SELBO RNIAN A 
93 
Here we have, at length, one apparently established instance of direct obser- 
vation of this curious habit, though so long ago as 1882. It is strange if no other 
observation confirmatory of this has been made during the last twenty-four years. 
W. 
347. Rooks Stealing 1 Eggs. — The other day about a dozen rooks 
passed over my head. One of them I noticed had an egg within its beak, which 
it dropped into a field, when all the rooks immediately swooped down for it. 
The egg was white, and apparently about the size of a pigeon’s, and I should 
imagine must have been purloined from another bird’s nest. 
Aprils , 1906. John Horne. 
348. Moorhen Perching. I lately saw three moorhens perching up 
a tree. As I have never hitherto seen these birds except on land or water, 
I thought it rather unusual. The tree was growing on the edge of a lake, and 
one of the branches hung over and just touched the surface of the water. The 
birds had obtained a footing on this branch from the water, and had climbed 
up to a height of about 9 or 10 feet, where they remained for about ten minutes. 
Clifford House, Clark Road, IVolverhatnplon. John Horne. 
April 4, 1906. 
349. Croaking of Frogs. — The croaking of frogs or toads is audible at 
some distance, even when uttered beneath the surface of the water, and the love- 
call of certain fishes may be distinctly heard from a depth of several fathoms. 
From this we may gather that sounds originating under water pass more or less 
readily into the air. It would seem, however, that sounds do not pass at all 
readily into water from the air; and that fish, and other tenants of our ponds 
and rivers, are insensible to all but violent sounds that occur in the air above 
them. I have frequently talked in the presence of a trout, over which I had 
thrown a fly, without disturbing it, though a slight stamp on the ground sent 
it off at once. Indeed, I cannot recall an instance of fish under water being 
frightened by the ordinary use of the human voice. When stalking a trout, fly- 
fishermen often ask their friends not to speak ; but if they did, would the chance 
of catching the fish be seriously lessened ? The auditory apparatus of fish is 
well developed. 
April, 1906. ' Edmund Thos. Daubeny. 
SELBORN I AN A. 
Lincoln’s Inn Fields. — We take the following from the 
Manchester Evening Chronicle : — 
With the County Council’s attempt to untie the tangle of the town’s traffic we 
all must sympathise, but it is annoying to find that the rage for newness sweeps 
away all the picturesque spots which make London dear to the hearts of her 
sons. 
In connection with wide Kingsway, it was decided that various side streets 
would have to be remodelled, Sardinia Street among them, and I am sorry to 
hear from a L.C.C. official that, in addition to the Sardinia Chapel, the ancient 
arch facing Lincoln’s Inn Fields must be demolished. Why? True, it serves no 
useful purpose, but, on the other hand, it is not in the way, and it gives a 
delightful old-world touch to a pleasant part of Central London. I always think 
of the spirit of Charles Dickens haunting this corner. 
Built by the great architect, Inigo Jones, in 1648, the massive arch had above 
it a room which formed part of the Spanish Embassy, and here, in troubled 
times, men were always on guard. The adjoining chapel of S.S. Anselm and 
Cecilia, now a very plain building, was sacked and binned in James II. ’s day, 
and on June 2, 1780, the Gordon rioters partly demolished it. 
In a house close by, Cromwell met Thurloe at night to discuss a plan for the 
seizure of the Prince of Wales and the Dukes of York and Gloucester. It is 
