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a very casual song from the lark in a fresh morning, and from the
blackbird or thrush at sunset, or the monotonous wail of the yellow-
hammer, the silence of birds is now complete. The grove is silent.
The Cuckoo is gone, the Nightingale enchants no more.
The young
broods of Swallows now fly abroad in numbers, and young birds of
other kinds are seen in all directions. Among insects the Lady-bird
or Lady-cow (Cynthia Cardui) is in August common. This insect
has been wronged, in being accused of participating in causing the
blights in apple trees, because it is generally seen upon blighted
apple trees. Why is it seen there? Because it feeds upon that
blight, both when perfect and in its larvæ state. Instead of causing,
it was sent to check and destroy the blight. It also destroys the
hop plant blight. Do not, then, let us foster prejudice against this
beautiful insect, but rather address it in that beautiful song, from
the German, of which we are wont to sing in England but the se-
cond verse:-

Lady-bird! Lady-bird! pretty one, stay,
Come sit on my finger, so happy and gay,

With me shall no mischief betide thee;
No harm would I do thee, no foeman is here,
only would gaze on thy beauties so dear,
Those beautiful winglets beside thee.

Lady-bird! Lady-bird! fly away home,
Your house is on fire, your children will roam,
List! list! to their cry and bewailing!
The pitiless spider is weaving their doom;
Then Lady-bird, Lady-bird, fly away home,

Hark! hark! to thy children's bewailing!

Fly back again, back again, Lady-bird dear;
Thy neighbours will merrily welcome thee here,
With them shall no peril attend thee;
They'll guard thee so safely from danger or care,
They'll gaze on thy beautiful winglets so fair,
They 'll love thee and ever befriend thee.

Lady-bird, Lady-bird, whither fly you,
To rest on the rose, or sip of the dew?

Lady-bird, Lady-bird, come to my bower,

It will shade you from Sun, and defend you from shower.

Various tribes and species of insects continue to sport in the Sun in both months. The beautiful butterflies, the frittilaries, bees and wasps in the day time, and the moths in the twilight and night. In August the Swallow kind begin to congregate: they assemble in vast numbers on the roofs of lofty buildings, and sometimes on the ground, previously to their annual migration. In August the nest of the harvest mouse (Mus messorius) may be found attached to the straws of vegetables in corn fields; they are very fond of fixing it to those of beans or peas, with which it sways backwards and

forwards when they are agitated by the wind It is the only Eng. lish mouse that elevates its nest above the ground; they are sometimes found in the shape of a pear with a long neck, at others round, the size of an orange. Vipers now bring forth their young. They are distinguished, by being viviparous, from snakes who deposited their eggs in dunghills or in the ground. They are rare in England, especially in the North. The writer of these notes saw a fine large Viper on Langley Dale Fell last month (July 14th) crossing the cart road; it was about two feet and a half long, with brown and black scales, which look well in the sun: he hissed as I approached him. I attacked him with my whip, which he darted upon vehemently; we had several severe meetings. After I had apparently killed him, my little boy, who was with me, very much urged me to convey him home, in the gig bottom, as a treasure; but I well knew the marvellous vitality of the viper, and dreaded his resuscitation and reanimation. So we left him by the wall side. Glow-worms are numerous

on fine evenings in July and August. It is not only the glow-worm that will not bear inspection when its lustre is lost by the light of day, but all those luminous insects that bear the same phosphoric fire about them, such as the hawthorn fly of the West Indies and of China, of which there are several sorts; some of which carry their light in a sort of snout, so that, when they are seen in a collection, they are remarkably ugly. In Italy there is a flying glow worm called Lucciola, a much more worthy and acceptable guest there than General Oudinot's fiery Frenchmen, the tools of tyrants, yet with the cant of liberty on their lips.

The agricultural operations of July cause the weather to be a source of great anxiety to the farmer. Animals are evidently sooner sensible of the ensuing change of the Atmosphere than we are, and from their appearances, and apparent sensations, we may in many instances determine what changes are likely to take place.

