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Show 332 MR. OLDFIELD THOMAS ON [Nov. 28, further the cause of zoological exploration, to hear the cost of a collector working systematically through the islands of the Far East, and I now have to give an account of the Mammals obtained by that collector-Mr. Malcolm P. Anderson-in Japan, where he has begun his labours. The selection of Japan for the first field of Mr. Anderson's work was almost a necessity, for practically nothing has been done with regard to the Mammalogy of that country since the time of Siebold and Burger, whose collections resulted in Temminck's great work of 1842-45, while authentic modern specimens of the species then described were necessary before any further progress could be made. It is true that, by the liberality of the Leyden Museum, typical specimens of most of Temminck's species were distributed to many European museums, our own National Museum receiving a very complete set, but these specimens, 60 to 70 years old, are all naturally much deteriorated by exposure to light, while scarcely any of them have any more exact locality recorded than " Japan." Under these circumstances no words can express the value of the fine series of specimens obtained by Mr. Anderson, who lias proved himself a most successful collector, and one well able to do full justice to the liberality of our President. The specimens, which are of all classes, after being exhibited before the Society, are to be transferred by His Grace to our National Museum, where they will be most gratefully appreciated. Mr. Anderson landed at Yokohama in July 1904, and began collecting at once in Hondo (Central and North), and made two trips to Hokkaido in September and November. Later he went to the two large southern islands, Shikoku in March 1905, and Kiushiu in April and May, the specimens from this latter being particularly valuable, as the Dutch Factory, from which the Leyden Museum obtained its materials, was situated at Nagasaki, at the south-eastern corner of the island. Lastly, Mr. Anderson visited the Oki group of islands, to the north of Southern Hondo, and Tanegashima, south of Kiushiu, while his brother, Mr. Robert Anderson, went to Yakushima, still further south. The specimens from these separate island collections 1 have included in an Appendix to the paper. In all, the mammals referred to in the present communication number about 600 examples, belonging to 50 species and subspecies. Of these I have found it necessary to give new names to twelve, besides describing one new Shrew discovered by Mr. Hawker in 1903. The fine new Marten, Mustela melavijms bedfordi, now figured, but described last session, is also to be credited to Mr. Anderson's collection. As yet I am chary of making any general conclusions about the mammal-fauna of Japan. It is, however, evident from this collection that there is little faunistic difference between Shikoku, Kiushiu, and the main southern portion of Hondo, but that a number of species do not extend into the north of Hondo, where |