Chapter IV: Introduction (3)

[51] In the muniment room at Hunstanton Hall there exists a book of MSS. notes relating to their estates, kept by Sir Hamon and Sir Nicholas le Strange, between the years 1612 and 1723. From this book Mr. Hamon le Strange has been good enough to send me an extract containing the full particulars of the stranding and disposal of a Sperm Whale 57 feet long, which came ashore on their Manor of Holme, on the 6th December, 1626, the skull of which is still in the courtyard at Hunstanton Hall.

Browne had not come to reside in Norwich at that time, and the chapter on the Spermaceti Whale in his _Pseudodoxia Epidemica_, was inspired by a subsequent occurrence of the same kind, for, as appears from the above note, a larger individual, 62 feet long, came ashore at Wells 20 years later, which he says led him to further inquiry. This would indicate about the year 1646 as the date of the latter occurrence, whereas in his third letter to Merrett, written in 1668, he states that it happened "about 12 years ago," or in 1656. There is probably an error in one of these dates.

Another example seems to have been found at Yarmouth about the year 1652, for we find Browne writing in that year for particulars of its "cutting up." (See Appendix E.)

In the postscript to a letter also in the muniment room at Hunstanton, dated June 11th, 1653, written to Sir Hamon le Strange, who had been consulting him professionally, Browne says: "I pray you at your leisure doe mee the honor to informe mee how long agoe the Spermaceti Whale was cast upon your shoare & whether you had any spermm with in any other part butt the head." It will be noticed that in both the letters referred to he is anxious to ascertain in what part of the body the "sperm" was situated, doubtless for the purpose of confuting the "vulgar conceit" as to the origin of the "sperm" referred to in the second paragraph of his treatise in the _Pseudodoxia_. His investigations also probably first led to a certain knowledge as to the nature of the food of this animal.

These, however, although the first to be recorded in this county, were not the first or only occurrences of the kind, for there is in the parish church of Great Yarmouth the base of the skull of a Sperm Whale, used as a chair, for the painting of which a charge of five shillings appears in the churchwardens' accounts for the year 1606; many such events in European waters are to be found recorded.

But the most interesting circumstance with regard to these whales is the statement that "two had yong ones after they were forsaken by the water." This event renders it highly improbable that they were Sperm Whales, for the stragglers of that species which have been met with in our waters, and indeed in the northern seas generally, have been almost invariably solitary males, or, in one or two instances "schools" of young males. In the only instance in which both sexes were found, the school was composed I believe of immature individuals. (_Vide_ J. Anderson, "Nachrichten von Island, Groenland, und der Strasse Davis," Frantfurt (1747), p. 248.) Moreover, this view is confirmed by a letter which will be found in Appendix B., where the following passage occurs:--"And not only whales, but grampusses have been taken in this Estuarie ... and about twenty years ago four were run ashore near Hunstanton, and two had young ones after they had come to land." A so-called Grampus which came ashore on the 21st July, 1700, was from a description and drawing in the le Strange MS. above quoted, a male _Hyperoodon rostratus_, apparently nearly adult.

The Grampus (_Orca gladiator_) (mentioned in the next paragraph) is frequently met with in the British seas, and has repeatedly occurred on the Norfolk coast. Some early occurrences are on record, for instance in Mackerell's "History of Lynn," twelve are said to have come ashore near that town in 1636, and another in 1680. Two very juvenile examples were taken off Yarmouth in November 1894.

A grampus aboue 16 foot long taken at yarmouth [3 or _crossed out_] 4 yeares agoe.

The Tursio or porpose is co[=m]on the Dolphin[52] more rare though sometimes taken wch many confound with the porpose. butt it hath a more waued line along the skinne sharper toward ye tayle the head longer and nose more extended wch maketh good the figure of Rondeletius. the flesh more red & [fa _crossed out_] well cooked of very good taste to most palates & exceedeth that of porpose.

[52] There can be no doubt that the Common Dolphin (_Delphinus delphis_) is here referred to, and indeed this species might reasonably be expected to be met with on our coast, as its range extends at least as far to the north as the Scandinavian waters, but so far as the writer is aware Browne's is the only record of its having been met with in Norfolk. The White-beaked Dolphin (_D. albirostris_) is not unfrequent, but it is clear that Browne does not refer to that species.

In the "Vulgar Errors," Browne devotes a whole chapter (chapter ii. of the fifth book) to a learned treatise on the "Picture of Dolphins," and in one of the letters to his son Edward (Sloane MSS., 1847), dated June 14th [1676?], he writes feelingly as an anatomist, evidently fearing that a specimen then available might be wasted, instead of being reserved for scientific purposes; for, says he, "if the dolphin were to be showed for money in Norwich, little would bee got; if they showed it in London they are like to take out the viscera, and salt the fish, and then the dissection will be unconsiderable." He then refers to the dolphin "opened when the King was here," and describes its anatomical peculiarities, adding that Dame Browne cooked the flesh "so as to make an excellent savory dish of it," and that "collars" thereof (steaks cut transversely) being sent to the King, who was then at Newmarket, for his table, they "were well liked of." It is evident therefore that he was present at the dissection of two of these animals.

The vitulus marinus[53] seacalf or seale wch is often taken sleeping on the shoare [4 _crossed out_] 5 [_written above_] yeares agoe one was shot in the riuer of norwich about surlingham [wh _crossed out_] ferry having continued in the riuer for diuers moneths before being an Amphibious animal it may bee caryed about aliue & kept long if it can bee brought to feed some haue been kept many moneths in ponds. the pizzell the bladder the cartilago ensiformis the figure of the Throttle the clusterd & racemous forme of the kidneys [_Fol. 24_] the flat & compressed heart are remarkable in it. in stomaks of all that I have opened I have found many [short _crossed out_] wormes.

[53] There is in the present day a considerable number of Common Seals inhabiting the sand-banks of the Wash between the Norfolk and Lincolnshire coasts, and they are frequently captured by the fishermen; nor has the habit of straying into fresh-water deserted them, for in recent years they have been taken in the River Ouse at Bluntisham, forty miles from the sea. Three other species of Seal have been taken on the Norfolk coast, viz., _Phoca hispida_, _P. barbata_, and _Halichoerus gryphus_.

