78 LEISURE-TIME STUDIES. 



wonderful process of alimentation. I have frequently, with 

 my own eyes, seen more than a thousand of these small 

 bodies of birds, hanging down on the sea-shore from one 

 piece of timber, enclosed in shells, and already formed." 

 Here, again, our author is speaking of the barnacles them- 

 selves, with which he naturally confuses the geese, since he 

 presumes the Crustaceans are simply geese in an undeveloped 

 state. He further informs his readers that, owing to their 

 presumably marine origin, " bishops and clergymen in some 

 parts of Ireland do not scruple to dine off these birds at the 

 time of fasting, because they are not flesh, nor born of flesh," 

 although for certain other and theological reasons, not specially 

 requiring to be discussed in the present instance, Giraldus 

 disputes the legality of this practice of the Hibernian clerics. 

 In the year 1527 appeared "The Hystory and Croniclis 

 of Scotland, with the cosmography and dyscription thairof, 

 compilit be the noble Clerk Maister Hector Boece, Channon 

 of Aberdene." Boece's "History" was written in Latin; 

 the title we have just quoted being that of the English 

 version of the work (1540), which title further sets forth that 

 Boece's work was " Translatit laitly in our vulgar and 

 commoun langage be Maister Johne Bellenden, Archedene 

 of Murray, And Imprentit in Edinburgh, be me Thomas 

 Davidson, prenter to the Kyngis nobyll grace." In this 

 learned work the author discredits the popular ideas 

 regarding the origin of the geese. " Some men belevis that 

 thir clakis (geese) growis on treis be the nebbis (bills). Bot 

 thair opinioun is vane. And becaus the nature and procrea- 

 tioun of thir clakis is strange, we have maid na lytyll laboure 

 and deligence to serche ye treuth and verite yairof, we have 

 salit (sailed) throw ye seis quhare thir clakis ar bred, and I 

 fynd be gret experience, that the nature of the seis is mair 

 relevant cans of thair procreatioun than ony uthir thyng." 

 According to Boece, then, "the nature of the seis" formed 

 the chief element in the production of the geese, and our 

 author proceeds to relate how "all treis (trees) that ar cassin 

 in the seis be proces of tyme apperis first wormeetin (worm- 



