trans. Newc. Soc, I 263.) It is singular that these were all males.

* Kelso MaU for Feb. 6. 1832 ; Mag. Nat. Hist. voL v. p. 665.

' Trans. Newc. Soc, i. 290. Five were seen on the Fern Islands in April 1830 ; and, in March 1831, a female was killed near Berwick. (Ibid.)

DR Johnston's adorkss. 5

These are the only birds remarkable for their rarity, which have oc* curred during the year; for I do not remember that any such was met with in our excursions. In that of June, made to Langleyford, at the foot of Cheviot, our distinguished colleague, Mr Selby, entertained some slight hopes of meeting with the ring-thrush ( Turdus torquattu), which, it was supposed, might breed near this sequestered hamlet : but the information of the respectable tenant proved the contrary ; for the bird is seen there . only in the later autumnal months, on its return from still more inland and more remote moors. During our ascent of Hedgehope on that day, the curlew {Numenius arquata) first, and, somewhat higher up, the golden plover (^Charadrius pluvialis)^ uttering as it flew from us its shrill plaintive cry, were seen in their breeding-grounds ; and the blackcock {Tetrao tetrix) was heard harshly calling to his mates. On this occasion, as on several previous ones, I was struck with the cries of the birds we noticed : there was no sprightliness in them, nor melody ; but all were plaintive, or rapid and harsh, and tended to increase that still sobriety — that almost solemn mood — which irresistibly steals over the mind of him who traverses these noiseless, wide, dark -brown moors. The melo- dy of the groves is not in harmony with the -scene ; and the warblers leave it willingly for haunts nearer the cheerful buzz of man and ci- vilization. But our excursion in July presented us with a most remark* able contrast to the scenery of the Cheviots : a wide and rough rolling sea, a coast fronted with lofty, dark, and precipitous rocks, caverned with gloomy recesses, so bold, so rugged, and naked, that Scotland scarce boasts one of superior grandeur. And how diverse were its feathered tenants in appearance and habits ! The slender-legged tribes of the moor, clothed in a mottled plumage, were here replaced with birds dis- tinguished by short legs, strength of body, and by colours disposed in large and unmixed patches, often strongly contrasted : and while the for- mer wheeled round and about us in circles, muttering their cries on wing, the latter flew out in a straight undeviating line, and silently. Nor were they less distinguished by their voices ; for the cries of seafowl are never plaintive, but most harsh, and most consonant with the pictorial character of their haunts. Pennant has given a description of these, so excellent, that I must be allowed to quote it here, with only a very few alterations, to make it more exact to St Abb's Head, the place of our visit. This magnificent promontory is a huge insulated mass of trap rocks, whose seaward sides form precipices of vast height, hollowed in many places into caverns, in which the wild pigeons ( Co/uw»6a livia) build their uests, and nurture their young in safety, amid the spray of waves that never sleep in rest. In some parts the caverns penetrate far and end in dark- ness ; in others, are pervious, and give a romantic passage by another opening equally superb. Many of the rocks are insuUited, of a pyrami- dal form, and soar to a great height. The bases of most are solid ; but in some pierced through and arched. They are covered with the dung

6 DR JOHNSTON S ADDRESS.

of the innumerable flocks of birds which resort here annually to breed, and fill every little projection, every hole, which will give them leave to rest. Multitudes were swimming about ; others swarmed in the air, and stunned us with the variety of their croaks and screams. Kittiwakes, sea-mews, and black-headed gulls, guillemots, auks, and corvorants, are among the species which resort hither. " The notes of all seafowl are , most harsh and inharmonious. I have often rested under rocks like these, attentive to the various sounds over my head ; which, mixed with the deep roar of the waves slowly swelling, and retiring from the vast caverns beneath, have produced a fine effect. The sharp voice of the gulls, the frequent chatter of the guillemots, the loud notes of the auks, the screams of the herons, together with the deep periodical croak of the corvorants, (and the boding voice of the raven), which serves as a bass to the rest, have often furnished me with a concert, which, joined to the wild scenery surrounding me, afforded, in a high degree, that species of pleasure which results from the novelty and the gloomy majesty 'of the entertainment ^"

I must not leave this majestic coast, without mention of another of its feathered tenants, the Cornish chough {Fregilus graculus)^ which, indeed, was not seen by us on this occasion, but is certainly ascertained to breed in the rocks between St Abb's and Fast Castle. This fact, dis- tinctly mentioned by Bishop Leslie in his history De Origins Scotorum^ published about 300 years ago 2, has been overlooked or disregarded by naturalists, who have considered the bird peculiar to the western shores of Britain ^ ; and it is to the Rev. A. Baird that we are indebted for the confirmation of the accuracy of the Bishop's information ; and, of course, for showing that the limits usually assigned to the distribution of the chough in this country are erroneous.

Reptiles. — Of the reptiles of Berwickshire, the frog {liana tempo- rarid) and the toad {Bufo vulgaris), have met us every where ; and, in our excursions to Penmanshiel Wood, and to St Bathan's, a viper ( Viper a communis) was taken ; but no communication relative to any of this ne- glected tribe of animals has been laid before you.

Fishes, — Mr Embleton gave us, at our meeting in December last, a description of a singular individual of the salmon (Salmo salar), which had been caught near Coldstream. It was distinguished by being spot- ted over, in a leopard-like fashion, with pale marks, by having its gill- covers beautifully streaked with red lines, and by leather-like fins ; and these peculiarities were not the effects of disease, for the fish was in good condition, and perfectly sound. At the same meeting I presented to the Club a list of the less common fishes found on the coast of Berwickshire, of which list the most remarkable, for their rarity at least, were the com-

' Arctic Zoology, i. Introd. p. xii.

* P. 17. Published in 1578.

' " Inhabits the western side of the island." Fletn. Br, Anim. 83.

OR JOHNSTON 8 ADDRKKS. 7

men tope^ the starry ray''^, of which I have had several specimeiui brought me, the top-knot 3, the toothed gilt-head *, the sea perch ^ the basse % the horse mackerel 7, the fifteen-spined stickleback ^ which is by no means uncommon on this coast, and is occasionally taken at the mouth of our river during the summer months. Besides these, there have occurred four species, which, in our latest system of British animals, are said to be confined to the ^* English coast ;" and which may therefore be considered as additions to the fishes of the Scottish shores. These are, the greater weaver ", the lesser spotted dog-fish ^", the hag-worm ^*, and the tadpole fish '=^. The hag-worm, so remarkable for tlie peculiarities of its structure, is, according to the testimony of our fishermen, rather com- mon on the coast of Berwickshire ; and the size of the specimens I have seen, and I am assured they are not larger than the average, is much superior to what is stated in our systematic works ; for, instead of 8 inches, they were 14 and 15 inches in length. Of the tadpole fish, which is one of the rarest British species, and previously known only as an inhabitant of the shores of Cornwall, I had the pleasure of exhibiting to you a living specimen, which had been captured in Berwick Bay. When alive, and when recently dead, the body appeared every where smooth and even ; but, after having lain three days on a plate, and become a little shrivelled, there appeared an obscure row of tubercles, running backwards from the pectoral fins, and these pea-like tubercles could be more readily distin- guished by drawing the finger over the skin. I would call attention to this fact, because the only good distinction between the Raniceps tri- furcatus, and R. Jago of Dr Fleming, is derived from the presence of these tubercles ; in the former the lateral line is said to be tuberculated above the pectoral fins, in the latter it is said to be smooth : but here we have a specimen which, when alive, exhibits the character of the Jago ; when dead, that of the trifurcatus ; and hence, I am induced to think that both are the same animal, having the tubercles more or less prominent and obvious according to the leanness or other conditions of the body.

Insects. — Since no communication has been laid before us relative to the entomology of Berwickshire, it is beyond my province to make any remarks on the subject ; but you may permit me to notice one fa- mily, too beautiful, too generally distributed, and too obtrusive, not to

* Squalus Galeu» Lin., Galeus vulgaris Fhm.

' Raia radiata Donov. ^ Pleurottecte* punctatus Pern,

4 Sparus dentatus Stew.^ Brama marina Flem.

A Perca marina Lin.^ Serranus norvegicus Flem.

6 Perca Labrax Lin.

7 Scomber Trachurus Lw., Trachurus vulgaris Finn.

8 Gasterosteus Spinachia Lin., Spinachia vulgaris Flem.

9 Trachinus major Fletiu

'° Squalus Catulus Lin., Scyllium Catulus Fiem,

' ' Myxine glutinosa Lin.

'"^ Iktrachoides trifurcatus Davie$, Raniceps trifurcatus Flem.

8 DR JOHNSTON S ADDRESS.

have attracted our attention : I mean the butterfly tribe. Of this, 85 species (including 1 1 that perhaps may properly be considered as varie- ties) have been ascertained to be natives of Britain ; and, of these, we have, in Berwickshire, only 16 distinct species, or somewhat more than one-fifth of the whole. Four belong to the family Papilionidae ; nine to the Nymphalidae ; and three to the Lycaenidae ^ None of the species are esteemed rare by experienced entomologists ; but, in Berwickshire, I never observed the Hipparchia Semele, until on our visit to St Abb's Head in July last, where we found this fine active insect in great profu- sion. The more common Hipparchia .^^Egeria, also, I have seen in one locality only in this county, viz. on the wooded banks of the Eye, below Ayton House, where it may be captured in the months of June and July. The Pontia cardamines is likewise a local species with us ; it very rarely occurs in the neighbourhood of Berwick, but appears very soon after passing the village of Paxton, on the road to Swinton, and abounds all along that low tract. It is also common on the road between Swinton- Mill and Coldstream ; but I have not noticed it elsewhere in Berwickshire.

Exannulosa. — Communications relating to the exannulose inverte- brate tribes have been made as yet only by myself, but I have now a zealous co-operator in our Secretary, whose situation is peculiarly favour- able for the investigation of these intricate and vastly curious creatures, among whose multitudes, it may be truly said, " we meet with forms and structures as varied and unexpected as if they had been the tenants of another planet." A collection of the zoophytes of the coast was ex- hibited at an early meeting, which I have since described at length in the Transactions of the Natural History Society of Newcastle ; and I flatter myself that no department of the natural history of Berwickshire is now so well known as this, in reference to species : their habits and economy require for illustration a person of more uninterrupted leisure. Our Actiniae, or animal flowers, on which I read a separate paper, are remarkably interesting. I know no marine worm that for beauty and elegance can be compared with the Actinia plumosa ; and such of you as had the opportunity of seeing the specimen that I preserved for some time alive, will recall with pleasure the splendid spectacle. Actinia Tuedice was still more interesting, to me at least, for the species was new to naturalists, and, fortunately, possessed characters that distinguished it decidedly from every other. The Actinia coccinea and viduata of Miil- ler are also denizens of our shores ; but the first was considered as a smooth variety of the senilis^ and the other a small streaked variety of the equina,

A passing notice of some invertebrates which I have described and

1 a. Papilionidse : Pontia brassicae, P. rapae, P. napi, P. cardamines. h. Nymphalidae : Vanessa urticae ; V. Atalanta, Cynthia cardui, Hipparchia iEgeria, H. Semele, H. Megaera, H. Janira, H. hiperanthus, H. Pamphilus. c. Lycaenidae : Lycaena Phlaeas, Polyommatus Alexiijt, P. Argus.

DR Johnston's address. 9

figured in the Magazine of Natural History iov the present year [1832] may perhaps be excused, since the subjects of them were procured in Berwick Bay. The Praniza fuscata is a minute crustaceous insect, and the Eolis rufihranchialis a molluscum new to naturalists ; and the Pla- naria comuta appears to be lilcewise an acquisition to the list of British worms. They afford a small sample of the many remarkable inverte- brates that inhabit our shores, and which have found, to this day, no one willing to make known their singular forms and structure, that, through the medium of his intelligent creature, they may praise their Creator^ and evidence still farther the endless variety in his works and wisdom- ^ Let the heaven and earth praise Him,** says the Psalmist, *^ the seas, and every thing that moveth therein.'*

Plants. — I turn now with pleasure to the vegetable kingdom ; for here I have to speak of others* discoveries, and not of my own. It might, perhaps, be presumed that, because a flora of the district had been so recently published, there was little here to reward the student ; but the fact is greatly otherwise : and I esteem the numerous discoveries which have been made of species, and of new stations for the rarer ones, as a proof of the utility of our Club ; for the zeal which led you on was surely kept alive by the knowledge that there were around you'some who interested themselves in your researches, and were ready to give you their meed of approbation and applause. The sternest stoic of us all, it has been observed, wishes at least for some one to enter into his views and feelings, and confirm him in the opinion which he entertains of his favourite pursuits.

Since the publication of my Flora of Berwick^ there has been added, exclusive of some naturalized or recently imported species, to the wild plants of Berwickshire, 20 dicotyledonous, 8 monocotyledonous, and 1 8 cryptogamic species, the names, stations, and discoverers of which are inserted in your minutes. By much the most interesting of these, whe- ther we consider it in reference to its beauty or rarity, is the Saxifraga Hirculus ^ discovered in the parish of Langton, by our ingenious col- league, Mr Thomas Brown. Only two stations for this saxifrage have been recorded in our British floras, and both are in the south of Eng- land ; so that Mr Brown has had the good fortune — and good fortune never waits but on the industrious and intelligent — to make one of the most interesting additions to the Flora Scotica that has been made of late years. Another addition to that flora is due to Misses Bell and Miss Hunter, who have found, for the first time in Scotland, the Sisom Amo- mum growing at the Hirsel Lough, near Coldstream ; and these ladies deserve our best thanks for their contributions, and still more for their devotion to botany ; as their example and success caimot fail to recom-

* •* Hirculus, a diminutive from hircusy a goat. Now look at the hair which hearda our plant, and you will see why LinuKus calls it a * little goat.' It it juat like that happy playful fancy which he possessed so remarkably." — Mr Brotm, in litt.

10 Du Johnston's address.

mend it powerftiUy to popular attention. The Hieracium aurantiacum, the discovery of Miss Hunter ; the Hieracium moiled and Carex fulva, both detected, in the first instance, in Berwickshire, by Mr Brown ; the Hypnum stramineum (in fruit), another of his interesting additions to our list ; and the Lathyrus sylvestris^ and the Carex distans, lately dis- c6vered near Berwick by Mr Dunlop, deserve to be particularised on account of their rarity : the Pulmonaria maritima restored to our shores by the researches of the Rev, J. Baird and Mr Carr, and the Myosotis sylvatica of Langton woods, are preeminent for their beauty ; and the Chenopodium urbicum is interesting as the subject of a strange story, which purports that this weed could by cultivation be turned into a real strawberry, and relative to which there is a curious letter from the hap- less Josephine to her gardener, in her lately published Memoirs^ for a knowledge of which, as of the plant itself, we are indebted to Mr Em- bleton.

While, on the one hand, the Scottish flora owes two good additions to this Club ; on the other, it has contributed two also to the floral cata- logue of Northumberland ; and both of these are the discoveries of our Secretary. It was long believed that the vernal squill was peculiar to the western coasts of England ; but the discovery of it by the Rev. A. Baird on the coast of Berwickshire removed this their peculiar ornament and boast ; and Mr Embleton has extended its eastern range, for he finds it in abundance at Dunstanborough Castle. Aspidium Thelypteris is the other new Northumbrian plant ; and it is not a little curious that this fern, which is stated by Dr Hooker to be abundant in Scotland, should not be found at all in Berwickshire, and is so rare in the north of Eng- land that it has escaped the notice of the many acute botanists who have botanised there, until this late date, when Mr Embleton drew it from its lurking-place in Learmouth bogs, on the very verge of the kingdom.

May I urge those members of the club who devote themselves more exclusively to botany, to continue the researches which have been so productive during the past year ? for the field is not exhausted so long as there remains a corner of the county unexplored ; and there are, I ween, not a few

•* spots that seem to lie

Sacred to flowerets of the hills,"

where no one has yet wandered, and where no one will wander, " save he who follows nature." There is too much to learn of the habits and properties of our common plants ; and I may mention, as an illustration of the remark, the observation which was made on the butterwort {Pin- guicula vulgaris) during our excursion to Cheviot. It was then acci- dentally observed, that, when specimens of this plant were somewhat rudely pulled up, the flower-stalk, previously erect, almost immediately began to bend itself backwards, and formed a more or less perfect seg- «iont of a circle ; and so, also, if a specimen is placed in the botanic box,

DR JOHNSTON'8 ADDRESS. 1 1

you win in a short time find that the leaves have curled themselves I wards, and now conceal the root by their revolution. Now, the butter- wort 18 41 very common plant ; yet I am not aware that this fact of its ir- ritability has been ever mentioned.

Geology. — In illustration of the geology of the county, a very ehi- borate paper was read to us, at an early meeting, by our zealous col- league, Dr Thomson. He has described, in a clear and interesting man- ner, the geological structure of the parishes of Eccles, Greenlaw, Pol- warth, and I^ongformacus ; and thus has made a valuable addition to the sketch of the geology of Berwickshire which Mr Baird has given in the introduction to my Floray and which had more peculiar reference to the eastern parts. I feel myself unqualified to estimate the merits of this paper ; nor is it necessary to enter into any analysis of it here, since it has been printed in the last Number [September 1 832] of the Maga- zine of Natural History.

Such, Gentlemen, is a rapid indication of the results of our first year's exertions ; and, in my opinion, they do not discredit, but rather justify, the expectations of those who moved the institution of this Club, which, I doubt not, will work still more efficiently in future years. But, when I estimate the advantages of our association by the acquisitions it has made to the natural history of the county, I do it great wrong ; for I hold it to be more useful, as affording a point of rendezvous for the na- turalists of the district, where they may cultivate a mutual acquaintance ; where they may talk over their common pursuit and all its incidents ; where they may mutually give and receive oral information ; where each may nourish his neighbour's zeal ; where we may have our " careless season," and enjoy " perfect gladsomeness f and, assuredly the good feel- ing and humour which have hitherto characterised, and will continue to characterise, our every meeting, vindicate me in assigning, as the distinc- tive character of this Club, its social character.

I cannot, I must not, conclude this address, without an expression of, I trust, our united gratitude to the Preserver of all and the Giver of all good. That fatal disease which has walked over the length and breadth of the land, with fear in its front and mourning in its rear, has not left this county altogether unvisited ; and we cannot yet think of its ravages in the place where we are now assembled, without deep feelings of pity for the loss sustained by the survivors, and without gratitude tliat here its desolating course was stayed. * No member of the Club has been removed by death ; neither has misfortune visited any of us, save only one, who has been afflicted with a severe and lingering sickness, and has, in consequence, been hindered giving us that attendance and assistance which none was more willing and none more able to give.

Gentlemen, it is unnecessary to add any plea to induce you to con- tinue your efforts in favour of this Club. The pleasure attendant on our

* A very few cases of Cholera subsequently occurred in different parts of Berwickshire ; and the diseaae visited Berwick, Twccdmouth, and Sptttal with considerable wv«ri^.

12 REV. MR BAIRD's ADDRESS.

pursuits is so pure and genuine, and so various, that I cannot fear that any one who has fairly entered into their spirit will turn him away. The best argument, indeed, I know in favour of our studies is derived from this fact ; for the Deity has never affixed pleasure (I mean, a pleasure which the conscience approves, and which the memory delights ever and anon to recall) to any sublunary pursuit that is unsuitable to the dignity and condition of man. When the conscience utters her still voice to re- prove or condemn, it is time to desist, and leave the path we are follow- ing, however gaily it may be strewed ; but where she approves, there let lis follow, certain of reward. And who among naturalists ever found the fruit of his study turn ashes in the enjoyment ? Nor can it be : for what our internal monitor approves, the Scriptures also commend, and send us for instruction to the meanest things, to the ant and to the lilies of the field ; and bid us seek out His wonderful works, and to tell of them ; and thence borrow their moral lessons ; and call upon us to praise the Crea- tor, in " his contriving skill, profuse imagination, conceiving genius, and exquisite taste ; in his most gracious benignity and most benevolent munificence," through his creatures, from the creeping things of the sea even to his behemoth and leviathan.

Address read at the Second Anniversary Meeting of tJie Berwickshire Naturalists Club, held at Dunse^ September 18, 1833. By the Rev. A. Baird, President.

Of all earthly pursuits and acquisitions, that of knowledge has ever been considered, by rational and civilized beings, as the most important, dignified, and honourable. According, indeed, as men are destitute or possessed of this, we are generally disposed to rank them in the scale of humanity : For, as it is this which, more than any thing else, distin- guishes one man from another, so it is also this which gives to one an influence and an authority which another, who is destitute of it, let his external advantages be what they may, can never possibly command.

But, if knowledge in general be thus excellent and desirable, there is one particular species of it which must surely, in an especial manner, re- commend itself to every man of sentiment, of feeling, or of observation. The knowledge we allude to is the knowledge of nature, — the know- ledge of the earth we tread on, with all its varied tribes of animated ex- istence, and all the interesting phenomena presented by its inanimate objects,— the knowledge, in short, of that fair world which is destined to be the present habitation of our species, and of those wondrous works whereby the great Creator so conspicuously manifests himself to his creatures ; and whereby, likewise, is so clearly shewn his great and glo- rious character. Such a knowledge, we say, must surely appear of all others (religious knowledge expected), not only as the most interesting.

KKV. MR BAIRD's ADDRESS. 13

but also as tlie most reasonable and the most adapted to our present situation ; and well, therefore, lias it obtained the name of Natural Knowledge.

But it is not my present purpose either formally to enumerate the advantages of natural history, or to give an answer to the question which has so often been asked. Of what importance, or of what avail, are the pursuits of the naturalist ? That question has often been already most satisfactorily answered, and, however interesting or important might be its discussion in some quarters, it fortunately is not necessary in our present circumstances. We are already sufRciently convinced both of the utility and importance of such pursuits as those for which this Club was instituted ; and even though this utility were less capable of being proved than we conceive it is, we are sufficiently satisfied with the sim- ple pleasure which the following of such pursuits affords, and with the simple information and the rational amusement which we thence derive.

The advantages to natural science in general of such an institution as the Berwickshire Naturalist's Club, must be equally obvious without attempting a formal statement or investigation. Our labours are limited to a certain district, — we have a distinct and a specific field for exer- tion,— and we are thus led more minutely to examine into Nature's works and Nature's wonders, as well as more regularly to record our ob- servations, than if our field of examination were more extensive, and our object were more general and undefined. There is, besides, the very useful spirit of honourable competition to stimulate our exertions, and, as the reward of these exertions, there is the pleasure and the satisfaction which, we know, await even our most trifling contribution to the general stock of knowledge.

