The Natural History of Selborne 253 



with their forefeet, so that, finding my sport interrupted, I returned 

 home musing in my mind on the oddness of the occurrence. 



As the morning advanced the sun became bright and warm, and. 

 the day turned out one of those most lovely ones which no season 

 but the autumn produces ; cloudless, calm, serene, and worthy of 

 the South of France itself. 



About nine an appearance very unusual began to demand our 

 attention, a shower of cobwebs falling from very elevated regions, 

 and continuing, without any interruption, till the close of the day. 

 These webs were not single filmy threads, floating in the air in all 

 directions, but perfect flakes or rags ; some near an inch broad, and 

 five or six long, which fell with a degree of velocity that showed 

 they were considerably heavier than the atmosphere. 



On every side as the observer turned his eyes he might behold a 

 continual succession of fresh flakes falling into his sight, and twink- 

 ling like stars as they turned their sides towards the sun. 



How far this wonderful shower extended would be difficult to 

 say ; but we know that it reached Bradley, Selborne, and Alresford, 

 three places which lie in a sort of a triangle, the shortest of whose 

 sides is about eight miles in extent. 



At the second of those places there was a gentleman (for whose 

 veracity and intelligent turn we have the greatest veneration) who 

 observed it the moment he got abroad ; but concluded that, as 

 soon as he came upon the hill above his house, where he took his 

 morning rides, he should be higher than this meteor, which he 

 imagined might have been blown, like thistledown from the 

 common above ; but, to his great astonishment, when he rode to 

 the most elevated part of the down, three hundred feet above his 

 fields, he found the webs in appearance still as much above him as 

 before; still descending into sight in a constant succession, and 

 twinkling in the sun, so as to draw the attention of the most 

 incurious. 



Neither before nor after was any such fall observed ; but on this 

 day the flakes hung in the trees and hedges so thick that a diligent 

 person sent out might have gathered baskets full. 



The remark that I shall make on these cobweb-like appearances, 



