AM) THE REV. R. CHURTON. 223 



LETTER XXII. 



FROM MR. CHURTON TO GILBERT WHITE. 



Brasen-Nose, Oct. 5, ] 792. 



Dear Sir, 

 I take the opportunity of enclosing, in a packet to Dr. 

 Chandler, the two papers which I promised you, one of them 

 the epitaph of Mr. Ray, the other the extract from Aristotle 

 about the Caprimulgus, to which I have added a passage 

 about swallows in Italy that I thought you would like to see. 

 Mr. Armetriding, Rector of Steeple Aston, is a naturalist, and 

 as I called there, driven by stress of weather, on my way 

 from Williamscot, we were talking about the said Capri- 

 mulgus, and he took down Mr. Pennant and seemed to think 

 that Dor-hawk was one of the best names there given to this 

 bird. For other news of no great moment, I refer you to Dr. 

 Chandler's letter. I hope you are quite well, and beg my 

 best regards to Mrs. J. White. 



Do you agree with Mr. A[rthur] Young about Lunar 

 years ? that every nineteenth is in its general features of wet, 

 dry, &c. very similar ? This Mr. Armetriding shewed me in 

 Mr. Young's annals, where, from some minutes of the nine- 

 teenth year backward from the present, it appears that that 

 also was extremely rainy. I have heard the same remark of 

 the Lunar Cycle before. I am, Dear Sir, 



Your sincere humble servant, 



R. CHURTON. 



The following are the passages referred to in the above letter enclosed 



to Dr. Chandler : — 



[Ray was born at Black-Notley, in the county of Essex, in the year 

 1628, and died in the same place early in the year 170o. " lie was buried 

 (according to his own desire) in the church of that parish, where a monu- 

 ment is erected to him." The epitaph is too long for insertion here in 

 extenso. It commences with the following words : — 



