HA RD WICKE 'S SCIENCE - GOSSIP. 



28- 



Avith its head, and make itself disagreeable in many 

 ways. Daylight was just departing when I heard of 

 John's return to North Head, and the sort offish he had 

 hooked. I hired a neighbour's cart, had the deer at 

 once landed and carefully conveyed to my barn, where 

 he was made fast to a strong post used for tethering 

 cows. After letting him rest awhile undisturbed, v/e 

 thought we might venture to cut the cords which 

 bound his feet, when he again made the most violent 

 efforts to escape, but, finding that escape was im- 

 possible, he lay quietly down, and apparently resigned 

 to his fate. We got together some food I thought he 

 would like, knowing their habits and the plants they 

 p)rincipally live upon in the woods, but nothing would 

 tempt him to eat, so, befoi^e leaving him for the night, 

 I poured a cow mash {nolens voleiis) down his throat. 

 Early next morning we paid the deer a visit ; the food 

 Ave had left for him remained untouched. He, who had 

 roamed the primitive forests of New Bnmswick, and 

 knew what sweet liberty was, could not live a prisoner 

 in a cow-shed. Towards evening the eyes showed 

 great weariness, and as we thought he could not sur- 

 vive another day, we had him slaughtered as merci- 

 fully as possible. This Moose, when deprived of his 

 skin, proved to be in fine condition, weighing 135 lb., 

 and was sold by John for nine dollars, without the 

 skin. I was presented with the head, which I have 

 pi-eserved for some Boston friends who are at pi'esent 

 collecting objects of natural history on this island, 

 and who have promised to send me in exchange some 

 birds I cannot procure here. John tells me I have 

 omitted to inform you that this deer swam at the rate 

 of five miles an hour, and frequently sprang half his 

 length out of the water. Had it not been intercepted 

 we have little doubt it would have reached Campo- 

 bello safely, and perhaps returned to this island 

 when the object of its visit had been accomplished. 

