Notices of New Books. 



8017 



Notices of New Books. 



c The Birds of India ; being a Natural History of all the Birds 

 known to inhabit Continental India.'' By T. C. Jerdon. In 

 two Volumes. Vol. I. Calcutta, 1862. 



To the student of Indian Zoology it has long been felt most pain- 

 fully that the researches of naturalists, however valuable, however 

 profound, are so scattered, and so difficult of access, that a force 

 comparable to that of the quartz-crushing machine must be applied 

 to them before the pure gold can be eliminated and collected. To 

 examine thoroughly the lists of Mr. Hodgson and the valuable papers 

 by Mr. Blyth, scattered through twenty volumes of the ' Journal of 

 the Asiatic Society ' and various English periodicals, is a task of no 

 ordinary toil; but when we add the works of Hartlaub, Temminck, 

 Horsfield, M'Clelland, Hutton, Sykes, Tickell, Gould, Pennant, Jar- 

 dine, Selby, Bonaparte, Gray, Royle, Franklin, Burgess, Adams, 

 Tytler, Kelaart, and of Mr. Jerdon himself, the task becomes one of 

 fearful and almost overwhelming magnitude, and certainly palli- 

 ates many little imperfections, some of which the author has himself 

 perceived, and amended in the list of errata. I feel disposed 

 to be very lenient to printer's errors, on the principle that it is highly 

 dangerous for those residing in glass houses to pelt their neigh- 

 bours with stones ; but we can scarcely charge on the printer such 

 mistakes as calling the king of the vultures, Sarcoramphus Gry- 

 phus; or the condor, Sarcoramphus Papa, — mistakes by which the 

 value of the work is certainly impaired. The captious critic might 

 enlarge on this theme, and revel in a prolonged errata-list, dwelling 

 especially on errors of punctuation, of which very curious examples 

 might be cited ;* but let those who undertake this task communicate 

 direct with the author, and refrain from publishing what might 

 damage the sale of a work the design of which is most excellent, and 

 which will hereafter form, if completed, a foundation, a start-point, 

 for all future writers on Indian Zoology. 



The volume before me is only intended as the first of a series : the 

 introductory page, after pointing out the advantage, or rather neces- 

 sity, of such a series, proceeds thus : — 



* For instance, — " It is also said to hurl chamois, or even on the Himalayas Ovis, 

 Amnion off precipitous cliffs by a sudden swoop, to feed on the mangled carcases." — 

 (P. 15). 



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