10 MEMOIR OF PENNANT. 



Anatomists mention (besides these) a third very won- 

 derful contrivance for their security, and inform us, 

 th it each eye is furnished with a certain muscle, by 

 which the animal has the power of withdrawing or 

 exserting them, according to its exigencies. 



" To make amends for the dimness of its sight, 

 the mole is amply recompensed by the great perfec- 

 tion of two other senses, those of hearing and smell- 

 ing. The first gives it notice of the most distant ap- 

 proach of danger : the other, which is equally ex- 

 quisite, directs it in the midst of darkness to its food 

 The nose, also, being very long and slender, is well 

 formed for thrusting into small holes, in search of the 

 worms and insects that inhabit them. These gifts 

 may, with reason, be said to compensate the defects 

 of sight, as they supply, in this animal, all its wants, 

 a-id all the purposes of that sense." 



An appendix is also added, containing much in- 

 formation from the older writers, with notices of ad- 

 ditional British species, which are to this day rare. 

 There is also a paper upon the migration of birds, 

 wherein he strongly recommends the study of natu- 

 ral history to the clergy, as a relaxation to beguile 

 the time not occupied with more arduous and im- 

 portant studies. 



During the progress of this work, Pennant made 

 a tour to the continent, where he met with many of 

 the most noted foreign naturalists, and commenced 

 an acquaintance and correspondence which was of 

 much use to him. He visited the Count de Buffon 



