2 77 
Review of Dr. Finsch’s ‘ Die Papageien. 3 
of gratitude to Mr. Brooks for having first shown in detail, 
through the Editor of f The Ibis* (1871, p. 445, note), the 
real nature of this interesting species. Otherwise it might, 
for many years, if not for ever, have remained an object of 
hopeless longing to the Indian field ornithologist, and a per¬ 
plexing puzzle to his less fortunate brethren the cabinet natu¬ 
ralists of the world. But as this useful information has been 
“ paraded” only “in what is supposed to be Latin” and 
without a “ full, sound, sufficient English or German ” de¬ 
scription, below is given* a translation for the benefit of the 
“ 500 millions of people ” by whom “ 100 years hence” 
English will be spoken; and who will then only possess “ ex¬ 
purgated editions 33 of f The Ibis/ if it “ survives,” and “ from 
which all the f Latin 3 has been carefully expunged.” 
As previously stated, one of the most serious accusations 
brought against Dr. Finsch is that of slighting discourtesy to 
Jerdon, Blyth, and other Indian naturalists. I have carefully 
read and reread the whole of Dr. Finsch’s text, and have been 
unable to discover a passage that can, unless twisted, he fairly 
said to support the charge. “ Dr. Finsch, a cabinet natu¬ 
ralist, on the strength, mainly, of some mis-sexed specimens 
in museums, takes on himself to disregard and disbelieve the 
positive statements of working field naturalists. Most pa¬ 
thetically does he lament our ignorance, (he should have 
spoken for himself, I think, not others !). He says (p. 26);” 
and then follows Dr. Finsch’s general remarks commencing 
with, “ Unfortunately we lack almost entirely a thorough ob¬ 
servation of the Parrots” (Papag. i. p. 26)—remarks abso¬ 
lutely true when Dr. Finsch wrote, even if applied to the 
Indian Parrots, and still so of the greater part of the species 
to this day. Dr. Finsch in the passage quoted uses the word 
(c p arro ts ” generally and in its widest sense. Mr. Hume, by 
restricting its meaning to the half dozen or so of species he 
has seen, dexterously turns Dr. Finsch’s general remarks into 
* “A manufactured bird, body of the Rufous-bellied Fairy blue-chat , 
head of the Indian grey-tit ” (Ibis, l. c.). Dr. Finsch, although stigmatized 
a u pseudo-classicist ” by Mr. Hume (t. c. p. 4), is doubtless competent to 
supply a u full, sound, sufficient German ” description, if required. 
