218 
NALORE 
[JANUARY 7, 1904 
ments of the kind described in this work. In the first 
place the substances must be of a very high degree of 
purity, and as the author justly remarks, there is 
usually no evidence that this has been the case. In 
the second, the difficulties experienced in maintaining 
temperatures which do vary at a greater rate than 
0-002° per minute are enormous, and in dealing with 
substances enclosed in thick-walled capillary tubes, the 
temperature difference might be in some cases of the 
same order as the observed abnormalities were the 
temperature less steady. 
Whatever may be the fate of the new theories or 
the opinion as to the value of some of the experiments 
on which they are based, we are indebted to the author 
for collecting and arranging this mass of information, 
and for bringing the points at 1ssue so clearly before 
the scientific world. M. W. T. 
THE B.M. HAND-LIST OF BIRDS AND 
CATALOGUE OF EGGS. 
A Hand-List of the Genera and Species of Birds. 
Vol. iv. By R. B. Sharpe. Pp. xii+391. (London : 
Printed by Order of the Trustees, 1903.) 
Catalogue of the Collection of Birds’ Eggs in the 
British Museum (Nat. Hist.) Vol. iii. By E. W. 
Oates and S. G. Reid. Pp. x+349; 10 plates. 
(London : Printed by Order of the Trustees, 1903.) 
HEN the publication of the valuable ‘‘ Hand- 
List ’? was commenced, it was considered that 
the work would be completed in four volumes. The 
fourth volume is, however, before us, and the author’s 
task is far from being ended. This, as stated in the 
preface by the director of the Museum, is due to the 
unexpectedly large amount of space occupied by the 
Passeres (or Passeriformes, as the author prefers to 
call them), the number of named species of which 
group has been largely augmented during the pro- 
gress of the work. Accordingly, in order to keep the 
present one of moderate dimensions, it has been de- 
cided to complete the work in five, in place of four, 
volumes. The fifth and concluding volume, it is satis- 
factory to learn, is in a forward state, and will prob- 
ably be issued shortly. 
Our opinion of the high value of this work having 
been already expressed in our notices of the earlier 
volumes, it need not be repeated here, although we 
must again state that it would have been an improve- 
ment had the dates of publication of the generic names 
been introduced. We are, moreover, debarred from 
criticising the right of certain forms and groups to 
specific or generic rank, for the author in this in- 
stance has been bound to follow the arrangement 
adopted in the ‘‘ Catalogues.”’ 
All that remains open to us in the way of criticism 
in relation to geographical and topographical 
names, and even here there is not much with which 
to find fault. We venture to think, however, that the 
author uses the term ‘‘ Himalayas’ or ‘‘ Himalaya 
Mountains ’’ in somewhat too wide a sense. _ Possibly 
he may be justified in including Kashmir in the 
“Himalayas,” although scarcely in the ‘‘ Himalaya 
Mountains,’’ but there is no justification for calling 
NO. 1784. VOL. 69] 
is 
| 
Ladak (p. 147) a part of that system. Then, again, 
on p. 149 we find Murree (Murri) described as being in 
the eastern Himalaya. The author’s spelling of that 
name—as Murri—is, moreover, without justification. 
Many years ago the Indian Government decreed that 
the names of well-known places were to be spelt in the 
old-fashioned way. If this ruling be followed, Murree 
is the proper orthography; if, however, the Hunterian 
system be followed, it should be Mari; Dr. Sharpe’s 
““ Murri ’’ is neither one system nor the other. 
If the proof-reading had been done a little more 
carefully, certain discrepancies in the printing of 
names might also have been avoided. We should not 
have had, for instance, in one place Amur-land (p. 138) 
and in another Amurland (p. 339), or Somali Land 
(p. 12) and Somali-land (p. 293), or Szechuen (p. 8) 
and Sze-chuen (p. 322), or Damara Land (p. 22) and 
Damara-land (p. 331). Again, we believe that Gansu 
| (p. 321) and Kansu (p. 323) are one and the same. 
Finally, we do not like the phrase (p. 259) ‘* Arctic and 
Subarctic regions of both hemispheres,’’ which, 
although no doubt etymologically correct, sounds 
somewhat ambiguous. 
In regard to the third volume of the ‘‘ Catalogue of 
Birds’ Eggs,’’ the most notable feature is its dual 
authorship, or, to be precise, that it is written by Mr. 
E. W. Oates, assisted by Captain Savile Reid. The 
explanation of this is to be found in the preface, where 
it is stated that, owing to the ill-health of Mr. Oates, 
it had been found necessary to entrust the completion 
of the work to other hands. In the case of this volume 
the MS. was left in a forward state by Mr. Oates, and 
has been revised, together with the proofs, by Captain 
Reid, who has also incorporated in the text references 
to recently acquired specimens. 
The present volume commences with the parrots, 
and includes the whole of the so-called ‘“ picarian ” 
birds, together with a considerable number of the 
passerines, that is to say, from the Pteroptochida and 
Formicariidze to the bulbuls (Pyecnonotida). From 
what has been written above, it is scarcely necessary 
to add that the plan followed in this volume is the same 
as in its predecessors. Now that a change of author- 
ship has taken place, we may suggest that the value 
of the work would be decidedly increased if the 
characteristics of the eggs of the different families and 
genera were given in some detail in the volume yet 
to come. As it is, no regular rule seems to have been 
followed in this respect, and it is therefore quite im- 
possible to gather of what value are egg-characters 
in classification. 
The exquisite plates illustrating this volume are, 
like those in its predecessors, reproduced from sketches 
by Mr. H. Gronvold. Although the number of the 
plates is somewhat less than in vol. ii., the number of 
eggs figured is (owing to their smaller size) much 
greater. It may be added that small eggs, like those 
figured in this volume, form much more attractive 
octavo plates than is the case with the larger ones 
depicted in the earlier volumes, and whichever of the 
two authors is responsible for the grouping of the 
specimens figured he is to be congratulated, from an 
artistic point of view, on the result. As a rule, eggs 