When these, and many other advantages, which will readily suggest themselves, are considered, it is not unreasonable to expect from the ex- ertions of such a body, many interesting discoveries and important addi- tions to the natural history of our country, and many curious facts af- fecting the state of natural science in general, which, but for the estab- lishment of such an institution, had remained in darkness and obscurity. Nor, as far as regards the Naturalist's Club of Berwickshire, are we dis- appointed in these expectations ; an institution, the second anniversary of which we are now assembled to celebrate, — an institution which, from its first formation, has been daily increasing both in numbers and re- spectability, and the labours of which, we are proud to say, have been neither insignificant nor unsuccessful. It belongs not to me, as a mem- ber of this society, to celebrate its praises ; but it certainly belongs to me, in the honourable situation I now hold in it, to congratulate you, as I do most cordially, on its increasing prosperity. When such an institu. tion was first proposed, it certainly was hoped, and fondly hoped, that it might prosper, and that we might do something towards the elucidation of the natural history of this interesting county ; but even the most

14 REV. MR BAIRD's ADDRESS.

sanguine of its original promoters could hardly have anticipated that its establishment should have been so cordially welcomed, and that it should have excited an interest so general and so great. It is, therefore, with no ordinary satisfaction that I either contemplate the present list of our members, or that I turn to the review of their labours since the celebra- tion of our last anniversary.

These labours during the past year, though hardly perhaps so inter- esting, in some respects, as those of the preceding one, have, neverthe- less, been far from unimportant. In some departments, indeed, they have been even more satisfactory. The most numerous contributions have been those of Dr Johnston : To our Secretary we are also indebted for various interesting communications ; while to Messrs Selby, Mitchell, Brown, W. Baird, and Dr Thomson, we are under additional obligations. But these contributions will be best enumerated by taking a brief review of the transactions of our several meetings during the past year.

And of these the first we have to notice is the Anniversary Meeting held at Coldstream in September last, — a very pleasant meeting, and at which many interesting communications were read. The day was spent in examining the Hirsel Woods, Birgham Muir, and Leithtillura, and Hirsel Lochs ; and to those who were present at this meeting, I need not recall either the very agreeable nature of the excursion, or the beauty of the scenery we were so often called upon to admire. Nor need I recall the pleasure with which we listened to our President's address on leav- ing the chair which he had filled so ably — a pleasure, however, which prevented us not fi:om duly appreciating the value and importance of various other papers which were laid before us. These were, 1 . A notice of a Merlin {Falco JEsalon) shot near Blanerne, on the Whittadder, by Mr Dunlop. 2. Notice of the occurrence of Grantia nivea^ Fleming, on the coast near Embelton, Northumberland, by Mr Embleton. 3. Notices of Plants hitherto unnoticed in the district, by Messrs Dunlop and Brown, and Dr Johnston. 4. An account of the Birds observed during the excursion at St Abb's Head in July, by P. J. Selby, Esq. 5. Cases of children poisoned by the seeds of Laburnum, by Dr Johnston. (See Mag. of Nat. Hist. v. 6. p. 74.) 6. A paper on the Geology and Botany of the coast of Northumberland, between Bamborough and Dun- stanborough Castles, by Mr Embleton. 7. A list of the Zoophytes of the same coast ; and a Meteorological Table from April to August, by Mr Embleton.

The next meeting of the Club which we have to notice was held in the month of December last, at Berwick-upon-Tweed, — a season of the year which suits not distant members, and when, consequently, our meet- ings must generally be expected to be thinly attended. Yet, was the meeting far from being destitute of scientific interest. In particular, we notice a very pleasing paper by Dr Johnston, giving a list of the more rare and valuable plants observed at the previous meeting at Coldstream,

HBV. MR BAIIID*K ADDREftK. 15

in which, among many otliers enumerated, we notice, um perhap* the mo8t interesting, the Agaricus applicatus of Withering ; a pUint not mentioned by Dr Greville in his Flora Edinensis, and which, therefore, may be considered as a fresh addition to the Scottish Cryptogamic Flora. In the minutes of the same meeting, we find recorded the discovery of the Mentha sylvestris, by Mr Dunlop, at Blanerne, on the Whittadder ; while our zealous botanical contributor, Mr Brown, among other good plants, gives us the Calicium Sphcproceplmlum, Parmelia caperatitSf Vaccinium Oxj/coccus or Cranberry, and Emiocarpon Weberi, forming altogether a valuable contribution to the botany of Berwickshire. At the same meeting, Dr Johnston communicated a list of the Echinoder- mata of Berwickshire, a very curious and interesting class of Marine Animals, the species of which now existing on the British coast appear to be few in number, though, in former times, they seem to have been more abundant and prolific. Belonging to the third family of this or- der of animals, Dr Johnston notices in particular one animal, of which he has made a new genus under the name of Fleminia muricaUi, in honour of the Rev. Dr Fleming, who has done so much to remove the obscurity under which the species lay previously to the publication of his History of British Animals. The individual thus added to our marine animals has been presented, by its discoverer, to the British Museum, where it is now deposited. A notice of an Albino family by Mr Embleton, and a continuation of his Meteorological Table for the pre- ceding three months, concluded the business of this meeting.

The third meeting of the Club was held at Cockbumspath, on the 3d Wednesday of April 1833, — a season when the naturalist begins once more to look around him with new hope and interest, and when nature, after the gloom and the repose of winter, begins once more to array herself in her robes of cheerfulness and beauty. The peculiarly back- ward state of the season, however, prevented the Club from nudging any very remarkable additions to the natural history of the county, and tended not a little to damp the expectations and the hopes which, both the return of spring and the natural beauty of the scenery of the neighbourhood had excited. Still, however, notwithstanding the heavy showers, and the un- usual coldness of the wind, the meeting was neither without enjoyment nor interest. Dunglass Dean at all events, was visited, and miserable indeed must be the day which will render it unworthy of unbounded and un- mingled admiration. Occurring in this beautiful station, two new plants, new I mean to the Flora of Berwickshire, were gathered by the Rev. John Baird. The one was the Chrysosplenium altemifolium, occurring mixed with the more frequent species, — Ckr. oppositifoli%tm; the otber was the Marchantia conica, growing on moist banks in considerable abundance, and in fine fruit. Various species of land shells were also gathered in the sheltered recesses of the dean. Among the communica- tions read at this meeting, we have to notice, with much pleMure, aeve-

16 REV. MR BAIRD's address.

ral interesting discoveries by our indefatigable member, Dr Johnston. The first of these is the addition of a rare fish to those previously de- scribed by him, as occurring in Berwick Bay, the Syngnathus cequoreus of Montagu. The second is a new Zoophyte, a species of the genus Plumularia, which its discoverer, with a propriety that M'ill be felt by every member of the Club, has named the Plumularia Catharina. The third is the Conferva coccinea of Dillwyn, many specimens of which had been procured in Berwick Bay during the past winter, and which, in the words of its discoverer, " forms a beautiful addition to the list of our marine algse." These communications were succeeded by a list of the Cirrhipedes of Berwickshire, also hy Dr Johnston ; and an interesting account by Mr Embleton of the Trigla IcBvis^ or smooth gurnard-fish, which was cast ashore at Newton, after a severe storm, from the south- east. The account of this fish was principally interesting, from the cir- cumstance that, hitherto, it has been chiefly observed on the coasts of Devonshire and Cornwall, and that, in all probability, a further exami- nation will prove this species and the Hirundo to be the same. At the same meeting, Dr Johnston mentioned that he had lately received from the Rev. Mr Campbell a specimen of the pochard duck {Anas ferina Lin^ shot near Coldingham Loch ; — while the pleasure of the meeting was still farther increased by the presence of Captain Alexander, 42d Royal Highlanders, a traveller of some celebrity.

The first summer meeting of the Club, which took place at Colding- ham on the 19th of May, was distinguished by a heavy rain, which, with occasional intermissions, lasted the whole day, and lessened very much the comfort, as well as hindered very materially the success, of the expedition. Yet some plants of considerable rarity, several birds, and many insects and worms, were observed and collected ; — while by those who then for the first time beheld the splendid scenery of " the Head," the excursion, I am sure, with all its drawbacks, will be long re- membered with delight. The loch, so pleasing in its general character, and so remarkable for its situation ; — the wide spread moors so finely undulating, and so elegantly carpeted with their thousand different wild- flowers ; — the magnificent precipices which form the mountain promon- tory of St Abb's, with their thousand times ten thousand feathered visi- tants ; and far beneath, and wide around as eye can stretch, the dread ex- panse of ocean, — these, altogether, form a scene than which a richer in natural phenomena, or one more striking for its grandeur and sublimity, is scarcely to be met with in our island, and sure I am that, round these shores, a plentiful harvest yet awaits our exertions. The plant of per- haps the greatest interest which this excursion afforded, was the Pote- Hum Sanguisorba, a plant new to the Berwick Flora, although in many situations by no means uncommon. For this addition to the botany of Berwickshire we are indebted to Mr Mitchell. The most important communications read at this meeting were, 1. A notice by Mr Embleton

REV. Mn oaird's address. '17

of the plants collected and observed in the last excursion. % A notice of the shells collected during the same excursion in Dunglass Dean, by Dr Johnston ; and, 3. A valuable and very ingenious paper by Dr Thomson, viz. ; a Register of the Barometer kept at Eccles Manse, du- ring the year 1832 ; from which the author deduced many curious facts and various conclusions of considerable importance. From the interest with which this paper was listened to, it is hoped that the example set by Dr Thomson, will have led othe;rs to institute a similar series of observations, and that, from different situations in the county, we shall have, from time to time, reports connected with this interesting depart- ment. At the same meeting were also read a notice by Mr Brown of two plants new to the Flora of Berwickshire ; and a notice by Dr John- ston of the Great Northern Diver ( Colymbus glacialis) being caught in a salmon-net on Spittal shore, 1 1th May 1833.

The 17th of July, when the Club met at Holy Island, was a day of unusual beauty. With regard to the excursion of the day, I, unfortu- nately, can say little, not having been present ; but we can all form some idea of its pleasure, when we know that the scene of the excursion was Holy Island, and the day one unrivalled for its splendour.

On looking over the minutes of this meeting, it appears to have been one of unusual business. Among other papers, we observe a notice by Mr Embleton, of the plants observed during last excursion ; — a very in- teresting and valuable notice by Mr Selby, entitled, " Onithological ob- servations made during the excursions of the Club in April and June ; " — and the announcement to the Society by Mr Mitchell, of two plants new to the Berwick Flora ; one, the magnificent Osmunda regalis, ob- served at the Boutin Linn, near Fenton in Northumberland ; the other, a species of mint, which solicited particular attention, and which has since been ascertained to be the Mentha crispa of Linnaeus. In the minutes of the same meeting, we observe an excellent paper by Dr Johnston, en- titled, " A list of the Invertebrate Animals observed during the walk from Coldingham to Coldingham Loch, St Abb's Head," &c. June 19th, in which he notices, as new to Berwickshire, the Helix ceUaria and H, purcL, Planorbis fontanus, and Pesidium ptdchellum ; and, as an addition to the marine botany of Berwickshire, the Sphacelaria cirrhosa of Gre- ville. At the same meeting was also read an interesting and elaborate paper, by Mr W. Baird, on that very curious animal the Gordius aqua- ticus or hair-worm, an animal by no means uncommon, but the struc- ture, the habits, and the general history of which have hitherto been very little attended to. The public business of the day was concluded by a paper by Dr Johnston on the failure of the Potato crop during the present year, — in which some probable reasons are assigned for the fact, but which, we suspect, is still in a great measure unexplained, and still, therefore, open to inquiry.

Such, then, is a very hurried and, I fear also, a most imperfect, recapt-

^8 REV. MR BAIRD's ADDRESS.

tulation of the labours of our Club during the second year of its exist- ence,— a recapitulation indeed so imperfect, that, had I not to plead, as an apology, a considerable absence from home, and continued profes- sional engagements since my return, I should feel almost ashamed to present it.

I conclude with only one observation. The preceding review shews that we have done something, and that the Club has not been instituted in vain. It also shews that the field of our labours is an interesting one, and that, though a little has been accomplished, a great deal yet remains to be done. Let us then continue our researches with vigour : let us stroll along our splendid shores : let us penetrate into the recesses of our woods and deans : let us ascend our mountain sides, and, with unwearied feet, let us follow the meanderings of our rivers and our babbling brooks ! There at least health and peace and rational enjoyment attend our footsteps ; and, while thus occupied, however the vulgar or the ig- norant may marvel at our joy, we can tell them that, with whatever eyes they may contemplate Nature, yet there are others who can

" Find tongues In trees, books in the running brooks, Sermons in stones, and good in every thing !"

Notice of the Birds observed in the Neighbourhood of St Abb's Head, on July IS. 1832. By P. J. Selby, Esq.F.R, S. E.,F.L. S.SfC, (Read on the 1 9th September 1832.)

Passing without further observation the various flocks of sparrows and other Fringillidae that enliven the shades of our highways, or are to be seen within the precincts of all the farm-steads and villages, I com- mence with the rock or shore pipit (Anthus aquaticus). This species, which is strictly confined to our rocky coasts, I observed to be plentiful near the village of Northfield, and indeed, along the whole of the coast we examined. In size it exceeds both the common and the tree pipet, (-4. pratensis and arboreu^). The claw of the aquaticus, though shorter and more curved than that of the pratensis, is longer and less incurv- ed than that of the arboreus. It feeds upon marine insects and worms, and is a permanent resident. The marten or martlet {Hirundo urbica) jaext attracted my attention fi-om the unexpected numbers in which it was seen hawking about the face of the cliff's, a habitat in point of situa- tion very dissimilar to those in which we are accustomed to observe them, such as the eaves of houses or the upper angles of windows. The nature and structure of the rock (porphyritic amygdaloid), which pre- sents a broken face, and a succession of projecting ledges, affords it however, peculiar facilities for the site and security of its curiously con- structed nest of clay ; and the offal, dung, &c. of the numerous sea birds, eann^ fail to generate an abundance and constant succession of insect

MR SELBY's notice OP BIRDS OBSERVED IN JULY 1832. 19

food. As we walked along the heights I observed the kestrel (Faleo tinnunculus) hovering in his characteristic manner in search of prey, and I liave little doubt, but that he finds a secure site for his eyrie in some of the adjoining cliffk. Tiiree or four carrion crows ( Corvus cO' rone) were also observed upon the rocks, but too wary to admit of our approach within gun-shot ; the eggs, and young of the sea-fowl, had, in all probability, attracted these depredators to such an unwonted locality. Three ravens ( Corvus corax) the largest and noblest species of the ge- nus, were also disturbed by our approach, and after soaring around, and attaining a considerable elevation, moved inland, uttering at intervals their loud and raucous croak. Before I enumerate the sea-fowl or a- quatics, I must not omit the rock-pigeon ( Columba livid), which inha- bits and breeds in the numerous caves which perforate the rocks in dif- ferent directions. This species is the original stock from which the various varieties of our common dovecot pigeon are derived ; it is found in similar situations upon the British coast, but never inland — the bird with which it was confounded ( Columba (Enas) being perfectly distinct, and possessing habits approaching more closely those of the cushat or ring-dove {Columba palumbus). Upon the ledges of the rocks the guillemots ( Uria troile) and razor-bills (Alca torda) were seen in great numbers, ranged in order, tier above tier, and looking at a distance like armies of pigmies : these upon the least alarm utter their peculiar curring kind of note, which, when mixed with the screams of the sea-gull and kittiwake, and heard from a distance, or softened by the murmur of the waves, produces a wild, though not disagreeable, species of concert, well according with the nature of the scenery which surrounds them. These birds each lay a single egg, of a large size and peculiar shape, being broad and round at one end, and tapering rapidly at the other, a form that prevents it from rolling or moving to any distance, even when placed on an inclined plane. The puffin or coulterneb {Fratercula arc- tica) perhaps as well or better known to us by the name of Tommy-Nody, also finds appropriate holes wherein to deposite its eggs. It does not ap- pear, however, to be numerous, as only two or three individuals were seen during the excursion. This bold headland is also the great breed- ing station of the Larus canus or common sea-maw ; it affects the up- per ledges, and recesses of the precipices, and was observed in great numbers, but so shy as not to be approached within gun-shot. The Larus rissa, or kittiwake, is also numerous, but does not breed in company with the other ; selecting in preference the small projecting angles, which barely admit of room for the reception of their egg* and young. As we returned seaward in the boat, several green cor- morants (Phalacrocorax cristatus) were seen perched uiwn the pin- nacles of the smaller isolated rocks, surveying with keen and watchful eyes our progress ; and always too much upon the alert, to permit us to approach within gnn-shot. The common cormorant {Phalacroeamx

20 MR selby's notice of birds

carbo) was also seen occasionally flying past, but at a considerable dis- tance from the shore. On our return, and to the south of Nortlifield, a small flock of the young of the Larus ridibundus^ black-headed or pewit gull, were observed : these in all probability had come recently down from Dunse or Pallinsburn, both great breeding stations in this district.

Observations on tlie Birds observed in the neiglibourhood of Coldbrandspath in April, and those at St Abb's Head in June, 1833. Bi/ P. J» Selby, Esq. (Read July 17. 1833.)

T^E cold ungenial weather which prevailed till the end of April, re- tarded the arrival of our summer visitants, at least ten days or a fortnight beyond the usual average period of their appearance ; and, from this cause, on the day of our excursion to Coldbrandspath and Dunglass, which, it will be recollected, took place on the l6th of April, not a single warbler or migratory bird came under our notice of any species. This, indeed, I anticipated from the backward state of vegetation, as I have for many years remarked, that the arrival of our songsters is regulated by, or ra- ther accords with, the first appearance of particular flowers, or the burst- ing of the buds of certain trees. Thus, the willow-wren (^Sylvia Tro- chilus) and black-cap ( Curruca atracapillcL) are never seen till the larch becomes visibly green. The greater pettichaps {^Curruca hortensis) and wood-wren {Sylvia sibilatrix) are considerably later, making their appearance with the bursting of the elm and oak. The spotted fly- catcher (Muscicapa grisola) is seldom seen before the oak is partly ex- panded ; and so with respect to the sedge- war bier {Salicaria Phragmites), grasshopper- warbler {Salicaria Locustella), and others.

The only bird which attracted notice was the dipper ( Cinclus aquati- cus), which we observed skimming along, and following the various wind- ings of the rivulet which flows at the bottom of Dunglass Dean. This neat and compact bird is the peculiar inhabitant of clear and rapid run- ning streams in hilly or mountainous districts ; being of very rare oc- currence upon the slow and sluggish rivers of the flat or champagne parts of the country. It is one of our earliest and, I may add, sweetest song- sters, commencing its lay as early as the latter end of January, or be- ginning of the following month, and its first brood is generally fledged or able to quit the nest by the middle of May. It dives with great fa- cility in pursuit of its prey, but certainly does not walk at the bottom of the water, as asserted by some writers ; the same exertion of the wings being necessary as well to keep it beneath the surface as give it pro- gressive motion, that we see used by all the natatores and true diving birds. The fry and spawn of fishes, insects, and caddis bait, which is

OBSERVED IN JL'NE 1838. 21

the larva of different species of phryganea, constitute its principal food. To obtain the latter in winter, when the rivers are mostly frozen over, it resorts to such places as remain partially open, as the heads of quick run- ning streams : In such situations on the Annan, Tweed, and other riven, I have repeatedly seen it dive into the stream from the margin of the ice, remain some time submerged, and again reappear near the same spot, and almost invariably with a prey in its bill, which it leisurely devoured on the ice.

During our excursion to Coldingham and the romantic scenery of St Abb's Head on the 19th of June, besides the birds communicated to the Club last autumn, the coot (Fulica atra) was observed upon Coldingham Lough, wher J it no doubt breeds in the rushes and other aquatic herbage at the nr>rchern extremity of this prettily formed piece of water. A large flock of herring-gulls {Larus argentatus) was also seen bathing and sporting in it ; and these, I afterwards found, had their breeding stations on particular parts of the Head, and the rocky cliffs to the north of it. This species had not been observed during our excursion in July 1832, having taken its departure from those haunts previous to our visit ; the common gull (Larus canus)^ which breeds in great numbers on the rock to the south of the Head, being the only species then visible.

Upon reaching the cliffs immediately north of the Head, and where they rise from the sea in fine broken and perpendicular faces to the height of 300 or 400 feet, our attention was attracted by the powerful and hoarse cry of a large species of Falco, two of which were seen soaring and wheeling in the air at a considerable heighty immediately in front of us. These I immediately recognised to be a male and female of the Falco peregrinus or common falcon. A nearer inspection of the precipice soon discovered to us the cause of their alarm and vociferous outcries, as we perceived two young birds (which the difference of size shewed to be male and female) perched upon a projecting angle of the rock. From their comparative tameness, and the short flights they took, when dis- turbed, along the face of the rock, it was evident they had but very lately quitted the nest. A shot was obtained at the young female within rea- sonable distance, and supposed to have taken fatal effect, as it was never seen afterwards, though the smaller bird remained visible as long as we continued on the heights. This eyrie of the peregrine has long been established, and it was from it that the late Mr Baird of Newbyth usu* ally obtained his caste of hawks, for each of which he gave the persons who undertook the perilous task of scaling the precipice one guinea. The castings of these birds were scattered in great profusion upon the tops of the cliffs; some which I examined were almost wholly composed of the bones and feathers of gulls and ether aquatic fowl, others were mixed with the featheri of partridges, and the bones of rabbits, and young hares.

Upon a low flat and isolated rock, about 1 50 to 200 yards from the

22 MR EMBLET0N*8 N6TICE OP THE SMOOTH GURNARD.

bottom of the cliff, we observed a flock of green cormorants {Phalacro- corax cristatus) busily engaged in prinning and drying their feathers. These individuals seemed conscious of the safe and unapproachable station they had selected for repose after the exertion of fishing, as they listened with apparent unconcern, and without shewing any alarm, to the report of our fowling-piece, which was fired off upon the cliff immediately above them. Upon the ledges of the precipices north of the Head, and upon the Head itself, the guillemots were perched in great numbers, the fe- males closely pressed together and incubating. Numerous pairs of razor- bills were also conspicuous : these generally select stations a little higher than the guillemots, and keep in distinct pairs, and are easily recognised, even at a considerable distance, by the form of their head and bill, and the superior blackness of their upper plumage. Several rock-pigeons {^Columba livid) were also seen upon wing, but, unfortunately, none £ame within range of shot.

Upon the stony hills round Coldingham Lough and the Head, the smart and prettily marked wheatear {^Saxicola CEnathe) were seen flit- ting from knoll to knoll, and, like its congeners, always alighting on the highest elevation. The whin and stone chats (Saxicola Rubetray S. Rubicola) were also observed where whin or furze prevailed ; and, in similar situations, the mellow call-note of the grey linnet {Linnaria cannabina) was repeatedly heard. I may also notice the common occur- rence of the rock-pipit {Anthus aquaticus) upon the rocks of the coast ; and the escape of a large brood of the diminutive wren ( Troglodytes eu- ropceus) fi-om their nest, from the face of one of the highest precipices of the cliff.

Notice of the Trigla Icevis or Smooth Gurnard, By Mr JR, EMBLETONy Surgeon. (Read 10th April 1833).

