NATURAL HISTORY OF SELBORNE. 
349 
are, first, a china-like shell, and second, a deep upper shell to 
contain the meat. The mouse in the picture must have 
been a judge of oysters. I have also a photograph of an 
oyster-catcher being caught by the beak by an oyster, and 
I once had a specimen of a crab that had been caught by 
the tip of the toe by an oyster. People at the sea-side should 
be very careful not to put their hands into holes to bring up 
lobsters and crabs. I have heard of a case of a man's fingers 
being nipped by the crab's claws and his hand jammed in a 
crevice of the rock, until the tide rose and drowned him. 
Yews, p. 38. — The juice of Yew berries is good to eat ; the 
seeds are dangerous. The boughs are fatal to cattle, though 
it is not often cattle will meddle with them except from mis- 
chief or idleness. Cattle and deer seem to prefer the boughs 
or loppings of yew, laurel, and other evergreens, when they 
have been cut a few days, and are much more inclined to eat 
them in that state, than to browse on them as they grow. 
Gardeners and foresters cannot therefore be too careful as to 
where they throw refuse of this description. 
Haws are a very favourite food of many birds, and a good 
crop of these berries will bring into the neighbourhood hun- 
dreds and hundreds of field-fares and redwings. Even black 
game will come down from their customary haunts to feed on 
the road-side hedges ; and an old blackcock picking haws along- 
side the Queen's highway has not unfrequently astonished the 
wayfarer. 
Canaries, p. 40. — It is quite possible to breed canaries out 
of doors ; the eggs should be placed in the nests of chaffinches 
or greenfinches, those of greenfinches would be preferable. 
The cross (artificially produced) between the cock greenfinch 
and hen canary is common. 
Mr. Davy has received from JSTorwich canaries bred out of 
doors in aviaries ; but they are, as a rule, of a pale colour to 
those bred in cages indoors, and consequently are more wild 
for the first few days. 
During the winter these birds are so much exposed that the 
ice has to be broken for them to drink. 
My friend, Mr. Monk, of Lewes, informs me some wild canaries 
were taken at Southwick, near Brighton, in April, 1869, feeding 
with a party of linnets, and as they showed no marks of having 
been caged, he surmised they might have migrated here. 
I learn from Mr. Davy that there is no putting a 
canary's song into words, but a canary may be taught any 
