YORKSHIRE NATURALISTS’ UNION AT 
POCKLINGTON. 
For the last excursion of the 1893 season, the district around 
Pocklington, including the villages of Barmby, Kildwick Percy, 
Warter, and Everingham, and the now famous Allerthorpe 
Common, was finally selected. Howden was the place originally 
chosen for this meeting, but as, despite the low-lying nature of the 
surrounding country, it was found totally unsuitable for a Fungus 
Foray, it was considered advisable to make the alteration. 
The best thanks of the Union are due to Mr. J. J. Marshall, of 
Market Weighton, and Mr. H. T. Soppitt, of Bradford, for the 
assistance they gave the secretaries in helping to make all the 
preliminary arrangements. 
Permission to visit their estates had been kindly granted by 
Lord Londesborough, Lord Herries, and Mr. Chas. H. Wilson, M.P. 
Although only planned for the two days, Wednesday and Thursday, 
September 6th and 7th, many of the mycologists arrived as early 
as Monday, and on Tuesday, under the leadership of Mr. George 
Massee, of the Royal Herbarium, investigated the neighbourhood 
of Kildwick Percy; but, owing to the great drought which had 
lasted for such a long time, and the hilly nature of the district, 
results were not entirely satisfactory. On the Wednesday they pro- 
ceeded by wagonettes to Lord Herries’ estate at Everingham, where 
they were much more fortunate, as they also were at neces pe 
Common on the following day. 
A very noticeable feature of this excursion was the almost total 
absence of the common species of fungi, the specimens obtained 
being more typical than abundant. 
On Wednesday evening a Fungus Show was arranged in the 
long room at the Feathers Hotel, and Mr. Massee exhibited about 
600 beautifully coloured sketches, typical of our British Fungi. 
Afterwards Mr. Massee gave a most interesting lecture on ‘The 
Evolution of Fungi.’ A full account of the doings of the mycologists 
will be found in a forthcoming paper. 
On Thursday, a strong contingent of naturalists, representing all 
branches of natural history, arrived and spread over the surrounding 
country, though principally in the direction of Allerthorpe Common 
and Thornton Plantations. Both on this day and the preceding, the 
members were greatly indebted to Mr. George Steels of Pocklington, 
and Mr. W. Wox of Barmby, who, throughout the whole excursion, 
gave them not only the benefit of their local knowledge, but also of 
actual experience in the field, concerning the distribution and habits 
of all classes of living creatures. By a quarter to four most of the 
Feb. 1804. 1894. 
