THE 



CLASSIFICATION OF BIRDS, 



Colleagues, — 



It was at first my intention, in addressing you at the present 

 Congress on the Classification of Birds, to have laid before you a brief 

 history of Ornithology from the time of Linnaeus to the present day. I 

 found, however, that this has been so admirably done by Professor 

 Alfred Newton in his article ^^ Ornithology,-"^ published in the 18th 

 volume of the ' Encyclopaedia Britannica,-" that to have attempted such 

 a task would have involved me in the most barefaced plagiarism ; and, 

 even if this crime had been condoned, I should have been unable to 

 teach you anything that you have not already learnt from his more 

 talented pen. From the time of our great master, Linnaeus, and even 

 from that of the patriarchs of Science, Professor Newton traces the 

 gradual development of Ornithology; and not only do I find little 

 to add to this masterly treatise, but my very criticisms are there 

 forestalled, and I offer this tribute to the genius of my talented 

 countryman, not without a slight feeling of envy at the vigorous English 

 in which the memoir is composed, and the truly wonderful way in which 

 his facts are marshalled and arranged. With some regret, therefore, 

 I have laid aside my exposition of the various schemes of Classification 

 which I had intended to place before you, because I feel that I could not 

 say anything which Professor Newton has not said ten times better ; 

 and although his article may not be " milk for babes," by the earnest 

 devotee of Ornithology it will be read with intense interest. 



Since the article appeared in 1884, however, some considerable 

 additions to our knowledge have appeared in print, and I propose to-day 

 to invite your attention to these important events in what may be 

 deemed the " Evolutionary " period in the history of Ornithology. 



There seem to be three great Epochs in the history of our Science, 

 which we may call the Linnean Epoch, the Cuvierian Epoch, and 

 the Darwinian or Evolutionary Epoch. 



