182 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



expect that the publication will be accepted as a finality in classi- 

 fication, but at least it will rank as a zoological Jin de sieele. 



The work is written wholly in German, and will thus prove a 

 trial to many English zoologists, though the smattering of a 

 language sufficient to read a zoological description is not very 

 difficult to acquire. We English are bad linguists, and prefer 

 translations where possible ; but we are not alone, for even 

 Strauss not only praised Schlegel's translations of Shakspeare 

 and Calderon, but wrote : " We Germans can read in translations 

 all that has been produced since nearly three thousand years, 

 from the Ganges to the Tagus." It is possible, however, that 

 some future linguistic latitude may be allowed, as among the list 

 of promised contributors we notice the names of both English and 

 French naturalists. 



However, this feature will not remove the necessity of every 

 working zoologist consulting at least the parts which relate to 

 his own special studies. 



