THE STRUTHIONIDAR. 463 - 
tempted to illustrate the application of my principles to one family 
throughout its details, I now propose in a few occasional papers to 
examine the true position and relations of some other families, 
especially where there exist acknowledged difficulties or where my judg- 
ment, after giving all the consideration I could to the subject, differs 
from that of the writers upon whom 1] usually most rely, and whose 
opinions seem to me deserving of the highest respect. This evening I 
have to offer a note on the family Struthionidae—the Ostrich tribe— 
which some have referred to thé Rasores (poultry and game birds), 
others to the GraLuatorus (stilted or wading birds), whilst many 
have considered them as entitled to form an Order of themselves, 
which has been called StrurHiones by some, by others CursorEs 
(or running birds). I would endeavour to arrive at a rational and 
satisfactory settlement of this controversy, marking how the system I 
adopt removes the chief difficulty ; and I would also examine the ex- 
tent of the family Struthionidae and the sub-families of which it is 
made up, suggesting some affinities not hitherto noted which seem to 
me not a little interesting, and which harmonize beautifully with the 
system of a set of different developments of a common type, each of 
which is analogous with one of the co-ordinate types forming the 
larger groups, of which the whole family is one of the members. 
The beak, the general habits and the nidification of the Ostrich and 
its allies remind us so strongly of the Rasorial birds, that we see at 
once that the reference of them to the Grallatores depends entirely on 
the length of their legs, the great strength of which is, however, some- 
what unlike the Waders generally. Jam disposed to conclude that 
those who have arranged the Struthionidae among the Rasores have 
been guided by real and important analogies; that those who have 
placed them among the Grallatores have attached undue importance 
to a single character which really only indicates the position of this in 
reference to the other families of Rasores ; and those who have elevated 
this group to the rank of one of their great orders of Birds have 
chiefly manifested their hesitation between the other two views, by 
taking a sort of intermediate position. A slight view of the limits 
and genuine members of the Rasorial order may, perhaps, set the sub- 
ject in a clearer light. 
It is well known that by many high authorities the pigeons (Colum- 
bidae) are counted amongst Rasorial birds, and, without doubt, they 
have very striking Rasorial characters in the figure of the beak, the 
