32 



NORTHERN NEWS. 



Mr. F. Boyes, of Beverley, had two crops of pears from one tree in 1907^ 

 and in November it was in bloom for the third time. 



Sir John Evans celebrated his eig-hty-fourth birthday on Nov. 17th. The 

 Rev. W. H. Eg-erton was ninety-six on Nov. 13th, and has been a Fellow 

 of the Geolog-ical Society for seventy-five years ! 



The Annual Report of the Warring-ton Museum, etc., has been received, 

 and contains particulars of the additions made during- the twelve months. 

 Over a thousand specimens have been added. Amongst them are several 

 pieces of Samian Ware, arranged by Mr. T. May ; a collection of foreign 

 insects found in Warrington, and twelve cases of types of British beetles, 

 by Mr. G. A. Dunlop. 



Some good should result from the Royal Commission on Coast Erosion- 

 We have before us Volume I., Part 2 of the Minutes of Evidence accom" 

 patiying the First Report of the Royal Commission appointed to enquire 

 into and report on certain questions affecting- Coast Erosion and the Re- 

 clamation of Tidal Lands in the United Kingdom. It contains over a 

 thousand closely printed foolscap pag-es. 



Mr. F. Boyes recently writes to the ' Field ' recording the capture of a 

 Great Grey Shrike near Beverley. This was towards the end of November. 

 He also states that a fine old pink-footed gander, which he had lately shot, 

 had quite rich pink coloured feet and legs when first secured, but ' within an 

 hour after death this colour had faded and left the leg's and feet a pale flesh 

 colour, almost white.' No wonder descriptions vary. 



At the recent annual meeting of the Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union, the 

 President, the Rev. A. Hunt, g-ave an address on ' The Pigmy Flint Age in- 

 Lincolnshire.' He stated he was jealous of a certain Yorkshire museum 

 which had secured so many fine Lincolnshire antiquities. A reason was 

 g^iven that it was ' merely a question of money.' We don't quite know what 

 is meant, as if ever there was a museum living in a state of chronic hard-up- 

 ness, it is that Yorkshire institution. 



There have recently been two sales of collections made by Yorkshire 

 geologists. The first was formed by the late J. W. Davies, F.G.S-, 

 of Halifax, and was sold at Leeds on Nov. 14th. It included a fine series- 

 of fossil fishes, amongst which Davis Avorked so well. The other consisted 

 of the fine series of fossil and recent mammalian remains got together by 

 the late James Backhouse, of York, and was sold at Stevens' rooms, London,^ 

 on December 2nd. It seems a pity that such collections as these should find 

 their way to the sale room. 



At a recent meeting of the Lancashire and Cheshire Entomological 

 Society, Mr. B. H. Crabtree shewed a fine series of the local melanic form' 

 of Boarmia repandata from Penmaenmawr, the females especially showing" 

 the white blotches characteristic of this local race ; B. geiynjiaria var. per- 

 fuviaria from Manchester ; varieties of Angeroyia pi-unaria from Monkswood ; 

 Aplecta nehulosa var. robsoni from Delamere Forest ; Agrotis ashworthit 

 from Penmaenmawr ; and Chariclea umbra from Sidmouth. Mr. Robert 

 Tait, Jr., showed a number of local species, among them being a long" 

 series of Agrotis ripae from S. Wales coast ; A. ashworihii, N. Wales, a 

 series captured at rest ; Hemerophila abruptaria, the chocolate form, from 

 the London district ; Lobophora viretata, Anticlea derivata, and Larentia 

 salicata from lake side, Westmorland ; Diajithecice nana and Eupithecia 

 jasioneata from Abersoch. Mr. H. R. Sweeting exhibited a series of 

 Noctua castanta and var. neglect a from Delamere ; A'', glareosa and A^. 

 briinnea, also from Delamere ; and Moma orion from the New Forest. By 

 Mr. W. Mansbridge a bred series of Odontopera bidentata from Wakefield^ 

 including var. nigra and diaphanous specimens. 



Naturalist, 



21 JAN. 1208 



