or articulated, in th é fame pliant manner as the branchés of moflÿ
corallines are ; tips; might make ©ne* çônçhadéi - that as nature in
fome vegetable inftanees approaches nearly to-mimais, fo in foëfty
of her lower animals fhe approaches nearly *to the' fhape of Vegetable^;
the Ipace between both; -kingdoms is - narrow; -the tranfitioneâfy,
and |càj-ce perceptible ; and dttfeems! not! to h é •unlikely, that foirife
infèâ^ fhonld confort, and ïconftrûd: their nidus’s in the plant-like
form, becaufe it is indeed • more foitable, upon many>©6càfions df
food and fecurity^fto the , exigencies d f -the medium they live inf.
This is no more unlikely^ than that the fpider fhetold fpin her wéb
to tranfmit, bend,, yield to, and float intheair,<and bees conform
their combs to the holes and hives allotted them. ’ InftiUd is a fertile
monitor, and ean fuit her leffons totheoéèafionofher difciples.
But to return : TShecoral fobftance is moft; perfed*. for polifh and
beauty, when moft flony and clofe-grained •; but the coral of the
Cornifh fea-coaft, in its fineft ftate; is o f r'a-leoarfe-gint compared to
the oriental; as to polifh and hardnefs greatly inferior; yetj Ss *a
manure, for land, I fhould think much preferable, by-expe^S
encc found excellent in its kind for this purpofe. Some of our coral
is white as new-quenched lime, fome cinereous, other brown yellow,
according to the materials of which they are compofed ; for
in the brown yellow more especially, the Specks of olay and ftone
which give it that colour, may in the microfcope be plainly feen. ‘
C H A P . XXL
O f Birds.
FROM vegetable, inanimate, and doubtful produ^lion?, let; us
rife now to, fenfitive life : Of birds found in Cornwall, fome
arc perennial, others migratory. Among the firn may be reckoned
the hawks, of which we have feveral forts; the marlions, fpar-
hawks, hobbies, and in fome places the lannardsz : In the reign of
Elizabeth, the Cornifh and Dévonfhire gentlemen employed a great
deal of their time in hatching, nurturing, and inftruding them to
fly at the partridge *: In Cornwall at prfefent this tedious fcience,,
which confumes fo much of life for fb little an end, is now no
moré, but ftill exflls it feems in a neighbouring ifland; for being
at Trerice (the feat of the prefent Lord Arundell of Trerice), Au-
guft 25, 1738, Ifaw a hawk which, being overpowered by a crow,
fell near a man at his labour in the field, who, perceiving the
* Carewj page 2$.. Ibid, f
* ö W B C O R ■ K
hm k quite fpentj' brought i t l im the! hotife to a'gentleman then
Reward to hisfo'ordfhip. The • hawk -Wa^ntffed-hs iffifal 1 ’ith ïïlver
fW e s o a its legs*''and; neC-ky■tod Mri'€hürdl#ffe '$é%éWafc( Was
balled) perceiving an • infcriptión ‘Stog^ed/ '%ufegly fofcoVérefi ’ the
name M ’ W f É ë n this
he toofc^greatmare offoe hawk, and wrote immediacy to gentleman:.!
Tfeqfbikl was ajfaVp'ÖÉtë/tayid^hli'gdriftefoan' j h r f t : ’
from Ireland -into Cornwall -on' jforpofe tb'fetëlvif.!
I v Among oumjCorfofh feittiV, 'the cöMbiaS o f W illu gh b^ V tffe cwh
pytthocoraxj -dcfcrves principal motfek1 It is found hilt rk'tSy^Öl Chough‘
fore defervedlpafoong thé fooderns itfods'èMaihed'foe nkée bf thé
to tbe.Alpes/.; buit Aldrovandus t (m pm . >#ap. iMöfffi!|§ §
that it iet onljr feem there'among''the Rhffiti in the Miter*?1 It'is
found alfo immfoe ifland of *Crefe,' in thé 'C o d e 's ,1 M g rfhe
f^Boaifts of-Cork m Tveknd,- in Wa lé^ febd'-b lfewh^e there
is a rpyrrhoeorax in-Africa called -foe ^rfew5 öL lh^D'éÉVff but
bigger than our/raven, and' therefore>:callfed *thë ^Mrf^r Ü oM a s^ l'
Tfo tbcdaifoful defeription o f this bird’'id Ray’s 'Wöltighby’u,pagè;
m ® nothing need be aided ;' 'as ’m its dëfëö^ add foerits,'fcSrie-
tking, and not improperly, may. It # taken <m#h
veiy agile and meddling, - and -nhérefom nöt tb' bé tfuftêd' fit&ié
where fire, money, nr papers o f Confetjtiencé lyé; but itt both foefe
particular, as I have often experienced, not near fo nufchicvoHs as
theij|aek^daW, (foe mfeiedula df authors) Whole by miflake
have- been too .often impfuted to out chdugtf; a gteat ^ènémy' to
houfesdeovered with thatch, the tnoift and1 Yöttéfi parits of Which,
If! its long billon fearching for worms it difperfes, and quickens the
dediylji it will alfo pick out thé limè-pointing
fpiders' and flies. ? Thefe tricks have pfbeured this bird a fefd gI^Tj
rader j Camden calls dt' incendiaria avis, ‘and Mr. ^^fëwj jpag$* j ö f
foe fknder of our country ; but-certain it" is foaf öuf anceflors
thought df it (and very deservedly too) in a different mtoner.
Upton, who writ dt re militari, about 'the fniddle o f the fifteènth’
centiuy, obferves to the praife • of the Cornifh, that fome of foél$
moft ancient families bore tffefe Birds in their c o è t -^ fo óm N ó \ v ,r
to fhew that thefe gentlemen* móde no^$|ihtdmptible choice p f foeir
bearing, it muft be remembered/that foe Cornifh choUgbi is the
moft graceful, flender, and genteel of. the crow kind, -for which
b Shaw-s Trav. page 251 ►
cApic ergo .in laudem g^ïtis & patriæ CoriiùbK
enns (quse gèns rèótè a^Tfbjanis. traxit origine^
it ab-inwtatiQne ut oreditu^ adhue perfeverat) qui^*
dem antiqRÜî^ni .labiles. ipfiiia f^trias litas aves in
afmis' fuis,:portant, quæ ijuidem aves " § ^ guK!
iêilicèt quæ in roftris çt tibiis nibefeunt] fpeciali-
ter inilM patlâa funt rêpertæ,•* Edit. Bffe. p; 195.