The Natural History of Selborne

The showers do not at all moisten the ground, which remains as hard as iron.  No savoys, endives, &c. can be planted-out.

Some grapes are got pretty large.  Finished cutting the small hedges.

Moor-buzzard, milvus aeruginosus, has young.  It builds in low shrubs on wild heaths.  Five young.

Great showers in sight to the E. & N.E.  The ground is very much burnt up, no rain having fallen, very small showers excepted, since June 27.

Oxford

Vast flocks of young wag-tails on the banks of the charwel.

Whitchurch, Hants.

Butomus umbellatus.  The stint, cinclus, Aldro. appears about the banks of the Thames.  At Oxford it is called the summer snipe.

Finished my hay-rick consisting of about seven tons without a drop of rain.

Ricked my St foin in curious order: there were five small loads without a drop of rain.

Fine haymaking: hay-cargin.  Young hedge-hogs are frequently found,  four or five in a litter.  At five or six days old their spines, (which  are then white) grow stiff enough to wound any body’s hands.  They, I see, are born blind, like puppies; have small external ears; & can in part draw their skins down over their faces: but are not able to contract thenselves into a ball, as they do for defence when well-grown.