ornithologist's text-book. 161 



sketch of what would, in our opinion, form a com- 

 plete and invaluable work on general Ornithology, 

 we shall conclude the Essay by a specimen of the 

 characters of one order, family, subfamily, and 

 genus, and a description of one species, as a sam- 

 ple of such a work. We might easily have given 

 an original specimen, but we preferred taking the 

 materials from other authors, to prove that by 

 engaging some of the first Ornithologists now 

 living, the accomplishment of such a work would 

 be far from difficult. 



The following can, of course, only serve as a 

 sample of characters of groups and descriptions of 

 species, and will therefore give but a small idea of 

 the plan we wish for, but we think it will serve as 

 a fair sample of one of the principal portions of 

 the volumes. The size of the work should be 

 octavo, in order to place it within the reach of 

 every one. 



" Order I, RAPTORES, Vigors. 



" In the natural arrangement, or that founded 

 upon the affinities connecting the various tribes of 

 the feathered race, the Raptorial Order constitutes 

 the first of the five great divisions into which the 

 Class Aves, like those of the other departments of 

 the animal kingdom, may be divided : a number, 

 it may be observed, to which not only the primary, 

 but also all the minor subdivisions, of such depart- 

 ments as have hitherto undergone investigation, 

 appear to be limited. Of these divisions, it is one 

 of the two which are considered typical or repre- 

 sentative (the Order Insessores being the other), 

 o 3 



