SPARROW. 85 



Lordship; and about five or six years ago, to prevent its 

 falling down, he had it repaired every chink well pointed; 

 and of course the colony was broken up, and the members 

 dispersed: the next year but one, the field in which it stands 

 was sown with turnips, and when the plants came up, and 

 escaped the ravages of the fly, they looked well, and grew 

 as well as perhaps any other turnips for five or six weeks, 

 when, to the astonishment of Mr. Dawson, the bailiff, every 

 plant was entirely covered with grub: whether the caterpillars 

 belonged only to one species or not I do not know, for at 

 that time I did not go to see; but nine women were to be 

 seen daily for some time, gathering them off the plants and 

 destroying them. Before the following spring, several places 

 in the building were re-opened, and the Sparrows soon took 

 possession of their old domiciles; and since that time there 

 has been no more trouble or loss with caterpillars. I leave the 

 fact to speak for itself.' There are many other similar accounts. 

 Mr. Jesse, too, states in his 'Gleanings in Natural History,' 

 that it has been calculated that a single pair of Sparrows 

 during the time they have their young to feed destroy above 

 three thousand three hundred caterpillars in a week, besides 

 other insects; countless thousands are thus prevented from 

 multiplying. 



The same Mr. Briggs, of Melbourne, whose arguments these 

 gentlemen had been confuting, mentions afterwards incidentally, 

 at page 2490, that from January to September, 1848, four 

 thousand five hundred and seventy-nine Sparrows were sent 

 to the 'Melbourne Sparrow Club.' I may here suggest that 

 many of these supposed Sparrows may not actually have been 

 such, for a similar institution existed until the present year in 

 my own parish, and any small bird being conveniently called 

 a Sparrow, and paid for accordingly by the authorities for 

 the time being, at the rate of a half-penny each, the necessary 

 funds amounted annually on the average to about five pounds. 

 Many and many an innocent victim has been sacrificed for 

 this blood-stained 'Head money,' a stigma on the annals of 

 our village jurisprudence. The farmers are the parties sup- 

 posed to be benefitted, though how erroneous the supposition 

 is, I think I have sufficiently shewn. If not a ease of Telo 

 de se,' it is one unquestionably of pecuniary suicide. 'Tem- 

 porary insanity' is the sole verdict that I, 'ex cathedra,' can 

 pronounce against them, coupled with the wish that the re- 

 peal of the corn laws may make them more awake to their 