I haue also obserued a scolopendra cetacea[54] of about ten foot long answering to the figure in Rondeletius wch the mariners told me was taken in these seas.

[54] A Scolopendra, ten feet long, is at first rather startling, but on referring to Rondeletius's _Libri de piscibus Marinis_ (lib. xvi. p. 488), I find that under the name "Scolopendra" he includes at least three distinct forms--i., _S. terrestris_, a centipede; ii., _S. marina_, certain species of Nereidiform polychaet worms; iii., _Scolopendra cetacea_, regarded as a Cetacean and figured with a Cetacean blow-hole. With regard to this remarkable figure my friend, Dr. S. F. Harmer, has favoured me with the following note:--"In the account given Rondeletius is evidently writing from report; the figure is also no doubt borrowed, and may have been 'improved' when redrawn; it seems to me that it is based upon some kind of Tunny, although he figures a Tunny earlier in the book (lib. viii. p. 249). The idea of the lateral appendages might have been derived from the dorsal and ventral finlets of a Tunny; but the first four finlets on each side are imaginary structures, and in a wrong position. I can offer no opinion with regard to the nasal appendages." Jonston (_De piscibus_, p. 156, Tab. xliv.) also gives a similar figure of _Scolopendra_ _Cetacea_, which appears to be a further modification of Rondeletius's figure; here it has teeth, shown like those of the Sperm Whale, and an extra dorsal-fin is added; the number of lateral appendages is the same, and a column of water proceeding from the blow-hole is falling gracefully forward. It is worthy of notice that Rondeletius also figures the Saw-fish [Pristis] with a blow-hole.

A pristes or serra [_written above_] saw fish[55] taken about Lynne co[=m]only mistaken for a [sha _crossed out_] sword fish & answers the figure in Rondeletius.

[55] In the "Transactions of the Linnean Society," ii., p. 273, is an essay by Latham "On the various species of Sawfish," but he does not mention any British locality. So far as I am aware Browne's is the only record of the occurrence of this southern species in British waters, with the exception of a note in Fleming's "British Animals," p. 164, where it is stated on the authority of the late Dr. Walker's MS. "Adversaria" for 1769, that _Pristis antiquorum_ is "found sometimes in Loch Long," but Fleming adds that he has met with no other proof of its ever having visited the British shores. Browne mentions in his eighth letter to Merrett that he sends him a "figure in little" of a _Pristis_ which he received of a Yarmouth seaman, and is so precise in his statement that his fish was _Pristis serra_ (the _Pristis antiquorum_ of Cuvier), that his record cannot be disregarded. He specially guards against its being mistaken for the Sword-fish (_Xiphias gladius_), which has been taken on several occasions in our waters, and of which he gives some interesting particulars.

A sword fish or Xiphias or Gladius intangled in the Herring netts at yarmouth agreable unto the Icon in Johnstonus with a smooth sword not vnlike the Gladius of Rondeletius about a yard & half long, no teeth [n _crossed out_] eyes very remarkable enclosed in an hard cartilaginous couercle about ye bignesse of a good apple. ye vitreous humor plentifull the crystalline larger then a nutmegge [cleare _crossed out_] remaining cleare sweet & vntainted when the rest of the eye was vnder a deepe corruption wch wee kept clear & limpid many moneths vntill an hard frost split it & manifested the foliations thereof.

It is not vnusuall to take seuerall sorts of canis or doggefishes[56] great and small wch pursue the shoale of herrings and other fish butt this yeare 1662 one was taken intangled in the Herring netts about 9 foot in length, answering the last figure of Johnstonus lib 7 vnder the name of _canis carcherias alter_ & was by the teeth & 5 gills one kind of shark particularly [_Fol. 25_] remarkable in the vastnesse of the optick nerves & 3 conicall hard pillars wch supported the extraordinarie elevated nose wch wee haue reserued with the scull the seamen calld this kind a scrape.

[56] Various species of Dog-fish are frequent off the Norfolk coast as elsewhere. The name "Sweet William" is applied to the larger fish of this kind, especially to the Tope; this appears also to have been the case in Pennant's time, for alluding to this vernacular name he supposes it was applied in ironical allusion to the offensive smell of their flesh and skin. They are objects of great aversion among the fishermen, owing to the disturbance they create among the shoals of fish, and the damage they do to both nets and the enclosed fish. Scarcely a season passes but one or more specimens of Browne's _Canis carcharias_, or, as modern Ichthyologists call it, _Lamna cornubica_, the Porbeagle, being entangled in the drift nets and landed with the herrings. One lies on the fish-wharf at Lowestoft as I write this note on the 19th of October, 1900, measuring 7 feet 10 inches in length. Jonston's figure referred to by Browne is evidently intended for this species, but he makes a slight error in the reference to the _Historia Naturalis (De Piscibus et Cetis)_; it occurs in book v., and the figure is fig. 6 on Tab. vi., and it is marked _Canis carcharias alius_ (not alter).

Sturio or Sturgeon[57] so co[=m]on on the other side of the sea about the mouth of the elbe come seldome into our creekes though some haue been taken at yarmouth & more in the great [owse _crossed out_] Owse by Lynne butt their heads not so sharpe as represented in the Icons of Rondeletius & Johnstonus.

[57] So great is the variation in the snout of the Sturgeon, that Dr. Parnell in his excellent essay on "The Fishes of the District of the Forth," describes the Sharp-nosed Sturgeon as a distinct species under the name of _Acipenser sturio_, and the broad-nosed form he calls _A. latirostris_. His views, however, have not been generally accepted, and only one British species is recognised. The Sharp-nosed variety has been taken here, but the normal form is much more frequent.

Sometimes wee meet with a mola or moonefish[58] so called from some resemblance it hath [from _crossed out_] of a crescent in the extreme part of the body from one finne unto another one being taken neere the shoare at yarmouth before breake of day seemed to shiuer & grunt like an hogge as Authors deliuer of it the flesh being hard & neruous it is not like to afford a good dish butt from the Liuer wch is [white _crossed out_] large white & tender somewhat [wee _crossed out_] may bee expected [for _crossed out_] the gills of these fishes wee found thick beset with a kind of sealowse. [Added subsequently] in the yeare 1667 a mola was taken at monsley wch weighed 2 [p _crossed out_] hundred pound.