On the 5th of April inst., a very fine specimen of this fish ( Trigla IcBvis, Flem. Br. An. p. 215), was cast ashore at Newton by the sea, after a severe storm from the south-east. It is found in great abundance on the coast of Devonshire and Cornwall, but is a very rare visitant so far to the north-east ; and this specimen is the only one which has been seen by the fishermen in this neighbourhood, so far as I can learn. It differed, however, in some points, from the description given by Dr Fle- ming, and seemed to me to hold an intermediate place between the Tri- gla hevis and T, hirundo of that author. Its extreme length was 23 J inches. From the origin of the pectorals to the anal-aperture 4J inches, whilst the pectorals extended rather more than half an inch beyond it. Breadth of the pectorals 3 J inches : circumference of the body imme- diately at their base, 10 inches. The first dorsal fin had only 8 spines

MR W. BAIRO ON THE HAIR-WORM, 39

differing in this point from both the lavis and hirundo of Fleming, and the second and third spines were nearly of a length, and about a half inch longer than the first. The second dorsal consisted of 16, anal 15, veii« tral 6, and pectorals 9, agreeing in these points with the first of Fleming, caudal 1 8, and lunated. On each side of the second dorsal fin there ex- isted a row of large spines, increasing in size from its commencement to its termination, agreeing here with T, hirundo, Flem. At the base of the first dorsal, these spines had completely disappeared, and a rough ridge occupied their place, agreeing here with the 71 kevis. The lateral Jine was partly smooth, and partly rough; thus uniting another distinguish- ing mark of the two species : The colour on the back was of a greenish brown intermixed with red, whilst the sides were of a rich vermilion ; studded with spots of pure white. Belly pure white. The pectorals of a deep blue, green and red, blended together, and which, when fresh, ex- hibited a very beautiful appearance. The head and caudal fin were red. Pupil dark green. The membrane of the first dorsal fin was marked with large patches of the same bright vermilion as the sides.

Dr Fleming says that the fishermen on the coasts of Devonshire and Cornwall regard the two species as the same fish. The specimen that presented itself to our notice, seems to have united in it several of the charactei's which are looked upon as distinguishing the species ; and perhaps it may be found, upon a more extended examination, that the one is a mere variety of the other.

Remarks upon the Gordius aquaticus or Hair- Worm. By William BairDj Esq. Surgeon, H. E, L C, S, (Read July 17. 1833.)

This slender animal, though common enough in our ponds, seems to be one which naturalists have very cursorily or imperfectly described. Even its place in the general arrangement of animals is not properly fixed ; and with regard to its economy, little or nothing seems to be de- cidedly known, though a sufficient number of fables are related of it.

24 MR \V. BAIRD ON THE HAIR-WORM.

LinniBUS, in his Systema Natune, places it in his class Vermes, order Intestina ; and Muller, in his Vermium Historia, also places it in the class Vermes, and order Helminthica, corresponding to Linnaeus' Intes- tina. Cuvier, however, in his last edition of his llegne Animal, places it among the Annelides, animals, it must be observed, possessing red blood, and a double circulation of arteries and veins. If its situation in the general system be thus indistinct, it is no less unfortunate in its ge- neric relations, having apparently been frequently, perhaps generally, confounded with the genus Filaria. Linnaeus, in his Fauna Suecica, amongst several old authors, which I have not been able to lay my hands upon, quotes the curious work, Historia Naturalis Johnstoni, for a figure of the Gordius, which by Johnston is called the meer wurm. Upon examining this curious work, however, the figure there given is not a correct resemblance of our Gordius, but evidently a Filaria ; and from this figure being cited by Linnaeus as a figure of the Gordius, it appears probable, that that great naturalist had himself confounded the two ge- nera. Muller, again, in his description of this worm, which he calls GordiiLS Seta, mentions " that a variety is found with one extremity bifid, or divided into a fork with obtuse legs." In his description of the species in general, he says, the extremities are of the same colour as the rest of the body, and that one extremity is somewhat sharpened. Now it is evident from this, that his description of the species is of that of a Filaria ; and that his variety, with a bifid extremity, is in reality the true Gordius ; for in all the specimens which I have examined yet, and from different parts of Berwickshire, the tail is universally bifid, the ex- tremities are of a darker colour than the rest of the body, and neither extremity is sharpened more than the other. Smellie, in his Philosophy of Natural History, in speaking of the Gordius or Hair-worm, says, that in this country it is harmless ; but that in India and Afi'ica it is found to be exceedingly troublesome, insinuating itself under the skin, and pro- ducing dangerous consequences. This is the animal commonly known by the name of the Guinea-worm, which is a species of Filaria, and Smellie evidently confounds the two genera together. In a paper by a Mr Bird, in the first volume of the Transactions of the Medical and Physical Society of Calcutta, the Guinea-worm is attempted by him to be proved a species of Gordius, most probably, he says, the Gordius argillaceus. This is one of MuUer's species, I believe, and I have al- ready shewn my reasons for believing his description of the Gordius to be mixed or confounded with that of a Filaria, which may account for Mr Bird falling into this mistake. The fabulous account of tins animal is perhaps the most interesting part of its history. It is almost univer- sally believed in this country, by the lower orders especially, as produced by horse hairs being dropped into the water ; and it is not unusual to meet with people, who, with all the confidence of honest Gerard, in his account of the Barnacle Goose, declare that they themselves have proved

MR W. BAfRO ON THE HAIR-WORM. 25

the truth of this belief, by actual experiment : that they have thrown horse hairs into the water, and actually seen them come forth Itving- Gordii. No later than last week, an intelligent farmer assured me with much gravity and sincerity, that he had actually seen horse-hairs placed in the water and become living worms ; but when pressed upon the subject, his belief arose from his having seen those hairs when taken out of the water, and placed upon the palm of his hand, curl up like worms. When the learned herbalisfi? Gerard, can confidently state, that he has seen the Barnacle Goose spring forth full fledged, and in all his plumy glory, out of the diminutive barnacle shell, we need not so much wonder at the confident simplicity of our less learned rustics, with regard to an animal which possesses certainly very much the appearance of a horse hair. LinnaBus, in his Systema Naturae, mentions this opinion also, so that it appears it is not confined to this country alone. It is reported also of the Gordius, that if handled without sufficient caution, it will in- flict a wound at the end of the fingers, and produce whitlow. Linnaeus, in his Fauna Suecica, says, that the rustics of Smolandia believe that the bite of this worm causes the whitlow, and that they call the whitlow in their language Onda Betet, and that they give the same name to the worm itself. But though they believe thus much, he says, they are ig- norant whether it enters the body like the Guinea-worm. He farther states that these rustics have a method of curing the whitlow, produced by the bite of this worm, by making an incision with a knife, with which they had previously divided the animal into minute segments.

The serpent-like appearance of the worm, with the natural credulity and love of magnifying the dangers of an animal, the nature of which they are not acquainted with, will sufficiently explain these fables.

Linnseus further mentions, as the opinion of these rustics of Smolandia, that if this worm be cut into pieces, each separate portion will, polype- like, become a perfect animal. On Saturday the 29th of June, I cut one of these animals into six pieces, and left them in the saucer, in which the worm had previously been lying, for twenty days. On Wednesday, July 3, the intermediate portions between the tail and the head were found to be dead, having lived up to that day, but no appearance of the slightest reproduction was observable. The two extremities on the 4th were still alive, and shewed considerable powers of life, but not the slightest symptom of reproduction was observable in either of them.

When full grown, the Gordius appears to be about 10 inches in length : it is round and filiform, considerably resembling a horse hair or hog's bristle in diameter and general appearance ; the body is of equal size and diameter throughout its whole length, and has its two extremi- ties darker than the rest of the body, which is generally of a brown co- lour. In all the specimens which I have examined the tail is bifid, being divided into a fork, with very short obtuse legs. The skin is marked with numerous fine transverse rings, which require the aid of

26 DR Thomson's analysis of a mineral from the tweed.

the micioscope to be made visible ; and when placed under a high mag- nifier is seen to be beautifully and finely reticulated, producing in the sun's rays a play of colours. This ringed and reticulated appearance is well seen in parts which have become dry. The skin is very thin, and, when cut transversely, shews that internally the body is composed of a white medullary substance, in the centre of which may be seen the intes- tinal canal. The whole organization appears, as far as can be made out or seen, to be very simple ; so simple, indeed, says honest Muller, that " even by the aid of the microscope, nothing more fully can be made out of it." The same author says farther, no appearance of a mouth can be made out, though the very celebrated Plancus represents the mouth fim- briated. Plancus' work I have not been able to see to compare his re- presentation with what I have seen myself, and no author that I have seen describes it as being visible ; but though all appearance of a mouth escaped certainly for a time my utmost efforts, at length, by means of the powerful microscope belonging to Sir John Hall, Bart, of Dunglass, and after repeated examinations, I discovered at the very extremity in several specimens, a round aperture, having somewhat of a fimbriated margin round it. In other specimens in which the round aperture was not visible, I could distinctly see the white medullary part of which the internal part of the animal is composed, filling up the aperture, and in many a puckering was distinctly seen, as if the mouth were closed. Once, and once only, I distinctly, as I thought, saw the puckered ap- pearance give way while under the microscope, and the round aperture open to its full extent. This opening, therefore, I have no doubt is the mouth of the animal ; and as upon repeated examinations no other open- ing could be seen in any other part of the body, I conclude that this, as in some other animals, may serve the purposes both of mouth and anus, or that this latter aperture remains to be discovered.

Analysis of a Mineral from the Tweed. By Dr Thomson. (Read December 21. 1831.)

The mineral of which the analysis is subjoined, occurs on the banks of the Tweed, near St Boswell's, in connexion probably with the sand- stone of that district. It is extensively used as a slate pencil in the neighbourhood where it is found, and resembles indurated claystone.

Colour milk white : opaque : lustre dull : sectile : hardness 2.5 : spe- cific gravity 2.558. Before the blowpipe per se becomes blue and brittle. Fuses with carbonate of soda into an opaque bead ; with borax and salt of phosphorus into a transparent glass.

Its constituents are —

BAROMETRICAL REGISTER KBPT AT ECCLE8 MAN8E.

27

Silica, .	44.300 » 2.3 Atoms.
Alumina,	40.400 - 1.7 ...
Lime, .	0.755
Magnesia, .	0.600
Water, .	13.500 = 1.2 ...

K455

ConBideriDg the lime and magnesia as accidental, the formula will be A/'i S^ + Aq, or bi-subsesqui silicate of alumina. ,1

From the locality where the specimen analyzed was. procured, the mineral may be termed Tuesite,

Barometrical Register ftept at Eccles Manse during the years 1832-33. By Alexander S. Thomson ; ivith Observations by Robert D, Thom- son, M. Z).

The Barometrical diurnal heights were registered at 10 a.m. regu- larly. The mean altitudes for the several months of the year 1832-33 are collected in the following table : —

January,

February,

March,

April,

May,

June,

July,

August,

September,

October,

November,

December,

Mean,

Corrected for Temperature,

Mean,

1832.	1833.
29.509	29.649
.486	28.969
.091	29.344
.808	.120
.829	.414
.734	.388
.83G	.824
.486	.490
.848	.234
.494	.142
.458	.130
.274	28.960
29.571	29.305
29.523	29.257
29.390

The subjoined observations are deduced from au inspection of this register : —

1. The lowest station of the mercury during 1832 was 28.6 on the 5th of October, to which point it fell the same day from 29 inches ; and this rapid subsidence was followed by a heavy rain, which continued for several days.

The greatest elevation of the barometer was 30.1 inches, which it at-

28 BAROMETRICAL REGISTER KEPT AT ECCLES MANSE.

tained several times, but more especially on the 10th February and 21st and 22d September.

The range of the barometer for 1 832 is thus found to be one inch and a half. The lowest boiling point of water was therefore 209°.32 Fah- renheit, and the highest 212°.17 ; the mean for the whole year 211°.08, the range of boiling point being 2°.85.

2. A fall of y^^ was frequently attended with a shower, or even heavy rain. A subsidence of ^§^ was very speedily followed by the same consequences, as on the 14th and 15th August 1832. This result forms a striking contrast with observations made between the tropics, where we find, in similar circumstances, a more decided fall of the mer- cury, seldom less than j\ previous to the occurrence of rain, which is about double the subsidence as obtained by this register.

3. When frost occurred, the barometer generally rose from ^^^y to half an inch. Snow most commonly depressed the mercurial column, while a thaw elevated it.

4. The mean height of the barometer for the two years 1832 and 1833 is, after correction for temperature, (29-523 f 29.257) -f- 2 = 29.390 ; from which we may calculate the elevation of Eccles above the level of the sea.

I By the formula 45 (^ — t), applied to the diminution of temperature

by the rarefraction of air, reckoning the density of the air in the same latitude at the sea 1, and assuming 29.82 as the standard barometer pressure for Britain, we have 29.82 : 29.39 : : 1 : .985 r= density of air at Eccles, Then 1 -f- 985 z=: 1.015. By substitution the formula be- comes 45 (1.015 — 985) = 45 X 030 = 1.35 = difference of tempera- ture between the two stations.

Assume the law of equable progression, 1 : 270 : : 135: 364 J = feet above the level of the sea, shewing a gentle ascent of 315|^ feet to Stitchell, which is about five miles distant, and 680 feet above the sea, according to Mr Blackadder, and 533| to Hume Castle, which, by the same authority, has an elevation of 898 feet.

We arrive at the mean temperature, by comparing the mean tempera- tures of stations well established. The mean temperature of Glasgow, which is situated in 55° 31' 32" north latitude, is 47^ 75', and that of London 50°, St Pauls being situated in 51° 30' 49' north latitude ; from which it appears that the temperature of the atmosphere diminishes 0.53 Fahrenheit, for every additional degree of latitude. Eccles is situated in about 75° 40' north latitude, or 11^ miles south of Glasgow, with a difference of + jj^ temperature. Hence we have for Eccles a mean temperature of 47° 85'. By deducting the difference of tempera- ture of the two stations, as obtained by the formula, from the standard temperatiu-e 48° 66' . — 1°.35 = 47° 31' = the mean temperature, which is, however, probably less than the true number by a considerable sum.

( 29 )

List of Plants discovered within the District^ since the publication of Dh Johnstos's Flora of Berwick-upon-Tweed.

a. DICOTYLEDONES.

Chrysosplenium alternifolium — Alternate-leaved Golden Saxi- frage. Langton woods : at Longformacus : near Cockburn mill, Mr Thomas Brown. Dunglass Dean, intermixed with the C. oppo- sitifolium^ from which it differs in growing in a more scattered manner, seldom above ten or twelve specimens together ; in pre- ferring a more shady and less damp spot, seldom growing where the water stands ; and in having both leaves and flowers of a larger size and bright colour ; Mr 11. Embleton.

Saxifraga hypnoides — Mossy Saxifrage. Dunsdale and Henhole Hopes, part of the Cheviots ; Miss Hunter, and Miss E. Bell.

Saxifraga hirculus — Near Langton wood, Berwickshire ; Mr Thomas Brown.

Peplis portula — Water Purslane. In a ditch on the tower farm near Cockbumspath, plentiful ; Rev. A. Baird. Near the head of Lemington Dean ; Mr Can*.

Lotus decumbens — Spreading Bird's-foot Trefoil. Cultivated fields between Coldingham Lough and the sea; Dr Johnston and Mr Embleton.

Lathyrus sylvestris — Narrow-leaved Everlasting Pea. Banks of the Whiteadder, opposite Hutton mill, in great abundance ; Mr K. Dunlop.

SpiRiBA filipendula — CoTHmon Dropicort. Belches Braes near the Lees ; Miss E. Bell and Mr Embleton. Perhaps not indigenous there.

Si SON AMOMUM — Bostard Stone-Parsley. Sides of the Hirsell Lough, plentiful ; Misses Bell and Miss Hunter.

Bidens tripartita — Three-lobed Bur Marigold. By the side of a ditch near the brewery in the village of Chatton, Northumberland ; Mr Mitchell.

HiERACiUM molle — Soft-leaved Ilawkweed. Langton woods; Mr Brown.

HiERACiuM prenanthoides — Rough-bordered Hawkweed. Wooded bank opposite Bank-house, Berwickshire ; Mr W. Baird.

Lithospermum maritimum — Sea Gromwell. On the shore at the mouth of the Pease-burn ; Rev. J. Baird. Lumsden shore, plentiful ; Mr Carr.

Myosotis sylvatica — Wood Scorpion-grass. Langton woods. " M. sylvatica is now (May 25.) adorning with its large lovely bios-

30 ADDITIONS TO THE FLORA OF BEIIWICK-UPON-TWEED.

soms the banks of Langton woods. It is, I am persuaded, a good species, though it may be difficult to give technical marks. No one who has seen it, will deny its claims, or unite it with M. arvensis.^* Mr Brown.

ScROPHULARiA AQUATiCA — Water Figwort. On the sides of the Whiteadder below Claribad mill, plentiful ; Mr R. Dunlop.

Mentha sylvestris — Horse Mint. In the neighbourhood of Blan- erne, abundant ; Mr Dunlop.

Mentha crispa, Linn, — Side of Wooler Water near Coldgate mill ; and about one mile and a half above Langleford, on the borders of a rivulet flowing down from the Cheviot, and near its junction with the Wooler Water ; Mr Mitchell. A specimen of this addition to the British Flora being sent to Mr Winch, he pronounced it to be the M, crispa of Linnaeus, an opinion which has been since con- firmed, and it is understood that a figure of it will soon appear in the Supplement to English Botany. The following extract is from a letter of Mr Mitchell : " I took the mint to Mr Bennet, who has the chai'ge of the Linnean herbarium. On comparing it with Lin- naeus* specimens it is M. crispa^ as you mentioned : there seems to be no natural habitat for it except in Northumberland, for though Linnaeus gives Siberia, Switzerland, and Hartz in Germany, the first of these, by a pencil note of Sir J. E. Smith, appears to have been founded on a very different plant. The Swiss habitat adopted from Haller is taken from specimens stated by the author himself to be exotic : and the plant of the Hartz, first noticed by Weber in 1774, appears, from the reference by Hoffman of Ehrharts* plant to the same locality, to have been the M. crispata."

Stachys ambigua — Ambiguous Woundwort. In Edmonstone Dean, Berwickshire, among whins, sparingly ; Dr Johnston.

Chenopodium urbicum — Upright Goose-foot. Hirsell Woods ; Mr Embleton.

Salix argentea — Silvery Willow. In the bog on Birgham Muir ; Dr Johnston. In a bog to the north of Sweet-hope farm house ;

Mr Brown.

h. MONOCOTYLEDONES.

Sparganium natans — Floating Bur-reed. In the foss at the top of Coldingham Lough, abundant ; Dr Johnston. Northfield Mill- pond ; Mr Dunlop.

Sera PI AS latifolia — Broad-leaved Helleborine. Woods at the Hirsell and Castle-law ; Misses Bell.

Carex distans — Loose Car ex. Mouth of the Whiteadder ; Mr R. Dunlop.

Carex fulva — Tavmy Carex. Near Ledgerwood, Mr T. Brown. Bogs

ADDITIONS TO THE FLORA OP BERWICK- UPON-T WEED. Si

about Buncle : and plentiful in the bog below Lintlaw ; Mr R.

Dunlop. Carex vesicaria — Bladder Carex, In boggy ground above Wpoler

Water, opposite the Shepherd's house near Middleton Hall; Mr

Mitchell. Carex (Ederi — CEderian Carex, In a bog near Mayfield, abundantly;

Mr Dunlop. Bromus racemosus — Smooth Brome-grass, In fields near Coldstream

and Anton's Hill ; Miss Bell.

c. CRYPTOGAMOUS.

AsPiDiuM thelypteris — Marsh Shield-fern, Learmouth bogs, North- umberland ; Mr 11. Embleton.

OsMUNDA regalis — Commou Osmund-royal, Routing Linn near Fen- ton, Northumberland ; Mr Mitchell.

Phascum axillare. Wettish Dean a little to the south-east of Rae- cleugh Head ; Mr Brown.

Gymnostomum fasciculare. Langton Lee's Cleugh; Mr Brown.

Orthotrichum diaphanum. On the wall of Langton Wood; Mr Brown.

Bryum MARGINATUM. Langton Lee's Cleugh ; Mr Brown.

Hypnum stramineum. Choose Lee, in the parish of Langton, in fine fruit; Mr Brown.

Hypnum piliferum. Langton Lee's Cleugh ; Mr Brown.

Hypnum murale. Langton Wood ; Mr Brown.

Hypnum cordifolium. Langton Woods ; Mr Brown. In the bog on Birgham Muir ; Dr Johnston.

Marchantia conica. Dunglass Dean, plentiful ; Rev. J. Baird. Lang- ton Lees ; Mr Brown.

Jungermannia ciliaris. Buncle Wood; Muir near Langton Lees, plentiful about Stitchel 'House ; Mr Brown.

Jungermannia crenulata. Langton Lee's Cleugh, and at Ledger- wood ; Mr Brown. Dunglass Dean, Mr Embleton.

Jungermannia reptans. Langton Lee's Qeugh ; Mr Brown.

Jungermannia resupinata. Lammermuirs near Westruther ; Road- side near Nesbit ; Mr Brown.

Jungermannia tomentilla. Langton Lee's Qeugh ; Mr Brown.

Jungermannia serpyllifolia. Sides of a little stream that falls into the WTiiteadder above half a mile west of Abbey St Bathan's ; Mr Brown.

CoLLEMA NiGRESCENS. Langton Woods ; Mr Brown.

Gyrophora polyphylla. Abbey St Bathan's ; Mr Brown.

Parmelia caperatus. Hairy-heugh Crags, Berwickshire ; Mr Brown.

32 ADDITIONS TO THE FLORA OF BERWICK-UPON-TWEED.

Caliciubi sPHiEROCEPHALUM. On the barks of trees about Stitchel House ; Mr Brown.

Sticta fuliginosa. Langton Lee's Cleugh ; Mr Brown.

Chroolepus ebenea. On shelving rocks in Edmonstone Dean, Ber- wickshire ; Dr Johnston.

Sphacelaria cirrhosa. On the shore a little north of St Abb's Head ; Dr Johnston.

Dasya cocciNEA. Berwick Bay, occasionally cast on shore in abun- dance ; Dr Johnston. Near Embleton ; Mr Embleton.

Ulva defracta, Withering. Coldingham shore, after a storm ; Rev. Mr Campbell. It is in some respects an interesting sea-weed, — mostly so in this ; that no one seems yet to have detected a specimen with the slightest appearance of a root. Mr C.'s specimens were equally imperfect. The plant was first discovered on the beach at Wey- mouth, by Major Velley, and described by him in Withering's Ar- rangement of British Plants. It was afterwards found by Mr Brodie of Brodie, on the coast of Fife, who supplied the specimens figured in English Botany ; and subsequently Messrs Borrer and Hooker gathered it on the shores of the Orkney Islands ; — so that, if a rare fipecies, it has at least an extensive geographical range. Dr Hooker says it is very unlike any other ulva, " and has rather the appearance of animal matter ;" but the opinion here hazarded has no foundation. It is a true vegetable, as I am perfectly satisfied by a careful ex- amination of it, possessing in fact the character of the genus Du- montia of Greville, who, however, takes no notice of this species in his Algae Britannicae : Dr Johnston.

Palmella riYAiiiNA. In the Hirsell Lough, plentiful, swimming on the surface in green gelatinous, globular, more or less lobulated masses, from the size of a pea to that of a walnut ; Dr Johnston.

Nostoc verrucosum. In a small rivulet running into the Whiteadder near Ord- wheel ; Mr Brown.

