1. Alfred and Edward Newton's School Days

Part 1: With Rev. Josiah Walker at Stetchworth

In a series of articles, of which this is the first part, we will explore the formative years of two principal founding members of the British Ornithologists’ Union (BOU), Alfred and Edward Newton, during the period 1845 to 1850. This is before the founding of the BOU, before Alfred Newton became "a monumental figure in Victorian ornithology,”¹ and before Edward Newton set out on a distinguished career as a colonial administrator for which he was knighted in 1887. The postal covers that inspired this study will be examined in chronological order, and divided into three parts.

In Part 1, we start by establishing a biographical foundation to tell the stories of our covers. Then, inspired by the first of our covers addressed to the Newton brothers while being educated by Reverend Josiah Walker in Stetchworth, Newmarket, Cambridgeshire, during the mid-1840s, we examine how Reverend Walker came to be their teacher. Through the experience of others, we also discover what it was like to be a student under his tutelage and what it may have been like to live under his care. Additionally, we provide an overview of the brothers' ornithological endeavours during this formative period.

In Part 2, we will examine the life of Reverend Joseph Horner of Everton, Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, under whom Alfred Newton was subsequently educated.

In Part 3, we explore a series of postal covers that give us the opportunity to explore more of both Alfred’s and Edward’s personal and family lives during the period that Alfred attended Magdalene College, Cambridge.

The Covers

The covers that illustrate this period in the Newton’s lives are shown below.

Figure 1 illustrates an 1845 cover sent to Alfred Newton, at “Reverend J. Walker’s, Stetchworth, Newmarket.” The Penny Red (corner letters KB) is cancelled using an obliterator that came into use after 1844 and used at London offices for mail passing through the General Post. These are distinguished by a number (1 to 50) within a diamond surrounded by broken lines in the shape of an oval. On the rear is a postmark used at the London Chief Office, dated NO-12 / 1845 (November 12, 1845); a Wednesday. The letters at the top of the postmark designate the stamper. A second postmark shows the date of arrival (Thursday, November 13) at Newmarket, the post town from which the cover was then delivered to Stetchworth, a small village in East Cambridgeshire, England, approximately 3 miles (5 km) south of Newmarket and 12 miles (19 km) east of Cambridge.

Fig. 1 - 1845 (Nov. 12) cover addressed to Alfred Newton, care of the Rev. J. Walker, Stetchworth, Newmarket (Author’s collection)

Figures 2 and 3 illustrate covers addressed to Edward Newton at Reverend J. Walker’s, Stetchworth, Newmarket. On the cover in Figure 2, the Penny Red (OB) stamp is obliterated using a barred oval cancel, numbered 790; assigned to the Thetford Post Office and used from 1844 to c.1907. A Thetford postmark for March 11, 1846 (Wednesday) has also been applied. The cover is missing the back flap, and there is a partial and faint receiving postmark for Newmarket, dated March 12, 1846 (not pictured). Thetford was the post town for Elveden, and is likely therefore that this cover was sent by a family member.

Fig. 2 - 1846 (Mar. 11) cover addressed to Edward Newton, care of the Rev. J. Walker, Stetchworth, Newmarket. The cover was sent from Thetford.

Figure 3 illustrates the second cover addressed to Edward Newton at Reverend J. Walker’s. The Penny Red (NK) stamp is obliterated using the Thetford 790 barred oval cancel, and bears a Thetford postmark for June 5, 1846 (Friday). On the rear of the cover if a Newmarket arrival postmark dated June 6 (Saturday).

On the rear flap is a message that appears to be a continuation of the letter that the cover once contained. This reads, in part (punctuation added to aid reading):

… Papa goes up to town tomorrow. We told him of Alfred wanting some money & we (?) him again. Give my affec. love to him. Yours affec. C. Newton. Will the Lloyds come back again. I hope Charley does nothing imprudent now. Mind you write by return of post today. What day (do?) holidays begin.

The writer “C. Newton” is likely to have been Edward’s sister Caroline (see Siblings).

Fig. 3 - 1846 (Jun. 5) cover addressed to Edward Newton, care of the Rev. J. Walker, Stetchworth, Newmarket. The cover was sent from Thetford, and bears a note (a continuation of the original letter) on the inside of the back flap. This is seen in a two other Newton covers in the author’s collection. (Author’s collection)

Early Years

For an overview of Alfred Newton’s life and contribution to ornithology, Tim Birkhead’s and Peter Gallivan’s paper published in The Ibis (October 2012), Alfred Newton's contribution to ornithology: a conservative quest for facts rather than grand theories, is recommended. The life of Sir Edward Newton is outlined in a series of obituaries published after his death. Examples include his obituary in the July 1897 issue of The Ibis² and Memoir of the late Sir Edward Newton, M.A., K.C.M.G. in Transactions of the Norfolk and Norwich Naturalists' Society.³ In 1911, an intimate and touching portrait of Alfred Newton in his final years was written by Arthur Christopher Benson in The Leaves of the Tree: Studies in Biography.⁴ In 1921, Alexander Wollaston published a biography of Alfred Newton, Life of Alfred Newton, professor of comparative anatomy, Cambridge university, 1866-1907,⁵ which has since become an important reference for all Newton biographers. This article will draw from these resources in addition to those referenced within the text and footnotes.

Parents and Relatives

Alfred and Edward Newton, were the fifth and sixth sons respectively of William Newton and Elizabeth Milnes. William Newton (1782-186) was born on February 16, 1782, in St. Croix, Virgin Islands, into a family of wealthy plantation owners. His father was Samuel Newton, and mother (or step-mother) Elizabeth.⁶ William married Elizabeth Milnes (1789-1843) on December 13, 1811, in Ferry Fryston, Yorkshire, and purchased the substantial Elveden estate in 1813⁷ from the Earl of Albemarle. He served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for Ipswich from 1818 to 1820.

Elizabeth Milnes was the daughter of Richard Slater Milnes (1759-1804) of Fryston Hall, Yorkshire. The heir of a Presbyterian cloth merchant and a follower of William Pitt the Younger, Richard was the MP for the City of York from 1784 to 1802, during which time his only known speech in parliament was on the abolition of the slave trade. Elizabeth’s mother was Rachel Busk. She and her sister, Marianne, were the only daughters of Hans Busk (1718-1792) and Martha Rodes, daughter and heiress of Richard Rodes of Houghton Hall and Bull House, Peniston, South Yorkshire. Rachel and Marianne are reputed to have each had dowries of £100,000. Through Marianne’s marriage to Richard’s brother James Milnes, MP for Bletchingley (1802-05), the total of those dowries flowed into the Milne family. Through the marriage, Houghton Hall also passed to Richard.

