Letters, Extracts, and Notes. 717 



plan has been successfully carried out, we trust that the inde- 

 fatigable explorer will come home, and devote his attention 

 to his fine collection of Birds, the result of his two great 

 journeys, which await his arrival at South Kensington. 



The proposed Introduction of the "^American Robin" into 

 England. — We believe that we are in agreement with the 

 wishes of the large majority of ornithologists when we 

 express a hope that the attempts to introduce the "American 

 Robin " (Turdus miffratorius) into this country will not 

 succeed. We agree with the Editor of ' Nature ' (Aug. 25th, 

 1909) that the experiment is ''of a very interesting cha- 

 racter," and that the bird in question is " cheery/' its song 

 "kill 'em, cure 'em, give 'em physic" being agreeable, 

 except, perhaps, to the vendors of patent medicines. But 

 our English gardens are fortunately the habitation of several 

 melodious species of Thrush, and we should be much grieved 

 if our Song-Thrushes and Blackbirds were displaced by 

 intruders from other parts of the world. We know well 

 what has happened in many parts of the globe where similar 

 " interesting experiments " have succeeded, and where English 

 Sparrows and Indian Mynahs have exterminated the native 

 birds. According to our contemporary, seventeen American 

 Robins turned out this spring near Guildford mated immedi- 

 ately, and commenced nest-building almost at once, and 

 " now number between forty and fifty." Fears are enter- 

 tained, it is said, that these birds may have retained their 

 " migratory instinct/' and on the approach of winter will 

 leave England and become " hopelessly dispersed." This, in 

 our opinion, would be the best thing that could happen. 

 We prefer our Turdus merula and T. musicus to T. migra- 

 torius, in spite of its " cheeriness." 



The Auckland Museum, New Zealand. — Mr. Lewis T. 

 Griffin, who was for about two years (under Mr. W. L, 

 Sclater) taxidermist at the Cape Museum, and afterwards 

 in a similar situation at the Transvaal Museum, Pretoria, 



