Mr. 0. Thomas on a new Rat from China. 113 



P. Bewitsonij Moore. The blue area as large as in the 

 former, occupying the entire discoidal cell of the fore wing, 

 and in the submedian interspace all but reaching the outer 

 margin. There are two blue apical spots as in Hewitsoni, 

 but no black spot in the submedian interspace as in most 

 specimens of that species, nor even the black line on the sub- 

 median vein as in typical pleurata. In the hind wing the 

 blue area occupies the discoidal cell and extends a little above 

 the radial. The outer margin of the hind wing is narrowly 

 black, and there are, as in pleurata, traces of marginal and 

 submarginal rows of black markings. 



Below, the markings much resemble those of pleurata, but 

 are more indistinct, more parallel, and on a pale ground. 



X. Description of a new Rat from China. 

 By OLDFIELD THOMAS. 



AMONG a collection made at Kuatun, N.W. Fokien, and 

 presented to the National Museum by Messrs. J. de La Touche 

 and C. B. Hickett, there occur three specimens of a fine large 

 rat as large as Mus Edwardsi, Thos., found at the same 

 locality, but quite different from that and more nearly allied 

 to the Burmese Mus Bower si, And. It is, however, clearly 

 distinct, and may be called 



Mus Latoucheij sp. n. 



Size very large. Upper surface uniformly clear grizzled 

 grey, without tinge of yellow ; the fur composed of grey 

 hairs intermixed with slender, flattened, white, brown-tipped 

 spines, not numerous or stiff enough to make the fur feel 

 really spinous. Under surface pure white or yellowish white 

 throughout, the line of demarcation on sides not very sharply 

 defined. Ears large, evenly rounded. Hands white above, 

 the fingers almost naked. Feet greyish proximally, white on 

 the digits. Tail about as long as the head and body, its 

 scales averaging about ten to the centimetre, very thinly 

 haired, uniformly brown above and below, the extreme tip 

 white. 



Skull, in proportion to the size of the animal, rather lightly 

 built. Compared to that of Mus Bowersi the nasals are more 

 square-ended behind, the line of the fronto-premaxillary and 

 fronto-nasal sutures runs straight across from side to side 



Ann. & Mag. N. Hist. Ser. 6. Vol. xx. 8 