[58] This fish (_Orthagoriscus mola_), which we know as the Sun-fish, has been repeatedly taken here. For an account of its parasites see Cobbold on the "Sun-fish as a host," "Intellectual Observer," ii., p. 82; also Day, "Brit. Fishes," ii., p. 275. According to Dr. Spencer Cobbold the Sun-fish is infested by nine species of Helminths, three of which are mostly found attached to the gills, while a fourth adheres to the surface of the body.

The Rana piscatrix or frogge fish[59] is sometimes found in a very large magnitude & wee haue taken the [paynes _crossed out_] care [_written above_] to haue them clend & stuffed. wherein wee obserued all the appendices whereby the[y] cach fishes butt much larger then are discribed in the Icons of Johnstonus tab xi fig 8.

[59] Both this species and the Wolf-fish are well known upon our coast.

[_Fol. 26_] The sea [wollf _crossed out_] wolf or Lupus nostras of Schoneueldus remarkable for its spotted skinne & notable teeth incisors Dogteeth & grinders the dogteeth [in the _crossed out_] both in the jawes & palate scarce answerable by any fish of that bulk for [strength _crossed out_] the like disposure strength & soliditie.

Mustela marina[60] called by some a wesell ling wch salted & dryed becomes a good Lenten dish.

[60] Some member of the family _Gadidae_ is here referred to, probably the five-bearded Rockling, _Motella mustela_, or Brown Whistle-fish of Pennant, which is occasionally taken by our fishermen, but is by no means common.

A Lump or Lumpus Anglorum so named by Aldrouandus by some esteemed a festiuall dish though it affordeth butt a glutinous jellie & the skinne is beset with stony knobs after no certaine order ours most answereth the first figure in the xiii table of Johnstonus butt seemes more round & arcuated then that figure makes it.

Before the herrings there co[=m]only cometh a fish about a foot long by the fish man called an horse[61] resembling in all poynts the Trachurus of Rondeletius of a mixed shape between a mackerell & an herring. obseruable from [an oblique bo _crossed out_] its greene eyes rarely skye colored back after it is kept a day & an oblique bony line running on ye outside from the gills vnto ye tayle. a drye & hard dish butt makes an handsome picture.

[61] This is the Horse Mackerel, or Scad, _Caranx trachurus_; a handsome fish and common enough, especially off Sheringham, but not much esteemed for the table.

The Rubelliones or Rochets[62] butt thinly met with on this coast. the gornart cuculus or Lyrae species more often wch they seldome eat butt bending the back & sprdding the finnes into a liuely posture do hang them up in their howses.

[62] Fish of the Gurnard kind are here referred to. The Rochet of Pennant is the Red Gurnard, _Trigla cuculus_; he calls _T. lyra_ the Piper. Large numbers of various species of Gurnard are brought in by our trawlers and sell readily, especially the Sapphirine Gurnard, or Tub-fish (_T. hirundo_), which is known as the "Lachet" on our coast; it reaches a large size, and seems to be much in demand for the table. In spring the colours are very brilliant, and they are frequently seen on the fish stalls with their pectoral fins extended as Browne describes.

[_Fol. 27._] Beside the co[=m]on mullus[63] or mullet there is another not vnfrequent wch some call a cunny fish butt rather a red muellett of a flosculous redde & somewhat rough on the scales answering the discription of [Rond _crossed out_] Icon of Rondeletius vnder the name of mullus ruber asper [no _crossed out_] butt not the tast of the vsually knowne mullet as [being butt _crossed out_] affording butt a drye & leane bitt.

[63] The Common Mullet I take to be the Grey Mullet (_Mugil capito_), which is at times plentiful on our coast, coming into Breydon and the mouths of the rivers, but the Red Mullet (_Mullus barbatus_) is far less frequently met with. In his third letter to Merrett, Browne says, "There is of them _maior_ and _minor_," the latter probably being the variety known as the Surmullet, by far the most frequently met with here.

Seuerall sorts of fishes[64] there are wch [bear _crossed out_] do [_written above_] or may beare the names of seawoodcocks as the Acus maior scolopax & saurus. the saurus wee sometimes meet with yonge. Rondeletius confesseth it a very rare fish somewhat resembling the Acus or needlefish before & a makerell behind. wee have kept one dryed many yeares agoe.

[64] The Saurus of Rondeletius appears to be the Skipper or Saury-pike (_Scombresox saurus_) of modern authors. _Acus major_ is the Gar-fish or Greenback (_Belone vulgaris_); this is the _Acus primus_ of Rondeletius, Dr. Harmer has been good enough to send me the following note on Rondeletius's figures:--"_De Acus secunda specie_" (lib. viii. p. 229). "Two species are figured; the upper figure appears to represent _Siphonostoma typhle_, and the lower one _S. acus_. Guenther ('Brit. Mus. Cat.,' viii. p. 157) gives a reference to Rondeletius in his synonyms of _S. acer_ without indicating that the latter figures two species. Under _S. typhle_ (p. 154) he gives the synonym _Syngnathus rondeletii_, De la Roche. A reference to Delaroche ('Ann. Mus. Hist. Nat., Paris,' xiii, 1809 p. 324, Pl. xxi. fig. 5) shows that _S. rondeletii_ is identified with the first figure on p. 229 of Rondeletius; and it may thus be concluded that Guenther agrees with this conclusion. It seems therefore probable that Browne's Acus of Aristotle refers to _S. typhle_."

The Acus maior calld by some a garfish & greenback answering ye figure of Rondeletius under the name of Acus prima species remarkable for its quadrangular figure and verdigreece green back bone.

[L] A lesser sort of Acus [wee _crossed out_] maior or primae specaeei wee meet with [answering the saurus of Rondeletius _crossed out_] much shorter then the co[=m]on garfish & in taking out the spine wee found it not green as in the greater & much answering the saurus of Rondeletius.

[L] This and the next paragraph on the back of Fol. 26 are in different ink and smaller writing though in the same hand, and appear to have been added subsequently. The first paragraph is omitted by Wilkin.

