INTRODUCTION. xi 



of one hundred pounds was given to assist in defraying the 

 necessary expenses. From the desire to make this volume com- 

 plete in itself, it has been restricted to the Synonymy of the 

 first great Order of Birds, or Accipitres, and is therefore not 

 so large as it might have been made, had another Order been 

 commenced with. That it is without errors, where so many 

 works have been referred to and quoted from, cannot be expected, 

 but every pains has been taken to avoid mistakes and render the 

 quotations correct ; and the well-known accuracy of the printers, 

 Messrs. Taylor and Francis, who have taken great interest in 

 every part of the work, has rendered this much more easy. 



In conclusion, let us return our acknowledgments to the 

 officers of every public Museum, as well as the proprietors of 

 private collections, for their assistance and advice whenever they 

 have been requested. In the British Museum every specimen 

 has been separately examined in company with Mr. George 

 Robert Gray, and much advantage has been gained by colla- 

 ting our nomenclature and synonymy with that of the Museum 

 lists. 



Jardine Hall, 



1st September, 1855. 



^^ 



