30 FISHES. 



4. C. B. Klunzinger, " Synopsis der Fisclie des Eotlien 

 Meers." (Wien. 1870-1, 8vo.) 



5. T. Cantor, " Catalogue of Malayan Fishes." (Calcutta, 

 1850, Svo.) 



6. F. Dmj, " The Fishes of India " (Lend. 1875, 4to, in 

 progress) ; contains an account of the freshwater and marine 

 species, and is not yet complete. 



7. A. GunthcT, " Die Fische der Siidsee." (Hamburg, 4to ; 

 from 1873, in progress.) 



Unsurpassed in activity, as regards the exploration of 

 the fish fauna of the East Indian Archipelago, is P. Blecker, a 

 surgeon in the service of the Dutch East Indian Government 

 (born 1819, died 1878), who, from the year 1840, for nearly 

 thirty years, amassed immense collections of the fishes of the 

 various islands, and described them in extremely numerous 

 papers, published chiefly in the Journals of the Batavian 

 Society. When his descriptions and the arrangement of his 

 materials evoked some criticism, it must be remembered 

 that, at the time when he commenced his labours, and for 

 many years afterwards, he stood alone, without the aid of 

 a previously named collection on which to base his first re- 

 searches, and without other works but that of Cuvier and 

 Valenciennes. He had to create for himself a method of dis- 

 tinguishing species and of describing them ; and afterwards 

 it would have been difficult for him to abandon his original 

 method and the principles by which he had been guided for 

 so many years. His desire of giving a new name to every 

 individual, to every small assemblage of species wherever 

 practicable, or of changing an old name, detracts not a little 

 from the satisfaction with which his works would be used 

 otherwise. It is also surprising that a man with his ana- 

 tomical knowledge and unusual facilities should have been 

 satisfied with the merely external examination of the speci- 

 mens. But none of his numerous articles contain anything 



