MCSEUMS. !» 



arriving there on the night of February 20th, 1899. The party left 

 Aden on March '2nd, and sixteen days later arrived in London. 



The results of the expedition may be summarised as follows: — Of 

 mammal- there arc examples of one or two species of rat, of one 

 species of civet cat, one species of bat, and a fine wild ass. Of birds 

 there are some ^00 specimens, 250 in skin and 50 in spirit, out of which 

 seven species have been described by the Director and Mr. Grant as 

 new to science. A large series of reptiles, described by Mr. 

 Boulenger, was acquired, which contains one genus and eight species 

 new to herpetology. Of the scorpions, millepedes, and spiders ob- 

 tained, Mr. Pocock has described one new genus and seven new 

 species in the former group, and one new genus and four new species 

 in the latter. Of the land-shells (numbering several thousands), 

 Mr. Edgar Smith has described eight species as new to his depart- 

 ment of zoology. Of insects there are several thousands, and Mr. 

 Ogilvie-Grant has described three new butterflies, one of them a 

 very beautiful and large Charaxes (C. velox), while Sir George 

 Hampson has diagnosed one new genus and fourteen new species of 

 moths. Mr. Burr, who has examined the Orthoptera, describes two 

 new genera and six new species : while Mr. Kirkaldy has described 

 the whole of the species of Hemiptera as new to science. Lord 

 Walsingham has found the whole of the Microhpidoptera to be new 

 to science. Professor B. Balfour, F.R.S., of Edinburgh, reports that 

 the plants, of which living specimens or ripe seeds, over 200 in 

 number, have been brought home, are of great scientific interest. 

 Their cultivation is being kindly undertaken by him in the Royal 

 Botanical Gardens at Edinburgh. Five species are new to science, 

 and eleven new to the botany of the Sokotran island cluster. Among 

 the most interesting may be mentioned species of Dorstenia, Adenium, 

 Begonia, Crinuin, Exacum, Ruellia, Demlroskyos, Hcemanthus, Helich- 

 rysiun, with Punica protopunica and Dracaena cinnabari. 



Ihe true Sokoteri of the mountains, the Mahri, were found to be 

 a light-complexioned Mahomedan people only poorly civilised, 

 living in caves or rude cyclopean huts, who possess but few utensils, 

 implements, or ornaments, and almost no weapons. The ethno- 

 graphical collections are consequently very small ; still, there have 