Elizabeth Milnes’ brother, Robert Pemberton Milnes (1784-1858), as eldest son, inherited his father’s estates. In 1808, as Member of Parliament for Pontefract (1806-1818), he married the Honourable Henrietta Maria, daughter of Robert Monckton-Arundell, 4th Viscount Galway. Their son, Richard Monckton Milnes (1809-1885) became a prominent literary figure and was created 1st Baron Houghton in 1863. Elizabeth’s sisters Caroline, Louisa and Jane, never married, and for Caroline’s health resided in Torquay, in a house named after the family seat, Fryston Lodge.⁸

A Childhood Home

The Newton’s home, Elveden Hall, was located on the Suffolk–Norfolk boundary in the small village of Elveden (also seen as Elvedon or Elden). A description of Elveden contemporary with the period under discussion comes to us from the 1844 edition of History, Gazetteer and Directory of Suffolk, and the Towns Near Its Borders.⁹

ELVEDEN, or ELDEN, a small village, 4 miles S.W. of Thetford, has in its parish 240 souls, and 5555 acres of light sandy land, all the property of Wm. Newton, Esq., the lord of the manor, who resides at Elveden Hall, a large and handsome mansion, in a small park, adjoining a rabbit warren of about 1000 acres. It was anciently appropriated to Bury Abbey, and was given by Henry VIII to the Duke of Norfolk. It afterwards passed to the Crisps, and from them to the Tyrells. It was the property and seat of the late Admiral Keppel, second son of the second Earl of Albemarle of his family, who, after displaying great valour and skill in many naval engagements, was created Viscount Keppel, of Elveden, in 1782, but dying without issue in 1796, the title became extinct. His nephew, the present Earl of Albemarle, resided here in the early part of the present century, and for some time had in his own occupation 4000 acres of the parish, which he greatly improved by planting and drill-husbandry, though it consists chiefly of a blowing sand. The Church (St. Andrew) is a small thatched fabric, and the living is a rectory, valued in K.B. at £12. 17s. 6d., and now having a yearly modus of £300, awarded in 1840. Wm. Newton, Esq., is patron, and the Rev. E. R. Benyon incumbent. The poor have 10s. a year from two roods of land given by an unknown donor; and £3 a year out of the rectorial tithes, left by Suckling Jay, Esq., in 1675. Directory:- Wm. Newton, Esq., Elveden Hall; Rev. F. C. A. Clifford, curate, Rectory; Cphr. Brown, shopkeeper; Jas. Goddard, constable; Chas. Lusher, vict., Albemarle Arms; Wm. Napthen, baker and gamekeeper; George Postans, steward; Fredk. Chas. Payne, farmer and warrener; and Peter Williamson, gent.

Alfred and Edward Newton discovered that the expansive Elveden estate provided the perfect backdrop for nurturing their shared passion for natural history, particularly ornithology—a connection that remained constant throughout their childhood. It wasn't until 1863, when the brothers had reached adulthood and were living independently off the estate, that their father passed away and Elveden was sold to Prince Duleep Singh, the exiled last Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. Prince Duleep Singh undertook a substantial redesign of the Georgian mansion's interior, drawing inspiration from the Mughal palaces of his homeland, while simultaneously transforming the exterior in the Italian architectural style. Later on, the estate changed hands once more, coming into the possession of the Guinness family.

The following description of Elveden as advertised for sale in The Law Times of June 6, 1863, gives a sense of the home and property the Newton children grew up in.

MESSRS, FAREBROTHER, CLARK and LYE are instructed by the Trustees under the Will of the late W. Newton, Esq, to offer for SALE at GARRAWAY'S, on WEDNESDAY, JULY 1st, at Twelve (unless they previously meet with an acceptable offer), this very valuable and desirable ESTATE, and which comprises the whole of the parish of Elveden, distant about three miles from Thetford, on the Great Eastern Railway, ten from Bury St Edmunds, fifteen from Newmarket, and within easy distance of Norwich, from which place to London, via Newmarket, runs the turnpike-road for about four miles through the centre of the estate; with a most comfortable and spacious mansion, distinguished as Elveden Hall. The house comprises entrance-hall, suite of reception-rooms, with windows opening to the south on to flower-garden, gentleman's morning room, numerous large bedrooms and dressing-rooms, nurseries, principal and secondary staircases, and most ample domestic offices, together with large stabling, coach-house, brewhouse, &c., flower-garden and pleasure-grounds, two large walled kitchen-gardens in the best state of cultivation, with hot-houses. The whole admirably adapted for a family of the first distinction. Also gardener's, gatekeeper's, and other cottages. The estate is divided into three large farms; two held by tenants, containing nearly 3000 acres of productive arable, pasture, and heath land, with good houses conveniently situated on each, with all necessary agricultural buildings, erected on the most approved principle; including an extensive rabbit warren. The woods and plantations (very valuable cover), principally of oak, larch, and Scotch fir, in thriving condition, and which have been planted from time to time for the combined purposes of profit and shooting, with the lands in hand, are above 2000 acres. This estate is unequalled for its attractions to any nobleman or gentleman fond of sporting and country pursuits, has long been celebrated for its abundance of game, and is bounded by large properties carefully preserved. Near the house are well laid-out paddocks, warm and well sheltered, with good hovels, affording every opportunity for breeding. There are hounds within easy reach. The parochial and other rates are very low. Also the Advowson and next Presentation to the Rectory of Elveden (subject to the life of the present incumbent, aged about 76), with a good rectory-house, offices, garden, and about 255 acres of glebe land, together with the tithes of the Parish.

Siblings

Alfred Newton was born on June 11, 1829, near Geneva, Switzerland, on an extended family holiday to the continent. Edward Newton was born on November 10, 1832, at Elveden. Alexander Wollaston’s 1921 biography of Alfred Newton offers only the barest glimpse at the lives of Alfred’s and Edward’s brothers, and of their sisters he only makes passing reference and states, incorrectly, that there were four¹⁰. Research using contemporary birth, christening, and marriage records available online¹¹ show that there were actually five sisters in a family of eleven siblings.

