Beecher's reasoning may be criticized on several points. It may be, as he suggests, that muscles with parallel fibers evolved earlier, phylogenetically, than did muscles with pinnate fibers, but he does not give adequate consideration, it seems to me, to the possibility that parallel fibers may also have evolved secondarily from pinnate fibers. Since Beecher (1951a) found that patterns of jaw-musculature within the Family Icteridae were conservative, he is reluctant to admit the possibility of convergence among any of the other families. Differences in patterns of jaw-musculature are, however, functional adaptations and like the bill, which is also associated with food-getting may be subject to rapid evolutionary change. Finally, in attempting to classify the oscines, he has relied almost entirely on a single character--the pattern of jaw-musculature. Tordoff's attempts (1954) to clarify the relationships of the fringillids and related species are based chiefly on features of the bony palate. He assumes that since palato-maxillaries seem to be absent in the majority of passerine birds, their occurrence in certain nine-primaried oscine groups indicates relationship among these groups. He points out that these bones, when present, are important areas of origin of the _m. pterygoideus_ which functions in depression of the upper jaw and in elevation of the lower jaw. He assumes, therefore, that palato-maxillaries were evolved to provide for a more effective action of the _m. pterygoideus_. The need for such action could be associated with a seed-eating habit. All richmondenines and emberizines possess palato-maxillary bones either free or fused to the prepalatine bar, but there is no trace of these bones in the carduelines. Carduelines, furthermore, possess prepalatine bars that are characteristically flared anteriorly. This condition does not exist in the richmondenines or in the emberizines. Tordoff points out, also, that the irregular, erratic migrations of the New World Carduelinae are unlike the more regular migrations of the richmondenines and emberizines. The carduelines, furthermore, are more arboreal in their habits than are these other groups and exhibit a decided lack of nest sanitation during the later stages of nesting, a situation which contrasts with that found in the Richmondeninae and Emberizinae. He suggests, therefore, that the carduelines are not so closely related to the richmondenines and the emberizines as previously has been thought. Since there are only two cardueline genera, _Loximitris_ and _Hesperiphona_, endemic to the New World and at least 10 genera with many species endemic to the Old World, Tordoff (1954:15) suggests an Old World origin for the carduelines. He strengthens his argument for this hypothesis by pointing out that in features of the bony palate and in habits the carduelines resemble the estrildines of the Family Ploceidae.