,^^ 



32 Captain Wardlaw Ramsay on 



tion, to be far nearer the Ciconiiform birds ; and in the un- 

 finished paper on Pelecanoides ah^eady alluded to_, the reasons 

 for this change were to have been givenj the shortness of 

 the cseca and the double great pectoral muscle being two 

 of the facts adduced in favour of it. 



In this imperfect sketch of my lamented friend's ornitho- 

 logical work, I hope I have succeeded in showing my fellow 

 members of the B. O. U. and others that Garrod's work and 

 generalizations did not depend upon any single character or 

 set of characters. No man probably has ever yet enjoyed 

 such opportunities or ample material for research in any 

 single group of animals as he did; and he had, in addition, 

 the advantage of all the work previously done on the subject, 

 the value of which was duly estimated by him in forming his 

 own conclusions. He came to the question of the classification 

 of birds quite fresh, with none of those prejudices on the sub- 

 ject which are nearly inevitable amongst those who have 

 worked at birds in their early days and so imbibed more or 

 fewer of the traditional ideas on the subject. In addition, 

 he had had all the advantages of a regular medical and scien- 

 tific education, and was therefore the less likely to be tempted 

 into rash generalizations or led away by crude theories. 

 This much is certain : no future attempt to classify birds can 

 omit- to take into consideration the contributions to this 

 subject ^ade by the brilliant genius of our late member, 

 which will always remain as a lasting tribute to his memory. 



II. — Descriptions of two neio Species of Birds. By Captain 

 K. G. Wardlaw Ramsay, F.Z.S. &c., 67tli Regiment. 



(Plate I.) 



Two apparently distinct species of the genus Analcipus, 

 Swainson, have hitherto been treated as identical, viz. the 

 Black-and-crimson Orioles of Sumatra and Java. 



The title A. cruentus (Wagler), Syst. Av. addit. sp. 9, has 

 been equally applied to the birds from both islands, as well 

 as to those from Borneo; but this title must be retained 



