NATURAL HISTORY OF SELBORNE. 271 



air, and sport and dive in a playful manner, all the while exerting 

 their voices, and making a loud cawing, which, being blended and 

 softened by the distance that we at the village are below them, 

 becomes a confused noise or chiding ; or rather a pleasing mur- 

 mur, very engaging to the imagination, and not unlike the cry of 

 a pack of hounds in hollow, echoing woods, or the rushing of the 

 wind in tall trees, or the tumbling of the tide upon a pebbly shore. 

 When this ceremony is over, with the last gleam of day, they 

 retire for the night to the deep beechen woods of Tisted and 

 Ropley. We remember a little girl who, as she was going to bed, 

 used to remark on such an occurrence, in the true spirit of phy- 

 sico-theology, that the rooks were saying their prayers ; and yet 

 this child was much too young to be aware that the Scriptures 

 have said of the Deity -that " He feedeth the ravens who call 

 upon Him." I am, etc. 



LETTER LX. 



IN reading Dr. Huxam's " Observationes de Acre," etc., written at 

 Plymouth, I find by those curious and accurate remarks, which 

 contain an account of the weather from the year 1727 to the year 

 1748, inclusive, that though there is frequent rain in that district 

 of Devonshire, yet the quantity falling is not great ; and that some 

 years it has been very small : for in 1731 the rain measured only 

 17-266 in.; and in 1741, 20-354 in.; and again, in 1743, only 

 20-908 in. Places near the sea have frequent scuds, that keep 

 the atmosphere moist, yet do not reach far up into the country ; 

 making thus the maritime situations appear wet, when the rain is 

 not considerable. In the wettest years at Plymouth the Doctor 

 measured only once 36 ; and again once, viz., 1734, 37*114 in. 

 a quantity of rain that has twice been exceeded at Selborne in the 

 short period of my observations. Dr. Huxam remarks that fre- 

 quent small rains keep the air moist ; while heavy ones render it 

 more dry, by beating down the vapours. He is also of opinion 



