Essays Upon Natural History, and Other Miscellaneous Subjects,

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J. Robson, 1770 - Natural history - 261 pages

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Page 96 - Yea, the stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed times ; and the turtle, and the crane, and the swallow, observe the time of their coming; but my people know not the judgment of the LORD.
Page 40 - As I foretold you, were all fpirits, and Are melted into air, into thin air ; And, like the bafelefs fabric of this vifion, The cloud-capt towers, the gorgeous...
Page 31 - were planting a grove of oaks*. The 'manner of ' their planting was thus. They first made little ' holes in the earth with their bills, going about and ' about till the hole was deep enough, and then they ' dropped in the acorn, and covered it with earth ' and moss. The young plantation,
Page 107 - I came into soundings in our channel, a great flock of swallows came and settled on my rigging ; every rope was covered ; they hung on one another like a swarm of bees ; the decks and carving were filled with them. They seemed almost famished and spent, and were only feathers and bones ; but, being recruited with a night's rest, they took their flight in the morning.
Page 122 - ... particular that should happen amongst his acquaintance of the Royal Society, and other ingenious Gentlemen, many of whom I was weekly conversant with ; and I seldom missed drinking coffee with him on a Saturday, during the whole time of his retirement at Chelsea.
Page 124 - January, 1753, at four o'clock in the afternoon: he died on the llth, at four in the morning. 1 continued with him later than any one of his relations ; but was obliged to retire, his last agonies being beyond what I could bear ; though, under his pain and weakness of body, he seemed to retain a great firmness of mind and resignation to the will of God.
Page 103 - This was more evident to me, when in the morning I found the wind had come about to the north-west in the night, and there was not one swallow to be seen of near a million, which I believe was there the night before.
Page 106 - Of the three opinions, the firft has the ntmoft appearance of probability; which is, that they remove nearer the fun, where they can find a continuance of their natural diet, and a temperature of air fuiting their conftitutions.
Page 182 - ... hitherto produced. It was a river of transparent water, about forty yards wide, which ran down a declivity of near a hundred and fifty yards in length. The channel it ran in was very irregular ; for it was entirely formed of rock, both its sides and bottom being made up of large detached blocks ; and by these the course of...
Page 123 - During this latter part of his life, he was frequently petitioned for charity by some decayed branches of families of eminent men, late of his acquaintance, who were famous for their learned works, &c. which petitions he always received, and considered with attention ; and provided they were not found fraudulent, they were always answered by his charitable donations. He has often desired that I would inquire into the merits of such petitions ; and if found satisfactory, he commissioned me to convey...

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