4t 6 Recent Literature. on 
Mr. Winge and his brother have published, are almost wholly unknown 
to- American readers. This is to be regretted, as a more admirably 
conceived and executed series of observations could scarcely be imagined, 
and the work might well be used as a model to be followed — with neces- 
sary modifications to suit local conditions—by local ornithological 
societies. With the exception of some of the earliest papers, all are 
arranged on essentially the same plan, so that a brief outline of the last 
will give an idea of the scope and contents of each number of the 
series. 
The report for 1896 occupies 72 pages, slightly more than the average, 
and is divided into six sections. The first of these contains the following 
miscellaneous introductory matter: A statement of the number of species 
(65) and specimens (1048) of birds sent by light keepers to the Zodlogical 
Museum at Copenhagen; a list of the lights (35) from which returns 
were received; a nominal list of the species represented, together with the 
number of specimens of each received, as well as the number killed where 
this is known; a statement of the total number of species recorded during 
the past ten years (134); the author’s personal observations on the 
movements of birds in the neighborhood of Copenhagen. The five 
sections into which the main body of the report is divided are arranged 
under headings which may be translated as follows: (1) Catalogue of 
the Birds sent in from the Lights; (2) Summary of the Nights on which 
Birds came to the Lights; (3) Various Observations from the Lights; 
(4) Unusual Occurrences in 1896; (5) Observations from the Faroes. 
In the first section the nominal list from the introduction is repeated, 
now, however, profusely annotated, always with the locality and date for 
each specimen sent in (for some species this alone occupies a page or 
more of text arranged chronologically and with the months alone para- 
graphed), and often with extended critical remarks of varied character. 
The second section consists of the keepers’ observations on weather 
conditions during the nights when birds were observed, together with 
their accounts of the actions of the birds themselves. In this section the 
matter is arranged chronologically, the various reports for each night 
grouped together. The keepers naturally refer to the birds by their 
common Danish names, but at the end of each day’s series of observations 
Mr. Winge gives technical names of such species as were forwarded to the 
Zodlogical Museum. Owing to the author’s peculiar views on the subject 
of nomenclature the vernacular names are to an American reader in many 
instances the more intelligible of the two. 
In the third section the keeper’s report from each light for the whole 
year is given entire. These reports are not classified alphabetically, but 
are arranged in a rough geographical sequence, beginning with the lights 
on the west coast and ending with those at the extreme southeast. Some 
of these reports cover more than three pages of running text and indicate 
a remarkable amount of interest on the part of the keepers. 
The fourth and fifth sections, which together occupy only four pages, 
