^°*i9^if ^^] Notes and News. 279 



NOTES AND NEWS. 



Only those who have had occasion to pursue their studies in the Ornitho- 

 logical rooms of the United States National Museum have realized what 

 an enormous work Dr. Charles W. Richmond has accomplished in his 

 spare moments during the past fifteen years, in preparing a card catalogue 

 of the described species of birds. The student of North American birds 

 with numerous comprehensive works and the A. O. U. Check-List at his 

 elbow, has no conception of the difficulties that confront one who is study- 

 ing the birds of South America, the East Indies, or Africa. Even with the 

 literature accessible, — and there are few libraries in America that approach 

 completeness, there are numerous questions of date of pubhcation, first 

 place of publication etc., which require much expenditure of valuable 

 time for their solution and which are being worked out over and over again 

 by different individuals, not always, unfortunately, with uniform results. 

 Dr. Richmond's cards contain the actual date of publication, the original 

 reference and spelhng, type locaHty and location of the type specimen 

 when indicated, all verified by his personal investigations. The periodicals 

 and single volumes have been studied page by page and many new names 

 proposed years ago and hitherto overlooked have been brought to light. 



Some 30,000 cards have been completed, together with about 10,000 

 additional cards containing fragmentary data supplementing earlier cards 

 or referring to those not yet prepared. Dr. Richmond estimates that the 

 catalogue is at least three-fifths completed. 



From what has already been said the value of such a list, prepared as 

 it is by a skilled ornithologist, and the amount of time that the student 

 saves who has access to it, can perhaps be appreciated. The labor in- 

 volved in its preparation probably no one but its author will ever appreciate ! 



With the completion of his task practically assured Dr. Richmond has 

 in mind the possibility of having all the future cards printed in duplicate 

 or rather in a limited number of sets according to the demand that there 

 might be for them and at the same time to reprint those already completed, 

 beginning with the rarer and less accessible publications, so that such 

 institutions as cared to cooperate with him would in a few years possess a 

 complete card catalogue of the described species of birds of the world. 



The benefit that such an unselfish undertaking would prove to the 

 ornithology of the future can hardly be estimated, and should Dr. Rich- 

 mond seriously consider the project he should receive every assistance 

 and support. 



