16 THK ENTOMOLOGIST. 



this place is by no means easy, as it lies out of the main 

 track of any conveyance, between Norwich and Yarmouth, 

 and the nearest point to any railway station being at 

 Brundall, some seven miles distant. I determined to try this 

 route, and risk getting a conveyance of some kind to carry 

 my luggage. Fortunately I found at the station a farmer's 

 cart in waiting, which was going to South Walsham, only a 

 mile from Ranvvorlh. Thence I walked on to the "Jolly 

 Maltsters," where I hoped to be able to find apartments, 

 and to assuage a pretty considerable thirst, created by a 

 blazing July sun, which, after some trouble, I did. I 

 found that 1 was, as expected, the only visitor in the place. 

 Thus far all had gone well. Oh reaching the house I had 

 noticed a nice lot of young fowls running about, and cruelly 

 conceived the idea of spitting a couple of them. The land- 

 lady consented to do the deed, and to roast them for a five 

 o'clock dinner. Were I inclined to be superstitious, I might 

 perhaps attribute my want of success on this occasion, not, 

 like Coleridge's " ancient mariner," to the killing of the 

 albatross, but to my foiv I plot. 



I started at once to reconnoitre my hunting-ground, or it 

 would be almost more correct to say, hunting-water. A few 

 yards from the house is Ranworth Broad and, opposite or 

 across it, Ranworth Marsh. Possibly many, like myself when 

 T went, have little idea what this fenny country is like ; it 

 may not be amiss to briefly describe it. The district here 

 for miles is one extensive flat, through which run small and 

 sluggish streams, on either s-ide of them are thousands of 

 acres of marshy ground, with here and there large open 

 pieces of water, called Broads, Ranworth Broad is about a 

 quarter of a mile long, varying in width from one hundred to 

 two hundred yards: it has a deep belt of reeds and rank 

 vegetation all round the margin, whilst jutting out into the 

 water, and also growing in the middle of it are beds and tufls 

 of Typha angustifolia, T. laiifoUa, Scirpus lacustris, &c. 

 On the marsh opposite there are thousands of acres of rough, 

 rank herbage, composed of smaller species of reed, meadow- 

 sweet [Spircea Ulmaria), Valeriana officinalis, two or three 

 species of willow-herb [Epilobiiwi), Caricece, several of the 

 Juncaceee, or rush famil} , with a carpet of moss, and marsh- 

 fern {Lastrea Thelypleris), also several coarse grasses; 



