INTRODUCTION. 79 



work, but too general for the British student, and 

 now very little known. Advancing farther, in 

 1766 Pennant's British Zoology was published, 

 bearing more of the character of an illustrated 

 work, for which descriptions were more amply 

 furnished in later editions of a lesser size. This 

 work cleared the discrepancies of many of the 

 synonims, and hinted at the cause of confusion in 

 others which could not then be ascertained by 

 examination or experiment. In 1789? " The Birds 

 of Great Britain," by William Lewin, was com- 

 menced. It is a quarto book, was published in 

 numbers, and professes to give a figure of every 

 species. The plates are etchings, probably done 

 by the author, in many instances shewing good 

 drawing, though in general they are careless ; 

 birds are figured, however, which may be use- 

 ful in assisting to make out what were really 

 described by some of the authors previous or about 

 the same period, under such titles as Lanner, 

 Spotted Falcon, Grey Falcon, Grey Eagle, &c. 

 Figures of many eggs are also given. The 

 descriptive part is written in French and English, 

 but is very short, and enters into none of the 

 doubtful or difficult points of ornithology. Within 

 a few years of the same period, (about 1799t) two 

 works of a more decidedly illustrative character 

 began to be published ^Donovan's and Graves 

 British Birds. They appeared in periodical 



