Intelligence and Miscellanies. 339 



eome visiters from their nests, are oftentimes very remarkable. 

 I have seen them simulate lameness, and flutter about as 

 though they were much crippled, evidently for the purpose of 

 attracting attention, and drawing the visiter in pursuit of 

 themselves, in order to save their tender young. Indeed, their 

 extraordinary manoeuvres, on such occasions, might readily be 

 mistaken, by a believer in fascination, for the effect of some 

 such imaginary power. That the same artifices are employed 

 by the feathered tribes to divert snakes, cats, and all other in- 

 truders, known, or supposed to be dangerous, from the neigh- 

 borhood of their nests, there can be little doubt. 



The grave tales, however, which are related of snakes 

 charming birds, drawing squirrels down from tree tops, and 

 even subjecting human beings to their incantations, are so 

 entirely foreign to all my ideas of rationality, and so inconsist- 

 ent with all my own observations, that I am fully prepared to 

 reply to such representations, in the language of the Roman 

 Poet :— 



" Quodcunque ostendis mihi sic, incredulus odi." 



I do not deem it necessary to detail my reasons, in extenso, 

 for disbelieving what I am convinced is a vulgar error. I 

 should as soon think of troubling you with a series of argu- 

 ments against the doctrines of water smelling or witchcraft. 

 It is for those who contend for the facts, to furnish conclusive 

 evidence of their existence. The actual state of natural 

 science, requires that substantial proof be afforded, to induce 

 a belief of improbable things. My only object, in this hasty 

 notice of the matter, is to enter my humble protest against 

 such a doctrine passing to the world through an " American 

 Journal of Science,' 1 without something like satisfactory evi- 

 dence of its correctness. W. D. 



The preceding article was intended for the former number 

 of this Journal, but arrived too late for insertion. The very 

 respectable author has, by fair implication, conceded in his 

 denial and rebuke, all that any sensible man probably be- 

 lieves on the subject ; that is to say, that by terror or by en- 

 grossment of the faculties in some other way, one animal 

 has it sometimes, in his power, to place another animal off 

 his guard, and to bring him within his reach, so that he thus 

 becomes his prey ; just as a child, or even a botanist, fasci- 

 nated by the beauty of flowers and plants, may so far forget 



