Vol. xxi.] 4 



formidable task have been more appropriately committed 

 than to Dr. Sharpe^ who has so long had charge of the 

 Collection, and has been unremitting in his endeavours to 

 make it as perfect as possible. This task having been 

 accomplished, we will ask him to turn his serious attention 

 to the Hand-list of Birds, and to the Catalogue of Eggs, 

 two most important works, both of which require a final 

 volume. 



The PalcBardic Begion. 



It cannot be said that British Ornithologists have omitted 

 their home-duties. Since I last addressed you, Mr. Abel 

 Chapman has issued a new edition of the 'Bird-life of the 

 Borders,^ Mr. Nelson has given us two volumes on the 

 Birds of Yorkshire, Mr. C. Reginald Haines one on the 

 Birds of Rutland, Mr. Whitaker has written on the Birds 

 of Nottinghamshire, and Mr. Bickerton on those of Hertford- 

 shire. Besides these, we have Mr. Howard's 'British 

 Warblers^ and Mr. Jourdain's work on Palaearctic Birds^ 

 Eggs still going on. Moreover another 'Migration-Report,' 

 if not already in print, is shortly expected, and we find a new 

 periodical established, entirely devoted to British Birds, 

 which has already reached its fifth number and promises to 

 become a great success under the editorship of our esteemed 

 member, Mr. Witherby. 



Passing on to Asia, great discoveries, as we all know, have 

 been recently made in the extreme north-eastern portion of 

 the Palaearctic Region ; and we may shortly expect from 

 Mr. Buturlin a complete account of his ornithological 

 adventures in the far-off Kolyma district, to add to his 

 account of the nesting of the Rosy Gull and Spotted Sand- 

 piper, with which he has already favoured us. 



Dr. Hartert, as we are all aware, is labouring diligently 

 with his severe task of rearranging the birds of the Palaearctic 

 Avifauna in their species and subspecies, and has already 

 issued four numbers of his work on this subject. This is, 

 of course, of transcendent interest to our many friends who 

 are specially devoted to the British Bird-list, and will be 