The Newton siblings were born over a period of 20 years, spanning 1812 to 1832, and were:

1. Elizabeth Rachel (1812 - 1907)

2. Maria Jane (chr.1813 - 1904)

3. Emma Louisa (1816 - 1883)

4. William Samuel (1816 - 1889)

5. Caroline Georgiana (1818 - 1900)

6. Sophia (b.1822)

7. Robert Milnes (chr.1822 - 1900)

8. Horace Parker (chr.1825 - 1890)

9. Francis Rodes (chr.1828 - 1886)

10. Alfred (1829 - 1907)

11. Edward (1832 -1897)

Given the age differences, it seems unlikely that Alfred and Edward would have formed a strong relationship with the eldest of their siblings. At the time of Edward’s birth, the first born, Elizabeth Rachel¹², was already an adult; 20 years of age and married the following year to Sir Mark Wood, MP for Gatton. By Edward’s tenth birthday, the eldest brothers William Samuel¹³ and Horace Parker¹⁴ were commissioned officers in the army; whilst Robert Milnes,¹⁵ ten years Edward’s senior, was at Trinity College, studying law.

Francis Rodes¹⁶ was the closest in age to Alfred and Edward, and is more likely to have been a member of their childhood inner circle. Francis married into a well-known St. Croix family in 1852 and is recorded in the St. Croix Census of 1855 and 1860 as a Planter of the Castle Bourke estate owned by William Newton.¹⁷ In the late 1850s, Alfred and Edward both visited the island. While these were likely family visits, the Newton brothers took the opportunity to explore the island’s wildlife, submitting a joint paper, Observations on the Birds of St. Croix, West Indies, made, between February 20th and August 6th 1857 by Alfred Newton, and, between March 4th and September 26th 1858 by Edward Newton, to the first issue of The Ibis. They also collected reptiles which they donated to the British Museum.¹⁸

To Alfred and Edward's relationship with their sisters, Wollaston quotes a letter sent from Alfred to Edward on May 3, 1845, while he was away at school in Stetchworth, in which he writes, “I will write to my sisters to-morrow.” If the content of Caroline’s communication to Edward in Figure 3, is evidence of a regular correspondence, it suggests that the brothers shared a close relationship with perhaps the younger of their sisters. In Alfred’s later years, Wollaston writes, “he spent a part of every summer with two of his sisters between 1866 and 1886” at Bloxworth, Dorsetshire.¹⁹ In the memoirs of the clergyman and zoologist Octavius Pickard-Cambridge, a friend of Alfred’s, Octavius writes of “Miss Newton and Miss Caroline Newton, of Bloxworth House.”²⁰

In the England and Wales Census of 1851²¹ for Elveden Hall, Caroline (aged 30) is unmarried and living at home. Her occupation is given as “Head of Family Daur” (Daughter), and since the death of her mother in 1843 may have taken on the role of mistress of the house. Also at home on the Census date was Alfred (occupation listed as Magdalene College, Cambridge), Edward (Scholar at Home), Robert (Barrister Practising), and Horace (Captain Royal Artillery). In addition are listed eleven servants.²²

A Naturalist is Born

At the age of five or six, Alfred fell and injured his right knee whilst playing in the library of Elveden Hall, resulting in him becoming permanently lame in his right leg and requiring the use of a cane throughout his life. Arthur Christopher Benson writes of Alfred’s lameness on describing his first meeting with him in 1904,

My first encounter with the Professor, as we all called him at Magdalene, was at dinner at the Lodge. He was then over seventy-five years of age, and had resided at the College for more than fifty years. I recognised him at once. He was older, balder, whiter, and much lamer. He walked with two sticks and with great difficulty. He had been lame in one leg since infancy, and had latterly injured his sound leg by a fall out yachting.

Alexander Wollaston speculates in his biography of Alfred Newton, that but for this incident, Alfred’s life may have had a very different trajectory.

It may be that this accident prevented him from following his brothers' example and becoming a soldier, a career in which it may safely be said that he would have won certain distinction. But one very definite result which followed from his lameness was the encouragement it gave him in his earliest years to acquire habits of observation and contemplation.

As a result of his injury which “debarred [him] to a great extent from the more active pursuits of his elder brothers,”²³ Alfred turned to his younger brother Edward for companionship, forming a strong bond that lasted throughout their lives. As children they wrote to each other using affection nicknames Taff (Alfred) and Tedge (Edward). Virtually inseparable, Alfred and Edward shared many interests, including bird-watching and collecting eggs. The extent of their interest in ornithology at this early age can be gleaned from their contributions to the natural history journal The Zoologist (see Birding at Elvedon and Stetchworth).

Schooling

In 1844, Alfred was sent to Stetchworth near Newmarket, to be tutored by the Reverend Josiah Walker. Wollaston writes that, separated from his brother a life-long correspondence between the two began, in which the two brothers wrote to each other every day, “and each one kept carefully all the letters of the other.”²⁴ Alfred Newton was subsequently tutored by the mathematician Reverend Joseph Horner, Vicar of Everton, near Biggleswade in Bedfordshire, before entering Magdalene College, Cambridge, as a pensioner in October 1848. He graduated in 1853.

Edward also set out on the same educational pathway, attending Reverend Josiah Walker’s school at Stetchworth by March 1846. However, while “delicate health as a boy necessitated his education being conducted chiefly at home,”²⁵ he did proceed to Cambridge and graduated from Magdalene College in 1857, joining the colonial service in 1859.

Reverend Josiah Walker

Alfred and Edward Newton’s teacher at Stetchworth, Josiah Walker, was born on March 21, 1805, in Perth, Scotland, the son of Josias Walker (1761-1831)²⁶ and Margaret Bell (1759-1831), daughter of Richard Bell of Crurie, Dumfriesshire.²⁷ Descended from a succession of ministers, Josias’ father, the Reverend Thomas Walker, was ordained minister of Dundonald, Ayrshire, in 1732. His grandfather, Reverend David Walker, was minister of Temple, Edinburgh.

Josias was educated at Edinburgh High School and Edinburgh University. At the time of Josiah's birth, he held the position of Collectorship of Customs at Perth, which he had obtained through the patronage of the 4th Duke of Atholl, John Murray, in recognition for his services as a tutor to the Duke's son, the Marquis of Tullibardine, from 1787 until the Marquis was declared mentally ill at the age of 20. From the Customs house, Josias joined the Tory newspaper, the Perth Courier as an editor in 1808, and in 1811 became a published biographer of the poet Robert Burns, whom he had first met and befriended in 1787.

