14 THE BIRDS OF ESSEX.
From first to last, Henry Doubleday led an exceedingly quiet and
retired life. Before 1848, when his father died and the entire manage-
ment of the business at Epping devolved upon him, he made many
collecting expeditions, which were, however, chiefly confined to the
Eastern Counties. After that time, he became treasurer, both to the
Local Turnpike Trust and to the Epping Poor Law Union, and both
duty and inclination kept him constantly at home. Between 1846
and 1873, he only twice slept away from his own house. A brief
visit to Paris in 1843 was the only occasion on which he ever left
England. A " Note on the Habits of the Hawfinch " in Jardine's
Magazine of Zoology in 1837 (i., p. 448) was probably his first
published contribution to science. His first entomological note
appeared in 1841 (Entomologist, i., p. 102). It described his suc-
cess in capturing moths at Sallow-blossom, then an entirely novel
proceeding. In 1842 (Entomologist, i., 407 and Zoologist, i., p. 201)
he introduced the now very familiar plan of "sugaring" for moths.
The credit of having introduced " sugaring " to the notice of ento-
mologists was claimed (43. ii., 32) by the late Mr. J. L. English,
who for many years acted as Doubleday's assistant; but there is,
to say the least, good reason to think that it rightly belongs to
Doubleday (50. ii. 69). During the whole of his life he frequently
contributed observations on the habits of mammals, birds, and insects
to the scientific magazines of the day. The Entomologist and the
Zoologist, both conducted by his intimate friend, the late Edward
Newman, received most of these notes, but others are to be found
in the Proceedings of the Entomological Society of London, of which
he was an original (1833) and life-long member. Many notes, too,
supplied by him were made use of by Yarrell in his standard History
of British Birds (1837—1843).
Through the kindness of the Rev. H. A. Macpherson, of Carlisle,
I have been favoured with the opportunity of perusing at leisure no
less than one hundred and one most interesting letters (10) upon
natural history subjects written by Henry Doubleday to Dr. Heysham,
of Carlisle, between August 30, 1831, and February 9, 1846,
after which the correspondence seems to have dropped. These
letters, which are the property of Mr. J. G. Mounsey, naturally throw
considerable light upon his private opinions and upon the passing
events of his life at this period. The correspondence seems to have
been arranged by Edward Doubleday when, for some reason, he had
paid a visit to Heysham at Carlisle. The first few letters are written
in strict Quaker phraseology, "thee" and "thou " being always used
in place of " you," but this peculiarity soon afterwards disappears