Northern N^ews. 



355 



Across the Broad Acres : Being sketches of Yorkshire Hfe and 

 character, by A. N. Cooper. Hull : A. Brown & Sons. 316 pp., 3/6 net. 



In this volume the Walking Parson has gathered together a number 

 of stories relating to Yorkshire, which will go well to pass away a pleasant 

 afternoon. One or two are of particular interest — for example, that 

 relating to Sir Charles Strickland, the original of ' The ]Madman ' in ' Tom 

 Brown's Schooldays ' ; and the race horse ' The Darley Arabian,' which 

 is thought to have had much to do with the ' ^Making of A^orkshirc' 



Amongst the tales are manv ' chestnuts,' though, perhaps, none the 

 worse for reproduction : and some of the stories fall very fiat towards the 

 close, and most have distinctlv ' Sunday-School ' flavour, which, perhaps, 

 is inevitable. We learn that the birds who [sic] breed at Bempton and 

 other parts of the Yorkshire coast migrate to Holland, then to Spain, and 

 thence to the Soudan, thus forming ' The Letter Z,' the text of another 

 good {i.e. Christian) story ; that Middlesborougli owes its existence to a 

 rabbit ; and a canary caused the erection of some large works near Castle 

 Howard. There is thus some natural history in the volume ! We don't 

 like to see a writer's portrait as a frontispiece to a volume, as it may give a 

 stranger the impression that the author is conceited — an impression which 

 would certainly be wrong in the present instance. But we cannot under- 

 stand why the Walking Parson and his daughter were photographed whilst 

 dancing a cake-walk at his front door, and it was really unkind of the 

 publishers (who have otherwise done their work very well) to have repro- 

 duced the photograph unknown to the author. As Mr. Cooper wisely 

 says, however, ' soft words don't butter parsons,' — we mean ' parsnips.' 

 



NORTHERN NEWS. 



]\Ir. C. B. Ticehurst gives the result of the wood-pigeon diphtheria 

 enquiry in the August ' British Birds.' From this it is apparent that the 

 disease was practically confined to the counties bordering the Thames 

 Valley. 



The Herbarium of the late W. R. Linton has been presented by his 

 widow to the Liverpool University, It contains an excellent collection of 

 British plants, and is particularly strong in Brambles, Willows, and 

 Hawkweeds. 



We notice it has been suggested that to prevent cats from indulging 

 in the ' cruel habit ' of catching young birds, a dead bird should be securely 

 tied round the cat's neck, and left there for a few days ! This, of course, 

 would not be cruel ! 



If the editor of ' The Animal World ' is not careful, he will soon be a 

 competitor with another journal which is devoted to truth and nature. 

 The ' Dog Stories ' in the August ' Animal World ' are really worthy of a 

 certain angling column. 



A writer in the August ' Zoologist ' informs us that ' during the first week 

 of June three sand-grouse were observed in a field of j-oung corn in the 

 eastern portion of Cleveland. Shortly afterwards one of them was picked tip 

 dead' ! The other two ' disappeared ' a little later. 



Another new British bird, from Kent, is recorded in ' British Birds.' 

 It is the South European Large-billed Reed Bunting. Kent is very near 

 the continent, and if every straggler that gets blown over is to be a ' new 

 BritTsh bird,' the B. O. U. list will soon require extending. 



' Natural history ' is getting quite interesting. Under the heading of 

 ' Clever Swan and Trout,' we learn that a swan has been trained to pull a 

 rope and ring a bell for bread. ' Stranger still,' a trout in the same lake 

 has also been seen to ' take hold ' of the string, and make the bell ring. A 

 photograph of a lady who saw it is sent as proof ; which reminds us of a 

 certain ' horny theologist ' in Yorkshire, who took some fellow-naturalists to 

 see a window from which he had seen a rare bird — a ' gull ' we believe 

 it was. 



1908 September i 



