308 Descriptions of Burmese and Indian HeliciJco. [No. 4. 



is very sharply keeled and the spire much flatter than in the first 

 species, and I may here remark that I cannot get over the impres- 

 sion that H. Bombax is nothing more than the young of the rounder 

 of these two species of Streptaxis. (S. Petiti ?) I regret not hav- 

 ing paid attention to the respective distribution of these species, 

 which I had previously confounded together. Together with the 

 above shells I received a single specimen of Bulimus citrinus (var ?) 

 which I had not myself noticed so far North. It measures only 1.01. 



In the May number of the Annals of Natural History for the 

 present year Mr. Benson expresses his unhesitating conviction that 

 my H. Castor is nothing more than the young of his H. Oxytes. 

 I can only account for this by supposing that the specimen for- 

 warded by me was smashed in transit and that Mr. Benson relies 

 on some other source for his information. If a writer were unused 

 to attach any weight to "'habitat" and " distribution" in the discri- 

 mination of nearly affined species, he would have some reason per- 

 haps to regard H. Castor as an extreme variety of H. inversicolor, 

 wanting it is true the solidity, pronounced sculpture, colour and 

 the closed umbilicus of that species, but not absolutely differing in 

 any one character of importance, it is therefore out of the question 

 associating it with the widely umbilicated H. Oxytes. 



H. Pollux is of a similar type with H. Castor, and therefore cannot 

 be allied to H. Chevalieri — which has, " umbilicus latus" or to any 

 similar shell. 



Mr. Benson also alludes to a shell which Mr. W. Blanford con- 

 sidered to be a young variety of H. Cyclophlax, but a shell which 

 I received from Mr. W". Blanford, as such, is unquestionably dis- 

 tinct, though it is most probable that Mr. Blanford only sent home 

 specimens of H. Cyclophlax, as otherwise Mr. Benson would hardly 

 have failed I think to recognise a new species in the shell I shall 

 now describe. 



Helix Blanfordi, n. s. 



Testa umbilicata, depressa, late, sive costulate striata, exilissime et 

 minutissime flexuose granulata, ad peripheriam undata — ferrugiueo- 

 cornea, acute carinata, linea peripheriali tenui albida ciucta, ad su- 

 turam anfractus ultimi notanda — Anfract. 5^, ultimo circa umbili- 

 cum vix perspectivum tumido. Apertura angulate lunari. Perist. 

 acuto ad umbilicum parurn dilato, crassiusculo. 



