293 Letters, Extracts, Notices, ^c. 



now transferred to the British Museum, is found to consist 

 of about 16j950 specimens, including 235 skeletons. It is 

 one of the most important that the Museum has ever re- 

 ceived, being particularly rich in species of the Paleearctic 

 region, which were not so well represented in the Museum 

 as those of most other parts of the world. It comprises a 

 series of almost every species of the Phasianidse known to 

 science, including many rare and costly specimens ; while as 

 regards the Thrushes, on a monograph of which Seebohm 

 was engaged at the time of his death, the collection is pro- 

 bably the finest in the world. Of the Wading-birds (Plovers 

 and Snipes) Seebohm had already presented many hundreds 

 of specimens, but the 1440 skins which remained in his 

 possession at his death formed the pick of his collection 

 and the material upon which he founded his work on the 

 Geographical Distribution of the Charadriidse. Besides the 

 many types contained in the collection, and the large series 

 from localities whence the Museum had not hitherto had the 

 opportunity of obtaining specimens, there are also many 

 historical collections, such as Swinhoe's from China, Piyer's 

 from Japan, Anderson's from India, a nearly perfect set of 

 the birds of Mount Kina-balu, Borneo, and the valuable series 

 obtained by Seebohm himself in the valleys of the Pett'hora 

 and the Yenesei. The collection of skeletons is also Jhe of 

 great importance, as the Museum collection was previously 

 quite insufficient for the scientific study of these objects. 



From an article contributed to ' Nature ' (Feb. 20th, 1896) 

 on this subject by Dr. Bowdler Sharpe, we extract the 

 following particulars : — 



" A few years ago Mr. Seebohm presented to the Museum 

 his collection of eggs, and, with this as a basis for the work, 

 the entire series of oological specimens in the Museum was 

 set in order and arranged under his own supervision by my 

 daughter, Emily Mary Sharpe, till it was found that, with 

 the Hume and Salvin-Godman collections, the British 

 Museum could boast of a series of 48,000 eggs of birds. 



" In the same generous spirit, he freely gave the type- 

 specimens of any birds he possessed, that the value of the 



