86 GILBEKT WHITE OF SELBORNE 1782 



D"" Huxham,* that, at Plymouth at least, the whole year 

 1739 was a wet one: for the rain in that period was 

 36"308 in., a large quantity. I have been much entertained 

 with the remarks of that accurate writer; and find from 

 him that the district of Plymouth is rather to be called 

 a wet one from the frequent rains, more than from the 

 quantity. Besides, I see, in our very dry years they had 

 little rain : as in 1741, 20-354 in. ; and in 1743, 20-908 in. 

 Nor do I find that in the 20 years and upwards that the 

 D' carried on his exact measurings, that ever the water 

 was caught that has fallen of late years at Selborne. 



Burbey took a piece of timber from my orchard, and 

 set a person to turn the water in the pound-field lane. 

 The man, I suppose by the order of Town, did not dig a 

 pit in the hop-garden, but carry ed a ditch round by the 

 hedges into Town's mead. A most effectual rain for trial 

 (1*45) fell on the 2nd and 3rd of November. Much white 

 water ran into Town's mead; and so good effect had the 

 contrivance that, comparatively, little came down the street. 

 But behold Parsons came open-mouthed in the morning 

 to complain that your father's expedient had flooded half 

 an acre of his wheat-fallow on the other side of the hedge. 

 However upon examination this outcry, as Parsons himself 

 allowed afterwards, proved to be without reason. I then 

 spoke to Town, who said that Parsons was a poor envious 

 fellow, that could not bear to see him get any benefit from 

 the water; and moreover made a vast merit of admitting 

 the water at all. I see since that some body has stopped 

 the mouth of the drain with a spade ! 



Before you wrote I had seen accidentally Dryden's * Hind 

 and Panther.' The poet does not compare martins to 

 Dutchmen) but swifts to Swiss, on account of their bulk. 

 What a strange, long-winded allegory has the Laureatf 



* Author of ObservatioTies de Aere, etc. Vide Letter LX. to Barrington. 

 t William Whitehead. 



