ON THE EODENTS OF THE GENUS SMINTHUS IN KASHMIR. 



By Frederick W. True, 



Curator of the Department of Mavimals. 



On an earlierpage of the present volume of the Proceedings,* I referred 

 two specimens of Sminthus, collected in central Kashmir by Dr, Abbott, 

 to the species recently described by Dr. Biicliner,t under the name of 

 /S'. concolor. I have since had access to Mr. Thomas' description of a 

 new species (*S'. leathemi) from Wardwan,| and find it necessary to 

 revise my inevious statements. I am now of the opinion that Dr. 

 Abbott's specimens should be regarded as distinct from both S. concolor 

 and S, leathemi. It may be known from the following description : 



• 



SMINTHUS FLAVUS, new species. 



Ears prominent. Tail one and one-half times as loug as the head and 

 body. Claws moderate. The thumb with an elongated convex nail. 



Upper surfaces dull ochraceous gray, which color is i)roduced by the 

 mingling of the gray of the basal portion of the uuder fur, the ocher- 

 color of its tips and the black ot the longer and coarser hair. On the 

 sides the coarse black hairs become less and less abundant, leaving the 

 color nearly pure ochraceous yellow. Upper lip and all under suriaces 

 cream white, the hair being of this color at the extremities and gray 

 at the base. Sides and top of muzzle, and also the ears, chocolate- 

 brown. Backs of the forefeet dusky brown; toes white. Hind feet 

 entirely white. Tail bicolored, brown above and white below, except 

 in the terminal 12 or 15 mm., where it is brown both above and below. 

 Claws white. 



Nasal bones of the skull long. Interparietal a little more than twice 

 as wide as loug. Incisive foramina ending posteriorly opposite the 

 middle of the premolar. Posterior extremity of the palate on a line 

 with the hinder margin of the last molar, and furnished Avitli a median 

 spinous projection. 



* Proc. U. S. Nat. Mns., xvii, 1894, p. 9. 

 t Bull. Acad, Sci, St. Petersburg, uew ser., in, 1892, p, 107. 

 t Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 6th series, xi, 1893, p. 184. 

 Proceedings of tlie U. S. National Museum, Vol. XVII— No. 1004. 



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