114 Letters, Extracts from Correspondence, Notices, &;c. 
the Grecian Archipelago, the Francolin is becoming a rare bird 
in Europe.”* 
I was not prepared, however, to state that it had become 
“ extinct in Europe,” and I will show that I did not stand alone 
in such opinion. It is true that Malherbe, when he wrote his 
‘ Faune Ornithologique de la Sicile * in 1843, remarked that it 
was becoming more and more rare in that island. Yet Luigi 
Benoit, from whom, as Lord Lilford remarks, Malherbe quoted 
verbatim, has recorded that, in 1840, it Was so common in Sicily 
as to fetch only 1 franc and 25 centimes in the market! That 
it should now be extinct in Sicily is therefore one of the most 
remarkable and, at the same time, one of the most interesting 
facts in natural history. 
My authorities for the occurrence of the Francolin in Malta and 
the Grecian Archipelago were Temminck, Schlegel, and Degland. 
I am assured, however, by Dr. Leith Adams and Mr. Charles 
Wright that it does not, and they believe never did, exist in 
Malta. Temminck and Degland both give Turkey as a locality. 
Since the publication of Lord Lilford’s interesting paper, I 
have made some further inquiries, the result of which goes far 
towards confirming his views. 
M. de Selys Longchamps writes to me:— 
( Translation.) 
“ I have nothing original to say upon the Francolin question. 
The following are the authorities pro and con :— 
“1. Luigi Benoit (Ornitologia Siciliana, 1840, p. 118). 
f Found in the southern parts of Sicily, especially in the plains 
which extend between Castiglione and Terranova; but it has 
become more and more rare, owing to unfair sporting. It sells 
for 1 franc 25 centimes (1 shilling). 5 
“ 2. Antonio Schembri (Quadro geografico-ornitologico di 
Malta, Sicilia, Roma, Toscana, Liguria, Nizza, e la Provincia 
di Gard: Malta, 1843). ‘1 have never found the Francolin at 
Malta. Sedentary at Terra Nova and Castiglione, in Sicily. 
Now rare in Tuscany. Formerly common there, according to 
Savi. Accidental during its passage at Nice. 5 
* Birds of Europe, vol. iii. p. 23 7- 
