290 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



THE CENTENAEY OF GILBEET WHITE. 



A pilgrimage to the birthplace and home of a celebrated 

 naturalist (if the memory of the man is to be respected) deserves 

 to be undertaken in a spirit of calm contemplation and reverence 

 of Nature, such as pervades every page of his own writing. 



To invade his native village with a cavalcade of noisy, dust- 

 stirring vehicles, laden with a few hundred excursionists, and to 

 permit a posse of itinerant fair-goers to take possession of a 

 centrally-situated meadow for the purpose of erecting swings and 

 merry-go-rounds, with their hideous accompaniment of trumpet 

 and steam whistle, seems nothing less than desecration. Yet this 

 was what happened on June 24th, when the members of the 

 Selborne Society, in conjunction with those of the Hampshire 

 Field Naturalists' Club, met at Selborne to celebrate the cen- 

 tenary anniversary of the death of Gilbert White. By whose 

 authority, or for what reason, the owners of trumpet and 

 whistle were allowed to make themselves so objectionable, did 

 not transpire ; but, in the opinion of all right-minded members 

 of the societies represented, they should have been sternly 

 repressed. Their presence simply marred the enjoyment of what 

 would otherwise have been a very delightful day. 



To some extent we found compensation in the courtesy of 

 Mr. and Mrs. Read, the present occupants of Gilbert White's old 

 house, The Wakes, who kindly permitted visitors to inspect the 

 premises and grounds. The latter are little changed since the 

 date of our first visit some thirty years ago, save that the trees 

 have grown and spread laterally to such an extent as to con- 

 siderably reduce the charming view of Selborne Hanger which 

 was once obtainable from the lawn. The house itself, alas ! has 

 undergone considerable alteration in the way of additions, which 

 were made by a new purchaser on the death of the late Professor 

 Bell. This well-known naturalist, it may be remembered, occupied 

 the house for very many years ; first as tenant, and subsequently 

 as owner, and it was his pride to boast of his conservatorship as 

 tolerating no change of any kind in either house or grounds, 

 which he desired to see as much as possible in the condition in 

 which White left them. 



At the luncheon (that inevitable concomitant of all similar 



