11 4 
NATURE NOTES. 
scientific writer as one of its secretaries. Some narrow-minded persons may 
deplore that the work of this great Society is not confined to tracts and cate- 
chisms ; but its wisest and best supporters will feel convinced that in leading men 
to reverently study and admire the wonderful works of God in Nature, the Society 
is in a very real sense “ promoting Christian knowledge.” 
The River-side Naturalist , by Edward Hamilton, M.D., F.L.S. Sampson, 
Low, Marston & Co. [Price 14s.] 
We have for some time wished to recommend Dr. Hamilton’s admirable vade 
mecum for the lover of Nature, but have not been able to find opportunity to do so. 
Meanwhile many of our readers have secured the book, and several allusions to 
its value have been made by our correspondents. Now that summer has at last 
deigned to visit us after months of weary waiting : — 
“ Waiting for the pleasant rambles, 
Where the fragrant hawthorn brambles, 
With the woodbine alternating, 
Scent the dewy way ” : — 
we most heartily advise our readers to take with them in their pleasant rambles 
The River-side Naturalist. Is there anything pleasanter than to saunter over the 
dewy meadows on a summer morning, with a congenial companion if possible, 
down to a shady secluded brookside. and there to while the hours away, watching 
that charming and most unjustly persecuted creature the water vole as it busies 
itself in providing for its young, waiting to catch a glimpse of the rapid flight of 
the kingfisher as it passes up or down the stream “swift as a meteor’s shooting 
flame,” noting the strange habits of the innumerable creeping things that haunt 
the banks of the stream, and if for a moment animal life presents nothing for 
observation, admiring the flowers and foliage of the water plants ? Who that has 
spent a day thus does not remember it as one of the choicest memories of his life ? 
How can days of dry study among the skeleton and stuffed specimens of a museum 
compare with even one hour like this? To those who have known w’hat it is to study 
nature in this real fashion we cordially recommend Dr. Hamilton’s book in order 
to refresh their pleasant recollections, and to find, we feel sure, some notice of 
things they have missed in their previous rambles, and may hope to encounter 
now. “ Summer longings ” are being gratified and the cooling streams are grateful 
to the sufferers from the well-nigh forgotten heat of the sun. To those who know 
not the pleasures of the river-side ramble, w'e still more strongly recommend the 
study of The River-side Naturalist as a preparatory pleasure to the actual excursion 
itself. If they will do so, we shall be prepared to suffer heavy penalties if they do 
not give us grateful thanks for having suggested a new sweetness in life and shown 
how it is possible to mingle genuine pleasure with the pursuit of knowledge. 
“ Where the lily’s tender gleam 
Quivers on the glancing stream, 
Come away ! 
All the air is filled with sound, 
Soft and sultry, and profound ; 
Murmurs through the shadowy grass 
Lightly stray. 
Faint winds whisper as they pass — 
Come away ! ” 
The book may be described as an “ Encyclopedia of the Zoology and Botany of 
the Riverside.” As one would expect from so noted a fisherman as Dr. Hamilton, 
the ichthyological portion is the most complete ; but in all apartments of zoology 
the author either gives valuable information of his own or draws upon the best 
authorities — Seebohtn, Yarrell, Giinther, Dresser, Day, &c. The botanical portion 
is much slighter, and does not show so much evidence of thorough study. The 
frequent introduction of illustrations from Folk Lore and poetical extracts takes 
away all suspicion of that dryness which sometimes pervades merely zoological 
works. 
Nothing is perfect under the sun — with the very doubtful exception of a 
certain much advertised patent soap — and Dr. Hamilton’s book only shares the 
