Bibliographical Notices. ^ 53 



behold so radiant a creature in all the wildness of its native free- 

 dom." 



With one more extract, also relating to birds, we must conclude our 

 notice of this interesting book ; it is headed — Voices of early Birds : — 



'* April 29th. — I rose some hours before the sun, and proceeded 

 to the Peaks of Bluefields. Passing through the wooded pastures 

 and grassrpieces of Pinnock-Shafton, I was interested in the voices of 

 * earliest birds.' While as yet no indication of day appeared over 

 the dark mountain, no ruddy tinge streamed along the east ; while 

 Venus was blazing like a lamp, and shedding as much light as a 

 young moon, as she climbed up the clear dark heaven among her fel- 

 low-stars ; — the Piramidigs or Nightjars were unusually vociferous, 

 and careering in great numbers ; they flew low, as I could perceive 

 by listening to their sounds, but were utterly undistinguishable to the 

 sight from the darkness of the sky across which they flitted in their 

 angular traverses. Presently the Flat-bill uttered his plaintive wail, 

 occasionally relieved by a note rather less mournful. When the ad- 

 vancing light began to break over the black and frowning peaks, and 

 Venus waned, the Peadove commenced from the neighbouring woods 

 her fivefold coo, hollow and moaning. Then the Petchary cackled 

 his three or four rapid notes ; and from a distant wooded hill, as yet 

 shrouded in darkness, proceeded the rich, mellow, but broken song 

 of the Hopping Dick. Now the whole east was ruddy, and the rug- 

 ged points and trees on the summit of the mountain-ridge, interrupt- 

 ing the flood of crimson light, produced the singularly beautiful phaj- 

 nomenon of a series of rose-coloured beams, diverging from the east- 

 ern quarter, and spreading like an expanded fan across the whole 

 arch of heaven, each ray dilating as it advanced. Then mocking- 

 birds all around broke into song, pouring forth their rich gushes and 

 powerful bursts of melody, filling the ear, and overpowering all the 

 other varied voices, which now helped to swell the morning concert 

 of awakening birds." 



In another passage, Mr. Gosse has well refuted the erroneous idea 

 that the birds and flowers of the tropics are destitute of song and 

 scent, and furnished us with a long list of marked exceptions to this 

 so-called rule ; whilst in many other places, in descriptions of the 

 various scenes in which his researches were carried on, he has com- 

 municated a great deal of information on tropical vegetation which 

 will be exceedingly interesting to the botanist. A considerable num- 

 ber of new species of animals are described in various places, some of 

 them illustrated by coloured figures, and the work is also adorned 

 with views of several of the scenes described : it is certainly a most in- 

 teresting and valuable addition to our stock of information on tropical 

 natural history. 



In conclusion, however, we cannot but express our regret, that 

 Mr. Gosse should have allowed himself to fall into the common cant 

 of soi-disant field-naturalists in speaking against all branches of na- 

 tural history except their own. We should have thought that one who 

 in his own department can work so well, might have rested his claim 

 to be regarded as a naturalist on the merits of his works, without re- 



