Recently published Ornithological Works. 343 



50. Stearns and Cones' s ' ISlew-England Bird-Life.' 



[New-England Bivil-Life, being a Manual of New-England Ornitlio- 

 log3^ Revised and edited from the Manuscript of Winfrid A. Stearns by 

 Dr. Elliott Cuues. Part I. Oseiues. 8vo. Boston: 1881.] 



This is a volume which will^ without douht^ he highly ap- 

 preciated by our transatlantic readers, though it may not, of 

 course, present the same amount of interest to the general 

 ornithologist. But a good local fauna is always acceptable; 

 and in this case the name of the editor gives us an ample 

 guarantee of the accuracy and completeness of the work. 

 The introduction comprises "general definitions/^ a short 

 treatise on the " preservation of specimens," and another 

 upon " faunal areas," all of which will be useful to the student. 

 A summary notice of previous writings on New-England orni- 

 thology follows, arranged in chronological order. In the 

 main portion of the text short characters are given of each 

 species, and full remai"ks as tooccurrence,'distribution, breed- 

 ing-habits, and other particulars, — ^just enough, in our opinion, 

 to render the work useful to the local naturalist, without 

 overloading its pages. The woodcuts, some of which seem 

 to our eyes to be old friends, are not, if we may presume to 

 say so, quite on a par with the general execution of the work. 

 Some of them are coarsely drawn, not to say ugly. 



51. Stone's 'Few Months in Neio Guinea.' 



[A few Months in New Guinea. By Octavius C. Stone, F.R.G.S. 

 London: 1880. 1 vol. sni. 8vo, 2;j8 pp.] 



M.Y. Stone passed about three months at Port Moresby and 

 its vicinity in 1875-76, Avich ISlessrs. Petterd and Broad bent 

 as collectors, and made a fine collection of birds, embracing 

 examples of 116 species, of which the names are given in the 

 appendix. The narrative of his residence in this strange land, 

 though not exciting, will be read with interest by naturalists. 

 Mr. Stone penetrated about 25 riiiles into the interior from 

 Port Moresby, and claims to be the first Englishman, after 

 Mr. Wallace, that had sliot a Paradise-bird {Paradisea rag- 

 gianu). We can fully synipatliize with him as, on this occa- 



