wild boars. Probably, the thicket now called Hornsey Wood formed part of this "vast forest," the frequenters of which, instead of valorous hunters, are now tea-drinking and pic-nic parties of citizens! In the reign of Charles I., however, wild boars had become so scarce, even in the New Forest, Hampshire, that many were turned into it to breed; but the civil wars, which soon after ensued, caused their speedy destruction.

The wild ox, or, more properly, the Urus, which formerly inhabited, in considerable numbers, the forests of Britain, was of a gigantic size, and of a totally different species from the domestic ox; although Pennant, and other writers of his school, fancied they were the same. The horns of the wild urus have not only been found in the same strata with the bones of the lost elephant, proving that it belonged to the zoology of a former period, but also in more recent formations, as peat mosses, marshes, and beds of sand. This huge animal, no doubt, existed in Britain in the time of Cæsar: and the trophy of the horns of the Dun Cow, killed by Guy, Earl of Warwick, exhibited in Warwick castle, are unquestionably those of a wild urus. This, and many other skulls of the same sort, existing in different museums, are nearly one-third larger than those of domestic oxen, square from the orbits to the occipital crest, and somewhat hollow at the forehead: the horns show a peculiar rise from their root, at the side of the above crest, upwards; they then bend outwards, and finally forwards and inwards. "No domestic race," as Hamilton Smith remarks, "possess this peculiarity of turn, but numerous specimens of inferior size, found fossil in some of the Cornish mines, have this shape, and the wild bull of Scotland alone in part retains it." It does not exactly appear at what precise time this formidable race of oxen was exterminated in England. Fitz-Stephen (a learned monk, who lived in the reign of Henry II., and wrote a History of London, recorded by Leland) mentions these animals, under the name of Uri Silvestres, among many others, which in his time, were found wild in the great forests close to London. Leland also enumerates, among the provisions at the great feast of Nevil, Archbishop of York, six wild bulls. The Scotch urus, before alluded to, seems to have been a small and inferior breed of this species, almost peculiar to the woods of Southern Scotland and Northern England. It is probable that this breed was exterminated from the open forests long after that larger species which had more especially inhabited Southern England; for Sibbald assures us, that in his days a wild and white species was still found in the mountains of Scotland: and Bishop Lesley, who wrote in 1598, asserts that cattle, in a wild state, were then found in Stirling, Cumbernauld, and Kingcairn. But, some time before the Reformation, the few that remained were already confined in parks belonging to ecclesiastical establishments, whence they were transferred at their dissolution to Drumlanrig. It was at this latter place, and in the park belonging to Chillingham Castle, Northumberland, that Pennant(Tour in Scotland, v. ii. p. 124.) first saw these modern descendants of the ancient urus. He proceeds to describe them as having lost their manes, but retaining their original white colour, and great fierceness; they were of a middle size and long-legged, with black muzzles and

ears, their horns fine, with a bold and elegant bend. The keeper of those at Chillingham said, that the weight of the ox was 38 stone, and of the cow 28 stone; that their hides were more esteemed by the tanners than those of the tame race, and that they would give sixpence per stone more for them. "These cattle are wild as any deer, for, on being approached, they instantly take to flight and gallop away at full speed; never mixing with the tame species, or coming near the house, unless constrained by hunger or very severe weather. When it is necessary to kill any, they are always shot; if the keeper only wounds the beast, he must take care to keep behind some tree, or his life would be in danger from the furious attacks of the animal, which will never desist till a period is put to its life."-(Brit. Zool. v. i. p. 26.) Thus far Pennant, whose words are those of an eye-witness. On a subject so interesting, we shall add some further particulars, furnished by the most eminent modern naturalist in this department of the science. The individuals of the Scotch urus, observes Hamilton Smith, in the park of Burton Constable, were all destroyed in the middle of last century by a distemper. The race is entirely of a white colour; the muzzle invariably black; the inside of the ear, and about one-third part of the outside, from the tips downwards, red; the horns are white, with black tips, of a fine texture, and, as in fossil skulls, bent downwards. Bulls weigh from 35 to 45 stone, and cows from 25 to 35 stone, — 14 pounds to the stone. Before they were kept in parks, they were probably larger and more rugged; old bulls still acquire a kind of mane, about two inches long, and their throat and breast are covered with coarser hair. Those at Burton Constable differed from the others, in having the ears and tips of the tail black. In their manners, also, they were unlike domestic oxen, and assimilated more to the ancient urus. Upon perceiving a stranger, these animals gallop wildly in a circle round him, and stop to gaze, tossing their heads, and showing signs of defiance: they then set off, and gallop round a second time, but in a contracted circle, repeating this circular mode of approaching till they are so near that it becomes prudent to retire from their intended charge. The cows conceal their young calves for eight or ten days, going to suckle them two or three times a day; if a person comes near the calf, it conceals itself by crouching. One, not more than two days old, very lean and weak, was discovered by Dr. Fuller. On his stroking its head, it got up, pawed the ground, bellowed very loud, and, going back a few steps, bolted at his legs: it then began to paw again, and made another bolt; but, missing its aim, fell, and was so weak as not to be able to rise. By this time, however, its bellowing had roused the herd, which came instantly to its relief, and made the Doctor retire. When one of this breed happens to be wounded, or is enfeebled by age or sickness, the others set upon it and gore it to death. These animals were killed, to within a few years, by a large assemblage of horsemen and country people armed with muskets; the former rode one from the herd, and the latter took their stations on walls or in trees. There was grandeur in such a chase, but from the number of accidents which occurred, it was laid aside. We believe, concludes Major Hamilton Smith, that at present none remain, excepting at Chillinghaí Castle, the property of the Earl of Tankerville, near Berwick-upon-Tweed: at Gisborne, in Craven; at Lime Hall,

