'Recently published Ornithological Works. 651 



to justify on the grounds that they added much to our 

 knowledge of British Birds ; but, on the whole, the work, 

 so far as it has gone, is extremely interesting, especially 

 the notices of the older authors — such, for instance, as 

 Richard Carew of East Antonie who flourished in the reign 

 of Queen Elizabeth, and wrote on the birds of Cornwall in 

 his survey of that county. Perhaps the earliest writer 

 mentioned is Dame Berners, who is said to have been 

 Prioress of Sopwell Nunnery in Hertfordshire, and is sup- 

 posed to have written the " Boke of St. Albans,^' containing 

 treatises on hawking, first printed at St. Albans in 1486. 



Whether intentionally or not, we find no mention of the 

 following modern authors, who appear to have contributed 

 articles to various periodicals of over a page in length : — 

 E. N. Bloomfield, M. Barr, W. Berry, S. E. Brock, J. J. 

 Beeston, and, finally, the Duchess of Bedford, who, one 

 would have thought, well deserved a mention. 



We shall look forward to the completion of this work 

 with the greatest pleasure, and shall hope to give it when 

 finished a more extended notice. 



Ridgivay on American Birds. 



[The Birds of North and Middle America : a descriptive catalogue. 

 By Robert Ridgway, Curator, Division of Birds. Part VII. Families 

 Cuculidae, Psittacidas, and Columbidae. Pp. xii+o43 ; 24 pis. Bulletin 

 of the United States National Museum, no. 50. Washington (Govern- 

 meut Printing Office), 1916. 8vo.] 



All workers in American ornithology appreciate the great 

 work which Mr. Ridgway has undertaken and which appears 

 volume by volume at intervals of a year or two. The first 

 of these, which was publislied in 1901, contained an account 

 of the Finches ; the eighth, now in the course of prepara- 

 tion, will contain the Shore-birds, Gulls, and Hawks. 

 Perhaps a ninth will complete the work. Descriptions of all 

 the birds inhabiting the North American continent are 

 given, as well as those of the West Indies and Galapagos. 

 A good number of extralimital species are also included, in 

 the keys in order to elucidate the relationships of the North 

 American forms treated of. 