A scolopax[65] or sea woodcock of Rondeletius was giuen mee by a seaman of these seas. about 3 inches long & seemes to bee one kind of Acus or needlefish answering the discription of Rondeletius.

[65] The Scolopax, or Sea Woodcock, is clearly _Centriscus scolopax_, a very rare fish in the British seas, and it would have been well had Browne given a more precise account of the origin of his specimen.

The Acus of Aristotle [_see Note 64_] lesser thinner corticated & sexangular by diuers calld an addercock & somewhat resembling a snake ours more plainly finned then Rondeletius discribeth it.

A little corticated fish[66] about [4 inches _crossed out_] 3 or 4 inches long [_several words smeared out_] ours answering that wch is named piscis octangularis by wormius, cataphractus by Schoneueldeus. octagonius versus caput, versus caudam hexagonius.

[66] Doubtless the Armed Bull-head, or Pogge, _Agonus cataphractus_. A MS. note in Berkenhout says it was called at Lowestoft a Beetle-head (1769).

[_Fol. 28._] The faber marinus[67] sometimes found very large answering ye figure of Rondeletius. which though hee mentioneth as a rare fish & to be found in the Atlantick & Gaditane ocean yet wee often meet with it in these seas co[=m]only calld a peterfish hauing [a _crossed out_] one [_written above_] black spot on ether side the body conceued the perpetuall signature from the impression of St Peters fingers or to resemble the 2 peeces of money wch St Peter tooke out of this fish remarkable also from its disproportionable mouth & many hard prickles about other parts.

[67] _Zeus faber_, the Dory. Many, usually small ones, are brought in by our fishermen.

A kind of scorpius marinus[68] a rough prickly & monstrous headed fish 6 8 or 12 inches long answerable vnto the figure of Schoneueldeus.

[68] _Cottus scorpius_, Father Lasher, commonly taken by the shrimpers.

A sting fish[69] wiuer or kind of ophidion or Araneus slender, narrowe headed about 4 inches long wth a sharpe small prickly finne along the back which often venemously pricketh the hands of fishermen.

[69] Probably from its size the Lesser Weever, _Trachinus vipera_, as also the _Draco minor_ of Jonstoni. A common fish in our waters. Large numbers of the Greater Weever, _T. draco_, are brought in by the trawlers.

Aphia cobites marina[70] or sea Loche.

[70] One of the Gobies. Day, "Brit. Fishes," i., p. 169, supposes the _Aphya cobites_ of Rondeletius (p. 20) to be the White Goby, _A. pellucida_; Pennant has _A. cobites_ as a synonym for the Spotted Goby (_G. minutus_) and the Sea Gudgeons, Black Gobies (_G. niger_), but at that time there was no very nice distinction of the members of this genus. The Sea Miller's Thumb is probably the Shanny (_Blennius pholis_). _Alosa_, is the Allis Shad (_Culpea alosa_, L.), not uncommon (_see Note 74_).

Blennus a sea millars thumb.

Funduli marini sea gogions.

Alosae or chads to bee met with about Lynne.

Spinachus or smelt[71] in greatest plentie about Lynne butt [co[=m]on on yarmouth coast _crossed out_] where they haue also a small fish calld a primme answering in [all _crossed out_] tast & shape a smelt & perhaps are butt the yonger sort thereof.

[71] The Smelt, _Osmerus eperlanus_, is abundant in the shallow waters and estuaries on the Norfolk coast in spring, ascending the fresh-water rivers to spawn. The small fish called a Primme by Browne, may be the Atherine (_Atherina presbyter_), which is also found in our waters, where it is often mistaken for the Smelt, but I have not heard it called by the former name.

[_Fol 29._] Aselli or cods of seuerall sorts. Asellus albus or whitings in great plentie. Asellus niger carbonarius or [col _crossed out_] coale fish. Asellus minor Schoneueldei callarias pliny or Haydocks with many more also a weed fish somewhat like an haydock butt larger & dryer meat. A Basse also much resembling a flatter kind of Cod.[72]

[72] The first three fishes named in this paragraph need no comment; the Weed-fish is doubtless a local name, but for what species I cannot discover. The Bass, _Labrax lupus_ (Cuv.), is, as might be expected from the nature of our coast, by no means common here.

Scombri are makerells[73] in greate plentie a dish much desired butt if as Rondeletius affirmeth they feed upon sea starres & squalders (_see Note 90_) there may bee some doubt whether their flesh bee without some ill qualitie sometimes they are of a very large size & one was taken this yeare 1668 wch was by measure an ell long and of ye length of a good salmon, at Lestoffe.

[73] The latter part of this paragraph, beginning, "Sometimes they are of a very large size," is written on the left-hand side of the opening, and is evidently a subsequent addition. One would be inclined to think from the great size of the fish here recorded (3 ft. 9 in.), that it may have been a species of Tunny, or even a Bonito, both of which have been taken on the Norfolk coast. Seventeen inches is a large mackerel.

Herrings departed sprats or sardae not long after succeed in great plentie wch are taken with smaller nets [& dryed _crossed out_] & smoakd & dryed like herrings become a [daint _crossed out_] sapid bitt & vendible abroad.

Among these are found Bleakes or bliccae[74] a thinne herring like fishe wch some will also think to bee young herrings. And though the sea aboundeth not with pilchards, yet they are co[=m]only taken among herrings. butt few esteeme thereof or eat them.

[74] It is quite evident that the fish referred to here, and again in the sixth letter to Merrett, is not the true Bleak (_Alburnus lucideus_) of our freshwaters. It seems that the young of some species of Clupeoid was thus known, for I find it stated in a MS. note in a copy of Berkenhout's "Outlines of the Natural History of Great Britain," (1769), in the possession of Mr. T. E. Gunn, that the Bleak and the Sprat are often caught together in the sea at Aldeburgh (Suffolk) in November, and the writer of the note adds, "the Bleak is larger than the Sprat, its eyes are larger, and the upper part of its belly serrated." I think from this description and from Browne's remarks, that the young of a species of Shad must have been mistaken for the Bleak, which although found low down in our rivers almost to where the salt tide mingles with the fresh, does not I believe enter the salt water.