The following have been set down in Peasant observations as general rules. They are taken from a very old set of weather maxims. When the Raven is observed early in the morning at a great height in the air, soaring round and round, and uttering a hoarse croaking sound, we may be sure the day will be fine, and may conclude the weather is about to clear and become fair.

Also, when the Swallow is observed to fly high, the weather will probably be fair.

On the contrary, when the Swallow or Martlet are observed to fly low and dip the tips of their wings in the water, as they skim over its surface, we may conclude that rain will ensue, and probably before the expiration of twenty-four hours.

The clamorous quackling of Ducks, Geese, and other water fowl is a sign of Rain.

Before Rain, Swine appear very uneasy, and rub in the dust, as do Cocks and Hens,

Before Storms, Kine and also Sheep assemble at one corner of the field, and are observed to turn all their heads toward the Quarter from whence the wind doth not blow.

The appearance of Sea Gulls, Petrels, or other Sea Fowl in the inlands, indicates stormy weather. In fine weather the Bat is observed to continue flying about very late of an evening.

In Autumn, before Rain some Flies bite, and others become very troublesome, and Gnats are more apt to sting. When flocks of Wild Geese are observed flying in a westward or southern direction in Autumn, it indicates a hard winter.

The floating of Gossamer, and its alighting on the rigging of ships, foretells fine weather.

The clamorous croaking of Frogs indicates rainy weather.

The appearance of Beetles flying about of an evening in summer indicates that the next day will be fair.

Before Rain, Dogs are apt to grow very sleepy and dull, and to lay all day before the fire.

Before Rain, Moles throw up the earth more than usual.

The appearance of rare foreign birds in this country, such as Rollers, Hoopoos, &c., indicates hard weather.

When Spiders are seen crawling on the walls more than usual, Rain will probably ensue.

The much barking of Dogs in the night, frequently indicates a change in the weather.

When the Trees and Hedges are very full of berries, it indicates a hard winter.

The abundance of Woodseare and Honeydew on herbs, indicates fair weather, as does floating Gossamer.

It is said in Wiltshire, that the Dunpickles or Moor Buzzards, alight in great numbers on the Down before rain.

Before Storms, the Missel Thrush is observed to sing particularly loud and to continue so till the commencement of the rain, from which circumstance it is in some places called the Storm Cock.

It is a sign of rain when Pigeons return slowly to the Dovehouses. When Bees do not go out as usual, but keep in or about their hives, rain may be expected.

Before Wind, Swine run squeaking about as though they were mad; which has given rise to the notion that pigs can see the wind. Before Rain, the Pintados called Comebacks, squall more than usual, as do Peacocks.

The early appearance of Woodcocks, Snipes, Swinepipes, Fieldfares, &c., are the prognostications of severe winters. When the dew lies plenteously on the grass in the evening, the next day will probably be fine; when there is little or no dew, probably wet.

Spring flowers have given place to a different class of plants. The Climbers mantle the hedges and bowers. The beautiful Milk Vetch (Vicia Sylvatica) is in full flower in the early part of July