 We have many touching and curious instances 

 brought under our notice proving the strong 

 affection the large migratory birds have for one 

 another, especially the gregarious. A broken-winged 

 gull will often gather a cloud of sympathizing com- 

 panions around it when the nature of its affliction is 

 understood, and it is rarely it is left entirely alone so 

 long as life continues. When unable to rise from the 

 ocean, two or more birds are sure to alight near and 

 swim around it, as if to cheer and encoiu-age it, and 

 will continue to do so until the receding tide has 

 carried the party far out of sight. Before the winter 

 of 1876-7 had terminated a large flock of wild geese, 

 on their annual migration to the great lakes, was ob- 

 served making its way to our island, and a man I 

 know, who is constantly on the look-out for stray 

 shots, and who keeps his rifle ready loaded, noticing 

 their direction, rushed into his house and fired at a 

 venture at the birds then over head. It was a random 

 sort of shot, but there was no doubt he had hit one of 

 them, as it fell out of the line of flight, dropped some 

 distance below the others, yet still feebly continued 

 its journey. The instant it did this a confusion of 

 goose-notes was heard, when some of its companions 

 swooped down, got under the wounded bird, and 

 bore it up on a level with the others. Being too 

 weak to sustain itself, again it fell, and again it was 

 buoyed up by the relief party. It fell for the third 

 time, but not before it reached the earth did these 

 affectionate birds join the lagging flock, finding 

 further efforts useless to sustain it in the air. Writ- 

 ing about sea-gulls, I am reminded of a rather unique 

 way they are caught alive by the good, or bad, people 

 at ftlouiit Desert, Maine. A rather long stick is nm 

 through the tail of a small fresh fish, and then it is 

 left on the sea-shore, where it can be seen by the 

 birds. A hungry gull, who has perhaps been unsuc- 



cessful in his day's fishing, seizes it and attempts to 

 swallow it in the usual way, head first. He succeeds 

 remarkably well until he comes to the stick, when a 

 stop is made, and further progress is arrested. De- 

 termined not to give up what he has already pinched, 

 extraordinary efforts are made to bolt the stick, 

 and so he chokes, strangles, and falls over, when he 

 is easily captured. Hooks attached to lines are 

 baited with fish with the same object, proving 

 how cruel man is in exercising his boasted poivcr over 

 the lower animals, particularly those of no value to 

 him as food. Another scrap, and I must close this 

 long letter. Various are the ways birds are deprived 

 of life. A short time ago I was informed that a wild 

 duck had been found floating dead in Chesapeake 

 Bay with a large oyster firmly attached to its bill. It 

 was thought the bird when diving had purposely 

 captured the bivalve for food, but I think it more 

 probable the duck had been seeking its usual food at 

 the bottom, and had accidentally put its bill between 

 the gaping shells of the oyster, and so was compelled 

 to bring it to the surface, and not having strength 

 to support it there or to fly away with it, the head 

 drooped, and the bird was drowned. — H. M., Red- 

 lands, Bristol. 



NOTICES TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



To Correspondents and Exchangers. — As we now 

 publish Science-Gossip at least a week earlier than hereto- 

 fore, wecarinot possibly insert in the following number any 

 communications which reach us later than the 9th of the 

 previous month. 



R. G. (Stoke-upon-Trent). — Your Manx plant is the Poten- 

 tilla hirta; as you suspect, a "foreigner." It is recorded in 

 the Phytologist, as found on the Witchill, Perth, by Mr. John 

 Sim. 



G. D. P. — The specimens you sent us, so neatly mounted, 

 are. No. i, a seedling plant of the Sea Spleenwort {Asple^iimiz 

 marinmii) ; No. 2, a pretty seaweed of the Floridie group, 

 named Dclcsscria saiigiiiiiea. Both from North Devon. 



E. F. C. (Leicester). — It is one of the protean forms of the 

 Batrachian Rajiimculi. Without doubt, if it can be made into 

 a species, the K.JJoribitndus, Bab. These varieties are a very 

 interesting study. 



E. F. C (Leicester). — Your seedling Fern is difficult to name 

 in its present state ; you may, however, name it Pteris. The 

 species will be seen in time. 



J. R. N. (Kingston). — Thanks for the neat examples sent, 

 which are as follow: — No. i, Anthrisciis vulgaris; No. 2, 

 Trifoliiini refieiis ; No. 3, Rosa jnicrantha. Smith — a very 

 great rarity ; No. 4, Hieraciuiii 7iin>-or?i>ii ; No. 5, Epipactis 

 palitstris, L. We advise you to procure Hooker's " Student's 

 Flora," as the best for j-our purpose. 



Col. F. a. D. — The best photographs of the Moon are those 

 by Rutherford, enlarged by Brothers. See "The Moon; her 

 Motions, Aspect, Scenery, and Physical Condition," by R. A. 

 Proctor. London : Longmans, Green, & Co. (in which the 

 reduced photographs of the Moon are employed for illustra- 

 tion). 



E. B. Turner. — We are not aware of the existence of any 

 cheap work on British Diptera. 



J. E. Stephens. — Your specimen is the Field Cockroach 

 [Blatta gennaiiica). 



A Subscriber. — Rye's "British Beetles," published by 

 Lovell Reeve at los. 6d., with coloured plates, is the best 

 popular work of the kind. 



■W. B. M.— Get "The British Bird Preserver," by Samuel 

 Wood, published at is. G. F. Warne. Swainson's " Taxi- 

 dermist " treats on stuffing all kinds of animals. 



C. Foord. — The insect is, as far as one can judge from the 

 sketch, Trichiosoma hicorjnn, one of the large Saw-flies, the 

 cocoons of which may be found attached to the ends of the 

 branches of the white thorn during the winter. The lar\-a is 

 smooth, green, and looks as if it had been covered with meal. 



R. G. Goodwin (Walsall). — We have examined the so-called 

 "growth " on Aihyris, but it is not organic. It must be simply 

 an efflorescence, caused by the acetic acid probably combining 

 with traces of argillaceous matter. 



W. H. GoMM. — The spines sent us are those of Echinus 

 miliar is. 



