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 Jan., 1910 EDITORIAL NOTES AND NEWS 47 THE CONDOll, An Illustrated aazine of 'r et ern Publlsht Bi-Monthly by the Cooper Ornitholo#i- aal Club of Californi 3OSEPH GRINNELL. Editor. Berkeley, CI. J. EUGENE LAW, Business Mnagar, Hollywood. Cal. W. LEE CHAMBER. S. Business Manager, Sant Monic, Cal. HARR. Y S. SWAR. TH ROBERT B. ROCKWELL J Assoaite Editors Hollywood, California: Publisht Jan. 20, 1910 SUB$CIIPTION RATES One Dollar and Fifty Cents per Year in the United States, Mexico, and U. S. Colonies, payable in advance. Thirty Cents the Magic copy. One 11ar and Sevonty-flve CeMs por Yr in all other COUlltries i the IllteratiOllal PI Uio. Claims for missing or imperfect numbers should be made within thirty days of date of issue Subscriptions and Exchanges should be sent to the B usines Manager, Mu. nuscripts /or publlc&tion, and Books and Pu. pers for review should I)e sent to the Editor. Advartlslng Rotes on application. EDITORIAL NOTES AND NEWS The task of the reviewer is not one that attracts the average ornithologist. We have askt a number of well-qualified persons to write reviews of current books and articles for this magazine, but we are invariably met with either outright refusal on one ground or an- other, or subsequent evasion. The review of all current ornithological literature, especially that pertaining to Western North America, would be a valuable feature of THE CONDOR. It would furnish to our readers an index of whatever else is being done in our field, and it would give then] an estimate (at least from the standpoint of the eviewer) of the current articles outside of our own magazine. Further- more, such recognition of their work is due all authors. The present editors of THE CONDOR have at times in the past endeavored to present notices of all relevant publications. But we are now becoming convinced that it is impossible for us alone to adequately handle this phase of the work. Moreover, it is not to be expected that a single individual have the time or appropri- ate knowledge to enable him to digest and summarize (let alone critically analyze) bro- chures pertaining to all phases of the subject. The ideal would be for one person, who is him- self working in that field, to handle the litera- ture on life histories, another to handle syste- matic papers, another, paleontological, and so on. WANTED: REVIEWERS. In connection with the foregoing we take this opportunity of calling attention to the very great value to American ornithology of the review department in The /u/e. We who have constant need for securing information as to the gist and appraisemerit of articles not in]me- diately at hand, have only to refer to our files off'he .,4uk. We have come to feel assured tha practically'nothing has escaped notice in its eview colruns; and if the review notice that we are after and do find, is critical and above the initials, "J. A. A.", with what close atten- tio is it read. [e owe the profoundestgratitude to Dr. J. A. AIm for his thirty years and more of tireless, con sistent reviewing, not merely front the bib- liot ;raphical standpoint, but because of the wide- reaching influence he has exerted in maintain- ing a balanced advance in American ornitholo- gy. How fortunate that'su6h a facile pen, and the opportunity for reviewing, should have been backt up by the philosophical mind aml the wide general knowledge. We believe we make no ntistake m referring to Doctor Allen as the most powerful exponent of ornithology among Americans during the past twenty-five years. And it has been in very large measure thru his reviews that current opinion has been tem- pered, perhaps directed in some cases. Certain publisht works have appeared which were dis- tinctly on the wrong track in their conclusi9ns, and it devolved upon The 4uk reviewer to give the mass of more or less amateur ornithol- ogists the cue. Only one abreast of and ahead of, the times, could serve in such a capacity, with- out proving a himlrance rather than an incent- ive to progress. To Dr. J. A. Allen we owe a very great deal. No small proportion of his service lies in tbose tbirty years of reviews. We confess that we may be rightly accused of editorial inconsistency in this issue. But we beg to offer the excuse that said inconsist- ency is the result of the granting of tbe special request, by the author of the article in question, that old-fashioned usage in the matter of pos- sessives and spelling be retained. From the editorial standpoint it is, of course, desirable that authors conform to our custom in all regards. The general appearance of our maga- zine dentands this, too. The Southern Division of the Cooper Club has decided that hereafter their monthly meet- ings be held regularly (excepting during June, July and August) on the last Thursday evening of each month, in room 1 of the City Hall, Los Angeles. This will make it possible for distant members who might find it convenient to attend, to know far in advance when and where to expect to find the club in session. Mr. John Rowley has recently been appoint- ed Curator of Mammals in the California Aca- demy of Sciences. His work will lie chiefly in the preparation of habitat groups of large mam- mals, this to be the main feature of the exhibit to be installed in the new building for whmh plans are drawn up. Mr. Rowley will also be- gin the accunmlation of material towards the formation of a research collection of mammals.