47 



sited on ivy buds in a similar position to that which I have already 

 described ("Proa," 1896, p. in). 



You all know the old saying that " one may entertain an angel 

 unawares." Well, although what I am about to relate certainly does 

 concern winged things, and the incident did take place not far from 

 that favourite hostelry, the Beachy Head Hotel, it has to do with 

 nothing more dangerous to the human male sex than common white 

 butterflies ; but I must confess that, although I had carefully noted 

 the whole details of what I had witnessed, it was not until I had 

 returned home and heard what had been taking place there during my 

 absence that I had any suspicion of the importance of what I had 

 seen. The simple facts are as follows : — The morning of July 27th 

 was very bright, with a light north-easterly breeze, and at about 2.30 

 p.m. I left home for a walk over the downs to Beachy Head. Before 

 the foot of the downs was reached the wind had fallen away to a dead 

 calm, and light clouds gathered in the south-west — not enough to 

 obscure the sun, but enough to give an oppressive feeling to the sun- 

 shine. To the left of the footpath by which one ascends to the Head 

 the downs slope away to the sea, and on the upper parts of them 

 numbers of somewhat stunted furze-bushes grow. On passing these 

 I noticed large numbers of white butterflies flying listlessly over 

 them. On closer inspection they proved to be, I think without ex- 

 ception, Pieris rapce, large in size, but poor in condition. There were 

 a great many of them, half a dozen or more fluttering over a small 

 patch of furze, and this repeated along the whole length of the down. 

 None of them appeared to come further up the side of the down than 

 where the bushes were growing, nor did they give me the impres- 

 sion that they were flying in any particular direction ; but when I 

 stood still, and watched them from a little distance, there seemed to 

 be a general movement along the line of the bushes and round 

 the northern end of the down inland. White butterflies had not 

 been particularly common previously, and what few I had seen 

 were chiefly P. brassicce. On reaching the summit of the Head 

 we appeared to have passed by the P. rapce, the only butterflies seen 

 there being a few " Browns " and " Blues," and the solitary example 

 of Cynthia cardui already noted. Having refreshed ourselves with 

 an admirable tea — which, by-the-bye, is a feature of the hotel, — 

 we set out on the homeward journey via the " hollows " which lay 

 along the sea front, and thus below the furze bushes already referred 

 to. The sun was by this time well behind the hills, so that the 

 hollows were in shadow, and the butterflies settled down for the 

 night. Among those thus resting were a good many " Whites," and I 

 examined a number of them, among other species, on the chance 

 of picking up a variety or two. I found that they consisted of 

 P. napi and P. brassicce, both, for the most part, in very fresh order, 

 and P. rapce, which, however, were, with very few exceptions, worn. 

 On reaching home — too soon for supper and too late to go out again 

 before it — I sat down to write up my diary, and while so engaged my 