Congers are not so co[=m]on on these coasts as on many seas about England, butt are often found upon the north coast of Norfolk, & in frostie wether left in pulks & plashes upon the ebbe of the sea.

[_Fol. 30._] The sand eels Anglorum of Aldrouandus, or Tobianus of Schoneueldeus co[=m]only called smoulds taken out of the sea sands with forks & rakes about Blakeney and Burnham a small round slender fish about 3 or 4 inches long as bigge as a small Tobacco pipe a very dayntie dish.

Pungitius marinus[75] or sea bansticle hauing a prickle one each side the smallest fish of the sea about an inch long sometimes drawne ashoare with netts together with weeds & pargaments[M] of the sea.

[75] The smallest of the genus _Gasterosteus_, or Stanstickles, is _G. pungitius_, the ten-spined Stickleback, but this fish is two inches long when full grown. All the species seem to be more or less indifferent to the salinity of the water. The fifteen-spined Stickleback, _G. spinachia_, is also sometimes taken by the shrimpers, and is the most truly marine species, but is by no means "the smallest fish of the sea."

[M] This word which Wilkin renders "fragments," is doubtless from the Latin _pergamentum_, and it seems likely that Browne had in view certain sea-weeds, possibly _Laminaria_ or _Ulva_ which, especially when dry, present somewhat the appearance and texture of parchment.

Many sorts of flat fishes[76] The pastinaca oxyrinchus with a long & strong aculeus in the tayle conceuud of speciall venome & virtues.

[76] _Pastinaca oxyrinchus_ appears to be the Sting Ray (_Trygon pastinaca_); _Raia clavata_, the Thornback; _R. oculata_, the Spotted Ray (_R. maculata_); _R. aspera_; the Shagreen Ray? (_R. fullonica_).

Severall sorts of Raia's skates & Thornebacks the Raia clauata oxyrinchus, raia oculata, aspera, spinosa fullonica.

The great Rhombus or Turbot aculeatus & leuis.

The passer or place.

Butts of various kinds.

The passer squamosus Bret Bretcock[77] & skulls comparable in taste and delicacy vnto the soale.

[77] The Brill, _Rhombus laevis_ (Lin.), _Passer asper squamosus___, Rondl., formerly known as the Brett, Bretcock, Skull, or Pearl.

The Buglossus solea or soale[78] plana & oculata as also the Lingula or small soale all in very great plentie.

[78] _Solea vulgaris_, the Common Sole. The "_Lingula_, or small Sole," is probably the _Solea variegata_, Flem., the _S. parva sive Lingula_ of Rond. Jonston figures "_Solea lingulata_," Tab. xx., fig. 12, but I am uncertain what species is intended. It is possible that Browne may have Latinised the trade name by which small Soles are known in the market as "slips" and "tongues." What other species he may have wished to indicate as "plana" and "oculata" it is difficult to determine.

Sometimes a fish aboue half a yard long like a butt[79] or soale called asprage wch I haue known taken about Cromer.

[79] The "asprage" (or it may be "a sprage") may possibly be the Dab, _Pleuranectes limanda_, which Rondeletius calls _Passer asper_. I do not find that species mentioned otherwise, and a great many are taken by the Cromer and Sheringham fishermen.

[_Fol. 31._] [See _Roller ante_ p. 30.]

[_Fol. 32._] Sepia or cuttle fish[80] [smear] & great plentie of the bone or shellie substance which sustaineth the whole bulk of that soft fishe found co[=m]only on the shoare.

[80] Of the various species of the Cephalopoda, _Sepia officinalis_, is more often represented by its calcareous dorsal plate than by the entire animal, for large numbers of these "cuttle-bones" are sometimes strewed along the shore for miles. The Squid, _Loligo vulgaris_, is often met with, sometimes of considerable size. The horny "pen" resembles a short leaf-shaped Roman sword, and Browne's term, "Gladiolus," is quite as appropriate as that of "Calamus." His _Polypus_ is probably _Octopus vulgaris_, but it is rarely met with on the Norfolk coast.

The Loligo sleue or calamar found often upon the shoare from head to tayle [such _crossed out_] sometimes aboue an ell long, remarkable for its parretlike bill, the gladiolus or calamus along the back & the notable crystallyne of the eye wch equalleth if not exceedeth the lustre of orientall pearle.

A polypus another kind of the mollia[N] sometimes wee haue met with.

[N] By _mollia_ is meant all soft-bodied shell-less animals.

Lobsters in great number about sheringham and cromer from whence all the country is supplyed.

Astacus marinus pediculi [marini _written above_] facie[81] found also in that place. with the aduantage of ye long foreclawes about 4 inches long.

[81] Probably _Nephrops norvegicus_, the Norway Lobster, called at Lowestoft a Crayfish or Prawn. They are sometimes brought in in large numbers by the steam trawlers, but the precise locality in which they are captured I am unable to say; the fishermen say the "North Sea," which is rather a vague address, but others say between the Texel and Heligoland.

Crabs large & well tasted found also in the same coast.

Another kind of crab[82] taken for cancer fluuiatilis litle slender & of a very quick motion found in the Riuer running through yarmouth. [_added subsequently_] & in bliburgh riuer.

[82] _Carsinus maenas_, the Shore-crab, a very common species on the Norfolk coast is here intended.

[_Fol. 33._] Oysters exceeding large about Burnham and [Huns _crossed out_] Hunstanton like those of poole St Mallowes or ciuita [vech _crossed out_] vechia whereof [some _crossed out_] many are eaten rawe the shells being broakin with [cle _crossed out_] cleuers the greater part pickled & sent weekly to London & other parts.

Mituli or muscles in great quantitie as also chams or cochles about stiskay [_sic_] & ye northwest coast.

Pectines pectunculi varij or scallops of the lesser sort.

Turbines or smaller wilks, leues, striati. as also Trochi, Trochili, or scaloppes finely variegated & pearly. [as also _crossed out_.] Lewise [_sic_] purpurae minores, nerites, cochleae, Tellinae.

Lepades, patellae Limpets, of an vniualue shell wherein an animal like a snayle cleauing fast unto the rocks.

Solenes cappe lunge venetorum co[=m]only a razor fish the shell thereof dentalia

[The MS. breaks off here, and the next paragraph appears to be an interpolation.]

