I. THE ROBIN. 9 



5. You may fancy this is caricature ; but the abyss 

 of confusion produced by modern science in nomen- 

 clature, and the utter void of the abyss when you 

 plunge into it after any one useful fact, surpass all 

 caricature. I have in my hand thirteen plates of 

 thirteen species of eagles ; eagles all, or hawks all, 

 or falcons all — whichever name you choose for the 

 great race of the hook-headed birds of prey — 

 sgme so like that you can't tell the one from the 

 other, at the distance at which I show them to you, 

 all absolutely alike in their eagle or falcon character, 

 having, every one, the falx for its beak, and every 

 one, flesh for its prey. Do you suppose the unhappy 

 student is to be allowed to call them all eagles, or all 

 falcons, to begin with, as would be the first condition 

 of a wise nomenclature, establishing resemblance by 

 specific name, before marking variation by individual 

 name .'' No such luck. I hold you up the plates of 

 the thirteen birds one by one, and read you their 

 names off the back : — 



The first is an Aquila. 



The second, a Halisetus. 



The third, a Milvus. 



The fourth, a Pandion. 



The fifth, an Astur. 



The sixth, a Falco. 



The seventh, a Pernis. 



