62 



July 28, 1840. 



Professor Owen in the Chair. 



A letter from Capt. Christopher Smith, of H. M. Brig- ' Star,' was 

 read: it is dated July 20, 1840, and refers to two living Agoutis 

 which that gentleman begged to present to the Society. The letter 

 moreover states that he had collected a few specimens of Natural 

 History, which he would take an early opportunity of forwarding 

 for the Society's Museum. 



Mr. Leadbeater exhibited an extensive collection of Birds, most of 

 which were rare species from the various islands of the Indian Archi- 

 pelago. 



Mr. Cuming exhibited some specimens of Quadrupeds, which he 

 had procured during his stay at Malacca ; they consisted of two spe- 

 cimens of Semnopithecus obsczirus, which species, Mr. Cuming states, 

 is subject to great variation in its colouring, one specimen of Felis 

 marmorata, and one of Rhizomys Sinensis. 



Mr. Cuming's notes relating to the last-mentioned animal state 

 that the specimen was a male, and before it was skinned afforded the 

 following dimensions : length from the tip of the nose to the root of 

 the tail, 15 inches; of tail, 6 inches; girth behind the shoulders, 8 

 inches. The animal lives on the roots of bamboos, under which it 

 burrows ; the eyes are very small, and of a black colour, 



Mr. Blyth read his paper entitled " An Amended List of the Spe- 

 cies of the genus Ovis." 



" The arrival of various spoils of different species of wild sheep," 

 remarks the author, " since my memoir upon this genus of animals 

 was read before the Society, enables me now to clear up several 

 points which I formerly left as doubtful, as well as to include some 

 additional species in the catalogue, and to indicate still more as pro- 

 bably distinct, and therefore desiderata to which the attention of 

 travellers and others should be directed. 



" 1 . Ovis Polii, nobis (the Pamir Sheep) . In the narrative of 

 the celebrated Venetian traveller, Marco Polo, we read (in Mars- 

 den's edition, p. 142) that upon the elevated plain of Pamir, east- 

 ward of Bokhara, and which is 16,000 feet above the sea-level, ' wild 

 animals are met with in great numbers, particularly sheep of a large 

 size, ha\T[ng horns three, four, and even six palms in length. The 

 shepherds form ladles and vessels of them for holding their victuals. 

 They also construct fences for enclosing their cattle, and securing 

 them against the wolves, with which they say the country is infested, 

 and which likewise destroy many of the wild sheep or goats (mou- 