Dentalia by some called pinpaches because pinmeat thereof is taken out with a pinne or needle.[83]

[83] Mussels and Cockles are very abundant all along the shallow shores of North-west Norfolk, as well as Clams, _Mya arenaria_. "Scallops of the lesser sort" are probably _Pecten opercularius_ and _P. varius_. The Whelk, _Buccinum undatum_, is also very numerous, and forms the staple of a considerable industry at Sheringham; the lesser, or Dog-Whelk, _Nassa reticulata_, as well as _Purpura lapillus_ and several sorts of Trochus, are commonly met with. The genus Nerita was a very comprehensive one in Browne's time, and included many species of Littorina, of which the well-known Periwinkle, _L. littorea_, is the most numerous here. No true Nerita is now recognised as British, although in the warmer seas the genus is a very numerous one. The most common Tellina here is _T. tenuis_, _Lepades patellae_ are of course the common Limpet (_Patella vulgata_), and of the Solen, or Razor Shell, which Gwyn Jeffreys says in the time of Aldrovandus was called by the Venetians "cappa longa," we have two species found on the sandy portions of the coast. Here some confusion exists in the MS., after the words, "the shell thereof dentalia," the note ends abruptly, and is followed by an interpolation which seems quite irrelevant, as Dentalia have surely never been called "Pin-patches" (the vernacular name for _Littorina littorea_), nor is it probable that, like that common univalve, they were ever taken out of their shells with a pin or needle. _Dentalia_ are mentioned on two other occasions as of doubtful occurrence and _Dentalium entalis_ has slight claim to be a native of Norfolk; the only recorded specimen I know of was picked up in 1890 by Mr. Mayfield, from the drift on the beach between Wells and Holkham.

Cancellus Turbinum et neritis[84] Barnard the Hermite of Rondeletius a kind of crab or astacus liuing in a forsaken wilk or nerites.

[84] Hermit Crabs are here referred to, the larger, _Pagurus bernhardus_, found very frequently inhabiting the shells of the Whelk, and a smaller species which takes up its abode in those of a _Trochus_.

echinus echinometrites[85] sea hedghogge whose neat shells are co[=m]on on the shoare the fish aliue often taken [with _crossed out_] by the dragges among the oysters.

[85] Dead _Echini_ are very common on the sea-shore, and many living ones are dredged by the shrimpers. _Echinus sphaera_ is the most common on the Norfolk coast; _E. miliaris_, a small species, is also very abundant about Cromer.

[This and the next paragraph on fol. 33 _verso_.]

Balani[86] a smaller sort of vniualue growing co[=m]only in clusters. the smaller kinds thereof to bee found oftimes upon oysters wilks & lobsters.

[86] The species of Cirripeds referred to are probably the common Acorn Barnacle (_Balanus porcatus_) and the Goose Barnacle (_Lepas anatifera_), the latter occasionally found on ships' bottoms and drift-wood, probably carried by favourable currents from warmer seas than our own.

Concha anatifera or Ansifera or Barnicleshell whereof about 4 yeares past were found upon the shoare no small number by yarmouth hanging by slender strings of a kind of Alga vnto seuerall splinters or [clefts _crossed out_] cleauings of firre boards vnto wch they were seuerally fastned & hanged like ropes of onyons: their shell flat & of a peculiar forme differing from other shelles, this being of four diuisions. containing a small imperfect animal at the lower part diuided into many shootes or streames wch prepossed [imag _crossed out_] spectators fancy to bee the rudiment of the tayle of some goose or duck to bee [expute _crossed out_] produced from it. some whereof in ye shell & some taken out & spred upon paper wee shall [still?] keepe by us.

[Fol. 34.] Stellae marinae[87] or sea starres in great plentie especially about yarmouth. whether they bee bred out of the [vrticas _crossed out_] vrticae squalders or sea gellies as many report wee cannot confirme butt the squalderes in the middle seeme to haue some lines or first draughts not unlike. our starres exceed not 5 poynts though I haue heard that some with more haue been found about Hunstanton and Burnham. where are also found stellae marinae testacae or handsome crusted & brittle sea [stars _crossed out_] starres much lesse.

[87] The Five-finger (_Asterias rubens_, L.) is a very numerous species on our coast and very destructive. Brittle Stars (_Ophiocoma sp?_) are as Browne states most frequent about Hunstanton, Burnham, and Cromer. _Solaster papposa_ is also found in the same localities.

The pediculus[88] and culex marin us the sea lowse & flie are [are _crossed out_] also no strangeres.

[88] The Pediculus, or Sea Louse, is probably _Talitrus locusta_, the Sand-hopper; what may be intended by _Culex marinus_ it is difficult to say. A species of gnat is at times very numerous on the wet sand just above the water-line. _See also_ Notes 110 and 115, on a kindred subject.

Physsalus Rondeletij[89] or eruca marina physsaloides according to the icon of Rondeletius of very orient green & purple bristles.

[89] The Sea Mouse, _Aphrodite aculeata_. This is referred to again in the Letters to Merrett.

Urtica marina[90] of diuers kinds some whereof called squalderes. of a burning and stinging qualitie if rubbed in the hand. the water thereof may afford a good cosmetick.

[90] Mr. E. T. Browne, of the Zoological Laboratory of University College, London, has kindly furnished me with the following notes on this subject: "Jonston (1657) gives figures of Anemones and large _Medusae_ under the name of _Urtica_. On Tab. xviii. he figures Anemones and other beasts, but not _medusae_. The _medusae_ are on the next Tab. (xix.). _Urtica marina_ includes both Anemones and certain Scyphomedusae (not _Pulmo_). Under 'some ... called Squalders of a burning and stinging quality,' I think Browne must refer to our common stinging Scyphomedusae belonging to the genus _Chrysaora_ or _Cyanaea_, of which there are three species.

