95 



X. 



BRITISH MAMMALS. 



The whole extent of the garden, with its 

 croft and orchard, is not three acres, but a 

 fair proportion of the British mammals are 

 from time to time to be found there. 



The old church, largely built of timber, 

 picturesque and quaint, stands within a few 

 yards of the house and its roof affords shelter 

 to many bats. We find the wings of moths, 

 the remnants of their feasts, scattered on the 

 floor (I have noticed the wings of a tortoise- 

 shell butterfly among them), and I have 

 found there more than one dead body of a 

 common bat ; I cannot say whether that is the 

 only kind we have, but in 1908 a bat was seen 

 near the house which, from the description 

 given of its size and manner of flight, may 

 perhaps have been a noctule. 



On May 28th, 1899, there was an eclipse 

 of the sun ; it was only partial, and made very 

 little difference to the light, but just so long 

 as it lasted, from 3 to 4.30 p.m., I saw a bat 

 flying busily round and about the church. 



The soil is light and worms seem to be 

 abundant, but one hardly ever sees a mole- 

 hill in this part of Cheshire. One day, 

 however, in December, 1899, we noticed that 

 a bed of parsley had withered in a mysterious 

 way, and when we came to look, the ground 



