THE yOUNG 



NATURALIST. 



295 



two or three meadow hrov^ns [Satyrutjanira) 

 and the yellow shell {Camittojrannna hillna- 

 ata), and silver ground carpets [Melanippe 

 inontaiiata) in abundance. 



At Hockley House we struck off to the 

 right, along the Stratford road for miles, 

 when we found ourselves in Henley, in 

 Arden, a pretty little quiet town. In the 

 main street we noticed a dilapidated-looking 

 monument, and on asking an inhabitant 

 what it was, were informed that it was " The 

 cross," which was all the information we 

 could obtain. I do not think that if " The 

 Cross " had been in Birmingham it would 

 have stood a week, for it seemed as though 

 a gust of wind would blow it over. We 

 turned into a very cosy smoking-room for a 

 few minutes, then started off again with 

 eight miles before us. A mile past ITenley 

 we came to a small coppice, where we 

 noticed, in the hedge, the dog roses and 

 woody nightshade, growing to a height of 

 eight or nine feet, and smothered with 

 flower.-;. 



About five miles from our destination we 

 lay down under the shade of an oak on a 

 bank for some five minutes or so, and while 

 here I saw n hive bee, flying about from 

 flower to flower, and noticed that it always 

 alighted on the flowers of the white Dutch 

 clover and never on those of the strawberry 

 headed clover, although there were quite as 

 many near. I had read some months ago 

 Sir John Lubbock's " Insects in relation to 

 Flowers," so I gathered a flower of the 

 white clover, and was deeply interested by 

 observing the way the llower opens when 

 the bee alights on it, and then closes again 

 by a spring when the pressure is removed, 

 thus effectually preventing the rain from 

 touching the pollen. In fact, so deep was I 

 meditation, that 1 did not hear my friend 

 saying it was time to get on, till he brought 

 me to in rather a more forcible way. Along 

 the roadside, and almost growing in the 

 horse road, was the greater plaintain {Plan- 



tago major) in abundance, and the banks on 

 one side were quite white with the flowers 

 of the meadow sweet {Spirasa ulmaria). As 

 we got nearer to Stratford, the meadow 

 browns [S. janira) came out in great force, 

 flying along the banks ; and we also saw 

 another common white (P. rajjce), the only 

 two we saw all day. Some two or three 

 miles from our destination we found a few 

 flowers of the yellow and grass vetchlings 

 ( Vicia lutca and Lathyrus nlswlia) on the 

 banks, and now and then a few flowers of 

 the tansy {Tanacetum vulgare), the majority 

 of the plants not being out. 



We arrived at Stratford at 2.^0 p.m., 

 feeling very hungry, so our first care was to 

 go and get some dinner, which we demolished 

 very quickly. After dinnef we had a wash, 

 brushed our clothes and boots which were 

 smothered with dust, then went down to 

 the river, engaged a boat and started up. 

 On our way we past several patches of the 

 yellow water lily {Nupliar lutea) in flower, 

 and saw some half-dozen or more water 

 voles swimming across the river and finally 

 disappear in their holes. When coming 

 down the river at six o'clock we had one or 

 two drops of rain and heard the thunder 

 rolling in the distance, but it soon past over 

 and we continued our journey down. My 

 friend, who was steering, saw on the oppo- 

 site shore a corncrake [Crcx jmitensis, which 

 he thought could not fly (he was not a 

 Naturalist), and would persist in landing to 

 try and catch it, so he landed a few yards 

 below the place, but, of course, when he got 

 there the 1 ird was " noii est " We got back 

 to Stratford at 6.30, settled up with the 

 boatman, caught the seven o'clock train and 

 arrived in town again shortly after eight, 

 where we were surprised to see the streets 

 so muddy, and learned that they had had a 

 fearful thunderstorm at half-past three in 

 the afternoon. We made the best of our way 

 home, had some supper, and (I speak for 

 myself), got off to bed. 



