388 MISCELLANY. 



Occurrence of the Grey Shrike (Lanius excubilor) in the Vicinity of 

 Scarborough. — This bird is occasionally met with here. A very fine specimen 

 of the male was shot within a mile of Scarborough by Mr. J. Wilson, and given 

 to me immediately after. One was also shot by Mr. Samuel Taylor, of Bleach- 

 field, and is now in his possession.* In the year 1832 another was taken. A 

 fourth, shot in 1835, at Cloughton, near this town, is in the Scarborough Museum. 

 — Patrick Hawkridge, Scarborough, Aug. 7, 1837. 



Relative Abundance of the Warblers (Sylvia) in Surrey. — The Dark- 

 legged Warbler (Sylvia loquaxj is in this neighbourhood rarer than I can well 

 account for, though quite common in several places about four or five miles 

 distant, or even less. We always hear a few of them in spring and autumn, 

 but this season not one has bred in the neighbourhood, although the Willow 

 Warbler literally abounds. It is more confined to the woods than S. trochilus. 

 [See Mr. Salmon's communication on the relative abundance of the Warblers in 

 Norfolk, p. 385]]. — Edward Blyth, Tooting, Surrey, Oct. 3, 1835. 



Wanderings and Ponderings of an Insect-hunter. — It is known to every 

 book-writer that the preface is the very end of his labours. Still, such is the 

 mendaciousness of man, that he always places it at the beginning — the author of 

 Tristram Shandy excepted, who veraciously places it where he wrote it — in the 

 middle. I think it is rather new to put the preface at the end. 



The reader, the courteous and gentle reader of the Entomological Magazine, 

 has observed divers wood-cuts, having no apparent connexion with the text : 

 thus, a public-house was made to illustrate Bowerbank On the Circulation of 

 the Blood; and a quaker's meeting-house embellished Douglas's Random 

 Thoughts. Now, although the sapients may attempt to prove that the public- 

 houses cause a circulation of the blood, and that quakers' meeting-houses are 

 places for random thoughts, be it distinctly understood that no conclusions of the 

 kind were intended. Again, the residence of Thomas Rogers is to be placed at 

 the end of this article, whether convenient or inconvenient, although that great 

 man is yet in need of an introduction to my readers ; moreover, in the next 

 space an intended representation of the Needles, as seen from Alum Bay, is to 

 be introduced. All these were designed by the Insect-hunter as illustrations of 

 his " Wanderings." They represent very faithfully the objects from which they 

 were drawn ; although, in justice to the engravers, it should be stated, that they 

 complained grievously of the want of composition in the drawings, and also of 

 their being positively commanded to make exact copies without embellishment. 

 In these respects tastes widely differ. The Insect-hunter likes faithful repre- 

 sentations of all things. He would rather possess exact though homely likenesses 



* In all cases of the occurrence of rare birds and other animals, it would be interesting to know 

 the dates.— Ed. 