In 1815, Josias was appointed Professor of Humanity at Glasgow University, at which point Josiah entered the Glasgow Grammar School, “where he remained until his fifteenth year, when he entered upon his course at the College. And after completing his own classical studies, he became his father's assistant in his classes until the death of the later in 1831.” Described as of “exceedingly delicate physical organization”, Josiah devoted himself to the study of Hebrew, and after failing in his application to be a Professor of Hebrew in 1831-32 at Glasgow University entered Trinity Hall, Cambridge, where he was eventually conferred a Bachelor of Civil Law in July 1839.²⁸ During this period, he was also pursuing religious orders and was ordained Deacon in 1836, and Priest in 1837. His first curatorship was at Folksworth, Huntingdonshire.

On April 5, 1838, the 21-year old Josiah, married Mary Rice Lock, also 21 years old, daughter of Peter Lock, of Saint David, Exeter. In 1840, Josiah was appointed curate in sole charge of Stetchworth, situated near Newmarket in East Cambridgeshire. In the fourth edition of Samuel Lewis’ A Topographical Dictionary of England, published that same year, Stetchworth was described thus,

STETCHWORTH (ST. PETER), a parish, in the union of NEWMARKET, hundred of RADFIELD, County of CAMBRIDGE, 2¾ miles (s. by W.) from Newmarket; containing 545 inhabitants. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £10. 12. 1; present net income, £174; patron and impropriator, Richard Eaton, Esq. The church contains a handsome monument in white marble, to the memory of the Hon. Henry Gorges. An almshouse for two poor persons of each sex was founded here in 1700, by Lord and Lady Gorges, who endowed it with £30 per annum.²⁹

Early in his new position, the Walker’s encountered a series of significant financial setbacks when their combined fortunes were misappropriated by an unscrupulous solicitor, and a mining enterprise in which Josiah had invested collapsed. While the local parishioners offered what support they could, it was the neighboring landowners and clergy who offered a source of long-term financial support by offering to pay him to tutor their sons. Thus, Josiah established Stetchworth Vicarage as the most renowned private tutor's residence in the surrounding region.

Census records from 1841, when the school was in its infancy, record four students at the vicarage on the census date; John Tharp (aged 14), James Baily Cooper (12), Malcolm Lloyd (9), and Charles Lloyd (8).³⁰ Charles Lloyd may be the same child referred to in the note on the back flap of the cover illustrated in Figure 3. Alfred Newton also makes two references to a Charles Lloyd (of Reading) who provided him with information of birds sighted in the Reading area in his article Occurrence of Rare Birds near Thetford in Norfolk, &c., published in The Zoologist in 1847.³¹

Wollaston writes of Alfred’s experiences at Walker’s school,

School at Mr. Walker's was not very arduous, and holidays, which depended on the getting of so many marks, seem to have been frequent. Alfred often drove over to Elveden, a distance of about nineteen miles, for Sunday, and one day in February, 1845, he went with his father to Cambridge.³²

Some children from the parish and neighbouring parishes, chose to attend Reverend Walker’s school as day students only. One such student was Edward Kedington Bennet (later Reverend Bennet), who recalled “riding my rough pony daily to and fro for a year or two from my father's house”. Edward’s father was Reverend James Thomas Bennet, rector of Cheveley, located 3 mi (5 km) northeast of Stetchworth. Both of Edward’s brothers preceded him at Stetchworth, and a strong friendship was formed between the two families. Following Reverend Walker's passing, his daughter Margaret (now Mrs. Alexander Rogerson), extended an invitation to Reverend Bennet to pen the introduction for a posthumously published memoir titled "Memorial of a Country Vicar" (1883).³³

In that introduction, Reverend Bennet reminisces,

They are scattered far apart now - those left alive of us who thus came together in that old-fashioned quiet parsonage. But sure I am that we all look kindly its memories. The rule was very kind, and very strict.

He continues,

The mischievous little boys, with a strong taste for idleness, were found to do so well under Mr. Walker's hands, that they were not taken away as they grew older, to be sent to a public school. And the keen delight with which, as his boys grew up, Mr. Walker carried them on with him - seizing on each lad's taste and talent, if he had any, and so infusing his own into it that the boy hardly knew how he learnt what he did - was, as my old friend has told me in later years, a pleasure in the midst of his hard toil which he had not looked for at the outset. Nor was he badly repaid afterwards. Of the many of Mr. Walker's boys whom I can call to mind, very few indeed have turned out otherwise than well, and most of them have done credit to their early training. It was not that they have gained for themselves any very high places in life, for most of them were not of the class who have really to work for their bread, and it is of such boys chiefly that our great men are made. Nor, so far as I know, were many of them exceedingly learned scholars, for the resources of Chinese civilisation had not yet been called in to stimulate the deficiencies of English character; and the doubtful blessings of competitive examinations neither terrified nor enticed us forty years ago. There was, therefore, no “cramming" at Stetchworth. But the squires and clergy who passed from Mr. Walker's hands to the Universities, and so to their places in English society, were of such training in their boyhood that they had learned to fill those places with credit and usefulness.

Reverend Bennet also remembers “one most remarkable fact” about Reverend Walker’s health,

It will hardly be believed - it is hard even for me to realise as I look back on his active life - that Mr. Walker was from his earliest years nearly deaf. He was, indeed, so deaf that he could not hear the responses in the Church service read by his clerk, and he read the alternate verses in the Psalms to himself, as the only way of keeping his place in their recital.

During Alfred and Edward's time at Walker's, the vicarage served not only as lodging for the students and domestic staff but also as the residence for the growing Walker family. Between 1841 and 1846, Josiah and Emma welcomed four daughters in Stetchworth: Margaret Bell (1841), Russell Mary (1843), Mary Elizabeth (1845), and Christina Jessy (1846)³⁴. A description of the 16th-century vicarage on Stetchworth High Street, which underwent reconstruction after the Newtons' stay and is now designated as a Grade II listed structure by Historic England, provides insight into the living space shared by this diverse group of individuals.

House formerly the vicarage. Rebuilt c.1850 encasing and re-roofing the original C16 three unit plan timber framed house with chimney stack in chimney bay. Servant wing to west recently rebuilt with main roof extended. Timber frame and brick walls rendered. Low pitched hipped slate roof. One stack with rendered brick. Two storeys and cellar, main entrance in east gable. South elevation has seven flush-framed hung sash windows with side lights, and one similar ground floor window. Six ground floor garden casements with glazing bars and over-lights. Interior has mid C19 staircase, chimney pieces, and four-panelled doors. Two sealed inglenook hearths.³⁵

The reconstruction of the vicarage c.1850, coincides with Reverend Walker’s call to the vicarship of neighbouring Wood Ditton (Woodditton), where he continued his tuition.³⁶ The 1851 England Wales Census from the Vicarage at Wood Ditton records eight students between the ages of 9 and 16 years.³⁷ The Scottish barrister Charles Stewart (1841-1916),³⁸ a student during this period, gives us a brief glimpse of life under Reverend Walker’s tutelage at Wood Ditton in his memoir, Haud immemor: Reminiscences of legal and social life in Edinburgh and London, 1850-1900 (1901).