in Cheshire; and at Chartley, in Staffordshire. The anecdote above given of Dr. Fuller has been ascribed to Mr. Bailey of Chillingham. There is also a large breed, not perfectly white, in the Duke of Hamilton's park, Lanarkshire, Scotland. It seems hardly necessary to refute the opinion of a modern compiler on "British animals," that "the remains of oxen, which occur in marl pits in this country, seem all to belong to the "Bos taurus," or common ox; for both Cuvier and Hamilton Smith have proved that they are those of the Bos urus.

The beaver, which is mentioned as still existing in small societies on the unfrequented banks of one or two of the great European rivers, was formerly found in Great Britain, but has for many ages ceased to exist here and in the greater part of the Continent. Pennant remarks, that Giraldus Cambrensis, who travelled through Wales in 1188, gives a brief history of its manners; and adds, that in his time it was found only in the river Fervi. Two or three waters in that principality still bear the name of Llyn yr afange, or the beaver lake; attesting the existence of these animals in more than one locality. Mr. Pennant mentions having seen two of their supposed haunts; one in the stream that runs through Nant Francon; the other in the river Conway, a few miles above Llanrwst; and both places, in all probability, had formerly been crossed by beaver dams. Beavers, however, must have been very scarce even in the earliest times; for by the laws of Howel the Good, already alluded to, the price of one of their skins was fixed at 120 pence, a great sum in those days. The Welsh call them Croen Llostlydan, that is, the broad-tailed animal. Beavers, however, were not confined to Wales; for in remote times they must have been found both in Berkshire (Phil. Tr. 1759) and in different parts of Scotland, since their bones have occurred in these situations in beds of marl and in peat moss.

Such were the quadrupeds that once ranged through the forests of Britain, as their indigenous soil, and which formed no inconsiderable proportion of those originally destined to this portion of the world. Their extirpation must have been gradual, but it has been complete ; nor is it at all difficult to account for their loss by the progressive cultivation of the soil, and by the destructive effects of the chase; to these causes also must be attributed the great numerical diminution of several birds, mostly of the aquatic order, which, although not absolutely extirpated from our islands, have gradually diminished even in our own times, and are become either exceedingly rare as natives, or are merely seen as stragglers. Two of the largest birds of game, not only of Britain, but of Europe, are now absolutely extinct in these kingdoms, although they were seen in the last generation. These are the Urogallus Europæus (Cappercailzie), or great cock of the wood; and the Otis tarda, or great bustard. The first is a noble bird, still found in the North of Europe, measuring commonly about 23 feet long, and weighing from 13 to 14 pounds. It seems to have been confined, in these islands, to the fir woods of Ireland and Scotland. In the latter kingdom, a specimen was seen so late as 1760, in the woods of Strathglass; and it was found in Stathspey until 1745. In the northern parts of Europe it is still common; and a fine pair which we saw in the autumn of 1829, hanging up in a poulterer's shop in Paris, was stated to have

come from Hungary. The great bustard is a still larger bird, measuring at least 4 feet, and weighing about 26 pounds. Pennant affirms, that in his days (1777) these birds inhabited "most of the open countries of the south and east parts of this island, from Dorsetshire as far as the Wolds in Yorkshire," and are generally found in flocks of fifty or more: but, in 1812, his editor observes, "the breed is now nearly extirpated, except on the downs of Wiltshire, where it is also very scarce.' At present we believe that it is only to be met with on a particular estate in Norfolk, the proprietor of which (we honour and respect his feelings) is so desirous of preserving a remnant of this noble indigenous race, that he prohibits their being shot, upon any pretence, within his domain. In Scotland, owing to the mountainous nature of the country, and want of open downs, it seems always to have been rare; yet it has been shot in Morayshire.

