THE HISTORY OF ORNITHOLOGY 1 



now almost worthless, was followed by writers for over a cen- 

 tury. Latham was an Englishman. He laid a very credita- 

 ble basis for a description of the Birds of the World, and di- 

 vided them into 9 orders, (6 of Land Birds and 3 of Water 

 Birds), 111 genera, and described over 4300 species ; this 

 was something magnificent for those days. The Abbe Bon- 

 naterre, 1790, of whom we know very little, yet gave us very 

 valuable additions to our classification. He proposed 12 clas- 

 ses and 112 genera "according to the form of the bill and 

 other minor distinctions." Several of his suggestions were 

 made abundant use of by later writers. W. Bartram, 1791- 

 99, followed closely after Catesby, and their names are inti- 

 mately associated. They pursued a parallel course of studies. 

 B. S. Barton, 1799, followed Bartram and Catesby, — 

 but most of the writers since Dr. Latham's time were spe- 

 cies discoverers and describers, and pleasing writers rather 

 than systematists. At this same time the eminent M. de 

 Lacepede, 1799, presented a classification for Birds making 

 the feathering or Fbearness of the tarsus and the 

 webbing OF the feet and toes his basis, — he separated 

 Birds into two great groups accordingly. The general char- 

 acter of the orders remained unchanged. His system was a 

 great advance towards modern classification. William 

 Lewin, 1801, classified and arranged the Birds of Great 

 Britain, though after Dr. Latham's plan. Ornithologists of 

 to-day do not appear willing, it seems to me, to ascribe to 

 poor La Vaillant, 1801, his proper due. The work which 

 he did for this science, American as well as African, was sim- 

 ply tremendous ; yet he died poor, and gave to others a chance 

 to]reap where he had sown. The Frenchman F. M. Dau- 

 din, 1802, published a work which became more popular, 

 probably, than its author had ever anticipated. Constant 

 Dumeril, 1806, in his Zoologie Analytique, put forth another 

 system, but it soon gave place to that of J. F. Blumenbach, 

 probably about 1804, who gave us a classification more 

 nearly corresponding to that of Dr. Latham than almost 



