WCP2318

[1]

Magd[alene] Coll[ege]

6 May 1975.

My dear Wallace,

I am much obliged to you for letting me know of the safe arrival of your MSS.

As to extinction of birds in W. India Islands for St. Thomas on 'Ibis', 1859, pp.374-376 Corvus <xanthiolensus> which seems to have been not uncommon in Ledrus' time 1796-8, is now only found on one inconsiderable hill in that island. There seems also to have been a Parrot — possibly a Chryastis now utterly unknown. Ledrus' <"Oristus caycunensis"> (which was possibly [illeg.] dominicussis) ditto. "Columba <sancti-thomas?>" the same. These cause the statement about the "[illeg.] colibris et deux oiseaux-<mouches>" which I have never been able to understand [2] but it points to more species of <Trocliclidae> assuming them [2 words illeg.] at present, for there are certainly not more than 3 now.

Finally <unknown> the "perroquet de tern" i.e. [illeg.] sp. ign. [species ignotus] — utterly unknown since but it was perhaps the Puerto Rican species.

<Gope> mentions the former but comparatively recent occurrence of Macaws in Jamaica — but no one has been there of late years.

Guyen (Comptes Rendus 7 Oct. 1866, lxiii, p.589) notices 6 species of Psittaci formerly found in Guadeloupe & Martinique — all now exterminated.

Of course the evidence might well be stronger, but such as it is it ought not to be overlooked.

I should be glad to see your <newest> list of peculiar & characteristic list of [3] Nearctic genera[?] — but you must remember that the Americans have been tremendous splitters & if any fair comparison is to be established lots of their splitting ought to be noticed.

I will do my best to let you have a list of European genera — <Plassis's> groups are on the whole good — but he names then on such an absurd principle.

Surely "Hayti" is properly only part of Hispaniola — still it may be that a part should stand for the whole.

So far as I am aware an honorary LL.D. Or Ph.D. does not usually i.e. by custom entitle the owner to be called "Doctor" — though old Gray was a beautiful exception. In Sclater's case I know that [4] he (or his wife I believe) doesn't like it. Blythe by the way was never a Dr at all — though when he was Inland he so comported himself that the natives thought that he at least ought to be & so dubbed him accordingly — As to "Professor" it would be a bold man who should say when the designation ended, but it is [illeg.] at Dancing masters or Chiropodists — which ever is lowest in systematic <rule>. For myself I don't care whether I am Prof.N. Or Mr. A.N. — but I consider "Professor Alfred Newton" to be <necessary?>

I have found it rather a convenient practice to drop all titles before the names of dead naturalists, & I find some others [5] inclined to do the same

Yours very truly | Alfred Newton¹ [signature]