"The vague description of what he calls 'sea buttons' [see below, also second letter to Merrett] would suit either a Medusa or a Ctenophore. The additional note, 'two small holes in the ends,' rather upsets matters, but I think he must refer to some sort of jelly-fish, probably damaged, which is usually the case when cast up on the shore. If the buttons worn in those days were like filbert-nuts or eggs, I am inclined to think that the reference must be to a Ctenophore, genus _Pleurobrachia_, but if flat, then to one of the _Hydromedusae_. It would be safe to say, 'probably a kind of jelly-fish,' which is about as vague as the reference." See also Dr. Reuben Robinson's description of "Squalders" in a letter to Browne (Wilkin i., pp. 422-424). It seems probable that the gelatinous masses referred to in the early part of this letter, which Dr. Robinson says were ascribed by Dr. Charleton to "the nocturnall pollution of some plethorick or wanton starr: or rather excrement blowne from the nosthrills of a rheumatick planett," were the remains of the undeveloped spawn of frogs, the bodies of which had been eaten by rats, crows, or herons, and which had become swollen by exposure to moisture.

[The next paragraph on folio 33 _verso_ is evidently added subsequently.]

Another elegant sort that is often found cast up by shoare in great numbers about ye bignesse of a button cleere & welted & may bee called fibula marina crystallina.

hirudines marini or sea Leaches.[91]

[91] It is difficult to determine the species of marine Annelids referred to by Browne; the Sea Leech is probably _Pontobdella laevis_. The "large wormes" digged for bait, mentioned more than once, are Lug-worms, _Arenicola piscatorum_; the _Vermes in tubulis testacei_ may be tube-worms of the genus Terrebella, or a species of Serpula. Tethya or "Sea dugge" (not "Sea dogs," as Wilkin has it) might very well apply to _Ascidia_ or one of the allied genera. Simple Ascidians, generally known as Sea-squirts, are common littoral forms; the animals figured by Rondeletius under the heading "De Tethyis" (p. 127) are simple Ascidians. The _vesicaria marina_, or "fanago," might well refer to the egg capsules of the common Whelk (_Buccinum undatum_), which are very commonly found in masses on the shore. In his sixth letter to Merrett, Browne mentions two kinds of "fanago," the first which I take to be the egg capsules of the Whelk, resembling the "husk of peas;" the smaller that of "barley when the flower [awn?] is mouldered away," may possibly be the egg capsules of _Purpura lapillus_, or of some species of Natica, which bear a fanciful resemblance to grains of barley. See also Merrett's second letter in Appendix A., in which he describes the Vesicaria found on oyster-shells as resembling flowers of _Hyacinthus botryoides_, which is not a bad description of the form of the egg capsules of _P. lapillus_.

vermes marini very large wormes digged a yarde deepe out of the sands at the ebbe for bayt. tis known where they are to bee found by a litle flat ouer them on ye surface of ye sand. as also vermes in tubulis testacei. Also Tethya or sea dugges some whereof resemble fritters [and _crossed out_] the vesicaria marina also & [_see Note 91_] fanago sometimes very large conceaued to proceed from some testaceous animals. & particularly [_Fol. 35_] from the purpura butt [in _crossed out_] ours more probably from other testaceous wee hauing not met with any large purpura upon this coast.

[A blank space.]

Many riuer fishes also and animals. Salmon[92] no co[=m]on fish in our riuers though many are taken in the owse. in the Bure or north riuer, in ye waueney or south riuer, in ye [yare or _crossed out_] norwich riuer butt seldome and in the winter butt 4 yeares ago 15 were taken at Trowes mill [ab _crossed out_] in Xtmas. whose mouths were stuck with small wormes or horsleaches no bigger than fine threads some of these I kept in water 3 moneths if a few drops of blood were putt to the water they would in a litle time looke red. they sensibly grewe bigger then I first found them and were killed by an hard froast freezing the water. most of our Salmons haue a recurued peece of flesh in ye end of the lower iawe wch when they shutt there mouths deepely enters the upper. as Scaliger hath noted in some.

[92] The Salmon (_Salmo salar_) is at the present day very rarely found in our rivers, and those met with are, as a rule, male Kelts which have strayed into unsuspected situations after floods; a singular exception occurred on the 20th May, 1897, when one weighing 6 lbs. was taken on a fly in the river above Stoke Holy Cross Mill; this fish is preserved in the Norwich Museum. Another curious capture of which I heard (but did not see the fish) occurred on the 1st August, 1898, when a salmon, also of 6 lbs. weight, jumped into a small boat towed behind a yacht which was sailing across Breydon Water. That the salmon was at one time a recognised visitor to our rivers is evident from the following extract from the Norwich Court of Mayoralty Book under date 2 Novr. 1667: "It is ordered that the bell man give notice that if any person shall take any Salmons from the Nativity of our Lady unto St. Martin's day, or destroy any young Salmons by netts or other ingens from the midst of April until the Nativity of St. John Baptist shall be punished according to the law." The Salmon is the host of several parasites both internal and external. Fresh run Salmon are generally infested with a "Sea-louse," which quickly perishes in freshwater; not so, however, with the troublesome worm-like creature, the subject of Browne's experiments; it is known as _Lernaea salmonis_, and is only found on the gill-covers of spent Kelts; it is not got rid of till the fish returns to the salt water. Browne may be excused being rather sceptical as to the identity of the clean run Salmon and the spent Kelt, for no greater contrast can be imagined than that which exists between the two--the male in the "redding" season develops the unsightly hooked mandible, which so puzzled the worthy doctor, and both in colour and form is as hideous an object as can be imagined. Becard Gallorum (not _Beccard gallorus_), _i.e._, the fish called "Becard" by the French (see second letter to Merrett), refers to the use of a name still applied in France to a large Cock Salmon, and "Anchorago" is the name under which the fish was described by Scaliger, whose book I have not seen. Dr. Guenther tells me that Artedi, "Ichthyologia," Pt. v., p. 23, quotes this name as a synonym of the Salmon.

The Riuers lakes & broads[93] abound in [the Lucius or _added above_] pikes of very large size where also is found the Brama or [breme _crossed out_] Breme large & well tasted the Tinca or Tench the Rubecula Roach as also Rowds and Dare or Dace perca or pearch great & small. whereof such [as] are are in Braden on this side yarmouth in the mixed water [are gen _crossed out_] make a dish very dayntie & I think scarce to bee bettered in England. butt the Blea[k] [_Fol. 36_] the chubbe the barbell [I haue not obserued in these riuers _crossed out_] to bee found in diues other Riuers in England I haue not obserued in these. As also fewer mennowes then in many other riuers.

