90 Proccedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. [No. 1, 



brown of the upper-parts all but totally conceals tlie dark grey : in 

 the adults the brown tips are much less developed, and there is 

 scarcely any difterence in colour above and below. The largest spe- 

 cimen (a skin) has the tarse f in. A female skin in spirit measures 

 about 5 in., with the tail nearly 3 in. ; tarse plus f in. Amoy.* 



S. ? The young of a large species of Shrew, which at first 



BÍght might be deemed an albino, but on closer examination is seen 

 to be of a very albescent grey colour, whieh is probably typical. Ex- 

 tremely doubtful as a leucoid variety of the preceding. 



Sciurus castaneovejttiiis, Gray, Br. Mus. Catal. : Se. griseopec~ 

 tus, nobis, J. A. S. XVI, 873. 



MUS DECUMANUS, L. 



M. elavescens, Gray. Not full-grown apparently. 



M. ? A diminutive species seemingly; rather than the 



young of a Mouse afíined to M. mtjsculus ; approximating the de- 

 scription of M. vagus, Pallas, only the tail is of the same length. as 

 the head and body. Entire length about 4 inches only ; the tarse with 

 toes -f indi, or decidedly long in proportion. Ear-conch as in M. 

 mtjsculus ; but more ciad with small hairs within. It is not de- 

 sirable to ñame it from a single skin. 



Ceeyus taiouanus, nobis, n. s.f The ' Spotted Deer' of Chinabas 

 been currently but vaguely identified with the Axis or ' Spotted Deer' 

 of India ; but I have long doubted the correetness of that identifica- 

 tion. The question is completely decided, so far at least as the Deer 

 of the island of Formosa is concerned — and I am tolerably sure that 

 this is the (imported ?) ' Spotted Deer' of China, — by a skull now sent 

 by Mr. Swinhoe, which belongs strictly to the Elapliine and not to the 

 Axine group of Deer : being the smallest and southernmost in its 

 distribution of that group, the northern tropic crossing the middle of 

 the island, and the southern cape of Eormosa lying in about the same 



* I have since obtained what seems to be the same species froni the vicinity of 

 Calcutta ; and Major Tjtler assures me that he has several specimens collected 

 at Barraclípore : but it seems distinct from a still clarker Shrew sent from S. 

 Malabar, my dubiou3 S. yieidescens, J. A. S. XXVIII, 285. More extensive 

 comparison of the skulta, especially, is needed to determine the identity or non- 

 identity of these Shrews from various localities satisfactorily. I had long been 

 assured of the existence of a large black Shrew in Lower Bengal, which the natives 

 imagine to be fearfully venomous ! 



f This ñame is suggested by Mr, Swinhoe, in reference to the island's ñame of 

 Taiwan, seu Formosa. 



