4 ornithologist's text-book. 



Synopsis Methodicum Avium, by John Ray. 

 1713. 



We find it our duty to say that the amiable and 

 gentle Ray, whatever he might be in Botany, had 

 very little merit as an Ornithologist, the whole of 

 the system, and also the names of birds used in his 

 works, being the production of his friend Willughby ; 

 this is frankly acknowledged by Ray himself, and 

 must therefore be true. Thus if you possess the 

 Ornithology of Willughby, it is unnecessary to 

 have the Synopsis of Ray. We are sorry to. ob- 

 serve that the credit of Willughby' s system, and 

 also of his names, is generally most unjustly 

 awarded to Ray, in works on Natural History, at 

 the present day. 



Systema Naturae, by Sir Charles Linne, M.D. 

 Fauna Suecica, by Sir Charles Linne, M.D. 8vo. 



After the publication of Ray's Synopsis, no work 

 of importance appeared until the Systema Naturae 

 of Linnaeus. The best edition of this work is the 

 12th, the last which was published by the author, 

 and which appeared in 1766. It is probable that 

 this production has done more to advance Orni- 

 thology* than any other of a like nature, increasing 

 the votaries of the science an hundred fold, by the 

 advantages which the simplicity of the system 

 held out to amateurs. This system, although 

 confessedly artificial, is remarkably comprehensive, 

 and the groups are generally very accurately de- 

 fined. It contains one or two very flagrant errors, 



* When we have occasion to mention works which treat of 

 Natural History generally, we shall of course only criticise the 

 ornithological department. 



CSI 



