102 MR. HAROLD SCHWANN ON [Feb. 6, 



name. The river was originally fringed with dense reeds, 

 providing excellent shelter for game of all kinds ; but in some 

 parts clearings have been made by the natives, and the gi'ound 

 drained and cultivated with corn and fruit-trees. 



The Molopo River, lying considerably to the north of Kuruman, 

 is dry most of the year, but in the rainy season may be as much 

 as 16 feet deep. The water remains in stagnant pools till about 

 mid- August, when it is gradually evaporated, leaving the river- 

 bed dry until next year. The country surrounding the river is 

 covered with dense camel-thorn * forest and patches of soft sand. 



The particular interest of this collection lies in its providing 

 the British Museum with many valuable topotypes of Dr. Smith's 

 now well-worn and rather faded specimens. His main collections, 

 described in the ' Illustrated Zoology of South Africa,' were made 

 at Kuruman and Old Latakoo, lying in S. lat. 27°, E. long. 24°, 

 a place not mai-ked on modern maps, but in his day of considerable 

 importance. As was to be expected, the prevailing colour of the 

 specimens is sandy and considerably lighter than that of animals 

 inhabiting well-wooded areas. Among the species now described 

 for the first time may be mentioned Oroddtira deserti, a pale- 

 coloured Shrew, probably a deseii form of Sundevall's argentata, 

 and Mus woosnami, a striking species both in colour and tooth- 

 structure. 



1, Rhinolophus dbnti Thos. 

 (5" . D. 7, 8. Kuruman. 



2, Rhinolophus augur K. And, 



d. W. 26, 28, 29; D. 124, 125, 126, 127, $. 127. 

 Kuruman, 



" I found some hundreds of these Bats hanging on the rocks 

 in the shaft of an old gold-mine near Kuruman fountain. Of 

 the fifteen that I caught, curiously enough, only one was a female. 

 These Bats are common here, but seem to be found only in the 

 caves, as I have seen none about the houses or old mission 

 buildings here,"— ^, B. W. 



3, Nycteris thebaic a Geofi", 

 cS . D. 15. Kuruman. 



4, Yespertilio capensis Smith, 



6 . D. 133, 2 ■■ W. 56. Kuruman, 



" I caught this little brown Bat in an old mission building, 

 Jt is not an uncommon species here." — B, B. IF, 



5, MiNIOPTERUS SCHREIBERSil Kuhl. 



<S , W, 30. Kuruman. 

 "• This little black Bat with a very long tail was caught at night 



* So called from the Dutcli na^e for the Giraffe, " kameelpardel," which is ver3- 

 Jfoi[id of thes? buslies, 



