210 Information respecting Travellers. 



made out, all different from the Acipenser, that of the North 

 Sea, and that last year a new genus was discovered in Dal- 

 matia. In fact, the extent of the rivers and lakes, and the 

 variety of climates and situation in the Austrian monarchy, 

 probably make it the richest country in freshwater ichthy- 

 ology in Europe. Nearly one hundred species have been 

 made out, and are on the point of being made known to the 

 public, by M. Heckel, to whose zeal and intelligence the 

 science will be deeply indebted. The genera and species 

 which have not been figured elsewhere are given with a 

 degree of accuracy which it is impossible to excel, and which 

 will form an epoch in designing. 



The figures are drawn by a sort of pantograph, of M. 

 HeckePs own invention, which performs its office with a minute 

 precision I believe hitherto unknown, especially for the de- 

 tails of the scales. The more common species are given sim- 

 ply in outline, and the work, which is far advanced, is of ex- 

 traordinary low price. 



XXVIII. — Information respecting Zoological and Botanical 

 Travellers, 



Private letters from Demerara, of date 18th of August, inform us 

 of the return of Mr. Schomburgk in safety from his first expedition. 

 That gentleman writes, " The object of my last journey was to mark 

 the boundary between British and Venezuelan Guiana, and in this 

 object I have succeeded ; but with regard to scientific researches, very 

 little has been done. We had the most unfavourable weather ; rain 

 every day, and the rivers having inundated their banks contributed 

 to our ill success. My brother is just about to despatch to Berlin 

 such collections as he has made, viz. 220 species of birds, 800 in- 

 sects, and 288 species of plants, with about 200 different objects in 

 spirits." 



" I procured" (he continues) " today a skin of that scarce animal 

 the Black Tiger, Felis nigra ; it is unfortunately much mutilated by 

 the Indian who shot it, the tail and legs being cut off ; bad as it is, 

 it is another proof of the existence of that animal, of which we pos- 

 sess such uncertain knowledge. The skin measures from the nose 

 to the insertion of the tail 4 feet 5 inches ; at first sight the colour 

 appears a glossy black ; but on inspecting it closer, it will be observed 

 that the ground-colour is a dark brown, covered with a number of 

 spots of a shining jet, which are closer to each other than I have ob- 

 served in any of the American Feliiue. These dark spots, which are 

 of a less size than a shilling, extend still closer from the eyes to the 

 region of the shoulders. On the abdomen and interior of the thighs 

 the colour is lighter, and a slight admixture of strong white hairs is 

 observed. To judge from the length of the skin, the animal it came 

 from must have been approaching in size the greater Jaguar. I have 



