﻿ORNITHOLOGICAL BIBLIOGRAPHY. 203 



whose primary object is to ascertain the name and his- 

 tory of a bird with which he is unacquainted. Before 

 the great reform in the nomenclature of this science^ 

 commenced by the illustrious Illiger, and introduced into 

 this country long afterwards, the General Synopsis of 

 Dr. Latham was the universal text-book. The early 

 volumes of the General Zoology of Dr. Shaw, are partly 

 abridged from the Synopsis, and compilated from other 

 authors. On the death of Dr. Shaw, the subsequent 

 volumes were edited by Dr. Leach and Mr. Stevens : 

 many of the modern genera were then introduced, par- 

 ticularly by the latter, who also incorporated the new 

 birds figured in the more recent publications ; thus ren- 

 dering the work, upon the whole, far more useful for 

 ordinary purposes of reference than either the General 

 Synopsis, or the more recent History of Birds, It 

 must be remembered, however, that all these compil- 

 ations, however serviceable, partake more or less of the 

 faults already alluded to (l67-); and that, in all mat- 

 ters of doubt, recourse must be had to the original de- 

 scriptions and figures contained in the authors from 

 whom these general ornithologies have been compiled. 

 The mere English reader must content himself with 

 these : but, however poorly our own language is supplied 

 with works of this class, that of France is much richer. 

 The Manuel of M. Lesson, notwithstanding the de- 

 fects in its arrangement that have been charged upon it, 

 is certainly the best Compendium of modern ornitho- 

 logy the student can possess. Most of the genera there 

 published are briefly characterised, and it is a most use- 

 ful index to the new species figured in those expensive 

 continental works which are above the purchase of the 

 generality of students. In both these respects, we 

 give the preference to the Manuel rather than to the 

 Traite de Ornithologie of the same writer. The orni- 

 thological portion of the Enyclopedie Methodique is a 

 much more extensive and valuable work ; it contains, 

 in fact, descriptions of all the species then known, ar- 

 ranged under the genera of M. Vieillot, who is himself 



