The Natural History of Selborne

The country-people, who are abroad in winter-mornings long before sun-rise, talk of much hard frost in some spots, & none in others.  The reason of these partial frosts is obvious: for there are, at such times, partial fogs about: where the fog obtains little or no frost appears; but where the air is clear there it freezes hard.  So the  frost takes place either on the hill or in dale, where every the air happens to be clearest, & freest from vapour.  Hyrn, cornu vel angulus: whence our Faringdon Hyrn, or hern as we pronounce it, is the corner-field of our parish.  Heane, Humilis: hence perhaps our honey-lane.  Our Gally-hill, is perhaps gallows hill from Galga, crux.  Does not domesday book among other privileges, say that Priors & c. were allowed Furcas, gallows?  By, habitation: from whence ye adjective Byn, as Binsted, &c.  Deortun, saltus: hence no doubt our Dorton, a wild, bushy common just below the village: Deerton, a place where deer are kept.  Eowod, Ovile: hence perhaps our field called the Ewel?  Ymbhanger the winding hanger: we have places so named.  Rode, crux: hence our Rode-green near the Priory, where probably a cross was erected.  Fyrd, a ford; also a camp: hence probably our high common-field to the N.W. is called the fordown.  Ether, sepes: the top border that binds down our hedges & keeps them together is called by our hedgers ether to this day: the wickering the top along they call ethering.  Gouleins (Gothic) salutatio: hence perhaps our word Golly, a sort of jolly kind of oath, or asservation much in use among our carters, & lowest people.  Eorthwicga, blatta terrana: hence our absurd word, not peculiar to this district: earwig.

On every sunny day the winter thro’, clouds of insects usually called gnats (I suppose tipulae & empedes) appear sporting & dancing over the tops of the ever-green trees in the shrubbery, & frisking about as if the business of generation was still going on.  Hence it appears that these diptera (which by their sizes appear to be of different species) are not subject to a torpid state in the winter, as most winged Insects are.  At night, & in frosty weather, & when it rains & blows they seem to retire into those trees.  They often are out in a fog.

People fall with colds. Dry weather for near three weeks, ’til the ground was very free from water.

10 or 12 large gulls sailing high in the air over comb-wood pond.

People recover from the epidemic disorder.

This epidemic disorder falls heavier on adults than children.

Fog on the hills.  Spring-like, more like Feb: than Decr.  Ravens in their common mode of flying have a peculiarity attending them not unworthy of notice; they turn-over in the air quite on their backs, & that not now & then, bur frequently; often every two or 300 yards.  When this odd attitude betides them they fall down several fathoms, uttering a loud crow, & then right themselves again.  This strange vacillation seems to be owing to their scratching when bitten by vermin– the thrusting-0ut of their leg destroys their equipoise, & throws their wings out of the true center of gravity. Ravens spend their leisure-time over some hanging wood in a sort of mock fight, dashing & diving at each other continually while their loud croakings make the woody steeps re-echo again.

Furze blows.  Colds & feverish complaints obtain in this neighbourhood.  in London, Portsmouth, & other places colds, & coughs have been general: in Dublin also.

The grey crow, a bird of winter passage, appears.  It is as rare at Selborne, as the carrion crow is in Sweden.  This is only the third bird that I have seen in this district.  They are common on the downs at Andover, & Winton.  The air is unusually damp, with copious condensations on the walls, wainscot, looking-glasses, &c, of houses, in many places running in streams.

Many phalanae appear.  Strange that these nocturnal lepidoptera should be so alert, at a season when no day papilios appear, but have long been laid-up for the winter.  Trees will not subsist in sharp currents of air: thus after I had opened a vista in the hedge at the E. corner of Baker’s hill, no tree that I could plant would grow in that corner: & since  I have opened a view from the bottom of the same field into the mead, the ash that grew in the hedge, & now stands naked on the bastion, is dying by inches, & losing all it’s boughs.  Phalaene appear about hedges in the night time the winter thro’.