South Groveland, Massachusetts.
I have been gathering a cabinet of curiosities since I was nine years old (I am now fourteen), and I have stones and shells and pieces of wood from a great many of the States, from the arctic regions, from South America, Oceanica, and Europe—more than two hundred in all. Among the rest is a Proteus (Menobranchus maculatus) taken from the Winooski River by Thompson, once State Geologist of Vermont. I would like to know if any other of your correspondents has got a Proteus, and also if any has a cabinet.
Edwin A. H.
Melrose, Massachusetts, January 25.
I found some willow "pussies" yesterday. I hope I have found them first.
A. L. H.
Yes, you have found them first. It is very remarkable to find them at all in January in the locality where you live, but as the buds set in the autumn, the singularly mild weather of January has made them swell and burst thus early in the season. Thank you for so promptly reporting these first signs that spring is near. Now let us see when the "pussies" will appear in other sections of the country.