LETTER OB TRANSMITTAL: 
U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, 
Washington, D. C., July 5, 1902. 
Str: I have the honor to transmit herewith, as No. 23 of North 
American Fauna, a technical work on the generic names of mammals, 
by my assistant, Dr. Theodore Sherman Palmer. It consists of three 
parts: (1) An annotated list of the generic names of mammals; (2) an 
alphabetical list of the families of mammals, and (3) a classified list of 
the generic names, arranged by orders and families. 
The first part was begun by me in 1884, but owing to pressure of 
other work I was unable to carry it on, and turned it over to Dr. 
Palmer for completion. The second and third parts are wholly 
Dr. Palmer's. 
Respectfully, C. Hart Merriam, 
Chief, Biological Survey. 
Hon. JAwEs Wirsow, 
Secretary of Agriculture. 