Hydnum membranaceum, Bot. Gall. On a decaying trunk of some tree in New-water-haugh wood ; Dr Johnston. About Eccles, common ; Dr Thomson.

Peziza macropus. Langton Lee's Cleugh ; Mr Brown. This fungus, when recently dried, exhales the peculiar disagreeable smell of mice in a remarkable degree.

Peziza coccinea, Bot. Gall. ii. 740. On the ground in damp places in the woods about the Hirsell.

Peziza umbrina, Grev. Fl. Edin. 419- On the ground in the Hirsell fir plantations.

Peziza punctiformis, Grev. On decayed trees in Hirsell plantations.

( 33 )

Address to the Bertvickshire Naturalist^ Cluby read at its Third Anni' versary Meeting, September 17. 1834. By P. J. Selby, Esq. President.

Gentlemen, Having now to resign this chair, and the honourable station in which I was placed at the last anniversary meeting of the Club, by your kind but unmerited partiality, I shall proceed, in imitation of the example recommended by the first promoter of the Society, and so ably illustra- trated by himself and his successor in their respective addresses, to give a rapid, though I fear it m ill prove a very imperfect sketch of the pro- ceedings at our different meetings, and the result of the labours and researches of the various members of the Club during the past year. Before I enter more immediately into this detail, I may be permitted to congratulate the Qub upon its present prosperity, and the probability — I had almost said certainty — of its increasing usefulness in furthering and accomplishing those objects which first led to its institution. It has been increased, since the last anniversary, by the acquisition of several members,* all of whom, I hope, have entered the Society prepared and fully determined to contribute each his mite to the general stock of in- formation. This progressive increase of members augurs well for the stability and future success of the Club ; — and shews, that the motives which first led to its formation, begin to have their proper weight, and to be duly appreciated, and that the advancement of science, and conse- quent increase of knowledge, is considered likely to be benefited by the existence of such societies as our own. The first meeting to which I call your attention, is that of the anniversary, held at Dunse in Septem- ber 1 833. Of the excursion of the day, I can give but an imjierfect account, having been unable to attend it in person ; but from the minutes of the meeting, I can gather, that it was not devoid of interest : for although the season of the year precluded the hope of meeting with any great variety of Flora's gifts, several samples of that rare plant, the Saxifraga HircvIuSy were procured ; and as the woods and plantations, which embellish the vicinity of the town, and the castellated mansion of Mr Hay, were selected for the walk of the day, many interesting mosses ,

• Rev. Mr Wallace, of Abbey St Bathan's .... April 16. 1834.

George Darling, Esq. Weetwood June 18. ..

Mr William Carr, Ford -

Rev. Mr TurnbuU of Eyemouth July 30. ..

Mr Francis Douglas, Kelso -

Captain Mitford, R.N. • - *'pt- '7. ...

Rev. J. Parker, Curate of Chatton .....

B. N. c. — NO. II. c

34 MR selby's address.

lichens, and other cryptogamic plants, were observed in their secluded and umbrageous recesses. To the excellent address of the President, delivered upon that occasion, I need scarcely recall the attention of those who had the satisfaction of hearing it in person ; and I am sure, those who did not enjoy that pleasure, will rejoice with me, that the subsequent publication of our Transactions has now placed it within their reach. Among the communications read at the meeting, the first related to a bird belonging to the genus Cataractes (Skua), killed upon the adjoin- ing coast, and which, at that time, I could not precisely refer to any of the described species, although I pointed out its near affinity to the Cataractes (Lestris Richardsonii) of the Fauna Bor. Amer. I have since ascertained, that it is identical with that kind, the under plumage being subject to vary, and not always possessing the uniform brown tint, as described in that work ; and further, that it is this species which annu- ally resorts to the northern islands of Scotland, for the purpose of incu- bation, and not the true Cat. parasiticus (Arctic Skua), as ornithologists have hitherto generally supposed. Dr Johnston afterwards read an inter- esting paper, on the Insects, Mollusca, &c., observed at the previous meet- ing held at Holy Island, enriched with valuable and curious remarks on their structure and functions. Among the insects I may particularise the Phyllopertha Frischii^ a beetle of rare occurrence in the north, and very locally distributed, and which has only once been met with beyond the northern boundary of the Tweed. Next followed a paper by our worthy secretary, Mr Embleton, on the plants observed at the former meeting, and a continuation of his interesting meteorological observations. Mr Mitchell also read an account of the brown amethyst found in a ravine near Cheviot, amongst the debris of the porphyritic trap-rock, ex- hibiting a specimen of the gem, and a list of new habitats for rare plants. This was succeeded by an ingenious paper of Dr Thomson's on the Tormentilla reptans, and the genus Potamogeton ; and the business of the meeting was concluded by a curious account of the game of Ball, as played at Dunse on Pastern's Eve, by Mr Thomas Brown.

As usual, the next meeting was held in December at Berwick-upon- Tweed, where, in defiance of the short days and wintry blasts, a nume- rous party assembled. The wetness of the morning prevented any extended excursion ; but towards noon, when the mists and rain cleared off, a ramble along the steep and rocky coast, to the north of the town, as far as the lofty pinnacle-shaped rock, called the Needle Eye, from the perforation at its base, delighted those who had not before visited the environs of Berwick ; and the interest of the walk was increased by a search along the shore for algae and other marine productions. At this meeting I may mention, that the Club resolved to print the communica- tions already read before it, a resolution I hold to be of great import- ance, and which, I hope, will be repeated at regular intervals, not only

MR selby's audrbm* 35

on account of the intrinsic value the papers may individually poMCM, and which are thus made available to others ; but, as an evidence that the Club is really earnest in its intentions and pursuits, and that the ad- vancement of science and knowledge, however limited in degree, is the principal object, and the ultimate aim, of our association. At this meet- ing we were favoured with communications, connected with zoology, botany, and meteorology. In the first department, Dr Johnston gave excellent descriptions of two species of the genus Delphinus, viz., the Delpkintts phoccena (common Porpesse), and the Delphintu melcu or deductar (Casing whale). His account, which embraced the anatomy and peculiarities of structure observable in these marine aniraab, was further illustrated by beautiful figures and drawings from the pencil of his amiable lady. The occurrence of the Phalaropus lobatus, a rare British bird, was also mentioned as having been killed within the precints of our district ; and a rare moth,* from the wooded glen of the Pease Burn. A list of localities of rare plants was furnished by our accomplished coadjutrix Miss Bell ; and a second list of the same nature was also read by Dr Thomson, who added three species of fungi to the cryptogamic catalogue of the district. The same gentleman favoured the Club with an analysis of a ball of iron-pyrites found near Eyemouth. The business of this meeting was concluded by a paper from the pen of Mr William Baird, who delighted the assembled members by his admirable and poetic description of the Aurora Borealis, as it had appeared on various evenings during the late autumnal and winter months. Upon one occa- sion he adverts to a noise he heard during the brightest corruscations of the meteor, resembling, as he describes it, the gushing of a sudden breeze among trees, or the noise produced by the quick flight of a bird overhead. This peculiar sound, he adds, was heard tlie same evening by other observers in the neighbourhood ; but whether it actually origi- nated with, and was caused by the aurora, or proceeded from some other extraneous source (though nothing occurred at the time to account otherwise for its production), he ventures not to decide, knowing tliat a discrepancy of opinion exists upon this point, which can only be set at rest by repeated and long- continued observation of the phenomena. I need scarcely recall to the recollection of those who attended the Spring Meeting, the pleasant and instructive day we passed at Abbey St Ba- than's, so sweetly situated upon the secluded and quiet banks of the silvery Whitadder, where, while some amused themselves, with dexterous art and well- trimmed flies, in deceiving the finny tenants of that limpid stream, others resorted to the woods and fields in search of Flora's treasures, or those insect tribes which, recalled to life and activity by the revivifying influence of the season, had ah-eady quitted their hyber- nacular retreats. Several specimens of a trout were taken, in form and

• IUpparchus rapilionarius, taken by Mr WUliam Dunlop.

c 2

36 MR SELBV'S ADDRESS.

character analogous to the Orange fin of the Tweed, which there i« every reason to believe is the fry of the Salmo Trutta of authors, the common sea-trout of most of our northern rivers. I may also mention that, in passing through the woods of the " Retreat," several ring-ouzels (Merula torquata) were observed. These had apparently just arrived from more southern climes, and were then wending their way to those npland rocks and craggy dells, their appropriate siniimer retreats, there to be engaged in those momentous offices connected with the reproduc- tion of their species. The wheat-ear (Saxicola (Enanthe), another of our summer visitants, and one of the first harbingers of spring, was also seen flitting across the moory waste, catching the attention of the orni- thologist, as it flew from stone to stone, by the conspicuous display of its snow-white rump. The communications made to this meeting were, 1st, A paper by Sir William Jardine, on the hirling of the Solway, with some observations on its habits and distribution ; and further shewing that this fish appears to be identical with the silver-white of the river Tweed. By most ichthyologists it has been considered a good specie* ; in which opinion I am still inclined to concur, although, upon a late occasion, it was deemed by Monsieur Agassiz, an authority of great and acknowledged weight, to be a variety only of the Salmo Trutta of Linn. Further observations, therefore, upon its structure and habits, must be carefully instituted, in order either to establish its claim, by characters of sufficient importance, to a specific distinction, or, if found wanting in them, to erase at once its name from the station it has hitherto held in our systematic arrangements. The same gentleman mentioned the fact of the alpine swift ( Cypselus alpinus) having again been killed in Ire- land, and the occurrence of the Larus Sahini in the same country. He also adverted to the curious variety of the hare found in that country, possessing a fur of a different quality and colour from that of the com- mon kind, and more analogous to that of the alpine hare {Lepus varia- bilis^ Flem.) When first noticed, it was supposed to be a distinct and undescribed species ; but farther observation leads to the conclusion, that it is only a marked variety of the Lepus timidus, — intermediate stages, as it were, having been found, which connect the extreme variety with the common type. Mr Henderson afterwards gave a portion of a meteorological register, which he was requested to continue ; and after the exhibition of a rare species of star-fish, the Ophiura granulata, new to the Berwickshire district, by Dr Johnston, the meeting was con- cluded by an interesting notice from the same gentleman, of some Ro- man funereal urns, recently dug up at Murton, near Berwick.

The first Summer Meeting in June, was held at Millfield, in the richly cultivated vale of Till, but being at that time absent upon an excursion to the wilds of Sutherland, I can only speak of the occurrences of the day, from the minutes of the Club. From these it appears, that the anti- cipation of a delightful and productive walk, to the hill of Yeaveri ng-

MU sblby's address. T)7

Cell, was, unfortunately, in a great measure disappointed, towards noon, hy a heavy and continued rain, which compelled the party, however re- luctant, to seek the shelter of the village inn, but not before that rare and lovely plant, the Pyrola secunda, had been culled by Dr Johnston and Rev. Mr J. Baird. Communications from both these gentlemen were afterwards read ; that of Mr Baird referred to a plant found near to Kirk-Yetholm, and which he endeavoured to prove was the Anemone ranunculoidesy and not the Ranunculus auriconius, as had been suggest- ed by Professor Graham. It, however, appears, that doubts still remain upon this point, which we may hope to have resolved, by the reappear- ance of the flower in the same locality where it was first discovered by Mr Baird last springs who has undertaken to watch narrowly its pro- gress the ensuing season. Dr Johnston's paper contained a notice of the plants and insects observed at Abbey St Bathan's in April last. Among the former, he particularizes the Populus tremula, which grew, evidently in a wild state, upon a bank of natural brushwood, nearly oppo- site the little inn, and the Morchella esculenta (Morel), a rare fungus in this district, but which was that day gathered in considerable abundance in the woods around the " Retreat." He also added to his former list of Ber- wickshire fishes four new species, among which we notice the Blenniiu tentacularts,* a fish new to the Scottish Fauna, and of rare occurrence upon the English coast. Mr Armstrong mentioned to the Club the fact of the ring-ouzel breeding upon the hills in the neighbourhood of Wooler, from whence he had procured the nest ; and that a hooded crow ( Corvus cor- nix), had this last spring paired with a carrion crow ( Corvus corone) at Fowberry, M'here it was killed from the nest, containing eggs. Examples of a similar nature have also been known to occur in Dumfriesshire, by our colleague Sir W. Jardine ; and Temminck remarks, that in the northern countries of Europe, where the C. corone is rare, a mixed breed is sometimes produced between it and the C. comix, I cannot, how- ever, entertain a doubt as to the specific difference of the two birds, al- though Dx Fleming, I believe, hesitates in considering them distinct ; the marked and constant difference of plumage, the form and size of their bills, their different cries, easily distinguished by the accurate observer, and the dissimilarity of habits and manners, evidently separate them too far, to warrant us in considering them as mere varieties of the same spe- cies. This is indeed further strengthened by the rarity of such associa- tions, and the circumstances under which they always take place, viz. when one of the species is rare and thinly disseminated, as in those parts quoted by Temminck, or in our own country, where some accident has detained the C. cornixy and prevented it re-migrating at the usual period with its congeners. Circumstances again uufortunately prevented my

• Of Brunnich. Cuv. Reg. Anim. ii. 237. The CrcMteH Blenny of Pennant — Hr Varreily to whom the specimen wns presented.

3S MR selby's address.

presence at the July meeting of the Club at Smailholm, where a lovely day and an interesting excursion, in a district rendered classical by the magic pen of Sir Walter Scott, appears to have given unalloyed satisfac- tion to the assembled members of the Club, and to their visitors from the Tweedside Physical and Antiquarian Society. The principal object of the excursion was the examination of Whiterig Bog, remarkable for its extensive deposit of shell-marl, used by the agriculturists of the district as a manure, or alkaline corrective. The Peel or Tower of Smailholm, one of the Bor- ' der defences in earlier times, was afterwards visited, and the botanical treasures of the morass, at the foot of the rocky steep upon which it is perched, where several interesting plants, such as the cranberry ( Vacci- nium OocycocciLs), sundew {Drosera rotundifolid), &c. were gathered. Several additions to the Berwickshire Flora were announced, as the dis- coveries of our colleagues, Miss Hunter and Miss Bell, whose exertions and success in enriching the jF/or«ofthe district, have before been adverted to. A pleasing and graphic account of the excursion of the Club in June was afterwards read by Dr Johnston, and the business of this meet- ing was concluded by some remarks upon a deposit of marl by Mr Mitchell, which he further illustrated by specimens of the shells compo- sing it.

Such, gentlemen, is a rapid, but inadequate recapitulation of the la- bours and proceedings of the Club during the third year of its exist- ence, but from which, however imperfect it may be, we can gather, that much important information, upon various subjects connected with the objects we have in view, has been brought before it, and that many interesting additions, in the various departments of natural history, have j-ewarded the zeal of our colleagues, and enriched the catalogue of our local Fauna. It may perhaps be objected, that the excursions of the last year have not been so productive as those of the two former ; but, even allowing it were so, can we feel disappointed or even surprised that such should be the case, when we consider the limited district to which we are confined, and that the greater part of the ground has already been trod- den by the Club ? Besides, it is by a closer and more minute investiga- tion than we can afford to bestow, during our appointed walks, that the zeal of the entomologist, the botanist, or the cultivator of any other department of natural history, can expect to be fully rewai'ded. But even should our walks afford nothing new, or that we had not previously met with, still I hold that one great object of our meeting remains in full force, and its utility is but slightly, if at all restricted, for it is the associating together in friendly communion of individuals engaged in si- milar scientific pursuits, who otherwise have but few opportunities of in- tercourse ; it is in the interchange of opinion and sentiment thus person- ally enjoyed, and to those friendly discussions tending to elucidate truth, or correct erroneous views, that, in my humble opinion, the expe-

MR 8BLBY 8 AODRB88. 90

diency, as well as the chief utility, of such associations as our own are to be estimated. Let it not, however, be supposed, that I imagine the field of discovery in the district we embrace, or even in the very limited portion of it to which our walk this day has been restricted, is either ex- hausted or destitute of objects to rewai'd the patient and zealous disciple of nature. On the contrary, I feel confident that the mine is still rich and productive, and that our provincial fauna may yet, through our ex- ertions, be greatly extended. Witness, I may almost say, the daily dis- covery of species, many of them new, others which have not hitherto been observed within the limit of our district, by our highly-gifted and respected associate, whose labours are at present especially directed to those curious and interesting beings belonging to the invertebrate class, and whose acute and microscopic eye, aided by the pencil of his amiable consort, has made us familiar with the wonderful structure of many of those extraordinary creatures. Witness, I may add, the specimens of the rare and elegant insect, exhibited this very day, and captured within view of the apartment in which we are now assembled.

But should our research unexpectedly, and contrary to what I really think can possibly happen, prove unrewarded by the discovery of any thing new, or even rare, let not our ardour be depressed, or a feeling of disappointment turn us aside from the contemplation of Nature's lovely works ; for, though I admit the acquisition of a new or unexpected ob- ject is accompanied with a feeling of a pleasant and gratifying descrip- tion, and is calculated to foster and increase our zeal, still another, and in many cases an unexplored field, lies open to all interested in these pursuits, sufficient of itself to occupy our attention, and reward the ut- most labour we can bestow upon it,^ — I mean the physiology and structure of what we already possess, or can at all times easily acquire ; a study the most delightful, and at the same time the most instructive; a study which, in well-regulated minds, cannot fail, by the wonders it discloses of consummate wisdom, admirable contrivance, and beautiful adaptation, to improve and raise the mind to that omnipotent and beneficent Being, the author of the universe and all that it contains, and to call forth those feelings of adoration, and gratitude, and love, the legitimate and only proper objects of all our learning and scientific acquirements ; and which may teach us to exclaim with the sacred poet of old, " He spake the word, and they were made ; lie commanded, and they stood fast.**

P. J. S.

( 40 )

Notice of the Capture q/* Deilephila Galii {Scarce Spot Elephant Moth) a rare Lepidopterotis Insect^ belonging to the Family of the Sphingi- dae, Leach. By P. J. Selby, Esq. of Twizell House.

On the evening of the 1 2th of August 1 834, soon after sunset, when looking after Phalaenae in the garden at Twizell House, my attention was attracted by a large moth hovering, in the manner of the Humming- bird Sphinx (Macroglossa stellatarum), in front of the flowers of a Mo- narchal and probing their tubes with its long extensile proboscis ; wait- ing an opportunity, I succeeded in securing it, when it proved to be a beautiful and newly excluded specimen of the Deilephila Galii Steph. one of our rarest British insects. A second was taken in the same gar- den the evening of the 14th August; and I have since learnt that an- other, now in the possession of Dr Johnston, was secured about the same time in the neighbourhood of Berwick. This is the first authenticated instance of the occurrence of this beautiful sphinx in the north of Eng- land, and in the south four or five examples only of its capture are re- corded.

Notice of the Brown Amethyst. By James Mitchell, Esq. R.N.

I HAVE found that rare and beautiful gem the brown amethyst, in a ravine near Cheviot, Northumberland, called by the people around the Diamond Quarrj^, from the numerous specimens of rock-crystal, and other specimens of crystallized quartz, found there. A specimen of the brown amethyst, cut and set, I now submit to the inspection of the So- ciety. Previously to my finding this mineral, it was not known to exist in Northumberland, for the locality is not mentioned by Professor Jame- son in his splendid and hitherto unrivalled work on mineralogy. This ravine, which is formed by the washing away and consequent decay of the porphyry rocks by a small river, exhibits blocks of various sizes of quartz-rocks amongst the clay of its banks. Many of them on being bro- ken discover drusy cavities, the walls of which are filled with most beau- tiful crystals of quartz of various colourg, tinged by iron, some yellow, others blue, and some jet black, while others are the fine rock-crystal, having no colouring matter. Some of the crystals I have found covered with a red ochry crust of iron-ore, which could not be scraped off by the knife. The brown amethyst I discovered in single perfect crystals amongst the yellow detritus of the decayed porphyry ; and I have no doubt that they had come from some drusy cavity in the quartz-rocks.

( 41 )

Remarks on a Deposit of Shell-Marl. By Mr James Mitchell, Sur- geon, Royal Navy.

About a mile and a half from Wooler, Northumberland, on the estate of Colonel Hughes, called Middleton Hall, there is a very extensive deposit of shell-marl, about three or four acres in length, and one in breadth. The Colonel remembers it as a lake, with its margin and banks adorned with trees and shrubs ; it seems to have been fed by numerous springs, some of which exist even in the present day ; but it has been so well drained that now it may be crossed anywhere in safety, and is indeed so dry as annually to yield a fine crop of natural hay. Only a very small part of this agricultural treasure has been dug into, no more being taken out than suffices for the use of the estate, and it has produced very luxuriant crops. Yet, small as is the part which has been opened, there is suffi- cient to interest the observer of nature. Previous to its being drained, the peat was so spongy "as to measure about four feet deep ; it is now re- duced to between two and three. In this peat, which covers the marl, were found oak and willow trees, with acorns, hazel-nuts, &c. ; but do re- mains of animals have yet occurred in it. The marl, so far as they have yet dug, is, in the best places, about ten feet, but it varies in thickness, and it is very likely that it will be thicker in the centre. It is white, with rather a yellow tint. In its upper strata the shells are very perfect, but below, from the greater pressure, they are broken or comminuted, and in general obliterated. They are the same species which are found in fresh-water ponds at the present day ; and, through the kindness of Mr Nichol of Edinburgh, I am enabled to give their names, viz. Cyclas cornea, C. pusilla, Succinea amphibia, Planorbis contortus, PI. fontanus, Limneus pereger, Valvata obtusa, and V. spirorbis. There was found also in the marl two complete skeletons of the red deer(Cervus elephas), with very large branching antlers. They were standing in an upright position, which seems to corroborate the statement of Mr Lyell, who says — " Deer, and such species as take readily to the water, may often have been mired in trying to land where the bottom was soft and quaggy, and, in their efforts to escape, may have plunged deeper into the marly- bottom. Some individuals, we suspect, of different species, have follen in when crossing the frozen surface in winter, for nothing can be more treacherous than the ice when covered with snow, in consequence of the springs which are numerous, and which, always retaining an equal tem- perature, cause the ice, in certain spots, to be extremely thin, while, in every other part of the lake, it is strong enough to bear the heaviest weights.** — Prin. of Geol. vol. ii. p. 251.

( 42 )

Facts relating to the Tormentilla officinalis. By Dr R. D. Thomson.

The following tables have been drawn up from observations on the Tormentilla officinalis,^ which were made with the view of contributing to the determination of a question which has interested most botanists — whether the genus Tornientilla should be considered as distinct from Potentilla, or whether the species of the former genus should be ranked under the latter. I have seen observations somewhat similar, but upon a less pai'ticular plan, than those I have detailed, for nothing has hither- to been related regarding the soils upon which the different specimens examined had vegetated, which must be considered of very considerable importance in determining the effect of soil in increasing or diminishing the number of petals. The plants subjected to examination were col- lected on four distinct formations, viz. 1. Mica-slate, 2. Old Red Sand- stone, 3. New Red Sandstone ; and, 4. Diluvium. By the latter term is to be understood the grav^lleft by the retiring of Loch Lomond, on the west side of that lake, on the road from Helensburgh to Luss, which passes through numerous artificial-looking tumuli, presenting a rounded outline. A careful search satisfied me that these were formerly islands in the lake, similar to those which now vary so beautifully its surface, and which have been left as isolated hillocks by the gradual draining of the lake. The gravel consists of clay -slate. The new red sandstone at Helens- burgh is formed of fragments of clay-slate, imbedded in clay, obviously a product of the disintegration of the clay-slate rocks, and is overlaid in general by a stiff reddish soil. The new red sandstone of Berwick- shire appears to be closely connected with the carboniferous series. These observations seem necessary in order that the subsequent facts may be better appreciated.

