NOTICES OF NEW BOOKS. 527 



the land than this poor Owl, the writer has always made it his 

 endeavour to plead for and protect. Then, too, there is the 

 wretched fashion of turning the masks, wings, and tails of these 

 birds into fire-screens, and the still more senseless decoration of 

 ladies' hats with their soft and downy feathers." 



The few Steganopodes fall to the care of Mr. Henry 0. 

 Forbes, with whose name we are glad to see associated that of 

 Anna Forbes, whom we have not forgotten as the authoress of 

 "Insulinde." Mr. Forbes, however, has but just commenced his 

 share of the work, and in future volumes will deal with the 

 Herodiones, Odontoglossae, and Gaviae. 



Some of the drawings by Mr. Frohawk, with their back- 

 grounds, are very successful, and possess a charm of their own. 

 We might instance the plates of the Redwing, Dipper, and Osprey 

 as examples. 



John Hunter: Man of Science and Surgeon, 1728-1793. By 

 Stephen Paget. T. Fisher Unwin. 



That John Hunter was a great surgeon requires no telling ; 

 that he was also a great teacher the names of some of his pupils 

 amply testify — Astley Cooper, Abernethy, and Edward Jenner 

 were among the number ; that he was a great collector is proved 

 by the fact that his museum has been calculated to have contained 

 more than 13,000 specimens; and that he was at heart an ardent 

 naturalist will be manifest to any reader of this book. 



" John Hunter was the youngest son, and his mother spoiled 

 him." So writes his biographer, but the second statement we 

 greatly doubt. It appears to be based on the fact that " He would 

 do nothing but what he liked, and neither liked to be taught 

 reading nor writing nor any kind of learning, but rambling 

 amongst the woods, braes, &c, looking after birds'-nests, com- 

 paring their eggs— number, size, marks, and other peculiarities." 

 His mother, probably, instead of spoiling him by this inde- 

 pendence, helped to mould his practice of seeing for himself in 

 after life, and thus indirectly inculcated the habit of proof by 

 experience, and not faith by books. His career was not one of 

 all sunshine. " First came the years of waiting for practice, that 

 rise from the river of Time like the lean kine in Pharaoh's dream 



