278 Foure-Footed Beastes. 



palms of tbeir own hands, or evident in their own 

 heards and flockes) I care not. I may remember 

 you of a Countrie tale of an old Masse-Priest in the 

 daies of Henry the eight, who, reading in English 

 after the translation of the Bible the miracle of the 

 five loaves and two fishes, and when hee came to 

 the verse that reckoneth the number of the ghuests 

 or eaters of the banquet hee paused a little, and at 

 last said they were about five hundred. The 

 clarke, that was a little wiser, whispered into the 

 priests eares that it was five thousand, but the 

 priest turned backe and replied with indignation, 

 Hold your peace, sirrha, we shall never make them 

 believe they were five hundred. Such priests, 

 such people, such persons I shall draw upon my 

 backe, and although I doe not challenge a power 

 of not erring, yet because I speake of the power of 

 God, that is unlimitable, I will be bold to averre 

 that for truth in the Booke of Creatures (although 

 first observed by Heathen men) which is not con- 

 trary to the booke of Scriptures." 



So delightfully quaint is the whole book that it 

 is impossible to open it without finding something 

 amusing, and the good stories are so many in 

 number that it is equally impossible to say of any 

 of them that they are the best. Among the 

 descriptions, however, the following is distinctly 

 good, and will commend itself, we imagine, to all 

 lovers of cats, and, further, it is an excellent 

 example of the author's style; " It is needlesse to 

 spend any time about her loving nature to man, 