PACTS RELATING TO THE TORMENTILLA OFFICINALIS.

43

Nummary

100

200

300

600

700

900

1000

5th Petal imperfect.

4th Petal deeply cleft.

6th Petal imperfect.

1000

en ft > B50 5

200

300

400

500

Summary,

l||L

1000

1000-

100

200

6th imperfect.

98

12

10

10

10

10

Summary.

f 2 Petals X divided.

300

400

500

600

700

900

1000

1000

s

s s Q

Summary,

100

200 300 400 500 600 700

700

91

5

2

1 _1_

93 5

1

"97~ 2

1 98

1 1

98

2

99 1

94 2 2

_1

98

_2_

964 22 4 4 2 1 1 1 1

99

98 2

]pyke

in a cul- .tivated field, f 5th Petal very I minute.

98 \

6

1

10

44 MR BROWN ON THE GAME OF BALL

It appears, therefore, that of 3700 specimens of flowers, 3628 have all the characters of Tormentilla ; 43 possess those of Potentilla, while the remaining 29 vary in the number and proportion of the divisions of the calyx and corolla. The conclusion to which these facts in- clines is, that the genus Tormentilla does exist, and that the occasional multiplicity of petals and sepals is to be referred to luxuriance of growth.

Auffiut 1834.

The Game of Ball as placed in Dwise o?i Fasterr^s Eve, By Mr Thomas Brown.

As one object of this Club is to examine the antiquities of Berwick- shire, a brief notice of the above game may not be unacceptable. Though still kept up, the interest taken in it has greatly decreased, and it may not, improbably, disappear ere long. It is not so much, therefore, from its present state that a complete description is to be drawn, as from the recollections of the oldest inhabitants. I have only to regret that the details here presented are not more complete.

Fastern's Eve, or, as it is here called, Eastern's E'en, was once almost, if not altogether, a holiday to the inhabitants of Dunse. As in many other parishes, cock-fighting was the principal amusement during the forenoon, and, at one period, it seems, to have been in high estimation. The parish school, which was set apart for it, is described as having been sometimes crowded to the door, and the fees collected on the occasion formed a perquisite of some value. It is certainly to the honour of the present generation that this practice has disappeared.

The amusements of the afternoon are both more peculiar and inviting. The game is ball, played in a manner which, if not peculiar to Dunse, is at least not common. Preparations for it used to begin nearly a week before. Three young men were chosen to conduct them, and were called " ba'-men." They met on the Wednesday of the preceding week, to hold, along with their friends, the shaping of the ball, when they pa- raded the town, accompanied by a drum and fiddle, playing the tune, —

*' Never let the grce gang doon For the gude o' our toon."

In this style they called at the houses of the more respectable inhabi- tants, danced with the servants, and received contributions.

Till the day itself arrived, their only duties were to collect these con- tributions and prepare the balls. Three are required for the game, but four are always prepared. The family at Dunse Castle have so liberally supported the practice, that it has been customary to leave there one of the balls, which it is said are preserved. Of those played with, the first

AS FLAYED IN DUN8E ON FA8TERN 8 EVE. 4«)

h gilt, and called the ** golden ha\\" the second, from its colour, is called the " silver ball ;" the third is spotted.

About eleven o'clock in the forenoon the honour of throwing off the ball was at one time exposed to auction, in the churchyard, over one of the tombstones. The arrangement of the working classes in Dunse, under the different trades, was at that time much more complete than at present; and it was a subject of considerable competition among them who should have the honour of throwing up the ball. My inform- ant states it as a very early recollection, that the whip-men (carters) bought it for fifteen shillings, — a sum which, making allowance for the difference of the value in money, shews the estimation in which it was held. The children of the Drummelzier family, or of the more respect- able families in Dunse itself, have of late enjoyed the honour, but it has not unfrequently been left to the ball-men themselves.

It was from the top of a small building that stood close to the old Town-house, that the ball was usually thrown. Since that was taken down, it is simply from the street. About one o'clock the shops are shut, — the golden ball is thrown off, and the game begins.

The opposing parties are the married and unmarried men. Their ob- ject is not to kick the ball, but to snatch it up and carry it off. This, however, is exceedingly difficult. It is thrown into the middle of the crowd, and whoever happens to gain it, is sure that hundreds will rush on him from every point. The scenes to which this leads, are, as may be supposed, exceedingly varied and amusing. At one time the crowd is rolled together in a mass, every individual in which is making the greatest exertions to gain or retain the ball. And should the possessor of it be able to escape, or to throw it to any distance, the rush which is made, and the eager pursuit, exhibit a very animated siglit. The game of the married men is to carry the ball into the church, the doors of which are set open on the occasion. The unmarried men endeavour to reach any mill in the parish, and put the ball into the hopper.

The contests, though conducted in good humour, are usually very de- termined, and when the game was in higher estimation than at present, it is said that accidents sometimes happened from the pressure of the crowd.

Though the unmarried men might carry the ball to any mill in the parish, they generally endeavour to reach Clock-mill, about half a mile to the west of Dunse. It was once customary, therefore, for a party of their opponents to be stationed before it, and many a hard contest took place there. The parties, however, scarcely met on equal terms. Tlie young men, spent with previous exertion, were no match for these fre«h opponents ; and it not unfrequently ended in their being plunged in the mill-lead. If, however, in spite of all opposition, the mill-hopper was fairly reached, the game was won. And then came their honours. The miller entertained them with pork and dumplins ; and, what was of far

^

MR BAIRD ON THE AURORA BOREALIS.

more importance, dusted them, especially their hats, with flour. Like the laurel wreaths of other regions, this marked them out for the gaze of their fellow-townsmen.

In this way the three balls are played for successively. The person who succeeds in kirking or in milling — such are the phrases — the first or golden ball, receives from the ball-men a reward of Is. 6d., for the se- cond Is., and for the third 6d.

I have no means of ascertaining the antiquity of this practice. The oldest inhabitants tell us that, ever since they recollect, it has been fall- ing off. It seems indeed at one time to have been engaged in with much greater spirit. Whoever did not play was marked, and the inha- bitants not unusually assembled next day to inflict punishment. They dragged him forth — carried him down to the cross, and, as is said, knocked him against it. When one thinks of the population, leaving for one day their laborious ocicupations, and entering with spirit into the excitements of this game, he would be a stern moralist who would for- bid them the enjoyment. But every picture has its darker shades. The evening was generally spent in dancing and drinking. It was remarked too, that if any private quarrels had arisen, they were one way or other settled and set at rest on Pastern's E'en.

On the Aurora JBorealis. By Mr William Baird.

In the winter season of the year, when botany can no longer afford its usual animating enjoyments to the lovers of flowers ; when the birds, which made our summer groves vocal with their music, are silent, and seldom to be met with by the ornithologist ; when the greater part of animated nature, in short, is either dead, torpid, retired to their holes and caves for shelter from the severity of the weather, or seeking by a rapid flight new summers in a warmer clime ; when even the few pur- suits which the botanist or zoologist have still within their reach, are further interrupted by the inclemency of the season, " vapours, and clouds, and storms," or by the shortness of the days, " which driving sleets deform," the meteorologist can still find full employment for his powers of observation. The storms and blasts of winter all contribute materials for his peculiar studies. Pleased; he

" Hears the winds roar, and the big torrent burst. Or sees the deep fermenting tempest brew'd In the grim evening sky."

The ever varying state of the clouds afford him constant amusement, whilst he derives great delight and satisfaction in watching, by means of the barometer or sympiesometer, the frequent changes in the pressure and density of the atmosphere. Many meteorological phenomena of a

MR BAIRD ON THE AURORA BOREALIS. 47

more interesting nature still are of frequent occurrence at this dead sea- son of the year, and well-deserving the notice of the observer of nature. As few phenomena of this character have hitherto been taken much no- tice of in this Club, I shall make no apology for introducing to you some observations made upon a very beautiful phenomenon, which has been

exhibited in great brilliancy several times since our last meeting I

mean " those dancing meteors," that ceaseless shake " a waving blaze, refracted o*er the heavens" — the Aurora Borealis. I do not intend mak- ing any detailed remarks upon the theories connected with this interest- ing phenomenon, but merely to describe the appearances as I witnessed them upon two occasions since our last meeting, within this district, and then make a few observations upon the state of weather following their appearance. The first occasion alluded to was the 18th of September last, the evening of our last anniversary meeting, upon which evening I observed the phenomenon in great splendoul*, whilst travelling from Dunse to Cockburnspath. As soon as daylight had disappeared, the phenomenon commenced being visible, and as the evening advanced, it waxed more and more brilliant ; and though, for some part of the time, a clear moon of five or six days old shone with considerable brightness, it did not at all impair the brilliancy of the " waving blaze" of the aurora. At first there was observed a white arch, resembling a light cloud of the " Cirrus" for- mation, extending over the northern horizon nearly from east to west about 20° or 30° above the horizon. This at first was faint, while some remains of daylight lingered on the hills, but gradually, as the evening became darker, the arch waxed brighter, and then we were made sen- sible of its unsteady blaze, now fading away, till only a dim arch could be seen, and anon suddenly starting forth to its original brilliancy, but never altogether disappearing. Soon aflerwards, perhaps half an hour afler the arch became visible, jets of white light shot forth from the edge of the arch in one or two places, and streamed over to the zenith. As these disappeared, fresh portions of the arch shot forth fresh streams of liquid light, which blazed over half the heavens, disappearing in their turn as rapidly as they formed, and anon being replaced by fresh and more brilliant streams, till at times the whole northern half of the sky blazed bright with the flickering meteors. From the west side of the arch, long tapering streams shot forth in a slanting direction towards the zenith, in the centre beautiful straight jets tapered up towards the same point of the heavens, while, from the eastern portion of it, long splendid streams slanted their fine points upwards, and all three parts converged their points towards the zenith, like the radii of a circle. While this bril- liant display lasted, occasionally a smaller arch of white light would form a few degrees above the larger one, and from its edges smaller and much shorter jets would be frequently sent forth, which, beginning towards one extremity, would sometimes dance and leap, and run in tiie most extra- ordinary manner along its upper edge, and now and then assuming pris-

4S MR BAIRD ON THE AURORA HOREALIS.

matic colours, recalled to our minds an exhibition of the figures of a ma^ gic-lantern upon a most magnificent scale. Well may they be named the " merry dancers," and well might the more savage nations of the north, in former ages fancy, in such exhibitions as these, they saw the powers of the air holding their high revels in the clear sky.* This splendid display of these beautiful meteors continued for nearly two hours, w^hen they gradually decreased, became dim, and finally disap- peai'cd. On the other occasion alluded to, a different, but more magnifi- cent display still, took place, which I observed whilst at Yetholm about the middle of October. The night was still and calm, not a breath of wind was to be felt ; the moon was within a few hours of its change, and con- sequently was not visible. About eight p. m. upon going out, I was sur- prised at the brightness of the night, and, distrusting my know ledge of the moon's age, I looked aloft to see if that luminary was visible. The first glance of the sky explained the brightness of the night, and at the same time filled me with astonishment. The whole welkin, from east to west, was in a blaze of light ; and I remarked that, though there was a bright space stretching for some degrees above the horizon in the north, the grand display of the streaming meteors was from east to west, while at the same time the few that came from the north stretched to the ze- nith, and some from the west shot up in that direction also, and from all the three points converged towards the centre of the sky. Words can- not do justice to the magnificent scene, — the streams of light were in constant motion, moving with vast velocity, and often sheets of liquid light stretched over a great space of the sky, suddenly disappearing, and being replaced by magnificent long sharp-pointed pencils of light, which darted up to the zenith in one continued blaze. Once or twice, when a more than usually brilliant display took place, and was accompanied with these sheets of light, I thought I distinctly heard a noise, resembling ex- actly the sound of a sudden but gentle breeze of wdnd amongst the trees, — a low, soft, but momentary gush of sound, as it were, not unlike the noise of the quick flight of a bird overhead. I looked to the shrubs and some short trees near me, but not a twig nor a withered leaf was in motion : it could not have come from them. A mill-lead was within a few hundred yards of me ; and, from the stillness of the night, its noise could be distinctly heard from where I stood ; but the sound I have men- tioned was not, to my ears, the sound of falling water, — neither was there any bird to be seen. As I never before heard a similar sound during a display of the aurora, and as the noise, generally said to have been heard, is described as a crackling noise, I satisfied myself at the time, that it must have been the noise of the water only partially con- veyed to my ears, or that it was the effect of imagination ; but I was

• On the appearance of this meteor, the dogs of the hunters on the shores of the White Sea lie down in terror; and the name given to the meteor by these hunters is (transhitcd) the raging host is passing !

MR BAIRO ON THE AURORA BOREALI8. 40

aflerwards informed that tlie same sound was heard on the same evening, in the neighbourhood of Cockburnspath, and the hearer describes it as somewhat resembling the low but quick flap of a bird's wing. I stat« tliis with mbch diffidence, however, well knowing the discrepancy of opinion upon this point. A few nights after this, there was another al- most equally brilliant display, and since that they have been of no un* frequent occurrence, though not to any extent.

It is a general opinion that a bright or frequent display of these beaur tiful meteors f^etokens bad weather ; and though I am not acquainted with the results which learned men have come to upon this sulject, I am aware that this inquiry has called forth the observations of several me* teorologistg, and that the scientific M. Arago of Pari», in particular, has bestowed much attention on the subject, and I believe has had frequent communications from naturalists in this country concerning it. I am sorry that I cannot bring forward here, a detailed account of the weather as it immediately succeeded the appearances I have attempted to de- scribe ; and owing to the delay attending the forwarding of his meteo* rological instruments from Edinburgh, I have not been able to avail my- self of the meteorological diary or journal which the Rev. Mr Wallace of Abbey St Bathan's some time ago kindly promised to furnish the Club with, and with which I had hoped to have been able to supply the want of my own observations. A general recollection, however, remains of the weather following these appearances, which will, perhaps, be suffi- cient, in the mean time, to shew the probability of the opinion, that they are precursors of stormy weather. The day following the first exhibi- tion, the sky in the forenoon presented the appearance of an immense number of finely pointed and waved linear " cirri,** not very unlike the long streams of light seen on the preceding evening. These soon be- came mixed with the " comoid'* variety of " cirrus,** or mare*8 tails, ac* companied with some specimens of the " plumose** variety, which latter varieties are generally acknowledged by meteorologists to be precursors of wind and rain. The latter part of September, it will perhaps be re- membered by many, was characterized by blustering changeable weather, storms of wind arising at frequent intervals, shattering the trees, and stripping them of their leafy glory. Owing to their being chiefly from the west, however, little or no damage was done on this coast. About twenty-four hours after the appearance of the second display I have men- tioned, a fierce storm of wind arose, accompanied with heavy showers of rain: the weather became cold and dismal, and on the 14th October the Cheviot Hills, a little to the south of Yetholm, were covered with snow. About the same time the Tweed and Teviot were swollen to their banks, and a series of broken and severe weather continued for some time. Frost and snow since then have been but little felt, but it cannot have escaped the notice of all the members of the Qub, what fierce and great storms have raged for some time back, and what lamentable disasters at

B. N. c. — NO. II. n

50 SIR WILLIAM JARDINE's NOTICE OP THE

sea have filled the columns of our journals. Being chiefly from the west- ward that these fierce storms have blown, this coast has suffered but lit- tle, but the coasts of the west of Scotland, England, and Ireland, have teemed with shipwrecks, deaths and desolation ; hundreds of lives have been lost, and property to an immense amount irrecoverably lost and de- stroyed. Ninety thousand tons of shipping have been calculated to have been lost this year, and a large part of this immense loss has hap- pened within the last three months. The observations of one individual, and the inferences to be deduced therefrom, are of little value by them- selves, and I only offer these few remarks as a contribution towards a subject of great interest, and well entitled to further inquiry, and as they may be useful by way of comparing with the observations of other indi- viduals upon the same subject.

Notice of the Herling of the Solway being found in the Tweedy with some Observations on its Habits and Distribution. By Sir Wil- liam Jardine, Bart.

Among the many species of fish which inhabit or occasionally resort to the rivers of this country, the family of the Salmonidae contain by far the most important part, and the rents arising from their capture form a considerable amount in the value of the fisheries of Great Britain. The species whose habits I shall now attempt in part to describe, is not of itself sufficiently important to form a large article of commerce, or to rank for much value in the accounts of the taxmen of the fisheries, though I believe that in many districts, and particularly in the western coast of Scotland, much more might be made from it ; but at the first appear- ance of decrease in the salmon fisheries, it was conjectured by many of the proprietors that this fish was the fry or young of the salmon ; while it was advanced by others, as an argument against this, that it was not found in either the Tay or the Tweed, two of the most important salmon streams in Scotland. In some rivers nets of less than a certain width of mesh were not allowed ; but on the part of the taxmen it was of conse- quence to make it out distinct, and to supply the markets as far as they could. In this way a point of much importance was involved, for had the herling been proved to be the young salmon, some additional means must have been necessary to preserve them fi'om a destruction which in some rivers is immense. It is now generally known to be a species en- tirely distinct, though proper characters have not been affixed to it, and I regret that I cannot now give them with satisfaction to myself, less from the want of materials, as from being unable to compare and contrast them with some of their congeners.* I propose, therefore, to confine

• Gill covers, .	. 11	FinsV, . .	. 11
FinsD, . .	. 14	_ A, . .	. 12
^. P, . .	. 14	Vertebrae, .	. 60

HERLINO OF THE SOL WAY BEING FOUND IN THE TWEED. 51

ray present observations to those habits whicli have come under my own notice.

This fish I consider to be the aS'. alhu of Fleming, the Heriutg or Hir ling of the Scotch side of the Solway Frith, the Whiting of i\\e Eng- lish side, and by which name it is also known in the Eden and Esk, the Phinnock of the north and west of Scotland, the White or Phirmock of Pennant, and the Silver White of the Tweed tacksmen.

In the Solway Frith (where I have had the most frequent opportuni- ties of observing them), they commence their approach to the mouths of the rivers about the middle and towards the end of June, if the season has been remarkably dry, and perhaps a few days earlier if there has been much rain. From this time they continue running till about the end of August, when the greatest body of the shoal is either past or taken. The height of the run, however, may be said to be about the last weeks of July, and their numbers at this time are almost incredible. In the rivers they are caught with the common sweep-nets, in the Frith by the stake-nets of small mesh, or, as they are called, herling-houses. Many hundreds are taken at once in each enclosure at every tide ; — the whole neighbourhood are for a short time supplied with them ;— cart- loads are sent for sale to Ecclefechan and Lockerbie and the surround- ing villages, and I have once or twice known them reach Moffat, a dis- tance of above thirty miles from the nets. This abundance, with little exception, seems general wherever they are found.

They enter the fresh waters for the great business of spawning, and I have observed that in the larger rivers, the great body of the shoal leave the main stream and seek the smaller tributaries, and very few remain where the water continues strong and heavy. The spawning commences earlier than that of the salmon, is of course sooner finished, and by the end of February almost the whole of the old fish have returned to the sea. The young I have never been able to see ; it is probable, how- ever, that they are hatched earlier, and make their way to the salt water when of a small size, and three or four months is a sufficient interval for them to have obtained the siie and weight of their first appearance in tlie following June.

It may be noticed as remarkable in the history of this fish, and at va- riance with the habits of the other British salmon, that from tlie time of the return of the old fish or kelts to the sea, not an individual is aeeo till the appearance of the great shoal : a few days before ftBiigglan •!>- pear, and they are the signals for preparations being commenced for their destruction ; but in the intervening four months between March and the end of June, they are never to be met with. In this respect they more resemble the Coregoni, which are completely gregarious, and also the herring, to which I believe the above mentioned genus letds.

The fish in the Solway very seldom reach 2 lb. in weight Upon their first arrival i lb. and J lb. is a common size, afterwards the greater

d2

52 HERLINO OP THE SOLWAY FOUND IN THE TWEED.

proportion average from 1 lb. to 1^ lb. One of the most marked appear- ances of this fish, is the great proportional breadth of the back, and the peculiar greyish-green colour of the upper parts. This colour appears very conspicuous when seen before the water has completely ebbed from the stake-nets, when the fish swim near the surface ; and when small sea- trout are mixed with them, the contrast is at once perceived. The dis- tribution of this fish in Scotland, as far as it can be with certainty traced, is pretty extensive ; the south and west coasts, however, seem to possess the greatest abundance. Commencing at the Solway, we meet it in great abundance as far as the Dee at Kirkcudbright, from thence we lose it till the mouth of Loch Awe at Loch Etian in Argyllshire, from this it is common along the whole of the west coast. On the east it is plentifully found at Inverness, and I have traced it at Peterhead, but from this point to the Tweed, I have been unable to hear of it. Wales is the only dis- trict in the south where it will probably be found thus following the west coast, and the sewin will most likely prove our Scottish hirling or whit- ing. It has not yet been noticed in any part of Ireland.

Regarding this fish being occasionally found in the Tweed, it seems to vary in the gregarious habit, comparatively few being met with. Among the tacksmen the Solway name was not known, but upon describing the fish to them, they at once referred it to their silver white- The matter was, however, soon proved, by having the good fortune to catch one when fishing salmon with Stevenson, the tacksman of the CroMm fishing. We had made frequent inquiries at the different tacksmen regarding it, and when the fish rose, Stevenson at once called out that it was a silver white, shewing that he was perfectly acquainted with it. It correspond- ed with all the characters of the Solway fish, having the same number of vertebrae, rays in the fins, and gill-covers, &c.

As far as I can learn, they are not abundant in the Tweed. They are perfectly well known at Coldstream, and are taken with whitling flies ; and Stevenson mentioned having once taken about fifty opposite Birg- ham in one draft of a sweep-net. I have been unable, however, to trace them farther up than Kelso, and though fishing much with suitable flies, I have never seen them in the higher waters of Dryburgh or Morton. The stream of the Tweed and larger rivers may probably be too heavy and powerful for them, and it is probable that the great proportion of those which do enter the Tweed will diverge at the spawning season to the smaller tributaries.

( 53 )

K

Notice of some Roman Urns recently discovered near Berwick-upon- Tweed. By Dr Johnston.

