282 NATURAL HISTORY 



formerly remarked them in the month of 

 October all the way from Chichester to 

 Lewes wherever there were any shrubs and 

 covert : but not one bird of this sort came 

 within my obser\:^tion. I only saw a few 

 larks and whin-chats, some rooks, and 

 several kites and buzzards. 



About Midsummer a flight of cross-bills 

 comes to the pine-groves about this house, 

 but never makes any long stay. 



The old tortoise, that I have mentioned 

 in a former letter, still continues in this 

 garden ; and retired under ground about 

 the twentieth of November, and came out 

 again for one day on the thirtieth : it lies 

 now buried in a wet swampy border under 

 a wall facing to the south, and is enveloped 

 at present in mud and mire ! 



Here is a large rookery round this house, 

 the inhabitants of which seem to get their 

 livelihood very easily ; for they spend the 

 greatest part of the day on their nest-trees 

 when the weather is mild. These rooks 

 retire every evening all the Winter from 

 this rookery, where they only call by the 



