viii INTRODUCTION 



the reach of those who cannot aifoid to pay more 

 than forty shillings for their desideratum. It is 

 obvious that if the whole bird were figured, in- 

 stead of merely the head and foot as here shown, 

 it would be not only impossible to produce the 

 work in one volume, but impossible also to pro- 

 duce it at the price. Such a departure from the 

 plan would defeat the object in view. Equally 

 impossible has it been found to deal with many 

 a point of interest except by reference to volumes 

 and pages wherein information on the subject may 

 be found. The author has had constantly to bear 

 in mind that his volume is intended merely as a 

 "Handbook" and not a " Histoiy." Had it been 

 otherwise, and the cost of production of no import- 

 ance, it is certain that the materials which have 

 been collected during the past thirty years, and 

 now only partially utilised, would have sufficed to 

 fill three goodly volumes. In view, however, of 

 the admirable fourth edition of Yarrell's " British 

 Birds," which was not completed until 1885, Mr. 

 Saunders' excellent "Manual," now in a second 

 edition, and the late Mr. Seebohra's volumes on 

 " British Birds and their Eggs," such amplification 

 seemed uncalled for, and accordingly the contents 

 of the present volume have been compressed. 

 Nevertheless the number of pages in the first 

 edition has been trebled, and the plates have been 

 added, so that the difference in bulk is consider- 

 able. In a great measure this has been due to 



