340 A memoir on the Rats and Mice of India. [No. 4, 
In a late No. of the Proceedings of the Linnzan Society* it is shewn 
that, in London, the M. pecumanvs, M. rarrus, and M. anexanpgt- 
NuSs, interbreed and commingle, yielding fertile hybrids of all degrees 
of intermediateness. 
Mus Anpamanensis, Blyth, J. A, S. XXIX.108. IL Nicobari- 
cus (?) Scherzer, ‘ Zoology of Novara Expedition.’ 
The indigenous Rat of the Andaman Islands. Length about 8 in.; 
tail the same; ears much as in M. pEcumanus. ‘The fur a shade 
darker on the back than in that species, paler on the sides, and dull 
white below; the long piles at once distinguished by their flattened 
spinous character, which is also slightly the case in M. narrus, 
though much less conspicuously than in the present species. It 
would appear to be a burrower in the ground. 
There are certain Indian Rats with the tail longer than the head 
and body, of arboreal habits, building nests in the branches of trees, 
never burrowing in the ground, and when they enter houses, (the 
commonest Bengal species (M. RUFESCENS) at least,) very commonly 
hide or attempt to hide during the day, in the jilmils or venetian 
blinds of apartments. The largest of these I have termed,— 
M. nemorauts, Blyth, J. 4. 8S. XX. 168. This resembles the 
next, except in being considerably larger, much less rufescent above, 
and the under parts are merely paler or dull greyish brown, occasion- 
ally somewhat albescent. Length about 8} in., tail 95 in., hind- 
foot 14 in. Inhabits Lower Bengal and also Ceylon. 
Mus rurescens, Gray, W. N. H., N.S., I. (1837), p. 585, apud 
Gray, though the description does not apply, and the tail is stated to 
be shorter than the head and body, whereas the reverse is the case. 
* Proc. Lin. Soc., Feb. 6th, 1862, p. 66: also Zoologist, p. 7983. 
4 Mi. RUFESCENS, Gray. House Rat [!] Fur pale brown; beneath, yellowish- 
grey. Under fur lead coloured, with numerous slender brown bristles, marked 
with a deep central channel, ending in a black hair-point ; of the chin and under 
sides, softer, with whitish slender bristles. Tail nearly as long as the body [!], 
with rather small square scales, and very short hairs. Feet brown; claws white, 
covered with white hairs. Length of the body and head 63 in.; tail 5; in. [!], 
hind-foot 14 in. ; to base of thumb 7% lines. Inhabits India.” 
It is utterly impossible to recognise the species from the foregoing description. 
On the same occasion Dr. Gray described— 
“WM. Astaticus, Gray. Pale brown blackish, varied. Hars large, nakedish. 
Cheeks, chin and beneath, greyish. Whiskers elongate, black, Tail as long as 
the body and head, with short adpressed black hairs, longer and more abundant 
near the tip. Cutting teeth smooth, and yellow in front. Thumb of fore-feet 
quite rudimentary, slightly clawed. Sole of hind-feet bald to the heel, with six 
tubercles; outer hinder largest. Heel narrow, one-third the length of the foot, 
