100 CORRESPONDENCE WITH HIS FAMILY. 



accurately described, the descriptions fairly transcribed and 

 fit to be put to the press. Thus I have endeavoured to give 

 you an imperfect sketch of what I saw in New Burlington 

 Street ; and a very imperfect one it is." 



LETTER III. 



GILBERT WHITE TO SAMUEL BARKER 



(on the same sheet as the foregoing extract from 

 Mr. Sheffield's letter). 



Dec. 21, 1772. 

 Dear Sam, 

 As I have promised for some time to write to you without 

 fulfilling my promise ; I shall, by way of making you some 

 amends, send you the above written extract from my friend 

 Mr. Sheffield's letter instead of something of my own com- 

 posing. When you and I happen to meet, we will, if you 

 like, read Virgil's Georgics together, together with Martin's 

 translation and notes, and shall, I trust, find no small satis- 

 faction from that most beautiful of all human compositions. 

 Ben. White, while with me, read them thro' three several 

 times ; but he was at that time almost too young to relish so 

 masterly a work. 



Give my respects to your father, and tell him I owe him a 

 letter which I intend to pay him soon ; and inform him that 

 hitherto our winter has been remarkably mild : within a fort- 

 night I have cut grass for my horses ; and nasturtiums abroad 

 are still in bloom ! Our mornings and evenings are full as 

 mild now as they usually are at this season at Gibraltar : tho' 

 at noon the therm r is much raised at that place. My therm r 

 yesterday morning stood at 52 ! As I have some suspicions 

 about the regularity of my barometer, pray send me a journal 

 of your barometer for any month past ; and let me know if 

 the surface of the quicksilver in the receiver of y r barometer 

 be exactly 28 inches beneath the lowest mark on the plate. 



