The Natural History of Selborne

A sand-piper shot at Hawkley.

A bat comes out many times in a day, even in sunshine to catch flies: it is probably a female that has young, & is hungry from giving suck: the swallows strike at the bat.

Mr Hale & Tim Turner begin to pick hops in the Foredown.  Hale picked 350 bushels: his hops are large & fine.

A stag, which has haunted Hartley wood the summer thro’ was roused by a man that was mowing oats just at the back of village.  Several young persons purused him with guns, & happening to rouse him again on the side of Nore hill, shot at him; & then collecting some hounds from Emshot, & Hawkley, they drove him to a large wood in the parish of Westmeon, where they lost him, & called-off their dogs.

Some mushrooms spring on my hotbeds.  Mr Sam Barker, from a measurement taken, adjudged Wolmer pond to contain 66 acres, & an half, exclusive of the arm at the E. end: the pond keeper at Frinsham avers that his pond measures 80 acres.  Zizania aquatica, Linn: called by the English setlers wild Rice; & by the Canadian French– Folle Avoin.  In consequence of an application to a Gentleman at Quebec, my Bro. Thomas White received a cask of the seed of this plant, part of which was sent down to Selborne.  His desire was to have received it in the ear, as it then would have been much more likely to have retain’d it’s vegetative faculty: but this part of his request was not attended to; for the seed arrived stript even of it’s husk.  It has a pleasant taste, & makes a pudding equal to rice, or millet.  This kind of corn, growing naturally in the water, is of great service to the wild natives of the south west part of N. America: for as Carver in his travels says, they have no farther care & trouble with it than only to tye it up in bunches when it first comes into ear, & when ripe to gather it into their boats; every person or family knowing their own by some distinction in the bandage.  Carver observes, that it would be very advantageous to new settlers in that country, as it furnishes at once a store of corn the first year; & by that means removes the distress & difficulty incident to new colonies till their first crop begins to ripen.  Linnaeus has given this plant the name of Zizania: but what could induce the celebrated Botanist to degrade this very beneficial grain with the title of that pernicious weed which the enemy in the parable served among the good-corn while men slept, does not so easily appear.  (Matt. 13 chapter)

The swallows are very busy skimming & hovering over a fallow that has been penned; probably the dung of the sheep attracts many insects, particularly scarabs.

Nep. Ben returned to London.

Farmer Lasham has much wheat out, which was not ripe when other people cut, & housed.

H.W. & Miss W. left us & went to Newton.  Bro. Henry, & B. White, & wife came with little Tom, & Nurse Johnson.

Wheat harvest will mostly be finished by Monday; viz. in old July.