38 ornithologist's TEXT-BOOK. 



is, however, perhaps scarcely fair to criticise this 

 little work so severely, when we find — as we shall 

 hereafter do — that Selby has by no means suc- 

 ceeded in the delineation of this beautiful aud in- 

 teresting family. But, on the other hand, it is our 

 cool and decided opinion that no part of the British 

 Warblers — the preface, of five pages, perhaps 

 excepted — can be of the slightest use either to the 

 Naturalist, or to those who keep birds in confine- 

 ment. For the latter purpose, Bechstein's delight- 

 ful and useful Cage Birds (reviewed in our p. 15) 

 is by far the best work in existence. Mr. Sweet 

 kept most of the different kinds of Sylviadce in 

 confinement many years, and observed them closely 

 in their natural state; he might, therefore, have 

 furnished a delightful volume on the Warbler fa- 

 mily, which is now far from the case. Nor can 

 we compliment the author on his style. It may 

 be supposed by some that we are thus criticising 

 the work of Mr. Sweet on account of the impossi- 

 bility of his replying to our observations— the au- 

 thor having died in January 1835 — but this is not 

 the case, as we shall fully prove in the sequel, by 

 criticising far more severely the productions of cer- 

 tain compilers who are at present in the full glory 

 of their short-lived career. 



Sur les Fonctions dn Cerveau, par F. J. Gall, 

 M.D. 6 vols. 8vo. Paris, 1822—1825. 



Dr. Gall is well known to every one as the dis- 

 coverer of the most splendid and practicably useful 

 of the sciences — Phrenology. But the learned 

 author also shows an intimate knowledge of the 

 habits of birds and other animals, on which his 

 remarks are highly interesting. He was likewise ex- 

 tremely fond of keeping birds in confinement, and 



