44 Memoirs of the Indian Museum. [Vol. I, 



No. 8099 ^^s the belly, throat and inside of the limbs quite white. The feet are 

 almost entirely white ; the tail is bi-coloured, being lighter below. This is faintly in- 

 dicated, too, in the black tail of the dark coloured specimen. 



It is impossible, as has been shown, to assign these rats to any of the varieties of 

 the species hardwickii , while bengalensis is equally negatived by the largeness of the feet 

 and the character of the fur. At the same time it would be a mistake to attempt to 

 give the form a name and definite place in the scheme of Nesokia as long as our know- 

 ledge of that genus remains as unsatisfactory as at present. 



The figures of the skulls of Anderson's types are so markedly different that one 

 accepts with some reserve Thomas' reduction of Anderson's seven species to four. 

 Possibly a full examination of more material would re-establish some of these ex- 

 tinguished varieties and show that some of the intergrading steps are sufficiently defined 

 to require recognition. Next plague season, if the system of rat-collection is as widely 

 resorted to as it was last year, it should be possible for the Government of India to 

 secure such a series from all parts of India as to settle this and other doubtful questions 

 once and for all. 



NOTE ON MEASUREMENTS OF RATS AND PRECAUTIONS TO BE 

 TAKEN IN DESPATCHING SPECIMENS. 



A few notes on measurements may be of some use to those who wish to take up 

 the subject without previous experience of similar work. The following body measure- 

 ments are usually recorded : (i) Length of head and body combined ; taken from tip 

 of the nose, excluding hairs, to centre of anus. If rigor mortis is present, the body must 

 be straightened but not stretched. Callipers are recommended, but a steel tape will 

 do if following the contours of the body be avoided. (2) lycngth of tail ; from centre 

 of anus to tip, excluding hairs. (3) Length of hind foot ; from the point of the heel 

 to tip of longest toe, excluding claw. (4) Length of forearm and hand, excluding claws. 

 Thomas notes that this is a most useful measurement for showing the comparative 

 length of the fore and hind limbs , that of the hand only being extremely difficult to 

 take with accuracy. This measurement is, however, rarely recorded. (5) Length 

 of ear. In my own measurements this has been taken from the lower edge of the mea- 

 tus, but Thomas recommends that it should be taken from the external root of the 

 conch as the skin shifts so much on the head that the measuring from the meatus is 

 very unsatisfactory. In addition to the above, which are those in ordinary use, 

 Thomas advises that the length of the head should be given, measured from the tip 

 of the nose to the inside of the auditory meatus, one point being placed in the meatus 

 as far as it will go without hurting the skull. " This should always be given, being 

 almost the only measurement that can be relied upon for perfect accuracy in showing 

 the general size of the animal." Probably this was so at a time when nearly all measure- 

 ments were those of spirit specimens, but even Thomas himself does not record it in his 

 later articles. Other measurements, occasionally recorded, are the breadth of the ear, 

 the length of the last pad of the hind foot, and the distance between the front of this 

 pad and the heel. 



