62 MELYILL : MEMOIR OF THE LATE HUGH CUMING. 
likewise to the Archbishop of the same place, and on his arrival, 
he found every attention given him, and assistance in carrying 
out his work. He happily possessed a considerable knowledge 
of the Spanish tongue, which was, of course, indispensable. He 
systematically travelled through nearly all the islands, not merely 
Luzon and Mindanao, but the smaller, such as Samar, Leyte, 
Bohol, Ticao, Cebu, Mindoro, Masbate, Panay, Negros, and 
others, everywhere becoming the guest for the time being of the 
Padre of each village and township ; and for four-and-a-half years 
he continually laboured, with unrivalled results. It is true that 
Semper, and more recently von Moellendorff, have added 
several species to the lists, but still the fact remains that so 
assiduously did Cuming scour the interior, sometimes quite 
pathless, of these islands after specimens, that by far the 
majority of the terrestrial and fluviatile mollusca were dis- 
covered by him. It is calculated, by Kobelt, that there are 
about 600 species in the Philippines—of these the genus Cochlo- 
sty/a, in its wider sense, contains more than a third, say 211 
species (Fischer). 
The principal method adopted by Cuming was, by a small 
bribe, to engage the services of the school children, who would 
traverse the woods and forests where the greatest exuberance of 
life was to be found, and daily bring him new and beautiful 
spoils, many being thus secured which are still almost, if not 
quite unique. Such is the Cochlostyla leytensts, that beautiful 
almost hyaline shell, latticed with green. 
The natives, naturally, were slow to comprehend why he 
required this vast array of snail shells, and he was frequently 
interrogated as to this. He found that they were beyond 
understanding what cabinets of Natural History meant ; and as 
they are in the habit of burning these shells for the sake of the 
ash to assist them in chewing the betel-nut, he had to resort to 
the expedient of telling them that he required all he could get 
to send to England for the same purpose, and this appeared to 
satisfy their minds. Another strong influence he exercised over 
~ 
J-C., viti., Apr. 1895. 
