Notes and Letters on the Natural History of Norfolk / More Especially on the Birds and Fishes

by Sir Thomas Browne

APPENDIX A.

[TWO LETTERS FROM DOCTOR CHRISTOPHER MERRETT TO SIR THOMAS BROWNE, MS. SLOANE 1830, FOL. 1 TO 3. THEY ARE BOUND UP IN INVERSE ORDER OF DATE.]

[Reply to No. 2 in the above Series.]

[Fol. 3.] Worthy Sr,—y^rs of y^e 14^th instant I recaeved as full off learning in discovering so many very great curiosities as kindness in communicating them to mee & promising y^r farther assistance. ffor which I shall always proclame by my tongue as well as by my pen, my due resentment & thanks.

The 2 funguses [guses crossed out and i inserted] y^w sent y^e figures off [[see Note 106]] are y^e finest & rarest as to their figure I have ever seen or read of, & soe is y^r fibula marina, far surpassing one I reacived from Cornwall much of y^e same bigness, neither of which I find anywhere mentioned. The urtica marina minor Jonst. & physalus I never met with, nor have bin informed off y^e canis charcharius alius Jonst. Many of y^e Lupus piscis I have seen, & have bin informed by y^e Kings fish monger they are taken on our coast, but was not satisfyed for some reasons off his relation soe as to enter it into my pinax, though tis said to bee peculiar to y^e river Albis [= Elbe] yet I thought they might come sometimes thence to y^r coasts. Trutta marina I haue and y^e loligo, sepia, & polypus y^e 3 sorts off y^e molles have bin found on our western coasts which shall bee exactly distinguished—As for y^e Salmons taken a bove London towards Richmond & nearer, & y^t in great quantity some years they have all off them their lower jaw as y^w observ, [[see Note 92]] & our fishermen [men crossed out] say they usually wear off some part off it on y^e banks or els y^e lower would grow into y^e upper & soe starve them as they have sometimes seen—y^w ask whether I haue y^e mullus ruber asper, or y^e piscis Octangularis Wormii. or y^e sea worm longer than y^e earth worms, or y^e garrulus Argentor. or y^e duck cal'd a May chit or y^e Dor hawke. The 4 first I haue noe account off y^e 2 later I know not especially by those names, wee have noe hawk by y^t name [[see Note 42]] y^r account of succinum as all y^e rest will bee registered. As for y^e Aquila Gesneri I never saw nor heard off any such in y^e Collidge for [fol. 3 verso] this 25 years last past. Sr y^w are pleased to say y^w shall write more if y^w know how not to bee surpurfluous—certainly what y^w have hitherto done hath bin all curiosities, & I doubt not but y^w have many more by you—I can direct y^w noe further than y^r own reason dictates to y^w. Besides those mentioned in y^e pinax I have 100 to add, & cannot give y^w a particular off them—whatever y^w write is either confirmative or additional. I doe entreat this favour off y^w to inform mee fuller off those unknown things mentioned herein, & to add y^e name page &c. of y^e Author if mentioned by any or else to give them such a latin name for them as y^w have done by y^e fungi which may bee descriptive & differencing off them. Sr I hope y^e publigs [sic] interest & y^r own good genius will plead y^r pardon desired by

y^r humble servant

Chr. Merrett.

London Aug. 29. 68.