[93] The freshwater fishes named in the next three paragraphs are so well known as to require few remarks. The Bream in our rivers and broads are very numerous and reach a large size, but of their esculent qualities I have had no personal experience; not so, however, with the Perch, which quite deserve Browne's high encomium. It is well known here that this fish shows no aversion of a certain admixture of salt and fresh water, and Mr. Lubbock ("Fauna of Norfolk") says, "the point in Norfolk rivers where the largest are taken with most certainty is where water begins to turn brackish from the influence of the ocean;" in autumn the very finest are taken by angling with a shrimp, a favourite bait in the lower parts of the Yare and Waveney. In such localities a small shrimp (_Hippolyte varians_, Leach) abounds, and it is to this favourite food that Mr. Lubbock attributes the excellence of these Perch. Roud is the local name of the Rudd (_Leuciscus erythropthalmus_). The River Nar is still perhaps the best Trout stream in the county, and the Crawfish is found in most of the rivers but not abundantly.

The Trutta or trout the Gammarus or crawfish [no _crossed out_] butt scarce in our riuers butt frequently taken in the Bure or north riuer & in the seuerall branches therof. & very remarkable large crawfishes to bee found in the riuer wch runnes by castleaker & nerford.

The Aspredo perca minor[94] and probably the cernua of Cardan co[=m]only called a Ruffe in great plentie in norwich Riuers & euen in ye streame of the citty. which though camden appropriates vnto this citty yet they are also found in the riuers of oxforde [&] Cambridge.

[94] Merrett calls the Ruff _Cernua fluviatilis_, and mentions its abundance in the River Yare at Norwich, which he (no doubt inadvertently) assigns to the County of "Essex"; from this locality Caius obtained the specimen, a drawing of which he sent to Gesner under the name of _Aspredo_. Camden assigns this fish also to Norwich, and Spencer, in his "Marriage of the Thames and Medway," writes of the Ruff:--

"Next cometh Yar, soft washing Norwich walls,
And with him bringeth to their festival
Fish whose like none else can show,
The which men Ruffins call."

This county seems to have been assigned an exclusive proprietorship in the Ruff, to which, as Browne rightly points out, it had no just claim.

Lampetra Lampries great & small[95] found plentifully in norwich riuer & euen in the Citty about may [some _crossed out_] whereof some are very large & well cooked are counted a dayntie bitt collard up butt especially in pyes.

[95] Both the Sea Lamprey (_Petromyzon marinus_) and the Lampern (_P. fluviatilis_) are found in the Norfolk rivers.

Mustela fluuiatilis or eele poult[96] to bee had in norwich riuer & [in thalso _crossed out_] between it & yarmouth as also in the riuers of marshland resembling an eele & a cod. a very good dish & the Liuer thereof well answers the commendations of the Ancients.

[96] The Burbot, or Eel Pout (_Lola vulgaris_), called by Merrett a Coney-fish, from its habit of concealing itself in holes in the river banks. It is not sufficiently numerous now to form an article of diet, and I imagine there are few living who could bear testimony as to the esculent qualities of its "Liuer."

[_Fol 37._] Godgions or funduli fluuiatiles, many whereof may bee taken within the [citty _crossed out_] Riuer in the citty:

Capitones fluuiatilis or millers thumbs, pungitius fluuiatilis or stanticles. Aphia cobites fluuiatilis or Loches. in norwich riuers in the runnes about Heueningham heath in the north riuer & streames thereof.

Of eeles[97] the co[=m]on eele & the glot wch hath somewhat a different shape in the bignesse of the head & is affirmed to have yong ones often found within it. & wee haue found a vterus in the same somewhat answering the icon thereof in Senesinus.

[97] The coarse variety of the Eel, known as the "Glout," or Broad-nosed Eel, is believed to be the barren female; Browne's informants were doubtless misled by the presence of certain thread-worms (_Nematoxys_) in the abdomen of the eels, which they mistook for young ones.

Carpiones carpes plentifull in ponds & sometimes large ones in broads [_smear_] 2 the largest I euer beheld were [found _crossed out_] taken [_added above_] in Norwich Riuer.

[A whole line is smeared out, and a break occurs in the MS. after the observation on the Carp; it then proceeds to notice some other inhabitants of the county which perhaps Browne had difficulty in classifying.]

Though the woods and dryelands about [abound?] with adders and vipers[98] yet are there few snakes about our riuers or meadowes more to bee found in Marsh land butt ponds & plashes abound in Lizards or swifts.

[98] Both Vipers (or Adders) and Snakes, the latter in particular, are, I imagine, much less abundant than formerly, but the few species of Lizards and Newts (Swifts) are still probably in undiminished numbers; the Mole Cricket (_Gryllotalpa vulgaris_) is rare with us; Horse-leeches (_Aulostoma gulo_) are frequent, and also "Periwinkles," which I take to be various species of freshwater Molluscs, possibly of _Limnaea_. The Hard-worm (or Hair-worm), _Gordius aquaticus_, which refused to be generated from "horsehayres," is still an object of wonder to the unlearned, and the Great Black Water-Beetle (_Hydrophilus piceus_) is found; but _forficula_ and _corculum_ were a puzzle, as it is evident from their association they must be aquatic forms (and the Earwig certainly does not take to the water voluntarily), till my friend, Mr. C. G. Barrett, referred me to the following passage in Swammerdam's "Book of Nature," p. 93: "This is most certain that the _Forficula aquatica_ of Jonston is the true nymph of the Mordella, or Dragon-fly,"[O] Dr. Charleton in his "Onomasticon," p. 57, has "Corculus, the Water-beetle, resembling an heart;" not very definite, but probably the Whirligig Beetle, _Gyrinus natator_, is intended; it is also an appellation given by some authors to "a small species of cordiformis, or heart-shell, of a rose colour," doubtless a Cyclas or a Pisidium. Squilla is the Freshwater Shrimp (_Gammarus pulex_), and _Notonecta glauca_, the Waterboatman "which swimmeth on its back," is well known.

Otters are still numerous in the broads and reed-margined rivers, and so long as these natural fastnesses endure in their present condition they are likely to continue so.