1897.] NEW AFRICAIf MAMMALS. 431 



mixed greyish and white, the hairs slaty grey basally, yellowish 

 white terminally. Scrotum orange-yellow. No black mai'kings 

 on muzzle, round eyes, or on ears, all being equally rufous. The 

 whiskers are, however, black. Tail brilliant i-ufous throughout, 

 some of the hairs of the upper surface subterminaily ringed with 

 black. 



Skull elongate, smoothly rounded, with short backwardly directed 

 postorbital processes. Nasals much expanded behind, their pos- 

 terior breadth greater than their anterior. Two upper premolars 

 present. 



Dimensions of the type, an adult male, in skin : — 



Head and body 258 mm. ; tail imperfect (of another specimen, 

 without hairs (c.) 198, with hairs 260) ; hind foot, moistened, 52-5 ; 

 ear 19-5. 



Skull — greatest length 56 ; greatest breadth 31"7 ; nasals, length 

 15, breadth anteriorly 8, posteriorly 10'3 ; tip to tip of postorbital 

 processes 23. 



Hah. Kombe Forest, Masuku Eange, 7000 feet. 



Tyjje. c? . Collected by Mr. A. Whyte, July 1896. 



This splendid Squirrel, beside which even X. palliatus looked 

 almost dull, was really not closely allied to that animal, but by the 

 general shape of its skidl and the expansion of its nasals pos- 

 teriorly seemed to show a nearer relationship to X. cepapi and 

 X. pyrrhopus. In any case, however, the alliance was a very distant 

 one, and no detailed comparison with these or other species 

 was required to prove its entire distinctness from anything hitherto 

 known. 



Saccostomus elbgans, sp. n. 



Colour very much as in an Upper Shire specimen of S. canipestfis, 

 from which it differs in its much longer and narrower skull, 

 slenderer muzzle, less widely open anteorbital foramina, narrower 

 interorbital region, straight front edge of interparietal, and small 

 palatal foramina, which do not reach to the front edge of m.^ 



In some of these cranial characters S. elegans agreed with 

 S. mashome, De Wint., but differed from that species in its buffy or 

 isabelUne colour, instead of the slaty grey which is so peculiar in 

 that form. 



Dimensions of the type, in skin, female : — 



Head and body 144 mm. ; tail 38 ; hind foot 18*8 ; ear 15. 



Skull — greatest length from tip of nasals to occiput 32'5 : 

 nasals 13-3 x 3'7 ; interorbital breadth 4-2 ; interparietal 3'2 x 6'4 ; 

 diastema 10-1 ; palatal foramina 6 X 2-5 ; length of upper molar 

 series 4"3. 



Hab. Karonga, Lake Nyasa. 



MXTS MTIK^, sp. n. 



Similar in size and proportions to M. chrysophiliis, De Wint., 

 which also occurs on the plateau, but the general colour much 

 browner, duller, and less yellow. The back grizzled black and 



29* 



