364 HABITS OF BIRDS. 



whom we have met with, we shall give his own 

 narrative as translated by Bellenden : 



" Rests now," says he, " to speak of the geese 

 engendered of the sea named claiks. Some men be- 

 lieves that thir (these) claiks grows on trees by the 

 nebbis (bills). But their opinion is vain. And be- 

 cause the nature and procreation of thir (these) 

 claiks is strange, we have made no little labour and 

 diligence to search the truth and verity thereof, we 

 have sailed through the seas where thir (these) claiks 

 are bred, and finding by great experience that the 

 nature of the seas is more relevant cause of their 

 procreation than any other thing. And howbeit thir 

 (these) geese are bred many sundry ways, they are 

 bred ay allanerly (only) by nature of the seas. For 

 all trees that are cassin (cast) into the seas by pro- 

 cess of time appears first worm-eaten, and in the 

 small bores and holes thereof grows small worms. 

 First they show their head and feet, and last of all 

 they show their plumes and wings. Finally, when 

 they are coming to the just measure and quantity of 

 geese, they fly in the air, as other fowls do, as was 

 notably proven in the year of God one thousand 

 iiii hundred Ixxx, in sight of many people beside 

 the castle of Pitslego, one great tree was brought by 

 alluvion and flux of the sea to land. This wonder- 

 ful tree was brought to the laird of the ground, 

 quhilk (who) soon after gart (caused) divide it by 

 one saw. Appeared then one multitude of worms 

 throwing themself out of sundry holes and bores of 

 this tree. Some of them were rude as they were but 

 new shapen. Some had both head, feet, and wings, 

 but they had no feathers. Some of them were per- 

 fect shapen fowls. At last the people having ylk 

 (each) day this tree in more admiration, brought it 

 to the kirk of Saint Andrews beside the town of 

 Tyre, where it remains yet to our days. And within 



