28 THE BIRDS OF ESSEX. 



as by frequent visits to London, and return visits from Mr. Curtis and 

 other well-known London naturalists of the day. When in town, he 

 seems frequently to have called on Sowerby, Yarrell, Gould, and 

 other leading naturalists. Many interesting letters belonging to this 

 period still exist in the possession of Mr. S. W. Squier, J. P., of 

 Horndon-on-the-Hill, who acted as his widow's executor, and to 

 whom I am indebted for much of the information here given. 

 These show that he was in correspondence with the following, 

 amongst others : — John Curtis (1827 — 42). Edward Blunt (1825—26), 

 Messrs. J. and J. F. Ward (1828—34), T. C. Heysham, of Carlisle 

 (1838 — 39), Thomas Pain, of Great Yarmouth (1839—40), and 

 G. S. Gibson, of Saffron Walden (185 1 — 65) with reference to the 

 F/ora of Essex. In 1839 he was elected a Fellow of the Linnean 

 Society. His first published notes on Natural History seem to have 

 appeared in 1833 in the Field Naturalist, a short-lived magazine 

 edited by James Rennie. The first was a brief article "On the 

 Black-headed Gull" (13. i. 533), to which the editor added, "Other 

 communications from our intelligent correspondent will be accept- 

 able." He afterwards contributed to the same publication articles 

 on the "Migration of the Tree Sparrow" (13. ii. 153), "The Method 

 of forming a Rookery" (13. ii. 153), "The Dunlin" (13. ii. 154), and 

 "Hints on collecting Water Birds" (13. ii. 197). The latter espe- 

 cially shows him to have been a thoroughly practical, working 

 ornithologist, and especially familiar with shore birds. In 1844 he 

 contributed some remarks on the nude space around the Rook's bill 

 to the Zoologist (23. 937). Beyond these notes he seems to have 

 published little or nothing. 



In 1827 Mr. Parsons and his falher, who thoroughly shared the 

 son's tastes, killed the following (8) at New England on May 11, 

 and sent them to " Mr. Ward " on the following day : — i Ring 

 Dottrell (? breeding), 2 Pewit Gulls, i Sandwich Tern, i Common 

 Tern, i Large Grey Gull, i Whimbrel, and i Grey Owl. On Jan. 21, 

 1829, Mr. Parsons and his father had "a famous day's sport" on New 

 England, killing 2 Golden Eyes, 6 Brent Geese, 4 Wigeon, i Pochard, 

 &c. (8). From a ticked MS. list of British birds, in his handwriting, 

 and dated 1833, it appears that he then possessed specimens of 166 

 species, and of the eggs of 93 species ; but some of these he had 

 evidently not obtained at or near Southchurch. In all that 

 he did he was exceedingly painstaking and methodic. In 1840, 

 whilst residing at East Tilbury, he married Miss Anne Jane Silver- 

 sides, but, after her death, he was again married, in 1850, whilst he 

 was living at North Shoebury, to Miss Mary Benton, sister of 



