24 



KIDD'S OWN JOURNAL. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



William Burton, who writes us a most insulting letter, 

 dated " Lower Tottenham," and requests us to publish 

 it in our Journal, will if he be wise, thank us for not 

 doing as he wishes. Our mission is to cement peace, 

 not to scatter firebrands. If our correspondent bears 

 such ill-will to us, all we can say is, we regret it. Let 

 us thank him for his "support," as he calls it, thus far; 

 we do so, readily. Perhaps, by and by, he will join 

 our standard again. Let us hope so. 



Communications Received. — Cocao. "We have noticed 

 your letter in another part of our paper. — J. M., Glas- 

 gow. Many thanks. — Bombyx Atlas. Excellent! In 

 our next. — A London Footman. Our "Treatise on 

 the Canary" commenced in No. XL, and terminated in 

 No. XXIII. It may be obtained of our Publisher. 

 Your hen Canary is well adapted for breeding from. 

 Goldfinches will breed, year after year. As you are 

 so fond of birds, you really cannot do better than take 

 in this Journal. Your questions prove to us, that we 

 have already written much that will delight and assist 

 you. 



Private Letters. — Of these we daily receive such 

 immense quantities, that we must really beg the 

 writers to excuse our not replying to them ; our time 

 being overwhelmingly occupied with Public duties. 



Correspondents sending in any " facts" connected with 

 Science or Natural History, are requested in every 

 case to append their names and places of abode. In no 

 instance, however, will their names be published with- 

 out their express sanction. 



To obtain this Paper without any difficulty, our readers 

 need only order it to be sent to them by any of their 

 local Booksellers or Newsvendors. It is published 

 simultaneously with all the other weekly periodicals. 



KIDD'S OWN JOURNAL. 

 Saturday, July 10, 1852. 



Had the " Man of Uz " been the Editor 

 of this Journal, we question whether he 

 would have carried off the prize for 

 " patience." Toil as we may, be generous 

 as we may, and good-natured to a fault, yet 

 are " some people " never satisfied with us. 



For instance, a correspondent, signing 

 herself " Cocao," and residing at Acton — 

 dear little Acton ! as we call it — writes and 

 threatens to purchase no more of our papers,* 

 because we have refused to take notice of 

 her friend, E. C. B., of Kouen, who a long 

 time since sent us a communication about a 

 suffering dog ! 



This affords us a fair opportunity for com- 

 plaint. We inserted the said communication 

 (see Vol. L, page 283) immediately after we 

 received it ; indeed we put ourselves out of 

 the way to give it the earliest insertion. 

 But some of our subscribers never read the 

 Journal when they have bought it; and 

 hence we get blamed when we do not deserve 

 it. If our fair correspondent, with whom 

 indeed we cannot be angry under any cir- 

 cumstances, will consult the Index just 



* Extract: — "Cocao" begs to inform Mr. 

 Kidd [formal, very !] that if he does not think it 

 worth while [cruel !] answering his correspondents, 

 she shall discontinue taking his Journal." [This 

 to us ! !] 



published, she will therein find her friend's 

 letter referred to, and also remarks on the 

 distemper in dogs (see p. 201, 248, 283,380, 

 Vol. I.). 



"We do entreat some little consideration at 

 the hands of our patrons. If our paper is 

 not worthy a perusal, of course we cannot 

 wish any one to procure it. But to purchase 

 it and not read it, and then fall foul of us for 

 faults not committed — this is grievous. The 

 present is not the first case of the kind, by 

 many. We notice it to-day with a view to 

 its being rectified. We are in perfect good 

 humor nevertheless, and mean to continue 

 so, " wind and weather permitting," all 

 through the year. 



Notwithstanding the long-conti- 

 nued rains of the month of June, and 

 the wildness of the gardens, trees, and 

 woods ; yet has it been delightful to go forth 

 between the showers, and admire the hand 

 of our Creator, so observable at every 

 turn. All out-of-doors is perfect loveliness. 



The sun, although hidden at intervals 

 from our sight, has nevertheless not failed to 

 shed on us his genial warmth and radiant 

 heat ; and, as we have wandered abroad, we 

 have been made sensible of his quickening 

 powers by the universally-diffused fragrance 

 so peculiar to this month of flowers. Now 

 is the very time for inhaling such odors as 



The Rose 



Wastes on the Summer air ; or such as rise 

 From beds of hyacinths, or from jasmin flowers; 

 Or when the blue-eyed violet weeps upon 

 Some sloping bank remote, while the young sun 

 (Creeping within her sheltering bower of leaves) 

 Dries up her tears. 



Walk where you may at this season in the 

 country, and you will find the air full of the 

 sweetest of perfumes. The humblest briar 

 is full of incense. 



We have been asked, recently, — in what 

 particular spot near London our summer 

 vocalists can be heard to the best advantage ? 

 This is the very time to answer the ques- 

 tion ; and perhaps no better season was ever 

 known than the present for hearing them 

 in their glory. The ail-but incessant rains 

 of Spring, and the chilliness of the season, 

 have so materially checked their verbal 

 melody, that many of them seem to have 

 reserved their full powers until now. Among 

 these are the blackbird, thrush, robin, wren, 

 titlark, woodlark, skylark, blackcap, and 

 others. 



We need not go far from London to enjoy 

 the voices of all these. Let us enumerate 

 the neighborhoods of Acton, Ealing, Kew, 

 Chiswick, Hammersmith, and Richmond, — 

 not forgetting Twickenham and its lovely 

 meadows. At each one of these places, the 

 trees, fields, and hedges, rejoice in the com- 



