IV 



PREFACE. 



attention, a great delay is avoided by adopting this method of 

 publication, which must otherwise have been incurred before the 

 materials could have been made known. 



An Account of the Voyage, drawn up by Captain FitzRoy, 

 (and to which I have added a volume) being on the point of 

 publication, I shall not in this Work enter on any minute details 

 respecting the countries which were visited, but shall merely give 

 a sketch of the geology in the introduction to the part containing 

 Fossil Mammalia, and a brief geographical notice in that attached 

 to the account of existing animals. At the conclusion of this 

 Work, I shall endeavour to place together the leading results in 

 the natural history of the different countries, from which the 

 collections were procured. I may here state that Mr. Owen 

 has undertaken the description of the Fossil Mammalia; Mr. 

 Waterhouse, the Recent Mammalia; Mr. Gould, the Birds; 

 Mr. Bell, the Reptiles ; and the Rev. L. Jenyns, the Fish. 

 Whatever assistance I may obtain in the invertebrate classes, 

 will be noticed in their respective places. The specimens have 

 been presented to the various public museums, in which it was 

 thought they would be of most general service : mention will be 

 made in each part where the objects described have been 

 deposited. 



