Ɛpsilon

WCP4023

Letter (WCP4023.3966)

[1]

Hurstpierpoint,

Feb.14th. [1868]1

Dear Newton2

I did not know of Gould’s3 figure in the "Birds of Asia".4 I carefully compared Blyth’s5 description with my bird, & determined that it could not possibly be the same.

If not a synonym of S. cirrhatus it may be new, but is not mine. The question then is, whether Gould’s figure represents Blyth’s bird or mine? I cannot of course decide that without [2] coming to town, and do not want to do so for this three weeks, as I have already been up twice this month.

The best way would be to compare Gould’s specimen with mine.

Yours very truly | Alfred R. Wallace [signature]

A. Newton Esq.

[3]5

1
See note 5.
2
Newton, Alfred (1829-1907). British zoologist and ornithologist. Founding member of the British Ornithologists' Union.
3
Gould, John (1804-1881). British ornithologist and publisher.
4
Gould, J. 1850-1883. Birds of Asia. London: Published by the author.

Editorial information

Status: Edited (but not proofed) transcription [Letter (WCP4023.3966)]

For more information about the transcriptions and metadata, see https://wallaceletters.myspecies.info/content/epsilon

Revision history

Transcribed by Ather, Rabiya [2012-10-11] Transcription checked by Catchpole, Caroline [2013-01-15] Transcription checked by Beros, Matt [2020-06-10] Transcription checked by Chua, Christine [2026-04-18]

Please cite as “WCP4023,” in Beccaloni, G. W. (ed.), Ɛpsilon: The Alfred Russel Wallace Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/wallace/letters/WCP4023