64 THE NATURAL HISTORY 



not forgot to mention the faculty that snakes have of 

 stinking se defendendo. I knew a gentleman who kept a 

 tame snake, which was in its person as sweet as any animal 

 while in a good humour and unalarmed ; but as soon as a 

 stranger, or a dog or cat, came in, it fell to hissing, and 

 filled the room with such nauseus effluvia as rendered it 

 hardly supportable. Thus the squnck, or stonck, of Ray's 

 Synop. Quadr, is an innocuous and sweet animal ; but, 

 when pressed hard by dogs and men, it can eject such a 

 most pestilent and fetid smell and excrement, that nothing 

 can be more horrible. 



A gentleman sent me lately a fine specimen of the lanius 

 minor cinerascens cum macula in scapulis albd, Raii ; which is a 

 bird that, at the time of your publishing your two first 

 volumes of British Zoology, I find you had not seen. You 

 have described it well from Edwards's drawing. 



LETTER XXVI 

 TO THOMAS PENNANT, ESQUIRE 



Selbome, December 8, 1769, 



Dear Sir, 

 I WAS much gratified by your communicative letter on your 

 return from Scotland, where you spent, I find, some con- 

 siderable time, and gave yourself good room to examine 

 the natural curiosities of that extensive kingdom, both 

 those of the islands, as well as those of the highlands. 

 The usual bane of such expeditions is hurry ; because men 

 seldom allot themselves half the time they should do : but, 

 fixing on a day for their return, post from place to place, 

 rather as if they were on a journey that required dispatch, 

 than as philosophers investigating the works of nature. 

 You must have made, no doubt, many discoveries, and laid 

 up a good fund of materials for a future edition of the 

 British Zoology ; and will have no reason to repent that 