Such book learning as I have acquired has been mainly at the hands of private tutors. For three or four years I studied, not quite ineffectively, under the roof and personal care of the Rev. Josiah Walker, Vicar of Wood Ditton, near Newmarket, in Cambridgeshire. Mr Walker was a fine scholar, a good man, and a gentleman. He took charge of some seven or eight boys only, and it was, I am sure, not his fault but his pupils', if they did not imbibe both learning and morality at his hands.³⁹

The relationship between Alfred and Reverend Walker did not end with Alfred’s schooling. In the correspondence of Alfred Newton held at the University of Cambridge, there are five letters from Reverend Walker to Alfred, spanning the period 1862 to 1868⁴⁰ indicting an ongoing correspondence during a particularly difficult period in Reverend Walker’s life.

In 1859, Reverend Walker had travelled to Hannover, Germany, accompanied by family members and some of his students, seeking to regain his failing health. Although his own well-being improved during the trip, he returned to Wood Ditton in 1860 without his 16-year-old daughter Russell, who tragically passed away in Hannover on February 17, 1860.⁴¹ Subsequently, in 1865, his wife Mary fell ill and eventually passed away in October 1867. Despite his best efforts to carry on, driven by his commitment to both his parishioners and pupils, the loss of his wife weighed heavily on him, and he never fully recovered.⁴² Reverend Walker retired due to advancing age in 1880 and returned to his native Scotland. At the time of his passing on December 14, 1882, at the age of 78, he was residing at 34 North Bruntsfield Place, Edinburgh.

Birding at Elveden and Stetchworth

Wollaston’s book quotes several letters from Alfred to Edward during his time at Stetchworth, in which Alfred writes at length about his and their birding activities (see example in Note 31). Rather than reproduce these here, we will focus on the brother's published bird notes.

Since 1844, Alfred and Edward Newton had been contributing bird observations to the journal The Zoologist,⁴³ which had been established in 1843 as a monthly and annual publication by the British naturalist Edward Newman.⁴⁴ The Zoologist embodied an ideology of making natural history accessible and inclusive. Instead of relying on expert authors, the periodical encouraged contributions from a diverse range of readers, promoting a sense of community among those interested in natural history. Newman's vision was to create a publication that combined scientific accuracy with readability, and as such resisted calls to introduce Latin descriptions, favoring plain and intelligible English, effectively democratizing the field.⁴⁵

A Survey of Published Notes in The Zoologist, 1844-1846

The following is a complete list of the notes submitted by Alfred and Edward Newton to be published in the second (1844), third (1845) and fourth (1846) volumes of The Zoologist, spanning the period from the commencement of his submission to his schooling at Stetchworth. The notes are given in order of publication (page number shown as “Zool.”).

In Volume 2 (1844), the following notes were submitted by Alfred Newton;

• Note on the occurrence of the Sea Eagle at Elden, near Thetford; Elden Hall, near Thetford, Suffolk, Nov. 1843 (Zool. 443)

• Notes on the arrival of Summer Birds at Elvedon and, its vicinity in 1844; Elvedon, May 30, 1844 (Zool. 651)

• Note on the dates of Nidification of Birds at Elden; Elden, Essex, July 29, 1844 (Zool. 722)

• Correction of a previous Error; Stetchworth, near Newmarket, October 3, 1844 (Zool. 768)

• Note on the Occurrence of the Black Grouse at Elvedon; Stetchworth Vicarage, October 22, 1844 (Zool. 794)

In Volume 3 (1845), the following notes were submitted by Alfred and Edward Newton, as indicated:

Alfred Newton

• Occurrence of the Spotted Redshank at Elden; Stitchworth, Nov. 11, 1844 (Zool. 877)

• Dates of Arrival of Migratory Birds at Stetchworth, in 1845; Elden, June 17, 1845 (Zool. 1066)

Edward Newton

• Early Nest of the Blackcap; Elveden Hall, April 25, 1845 (Zool. 1024)

• Dates of Arrival of Migratory Birds at Elvedon, in 1845; Elden, June 17, 1845 (Zool. 1065)

In Volume 4 (1846), the following notes were submitted by Alfred Newton;

• Chaffinch, Quail, Ringdove, &c.; Elden, April 21st, 1846 (Zool. 1367)

• On Redpolls staying at Thetford throughout the summer; Elden, June 29th, 1846 (Zool. 1497)

• Dates of arrival of Migratory Birds in Norfolk, Suffolk, and Cambridgeshire; Elden (Zool. 1549)

Exploring the Notes

Alfred Newton’s first submission to be published in The Zoologist, was Note on the occurrence of the Sea Eagle at Elden, near Thetford, dated November 1843.⁴⁶

Note on the occurrence of the Sea Eagle at Elden, near Thetford. A very fine female specimen of the sea eagle (Halia'etus albicilla) was shot on the warren at Elden on January 12, 1843. As it was very slightly wounded, we endeavoured to keep it alive for some time, but as it seemed to pine, it was killed and stuffed by Mr. Reynolds of Thetford.⁴⁷ It had haunted for some time the large rabbit-warrens in the vicinity of Thetford, and was shot in the act of preying on a rabbit. It measured 7 feet 11 inches from tip to tip, and 2 feet 6 inches from beak to tail, and weighed 11 lbs. when first shot, but lost 1 lb. when in confinement. - Alfred Newton; Elden Hall, near Thetford, Suffolk, Nov. 1843.

This was followed by his first bird list, Notes on the arrival of Summer Birds at Elvedon and, its vicinity in 1844, dated May 30, 1844. Later that same year, Alfred submitted Note on the dates of Nidification of Birds at Elden, dated July 29, 1844; writing

Nothing of the kind having yet appeared in 'The Zoologist,' I venture to enclose a list of the dates of nidification of birds in the vicinity of Elden, collected by the Rev. Frank Clifford⁴⁸ and myself, for insertion in that periodical.

