614 
he feels sure, previously destroyed the viper. He has once or 
twice found vipers in the woods here similarly killed with broken 
heads, inflicted, he thinks, by the pheasants. 
His father, an old shepherd at Cossey, once found a large viper 
lying with her young ones near her, one of which ran down her 
throat on his approach, followed by a second, which, however, 
could only get partly down and then backed out again. Thereupon 
he killed the viper, and found in the anterior portion of the gullet 
the young one he had first seen creep down, and just below it a 
newly swallowed mouse, which blocked the passage, so that there 
was only room for one young one to take refuge between the mouse 
and the viper’s mouth. — J. H. Gurney, 17th December, 1878. 
License for Shooting, a.d., 1554. In the ‘Visitation of 
Suffolke,’ edited by Dr. J. J. Howard, and published in 18GG, I 
observe at p. 17 the following passage, viz. : — “By letters patent 
dated August 31st, 1554, 1 and 2 Philip and Mary, license was 
granted ‘unto our welbelovyd subjccto George Eden, to appoynto 
at his wyll and pleasure any one of his servauntes to sliote in a 
crosbowo or handgono att all mannor of dere, heron, shullard, 
wildeswane, mallerd, teale, crane, bustard, and all other land fowle 
or water fowle whatsoever, and also to use, cai’rye, occupie, and 
kepe his said crosbowe or handgonne for the purpose aforesaide 
within the counties of Suffolk and Cambridge, and the lymyttes of 
the same .’” — ( Vide Pat. Poll 1 and 2 Philip and Mary. Part V.) 
Geoi’ge Eden was appointed in 1555 surveyor of Crown lands in 
Suffolk, and seems to have resided partly in London and partly 
at Sudbury, and to have had a landed estate at Wickhambroke, in 
Suffolk. — J. II. Gurney, June 15th, 1878. 
Hest of Water-Spider (Argyroneta aquatica). In Wootton 
Marsh I find the nests of this spider in great quantity amongst 
the leaves of Potamorjeton pectinatus and the algal stage of Hypnum 
jluitans with which the ditches are filled. A curious feature of 
design in these nests is, that they are all composed of fragments 
of Chnra Jlexilis. At first sight it was a little puzzling to under- 
■ stand why this plant was selected for the purpose, but after think- 
ing it over it became intelligible. This spider, as is well known, fills 
its nest, the opening of which is below, with air carried down with 
that object. As tho water in the ditches is lowered during the dry 
