INTRODUCTION. 
Popular Names . — If any merit accrues from the introduction of 
these it devolves on Mr. N. B. Kinnear who persuaded me, against 
my original inclinations, to include them here. I have met him 
half-way and found, or invented, English names for the species : 
for the subspecies, names can always be made by prefixing the 
geographical adjective although in a few cases names have been found 
for subspecies when these are very distinctive in appearance as in 
the case of Christmas Island forms. In general, the principle of 
simplicity has been followed. Some names, such as “Vieillots' 
Fireback” for Lophura tufa seem to have been established for many 
years. I have also tried to use names already published by Robinson 
and Stuart Baker but sometimes this has not been a reasonable 
course to follow. “Rosy Mini vet*' for Pericrocotus roseus is suitable 
for Indian representatives of the species but the Malaysian forms are 
grey, not pink. It has also seemed to me ungracious to drop a 
name original!}' applied as a mark of honour, or respect, and Oriolus 
hosei therefore appears here as “Hose's Oriole”. 
III. NOMENCLATORIAL. 
In the following pages an attempt is made to abide by the 
‘‘International Rules of Nomenclature”. One of the chief unsettled 
difficulties is the vexed question of how far one should preserve the 
original spelling of names when these are obviously, from the 
purist’s point of view, incorrect. The excellent recommendation of 
the rules that the original orthography should be faithfully preserved, 
except in the case of printer’s errors, lapsus calami , and errors of 
transcription, has, unfortunately, been negated by the broad inter- 
pretation given to these exceptions in the “opinions” following the 
rules. The modern practice of regarding a nomen nudum as 
unusable if it was, subsequent to its original publication placed 
as a synonym by a revisor, seems unreasonable, and it is surely better 
to establish these floating names under the name of the author who 
first associated them with a valid description. 
In this handlist I have continued to use several old established 
names although some recent authors have regarded these as indeter- 
minable. I suggest that these authors should be required to indicate 
in what way the names are inapplicable rather than the reverse. A 
large percentage of the older descriptions are so generalized that they 
are, prima facie , indeterminable. In the case of Platsymurus recently 
rejected, I contend that the figures ou which the name is based are 
not only recognizable, but excellent likenesses. 
An outstanding difference among systematists concerns the status 
of new names, introduced inadvertently, as a result of a mistaken 
identification. Alcippe cinerea Blyth, and Cyornis unicolor infuscaia 
Hartert, are both new combinations, with good descriptions, applied 
in this manner, but the first in the mistaken notion that it was 
Malacopteron cinereus Eyton, and the second, Mnscicapa infuscaia 
Blyth. 
xvi 