Edward Newman responded with an editorial note,

There is scarcely any subject connected with Natural History, more interesting than the nidification of birds, and a statement of dates upon this subject, from different localities would be highly valuable. The compilation of such lists requires very great care. In Mr. Newton's list, some of the days appear to me very unusual, and rather exceptions to the general rule than indications of that rule. Thus, experience leads me to consider the swift due (so to speak) as an arrival about the 3rd of May, and it surely is a rare occurrence to find it nesting on the 2nd of that month. The nightjar is equally aberrant in Mr. Newton's list; I have often found its eggs five or six weeks later, and never before June. I cannot consider Mr. Newton's dates in these instances attributable to localities, but rare and noticeable deviations from the usual habits of the birds. — Edward Newman

The concerns made by Newman proved well founded, as his comments drew a response from Alfred who corrected several dates that brought his observations in line with Newman’s experience. Alfred’s response, Correction of a previous Error, was dated October 3, 1844, Stetchworth, where he was now studying under Reverend Walker. His residence in Note on the Occurrence of the Black Grouse at Elvedon, dated October 22, 1844, was given more specifically as Stetchworth Vicarage.

During his time at Reverend Walker’s school, Alfred Newton, submitted a record of the migratory birds he had observed arriving at Stetchworth. He reported these as Dates of Arrival of Migratory Birds at Stetchworth in 1845, dated June 17, 1845⁴⁹ (Figure 4).

Fig. 4 - Dates of Arrival of Migratory Birds at Stetchworth in 1845, dated June 17, 1845, by Alfred Newton (The Zoologist, 1845)

Edward Newton, likewise, was keeping a record of the migratory birds arriving at Elveden. These were reported alongside those of his brother in the same issue of the The Zoologist (Figure 5).

Fig. 5 - Dates of Arrival of Migratory Birds at Elvedon in 1845, dated June 17, 1845, by Edward Newton (The Zoologist, 1845)

In 1846, Alfred submitted Dates of arrival of Migratory Birds in Norfolk, Suffolk, and Cambridgeshire, for the period October 10, 1845, through May 20, 1846. The locations of the birds reflect the boundaries of his world at this stage in his life; Stetchworth (Cambridgeshire), Elden (Suffolk), and Thetford (Norfolk).

In 1847, his notes Dates of Arrival of Migratory Birds at Elveden in the Autumn of 1846, and Occurrence of Rare Birds near Thetford in Norfolk, &c, both dated March 30, 1847, and addressed Everton, Biggleswade, marks his departure from Stetchworth and his move to the school of Reverend Horner.

This will be the subject of Part 2.

1. Birkhead, T.R. & Gallivan, P.T. (2012). Alfred Newton's contribution to ornithology: A conservative quest for facts rather than grand theories. Ibis, 154, 887-905. DOI: 10.1111/j.1474-919X.2012.01274.x

2. British Ornithologists’ Union. (1897). Ibis, Vol. ser.7:v.3=no.9-12. [London], Published for the British Ornithologists’ Union by Academic Press. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/54800.

3. Norfolk and Norwich Naturalists’ Society. (1894). Transactions of the Norfolk and Norwich Naturalists’ Society, Vol. v.6(1894-1899). Norwich, Norfolk and Norwich Naturalists’ Society. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/192648.

4. Benson, A.C. (1911). The Leaves of the Tree; Studies in Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. hdl:2027/uc2.ark:/13960/t5k93398t

5. Wollaston, A.F.R. (1921). Life of Alfred Newton, Professor of Comparative Anatomy, Cambridge University, 1866-1907. London: J. Murray. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/115898.

6. 'William Newton MP'. Legacies of British Slavery database. Retrieved August 31, 2023, from http://wwwdepts-live.ucl.ac.uk/lbs/person/view/2146644193.

7. Wollaston (p.1) states William Newton purchased the estate in 1810. I have chosen to use the date of 1813 quoted by The Suffolk County Council (Monument record ELV 009 - Elveden Hall).

8. Reid, T. Wemyss (Thomas Wemyss). (1890). The life, letters, and friendships of Richard Monckton Milnes, first lord Houghton. London: Cassell.

9. White W. (1844). History gazetteer and directory of Suffolk and the towns near its borders ; comprising under a lucid arrangement of subjects a general survey of the county and separate histories & statistical & topographical descriptions of all the hundreds liberties unions boroughs towns ports parishes townships villages & hamlets. Printed for the author by R. Leader.

10. Wollaston, A. (1921). Life of Alfred Newton, Professor of Comparative Anatomy, Cambridge University, 1866-1907 (p. 1).

11. Genealogical research was conducted using familysearch.org

12. Elizabeth Rachel (15 Aug 1812, Elveden - 1907); m1. 18 Jun 1833 at Elveden, Mark Wood (1794-1837), MP for Gatton (1816-18), succeeded his father as 2nd Bart. of Gatton Park. His entry in The History of Parliament notes that “Evidently he was not interested in politics. An obituary stated that he was ‘much attached to the sport of the Turf, of which he was a constant and liberal patron; and has left a large and valuable breeding stud’. He died 4 Aug. 1837, leaving an ‘infant family’, but no son, whereupon the baronetcy became extinct.” Elizabeth m2. 1845, Charles Cox.

13. William Samuel Newton (16 Aug 1816 - 1889); married 1856, Elizabeth Louisa, dau. of Major-General Thomas Steele (d.1847) and Lady Elizabeth Montagu (1795-1857), dau. of William Montagu, 5th Duke of Manchester. William served with the Coldstream Guards in the Crimean campaign from 18 Oct. 1854 to 8 Apr. 1855 including the battles of Balaklava and Inkerman, and siege of Sebastopol. Retiring with the rank of General from the South Lancashire Regiment (82 Foot). Rank: Liuet. (5 Dec. 1834), Captain (31 Dec. 1839), Lieut. Colonel (25 Feb. 1848), Colonel (28 Nov. 1854), Major General (6 Nov. 1862), Lieut. General (25 Oct. 1871), General (1 Oct. 1877). Williams service record was obtained from Hart's Annual Army List, Militia List, and Imperial Yeomanry List (1885).

