The Scottish Naturalist. 293 



editions of 2 or 4 vols., crown 4to., profusely illustrated,"' 

 the Editor did me the favour to write me as follows : — 



" La Belle. Sauvage Yard, Ludgate Hill, 

 "London, E.C., November 7, 1873. 



" I beg to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 5th inst., which 

 you were so kind as to address to Messrs Cassell, Petter, & Galpin, upon 

 the subject of the authorship of " Mammalia " in their Natural History. 

 They desire me to say in reply that as that work was written by several 

 gentlemen they will feel obliged if you will be good enough to quote it as 

 ' ' Cassell's Popular Natural History. " 



" November 14, 1 873. 



I beg to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 10th inst.; in reply 

 to which Messrs Cassell, Petter, & Galpin desire me to explain that they 

 think it possible that you may refer to the statement about monkeys and 

 smallpox which appeared in the first edition of their Natural History. In 

 that case, I have to inform you that the statement was afterwards dis- 

 covered to be erroneous, and was expunged in subsequent editions. The 

 author of that portion of the Natural History is dead, and they do not feel 

 that it would be desirable to have his name now published. " 



This work, which treats of Mammalia, Birds, Reptiles, Fishes, 

 and Insects, is a compilation of matter, including abundant 

 anecdotes, bearing upon, or illustrative of, the character and 

 habits of animals. And in so far as the names of works or 

 authors quoted are given, assuming always that the quotations 

 are accurate, such a work contains a mine of information. Nor 

 is the mere fact of its containing an error here or there sufficient 

 to invalidate the general value of the work ; for, as I shall have 

 occasion to point out by-and-bye, when treating of publications 

 by the highest scientific authorities of the present day, absolute 

 absence of error need not be looked for. Nevertheless it is 

 always unsatisfactory not to be furnished with the names of the 

 compilers of, or contributors to, a Natural History of any con- 

 sequence. 



Probably of the same character as the " Popular Natural 

 History " is the " Wonders of Animal Instinct,"! which con- 

 stitutes a volume of the " Library of Wonders," published by 

 the same enterprising firm,! to whom we owe, for instance, 

 among other admirable works, the " Races of Mankind," by 

 Dr. Robert Brown. 



* The last edition was in 2 vols., 187 1 ; the older editions in 4 vols. 

 *f* 2nd edition, illustrated, 1874. 



X Along with the Zoological contributions to " Cassell's Magazine," an 

 illustrated weekly, whose articles resemble those of ' ' Chambers's Journal " 

 and the better class of its rivals. 



