BIRDS 255 



procured. On the 20th of February [1829] two were killed 

 out of a flock of five on Burgh Marsh.' In a draft letter of 

 October 14, 1831, Heysham says, 'Two or three good things 

 have lately been met with in this neighbourhood [i.e. in the early 

 months of the year], including a specimen of the Whooper 

 Swan, two of the Great Snipe, and a pair of the Bohemian 

 Chatterer.' An undated letter, probably draughted in 1838, 

 runs thus : ' Mr. Heysham presents his compliments to Miss Gar- 

 forth, and has taken the liberty to ask her if she thinks a wild 

 Swan would be at all acceptable to Mr. and Mrs. Lawson at 

 Brayton. He makes this enquiry at the request of a poor 

 industrious man of the name of Musgrave, who has now one 

 alive in his possession, and which he intends to keep until 

 Saturday. He states that Mr. Lawson has at present a very 

 considerable number of Water Birds in his Park, and provided 

 that he has not already a Wild Swan, it may perhaps be an 

 acquisition, as it very rarely happens that one is captured alive. 

 Wednesday evening.' Whether this was a Whooper I cannot 

 positively say, but I have little doubt that it was. Heysham 

 writes to the late Mr. Gurney on February 14, 1838: 'Many 

 thanks to you for your valuable present of a young specimen of 

 Cygnus Bewickii, which reached me in excellent order on Monday 

 last. This is by much the smallest specimen of that species I 

 have yet examined, but the young birds, not only of C. BewicTcii, 

 but also of C. ferns, vary very much in size, etc. Large flocks 

 of Swans during the last ten days have been seen in various 

 parts of this country, but very few hitherto have been obtained. 

 I have only seen one, which however was a most magnificent 

 specimen of C. ferus.' It may be remarked, a propos of this, that 

 a specimen of the Whooper preserved in the Newcastle Museum 

 is labelled 'mature female, shot near Carlisle, winter of 1838. 

 Presented by Mr. Wm. Green.' Heysham adds to the above 

 letter, 'The frost returned again on Saturday last, and has 

 gradually increased in intensity ever since, and so far there is 

 not the slightest indication of any change.' Mr. Hindson re- 

 marks of the Whooper in his MS. : ' In 1838 several were killed 

 in the Lake district. Dr. Cockburn shot two in the Lowther 

 river, near Bampton, Westmorland. Mr. Peter Wilman and 