14. Horace Parker Newton (chr. 28 Jan 1825, Elveden - 1890); married 31 Mar. 1864 at St. Paul’s, Knightsbridge, Alice Knox (1845-1885), dau. of Arthur Edward Knox (1808-1886) and Lady Jane Parsons. Served Gibraltar (14 Aug. 1843 - 25 Jun. 1844), Canada (16 Nov. 1844 - 9 Jul. 1848), Nova Scotia (May 1851 - 31 Jul. 1854), Crimea (12 Jul. 1853 - 9 Jul. 1856). Served in the Crimean campaign in the siege and fall of Sebastopol, in the Trenches with the Siege Train, and was present at the bombardments of the 17 Aug. and 8 Sep. Rank: 2nd Lieut. (11 Jan. 1843), Lieut. (1 Apr. 1844), Captain (8 Jul. 1850), Major (2 Nov. 1855), Lieut. Colonel (21 Jul. 1864), Colonel (21 Jul. 1869), Major General (13 Feb. 1881), Lieut. General (1 Feb. 1882). Horace’s service record was obtained from Hart's Annual Army List, Militia List, and Imperial Yeomanry List (1885).

Arthur Edward Knox was counted as one of the original (founding) members of the British Ornithologists’ Union. He contributed notes to The Zoologist, and authored several books on ornithology: Ornithological rambles in Sussex: with a systematic catalogue of the birds of that county, and remarks on their local distribution (1849), and Game birds and wild fowl, their friends and their foes (1850).

15. Robert Milnes Newton (chr. 26 Sep 1822 - 1900); Barrister. Educated at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge. Called to the bar, 1847. On the Norfolk circuit. Recorder of Cambridge, 1858–66. Metropolitan Police Magistrate at Great Marlborough Street, London, 1866–97. Famously presided over Oscar Wilde's libel case, and the Cass Case.

16. Francis Rodes Newton (chr. 14 Feb 1828 - 1886, Malmo, Sweden). In 1852, living on St Croix as a planter on the Castle Burke estate, belonging to his father William Newton, he married Anna Louisa Gyllich (1833–1862), daughter of Major Jacob Heitmann Gyllich, Knight of the Dannebrog (14 July 1865), and his wife Adriana Louise von Meley, daughter of Frederik Christian von Meley. In 1866, he was a widower living on an island off Puerto Rico. He died in Malmo, Sweden, in 1886.

17. The following description of the Castle Bourke is from the book Statistics regarding landed properties in the Island of St. Croix from 1816 to 1857 with a table showing the quantity of sugar shipped from 1835 to 1840 and from 1850 to 1857, published by P. B. Hatchett in 1859

Castle Bourke or Castle, in Princes Quarter No. 32, 33 & 34, Centre Police District, Frederiksteds Jurisdiction, belongs to Wm. Newton; 1816, 157 acres in canes, 105½ in other cultivation, total 262½; 1857, 212 acres in canes, 50½ in other cultivation, total 262½; 1816, 224 slaves, 1847, 126; steam mill of 10 horse power, wind mill also.

The book also records that in 1851, Francis Rodes, in partnership with Dr. J. Y. Stevens, purchased the 150-acres Stoney Ground estate from Francis’ future father-in-law, Major J. H. Gyllich. Francis sold his half share to Dr. Stevens in 1854 for $4000. In 1856, Francis purchased the Montpellier or Cooper’s Negrobay estate, and sold it 1858.

18. Günther, A.C.L.G. (Albert Carl Ludwig Gotthilf). (1859). On the Reptiles from St. Croix, West Indies, Collected by Messrs. A. and B. Newton. The Annals and Magazine of Natural History; Zoology, Botany, and Geology, 4, 209–217.

19. Wollaston, A. (1921). Life of Alfred Newton, Professor of Comparative Anatomy, Cambridge University, 1866-1907 (p. 275).

20. Pickard-Cambridge, A.W., Sir. (1918). Memoir of the Reverend Octavius Pickard-Cambridge. Oxford: Printed for private circulation. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/76197

21. FamilySearch. (2019, September 12). England and Wales Census, 1851 [Database with images]. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:SGRX-3TP

22. The household staff listed in the 1851 England and Wales Census, at Elveden, are: Ann Williamson (68, Family Nurse), Daniel Olley (57, Yardman), Sarah Martin (52, Laundress), William King (31, Butler), Ann Fleming (31, House Keeper), Ann Harnwell (29, House Maid), George Laughton (24, Footman), Emma Brown (22, Lady’s Maid), Mary Foges (21, Kitchen Maid), Jane Elsden (20, Laundress), and Eliza Jaggs (18, Scullery Maid).

23. Wollaston, A. (1921). Life of Alfred Newton, Professor of Comparative Anatomy, Cambridge University, 1866-1907 (pp. 4-5).

24. ibid. (p. 8).

25. British Ornithologists’ Union. (1897). Ibis, Vol. ser.7:v.3=no.9-12. [London], Published for the British Ornithologists’ Union by Academic Press. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/54800

26. Texts vary in the use of Josias or Josiah. To help distinguish father and son in this treatment, I will use Josias for the father and Josiah for the son.

27. Steuart, J. (1932). The Bell Family in Dumfriesshire (Vol. 2 of Records of the Western Marches, vol. 2). R. Dinwiddie.

28. Turrill, J. (1839). The British Magazine and Monthly Register of Religious and Ecclesiastical Information, Parochial History, and Documents Respecting the State of the Poor, Progress of Education, &c. United Kingdom.

29. Lewis, S. (1840). A Topographical Dictionary of England (Vol. 4). https://www.google.co.jp/books/edition/S_to_Z/wwZBAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1

30. FamilySearch. (2019, May 22). England and Wales Census, 1841 [Database with images]. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MQRX-VSN

31. The Zoologist: A Monthly Journal of Natural History, Vol. 5 (1847), London, 1843-1916, 1847. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/123033.

32. Wollaston, A. (1921). Life of Alfred Newton, Professor of Comparative Anatomy, Cambridge University, 1866-1907 (p. 6).

Wollaston transcribes a letter sent from Alfred to Edward about his trip to Cambridge with his father.

My dearest Tedge,

I must give you a long letter concerning my doings at Cambridge. I spent my whole time, 3 hours, in the Museum of the Phil. Soc. I took one of my old notebooks and a pencil and sketched the most striking of the birds, writing down by the side the colours, etc. The most beautiful British bird was the Indian Bee-eater, of which I send you a coloured drawing. I also send you a drawing of the Great Bustard, of which they have 4 specimens, 2 m. and 2 f. ; it is the most magnificent bird I ever saw except the Capercaillie, the colours of which were too difficult for me to draw. They have three specimens of the Otis tetrax, a very pretty bird. There is a magnificent Golden Eagle. I am now quite certain that our bird is the Linota montium and not Linota cannabina. Our Redpoll is also a (young) male bird and, of course, it retains its immature plumage. The birds are, with the exception of a few old specimens, very well stuffed. A word now about the eggs, which are not much, the Falco peregrinus and Otis tarda being the lions ; I was much disappointed with that part of the Museum. I was surprised at not seeing a specimen of the Regulus ignicapellus there, as Mr. Jenyns is the premier with regard to the Nat. Hist. department. They have a few works on Nat. Hist., most presented by their authors. Audubon's "American Ornithology " is a daub. The "Nat. Hist, of the Voyage of H.M.S. Adventurer and Beagle," is a beautiful book. There is also a book by the author of "Taxidermy," on Freshwater Fishes, coloured by hand. I was rather disappointed in seeing the Kittiwake there, for unless it is an adult male in breeding plumage (which is snow-white) I don't think it is a very handsome bird. It is now quite dark, so good-bye, dearest Tedge.

