INTRODUCTION ig 



Worcestershire included a few ornithological notices ; and Walcott in 1789 

 published an illustrated Synopsis of British Birds, coloured copies of which 

 are rare. Simultaneously William Lewin commenced his Birds of Great 

 Britain, in 7 quarto volumes, the last of which appeared in 1794, a 

 re-issue of the whole in 8 volumes following between 1795 and 1801. 

 In 1791 J. Heysham added to Hutchins's Cumberland a list of birds of 

 that county, while in the same year began Thomas Lord's Entire New 

 System of Ornithology, or (Ecumenical History of British Birds, the un- 

 grammatical text professedly written, or corrected, by Dr. Dupree, a 

 pretentious and worthless work of which 38 parts were published in the 

 course of the next five years. In 1794 Donovan commenced a History 

 of British Birds which was only finished in 1819 — the earlier portion 

 being reissued about the same time. Bolton's Harmonia Euralis, an 

 account of British Song-Birds, first appeared between 1794 and 1796. 

 Other editions followed, one even 50 years later. ^ 



All the foregoing British publications yield in importance to two that 

 remain to be mentioned. In 1767 Pennant, several of whose works have 

 already been named, entered into correspondence with Gilbert White, 

 receiving from him much information, almost wholly drawn from his own 

 observation, for the succeeding editions of the British Zoology. In 1769 

 White began exchanging letters of a similar character with Barrington. 

 The epistolary intercourse with the former continued until 1780, and with 

 the latter until 1787. In 1789 White's share of the correspondence, 

 together with some miscellaneous matter, was published as The Natural 

 History of Selborne — from the name of the village in which he lived. 

 Observations on Birds form the principal though by no means the whole 

 theme of this book, which may be safely said to have done more to pro- 

 mote a love of Ornithology in this country than any other work that has 

 been written, nay more than all the other works (except one next to be 

 mentioned) put together. It has passed through a far greater number of 

 editions than any other work on Natural History in the whole world, and 

 has become emphatically an English classic — the graceful simplicity of 

 its style, the elevating tone of its spirit and the sympathetic chords it 

 strikes recommending it to every lover of nature, while the severely 

 scientific reader can find few errors in the statements it contains, 

 whether of matter-of-fact or opinion. It is almost certain that more than 

 half the zoologists of the British Islands for the past eighty years or more 

 have been infected with their love of the study by Gilbert White ; and 

 it can hardly be supposed that his influence will cease.^ 



•^ I cannot vouch for the complete accuracy of some of tlie dates given above. 

 They have puzzled even that accomplished bibliographer Dr. Coues. It was nobody's 

 business in those days to record the precise time of appearance of a work published 

 in parts, and the date, when given at the foot of the plates, cannot always be trusted. 



^ Next to the original edition, that known as Bennett's, published in 1837, which 

 was reissued in 1875 by Mr. Harting, was long deemed the best ; but it must give 

 place to that of Bell, which appeared in 1877, and contains much additional informa- 

 tion of great interest. But the editions of Markwick, Herbert, Blyth and Jardine 

 all possess features of merit. An elaborately prepared edition, issued in 1875 by 

 one who gained great reputation as a naturalist, only shews his ignorance and his 

 vulgarity. Since that time several popular writers have essayed other editions, 

 though their labour may have been limited to the production of a preface in which 



