Sushkin's studies (1924, 1925) of the structure of the bony and horny palates have served as a basis for the division of the Fringillidae into as many as five subfamilies (Hellmayr, 1938:v): Richmondeninae, Geospizinae, Fringillinae, Carduelinae, and Emberizinae. Beecher (1951b:280) points out that "the richmondenine finches arise so uninterruptedly out of the tanagers that ornithologists have had to draw the dividing line between the two groups arbitrarily." His study of pattern of jaw-musculature substantiates this. He states further that the cardueline finches arise without disjunction from the tanagers. He suggests, therefore, that the two groups of "tanager-finches" be made subfamilies of the Thraupidae and that a third subfamily be maintained for the more typical tanagers. He states that the emberizine finches are of different origin, arising from the wood warblers (1953:307). Beecher (1951a:431; 1953:309) includes the Dickcissel, _Spiza americana_, in the Family Icteridae, chiefly on the basis of jaw muscle-pattern and the horny palate. Tordoff (1954:10-11) presents evidence that the occurrence of palato-maxillary bones in nine-primaried birds indicates relationship among the forms possessing them. He points out that all fringillids except the Carduelinae possess palato-maxillaries that are either free or more or less fused to the prepalatine bar. He points out also that in all carduelines, the prepalatine bar is flared at its juncture with the premaxilla, and that the mediopalatine processes are fused across the midline; noncardueline fringillids lack these characteristics. In addition to the above he cites differences between the carduelines and the "other" fringillids in the appendicular skeletons, in geographic distribution, in patterns of migration, and in habits. Tordoff concludes, therefore, that the carduelines are not fringillids but ploceids, their closest affinities being with the ploceid Subfamily Estrildinae. On the basis of palatal structure, the Fringillinae and Geospizinae are combined with the Emberizinae, the name Fringillinae being maintained for the subfamily. The tanagers merge with the Richmondeninae on the one hand and with the Fringillinae on the other. On this basis, Tordoff (1954:32) suggests that the Family Fringillidae be divided into subfamilies as follows: Richmondeninae, Thraupinae, and Fringillinae. The carduelines are placed as the Subfamily Carduelinae in the Family Ploceidae. From the foregoing, it is apparent that the two most recent lines of research have given rise to conflicting theories regarding relationships within the Family Fringillidae. The purpose of my investigation, therefore, has been to gather information, from other fields, which might clarify the relationships of these birds.