NATURAL HISTORY NOTES, QUERIES, Uc. 239 
seemed to treat them with utter contempt, and after a few minutes more rose, 
sparkling with diamonds, and at about three feet from the water commenced his 
toilet, in which his tong hairy legs took an active part ; but as he took so long 
about it I was obliged to wish him farewell. Never having heard of a spider 
taking a bath before, I felt that the record of it might interest some of your 
readers. 
Dublm. H. M. Barton. 
Poisoning by Bearsfoot. — I wonder if you or your readers are aware 
what a very strong irritant poison is the juice of the Bearsfoot (Helleborus fcctidus). 
Of course everyone knows it is poisonous in all its parts to eat, but I was not before 
aware that it affects even the skin. • One Sunday this last summer I came in to find 
my little girl lying on her face crying. She told me that she had been shelling the 
little seeds of the plant which, as she expressed it, “ provides your garden from 
mine.” This I knew to be the Bearsfoot, a common weed in the .shrubbery. The 
child added that her hands were burning and pricking, and even after the thorough 
washing, which I at once ordered, this continued. I noticed throughout that day 
and the next that she shrank from using her thumbs and first fingers, and at the 
end of about a week the skin peeled off as if the little fingers had been burnt. I do 
not find any notice of this peculiarity in any of my botany books, so I thought it 
might be interesting to your readers. C. M. B. 
Swallows in late October. — It may interest some readers to hear that in 
this village I remarked a number of swallows {Hiricndo domestica) on the 29th of 
October. They did not appear to be weak or young birds, neither did they seem 
to be stragglers left behind. I counted quite a score skimming about on the 
surface of the brook and in the air, as in the height of summer. Is not this an 
unusually late date for them to be still with us ? I have generally noticed that all 
the family have left us before the 20th of the month. 
South Stoke, Bath. N. S. II. Samler. 
A Scented. Spider. — A friend of mine found in her garden in London the 
other day, a spider, and in handling it to give to a favourite bird, she perceived a 
strong odour of perfume in her hand, which remained there for some time, and on 
going into the house .she was asked where the scent came from. Can anyone 
kindly tell me if this is unusual in spiders of this country ? F. M. M. P. 
Martins (p. 219). — I have seen, year after year towards the end of Septem- 
ber, thousands of martins in the neighbourhood of Selsey. A single telegraph wire 
ran from Chichester to Selsey, and it formed a favourite perch for these birds. I 
have seen them sitting close together, forming a continuous line nearly one hundred 
yards long. It was a curious sight to see hundreds of these birds packed as 
close together as they could squeeze, with their heads all turned one way. The 
natives say they always sit with their heads to the wind, but my observations did 
not thoroughly confirm this, for though I never saw them sitting with their tails 
direct to the wind it frequently blew on their quarters, if I may use a nautical 
expression. I never saw them start on their journey south, nor did I ever hear of 
anyone in the neighbourhood who did. They left suddenly — thousands of birds 
at night, but in the morning every one gone. I made enquiries of the fishermen 
who are out at all hours, but they have never noticed them leave, and when in the 
Channel myself with the fishermen I have kept special watch for migratory birds, 
but have never seen any flying south. It would seem as if they left in a body, but 
in the spring they come back in small flocks, and even singly. At that time of 
the year it is not a rare occurrence for the birds to alight on the fishing boats for a 
rest, and as an example of the complete exhaustion of some of these tiny travellers 
a fisherman told me that one day when about seven miles from land a chiff-chaff — 
for such I judged it to be from his description — came fluttering towards his boat 
and just managed to reach the side, but not having strength to cling, it fell back 
into the waves. The fisherman caught it almost as it touched the water, but it 
was too late, the little thing was dead. Fred. W. Ashley. 
M. S. J. — We would advise you on no account to take for granted the pseudo- 
scientific explanations of natural phenomena which are to be found in popular 
works on natural history. 
A Correction. — Miss Johnson writes that the statement on p. 214 that her 
work on Sunshine is “based on a series of lessons given in connection with the 