in some hazle copses in the North, and is particularly luxuriant and beautiful (when seasons suit) in the Flatt's ravine, near Barnard Castle. Several of the Galiums familiarly called White and Yellow Ladies' Bedstraw, adorn the hedges and hedge-banks with their delicate and minute flowers, rendered showy by the vast numbers which are crowded upon one stalk. The wild hop, the bryony-clematis or traveller's joy, the large white Convolvulus and the Honeysuckles, also contribute to hang with beauty every bush and shrub. The large space which it would occupy, prevents us from inserting a full Catalogue of flowers for the two months, but we may just notice amongst the more beautiful and attractive, the Bogbean or buck bean, (Menyanthes nymphæoides) a member of the gentian family, a most lovely fringed flower, one of the most beautiful of the British wild flowers, found in ponds in heathy and peaty districts in the North, the Campanulu rotundifolia, (the hare bell of the poets and blue bell of the botanists) the Campanulu glomeruta, and the Campanulu pyramidulis, beautifying the hedge rows and fields, and occasionally found imported into the garden; the various species of Mallow, the red and white Convolvulus, the scarlet poppies, corn cockle and azure bugloss which adorn the corn fields; the wild roses which grace the hedges, and of which there are several beautiful British varieties; the Enchanter's nightshade in the woods, the beautiful thistle flowers, especially those of the Melancholy plume thistle, the Yellow loose-strife, the varieties of the Epilobium or willow-herb, the three beautiful English heaths, (Erica tetralix, cinerea, and vagans,) the Stonecrops adorning even the old mossy wall, the purple loosestrife, the Snap-dragons on the ruins and towers, the Bartsia on the waste and moor, the Vervain, the St. John's worts, the Cotton grass, those curious members of the Orchis family, Orchis pyramidalis, and hircina, ophrys apifera, and arachnites, Epipactus latifolia, and palustris. The ferns also put forth their peculiar attractions and curiosities. The Mullein rears its gigantic form, the hawkweeds and knapweeds on the hedge banks and rims of corn fields, the small flowered fumitory, the golden marsh saxifrage (Saxifraga hirculus) with hypnoides and others adorn some moors in the North, especially in Teesdale. But it would be a serious encroachment upon the space of this little periodical were I to enumerate but half the floral gems of July and August.

In August the Corn harvest begins. Nature has perfected some of her most important operations. The mellowness and maturity of beauty spreads over the landscape. The mower sweeps down the barley and rustling oats, the sickle (implement of olden as well as of modern time) cuts the wheat. The farmer is ruling and rejoicing in the field, the busy shearers from the gossiping matron to the blooming damsel are there with the children gleaning amid the sheaves. Then we have the phenomenon of the harvest moon, rising several nights successively almost at the same time, immedi

ately after sunset and remarkable for its beauty. Its rising is peculiarly magnificent, the effect of it being greatly increased by the serenity and transparency of the atmosphere. The phenomenon, as far as the times of rising is concerned, is caused by the position of the moon's monthly path at that time with respect to the eastern side of the horizon. The full moon, then being in or near the first of Aries, and that part of the ecliptic making a more acute angle than any other part with the eastern side of the horizon, so that its successive points rise rapidly one after another as the sphere revolves, it necessarily follows that the moon's daily advances of thirteen degrees make a less difference in her successive times of rising than when she is moving through a part of her course which is less oblique to the eastern horizon. This circumstance, of course, must happen every month, because every month the moon is in or near the first of Aries, but as it is only in autumn that it coincides with the time of full moon, it is only then that the phenomenon is particularly remarked.

During August several shrubs and trees, particularly some hedge thorns, and the Oak and Elm put forth shoots and new leaves and enliven the sombre woods, and the darkening hedge-rows.

In July, Bream and Trent fish spawn. Grayling leaps well at flies, especially at small fies. Trouts can be tickled with the hand under stones and banks in hot days. The Chub now will take any fly, or beetles with the legs and wings off. He is very fond also of grasshoppers and humble bees. The Salmon now makes good fishing with fly in the Northern streams, or he may be taken in nets, in traps, by the line, or the spear. In July, evenings are best for fly-fishing. The orange fly, small dun white, wasp fly, black hackle, shell fly, black blue dun, palmer worms and cockchafers do well, also, the usual June flies. In August the flies are the same as July, also the ant fly, the fern fly, white hackle, Harry-long-legs, and the browns and duns of May.

Towards the end of the month, symptoms of the year's decline begin to appear. It is a month at once speaking to us by the rich harvests of the earth, of gratitude and love to the all-beneficent God, and reminding us also of life's onward progress and our future destiny. The first fades appearing on the leaves, the ripened corn, the transparent air, the magnificence and peace of the autumnal eve, the harvest moon riding in majesty and grace, all speak in power, all send forth a still small voice to the soul of man.

"'Tis well when ought can wake the heart,
To love and faith whose trust is right!
'Tis well when conscience is not seared,
And the low whisper can be heard,

That breathes thro' nature day and night."

G. B.

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