PEEFACE. 



" 6. The CoUection of the Royal N"aval Hospital of Haslar. 

 7. The Collection of FLshos of the Red 8ca, described by, and 

 prociu-ed from Dr. Riippell. 



" 8. The Collection of Fishes of Japan, described by Prof. Schlegel, 

 and received fi-om the Leyden Museum. 



" 9. The CoUection of Fishes of AmbojTia, described by Dr. Blceker, 

 and presented by liim to a charitable institution in HoUand. 



" 10. Fishes from the Cape, presented by Sir Andrew Smitli, M.D. 

 "11. The Collection of Freshwater Fishes of India, collected by 

 Dr. Griffith, described by Dr. MaccleUand, and presented by the 

 Hon. East India Company (mostly Cyprinoids). 



" 12. The Fishes of the Seas of Madoii-a and the Canai-y Islands, 

 described and presented by the Rev. R. T. Lowe. 



" 13. A Collection of the skulls and skeletons of German Fishes, 

 made by Dr. A. Giinther. 



" By the kindness of the late Dr. Horsfield, the types of the species 

 of Indian Fishes described by Dr. Cantor have been examined at the 

 Museum of the Hon. East India Company. 



" WTierever I have not had an oppoi-tunity of examimng the species, 

 and have been obHged to borrow the characters for a diagnosis from 

 another description, I have added the authority. There remain, 

 however, species which are either insufficiently described, or founded 

 on characters so sUglit that it is doubtful whether they wiU stand 

 as species,— or which are established from figures not executed by, 

 or under the inspection of, natui-alists : these are mentioned in notes,' 

 without a description, and with the synonymy only. WTioever has 

 gone through the labom- of examining such descriptions, of making the 

 best of them, and of determining fishes by them, ^^dU know the amount 

 of time fruitlessly spent, and will understand how to appreciate the 

 more recent accounts of Sleeker, which combine ^.ith the distinctness 

 of a diagnosis the accuracy of a description. 



" To conclude, I add some explanatory remarks on my way of taking 

 the measurements of specimens, of coimting the scales, &c. :— 

 " 1. The height of the hody is always its greatest depth. 

 " 2. The length of the head is the distance between the end of the 

 snout and the posterior extremity of the hong operculum. The length 

 of the snout is the cUstance between the end of the snout and the 

 vortical from thv anterior margin of the eye. 



