492 
Letters, Announcements, 
l^ew Work on Cage-Birds. —Dr. Anton Reichenow^ of the 
Berlin Museum, has commenced a new illustrated work on 
foreign cage-birds, under the title ^Vogelbilder aus fernen 
Zonen.^ It is published by Th. Fischer, of Cassel, and the 
drawings are by Mutzel. The first part is devoted to the 
Parrots. 
Socotra .—We are glad to say that there is some prospect of 
our shortly obtaining some insight into the zoology of Socotra. 
The British Association have appointed a committee to con¬ 
sider what can be done towards the investigation of this terra 
incognita, and have made a grant of £100 for the purpose 
under their auspices. A very competent naturalist is likely 
to undertake an expedition there in the course of the ensuing 
winter. As regards the birds of Socotra, our whole know¬ 
ledge at present is contained in a paragraph of Lieut. Well- 
sted^s Beport*, which includes Batsand Cassowaries^^ 
in the avifauna. We hope before another year has passed to 
have some more definite information on this interesting 
subject. 
We are sorry to hear that the valuable collection of Chinese 
birds made by our lamented Member, the late Mr. Bobert 
Swinhoe, F.B.S., which contains about 3700 skins, referable 
to some 650 species, is still undisposed of. It was offered, 
we are told, to the British Museum, but, as has often hap¬ 
pened in such cases, declined. It would be greatly to be 
lamented if this collection, which contains about 200 types 
of species first described by Mr. Swinhoe, and the originals 
of his numerous papers on Chinese ornithology, should pass 
out of the country. We still hope it will find a resting-place 
where it may remain accessible, as heretofore, to British 
ornithologists. 
Andrew Anderson, an able and zealous Indian ornitho¬ 
logist, and a Member of our Union, who died in July of the 
^ Journ. R. Geogr. Soc. v. p'. 204 (1835), 
