December 
published, entitled ‘* Key to North American 
Birds ’’ (Estes & Lauriat). The physical de- 
scriptions in this are extremely accurate, but 
the accounts of their habits are very brief. It 
is valuable as being the highest authority on all 
North American birds, and also contains much 
that is interesting in the more scientific aspects 
of the subject. 
If one is only dabbling in the study, he will 
probably content himself with learning merely 
the popular names of the species, with little re- 
gard to their relationships ; but if he is ambi- 
tious to have a distinct classification of them in 
his mind, he will find it of great assistance to 
master the scientific names as well, by which 
the relations of family, genus, and species will 
be kept constantly in view. This suggestion is 
not inconsistent with a previous criticism of 
current classification. Even a poor classifica- 
tion is infinitely better than none; and the 
present grouping is far from poor, as its mis- 
take (if a layman may be allowed to pass judg- 
ment) is probably not so much in asserting false 
relationships, as in adopting, to some extent, 
principles of classification which are not truly 
fundamental. And moreover, whether it be a 
weakness or not, there zs a great satisfaction, 
329 
