THE COMMON OR BROWN HARE 279 



or even lakes, in search of food. A field of carrots has lured 

 numbers over the Trent, where it was about two hundred 

 yards wide, 1 and probably the attractions of a mate may trans- 

 form any robust male into a Leander. So many instances 

 of apparently spontaneous swimming are on record, 2 that 

 particulars of one or two will be sufficient. William Yarrell 

 found one crossing an arm of the sea about a mile in breadth, 3 

 and in Scotland H. D. Graham 4 often encountered them on 

 little islets lying a quarter of a mile from the mainland, while 

 the late Rev. John Atkinson stated long ago 5 that on the 

 saltings of Essex 6 the hares lie in their forms until overtaken 

 by the tide. Many similar instances have been placed on 

 record. 7 



A hare is as exclusively a vegetable feeder as any 

 known animal. Its food consists of various kinds of herbage, 

 particularly of the mixture known as "grass"; but its choice 

 is much more restricted than that of the Rabbit, and it is 

 said to select comparatively few plants. According to Mr 

 Woodruffe- Peacock, it much prefers the hard fescue, and, after 

 that, the common meadow and the blue heath grasses. Of 

 clovers its favourite is the true cow-grass or marl clover, 

 and on open arable lands it seeks sow-thistles, dandelions, 

 and chicory. In a garden it will attack, before all other plants, 

 dahlias, pinks, carnations, and nasturtiums, parsley, lettuce, 

 and thyme. It will eat also turnips, cabbage, and carrots. 

 To young plantations or shrubberies it is a very annoying 

 and destructive invader, gnawing off the bark and biting 

 the tender young boughs ; it seems to have a particular liking 

 for conifers, but, amongst other trees, rhododendron and 

 alder seem to be proof against it, while laurel is very 

 attractive. The leaves of roses and laburnums were the 

 favourites of Mr Drane's 8 "No One," which had tastes 



1 Woodruffe-Peacock, op. cit., 13 ; see also Drane, op. cit., 106. 



2 See Harding Cox, Field, 22nd September 1906, 540. 



3 Loudon's Mag. Nat. Hist., v., 1832, 99. 



i Birds of Iona and Mull, ed. J. A. Harvie-Brown, 1890, 72. 



5 Zoologist, 1844, 420. G Cf., for rabbits, E. T. Booth, Field, 6th Oct. 1883, 490. 



7 As Field, 1889 (many references); F. Newbolt, Journ. cit., 18th October 

 1890, 599; W. L. Distant, Zoologist, 1904, 187. 



8 Op. cit. supra, p. 270 ; also MS. per T. W. Proger. 



