112 GILBERT WHITE OF SELBORNE i784 



wheat, that she dyed what they call sprung, being blown up 

 to a vast size. These accumulated losses amount, it is 

 supposed, to full £27 I Your loving uncle, 



Gil. White. 

 Respects as due, and compliments of the season. 



On January 29th, 1784, Mulso, who had received 

 the verses from his friend which have been published 

 under the title of ' On the Dark, Still, Dry, Warm 

 Weather occasionally happening in the Winter 

 Months,' wrote : — 



"It was cruel to have a child of yours in my keeping, 

 and never tell you how I liked it, and how much it had 

 the features of its father: yet how could I enjoy the 

 description of calm and occasionally warm weather, when 

 my very ideas are petrified with cold ? Have you re- 

 membered anything so severe and so lasting since the year 

 1740? But as to your poem, I think it super -excellent. 

 You are quite in your element. I have communicated your 

 lines to my sister Chapone; she will think with me that 

 these will be amongst the pieces that you will give one day 

 to the public." 



Here it may be remarked that their author never 

 published any of his verses, with the one exception 

 of the poem entitled * The Naturalist's Summer 

 Evening Walk,' which is appended to Letter XXIV. 

 to Pennant, and may truly be termed ''super- excel- 

 lent," and not unworthy to be compared with even 

 the ' Elegy ' itself. As will presently be seen, how- 

 ever, on one occasion some verses, probably those now 

 sent to Mulso, were forwarded to the 'Gentleman's 

 Magazine,' by whom does not appear. 