The urns, of which figures are annexed, were lately discovered at Murton, in the northern part of the county of Durham, and about four miles from Berwick-upon-Tweed. They were buried, at no great depth, in a light sandy soil raised into a sort of low mound, and were covered or intermixed with stones disposed without order. The small one was perfect, the two larger were broken into many pieces, but, by fitting these together, a perfectly correct idea of their shape and sculpture was ob- tained. The small one exactly resembled an old-fashioned salt-cellar : the diameter of its mouth was nearly 2J inches, the greatest circumfer- ence 10, and the height 2 inches. The height of the second was 6, the diameter of its mouth 5 J, and the greatest circumference 20 inches. The third was a size larger ; and fragments, evidently belonging to still larger urns, and of different patterns, were also procured from the same place. All of them were made of the coarsest clay, such as is still found near the spot where they were buried, and were so brittle, although half an inch thick, that it was found impossible to remove them uninjured from the soil. They had not been burned, but merely dried in the sun or in an oven, and from the blackness of their interior, even this does not seem to have been done perfectly. The sculpture on the exterior was of the rudest and simplest kind, and executed probably with the trowel or a knife. They were filled with a fine black dust or ash, and in some of them fragments of bone were detected, which mouldered away on expo- sure to the air. The small urn might be destined to hold the ashes of the heart. To none of them was there a lid or cover.

54 DR Johnston's notice of some roman urns.

These are evidently sepulchral urns of Roman manufacture, and the coarseness of the material, and the rude fashion in which they are orna- mented, prove the ashes they contained to be those of some ignoble per- sons,—

" to fortune and to fame unknown."

Similar urns have been dug up occasionally in other places in this neigh- bourhood. Two were procured from a gravel bank at Billymire, in the parish of Chirnside, about 1790 (Stat. Ace. v. xiv. p. 30); and "in 1 792, on clearing the ground of a heap of stones which had been collect- ed upon the top of the Crimson, or Cramestone Hill, on the north side of the village of Garington, several earthen urns, of different sizes, were dug up. The urns contained human bones, but had no inscription upon them." (Ibid. p. 584.) I have seen the fragments of two very large ones in the possession of the Rev. A. Baird of Cockburnspath, which had been procured near that village ; and Mr Selby has met with several near Twizel-house. For the possession of those under notice, the Club is in- debted to the attention of the Rev. Mr Campbell of Tweedmouth.

Since sepulchral urns were never placed by the Romans in temples, but in fields and by high- ways, the situation of the present may possibly serve to indicate the precise line of the great northern road of that peo- ple, called the Devil's Causeway ; and from the name of a hamlet — Camp-houses — in the immediate vicinity of Murton, we may conjecture that they had also a military station here, which is the more probable, as the remains of a Roman camp are still visible on the banks of the Tweed, near West Ord, which is not more than between two and three miles dis- tance from Murton.

To ascertain the precise antiquity of these remains I can make no es- say, but a conjectural approximation to it may be allowed. Notwith- standing the stories to the contrary in the Scottish Chronicles, it may safely be taken for granted that the Romans had not penetrated, or at least made any settlement in our district, until Agricola led his armies northwards, about the year 80. They withdrew finally from Britain in the year 426 ; and although they did not occupy our district during the whole of the intervening 346 years, having been repeatedly driven beyond Adrian's Wall by the Picts and Scots, yet they generally repos- sessed Ihemselves of it in a short time, and certainly had encampments in it until within a very short period of their removal. But assuming the latest date for their burial, the urns before us possess all the interest attached to antiquities upwards of 1400 years existence, — a larger one than any monument of the border warrior can claim. " In vain we hope to be known by open and visible conservatories, when to be unknown was the means of their continuation, and obscurity their protection." — Sir T. Browne.

Note. — Since the above notice was read, I have received from Mr

DR JOHNSTON ON THE (ENANTHB CBOCATA. 56

Brodie of Ayton-mill, a very perfect urn, rather more than four inches in height, and six in diameter, which was found by him, about fourteen years ago, under a heap of stones on BeU's-hill, opposite St Abb's Head, in the parish of Coldiughaui. In shape, sculpture, and material, it agrees nearly with those figured, and was full of a fine black ^h.

A Note relative to (Enanthe crocata. By Dr Johnston.

In the appendix to my Flora, it is stated that no yellotv juice could be found in any part of our Berwickshire CEnanthe, and I was hence led to conclude that it was more probably CE. apiifolia of the British Flora. Mr Winch informs us that the same remark had been made in regard to the plant near Newcastle ; and I have been well informed that the Edin- burgh botanists were equally unsuccessful in finding any yellow juice in their plant. Such being the fact, I was not a little surprised and pleased to receive from Mr Dunlop, roots of CE. crocata, from the banks of the Eye ; and from which, when broken, drops of a deep orange-yellow juice immediately exuded. There was no doubt, then, that these belonged to the true CE. crocata ; and as the leaves, &c. diflfered in no respect from those I had previously examined, I was led to re-examime roots from other stations, and the result has been a conviction that the species is every where the same with us, although the juice is oflen very scanty, and sometimes scarcely visible. Thus, roots dug on the Castlehills, when broken, continued white for some time, but the fracture ultimately assumed a yellowish hue, and when narrowly looked at, minute yellow dots were seen scattered over the surface. The quantity of juice, and its intensity of colour, probably depend on the nature of the station the plant has selected, being deep-coloured when growing in drier, and pale, or almost colourless, when in very wet places.

Additions to the Flora of Bervnck-upon-Tweed, {Omtinuedfrom pagt 32.)

DICOTYLEDONES.

Centunculus minimus — Small Chaffweed, Near Lithtillum Loch, Birgham Muir, Miss Hunter.

Galium Mollugo, var. G. scabrum. With. Bot, Arang, ii. 190. In a field at Anton's Hill, Miss E. Bell. On the nortli side of the Hirsel Lough, and on the Hirsel grounds, Miss Hunter and Mis9 £. BelL

56 ADDITIONS TO THE FLORA OF BKRWICK-UPON-TWEED.

Pyrola secunda — Serrated Winter-greefi. On Yevering Bell, Nor- thumberland, sparingly, Dr Johnston and Rev. J. Baird. This pretty plant is not uncommon in fir woods in the Highlands of Scotland, but it has always been considered one of the rarest of English plants, and this is its first and only habitat in Northumberland. Wallis, indeed, says, that the "small winter-green, with roundish serrate leaves,** grows plen- tifully on the borders of Ramshaw Wood ; but Mr Winch tells us that he had sought for it there in vain ; and after examining Wallis's descrip- tion, we eptertain no doubt whatever that his~species is really Pyrola minor, a plant that had not been accurately characterised when the his- tory of Northumberland was published.

Rhamnus catharticus — Common Buckhwm, Sea banks at the mouth of Dunglass Burn, Rev. A. Baird.

Rosa inodora. Hook. Brit. Flor. i. p. 233. At the base of Yevering Bell, intermixed with other species, Dr Johnston.

Rosa villosa, Hook. Brit. Flor. i. p. 230. On Yevering Bell ; and frequent in the deans and ravines of Berwickshire, Dr Johnston.

Stellaria nemorum, Wood Stitchwort. On an island in the Tweed, between Cornhill and Lees, on the Scotch side of the river. Miss E. Bell. To the west of Warke, under some willows on the side of the Tweed, Miss Bell.

Trifolium FRAGiFERVM^^Strawberrt/'headed Trefoil, North side of the Whiteadder, from the Blue-stone ford to near Edington Mill, and by the hedges on the farm of Nethermains, in the parish of Chirnside, Mr Henderson. Side of the Whiteadder, at Gainslaw Bridge, Mr P. W. Maclagan.

CRYPTOGAMOUS.

Hypodcyla.

Sph^ria polymorpha. On stumps of trees in the Hirsel woods ; not common.

HisTERiuM RuBi. On decayed branches of Rubus fructicosus, in the plantations at the Retreat, Dr Johnston.

Fungu

Helvei^la mitra. Bankhead wood, near Eccles, October 1883, Dr R. D. Thomson.

Boletus edulis, Greville. Hirsel woods, Dr Johnston.

Agaricus applicatus. Withering* On rotten wood in the Hirsel plantations, Dr Johnston.

Ly coper doA^ecB.

LicEA FRAOiFORMis. On rottcu willow trees at Horsykend, in No- vember, Dr R. D. Thomson.

ADDITIONS TO THE FLORA OK BBRWICK-UPON-TWKBD. oj

Uredinecp,

Uredo Euphorbia Bot. Gall, ii. 896. On the under surface of the leaves of Euphorbia Helioscopia ; frequent in gardens at Eccles, Dr R. D. Thomson.

iEciDiuM ASPERiFOLii, Bot, Gall, ii. 906. On the leaves of Lycopsb arvensis, near Coldstream, Mr R. Embleton. On the same plant in Holy Island, Dr Johnston.

Uredo Valeriana, Bot, Gall, ii. 898. On the leaves of Valeriana officinalis, in autumn, near Berwick, Dr Johnston.

Puccini A Adoxje. On the leaves of Adoxa moBcbetillina, in Lang- ton Wood, Mr T. Brown.

MucedinecB,

EuROTiUM RosARUM, Grev. Crypt, Fl, tab. 164, fig. 2. On the un- ripe fruit of various roses in several parts of Berwickshire, Dr Johnston.

Hblmisporium velutinum. On a branch of decaying sycamore in the Hirsel woods. Sir W. Jardine.

Helmisporium chjelospermum, Bot, Gall, ii. 929* On the dead «traw of the oat, Mr T. Brown.

Plants fyr which no Berwickshire Habitats are mentioned in Dr Johnston's Flora,

Arundo arenaria. Links about half a mile south from Coldingham sands, not plentiful, Mr A. Carr.

Carduus nutans. In fields about Edrom, and at Mayfield, Mr R. Dunlop. Probably introduced with clover-seeds.

Clinopodium vulgare. Birgham haugh, Dr R. D. Thomson.

Cynoglossum officinale. On Coldingham shore, plentiful; and about Halidown farm, sparingly, Dr Johnston.

Endocarpon Weberi. Stitchell Linn, Mr T. Brown.

HiERACiUM umbellatum. On the Edinburgh road near Hatchetnize, Miss Bell.

Mentha gentilis. Sides of the Whiteadder, from its mouth to Ed- ington, occasionally, and intermixed with M. hirsuta, Mr C. C. Ba- bington.

Lepidium campestre. Banks of the Dean, Dunglass, Rev. A. Baird.

PoTERiUM SANGUisoRBA. On the bauks of Coldingham Lough, very sparingly, Mr Mitchell.

Ranunculus lingua. Ferneyrig and Lithtillum Lochs, plentiful, Dr R. D. Thomson. In a bog at Craig's Walls, parish of Edrom, Mr Hen- derson.

Vaccinium oxycoccus. In a bog to the north of Sweethope Farm- house, plentifully, Mr T. Brown.

58 ADDITIONS TO THE FLORA OF BERWICK-UPON-TWEED.

Sedum villosum. On the Lammermuirs in the parishes of Longfor- macus and Westruther, plentiful, Mr T. Brown. Ecklaw Edge, parish of Cockburnspath, Rev. A. Baird.

PLANTS IMPERFECTLY NATURALISED.

AcoNiTUM NAPELLUs. Banks of Wooler Water above Haughhead, Northumberland, Mr Mitchell.

Anchusa sempeuvirens. In a small dean near Ninewell's House ; road side between Reston and Reston-mains ; and by the road side at Mordiugton Church, Mr Henderson.

Apium petroselinum. Banks of the Tweed near Fireburn Mill, Berwickshire, plentiful, Miss Bell.

Aster salicifolius. Banks of the Leet behind the Hirsel Woods, but planted there, Mr R. Embleton.

Bromus secalinus. In a wheat-field at Spittal, North Durham, with Lolium arvense, abundant (the wheat-seed came originally from the Isle of Wight) ; occurs also in corn-fields occasionally throughout Ber- wickshire, Dr Johnston.

Hieracium aurantiacum. Pease Bridge Woods, Rev. A. Baird. In Hirsel Woods, Miss Hunter, but evidently an outcast of the garden. Miss Bell finds Aquilegia vulgaris and Narcissus pseudo-narcissus in the same woods, and of their garden origin no doubt can be entertained.

Iberis amara. Tweed side near Lennel Church, Miss E. Bell. Bed of the Tweed above Coldstream, Mr Embleton. Bed of Ale Water, Dr Johnston.

LoNiCERA CAPRiFOLiUM. Commou near Coldstream in woods and hedges. Miss Bell.

Lysimachia nummularia. Dunglass Dean, Rev. A. Baird.

Medicago sativa. Has naturalized itself on the banks of the White- adder near White-hall, Mr Henderson.

Reseda fruticulosa. On the ballast behind Berwick Pier, 1832, Mr R. Dunlop. Has disappeared, 1834, Dr Johnston.

Rumex maritimus. On the shore behind Berwick Pier, introduced with ballast, 1832, Mr R. Dunlop. Has disappeared, 1834, Dr John- ston.

SoLANUM NIGRUM. On the ballast behind Berwick Pier, plentiful in 1832, Mr R. Dunlop. Mr Manners could find only a single specimen in 1834.

Acer campestre. Common in hedges about the Hirsel, where there are several trees of it that have attained considerable size, Dr Johnston. Handsome specimens of this tree occur on the south side of Dunglass Dean, Rev. A. Baird.

ADDITIONS TO THE FLORA 0¥ BSBWICK-UPON-TWEED. 59

Habitats for some of the rarer Plants of the District y additional to those given in Dr Johnston's Flora*

DICOTYLEDONES.

Astragalus glycyphyllus. Banks of the Whiteadder, a little be- yond Claribad Mill, plentiful, Mr 11. Dunlop. Banks of Wooler Water above Coldgate Mill, Northumberland, Dr Johnston. By the quarry at Whitehall, Mr Henderson.

Adoxa moschatellina. Banks of the TiH opposite Twizel Castle, North Durham, Miss E. Bell and Miss Hunter.

Arenaria verna. Banks a little north of Eyemouth Fort ; banks above Earnsheugh, Mr A. Carr.

Arabis thaliana. Mouth of Lurasden Dean ; remains of the old bridge over the Eye at Ayton Park, Mr A. Carr.

Betonica officinalis. Banks of the Whiteadder at WTiitehall, sparingly, Mr Henderson. About Houndwood, plentiful, Dr Johnston.

Cardamine amara. Wood opposite Carham Hall, Dr R. D. Thom- son.

CicHORiUM Intybus. Twizel Castle, Dr R. D. Thomson. On the Cove Farm near Cockburnspath, Rev. A. Baird.

Chrysosplenium alternifolium. Near the mineral well at Corn- hill, Miss E. Bell.

Cerastium arvense. Road side leading from Coldingham to the Lough, Rev. A. Baird.

Campanula latifolia. Wooded banks of the Whiteadder below Chirnside Bridge, Mr R. Dunlop.

Convolvulus arvensis. Gravel pit on the Ayton road near the seven mile stone from Berwick, Mr A. Carr. Fields to the north of Eye- mouth, Mr Henderson.

Centaurea cyanus. Corn-fields about Lintlaw, plentiful, Mr R. Dunlop.

Daphne laureola. Bank below Whitehall, seemingly wild, Mr Henderson.

Epilobium ANOusTiFOLiUM. On a wild and rugged bank above Qa- ribad Mill in great profusion ; banks of the Whiteadder below Chirnside Bridge, Mr R. Dunlop. On the steep rocky bank, south side of the Whiteadder, about a quarter of a mile below Edington Mill, abundant, Mr Henderson. In the ravine above Ross, Dr Johnston.

EuoNYMUS EUROPiEUs. Banks of the Whiteadder above Garibad Mill, Mr R. Dunlop. In Humbletondean, near Wooler, Mr Mitchell. Cockburnspath Towerdean, Rev. A. Baird.

EcHiUM vuLOARE. Very abundant by the side of the Whiteadder from Ninewalls to Huttonhall Mill, Mr Henderson.

00 ADDITIONAL HABITATS FOR SOMR OF THB

EuPHOUDiA ExiGUA. I'irghani-liaugh, Dr U. 1). 'riioiiisoii.

Fedia olitouia. Ravine above Ross ; banks of the Eye below Ay- ton Bridge, Mr A. Carr*

FuMARiA cLAVicuLATA. Stony placcs on the banks of the Dye near Longformacus, Mr T. Brown. In Edmondstone Dean, and in Penman- shiel Wood, most abundant, Dr Johnston.

Galium boreale. Not uncommon in the neighbourhood of Cold- stream and Anton's Hill, Miss Bell. Roadside near Edrom, Mr T. Brown.

Genista tinctoria. Boggy ground on Birgham-muir, Dr Johnston.

Geranium lucidum. Birgham-wood, Dr R. D. Thomson.

Glaucium luteum. Lumsden shore, very plentiful, Mr A. Carr. Sea-shore below Cockburnspath, Rev. A. Baird.

Gentiana campestris. Coldingham Muir, near the Lough ; Birg- ham Muir, in profusion ; and on the banks of the Dye above Longfor- macus ; Dr Johnston.

Hyoscyamus NIGER. Near Eyemonth and Burnmouth, Mr Henderson.

Hypericum humifusum. St Foin; Bankhead Wood, Dr R. D. Thomson.

Hieracium sabaudum. Penmanshiel Wood ; and in the Peasebridge Dean, plentiful, Dr Johnston.

Hieracium sylvaticum. Penmanshiel Wood, plentiful, Dr Johnston.

LiGUSTRUM vulgare. Pcasebridgc Dean, Mr A. Carr. Apparently indigenous there.

Lotus corniculatus, var. B. Smith. Near Buncle, Mr T. Brown.

Littorella lacustris. Mill-pond of Northfield, plentiful, Dr John- ston.

Melampyrum pratense, var. montanum. On Yevering-Bell, Dr Johnston.

Malva moschata. Banks of the Whiteadder near Whitehall, and by Covey-heugh on the banks of the Eye, Mr Henderson. Side of the Whiteadder about Blanerne ; and most abundant in a field below Preston farm-house, Mr R. Dunlop. Bridge over the Leet at Castle- law, Dr R. D. Thomson. South side of the Whiteadder, a little below the Raven-knowes, Mr R. Dunlop.

CEnanthe phellandrium. In the Loch at the Hirsel, and in Lith- tillum Loch, Miss E. Bell and Miss Hunter.

Nasturtium terrestre. Lithtillum Loch, Dr R. D. Thomson.

Nasturtium sylvestre. Tweedside at Lennel, and Birgham-haugh, Dr R. D. Thomson.

Parietaria officinalis. Vault on the site of the old church in front of Mordington House, Mr A. Carr.

Plantago maritima. One mile south of Bogend on the Kelso road, Dr R. D. Thomson.

Pyrola media. Dirrington-law, Mr T. Brown. In the wood oppo- site Bankhouse, Mr W. Baird.

RARER PLANTS OP THE FLORA OP BERWICK-UPON-TWEED. (II

Rosa rubioinosa. Sea-banks near the shore, half way between Ross and Lamberton Shields, a single shrub, but perfectly wild, Dr Johnston. RuMEx SANGUINEUS. In the woods at Whitehall, Mr Henderson. Langton Woods, plentiful, Mr T. Brown.

Sanicula EUROPiEA. Banks of the Eye near Houndwood ; and of the Whiteadder, near Whitehall, Mr Henderson.

Saxifraga oranulata. Banks below Ninewells, Mr Henderson. Symphytum tuberosum. Near the mill-call above Huttonhall Mill ; and by the side of the Whiteadder at Whitehall, Mr Henderson. Samolus Valerandi. Ferneyrig bog ; Learmonth bog. Miss Bell. Salix pentandra. Near Langton House, Mr T. Brown. Base of Yevering-Bell, Dr Johnston.

Symphytum officinale. Post-road near Purvis Hall, Miss Hunter. Dunglass Dean, Rev. A. Baird.

Senecio tenuifolius. On the Raven-knowes between Claribad and Edington Mills ; in the lane between Edrington and Cocklaw, Mr R. Dunlop.

Sambucus ebulus. Banks of the Tweed and of the Leet near the Hirsel, Miss E. Bell aud Miss Hunter.

ScABiosA COLUMBARIA. About the Linn at Stitchell House, Mr T. Brown. Craigs below Nenthorn-Gerrick on the Eden, Dr Johnston. Thalictrum majus. Dulaw Dean, Mr Henderson. Thalictrum flavum. Dunglass Dean, Rev. A. Baird. Trollius EUROPiEUS. Very abundant in a plantation above Billy Mill, Mr Henderson. Bog south of Hardacres, Dr R. D. Thomson. In boggy ground below Lumsden, abundant, Dr Johnston.

Trifolium officinale. Plentiful on the banks of the Tweed about Coldstream, Miss Bell. Tweedside at Lennelhill and Birghara-haugh, Dr R. D. Thomson.

Utricularia vulgaris. Ferneyrig Bog, Dr R. D. Thomson. Viburnum Opulus. Base of Yevering-Bell, Dr Johnston. Lees' Cleugh, Mr T. Brown.

Veronica scutellata. In the parishes of Langton, Longformacus, and Westruther, very general, Mr T. Brown.

Vbrbascum thapsus. Banks of Wooler- Water, near Coldgate Mill, Mr Mitchell.

Viola lutea. Banks near Earnsheugh Camp, plentiful, Mr A. Carr.

MONOCOTYLEDONES.

Alisma ranunculoides. Loch Lithtillum, Dr R. D. Thomson. Pond on St Abb's Head, Mr A. Carr. In a bog below Lintlaw farm- house, Mr R; Dunlop.

Arum maculatum. In a hedge at Whitehall, Mr Henderson.

62 ADDITIONAL HABITATS FOR SOME OP THE

Allium vineale. Bauks of the Eye, near Ayton House, Mr A. Can*.

Blysmus compressus. Side of Whiteadder above and below Clari- bad Mill ; and very plentiful in a bog a little west of Blanerne House, Mr R. Dunlop.

Carex laevigata. In the brushwood at the base of Yevering Bell, with C. remota et paniculatxi, Dr Johnston.

Lemna trisulca. Pond behind Heughhead farm-house, Mr A. Can.

LiSTERA ovATA. Banks of the Eye at Coveyheugh, Mr A. Carr.

Orchis conopsea. Banks about Coldinghain Lough, and the mill- pond of Northfield, Dr Johnston.

SciRPUs lacustris. Ferneyrig Bog, Dr R. D. Thomson.

SciRPUS SYLVATicus. Birgham Wood, Dr R. D. Thomson. Banks of the Eye, below East Reston, Mr A. Carr.

Typha latifolia. In an old marl-pit at Craig's-walls, Mr Hender- son, In a pond near Crumstane, plentiful, Mr R. Dunlop.

Triticum caninum. Whiteadder at Hutton Hall, Dr R. D. Thom- son.

CRYPTOGAMOUS.

AspiDiUM oreopteris. Edmonstone Dean, Dr Johnston.

AspiDiUM angulare. Dunglass, and Cockburnspath Tower Deans, Rev. A. Baird.

AspiDiUM aculeatum. Dunglass Dean, Miss Hunter. Twizelglen, Miss E. Bell.

BoTRYCHiUM lunaria. On the moor above Mayfield, plentiful, Mr R. Dunlop.

Polypodium dryopteris. Lamington Dean, abundant, Mr Hender- son. Edmonstone Dean, in great profusion, also on Yevering Bell, Dr Johnston.

Anomodon viticulosum. Pease Dean, in fruit. Rev. A. Baird.

