$ ornithologist's text-book. 



Nederldndische Vogel, by Sepp. 



This author had less success as an Ornithologist 

 than as an Entomologist, "his talents being quite 

 unsuited to this department ; and his figures have 

 all the stiffness and roughness of badly preserved 

 dried specimens ;" but the work is useful as a fauna 

 of the Netherlands. 



Ornithologie ; on Methode contenant la Division 

 des Oiseaux, en Ordres, 8$c, 6 vols. 4to. 1760, by 

 Brisson. 



Omithologia, sive Synopsis Methodicum sistens 

 Avium, 2 vols. 8vo. 1762, by Brisson. 



The descriptions in these voluminous works are 

 remarkable for exactitude, but the figures, which 

 are uncoloured, are very bad. Brisson was the first 

 Ornithologist since the time of Linnseus who 

 ventured to propose a system of his own, and 

 displayed a singular and unwarrantable hostility to- 

 wards the illustrious Swede. It seems strange that 

 Naturalists, engaged in studying the works of the 

 Creation, should ever stoop to these paltry bicker- 

 ings, especially when we consider what a wide 

 field they have for observation. — The system of 

 Brisson had its merits, and, amongst others, that 

 of drawing away many individuals from their blind 

 admiration of the Systema Natura. The chief 

 fault in the scientific part of Brisson's works is, 

 that he sometimes gives only one Latin name to a 

 bird, and sometimes three or more, thus departing 

 from Linnosus's admirable principle of invariably 

 giving a generic and specific appellation to each 

 species. Several new birds were described in the 

 above-mentioned works, which are still useful to 

 the Ornithologist. 



