342 Annals of the Carnegie Museum. 



This was followed by a postal card, dated September lo, 1915, upon 

 which he said : " I am sending you the Audubon Shearwater sternum 

 by this mail. Yes, it is a perfect sternum, shoulder-girdle and all. 

 This was, and still is, my method of collecting sternums of Aves, of 

 which I have a large number of many species. Shall be glad to see 

 your paper." Finally, Professor Maynard sent me the following 

 letter, under date of September 17, 1915: 



" When I collected the Shearwater from which the sternum was 

 taken that I sent to you the species was known as Pitffinits obscuriis 

 Gm. (see Coues Key. 1894, p. 786). I presume that it was then con- 

 sidered the same as the Indian Ocean species. It was, however, sep- 

 arated by Finsch in 1872 and named P. Audiihoni (P. Z. S., 1872, iii). 



" Now it seems, as you say, we must call it Puffinus Ihermmicri. 



" You will find an account of the soft parts of a portion of the 

 internal structure in my Birds of Eastern North America, Revised 

 Edition 1897, P- 35- This book is, I think, in the Smithsonian or 

 National Museum library. 



" Did I tell you in my last that I shall be glad to have you clean 

 that sternum? I intended to have done so, if I did not. 



" I shall be pleased to read your opinion regarding the identity of 

 the " Cahow " of Bermuda in your forthcoming paper. 



" If I do go to the Bahamas this coming spring I will try and get 

 a skeleton or two of x\udubon's Shearwater. 



" Very truly yours, 



[Signed] C. J. Maynard." 



Desiring to measure the wing and leg bones in the case of certain 

 petrels as best I could, and having been informed by Doctor Richmond 

 that Prof. Leverett M. Loomis, of the California Academy of Sci- 

 ences, had had in his possession for study for a very long time the 

 unique skins of Aisfrclata caribhcca and ^. hasitafa, I wrote him, 

 requesting him to obtain the aforesaid desired lengths of the ulnse 

 and tarso-metatarsi for me. The skins in question belonged to the 

 U. S. National Museum, and are of particular value, as it is very 

 probable that both species are now to be numbered among the extinct 

 birds of America. In reply I received the following communication : 