HooKERiA LUCENS. Boggy places on Dirrington, and in Langton Lees* Cleugh, Mr T. Brown. Dunglass Dean, abundant, Rev. A. Baird.

Hypnum uncinatum. Near Buncle, Mr T. Brown.

Hypnum alopecurum. In fruit in Langton Lees' Cleugh, Mr T. Brown : and, in Pease Dean, Rev. A. Baird.

Orthotrichum pulchellum. At Longformacus, and near Gaving- ton, Mr T. Brown. Cockburnspath Tower Dean, Dr Johnston.

Anthoceros punctatus. In a field east of Buncle, with Ricia glauca, Mr T. Brown.

PoLYTRicHUM URiNGERUM. Near Foggo, Mr T. Brown.

Parmelia AQUiLA. Rocks at Sweet-hope, and Hairy-heugh, Mr T. Brown.

BARER PLANTS OF THE FLORA OF BBRWICK-UPON-TWBSI>. 68

Parhelia conspbrsa. Sweet-hope Craigs, Hairy-heugh Craigs, Mr T. Brown.

Sticta pulmonaria. Langton Lees* Cleugb, io fruit, plentiftil, Mr T. Brown.

AoARicus RUTiLANS. Hirsel Woods, Dr Johnston. Bankhead Wood, Dr R. D. Thomson.

Arcyria punicea. Bankhead Wood, Dr It. D. Thomson. Hirsel Woods, Dr Johnston.

iEciDiUM LACERATUM. On the fruit of the hawthorn on Yevering Bell in June 1834, in great profusion, Dr Johnston.

Erineum PYRiNUM. On the leaves of the crab-tree in Bankhead Wood, Dr R. D. Thomson.

PoLYPORUS FOMENTARius. At Stitchel Housc, Mr T. Bfown.

Phascidium repandum. On Sherardia arvensis about Eccles, Dr R. D. Thomson.

Scleroderma cepa. In the Hirsel Woods, abundant, Dr Johnston.

A CakUogue of the Cirrhipeda found on the Coast of Berunckshire. By Dr Johnston.

I. Cirrhipeda sessilia.

1. Balanus communis, Mont. Test. Brit. p. 6. On the roots and stems of the larger Fuci, on stones from deep water, and on crabs, com- mon.

2. Balanus Balanoides, Mont. Test. Br. p. 7. On stones, fuci, and the shells of crabs, common. This species exhibits the interior cellular structure of the valves in a very distinct manner.

3. Balanus punctatus, Mont. Test. Brit. p. 8, pi. S,fig. 5. This is by .much our commonest species, and literally covers the rocks between tide-marks, for it is never found within the line of low water, as the pre- ceding usually are. When young the shell is smooth and oval (Lepas convexula, Penn. Br. Zool. iv. 150,/>/. ^Q,fig. med.\ but in its growth, pressed upon and constrained by others, it becomes irregular in its out- line and rough. On the Berwickshire shores it seldom exceeds the quarter of an inch in diameter, and is about the same in height, but from the neighbourhood of Bamborough I have specimens nearly an inch long, the height exceeding three times the measurement of the base.

4. Clitia striata. Leach. Lepas striata, Penn. Br. Zool. iv. 148, pL 4\y fig. inf. Balanus striatus, Mont. Test. Br. p. 14. Creusia verruca, Lamarck. On the roots and stalk of Laminaria digitata, on shells and corallines, common.

64 CATALOGUE OF THE CIHRHIPKDA FOUND IN BERWICKSHIRE. II. CiRRHIPEDA PEDUNCULATA.

5. Pentelasmis anatifera, Leach. Lepas anatifera, Lin. Anatifa laevis, Lamarck. Adhering to a plank of wood cast on shore in the winter 1819-20. This is the shell which, little more than a century ago, was generally believed to be the embryo of the barnacle duck ; and, in the year above mentioned, I had the tale told me by our fishermen, yet, it must be allowed, in a manner that showed they were very incredulous of a fable, to the truth of which very learned historians and theologians, and very observant naturalists, have deponed with the confidence and sincerity of eye-witnesses.

6. Scalpellum vulgare, Leach. Lepas scalpellum, Lin. PoUicipes scalpellum, Lamarck,, On corallines, especially on Tubularia ramosa, not uncommon.

( 65 )

An Address delivered at the Fourth Anniversary of the Berwickshire Naturalists* Club, September 16. 1835. By Robert Embleton, President.

On resigning the chair to which I was, by your kindness, elected, it is necessary that I should briefly recapitulate the proceedings of the Club for the past year. Before doing so, however, I must express, as one of the promoters of this Club, the pleasure and gratification I feel in seeing the hopes and expectations formed at its commencement so fully realized. Four years have now elapsed since its formation, and, if we regard what we have already accomplished with feelings of satisfaction, it cannot be deemed presumptuous to hope, that the labours of each suc- ceeding year will afford additional matter for congratulation, and fresh inducement for exertion.

The last anniversary meeting was held at Twizell House, the beauti- ful seat of our late President, and was one of great interest. I need scarcely recall to your recollection the admirable address of our President on his leaving the chair ; nor the satisfaction every member of the Qub must have then felt at the approbation expressed by two of the most dis- tinguished zoologists of the present day, Messrs Jenyns and Yarrel, who attended it, of the plan, objects, and probable advantages of our Club. No insects of any note were captured on our walk, which was necessari- ly a hurried one ; but two or three good plants were found in Bradford Dene, viz. Mentha gentilis, Sanguisorba officinalis, and Clinopodium vtdgare. At that time I laid before you the first part of my List of the Malacostraca of Berwickshire and North Durham, specimens of which were also exhibited ; and Dr Johnston read a description of a new Bri- tish shell {Natica helicoides), a specimen of which was shewn. The rest of the day was spent in inspecting the beautiful collections in the various departments of natural history belonging to Mr Selby.

Our December meeting was held as usual at Berwick. The day was such as to prevent our taking any excursion farther than the beach, and nothing of any novelty presented itself to our notice, 'i'he papers, how- ever, which were then read were neither few nor unimportant. U/, In the botanical department. Miss Hunter and Miss £. Bell furnished us with a list of some rare and additional species of the Cryptogamia of Berwickshire, amongst which may be mentioned, Peziza h^Bmisph/ericOj P. sarcoideSf Agaricus fragrans ; with Polyporus betulinus, Cantharel- lus laviSf Merulius lachrymans, Dtedalea oonfragosa, &C., specimens of which were exhibited. 2d, An elaborate and interesting paper on the Entomostraca of Berwickshire was read by Mr W. Baird. This class of crustaceans, from their minuteness, and from the care and perseverance necessary for their elucidation, has engaged but little the attention of

B. N. C. NO. III. E

66 Mil EMBLETON*S ADDRESS.

naturalists since the time of Miiller ; but, from the short period since Mr Baird commenced their investigation, he has determined no fewer than eighteen species ; and as the season was not the most propitious for them, we may look forward to the discovery of many not yet known to the naturalist ; and there is no one, I am sure, more capable of doing justice to the subject than he who has undertaken it. Sdli/, A description, by the Rev. A. Baird, accompanied by many specimens, of those curious and fantastically formed productions, known bj'^ the name of " fsdry stones," from the Fairy Glen, near Melrose, so beautifully described by Sir Walter Scott in the Monastery. 4M, Notices of the occurrence of several rare and interesting species in Ornithology, Ichthyology, and Entomology, by the Secretary ; ^ also a list of the Bivalve MoUusca found on the coast of Berwickshire, illustrated by specimens, and re- marks on the diversities in their organization and habits, btk. Addi- tions to the previous list of the Malacostraca of Berwickshire and North Durham, which I laid before you at the previous meeting. On that day two more were added to those I had already determined ; one, the beau- tiful Pinnotheres Cranchii, first found on the Devonshire coast by Dr Leach, was brought by the Reverend Mr TurnbuU from Eyemouth ; the other at the time was supposed to be a species new to the Fauna of Great Britain, and on referring it to Mr J. E. Gray of the British Mu- seum, that opinion was confirmed. It is proposed to give to this species the name of Galatkcea nexa, as forming a beautiful link between the Galathcea squamifera and G. spinigera of Dr Leach. Three specimens have only as yet been obtained, two in Berwick Bay, and the other near Embleton.

The next meeting at Allan ton, a district through which flow the streams of the Blackadder and Whiteadder, so well known to the lovers

* Of these notices we may particularize the following : —

*• 1. Phalaropus lobatus, Grey Phalarope. Shot in the Tweed at Berwick, by Mr Good, about the middle of November 1834.

" 2. Botaurus stellaris, Common Bittern. A fine specimen was shot at Redheugh, pa- rish of Cockburnspath, by Mr Johnston, on December 6. 1834. Mr Selby has a specimen in his collection, which was shot near Berwick.

" 3. Ljparis Montagui, Fhm. Brit. Anim. p. 190. Occurs occasionally on the coast of Berwickshire, adhering to rocks and stones at low water-mark. It has not been pre- viously noticed as a Scottish species, and is considered rare even in the south of England. Among our specimens there was one marked with dark stripes, arranged in a very peculiar fashion.

• * 4. Locusta migratoria, Locust. I have a specimen taken at Beal, North Durham, by Mr W. Willowby, about the middle of August 1834; and another taken at Scremerston on the 17th of September. A third was captured at Chirnside, where, as Mr Henderson has told me, at least one other individual was seen about the same time.

♦* 5. Oiceoptoma dispar. Of this rare insect I took a specimen on the heights near Smailholm Tower, in our excursion there in July 1834.

" 6. Chrysomela lamina. I have a specimen which was taken on the Castle-hills at Ber- wick.

•* 7. Vanessa To, Peacock Butterfly. Taken near Redheugh and the Pease Bridge, by Mr Ralph Johnston.

" 8. Melitsea Selene. Captured near Dunse."

MR BMBLBTON'S ADDRB88. 67

of tliat recreation which honest Isaac Walton describes as " the most calm, quiet, and innocent of all," was one of the best attended ; and from the diversity and beauty of the scenery, each member had sufBcient scope to follow the bent of his inclination in the pursuit of his favourite study. The first paper read was one on the parr (the Salmo aamulus of Willughby and Ilay), by Sir W. Jardine, being the second of a series on the fishes of the Tweed. *ldly, A notice of the fishes found in the Tweed, and in the rivulets and the lochs in the vicinity of the Hirsel, by the Earl of Home. 3rf/y, A list of the insects captured in the neigh- bourhood of Berwick, by Mr C. Babington, when on a visit to Dr John- ston, was read by the Secretary ; and the Reverend A. Baird brought for exhibition some beautiful specimens of Peziza humosa found on Bunkle-edge, and an addition to our flora. The business of the day was concluded by a brief, clear, and interesting lecture, on the best means of keeping a meteorological table, by the Reverend Mr Wallace.

The June meeting took place at Head Chesters, and whether we view the district with the .eye of a naturalist, or as a mere lover of the pic- turesque, there is perhaps no spot we could name in preference to it. The bold and beautiful boundary of the " vast and mighty deep," so well known to geologists, the dark and deeply wooded glen of the Pease Burn, the high and scantily clothed heights above Old Cambus, furnish a variety of scenery, either taken conjointly or separately, which few districts can boast of. In the walk between the Siccar Point and the mouth of the Pease Burn, the Astragalus glycyphyllus was observed in several places by that acute botanist Dr Greville, whose presence added not a little to the pleasures of the day. A species of Hieracium, which remains to be determined, was observed in several places, and in great profusion. Afler the walk, Mr Selby and Dr Johnston laid before the meeting lists of the insects taken by them at Allanton. A beautiful figure of the singular animal Cuvieria Phantapus (Flem.) was shewn by the Secretary ; it was sent from Eyemouth by the Reverend Mr Turn- bull, and is the first instance of its occurrence on the coast of Berwick- shire. Mr Selby mentioned a striking and beautiful display of instinct which had come under his notice, as shewn by a pair of water-hens in the removal of their eggs from their nest, which had been invaded by the rise of a water-course, on the margin of which they had built. In the contemplation of this instance of instinct, we may trace the same Great Cause, which pervades all nature ; and to those who look upon the followers of natural history as weak and foolish, we might use the admonition given by him of old — Go, consider, and be wise.

The next meeting at Earlston presented many attractions, not having been visited previously by any member of the Club. The day being windy, was not favourable for the capturing of insects, consequently few species were taken. Included in the walk were the grounds of the fjw-

e2

68 MR bmblbtom's address.

filmed " Cowden Knowes," and the Banks of the Leader : in such a spot the botanist would naturally expect to find many a favourite flower ; nor will he find himself disappointed. Amongst those observed on that day were, Veronica montana^ Vicia sylvatica, Stellaria nemorum, Hyperi- cum hirsutum, EuonymiLS eur&pceus^ Viburnum opulus^ Huhus saxatilisy Circcealuietiana., Hieraciumprcenanthoides, Campanula latifolia, Melica unijloray Br omits asper, Car ex sj/lvatica, Aspidium lobatum ;^ and Ver- bascum Thapsus was gathered by Sir W. Jardine, but too near the cul- tivated grounds of the mansion not to leave some doubt as to its being indigenous. Lists of the insects taken at last meeting were read by Dr Johnston and Mr Selby. An interesting addition to the Phenogamous plants was communicated by Dr Johnston, the Orobus sylvaticus^ which he had found in Howpark Dene, in the parish of Coldingham,^ along with Pyrola media. 3dly, Observations on the strata of Berwickshire and North Durham, by Dr R. D. Thomson. 4//^/y, A paper on the Skeleton of a Red Deer found at Cheswick ; and another upon the opening of a Cairn at the same place, in which were found the remains of a human skeleton, and some ancient weapons, by Mr Donaldson, concluded the business of the day.

In this brief review of the labours of the past year, the increase to our knowledge in the various departments of our pursuits will be found to be neither little nor uninteresting. Those members who have hitherto la- boured so zealously, I hope will still continue their exertions ; and I trust that each and all will strive to add their mite, to make our know- ledge as perfect as possible. As the mighty torrent owes its power and grandeur to the tributary streams, by which in its course it is fed, so the general stock of Jiuman knowledge and happiness is increased by the efforts of each individual member of society. The progress of Na- tural History of late years has been rapid and extensive. Clubs similar to our own are springing up in various parts of the kingdom ; and its natural history will never be fully investigated, until each county can boast of one. When we consider what we have already done, and what still remains to do, even in this county, the productions of which are better known, I believe, than those of any other in the kingdom, we can easily imagine what a field of discovery in every branch is yet unexplored ; and when we shall have attained to a complete enume- ration of the species of each class, what a boundless and inexhaustible mine for wonder and admiration still remains, in the investigation of their habits and uses in the different places assigned them in the crea- tion. To rest satisfied with the mere knowledge of the name of an ani- mal or plant, is to stop on the very threshold of Nature's wide domain.

* All these were gathered in Redpath Dean.

* Found also by the Rev. A. Baird, on a wooded bank between Penmanshiel Wood and Bank-house.

ADDITIONAL MEMBERS. — DESCRIPTION OF NATICA HELICOIDBS. 69

The true naturalist seeks to discover the great laws of Nature : their contemplation leads him to admire and adore the wisdom and power of Him who has given them bounds they cannot pass, in their reproduc- tion, preservation, and annihilation. He investigates their harmonious connexion, their wonderful organization and powers, their uses, as they conduce to supply his wants, relieve his cares, assuage his disease, em- hellish his life, or add to his happiness. In their pursuit he finds health, contentment, and peace. To him, the fertile vale, the barren heath, the cloud-capped hills, and the dry and arid rock, furnish objects for his study and delight ; and with a mind influenced by such feelings, he is ready to exclaim,

** These are thy worki, O God, and they proclaim thy praise.**

List ofMemberSf continued from p. 33.

J. S. Donaldson, Esq. of Cheswick, . . May 6. 1835.

Rev. M. Dods, Belford, ....

Rev. N. B. Cunynghame of Prestonpans, . ■ -

Sir David Erskine of Dryburgh, . . Sept. 16.

Description of Natica helicoidbs, a new British Shell. By Dr George Johnston.

Natica helicoides.

Shell ovato-conical, smooth, white, immaculate, covered with a yellow- ish epidermis ; whorls 5, rounded, separated by a channelled suture, the spire produced and rather obtuse ; aperture pure white, with a small fissure on the pillar. Length ^^ths ; breadth scarcely ^^ths.

Hab. Berwick Bay.

Obs. This new species was found in the refuse of a fishing-boat. When the epidermis is removed, the whorls appear to be finely striokite in a spiral direction. Animal unknown.

List of the Malacostraca Podophthalma, found on the coasts of Ber- wickshire and North Durham. By R. Embleton, Surgeon.

1. Carcinds Memos, Leach, Mai. Brit. teb. 5. Common dog crab. Penn. Brit Zool. iv. tab. 2, fig. 5. Everywhere common.

70 LIST OF MALACOSTRACA PODOPHTHALHA.

2. PoBTONUs pvbeTy Leachy Mai. Brit. tab. 6. Velvet crab. Penn Brit. Zool. iv. tab. 4, fig. 8. Not uncommon.

3. PoRTUNus corrvgatus. Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 7, fig8. 1-2. Wrinkled

crab. Penn. Brit. Zool. iv. tab. 5, fig. 9. Berwick Bay, rare. Dr Johnston.

4. PoRTUNUS ^/eca^M*, Milne Edwards^ Hist, des Crust, part 1, p. 442.

Penn, Brit. Zool. iv. tab. 4, fig. 6, «. Occasionally brought from deep water in Embleton Bay, adhering to the nets of the fishermen.

5. PoRTUNUS marmorem, Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 8. Marble crab. Pe7in. Brit. Zool. iv. pi. 2, fig. 6. Occasionally met with in the same way as the preceding.

6. Cancer j^a^wriAy, ZcacA, Mai. Brit. tab. 10. Common crab. Penn. Brit. Zool. pi. 3, fig. 7. This is the only species used as food on these coasts ; it is taken in vast quantities, and during the whole year.

7. Pinnotheres J9WMW, Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 14. Pea crab. Penn.

Brit. Zool. iv. pi. 1, fig. 1. Inhabits bivalve shells, chiefly those of the common mussel. I have taken it also from the Cardium leevi- gatum, the only specimen of the shell that has occurred to me. It is by no means uncommon in the mussels obtained at Holy Island, but all are females.

8. Pinnotheres Cranchii, Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 14, figs. 4-5. A

single specimen has only come under our notice ; it was brought from Eyemouth by the Rev. Mr Turnbull.

9. Macropodia phalangium. Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 23, fig. 6. Slender- legged crab. Penn. Brit. Zool. iv. pi. 9, fig. 1 7. Common.

10. Macropodia tenuirostris, Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 14. This is of

much less frequent occurrence than the preceding ; it is easily dis- tinguished from it by the length of the rostrum, and by the spines on the inner side of the claws.

1 1 . LiTHODEs Maja, Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 24. Penn. Brit. Zool. iv. pi. 8, fig. 14. This beautiful crab is not uncommon in Embleton Bay. The male is at once distinguished by the length of the claws and size of the spines ; the females, however, are much more nu- merous, not above one male occurring in five or six. They are called Harpers by the fishers.

12. Ebalia Pennantii, Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 25, figs. 1-6. Uneven

crab. Penn. Brit. Zool. iv. pi. 9, a, fig. 19* Rare. A single specimen, taken at Redheugh, Berwickshire, in the collection of Dr Johnston, and another in my own, taken in Embleton Bay, are the only ones that have come under my notice. In both, which are females, the abdominal covering is marked with two rows of bright scarlet spots, a character not noticed by Dr Leach.

13. Hyas araneus, Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 21, a. Spider crab. Penn.

LIST OP MALAC08TRACA PODOPHTHALMA. 71

Brit. Zool. ir. pi. 9, fig. 16* Common. Generally covered with fuci and corallines.

14. Hya3 coarciatus, Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 21, b. Berwick Bay. Dr

Johnston.

15. Inachus DorynchuSy Leach^ Mai. Brit. tab. 22. Berwick and

Embleton Bays. Not unfrequent.

16. Porcelana platychelesy Milne Edwards, Hist des Crust, pi. 22, fig. 5. Great-clawed crab. Penn. Brit. Zool. iv. pi. 6, fig. 12. Very common in Berwick Bay, but more rare to the south.

17. Porcelana longicornisy Lamarck, Aiiim. s. Vert. v. 230. Long-

homed crab. Penn, Brit. Zool. iv. pi. 1 , fig. 3. A beautiful spe- cies, found frequently in the roots of the Fttcus palmatus.

18. Pagurcs Strehlonyx, Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 26. Hennit crab. Penn, Brit. Zool. iv. pi. 1 7, fig. 38. Very common, occupying shells of the genus Turbo and Murex.

19. Galathea squamifera, Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 28, a. Berwick and

Embleton Bays. Not common.

20. Galathea spinigera. Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 28, b. Penn, Brit.

Zool. pi. 14, fig. 26. A common but beautifully marked species.

21. Galathea rugosa. Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 29. i^enw.Brit. Zool. iv. pi. 1 3, fig. 25. Not uncommon ; differs from either of the pre- ceding in the extreme length of the first pair of claws.

22. Galathea nexa, nova species. Three specimens of this hitherto unnoticed species have only yet been found, two in Berwick Bay, and the other in Embleton Bay. It forms a beautiful link between

G, squamifera and G, spinigera, approaching to the first in the shape of the body, and to the latter in the shape and size of the claws. The characters of the three species may be thus expressed :

(1.) Gal, spinigera. Arms rather small, flattened, hirsute, very spinous ; the spines arranged along each margin, and a row of lesser ones down the middle ; ligament of the marbled shell bright blue.

(2.) Gal, nexa. Arms large, hirsute ; the hand without spines, the wrist with a single one on the inner side, or, when two, the anterior is much the smallest ; ligament of the shell brown (plate 1).

(3.) Gal, squamifera. Arms large, almost naked ; the hand without spines ; two unequal spines on the inner side of the wrist ; the posterior spine one-half less than the anterior ; ligament of the shell blackish.

23. Nephrops norvegicus. Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 36. Norway Lobster,

Penn, Brit. Zool. iv. pi. 12, fig. 24. One of the moft beautiful of the Crustacea ; on the coast of Berwickshire, opposite to Cold- brandspath, it is not nneommon, bat is rarely M'ei: farther south.

^2 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE FLORA OF BERWICKSHIRE.

To the Rev. A. Baird of Coldbrandspath, I am indebted for the specimen I possess.

24. Cbangon vulgaris^ Leachj Mai. Brit. tab. 37, B. Common Shrimp, Penn, Brit. Zool. iv. pi. 15. fig. 30. On all our sandy bays.

25. Pandalus annulicornis, Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 40. Red Shrimp of

the fishermen. Berwick Bay, &c. not uncommon. Remarkable for its bright red colour ; the antennae, which are very long, marked with alternate red and white bands.

26. PALiEMON Squilla, Leach, Mai. Brit. tab. 43, figs. 11-13. In pools

in the Bay on the north-east side of Holy Island, &c. Frequent on the coast of Berwickshire.

