The Zoologist— April, 1874, 3927 



birds bathe on the wing, and generally take three or four dips, hovering, 

 between times, about three inches above the surface. Sometimes, when the 

 last- mentioned species was suspended over the water, its rapidly vibrating 

 wings looking like a mere film, a white speck, like a snow-flake, shot down 

 the valley swift as the flight of an arrow, and stopped suddenly over the 

 pool, startling the emerald-throat, and frightening it up amongst the over- 

 hanging branches. The intruder was the white-cap {Microchera parvirostris 

 of Laurent), the smallest of thirteen diS'ereut kinds of humming-birds that 

 I noticed around Santo Domingo, being only a little more than two inches 

 and a half in length, including the bill ; but it was very pugnacious, and I have 

 often seen it drive some of the larger birds away from a flowering tree. Its 

 body is purplish red, with green reflections, the front of its head flat, and 

 pearly white, and, when flying towards one, its white head is the only part 

 seen. Sometimes the green-throat would hold its ground, and then it was 

 comical to see them hovering over the water, jerking round from side to 

 side, eyeing each other suspiciously, the one determining to dip, but appa- 

 rently afraid to do so, for fear the other would take a mean advantage, and 

 do it some mischief whilst under water ; though what harm was possible 

 I could not see, as there were no clothes to steal. I have seen timid bathers 

 acting just like the birds, though from a different cause, bobbing down 

 towards the water, but afraid to dip overhead ; and the idea of comicality 

 arose, as it does in most of the ludicrous actions of animals, from their 

 resemblance to those of mankind." — P. 137. 



I will next turn to one of Mr, Belt's " theories." After alluding 

 to Bates's speculations on the future of the human race, especially 

 to his idea that under the equator man will eventually attain the 

 highest form of perfection, Mr, Belt continues — 



" I have had similar thoughts when riding over hundreds of miles of fertile 

 savannahs in Central America, where an everlasting summer and fertile land 

 yield a harvest of fruits and grain all the year round — where it is not even 

 necessary ' to tickle the ground with a plough to make it laugh with a 

 harvest.' But thinking over the cause of the degeneracy of the Spaniards 

 and Indians, I am led to believe that in climes where man has to battle 

 with Nature for his food, not take it from her hands as a gift ; where he is 

 a worker, and not a pauper ; where hard winters kill off the weak and brace 

 up the strong ; there only is that selection at work that keeps the human 

 race advancing, and prevents it retrograding, now that Mars has been 

 dethroned, and Vulcan set on high." — P. 17'3. 



This is diametrically opposed to the views expressed by Mr.Bates. 

 Mr. Belt has not failed to notice the degenerated and degenerating 

 condition of the American Spaniards and American Indians, and 



