CHAPTER OF VARIETIES. 233 



innumerable grapes or oak apples, or a bracelet of crystal ; and we 

 could discover little footstalks in many of them, by which they were 

 fastened to the ribs and fibres of the leaf, which is a very pleasant 

 spectacle. A leaf of rue looks all full of holes like an honey-comb ; 

 a sage leaf looks like a white rugge or shagge, full of knots tasselled 

 all with white silver thrums, and one or two fine round crystal beads 

 or pendents, as big as pease, fastened to every knot. Look at the 

 back side of a nettle-leaf, and you shall see it all full of needles, or 

 rather long sharp transparent pikes, and every needle hath a crystal 

 pummel, so that it looks like a sword-cutler's shop, full of glittering 

 drawn swords, tucks, and daggers ; so that here you may autoptically 

 see the causes, as well as you have formerly felt the effects of their 

 nctling. Something like them appear the prickles of borrage leafs 

 and stalks. — Dr. Henry Power, 1664. 



On the different dispositions of birds, with anecdotes 

 of a goldfinch and a canary. — I am a great admirer of all the 

 animal creation, and especially of remarking the habits of birds, many 

 of which I have as pets. I am partial to them, inasmuch as they form 

 one of the pages of that most interesting volume, the Book of Nature, 

 to study which, in any way, is my greatest resource. Perhaps few 

 persons are aware how much the tempers and dispositions of birds vary 

 from each other, and some, who were not much acquainted with them, 

 have smiled to hear me talk of birds' tempers. But nevertheless I am 

 convinced, from long and repeated observation, that they differ as much 

 in their tempers as the human race. We frequently see the children 

 of the same family, though receiving the same education as the rest, 

 differ extremely in their dispositions when they come to maturity, and 

 just so is it with animals, in proof of which, the circumstance I am 

 about to relate may, perhaps, possess some interest. 



I have, among my other animals, a goldfinch, which was once a wild 

 one, and a canary bird, which of course was hatched in a cage. The 

 goldfinch, though originally wild, and full grown when made a prisoner, 

 accustomed to wing his airy flight without controul ; to " perch at will 

 on every spray" ; to roam as " free as air " far away from mankind, has 

 become so exceedingly gentle and tame, as to render him quite a little 

 wonder, and indeed I do not think it possible any wild creature ever was 

 more entirely domesticated. He is not only so very sagacious as to a 

 know and distinguish me, who have had the sole care of him, from every 

 one else, not allowing any other person to stroke or fondle him, but he 



