Marcu, 1893. SOME NEW BOOKS. 219 
mode of life, of the Black Vulture, the Upland Goose, and the 
Crested Tinamou, as well as of several of the smaller birds. Perhaps 
the most generally interesting chapter in the whole book is that 
on ‘“ Bird-music,” in the course of which the author points out how 
impossible it is to convey any adequate idea of the songs of birds by 
mere description. He illustrates this by mentioning that before he 
had ever visited England he was anxious to obtain some idea of the 
nature of the melody of the British songsters, but that all his efforts 
were in vain. And the description of his delight at first hearing the 
music of our English fields and groves ought to remind us all how 
little we really appreciate, as a rule, the natural charms of our own 
land. Possibly some further development of the phonograph may 
be the ultimate means by which “ Bird-music” may be rendered 
comprehensible to those who cannot hear it at first hand, as we 
greatly doubt if this can ever be effected by any merely graphic 
method. 
Of scarcely less interest is the author’s description of the ways of 
the leaf-bearing ants, on pp. 140-141 ; while those whose special study 
is Mammals will not fail to notice the observations on the burrowing 
Tuco-tuco (Ctenomys) and the Mara (Dolichotis). As the author well 
remarks, it is very curious to find in a burrowing animal the eyes of 
so large a size as they are in the former of these two rodents. 
In commending this book to the attention ‘of our readers, we 
may express a hope that it will ere long be followed by others from 
the same ready pen. 
THe GREAT SEA-SERPENT: An Historical and Critical Treatise. With the reports 
of 187 appearances (including those of the appendix), the suppositions and 
suggestions of scientific and non-scientific persons, and the Author’s conclusions. 
With 82 illustrations. By A. C. Oudemans, Jzn. Published by the Author, 
October, 1892. London: Luyac & Co. 
Of this work we give two reviews, the one by a naturalist, the 
other by a literary contributor. 
I. 
Tue author in his preface compares his work with that of Chladni on 
meteoric stones. Chladni, he says, opened the eyes of unbelievers by 
collecting and comparing all accounts of meteoric stones up to the 
nineteenth century. Meteoric stones were again found and were 
proved to be quite different from terrestrial stones. Unfortunately 
for the argument, remarkably few sea-serpents have been caught, and 
those few have proved to be not at all different from well-known 
objects. 
We confess to have found Oudemans’ book exceedingly dul 
reading. 379 pages are devoted to genuine or invented accounts of 
various appearances; 110 to explanations hitherto given. No doubt 
it is useful to have the literature of the subject compiled, but the 
author might have contented himself with a much greater compression 
of the interminable newspaper discussions, evidence on oath of sailors 
and fishermen, and so forth. We do not see that he advances at all 
beyond Mr. Hoyle’s bright and short account of the sea-serpent in the 
‘* Encyclopedia Britannica.” A number of the records are pure 
myths; some others are due to mistaken observations of floating sea- 
weed ; porpoises swimming in a row; basking sharks, and so forth. 
The persistent records from the Norwegian coasts are most probably 
explained by the existence of gigantic cuttle-fish ; and there remains 
