INTRODUCTION. 
Tux present Catalogue is only a preliminary to a more complete 
and extensive volume on the African birds in my collection, and 
may be considered nothing more than a rough list of the species 
in my possession, compiled for my own use, and for distribution 
among naturalists and collectors, in order to show what birds I 
have got and what desiderata are still wanting to make my list 
of African birds quite complete. I may mention that I am espe- 
cially anxious to procure complete series of every species; and in 
order to better accomplish this design, I have restricted my col- 
lection to the Orders Passeres and Picarie only ; and, considering 
the scarcity of collectors in Africa, I feel that I may congratulate 
myself in having got together such a large quantity of skins in 
less than two years. So much, however, remains to be done that 
I have been induced to publish this crude list in order that any 
one haying African birds to dispose of or exchange may inform 
me of the fact; and as I have duplicates of some of the rarer 
birds included in this volume, I shall be particularly glad to avail 
myself of any offers of exchange for species which I do not possess. 
I may add that I am always glad to take specimens if from any 
locality not mentioned in the present Catalogue; and I do not 
consider my series complete unless I have two adult males and 
females, and young birds in all stages of plumage. 
