38 



THE NATURALIST. 



also previously pointed out localities for 

 DentaHa hulhifera. Although tliis beautiful 

 plant is one of our very rare English ones, 

 it grows here in great profusion : Ranunculus 

 arvensis was also in flower in a neighbouring 

 field. Three hours passed swiftly and plea- 

 santly away in looking for these natural 

 objects and in commenting upon them when 

 found, and the members returned home 

 over the hill again about six in the evening. 



ElCHMOND AND NOETH ElDING NATU- 

 RALISTS' Field CLrs.— Monthly meeting, 

 May 9th. The President, E. Wood, Esq., 

 F. G. S. in the chair. The following 

 new members were elected viz : — Messrs. 

 P. Metcalf, Easby ; J. Capper, Newcastle ; 

 C. Pallisor, Northallerton ; F. Smith, 

 Richmond. Mr, Wood exhibited a perfect 

 specimen of the fossil Woodocrinus onac- 

 Todactylus discovered by him in Swaledale, 

 and now so well known amongst geologists ; 

 also, amongst other fossils, an elephant's 

 tooth which had been turned up during the 

 recent draining excavations in the metropo- 

 lis, Mr. J. Aspdin exhibited a male spe- 

 cimen of the Goosander Mergus mer- 

 ganser, shot near Richmond, in January, 

 1864 ; also a specimen of the Sclavonian 

 Grebe, Podiceps cornutus ; and a female 

 widgeon, Anas Penelajpe, assuming the plu- 

 mage of the mature male, both recently 

 shot at the mouth of the Tees. Mr, Milli- 

 gan exhibited a case of Little Grebes, 

 Podiceps minor, as also a case of Partridges, 

 Perdix cinerea, the latter having been found 

 frozen to death near Richmond, during the 

 severe winter of 1861. A large and valuable 

 collection of Botanical specimens were pre- 

 sented to the club by the Rev. Scott F. 

 Surtees, and a resolution conveying the 

 thanks of the club to the donor, unani- 

 mously adopted. At the close of the 

 meeting Mr. Wood expressed a hope of 

 seeing a larger attendance of the members, 

 at his house on the Monday following, to 

 inspect his museum and receive an explan- 

 atory lecture on its contents. After a vote 

 of thanks to the chairman, the meeting 

 adjourned to the second Tuesday in June. 



Anecdote of a Cat. — The following 

 was sent to me by Miss FuUerton, sister to 

 Mr. FuUerton of Thryberg Park, near 

 Rotherham, it is perfectly true, and there- 

 fore may be placed on record, but I only 

 wish to be considered as furnishing it as a 

 singular coincidence of facts, and not as a 

 proof of reasoning powers in the animal in 

 question : — No poultry, no rabbits, in the 

 house, the cook called to the cat " Jim", — 

 ''Mew" — "Now Jim, I have nothing for 

 master's dinner ; I saw you at the rabbit 

 hole yesterday in the garden, go like a 

 good Jim, and fetch me a young rabbit, and I 

 will give you a dinner you lil^;e, a nice tit-bit 

 of veal, Jim,"— In half an hour, the cook 

 felt the cat rubbing himself against her ; 

 an unusual thing for him to do, as he gene- 

 rally stood on his hind legs, and mewed — 

 she looked down, he had a live rabbit in his 

 mouth which he allowed her to take, — she 

 said, "good Jim, but this is so small, do 

 fetch me another, " he turned and went out ; 

 in a short time returned, she was not in 

 the kitchen, he followed her into the larder 

 and laid a live rabbit at her feet and 

 mewed, she praised him and gave him the 

 bit of veal he liked. A son of the same 

 cat jumped once on an india-rubber hot 

 water bottle, could not make it out, but 

 always avoided it, wherever he might see it 

 afterwards, A child disliking cats especi- 

 ally, and sitting on the sofa in its usual 

 place, just as the cat was going to spring 

 up ; seized the bottle, held it towards him 

 exclaiming, ' ' hot-water bottle, Jim, hot- 

 water bottle," the cat looked at it for an 

 instant, turned, left the room and the 

 house, and never entered it again, — F. O. 

 MoERis, Nunburnholme Rectory, York. 



The Bee Eater. — I had this morning 

 the great satisfaction of meeting with what 

 few naturalists have seen in this country, 

 viz : — Iferops apiaster, the Bee Eater. It 

 was sitting in company with one or two 

 flycatchers, on a fence by the roadside, 

 about two miles from this place, watching 

 for and catching the insects as they passed. 



