﻿396 
  THE 
  ZOOLOGIST. 
  

  

  Natural 
  History 
  Essays. 
  By 
  Graham 
  Renshaw, 
  M.B., 
  F.Z.S. 
  

  

  Sherratt 
  & 
  Hughes. 
  

  

  Most 
  readers 
  of 
  ' 
  The 
  Zoologist 
  ' 
  are 
  familiar 
  \jjth 
  the 
  name 
  

   of 
  Dr. 
  Renshaw, 
  who 
  has 
  contributed 
  several 
  papers 
  on 
  rare 
  

   mammals 
  and 
  birds 
  to 
  its 
  pages. 
  These 
  and 
  others 
  are 
  now 
  in- 
  

   cluded 
  in 
  an 
  amply 
  illustrated 
  volume 
  entitled 
  ' 
  Natural 
  History 
  

   Essays,' 
  which 
  altogether 
  relate 
  to 
  African 
  mammals, 
  numbering 
  

   sixteen 
  in 
  all. 
  We 
  apply 
  the 
  word 
  African, 
  and 
  not 
  the 
  term 
  

   Ethiopian, 
  to 
  these 
  animals, 
  as 
  some 
  of 
  them 
  are 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  

   northern 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  continent 
  which 
  is 
  included 
  in 
  the 
  Palse- 
  

   arctic 
  region. 
  

  

  A 
  strong 
  feature 
  in 
  these 
  essays 
  exists 
  in 
  the 
  full 
  information 
  

   as 
  regards 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  specimens 
  — 
  and 
  their 
  present 
  museum 
  

   location, 
  of 
  several 
  very 
  scarce, 
  and 
  at 
  least 
  two 
  extinct 
  species 
  ; 
  

   while 
  Mr. 
  Renshaw 
  has 
  compiled 
  very 
  much 
  information 
  regard- 
  

   ing 
  their 
  habits 
  from 
  the 
  pages 
  of 
  old 
  African 
  travellers. 
  These 
  

   obituary 
  notices 
  of 
  the 
  Quagga 
  and 
  the 
  Blaauwbok 
  are 
  now 
  very 
  

   sad 
  and 
  prophetic 
  reading 
  to 
  those 
  who 
  have 
  recently 
  visited 
  the 
  

   plains 
  of 
  Southern 
  Africa, 
  and 
  have 
  noticed 
  the 
  immense 
  dimi- 
  

   nution 
  of 
  the 
  once 
  enormous 
  mammalian 
  fauna. 
  A 
  few 
  years 
  

   ago 
  an 
  old 
  Africander 
  visited 
  Pretoria, 
  and 
  pointed 
  out 
  a 
  spot 
  in 
  

   the 
  centre 
  of 
  the 
  town 
  where 
  he 
  had 
  once 
  killed 
  a 
  Lioness 
  ; 
  whilst 
  

   in 
  the 
  environs 
  of 
  that 
  city 
  a 
  Boer 
  farmer 
  has 
  told 
  us 
  how 
  Lions 
  

   used 
  to 
  visit 
  his 
  lonely 
  farm, 
  and 
  pointed 
  to 
  the 
  spots 
  they 
  used 
  

   to 
  frequent. 
  All 
  that 
  is 
  altered 
  ; 
  the 
  wild 
  game 
  is 
  only 
  found 
  

   where 
  the 
  shaft 
  has 
  not 
  been 
  sunk 
  ; 
  the 
  Antelopes 
  have 
  almost 
  

   disappeared, 
  for 
  the 
  Boers 
  found 
  a 
  market 
  for 
  their 
  skins 
  ; 
  Lions 
  

   have 
  restricted 
  their 
  range 
  ; 
  and 
  the 
  Rand 
  millionaire 
  is 
  now 
  the 
  

   lord 
  of 
  an 
  auriferous 
  land. 
  

  

  To 
  those 
  who 
  wish 
  the 
  story 
  of 
  some 
  of 
  these 
  animals 
  well 
  

   told, 
  we 
  commend 
  this 
  small 
  volume. 
  

  

  Superstitions 
  about 
  Animals. 
  By 
  Frank 
  Gibson. 
  The 
  Walter 
  

   Scott 
  Publishing 
  Co., 
  Ltd. 
  

  

  The 
  subject-matter 
  of 
  this 
  book 
  is 
  open 
  to 
  a 
  different 
  con- 
  

   ception 
  and 
  treatment 
  to 
  that 
  pursued 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Gibson. 
  It 
  might 
  

   have 
  been 
  entitled 
  "Animal 
  Folk-lore," 
  and 
  its 
  origins 
  searched 
  

   for 
  in 
  the 
  cults 
  of 
  primitive 
  folk. 
  The 
  author 
  has, 
  however, 
  

  

  