190 
THE CONDOR 
Yol. XVI 
gathers comparatively few specimens, and 
these frequently most indifferently pre- 
pared. With 1165 skins, however, the com- 
bined series of many public and private col- 
lections, the author appears to have had the 
subject matter sufficient to cover most of 
the points involved, though it is easy to ap- 
preciate his statement that the elucidation 
of the group “involved the expenditure of an 
incredible amount of time and labor’’. 
Soma of the most important of the conclu- 
sions reached by Mr. Oberholser are as fol- 
lows. A new family, Chordeilidae, is erect- 
ed, with Chordeiles as the type genus, and in- 
cluding also the genera Nannochordeiles, 
Nycti'progne, Lurocalis. and Podager, the 
last four being all from outside the limits of 
the ChecTc-List. The three species of Chor- 
deiles are treated in minutest detail, virgin- 
ianus with nine subspecies, acutipennis with 
five, and rupestris with three. One new sub- 
species of Chordeiles virginianus is describ- 
ed, C. V. liowelli, from the central United 
States, breeding north to Wyoming, south to 
central Texas. C. v. aserriensis Cherrie, 
based on winter birds from Central Amer- 
ica, is revived and considered applicable to 
the form breeding in southern Texas and ex- 
treme northeastern Mexico. Of Chordeiles 
acutipennis a new subspecies, C. a. micro- 
meris, is described from Central America, 
and another, C. a. inferior, from Lower Cal- 
ifornia. Chordeiles rupestris, confined to 
South America, is, from the paucity of ma- 
terial, necessarily passed over in a some- 
what cursory manner, compared with the 
treatment accorded the others, but one new 
subspecies is described here also, C. r. za- 
leucus, from Peru. 
In the introductory pages of the work 
there are some important discussions rela- 
tive to branches of the Caprimulgi other 
than Chordeiles. The genus Antrostomus 
is divided, only one species, carolinensis, 
being left in Antrostomus, while a new gen- 
us, Stochalcis. is described, with Caprimul- 
gus vociferiis Wilson as type, and inclusive 
of certain other species heretofore referred 
to Antrostomus, mostly Middle and South 
American in their distribution. Mr. Ober- 
holser considers Antrostomus vociferus ari- 
zonae Brewster to be a recognizable form, 
and distinct from A. v. macromystax, under 
which it is synonymized by the A. O. U. Com- 
mittee. 
Altogether it seems evident that this study 
is one of the most important contributions 
thus far made to the literature of Ameri- 
can Caprimulgi. There will probably be dif- 
ferences of opinion as to the need of sep- 
arately naming certain of the forms here 
recognized, but this is not a feature to de- 
tract from the value of such a work. The 
trained specialist, laboring on some special 
group, and poring for weeks or months in 
painstaking study over large series of spe- 
cimens, will certainly see things that the 
more casual observer can not be expected 
to appreciate, and it will doubtless always 
be impossible to bring everyone in accord 
in such matters. The conclusions of a stu- 
dent such as Mr. Oberholser, reached after 
most careful consideration of ample mate- 
rial, are deserving of the utmost respect; 
and doubtless the majority of ornithologists 
will be quite content to accept his decisions, 
at least until some future worker with 
greater opportunities arises to revise the 
subject further. On the other hand, it is 
possible to see how it may not be expedient 
to admit in such a manual as the A. O. U. 
Check-List all of the finely differentiated 
geographical races, based on average differ- 
ences, which the specialist feels obliged 
to describe, such action not necessarily im- 
plying disbelief in the statements of the 
latter. In other words, the student, in or- 
der to properly elucidate his problem, may 
feel obliged to attach a name to a race 
which, as far as concerns the ordinary user 
of an average manual of the subject, had 
best be omitted from such a catalogue. 
To the present reviewer the work under 
consideration appears to be most excellent 
in every way. It is well conceived and care- 
fully executed to the smallest detail; the 
subject matter is divided and set off in such 
a way as to make everything readily acces- 
sible; while the facts themselves and the 
deductions derived therefrom are presented 
by one who is evidently master of his sub- 
ject. H. S. SWARTH. 
MINUTES OF COOPER CLUB MEETINGS 
SOUTHERN DIVISION 
April. — The regular meeting of the 
Southern Division was held at the Museum 
of History, Science, and Art, Thursday 
evening, April 30, 1914, with the following- 
members in attendance. Messrs. Chambers, 
Daggett, Edwards, Miller, Morcom, Rich, 
Robertson, Swarth, Willett, and Wyman. In 
the absence of the president, vice-president 
Robertson took the chair. The minutes of 
the March meeting were read and approved, 
followed by the minutes of the Northern Di- 
vision for April. The following new mem- 
bers were elected: C. A. Brant, El Tovar, 
Grand Canyon, Arizona; William T. Martin, 
