IIUMMINCi IN TIIK AIK. 
I 
35 
him to attrilnite the iiiysterions .sound to humhle-liees. 
In reply to this, Mr. F. Gibbons wrote to the same puldi- 
cation that in the case of his own observations he saw no 
bumble-bees or other insects to cause the sound, and he 
goes on to ask whether it can be possible that they were 
very high up in the air, out of sight. 
“ On cb'y summer evenings,” writes Mr. Gilibons, ” most 
flying insects rise v^ery high, but it seems scarcely feasible 
that such insects as bees should rise so high as to be out of 
sight, seeing that they would hav^e no apparent induce¬ 
ment, their food being entirely on the ground. Were there 
only a few bumble-bees about one would naturally expect 
the humming sound to be more or less intermittent as the 
indivddual came near to hand ; but such was not the case 
when I heard it. The .sound was regular, much like that 
proceeding from a grov^e of lime trees in blo.ssom, when 
surrounded with thousands of bees. I cannot help think¬ 
ing that the origin of the .sound must be much more ob- 
.scure than the insect theory, or Gilbert White, who fre¬ 
quently heard this humming, would have determined its 
origin, for he was an extremely shrewd and quick ob- 
serv^er.” 
On the other hand, mother observ^er, Mr. F. J. Par¬ 
tridge, furnishes Nature Notes an account of an oFservation 
which suggests the insect theory in a different form. He 
writes : 
“ I see there has been another letter on this subject, bnt I believe 
the right explanation will be found in this. Pet me give my de¬ 
scription of the case. I was .staying at Minehead, Somerset, in sum¬ 
mer, and going for a walk one day up one of the grassy slopes 
near the sea, I exj^erieiiced a ])eculiar sensation of sound. 
I had walked, as it were, into the midst of a humming noise, the 
origin of which was invisible, and which surrounded me on every 
side. I looked up, then down, to the right, then to the left, be¬ 
hind ; the humming kept on never altering or wavering, a high 
pitched indescribable note'far Ijeyond the toj) C of the ])iano, and 
nearing those harmonics which the ear is unlitted to transmit prop- 