27. AsTACUs Gammarusy the Lobster, Penn. Brit. Zool. iv. pi. 10, fig. 21. Taken in great numbers on this coast. The regular time for commencing to take them for the London market is the 1st of December. A full-grown lobster, to use the language of the fishers, must measure four inches and a half in the length of the barrel ; they then bring from ten to fourteen shillings a-score ; if below that size, they bring only half price. Of late years, the numbers taken annual- ly have very much decreased, owing to the increase of the fishery.

28. AsTACVs Jiuviatilis, the Crawfish, Penn, Brit. Zool. pi. 15, fig. 27.

In the rivulets to the south of Berwick Bay, this species is not un- common. Dr Johnston, however, has not met with it in Berwick- shire.

Contributions to the Flora of Berwickshire.

1. Additional Species.

Sphagnum squarrosum. In peat bogs on Coldingham Moor. Dr John- ston.

Peltidea aphthosa. On rocks west from Longformacus Manse, spa- ringly, Mr Thomas Brown.

Agaric us yra^ra/w. With. Bot. Arrang. iv. l6l. Anton's-hill and Hir- sel Woods, in October and November, not uncommon, Miss E. Bell.

Agaricus rosettSy With. Bot. Arrang. iv. 258. Hirsel Woods, Miss Hunter and Miss E. Bell.

Cantharellus l(Evis, Bot. Gall. ii. 797. Parasitical on Hypnum ruta- bulum, Miss Hunter. Description. Fungus sessile, of a uniform white colour, thin and membranous, cuped, the disk somewhat un- even, the margin entire, even or sinuous ; hymenium not veined, roughish. The largest specimens are fully three-tenths in diame- ter. When old, the disk becomes often nearly plane. On drying, the plant shrivels up, so that it can scarcely be recognised, but its original appearance is restored by immersion in water.

MR BAIRD ON THE ^< FAIRY 8TONB8." 73

DiBDALEA confragosay Bot. Gall, ii. 795. Boletus labt/rinthifarmitt With, Bot* Arrang. iv. 329. On the. decaying roots of trees at the Hirsel, Miss Hunter and Miss £. Bell.

Merulius lachrymanSf Grew. FL Edin, 397. On much decayed fir sticks from the Hirsel Woods, Miss Hunter and Miss E. Bell.

Peziza hemispfuBricat Bot. Gall, ii. 744. P. hispida. With, Bot. Ar- rang. iv. 354. Anton*s-hill Woods, Miss Hunter.

Peziza sarcoidesy Grev. Fl. Edin. 423. Hirsel Woods, Miss E. Bell and Miss Hunter.

PoLYPORUS betulinusy Grev. Fl. Edin, 400. On the trunk of a decay- ing birch tree near Anton s-hill. Miss Hunter.

2. Additional Habitats.

HiBRACiUM Prenanthoides. Banks of the Dye at Longformacus ; Pease Bridge Dean, Mr Thomas Brown.

Hieracidm umbellatum. Near Woodend, in the parish of Langton, Mr Thomas Brown.

Pteris crispa. On the Black-hill at Earlston, plentiful.

Agaric us fiabelliformisy A. JicoideSy With. Bot. Arrang. iv. 303. On decaying sticks at the Hirsel, Miss E. Bell and Miss Hunter.

Helvella mitra, Anton's-hill and the Hirsel Woods, not uncommon. Miss Hunter and Miss E. Bell.

Peziza macropus. Hirsel Woods, Miss E. Bell and Miss Hunter.

Peziza ochroleuca. Hirsel Woods, Miss Bell and Miss Hunter.

Peziza umbrina. Anton*s-hill woods, common. Miss Hunter.

PoLYPORUs varius. On decayed sticks from the Hirsel Woods, plen- tiful. Miss Hunter and Miss E. Bell.

3. Erratum. For Rhamnus catharticus, /mi^^ 56, read Hippophae rhamnoides.

Remarks on the Mode of Formation of certain curiously shaped Stones y found in the bed of a small stream near Melrose, and popularly known in the neighbourhood by the name of** Fairy Stones.** By the Rev. A. Baird.

Those of us who remember with any thing like correctness some of the earlier of those interesting productions, known throughout the civilized world by the title of ** The Waverly Novels," will have lit- tle difficulty probably in recalling to their recollection the scenery of ** The Monastery.'' They will recollect the beautiful descriptions which there occur of " St Mary's ruined pile," — of the smiling scenery of fair Twccdsidc, — of the ancient castle of the Glendinnings, — of the pool in

74 MR BAIRD ON THE " FAIRY STOMBS."

the ruin where the poor Sacristan was so uncivilly and unmercifully ducked by the White Lady, — and of the usual spot itself of that fair creature's residence, the pastoral Valley of Glendearg. These several scenes occur within a very few miles of each other, and in each and all of them there is an interest and charm of no common nature, whether we consider their own inherent beauties, or the many pleasing associa- tions which either the genius of the poet's pen, or the deeds of other years, have thrown around them. Of these various scenes, however, the last is the one which at present is more immediately interesting to us, as it is the scene where not only many of the principal events of the romance are supposed to have taken place, but where also the curious substances occur which are to form the subject of our present specula- tions. This pleasing little valley commences about two miles westward from the town of Melrose, its general direction being from north to south, and extending in length about five miles. It is watered by a limpid little mountain stream, named the Elwand or Allan Water, which, after forming some very pleasing scenes, discharges itself into the Tweed on its northern bank, and near the site of the ancient bridge across that river. Towards the south, the valley thus opens into the wider vale of the Tweed, while at its northern extremity is situated the ruin of Hillslop Tower, the undoubted Glendearg of the romance.

There are several ways of access to this valley leading from different directions, but to see and to examine its scenery to the greatest advan- tage, the most interesting, although certainly not the shortest, is by the streamlet's side, along a winding path through Langlee-wood, the pro- perty of Lord Somerville. During this part of the walk the scenery is very pleasing, although much contracted ; but on leaving it a wider glen gradually opens to view, bounded on one side by a precipitous bank or scaur of a reddish colour, varied here and there by a few intermingled patches of green sward, and on the other by a series of more gently swelling eminences, forming, from their more cultivated appearance, a striking contrast to those opposite to them. Proceeding onwards this kind of scenery continues for some time with little interruption, till we arrive at a scene somewhat different, an amphitheatre of scaurs and pre- cipices thickly strewed with copsewood, at the foot of which the streamlet is seen working its troubled way. This spot is generally known by the name of the " Fairy" or " Nameless Dean," and it is in this part of the valley, as the name itself suggests, that the " Fairy Stones," as they are vulgarly called, are most frequently found. These are of various sizes, from that of a bean to two or sometimes three inches in circumference, and of a great variety of shapes, some exhibiting the exact appearance of hunting-caps, some of tea-pots, kettles, buttons, walnuts, &c. &c. Generally speaking, however, their usual form is roundish, with a flat- tened base ; and they are all seemingly composed of a pretty pure clay, which yields more or less readily to the knife. They are almost in-

MB BAIRO ON THE << FAIBY STONES.** 75

variably found by collectors in the bed of the stream, and from their singular shapes and equivocal sort of origin, have most probably given the name of the " Fairy Dean** to the little valley in which they are usually found. These stones are well known to the inhabitants of the neighbourhood, and seem to be regarded by many with no small venera- tion. Well known, however, though they are, I have not been able, ex- cept in one trifling book, to meet with a single notice or remark upon the subject This book I do not now remember the title of, but its ob- ject, as far as I can at present recollect, is to serve as a guide to strangers visiting the neighbourhood of Melrose and Abbotsford. In this little work, the author sums up both his description of the external appearance of these stones, and his opinion of their origin, in two short lines. " Here occur,** says he, " some curiously shaped stones, which are said to be found after great falls of rain ;** " and which are justly supposed,** as he adds in a note, ^^ to be the petrifactions of some mineral spring hard by.** Whether this supposition was the author's own invention or not, or whether, along with his own, he expressed the opinion of any other observers, I know not ; but I fear the explanation which he offers, will hardly satisfy those who examine these substances even with the most common attention. They evidently bear no earthly similitude to a " petrifaction*' (if that word at least is to be understood in its proper meaning), and I know of no " mineral spring hard by*' possessing any such qualification as that alleged. This idea, therefore, appearing so unsatisfactory, it will be necessary to have recourse to some other ex- planation ; and accordingly, on talking over the subject with some ac- quaintances, I have heard two other opinions upon the subject, which I shall next very shortly notice. The one is, that they may have been originally portions of a soft clay rock, occurring somewhere towards the head of the glen, which, having been detached from their native situa- tion by the action of the stream or weather, had gradually been worn into their present fantastic shapes by simple attrition in the channel of the rivulet : and the other, which, before visiting the scene personally, I was inclined to think sufficiently satisfactory, is, that they may have been originally imbedded portions or nodules contained in an amygda- loidal rock, that is to say, nodules of fine clay, which, by infiltration from above, had gradually found their way into the cavities with which that kind of rock abounds, and which, partly by the influence of the weather, and partly by the occasional violence of the water, had been forcibly disengaged, and carried down into the bed of the stream where we now find them. Neither of these opinions do I now consider as correct ; for, with regard to the former supposition, if they were merely portions of a day rock, formed into their present shapes by simple attrition and the unceasing flow of the waters over them, why, it might be asked, do we not find such stones in every similar situation where clay rocks oocur ? and why should the Allan Water manufacture such curiosities, and no

76 MR BAIRD ON THE " FAIRY STONES.*'

other water ? But, besides this, the great variety in the shape of the stones themselves, is a strong objection against this supposition. For, were they formed merely by friction, we should expect of course that they would all uniformly assume the circular form ; and that, instead of finding one perfectly flat on one side and roundish on the other, and in- stead of the sharp angles and projecting lines we observe in others, as beautifully marked as if they had been turned by art, we should find them of one uniform indistinct roundness, and certainly without the beautiful character of the projecting lines already alluded to. And with regard to the second supposition, it may be sufficient to state, that no amygdaloidal rocks appear to occur in all this neighbourhood, nor any other rock in which nodules of this description could be imbedded. The rocks, where visible, appear in general to be stratified, the funda- mental ones at least being greywacke and greywacke slate. The other rocks I cannot take upon me at this moment to name (unless to suspect that there may be slight traces of the old red sandstone), for the only regular visit I ever paid to the glen was a hurried one, and that too when the shades of evening were beginning rapidly to close around me. Dim and indistinct, however, though the surrounding objects were now becoming, enough of light was still left to guide me to another theory upon the subject, which possesses the merit at least of being a simple one. I imagine, then, that these stones are in fact little else than a pe- culiar kind of stalactite, and, generally speaking, formed in much the same way, altliough their component parts are somewhat different from ordinary stalactites. On several parts, accordingly, of the banks of this dean, there flow little trickling streams of water, and in one place the bank is composed entirely of a stiff" tenacious alluvial claj^ with boulders of different rocks and of various sizes firmly fixed in it, and frequently projecting considerably beyond the surface of the clay of which the bank is composed — (a specimen of this kind I at one time had, but cannot now exhibit it, which I am sorry for). Down this slope, water is con- tinually trickling, highly saturated, as we may suppose, with the particles of the fine clay, which, as it flows, it of course deposits either in small hollows on the surface of these boulders, or round any little inequality or obstruction on their surface to which it can attach itself. Thus, for example, in any rolled mass, such as that now before me, we can easily suppose that there may be many little inequalities either higher or lower than its general surface, — that water regularly trickling over this, highly saturated with the particles of a fine and tenacious clay, meeting with these inequalities and obstructions, would find something on which, or around which, to form a deposition, — that a nucleus would thus be formed, and that, as the water kept trickling, layer after layer would be gradually added, until at length the deposition would increase into the form and size which these stones generally assume. Such I am inclined to consider as the general mode of formation of these curious substances ;

DR JOHNSTON 8 CATALOGUE OP BIVaLVBD SHELLS. 77

and this being admitted, the various peculiarities of figure observable in them may easily be accounted for. Those, for instance, with a protu- berance to one side more than another, would be deposited on the sur- face of the boulder inclined at a considerable angle ; those again with the most perfect shapes, would be formed on the under side of the stone in a vertical position, like a regular stalactite ; and so we might equally easily explain any variety of figure in those specimens which have a flattened base, and which thus shew that they must at one time have ad- hered to a level surface. Those again which have an oval shape, com- posed as it were of two distinct hemispheres, we may suppose to have been formed in this manner, viz. by the water flowing over a hollow on the surface of the mass or boulder, that this hollow will gradually be filled by the particles of the fine clay, which, as they will naturally have more attraction for themselves than the smooth surface of the rock or stone they are deposited on, will thus go on increasing, layer afler layer being added, until at length the figure of an oval or double hemisphere is assumed.

It is easy likewise to explain how they occur so often single, and are generally found in the bed of the streamlet. A very violent shower of rain would account satisfactorily for both appearances. The violence of the water flowing over the banks would loosen many of these imbedded boulders, — they would rush furiously down the slope, — from the rough- ness and resistance of their course they would part with their attached fairy stones : these would thus be carried into the bed of the stream, where, as before remarked, they are generally found, and that too in greatest abundance after violent showers of rain.

It has been remarked by the inhabitants of the neighbourhood, that they are much less abundant now than they once were, at least good specimens ; but whether this be owing to their having been more sought for of late years by the increased number of visitors to this valley, or whether it is owing to the higher grounds above the Dean being more drained than formerly, and consequently allowing less water to trickle down their slope, I shall not pretend to determine.

A Catalogue of the Bivalved Shells found on the Coast of Berwickshire and North Durham. By Dr Johnston.

SoBKiNGDOM MOLLUSCA. Class CONCHIFERA. I. MONOMYAIRIA.

OsTRBADJB. Anemia punctata.

Anomia ephippium. aculeata.

squamula. Ostrea cdulis.

7«

DR JOHNSTON S CATALOOUB OF BIVALVED SHELLS

Pectbnida. Pecten maximus. opercularis. lineatus. varius.

Arcad^e. Arcafiisca. Nucula nuclea. minuta.

Mytilid^. Mytilus edulis.

var. pellucidus.

var, subsaxatilis, WiUiamson, in Mag. NaL Hist. vii. p. 354, %. 48. Modiola vulgaris.^

var. barbatus. discors. discrepans.^

Unionid>e. Anodon anatinus. cygneus.

Conch ACKJE. Cardium edule.

echinatum.'

laevigatum. Donax trunculus.

Pecten obsoletus.

spinosus, Brovm, Ulus, fig. 8. Lima fragilis.

II. DIMYAIRIA.

Tellina fabula.

tenuis.

crassa. Psammobia florida.

Ferroensis.

solidula. Cyprina islandica»* Mactra solida.

tnincata.

pi. 33,

subtruncata.

elliptica. Brown, Illus. fig. 6.

stultorum. Kellia suborbicularis.^

rubra. Cyclas comeus.^

amnicus. Pisidium pulchellum, Jenyns

pusillunij Jenyns. Astarte Danmonise.

Scotica.

compressa. Cytherea exoleta.'^

lincta.

ovata.

pi. 15,

^ Lamarck haa arranged " Modiola'' amongst the " Monomyairia," but iVf. vulgaris has three or more properly four, adductor muscles ; viz. one near each end of the shell, and two lesser ones towards the centre of the body.

2 The foot of this and the preceding is very extensible, and when extended, is several times longer than the shell, and almost filiform. By fixing this foot at the furthest point to which it can be stretched, and then dragging the shell forwards, the animal moves with con- siderable rapidity ; and swims readily in a reversed position on the surface. .

^ Foot of a rich pink colour, long, somewhat compressed, with a bend or elbow, whence it tapers to an obtuse point : cloak with a plain thin margin, about a line in breadth, behind which it is suddenly thickened, and at regular intervals raised into glandulous warts or tu- bercles, corresponding to the grooves in the shell : respiratory and excrementitious aper- tures encircled with tentacular filaments ; labial appendages long, strongly striate on one side.

* Animal white ; the cloak open, with a thickened minutely crenulate border, the ori- fices of the passages encircled with papillse ; foot broad, compressed, the margin plain, and somewhat undulate.

* Animal clear white ; syphonal tube single, cylindrical, with a plain aperture ; foot compressed, tapered, thin, and flexible.

* Often found in marL

' Animal with a broad compressed foot ; syphonal tubes united throughout, with plain apertures.

DR Johnston's catalogue of bivalvbd shblls. 79

VesBS etusina, Mya arenaria.

fatciata. normegica, Lyontia tMaU, Twr-

Gallina. ton,

undata. Sphenia Swainsonii,

Venerapis perforam, Anatina pubesccns, Turton. Amphi-

pullastra. desma pubesccns, Fleming.

decustata. Amphisdesraa album.

virginea. Solen siliqua.

ensis.

Pylorid*. peliuoidus.

Corbula striata. Hiatella rugosa.'

Lutraria vulgaris. arctica. Mya truncata.

The following species 1 have not met with : —

Pecten sinuosus. Holy Island, Winch.

Mytilus edulis, var. incurvatus. Holy Island, Winch.

Isocardia Cor. " This exceeding rare shell in the British catalogue, was

taken by me alive in the Firth, near St Abb's Head." — Laskey in

Wern. Mem. i. 385. Cardium nibrum. Holy Island, W. C. Trevelyan, Esq. Amphidesma convexum, Fleming. Mya declivis, DiUwyn. Holy Island,

Winch. Cytherea Guineensis. " Taken in deep water, off St Abb's Head, very

rare. One specimen was taken alive." — Laskey, Venus subrhomboidea. Taken by Captain Laskey, off St Abb's Head,

in deep water, very rare. I^olas Dactylus. Holy Island, Winch.

crispata. Holy Island, Winch. Solcn Legumen. Holy Island, Winch.

In the preceding list I have followed the nomenclature of Dr Fleming's ♦• British Animals," except where the contrary is specified. Of the spe- cies in italics, the empty shells only have been found, but the others have occurred in a living or fresh condition. Few of them seem to be abundant in oiur bay, but their apparent scarcity may be owing to the want of proper means and opportunities of ascertaining their localities, for the dredge has not been used, my specimens having been picked from the refuse of fishing-boats, or on the shore after storms. The Pec- ten lineatus, P, spinosusy Limafragilisy Arcafusca, Kellia rubra^ Ana- Una pubescensy Tellina crassoy Psammobia florxday Astarte comprestOt and Ml/a norvegica, are, however, considered among our rarest species by collectors in general, and in that respect are the most interesting in the catalogue.

The Mussel {Mytilus edulis) is our most plentiful species, and at cer-

^* Animal with two large syphonal tQb<>s, united throughout : a tmall hjmn anterior end.

80 DR Johnston's catalogue of bivalved shells.

tain seasons is brought to the market, many people being fond of them when roasted or pickled ; and it is also occasionally used as a bait by our fishermen. On the rocky and exposed coast of Berwickshire it rarely attains a size exceeding one inch, but becomes very large and fine in the gravelly and sandy bays which lie opposite Holy Island, where it finds a supply of brackish water. The Cockle^ ( Cardium edule) is gre- garious in the same places, whence large quantities are annually taken for sale to Berwick and the neighbouring villages. The Clams {Pec- tenidce) are rare with us, excepting the small obsoletus, which is the fa- vourite food of the flounder, from the stomach of which many specimens can generally be procured. The Solenes, or Razor-fish, and the Myge abound on the sandy flats about Goswick and southward, burrowing in the sand and gravel, but being used neither for food nor bait, they are consequently not sought after. The only Oyster-bed is in the channel between Holy Island and the mainland, and is the private property of the Earl of Tankerville. In the inventory of the Priory of Holy Island for 1381-2, we find expended for " a sloop (navicula) bought of a cer- tain Scotchman (de quodam skoto), with the oysters and other goods contained in it, 100s." From the nature of the purchase, Mr Raine thinks it may be inferred " that there were at that period no oysters to be procured at home ;" and suggests, that the oysters of this very cargo were the founders of the present valuable colony. {Hist. N. Durham^ p. 110.) The conjecture is, I believe, unfounded, for not many years since, the oysters being exposed, by the unusually great recess of a spring tide during the night, to a severe frost, were all killed, and the bed had to be renewed from Prestonpans ; and, if my information is correct, a similar accident has occurred more than once during the last half century.

None of our bivalved shells are remarkable for their brilliancy or beauty. The fresh-water species are of a dirty green or horn colour, while the marine are generally of a uniform dull chalky-white, often co- vered with a brown epidermis, and sometimes marked with coloured lines and spots, but less strongly than on the same shells from the south- ern shores of our island, and greatly inferior to the specimens figured in our illustrated works on Conchology. The pectenes, however, exhibit mottled and streaked surfaces of brown, yellow, and white, which is very agreeable, and hence they have been applied to many articles of fancy- work ; and when the outer layer of the shell of the mussel is removed with care, a fine display of blue and white bands, blending their irrides- cent hues, is exposed. The delicate valves of Kellia svhorbicularis I have seen very successfully used in imitating the petals of the hawthorn.

^ •* On the saods of those farms (Ross and El wick) are very large cockles, known in the country by the name of Budle-cockles : also an oyster scarp, which has long been famed by those who profeM an elegant taste, the oysters produced there being said to excel those of every other part of the kingdom." — Hutchison s Durham^ v. iii. p. 471.

MR BADINGTON's CATALOOUE OP 1MSBCT8. M

The cloak of the pectenes deserves attention from the beauty and sin- gularity of its structure. The free margin is clouded and mottled some- thing like the shell, with brown, orange, black, and white, and two or three series of short ciliated tentacula, which are not exactly marginal, encircle the outer edge. Similar tentacula garnish the thickened mar- gin next the adhering part of the cloak, intermixed with a few of much larger size placed at distant intervals ; and in this inner series we find little black bead-like bodies placed at regular intervals, glowing with the lustre of some precious stones. These beads are very hard, iridescent, circular, nearly sessile, and, I think, cupped in the centre ; but of their function no probable conjecture has been offered.

It will be observed from the table, that no species of Tubicolae is found on our shore, — species which are more peculiarly organized for burrow- ing in wood, clay, and stone ; yet our limestone rocks are perforated in every direction with thimble-like cavities, large enough to admit a finger. These holes are the sole work of the Hiatella rugosa, which has the wonderful property of excavating its cells in the rock by the excretion probably of an acid or solvent, the nature of which, however, remains to be discovered.

Catalogue of Insects found at Bertmck-upon- Tweed, in August 1834. By Charles C. Babington.

Dromius linearis.' Hydroporus alpinus.*

■■ fasciatus.* sexpustulatus.

Hclobia Gyllenhalii.* proximus.

brevicollis.* ovalis.

Amara leevis. jugularis.

Bradytus apricarius. -^_— erythrocephalus.

Calathus mollis.' __ flavipes.

Argutor crythropus. ■ pubescens.

Trcchus minutus. Colymbetes maculatus.

Acpus fulvesccns.* bipustulatus.

Peryphus agilis. Oyrinus natator.

Bembidium paludosum.* Enicocerus viridia>ncu8.

Notiophilus striatus. tristis.

Haliplus obliquus. Oibsoni.

ruficollis. Elmis Volkmtcri.

Hygrotus scitulus. — variabilis. Hydroporus depressus. — ^ lacustris. — — — - 12-punctatus. nigosus.

> Found 00 plants by