I am your most affectionate brother,

Taff.

33. Walker, J., Bennet, E. K., Rogerson, A. (1883). Memorial of a country vicar: being selections from the unpublished mss. of the late Rev. J. Walker, B.C.L.

Descriptions of the life of the Reverend Josiah Walker come down to us through a variety of sources, but perhaps the most intimate is through Rev. Walker’s own memoirs, Memorial of a Country Vicar (1883), edited by his daughter and published posthumously. Many of the details in this treatment are taken from the introduction written by Rev. Walker’s former student and friend, the Reverend Edward Kedington Bennet D.C.L. (1834-1890).

34. Russell is discussed further in the text. Margaret Bell (as noted earlier in the text) married Alexander Rogerson (1845-1906) of St Michael’s Lockerbie, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. She died in 1929. Mary Elizabeth (1845-1915) married her cousin Dr. Thomas James Walker (1835-1916) of Peterborough in 1865, and raised 15 children of whom four followed in their father's profession. A pioneer of laryngoscopy, Dr. Walker was also a philanthropist and collector of Roman and Saxon artefacts. A blue plaque is affixed in his memory at 35 Westgate, Peterborough, where he was born and practised. Christina Jessy died in 1913. Charles Roger notes in his book on Robert Burns (see Note 35 below) that as of the date of publication (1890), she was unmarried.

35. Historic England. (n.d.). List entry: 1331440. https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1331440?section=official-list-entry

36. According to the biography in Charles Rogers’ The Book of Robert Burns: Genealogical and Historical Memoirs of the Poet, His Associates, and Those Celebrated in His Writings, Volume 2 (1890), Rev. Walker was appointed to Stetchworth in 1840, and Wood Ditton in 1850. The website “A Cambridge Alumni Database” states he was curate of Stetchworth, Cambridgeshire, 1846-47, and vicar of Wood Ditton, Cambridgeshire, 1847-80. Evidence suggests that 1850 is the correct date.

37. FamilySearch. (2019, November 8). England and Wales Census, 1851 [Database with images]. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:SGCP-ZT8

38. Information regarding Charles Stewart’s date of death, from https://www.priaulxlibrary.co.uk/articles/article/osmond-de-beauvoir-priaulxs-original-bequest

39. Stewart, C. (1901). Haud Immemor: Reminiscences of Legal and Social Life in Edinburgh and London, 1850-1900 (p. 34).

40. Cambridge University Library. (n.d.). Alfred Newton Papers (GBR/0012/MS Add.9839).

41. FamilySearch. (2023, March 17). Deutschland, ausgewählte evangelische Kirchenbücher 1500-1971 [Database]. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPX1-4K8G

42. Walker, J., Bennet, E. K., Rogerson, A. (1883). Memorial of a country vicar: being selections from the unpublished mss. of the late Rev. J. Walker, B.C.L.

43. The Zoologist was amalgamated with British Birds (founded 1908) in 1916.

44. Although described as an entomologist and botanist, Edward Newman (1801-1876), as a partner in a firm of London printers, Luxford & Co., became a printer and publisher of various books on natural history and science, including ornithology on which he published Birds-nesting (1861) and New Edition of Montagu's Ornithological Dictionary (1866).

45. Wale, M. (n.d.). The Zoologist (1843-1916). In Constructing Scientific Communities: Citizen Science in the 19th and 21st Centuries. University of Oxford. https://conscicom.web.ox.ac.uk/article/the-zoologist-1843-1916. (Accessed 2023-10-18).

46. The Zoologist : A Monthly Journal of Natural History. Vol. 2 (1844). London, 1843-1916, 1844. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/123306.

47. A description of the Reynolds is given in The Magazine of Natural History and Journal of Zoology, Botany, Mineralogy, Geology, and Meteorology; Volume 8 (1835).

[The Skill of the Messrs. Reynolds, Thetford, Norfolk, in stuffing and setting Skins of Birds for Preservation.] - The superior manner in which these young men have set up their specimens, their attention to every slight variation in the mark- ings, &c., have obtained for their performances the appro- bation of all who have seen them. In giving to the specimens, too, the character of expression proper to the species, I have never seen them excelled, and but very rarely equalled. They are richly deserving the patronage of those who prefer to see animation maintained, as it were, in their specimens, to the formal, stiff, and unnatural postures which at present dis- figure so many of the specimens in our public museums. - J. D. Salmon. Thetford, Norfolk, Dec. 8. 1834.

48. Francis (Frederick) Charles Alfred Clifford (1817-1878). Rev. Clifford predates the Newton brothers as a contributor to The Zoologist, contributing Anecdotes of a Robin, signed “Frank Clifford; Elvedon Rectory near Thetford, October 2, 1843.” He contributed further notes to the 1844 volume of The Zoologist, signed Rev. Frank Clifford and dated December 29, 1843; Note on the Greater Tit, and Note on the occurrence of the Rose-coloured Pastor at Thetford. After this date, no further notes were contributed.

The following notes regarding his education come from Alumni Cantabrigienses, A Biographical List of All Known Students, Graduates and Holders of Office at the University of Cambridge, from the Earliest Times to 1900 (2011). His contributions to The Zoologist, show that the date for his curatorship at Elveden should commence in 1843.

Adm. pens. at TRINITY, June 28, 1834. Of Middlesex. Migrated to St John's, June 30, 1836; matric. Michs. 1836; Scholar; B.A. ( 35th Wrangler ) 1840; M.A. 1843; incorp. at Oxford, 1849. C. of Elveden 1845-6. C. of Dursley, 1847. In Clergy List, 1848-65, unbeneficed.

49. The Zoologist : A Monthly Journal of Natural History. Vol. 3 (1845). London, 1843-1916, 1845. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/123029.