332 MR. OLDFIELD THOMAS OK [Nov. 28,, 



further the cause of zoological exploration, to bear the cost of a 

 collector working systematically through the islands of the Far 

 East, and I now have to give an account of the Mammals obtained 

 by that collector — Mr. Malcolm P. Anderson — in Japan, where 

 he has begun his labours. 



The selection of Japan for the first field of Mr. Anderson's work 

 was almost a necessity, for practically nothing has been done 

 with regard to the Mammalogy of that country since the time 

 of Siebold and Burger, whose collections resulted in Temminck's 

 great work of 1842-45, while authentic modern specimens of the 

 species then described were necessary before any further progress 

 could be made. It is true that, by the liberality of the Leyden 

 Museum, typical specimens of most of Temminck's species were 

 distributed to many European museums, our own JSTational Musevim 

 receiving a very complete set, but these specimens, 60 to 70 years 

 old, are all naturally much deteriorated by exposure to light, 

 while scarcely any of them have any more exact locality recorded 

 than " Japan." 



Under these cii^cumstances no words can express the value of 

 the fine series of specimens obtained by Mr. Anderson, who has 

 proved himself a most successful collector, and one well able to do 

 full justice to the liberality of our President. The specimens, 

 which are of all classes, after being exhibited before the Society, 

 are to be transferred by His Grace to our National Museum,, 

 where they will be most gratefully appreciated. 



Mr. Anderson landed at Yokohama in July 1904, and began 

 collecting at once in Hondo (Central and North), and made two 

 trips to Hokkaido in September and November. 



Later he went to the two large southern islands, Shikoku in 

 March 1905, and Kiushiu in April and May, the specimens from 

 this latter being particularly valuable, as the Dutch Factory, from 

 which the Leyden Museum obtained its materials, was situated at 

 Nagasaki, at the south-eastern corner of the island. 



Lastly, Mr. Anderson visited the Oki group of islands, to the 

 north of Southern Hondo, and Tanegashima, south of Kiushiu, 

 while his brother, Mr. Robert Anderson, went to Yakushima,. 

 still further south. The specimens from these separate island 

 collections 1 have included in an Appendix to the paper. 



In all, the mammals referred to in the present communication 

 number about 600 examples, belonging to 50 species and sub- 

 species. Of these I have found it necessary to give new names 

 to twelve, besides describing one new Shrew discovered by 

 Mr. Hawker in 1903. The fine new Marten, Mustela melar^ijnis 

 hedfordi, now figured, but described last seKSsion, is also to be 

 credited to Mr. Andei^son's collection. 



As yet I am chary of making any general conclusions about 

 the mammal-fauna of Japan. It is, however, evident from this 

 collection that there is little faunistic difference between Shikoku, 

 Kiushiu, and the main southern portion of Hondo, but that a 

 number of species do not extend into the north of Hondo, where 