To pursue this inquiry into the remaining orders of the animal kingdom would be superfluous, were it even possible. Notwithstanding the great number of fish indigenous to our seas and fresh waters, some may possibly have been exterminated from the latter, and the larger fish-quadrupeds (as the different whales and porpoises) are no longer to be met with in those latitudes where formerly they were common. Very many species of insects, also, even within the records of entomological science, have been actually exterminated. A striking instance of this regards the Melitæa tessellata, Steph., figured by old Pettevir, and described by him as pretty common in Caen Wood." The Cynthia Hampstediensis, Step., is likewise similarly mentioned by the same accurate author, who calls it "Albins Hampstead eye," where it was caught by this curious person, and is the only one I have yet seen. These instances, among conspicuous and showy insects, are. sufficient to make us believe, that when the "great forests round London," and in other parts of the empire, were progressively destroyed, a considerable number of insects of rare and local species were eventually exterminated. Few persons, not even professed entomologists, are aware of the very narrow limits to which some insects are confined. A species may be in the greatest profusion within, perhaps, 2 or 3 acres of ground, beyond which it may never have been seen. Setting aside instances that may be cited on the testimony of others, we shall merely cite one out of several which fell under our own observation in tropical America. In a small brush-wood part of the forest of Urupee, in the province of Bahia, we met with a new and striking Hesperia, in such profusion that thousands might have been captured. Beyond this spot, however, it was not to be found; nor did we ever meet with single specimen, before or since, during nearly three years of entomological research in Brazil. There can be no doubt, therefore, that the influence of cultivation has lessened the numerical amount and the number of native species of animals, in every department, independent of such as have been exterminated by the chase.

Animals now found in the British Islands, &c.-Let us now consider the actual zoology of Britain, turning to such animals as still inhabit our islands, and either roam at large, as indigenous natives, or thrive and multiply in a state of domestication. The latter will claim our first attention, and they are all comprised in the following list:

Commencing with the quadrupeds, we perceive that those most adapted to the service of mankind, whether to lighten his labour, clothe his body, or supply him with food, have been abundantly supplied by the beneficent Creator; who, by endowing them with peculiar docility, and with a physical constitution capable of living in almost every climate, has obviously fitted them for the particular service of man. The plains of Central Asia are generally thought to have been the cradle of the human race, whence, as from a centre, the different branches of the primitive family diverged in all directions; slowly, but surely, fulfilling the command, that they should be "fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth." With them went their "flocks and herds," and such other creatures as had been provided for their more immediate use. It is natural, however, to suppose that the animals thus following the primitive nomadic tribes would soon acquire a much wider geographical range than man himself. Individuals would be frequently straying from the camp, or lost during a march: thus every tract or region, through which the wandering patriarchs successively passed, received, in all probability, the original stocks of their domestic animals, which for a season might continue wild, yet, by their natural instinct, would return to the haunts of men so soon as colonies were settled near their vicinity. We can conceive no other cause more natural, or more rational, to account for the almost universal distribution of these animals over the Old World. And it is further strengthened by the remarkable fact, that we have seen, within the compass of modern history, the same dispersion take place in the New World, in regard to the horse, ox, and other animals. Before the arrival of the Spanish conquerors, these quadrupeds were unknown; for if, as is generally supposed, the continent of America was peopled by colonies from the northern regions of Asia, it follows that the emigrants could not carry with them animals they did not themselves possess; as neither the ox, the horse, nor the ass, is found in Kamschatka. Individuals from the first two of these classes escaped from the settlements of the Spaniards, or were dispersed during their wars; and it was thus, no doubt, that the pampas of Paraguay were filled by the horses and oxen, that are now killed merely for the sake of their hides. These remarks will show the futility of all dissertations upon the native country of such species as are now, in fact, naturalized in almost every climate, yet cannot, with certainty, be traced to any one. If, however, there be any region to which the authority of the best writers assigns the greater part both of the quadrupeds and birds in the foregoing list, it is assuredly Western Asia, or those parts inhabited by the purest of