W. H. HUDSON'S WORKS. 



THE NATURALIST IN LA PLATA. 



By W. H. HUDSON, C.M.Z.S. 



Witli Illustrations by J. S.mit. Demy 8vo, i6j-. 



Mr. Alfred R. Wallace in "Natiire" says: — "This volume deserved a more distinctive 

 title, since it differs widely from the several works of other naturalists with which it may 

 be classed judging from the title-page alone. It is, in fact, so far as the present writer 

 knows, altogether unique among books on natural history. It is to be hoped that its success 

 will be proportional to its merits. What renders this work of such extreme value and 

 interest is, that it is not written by a traveller or a mere temporary resident, but by one 

 Lorn in the country, to whom its various tribes of beasts, birds, and insects have been 

 familiar from childhood ; who is imbued with love and admiration for every form of life ; 

 and who for twenty years has observed carefully and recorded accurately everything of 

 interest in the life-histories of the various species with which he has become acquainted. 

 When we add to this the fact that the writer of this volume is well acquiinted with the 

 literature, both old and new, bearing upon his subject; that he groups his facts and observa- 

 tions so as to throw light on obscure problems, and often adduces evidence calculated to 

 decide them ; and, in addition to all this, that the bock is written in an earnest spirit, and in 

 a clear and delightful style, it becomes evident that not all who attempt to follow in his 

 steps can hope to equal their forerunner. ... It remains only to add that the book is beauti- 

 fully got up, that the text is singularly free from misprints, and that the n\mierous illustrations 

 — photographic reproductions of drawings — are at once delicate and characteristic. Never 

 has the present writer derived so much pleasure and instruction from a book on the habits and 

 instincts of animals. He feels sure that it will long continue to be a storehouse of facts 

 and observations of the greatest value to the philosophical naturalist, while to the general 

 reader it will rank as the most interesting and delightful of modern books on natural 

 history." 



IDLE DAYS IN PATAGONIA. 



By W. H. HUDSON, C.AI.Z.S. 

 Illustrated by Alfred Hartley and J. Smix. Demy 8vo, 14.S. 



The Times says : — "'Idle Days in Patagonia' is a welcome and worthy addition to the 

 literature of travel and zoological observations in South America — already so rich by the 

 labours and writings of Bates, Darwin, and of ISIr. Hudson himself, who is not unworthy to 

 be named in this distinguished company. Mr. Hudson is a keen observer, an acute reasoner, 

 and a very attractive writer, and the many readers who have appreciated his ' Naturalist 

 in La Plata' will turn with eagerness to his 'Idle Days in Patagonia,' and will not be 

 disappointed." 



Ths Scotsman says : — " ' Idle Days in Patagonia ' is a corollary to the- author's ' Naturalist 

 in La Plata,' itself one of the most delightful books of travel and natural history that has 

 appeared for many years. In the new voUime Mr. Hudson presents himself almost more as 

 the poet than as the observer of wild nature. . . . Mr. Hudson's chief field of Patagonian 

 research was on the Rio Negro, whose valley is a strip of life and greenness drawn through 

 the dry and thorny wilderness. There is not a dull or an unsuggestive page in his book. 

 Personal adventiu'es there are not a few, but Mr. Hudson is almost more interesting wh^i he 

 turns aside to meditate upon, and illustrate from the rich store of his reading and experience, 

 such themes as bird music, migratory instincts, the 'quality of whiteness' in snow and other 

 natural objects, the mysteries enfolded in the sense of smelt, keenness of sight and cotour 

 sense in savage and in civilized men, and the predominating colour of the eye, and its 

 significance in different races of mankind." 



CHAPMAN & HALL, Limited, LONDON. 



