ee 
—e — 
————————————— ee __ 
CORRESPONDENCE. I8t 
Of 148 species of the Edriophthalmata or Sessile-eyed Crus- 
taceans in the catalogue, only 27 were previously recorded, so 
that Mr. Haswell has added a total of 121 to this division, viz :— 
977 sp. of Amphipoda (Sandhoppers, &c.), 27 sp. of Lsopoda 
(Wood-lice, Slaters, &c.), and 17 sp. of Axtsopoda. Notwith- 
standing the large additions made by Mr Haswell to our know- 
ledge of these groups, it is impossible to believe that anything 
like a complete record of this branch of the fauna is yet before 
us. But an excellent start has been made by the publication of 
this catalogue, and collectors will now be enabled to work up 
their finds in all parts of Australia, which previously could not 
be done owing to the want of available literature. Only 
a portion of the whole vast coast-line and of its surround- 
ing seas has yet been examined, and it may be antici- 
pated that a comparison of the forms occurring on the 
East and West Coasts respectively will reveal some remarkable 
facts of distribution. This question of the distribution of the 
Crustacea has been but little worked out as yet, but as the 
material accumulates it will no doubt receive more attention. 
It is to be hoped that the intention of the trustees of the 
Australian Museum, as expressed in the preface of this work, 
will be carried out, and that the volume now before us will prove 
to be only the first of a series dealing with the systematic 
geology of Australia. GEO. M. THOMSON. 
CORRESPONDENCE. 
LOO 
ON THE SKELETON: OF NOTORNIS. 
(To the Editor N.Z. JOURNAL OF SCIFNCE.) 
SIR,—Will you allow me space to make one or two additions 
to my paper on the skeleton of Mofornis, which appears in the 
new volume of the “Transactions of the New Zealand Insti- 
tute.” 
Mr. T. Francis Hankinson has favoured me with particulars 
as to the capture of the Te Anau specimen, which I intended 
to publish in the form of a postscript to my paper... I find, how- 
ever, that this is unnecessary, as the whole story is told by Dr. 
Buller in his paper on the skin of WVotornzs, also in the new 
volume of “ Transactions.” 
Since my paper was printed I have found that Mr. Wallace, 
in “Island Life,” speaks strongly in favour of the hypothesis 
that the Ratitaz are descended from ancestors capable of flight. 
I ought to have mentioned that the Dromcognathe (Tinamous) 
are probably the nearest living representatives of these hypo- 
thetical Proto-Carinate. 
I have lately seen Captain Hutton’s paper on Cabalus 
modestus (“ Trans. N. Z. Inst.” vol. VI., p. 108). Judging from 
the figures which accompany the paper, I can only wonder that 
