62 MR. O. THOMAS ON THE MAMMALS OF [Jan. 19, 



14. Mus BOWERSi, Anders.' 



a. 2' Machi, 8/5/81. 

 There is nothing in Dr. Anderson's description of his Mus bowersi 

 absolutely to present the present specimen belonging to it ; but the 

 differential characters of these Muridce, obvious enough on actual 

 comparison, are often so difficult of description that I should not be 

 suprised if the present were to turn out to be distinct from M. bowersi, 

 especially as the figure of that animal is by no means identical with 

 Mr. Hume's specimen, but is more similar to the species of the 

 group to which M. germaini, M.-Edw., belongs. However, there 

 can be no question that for the present the Manipur Rat should 

 rather be referred to M. bowersi than be described as new. Dr. 

 Anderson's type was obtained at Hotha, Yunnan, at an elevation of 

 4500 feet. 



15. Mus BERDMOREI, Bly. 



a, b. KopumThall, 11/2/81. 



These two specimens agree so closely with Blyth's short descrip- 

 tion ^ that I have no hesitation iu referring them to his species, 

 even though Blyth himself afterwards placed M. berdmorei as a 

 synonym of J7. rohustulus, Bly. { = M. rattus rufescens, Gr.), and 

 thougli the locality of Blyth's specimen, Mergui, Tenasserim, is so 

 distant and has so differeut a fauna from Manipur. 



The following description, based on Mr. Hume's two skins, will 

 serve to supplement the short and unsatisfactory one given by 

 Blyth :— 



General colour clear slaty grey, the tips of some of the hairs 

 brown and of others wliite, the mixture giving a very tinely grizzled 

 appearance to the back, in which no trace of yellow or fawn is present ; 

 chin, chest, and belly pure white. Ears outside brown, inside silvery ; 

 feet white ; tail bicolor, black above and white beneath for half its 

 length, the terminal half white all round ; the tip not pencilled. 



Fur of only one sort, stiff and hispid, but with no trace of spines. 

 Tail about the length of the head and body combined, or a little 

 shorter. Ears large and evenly rounded ; fifth hind toe reaching to 

 the middle of the first phalanx of the fourth. Foot-pads large and 

 prominent. 



Skull with its facial portion unusually long, nasals long and 

 narrow, surpassing in length the ascending premaxillary processes ; 

 supraorbital ridges well defined ; anterior plate of zygoma well 

 developed, very convex forward. Palate very long, the interval 

 between the back of the incisors and the molars yery much longer 

 than usual ; palatine foramina rather short, terminating about 1mm. 

 in front of m' ; posterior nares opening at the level of the hinder 

 edge of m^. 



Incisors pale yellow, lightening to white at their tips, directed 



1 Zool. Yunu. Exi3. p. 304, pi. xvii. (1878). 

 '■" J.A.S.B. xx.p. 173(1852). 



