14 



and representing possibly the remains of an ancestral type, from which 

 the Accipitres and Herodiones have branched off at an early epoch. 



The Herodiones contain the Arde<p, Ciconia, and Platalea. 



The Phoenicopteri so much resemble the Anseres in certain points 

 that they should form a Suborder of that group, equal in value to the 

 true Anseres and the Palamedece. 



The Accipitres would embrace the Cathartidce, Vulturida, Falconidce, 

 and the Serpentariidce, but whether Cariama goes here or not must 

 remain an open question. 



The Striges are not so nearly alHed to the Accipitres as most people 

 would believe, and should stand independently of that Order, to which 

 the Psittaci would be perhaps the nearest allies. The Striges would 

 find their closest relations in the Picmia, especially with Steatornis, 

 which has branched off from a common ancestor with the Owls. 



The Picaria represent '' chaos," and until the Order has been more 

 sufficiently studied, Professor Newton declines to meddle with it, nor 

 would he, at the time of writing, grant to the Woodpeckers the high 

 position of Sauroffnathce claimed for them by Professor Parker. 



The Coccygomorphce he has already alluded to among the " groups 

 allied to Gallincej" where Opisthuconius indicates an old line of descent, 

 now almost obliterated, in the direction of the Musophagida, and thence 

 to the Coccygomorphce, following Huxley. 



Finally, in the arrangement of the Passeres, Professor Newton 

 acknowledges the value of the work done by Garrod and Forbes, and 

 adopts in the main their conclusions and those of Sclater. 



The Passeres would therefore include three main Suborders, viz. : — 

 the Oligomyodi, the Tracheophonce, the abnormal Acromyodi or Pseud- 

 oscines [Atrichiidce and Menuridce), and finally the normal Acromyodi 

 or true Oscines. At the head of the latter he would put the Corvidce 

 in place of the Turdida. 



Such is a brief outline of Professor Newton's scheme of classification 

 in 1884, and if he had not Avarned us that he considered that a phylo- 

 genetic scheme was at that time impracticable, I should have said that 

 a highly instructive one could have been drawn up from the details 

 which he had himself got together in the memoir from which every 

 ornithologist can draw inspiration and ideas. 



Professor Newton's article is apparently designed to bring down the 

 history of Ornithology to the year in which it was published, but a 

 supplement is necessary, for he makes no reference whatever to the 

 'Catalogue of Birds,' then in course of publication by the British Museum, 

 although at least eight volumes had been published when he wrote in 

 the ' Encyclopsedia.' The first volume, containing a monographic 

 revision, with descriptions and full synonymy, of the Diurnal Accipitres, 

 was published by the Trustees in 1874. That this was considered an 



